Why is Armageddon so good?

My name is TooSarcastic and I netdeck. I have a problem, I know. While several other bloggers here were actually working hard to build viable U/W control builds, I decided to attend last week’s FNM with the most recent Angelfire lists and try to pound some n00bs with Angels and Dragons. I did, in fact pound some n00bs, but it was not with the newest technology. Most of the decks that I found eschewed Boom/Bust (with the exception of the 1st place Georgia Regionals decklist) either for the Aethermage’s Touch inclusions or just for more threats like Demonfire. I felt like I, too should cut the Red Armageddons but found myself hesitating and ultimately deciding that I couldn’t do it. I wanted to run them so badly. So I did just that. Here’s the list.

Lands
1 x Adarkar Wastes
2 x Steam Vents
4 x Flagstones of Trokair
1 x Ghost Quarter
1 x Boros Garrison
1 x Shivan Reef
2 x Island
1 x Mountain
2 x Sacred Foundry
1 x Urza's Factory
3 x Plains
2 x Hallowed Fountain
1 x Sunhome, Fortress of the Legion
1 x Izzet Boilerworks

Creatures
1 x Bogardan Hellkite
3 x Aeon Chronicler
4 x Lightning Angel
3 x Court Hussar
1 x Numot, the Devastator

Spells
4 x Boom // Bust
3 x Lightning Helix
4 x Azorius Signet
4 x Wrath of God
3 x Compulsive Research
2 x Izzet Signet
3 x Remand
1 x Molten Disaster!

I feel compelled to write Molten Disaster with an exclamation point, kind of like “Panic! at the Disco.” Not really at all, actually. As I was saying… It turns out that one sided Armageddons are quite good, and having quad flagstones and six signets (plus the bouncelands, which conveniently fill up you hand with land that you can play post-Busting) make the Boomer McBust very much one sided. I played against several Sligh decks at the tourney, and both played the Greater Gargadon. Now I’m not saying you should be Busting while big gargs is suspended, but if he ain’t, there’s nothing wrong with getting rid of permanents before the sacrificing begins. Yes, mono red’s threats cost far less than your answers; but who cares? The aggro matchup is so good for Angelfire that the ability take away what little end game their deck can muster is worth it. You have vigilant fat-bottomed Angels that hold down the fort while attacking in the air. You have Helix for removal and life gain. You have quad Wrath, obv. The ideal time to be busting is one or two turns prior to your humungous Aeon Chronicler strolls onto the board. If; 1) Chronicler is suspended and 2) you have anything close to board parity plus 3) the ability to untap with three more mana than your opponent, then Congratulations! You should be Busting it up. This is not an infrequent situation, in my experience. It should be obvious that the control matchup is far more scared of Bust than aggro. As well they should be. It’s true that a control opponent with signets can sandbag some land to play around the ‘Geddon, but it’s a rare control vs. control matchup where the player who holds land back wins. Essentially Bust must be countered by most control decks. I can imagine a scenario where the U/B player flashes in Teferi in response to Bust, gets Teferi to stick and then flashes out some other creature prior to Bust resolving, but that’s about the only time any control player would willingly part with their lands. God help the control player who can’t counter Bust (or Boom for that matter!) and has a storage land in play brimming with counters. So the Busts are simply four more threats that a control player must deal with. The play is usually to lead with one or more turns casting Bust (hopefully with Remand in hand as well), let them counter the land-D and then next turn flash out Hellkite or play McNumot FTW. Let them counter the ‘Geddons! They have to! Meanwhile you will be continuing to presure them with creature threats and ready with Remand when it matters.
Begin rant #2:
Demonfire is great and all, but I really like Molten Disaster against control. Split Second is good, and you know you’ll have 10-15 mana available by the time you’re ready to end the game. Here’s the “kicker.” Get it? Kicker? I’m hilarious! The Angelfire player doesn’t have to be Hellbent to get the Molten Disaster to stick. This seems better than Demonfire. Angelfire is definitely the beatdown against most other control decks, but this does not mean that it wants to spill out its hand. Molten Disaster protects this resource while shortening the clock for other control decks. Sure, you probably won’t be casting Molten Disaster FTW against a lot of aggro, but it does a great Earthquake impression. Molten Disaster for 2, anyone? Once I own more of these babies, they’re going in the deck. Our time with Angelfire as we know it is limited, because once the signets, duals, and bouncelands rotate, Boom/Bust is much less attractive. But until October, I recommend this deck (Busts and all) heartily. One more thing; it is very forgiving to play. You can repeatedly punt away games and suddenly find yourself swinging for the win anyway. Some of us need this kind of insurance more than others.