When Treasure Cruise and Dig through Time were legal in Legacy, we saw a surge in the presence of U/R Delver; a deck that just wanted to trade resources as efficiently as possible and tempo opponents out of the game with Delver of Secrets and Young Pyromancer. With Legacy trending toward midrange Eldrazi decks, it may be time for this highly interactive, tempo-focused deck to make a comeback. Let’s take a look:

U/R Delver ? Legacy | koura, 5-0 Legacy League

• Creatures (14)
• 2 Stormchaser Mage
• 4 Delver of Secrets
• 4 Monastery Swiftspear
• 4 Young Pyromancer

• Spells (30)
• 1 Fireblast
• 3 Price of Progress
• 4 Brainstorm
• 4 Daze
• 4 Force of Will
• 4 Lightning Bolt
• 1 Forked Bolt
• 1 Set Adrift
• 4 Gitaxian Probe
• 4 Ponder

• Lands (16)
• 1 Mountain
• 2 Island
• 1 Bloodstained Mire
• 1 Flooded Strand
• 3 Volcanic Island
• 4 Polluted Delta
• 4 Scalding Tarn

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Divert
• 1 Exquisite Firecraft
• 1 Flusterstorm
• 1 Null Rod
• 1 Pithing Needle
• 2 Red Elemental Blast
• 1 Relic of Progenitus
• 1 Rough // Tumble
• 2 Smash to Smithereens
• 1 Sulfuric Vortex
• 2 Surgical Extraction
• 1 Talent of the Telepath

Buy This Deck

The core of the deck hasn’t changed since the days of Treasure Cruise. The key is to get ahead on board with a Delver of Secrets or Monastery Swiftspear. The primary game plan is to then use your counterspells to protect your threat, your removal to clear the way, and burn spells to close out the game. The backup plan is to swarm the board with Young Pyromancer tokens and attrition your opponent out of the game.

So why now? What has changed in the format to make this deck an attractive option? The format has become polarized between Eldrazi decks and fast combo decks, both of which are weak to different aspects of this U/R Delver deck. Fast combo decks will have a difficult time fighting through the combination of a fast clock plus efficient counterspells, especially with cantrips to help smooth out draws and find a critical mass of interaction. Similarly, Eldrazi decks are going to be weak to cards like Daze and Force of Will on their first threat or two, particularly if they’re already being beaten down by a Monastery Swiftspear. In addition to having an advantage in raw game plan, U/R Delver also has access to Price of Progress against the Eldrazi deck, which will consistently do upward of eight damage for two mana.

For many years, Legacy has been a format where tying together efficient threats and interaction with cantrips has been an enormously powerful strategy. Generally, these decks have focused on mana denial as a large part of their strategy, utilizing the likes of Wasteland and Stifle. Part of the reason this deck may be so powerful in this format is because it eschews the land-based interaction because it’s just too slow. Eldrazi decks only need a turn or so with their Sol lands to bury you in monstrous threats. Combo decks only need a turn to cast a Show and Tell or Tendrils of Agony. The fair decks are able to play large numbers of basic lands. Given this is the state of the format, setting aside mana denial in favor of Price of Progress and Fireblast to just kill your opponent seems like a great place to be.