Modern Deck Tech: Selesnya Stoneforge

I haven't been here in a while, so you probably shouldn't know my articles. I have mostly played Modern and Historic. For those who don't know, my favorite color combination in Magic is Selesnya. From combos to the roots midrange, GW decks have always been the most attractive to me. Today, I bring a Midrange that is prepared to handle everything and a little more.

First of all, I found the list on the internet, but I've changed a lot the mana base, and 2-3 maindeck non-lands. So, the original idea was not mine and I don't remember which channel i took to be able to credit it, but these 75 cards, specifically, were worked on by me and chosen after several tests.

Before going into the detail of each card and its functions, i want you to invest 5 minutes looking carefully at the deck:

Like all good Midrange, the Deck is geared towards creature mechanics, using them as a resource at the beginning of the game to build a relevant board. Unlike Aggros, who start very fast and gradually lose their gas, or Controls who suffer a lot to survive until the lategame, Midranges usually have the first two / three turns a little slower and from then on, the performance of the deck improves considerably. Ideally, getting ahead on match.

A good example of the creatures we use as a resource are Birds of Paradise, Noble Hierarch and Stoneforge Mystic. The first two help speed up your game, to allow for more aggressive turns, with heavier creatures. Meanwhile, Stonefoge makes it possible for us to seek out the threat we need and, if all goes well, still put it out there. If you have never seen this noble maiden in action, you may be wondering why it is so relevant, why the deck is named after you. So, let's go!

Stoneforge enters turn 2, looking for the best option for the match in question. The main options are Batterskull and Sword of Feast and Famine. The first is the default choice, it gets in the way of any Aggro deck, and puts strong pressure on any Control. In other words, if you are in doubt about what you are playing against, it is the safe choice. The second, against any black and / or green deck, can do a lot of damage. In a meta where we find many Death's Shadow, Stompy, The Rock and etc, it manages to be the MVP of the game, aside from the fact that many decks will suffer for the simple fact of having to discard.

If you are still not convinced about the potential of Stoneforge, after the sideboard it usually shines even more. With Sword of Light and Shadow and Sword of Fire and Ice in the sideboard, you have more options to deal with what appears in front of you. Feel free to adapt the sideboard, including equipment that best suits your meta. Regardless of which equipment you prefer to include, you can be sure that a creature that searchs your sideboard cards when entering the battlefield is VERY relevant!

So let's go to the other surprises that make up the deck!

Mirran Crusader and Auriok Champion are not good cards, in any metagame, but with the rise of Rakdos decks with Scourge of the Skyclaves, these two cards showed tremendous potential. Crusader would be a great pressure in the second round and any equipment you can attach to it will be very valuable due to Double Strike. Auriok, despite not having the finisher potential that Crusader has, is much more versatile, managing to help you control decks like Burn and Prowess in an exceptional way.

It is worth mentioning that the two cards mentioned above depend a lot on the meta, so they are not timeless creatures for the deck. If this is not the current meta when reading this article, use these slots with creatures that suit you best, and you can prioritize Knight of the Reliquary, Scavenging Ooze, Ramunap Excavator, Eternal Witness and others that did not appear in this article's version.

To complete the creatures, we have those that are useful in almost any situation. So let's take a closer look.

A very well-known card that is capable of transforming Death's Shadow into a 1/1 illusion, a Goyf into a 2/2, to be used as removal of artifacts and enchantments, to get rid of a combo pieces or simply to move out of the way your opponent's blocker. If it weren't enough, with 2 power, it will beat more than you think! Okay, I'm a clear fan of the card, so let's go to the next one before i write another paragraph drooling about it hahaha

My favorite card in GW colors. I have many memories of games won by that card. The most curious thing is that i remember well 3 matches in which she was essential: Burn, Bogles and Jund. In other words, if i remember it saving game against those 3 decks, it means that the versatility is very great. Being able to destroy artifacts and enchantment, recover that 4 health and still serve as a chump block or enters as a 4/3, imposing an accelerated clock when necessary, makes it useful in almost any match. You will hardly be sad to draw this beauty.

ALmost any Modern tier 1 / 1.5 / 2 deck uses a very large amount of non-basic lands. This skill alone is already very relevant, let's take a fetchland as an example. The fetch will enter tapped and if the opponent needs to search a shockland (for the purpose of matching the mana colors), it will also enters tapped. This will delay your opponents a lot. As if that weren't enough, it limits the number of spells to be cast by each player, to one per turn. This can practically destroy decks like Storm and Prowess, while not much of a problem. The icing on the cake is the ability to "fly", which often goes unnoticed, but which guarantees an avoidance in matchs that the battlefield is filled with blockers on both sides.

There is no reason for us to be too mystery about this part of the deck tech. We used only two cards, two of the most famous in these colors. Path to Exile and Collected Company. Path not only helps us contain the momentum of decks that rely heavily on a single creature, but is ideal for delaying combos like Devoted Druid, Heliod, Storm etc. In some cases, we can just take the blocker out to get a free attack with some equipment that is relevant to that match.

Company, not only speeds up our game, often putting two relevant creatures on the field in turn 3, but it also allows us to play in the EOT, bypass the counters a bit and take our opponents by surprise. A common scenario is that you can find a Skyclave Apparition and a Knight of Autumn in the same Company. If both have a valid target, you can make a "4 for 1". You spent a Company to put two creatures on the battlefield, take something from it with Skyclave and destroy an artifact with Knight. You can also find a Stoneforge and search for equipment or simply dig 6 cards looking for a creature of the sideboard. In any of the scenarios mentioned, it is easy to notice the potential of the Collected Company.

You will find two ways to build the deck's mana base. Without fetchlands, based on fastlands, checklands and a greater amount of Horizon Canopy. Some people argued that HP is a big issue and that mana base would be more consistent in saving life. On the other hand, fetchlands help you to better match the colors of mana, which can be relevant, as we have many cards with two white in cost. In addition, fetchlands filter the deck, increasing the likelihood of better draws in the lategame. For these two reasons, i opted for the version with fetchlands, but i believe that the other guarantees consistent results in the same way.

With fetchlands helping us to find the colors we need, i am less concerned with using 3 Ghost Quarter on the deck. It is a useful card in many matches. But especially against Tron, it can save you the time needed to win the game. Finally, i chose to use one Horizon Canopy only, but it is debatable. I think about putting two, maybe taking a ghost quarter or a basic land, but i would not play with more than that. One reason is that the damage may become relevant in some matchs. Another one is that you may be left without a target for fetchs in the lategame if you take out too many basics. So i think that somewhere between 1 and 2 would be the ideal amount.

As i always say, sideboard is a little personal, it depends a lot on where you play, whether you play forfun or competitive or online only. If you play physical in Brazil or in another country. If you play big championships or if it's always in the same store. In other words, it depends on a lot of things, but i will talk briefly about what i currently use.

As i mentioned earlier, the two Swords on the sideboard are easy targets if they are found on the deck due to Stoneforge's skill, so they are great cards to have at your disposal. It is always worth having some equipment on the sideboard if you are playing with Stoneforge.

Scavenging Ooze is awesome. It disrupts any deck with graveyard-based mechanics, can be found when using a Collected Company, can make you gain life, grows and can become a threat or serve as a big blocker to save time against an Aggro. He does just about everything and deserves a place on the sideboard.

Kozilek, Butcher of Truth and Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre are on the sideboard, as i've been finding a lot of mill. It is important to use two different ones to prevent both being exiled at the same time with a Surgical Extraction or Extirpate.

Damping Sphere is very strong against Storm and, especially, Tron. There is not much to talk about, if it is not removed, it practically guarantees these two games.

Spellskite is very strong against Infect and Bogles. Being able to pull any buff or aura, makes the strategy of these two decks unfeasible. As it is a cost 2 creature, it can be found with Company as well.

Rest in Peace is the ideal card to end any graveyard deck. We are using 3, because as we have no way to search for enchantments on the deck and the current cemetery decks are usually fast, we need to ensure that we will find a copy.

Veil of Summer can help you against decks that have black counters or removals. Not only does it end up being a counter, but it also allows you to draw a card, generating a card advantage. There is not much to add, it is practically a “must have” on the side of green decks.

Burrenton Forge-Tender is the icing on the cake against red decks. If the mainboard stuffed with things wasn't enough to deal with these decks, this guy comes from the sideboard to complete the party.

Settle the Wreckage is the most questionable card on the side. In addition to having only one copy, we have no way to get it. It is a personal option and i agree that it may not be effective in most games, but against that Midrange mirror, or against a Human/Spirits it can become the path to victory. One reason for using this card is exactly the fact that it is not used much, few people play around it when they are against a Midrange and this fact has already brought me some victories.

Feel free to change the side ore the deck to make it more aligned with your play style and your the meta.

Thank you for staying here and leave a message if you want to see more Modern decks around here!

See you next time!