It’s a new year and we in the Magic community have so much to look forward to during the coming weeks and months. Rivals of Ixalan, a Modern Pro Tour and Magic’s 25th Birthday, and that’s just in the first couple of months. One could say that we are a bit spoiled. However, there is one thing happening in January that has many players very excited, yours truly included. Yes, at long last Paper Pauper will be getting its time in the sun with Channel Fireball providing Grand Prix double up events throughout January. How did we get to this point? What inspired Channel Fireball to spend time and resources on a new and possibly risky venture? It wasn’t a what, it was a who, and that individual was none other than the Professor of Tolarian Community College.
A long-time supporter of the format, the Professor has been pushing for Paper Pauper to be pushed to the forefront of the competitive magic scene. Back on the 11th December, he put this question to Channel Fireball and Star City Games.
What WOULD have to happen for their to be one, just ONE Pauper GP or SCG Open? Like, can you imagine if there was just ONE? Once? I think it would be awesome. #mtg #mtgpauper
— Tolarian Community (@TolarianCollege) December 12, 2017
Amazingly, Channel Fireball took only a day to make the decision to include Pauper Double Up events at each of their January events they are hosting. Whilst we might not be quite at the point of a Pauper Grand Prix’s, it is certainly a step in the right direction to legitimising this great format. If you are attending any of these events I would highly recommend you give the format a try, as it will show Channel Fireball and Wizards that these kinds of events are worth pursuing. If you are new to the format what do you build? You could always try out a top tier deck, but why give your opponent the advantage of knowing what you are on. Now I might be unable to attend any of these events myself (insert your favourite ‘sad’ meme here) but many of my fellow UKMTG content creators will be attending the London GP and are very interested in testing their metal at some competitive Pauper. So, I reached out and asked if they had any idea for some spicy budget brews that they could surprise unexpecting competitors with. I’m happy to report that the guys from Orcs Head Magic came through with some great brews that you can build yourself for about 1 tix online, and won’t cost you more than a few dollars in the real world. So, what are we waiting for, let’s have a look at some great Pauper decks courtesy of some of the best UKMTG content creators.
Orcs Head Jordan’s R/B Slivers
Slivers are not new to the wonderful world of Pauper. Green White Slivers is a great tribal deck that works like a Modern Merfolk deck, making use of several lords to pump up the team and swing in for lethal. But the Lords bring up the price of the deck quite a lot, so Jordan decided to go down the route of pure aggression, which is always Rakdos. So, the deck has the obvious traits of Slivers buffing each other. Frenzy Sliver and Bonesplitter Sliver allow for extra damage and Crypt Sliver allows regeneration. Two-Headed Sliver will give you some evasion, while Impact Tremors deals damage for every creature he plays. Foul-Tongue Shriek will give you large swings on big attacks, allowing him to finish the game once his board is established.
Creatures
4 Mindlash Sliver
4 Striking Sliver
4 Crypt Sliver
4 Frenzy Sliver
4 Heart Sliver
4 Two-Headed Sliver
4 Bonesplitter Sliver
Spells
2 Foul-Tongue Shriek
2 Dash Hopes
4 Doom Blade
Enchantments
2 Impact Tremors
Lands
4 Bloodfell Caves
2 Evolving Wilds
8 Mountain
6 Swamp
2 Teetering Peaks
Sideboard
2 Foul-Tongue Shriek
2 Dash Hopes
4 Alms of the Vein
4 Blightning
3 Aphetto Dredging
Orcs Head Chris’ Boros Prowess Burn
When all else fails, be aggressive. It is a simple moto, but it holds a lot of truth. When someone starts out in a new format they can find it to be confusing and a little bit scary to decode the meta. Is control any good? What is the best removal? How fast is the format? All these are questions that can overwhelm an unprepared player. But why stress yourself out interacting with your opponent. Why not throw down an army of cheap creatures, and then pump them up with a plethora Instant and Sorceries to maximise their damage output. That is the route that Chris has taken, and it certainly a legitimate strategy. Creatures like Kiln Fiend can quickly get out of control with a couple of non-creature spells behind them and can be almost unblockable Grasp of the Hieromancer. If you are after an aggressive budget brew this should be right up your alley.
Creatures
4 Kiln Fiend
4 Mage-Ring Bully
4 Sanguinary Mage
2 Student of Ojutai
Spells
4 Fiery Impulse
4 Lightning Bolt
3 Rush of Adrenaline
4 Shock
2 Titan’s Strength
3 Center Soul
Enchantments
2 Glaring Aegis
2 Grasp of the Hieromancer
4 Infectious Bloodlust
Lands
4 Evolving Wilds
8 Mountain
3 Plains
4 Stone Quarry
Sideboard
3 Dual Shot
2 Mighty Leap
2 Fate Forgotten
2 Safe Passage
2 Shoulder to Shoulder
2 Isolation Zone
2 Structural Distortion
And there you have it, two sweet Pauper decks for you to try out yourself. A big thank you to Jordan and Chris from Orcs Head Magic. If you want to see what else these guys get up to in the realms of Magic content then you can check out their YouTube channel here. And while you are there why not show some love to our fellow UKMTG community members. Now I might not be able to attend any of the January GP’s myself, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be hoping that these events continue throughout the year. I am keen to do some more testing with my new and improved home brew by the time GP Birmingham comes around (you can find the list below). If you enjoy the content we provide here at Master of Magics why not like and subscribe in order to keep up to date on all of our article when they come out. We hope to see you soon and remember, Good Luck and Have Fun.
Gruul-Fall MK3
Creatures
4 Makindi Sliderunner
4 Plated Geopede
4 Snapping Gnarlid
4 Valakut Predator
2 Territorial Baloth
Spells
4 Lay of the Land
4 Swell of Growth
2 Temur Battle Rage
2 Harrow
Artifacts
4 Adventuring Gear
Enchantments
2 Khalni Heart Expedition
Lands
4 Evolving Wilds
8 Forest
6 Mountain
4 Teetering Peaks
2 Terramorphic Expanse
Sideboard
3 Fog
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Smash to Smithereens
2 Zektar Shrine Expedition
2 Naturalize
2 Grazing Gladehart
