Every play group has that one person. You know the one. They’ve always got that new fun deck, it usually contains a bunch of mediocre creatures, and looks like a very easy way to go 4-4 at your next tournament. Well in my play group that guy’s name is Ryan Sandrin. A devoted lover of [Card]Noble Hierarch[/Card], [Card]Eternal Witness[/Card] and claiming that Modern Goblins is “well-positioned.”

Well this past weekend Ryan’s got to live his dream of triumphing against all odds with what I can only describe as a “fun deck.” He won our Modern Showdown on Sunday a deck that contains the CopyCat combo, but also a bunch of snow cards, oh, and also [Card]Primeval Titan[/Card].

The combination of [Card]Felidar Guardian[/Card] and [Card]Saheeli Rai[/Card] is something that people have been trying to workshop in Modern ever since it broke out in Standard. Everyone remembers how good it felt to [Card]Splinter Twin[/Card] people, and they just need that feeling back no matter the cost. But I think what we’ve got going on here with Sandrin’s list might be just what the archetype needed to be competitive. You see, at it’s heart this deck can really just obliterate other midrange decks. With Titan and Field, Coatl and all these cheap three mana walkers there’s a real fair gameplay going on. Which means, you can lean on the combo when you’ve got to get your opponent dead and just grind otherwise. Which, if you remember, is what Twin did oh so well.

Sandrin was able to use that ability to grind to his advantage on Sunday when he prevailed over FOUR Jund decks, a [Card]Death’s Shadow[/Card] deck, a midrangey Ponza deck and Jacob Richer on Tron in the Top 8.

Sandrin defeated his close friend and well-known local foil guy Chris “FineDining” Ha in the finals on Jund.

This Top 8 is surely nothing short of wild. It better resembles [Card]Thragtusk[/Card] Standard then anything we’ve seen out of Modern in the last few years. In my expirience since the unbanning of [Card]Stoneforge Mystic[/Card] Jund has been by far the most popular deck in the city. Which means it’s probably time to start turning towards big mana decks like Tron or Amulet if you’re looking to get a leg up on the competition.

Before I leave you for the week I’d just like to quickly plug all of Face to Face Games’ upcoming WPN qualifier events. Wizards of the Coast has added a new system to their competitive framework to allow players to qualify for the upcoming Player’s Tour at the local level. Below are the dates of our upcoming Open+ events which will qualify the winner for the PT and check out this article to find out how you can qualify at your local Face to Face location as well.

With their win on Sandrin cements his spot in the upcoming Ultimate Showdown, while the rest of our Top 8 have begun their march up the leader board to qualify. If you’re interested in your Ultimate Showdown point total, you can check it out here. If you’d like to inquire about your point total or report a discrepancy, please email Toronto@facetofacegames.com.

We’re also happy to announce our support for the upcoming PIONEER format. We’re going to be hosting FREE Pioneer daily’s every Wednesday during October and November and adding a Pioneer side event to all upcoming Open Series events in 2019!

This upcoming weekend at Face to Face Games Toronto we’ll be hosting one of our ever-popular Team Trios Showdowns. We also have a FacetoFaceGames.com Modern Open event in Hamilton on Saturday! Grab a couple friends, make sure to pre-register and we’ll see you at the shop!

[Deck Title= First Place, CopyCat Titan – Ryan Sandrin]
[Creatures]
4 Felidar Guardian
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
3 Primeval Titan
2 Ice-Fang Coatl
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Oko, Thief of Crowns
2 Teferi, Time Raveler
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Wrenn and Six
2 Search for Tomorrow
4 Path to Exile
4 Saheeli Rai
4 Arcum’s Astrolab
4 Oath of Nissa
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Breeding Pool
2 Field of the Dead
2 Snow-covered Island
2 Snow-covered Forest
1 Forest
1 Plains
1 Snow-covered Mountain
1 Snow-covered Plains
2 Prismatic Vista
1 Flooded Strand
2 Windswept Heath
2 Wooded Foothills
1 Steam Vents
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Temple Garden
1 Stomping Ground
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Disdainful Stroke
1 Spellskite
2 Leyline of Sanctity
2 Knight of Autumn
2 Collector Ouphe
2 Veil of Summer
1 Alpine Moon
1 Rest in Peace
2 Damping Sphere
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Second Place, Jund – Chris Ha]
[Creatures]
4 Bloodbraid Elf
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Dark Confidant
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 Wrenn and Six
4 Liliana of the Veil
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Thoughtseize
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Fatal Push
2 Kolaghan’s Command
2 Assassin’s Trophy
1 Abrupt Decay
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Mountain
1 Nurturing Peatland
1 Blood Crypt
1 Stomping Ground
2 Raging Ravine
2 Wooded Foothills
1 Barren Moor
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
4 Verdant Catacombs
2 Overgrown Tomb
2 Swamp
1 Forest
2 Bloodstained Mire
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Plague Engineer
2 Collector Ouphe
2 Collective Brutality
1 Tireless Tracker
2 Fulminator Mage
1 Ancient Grudge
2 Kitchen Finks
1 Liliana the Last Hope
1 Ashiok, Dream Render
1 Nihil Spellbomb
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Third Place, Jund – Matthew Loong]
[Creatures]
2 Dark Confidant
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Bloodbraid Elf
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 Wrenn and Six
4 Liliana of the Veil
2 Fatal Push
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Thoughtseize
3 Assassin’s Trophy
2 Kolaghan’s Command
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Barren Moor
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
1 Blood Crypt
3 Bloodstained Mire
1 Forest
1 Mountain
2 Nurturing Peatland
2 Overgrown Tomb
2 Raging Ravine
1 Stomping Ground
2 Swamp
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Wooded Foothills
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Alpine Moon
1 Ancient Grudge
2 Collective Brutality
2 Collector Ouphe
1 Tireless Tracker
2 Fulminator Mage
2 Plague Engineer
1 Huntmaster of the Fells
1 Ashiok, Dream Render
1 Maelstrom Pulse
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Fourth Place, Mono-Green Tron – Jacob Richer]
[Creatures]
2 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger
4 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Thragtusk
2 Walking Ballista
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Sylvan Scrying
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Once Upon a Time
4 Ancient Stirrings
4 Expedition Map
4 Chromatic Star
4 Chromatic Sphere
4 Oblivion Stone
4 Karn Liberated
2 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Forest
1 Sanctum of Ugin
1 Ghost Quarter
4 Urza’s Tower
4 Urza’s Mine
4 Urza’s Power Plant
1 Blast Zone
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Emrakul, the Promised End
3 Nature’s Claim
2 Veil of Summer
2 Dismember
2 Spatial Contortion
3 Thragtusk
1 Warping Wail
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Fifth Place, Jund – Allen Zhou]
[Creatures]
1 Dark Confidant
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Bloodbraid Elf
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Wrenn and Six
4 Liliana of the Veil
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Thoughtseize
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Fatal Push
2 Assassin’s Trophy
2 Kolaghan’s Command
1 Maelstrom Pulse
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Barren Moor
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
3 Bloodstained Mire
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Wooded Foothills
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Blood Crypt
1 Stomping Ground
2 Nurturing Peatland
2 Raging Ravine
2 Swamp
1 Forest
1 Mountain
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Surgical Extraction
1 Damping Sphere
2 Collective Brutality
2 Collector Ouphe
1 Ancient Grudge
3 Plague Engineer
3 Fulminator Mage
1 Kitchen Finks
1 Obstinate Baloth
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Sixth Place, Ponza – Connors Eilerson]
[Creatures]
4 Arbor Elf
2 Birds of Paradise
1 Courser of Kruphix
1 Glorybringer
2 Inferno Titan
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
1 Stormbreath Dragon
3 Tireless Tracker
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 Blood Moon
4 Utopia Sprawl
2 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
4 Karn, the Great Creator
3 Stone Rain
1 Primal Command
4 Pillage
3 Trinisphere
[/Spells]
[Lands]
7 Forest
1 kessig Wolf Run
1 Mountain
3 Stomping Ground
4 Windswept Heath
4 Wooded Foothills
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Anger of the Gods
1 Ensnaring Bridge
1 Liquimetal Coating
1 Mycosynth Lattice
1 Obstinate Baloth
1 Pithing Needle
2 Relic of Progenitus
2 Thragtusk
1 Tormod’s Crypt
1 Walking Ballista
1 Wurmcoil Engine
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Seventh Place, Jund- Derek Chiu]
[Creatures]
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Bloodbraid Elf
2 Scavenging Ooze
2 Dark Confidant
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Thoughtseize
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Fatal Push
4 Liliana of the Veil
3 Wrenn and Six
2 Kolaghan’s Command
3 Assassin’s Trophy
[/Spells]
[Lands]
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Nurturing Peatland
2 Overgrown Tomb
1 Blood Crypt
1 Stomping Ground
1 Forest
1 Mountain
2 Swamp
1 Barren Moor
3 Raging Ravine
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Bloodstained Mire
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Ashiok, Dream Render
2 Alpine Moon
1 Ancient Grudge
3 Collective Brutality
2 Collector Ouphe
2 Damping Sphere
1 Kitchen Finks
1 Huntmaster of the Fells
2 Plague Engineer
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

[Deck Title= Eighth Place, Mardu Death’s Shadow – Ellis Straker]
[Creatures]
4 Death’s Shadow
1 Gurmag Angler
1 Hex Parasite
4 Ranger-captain of Eos
4 Tidehollow Sculler
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Lightning Bolt
1 Anguished Unmaking
1 Collective Brutality
4 Fatal Push
4 Inquisition of Kozilek
2 Kolaghan’s Command
2 Path to Exile
2 Temur Battle Rage
3 Thoughtseize
4 Mishra’s Bauble
1 Phyrexian Unlife
[/Spells]
[Lands]
3 Arid Mesa
1 Blood Crypt
4 Bloodstained Mire
3 Godless Shrine
4 Marsh Flats
1 Plains
1 Sacred Foundry
2 Silent Clearing
1 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Anguished Unmaking
2 Celestial Purge
3 Collective Brutality
1 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
1 Phyrexian Unlife
2 Plague Engineer
2 Rest in Peace
1 Shenanigans
2 Stony Silence
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]