Temur Threshold at BIG MAGIC Open

By Shuhei Nakamura

Shuhei Nakamura is a member of the Pro Tour Hall of Fame, former Player of the Year, and is one of just six players with more than 400 lifetime pro points.

This week, I will be featuring decks from the second BIG MAGIC Open, held in Yokohama, Japan, on October 25–26. This event was actually comprised of two tournaments, one run as Legacy and the other Standard, and is one of the largest and most prominent events in the country aside from a Grand Prix or other premier event.

The first deck we'll be examining is one by Yūki Ichikawa, which took 2nd place in the Legacy tournament, which had just under 400 players. It contains exemplary green creatures, library manipulation, Delver of Secrets, and red burn spells—an always potent combination. At first glance, it doesn't look much different from many other decks so often seen in the format.

What makes Ichikawa's deck different is the Dead // Gone in the main deck and particularly the Sulfuric Vortex cards in the sideboard. These are silver bullets against the White-Blue Miracles deck popular in Legacy, as it provides a consistent noncreature source of damage and also prevents lifegain. I imagine most of his opponents were hard-pressed to deal with it.

Yūki Ichikawa's Temur Threshold

Decklist Stats Sample Hand

Creature (12)

4 Tarmogoyf 4 Delver of Secrets 4 Nimble Mongoose

Sorcery (5)

1 Forked Bolt 4 Ponder

Instant (25)

1 Dead // Gone 4 Daze 4 Force of Will 4 Brainstorm 2 Spell Snare 2 Spell Pierce 4 Lightning Bolt 4 Stifle

Land (18)

4 Wasteland 4 Misty Rainforest 4 Scalding Tarn 3 Volcanic Island 3 Tropical Island

60 Cards

Sideboard (15)

1 Forked Bolt 1 Spell Pierce 2 Rough//Tumble 1 Destructive Revelry 3 Submerge 2 Red Elemental Blast 1 Pithing Needle 1 Grafdigger's Cage 3 Sulfuric Vortex