KTK: PTQ Sealed Pool
November 4, 2014 1 Comment
I played in a Sealed PTQ in Seattle this weekend but didn’t do too well. Perhaps it’s how I built the pool, so I’m curious to see what others would have built. (The pool’s also posted on TappedOut, if you prefer.) Post your build in the comments and I’ll post my build in the comments later this week. This is also good practice for the PTQ this coming weekend.
Artifact
Cranial Archive
Lens of Clarity
Temur Banner
Ugin’s Nexus
White
Abzan Battle Priest
Ainok Bond-Kin
Brave the Sands
High Sentinels of Arashin
Kill Shot
Mardu Hateblade
Mardu Hordechief
Rush of Battle
2 Sage-Eye Harrier
2 Siegecraft
Suspension Field
Timely Hordemate
Venerable Lammasu
Watcher of the Roost
Blue
Cancel
Crippling Chill
Dig Through Time
Disdainful Stroke
Embodiment of Spring
Jeskai Windscout
Scaldkin
Weave Fate
Whirlwind Adept
Black
Debilitating Injury
Despise
Dutiful Return
Gurmag Swiftwing
Kheru Dreadmaw
Molting Snakeskin
Rite of the Serpent
Rotting Mastodon
Ruthless Ripper
Shambling Attendants
Sidisi’s Pet
2 Throttle
Red
2 Act of Treason
2 Ainok Tracker
Arrow Storm
2 Barrage of Boulders
Bloodfire Expert
Bring Low
Mardu Warshrieker
Monastery Swiftspear
Summit Prowler
Swift Kick
Green
Archer’s Parapet
Dragonscale Boon
Hooting Mandrills
2 Longshot Squad
Meandering Towershell
3 Savage Punch
2 Scout the Borders
Seek the Horizon
Sultai Flayer
Multicolor
Deflecting Palm
Duneblast
Efreet Weaponmaster
Mardu Charm
Ponyback Brigade
Secret Plans
2 Snowhorn Rider
Sultai Charm
Winterflame
Land
Blossoming Sands
Frontier Bivouac
Swiftwater Cliffs
Thornwood Falls
2 Wind-Scarred Crag
MTGDissected 
I built a W/G/b deck from this pool.
Creatures (13):
– 2cc: Ainok Bond-Kin, Archer’s Parapet
– 3cc: Mardu Hordechief, Watcher of the Roost
– 4cc: High Sentinels of Arashin, Abzan Battle Priest, Timely Hordemate, 2 Longshot Squad, Sultai Flayer
– 5cc: Meandering Towershell, Hooting Mandrills
– 6cc+: Venerable Lammasu
Spells (9):
– 2cc: Suspension Field, Debilitating Injury
– 3cc: Kill Shot, 2 Scout the Borders
– 4cc: Dragonscale Boon
– 5cc: 2 Throttle
– 6cc+: Duneblast
Land (18): Blossoming Sands, 7 Plains, 7 Forests, 3 Swamps
I decided to run 18 lands and 2 Scout the Borders since I had little in-color manafixing and many 4-drops. When I didn’t need the land/fixing, I hoped Scout the Borders would help me find High Sentinels of Arashin. My last cut was Seek the Horizons for an 18th land; while I don’t like Seek the Horizons, I was hoping it would help fix my mana and ensure I had enough lands to play Duneblast and Venerable Lammasu, but I decided I already had too many 4-drops. I also considered playing Mardu Hateblade, Ruthless Ripper, Shambling Attendants, and one or both of the Sage-Eye Harriers, splashing Sultai Charm off the Thornwood Falls and Frontier Bivouac, and perhaps even using the rest of my dual lands to splash Bring Low (just as much for the lifegain as for the removal).
I went a disappointing 3-5 with this deck. Some PTQ regulars I spoke with said they would have run the 3 Savage Punches and Mardu Hateblade over the 2 Scout the Borders, one of the Throttles (to make black even more of a splash), and Venerable Lammasu, but felt the pool was rather weak and that they wouldn’t have expected much from either build. I agree that Scout the Borders isn’t particularly good unless you need to enable delve, but I felt my deck would be too inconsistent without it. Also, I didn’t have enough experience with Savage Punch to realize that it’s actually a good card even when you don’t have many creatures with power 4 or more, and that it rarely results in getting blown out when your opponent plays removal/bounce played in response.