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Choosing your plan: How I won the Modern Challenge with Goblins

Rodrigo Eiras
01/12/2022 · 14 min read
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About me

Hello, goblins players!

My name is Rodrigo Eiras, I'm a sociologist, a PhD student in Sociology, and a Brazilian Magic the Gathering player who has been piloting Goblins for at least 10 years. I started with the deck in Legacy in 2008, when I was just a teenager.

I became a Death and Taxes  player along the way, then I played Elves in Modern  (with two 10-5s in Grand Prixs in Brazil) and have been exclusively playing Goblins in Modern for at least 4 years.

I been exclusively playing Goblins in Modern for at least 4 years

Most of you have probably never heard of me, but for those who admire tribes, it’s possible you might recognize me as Ganjadejanga on Magic Online . As you can see, creature decks have always been a passion of mine and I’ve been having a blast with them over the years, and there’s nothing that makes me happier in Magic right now than a Goblin Ringleader revealing four Goblin cards from the top of my deck.

Making it to the top with goblins

After nearly two years of playing Magic Online, I made back-to-back Top 8's in the October and November Modern Showcase Challenges, with the first challenge ending in fourth place - with a 9-2 record - and becoming the champion of the second challenge I played in, with 11 wins and only one loss, which was a concession to a friend to make it into the Top 8.

I can confidently say that I was undefeated in tournament matches. This result is definitely my biggest achievement with Goblins in my entire life and, a few months ago, if someone had told me this was going to happen I would have said that it was a bad joke.

For those who are not familiar with Magic Online and don't know what these tournaments represent, the Showcase Challenge is one of the most competitive tournaments you can participate in on Magic Online, with highly qualified players and generous prizes. It is also the first step for those who dream of qualifying for the MOCS (Magic Online Championship Series) and competing for $20,000, which I will try to qualify for, dreaming of a spot.

This is my first article of a series I will make about the deck, so let me know your opinion, what you expect to read or any other curiosity you would like me to detail.

In the first articles I will seek to explain how the deck operates, game plans, abilities, its potentials and weaknesses, its patterns, plays and, lastly, a sideboard guide for the most common matchups in Modern metagame . I hope you enjoy it.

My current version of the deck

Goblins. Builder: ganjadejanga.MTGO - Magic Online
1st in MTGO Modern Showcase Challenge #12495532 19-Nov-2022
MTG Decks Maindeck (60)
Creature [33]
4  Mogg War Marshal   $0.35
2  Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker   $8.99
4  Munitions Expert   $0.35
4  Goblin Matron   $0.35
4  Boggart Harbinger   $1.49
2  Sling-Gang Lieutenant   $0.49
1  Goblin Cratermaker   $0.35
4  Ignoble Hierarch   $3.99
3  Goblin Ringleader   $0.69
1  Goblin Trashmaster   $5.49
4  Conspicuous Snoop   $5.49
Artifact [4]
4  Aether Vial   $8.99
Land [23]
3  Mountain   $0.01
2  Stomping Ground   $13.99
4  Cavern of Souls   $42.99
2  Blood Crypt   $17.99
1  Swamp   $0.01
4  Bloodstained Mire   $27.99
4  Unclaimed Territory   $0.35
3  Arid Mesa   $17.99
Sideboard [15]
4  Leyline of the Void   $3.49
1  Orvar, the All-Form   $5.49
2  Sling-Gang Lieutenant   $0.49
3  Tarfire   $0.35
1  Masked Vandal   $0.79
4  Blood Moon   $7.99
Buy this deck:

$71.19 Tix @cardhoarder   $1.78 / Week @cardhoarder   $447.83 @tcgplayer   $544.43 @cardkingdom  


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Aggro, combo or midrange?

Despite Goblins being an ancient tribe in Magic as a whole, in Modern these creatures only became viable after the introduction of Modern Horizons, which despite much criticism from the community, was a fundamental collection for this archetype to become competitive in the format with the release of cards such as Goblin Matron, Munitions Expert, Pashalik Mons and Sling-Gang Lieutenant.

With these cards, the first modern decks  were being assembled and some players began to test the deck in the format. As soon as Goblin Ringleader was released in M20, the deck was established as a competitive but unpopular option.

Despite the deck having been played with combos like Skirk Prospector + Metallic Mimic or Grumgully, the Generous + Murderous Redcap, the deck reached a new level of competitiveness with the release of Conspicuous Snoop in M21, enabling the combo with Boggart Harbinger + Kiki-Jiki, the Mirror Breaker. Instead of three cards to win the game, only two are now necessary as long as you have a copy of Kiki-Jiki and another of Sling-Gang or Mogg Fanatic in your deck.

For those unfamiliar, the combo involves having a Snoop in play - without suffering from summoning sickness - and playing Boggart Harbinger to search for a Kiki-Jiki and put it on top of your deck. Snoop gains all activated abilities of Goblins that are on the top of the deck, and can activate the ability to copy itself, as it is not Legendary, creating infinite copies. With the last copy flipped, you can copy the Boggart Harbinger that is in play and this time put a Sling-Gang at the top of your library and thus sacrifice all the copies produced and drain your opponent's life to zero.

This development revolutionized the archetype by addressing one of the deck's biggest weaknesses: winning games before turn 4. With this combo, it's possible to win comfortably on turn 3 - assuming there is no interaction from your opponent - making the deck one of the fastest in the format and a viable option to beat any other combo deck in Modern, something that was unthinkable in the past.

So, have Goblins gone from an Aggro deck to being a Combo deck?

Yes, but not only that, the archetype can still be classified as Aggro and/or Midrange, since we are talking about an archetype that plays with creatures and has a powerful midgame plan, generating value with cards such as Goblin Matron, Goblin Ringleader.

Shifting between strategies

Goblins decks are notoriously difficult to pilot because they require players to constantly shift between strategies during gameplay, choosing the best - or least unfavorable - option to try and win the game. Identifying these patterns and paths is not always an easy task.

Sideboarding is essential for helping players prepare for the various strategies they may face, allowing them to adjust their approach to counter the opponent or create a favorable situation.

Choosing the right game plan

If I could pick the most common mistake I see while watching people play Goblins, without a doubt, it would be trying to win through a combo when, in reality, the most appropriate strategy would be aggro and/or midrange.

This is precisely what makes the deck so difficult to pilot: transitioning between the various game plans to win a match requires experience, opportunism and above all, patience. Knowing when to switch from the early game aggression to the late game control or when to sacrifice board presence can make all the difference between a victorious and a defeated player.

Example 1 - Andrea Mengucci

After placing 4th in the Modern Showcase Challenge, Andrea Mengucci decided to try out my deck in a Modern league on Magic Online, ending with a 1-4 record. This, to me, is living proof that the deck isn't easy to play, as Mengucci is one of the greatest players in the game's recent history and needs no introduction from me or anyone else.

I'm not saying that I'm a better player than him, I have a full sense of reality and a lot of humility to say that this has never crossed my mind, it's not about that I want to point out here. What I'm calling attention to is how such an experienced player fell into quite common errors that I've seen repeated many times among other players with the deck. The goal of the deck is not always to win through the combo.

For a straightforward and efficient win, many fall into the temptation of taking the easy route when a longer game could have been the path to victory.

Let's take a look at the following situation:

In this gaming situation, what can we observe? Our opponent is playing Jund Saga, with two cards in hand, a Ragavan and W6 on the table. I have a potential combo in my hand, but I can also try to take out the monkey with Munitions Expert.

What's the best move? Going for the combo plan or going for the midrange plan?

The probability of one of my opponent's cards being a removal is very high since Jund Saga plays with many removals, so I believe the best choice for this scenario is to try and kill Ragavan with Munitions Expert. If they waste a removal on the Expert, that's ok, that leaves us room to play Snoop on the next turn. If Snoop survives a few turns, it's our chance of having an easy win with the combo. And that's exactly what happens.

Despite our opponent having a Thoughtseize and making us discard our Boggart Harbinger, Snoop survived for multiple turns, a sign that we were winning the game against a deck that supposedly shouldn't have allowed Snoop to remain alive for that long.

 And eventually, we found another Boggart to secure the victory.

We can learn from this scenario that sometimes not going for a combo plan does not mean we have to give up on this type of win for the remainder of the game; on the contrary, choosing a midrange plan gives us the possibility of choosing a combo plan in the future.

By not trying to go for the combo on turn 3, we open ourselves up to make our opponent waste their removal spells on irrelevant creatures, allowing us to then play our most important creatures later in the game and go for the victory with them. Ironically, not choosing the Combo plan can be seen as choosing the Combo, only four turns later. It's confusing, but that's what the deck is all about.

Bluffing your opponent into wasting a card is essential to this patience-based strategy game. If your opponent is destroying Mogg War Marshals, Matrons or Ringleaders, it could mean either a present or future victory.

Think carefully when making a play: what kind of plan am I choosing to make a certain move? Does this choice allow me to switch plans in the future? What message is my opponent sending me now, would they use a removal on a creature I don't care about? What are the gains and losses with each play?

Example 2 vs Wafo-Tapa

This is G3 of the sixth round of the Modern Showcase Challenge. I am facing one of the best - if not the best - control players in the world: Guillaume Wafo-Tapa, better known on Magic Online as WaToO. We both sit at 5-0, vying for our sixth win. WaToO has three untapped lands and five cards in hand.

Should I go for the combo plan? My answer, again, is no. I feel I am winning this game due to having a Cavern of Souls in hand and the potential to generate value by using Snoop's ability to play creatures from the top of my library.

Alternatively, if I choose the combo plan and it has the necessary answer to remove my Snoop from the table, I will most likely lose the game by wasting multiple pieces in my favor: the Goblin Matron that is on the top of my library, the Boggart Harbinger that is in my hand, and my next draw which will be the second Kiki-Jiki.

A positive scenario then became extremely negative. Therefore, I choose to continue playing the Midrange plan. I play Matron with the Cavern of Souls, search for a Goblin Ringleader, attack with the Snoop and pass the turn. And lo and behold, this new scenario arises:

Luck was on my side on my next turn, the top of my deck revealed a second Kiki-Jiki after I drew an Aether Vial. Again, the question arises: should I go for the combo? This time, the answer is, without a doubt, yes.

Why didn't I choose this plan the last time, and now do I have a different answer?

Simply because now I have nothing to lose by trying to win this turn. If I copy Snoop with Kiki-Jiki's ability and he has no answer, then I can win with minimal losses; a totally different scenario than the previous turn. Thus, I decided to use Snoop's ability to target itself; WaToO allows this, and I make multiple copies.

I play Boggart Harbinger, and my opponent responds with Dress Down—but it doesn't matter, since at the end of the turn, when the effect of Dress Down wears off, I can use Snoop's ability to copy Boggart and look for Sling-Gang to drain my opponent's life points. This way, I can win the game, traversing between one game plan and the next.

Example 3: Showcase finals vs Hardened Scales

Finally, I'd like to bring up a scenario from the Showcase Challenge finals against Hardened Scales. This is Game 3 of the finals.

What is the best move? I have one of the best opening hands I could ask for against this deck and I don't want to ruin it all in such an important final.

Considering the situation, what should be taken into account? Hardened Scales is a deck that has multiple one mana cards, so it's strange that my opponent didn't make any moves in the beginning of the game and I start to suspect that a Dismember is on its way. To avoid my opponent's turn 1 being efficient and me losing my Snoop, I opt to play the Goblin Cratermaker because I believe this is an excellent option to make my opponent “waste” a removal, since it is a very efficient card against the deck.

As I suspected, my opponent didn't want to waste their turn and used their Dismember on my Cratermaker, paving the way for my Snoop to survive the next turn. It's interesting to think about these sequences and how to draw removal to other creatures so you can play your combo without response. I was able to play my Snoop, which my opponent misjudged and didn't kill immediately with Walking Ballista on their turn. My opponent allowed my Aether Vial to reach three counters and the result we know what it was.

I was able to come out on top by playing around removal while taking advantage of mistakes my opponent made.

What we just learned

In conclusion, respect your opponent but don't be afraid.

Invariably, we will lose games by choosing an incorrect plan for each game situation, as Magic is a complex game and most situations will not be simple. I have lost many games by not choosing the "right" plan, but I have learned that we have to respect the possibility of removal, but respecting too much can become an irrational fear that can lead us to lose games, making us often play around cards that are not in our opponent's hand (and sometimes not even in the deck!) and that is the worst feeling you can have while playing with the deck. This type of reading and learning takes time and maturity.

Knowing how to distinguish a real scenario from a psychological fear is also part of the learning process. Choosing the midrange plan while the game is in your favor is a valuable tip, as well as choosing the combo when there are no better options can also be considered an efficient reading among the various scenarios.

Final Words

In this article, I've tried to focus on the aspect I think is central to the deck: its playstyles and gameplans and how to navigate between one strategy and another is the right path to victory. I will try to tackle play patterns and choices in other chapters before publishing a sideboard guide as I believe these aspects are much more important than the cookie recipe that people tend to want to reproduce without first understanding how the deck's dynamic really works.

I believe this order is the best way to learn how a deck works instead of having mechanical actions such as "how do you use your sideboard in a particular game?" and blaming a sideboard strategy that didn't work, when in fact, certain nuances of specific games were not understood.

I hope you enjoyed this article. If you'd like to donate directly to me, my PayPal is [email protected]. If you can't donate any amount, that's okay! But let me know your thoughts, share this article with friends, and don't hesitate to reach out to me on Twitter or Discord. I also ask that you look into other articles on mtgdecks.net, as there is plenty of valuable content to be found. That's it for now! Long live the tribes! Long live the Goblins! For the Horde!

If you liked this article maybe you will also find interesting on of the following ones Mastering Amulet Titan: The Side Guide That Took Me to the Pro Tour , The Rogue Corner: Jund Persist Primer, Modern Mono White Hammer Primer & Sideboard guide

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Rodrigo Eiras
MTGO Grinder & Goblins specialist
Rodrigo Eiras, better known as Ganjadejanga on MTGO, is a Brazilian sociologist and PhD student who grew up in the Janga neighborhood and has a passion for decks built around creatures. Today he stands out in the competitive scenario with his favorite deck and favorite format: Modern Goblins.

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Published: 2022-12-01 00:00:00

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