Rakdos Midrange in Pioneer *RCQ Top 8 Split*
Last weekend I split the top 8 of the RIW Hobbies RCQ with Rakdos Midrange in Pioneer. The top 8 agreed to redistribute the store credit and I don’t want to go to the Regional Championship so I conceded my round. When life settles down I can think about traveling to big events.
Today I’m going to cover the recent metagame changes and how it influences my card choices. Rakdos Midrange is still a great deck, but we need to make some updates.
My son, Milo, was born three months ago and I haven’t had a chance to play much Pioneer. I was surprised to finish in first place after swiss because dads with newborns don’t get much sleep. Luckily Rakdos doesn’t have too many decisions each turn and I was confident in my play.
A lot has changed in the Pioneer metagame in the last three months. Here are some recent developments I needed to consider:
Mono Green Devotion has risen in popularity spearheaded by Bobby Fortanely. I spent some time watching his Pioneer leagues as he is the current expert on the archetype. Even if I didn’t play Devotion it’s important to learn how the best deck functions.
I was watching what types of decks gave Green trouble as I would expect them to rise in popularity as well.
4 Elvish Mystic
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Old-Growth Troll
4 Cavalier of Thorns
1 Cityscape Leveler
2 Polukranos Reborn
4 Storm the Festival
4 Wolfwillow Haven
4 Oath of Nissa
4 Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner
4 Karn, the Great Creator
4 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
2 Lair of the Hydra
13 Forest
2 Boseiju, Who Endures
1 Darksteel Citadel
1 Transmogrifying Wand
1 The Chain Veil
1 Skysovereign, Consul Flagship
1 Tormod’s Crypt
1 Haywire Mite
1 Pestilent Cauldron
1 The Stone Brain
1 Esika’s Chariot
1 Pithing Needle
1 Damping Sphere
1 The Mightstone and Weakstone
1 Woodcaller Automaton
1 The Filigree Sylex
1 Cityscape Leveler
Azorius Spirits has seen an uptick since blue tempo decks have historically fared well against Green Devotion.
In practice the addition of Polukranos Reborn improved the matchup as a ⅘ with reach is quite the roadblock. If I was playing Green Devotion I would be more afraid of Mono Blue Spirits.
4 Adarkar Wastes
2 Mutavault
4 Seachrome Coast
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Rattlechains
4 Mausoleum Wanderer
4 Spell Queller
4 Curious Obsession
4 Supreme Phantom
4 Spectral Sailor
2 Lofty Denial
3 Shacklegeist
4 Hengegate Pathway
1 Katilda, Dawnhart Martyr
4 Geistlight Snare
1 Otawara, Soaring City
2 Slip Out the Back
2 Invasion of Gobakhan
3 Island
1 Declaration in Stone
2 Skyclave Apparition
4 Portable Hole
2 Katilda, Dawnhart Martyr
4 Wedding Announcement
1 Destroy Evil
1 Tocasia’s Welcome
Mono White Humans can also match up well against Mono Green Devotion.
Brave the Elements and Ossification can both prove to be scary spells. Humans was popular in the past and there was a reason Mono Green went into hiding.
I can justify sticking with Rakdos Midrange because the aggressive decks that can compete with Mono Green are reasonable matchups.
2 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
4 Mutavault
2 Brave the Elements
1 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
1 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
1 Kytheon, Hero of Akros
4 Thalia’s Lieutenant
4 Dauntless Bodyguard
2 Castle Ardenvale
4 Brutal Cathar
4 Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
4 Hopeful Initiate
14 Plains
2 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
4 Recruitment Officer
3 Ossification
4 Coppercoat Vanguard
Sideboard
2 Rest in Peace
2 Reidane, God of the Worthy
4 Portable Hole
4 Wedding Announcement
2 Destroy Evil
1 Knight-Errant of Eos
Rakdos Sacrifice is more popular than ever. Rakdos Midrange has fallen in popularity while Sacrifice has largely taken its place as the Fable deck of choice.
Make no mistake, Rakdos Midrange is still a contender as the metagame is constantly evolving.
The play style is different despite the core of the deck consisting of the strongest Rakdos cards in the format. Sacrifice is strong against Rakdos Midrange due to having more card advantage engines, but loses speed. A slower, but more resilient, clock hurts your matchups against combo and big mana decks.
I built Rakdos Sacrifice in Explorer on Arena because all of the cards are on the platform and I don’t care for the play style. There isn’t enough time for me to chase the latest trends. Less is more. Stick to what you know.
Companion
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring
Deck
4 Thoughtseize
4 Blightstep Pathway
2 Swamp
4 Bloodtithe Harvester
3 Cauldron Familiar
3 Claim the Firstborn
4 Deadly Dispute
2 Den of the Bugbear
4 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
2 Hive of the Eye Tyrant
4 Mayhem Devil
1 Mountain
4 Fatal Push
1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
1 Sulfurous Springs
4 Blood Crypt
1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Unlucky Witness
4 Witch’s Oven
2 Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger
Sideboard
2 Duress
2 Furnace Reins
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring
2 Kolaghan’s Command
2 Ob Nixilis, the Adversary
1 Noxious Grasp
2 Reckoner Bankbuster
2 The Meathook Massacre
1 Unlicensed Hearse
Azorius Control in the traditional sense is being replaced by a version featuring Lotus Field. Strict Proctor and Discontinuity mitigate Lotus Field’s drawback of sacrificing two lands to enable a burst of mana for your fourth turn. The deck trades consistency for power. Without Sylvan Scrying there are fewer ways to find Lotus Field and the deck is much weaker without the namesake land on the battlefield.
Boros Convoke and Boros Pia are two new ways to end the game quickly. Twitter quickly heralded Boros Convoke as the new Hogaak, but it’s simply another deck in the Pioneer metagame.
An important check in the format as Mono Red decks aren’t powerful enough to keep up with the rest of the field.
1 Plains
4 Sacred Foundry
4 Battlefield Forge
4 Ornithopter
4 Reckless Bushwhacker
4 Thraben Inspector
4 Inspiring Vantage
2 Shefet Dunes
2 Legion’s Landing
4 Venerated Loxodon
3 Giant Killer
3 Needleverge Pathway
3 Clarion Spirit
2 Den of the Bugbear
4 Voldaren Epicure
4 Resolute Reinforcements
4 Gleeful Demolition
4 Knight-Errant of Eos
Sideboard
3 Forge Devil
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
3 Rending Volley
1 Firemantle Mage
2 Oketra’s Monument
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring
2 Cathar Commando
7 Mountain
4 Battlefield Forge
4 Sacred Foundry
4 Chained to the Rocks
1 Lightning Strike
4 Monastery Swiftspear
3 Inspiring Vantage
4 Soul-Scar Mage
3 Bonecrusher Giant
2 Needleverge Pathway
3 Showdown of the Skalds
1 Fateful Absence
4 Play with Fire
4 Reckless Impulse
4 Kumano Faces Kakkazan
4 Pia Nalaar, Consul of Revival
4 Wrenn’s Resolve
Sideboard
1 Showdown of the Skalds
2 Rending Volley
2 Rest in Peace
2 Alpine Moon
1 Justice Strike
1 Jegantha, the Wellspring
2 Reidane, God of the Worthy
1 End the Festivities
1 Destroy Evil
2 Invasion of Gobakhan
As you can see there have been many developments in Pioneer recently. There are many more archetypes you may encounter in a Pioneer tournament, but these are just some highlights.
Pioneer is a format that rewards archetype dedication so I decided to stick with trusty Rakdos Midrange, but I needed to make some adjustments.
Here’s the list I played to a top 8 split (5-0-1 in swiss):
4 Bloodtithe Harvester
4 Bonecrusher Giant
2 Graveyard Trespasser
4 Fable of the Mirror-Breaker
1 Abrade
1 Misery’s Shadow
1 Heartless Act
1 Go for the Throat
1 Power Word Kill
4 Fatal Push
4 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
2 Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger
2 Reckoner Bankbuster
3 Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
4 Blightstep Pathway
4 Blood Crypt
4 Haunted Ridge
1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
2 Blackcleave Cliffs
3 Swamp
2 Hive of the Eye Tyrant
1 Den of the Bugbear
1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
2 Castle Locthwain
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
Sideboard
1 Reckoner Bankbuster
2 Noxious Grasp
2 Duress
1 Abrade
2 Hidetsugu Consumes All
2 Go Blank
1 Extinction Event
1 Kolaghan’s Command
2 Misery’s Shadow
1 Path of Peril
The core of the deck hasn’t changed, but the interaction got a serious facelift.
Power Word Kill used to be the default Doom Blade of choice, but with fewer vehicles in the format Go for the Throat now has room to shine. Each removal spell has a downside so I’m playing a mix of the three, including a Heartless Act. Mayhem Devil not dying to Power Word Kill is one of the key creatures that triggers the removal split.
Abrade not only kills Mayhem Devil, but also Witch’s Oven. I get a free sideboard slot by playing one in the maindeck. There’s a cost to playing a maindeck Abrade as it’s weaker in an open field.
Misery’s Shadow is a concession to Mono Green.
It has other applications against Greasefang, Sacrifice, and Phoenix, but Old-Growth Troll is the real reason.
Bobby Fortanely says he loses an above average amount of games to Rakdos Midrange due to Misery’s Shadow so I want to play up to three in the seventy-five. A common issue with post board games is you draw too many interaction spells while cutting Bonecrusher Giant, Graveyard Trespasser, and Reckoner Bankbuster.
I don’t want to play a second maindeck Shadow because there are only three removal spells for Cavalier of Thorns.
Once I add two Noxious Grasp it becomes more powerful. Green Devotion will also cut two elves in favor of grindy artifacts so Fatal Push is more likely to target Old-Growth Troll post board.
Duress isn’t so much of a metagame choice as a change in philosophy on the maindeck slot. There will always be creature decks in Pioneer where Duress is lackluster and spell-heavy decks with good targets. In the past there were five ways to kill big creatures, but that’s too many with the Noxious Grasps in the board.
Bobby Fortanely’s match data shows him not losing an above average amount of games where Extinction Event is cast. He waits for Fable’s second chapter before deploying an odd-costed midrange creature so it will exile the reflection. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat with Extinction Event in my hand and not wanted to cast it.
I’m playing one Extinction Event because I can stomach bringing it in against other creature decks. Sheoldred rarely is boarded out so for every Extinction Event played in the sideboard the mana curve is raised.
Hidetsugu Consumes All is a sweeper that’s relatively weak against Humans and Spirits, but shines against Boros swarm decks and Rakdos Sacrifice. I’m much more afraid of Sacrifice and Boros so I want to have targeted interaction. You can bring in one against Greasefang to clean up the graveyard and cat tokens from Esika’s Chariot.
Path of Peril rounds out the sweepers and I want to find room for a second copy as it shines against the opposite creature decks- Humans and Spirits. It’s also strong against Boros decks.
Since there are fewer Rakdos Midrange decks and I’m adding a Misery’s Shadow and Duress to the maindeck I no longer have room in the sideboard to take out all four Thoughtseize in the mirror. My mirror sideboard cards are Abrade, Kolaghan’s Command, and Reckoner Bankbuster. I leave in three Thoughtseize even though they aren’t perfect. Most Rakdos mirror configurations you face will do the same so we’re on even footing.
Noxious Grasp is for Mono Green Devotion as no longer playing Dreadbore leaves me weak to Kiora. It doesn’t kill Karn, but the extra turn to cast it allows you to get on the battlefield quicker to attack him. Grasp is also for Humans, UW Field, and Greasefang.
Go Blank is my graveyard exiling weapon of choice. I’ve seen Unlicensed Hearse, but Phoenix boards in Abrade and Brotherhood’s End and Greasefang plays up to four Witherbloom Command maindeck. Since those are the two graveyard decks I wouldn’t consider playing Hearse.
Go Blank also plays well with seven one-mana discard spells. Rip their hand apart early and let the Mind Rot clear out the rest. Duress and Go Blank cover a wide range of matchups so I have room to play specific hate for Green Devotion, Rakdos Sacrifice, and Boros Aggro.
I was featured in round three and four, but you can see every round in the link below:
The metagame is shifting away from decks like Enigmatic Incarnation that prey on Rakdos and toward aggressive decks that go under Mono Green. Many decks are cutting cards from their sideboard that are “for the grindy matchups.” This is the time to strike.
