Bringing 5c Niv to Light to life: Tournament Report

As I'm nervously preparing for this small paper Pioneer tournament, I keep going back and forth between my two deck choices of Jeskai Ascendancy combo and Niv to Light. I start asking myself if I still have it. Do I still have the ability to play paper the same way I did before the pandemic started? As I check in for the tournament, I see some old and new faces. My nerves begin to calm and that same carefree but tournament mindset returns.
Before I start breaking down the rounds I want to share the list I played for the event.
```
1 Nahiri, the Harbinger
2 Klothys, God of Destiny
3 Niv-Mizzet Reborn
1 Notion Thief
2 Omnath, Locus of Creation
4 Sylvan Caryatid
1 Tolsimir, Friend to Wolves
1 Valki, God of Lies
4 Bring to Light
3 Dreadbore
1 Extinction Event
1 Shadows' Verdict
1 Slaughter Games
3 Abrupt Decay
1 Kolaghan's Command
1 Mortify
1 Prismari Command
2 Vanishing Verse
4 Fabled Passage
1 Forest
2 Glacial Fortress
2 Indatha Triome
1 Island
2 Ketria Triome
1 Mana Confluence
1 Mountain
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Plains
1 Raugrin Triome
2 Rootbound Crag
2 Savai Triome
1 Sunpetal Grove
1 Swamp
1 Watery Grave
3 Zagoth Triome
2 Notion Thief
1 Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4 Fatal Push
1 Knight of Autumn
1 Koma, Cosmos Serpent
3 Mystical Dispute
1 Rakdos's Return
2 Thoughtseize
```
Round One
My round one opponent was on Izzet Phoenix and from what I recall, the match was definitely favored for me. I kept a solid opening seven for game one that had Sylvan Caryatid
Once Niv-Mizzet Reborn
Turns out multiple Klothys, God of Destiny
Rounds Two and Three
Rounds two and three were the playing against Bant Spirits. My round two opponent got under me during the first two games, taking the win. Round three I caught my opponent slipping in game one and made them pay for it pretty hard. They overextended on the board and I played Bring to Light
My round two opponent went on the play in game two, but got stuck on two lands for a while, letting me resolve Tolsimir, Friend to Wolves
For the Bant Spirits match ups I boarded in Mystical Dispute
Round Four
This was quicker than I expected it to be. My opponent was on GB Aggro/Midrange. Game one I played a Sylvan Caryatid
Game two played out almost exactly the same, except I played an Omnath, Locus of Creation
I chose the latter because the first line wasn't an guaranteed answer. Once again my opponent gave me the game, putting me at 3-1 for the day.
The deck has a lot of interesting lines and and decisions to make from the moment you play your first land. It's also definitely one of the harder decks to pilot in the format. Its build can take on many forms and has a variety of ways to combat a changing meta. If you enjoy a toolbox style decks, I recommend picking this deck up.
This is my first article for Cardsphere and I am looking forward to providing knowledge and insight into competitive magic across multiple constructed formats. It was great being back at an LGS playing paper, so I'd like to give a shout out to Gamer's Gauntlet!
As always be better human beings to one another,