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Drafting ThundersongBy Peter V on November 22nd, 2005 · Filed in Limited · 33 CommentsIntroduction: Thunderstruck It all began with one horrible draft. I was drafting Boros, but after two packs I simply had none of the staple cards of the deck. No Skyknights, no Arcs, no Fangtails, and only a single Thundersong Trumpeter. And definitely nothing as crazy as a good uncommon. What I had was bunch of filler cards: Sell-Sword Brutes, Goblin Spelunkers, Sparkmage Apprentices, War-Torch Goblins, Rally the Righteous,... Not bad cards, but simply nothing game-winning. Luckily, the third pack provided at least something nice with a couple more Trumpeters, but still I felt the draft hadn't gone good at all. The deck overperformed. It showed an odd tendency to win games on turn five or six. I started analyzing why this deck had done so well, while it seemed for the most part made up of very mediocre cards (which is not meant insulting to fans of Viashino Slasher). It turned out the strength of the deck was the combination of loads of cheap creatures (as I hadn't found removal all draft), Thundersong Trumpeter and Rally the Righteous. And so I started willingly drafting this strange archetype. Some of you are probably thinking: Strange archetype? Isn't that just a normal Boros deck? After all, it has the same goal: win very quickly. The answer is no. Of course the fact that it uses Red and White cards means it'll overlap with a typical Boros deck. But the pick order is totally different. The most notable difference is that you draft Thundersong Trumpeter over anything. And I mean anything. The deck: Thundersong Always pick this. 1) As many Thundersong Trumpeters as come to you in the draft. The nice thing is they can come around quite late, as there's typically only one other Boros drafter at the table, and even then there are some cards he will take over it. 2) At least two, and up to four(!) Rally the Righteous. You don't really need to pick them too high as they tend to table. 3) Aside from the Rallys you only want about three spells. Also, in this deck you play only 16 lands (and - I hope this didn't really need to be said - never play a Signet or other such nonsense). The spells should preferably be really good (Galvanic Arc or Lightning Helix good). A single Boros Fury-Shield is usually nice too but I personally don't like to run more than one. I also don't want Fiery Conclusion in the deck - every creature counts. 4) This obviously makes a lot of room for creatures. The bulk of your deck should be two-mana creatures. Veteran Armorer is clearly the best (after our herald, of course), next is Sell-Sword Brute, Sparkmage Apprentice, Courier Hawk and Viashino Slasher. The last two I prefer to leave out unless I'm desperate for 2-drops. 5) Try to get a few one-mana creatures too, but not too many. Three or four will do. The best one-drop is by far the uncommon Frenzied Goblin cause he's like an extra Trumpeter. Next is War-Torch Goblin, and if nothing better comes around, even Boros Recruit will do as a good target for Rally the Righteous. 6) You want only a few three- and four-mana creatures, and nothing that costs more than that really. Skyknight Legionnaire, Nightguard Patrol and Viashino Fangtail will always make the deck, the rest can act as filler. Let's get to a draft and see what all this means in practice! The draft I'm using the same "spoiler tag" format bateleur used earlier cause it's more fun to read drafts that way, in my opinion. If you don't want to make your own picks, that's fine too. I won't check it. Promise. Pack 1 (RA): Pick 1: Golgari Thug Seed Spark Carrion Howler Seeds of Strength Convolute Wojek Siren Woodwraith Strangler Muddle the Mixture War-Torch Goblin Sparkmage Apprentice Galvanic Arc Transluminant Rally the Righteous Fiery Conclusion
Spoiler:
Pick 2: Belltower Sphinx Wojek Embermage Congregation at Dawn Gate Hound Compulsive Research Stone-Seeder Hierophant Dogpile Conclave's Blessing Selesnya Signet Scatter the Seeds Boros Signet Elves of Deep Shadow Barbarian Riftcutter
Spoiler:
Pick 3: Devouring Light Lurking Informant Seismic Spike Consult the Necrosages Civic Wayfinder Benevolent Ancestor Rally the Righteous Transluminant Coalhauler Swine Shred Memory Stone-Seeder Hierophant Terraformer
Spoiler:
Pick 4: Frenzied Goblin Reroute Stoneshaker Shaman Benevolent Ancestor Stone-Seeder Hierophant Thundersong Trumpeter Screeching Griffin Nightguard Patrol Quickchange Rain of Embers Golgari Signet
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Pick 5: Bloodbond March Psychic Drain Spectral Searchlight Incite Hysteria Grayscaled Gharial Viashino Slasher Barbarian Riftcutter Surge of Zeal Leave No Trace Consult the Necrosages Muddle the Mixture
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Pick 6: Boros Swiftblade Terraformer Quickchange Perplex Incite Hysteria Surveilling Sprite Veteran Armorer Fiery Conclusion Strands of Undeath Mortipede
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Pick 7: Grozoth Ethereal Usher Convolute Incite Hysteria Coalhauler Swine Thundersong Trumpeter Woodwraith Strangler Surveilling Sprite Gaze of the Gorgon
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Pick 8: Selesnya Sagittars Root-Kin Ally Dark Heart of the Wood Necromantic Thirst Convolute Clinging Darkness Fists of Ironwood Strands of Undeath
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Pick 9: Seed Spark Wojek Siren Woodwraith Strangler Muddle the Mixture Sparkmage Apprentice Rally the Righteous Fiery Conclusion
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Pick 10: Gate Hound Stone-Seeder Hierophant Dogpile Conclave's Blessing Selesnya Signet Barbarian Riftcutter
Spoiler:
Pick 11: Flash Conscription Seismic Spike Coalhauler Swine Stone-Seeder Hierophant Terraformer
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Pick 12: Frenzied Goblin Stoneshaker Shaman Stone-Seeder Hierophant Quickchange
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Pick 13: Grayscaled Gharial Barbarian Riftcutter Surge of Zeal Pick 14: Quickchange Perplex Pick 15: Grozoth
Spoiler:
Pack 2 (RA): Pick 1: Voyager Staff Clutch of the Undercity Watchwolf Surge of Zeal Veteran Armorer Sell-Sword Brute Necromantic Thirst Dryad's Caress Caregiver Clinging Darkness Thundersong Trumpeter Perplex Gaze of the Gorgon Compulsive Research
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Pick 2: Suppression Field Darkblast Pollenbright Wings Seeds of Strength Barbarian Riftcutter Golgari Rot Farm Compulsive Research Drift of Phantasms Courier Hawk Torpid Moloch Roofstalker Wight Rally the Righteous Stone-Seeder Hierophant
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Pick 3: Vindictive Mob Lightning Helix Boros Recruit Selesnya Signet Dizzy Spell Gaze of the Gorgon Perplex Thundersong Trumpeter Seismic Spike Ordruun Commando Thoughtpicker Witch Centaur Safeguard
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Pick 4: Selesnya Sagittars Divebomber Griffin Incite Hysteria Smash Vedalken Dismisser Sundering Vitae Bramble Elemental Quickchange Leave No Trace Induce Paranoia Roofstalker Wight
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Pick 5: Sisters of Stone Death Ivy Dancer Golgari Signet Conclave's Blessing Roofstalker Wight Brainspoil Votary of the Conclave Fiery Conclusion Drift of Phantasms Quickchange Shred Memory
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Pick 6: Master Warcraft Flow of Ideas Dimir Machinations Wojek Apothecary Rally the Righteous Stone-Seeder Hierophant Transluminant Perplex Convolute Elvish Skysweeper
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Pick 7: Infuriate Rolling Spoil Goblin Spelunkers Transluminant Scatter the Seeds Leave No Trace Golgari Brownscale Centaur Safeguard Strands of Undeath
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Pick 8: Warp World Frenzied Goblin Flame-kin Zealot Woodwraith Strangler Viashino Slasher Sell-Sword Brute Dizzy Spell Smash
Spoiler:
Pick 9: Bloodbond March Voyager Staff Clutch of the Undercity Surge of Zeal Necromantic Thirst Dryad's Caress Perplex Pick 10: Searing Meditation Suppression Field Golgari Rot Farm Drift of Phantasms Torpid Moloch Stone-Seeder Hierophant Pick 11: Boros Recruit Dizzy Spell Gaze of the Gorgon Perplex Ordruun Commando Pick 12: Mnemonic Nexus Incite Hysteria Smash Quickchange Pick 13: Conclave's Blessing Quickchange Shred Memory Pick 14: Flow of Ideas Stone-Seeder Hierophant Pick 15: Rolling Spoil
Spoiler:
Pack 3 (RA): Pick 1: Devouring Light Remand Golgari Thug Fists of Ironwood Muddle the Mixture Vedalken Dismisser Skyknight Legionnaire Votary of the Conclave Boros Garrison Woodwraith Strangler Rain of Embers Tattered Drake Goblin Spelunkers Shambling Shell
Spoiler:
Pick 2: Sunhome, Fortress of the Legion Frenzied Goblin Boros Fury-Shield Smash Veteran Armorer Dromad Purebred Woodwraith Strangler Farseek Guardian of Vitu-Ghazi Consult the Necrosages Tattered Drake Lurking Informant Zephyr Spirit
Spoiler:
Pick 3: Indentured Oaf Vitu-Ghazi, the City-Tree Mortipede Fists of Ironwood Dimir Aqueduct Selesnya Signet Stinkweed Imp Dimir Infiltrator Seismic Spike Drake Familiar Courier Hawk Surge of Zeal
Spoiler:
Pick 4: Overwhelm Congregation at Dawn Gaze of the Gorgon Terrarion Caregiver Dizzy Spell Infectious Host Lurking Informant Sewerdreg Surge of Zeal Clinging Darkness
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Pick 5: Eye of the Storm Undercity Shade Cleansing Beam Boros Fury-Shield Leave No Trace Screeching Griffin Dimir House Guard Dogpile Shambling Shell Dimir Signet Dimir Infiltrator
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Pick 6: Dimir Machinations Twisted Justice Boros Garrison Sell-Sword Brute Greater Mossdog Caregiver Roofstalker Wight War-Torch Goblin Goblin Spelunkers Boros Fury-Shield
Spoiler:
Pick 7: Golgari Germination Wojek Embermage Screeching Griffin Smash Roofstalker Wight Sadistic Augermage Golgari Rot Farm Zephyr Spirit Thoughtpicker Witch
Spoiler:
Pick 8: Bloodbond March Suppression Field Golgari Thug Fiery Conclusion Sell-Sword Brute Goblin Spelunkers Wojek Siren Thoughtpicker Witch
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Pick 9: Remand Golgari Thug Muddle the Mixture Boros Garrison Woodwraith Strangler Rain of Embers Goblin Spelunkers
Spoiler:
Pick 10: Frenzied Goblin Boros Fury-Shield Dromad Purebred Woodwraith Strangler Consult the Necrosages Zephyr Spirit
Spoiler:
Pick 11: Excruciator Dimir Aqueduct Seismic Spike Courier Hawk Surge of Zeal Pick 12: Hunted Horror Dizzy Spell Infectious Host Surge of Zeal Pick 13: Eye of the Storm Undercity Shade Leave No Trace Pick 14: Goblin Spelunkers Boros Fury-Shield Pick 15: Zephyr Spirit
Spoiler:
The deck
Conclusion: The Song of Thunder I can't leave you without sharing my funniest victory ever with a Thundersong deck. My opponent, clearly a true fan of this deck idea, played a turn three Hunted Phantasm. Did he even realize those tokens are RED?? Needless to say, on my turn, I hit him for 28. Sharing the Song Finally, a disclaimer. I'm definitely not perfect at drafting this archetype (or at drafting at all). During the above draft, I already pointed out some mistakes, and I'm sure there are more. I've drafted a lot to be able to write this, but then again I can't force this deck every time, and besides, the play level where I draft is low. Luckily, Lesurgo managed to solve both problems by trying out this archetype at a higher level. I'll let him explain: I go to a casual unsanctioned draft on Tuesdays with a lot of players that have done well at Nationals and other large events, and while the list is very long of their accomplishments, I'm sure that the fact that Alan Corner, the Hall of Fame inductee, plays there on a regular basis would probably grab your attention. Anyways, my goal was to draft this archtype, so I did. It looked like a pile and I bent your rules a little bit, but it worked out quite well, going 6-1. Obviously the number of some of the cards would lead to that conclusion (4 Viashino Fangtails are pretty good, I hear) but even without those the deck still seemed pretty crazy. I only ended up with 3 Trumpeters but I also had 3 Frenzied Goblins so it all worked out. Here is what I drafted:
As you see, he went for a slightly higher mana curve, because his "expensive" cards were just bombs. But again, the core of the deck is made of the six "Trumpeters". I'd say, give this a try and let me know how it went! What are your own tweaks to this deck type? Agree or disagree about certain cards for this deck? Experiment away - just stay true to the idea of the deck: lots of little guys and Rally for the win. -Tahn Thanks to Lesurgo for trying this out so quickly, at a higher level than where I get to play. Thanks to iloveatogs for great art and banner. Thanks to Binary for editing. By Peter V on November 22nd, 2005 · Filed in Limited · 33 Comments |
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