counter-cat | Quiet Speculation

Real Friends: Horizons Pet-Deck Update

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 19 Jul 2019 16:00:29 +0000

It's maybe been said to the point of platitude at this point, but Modern is a format that rewards deck mastery. At least for me, it's also way more fun when you can find a deck that ticks all your preference boxes. I've been playing Eldrazi Stompy since Thought-Knot Seer was spoiled, and Counter-Cat since […]

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Love What You Play: Taking the Taste Test

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 18 May 2018 16:00:39 +0000

Modern has at times been described as a format hostile to Spike, the player demographic in search of winning at any cost. Indeed, "spiking" tournaments as players do in other constructed formats—by playing the best deck and understanding the mirror—isn't a reliable path to success in Modern. Rather, this format rewards players for picking a […]

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Triple Threat: My Aggro-Control Weapons of Choice

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 24 Nov 2017 17:00:36 +0000

I've been singing Modern's praises for, well, ever. At one time, I thought I was either the format's single biggest proponent or just some kind of insane zealot. But as time goes on and Modern steadily grows in popularity, articles like PVDDR's "The Problem with Modern" start looking hopelessly dated, and are met with a […]

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Chart Toppers: Counter-Cat After Ixalan

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 06 Oct 2017 16:13:17 +0000

My Ixalan spoiler review covered cards leaked back in June, and was published well before Wizards revealed the full expansion. As such, it didn't discuss Chart a Course, a spell spoiled during the Magic: Arena unveiling that has me giddier than anything else in the set. Chart a Course has shown promise in my go-to Delver […]

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Pay to Play: Brewing Counter-Vamp

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 15 Sep 2017 17:16:45 +0000

I've been a little distracted from Magic lately, and not even grinding the PPTQ season as planned. But all it takes for that to change is a well-timed spoiler from Wizards. Ixalan's been delivering plenty of those, and between the dripping-with-flavor new cards and the juicy-looking Magic: Arena, I'm back on the proverbial horse—the brewing […]

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Scratching the Itch: Returning to Counter-Cat

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 02 Jun 2017 16:00:50 +0000

I like winning as much as the next guy. Maybe even more. That's why, since even before the Gitaxian Probe ban, I've brought Colorless Eldrazi Stompy to three local tournaments a week. In doing so, I've racked up more store credit than I know what to do with, and gained a reputation around Boston as […]

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Brewing with Heart: Aether Revolt in Modern

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 17 Feb 2017 17:00:42 +0000

Modern has kept me busy lately. Fatal Push generated a metric ton of buzz, Dredge and Infect terrorized Modern and were subsequently nerfed, and most recently, I've had my heart set on building entire decks around the improvise mechanic or Smuggler's Copter. All these developments have prevented me from writing about how Aether Revolt's less obvious cards have worked their way into […]

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Afterthoughts and Amalgams: An RPTQ Cautionary Tale

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 19:27:04 +0000

Last weekend I played in my first RPTQ. What a tournament! I'd never played in a room full of players on or above my level before, and to say I was underprepared is a huge understatement. My car full of Boston grinders left after the third round, all of us beaten to shreds by the competition. […]

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Keeping Up With the Karpathians: Tuning For a Linear Metagame

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 25 Nov 2016 17:49:41 +0000

Looking solely at the Top 16s of recent events, observers might argue that Modern has become shockingly interactive. Todd Stevens' Sun and Moon, a white-red prison deck with a midrange slant, just won a Star City Games Open in Knoxville, headlining a Top 16 packed with more Sun and Moon, Skred Red, and Jund. Earlier this month, […]

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Delver, On a Bulk: Counter-Cat in Practice

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 20 May 2016 16:00:17 +0000

When I introduced Counter-Cat to Modern Nexus last week, a number of readers voiced understandable concerns about the deck. Didn't it auto-lose to Burn? Why not just play Monkey Grow? Or... Domain Zoo?! I promised answers, and this week I have them---sort of. I haven't had the time to play much Magic this past week, but […]

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Delver, With Teeth: Introducing Counter-Cat

Jordan Boisvert — Fri, 13 May 2016 16:00:28 +0000

I love to brew, and build upwards of ten Modern decks every week. Most of them aren't very good, which is why I've only written about a few on Modern Nexus; I think brewing is a numbers game, so as long as decks like Temur Delver and GRx Moon emerge from a sea of goofier ideas like Temur Rogues, […]

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