Counsel of the Wyly: Learn to Love the Ooze

Hello and welcome to Counsel of the Wyly, the article series written about Standard, Modern, Legacy, Vintage, and Commander. This week we'll be looking at Junk Reanimator, a deck that has been receiving lots of attention recently and for good reason.

This deck has been a powerhouse for months now since multiple Thragtusks and Angel of Serenity are very powerful against the aggro and control decks in the format. Here's the list I played at PTQ Theros: Tampa, Fl.

Junk Reanimator - PTQ Theros: Tampa, Fl

Creatures (24):
4x Avacyn's Pilgrim
3x Elvish Mystic
3x Centaur Healer
2x Fiend Hunter
3x Restoration Angel
4x Thragtusk
1x Shadowborn Demon
1x Acidic Slime
3x Angel of Serenity

Spells (13):
4x Grisly Salvage
3x Mulch
4x Unburial Rites
1x Sever the Bloodline
1x Garruk Relentless

Lands (23):
4x Temple Garden
4x Overgrown Tomb
2x Godless Shrine
3x Sunpetal Grove
3x Woodland Cemetery
2x Isolated Chapel
2x Forest
1x Vault of the Archangel
1x Gavony Township
1x Cavern of Souls

Sideboard (15):
2x Acidic Slime
3x Voice of Resurgence
1x Obzedat, Ghost Council
1x Garruk Relentless
2x Deathrite Shaman
2x Sin Collector
2x Abrupt Decay
2x Trostani, Selesnya's Voice

The list was fairly stocked and I think a majority of the mainboard is fine. I was unhappy with the fourth copy of Unburial Rites, the mana dork split, and Centaur Healer. I felt I wanted at least some number of Arbor Elf after adding the Shadowborn Demon since Arbor Elf can generate black mana off of Overgrown Tombs. Centaur Healer seems really good on paper, but I feel some number of Lingering Souls would have been better in this slot. The Spirit tokens block a lot more creatures and have some synergy with Voice of Resurgence out of the board. The other card I wanted to put in my mainboard was Blood Baron of Vizkopa. This card is an absolute beating against the current field since many decks do not have an answer to him once he's on board. Blood Baron of Vizkopa and Lingering Souls should also help with our worst match-up, Jund. Jund has both disruption and Scavenging Ooze that interrupt what we're doing. Most decks with Scavenging Ooze aren't difficult to fight against because we can hold our threats in our hand until we can deal with their Scavenging Ooze; however, Jund uses Rakdos's Return to make our plan ineffective. I want to add a second Acidic Slime to the main since one isn't effective enough. For our sideboard, I want a third Sin Collector because the card is very strong against against both Control decks and Jund. Games that you can cast Sin Collector on Turn 2 and follow up with a 2nd copy on Turn 3 can really disrupt what you're opponent is doing. If I was going to play this deck going forward, I'd update it like so:

Junk Reanimator - 2013 Revised

3x Avacyn's Pilgrim
2x Elvish Mystic
2x Arbor Elf
2x Fiend Hunter
3x Restoration Angel
4x Thragtusk
1x Shadowborn Demon
2x Acidic Slime
1x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
3x Angel of Serenity

Spells (14):
4x Grisly Salvage
3x Mulch
2x Lingering Souls
3x Unburial Rites
1x Sever the Bloodline
1x Garruk Relentless

Lands (23):
4x Temple Garden
4x Overgrown Tomb
2x Godless Shrine
3x Sunpetal Grove
3x Woodland Cemetery
2x Isolated Chapel
2x Forest
1x Vault of the Archangel
1x Gavony Township
1x Cavern of Souls

Sideboard (15):
1x Acidic Slime
3x Voice of Resurgence
1x Obzedat, Ghost Council
1x Garruk Relentless
2x Deathrite Shaman
2x Sin Collector
3x Abrupt Decay
2x Trostani, Selesnya's Voice

This is the deck I"ll be sleeving up until rotation since I think it's one of the best decks in the format. If your opponent is relying on Scavenging Ooze to hate you out, I think you will do well with this list. Thankfully, players aren't playing stronger hate cards like Ground Seal or Rest in Peace. Pairing a Rest in Peace or Ground Seal with a fast clock is the best way to deal with Junk Reanimator. If you see this happen in your local store, I'd recommend playing Centaur Healer in the main again.

I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it and feel free to give me ay feedback. Best of luck in all your games!

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-John Wyly