I finally decided on this version of the Ranger Zoo deck for the Extended PTQ:

[cardlist title=Steve’s Ranger Zoo]
[Creatures]
4 wild nacatl
4 kird ape
3 mogg fanatic
1 burrenton forge tender
1 figure of destiny
4 tarmogoyf
2 gaddock teeg
2 tattermunge witch
4 wooly thoctar
2 ranger of eos
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 incinerate
4 path to exile
2 umezawas jitte
2 char
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 bloodstained mire
4 sacred foundry
4 stomping ground
4 temple garden
3 forest
3 mountain
2 plains
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 volcanic fallout
2 ancient grudge
1 mogg fanatic
3 deugar hedge mage
1 proclamation of rebirth
2 ethersworn cannonist
2 oblivion ring
1 gaddock teeg
[/Sideboard]
[/cardlist]

Round 1 vs. Manfred, 5 colour elementals

I am quite nervous going into this round as this is my first constructed deck tournament at this level. I chat to Manfred as we shuffle and I find out that he’s been playing for 6 months and this is his first major event.
Manfred wins the roll and chooses to draw. I start with kird ape off stomping ground and a second one on turn 2. Manfred plays flamekin brawler followed by smoke braider on about turn 3. I incinerate the smokebraider and play and equip a jitte. I get Manfred down to 10 and he gets me to 12 off constant flamkin brawler beats. He smashes my jitte to smithereens, which I forget to take counters off to either gain life or kill his creature. He then evokes shriekmaw killing a kird ape. I then play tarmogoyf and finish the game in a couple of swings.
Game 2 is very similar to game 1 though Manfred gets a little mana flooded. I once again start with kird ape into kird ape while Manfred has flamkin brawler and little else. We both just swing in with our creatures for a while and it’s about 13 to 10 in my favour. He then commits another creature to the board and I wreck him with a sideboarded volcanic fallout. 1 swing and a char later I had won my first round.
I find out after that Manfred is playing 5 colour elementals with fusion elemental and horde of notions also with the interaction of ceaseless searblades and flamekin brawler.
I am lucky to have got an easy round 1 to get rid of the nerves and get me focused on the matches to come.

Match score 1-0

Round 2 vs. Jarron, Ranger Zoo

Jarron wins the roll and keeps his opening 7. I mulligan down to 5 and keep an average hand. Jarron leads with bloodstained mire into a mountain and mogg fanatic so I know it’s the mirror match. In the opening turn we attack and trade a few creatures keeping the board fairly clear. With the match at about 15 to 14 in my favour Jarron plays ranger of eos, fetches 2 wild nacatl. He then follows up with a 2nd ranger for the last 2 nacatl. I keep up for a while playing off the top of my deck while he has a hand full of cards. With the game at 6 to 8 he shows me 2 lightning helix and it’s on to game 2.
I bring in 3 deugar hedge mage (he played oblivion ring in game 1) and proclamation of rebirth for gaddock teegs and a couple of moggs.
Game 2 is over very quickly and I’m never really in the game. Jarron burnt all my creatures, played 2 rangers again and simply attacked until I was dead.

Match score 1-1

Round 3 vs. Bryan, Affinity

I win the roll for this match and lead off with temple garden into kird ape. Bryan then starts with seat of the synod, spring leaf drum, ornithopter and a frogmite. This doesn’t bode well as I really came unprepared for affinity. I then play jitte and swing in for 2. Bryan then follows up with atog and some more artifacts including cranial plating. Turn 3 I equip jitte and swing keeping 1 white open hoping he goes all in on atog as I’m holding path to exile. Instead Bryan plays master of etherium and rite of consumption to do me 20 damage. I pull counters off the jitte and stay alive at 1. With Bryan on 36 and me on 1 things weren’t looking good and I had to keep my creatures on defense. When Bryan plays another master of etherium and doesn’t forget to attack with ornithopter its all over as path to exile isn’t enough to save me.
I dive for my sideboard hoping to find enough answers and was suddenly glad with a last minute decision to dump blood moon in favour of ancient grudge. I bring in 2 grudge, 3 hedge mage and 2 o-rings.
Game 2 I keep an awesome aggressive hand but without removal. Bryan mulligans to 5 and reluctantly keeps. I drop him from 20 to 18 to 14 to 5 and then top deck deugar hedge mage to destroy his just played and large master of etherium and it’s on to game 3. To be fair Bryan was stuck on 1 land for the first 3 turns, not that I was unhappy about that.
Games 3 I keep an awesome hand against his deck, 3 path to exile, oblivion ring, wild nacatl, stomping ground and sacred foundry. Bryan mulls to 6 and starts with just a land. I play the nacatl. Bryan has no play on turn 2….not even a land. I start swinging with my 3/3 kitty and sit back on my removal. Bryan slowly starts playing some stuff but I o-ring a cranial plating and path to exile a master of etherium and the kitty gets there. I finish the game with 2 path to exile still in hand.

Match score 2-1

Round 4 vs. Ben, Red Burn

I win the roll for this match and once again lead with a kird ape of stomping ground while Ben has a mountain and martyr of ashes. I swing with ape for a couple of turns and also have a 0/1 tarmogoyf. Ben meanwhile misses land for to turns though does swing back with the martyr. I then play and sacrifice bloodstained mire into an untapped sacred foundry taking 3 damage and path to exile his martyr before he draws the land to activate it and ruin my board. I then attack him down to 6. Ben then hits me with a couple of burn spells down to 10 and I suddenly realize he is playing red burn and my lands are going to really hurt. Another attack and incinerate is enough to get there though.
For game 2 I bring in the 4th fanatic for a teeg. Ben starts with spark elemental and I take pain off my land to get a 2/2 kitty into play. Ben then plays a blinkmoth nexus and passes. I use a bloodstained mire for a basic land attack for 2 and then play a kird ape. I get incinerated at end of turn. Ben then plays a keldon marauders dropping me to 10. I play mogg fanatic but don’t attack. I block his attacking marauders losing a kird ape and then get hit by a burn spell and shrapnel blast. By the time the marauders has expired I am on 1 while Ben is still sitting on 18. I manage to drop him to 14 then 8 then 3 while keeping 2 moggs on spark elemental guard duty. When Ben’s 4th draw in a row fails to find a burn spell he concedes. I am extremely lucky to pull this game out!

Match score 3-1

Round 5 vs. Matt, Ad Nauseam Combo

Now sitting at 3-1 I am feeling pretty good about my decks chances but know I’ll be facing tougher opponents soon…and sure enough for this round I am paired against Matt who has travelled from Sydney for the tournament. I don’t know the details of his deck at this stage but I knew he was playing combo as I’d heard him a couple of rounds ago saying “and now I draw my deck”. Before we can get this match underway are decks are taken away for a deck check. I get my deck returned with no issues but Matt is called aside by the judge who then returns with Matt to tell me that he has been given a game loss and we are up to game 2 but with no sideboarding! Matt is obviously upset by this but also complains that this is his third deck check in 5 rounds and I am sure it’s not his first game loss.
Matt starts off game 2 with city of brass and ponder while I have bloodstained mire into stomping ground and kird ape. Turn 2 sees pentad prism for Matt while I bash for 2 and play another kird and a nacatl. Matt then firespouts and I have to start looking for more threats. I eventually get a 2/3 tarmogoyf and get Matt to 15. Matt had spent this time digging and getting a lotus bloom into play. He then plays angels grace, spoils of the vault naming ad nauseam and then ad nausem to draw his deck. He then shows me 2 simian spirit guide 2 chrome mox and spiraling embers to do me 40 odd damage.
For game 3 I bring in 2 ethersworn canonist, gaddock teeg and deugar hedge mage removing path to exiles and mogg fanatics. I start this game with blood stained mire into stomping grounds and a wild nacatl, then a kird ape on turn 2 and after an incinerate on turn 3 Matt is down to 10. He mean while had been playing some artifact mana and digging through his deck. He does have a turn 3 firespout again though. I play tarmogoyf and a jitte and he responds with engineered explosives for 2, but without the mana to activate it. He is now on 8 due to pain from city of brass. On my turn I play out a 2nd jitte destroying both in order to pump my goyf to 4/5 and attack him down to 4. On my next turn I attack and he cracks his explosives. I then play the char I’d been holding but he responds with angels grace and then spoils of the vault finding ad nauseam. I check the wording on angels grace a couple of times each time confirming that at the end of my turn he would be on 1. He thinks for a couple of seconds and concedes. I don’t quite understand his decision, maybe he needed city of brass to go off, maybe he thought I had the burn spell. I had no immediate way of killing him but was more than willing to walk away with a win!

Match score 4-1

Round 6 vs. Linden, Martyr Proclamation

Wow at 4-1 all I need to do is win this round and I can probably draw into the top 8. I am currently in 9th position! Before this round I am once again deck checked with no issues for either of us. Linden wins the roll and leads the way with a cloudpost. I had seen some of his deck during other rounds and knew it was a big mana white control deck. I lead with a figure of destiny off a shock land. When linden plays martyr of sands on turn 2 I know I am in big trouble and I will struggle to beat his life gain. Essentially this game I play some creatures he gains some life and plays turn 4 wrath of god. I started to rebuild but plays ranger of eos for 2 more martyr. I am never really in this game and get beaten by 2 eternal dragons.
I have very little to sideboard against this deck as I am just not prepared for it. I bring in the 3rd gaddock teeg and proclamation. Game 2 ends up very similar to the first. Linden has an early martyr and a turn 4 wrath to ruin me. I am holding 3 path to exile by the time he starts forecasting proclamation of rebirth so I don’t concede knowing I can deal with his eternal dragons and so there is a chance I can survive through the game and win when he runs out of cards as he had been thinning his deck with sac lands and ranger of eos. When he gets to over 50 life and I haven’t conceded I tell him I know I can’t win and am playing for the time hoping for a draw and better percentages. I also state that he is yet to show a win condition this game. In the end he is on 63 life when he shows me 3 banefires.

Match score 4-2

Round 7 vs. Jayce, Naya Zoo

Before this round I was discussing card choices and chances of still making top 8 with another naya zoo player. I was sitting in 17th and figured I had a very outside chance of making it. I never asked the player his name, but found it was Jayce when he sat down opposite me for this round.
Game 1 I win the roll and start with forest and wild nacatl. Jayce plays and sacs a mogg fanatic. I then get on top playing tarmogoyf, burrenton forge tender, wooly thoctar and then another thoctar. He path to exiles 1 of my thoctars and gets a goyf of his own out. I keep on the defensive and beat him down to 4. Jayce then plays another goyf and looks to stabilize. I then draw and play tattermunge witch allowing me to trample over his blockers for the win! I am quite excited about this play as the witch is my own addition to this deck specifically for this situation. It does work!
Game 2 I am on the draw and know I need to kill his threats before they attack or I will be behind the whole match. Jayce starts with a forest and a wild nacatl and this time it’s me with the fanatic to make the trade. He plays a goyf and I have path to exile and a nacatl of my own. I incinerate his next creature and play another threat. Now I have the advantage and he appears to be out of removal. In short order he is down to 4 and char finishes the deal.

Match score 5-2

At 5-2 I had a nervous wait for other matches to finish and to find out whether I’d done enough…I wasn’t hopeful though as I knew several of the top matches had drawn to ensure the position. In the end I finish 12th out of 80. I player at 5-1-1 scraped into the top 8 and another missed out, so I really needed to finish 6-1 to make it in. I am very happy with my result though especially when I find out that both Jarron and Linden (my losses) have both made it in.

I don’t know if I’d change my deck much if I were to play it again. I didn’t play against faeries, elves, loam or teps all day and was expecting to play them most of the day. I also never drew a ranger of eos in 15 games. After playing against it I know how awesome it can be and I think the 3rd copy is probably required.
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