The Dive Down

Latest Episodes:

Episode 66: Mono-White in Pio: Heliod, Fun-Crowned, pt. II Mar 27, 2020

Show notes

This week we head back for another Heliod deck dive, this time in Pioneer!
The Break Down: Super MTGO Qualifiers in Modern and Pioneer
The Dive Down: Infinite Clicks 'n' Damage 'n' Stuff

Become a citizen of The Dive Down Nation!: http://www.patreon.com/thedivedown
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Timestamps:
6:36 - Housekeeping
8:25 - Modern Super Qualifier
25:30 - Pioneer Super Qualifier
39:15 - The Dive Down Begins: Mono-White Heliod in Pioneer
45:10 - The Strength of Heliod
47:35 - A Brief History
48:10 - The Combo
53:49 - The Beat Down
1:06:32 - The Mana
1:08:16 - The Disruption
1:19:02 - The Gideons
1:26:33 - Playing the Deck
1:33:56 - The Matchups
1:39:45 - The Sideboard
1:41:38 - Wrapping Up

Links from this week's episode:
Modern Super Qualifier: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/modern-super-qualifier-2020-03-22
Pioneer Super Qualifier: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-super-qualifier-2020-03-22
Heliod deck list example: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2863625#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 65: Staying in Touch at a Distance Mar 20, 2020

Show notes

This week's a weird one, because things are weird. We first go over the Modern and Pioneer MTGO Challenges, then head into a grab bag of listener questions!
The Break Down: Business as Usual
The Dive Down: Staying Healthy and Staying Positive

Timestamps:
4:03 - Some positive news to start your Friday
7:22 - Housekeeping
9:49 - The Break Down - The Pioneer MTGO Challenge
25:46 - The Modern MTGO Challenge
39:50 - The Dive Down begins
42:31 - What we're covering with paper tournaments cancelled
46:03 - Some board games we like
52:13 - Magic Online, Magic Arena, computers, and you
1:04:32 - Questions lightning round begins - Bant snow control, the best deck in modern?
1:06:46 - The best pioneer deck?
1:10:20 - The tribes on the edge of glory?
1:14:20 - Where is Wilt-Leaf?
1:15:43 - Why do we like Pioneer, and what still draws us to Modern?
1:21:54 - Is Uro the new Oko?
1:26:48 - Should sets be tested online before print?
1:30:00 - Do we play Commander?
1:34:12 - Finding your deck
1:38:38 - Our favorite places
1:44:20 - Our go-to non-Magic Podcasts
1:48:28 - Closing out

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 64: MTG Bans, SCG Regionals, and Other Happy Thoughts Mar 13, 2020

Show notes

This week we're doing a bit of a news show — we're covering and discussing a bunch of current topics in Modern and Pioneer including Monday, March 9th's B&R, Pioneer on Arena, and SCG Regionals in Modern. Join us as we break down and break down and break down the last week of mtg.

The Break Down 1: Pioneer Masters
The Break Down 2: B&R
The Dive Down: SCG Regionals (Modern)

Timestamps:
2:43 - Housekeeping
4:21 - The Break Down begins: Pioneer Masters on Arena
19:32 - BANS!
32:53 - NO BANS??
48:21 - The Dive Down begins: SCG Regionals Weekend
50:48 - The top decks across all the top 8s
1:04:42 - The winners!
1:12:45 - The spicy decks
1:32:29 - Surprises
1:37:29 - Stan and Dave’s Regionals Experiences
1:47:28 - Closing out

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 63: Testing Innovations in Modern and Pioneer Mar 06, 2020

Show notes

This week we are looking at some of the newest (and oldest) tech and decks in Modern and Pioneer! Mono G Walkers in Pioneer, Grinding Station Breach in Modern, and... Shadow of Doubt?

The Break Down: The Modern and Pioneer Showcase Challenges
The Dive Down: Innovations in Modern and Pioneer

Timestamps:
2:19 - Housekeeping
5:27 - The Break Down Begins - upcoming bans and a listener poll
13:25 - The Modern Showcase Challenge
27:05 - The Pioneer Showcase Challenge
33:20 - The Dive Down begins - New tech in Modern and Pioneer
34:24 - Mono G Walkers in Pioneer
55:08 - Shadow of Doubt in Modern
1:24:08 - Grinding Station Breach
1:46:44 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
Pioneer showcase challenge: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-showcase-challenge-2020-03-02
Modern showcase challenge: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/modern-showcase-challenge-2020-03-01
Mono G Walkers: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2819606#paper
Izzet Flash w/ Shadow of Doubt: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2511750#paper
Grinding Station Breach: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2815217#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 62: Orzhov Sram Auras: Pants in Pioneer Feb 28, 2020

Show notes

The gents explore a Patreon request - Orzhov Sram Auras - in Pioneer! Who's wearing the pants in this format? Listen to find out!

The Break Down: SCG Indy Pio Open
The Dive Down: Some Hate, Some Hope, Some Pants
The Wind Down: Hey... Whacha Doin?

Timestamps:
2:34 - Housekeeping
3:00 - Important updates to our Patreon!
10:44 - The Break Down: SCG Indianapolis Pioneer Open
39:53 - The Dive Down Begins: Sram Auras
41:23 - Intro to Sram Auras
43:25 - The Creatures
57:41 - Auras & Blessings
1:06:52 - The Lands
1:09:03 - The Game Plan
1:15:37 - Playing Against Different Strategies in Pioneer
1:22:43 - Beating Sram Auras
1:26:25 - The Sideboard plans
1:36:06 - Our thoughts on the deck
1:46:15 - The Wind Down: What we're playing for fun
1:54:18 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
SCG Indy coverage: https://old.starcitygames.com/events/220220_indianapolis.html
An example Sram Auras decklist: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2794551#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Bonus 6: Modern Blue Moon w/ ThePenSword Feb 25, 2020

Show notes

In this bonus episode, Stan interviews a fixture of the MTGO leagues and Modern Blue Moon aficionado, Jacob Cumiskey aka ThePenSword. They talk about the ins and outs of Blue Red control decks, ranging from Thing in the Ice to Through the Breach, and gush over some of their favorite counterspells.

Find Jacob Cumiskey:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CumiskeyJacob
Twitch: twitch.tv/jacobcumiskey
Discord: https://bit.ly/2VvbZu3

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 61: Heliod Combo: Modern Spike Feeding Feb 21, 2020

Show notes

We take a dive into Heliod Company Combo in Modern. How it works, what we learned, and how annoying it is to play on Magic Online!

The Break Down: NRG Indianapolis
The Dive Down: Infinite Life and Infinite Misclicks
The Wind Down: Manners, Schmanners

Timestamps:
2:40 - Housekeeping
5:54 - The Break Down begins - The NRG Pioneer Trial
26:12 - The NRG Modern Trial
36:40 - The Dive Down begins - Heliod Company Combo
38:40 - What the deck is trying to do
40:15 - Infinite life combos
48:08 - Infinite mana and damage
54:48 - The tutors
1:03:46 - The ramp
1:09:05 - Strategies playing the deck
1:23:08 - Using the sideboard
1:26:42 - Playing against Heliod Combo
1:30:30 - What we liked about the deck
1:33:34 - Troubles we had playing the deck
1:41:33 - The Wind Down - Magic Online Combo Etiquette
1:49:58 - Closing out

Links from this week's episode:
NRG Pioneer Trial: http://articles.nerdragegaming.com/decklists-archive/pioneer-nrg-series-trial-february-15-2020/
NRG Modern Trial: http://articles.nerdragegaming.com/decklists-archive/modern-nrg-series-trial-february-16-2020/
Heliod w/ Anafenza: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2784654#paper
Heliod w/ Infinite Mana: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2758766#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 60: More Meta, More Meta, More Meta Feb 14, 2020

Show notes

We're headed back to where it all started - Modern! This week's episode is an exploration of the past month+ of Modern events on Magic Online. What's rising, what's fading, and what do we think about it?

The Break Down: RPT Phoenix and Shane's GP Phoenix experience
The Dive Down: More Meta, More Meta, More Meta

Timestamps:
3:22 - Housekeeping
5:26 - The Break Down Begins - RPT Phoenix
19:30 - Pioneer RPT win percentages
26:00 - Adapting to the combo metagame
28:25 - Shane's GP Phoenix experience
40:34 - The Dive Down Begins - The new Modern Meta
44:05 - The Modern Challenge data
54:15 - The Modern Prelims data
1:03:04 - The current decks of Modern: Titan
1:07:13 - Mono-Red Prowess
1:11:44 - Urza
1:14:02 - Tron decks
1:18:19 - Jund and Death's Shadow
1:23:00 - Izzet Control
1:25:08 - Some quick hits
1:35:20 - Our takeaways
1:42:08 - Wrapping up

Links from this week's episode:
WOTC's RPT Phoenix coverage: https://magic.gg/events/players-tour-phoenix-2020
CFB's GP Phoenix coverage: https://coverage.channelfireball.com/event/52

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Bonus 5: The Shadowy Science w/ Michael Rapp Feb 11, 2020

Show notes

In this bonus episode, Dave interviews certified Death's Shadow Scientist Michael Rapp about playing... well Death's Shadow. They actually do a bit of a deep dive on decks of all different shadow sizes including the most popular build of the moment — 4 Color Traverse.

Find Michael Rapp:
Twitter: @RappaciousOne
Articles: https://blog.cardkingdom.com
Discord: https://discord.gg/H8kRu4R

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

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Episode 59: Sleeve/Believe/Heave: Theros Beyond Death Edition Feb 07, 2020

Show notes

We kick off this week’s show with a Break Down of the first two Pioneer Players Tours, from sister cities Brussels and Nagoya. Then we Dive Down with the latest Sleeve/Believe/Heave episode, featuring 3 spicy Pioneer decks inspired by new cards from Theros.

The Wind Down: Players Tours Brussels & Nagoya
The Dive Down: Sleeve/Believe/Heave ft. Theros Beyond Death

Timecodes:
5:05 - Break Down Begins
7:56 - PT Brussels Analysis
18:10 - PT Nagoya Analysis
41:55 - Dive Down Begins
43:58 - RB Midrange
59:30 - UB Inverter
1:22:44 - UG Ramp

Links from this week's episode:
Rakdos Midrange: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2728102#online
Dimir Inverter: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2723294#paper
Simic Ramp: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2723199#paper

Our opening music is Nowhere - You Never Knew, and our closing music is Space Blood - Goro? Is That Your Christian Name?

email us: thedivedown@gmail.com
twitter: https://twitter.com/thedivedown

Support The Dive Down

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