Discard spells like the painless Duress and Inquisition of Kozilek provide information so that the pilot can make fully informed decisions on what the opponent is missing, picks out cards that may break the prison, and removes cards that may allow the opponent to win before a complete lock is set.Ībrupt Decay is a popular choice as a filler answer-all. This discovery brought about additions like Pithing Needle and Surgical Extraction.
The effectiveness and function of Ensnaring Bridge is one of the primary events that lead to the inevitability described above. It worked perfectly with the low converted mana cost of the core combo cards, isn’t reliant on playing specific colors, and essentially plays like a Moat - but better. Many options have been tried to patch this weakness. This is where the long evolution of the deck comes in. Eventually, enough threats will slip through that the opponent will be able to piece together a win. If the opponent has more threats in his or her deck than the Lantern pilot has “mill rocks” ( Codex Shredder, Ghoulcaller's Bell) available, then the opponent still has inevitability. The weakness to this strategy is that the opponent is still allowed to draw cards as normal. He or she is just doing it as the game plays out, within the legal restrictions of the game, rather than before the game as part of deckbuilding.
Instead, the Lantern pilot is effectively choosing what cards are and are not in the opponent’s deck. The opponent isn’t actually prevented from playing spells or drawing cards. The longer the game plays out, the more likely the Lantern deck will win-as long as the pilot makes correct plays. Jeff Cunningham wrote an article about this, and it’s definitely worth reading whether you plan on piloting Lantern Control or want to be prepared for it as Lantern Control is one of the most inevitable decks in the metagame. Lantern Control makes use of the idea of inevitability. The key to narrowing the list of possible supplemental cards is a deeper understanding of how the deck works and what weaknesses need to be corrected. For more information on what cards were tested and what cards are good or bad for certain metagames, you can check out (or join) the discussion in the MTG Salvation thread. The history of the deck goes back some years now, and through the combined work of dedicated players, the list of cards that have been found to be most effective has narrowed. Supplemental choices are varied, and a tremendous number of options have been cyclically tried, discarded, and tried again by each pilot who decides to adopt the deck. In addition, simple choices in what cards to supplement the prison pieces in a given metagame may impact the success of the deck. Every decision, from what order to play cards, to what cards to allow the opponent to draw once the combo is constructed, has an enormous influence on whether the pilot is going to win or lose. Lantern Control is probably one of the, if not the, most complicated decks to pilot in Modern. After this weekend, Zac Elsik's GP Oklahoma City list is sure to hype the deck even more. The core strategies and synergies that make Lantern Control work mean that few differences are apparent between decks. Most players' first introduction to Lantern Control came from Zac Elsik’s GP Charlotte list and Ali Aintrazi’s SCG Open Charlotte list. Let’s start with a look at two versions of the deck: my own list, and then Zac Elsik's GP-winning list from last weekend's GP Oklahoma City. Before we get started, I want to give a huge shoutout to the players, brewers, and testers in the MTG Salvation Lantern Control thread for all their work and deck development. This goal of this primer is to examine and explain the deck and its nuances. While there are still those who may doubt the effectiveness of combining the information that Lantern of Insight provides and the draw control that Codex Shredder and Ghoulcaller's Bell provides, it seems only a matter of time before the deck becomes a major player in the Modern metagame. It is mainly known by this year’s two Top 16 finishes, along with sporadic presence among smaller tournaments. Zac Elsik put this deck on the map with his 15th place finish at GP Charlotte, and with his recent win at GP Oklahoma City, the deck is sure to be shredding Modern tournaments for months to come. The existence and nature of the deck is often one that sparks debate and heated opinions, but there is no doubt of the power of the deck in the hands of a capable pilot. Lantern Control has recently attained notoriety in the Modern community. Randall Thompson has been working on and playing Lantern Control since March of 2013, working alongside many other architects of the deck, including GP Oklahoma City winner Zac Elsik, in the MTGSalvation forums.
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