At this point, it’s no secret that Cori-Steel Cutter is the best card from Tarkir: Dragonstorm by far. The card is dominating in multiple formats, to the extent that players are calling for a ban less than a month after its release. Whether Wizards deems it problematic enough to actually address remains to be seen. For now, however, it’s worth noting that the card isn’t just enabling linear Aggro strategies. In yesterday’s Modern League, a Hammer Time deck running the Tarkir: Dragonstorm Equipment nabbed a neat 5-0 finish.
This deck was once a key piece of the Modern metagame, but it’s pretty much completely vanished in recent months. Thanks to Cori-Steel Cutter and another Equipment from Tarkir, however, it’s back with a vengeance. By also leveraging an innovative package of Universes Beyond cards, this new take could well put Hammer Time back on the Modern map.
Hammer Time In Tarkir: Dragonstorm Modern
The new-and-improved post-Tarkir: Dragonstorm Hammer Time list in question comes to us via Aspiringspike. In yesterday’s MTG Online Modern League, they took the deck to a clean 5-0 finish.
Essentially, Hammer Time is built around exploiting Colossus Hammer: a one-mana Equipment that grants a staggering +10/+10 boost. Normally, its hefty Equip cost keeps it balanced, but Hammer Time gets around that using Sigarda’s Aid and Puresteel Paladin.
The end result is a deck that can field massive creatures very early on, leading to speedy beatdown wins. A bunch of artifact synergy pieces like Mox Opal and tutors in Stoneforge Mystic and Urza’s Saga give the deck a lot of consistency, too.
Adding to this tried-and-tested formula, Aspiringspike has included two new Tarkir: Dragonstorm Equipment pieces: Cori-Steel Cutter and Dragonfire Blade. The former is a fairly obvious upgrade. It’s very easy to activate Flurry in the deck and get it equipped to a token for free, at which point you have a 2/2 Trample/Haste/Prowess creature to work with. Slap a Colossus Hammer on that, and your opponent has two turns to live at best.
Dragonfire Blade is less flashy, but perhaps even more impactful. Hexproof from Monocolored shuts down pretty much all the commonly-played removal in the format, Phlage and flipped Ajani aside. This makes it easy to protect your Hammer-wielding creature as you angle for a win.
Cutting Edge Tech
Both of these Tarkir: Dragonstorm newcomers boost the consistency of Hammer Time a fair bit. Dragonfire Blade can even be fetched off of Urza’s Saga, if you need protection in a pinch. This isn’t where Aspiringspike’s innovation ends, however, as they also included a pair of bangers from last year’s much-maligned Assassin’s Creed set.
Kassandra, Eagle Bearer is the headliner here, and it’s a great inclusion in the deck for multiple reasons. Cheating The Spear of Leonidas, the other AC card in the deck, directly into play is solid normally, but becomes incredible when paired with one of Hammer Time’s ‘Equip for free’ effects. Kassandra has Haste, so slapping the Spear on her straight away lets you take immediate advantage of its flexible options.
Most of the time, you’ll want to pick the Double Strike mode here. It plays really nicely with Kassandra’s draw ability if you’re struggling to get enough damage together, and it’s also great for closing out games if you have Hammer/Cori-Steel Cutter online already. The ability to dig through your deck or create a 3/2 blocker is welcome, however, and can get you out of some tight spots.
These two cards give Hammer Time another explosive play line for the mid-game. If you can’t get there early with an Esper Sentinel or Puresteel Paladin, these two can come down and sort you out. Along similar lines, Aspiringspike also included Forged Anew, another Universes Beyond Equipment support piece.
This is a great inclusion for a number of reasons. It’s another way to circumvent Hammer’s Equip cost, and it even lets you Equip at instant speed to dodge removal. To top it all off, it reanimates an Equipment on entry, which helps shore up the deck’s weakness to artifact removal.
All The Gear And No Idea?
While Aspiringspike’s new post-Tarkir: Dragonstorm Hammer Time list is interesting, it’s not exactly meta-breaking. Boros Energy is one of the weaker matchups for the deck, which is unfortunate given it’s the deck sitting at the top of the meta right now. Since it can easily go wide it’s harder for Hammer Time to land its big blows, and it has access to multicolored removal to bypass Dragonfire Blade. Cori-Steel Cutter does improve this matchup by giving you an easy source of Trample, but it’ll still be tricky overall.
The deck also struggles against Eldrazi Ramp. Kozilek’s Command provides an easy out for any creatures equipped with Hammer, even if they’re also holding a Dragonfire Blade. They also pack artifact removal in World Breaker, and annoying roadblocks like Writhing Chrysalis to slow things down.
On the other hand, the deck has pretty strong matchups against both Dimir Murktide and Domain Zoo, two other prominent decks in the meta. Against the former, Hammer Time can win with a sneaky fast start. Against the latter, Trample is often enough to push past its smaller creature suite.
Overall, even with Aspiringspike’s successful innovations, Hammer Time is still a middling Modern deck at best. Cori-Steel Cutter helps out a lot against small creature decks, but the deck’s innate vulnerability to artifact removal and go-wide aggression remains. Don’t expect it to start topping Challenges any time soon, but don’t underestimate it if you cross paths with it either.