How To Build Bring To Light Scapeshift - A Highly Competitive Modern Magic The Gathering Deck

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Bring To Light Scapeshift Decklist: archidekt.com/decks/2754335#B...)
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Are you looking to play combo in Modern and interested in a one card combo deck that’s reliable, efficient, and highly competitive? Then have I got a deck for you!
Bring To Life Scape Shift Modern’s premiere one card combo deck, that kills your opponent with lands entering the battlefield! Wait…..what??? That’s right! Bring to Light Scapeshift is a combo control deck that looks to kill opponents by sacrificing a handfull of lands to search out a number of mountains and Valakuts via the linchpin card Scapeshift.
Your Ideal turn sequencing will start with a turn one suspended Search for Tomorrow. Followed by a Sakura Tribe Elder, which will ensure you have 5 Mana in any color combination your hand could demand on turn 3.
This means that you are only two more lands from going off and killing your opponent. Theoretically, if you are able to play a land from hand and hard cast a Search for Tomorrow your opponent could be dead on turn 4! Hooray for one card combos.
Obviously, this is not always going to be the case, as chances are you’ll be slowed down needing to use countermagic and removal to fizzle your opponent’s own plans.
This is what makes scapeshift great, it is a combo-control deck that has tools to buy itself time before going off. Let’s look at what makes up this deck.
Bring to light scapeshift is a competitive tier 1 deck for modern. It’s unqiue flavor of combo control consistently gets results, all the while providing a fun and complex gameplay experience. If you are interested in checking out this decklist and prices, I have included a link in the video description to our sponsor at card kingdom. Card kingdom is one of the fastest, most reliable, quality sellers of magic the gathering singles worldwide, and just by checking them out via our affiliate link you help support this channel.
I hope very much that this video has been of some help to you. What modern deck would you like to see a tech on next? Let me know in the comments below!
Music Courtesy Of:
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"Airport Lounge" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
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[@leonvalenzuela4096]

Valakut it a region that is nothing but explosive volcanoes, as in every mountain is a volcano in that region; multiple in lore.

[@LORDofATLANTIS]

I love this. As a relatively new merfolk pilot this is invaluable, great detail on inner workings of this deck

[@aaronalbus6879]

Hey Professor! I love your videos. Just ordered a batch of cards for my commander deck through card kingdom. Happy to support the college.

[@gwendilynncrow4129]

the ending of the video wit hthe viewers like you, thank you reminds me of the PBS kids commercial that was on tv when i was a little kid, that was a long time ago lol. the nostalgia.

[@Jacob_Friis]

LOVE IT! Was currently getting a Abzan Eldritch Evolution combo deck, but Bring to Light Scapeshift looks a lot more consistant and fun to play. Well, back to buy into a new modern deck :D

[@stefanobadodi2085]

Great video prof, I'm not into Modern at all but I love these deck techs. Keep up with the great work!

[@victorhong16]

for a second there i read How to Build a Light Spaceship. i was really excited.

[@aegir95]

Just saw you in commander Vs and have to say it was comedy gold as one would expect from you ;)

[@williamshabecoff4048]

Seriously though, snapcaster needs a reprint.

[@samverick]

Modern Masters 3 comes out in March!

[@bossshadow3060]

I know it is well nigh impossible, but I truly do hope that WotC chooses to to skip Snapcaster and Liliana for reprints. There are so many whiners that I would dearly love to see die of apoplectic fits if it were to happen that way.

[@TheTexasDice]

Masters Sets don't matter. Paying 110 bucks for a Lilly or 90 makes no difference, it's still too much.

[@DCAMM720]

So Tarmogoyfs being printed twice and reducing the price to around 100-115 from a steady 200-220 isn't a trend to go by if Snaps are reprinted? The prices would go down for a brief moment then go back up after a year or so.

[@davidrobinson7122]

Well he got it

[@frankschnitzer1054]

Professor, you should make a modern death and taxes or U/R Storm deck tech.

[@ghillemh]

Explained the deck really well, thanks!

[@D4rkAnubi5]

another great video thanks a ton

[@HeroesofCybertron]

Oh man. I used to play Scaprshift combo back when Extended was a thing. Nice to see that people adopted it for Modern.

[@Finngrinder]

I like how it's November 16 and Dredge and Infect MU isn't even mentioned on Anger xD

[@theoriginalmew2889]

The-Jaded Ikr I was wondering the same thing

[@BigBrothersEnd]

4:50 That got out of my budget quickly...

[@TheMCGamer2012]

Olivier Paille Yeah... I need 2 doubling season to finish off a deck and it's making my wallet cry. Why, modern, why?

[@Mihail4444]

:D

[@terrabite87]

1:33 that got out of my budget quickly

[@thedanchannel7428]

Yay! Another budget deck!

[@blackoutbingo9530]

Prof. I'd love to see an Atraxa super friends commander deck as you'd make it also I'd love to hear your advice on what should go in for optimal play beyond the obvious like doubling season and chain veil. The main reason I'd like to see this is because I'm currently attempting to piece one together, and am personally humble enough to know that I know nothing of this strategy having never seen played against or heard of super friends until after Atraxa's release. I thank you in advance regardless of whether or not you acquiesce my request; due to the fact that I also thank you for all the hard work you do for novices, intermediates; like myself, and even expert players on a daily basis. Lastly I applaud your efforts and pray for your continued success. Sincerely Yours, William Heaton

[@cptplease8100]

Just fantastic

[@eolfeci]

Very well made video! Are you planing on making a gameplay video with this deck? I am curious to see your unorthodox 5 color version in action.

[@lart93]

I mostly only play duel commander but this has sparked my interest in playing modern! However way out of my budget, if it remains competitive I will surely take it into account if I get ever get some extra money to spend on MTG :D

[@purklefluff]

this is a great FNM deck, and it'll serve you well... the RUG version is also excellent (uses prismatic omen instead of bring to light) but i feel like you could add a caveat to this deckbuilding review - scapeshift hasn't been able to break into a large tournament for some time now (months rather than weeks). it sort of comes in waves - i fully expect scapeshift to come back again next year with a couple of high-profile finishes, but it isn't a sure thing right now.

[@hvaughn-dunn8256]

Awesome!

[@kyleray6450]

i remember that channel fireball posted an article with decks that people need to stop playing. this unfortunately was one of those decks. i would personally recommend playing the through the breach Titan lists. the other lists of this deck are now all r/g

[@davidyannarella6550]

I feel like you'd want at least one mass artifact removal spell in the sideboard considering you can grab it off Bring to Light, maybe Shatterstorm or Fracturing Gust? Shatterstorm can really lay a blow on Affinity and Gust could be useful against Affinity or Bogles.

[@skyeberggren8047]

hey professor, could you do a modern MANA base how to video. you did this for commander and having used those methods have found them to be perfect, of course. I'm trying to get into modern but struggle at building the right MANA base.

[@androidgaming3330]

Professor there are two spells missing in your decklist

[@ruthlessrut3030]

hey idk if you have ever done a review on it but i can not find one, thr ultra pro metavault deck case i have one got it off amazon for 67 bucks and i just love it solid design suit case type case and was just wondering if you ever seen or have one to do a review on

[@sboss]

Tooth and Nail is a similar 1-card combo that's cheaper, more fun, and can kill on turn 3. And less people know how to play against it.

[@GaaradancepartyX]

as someone who has played scapeshift(not the bring to light version but still) and Tooth and Nail, Tooth and nail is really weak to burn and at least 75% of my local meta is either on grixis control or death shadow jund. you cant keep an arbor elf or a satyr out on the board to save your life. at least you can steal so many game ones with turn 2 blood moon lol.

[@jtmiller5305]

Supreme Verdict (as opposed to wrath of god) can also be good, with bring to light being able to get it.

[@acidfire4259]

Are both hydra and dragons is a good idea in commander or modern

[@jasperschragel-rietz6832]

Do you build and test the lists from your deck techs yourself?

[@Ant9846]

Hey Prof! Can you do one on Modern BW Tokens please :)

[@Adrelinen]

2:05 there's a typo on the snapcaster prices. One is 44.49 and the other is 44.99

[@adamhadlock2612]

Professor!!! I know you probably won't see this comment, but it would be superb if you made a Modern Restore Balance primer!!! You rock!

[@JLPicard1648]

If Negate is only targeting opponent's counter magic, can't it be replaced with Dispel?

[@simonwilliamson3684]

Ben Hamilton It's slightly more versatile, stops blood moon.

[@jakedaniel1492]

and counters discard spells*** if needed

[@ar-jdimapasoc6668]

is it worth it to buy kaladesh gift box

[@joshuapeacham5332]

can you do a deck tech on Grixis Delver next?

[@adamhathorne3658]

Is Engineered Explosives missing from the description deck list or am I just missing it.

[@GaaradancepartyX]

All about Naya valakut, "i hear your Blood Moon and raise you mainboard Nahiri" with the benefit of also saying to the jund player who casts Fulminator Mage, "no i do not only run 2 Valakut"

[@thatonekidtrex]

could you do a modern abzan deck tech and not that combo one

[@grymgungus3933]

I feel like the wrath of god should be supreme verdict. it dodges mausoleum wanderer from spirits, curse catcher and spell peirce in merfolk, and stubborn denial from bant eldrazi, meanwhile the only regenerating creature I can think of is experiment one and stompy sees much less play than the other three decks I listed before

[@TheTexasDice]

It's a meta-decision. Thrun The Last Troll is still an Abzan and Jund Sideboard Staple. And so is Golgari Charm.

[@cooperjohnson6962]

BTL scapeshift is not tier 1 in the current meta. Not many people are playing it. However, you can make an argument for titanshift, which has been putting up decent results, but it's still hovering in tier 2 territory in terms of how many people are playing it.

[@readonknight9093]

Please do a Bant Eldrazi Deck Tech

[@DigimonFan814]

Is crumble to dust an effective sideboard card against this deck?

[@christophergamble9334]

I have been playing this deck since june and I cannot help but feel as though you are overstating how powerful it is, yes this deck is good in a grindy mindrange field but right now in today's hyper aggressive dredge infect BTL could not be weaker, these our the decks worst match ups and they are top of the meta.

[@youtubeuser377]

please do a cheap modern prowess

[@bryanbonar]

Getting in a damage with Sakura Tribe Elder against stingy or careful players that use fetchlands also reduces your clock by a turn.

[@CardBazaarYT]

Professor, is there a way I can contact you?

[@AnotherZoruaAmongUs]

In the description's decklist, you forgot to add Engineered Explosives to the mainboard.

[@thedanath]

Iv played against scapeshift and as far as i can remember my opponent didnt play any blue in the deck. i cant remember the whole decklist but i do know it ran Primeval Titan as its a good beater and can get you out your Valakuts as soon as it enters the battle field

[@DamianVaz]

in the video description there are only 58 cards listed for the deck, only 28 spells

[@judgementgaming3270]

I would say 3 Valukut instead of 2. What about LD such as Ghost Quarter blowing one up?

[@roosterchains]

That would only be an issue if you had valakut already in play before resolving scapeshift. And they were above 20 health. Even then every land you play after is a bolt.

[@noahborthwick3231]

Can you do soul sisters

[@th3on3thatb3atu]

Isn't this deck just inferior to rg titan breach? I believe pros have given up on this version. Although I'm sure the matchups change and I'm sure this is still an at least tier 2 deck

[@averytwo1]

yes this is a bad version of the rg one ots probably tier 3ish as the better r/g version is still only tier 2

[@qwerty71041]

I feel the G/R version fits cleanly into tier 1.5 almost exclusively due to its ability to beat dredge

[@leesalt]

th3on3thatb3atu Yeah, it had recently been put on blast as being a deck you should stop playing in modern by Pascal Maynard on Channel Fireball. He suggests the RG version.

[@vinnyv2004]

Once Infect gets banned, this deck gets insane again. It has an OK dredge MU if it doesn't get banned, and BGX is almost a bye.

[@NerfMaster07]

why will infect get banned?

[@whatdothlife4660]

A land like Valakut not being legendary seems fine to me flavorwise. We are just drawing MORE mana and power from Valakut each time we play a copy.

[@daveswarts4357]

You should do grixis delver next

[@shauntothemaxx5639]

$865 dollars... I didn't know money went that high.... :( lol

[@aegir95]

This is how I always feel when watching these videos "Wow these cards aren't that expensive, I might actually get into modern with this deck" "Now lets look at the lands" "WOW, guess I'm never playing modern then, except for maybe mono red burn"

[@harmonzachary]

Any chance we will be able to see you play this on MTGO?

[@leesalt]

Zachary Harmon He doesn't stream anymore according to his interview with Derium becuase of being self conscious or some such. It's a shame because watching him and his wife play magic was one of the few reasons I'd stop what I was doing to watch Twitch.

[@sscomaro12]

i used to play this deck but i ended up selling it because my meta at my lgs is noting but counter.dec and it was so hard to ever go off

[@GirlPainting]

decks like this are the reason i demand that wizzards finaly opens post modern as a format, starting at origins. those card prizes are simply reducules and for no sane persona affordable.

[@felipebotelho7928]

Prof, there was a recent article by CFB telling people to "let go" of some decks, including this one. Any comments?

[@chessmaster1569]

Felipe Botelho can u link that article. I really want to read it.

[@leesalt]

Chessmaster156 Look up the latest article by Pascal Maynard on Channel Fireball. It's something like 4 decks you should stop playing in modern.

[@HotspotGG]

I play BTL scapeshift. The problem is that its often not interactive enough (and too slow) to beat infect and death shadow zoo. These matchups are really bad. I dont know how bad/good the dredge matchup is, but i imagine playing 4 cryptic commands can keep them from winning sometimes. The current meta is very aggressive (BTL is bad vs agressive matchups) and remand is a card thats not very good right now.

[@Eltharyon]

Pretty sure not long ago scapeshift made to the final of a tournament (modern of course), so I'd say it's quite viable.

[@roosterchains]

Not in this meta... and not in a long time. Occasionally in the last year you would see 1 make it in top 8 and that is a hard occasionally. But it was only dominate when dig through time was legal. The deck is just not interactive enough. Your better of playing r/g valakut/through the breach.

[@ZoidsNut]

no prismatic omen?

[@flourish7759]

Do another Merfolk!

[@_mrcrypt]

I'm missing something here... The way Valakut is worded, it deals damage on the 6th Mountain in play - "...if you control at least 5 other mountains...". How am I doing damage for all 6 lands from this combo?

[@samverick]

I think that's an oversight, you need 6 Mountains+Valakut to come into play through Scapeshift for the combo to trigger.

[@ForeverLaxx]

Because of "time traveling mountains." I know it sounds stupid, but follow me on this. When permanents all come into play at the same time, they each check for any relevant triggers simultaneously. Valakut states that when you play a mountain, check to see if there are 5 other mountains in play to see if it deals damage to something. Since all of those mountains enter play at once, all of them cause Valakut to trigger -- and since all of them are in play at the same time the trigger goes off, they all find 5 other mountains on the battlefield and so they all zap the opponent. This interaction was the reason my friend quit Standard during Zendikar. He absolutely hated the "time traveling mountain" phenomenon because he lost a game that he was winning due to it.

[@roosterchains]

It's a wording thing. Basically because of how scapeshift resolves than the mountains come into play. Each mountain sees each other enter at the same time. Also you need to scapeshift with 7 lands total. 6 mountains and 1 valakut

[@_mrcrypt]

Yes. I asked the guys at the shop last night. My issue was "control". Because of the State Based effect resolving, you control all 6 (or more) of those lands. I think my immediate reaction was a misunderstanding between "control" and "on the battlefield". I'm totally on board now. I love this game lol

[@acidfire4259]

Hydra and dragons is a good idea and modern or Commander

[@talesofshatou]

doesn't engineered explosives get around bogles because it's non-targeted?

[@simonwilliamson3684]

overthejames He was saying that he hates playing against it when he is playing Bogles.

[@mn-pegasus]

Wait, you aren't supposed to put in 4 Valakuts?

[@chadwickblackard8156]

If only magic was cheaper... I love so many of these modern decks :(

[@mjd2616]

Just curious, but why does it matter if a card is legendary or not? Are only allowed to have one per deck or something?

[@jackiesingleton2351]

Mason Dusthimer ,,,,, I think you can only have one copy of any legendary card on the field at a time. But I am old and just getting back into magic so you might want to double check that before your tournament. They used to kill each other when the second copy was played but I think that has changed since back in the day. P

[@nomatyx5789]

Isn't the new one titanshift better?

[@pers0na_355]

funny channelfire ball just posted an article on to not play this deck and play r/g version. also pretty sure ad nauseam is a better combi deck and is cheaper.

[@flameburst93]

wouldn't comboing on 6 lands for 2 valakut and 4 mountains total 24 damage?

[@Xantosdude]

3 damage per mountain. 6x3x2= 36. 6 Mountains, 3 Damage per mountain, and 2 Valakuts (2 sets of triggers).

[@flameburst93]

unless valakut counts as mountain, your math for 6 lands is way off, as it should be 4x3x2. On a side note, closer inspection of Valakut has revealed to me why that isn't feasible. you need at least 5 OTHER mountains for the damage to trigger, making a combo on anything less than 7 lands pointless.

[@tylerdirks7310]

flameburst93 watch the vid again. six mountains plus two valakuts.

[@flameburst93]

I know that. I was questioning in the first comment why you don't just combo out on 6 lands for 24 damage. in the second comment i realized and explained why.

[@WilliamsJamesEdward]

Has anyone else noticed that the main deck only has 58 cards? On the list, it states that there are 30 spells but I keep coming up with 28.

[@WilliamsJamesEdward]

Figured it out. Engineered Explosives is not on the decklist in the description.

[@dudewhoisnotfunny]

Something tells me Blood Moon is really big in the professors meta

[@PJP2810]

Although I do love the deck techs and Modern love. However, BtL Scapeshift being T1 Modern deck, not really. Also, with regards to taking an opponents Emrakul (7:47), that is hyper situational since Bribery is a Sorcery, and Emrakul has his Shuffle trigger.

[@Hungarth]

And then Soul Sisters/martyr proc makes your fun go soft.

[@justharry2190]

the professor doing math someone pinch me

[@JetFusion99]

I wish control combo scapeshift was still a thing but it is simply too slow against a lot of decks and can get stifled out of longer control match ups if you dont draw well. Fun to play but don't expect to win anyrhing higher than a fnm with it.

[@ashzciwobuz1277]

2:00 why does snapcaster have 2 prices?

[@modernminded5466]

Because the deck only includes 1.

[@GabrielSansigolo]

This deck is better then rg titan breach in fact

[@zacharydunn2222]

Bring to light is definitely not tier 1. The deck has problems against many linear decks that have faster combos. It also suffers consistency issues. If you draw too many control spells you can not win and if you have too many ramp spells your combo is usually not as fast as most of the decks. Additionally, discard spells such as thoughtseize can easily make hands that are keepable extremely awkward

[@fluffmallow1159]

sub 420!

[@kuroshinko427]

Dammit, Scapeshift needs a reprint!

[@pawedziedzic3250]

Why wait a turn if opponent is at 30 life? 3×4 mountains×2 Valakuts is enough Hell, you can deal 18 damage on turn 6, as long as you have 3 Valakuts in deck

[@brucepraska7781]

Is it just me or does no one understand why a deck like this is technically and actually a tier 1 deck for 1 on the technical side of things it allows the player to build the deck to that players style of deck building which when it comes to play styles every single player no matter there age and so on has a very unique style of deck building and 2 more importantly of the actual reasoning being is that btl allows you to costumize the deck to your meta which is huge why was amulet bloom so successful cause the deck was very customizable with the base of the deck staying relatively the same.

[@TheNutCase657]

Saying that BTL Scapeshift is a "competitive tier 1 deck that consistently get results" feels misleading. Afaik the deck hasn't posted any major tournament results in recent months, and RG Titanshift or Breach (not familiar with the different versions here, someone pls correct me) has been much more popular. They also get to mainboard 3 or 4 Anger of the Gods to beat up dredge

[@kartoffelnpommesgut]

I prefer RG titanshift.

[@Trogdor_Strongbraid]

Love promoting decks 8rack destroys! If you want a funner Valakut deck that's much cheaper try Splendid Dredge.

[@GimilitheGreat]

misleading those lightning bolts aren't 2.79 lol

[@emilsvahn5400]

noice

[@veggieheaven]

This deck isn't really as competitive as people would assume it to be, it's placement in the meta is low due to it never putting up quality results at bigger events or even when I have seen it played at local FNM's.

[@jacksonsteele8585]

You said snap caster 44.49 x1 = 44.99

[@techpriest8965]

Jackson Steele That is for the sleeve ;)

[@BuffaloEdward]

50 cents for a sleeve? Those must be the best damn sleeves ever.

[@techpriest8965]

Edward Haag Well, if the single card is worth more than my 4-5 magic decks I play with friends together then why not ;)

[@noobassscrub-ass354]

Falling quallity mate :(

[@KhanGarth]

I'm not sure about this being tier 1...

[@johnderienzo1644]

SO EXPENSIVE *SOB*

[@kinosmead]

As of the time of this comment you have exactly 175,000 subscribers. So allow me to be the first to congratulate you for having double of a million subscribers. Sorry, 1 and 3/4 million. Your english-major nature is rubbing off. Are you going to do another q + a?

[@edgypancreas1839]

M8 is English your second language?

[@kinosmead]

+Soulfire Gaming No?

[@edgypancreas1839]

+Planeswalker999 Million

[@kinosmead]

Wow. That's a lot of subscribers...

[@edgypancreas1839]

Have you realised your mistake?

[@ontheplaymtg3777]

Its not tier 1 tho. Its less competitive than RG breach titan

[@Aiden-zi3xf]

it also makes your wallet shit the bed.

[@demn5484]

$$$