Say "Hoo" Again, Punk (Masters Top 50)

Are you tired of losing to Unitless Control? I'm tired of losing to Unitless Control. I’m sick to death of it, in fact, so I bargained with a denizen of the infernal planes for a deck that would kick a Unitless player’s teeth down their throat. It ain’t bad in other matchups, either, turns out. Hooru Tempo remains my one true love.

Stuff to Know

- We’re here to exploit Silverblade Intrusion + aegis units. That swirly blue cloud was already a busted mechanic, but now? Now your Jotun Feast-Caller doesn’t die to relic weapons, or Killer attacks, or double blocks, or that damn Wasp. In fact, Silverblade Intrusion will keep him alive AND give you a card back, as recompense for having to deal with these indignities.

- If you ever manage to cast the Ultimate Silverblade Intrusion—in which you negate an Ice Bolt or Torch targeting Hojan, Crownbreaker, so that Intrusion triggers his renown AND plays one Valkyrie Denouncer AND draws another—your opponent should shame concede. They just got 6- or 7-for-1'd by a 1-cost spell.

- Your most proactive (and risky!) line is T2 Hojan, T3 Hojan + Intrusion. You can hold the Intrusion to surprise their burn, but don't turn your nose up at a 1-cost 3/3 flier that draws a card, pumps your Hojan, and sets you up at 5 power. That's just good eats.

- Never forget that Hojan is mainly in here to get your power base online; he’s not your primary threat and you shouldn’t invest too much in his survival. If he ramps your power and trades for one or more enemy cards, he’s done his job. Everything else is gravy.

- A previous iteration of this list also featured Baby Icaria, another 2-drop to get your power base online. Mostly she just died to Blightmoth, though. So I called my old pal Kothon, the Far-Watcher out of retirement, and the Kid's still Got It. He stands tall against Annihilate, the aforementioned Moth, and Blazing Salvo, and if you ever summon his Owl friend, remember that that bird LOVES to be Kodosh’s Armor’d.

- I used to have Svetya, Orene of Kosul in here, but she never actually did anything; Unitless can play around her if they use their Transposes intelligently, and the one time I did manage to activate her 8-cost ability, it threw 4 cards in the bin. Get on the bench, Svet. Bam, Sneakeepeekee has been incredible in her slot. A 3-cost play that disrupts the most ubiquitous mechanic in the game AND produces bodies for Kodosh’s Armor? LACE UP MY BOY

- Don't be tempted by Sediti, the Killing Steel. Unitless has face aegis almost constantly, and it's surprisingly easy for them to start a damage train rolling. Jotun Feast-Caller is still the GOAT for card advantage on a body, don’t you ever forget it.

- You're a dog to Vara, Vengeance-Seeker/Defile/Annihilate decks. You can win if you play smart and draw well, but...oof. It's tough. Their removal doesn't care about Intrusion, Blightmoth will mess with your ramp units, and they always, always, always manage to get a Silverblade Menace for 8 points to close the game, even though we only have a dozen spells in the 80. It’s like the tides, though. You can only defy Mother Nature for so long.

- Pace! Your! Threats!

Market Choices

- Your default market pick is Kodosh’s Armor. Card is bonkers (did you know that you can activate it MULTIPLE TIMES? because I didn’t!!) and you’ll be making plenty of tiny, single-faction token units who love to get beefier. However, Mirror Image is almost never a bad option, particularly if you just attacked with a flying JFC.

- In theory, Eilyn’s Choice is there to stop Harsh Rule. I have never actually done so. May be better as Pristine Light, since a Champion of Cunning can really wreck your ish.

- Disrupt feels weird, but it’s a comfort to have a market card that will answer almost anything—it’s especially helpful if Unitless manages to stick Svetya’s Sanctum. If you’re saucy, replace it with Korovyat Palace or Master’s Blade.

- Turn to Seed is the absolute nuts. When (not if) it gets nerfed to 4-cost, we’ll need to swap it for Hailstorm to cover our bases in the aggressive matchups.