Bragioto PietroIntro
Hi guys!!
I’m Pizzardone (aka Dennis to my enemies) and I finished 29th out of 981 players in Paupergeddon Spring 2026 with Mono U Terror.
Unfortunately, this deck sucks in a metagame with high variance like this tournament, especially with so many Elves and the new Affinity around. I tuned the list to win a lot of Game 1 and Game 3 on the play. Force Spike is really strong against mostly all the pre-sideboard meta; post-side I usually switch with specific counters like Annul and Envelop.
It was an insane and difficult run, but I’m satisfied with the list and how I played all weekend.
The best advice I can write (for anyone who wants to try this aggressive build) is not to play Deem Inferior. Instead, I opted for a 2 Sleep / 1 Artful Dodge split (which was incredible as always) and played six one-mana counters in the main deck for the maximum aggressivity possible on curve.
Thanks to LPP for daily testing and friendship, but I especially thank my team Zero3Spritz for cheering me and supporting me, who helped me reach Top 32 in this tournament and Top 8 at Damnation Fest 2026 two months ago with a very similar Decklist.
Il Mazzo
U Terror by Dennis Garbati, 29th Place
| Creatures (12) 4 Delver of Secrets // Insectile Aberration 4 Cryptic Serpent 4 Tolarian Terror Instants (22) 4 Brainstorm 2 Dispel 4 Force Spike 4 Mental Note 4 Thought Scour 4 Counterspell Sorceries (10) 1 Artful Dodge 2 Ponder 2 Sleep of the Dead 1 Deep Analysis 4 Lórien Revealed | Lands (16) 16 Island Sideboard (15) 4 Hydroblast 2 Blue Elemental Blast 3 Gut Shot 3 Steel Sabotage 2 Annul 1 Envelop |
Torneo
Rusults Summary (10-4):
1T) Elves – LWW (OTD)
2T) Elves – WW (OTP)
3T) 5-Land Spy – WLW (OTD)
4T) Jund Wildfire – LWW (OTD)
5T) CawGate – WLW
_6T) Affinity – LWL (OTD)
7T) Elves – WW (OTD)
8T) Mono R Madness – WW (OTP)
9T) Elves – LWW (OTD)
_10T) Mono R Madness – LL (OTP)
_11T) Affinity – LL (OTD)
12T) Jund Wildfire – WW
13T) Grull Ponza – WW (OTD)
_14T) Pizza Combo – LL
Turno 1: Elves – Bea Borsa from Milan
Game 1:
She starts and plays Forest into Quirion Ranger, really good in late game because I have a really good start with 3 Terrors on turn 4, but unfortunately she has Titania on the battlefield and I don’t see any counter in the game, so I slam 3 Generous Ent fast and I scoop because Sleep of the Dead is useless thanks to the Quirion.
Game 2 and 3:
Delver and Force Spike is good OTP to slow down the Elves gameplan. I see a nice number of counters in G2 and she floods for 2 turns. In Game 3 she has a slow start, so can’t play around Spike very well, and Artful Dodge wins the match alone.
Side in: 3 Gut Shot, 2 Annul, 1 Envelop
Side out: 1 Sleep of the Dead, 2 Dispel, 1 Deep Analysis, 2 Force Spike OTD or 2 Ponder OTP
Match: 2-1
Score: 1-0
Turno 2: Elves – Ratkowski from Poland
Game 1:
I started with Delver, Brainstorm, Force Spike, Island, Lorien, and another random spell. Thank God I decided to pass on Island, so I scam the game with Spike on turn 1 Llanowar; he keeps a not really solid blind hand and gets punished from my counterspell on top.
Game 2:
A tough game; I Spike a turn 3 Stampede and he draws a lot of lands. In late game, Mono Sleep of the Dead combos well with his Quirion Ranger.
Match: 2-0
Score: 2-0
Turno 3: 5-Land Spy – asWerty223 from Poland
Game 1:
He starts with Land Grant and I’m shaking; three Elves in a row is too much for my heart, but fortunately he has a lot of walls so I breathe back to normal ahah. I won this game with Force Spike turn 2 and my Terrors kill my opponent fast.
Game 2:
He begins strong with fast mana, and I have to use my counterspell for his Generous Ent, so I lose to double Dread Return with only Envelop in hand thanks to Mesmeric Fiend, leaving him with few life points.
Game 3:
It ends like my dream, beating him in a few turns with two Terrors who apply pressure, easy to keep two counters open on his big blocker.
Side in: 1 Envelop, 3 Gut Shot
Side Out: 2 Dispel, 1 Sleep of the Dead, 1 Force Spike
Match: 2-1
Score: 3-0
Turno 4: Jund Wildfire – Triso
Game1:
Triso is a very good Italian player; in G1 I’m in advantage on the board but I don’t have response for KCS, so he top-decks Toxin and kills me in a few turns with two Rats.
Game 2 and 3:
Both games were complicated. I think the key post-sideboard is to disrupt his advantage through Annul/Steel Sabotage, then using counterspells and Sleep for Chrysalis and removal. Playing two Dispel maindeck helps a lot. It’s always a pleasure to play against Jund; it is 50/50 in my opinion, based on playtest and the skill of the player.
Side in: 3 Steel Sabotage, 2 Annul, 2 Hydroblast
Side Out: 4x Delver of Secrets, OTP 1 Deep Analysis and 2 Force Spike / OTD 3 Force Spike
Match: 2-1
Score: 4-0
Turno 5: CawGate – Keira Randall from Lega Pauper London (Top64)
Game 1:
Another tough matchup with a strong player. She played really well and reached Top 64. I didn’t recognize all the plays but Force Spike was really strong; I used it for the Hawk so my Delver was free to deal a lot of damage, and I closed the game with Artful Dodge.
Game 2:
I don’t remember how, but she destroys me.
Game 3:
Incredible game; I win with Gut Shot when she tried to pump the Sacred Cat, giving me time to resolve my creatures. Medic in late recovers something like 14 life points, but I kill her with Sleep of the Dead and Artful Dodge. Dispel was strong for blocking her Brainstorm.
Side in: 2 Gutshot, 2 Annul
Side out: OTP 1 Deep Analysis, Artful Dodge, 2 Ponder
Side out: OTD 4 Delver of Secrets or 4 Force Spike
Match: 2-1
Score: 5-0
Turno 6: Grixis Affinity – Lou Anton Hauser (top8)
The only loss for me in Day 1 is against Lou with Grixis Affinity. Now the matchup with the new tool Utrom is terrible compared to the past and compared to Jund; 8 flying creatures beat my Delver race and block really well.
Game 1 was extreme and close; he won at 4/5 life. Nothing relevant to say about the other match; in Game 3 I drew a lot of lands, and Game 2 he screwed, sometimes happening.
Side in: 3 Steel Sabotage, 2 Annul, 2 Hydroblast
Side out: 4 Delver of Secrets, 3 Force Spike OTD or 2 Force Spike and 1 Deep Analysis OTP
Match: 1-2
Score: 5-1
Turno 7: Elves – Rebondo
Game 1:
I’m ready; the win and in is here. My opponent goes first and plays Forest into Quirion Ranger. I respond with my Delver who does 9 damage and go him in range for double Artful Dodge in late game. I won because he keeps a hand with two Quirion weak to counterspell on the draw engine.
Game 2:
Simply his hand can’t play around Spike, so I Gut Shot a turn 1 Llanowar and remain open with Force Spike instead of playing Delver. This sequencing rewards me because I Spike Titania, then play Delver with Brainstorm open on turn 2, cleaning the top.
Match: 2-0
Score: 6-1
Turno 8: Mono Red Madness – Roberto Vincenzo Evola
My list overperforms against this archetype; 4 Force Spike and 2 Dispel maindeck make Game 1 winnable, so Game 2 unless he draws 2 Relics in the first 10 cards, I have too many answers for his spells and threats.
Side in: 4 Hydroblast, 2 Blue Elemental Blast, 1 Envelop
Side Out: 1 Deep Analysis, 1 Artful Dodge, 1 Sleep of the Dead, 4 Delver of Secrets
Match: 2-0
Score: 7-1
Day 2
After a pizza and a Spritz with the team, we are ready for battle with five members in the race.
Turno 9: Elves – Dario Blandford (Top16)
Game 1:
Dario is an incredible player; in this game he has the nuts and I never entered the game.
Game 2 and 3:
I’m sure these two were among the best matches of the tournament. Both games I won thanks to a mix of pressure with Delver and a good number of counterspells, especially in Game 2, which went long—I saw all four copies. In Game 3, I had a good plan: he begins with Llanowar, so I Gut Shot it and remain open with Force Spike instead of playing Delver.
This sequencing rewards me because I Spike Titania, then play Delver with Brainstorm open on turn 2, cleaning the top, etc.
Match: 2-1
Score: 8-1
Turno 10: Mono R Madness – Nicola Santo (My Teammate)
Finally streaming!
I’ll be brief: I made a few mistakes, and Nicola played well. He knew my 75s and how I approached the matchup, so it was more difficult than usual.
Game 1:
It was tight; I left him one attack away from death, but drawing Artful Dodge, Deep Analysis, and Sleep of the Dead in a row definitely killed me.
Game 2:
I held a medium hand, and he punished me by drawing the second Relic from the top.
It was still a pleasure to see a teammate go 9-1.
Match: 0-2
Score: 8-2
Turno 11: Grixis Affinity – Leonardo Priami (Top32)
It went more or less like the Affinity I lost to. Leonardo is a friend and a member of my league, Lega Pauper Pisa, and we both know each other’s playstyles and the main and side cards well.
I think he’s one of the best young Pauper players we have, so I’m still satisfied.
(He destroys me both games at 5 life lol ahah)
Match: 0-2
Score: 8-3
Turno 12: Jund Wildfire – LucG27
I don’t have much to comment, honestly.
Game 1:
I managed to block his lead engine with Force Spike and Dispel, so he didn’t remove my threats very well.
Game 2:
He missed a few land drops, and a Steel Sabotage on the bridge sealed the deal.
Match: 2-0
Score: 9-3
Turno 13: Grull Ponza – Kroissant
I honestly didn’t expect this game on turn 13. In theory, I don’t think it’s a good matchup, but I haven’t tested it enough to give any advice.
Game 1:
I won only with Artful Dodge and defending a Delver that did a lot of damage.
Game 2:
Force Spike did its job.
Match: 2-0
Score: 10-3
Turno 14: Temur Pizza – Riccardo Cestari (Top16 Teammate)
Riccardo and I dodged each other the entire tournament, but the moment has come!
In the weeks leading up to the tournament, we developed his Devoted Druid Pizza Combo list together. I have to say that his idea of using Chrysalides as a main deck was incredibly strong against me; he saw three Game 2s, and I was never really in the game.
The night before at the hotel, I kept the same list, but due to my lack of testing, I didn’t feel like submitting it.
I’m so happy that a strong player like Riccardo made Top 16 with a list he created almost by himself.
Match: 0-2
Score: 10-4
Conclusione
It was a great weekend for me and my team, and I hope that in the upcoming events and at the top Pauper player tournaments, I’ll play at the same level, if not better, considering that I returned to the format after so many years of stopping.
Thanks to those who read the entire report, and I apologize for my terrible English. I tried my best. Bye bye!!
