Dies to Removal

Let me know how Flamespeaker tests for you all.

I only haven't tried it on Modo because I haven't built up the tickets. That said, it tends to line up poorly vs Carytid and Jace so I wouldn't consider it vs monsters and it's potentially tricky against control although it's entirely possible I was playing it incorrectly.

I don't get Flamespeaker, but I'm willing to try it.

I don't get Flamespeaker, but I'm willing to try it.

When I was trying it, I was using it as something to mess with aggro and mono blue. The argument last time is we didn't really need help in those matchups so it was a waste. There was also some comment about it being walled but I couldn't hear it very well over the sound of me beating my head against a wall.

Against control, it's draw 2 but only if you can keep Jace off the table. I wasn't super happy with it in that matchup but I'm notoriously awful playing against control so YMMV.

It's bad vs monsters but I believe that was already stated.

I didn't get a chance to test it on burn. I would be ok slamming it down turn 3 and making them deal with it but late game it would
probably be hard to cast. I'm not worried about tapping out on my turn if the cards are free.

I actually don't hate the 1x Mizzium Mortars.

Except when you draw it + 3 chains against control.

Not a fan of Wear // Tear right now. I think Glare of Heresy is generally better for me. Tear can hit Courser, but Glare can hit Elspeth and Fiendslayer Paladin.

Zem pointed at it in a recent comment... isn't Flamespeaker just a better "topdeck-it-when-i'm-out-of-gas" kind of card, even easier to cast than Brimaz? He seems good if both players' resources have been drained, but I can't test em cause, well, i don't own any *sadface*

you don't have to play either

you don't have to play either

Hater.

Although I am having a Great Revel moment over here. At least MDU is sticking to his position.

Boros Reckoner is still terrible.

Haven't found a matchup where I really like Flamespeaker yet... Not great VS control or aggro.

I've been thinking about Flamespeaker against Monoblack, and I think the question is, when we board in Speaker+Chandra, is our deck threat-dense enough to overload Monoblack's removal suite in post-boarded games?

I don't know how Bx decks sideboard so I don't know how much removal they'll have in their deck on average. Our deck will have 9 targets post-board if we run 2x Chandra and 3x Flamespeaker, so if someone who does know how Bx decks sideboard has any idea how much spot removal they would have post-board, that would be some really helpful information.

Except when you draw it + 3 chains against control.

The way I'm thinking about it, is it actually that much worse than drawing 2 chains 2 searing blood?

I know that searing blood is still much better than mortars and chains in the matchup, but there will still be a lot of games when SB is just as dead as a removal spell, and the tradeoff is much better removal against the decks you want it against.

Yes.

Searing blood is still damage when they activate mutavault or Elspeth.

Flamespeaker is ok vs aggro, but feels like win more.

Flamespeaker is ok vs aggro, but feels like win more.

You feel that if you're losing, this card doesn't turn it around? When I played it against aggro, it caused the game to stabilize instantly if they didn't immediately remove it.

Have you tried it against blue devotion yet?

Haven't hit a mono u yet.

I know dies to removal is a bad argument, but yeah, dies to removal.

After a few hours of testing:

[deck]Lands (23)
8 Mountain
4 Sacred Foundry
4 Temple of Triumph
4 Mutavault
2 Boros Guildgate
1 Mana Confluence

Creatures (8)
4 Chandra's Phoenix
4 Young Pyromancer

Spells (29)
4 Boros Charm
4 Lightning Strike
4 Magma Jet
4 Shock
4 Skullcrack
4 Warleader's Helix
2 Searing Blood
3 Chained to the Rocks

Sideboard 15
3 Keening Apparition
4 Toil // Trouble
3 Mizzium Mortars
1 Chained to the Rocks
2 Chandra, Pyromaster
2 Glare of Heresy[/deck]

Still not 100% on Keening Apparition.

I think I might give Spark Trooper another go.

Think this guy lurks?:

http://mtgo-stats.com/decks/110598

I think he reads r/spikes

Yeah, that's the build that spikes was bouncing around a few days ago.

Are there any cards you do like Keith?

I 3-1ed the daily today with the shouta list. I liked it somewhat. I feel that flamespeaker is okay. I am just not sure how to use him well. The reckoners seemed borderline. I missed mizzium mortars badly. Lost to blood baron x 2 against baleful playing junk constellation. I am still on board with YP maindeck over eidolon though. I could see myself ditching a reprisal in favor of another mizzium mortar.

I'm really interested in more details in flamespeaker.

- How did you use him?
- What matchups did you bring him in against?
- Did you feel he was weak in any of the matchups you brought him in?
- Are there any matchups you didn't board him in and you think you should have?

There is no obligation to submit to this interrogation, I just really want to play this card.

2-1 8-man local event today with Yasooka list.

Round 1 2-0 MonoU Devotion. Game 1 he kept a loose hand and had no real action before I killed him.
Boarding: -4 Boros Charm -3 Skullcrack +3 Prophetic Flamespeaker +2 Banishing Light +2 Chandra, Pyromaster
Game 2 he played 2 Cloudfin Raptors, Thassa, Master of Waves, Tidebinder Mage, Master of Waves, Frostburn Weird. I Chained his 2 Masters, his Thassa and his Tidebinder. Flamespeaker was nuts (drew 4 cards in two combat steps) and he had to tap it down with Tidebinder. The 1x Mortars wiped his board once, I let him get to 5 Devo to Chain the Thassa, and he had to use Thassa to get rid of Chandra. Overall the post-sideboard game went very, very well and according to plan.

Round 2: 1-2 vs UW Control
Game 1 went as normal for this type of matchup.
Boarding: -4 Chained to the Rocks -4 Shock -1 Mizzium Mortars +3 Prophetic Flamespeaker +2 Banishing Light +2 Chandra +2 Wear//
Tear
Game 2 his Jace stonewalled my Flamespeaker, and I never drew a Skullcrack to counter his 3 Sphinx's Revelations. He had all of the answers and I had no real pressure.
Game 3 he went T2 Nyx-Fleece Ram T3 Nyx-Fleece Ram T4 Blind Obedience and Extorted himself back up to 20 life. I went Flamespeaker, used it + Helix to kill his first Ram, he Sphered it, I played a few more creatures that all got exiled, drew ten lands in a row and lost.
Overall, I liked Eidolon much more vs control than Flamespeaker, but we kind of have to board this way? That or we keep in Shocks...

Round 3 2-0 Jund Monsters
Game 1 he killed himself with an untapped Blood Crypt at 2 life on turn 7 when I was about to kill him. I love having 4 Chains maindeck and a Mortars.
Boarding: -2 Boros Charm -2 Skullcrack -4 Shock (I don't think he ran Mystics) +4 Boros Reckoner +2 Reprisal +2 Banishing Light
Game 2 was a long contest that I won because I drew 3(!!) Mutavaults and was able to put enough pressure to race him despite him
having 2 Demons, a Vraska(that killed a Chain) and 2 Mistcutter Hydras.

Mistcutter Hydra has been causing me trouble as of late.

Are there any cards you do like Keith?

I'm testing a bunch of different sideboard cards, and most of them seem rather meh. Glare of Heresy has been very good for me.

Maybe my expectations are just too high.

Still looking for some kind of edge vs UW.

Still looking for some kind of edge vs UW.

I've been frustrated lately by the UW matchup too, between Rams, Elixer, etc. ugh.

If that was it, I think wear // tear would probably be good. I'm dealing with Fiendslayer Paladins locally too.

Flamespeaker is not your answer to UW.

Yeah, I tried boarding it vs control. It didn't help. Just got Azorious Charm'd and put me too far behind to catch up.

I don't like Chandra against Mono U very much.

And keeping in all 4 Helix against UW while cutting all Shocj...I shouldn't need to explain why that's not a good idea.

you want to beat uw, you need to play more banishing light and bring in chandra, then do nothing else but cast burn spells eot and phoenix

Easier said than done Kait. The UW players I run into are still using Fiendslayer Paladin, they seem to be very lucky, and it's very probable that they're just better than me.

well no uw player should be using fiendslayer paladin so there is no advice to give you except stop playing with such niche metagamers

or don't play a deck that auto loses to fiendslayer paladins