Welcome to Deck of the Week: a new feature here on the Card Kingdom Blog! Every Friday, we’ll post a Constructed decklist that should be on your radar for the weekend, whether you’re looking for something fun to sleeve up for Friday Night Magic or fine-tuning your sideboard for a PPTQ or Grand Prix.
This weekend, our friend The Professor from Tolarian Community College will be kicking off his Pauper Tour at GP Santa Clara. If you’re looking for a deck to challenge him, or just want to get into the Pauper format, look no further than the Top 8 of Mox Boarding House‘s most recent Rags to Riches Pauper event.
5-Color Tron
Jace Mickelson | 1st, Rags to Riches 16 | 30 Dec 2017
2 Mnemonic Wall
4 Mulldrifter
1 Sea Gate Oracle
1 Ulamog’s Crusher
1 Capsize
1 Condescend
1 Doom Blade
1 Electrickery
1 Electrostatic Bolt
4 Flame Slash
2 Forbidden Alchemy
1 Impulse
2 Moment’s Peace
2 Mystical Teachings
3 Prohibit
2 Pulse of Murasa
1 Rolling Thunder
2 Expedition Map
1 Prismatic Lens
4 Prophetic Prism
2 Island
1 Mountain
3 Shimmering Grotto
4 Swiftwater Cliffs
1 Thornwood Falls
4 Urza’s Mine
4 Urza’s Power Plant
4 Urza’s Tower
Sideboard:
2 Ancient Grudge
1 Coalition Honor Guard
1 Dispel
1 Electrickery
1 Gorilla Shaman
2 Hydroblast
1 Moment’s Peace
1 Negate
3 Pyroblast
1 Serene Heart
1 Ulamog’s Crusher
Tron is one Pauper’s most popular decks, and it seemed to be the deck to beat at last weekend’s Rags to Riches. While several Tron variants made it to the Top 8, this five-color version, piloted by Jace Mickelson, ended up on top after nine rounds. The deck’s toolbox of counterspells and removal, combined with its plentiful card-draw and filtering spells, allows it to answer most decks in the format before finishing off the game with a big Rolling Thunder or Ulamog’s Crusher hit. Pulse of Murasa has also been an impactful addition in recent years, helping the deck recur key cards while keeping its head above water against aggro.
If you’re looking to learn more about Pauper, we recommend checking out our brief introduction to the format or browsing Tolarian Community College’s Pauper video archive. Good luck, and have fun this weekend!
Header design: Justin Treadway
Header image: “Mulldrifter” by Eric Fortune
Hallie served as Content Manager for CardKingdom.com and editor-in-chief of the Card Kingdom Blog from 2017-2022. Part tournament grinder, part content creator, Hallie is always looking for ways to improve her game and to share what she learns with others.