Report Top 8 - Paupergeddon Summer Edition 2025 - RG Monsters by Tommaso Punis

Introduction

Hi, I am Tommaso Punis, Lega Pauper Pisa member (for those wondering, Dark Lega Pauper Pisa to be exact). I recently top8'ed in the Paupergeddon Lucca 2025 and this is the report about my run.

My memory isn't perfect, and I didn't take any notes since I never expected to write one - but I've done my best to recall the games as accurately as possible.

When I started playing pauper one year ago, RG ramp was the deck I was more interested in, since I like to ramp and stomp my opponents with high cost fatties. I tried it in the Broodscale meta, but I didn't enjoy its playstyle because it felt too random, relying on lucky cascades or Lead The Stampede to break through the opponent's defences. So I started playing Broodscale. After the ban, I was lost since the meta was too shaky and no deck appealed to me.

Two months ago, I gave a second chance to my pet deck, and copypasted the list from GiorgioCombo to try it at the LGS. The list was very different from the one I was playing before, since it now completely removed Lead The Stampede and the cascade fatties I disliked, to introduce Jewel Thief, Bannerhide Krushok, and, most importantly, Nyxborn Hydra. I stomped everyone at the LGS and the deck felt, for the first time, interesting to play. In fact, the creatures sequencing was no longer trivial, I had to choose what to bestow, and the instant speed combat trick was a blast to play with. In the subsequent weeks, I stomped the LGS again and again, also winning the top8. I even got bored of playing the same deck, so I tried a GW version with Summon: Choco/Mog and Summon: Fat Chocobo, also called GW chicken tribal, and it did ok even with this meme build. So, I decided to tune the list and submit it for the upcoming Paupergeddon.

Decklist

The main deck was stock: 4x of every good card and a flex slot of Ram Through that is a nice trick to have, especially against pingers, Chrysalis, and Ephemerate targets. Also, Ram Through is a card I would want 4x of in the side, so playing 1 in the main frees a slot in the 15, a trick Davide Burgio suggested to me.

The side is divided in 3 parts: anti-burn, anti-Jund, and anti-blue.

The anti-burn side: 3 Ram Through (+1 in the main), 4 Weather The Storm, 1 Life Goes On. Both versions of Monored (Synth and Madness) are the worst matchup for RG out of the most played decks, therefore I wanted to make sure that I had enough slots against it, also considering that G1 they win 90% of the time. Ram Through are necessary for the pingers who would otherwise kill you, and are sometimes even better than a life gain card. Often seeing a good hand and a sideboard card is enough to secure the win, which is why I decided that 9 cards against Monored are enough.

The anti-Jund side: 3 Ram Through, 3 Cast Into Fire. 7 removals for Krark-Clan Shaman are necessary to avoid being blown up by Toxin Analysis, and those cards are handy tools that can be used in many situations, against Jund and other decks.

The anti-blue side: 2 Relic of Progenitus, 2 Red Elemental Blast. The Relics are incredible against U/UB Terror and can be recycled against combo decks that use the graveyard. The Red Blasts are there to slightly improve the MU against blue decks, in particular to change the winrate against High Tide from 2% to 4%. MonoU Faeries is a bye but a couple extra answers may be needed in case I face a very good opponent…

Shoutout to Lorenzo Montana who managed to draw the literal worst hand possible when we tested those awkward MUs, convincing me to bring this deck to the Paupergeddon even if everyone thought it was not well positioned in the current burn meta. No shoutout for Tommaso Loss, who after my 3 - 4 at the Pauper Trial of Friday, suggested me to switch to Monored Madness, because "RG is only good in our LGS meta".

Tournament

Day 1

Day 1

Round 1: Bye (Lega Pauper Pisa top8 Winner)

Round 2: Monored Synth - Fabio D'Angelo - Slightly Negative

Opponent is a nice guy from Lega Pauper Comense, who also made day2 and played really well against me.

Game 1

As I said, very low chance to win g1: he bolts me to death.

The post side matchup is pretty good, having a plethora of 3/3 or more blockers to completely offset the opponent's board offense, and keeping 2 mana open makes them very scared to bolt your creatures, even though you would prefer to play the Krushoks as 4/4's instead of using them as a trick, since the 4/4 stat is huge. The Jewel Thief are game changers since they are the only creatures that can attack freely, so it is important to bait bolts on other creatures. Nyxborn Hydra seems a good card in the matchup, bestowing creatures out of bolt range, but all other cards are simply better and in a Raze+:MagicCardTooltip{name="Lava Dart" image="https://cards.scryfall.io/grid/front/b/1/b16dd041-451d-4914-8c46-aa315a90d802.webp?1783933110"} matchup, the hydra doesn't shine.

Game 2

The post sideboard plan goes well: I am able to Krushok my Jewel Thief to fizzle a bolt, and attack with an unstoppable 5/5 vigilance trample. A 9 life Weather The Storm makes me survive the upstairs bolts and pings.

Game 3

He plays a Kessig on T2 and another on T3, I don't see any Ram Through or life gain, in this spot I lose 100% of the time.

• Match: 1-2
• Score: 1-1

Round 3: Jund Wildfire - Jacopo Galli - Positive

I am very sad to be paired so early with a fellow LPP player.

Game 1

I highroll a nut start with Avenging Hunter and Writhing Chrysalis, he finds no interaction. The first of a long series.

The side can vary a little between games: depending on what your opponent plays around you can decide to remove 2 Nyxborn Hydra and 4 Bannerhide Krushok or vice-versa. Moreover, if you suspect that he isn't playing Toxin Analysis or he is playing around Ram Through, you can side in less copies of the latter.

Game 2

My opponent chooses not to sacrifice a land T2 to kill my Arbor Elf with Krark-Clan Shaman, follows a nut start as above.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 2-1

Round 4: Flicker Tron - Positive

Game 1

I present lethal on turn 5, he did not find Moment's Peace.

He has no way to stop the race other than Moment's Peace and Stonehorn Dignitary. The plan is to go for the nut start and find lethal on turn 5, or at least to bring him down to 5 life, in order to kill him with an unavoidable "Trap!" from the Initiative. The side-ins all contribute to breaking his lock of Mnemonic Wall + Ghostly Flicker + Stonehorn Dignitary/:MagicCardTooltip{name="Moment's Peace" image="https://cards.scryfall.io/grid/front/4/0/40ebe935-ccf9-435e-8fe8-53bcbf3526e7.webp?1783945215"}. After the match I talked to my opponent and he told me that he would have sided out more Nyxborn Hydra to bring in more Ram Through, and after all I think he was right.

Game 2

I go turn 3 Avenging Hunter, into turn 4 Avenging Hunter, followed by turn 5 Avenging Hunter, but he slams a Moment's Peace on the first 7/6 Avenging Hunter already. This tells me that his hand is either all fogs and no gas, or that I already lost. He goes Stonehorn Dignitary + Ephemerate gaining two more turns, but when Moment's Peace, Ephemerate and a Cast Down are in the graveyard, I play and crack a Relic of Progenitus. He had nothing else in hand.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 3-1

Round 5: BR Madness - Positive

Game 1

The harshest goldfish of the tournament: turn 2 Writhing Chrysalis followed by a Jewel Thief, an Eldrazi Repurposer and a Bannerhide Krushok, OTP. Opponent went turn 1 land go, turn 2 Vampire's Kiss.

5 clear side outs, 5 clear side ins.

Game 2

My opponent finds 3 flyers, while I have 3 unboltable reachers (fair, he plays 8 flyers and I play 8 reachers). A Weather The Storm for 9 life seals the deal.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 4-1

Round 6: High Tide - Alessio Zanni - Prohibitively Negative

Complicated mathematical calculations tell me that the matchup against High Tide is 4/96 in their favour.

Game 1

I present lethal on turn four OTP and he is forced to waste a Psychic Puppetry to survive. He tries to combo on his turn 4 but fizzles.

The Nyxborn Hydra is weak to Snap, so it is a clear sideout. I prefer the Bannerhide Krushok because it can steal games. The relics are not good, but in combination with the Eldrazi Spawns they can catch off guard a High Tide player who is used to tap out the graveyard hate and combo with the Stream of Thought loop.

Game 2

My opponent oversides against my Red Elemental Blast and fizzles the combo drawing 7 lands/GIgadrowse in 9 draws.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 5-1

Round 7: Monored Synth - Riccardo Cavazza - Slightly Negative

Game 1

I have been setting up a good race with the combo Jewel Thief + Nyxborn Hydra, not letting a single point of combat damage through all game, but with 2 pingers on the battlefield he topdecks Wrenn's Resolve into Lava Dart for exact lethal.

Game 2

I see blockers and a Weather The Storm.

Game 3

I keep Forest, double Arbor Elf, double Utopia Sprawl, Writhing Chrysalis and Weather The Storm, my opponent mulligans to 5: my plan is to make him waste all the bolts on the elfs, then stall with Writhing Chrysalis, go for a Weather The Storm and pray. He bolts all my elves and does not put creatures on board, but I cannot find a second land drop, I pass turn 4 with a Forest with 3 enchantments on it, my opponent looks at my land with the eyes of someone who would desperately like to topdeck a Raze, but he doesn't and next turn I cast a Weather The Storm for 12: from there on it's all downhill.

• Match: 2-1
• Score: 6-1

I made Day 2 at Paupergeddon on my third try, alongside my DLPP companion Lostonkato, and that truly fills me with joy. From now on, I've got nothing to lose.

Round 8: Monored Madness - Lahiri Cristofori - Negative

Game 1

Even if I had been able to choose my opening hand and every single draw, I still would have lost the game: he killed me on turn 4 OTP with a Guttersnipe followed by four burn spells.

The only difference from Monored Synth is that in this matchup we keep all our reach creatures to stop his aerial Sneaky Snacker race. The matchup is slightly worse overall, since their deck is built to win without relying on combat, but this means we can attack freely and present lethal earlier. Also, they don't play Raze which is good for us.

Game 2

My opponent goes turn 1 Faithless Loothing discarding double Sneaky Snacker, but I don't care because I know I have Writhing Chrysalis on turn 3, so he deals no damage to me through the board. I make a storm turn where I gain 12 life and present lethal for the following turn. My opponent is just one burn spell away from forcing me to slam my last card: Life Goes On. Of course, this was the only time I drew it the whole tournament, and I was so ready to gain those juicy 8 life.

Game 3

I keep a one-lander on a mull to 6 and on turn 2 my Malevolent Rumble misses, throwing into the bin 2 Weather The Storm and making me miss my land drop. But I am not the unluckiest player at the table, since my opponent in the next 4 turns casts 4 Highway Robbery and nothing else: at turn 6 I am still at 17 and I present lethal, he draws and shows me a hand with no pingers.

• Match: 2-1
• Score: 7-1

I go to dinner with my friends of Lega Pauper Pisa, Lega Pauper Piemonte and Lega Pauper Cornaredo. I just have the time to eat and cook my rivals of the Light Lega Pauper Pisa, and to desperately find a way to get to Lucca on the next day. I want here to congratulate my friends for making day 2: my Dark LPP companion Lostonkato; my Writhing Chrysalis Stefano Mannella: he introduced me and Lorenzo Montana to pauper, so he is our chrysalis and we are his spawns; Gabriele Marraccini who has been my Monored nemesis with the deck, and led me to include Life Goes On; and Diego Bersanetti.

Day 2

I wake up excited as a Malaysian dog, and can't wait to slam some cards on the board.

Day 2

Round 9: Elves - Mattia Saetta - Negative

Game 1

My opponent has a slow start after a couple of Winding Way's misses. I topdeck a giant Nyxborn Hydra, and even if he Masked Vandals it, I can close the game on a beatdown.

The matchup is horrible because he has a million chumpblockers, his creatures are often bigger than ours, and Wellwisher single-handedly wrecks us. But his deck is very fragile so a single piece of interaction can make it fall apart.

Game 2

His deck falls apart without me needing to do anything: he does nothing meaningful and on turn 5 he has a 5/6 Nyxborn Hydra and a Timberwatch Elf with 3 elves on board. He activates the Timberwatch to push some damage through and I kill on the backswing.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 8-1

Round 10: Mardu Synth - Marco Candela (Lostonkato) - Very Positive

I am so enraged by the plot that makes me face my Dark companion on X/1. At least it is not a deadly duel

Game 1

I stomp him.

Every card is strong in the matchup: his deck is slower and has smaller creatures.

Game 2

He finds some removals, but I see more monsters than his removals.

• Match: 2-0
• Score: 9-1

Round 11: Mono U Fae - Filip Skórnicki (Skura) - Very Positive

This is the first time I face Skura in an official match! I am so happy about it, a bit sad that I have to face him in an unloseable matchup.

Game 1

I resolve some creatures and his deck can't do anything about it.

The gameplan is very simple: every creature you resolve and keep on board untapped, is an insurmountable wall for their ninjas, which offsets his stream of damage and card advantage. Victory eventually arrives.

Game 2

He beats me with a ninja and some faeries, while casting 3 Bind The Monster and 2 Snap on my creatures. I die as an idiot with 3 Nyxborn Hydra in hand.

Game 3

My starting 7 is Forest, Arbor Elf, Utopia Sprawl, Utopia Sprawl, Writhing Chrysalis, Writhing Chrysalis, Red Elemental Blast: a bit risky, but too good to ship. I play Arbor Elf on turn 1, and he Bind The Monster it. Turn 2 I topdeck an Arbor Elf and play it. On his turn he Snaps my Arbor Elf and passes. I still don't draw land and have a Utopia Sprawl countered. Next turn he misses land drop and plays 2 faeries. I finally topdeck a Forest and develop my mana, and from there on it is all downhill.

• Match: 2-1
• Score: 10-1

Round 12: Altar Tron - Francesco Foschi - Even

Game 1

I present lethal for turn 5 OTP, he tries to find some blockers but it is not enough.

Post side it's a Weather The Storm hell. The plan is to present lethal early while drawing a piece of interaction to exile some combo pieces.

Game 2

He Weather The Storm to 36 life on turn 5, I think, and in the next turn he combos off.

Game 3

I keep a Eldrazi Repurposer+Cast Into the Fire+:MagicCardTooltip{name="Malevolent Rumble" image="https://cards.scryfall.io/grid/front/a/1/a178cfe8-f9fa-4255-88d0-54a0bed079f5.webp?1783911259"} hand on 6. My race is slow but I get to exile a Robert, ahem, Pactdoll Terror, on his turn 3 and cast Olyphaunt on turn 4. I topdeck a Nyxborn Hydra to bring him down to 1 life, and he doesn't find the combo on the next turn.

• Match: 2-1
• Score: 11-1

The Light LPP helps me with the calculations and by intentionally drawing now, I have good chances to draw also the next one to secure top8. I am willing to risk it.

Round 13: Monored Rally - Franek Komsta - Slightly Negative

Intentional draw.

• Score: 11-1-1

Round 14: Mardu Synth - Josè Vidal Ros - Very Positive

He is okay with drawing. We are both in the top8.

• Score: 11-1-2

My LPP and DLPP friends celebrate with me, I am so happy to have mimicked the epic achievement that my bro Lorenzo Montana did at the last Paupergeddon. While mentally preparing for the top8, a line from a song keeps echoing in my mind: "uno su mille sale sul podio degli eroi, vedrai un giorno ci arriveremo anche noi", which translates to "Only one in a thousand reaches the heroes' stage - yet one day, you'll see, we'll stand there too". Excitement runs through my veins as I approach my "heroes' stage", a summit I once believed forever beyond my grasp.

Quarter: Altar Tron by Francesco Foschi - Even

I am facing the very same opponent from round 12, the one I won with a topdecked Nyxborn Hydra. We chat a bit before the game starts and he tells me that he will take revenge for that topdeck.

G1: I am OTP for the rating. I drop a Writhing Chrysalis on turn 2, then a Malevolent Rumble finds another Writhing Chrysalis on turn 3. They close the game by turn 5.

G2: I had lethal on board by turn 5, and on his turn, my opponent taps out to play a Myr Retriever, with Ashnod's Altar and Golem Foundry already on the battlefield. Being the stupid RG player I am, I spend several minutes thinking - and end up using Cast Into the Fire on the Altar instead of the Foundry, which was about to get its third charge counter. I was afraid he could combo off, even though he was completely tapped out. If I had exiled the Foundry with the trigger on the stack instead, he wouldn't have been able to make the golem and I would have been lethal. In the next turn a big Weather The Storm gives him enough turns to find the combo.

G3: I play Jewel Thief on turn 2, Writhing Chrysalis on turn 3, but my opponent has natural tron + Prophetic Prism. He plays Weather The Storm on turn 3 for 9, while I only deploy an overcosted tree on the battlefield. I attack him down to 6 life and crack a Relic of Progenitus to keep him off flashbacking an Eviscerator's Insight, but a Robert with the help of some 3/3 golems makes him stabilize, and it is only a matter of time until he finds the combo.

Final Thoughts

It's an incredible feeling to Top 8 a tournament like this, and I'm genuinely proud of my deck choice. While I definitely relied on luck to get here, I had to face several tough matchups, but I came prepared. In particular, I played against four Burn decks, where my heavy anti-Burn sideboard really came in clutch.

I truly want to thank the Pauper community, which makes even events of this size feel relaxed and enjoyable. Not a single opponent I faced showed any salt or disrespect - a testament to the spirit of the format. Special thanks go to Bøøse for the immense work he's put into organizing Paupergeddon over the years.

Since I came to Lucca mostly for the "Gathering" part of Magic: the Gathering, I'm especially grateful to all the friends from various leagues who supported me throughout this run - especially my companions from DLPP and also the LPP. It's truly been a blast playing Pauper with all of you.

Last but not least, I wanna thank my fellow Eldrazi Spawn, Lorenzo Montana, for sticking with a dogshit player like me all this time, for, as we say in Pisa, plotting me in various ways, for the countless lessons you've taught me, and most of all, for being my friend.