My Werewolves

Creatures: 30

4 Reckless Waif

4 Wolfbitten Captive

4 Mayor of Avabruck

4 Immerwolf

2 Daybreak Ranger

4 Kruin Outlaw

4 Instigator Gang

4 Huntmaster of the Fells

Spells: 7

3 Full Moon's Rise

4 Moonmist

Lands: 23

2 Kessig Wolf Run

4 Rootbound Crag

9 Mountain

8 Forest

Sideboard: 15

1 Full Moon's Rise

3 Sundering Growth

3 Rolling Tremblor

2 Traitorous Instinct

4 Wolfir Avenger

2 Daybreak Ranger

I would never have built this version of the werewolf deck had it not been for Tomaharu Saito who posted a WU Human deck on Facebook.  Two nights ago, he showed a 37-creature masterpiece featuring War Falcon, Champion of the Parish, Knight of Glory, Precinct Captain, Thalia Guardian of Thraben, Geist of Saint Traft, Lyev Skynight, Fiend Hunter, Sublime Angel, and Silverblade Paladin.  I was struck by the synergy of the cards like the knights enabling the falcons to attack or the Champion growing to ridiculous proportions when followed by other humans in the battlefield.  Then there was Sublime Angel to mop things up from the air.  Everything clicked together and I admired the subtle but powerful choices Saito made like Thalia against Supreme Verdict strategies and Lyev Skynight for detaining vampires, zombies, and other problematic monsters.

Inspired to transplant the idea to my favorite tribe, I spent three hours crafting this thing of beauty in the wee hours of the morning.  While I couldn't quite get up to 37 creatures, I had enough manpower to carry through my plan of sending in three werewolves before casting Moonmist to make them bigger.  The heavy-hitting combo of Wildblood Pack and Terror of Kruin Pass was Plan A, designed to inflict twenty points of damage in one swing.  Plan B was to use Mayor of Avabruck and Immerwolf to increase the strength of the pack with cumulative +1/+1 bonuses to power/toughness. 

Burn spells deserved consideration but in the end I decided to skip them as they were ineffective in battling Centaur Healers, Thragtusks and Sphinx's Revelation.  Pillar of Flame and Spearing Spear felt like better alternatives to Moonmist and Full Moon's Rise.  However I had never experienced much success with them in the past so that might have colored my thinking  Besides, I wanted to be like Saito and fight other players with a deck that's fifty-percent creatures.

Notes

1. I'd like a set of Cavern of Souls and Stomping Ground to fortify the manabase replacing the 8 Forest but beggars can't be choosers.  Still I feel confident that the deck will claw and bite opponents to death.

2. Other decks accelerate into Huntmaster of the Fells but this one doesn't.  It excels as a post-Terminus threat.  Or if I'm low on life points, I can gain a few by calling on the huntsman and his pet wolf.

3. Full Moon's Rise thwarts most of the removal spells in the format but it also gives trample and a +1/0 boost which is critical in racing other aggressive tribes like zombies and spirits.  Its most important job though is nullifying Supreme Verdict and Mizzium Mortars.

4. Kessig Wolf Run provides reach, breaking through defenses to deal those last crucial points of damage.

5. The sideboard has the following cards: One, Rolling Tremblor kills Geist of Saint Traft, that hexproof cheater.  Two, Wolfir Avenger punishes countermagic and mass removal.  Three, Sundering Growth destroys Detention Sphere and Intangible Virtue.  Populate is extra gravy.  Four, Traitorous Instinct steals reanimated angels and negates the lifegain from Thragtusks.

Pack of Wolves: First Blood

As I promised last week, I went all-in with my werewolf deck.  To my surprise I came in second place after I racked up three wins and a draw in four rounds.  The shop where I played was not expecting werewolves and so my opponents' sideboards were unprepared.

In the first round I was up against the Selesnya guild.  I burned Avacyn's Pilgrims and Arbor Elves to deprive my enemy of mana in case he had kept a top-heavy hand.  It worked as I took the match in three hard fought games.  In the last one, he had an opportunity to gain five life points with a Thragtusk but he played Trostani, Selesnya's Voice instead.  This allowed me to use Kessig Wolf Run for exactly lethal.

My next opponent sported a Golgari deck.  I triumphed in Game One by casting Blasphemous Act and sacrificing Full Moon's Rise to save my creatures while destroying his.  I could have finished him off in Game Two but I blundered when I tried to kill his Lotleth Troll with Garruk Relentless' first ability and he pumped it in response. The game still took a while to complete because I had a couple of Moonmists in hand to stall him while I waited to get a Huntmaster of the Fells.  When I didn't, I succumbed to his zombies.  With only a few minutes left in the decider we couldn't eliminate each other so we drew.

Round Three pitted me against someone employing a Bant ramp strategy.  In the opening game he used Supreme Verdict and two copies of Terminus to wipe my board but each time I had a followup Huntmaster of the Fells to rebuild my pack of wolves and deal the final points of damage.  My mistake in this match had to do with my assessment of his deck.  I removed two copies of Full Moon's Rise anticipating that he would rely on Terminus to reset the board.  When he deployed Centaur Healer and Thragtusk which gained him several life points I tried to hide my shock.  A Full Moon's Rise and two copies of Huntmaster of the Fells  convinced him to pull the trigger on his Supreme Verdict.  My creatures remained after I used regeneration on them and he got a 3/3 beast after Thragtusk died.  I simply let my creatures transform and they broke through his defenses in short order.  

After this match I was in third place, needing to win for a shot at first or second.  I fought an Azorious deck in the final round.  It had Elite Inquisitors but Pillar of Flame trumped them.  His flyers were soon overwhelmed by a Mayor of Avabruck that transformed and spat out 2/2 (3/3 really) wolf tokens.  In Game Two he got off to a fast start, dropping me to nine life points before I stabilized with a Huntmaster of the Fells.  He didn't waste time exiling my most valuable creature with a Fiend Hunter.  I wasn't fazed though as a Daybreak Ranger turned into Nightfall Predator via Moonmist and began chewing up his little guys.  In fact, one of my best moves in the entire tournament was to Sundering Growth the Spectral Flight on his Elite Inquisitor and populate the token from a Huntmaster of the Fells.  The two wolves blocked the now grounded human and this was sufficient to turn the tide as my growing army of felines launched an unstoppable assault.

And with that the tournament ended, netting me three booster packs and a foil FNM Evolving Wilds.  I was happy with how my deck handled the various foes I encountered. Also my in-game decisions were excellent and my mistakes were not punished.

Having drawn first blood, my werewolves are eager to hunt down more victims in the days (especially nights) ahead.  This weekend's Game Day will become a killing field.  Awoo! :-)

GR WEREWOLVES
Wolfbitten Captive - 4
Mayor of Avabruck - 4
Daybreak Ranger - 4
Immerwolf - 3
Huntmaster of the Fells - 4
Wolfir Silverheart - 3
Pillar of Flame - 4
Full Moon's Rise - 4
Moonmist - 4
Blasphemous Act - 1
4 Rootbound Crag
3 Kessig Wolf Run
11 Forest
7 Mountain
Sideboard:
3 Blasphemous Act
3 Zealous Conscripts
3 Grafdigger's Cage
2 Sundering Growth
2 Clinging Mists
2 Garruk Relentless

Notes:
1. Put in Blasphemous Acts against token decks.  Take out the Silverhearts.  Sundering Growth and Clinging Mists replace the set of Pillar of Flame.
2. Zealous Conscripts come in against ramp and control decks.  They are mostly used to steal a big flyer like Angel of Serenity and negate Thragtusk's enters the battlefield ability of gaining five life points by taking control of and attacking with it.  Once again the Silverhearts go out for these to go in.
3. Grafdigger's Cages are deployed when facing Reanimator Decks.  The set of Pillar of Flame is removed to make room for this trio and maybe a single Zealous Conscript is brought in.
4. Sundering Growth usually answers enchantments like Oblivion Ring and Detention Sphere.  Sometimes it kills equipment like Runechanter's Pike or auras like Rancor.
5. Clinging Mists serve as fog effects numbers five to six after the set of Moonmist.  Against Selesnya, Zombies, tokens and any other aggressive deck, the Fateful Hour clause can snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. 
6. Garruk Relentless is a threat to both control and beatdown decks.  It can take the place of Wolfir Silverhearts in control matchups to lower the curve and provide a stream of wolf tokens.  Or it can remove a blocker or pesky attacker like a Huntmaster of the Fells on the other side of the table.

All-In

Tonight at the tournament I will be playing my heart out.  I don't want to hesitate a day longer.  On many occasions I have delayed taking this action and each time it grated on my psyche.

The reason for my inaction is fear.  I don't like losing and I hate throwing away money for no good reason.  I tell myself that I am being prudent but I know it is a lie.  The goals I've set for myself as a professional cardplayer require sacrifices. So the risk must be taken.  I can't receive the rewards of doing well by sitting on my hands.  I have to go out there and compete on a nightly basis in order to become the best in the world.  The path is clear; I only have to walk it.

Yes, I could fail and fritter away my meager resources.  Then again, they will dissipate anyway if I don't make the ultimate investment in my desires and competencies.  When I think about it, spending time and cash on my passion for Mtg is probably the wisest course personally and financially.  Even if I don't win a booster pack later, I can be happy with my decision to play because I can only grow from this point on, gaining knowledge for future battles and thus increasing the odds of one day bringing home the biggest prize around. Not to mention that after a year of hesitation and doubts, my soul can finally relax.