I’ve been having fun with Modern as Energy and Frog decks are fun to play. There are plenty of other strategies that prey upon the top two decks to keep the format evolving. The Modern RCQ season is wrapping up, but there are a couple more weekends to compete. Today I’m going to share my take on Energy as I am championing Mardu instead of stock Boros.
Let’s begin with the boogeyman of the format, Boros Energy. Here’s a list AleMTG used to top 8 a MTGO Challenge:
Boros Energy has been evolving in the sense that more players are abandoning Blood Moon which was unheard of just a couple months ago.
Blood Moon is not only weak in the mirror match, but shuts off Aether Hub, Arena of Glory, and Elegant Parlor. To make matters worse it increases the curve for possible misses on Amped Raptor and can actively hinder your draws without Plains.
I wasn’t interested in Energy when maindeck Blood Moon was stock because it has such a low floor in power level. Some players opt to still play Blood Moon because cards with varying power levels can be appealing. I would much rather play a deck with higher consistency at the expense of draws that can lock the opponent out of the game.
Lightning Bolt has been a Modern staple for the entirety of the format, but falls short against Psychic Frog and other popular creatures. I gave Boros a spin and found Bolt to be lackluster, but the energy-based interaction shined.
I got Static Prison wrong. In the early days of the new Modern format I viewed Static Prison as a necessity, but it’s clutch against Modern’s varying threat base. I can play more targeted interaction in the sideboard, but it’s a great catch all in game one. Watch out for Thraben Charm and Consign to Memory in post board games.
Galvanic Discharge has been on the downswing lately, but I have been impressed. In earlier days of the new Modern format it was critical to prepare for Suncleanser out of sideboards, but this is now less of a concern. The maindeck of Boros Energy is reasonable in the mirror making it less important to play silver bullets- especially when the opponents are prepared. The plethora of three damage removal makes a ¼ a weak blocker as it can then be finished off with Phlage.
Ragavan has been declared a rotated threat by Andrea Mengucci and others so I’m surprised to see it make a return to the current stock Boros list. It’s powerful against unfair strategies, but falls short against the mirror and Orcish Bowmasters. The deck isn’t much worse in the mirror by playing Ragavan because Blood Moon was the cut. I don’t mind a single copy of Ragavan, but there are plenty of games where it’s a liability.
Three copies of The One Ring are for redundancy rather than a requirement for the legend rule. It’s rare to swap out Rings to avoid taking lethal damage due to the life gain from Phlage and Guide of Souls. Twenty-three lands and three Ragavan can help cast The One Ring on schedule.
Goblin Bombardment is powerful and synergistic in Boros Energy, but has diminishing returns. Boros typically plays two copies to fill out the two-drop slot in the curve. Boros has awkward draws with plenty of removal making Bombardment less effective.
Note the lack of Suncleansers in the sideboard, but there are two Fear, Fire, Foes! This is the only targeted hate for the mirror as Ragavan is the only low-hanging fruit to cut. I’ve personally found Cast into the Fire to be the more impressive interaction against both The One Ring and small creatures. The power of Boros Energy lies in needing a plan against the go-wide strategy as well as grinding with Ring, Phlage, and Jegantha.
My gripe with Boros Energy is that despite it being “the best deck” it operates primarily at sorcery speed and opponents are ready. Many decks in the format will pivot to sweepers after sideboard which is typically helpful, but The One Ring can help stabilize.
There’s not a great answer to sweepers backed by pressure as seen by the sideboard.
Orim’s Chant can help against one of the more problematic matchups, Eldrazi Breach, as it can prevent a large monster from attacking, but is fairly narrow. A Storm turn can be disrupted if Chant is timed correctly, but many of the card advantage spells can also be cast on the following turn. The drawback to this interaction is it’s not strong enough to win a game without being backed by pressure.
Obsidian Charmaw is a powerful threat against big mana strategies. A worthwhile drawback is it requires abandoning Jegantha. Other cards in the sideboard that require abandoning Jegantha, such as Sunspine Lynx, aren’t as good because I would ideally bring them in for other matchups, but value the companion more.
I don’t care for Skyclave Apparition in Boros Energy as Jegantha backed by Arena of Glory is a very powerful option. There have been times I’ve sandbagged Arena of Glory as my fifth land to make the haste component of the elk a surprise.
Despite there being so many creature removal spells, very few sideboard cards can replace them against a deck like Jeskai Control. There’s basically a One Ring and you can convince me Orim’s Chant is better than Lightning Bolt.
Where to go instead? I’m glad you asked…
After playing both Boros and Mardu I can confidently say the black splash is worth it. Blood Moon was once the primary draw to two colors, but with the powerful enchantment now being cut it’s time to reconsider.
The base of Mardu Energy is similar to Boros; a small amount of black cards can make a big splash.
Orcish Bowmasters creates additional army-in-a-can threats while enabling the deck to play better at instant-speed. It’s powerful against the mirror, Jeskai Control, and Dimir Frog to name just a few decks.
Two Thoughtseize in the maindeck ensure you don’t draw too many of the effect, but is strong with Amped Raptor and Phlage. It can also poke a hole in a blue opponent’s hand to resolve The One Ring or simply take their haymaker. A general interactive answer complements Static Prison without having to play three copies as they are best in the mid game; balancing two can also be tricky.
I was initially afraid of four Thoughtseize in the seventy-five, but it plays out very well in post board games. It’s not only strong against combo decks, but many fair strategies will bring in board sweepers.
Many players in paper events will try to beat “the best deck” by playing a fringe strategy with plenty of hate. While this isn’t always effective it can be frustrating to lose to these decks after spending money on the staples for the top tier strategy. Since Energy can win with aggressive or midrange draws Thoughtseize can pick apart the interaction that fights your particular game plan.
Ragavan can help fix your colors, but I don’t want to play three copies. The monkey is legendary and can fall short in the Energy mirrors. There are nine one-drops in my deck and Ragavan is easily the weakest. Two Thoughtseize and a Ragavan are the easy cuts against Energy; the fourth card becomes tougher to trim.
Goblin Bombardment has diminishing returns and Orcish Bowmasters provide enough two-drops to play just a single copy. Remember you can sacrifice your amassed Zombie token ahead of casting another bowmaster and get another creature to throw. Mardu Energy is much better at using the lone Bombardment.
Lightning Bolt isn’t required as Orcish Bowmasters and Phlage kill smaller creatures while providing threats. The stock Boros deck plays so much removal it can lead to anemic draws. Mardu can create a critical mass of creatures more easily.
The One Ring is still the best top end for Mardu Energy despite having black for “grindy” options like Chthonian Nightmare and Ob Nixilis. Thoughtseize and shock lands deal extra damage, but Phlage and Guide of Souls gain enough life to keep the Ring going. Once the Ring has three counters it’s highly likely to have found enough ways to keep the burden counters from being too big of a liability. I would prefer to cast my early creatures ahead of Thoughtseize in many situations making it less important to fetch and shock into a black card on the first turn.
A third color makes slight changes to the manabase. I only liked the third Plains with Blood Moon in the deck making it an easy cut. A third Aether Hub also isn’t a loss because it can lead to awkward draws even in Boros. A light black splash means I can keep the second Arena of Glory which plays well with not only Phlage, but Jegantha. The elk companion can also fix colors if Blood Moon is cast. I’m most likely to fetch Rakdos duals to complement basic Plains as well as providing a Mountain for topdecked Arena of Glory.
Stock Boros plays three or four Sacred Foundry and Mardu can have similar amounts of shock lands. I play three surveil lands by choice, but can cut down to two. It’s possible Boros can fit a third Elegant Parlor because I’m always happy to have the library manipulation as an option with fetch lands. Each surveil is more likely to find a mid game Phlage to close the game.
Tap lands are less of a liability in the new stock Boros list as well as Mardu because there are four Phlage and three Rings that have mana values above two. This makes Amped Raptor stronger without extra energy and ensures surveil lands don’t disrupt the curve as often. Bowmasters also ensure there are more two-drops to cast ahead of Amped Raptor without energy.
Deafening Silence in the sideboard fights Storm with a single mana. Spells that cost one mana are at a premium when Orcish Bowmasters, Ajani, and Amped Raptor are so generically powerful in the two-drop slot. I can play more narrow sideboard cards when the maindeck spells are so generically powerful.
Chained to the Rocks is preferred to Fatal Push to fight Murktide Regent, but watch out for Harbinger of the Seas making your dual land an Island. The basic Mountain becomes more relevant in post board games. I don’t want to overload on removal in the sideboard because Static Prison and Galvanic Discharge cover many of the bases.
I don’t like black removal as it should line up well against Boros Energy that may still be playing Blood Moon. Cut down to just four Bowmaster for black after sideboard to minimize Blood Moon damage.
Boros and Mardu Energy are both very powerful decks, but I firmly champion the black splash. I want to win as many matches as possible which entails having a disruptive game plan against pilots looking to crush Energy with alternative strategies.
Good luck in the remaining RCQs and locals!