Been working on a B/W vamp list. The deck really plays best low to the ground with 4 Sanctum Seeker, 3 dusk//dawn and 2 settle the wreckage as the top end. Been running all creatures with just Mavren for the incidental token production. I'll post a list in a day or so when I'm sitting with the deck.
The main thing I want to say is Sanctum Seeker is THE reason to play vampire tribal.
This is what I'm running. You'll notice the only removal maindeck is Cast Out. That's by design so as to not be better or worse against mono red or UB control in game one. The 4x Gifted Aetherborn maindeck are there solely for the red deck matchup, not that there isn't enough lifegain already.
Lost Legacy in the sideboard is there for Approach. Vraska's Contempt comes in for the UB Control matchup, along with Duress. The 3x Dusk//Dawn are for the midrange matchup.
I'll update with my testing if this deck starts to work out for me.
Ixalan's binding does not have flash, but I think it is better. Play it on one Glorybringer or Hazoret and you dont have to worry about them the rest of the game.
Just had a thought what about throwing bontu into this drop him on T3 call to feast on turn 4 and have three turns of ammo for bontu not to mention pumping out guys with flipped legions landing and he doesn't get wiped I think he could be the secret sauce
So just had my first test I didn't do so hot but the deck works like it should bontu is amazing hidden stockpile is really good sunmare changes the gem I lost but it was really close also vona is the real deal sooo good I bumped up to two should I go for three? I feel like the deck is close
The white monument underperformed in my b/w deck. It is just fine in mono white i think. There is propably no real way to make this deck "work" until rivals. I only go to fnm once a month or so, and with my version i go 2/2.
Not to Necro an old thread but think of this, Several vampires on the field, token's and regular Vamp's, lets say around 7 or 8 for this example.
Play a Bishop of the Bloodstained hit for 7-8 damage on ETB, pass turn, (unless you have enough mana, then play Acrobatic Maneuver ) next turn providing you didn't loose any creatures play Acrobatic Maneuver on Bishop hit for 7-8 on ETB again and then attack!
7 or 8 vampires? Pipe dream. Well, if that happens you're already winning the game. Or, you're not blocking a horde of bigger creatures, and you lost already.
The new lord for vampires Legion Lieutenant is weak since he dies to every single removal currently in Standard. If you want a reason why cards like Hapatra never saw play, it's exactly that. Radiant Destiny should work much better, ascend or not. I guess if you want to build a Vampire deck, put both and force the opponent to spend their removal on the lords, since the rest is not exactly scary to look at.
Vampires was nowhere close to tier 1, I'm not sure Rivals brings enough to the table to change this. I guess you could play Slaughter the Strong against Temur and Ramunap to get rid of large bodies, then hopefully trade with what's left. You're not coming off that far ahead, but at least you avoid wiping next turn.
I was very disappointed by Bishop of Binding when I realized he need to attack to pump a friend... I think it's still to fragile vs midrange (where we get the most value out of it) cause they run removal anyway, and we certainly can't attack with it very often. A trap imo.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Pioneer - A bunch of stuff Modern - Humans Legacy - Grixis Phoenix / Death & Taxes
It depends on what someone is playing against on the field, but yeah it's pretty fragile. People wanted better answers, but it looks like what WoTC did was weaken the creatures so that the lower powered answers they have already in place can kill them. It's rendered a lot of cards borderline unplayable and the few that are playable are in other tribes. Vampires for some reason got really hit bad by the nerf bat in this set and right now I'm just hoping there are some new tools in RtD coming up to shore up the weaknesses. They probably had more high hopes for Mavren fein, dusk apostle and Vona, Butcher of Magan.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I played with my deck Saturday. 4 rounds. Saw radiant destiny maybe 3 times tops. Works well with Lieutenant. Just getting everything a little bit bigger. Had it with ascend one game against a control deck. That pretty much sealed the deal for me. I feel as though it keeps your low cost guys relevant as the game moves on, along with a lieutenant or two. Making them 3/3, or 4/4. I only ran 2 in the deck, and I cant see taking any out.
I think it's time to merge topics and choose one, so I'll post here from now on.
I'm working on an aggro shell after a long time scratching my head on a midrange one. There's a package of cards that work no matter what shell we play, then the remaining slots ar a bit more complicated to evaluate.
Here's my current list (Edit Feb 3rd 18) :
Adanto Vanguard is praised as the best vampire by some pros, while Paladin of Atonement is completely overlooked. My tests ring a different bell (EDIT: I might be opposing the wrong cards though, since Martyr is suspicious). I've been deeply disappointed by Vanguard, probably because Standard isn't what it was before RIX. Paying 4 is too much to save a creature that don't attack that well anymore. Between gods, Phoenix, eternalize, I don't like him in a go-wide list. He's probably still good in a UW Sram shell.
I have the same feeling with Yahenni, Undying Partisan. In this shell, I don't want to sacrifice my creatures before they dealt damage, and he doesn't even attack that well anymore. Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle, on the other hand, is the best 3-drop I want in every game, very strong with lords and anthems.
Notable vamps that don't make the cut ae Oathsworn Vampire and Famished Paladin. There's no way to gain life every turn, period. Dusk Legion Zealot is interesting but not very aggro. Aethersphere Harvester is easy to crew, but most importantly, it blanks Rekindling Phoenix and Glorybringer, which are too strong against vamps. Removal spells don't do enough cause they play many more copies. It also gives me more reach, cause the creature decks are impossible to break through on the ground.
In the SB, I don't have feedback to give yet, there may be some poor choices for now.
I will have to post my decklist. I played 4 rounds saturday, and went 2-2. I probably should have won 3, but red deck top decked a lightning bolt to win. I beat a w/b tokens and grixis control. My 2nd loss was 1-2 to Mardu vehicles.
I didnt get to experiment with prophet much. Just never really got her out in time. Famished paladin got A LOT of hate when he was out. Constantly getting countered or burned. My MVPs were adanto vanguard and yahenni. Yahenni can get really big, really quick, especially against tokens, or a board wipe.
I will be playing again this week with concealed courtyards in the deck which i had to order. Also think I may add some Gifted Aetherborns. I think the key to the deck is to get out quickly, maybe get some lifegain, and just overpower with counters and creatures in the mid game.
I think it's time to merge topics and choose one, so I'll post here from now on.
I'm working on an aggro shell after a long time scratching my head on a midrange one. There's a package of cards that work no matter what shell we play, then the remaining slots ar a bit more complicated to evaluate.
Here's my current list :
Adanto Vanguard is praised as the best vampire by some pros, while Paladin of Atonement is completely overlooked. My tests ring a different bell. I've been deeply disappointed by Vanguard, probably because Standard isn't what it was before RIX. Paying 4 is too much to save a creature that don't attack that well anymore. Between gods, Phoenix, eternalize, I don't like him in a go-wide list. He's probably still good in a UW Sram shell.
I have the same feeling with Yahenni, Undying Partisan. In this shell, I don't want to sacrifice my creatures before they dealt damage, and he doesn't even attack that well anymore. Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle, on the other hand, is the best 3-drop I want in every game, very strong with lords and anthems.
Notable vamps that don't make the cut ae Oathsworn Vampire and Famished Paladin. There's no way to gain life every turn, period. Dusk Legion Zealot is interesting but not very aggro. Aethersphere Harvester is easy to crew, but most importantly, it blanks Rekindling Phoenix and Glorybringer, which are too strong against vamps. Removal spells don't do enough cause they play many more copies. It also gives me more reach, cause the creature decks are impossible to break through on the ground.
In the SB, I don't have feedback to give yet, there may be some poor choices for now.
I understand what you are saying about Adanto, but after looking at the U/W Auras deck it seems super strong as it is hard to kill. So, I plan on testing Squire's Devotion to give him life link and a vampire token, Adanto can gain 5 life on each attack! Now, I know the idea might not seem popular, seeing that my deck isn't an aggro deck, just a Twilight Prophet deck. Stall out and blank my opponents attack and win with advantage from the Twilight.
Actually if you want to play fewer vampires, Devotion's value increases. Destiny is probably better if you play a ton of creatures, but Devotion gets superior as your creature count goes down. It gives Famished Paladin Vigilance, helps Twilight Prophet with Ascendancy and turns it into an Aethersphere Harvester ('member the Phoenix + Dragon issue ?).
That being said, I feel like Devotion would also be good on a Bristling Hydra, in a deck where it's hard to deal with any creature you play.
Martyr of Dusk may be the card I cut for Vanguard if I want it back in the deck, I'm not sure Martyr is aggro enough.
Ok so I really like the deck, and I want to try a green splash for Driven // Despair. The reason behind that is that I face problems with very specific archetypes, and this card would help a ton game 1. Cards like Supernatural Stamina don't do enough, that's why i'm looking for a stronger effect for those 2 flexible slots in the main.
The first issue I have is big flyers, more specifically Rekindling Phoenix, Heart of Kiran and Glorybringer (GR Monsters, Mardu Vehicles). These cards won't let my flyers get through, and I'm often short alpha striking the opponent. Giving my team Menace should let me finish the race when the board is stalled.
The second issue is UW Approach and UB control. Once I'm out of gas, I can't recover. Drawing a few cards would certainly help.
It forces me to re-arrange the manabase and sadly cut Paladin of Atonement, which loses deserts in the process. The question is what will replace it. There's a couple cards I need to compare in testing : Skyblade of the Legion : high toughness and flying are relevant, a subpar Skymarcher.
About the sideboard, I'm getting more reps and understand better what the deck needs.
Authority is the strongest card I can't think of against creature decks. Settle is more suspicious but the effect is very strong.
Grounds is crucial in the Scarab / Torrential MUs.
Gideon is way better than Lost Legacy, just more proactive and actually does impact the game even after the opponent played the card you'd like to surgical otherwise.
EDIT : Darn, Gideon of the Trials does so much work that I believe it has to be in the maindeck. It solves the issue of gods and flyers stopping me from attacking, and helps against control. I will cut the Radiant Destiny for it.
In the SB, I can go up to 4 Authority of the Consul (then I easily cut Vanguards VS aggro for them). I think I'm gonna try 2 Thopter Arrest for the remaining slots, trying to shave MUs with gods, vehicles and gearhulks.
EDIT : Darn, Gideon of the Trials does so much work that I believe it has to be in the maindeck. It solves the issue of gods and flyers stopping me from attacking, and helps against control. I will cut the Radiant Destiny for it.
In the SB, I can go up to 4 Authority of the Consul (then I easily cut Vanguards VS aggro for them). I think I'm gonna try 2 Thopter Arrest for the remaining slots, trying to shave MUs with gods, vehicles and gearhulks.[/quote]
I went 2-2 again this Saturday with my pretty standard bw vampires deck. Adding Gideon reeeealy intrigues me.
Agree. Duskborne Skymarcher went from 2 to 3 to 4 in my current build. Even playing it turn 1 to a turn 2 Legion Lieutenant works in keeping the pressure with a 2/2 flyer early. I actually like seeing the 1/1 more in my opening hand than Skymarcher Aspirant, as I'd rather draw more blood early than actually trade in the first few turns.
The only thing I'm unsure about right now is Radiant Destiny. Don't get me wrong. I think it's a great card, but I really, really am considering playing two copies of Twilight Prophet to get extra late game reach (ascend is so easy with this vampires) and an evasive threat that doesn't die to Abrade. I could also use some recommendations with my sideboard plan. Thanks in advance!
Could you develop about a few spicy cards and numbers you have in your main and side ? I'm interested in the non-obvious choices.
I like you trimmed Gifted Aetherborn, I'm currently at 3 copies. 4 unfortunately leads to games where they rot in hand.
I think the Duskborne Skymarcher wants Radiant Destiny to be good enough. When you get ascend, the Skymarcher has vigilance, so it can both attack & buff a creature before damage. It's also very important to grow it, and it unfortunately doesn't correctly with Metallic Mimic. So with only the 4 Legion Lieutenant, I feel it's a bit underwhelming. It's actually a card I might want to trim to 0-2 copies, and rather have 4 Vicious Conquistador + 4 Skymarcher Aspirant locked in the main.
That's why I also try cards like Gideon of the Trials and Thopter Arrest, but I also need to make room for a couple Fatal Pushes. I also want to get some reps with Squire's Devotion, because it is a nice card to attach to Paladin of Atonement and Adanto Vanguard. The main issue I had with paladin is that opponents can play around the card so I never get my life back, and it can be chumped by Gods and Phoenixes. With lifelink on it though, as it often becomes a 6+/6+, I can race all the creature decks with. And Devotion is proactive in comparison to Push, which I like.
Here i'll just put this right here. It's pretty straight forward go wide deck with plenty of buff for tribal and then you smash face with a fairly diverse sideboard to toy with
Could you develop about a few spicy cards and numbers you have in your main and side ? I'm interested in the non-obvious choices.
I like you trimmed Gifted Aetherborn, I'm currently at 3 copies. 4 unfortunately leads to games where they rot in hand.
No question that Gifted Aetherborn is a good card. Unfortunately, the early BB can be difficult. It's great in going through ground stalls early and halting a big creature though, but those things don't happen in the first two turns anyway. The life gain is amazing if pulled of early, though. We all know that. I just wanted to try something different in my sideboard while it's still early. Bloodcrazed Paladin has been good versus both control and sideboarded hate like Golden Demise. It can also fill in to create a big threat after big trades against red. Once you get past 3 toughness, it gets difficult for them. Bishop of Rebirth I wanted to test against removal heavy and control decks, but unfortunately I don't draw it enough to have anything to say.
I think the Duskborne Skymarcher wants Radiant Destiny to be good enough. When you get ascend, the Skymarcher has vigilance, so it can both attack & buff a creature before damage. It's also very important to grow it, and it unfortunately doesn't correctly with Metallic Mimic. So with only the 4 Legion Lieutenant, I feel it's a bit underwhelming. It's actually a card I might want to trim to 0-2 copies, and rather have 4 Vicious Conquistador + 4 Skymarcher Aspirant locked in the main.
I don't run Metallic Mimic because it's such a nonbo for a deck that has so many one drops. It doesn't do much on turn 2 either. I think that card is great for more token-dedicated builds that run a lot of Queen's Commission and Call to the Feast. My logic with wanting a lot of early fliers is for a lot of chip in damage early and then finish the opponent off with Sanctum Seeker triggers. Playing 4 makes a turn 4 to turn 5 double Sanctum Seeker possible, should you need all that extra damage.
I run Fatal Push which helps stem the tide against Heart of Kiran. To be honest, I want to run three copies. The 4 and 5 cc flying creatures, you can outrun. You're casting your first Sanctum Seeker by that time already, and hopefully with a lot of earlier threats during the prior turns to go for that sacrificial run FTW. Unfortunately, Whirler Virtuoso is, in fact, troublesome. I think primarily for all creature based decks. Card just stalls.
I have been looking at a lot of lists and trying different stuff. I think the big decisions are going either play Mono Black splash white or Mono White Splash black. I love Gifted Aetherborn but after playing Squire's Devotion on Adanto's Vanguard the combo is of juggernaut proportions. The Mono Black list I did is great versus control and midrange decks because it plays Push and contempt with Arterial Flow mainboard. Although, Twilight Prophet is a card I want to consistently win with. Still looking for ideas
I'm on the same boat, I've won FNMs with Mono Black Tempo Vampires and White Weenie Vampires, but can't seem to do so well with just BW Vampire Tribal, the white and black vampires want two different approaches with black's payout cards being Sanctum Seeker, Twilight Prophet and Bishop of the Bloodstained wanting you to go wide into the late game but the best white vampires Adanto Vanguard, Forerunner of the Legion and the 1 drops wanting you to win ASAP.
I feel both the black and white vampires from Ixalan would've worked better with the red vampires from SOI than they do with each other.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
The main thing I want to say is Sanctum Seeker is THE reason to play vampire tribal.
Anyone else build this yet?
How does it perform against Ramunap Red?
Any feedback?
Given that this seems to be a deck-specific question, merging with the corresponding thread. - hoser2
Ixalan's binding does not have flash, but I think it is better. Play it on one Glorybringer or Hazoret and you dont have to worry about them the rest of the game.
I have had better luck with Oketra.
Play a Bishop of the Bloodstained hit for 7-8 damage on ETB, pass turn, (unless you have enough mana, then play Acrobatic Maneuver ) next turn providing you didn't loose any creatures play Acrobatic Maneuver on Bishop hit for 7-8 on ETB again and then attack!
Thoughts???
The new lord for vampires Legion Lieutenant is weak since he dies to every single removal currently in Standard. If you want a reason why cards like Hapatra never saw play, it's exactly that. Radiant Destiny should work much better, ascend or not. I guess if you want to build a Vampire deck, put both and force the opponent to spend their removal on the lords, since the rest is not exactly scary to look at.
Vampires was nowhere close to tier 1, I'm not sure Rivals brings enough to the table to change this. I guess you could play Slaughter the Strong against Temur and Ramunap to get rid of large bodies, then hopefully trade with what's left. You're not coming off that far ahead, but at least you avoid wiping next turn.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
3 Duskborne Skymarcher
4 Legion Lieutenant
3 Adanto Vanguard
3 Gifted Aetherborn
3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
1 Forerunner of the Legion
4 Sanctum Seeker
1 Twilight Prophet
3 Call to the Feast
2 Radiant Destiny
2 Cast Out
4 Concealed Courtyard
4 Unclaimed Territory
3 Shefet Dunes
2 Ifnir Deadlands
6 Plains
5 Swamp
3 Duress
2 Dusk/Dawn
1 Bishop of Rebirth
2 Authority of the Consuls
2 Kambal, Consul of Allocation
1 Silent Gravestone
2 Lost Legacy
2 Bloodcrazed Paladin
I'm working on an aggro shell after a long time scratching my head on a midrange one. There's a package of cards that work no matter what shell we play, then the remaining slots ar a bit more complicated to evaluate.
Here's my current list (Edit Feb 3rd 18) :
3 Radiant Destiny
3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
4 Gifted Aetherborn
4 Legion Lieutenant
4 Paladin of Atonement
4 Adanto Vanguard
4 Metallic Mimic
4 Vicious Conquistador
4 Skymarcher Aspirant
4 Duskborne Skymarcher
4 Concealed Courtyard
4 Shefet Dunes
4 Ifnir Deadlands
4 Forsaken Sanctuary
2 Authority of the Consuls
4 Duress
2 Lost Legacy
2 Settle the Wreckage
Adanto Vanguard is praised as the best vampire by some pros, while Paladin of Atonement is completely overlooked. My tests ring a different bell (EDIT: I might be opposing the wrong cards though, since Martyr is suspicious). I've been deeply disappointed by Vanguard, probably because Standard isn't what it was before RIX. Paying 4 is too much to save a creature that don't attack that well anymore. Between gods, Phoenix, eternalize, I don't like him in a go-wide list. He's probably still good in a UW Sram shell.
I have the same feeling with Yahenni, Undying Partisan. In this shell, I don't want to sacrifice my creatures before they dealt damage, and he doesn't even attack that well anymore. Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle, on the other hand, is the best 3-drop I want in every game, very strong with lords and anthems.
Notable vamps that don't make the cut ae Oathsworn Vampire and Famished Paladin. There's no way to gain life every turn, period. Dusk Legion Zealot is interesting but not very aggro.
Aethersphere Harvester is easy to crew, but most importantly, it blanks Rekindling Phoenix and Glorybringer, which are too strong against vamps. Removal spells don't do enough cause they play many more copies. It also gives me more reach, cause the creature decks are impossible to break through on the ground.
In the SB, I don't have feedback to give yet, there may be some poor choices for now.
I didnt get to experiment with prophet much. Just never really got her out in time. Famished paladin got A LOT of hate when he was out. Constantly getting countered or burned. My MVPs were adanto vanguard and yahenni. Yahenni can get really big, really quick, especially against tokens, or a board wipe.
I will be playing again this week with concealed courtyards in the deck which i had to order. Also think I may add some Gifted Aetherborns. I think the key to the deck is to get out quickly, maybe get some lifegain, and just overpower with counters and creatures in the mid game.
I understand what you are saying about Adanto, but after looking at the U/W Auras deck it seems super strong as it is hard to kill. So, I plan on testing Squire's Devotion to give him life link and a vampire token, Adanto can gain 5 life on each attack! Now, I know the idea might not seem popular, seeing that my deck isn't an aggro deck, just a Twilight Prophet deck. Stall out and blank my opponents attack and win with advantage from the Twilight.
That being said, I feel like Devotion would also be good on a Bristling Hydra, in a deck where it's hard to deal with any creature you play.
Martyr of Dusk may be the card I cut for Vanguard if I want it back in the deck, I'm not sure Martyr is aggro enough.
The first issue I have is big flyers, more specifically Rekindling Phoenix, Heart of Kiran and Glorybringer (GR Monsters, Mardu Vehicles). These cards won't let my flyers get through, and I'm often short alpha striking the opponent. Giving my team Menace should let me finish the race when the board is stalled.
The second issue is UW Approach and UB control. Once I'm out of gas, I can't recover. Drawing a few cards would certainly help.
It forces me to re-arrange the manabase and sadly cut Paladin of Atonement, which loses deserts in the process. The question is what will replace it. There's a couple cards I need to compare in testing :
Skyblade of the Legion : high toughness and flying are relevant, a subpar Skymarcher.
Bishop's Soldier : lifelink is relevant, a subpar Aetherborn.
Martyr of Dusk : resiliency is relevant, a subpar Vanguard.
Dusk Legion Zealot : unique effect that helps fixing the mana, but not aggro at all.
There's also a chance Aetherborn has to be cut for one of those guys.
The list will be something like :
3 Radiant Destiny
3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
4 Legion Lieutenant
4 Martyr of Dusk
4 Skyblade of the Legion
4 Adanto Vanguard
4 Metallic Mimic
4 Vicious Conquistador
4 Skymarcher Aspirant
4 Duskborne Skymarcher
4 Concealed Courtyard
4 Blooming Marsh
4 Aether Hub
4 Shefet Dunes
2 Settle the Wreckage
3 Gideon of the Trials
About the sideboard, I'm getting more reps and understand better what the deck needs.
Authority is the strongest card I can't think of against creature decks. Settle is more suspicious but the effect is very strong.
Grounds is crucial in the Scarab / Torrential MUs.
Gideon is way better than Lost Legacy, just more proactive and actually does impact the game even after the opponent played the card you'd like to surgical otherwise.
EDIT : Darn, Gideon of the Trials does so much work that I believe it has to be in the maindeck. It solves the issue of gods and flyers stopping me from attacking, and helps against control. I will cut the Radiant Destiny for it.
In the SB, I can go up to 4 Authority of the Consul (then I easily cut Vanguards VS aggro for them). I think I'm gonna try 2 Thopter Arrest for the remaining slots, trying to shave MUs with gods, vehicles and gearhulks.
In the SB, I can go up to 4 Authority of the Consul (then I easily cut Vanguards VS aggro for them). I think I'm gonna try 2 Thopter Arrest for the remaining slots, trying to shave MUs with gods, vehicles and gearhulks.[/quote]
I went 2-2 again this Saturday with my pretty standard bw vampires deck. Adding Gideon reeeealy intrigues me.
Here's my current build:
4 Duskborne Skymarcher
4 Legion Lieutenant
4 Adanto Vanguard
2 Gifted Aetherborn
3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
1 Forerunner of the Legion
4 Sanctum Seeker
3 Legion's Landing
2 Call to the Feast
2 Fatal Push
2 Cast Out
2 Radiant Destiny
4 Unclaimed Territory
2 Shefet Dunes
1 Ifnir Deadlands
6 Plains
6 Swamp
4 Duress
2 Moment of Craving
2 Dusk/Dawn
2 Bloodcrazed Paladin
1 Bishop of Rebirth
2 Yahenni, Undying Partisan
2 Lost Legacy
The only thing I'm unsure about right now is Radiant Destiny. Don't get me wrong. I think it's a great card, but I really, really am considering playing two copies of Twilight Prophet to get extra late game reach (ascend is so easy with this vampires) and an evasive threat that doesn't die to Abrade. I could also use some recommendations with my sideboard plan. Thanks in advance!
I like you trimmed Gifted Aetherborn, I'm currently at 3 copies. 4 unfortunately leads to games where they rot in hand.
I think the Duskborne Skymarcher wants Radiant Destiny to be good enough. When you get ascend, the Skymarcher has vigilance, so it can both attack & buff a creature before damage. It's also very important to grow it, and it unfortunately doesn't correctly with Metallic Mimic. So with only the 4 Legion Lieutenant, I feel it's a bit underwhelming. It's actually a card I might want to trim to 0-2 copies, and rather have 4 Vicious Conquistador + 4 Skymarcher Aspirant locked in the main.
More importantly, our flyers aren't big enough to get through the best flyers in the format. Mardu Vehicles play 4 Heart of Kiran and possibly 2 Aetherpshere Harvester, so they always have one in the early game. GR Monsters and Grixis Energy have 4 copies of Rekindling Phoenix + 4 Glorybringer or Whirler Virtuoso. The priority is to have answers against those creatures Game 1, over Radiant Destiny or Duskborne Skymarcher.
It's also impossible to get through the Scarab God, Rhonas the Indomitable, Hazoret the Fervent or even Torrential Gearhulk, no matter how many anthem effects we run. The format is filled with strong blockers that vampires can't get through. We need removal and ways to go through. Radiant Destiny doesn't help, Thus Driven // Despair as an attractive idea.
That's why I also try cards like Gideon of the Trials and Thopter Arrest, but I also need to make room for a couple Fatal Pushes. I also want to get some reps with Squire's Devotion, because it is a nice card to attach to Paladin of Atonement and Adanto Vanguard. The main issue I had with paladin is that opponents can play around the card so I never get my life back, and it can be chumped by Gods and Phoenixes. With lifelink on it though, as it often becomes a 6+/6+, I can race all the creature decks with. And Devotion is proactive in comparison to Push, which I like.
That's where I am with my BW list :
2 Squire's Devotion
3 Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle
3 Gifted Aetherborn
4 Legion Lieutenant
4 Martyr of Dusk
4 Paladin of Atonement
4 Adanto Vanguard
4 Metallic Mimic
4 Vicious Conquistador
4 Skymarcher Aspirant
4 Concealed Courtyard
4 Ifnir Deadlands
4 Shefet Dunes
4 Forsaken Sanctuary
1 Swamp
1 Plains
4 Authority of the Consuls
3 Thopter Arrest
2 Settle the Wreckage
2 Fatal Push
4x Gifted Aetherborn
4x Metallic Mimic
4x legion lieutenant
3x Dusk Legion Zealot
2x Yahenni, Undying Partisan
4x Sadistic Skymarcher
3x Sanctum seeker
Spells:
3x Fatal Push
4x Legion's landing
4x Radiant Destiny
3x Queen's Commision
4x Evolving Wilds
4x Concealed Courtyard
4x Unclaimed Territory
1x Shefet Dunes
4x Plains
5x Swamp
1x Fatal Push
3x Authority of the Consuls
3x Baffling End
2x Bishop of Binding
1x Yahenni's Expertise
2x famished Paladin
1x Bishop of Rebirth
2x Champin of Dusk
Here i'll just put this right here. It's pretty straight forward go wide deck with plenty of buff for tribal and then you smash face with a fairly diverse sideboard to toy with
No question that Gifted Aetherborn is a good card. Unfortunately, the early BB can be difficult. It's great in going through ground stalls early and halting a big creature though, but those things don't happen in the first two turns anyway. The life gain is amazing if pulled of early, though. We all know that. I just wanted to try something different in my sideboard while it's still early. Bloodcrazed Paladin has been good versus both control and sideboarded hate like Golden Demise. It can also fill in to create a big threat after big trades against red. Once you get past 3 toughness, it gets difficult for them. Bishop of Rebirth I wanted to test against removal heavy and control decks, but unfortunately I don't draw it enough to have anything to say.
I don't run Metallic Mimic because it's such a nonbo for a deck that has so many one drops. It doesn't do much on turn 2 either. I think that card is great for more token-dedicated builds that run a lot of Queen's Commission and Call to the Feast. My logic with wanting a lot of early fliers is for a lot of chip in damage early and then finish the opponent off with Sanctum Seeker triggers. Playing 4 makes a turn 4 to turn 5 double Sanctum Seeker possible, should you need all that extra damage.
I run Fatal Push which helps stem the tide against Heart of Kiran. To be honest, I want to run three copies. The 4 and 5 cc flying creatures, you can outrun. You're casting your first Sanctum Seeker by that time already, and hopefully with a lot of earlier threats during the prior turns to go for that sacrificial run FTW. Unfortunately, Whirler Virtuoso is, in fact, troublesome. I think primarily for all creature based decks. Card just stalls.
I feel both the black and white vampires from Ixalan would've worked better with the red vampires from SOI than they do with each other.