Creatures (21)
Spells (15)
Sideboard
While this deck is billed as a Bant Aggro list it is in essence a White Weenie variant. With its mana base such as it is sporting eight Scry lands there is no one drop in the deck instead looking to open with a Scry of the bat. The two drops then power the deck out of the gate with Voice of Resurgence, Precinct Captain and Fleecemane Lion to start laying the beats. Then we have the popular newcomer Brimaz, King of Oreskos and Loxodon Smiter next at three on the curve. Also filling at three mana there is the decks utility removal Detention Sphere and the creature buff Spear Of Heliod. All of that serves to build the devotion count for the two gods which fill the four drop slot with Heliod, God of the Sun able to clutter the board while granting Vigilance to all your creatures and Ephara, God of the Polis which serves as the decks primary draw engine. In true White Weenie form this deck uses Brave the Elements as both a way to save it’s creatures from targeted removal and as an enabler for Alpha Strike wins. Finally we have utility from Selesnya Charm which is able to either push a creature over the top, exile a big nuisance creature including a god or just add an extra body to the board to keep the pressure on. All in all a powerful and exciting deck sure to hold a spot in the meta.
Orzhov Human – White Weenie
Ryo Nakada
1st place GP Shizuoka 2013
Lands (22)
Creatures (29)
Other Spells (9)
Sideboard
Ryo Nakada piloted this Orzhov Human list to take down the final Grand Prix of the year in Shizuoka. The first thing we notice about the deck is that it is basically a White Weenie deck with a splash color similar to the Boros ‘white weenie’ that Ben Lundquist used to win SCG L.A. in November. This time we see a black splash instead of red for Xathrid Necromancer and Orzhov Charm in the main as well as a plethora of answers in the sideboard.
Generally White Weenie comes out of the gates fast, but then is weak to sweepers like Supreme Verdict and Mizzium Mortars. Enter Xathrid Necromancer which can be dropped on turn 3 making your opponents sweepers awkward to use by leaving an army of 2/2 Zombies behind to deal with. The Orzhov Charm in the main is used as cheap instant removal to clear the path for your team or can also be used to bring back a 1-drop in your graveyard onto the battlefield. The black becomes more then a splash once you look into the sideboard, with all black except for a singleton Pithing Needle. Bringing in Dark Betrayal against the strong and popular Mono-Black Devotion decks. A fourth Xathrid Necromancer to use against sweepers from UW and Esper control decks. Profit // Loss against the mirror and other popular ‘White Weenie” versions and probably also good against burn decks like Boros Burn. I imagine the Sin Collectors are used to get your opponents removal and sweepers. The Thoughtseize and Pithing Needle is the decks only answers to planeswalkers.
This version of White Weenie curves out almost like its predecessor with the exception of a turn 3 Xathrid Necromancer instead of Ajani, Caller of the Pride or Frontline Medic. Orzhov Humans starts off with a turn 1 Boros Elite, Dryad Militant or Soldier of the Pantheon followed on turn 2 with a Daring Skyjek, a Precinct Captain or an Imposing Sovereign and finally comes turn 3 with a Banisher Priest to clear the path for more beats or Xathrid Necromancer to “protect the team”. Spear of Heliod helps speed your clock by pumping your team and can act as removal against big threats. And in classic White Weenie fashion Brave the Elements protects your team against targeted spells or helps push through an alpha strike for the win.
W/R Aggro (White Weenie)
Ben Lundquist
1st Place at StarCityGames Standard Open on 11/3/2013
Lands (22)
Creatures (26)
Planeswalkers (3)
Other spells (9)
Sideboard (15)
A couple weeks ago I introduced a Boros”White weenie” deck that made top 8 at Grand Prix Louisville piloted by Justin Herrell. This weekend Ben Lundquist piloted a Boros deck similar to this white weenie strategy and took down the standard SCG Open in L.A.
Ben’s version uses Boros Elite and Frontline Medic with the Battalion abilities which can get activated early on thanks to Mutavault. Brave the Elements is very powerful as a win condition or to protect against removal. Boros Charm seems better versus control, to protect against sweepers or to hit 4 points to a Planeswalker like a Jace, Architect of Thought which will nerf you’re already small creatures. Ajani, Caller of the Pride in the main instead of the sideboard looks interesting as well, reminds me of Elspeth, Knight-Erant in some of the old White Weenie decks. Another new bear that we didn’t see in the old list is Azorius Arrester in the main instead of Banisher Priest which are now in the sideboard. Once you board in those Priest against Aggro it gives you good tempo. I imagine the Fiendslayer Paladin are great against Mono red and Mono Black which are prominent in this meta.
Last big obvious change is the extra red spells in the sideboard instead of just Boros Charm in the main. Mizzium Mortars and Warleader’s Helix against aggro and Burning Earth probably against control like Sphinx’s revelation strategies.
Orzhov Midrange
David Doberne
2nd Place at StarCityGames Standard Open on 10/20/2013
Main Deck
60 cards
25 lands
18 creatures
16 other spells
Sideboard
15 sideboard cards
Boros “White Weenie”
Justin Herrell
Grand Prix Louisville – Top 16 Theros Standard
Main Deck
60 cards
23 lands
26 creatures
11 other spells
Sideboard
15 sideboard cards
This interesting Boros deck popped at GP Louisville this weekend, which is more like a white weenie with a splash of red for the four of the powerful Boros Charm. It has a low curve with powerful one-drops and bears that all have good abilities. Small cost for a low budget with Mutavault being the highest value which is a great investment since there played in all the formats (At this point everyone should have 4 in there collection). The Imposing Sovereign is a good tempo because your opponents have to wait 1 turn before they can effectively block with creatures they just summoned. The Precinct Captain helps your army grow. Spear of Heliod as your Glorious anthem and removal as an added bonus. Banisher Priest as removal is going to come as a surprise for most opponents and then you get to bash him with it too. The splash for Boros charm also makes total sense with so many sweepers like supreme verdict, Mizzium Mortars and Anger of the gods in this meta. The other two options are possible finishers or even combat tricks if you really need it. The Brave the Elements is also a good finisher when you want to go all out especially against Mono-Blue, Mono-Black and Mono-Red which are rampant in this meta and Mono-Green and the mirror while were at it too! This deck earns an honorable mention for getting Justin Herrell into the Top 16 of Grand Prix Louisville. Its fast and it looks really fun with all its cool useful small drops.
Orzhov Midrange
Paul Rietzl
Top 8 Pro Tour Theros – Standard
Main Deck
60 cards
26 lands
18 creatures
15 other spells
1 planeswalker
Sideboard
15 sideboard cards