RG Valakut Combo, a Budget Competitive Standard Deck
November 25, 2009
Update 1/17/10: I wrote a guide on how to play the deck. The guide includes an improved decklist. Check it out.
I’ve been having a lot of fun playing the RG Valakut Combo deck. I’m looking to start playing Standard Constructed on Magic Online (MTGO) but I don’t want to spend a lot of money in the beginning. I checked out my budget options and it looks like RG Valakut has posted good finishes on MTGO. The BU Crypt of Agadeem deck aka Standard Dredge has also done well, but I think RG Valakut is better for the MTGO metagame. The most popular deck by far in MTGO is Jund and RG Valakut seems to have a better matchup against it.
Here’s my current list.
| RG Valakut Combo | |||||||||||
Spells (23) Creatures (12) Lands (25) | Sideboard (15) |
| |||||||||
Main Deck Analysis
The deck works by using mana acceleration spells to get an active Valakut (or two) quickly. Once Valakut is turned on, each Mountain, Terramorphic Expanse, and Panorama becomes a Lightning Bolt. If you have spare mana acceleration, those spells also deal damage. Khalni Heart Expedition and Harrow are especially good since they can fetch two Mountains.
Also, here is one trick you can do with those two green spells that exploits the Magic rulings for enters the battlefield triggers. If you have four Mountains in play and an active Valakut, you can pop Khalni Heart Expedition or cast Harrow and fetch two Mountains to deal six damage. The way it works both Mountains “see other” so they both trigger Valakut. Here’s a link to a forum thread about the ruling.
Expedition Map is pretty slow but it tutors for Valakut and you need the Zendikar rare land to win. Also, the Map can go get a Forest if you need green mana. The deck only has 10 lands that can produce green or get a Forest. You can’t really play dual lands like Rootbound Crag and Kazandu Refuge. You need lands that can get Forests and Mountains to turn on Valakut. That’s why my list has Naya and Jund Panorama.
Some decklists don’t play Panoramas and run 2 more Forests and Mountains instead. However, I haven’t had too many problems with the Panoramas. They are slow but they trigger Khalni Heart Expedition twice and they give you a higher green mana source count.
Lightning Bolt is in the deck because fast aggro decks are a tough matchup. Also, Bolt can hurt Planewalkers and sometimes you use it to finish off your opponent if you don’t have enough Mountains to kill them.
Many Standard decks play fetchlands so Lavaball Trap is a devastating play at five mana. Also, you have a ton of mana ramp so playing it for eight mana is not too uncommon. Of course, Lavaball Trap is also a wrath that kill most of creatures in the format. I don’t play a full set because they are not very good against aggro decks with a low curve and decks without fetchlands.
Goblin Ruinblaster can be Oracle of Mul Daya, which I have in the sideboard. Oracle is stronger in a vacuum but Goblin Ruinblaster is better against Jund and there are so many Jund decks on MTGO.
Bloodbraid Elf is just good card advantage. Cascading into Harrow is especially awesome whenever you have an active Valakut.
Siege-Gang Commander is great since you’ll have a lot of mana on the board. And it gives you a lot of chump blockers versus aggro.
Sideboard Analysis
For aggro, you have Grazing Gladeheart, Pyroclasm, and Earthquake. Grazing Gladeheart might look pretty bad, but he chump blocks and he can gain you life with your fetchlands and mana acceleration. This gives you time to setup your combo.
Mold Shambler is more land destruction. It takes the spot over Acidic Slime because it can also hit planeswalkers.
Oracle of Mul Daya can come in for Ruinblaster in matchups where Ruinblaster is not that good. Also, against a creatureless deck, you can board it in for Lavaball Trap or Bolt.
5 Responses to “RG Valakut Combo, a Budget Competitive Standard Deck”
Got something to say?
-
Subscription Options
-
Categories
I spent a few weeks playing this as well (but have been running the RW version recently)
Can get some insane starts with the combo of Harrow/Khalni Heart/Rampant Growth – especially when firing off a fetchland, terramorphic, or the map. I’ve routinely had 7 or 8 mana in place after 4 or 5 turns.
I did tweak a little though, and ran 2 Siege Gang Commander and 2 Hellkite – the flash ability, and multi-target burn, won me several games where I was being run close. It’s a judgement call, but I certainly never drew the Hellkite and wished for a SGC
we actually tried this for about a month and always got it to 3rd to 2nd place at tourneys, but it never made 1st because it just lost to Jund. What exactly makes you think this deck is good against Jund?
I never said it was good against Jund. I said that it seems to have a better matchup against Jund than UB Dredge, another budget deck.
I think the matchup is close especially if you have 4 Ruinblasters main.
I just played this EXACT build at my local FNM and won 2 but lost 2 as well overall this build was BAD in my experience…. I lost to Bant control and RDW.
Yeah, I agree with you. The Lavaball Traps were too inconsistent. Here’s a list I went 6-0 with at FNM to win 11 packs. It’s also done well on Magic Online.
3 Forest
3 Jund Panorama
11 Mountain
4 Terramorphic Expanse
4 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
25 lands
4 Bloodbraid Elf
4 Goblin Ruinblaster
2 Oracle of Mul Daya
4 Siege-Gang Commander
14 creatures
1 Burst Lightning
4 Expedition Map
4 Harrow
4 Khalni Heart Expedition
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Rampant Growth
21 other spells
Sideboard
1 Burst Lightning
2 Earthquake
4 Grazing Gladehart
3 Magma Spray
3 Pyroclasm
2 Relic of Progenitus
15 sideboard cards