[Primer] Gruul Ragehammer (Old INN-RTR Standard)

[Link]

Its 4 mana, which is a huge difference, because that's the turn a non-hasted Pyreheart has an effect anyway.

Pyreheart does shit on its own, if youre blocking with it you're probably in a tight race, which is the War chant's only weakness.

The bonus is that its even harder to remove than wolf, AND makes everything else stronger. Being able to kill a Resto angel with a boar, a reckoner FS, etc. is gonna be nice.

[Thrillho]

Why are you concerned about killing Restoration Angel with a card that invalidates Restoration Angel's ability to block?

Also, I stand corrected -- 4 mana (not 5). Isn't that at the upper end of what you want to pay for spells? And why do you want a do-nothing on an empty board? If Hellrider is pushing it and it's Hellrider, why is a card that does 0 damage intrinsically warrant inclusion?

[rcwraspy]

Fate, why the 1x Guildgate? Are you not finding enough R/G consistency with 4/4/2 Grounds/Crags/Gardens? And can this deck really afford to play a land that HAS to come down tapped?

[Link]

I still have games where I don't hit a green source, and between rancors boars and GCR, I can't afford to have those be dead cards. I don't want multiples obviously, but I can usually plan a game around the tempo loss of a guild gate in my hand or drawn.

@Thrillho: that was just an example, the resto angel, which will still flash in and double block. I'm just saying +1/0 is actually huge deal for letting ash zealots take a thrag or beast with them (lets face it whatevers double blocked will likely die) when double blocked is good because it makes it harder for them to double block on subsequent turns.

obviously evaluating the card without having played it at all is hard, but I hardly think of it as a "do-nothing' card. You can look a pyreheart the same way, on its own it... swing for 1 maybe 2? Can chump block for half its card? Certainly doesn't seem strong.

But synergy and efficiency are important in aggro
decks. If there's a card that makes all of my creatures swinging in stronger AND makes them harder to block? 4 mana is a lil steeper than 3, but I'm willing to say its worth it for the effect. Throw in ZC on T5, and you're hitting for Stole power+3+2 extra damage, and its much harder to block that damage

[Link]

Also now that I see in the other thread that you're a diehard Esper player, its easy to see why you would undervalue this card.

Its pretty dead against esper after a board wipe, ofc. I think between hounds and domri I already have a favorable match-up against all version of Esper i've come up against. Side out Warchant and burn, side in domri and hounds and go to town.

Warchant is against creature based strategies that are popular these days.

[rcwraspy]

hrm, could War Chant and Ruric Thar both make the cut into larger Gruul decks? The synergy there seems strong - 6/6 vigilance you have to block with 2 guys. Reach tearing things out of the sky. And of course the 6dmg for non-creature spells.

[Thrillho]

My playing Esper has nothing to do with me not valuing a 4-mana do nothing. I understand what the printed text on the card says and why it is bad against a board wipe. That is not my point. Depending on your build of Gruul, 4 mana is either the top of your curve while offering no aggression in your "I am playing an aggressive curve to kill my opponent as quickly as is possible before I'm wrathed repeatedly out of the game" or, if you're playing top-heavy builds, your creatures are already huge, require 2+ creatures to block them, and this card is the definition of win more.

Hellrider and Ghor-Clan Rampager are at the top of your curve because they do things. Hellrider is an aggressive creature on its own -- it's a 3/3 that deals 1 damage when it attacks, but is also a 4cc enchantment that deals 1 damage whenever any of your creatures attack, and happens to serve both functionalities at the same time without
skipping a beat/can switch between modes if attacking with a Hasty 3/3 is irrelevant/going to get your hasty 3/3 killed. Rampager is both a pump spell, a removal spell when coupled with Domri Rade, and a big, evasive threat depending on where you are in the game and what function you need it to serve at any given time. Although each card serves your base "smash your opponent until they are dead" purpose, they offer you a lot of pivot space to achieve your linear goal despite not being very linear cards themselves.

Gruul Warcry is the opposite of this. It is a linear card with one purpose. When you have no creatures it play, it is a more awkwardly costed Swirling Sandstorm. When you have creatures in play, it is a more expensive Pyreheart Wolf that doesn't attack on its own and is either less or more resilient to removal (depending), meaning the bonuses it gives you is entirely dependent on how flooded your board is with creatures (as
the +1 is almost meaningless on something like a Rakdos Cackler). It being a good card scales in relation to the number of creatures you have in play that are not dying (IE how much more you are winning more by). Short of pushing through the last few points of damage (which can also be accomplished in myriad ways already -- you're playing a red deck for this reason), a stalled board only makes it more difficult to block, but doesn't make it so that your creatures are suddenly better than some other common standard-legal creatures (your first strike creatures match up against Thragtusk and Augur of Bloas better, for example), but Loxodon Smiter and Restoration Angel are still trumps to the gross majority of the aggro build's creatures, just they block less goodly than they did before. In a stall of 4 vs 4 creatures, you'll have two creatures get in, but then two of your creatures are getting murdered in this scenario.

I understand the ins and outs of cards like this. Maybe your personal playtesting has
shown better outcomes for it. Based on my understanding of Standard right now and after watching many many many many games of Naya, Gruul, and Aggro-Jund from many many players, and boredom goldfishing with Naya Blitz, it is not the card I would expect people to want to play.

[Link]

You're just choosing your words carefully.

GCR is removal with Domri rade and a pump spell WITH creatures but Gruul War Chant is just shit?

Why does GCR get to be good with other cards but Gruul war chant is just shit on its own?

You're literally just cherry picking examples that serve your argument. "GCR is good with XXX" "War cry is bad because its bad with cackler and alone" ??? I'll take a cackler thats 3/2 that has to be blocked by two things anyday.

GCR is a 4/4 with trample alone, its hardly worth a slot as a 4/4 at 4 that does no ETB effect. Is is literally popular BECAUSE of its synergy with the rest of the deck.

War chant also doesn't have to be at the top of the curve. With War chant, I think Zealous Conscripts is a great place to top out against any creature strategy to be able to swing in for lethal more reliably on curve (5 mana).

Many people have come to the conclusion
that reckoner is not worth his card slot over pyreheart wolf in the 3 drop slot over in our aggro discussions in the clan. It just is not matching up vs. popular strategies right now. This card allows reckoner into warchant on curve.

Hellrider will always be hellrider. But sometimes he's just too weak. There are board states where I can't just swing in with him and win or even get close to it. Sometimes I don't even see a hellrider.

Imagine this situation that happens ALL the time against numerous decks:

You have lethal power on the board with hellrider next turn. They drop a thrag tusk. Now you swing in with your hellrider and its not lethal, your hellrider gets eaten by tusk. Then drops another thragtusk, or Unburial rites that tusk, now they are even MORE out of range and your rider is dead.

Instead I drop gruul warchant. I get in some extra damage and the thrag can't block. Next turn I drop a hellrider and they have to double block hellrider with Thrag and XXXX, and I get enough damage
through to win next turn with any number of other cards.


Now whether pyreheart wolf serves this function better beacuse he comes down on t3 for a t4 hellrider remains to be tested. Whether this makes Reckoner much more playable against junk rites decks needs to be seen. I won't defend this card too highly, I'm just going to stop short and say "it DOES merit testing, and it shouldn't be tossed aside so lightly"

[Pyreheart Bezerra]

I like the new improved list Fate. Looks like you made some tough calls there for sake of shoring up the weak matchups. I like the sideboard strategy, and may have to impliment it.

[lorddax]

I want to test the card as it grabs a walmart brand of an overloaded dynacharge and the block confusion of wolf, whether they work in this packaging or not is definitely worth testing.

[rcwraspy]

War Chant may be another of those cards to hold and re-evaluate after rotation when Wolf is gone.

[Link]

The thing I can see this having over Wolf is surprise factor at least. With wolf they could always do combat math the turn it came down and leave back enough blockers. You can throw this down and its like having a hasted wolf to make an upset.

[Pyreheart Bezerra]

Been trying out the new list you posted Fate. Love it! it was hard for me to relegate the hounds to sideboard but the deck feels much much faster G1 because of it. I did the same setup as you except I only want 2 rancors MB in favor of the the 4th Hellrider. Also Pillar is definitely MB material now. Blood Artist is coming back with a vengeance at my LGS, and people are just now starting to jump on the Gruul gravy train. It sucks not being one of two R/g aggro players right now. I loved beating expensive Bant and Esper decks with my list. Guess they were tired of losing.

[Link]

Glad you're had success with it! 4 hellriders is statistically correct with 22 land. About the same % chance you'll draw a hellrider as you'll hit 4 mana on curve.

I'm thinking of going down to 21 or cutting something to add in room for stonewright's to have more options when flooding (KWR and Stonewright), going to need more testing. Probably going to stay at 22 and learn to pilot better through floods and/or add stonewrights in there somehow (at least as a 2 of).

[Link]

Reckoners still haven't arrived yet so I loaned the 2 I had to a friend playing MonoR.


In place of the 4 reckoners and 2 BActs, I ran 4 mortars and 2 bonfires.

It was enough to stop Naya Blitz, but not my mono red friend (he was just too fast G2 and I had a bad mull to 5 G1).

I'm happy with the changes as well.

Kessig Wolf Run has impressed me enough. Even when I had curved out at 4 mana, KWR my hound for just 1 made him a 3/3 against thrags with trample and a 4/4 after a bonfire to try and deal with him. Just that one point of damage matters, and if I draw more land, instead of getting flooding I'm doubling up MORE on damage. Without the reckoners I had no problems casting my entire deck also.

Still like 3 rancors. After exhausting Jund of their limited removal suite G1 I was able to ride a double rancor'd ash zealot to victory. My reads were good enough to not ever be 2-1'd with it as well. In my opinion
if you're in the position to be 2-1'd by a rancor you're already losing because there's not enough pressure on the board to have made them answer you the previous turn.

Definitely liked having the pyreheart wolf more often. Of course, I went up against Jund twice where wolf is so much better than reckoner (takes two of their removal to deal with, gets around their small threats).


Still on the fence on Zealous Conscripts vs. TBlood. I played it once vs. Bant to steal a thrag and swing with 4 against an empty board, but I happened to curve perfectly into 5 with my land drops that game. Do I want to rely on curving out to 5 with 23 lands post board? Probably not.

Also missed Volcanic strengths against jund (though I won without, still a nice option) and against my MonoR friend. I think it might be a staple against a reckoner heavy meta.


Oh yeah I DID try Mugging over Pillars just for the lulz. Never used its "did not block" clause, nor did I need it to go upstairs, so no opinion as
of yet other than it kills huntmasters just as well as pillars ever did.


going to do this list with the reckoners and BAct next week, then scrap it all for Gruul War Chant builds. (bye bye wolf?)

[Link]

Placeholder list for testing and playing post-DGM:

[deck]
30 Creatures
4 Ash Zealot
4 Rakdos Cackler
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Flinthoof Boar
4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
4 Stromkirk Noble
3 Boros Reckoner
3 Hellrider

9 Support:
3 Rancor
2 Gruul War Chant
2 Searing Spear
2 Pillar of Flame

21 Land
4 Stomping Ground
4 Rootbound Crag
11 Mountain
2 Temple Garden

//Sideboard
SB: 3 Domri Rade
SB: 4 Volcanic Strength
SB: 2 Blasphemous Act
SB: 2 Searing Spear
SB: 2 Pillar of Flame
SB: 1 Pyrewild Shaman
SB: 1 Boros Reckoner
[/deck]


Moved most of the burn package to the side. Leaning on 4 spears/4 pillars/4 reckoners to control mirror match-ups, and BActs to kill any VS things. Pyrewild Shaman as a 1 of for testing against control.

Cut Rancor down for more spears or hellrider as you see fit, but you'll also want to go back up to 22 land with 4 riders.

Tested against Alex's list last night, and
crappy RNG aside, VS is definitely important against Reckoner lists.

[MattC]

Here's my current list I went 6-3 at the Toronto WMCQ coming in 34th place, and then 17th at the PTQ the day after with a record of 6-2. I'm really happy with it right now and I don't think there's anything I want to change.

[DECK]
31 Creatures
3x Stonewright
4x Stromkirk Noble
4x Rakdos Cackler
4x Ash Zealot
4x Flinthoof Boar
4x Burning-Tree Emissary
4x Pyreheart Wolf
4x Hellrider

6 Instant/Sorceries
3x Pillar of Flame
3x Searing Spear

23 Land
14x Mountain
4x Stomping Ground
4x Rootbound Crag
1x Kessig Wolf Run

Sideboard
2x Hound of Griselbrand
1x Stonewright
1x Electrickery
2x Devil's Play
3x Flames of the Firebrand
4x Mizzium Mortars
2x Traitorous Blood
[/DECK]

My tournament report from the PTQ. (copy-pasted from MTGS)

Round 1 Jund Midrange (2-0) (easy matchup steamrolled opponent)

Round 2 BG Control (2-0) It was a homebrew list that I didn't think much of at the time but he
ended up 6-2 for the day as well so clearly he wasn't just some scrub.

Round 3 Jund Midrange (2-0) easy matchup, steamrolled opponent

Round 4 Jund Ramp? 2-1 He looked like an aggro deck preboard so I misboarded which caused me a game loss before I could rectify the situation. He was on a gyre sage ramp strategy pumping out silverhearts, thundermaws, and aristocrats.

Round 5 Prime Speaker Bant (0-2) He nut drew me both games, Turn two farseek, turn three Smiter/Healer, turn four Thragtusk, turn five Zegana exactly in both games. Nothing much any deck can do against that draw.

Round 6 vs 20 land RDW (2-0) This was a pretty normal RDW list he sided into the volcanic strength plan and I sided into removal so I crushed him pretty badly

Round 7 vs UWR Reckoner (0-2) This is a rough matchup and I kept a mediocre hand game one, in game two I got him down pretty low, devils play almost beat him but he had lifegain to avoid the flashback killing him.

Round 8 Vs Bant Control (2-0) In game one he
durdled and failed to stabilize against my board even with double thragtusk. In game two he sided into Blind obedience but he just couldn't deal with Pyreheart Wolf and Hound of Griselbrand.


It was pretty funny. Against the final Bant player he, was at three life, had stabilized his board presence against my board of BTE, Wolf, Hound, with Blind Obedience in play, so I dropped hellrider in tapped and proceeded to kill him on triggers.

Overall I'm a little sad that I didn't make top 16 but someone is always going to come in 17th and there's nothing I could have done about my breakers.

One of my favourite games was against my round 3 jund opponent. I finished the game with several cards in hand to his 1 land in hand, in game 2 he played double thragtusk, multiple huntmasters, rolling temblor, flashed it back, and miracled bonfire for 3 but none of it was enough for him to survive. "out attritioning Jund" lol

[Link]

Nice list, barely any chance for you to get color screwed which I like.

What match-ups were you bringing in devil's play against besides UWr? Control?

[Valdarith]

Placeholder list for testing and playing post-DGM:

[deck]
30 Creatures
4 Ash Zealot
4 Rakdos Cackler
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Flinthoof Boar
4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
4 Stromkirk Noble
3 Boros Reckoner
3 Hellrider

9 Support:
3 Rancor
2 Gruul War Chant
2 Searing Spear
2 Pillar of Flame

21 Land
4 Stomping Ground
4 Rootbound Crag
11 Mountain
2 Temple Garden

//Sideboard
SB: 3 Domri Rade
SB: 4 Volcanic Strength
SB: 2 Blasphemous Act
SB: 2 Searing Spear
SB: 2 Pillar of Flame
SB: 1 Pyrewild Shaman
SB: 1 Boros Reckoner
[/deck]


Moved most of the burn package to the side. Leaning on 4 spears/4 pillars/4 reckoners to control mirror match-ups, and BActs to kill any VS things. Pyrewild Shaman as a 1 of for testing against control.

Cut
Rancor down for more spears or hellrider as you see fit, but you'll also want to go back up to 22 land with 4 riders.

Tested against Alex's list last night, and crappy RNG aside, VS is definitely important against Reckoner lists.

I think not running the full set of Searing Spear is a mistake. It's literally the best burn/removal spell we have in Standard right now and can turn games around if you play your hand right. I've personally been running no Pillars in the main and three in the side with a full suite of Spears. I can't imagine not having four Spears, but then again I love instant speed removal.

Regarding Gruul War Chant, it's certainly worth testing. It actually does something the turn it comes down, but I feel like you really want big creatures on the board the turn this comes down. This may or may not be a good choice depending on how much enchantment hate exists in the post-DGM meta.

Also, what made you go down to 21 land? I feel like a 22 or even 23-land deck
could be good here. At 23 lands you could probably run two KWR and still get away with four Hellriders and three Reckoners. That being the case, I would take out the BTEs and increase the curve accordingly.

Also, I've been testing Volcanic Strength and I love it. Red-based decks can literally do nothing about a VS on a Boar. Just wait for them to tap out so they can't spear your Boar in response and suddenly the board state has changed dramatically. It's almost impossible to race.

[Link]

I could cut 4 BTE for 2 spears and 2 more lands.

Then I'd just cut a rancor for another hellrider and be pretty set..


But BTE looks to be good with War Chant... (and is just pretty core from what I've found. Accelerated pressure, even if it's just one extra card, seems to be the backbone to get my opponents on the backfoot.)


I have 4 spears in the 75, I'm just underwhelmed with it against the hardest match-ups. Against aggro I can always bring them in and start to roll, but I want to have better match-ups G1 against rites and control decks. I can probably just go 4 spears, 4 pillars in the SB which might be correct.

I'm just too in love with the nut BTE+Rancor+Pillar/1 Drop draw.


As for the lands, 22 is probably best but then I would want 4 hellriders and I just can't seem to fit all that in Will definitely make adjustments after testing.

As for 2 KWR MB with Reckoner, I think that's a little
greedy. I don't have enough ramp/mana to make that worth it, and if I can't cast reckoner that would set me back G1 pretty hard.

Going up to 1KWR is for the Hound/grindy strategy... so I'll need to fit one in the SB. but maybe pyrewild will just be as good? More pump for the same mana but no trample. Will make me rely on rancor more

[Link]

in fact, I think you inspired me to write a partner article about "Why you should be playing more BTE" next to your Stonewright one ;D

[Link]

I just realized I can't play mugging even if I wanted in DGM.

Voice of Resurgence folds only to pillar of flame.

Lovin the blasphemous act combo post board, just love the surprise angle if can give.

Cutting a pillar in the SB for a KWR for now

Edit: oh *** hwere are my hounds? Why is there never enough space for all my favorite cards

arghh.

SB:
Fine -1 VS, 1 Pillar, -1 Pyrewild (maybe after rotation buddy), +3 Hounds.

Also can just as easily swap War Chant to the SB for 4 MB spears after I'm satisfied with how good/bad War Chant is.

[Link]

dropping Gruul War chant, it is a bit too expensive. I agree now that we can take another look at it after rotation, and keep pyreheart if we want that effect at all.

In its place, Armed/Dangerous is much more potent and aggressive.


Arming a Noble off a BTE to swing for 4 and get the noble to a 3/3 is huge.

Dangerousing a Reckoner for lethal is also pretty amusing. Oh you managed to unburial rites a thrag and resto it? well now they all block papa and I redirect it all to you while my hellrider gets in.

Speaking of which Helios' reckoners came so I can finally start legit testing with them this thursday

[Pyreheart Bezerra]

dropping Gruul War chant, it is a bit too expensive. I agree now that we can take another look at it after rotation, and keep pyreheart if we want that effect at all.

In its place, Armed/Dangerous is much more potent and aggressive.


Arming a Noble off a BTE to swing for 4 and get the noble to a 3/3 is huge.

Dangerousing a Reckoner for lethal is also pretty amusing. Oh you managed to unburial rites a thrag and resto it? well now they all block papa and I redirect it all to you while my hellrider gets in.

Speaking of which Helios' reckoners came so I can finally start legit testing with them this thursday

yeah dude armed and dangerous definitelty caught my eye, make any creature a hound of griselbrand and bloodrush. could be a board sweeper
for us too. how many copies are you testing atm.

[Link]

just two.sorcery speed.is limiting so Ifigure seeing it once per game or set will be enough?

[Pyreheart Bezerra]

With some new DGM cards I decided to build my Gruul Hammer again from the ground up. During the prerelease I was in awe of the power of Zhur-Taa Druid I think he/she? will be as underrated as the Shaman. Since he only adds green I felt it would be better to go more green heavy so I could use that mana effectively and not just as an expensive goblin fireslinger. Here is what I came up with. It is removal light but I think the transformational sideboard of value and burn will help negate that initial fault of the deck.

[deck]Gruul Ragehammer 4.0[/deck]

Still toying with the manabase as I am not sure if 10 mountains is enough to keep Flinthoof Boar on all the time. I do have enough "green sources" that i could go 8 mountains and 6 forests maybe? But I do want Strangleroot to come out on curve if I dont have a BTE chain, gyre sage, or druid. Bonfire is powerful and can turn a game over. I definitely have enough mana to get value out of it. I would like a 3rd in the list, not sure where. Tell me what you think. Gyre sage and ZT Druid may be redundant and that would free up 3-4 slots for burn/removal if thats the way this deck needs to go. So far in testing it is able to still fly out of the gates because of burning tree, but the top end allows for me to comfortably battle well into the late game. Domri is def an all-star in this build he is netting a card most of
the time and I can protect him enough to where his ultimate isnt just a pipe dream. I have done it 3 times in my testing over the past three days. Where as in the first Ragehammer build I felt the need to use his -2 ability much more often than the +1 so I could never do that. The ultimate is just icing though, and it is definitely not the reason Domri is in the deck. Anything paired to a silverheart plus Domri's -2 can trump almost any creature right now.

[Link]

I have to be honest here I AM underwhelmed with Zhurr-Taa druid. He's great in limited/sealed for sure, but he had the POTENTIAL to be Gruul's Deathrite shaman...

if he were a single R/g hybrid cost OR he added one R OR G for hsi current cost.

Atm I really don't see much reason to play him over arbor elf int he G/r list. It gives you T2 domris and stuff. And even LESS reason to play him over gyre sage, who is the king of that build.

I do love me some Domri though.

I would take out the pyreheart wolves, they don't evolve gyre sage and your creatures are strong enough to get through on their own.

I would take out the ZTD as I said above.

I would add in: Borderland Ranger. Gets you mountains for boars and hellkites.

Also I think Hound has a place even if he doesn't evolve gyre sage. In the place people were playing Hellriders for G/r, I think hound is much better. Resillient (Which this deck needs) paired
with silverheart, BEAST with ramped KWR.

[Pyreheart Bezerra]

Yeah it was hard for me to take those hounds out of the sleeves. I have been noticing that the incremental damage the druid creates isn't really enough to counteract him coming in a turn later than arbor elf. My reasoning at the time, is that you dont always have a forest to use arbor elf, but ztd will always tap for mana. Also in a world without bloodthirst the ztd isnt the best. He could have a home in a midrange build but farseek seems to be a better use of 2 mana atm.

My thinking on the deck after your insight and some more testing
[deck]
4 Arbor elf
4 Gyre sage
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Flinthoof Boar
2 Borderland ranger
3 Hellrider/Strangleroot?
3 Hound of Griselbrand
2 Thundermaw
2 Wolfir Silverheart
4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
[/deck]

Everything else is the same. Hellrider could be strangleroot if this proves to be too top-heavy?

[Self Medicated]

Pyreheart - I run both Hellriders and Strangleroots in my deck. Here is my list for reference:

[DECK]
Lands (21)
7x Forest
1x Kessig Wolf Run
5x Mountain
4x Rootbound Crag
4x Stomping Ground

Creatures (36)
4x Arbor Elf
4x Burning-Tree Emissary
4x Experiment One
4x Flinthoof Boar
4x Ghor-Clan Rampager
4x Gyre Sage
4x Hellrider
4x Strangleroot Geist
4x Wolfir Silverheart

Spells (3)
3x Domri Rade

Sideboard (15)
2x Acidic Slime
2x Ground Seal
3x Pillar of Flame
3x Rancor
4x Searing Spear
1x Thundermaw Hellkite
[/DECK]

I have an Evolve sub-theme in my deck, so the Strangleroots are nice when they come back into play bigger.

[fireiced]

Hi! New to the forums here and an red mage who seeks to make Jaya and Chandra proud!

Below is my deck for critique!

[DECK]
Creatures [30]
4 Stromkirk Noble
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Flinthoof Boar
4 Ash Zealot
4 Boros Reckoner
4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
3 Hellrider
3 Hound of Griselbrand

Enchantment [3]
3 Rancor

Instant [4]
4 Searing Spear

Land [23]
4 Stomping Ground
4 Rootbound Crag
2 Temple Garden
1 Kessig Wolf Run
12 Mountains

Sideboard
2 Thundermaw Hellkite
2 Zealous Conscripts
1 Garruk Relentless
2 Domri Rade
2 Borderland Ranger
3 Blasphemous Act
3 Pillar of Flame

[/DECK]

Sb
explainations;

No gy hate for rites as I wish to just knock them out with the Reckoner + Act plan! Not sure if Putrefy or Drown in Filth will ruin my day

As like 40% of my meta is control, Thundermaws, Domris and Borderland Rangers come in with Reckoners and 2 GCR going out

Pillar and Act are for aggro decks where I will want to take out Hellriders, thing is I do not know what other 3 cards to remove for Acts

Conscripts is for midrange decks in general to steal their fatty and just close the game, Garruk is also used to provide CA/removal and stopping their Garruk PH from being cast until they answer my Garruk for Jund decks

[Link]

you can take out rancors against other decks I find usually.

You could also take out nobles (not against naya blitz) for hellkites/borderland rangers as a plan to finish them off after a BAct or something

Really solid decklist and plan though, I like it.

Also welcome!

[Christen]

For reference, this is the list I'm currently running.

[deck]Gruul Hammer[/deck]

I don't have too much problems though you have to be aggressive in your mulligans.

[Link]

4 threaten effects hasn't been too much? I usually never like to see one in my hand. And when I ran a list similar to yours for 2 nights Zealous Conscripts was sufficient for me

[Christen]

It helps in the Junk Rites and midrange matchup, though I am still experimenting with those two slots.

[Link]

I'd suggest Kessig wolf run.

Also Kessig wolf run MB too >_>

Why aren't you running it?

[fireiced]

Thanks for your fast reply! (:

So the plan here is to board into a total midrange plan against aggro? Will walkers help here too?

you can take out rancors against other decks I find usually.

You could also take out nobles (not against naya blitz) for hellkites/borderland rangers as a plan to finish them off after a BAct or something

Really solid decklist and plan though, I like it.

Also welcome!

[Kaitscralt]

Is there any reason why you guys (in this thread and others) use weaker card choices than the tier one lists? Is it just for the bad, made up deck name? You could easily improve the decks to a stock Gruul list (always run Searing Spear, obviously), but I'm seeing some weirdness here. Cutting 4x BTE? What?

I would hate to think the slowness of our new forum is allowing developing decks to sneak into competitive.

You guys spend a lot of time making fun of people who like Vexing Devil in your clan thread but you seem to enjoy cards of a similar caliber.

Maybe the two new mods can chime in.

[redthirst]

If your deck doesn't plan on dropping its hand on the table asap every game or has a higher curve that doesn't rely on 2 drops so much then BTE starts looking less impressive.

Can you explain exactly what you mean by weaker card choices? Got some examples?

[Kaitscralt]

Hound of Griselbrand for example.

I'm not sure using a card like that is worth having a non-existent deck called "Gruul Warhammer" in Competitive instead of actual Gruul lists that people think of when considering the archetype currently.

I always assumed Competitive was for discussing decks that had proven themselves through pro results, not FNM homebrews. I'm fine with it if everyone is fine with it (not really, but I am not going to commandeer the entire Standard forum, so I will go with majority), I just need to know if we are going to be even less competitive in nature than Salvation so I know how to organize things when more people start to join.

[redthirst]

Hound is better in this type of deck simply because the deck is not looking for a turn 4 kill so the more aggressive (and proven) alternatives don't do as much. That was more-or-less established with zem's Sledgehammer deck in the long long ago.

You do have a point about this not being a proven tournament competitive deck, though. If that's what y'all want this section to be, then it probably should be moved to developing.