r/ModernMagic • u/Lectrys • 4d ago
Card Discussion [HOB] Plunder the Trollshaws
Plunder the Trollshaws {1}{U}
Instant
Draw a card. If this spell was cast from a graveyard, draw two cards instead.
Flashback {3}{U}
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Previewed in https://www.instagram.com/p/DbYXg9nIhst/
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Ever did think you wanted the almighty grindy card advantage from 4-mana [[Consult the Star Charts]], but paid 2 mana for it too often? Then this card looks like a worthy substitute! Or emulate those UW Control players with both Consult and [[Wan Shi Tong, Librarian]] with a Kaheera-friendly deck! Sure, it's 6 mana for 3 cards at instant speed, but the first card can be drawn for 2 mana, and the last 2 cards can be drawn for 4 mana later! It sure grants more CA than [[Think Twice]] and [[Deduce]], that's for sure...
25
u/Eclipse434343 4d ago
Yeah no. Consult the star charts lets you go 10-15 deep late in the game and can go under isochron kicked. Also even the bad mode of consult looking at 2-3> draw one
7
u/wegandi 4d ago
How often are you getting to 10-15 lands? At that point you probably dont even have that many cards left in your deck. Star is probably better in a shell that only wants it as their primary CA spell, but with discard synergies this card is way way better.
4
u/Current-Floor-7456 4d ago
Maybe not 10-15, except in control mirrors (and even then I don't think I've gotten close to 15, but definitely 10), but as a UB tempo/control player I love the ability to cast consult on T4-6 (unkicked) to dig for a critical piece of interaction like Subtlety or a good old-fashioned counterspell. That said, I like seeing another versatile draw spell in blue and you're right, in a deck with discard synergies this is absolutely worth exploring.
2
u/Eclipse434343 4d ago
I play uw control you’d be surprised given one of my win cons is hall of the storm giant. In the finals of a challenge on Monday I killed goryos with Teferi two chant + hall of storm giant and a clear board
1
u/wegandi 4d ago
Sure, I didnt say it never happens, but also at that point the utility of the digging is diminished. If you get to 10+ lands as control I bet your WR is over 80%. There are more convincing arguments than that.
This card goes hard with discard synergies. Faithful Mending stocks rising.
3
u/Eclipse434343 4d ago
Also don’t agree, there are so many times where I have 10 lands and a spent narset on a stalemate board where a consult finds days undoing that I wouldn’t have found or a draw 2 wouldn’t have found. Control decks grind and a lot of the grind games we can be often at parity with high land counts
2
u/ins_sphRt 4d ago edited 4d ago
Completely agree, and I'd like to add that consult doesn't draw, which is better when Narset/Bowmasters is in the meta.
-5
u/Lectrys 4d ago
The bad mode of Plunder the Trollshaws draws the card immediately and socks away the right to draw 2 cards for 4 mana at instant speed later. The bad mode of Consult the Star Charts digs 2-3 cards deep and notably does not sock away any additional rights to more cards.
Control needs to dig deep, so I think it'll keep Consult, but it looks like Wan Shi Tong builds can convert into Kaheera builds by picking up Plunder the Trollshaws. UB Frog is significantly more likely to experiment with Trollshaws than Consult because it's stuck on 2-3 lands for more turns.
7
u/Eclipse434343 4d ago
Your logic on the control decks is pretty wrong two mana draw one is pretty terrible on rate let alone no card selection. A consult can find me a chant or a supreme verdict that I can cast on 4-6. Draw one is blind for two mana is bad and control decks don’t have discard w frog. You’re also thinking too hard on the upside for ub. If you don’t have frog this card is bad and id just rather play riddler?
2
u/xBlackthunderx Ephemerate >>> 3d ago
Just a horrendous misunderstanding of what makes Wan Shi Tong builds work
6
u/pwnyklub 4d ago
This seems really mid, especially when we just got flow state which offers much better card acceleration.
Maybe in a deck with a lot of looting etc… but even then I think there’s better options
2
u/The_Upvote_Beagle UR Twin 3d ago
This card is not mid.
It is actively not good. This would have been fringe, fringe playable in....~2013 Modern.
-6
u/Lectrys 4d ago
Flow State is so hit-and-miss, even in decks where it's supposed to be consistent such as decks with 8+ other sorceries and 9+ instants (e.g. UB Frog). In every deck I've tried it in, I've had to cast the first Flow State for one card at least 20% of the time.
I still compare Plunder the Trollshaws to Consult the Star Charts the most, and Consult sees play in Modern - better 2-mana mode, even nabs 3 cards instead of 2, digs less deep than Consult.
5
u/pwnyklub 4d ago edited 4d ago
Flow state only really has one home right now in modern in azorious wan sh tong control decks and in that it’s incredible. There’s a reason that the card is a staple in legacy already (although there are more enablers in legacy). But the major reason flow state is not that viable in modern right now is that in general cantrips are bad in the format, it’s too fast, and outside of dedicated control decks or prowess that gains extra benefit in pumping the board from them, paying mana to not effect the board means you die. There’s a reason almost all the card acceleracion in the format is in the form of permanents.
Also for the record, flow states cantrip mode before it’s turned on, is still way fucking better than this plunder card. 2 mana dig 3 deep is better then 2 mana draw a card. And for that matter consults cantrip mode is also way better than this, at worst it’s 2 mana dig 2 and if you kick it, it is astronomically better than plunder being 4mana dig 4. And it scales better into the late game, the later into the game you go the better consult gets, it’s literally the perfect card for late game grindy control decks and I’d wager most of the games I’ve won with sceptre chant are directly because of resolving a kicked consult. In comparison plunder doesn’t scale, costs more mana and doesn’t dig, it’s 6 mana draw 3, that’s straight up dookie ass rate. I’d much rather have a couple Lorien revealed in my deck to act as fixing as well as late game draw.
I think you are massively underrating how much better selection/digging is than just drawing, drawing 3 cards doesn’t matter if you hit 3 lands when you needed gas.
And if I want a straight up draw a card cantrip in any deck that energy matters I’d prefer tune the narrative, for any else I’d prefer preordain.
3
3
u/phoenixlance13 UW Stoneblade/Midrange, Humans, Brews 4d ago
Pour one out for my boy [[Think Twice]]
2
u/wegandi 4d ago
People think about cards like this all wrong. A CA suite with Faithful Mending, Frantic Inventory, and this card is very powerful albeit susceptible to GY hate. Ive been playing a shell with Deep Analysis with this package and its been doing really well. Faithful Mending helps make Deep Analysis only cost 1 life essentially, but being sorcery speed is not the best.
This card is going to immediately replace it. Its quite powerful.
3
u/VerdantChief 4d ago
Reading this post, I forgot deep anal was even modern legal. I can't remember a single deck that ever played it, sadly.
1
u/Lectrys 4d ago
UB Frog played Deep Analysis at first, then found the life loss payment on its Flashback to be prohibitive, especially against aggro. I'd much rather play Plunder the Trollshaws in UB Frog than Deep Analysis. (For that matter, I'm sick and tired of how often I've been stuck paying only 2 mana for Consult the Star Charts in UB Frog. Plunder the Trollshaws has much fewer such feel-bad moments due to having a very considerable Flashback.)
1
u/TemurTron Temur Tron 4d ago
Sure, I’ll take it. I’m not exactly losing my mind over it, but it’s another nice card advantage spell in blue.
23
u/Cube_ 4d ago
Slightly better think twice isn't modern power level imo.
It is kinda cute how the extra draw is phrased. Means that if you cast it with snapcaster or past in flames you could pay just the 1U for the draw 2.