Rise of the Rats: Gruul Aggro Breakdown and Matchup Guide

Note: This article was translated from Chinese by AI and may contain errors. Read the original Chinese version.

Introduction

Hello everyone, I’m XSBeeble, a player from northern Taiwan. I’m very happy to have qualified for MIT Season 9 at 桃園貓腳印. Below are my notes and thoughts on how I picked my deck.
I had been playing midrange for a long time, and honestly, I was quite resistant to aggro at first. The decks I tried include the Gruul Rabid Frenzy deck that is so popular in Japan, my beloved Golgari midrange, and I even considered the Omniscience combo deck for a while.
But even though the DFT set did not noticeably strengthen aggro (yes, really, not at all), I still chose Gruul Aggro and got good results on MTGA and at an MITQ. I will explain in detail how this deck is built, along with the sideboard plans and strategy for each matchup.

Deck Overview

Decklist link

Main Deck Card Choices

Screaming Nemesis (3)
Is this card strong? Super strong! But in the current environment, apart from aggro decks, there are plenty of hard removal spells and cheap bounce spells. If it is just a 3/3 haste creature, its value is actually not that high. Given how likely it is to get removed, I personally chose to keep 1 copy in the sideboard.

Sentinel of the Nameless City (1)
I chose to put this card in the main deck as a replacement for Screaming Nemesis. Its 3/4 body dodges the mainstream removal like Torch the Tower, Nowhere to Run, and Elspeth’s Smite. Vigilance helps against aggro and also avoids the cost reduction benefit of Ride’s End.
The Map tokens it creates on entering and attacking not only filter your draws but also work with the Valiant ability.

Torch the Tower (3)
The best red removal spell in the current environment, but there are not many chances to trigger Bargain in game 1, so I only play 3 copies.

Burst Lightning (2)
Although Torch the Tower has an exile effect, Burst Lightning gives me a chance to come back late in the game.

Witchstalker Frenzy (2)
In the current environment, many 3-4 mana creatures (such as Sheoldred, the Apocalypse, Beza, the Bounding Spring, Preacher of the Schism, Sentinel of the Nameless City, Abhorrent Oculus) cannot be dealt with by Torch the Tower, so this card fills in the gap in removal range, making you fearless when attacking and handling the biggest threats with the fewest resources.

Innkeeper’s Talent (3)
This card is the absolute main reason I chose to go green. It lets every creature grow to dodge removal like Cut Down and Nowhere to Run, triggers the mice’s Valiant ability, and can make interaction spells more expensive (only by 1, but it really matters). Late in the game, doubling counters is a huge threat (alongside Heartfire Hero, Pawpatch Recruit, and so on).

It is also worth mentioning that I chose not to play any Restless Ridgeline and to run only 22 lands. This deck’s mana curve is very tight, and any land that enters tapped off-curve can hurt your mulligans or even leave you behind on tempo. If you think your matchups need this creature land in long games, you can consider it, but you must treat that land as a creature slot.

Sideboard Card Choices

In this deck, Pawpatch Formation is another reason for playing green. It fights decks like Pixie and Domain, and its cycling-like ability not only works with Torch the Tower to trigger Bargain but also replaces itself when needed. I chose to put 3 in the sideboard to make sure I have a reliable answer in key matchups.

Tips

• Remember to use Bargain: the Monster Role token created by Monstrous Rage, and even the Map token created by Get Lost, can be used to enhance Torch the Tower, and do not forget that the enhanced version lets you scry 1.
• Interaction with the changeling land Soulstone Sanctuary: it is both a mouse and a lizard, so do not forget the abilities of Manifold Mouse and Hired Claw, and Shoot the Sheriff cannot destroy it.
• Activation timing of Hired Claw: it is once per turn, so do not forget it when the opponent loses life on their own turn, for example from Mosswood Dreadknight, Preacher of the Schism, Ketramose, the New Dawn, painlands, and so on.
• Screaming Nemesis can turn burn into direct damage: all your removal can be aimed at your own Screaming Nemesis to finish off the opponent’s last life points. Make sure you do this only when the opponent cannot respond in any way.

Matchups and Sideboard Strategy

Esper Pixie

This is a bad matchup. Although there are quite a few of them on MTGA or MO, for some reason they are rarer in Taiwan. The deck has strong recursion, bouncing enchantments like Nowhere to Run back and forth, and uses Hopeless Nightmare to drain your hand. But if the opponent does not have Nowhere to Run, the advantage is on our side, and you need to make good use of those windows to pressure their life total.
The most important strategy is to fill the board, because without This Town Ain’t Big Enough their deck cannot effectively handle a large number of one-for-one trades. Use Offspring aggressively so that your creatures make the greatest impact.
Because of its colors and tempo, this deck has to use a lot of painlands, and its life gain options are only a few Sheltered by Ghosts (very annoying) and the sideboard Momentum Breaker. As long as we get the timing right, we can still win.

Sideboard plan:

IN : 3x Lithomantic Barrage, 3x Pawpatch Formation, 2x Sunspine Lynx
OUT: 2x Screaming Nemesis, 4x Hired Claw, 2x Heartfire Hero

• Pawpatch Formation is the most crucial sideboard card. One of the opponent’s core strategies is to cast Stormchaser’s Talent back and forth to produce a row of prowess otters. When casting Pawpatch Formation, be sure to watch the opponent’s lands, and do not use it when they might have This Town Ain’t Big Enough. The best timing is to destroy the enchantment in response when the opponent casts a bounce spell.
• Pyroclasm can sweep the board effectively and shines when the board is filled with faeries and tokens, but remember that the otters have prowess and can instantly grow into toughness 3 (it takes at least 3 mana).
• Lithomantic Barrage can handle Optimistic Scavenger, Entity Tracker, and Fear of Isolation, and being uncounterable also means it can handle creatures enchanted with Sheltered by Ghosts.
• Sentinel of the Nameless City is much better than Screaming Nemesis in this matchup: it does not die to Nowhere to Run, and it has an enter-the-battlefield ability and defensive capability.
• The large number of nonbasic lands also means Sunspine Lynx will definitely be useful, and trust me, the opponent will not want to bounce this one.
• Many people put Obstinate Baloth in the sideboard to fight the discard from Hopeless Nightmare. But in fact, most players will take it out in sideboarded games and use Grim Bauble or The Witch’s Vanity against aggro, and experienced players especially will not use discard casually early in sideboarded games, so I chose not to use Obstinate Baloth in the sideboard.

Gruul Aggro

The aggro mirror is nothing more than a race, and the key is to keep the game plan under your control. The big point: do not keep an unstable hand. A perfect curve or lots of removal spells is what you most want to see. Try to settle on your strategy for the game right from the opening hand; in general you are faster on the play and more midrange on the draw, but you still need to decide based on your hand.
Screaming Nemesis is the most important creature in this matchup, not only a steady source of damage but also a good way to defend. Try to deal with the opponent’s Screaming Nemesis when your board is empty, to avoid its damage trigger creating a gap on the board.
Try to use removal on your own turn. Your opponent may have Snakeskin Veil or Monstrous Rage to protect their creatures and trigger prowess. Watch the opponent’s mana so that crucial removal is not wasted.

Sideboard plan:

IN : 1x Torch the Tower, 2x Pyroclasm, 1x Screaming Nemesis
OUT: 2x Questing Druid, 4x Hired Claw

• Deal with the opponent’s threats as much as possible and bring in every answer you can; in this matchup, whoever has creatures wins and whoever has none loses.
• Although Pyroclasm is a double-edged sword and a dead card when you are far ahead, it is extremely efficient against an opening of Heartfire Hero + Manifold Mouse, or against Offspring tokens.

Five-Color Domain, Four-Color Zur

The most important thing in this matchup is damage control. Try to keep one or two creatures on the board so that the opponent’s sweepers do not cost you too many resources. Upgrading Innkeeper’s Talent to make single-target removal less efficient, or giving creatures more than 4 toughness to dodge Elspeth’s Smite, are all things to watch for.

Sideboard plan:

IN : 3x Pawpatch Formation, 2x Sunspine Lynx, 1x Screaming Nemesis
OUT : 3x Torch the Tower, 2x Burst Lightning, 1x Sentinel of the Nameless City

• A few top targets for Pawpatch Formation: Zur, Eternal Schemer and Up the Beanstalk. The longer these stay on the battlefield, the lower your win rate gets. You can also destroy Temporary Lockdown on the opponent’s turn, giving them a big surprise during the combat phase.
• Sunspine Lynx can deal considerable damage (EveryWhere is a nonbasic land) and stops the life gain from Zur, Eternal Schemer and Beza, the Bounding Spring. If the opponent deals with it using Leyline Binding, do not forget to give them a second blow with Pawpatch Formation.

Golgari Midrange

My favorite deck, but also one of the most headache-inducing matchups. Resources are the key in this matchup: use cards like Questing Druid and all the Offspring abilities so the opponent can’t gain an advantage from one-for-one trades.
Spread out your damage evenly to avoid being left with nothing after removal, and pay special attention to the timing of Gix’s Command, making good use of Innkeeper’s Talent to minimize its impact.
As for Phyrexian Obliterator, it is probably a natural counter to us! I have not yet come up with a clear solution, but if you can use Witchstalker Frenzy to deal with it in one go and sacrifice some lands to secure a board advantage, that is probably the best you can hope for.

Sideboard plan:

IN : 2x Sunspine Lynx, 1x Screaming Nemesis, 1x Obliterating Bolt, 1x Sentinel of the Nameless City
OUT : 3x Torch the Tower, 2x Burst Lightning

• Obliterating Bolt is a good partner to clear the way for you and can handle most creatures.
• Sunspine Lynx deals damage as soon as it enters, can dodge some removal, and its 5/4 body is also decent in creature trades.

Conclusion

Gruul Aggro, Domain, and Esper Pixie have dominated the MTGGoldfish decklists for a while, proving their stability in the environment.
I think Gruul Aggro is not only stable but also a great deck for practice. Whether it is creature trades, the tempo of attack and defense, or in-game decisions, this deck helps players improve their play quickly. Although Gruul costs a bit more than mono-red aggro, I think it is worth the investment.
This is XSBeeble. I hope this guide helps you, and see you next time!