What should I play this weekend?

Like I said at the end of Blue Bell, I plan on playing Oath at Bloomsburg. There's lots of Dredge and Shops, and the blue control decks all run creatures. Here's what I'm thinking of running:

Standard 25 mana sources
4 Misty
1 Strand
1 Delta
2 U. Sea
2 Trop
1 Volc
1 Island
1 Forest
4 Forbidden Orchard
8 SoLoMoxen

4 Oath
1 Iona (Is now relevant again versus Shops. Name blue and shut off Metamorph.)
1 The Don (I'm torn between Tidespout and this guy.)
1 BSC
1 Tinker
1 Vault
1 Key
2 JtMS
1 Yawg Will
1 Demonic
1 Vamp
3 Thoughtseize
4 FoW
3 Drain
3 Misstep (I really like Spell Snare again and might swap three for three in this slot. That weakens my games two and three versus Dredge, but I feel like Snare is stronger in the majority of other matchups.)
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral
1 Show and Tell
1 Mystical
1 Scroll
1 Echoing Truth
1 Time Walk

SB:
4 LotV
2 Rav Trap
1 Pithing Needle
2 Hurkyl's
2 Ancient Grudge
3 Nature's Claim
1 Pyroclasm

My sideboard plan is to stop Dredge and Shops and screw my other matchups. The singleton Pyroclasm is for the janky decks I might run into.

Against Dredge: +4 LotV, +2 Rav Trap, +1 Needle
-3 Thoughtseize, -1 Mana Crypt, -3 Drain if I keep the Misstep or -3 Snare

Against Shops: +2 Hurkyl's, +2 Grudge, +3 Nature's Claim, +1 Needle if I see Welder
-3 Thoughtseize, -1 Scroll, -3 Misstep/Snare, -1 E Truth

Any suggestions or thoughts on individual card choices, my sideboard plan, or if I should just play another deck?

The more I play with mystical the less I like it, especially if I'm not playing dedicated combo.

Just a thought...

What makes it desirable over another counter or a recall or something of that nature, other than the one-of SaT?

Mystical is arguably one of the weakest cards in Oath, and this build is no exception. That slot could be any number of things: Gifts, Ponder, Flusterstorm, Noxious Revival, Beast Within, etc.

The reason I like Mystical is its ability to end games quickly versus decks like Dredge and Shops. It finds Tinker and Show and Tell, especially games two and three, before I run out of answers. Without a draw engine, I don't want to go into a long game.

It's obviously not great versus 4x Misstep. If I expected a lot of blue decks, I would definitely have a different sideboard and would most likely cut Mystical for Flusterstorm.

Thanks to a freak snow storm across PA, I didn't go to Bloomsburg. So for Clarks Summit, does anyone have 4x Lotus Cobra I can borrow? muwhahaha

I can't play Mike Noble "Him" Fish this weekend.... help!

why not?

I don't have the cards! Won't you be playing it this weekend?

Also, for hijacking this thread, I'll see if I can get some Snakes in the Car!

ive got an extra copy of the deck pretty much so if you want it we can make it happen

I don't really want to play shops again, but playing landstill seems terrible too, considering that from the SCG articles, NYSE, and TMD forums people are on that deck...or at least pretty aware of it now. Fish seems like the way to go, but if I can't go that route...maybe I just play a resilient snapcaster deck?

HALP

If you're having trouble predicting how the metagame will shift from X, Y, or Z (In this case, X is landstill being popularized, Y being people reacting to landstill being popularized, and Z being the reaction to that), just play either a solid blue control deck or shops. They're both generally solid choices in an unknown meta.

remember too this is not blue bell, its a new shop so might be some other random rogue stuff going on too!

Yeah. Be wary of playing landstill, since it gets owned the hardest by decks playing beats as the main plan. I guess you can scout the field if you want, but you also said you don't like landstill.... Why don't you like it, anyway?

Not wanting to lose to Landstill AGAIN was the impetus for my gut-reaction to play Fish. In reality, what I'll probably do is just load up on extra Pyroclasms and Perishes in the sideboard and call it a day.... :-p

Just going on the playstyles of the jerks that I know are going to be there, I would expect, at the very least, 1 Gush Storm (Vito), 2-ish Standard Control (Nate def, Pacey maybe), 1 Combo-or-Control--Doesn't-matter-'cuz-I'll-out-top-deck-you (Beav), 1 x Dark Times (Sean Duffy). 1 x Dredge (Anthony Scalzo), 1 x ??? (Joe Brown), 1 x Elves (....) 1 x Noble Fish (Materavich [Don't feel like looking his name up]).

Keith's not going to make it, or I'd count on 1 x Oath. I would guess that Shawn Griffiths would play Oath if he comes. Josh will be on Landstill if he makes the trek all the way up, as you all know.

I would COUNT ON at least 2 x Christmas Beatings, 1 x Goblins, and 2 x Additional Dredge from somewhere as well.

That's not counting our party / other random people in the area / people who audible / other people who may make the journey up.

I claim that one may be able to go lax on his or her Workshop hate. I don't know many people in that play group / area that play shops regularly, aside from Joe Brown.

Unacceptable.

any testing this week? Also leavign friday night? anyone know how long the trip takes?

Our fearless driver is out of commission. Do we have another way to get there? The trip takes approximately three hours.

It was really too bad you guys couldn't make it. A surprising 34 showed up. The custom playmat that went to first was really sick - old school Demonic Tutor art.

I went 3-2-1 with Cobra Doomsday with thanks to Joe Pace for loaning me 4x Cobra. Cobra really improves the deck overall, not just against Shops like you'd imagine.

7 Fetches
4 Sea
2 Trop
3 Island
3 Mox
1 Petal
1 Crypt
1 B Lotus

3 Doomsday
1 Laboratory Maniac
1 Tendrils of Agony
1 Tinker
1 BSC
1 JtMS
4 Lotus Cobra
1 Yawg Will
4 FoW
2 Spell Pierce
1 Duress
1 Hurkyl's
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
4 Gush
1 Fastbond
4 Preordain
1 Time Walk
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Ponder
1 Brainstorm

SB:
4 LotV
2 Jailer
3 Nature's Claim
1 Forest
2 Hurkyl's

Very brief report:
Round 1 vs Shawn Griffiths with UR Landstill
G1: The deck running 7 'counters' wins via Tendrils.
G2: He wins during extra time and we draw. I think Shawn went 1-1-3 drop.

Round 2 vs local scrub with jank
G1: Tendrils
G2: BSC

Round 3 vs Jason with Christmas Beatings
The deck seems to be making a comeback to combat Landstill. John Jones top 8'd
with it.
G1: Doomsday
G2: BSC

Round 4 vs Joe Pace with GG Oath
G1: Tendrils
G2: Oath into hasty dude
G3: Oath, Walk, hasty BSC, enough red to pump, I die with Hurkyl's in hand (only one mana up) and Doomsday win next turn

Round 5 vs Sean with Tidespout Oath
G1: Tendrils
G2: He gets infy mana and tutors for a storm card
G3: same as G2

Round 6 vs Matt Rine with UR Landstill
G1: Tendrils
G2: Landstill does its thing
G3: I win with JtMS

The deck played more like a Gush Tendrils deck than a Doomsday deck. I'm thinking I should just play Gush Tendrils like Shay's or possibly find room for Cobra. Going from like 17 to 7 disruption was a huge change, but I feel like this build is better than Menendian's.

If anyone wants a more detailed report, I can do that. I didn't think it was necessary.

What you can expect me to be playing at the next Bloomsburg:

2 Forbidden Orchard
2 Underground Sea
2 Volcanic Island
2 Tropical Island
1 Forest
1 Island
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Flooded Strand
1 Polluted Delta
1 Tolarian Academy
8 SoLoMoxen

4 Force of Will
3 Mental Misstep
2 Mana Drain
2 Prohibit
2 Red Elemental Blast
2 Lightning Bolt
1 Fire/Ice
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Tinker
1 Voltaic Key
1 Time Vault
1 Blightsteel Colossus
2 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Sensei's Divining Top

SB:
2 Forbidden Orchard
4 Oath of Druids
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria
1 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
1 Pyroclasm
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Yixlid Jailer
1 Pithing Needle

Yes, I realize the deck looks like a joke.

Prohibit looks like a joke, for sure.


Might as well maindeck frost titan while you're at it

We'll see who's laughing when I Prohibit your Force of Will. Oh wait...

Can you at least ATTEMPT to justify prohibit? The only thing I can see is dodging extirpate/extract ?

Reason one: If I was going to play a janky deck, I might as well go all out.
Two: I'm cheap. The deck is at 12 proxies. I didn't feel like paying $30 to play in a dinky Bloomsburg event.
Three: It gets around Misstep (unlike Snare and Pierce) and hits creatures (unlike Pierce or Flusterstorm).
Four: I don't own any Mana Leaks.
Five: Prohibit has kicker. Phyrexian Scuta has kicker. Kicker is awesome. Therefore Prohibit is awesome.
Six: The world is obviously coming to an end soon since Taylor Swift won performer of the year from two different award shows recently. So nothing matters anymore.
Seven: It counters Standstill, and I hate Standstill.
Eight: Comes after seven but before nine.
Nine: See Eight.
Ten: Is a nice round number.

i think the reason tim was freaking out was because he thought there was some hot tech that he has not yet discovered

Honestly....I can mail you 4 black border.

Rob, is there any reason you're not just running Counterspell in that spot?

Also, Taylor Swift winning Entertainer of the Year is awesome.... I don't know WHAT you're talking about!