CKL Plays (Modern) Esper Taxes

This time, on CKL Plays, Corey tests out an Esper Death and Taxes deck.  This deck, piloted by Bennet Bartlett, was played to a 10th place finish at the Modern Classic on March 11th.  Due to its fetchland mana base, this deck plays zero copies of Leonin Arbiter and instead, opts for Aven Mindcensor in the main.  Though the lack of Arbiter in this build may seem a bit odd for a Death and Taxes shell, the payoff for including blue is huge in lots of great synergy with Spell Queller and Hostage Taker.

Deck Tech


Esper Taxes Decklist

Spells (4)
Path to Exile

Creatures (28)
Aven Mindcensor
Eldrazi Displacer
Glen Elendra Archmage
Hostage Taker
Flickerwisp
Spell Queller
Thought-Knot Seer
Tidehollow Sculler
Wasteland Strangler
Thalia, Guardian of Thraben

Artifacts (4)
Aether Vial

Land (24)
Island
Adarkar Wastes
Caves of Koilos
Concealed Courtyard
Eldrazi Temple
Marsh Flats
Ghost Quarter
Godless Shrine
Hallowed Fountain
Flooded Strand
Swamp
Polluted Delta
Shambling Vent
Watery Grave
Plains
Sideboard (15)
Burrenton Forge-Tender
Detention Sphere
Eidolon of Rhetoric
Fatal Push
Flaying Tendrils
Surgical Extraction
Ghost Quarter
Relic of Progenitus
Hostage Taker
Linvala, Keeper of Silence
Glen Elendra Archmage
Fulminator Mage
Dusk/Dawn


Round 1 vs. UW Miracles

Round 2 vs. G Tron

Round 3 vs. GR Ponza

Round 4 vs. GR Ponza AGAIN

Round 5 vs. Grixis Death’s Shadow

Discussion