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by Maraxus The Analysis of Sligh Hello to all readers. I am a frequent poster on the Beyond Dominia mills under the name of Maraxus of Keld. My favorite deck since Tempest came out has been Sligh. Why is Sligh so powerful? That's what I'm going to try to explain. For those of you who don't know what Sligh is, it's a red deck that combines quick creatures, burn, Ball Lightnings, and Cursed Scrolls to win quickly. It was originally played as a control-style deck, which eliminated creatures and pounded the opponent for the win. Since the release of Tempest, it has become faster and deadlier. In most tournaments, you can see Sligh decks making it into the final rounds consistently. At Worlds, three Sligh decks made Top 8. One White Weenie made it in, and four Survival of the Fittest/Recurring Nightmare decks were present. Nowhere to be seen were Suicide Black, Oath of Rogues, SGD, Tradewind Prison, or any of the other popular archetypes. Despite heavy metagaming against Sligh, it still placed three out of eight. What makes Sligh such a threat? In a word, consistency. Sligh decks almost never get a bad draw. You can pull mostly creatures and a little burn, use the burn to wipe out the defenses and let the creatures beat the opponent to death. Or you can pull a few creatures and a lot of burn, hit the opponent with the creature a few times before they set up their defenses, and burn them with everything on turn 5. Ball Lightnings do a quick six damage, Cursed Scroll wipes out defenses and can wipe out creatures with protection from red, and Fireblast finishes with style. With so many roads to victory, Sligh can always put up a good fight. But how do you build a good Sligh deck? You could always go to the Dojo and copy the decklist there, or find it elsewhere, but there's no guarantee you can play it properly. The best way to do it is to build it yourself and playtest repeatedly until you are comfortable with it. Sligh revolves around the mana curve. Most of the spells cost one or two mana. The only real exception is Ball Lightning, which is powerful enough to justify its casting cost, and Fireblast, which is usually used by sacrificing Mountains. Don't put card that cost more than three in Sligh. You can find many cards in Sligh decks, but few are truly the best. Many are used because they simply "look good". Here's a list of cards that can be considered, and which ones really make the grade. Ball Lightning- This is a must. Six damage on turn three. With this as a threat, the opponent must always keep his defenses up. A well placed Ball Lightning can take out a Wall of Blossoms, hit the opponent for two in trample damage, and allow another attacker to slip through as well. No good Sligh deck is without this.   Bottle Gnomes- The sideboard card of choice vs. other fast decks. Not a good choice maindeck.   Canyon Wildcats- It's a good choice vs. Red, but the low toughness makes it weaker than Ironclaw Orcs.   Cursed Scroll- The Scroll is one of the most powerful cards in Type 2 play. Since Sligh can dump its hand quickly, the Scroll is always effective. With one card in hand, it's two damage for three mana, every turn. It can clear blockers, take down that annoying Soltari Priest, or whittle away the opponent until you draw some more powerful stuff. While expensive, this is another must for any good Sligh deck.   Dwarven Miner- Once the bane of 5cX decks, now it has been supplanted by Wasteland and Price of Progress. Use only in the sideboard.   Dwarven Thaumaturgist- It used to be a good sideboard card vs. Tradewind Prison, but it's slow.   Fireblast- Possibly the key card in Sligh. This is the finisher card. Watch the opponent's jaw drop as they sit at fourteen life, safe from your creatures and prepared to mount an assault of their own, when you double-Incinerate/double-Fireblast to win the game. Nothing matches the closing power of this card.   Fireslinger- This card is a throwback to the control days of Sligh. Its primary purpose is to clear a path for your attackers, or to ping away the last life of the opponent. It has a strong ability vs. other weenies. This is another good card to play with.   Giant Strength- This was the tech that allowed Price to win Pro Tour LA with Sligh. It surprised the field then, but it has since been removed from the better Sligh decks.   Goblin Digging Team- This works well against SGD and Tradewind Prison, but unless you see those a lot, there are better choices.   Goblin Vandal- A good anti-artifact card, but usually you will not be threatened by artifacts.   Hammer of Bogardan- A strong choice for Sligh decks if you see a lot of decks that can stall you from winning. This allows Sligh a better chance in the late game.   Incinerate- Even if it is inferior to Lightning Bolt, it's the best you're gonna get in Type 2. Strong for creaturekill or burning the opponent, this belongs in any red deck, not just Sligh.   Ironclaw Orcs- While at first glance this seems weak (who would want these with Grizzly Bears for the same cost and no drawback), they really do belong in Sligh. Since blocking is not something that Sligh concerns itself with, you get a 2/2 for two mana. Good choice for Sligh.   Jackal Pup- Why would anyone use these? It just lets the opponent Shock it and you at the same time. The thing is, a 2/1 for one mana is so strong with burn support. Unless you are facing another Sligh deck, these are a tremendous asset. Simply sideboard out in Sligh vs. Sligh, and these will win many games for you.   Keeper of Kookus- The Keeper works well vs. other Sligh decks, but you can do better.   Kindle- Kindle is a weak burn spell and should not be used. While it may seem good, Sligh wins quick enough that you will never see the bonus work.   Lava Hounds- Sligh became too quick to use anything that cost more than three mana, so these eventually rotated out of the deck.   Maniacal Rage- It's a strong card in Rath Cycle constructed, but it's weaker in Type 2. Giant Strength works better.   Mogg Conscripts- These are good creatures with Mogg Flunkies and Raging Goblins. Make sure to use lots of creatures if you decide to put these in.   Mogg Fanatic- The power of this card is amazing. You get a quick attacker, plus the bonus ability, which can be used for many things. Take out a creature that's hanging around to block. Take down the big creature that blocks your others. Throw one more damage at the opponent to end the game. Combine with Fireslinger to take down that large threat. This is another must.   Mogg Flunkies- These are a decent substitute for Ironclaw Orcs, but the metagame will dictate which you play. An area loaded with creaturekill will make these a bad choice. If you play with these be sure to pack extra creatures like Raging Goblin.   Orcish Artillery- Once a good choice in Sligh, they have now been replaced by Fireslinger.   Price of Progress- A good choice instead of Wasteland, because it deals damage. Usually seen in the sideboard.   Raging Goblin- This is a decent choice for Sligh, but there are stronger alternatives for one mana, like Jackal Pup and Mogg Fanatic. Play these over Jackal Pup in a heavy Sligh environment.   Rathi Dragon- A powerful card against decks where that extra punch is needed. It is usually seen in the sideboard.   Scalding Salamander- It's too slow to be a threat outside of sealed deck format. Sligh can kill before this is effective.   Seismic Assault- This is the only good card that Sligh got in Exodus. It has strong potential and will become a mainstay when Fireblast leaves. A deck with these should pack extra lands.   Shock- Two damage for one mana. A weakened Lightning Bolt, but it's all you've got. It's a must for the same reasons as Incinerate.   Sonic Burst- While it may seem a decent replacement for Fireblast, the random discard can hurt. Only use it if you're going to need extra burn.   Spellshock- This card is okay for Sligh, but you start to draw the deck from its purpose into a more controlled deck. Only play with this if you know what you're doing.   Suq'Ata Lancer- A strong creature, but no replacement for Ball Lightning. These are a tough choice to leave out, but you have to stick to the mana curve, and Ball Lightnings are better for 3 mana.   Viashino Sandstalker- This card is too mana-intensive for most Sligh decks, especially with Cursed Scroll, because the mana is better used to power the Scroll. After such a list, you may seemed overwhelmed at the options, but most can be eliminated immediately. My current Sligh deck looks like this: 4 Ball Lightning 4 Cursed Scroll 4 Fireblast 4 Fireslinger 4 Incinerate 4 Ironclaw Orcs 4 Jackal Pup 4 Mogg Fanatic 2 Seismic Assault 4 Shock 22 Mountain The deck works very well. The sideboard is constantly changing, but it has included Boil, Pyroblast, Bottle Gnomes, Rathi Dragon, Torture Chamber, Havoc, Dwarven Miner, Price of Progress, and many other cards at different times. Only a detailed study of the environment in which you play can tell you what to put in your sideboard. Well, I'm exhausted from writing all this. Next issue I will try to break down another strong deck, even if I don't make such a large list of card options. Look for breakdowns of Suicide Black, White Weenie, and Oath of Rogues in the future, along with many others. Feel free to e-mail me at r***m@m***o.com with any comments or questions.           Maraxus [ Back to September 1998 Table of Contents ] [ Back to Beyond Dominia ] Magic: the Gathering is a Registered Trademark of Wizards of the Coast