Modern Musings: Eldrazi Tron
In a world full of 4-colour decks, be a colourless eldritch nightmare. E-tron lists are still going strong, utilizing tron lands to land large threats and Chalice of the Void to make sure they last that long. These days, the deck has found new life with the addition of Urza's Saga, pumping out Karnstructs and searching for Expedition Maps, which in turn find more Sagas and Tron lands… the cycle continues until your opponent is completely overwhelmed! Check out the stock list below:
E-Tron seeks to control the early game with Chalice of the Void on low numbers, Matter Reshapers that either gum-up the board or apply pressure (and replace themselves), and removal such as Dismember and Warping Wail (Goodbye Ledger Shredder!). As the late game starts, we find our planeswalkers and begin using our wishboard to get our silver bullets and bring our opponents low with whatever we feel is best. One of the best feelings against 4C Elementals is playing a Sundering Titan and watching them panic!
Generally speaking, this is a deck that rewards an aggressive and proactive strategy, but can step into a controlling role with Ugin boardwipes, Thought-Knot Seer hand disruption, and Warping Wail 's counterspell mode, which is especially live against all cascade decks. The best part about E-tron is its resiliency, as Blood Moon can slow it down, but doesn't affect it nearly as much as it affects Mono-G Tron lists. Being able to find Wastes off of Expedition Maps (or an opposing Boseiju, Who Endures) means that we can almost always generate the colorless mana that we require.
As stated earlier, this list now takes advantage of Urza's Saga, giving us the opportunity to create Karnstructs before seeking an Expedition Map. Every once in a while, we want to grab graveyard hate instead, as we have both Tormod's Crypt and Relic of Progenitus available to us, depending on what will damage our opponents more.
E-Tron is a deck that greatly benefits from knowing the meta, as you need to know what to put your early chalices on. Zero is perfect for most cascade decks, but pilots need to know the telltale signs of a cascade deck and what fetches/shocks they run. In contrast, Chalice on one is a death-knell for most Burn decks, especially in game one. Locking opponents out of the game is the time-honoured tradition of Eldrazi Tron, but sometimes they have to work hard for it.
On that note, don't forget your Chalice triggers in paper! I can't tell you how many times I've watched a Chalice let a critical Spell Pierce or Lightning Bolt through. Your triggers are yours to remember!
Sideboard
Most of our sideboard is a Wishboard for Karn, the Great Creator, but there are times when you want to bring certain pieces into the main deck instead. Usually, these are pieces that can be searched for with Urza's Saga, such as Grafdigger's Cage or the second Relic of Progenitus. Sometimes it's worth leaving Tormod's Crypt in the board as a wish target, but other times (especially against cascade decks) it's better to bring it into the main list, so you can search it up with a Chalice on zero in play.
Finally, remember that both Sorcerous Spyglass and Pithing Needle can stop the Neon Dynasty channel lands. Mana value is an important part of the small tech, as you need to know what your chalices are likely going to be set at, and work around them.
Overall, Eldrazi tron is a fun deck with equal parts control and aggro. Not many decks get to play a 5/5 hasty trampler on turn 3!
Today's skill testing question: I cast Emrakul, the Promised End, targeting my opponent. On their turn, I see a Glittering Wish in hand. Can I cast it? If so, what happens? Let me know your answer @Melitius!
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