NOVEMBER 2018: MONO BLUE MERFOLK

One of my christmas wish is to top 8, if not win, in each big modern event this December 2018. These events are Gold Rush Modern on December 9th; Metro Modern Cup inpartnership with SCL events and Block 101 on December 15th; Regran Open Modern on December 16th; and Radioactive Games's Modern Year End Tournament on December 29th. 

To help me achieve my wish, I must improve on my merfolk gaming. So I started by reviewing my last three tournaments with the deck. I played a total of 20 rounds (49 games in total). I won against: Burn, Elves, Eldrazi, Humans, Jeskai tempo, Spirits, Tron, UR Storm, UW Miracle, and Wr Taxes decks. I lost to: Abzan, Affinity Hardened, Dredge, Mardu YP, Spirits, and UR Control decks. Intentional draws with KCI and Spirits decks.

Notes
I will need to improve on the area where I had committed errors and misplays. I'll start talking with my worst output, at the Regran Open. Here's what I concluded after re-reading my losing tournament report. 

I only had 18 lands. The reasons why I went down to 18 lands are: (i) most of my spells's casting costs are only at 1 and 2; (ii) and that having an answer (Echoing Truth) in the main deck against random main deck hate (the likes of Worship, Ensnaring Bridge, etc) was a good idea. Unfortunately my plan backfired because there were games that I got stuck at two lands. 

The damages of the elemental tokens off Master of Waves will really turn tides into your favor. If I recall it correctly, I had two games that if only I had a Master of Waves on the battlefield I could have won the game. Also, red was the primary source of removal of three out of my four opponents. So for my next tournament I made sure that he is back in the sixty. Master of Waves did not disappoint me because he helped me win three assignments. 

The lack of protection from Kira, Great Glass-Spinner and Kopala, Warden of Waves also mattered because most of the removals of my opponents says "target". 

Mistcaller, I am not sure what to say about it because I did not get the opportunity to use it. The card is very promising especially that the meta right now loves to 'cheat' creatures into play. 

My MDP and Got Game modern tournament results were better than my Regran Open's. Despite having nice standings from those events, I still committed some errors. 

I forgot some of the triggers particularly that of Aether Vial and Merrow Reejerey. Speaking of Merrow Rejeerey, its trigger can tap (or untap) any permanent you want. There will be corner times that denying them the mana is the correct call rather than tapping any of his creatures. In one situation versus Dredge, I was so focus in calculating the combat damages my school will do that I totally forgot to use the triggers to his lands. I should have tapped those red mana sources (upkeep two Merfolk Tricksters) instead of zombies. As a result of my negligence, he was able to flashbacked Conflagrate and win the game into his favor. 

Use those sideboard cards properly. I remember a game involving two active Relic of Progenitus against UR Storm. I know what you're thinking: that I have that game in the bag. I almost lost this one because in one particular end of his turn scenario, this was our situation. Life totals were at him 8 and me at around 16 (I think). On the table he had: an Island, 4 UR lands and a Baral; while I had 2 relics, Harbinger, Trickster,  4 Islands, and a vial that has 2 counters on it. Unfortunately greed took over me instead of just waiting for that Past in Flames crack-relic-respond-moment. I was just lucky that I was gifted with Negate and Dispel (from those relics) to keep his spells at bay. 

If you are going up a deck that has a ton of mass removals (Wrath of God like spells, Engineered Explosives, etc), I strongly suggest that you only swim with two or three merfolks at the same time. 

Adjustments
I really haven't implemented any of these yet. But as of right now, I am happy with the sixty and will only probably do minor changes in the sideboards.

Thank you for reading.


Paeng 4983