The past 2 weekends we had a ton of competitive Pauper gameplay with Sylvan Factory Games hosting a 1K last weekend (see article here: as well as RIW’s Pauper 1K this past weekend! In this article, I want to go over the metagame from Sylvan and the metagame from RIW to look at what to expect going back into routine weekly events. https://riwhobbies.com/sylvan-factory-1k-pauper-meta-breakdown-and-analysis/)
A quick recap of the Sylvan event:
-39 players
-21 unique archetypes in the event
-Dimir Terror was the most played deck
-7 unique archetypes in top 8
-Won by Caw Gates
After looking at these snippets of info going into the RIW 1K I was thinking a few things. First, Caw Gates numbers may increase due to it winning the previous weekend. Second, although Red and Dimir Terror had a weak conversion you can always expect those 2 decks to be at any Pauper event in high numbers. Lastly, as for deck choice going into the event I was still very high on Gruul Ponza.
Let check on how we did:
Metagame Breakdown (43 Players)
|
Archetype |
# of Pilots |
Metagame % |
|
Caw Gates |
6 |
14% |
|
Kuldotha Red |
4 |
9% |
|
Dimir Terror |
4 |
9% |
|
Golgari Gardens |
3 |
7% |
|
Poison Storm |
3 |
7% |
|
Gruul Ponza |
2 |
5% |
|
Rakdos Madness |
2 |
5% |
|
Jeskai Ephemrate |
2 |
5% |
|
Dredge |
2 |
5% |
|
Moggwarts |
2 |
5% |
|
Black Burn |
1 |
2% |
|
Izzet Burn |
1 |
2% |
|
Izzet Terror |
1 |
2% |
|
Mono U Faeries |
1 |
2% |
|
Orzhov Gates |
1 |
2% |
|
Red Tron |
1 |
2% |
|
Altar Tron |
1 |
2% |
|
Dimir Faeries |
1 |
2% |
|
Boros Synth |
1 |
2% |
|
Grixis Affinity |
1 |
2% |
|
Rakdos Reanimator |
1 |
2% |
|
Cycle Storm |
1 |
2% |
|
Turbo Fog |
1 |
2% |
As for the top 8:
|
Top 8 Results After Elimination Rounds |
||
|
1st |
Jeskai Ephemerate |
Austin Graham |
|
2nd |
Moggwarts |
Jack Smith |
|
3rd |
Gruul Ponza |
Ryan Piel |
|
4th |
Caw Gates |
Sean Dunn |
|
5th |
Kuldotha Red |
Gage |
|
6th |
Dimir Terror |
Kyle Boggemes |
|
7th |
Orzhov Gates |
Jason Golembiewski |
|
8th |
Cycle Storm |
Gary Smith |
Quick overview of RIW’s Pauper 1K:
-43 players
-23 unique archetypes
-Caw Gates was the most played deck
-8 unique archetypes in top 8
-Top 4 split (Gruul Ponza, Jeskai Ephemrate, Moggwarts & Caw Gates)
Hmmm, pretty good read overall on my part. Caw Gates was the most played deck at 6 pilots even putting 1 into the top 8. Dimir Terror and Red showing up tied as the second most played decks.
Also Gruul Ponza in top 8! As you can see I am not the only one who was thinking Ponza was a good choice. RIW regular Ryan Piel was going to play Mono U Terror for this event but after facing me playing Ponza the Wednesday before he made an audible to the deck. Although Ponza did not pay off for me, I was glad Ryan was able to convert the deck into a top 4.
Number of pilots mattered a bit more in this event as there were 6 decks in top 8 that had multiple pilots overall. Whereas the other 2 players in top 8 were the only pilots of their decks (Orzhov Gates & Cycle Storm). I want to highlight these 2 decks a bit as they are both unique choices. First up Gary Smith on Cycle Storm (AGAIN!?).
Cycle Storm by Gary Smith:
8th Place, RIW Pauper 1K
4 Monstrous Carabid
1 Ardent Elementalist
4 Cabal Ritual
4 Dark Ritual
4 Deadly Dispute
4 Drannith Healer
4 Drannith Stinger
2 Horror of the Broken Lands
4 Imposing Vantasaur
4 Lotus Petal
1 Mystical Teachings
4 Reaping the Graves
4 Songs of the Damned
4 Street Wraith
4 Barren Moor
4 Great Furnace
4 Vault of Whispers
SIDEBOARD
3 Faithless Looting
1 Flaring Pain
4 Ingot Chewer
2 Mountain
4 Pyroblast
1 Swamp
If you read last week’s article then you may recognize the name Gary Smith. Gary is an RIW regular and also got top 8 in last weekend’s 1K event with the same deck!
Cycle Storm is a deck Gary has been testing for the last month or so tuning and taking his beatings while learning the complicated combo deck. As you can see, sticking with a deck and learning all the ins and outs can pay off for you just like it did here for Gary! This is a wise choice for a deck though because it is a complicated deck that nobody is prepared for and can steal games by going off in the early turns or you can hold onto resources and go off in the face of lethal damage in hopes to steal the game from right under your opponent’s nose.
Combo decks are strong in this format and are severely underplayed in the local area. Midrange/Control are king around these parts. That is where we will look at Jason Golembiewski on Orzhov Gates.
Orzhov Gates by Jason Golembiewski:
7th Place, RIW Pauper 1K
4 Sacred Cat
4 Thraben Inspector
2 Novice Inspector
2 Kor Skyfisher
4 Outlaw Medic
3 Guildsworn Prowler
2 Militia Buglar
3 Holy Cow
2 Guardian of the Guildpact
1 Omen of the Dead
2 Corrupted Conviction
3 Village Rites
2 Suffocating Fumes
4 Cast Down
2 Orzhov Guildgate
4 Black Dragon Gate
4 Citadel Gate
4 Basilisk Gate
2 Heap Gate
2 Swamp
4 Plains
SIDEBOARD
2 Dawnbringer Cleric
2 Standard Bearer
2 Obsidian Acolyte
2 Crimson Acolyte
3 Relic of Progenitus
2 Dispel
2 Negate
As you can see Jason had a very unique choice. Had not seen this one from him before this event so when I heard Orzhov Gates got top 8 I was surprised. Jason loves to play small value creatures that can be sacrificed for value (i.e. Guildsworn Prowler) or can accrue value (i.e. Kor Skyfisher).
Another thing to note is this list is jam packed with new cards like Outlaw Medic and Holy Cow. I love what is going on with this deck and can understand how it did well. You have some packages like Guildsworn Prowler/Village Rites, Kor Skyfisher/Omen of the Dead and the namesake Basilisk Gate/12 other Gates. You also have a sideboard built for most situations with a minor blue splash. I definitely see myself trying this one out in the future and will be bugging Jason for more info this week.
As for the weekly events we will likely see people relax and go back to playing whatever they normally play or try something new. I know for me after seeing the success of Caw Gates I will be looking to learn the deck to add to my arsenal.
