I finally got a little playing in this weekend. I found that I didn't need the acceleration that much, but that I did want more low cc treefolk. It would be nice if Wizards would print a few more playable 1 and 2 cc treefolk. Probably a mana producer would be nice, but other things could also work just to have a wall or an early blocker. I am going to try out Lightning Greaves. I want to be able to cheat Ghoultree into play an attack the same turn. Interesting with Congregation at Dawn you can put Ghoultree on top and then Silverblade Paladin can be your normal draw. If you have access to 1WW you can give doublestrike and attack in one massive turn.
Early results of playing Favor of the Mighty is that it tends to help me a lot more than opponents. I'm not playing much removal so I'm not really getting hurt by it unless it makes something on the other side unblockable. But pretty quick you are putting down a Leaf-Crowned Elder and eventually a Timber Protector that has protection from all colors. Wraths still hurt, but we re-load really really well. I am liking the deck.
You have gotten me trying to play Treefolk again. I'll probably put some real time into it this weekend. I want to reduce my number of spells, but I'm not sure which ones are good and which ones aren't. The deck is actually centered around Favor of the Mighty. Playing Treefolk we should usually have the highest converted mana cost creature(s) on the field and granting them protection from all colors is a huge benefit. It protects Timber Protectors from being removed keeping your army Indestructible. Early it should protect Leaf-Crowned Elder from being removed and then it protects whatever you cheat into play with LCE. Not only does FotM keep opponents from destroying your biggest creatures, but it also allows them to be virtually unblockable. Add to that some level of Congregation at Dawn setting up your next draw into a Silverblade Paladin to soulbound your biggest creature and grant it doublestrike and you can win PDQ. Yes, they can still kill the Silverblade Paladin, but you'll still get 10 damage through with Ghoultree and FotM out.
If you are playing White, Congregation at Dawn was made for the deck and probably can fully replace Cream of the Crop.
White adds a lot to the deck sideboard possibilities. But I haven't started to think about it. Path to Exile seems like a good starting point.
Now the deck is doing something powerful, by cheating big creatures that you can tutor for into play.
You might play test a Ghoultree. I wasn't sold on it, but getting a free 10/10 is something to think about. It's still vanilla 10/10 so I'm not sold either, but in some situations the bigger creature helps end games also how does a red deck deal with it.
Oracle of Mul Daya is another card to consider. Probably Cream of the Crop is better, but Oracle has a lot of synergies with the deck.
Deck still probably isn't powerful enough for really competitive Modern play, but I think it's good enough for competitive casual. Let me know if you have any innovations or advice from playing it. I have a soft spot in my heart for the Treefolk and wish I could make the deck competitive enough for my play group.
This probably curves out pretty well and substitutes creatures that can be Elder or Pathed into play for spells. Treefolk Harbinger is so much better than the Crystal Ball. If you want a similar effect to Ball use Cream of the Crop because it will cost you less mana to cast and no mana to keep using. The sideboard is probably terrible, but it has some answer cards that you'd want to know about and consider. I wish I had another good one drop because you may not always want to cast Treefolk Harbinger on turn one. You could consider Utopia Sprawl for Rampant Growth because we have other two drops. But you accelerate turn two into a turn three LC Elder. But that let's you cast Harbinger on turn four to crush your enemy with the best possible free Treefolk on turn five. With acceleration on turn two you also can play both Descendants Path and Treefolk Harbinger on turn three.
Other ideas:
Congregation at Dawn would be powerful if you wanted to splash white.
Cream of the Crop could be really fun.
Noxious Revival can work to put a creature from graveyard back on top of your library.
Oracle of Mul Daya can be strong in this deck and is a Shaman so it would come into play with Crown Elder or Descendants Path.
Summoning Trap is great for the sideboard
Thorn of Amethyst might be good for you. O-Naginata might also work as a two of to help you trample and more damage.
You do see the treefolk harbinger and leaf crown/Descendants Path can combo into play a big expensive treefolk into play like Ghoultree, Woodfall Primus, Deadwood Treefolk. You don't have to run multiples of those so you could pick the best one to cheat into play and run one of each. Treefolk Harbinger is a heavy lifter, plus it's a little wall to chump with.
How serious is this build for you? Are you doing casual tribal? I'm just trying to find your goal because while I really tried to build a deck like this Modern is an unforgiving format and Treefolk don't have the support to be really really good.
If you are going to go tribal treefolk, then think of what you want to have your deck do... You can make pretty big tough creatures, but so can most tribal decks. Your playables are Dungrove Elder, Bosk Banneret, Leaf-Crown Elder, Treefolk Harbinger (combos with Leaf-Crown Elder you need four Treefolk Harbinger). Of these, its hard to say even all of them are playable in Modern because Modern is a very powerful format.
Breeding Pool and its cycle are Forests, so is Murmuring Bosk(which is easily playable in a deck like this), so you can splash colors and stay on theme with forests. Plus if treefolk are good at something they are good at finding forests... Again why you need to run Treefolk Harbinger as a four of... Dryad Arbor is also searchable, but I'm not sure you'd want it.
Genju of the Cedars might be fun as a one of simple to late game get value out of forests and to get around Wrath of God effects.
Doran, the Siege Tower is usually considered very good with Treefolk, and if you play it, you can do some crazy things with really high toughness creatures.
Primal Bellow might be a good card to cheaply pump to very large degrees.
Ranger's Path might be better than Cultivate. Utopia Sprawl can help you if you splash a color to run less lands of your splash color, but still have access to your correct colors. Plus it ramps for just one G mana. Another ramp spell you might think about is Sakura-Tribe Elder (which is doubly good since it can be cast for free off of Leaf-Crown Elder). Four Breeding Pools, Sixteen forests and one Island isn't that bad a land base.
Early results of playing Favor of the Mighty is that it tends to help me a lot more than opponents. I'm not playing much removal so I'm not really getting hurt by it unless it makes something on the other side unblockable. But pretty quick you are putting down a Leaf-Crowned Elder and eventually a Timber Protector that has protection from all colors. Wraths still hurt, but we re-load really really well. I am liking the deck.
4 Treefolk Harbinger
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
3 Bosk Bannerett
1 Silverblade Paladin
4 Leaf-Crowned Elder
2 Timber Protector
2 Woodfall Primus
2 Ghoultree
4 Congregation at Dawn
3 Lightning Greaves
4 Descendant's Path
4 Favor of the Mighty
1 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
3 Plains
4 Temple Garden
2 Noxious Revival
2 Vexing Shusher
2 Summoning Trap
2 Orchard Warden
3 Avoid Fate
2 Sapling of Colfenor
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If you are playing White, Congregation at Dawn was made for the deck and probably can fully replace Cream of the Crop.
White adds a lot to the deck sideboard possibilities. But I haven't started to think about it. Path to Exile seems like a good starting point.
4 Treefolk Harbinger
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
2 Dungrove Elder
2 Heartwood Storyteller
1 Silverblade Paladin
4 Leaf-Crowned Elder
2 Timber Protector
1 Deadwood Treefolk
1 Woodfall Primus
1 Ghoultree
2 Congregation at Dawn
1 Cream of the Crop
4 Descendant's Path
4 Favor of the Mighty
4 Utopia Sprawl
1 Arid Mesa
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
2 Plains
4 Temple Garden
2 Noxious Revival
2 Vexing Shusher
2 Summoning Trap
2 Orchard Warden
3 Avoid Fate
2 Sapling of Colfenor
You might play test a Ghoultree. I wasn't sold on it, but getting a free 10/10 is something to think about. It's still vanilla 10/10 so I'm not sold either, but in some situations the bigger creature helps end games also how does a red deck deal with it.
Oracle of Mul Daya is another card to consider. Probably Cream of the Crop is better, but Oracle has a lot of synergies with the deck.
Deck still probably isn't powerful enough for really competitive Modern play, but I think it's good enough for competitive casual. Let me know if you have any innovations or advice from playing it. I have a soft spot in my heart for the Treefolk and wish I could make the deck competitive enough for my play group.
4 Treefolk Harbinger
4 Bosk Banneret
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder
4 Dungrove Elder
4 Leaf-Crown Elder
4 Dauntless Dourbark
3 Timber Protector
1 Deadwood Treefolk
2 Woodfall Primus
1 Ghoultree
1 Rampant Growth
4 Descendant's Path
22 Forest
2 Noxious Revival
2 Vexing Shusher
2 Summoning Trap
2 Orchard Warden
4 Avoid Fate
1 Woodfall Primus
This probably curves out pretty well and substitutes creatures that can be Elder or Pathed into play for spells. Treefolk Harbinger is so much better than the Crystal Ball. If you want a similar effect to Ball use Cream of the Crop because it will cost you less mana to cast and no mana to keep using. The sideboard is probably terrible, but it has some answer cards that you'd want to know about and consider. I wish I had another good one drop because you may not always want to cast Treefolk Harbinger on turn one. You could consider Utopia Sprawl for Rampant Growth because we have other two drops. But you accelerate turn two into a turn three LC Elder. But that let's you cast Harbinger on turn four to crush your enemy with the best possible free Treefolk on turn five. With acceleration on turn two you also can play both Descendants Path and Treefolk Harbinger on turn three.
Other ideas:
Congregation at Dawn would be powerful if you wanted to splash white.
Cream of the Crop could be really fun.
Noxious Revival can work to put a creature from graveyard back on top of your library.
Oracle of Mul Daya can be strong in this deck and is a Shaman so it would come into play with Crown Elder or Descendants Path.
Summoning Trap is great for the sideboard
O-Naginata might also work as a two of to help you trample and more damage.
You do see the treefolk harbinger and leaf crown/Descendants Path can combo into play a big expensive treefolk into play like Ghoultree, Woodfall Primus, Deadwood Treefolk. You don't have to run multiples of those so you could pick the best one to cheat into play and run one of each. Treefolk Harbinger is a heavy lifter, plus it's a little wall to chump with.