Lim grats on the publication, when I saw it over on Gathering, I knew it looked like a deck thread I had stickied. I just think it's a great take on Mono-white control with some character.
Update:
-Ghostly Prison / +Strionic Resonator
I finally pulled the trigger on adding in the 'Resonator. It's a more flexible card, and a much more effective deterrent against large-to-midsize beaters than the 'Prison is. If I start seeing more token decks or weenie swarms, I may have to find a spot for GP again.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
I like a few of the new toys this year's commander product have brought us. No changes yet, but I'm going to be looking for a slot for Unexpectedly Absent. I also think the Opal Palace may warrant a look. MK dies pretty regularly through 'wrathing and the like, so this may be an interesting option. I also think Darksteel Mutation is a relatively interesting option for a tutor-able "removal" spell.
Oh, the choices!
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Condemn can be a really great card at just a single W to cast, but the timing restrictions made it too hard to get the full benefit. I think UA gives me more versatility by being able to hit any (non-land) problem permanent, and also removing the timing restriction. Obviously, there is another restriction added in if I'd like to stack this effect on top of a deck shuffle, but that isn't required for casting, just a little more fun to do.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Is land destruction that bad? I mean, you're a ramp/greedy deck who has in play 25 lands.. it seems quite obvious to me to push the cataclysm button or pull the land destruction lever.
I receive bad words every time I do that. I mean, it's a symmetrical LD, I get punished but you too.. so what's the problem?
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Currently playing: WW - legacy death and taxes - WW
I'M A MEMBER OF THE Anti-Blue Alliance (Just Say "Yes" to Spells!)
The SIX cardinal sins of Legacy:
1. Discuss the unbanning of Surival Of The Fittest.
2. Argue that banning Force of Will would make the format healthier.
3. Play Brainstorm without Fetchlands.
4. Stifle Standstill.
5. Think that Gaea's Blessing will make you Solidarity-proof.
6. Pass priority after playing Infernal Tutor.
Is land destruction that bad? I mean, you're a ramp/greedy deck who has in play 25 lands.. it seems quite obvious to me to push the cataclysm button or pull the land destruction lever.
I receive bad words every time I do that. I mean, it's a symmetrical LD, I get punished but you too.. so what's the problem?
Its all relative. I think it's an important capability, and almost essential to equalize the Ramp.dec players. However, there are many who get very bent out of shape about it. It completely depends on the group you're playing with.
One thing that is relatively important though, is a plan to continue the game. Destroying all lands, doing nothing else, then passing the turn around the table for 3 straight turns is pretty terrible. Destroying all the lands, then re-playing one of yours from the grave with Crucible of Worlds, then attacking with Sun Titan to get another is completely different. You're moving the game forward again, and immediately putting pressure on the board.
Regardless, there are always going to be people that are upset no matter what way the game ends, unless they won by blowing everyone else out. There's no pleasing everyone.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Lately I've been running into some surprisingly good mono red decks and I've been inspired. So I've started a project where I'm building mono decks for each color. I've had an Omnath deck in green for awhile and I didn't want to jump on the red bandwagon yet.
So I decided to start with white. Initially I was thinking about going with the Portal legends (Guan Yu etc...) and some sort of unblockable theme while running control. However, their prices and lack of synergy with much else deterred me.
So I basically just built a combo / control deck and decided on the commander afterwords. Michiko seemed like a great choice.
I've got it pared down close to what I plan to run but I wonder if you have any suggestions on cuts (I'd like to be at about 65 and I think I'm at 72). I've come up with a list I'm thinking about cutting but I want some opinions first.
FYI, the creatures are almost all definitely staying. They are almost all combo or win con pieces.
...
So I basically just built a combo / control deck and decided on the commander afterwords. Michiko seemed like a great choice.
I've got it pared down close to what I plan to run but I wonder if you have any suggestions on cuts (I'd like to be at about 65 and I think I'm at 72). I've come up with a list I'm thinking about cutting but I want some opinions first.
FYI, the creatures are almost all definitely staying. They are almost all combo or win con pieces.
Just my opinion, but I'm not a big fan of Ajani, Caller of the Pride here. Both Elspeths are good because they immediately can create some chump blockers to protect themselves. Ajani needs to wait until its at 8 loyalty, which could take a little while.
Lose the Reviving Dose. Straight life gain isn't worth it, because it doesn't change the board position in any way to actually help you. If you're running it just for the cantrip, there are better choices (cycling Renewed Faith is what immediately comes to my mind for a straight upgrade).
You're running a lot of 1-for-1 removal spells. I know that many of them are targeted exile effects, but you may want to think about something like Austere Command, Akroma's Vengence, or just Paraselene. This could free up some spots in your list for you.
Also is there any artifact tutor in white beyond Enlightened and Stoneforge?
Just my opinion, but I'm not a big fan of Ajani, Caller of the Pride here. Both Elspeths are good because they immediately can create some chump blockers to protect themselves. Ajani needs to wait until its at 8 loyalty, which could take a little while.
Lose the Reviving Dose. Straight life gain isn't worth it, because it doesn't change the board position in any way to actually help you. If you're running it just for the cantrip, there are better choices (cycling Renewed Faith is what immediately comes to my mind for a straight upgrade).
You're running a lot of 1-for-1 removal spells. I know that many of them are targeted exile effects, but you may want to think about something like Austere Command, Akroma's Vengence, or just Paraselene. This could free up some spots in your list for you.
Thanks, your suggestions match up well with some of the cards I was thinking. I was mostly thinking of running Prism to filter after an Armageddon but I don't think that would happen often so it's probably not worth the slot. I thought I put A's Vengeance in there and I meant to run Command but forgot to list it.
One thing I'm thinking about now is trying to find more sac outlets since that is basically my main win con. Saccing to burn players. I have a list of 5 or so more I'd like to put in but I'm going to test with what I have now before I put them in.
Also what is an optimal number of lands in a mono deck? I was figuring I'd be fine at 35 with my rocks but could I afford to go lower?
So, I'm going to try something a little different than normal, and see how I like it. For the release of Born of the Gods, I present to you my Michiko-Centric Set Review! I'm only going to touch on cards that I think are viable options or reasonably relevant to this deck (or a similar build).
Dawn to Dusk - I like this card more than I should. It has some versatility to it, and it doesn't require that to use both modes. That being said, I'm not crazy about this costing cmc 4. I'm even less happy about the fact that this is a sorcery. If this had cost 1 less or had been an instant, this would have been a strong possibility for inclusion. As it stands, it competes for a slot in the deck with Argivian Find or Seal of Cleansing, but I don't think it stacks up favorably with either of those. Sorry D2D...
Excoriate - Too conditional, too expensive (mana cost), and too slow (being a sorcery). Many better options out there.
Fated Retribution - Probably my favorite option in this set. It is an instant, which is the best thing about this. Instant-speed board wipes are few and far between, and because of this I doubt the possibility for a Scry is going to be relevant in most cases. If you play in a group that uses a good number of Planeswalkers, you should be playing this card in your sweeper suite. I'm currently back-and-forth on my own inclusion of this for my build. My most likely swap would come in the slot currently holding Phyrexian Rebirth. We'll see what I choose as time goes on.
Plea for Guidance - You'd think I would like this card, as basically 2x Idyllic Tutor stapled into one card. However, most of the real benefit to running a tutor suite of "silver bullets" come from being able to fetch whatever is needed at many stages of the game. The fact that this has a cmc of 6 relegates this to basically only assembling some sort of combo in one motion. What would actually have been a useful card, is if they printed something with a cmc around 3 or 4 with a kicker that pushed it up to a total of 6, giving you a choice to fetch either one or two enchantments. But they did not, and this is not the card creation forum, so we'll just move on.
Silent Sentinel - Higher mana cost, no etb effect, a worse ability, and worse overall stats make this a very poor substitute for Sun Titan. Pass.
Spirit of the Labyrinth - Great, great card. Not as much for EDH as many other formats, but still potentially fantastic. Even still, after Fated Retribution, this is clearly the next best option for a deck like this one. It allows you to really battle something like Azami or many builds of Niv 1.0 on the most efficient level. Plus, it's cheap AND it's an enchantment, which fits both of the criteria for my toolboxing. And to top that off, this Spirit does not interfere with the Tax-Rack combo that the deck loves to operate under. ... Now that I think about it, this is easily my favorite card in the set. I'm finding a slot for this immediately.
For an environment running a lot of theft effects or 1-for-1 removal spells, the 'Dais can be a very valuable tool. However, it is relatively slow, and narrow in function. It's also hit by many sweepers as "splash damage" from the intended target. I think the Spirit will offer more reach in more situations I'll come across, but I may come to regret the removal of my deck's only real sac' outlet.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Well, I finally got around to uploading a "visual spoiler" of my deck a few weeks ago, which is now 100% pimped out. I hope you enjoy it.
On a more timely note, it's time for a Journey into Nyx review in regards to Michiko Konda:
Aegis of the Gods - Another tool for use against combo decks. It's essentially a combination of Ivory Mask and True Believer, with the strengths (and weaknesses) of both. It's an enchantment, which means you can tutor for it, and it has a low cmc of just 2, so you can play it when you actually need to. If you're threatened by early combo often in your playgroup, it's something you should probably be playing. However, it gets worse as the game goes on in a non-combo-centric metagame, because you're going to hit it with splash damage from your wrath effects. This is the very definition of a metagame call, but one I personally will not be using. However, that takes away nothing from its strength in the correct meta.
Banishing Light - A functional reprint of Oblivion Ring in this deck, as there is really no way to interact with the enters/leaves triggers in this deck. I probably don't want to run another copy of this effect here, but it is a very useful catch-all for environments that don't run many sweepers that will hit enchantments.
Deicide - Useful, but not really useful enough in a singleton format. One benefit to this card though, is the information you can gather from an opponent's deck by searching it (even if you know you won't find another copy of the God in there, you can still look at your opponent's deck).
Godsend - I don't find it all that useful in theory. Any deck that relies on a small number of creatures isn't going to bother blocking yours, and any Voltron commanders are going to have some sort of evasion that reduces the utility of this equipment as a defensive piece. I'll pass.
Oppressive Rays - A neat little card that's quite efficient. In a 1v1 environment, I think this would be really useful. In multiplayer, I don't think it does enough.
Overall, a few neat tools for specific metagames, but nothing I'm overly excited about. Oh, well.
In general, I'm not a big fan of the voting cards, because you're giving up too much control over what you actually want to happen. This makes the "extra vote" cards like Brago’s Representative even less appealing to me.
Council’s Judgment - The best of the "Will of the Council" spells for this deck (in my opinion). It can't affect any of your own permanents (good!). It exiles the eventual target (also good!). Due to "choosing" rather than "targeting," you can remove permanents that have shroud and hexproof (...wierd, I guess, but also good!). However, you again don't have full control over the target in any game with 3 or more players in it (bad). Also, unless you're playing against some bad opponents, it's probably pretty rare that you're going to hit more than one permanent with your spell. This means it's relatively inefficient, as a 1-for-1. It could work, but I'm not really thrilled about it.
And, that's about it. Completely unrelated to this thread, but I have to say that I am really impressed with the reprints in this set. Swords to Plowshares? Misdirection? Stifle? Exploration? Ill-Gotten Gains? Pernicious Deed!?! All incredible cards that can always use more copies in circulation. I may sound crazy, but if they did a "cube-like" product such as this every few years with this quality of reprints, I'd be insanely happy.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Well, I guess it's M15 time! Like with my previous quick reviews, I'll only address new printings (unless I accidentally cover an old one...):
Ajani Steadfast - Amazing ultimate for this deck, but pretty lackluster otherwise. It does nothing to directly effect the battlefield with either of its other activations, so I don't really find much use in trying to get to that point. You may get away with flying under the radar because of this, but as soon as you approach the 7 loyalty needed for that emblem, nobody is going to allow it to go off.
Avacyn, Guardian Angel - Pretty good overall, but I think the player-focused ability on her is just too prohibitively expensive.
Boonweaver Giant & Heliod's Pilgrim - Pretty neat cards, but not really something I'm looking for in this deck. In an aura focused (rather than enchantment/artifact focused) list, These would both be really good. But like I said, they're not for me.
First Response - Actually a pretty good fit for the deck. It falls right along the lines of Darien, King of Kjeldor and Sun Droplet as more passive attack deterrents, rather than true "rattlesnakes". I could definitely see a build that went in a slightly different direction to mine that really wants to run this card. As mine is currently built however, I think it wouldn't do enough on its own.
Hushwing Gryff - Wow. Just wow. What a great effect to have stapled onto a creature. I only wish it were somehow also an enchantment (like Spirit of the Labyrinth) so I could search it out when I need it. With the limitations on my tutor capabilities, and the narrow application of the creature, I just don't think I can warrant finding a slot for it.
Pillar of Light - Instant-speed exile with no drawback is pretty good. But restrictions on the target is pretty lousy. Pass.
Resolute Archangel - I'm pretty sure you're all aware of my apathy towards life gain with no other function. Getting a french-vanilla 4/4 flier on top of it at this mana cost is not going to sway me. Pass. Having said that, if you're running a mono-white build with Serra Ascendant & Felidar Sovereign, then it's probably worth your while.
Return to the Ranks - Another great card, but another one we can't really utilize here. There aren't too many utility creatures at cmc 2 or less that I expect to be in the grave at any time.
Soul of Theros - Would fit great in a more token-oriented build (or maybe that build with Darien and First Response I mentioned above). I feel that it's just too mana intensive for my build, and I'm much happier to run something like my Mirror Entity in its place.
Spectra Ward - Pretty nice overall, but I think it would be functionally replaced by something as simple as Whispersilk Cloak. I know they're not exactly the same, but I'm just not excited by the 'Ward.
Spirit Bonds - This is a pretty intriguing option. You can't pump out several tokens at once, like Sacred Mesa or White Sun's Zenith, but the secondary activated ability is quite good. Plus these tokens can act as Skullclamp fodder or carry a Sword like a champ. This is definitely one to keep an eye on as a real possibility.
Avarice Amulet - Pairs pretty reasonably with my Soltari Vissionary, but I don't think that's reason enough to consider it. I feel that this is just too fragile a way to gain card advantage when I'm likely to be casting a Wrath effect several times in the game.
Soul of New Phyrexia - Now THIS is what Deathless Angel has always wanted to be. Can assuredly lead to blow-outs with Wrath and Armageddon effects, but it is quite the mana guzzler. I'm hesitant to include it because of the high mana requirement, the lack of an immediate effect on the board, and how tempting it is sure to be for Control Magic effects. I'll keep it under consideration though.
So there you go: lots of great and interesting cards, but nothing I'm jumping out of my chair for. I'll try to add some of these options to the initial primer post to give a comprehensive list of options/directions you could use.
Elspeth just wasn't doing enough for me, and I never made it to ultimate level to justify it's position in the list. The Staff gives me a tremendous amount of flexibility in this slot. I can tap down a potential attacker. I can re-use some of my utility men (like Weathered wayfarer or Argivian Archaeologist), or bring an attacker back for defense. Or if all else fails, I can just use it to draw some cards.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
I have to say i think i have fallen in love with this deck. I have seen the Land Tax+Scroll Rack engine before and have wanted to utilize it somewhere but it didn't seem to be powerful enough to hang in any regular constructed format. That caught my eye, as well as the commander. Looking for a new EDH deck i stumbled upon this thread and i am thinking of investing into this deck!
Short answer, yes to all, but I don't like any of them.
I've mentioned many, many times throughout the tread that life gain with no other effect is pretty bad. Even repeatable life gain like Pulse of the Fields. The only way that type of card is worthwhile, is if there are several synergies throughout the deck (such as Storm Herd or Felidar Sovereign). Since I'm not currently running those cards which synergize with life gain, it would take a considerable re-vamp of the deck to make them worthwhile.
Regarding the "many blockers" (Hundred-Handed One, Avatar of Hope, et al): They're not bad. They can act as a big deterrent to an alpha-strike. But only for creatures with no evasion. Or without trample. So probably only against some token swarms. I think I'd rather just Wrath.
Regarding Commander Eesha/Dawn Elemental types: just not really good enough. You can endlessly block a single creature per turn. I used to run a Dawn Elemental in the deck, but I was just never impressed by it. Commander Eesha gets bonus points for carrying a Sword like a champ, but still isn't much better.
And finally, I just don't like the variance on Renounce the Guilds. How many decks do you typically play against that you can expect to have a multicolored creature on the battlefield pretty regularly? Now, if you can expect them to consistently have a multicolored permanent on the board, there's probably a good chance that they'll have multiple multicolored permanents by the time you draw/cast your RtG. That gives them the choice of what card to sac', rather than you. So I see it as a high variance card, where you're not likely to be able to really choose what gets removed, and where if you do cast it when you can choose, you're likely trading 1-for-1 with only that opponent. I'd definitely prefer a more flexible removal spell that I can actually get some benefit from.
I have to say i think i have fallen in love with this deck. I have seen the Land Tax+Scroll Rack engine before and have wanted to utilize it somewhere but it didn't seem to be powerful enough to hang in any regular constructed format. That caught my eye, as well as the commander. Looking for a new EDH deck i stumbled upon this thread and i am thinking of investing into this deck!
Thanks for the kind words. It's definitely my favorite deck as well.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
With the KtK reveals all done, and the full spoiler posted, I'll get into my review of Khans in the framework of Michiko Konda, truth Seeker. Overall, I'm pretty disappointed with the mono-white available printings in this set. Don't get me wrong - I think the set looks like a blast to play in limited. But I think things are pretty weak for this deck. As usual, I'll only cover new printings (no reprints, unless by accident):
Brave the Sands - I think this is a pretty great defensive tool for a deck that has a slightly higher offensive orientation than this. Being able to attack & defend with the same creatures is pretty key, and doubling their blocking abilities is just gravy. I don't think this does enough on its own to warrant a spot in this deck, but I think it is a great potential tool for some others.
End Hostilities - An awesome metagame call in environments with equipment-heavy decks.
Cranial Archive - If this did not exile itself as part of the cost, I would have really liked this card. As printed, I'd prefer several other grave hate effects over this.
Ugin's Nexus - Another awesome metagame slot. If you're playing in an environment where extra turns are prevalent, you should likely find a spot in your deck for this card.
...And that's about it. I told you the set was pretty underwhelming for MK.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Hey, I was just looking through my trade binder and saw a Michiko Konda and was wondering what an EDH deck based on her would look like. I gotta say I'm impressed! I like how grindy it is, but it's also able to finish out the game with some fatties.
I ran a Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant deck for a while and enjoyed it, but I found mono-white to be fairly weak to infinite combo decks (which my meta has a lot of). It forced me to run cards like Ethersworn Canonist, Rule of Law, Null Rod, Pithing Needle, Linvala, etc which I never really enjoyed. It's pretty annoying how anti-combo cards like that, which prevent the whole table from losing, end up drawing hate from the rest of the table. I remember many games where fair decks would kill me just because of my Rule of Law, and then lose the next turn to a Palinchron-powered combo.
I think if I were to rebuild a mono-white EDH deck, I would definitely use yours as a template. Looks sweet!
Well, I guess it's time for my C14 review in the context of Michiko.
Angel of the Dire Hour - I like it a lot more than the Wing Shards I used to run in the deck, but I feel like this just costs too darn much to be useful. It is not only situational in effect (only hitting attackers), but it is also prohibitively expensive to cast, thereby also reducing the actual times when you are able to cast it. I'll pass here, but I am looking forward to giving it a whirl in my Type4 stack.
Angelic Field Marshal - I'm not a big fan of the "Lieutenant" ability, because it is effectively giving you a sub-par creature that can me slightly better on a conditional basis. It is effectively giving opponents an additional reason to target your commander with removal. Also, if I did want the vigilance this guy provides, I'd likely run either Heliod, God of the Sun or the Brave the Sands I mentioned in my last set review.
Comeuppance - A pretty interesting possibility. It would probably be useful to have a Fog-effect in the deck, and this provides a suitably "rattlesnake" twist on the idea for the format to take advantage of. It does however come into direct conflict with the trigger on Michiko. I think I'll leave it out for now.
Containment Priest - A great card that fills a similar role to the Hushwing Gryff I talked about in the M15 set review. This has a very narrow, but very powerful effect in certain situations/metagames. Once again, I feel like this is more of a personal metagame call, but if I had any way to tutor for this creature I'd want to have a copy in here. Until that tutor arrives, I'm going to pass on it.
Fell the Mighty - Another conditional Wrath-effect. I don't think this has enough upside to make me want to use it.
Jazal Goldmane - It just isn't as good as Mirror Entity at producing offense out of a non-threatening board-state. Not interested.
Nahiri, the Lithomancer - Good card. I love that she produces a defense for herself with the tokens. With a critical mass of equipment, this would be really good. I'm looking to add a copy of her in my Basandra deck, but I will not be doing so here.
Other token producers - Meh. Nothing interests me in the slightest.
Loreseeker's Stone - Costs a pretty high amount to cast, and the activation is just way out of where you want it. Even though mono-white is looking for card advantage, you're likely going to have several cards in your hand with this deck between Land Tax, Tithe, Thawing Glaciers and the like. For something in this range, I'd definitely look at Tower of Fortunes before this card.
Unstable Obelisk - I don't need more catch-all removal, but I do like the idea behind this card (ramp in the early game, or removal in the late).
Myriad Landscape - So close, yet so far. If it didn't have to be a basic land, you could get some value from this by fetching duals (which had a basic land type) or something like Mistveil Plains. Since that "basic land" qualifier is present here, it just really doesn't do it for me. On it's own, the land is a huge tempo drain (Cipt, then uses 3 lands to activate, then the targets CipT). It's a "no" from me on this.
And that should just about wrap this up. A bunch of neat cards, but nothing that begs for inclusion in my deck.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
A little bit late with my FRF set review, because I haven't been blown away with anything recently. The multicolored focus of the set does not lend itself well to this monocolored beauty. Like usual, I'm only going to address cards which are within the color identity of Michiko, and only cards I think are reasonable to bring up. Anyway, here goes:
Abzan Advantage - Another removal spell to get around indestructible permanents, but giving the choice to your opponent takes away a lot of the appeal. The secondary Bolster effect doesn't do anything for me at all, either.
Channel Harm - A great Fog effect until you look at the CMC. This would need to cost about half as much as it currently does for me to be interested.
Dragonscale General - If I had built the deck to attack more often than I do now, this would hold a lot of appeal, since it can boost the many small utility creatures I run. However, I think that the slow build-up this leads to would cause players to become much more anxious about my board state, and directly lead to disrupting my perceived position as the "second best" at the table. For the effect this card produces, I definitely prefer Mirror Entity.
Jeskai Barricade - Can act as a combat trick, save one of my creatures from a board-wipe, or re-use an "enters-the-battlefield" effect. I think its a relatively versatile little card, but I don't think I'd be able to abuse it much.
Lotus-Eye Mystics - A better Auramancer in some decks, but since I'm not casting a ton of spells, it wouldn't serve this deck very well. I may decide I want some more enchantment recursion as some point, but I'll want to find something with a little more reach than this.
Mastery of the Unseen - A really neat card, but one I wouldn't get a lot of value from unless I significantly re-tooled the deck. It really needs a more creature-heavy build to shine.
Monastery Mentor - Another good card in the right build, but another one I wouldn't be able to use very well in this deck. More non-creatures, more instants, and more card-draw could potentially make this a monster.
Valorous Stance - A nice, versatile card. Low CMC and 2 good effects. I could see someone trying to find a spot for this in a deck, but I don't think I will.
Wardscale Dragon - I don't run any combat tricks to take advantage of this restriction against my opponents. It is however, a source of disruption, which forces players to make a decision about their combat effects prior to finding out what creatures are attacking. If it were a little cheaper CMC, or a little more potent on offense, I'd consider it for inclusion, but not as printed.
Ugin, the Spirit Dragon - I'm really not too interested in any of these effects. At 8, he's not going to do a lot to stop a creature threat with his +2 ability. As a sweeper, he's conditional in a few ways I don't particularly like. And it's very unlikely that he's going to make it to his ultimate. Not worth it for me.
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"I have seen the true path. I will not warm myself by the fire—I will become the flame."
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
Any chance Michiko is interesting and viable nowadays for casual/kitchen table EDH? I used to keep up with this thread.
There are so many more cards available at this point that it's probably still fun. Would have to scour the more recent threads here, on Reddit, etc. to see what all we could add.
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-Ghostly Prison / +Strionic Resonator
I finally pulled the trigger on adding in the 'Resonator. It's a more flexible card, and a much more effective deterrent against large-to-midsize beaters than the 'Prison is. If I start seeing more token decks or weenie swarms, I may have to find a spot for GP again.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Oh, the choices!
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Update:
-Condemn / +Unexpectedly Absent
Condemn can be a really great card at just a single W to cast, but the timing restrictions made it too hard to get the full benefit. I think UA gives me more versatility by being able to hit any (non-land) problem permanent, and also removing the timing restriction. Obviously, there is another restriction added in if I'd like to stack this effect on top of a deck shuffle, but that isn't required for casting, just a little more fun to do.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
I receive bad words every time I do that. I mean, it's a symmetrical LD, I get punished but you too.. so what's the problem?
WW - legacy death and taxes - WW
1. Discuss the unbanning of Surival Of The Fittest.
2. Argue that banning Force of Will would make the format healthier.
3. Play Brainstorm without Fetchlands.
4. Stifle Standstill.
5. Think that Gaea's Blessing will make you Solidarity-proof.
6. Pass priority after playing Infernal Tutor.
Its all relative. I think it's an important capability, and almost essential to equalize the Ramp.dec players. However, there are many who get very bent out of shape about it. It completely depends on the group you're playing with.
One thing that is relatively important though, is a plan to continue the game. Destroying all lands, doing nothing else, then passing the turn around the table for 3 straight turns is pretty terrible. Destroying all the lands, then re-playing one of yours from the grave with Crucible of Worlds, then attacking with Sun Titan to get another is completely different. You're moving the game forward again, and immediately putting pressure on the board.
Regardless, there are always going to be people that are upset no matter what way the game ends, unless they won by blowing everyone else out. There's no pleasing everyone.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
So I decided to start with white. Initially I was thinking about going with the Portal legends (Guan Yu etc...) and some sort of unblockable theme while running control. However, their prices and lack of synergy with much else deterred me.
So I basically just built a combo / control deck and decided on the commander afterwords. Michiko seemed like a great choice.
I've got it pared down close to what I plan to run but I wonder if you have any suggestions on cuts (I'd like to be at about 65 and I think I'm at 72). I've come up with a list I'm thinking about cutting but I want some opinions first.
FYI, the creatures are almost all definitely staying. They are almost all combo or win con pieces.
1 Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker
Creatures
1 Angelic Arbiter
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria
1 Avacyn, Angel of Hope
1 Karmic Guide
1 Reveillark
1 Sun Titan
1 Duplicant
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Fiend Hunter
1 Archon of Justice
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1 Aven Mindcensor
1 Grand Abolisher
1 Mirror Entity
1 Psychosis Crawler
1 Pierce Strider
1 Adarkar Valkyrie
Planeswalker
1 Ajani, Caller of the Pride
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
1 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
Enchantments
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Journey to Nowhere
1 Hobble
1 Karmic Justice
1 Land Tax
1 Endless Horizons
1 Kismet
1 Angelic Edict
1 Dust to Dust
1 Revoke Existence
1 Wrath of God
1 Day of Judgement
1 Akroma's Vengeance
1 Entreat the Angels
1 Decree of Justice
1 Armageddon
1 Catastrophe
1 Martial Coup
Instant
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Path to Exile
1 Altar's Light
1 Return to Dust
1 Aura Blast
1 Abeyance
1 Shelter
1 Erase
1 Oblation
1 Restrain
1 Reviving Dose
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Swiftfoot Boots
1 Worn Powerstone
1 Thran Dynamo
1 Basalt Monolith
1 Mana Vault
1 Sol Ring
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Prophetic Prism
1 Phyrexian Altar
1 Ashnod's Altar
1 Thornbite Staff
1 Skullclamp
1 Vedalken Orrery
1 Extraplanar Lens
1 Gauntlet of Power
1 Caged Sun
1 Tsabo's Web
1 Staff of Domination
I appreciate any help. Also is there any artifact tutor in white beyond Enlightened and Stoneforge?
EDH Decks:
WUBOloro, Combo ControlWUB
UBOona Reanimator ComboUB
BRGProssh, Eater of the Blue MageBRG
UBRGrixis StormUBR
Rebuilding Jenara (stealyourstuff.dec)
Pauper Deck:
UBInspired SirenUB
Just my opinion, but I'm not a big fan of Ajani, Caller of the Pride here. Both Elspeths are good because they immediately can create some chump blockers to protect themselves. Ajani needs to wait until its at 8 loyalty, which could take a little while.
Lose the Reviving Dose. Straight life gain isn't worth it, because it doesn't change the board position in any way to actually help you. If you're running it just for the cantrip, there are better choices (cycling Renewed Faith is what immediately comes to my mind for a straight upgrade).
I don't like Prophetic Prism in a mono-colored deck.
You're running a lot of 1-for-1 removal spells. I know that many of them are targeted exile effects, but you may want to think about something like Austere Command, Akroma's Vengence, or just Paraselene. This could free up some spots in your list for you.
There are a bunch of equipment tutors in white (Stonehewer Giant, Steelshaper's Gift, & Steelshaper Apprentice to name a few), but I'm not recalling any straight artifact tutors.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Thanks, your suggestions match up well with some of the cards I was thinking. I was mostly thinking of running Prism to filter after an Armageddon but I don't think that would happen often so it's probably not worth the slot. I thought I put A's Vengeance in there and I meant to run Command but forgot to list it.
One thing I'm thinking about now is trying to find more sac outlets since that is basically my main win con. Saccing to burn players. I have a list of 5 or so more I'd like to put in but I'm going to test with what I have now before I put them in.
Also what is an optimal number of lands in a mono deck? I was figuring I'd be fine at 35 with my rocks but could I afford to go lower?
EDH Decks:
WUBOloro, Combo ControlWUB
UBOona Reanimator ComboUB
BRGProssh, Eater of the Blue MageBRG
UBRGrixis StormUBR
Rebuilding Jenara (stealyourstuff.dec)
Pauper Deck:
UBInspired SirenUB
Dawn to Dusk - I like this card more than I should. It has some versatility to it, and it doesn't require that to use both modes. That being said, I'm not crazy about this costing cmc 4. I'm even less happy about the fact that this is a sorcery. If this had cost 1 less or had been an instant, this would have been a strong possibility for inclusion. As it stands, it competes for a slot in the deck with Argivian Find or Seal of Cleansing, but I don't think it stacks up favorably with either of those. Sorry D2D...
Excoriate - Too conditional, too expensive (mana cost), and too slow (being a sorcery). Many better options out there.
Fated Retribution - Probably my favorite option in this set. It is an instant, which is the best thing about this. Instant-speed board wipes are few and far between, and because of this I doubt the possibility for a Scry is going to be relevant in most cases. If you play in a group that uses a good number of Planeswalkers, you should be playing this card in your sweeper suite. I'm currently back-and-forth on my own inclusion of this for my build. My most likely swap would come in the slot currently holding Phyrexian Rebirth. We'll see what I choose as time goes on.
Griffin Dreamfinder - Worse than Sun Titan by a mile, similar to the Razor Hippogriff I cut ages ago, and I'd probably put it behind even something like Auramancer/Monk Idealist in terms of usefulness. Pass.
Plea for Guidance - You'd think I would like this card, as basically 2x Idyllic Tutor stapled into one card. However, most of the real benefit to running a tutor suite of "silver bullets" come from being able to fetch whatever is needed at many stages of the game. The fact that this has a cmc of 6 relegates this to basically only assembling some sort of combo in one motion. What would actually have been a useful card, is if they printed something with a cmc around 3 or 4 with a kicker that pushed it up to a total of 6, giving you a choice to fetch either one or two enchantments. But they did not, and this is not the card creation forum, so we'll just move on.
Silent Sentinel - Higher mana cost, no etb effect, a worse ability, and worse overall stats make this a very poor substitute for Sun Titan. Pass.
Spirit of the Labyrinth - Great, great card. Not as much for EDH as many other formats, but still potentially fantastic. Even still, after Fated Retribution, this is clearly the next best option for a deck like this one. It allows you to really battle something like Azami or many builds of Niv 1.0 on the most efficient level. Plus, it's cheap AND it's an enchantment, which fits both of the criteria for my toolboxing. And to top that off, this Spirit does not interfere with the Tax-Rack combo that the deck loves to operate under. ... Now that I think about it, this is easily my favorite card in the set. I'm finding a slot for this immediately.
So, in conclusion...
Updates!
-Culling Dais / +Spirit of the Labyrinth
For an environment running a lot of theft effects or 1-for-1 removal spells, the 'Dais can be a very valuable tool. However, it is relatively slow, and narrow in function. It's also hit by many sweepers as "splash damage" from the intended target. I think the Spirit will offer more reach in more situations I'll come across, but I may come to regret the removal of my deck's only real sac' outlet.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
On a more timely note, it's time for a Journey into Nyx review in regards to Michiko Konda:
Aegis of the Gods - Another tool for use against combo decks. It's essentially a combination of Ivory Mask and True Believer, with the strengths (and weaknesses) of both. It's an enchantment, which means you can tutor for it, and it has a low cmc of just 2, so you can play it when you actually need to. If you're threatened by early combo often in your playgroup, it's something you should probably be playing. However, it gets worse as the game goes on in a non-combo-centric metagame, because you're going to hit it with splash damage from your wrath effects. This is the very definition of a metagame call, but one I personally will not be using. However, that takes away nothing from its strength in the correct meta.
Banishing Light - A functional reprint of Oblivion Ring in this deck, as there is really no way to interact with the enters/leaves triggers in this deck. I probably don't want to run another copy of this effect here, but it is a very useful catch-all for environments that don't run many sweepers that will hit enchantments.
Deicide - Useful, but not really useful enough in a singleton format. One benefit to this card though, is the information you can gather from an opponent's deck by searching it (even if you know you won't find another copy of the God in there, you can still look at your opponent's deck).
Eidolon of Rhetoric - Another copy of Rule of Law, but one that gets hit by Wrath effects. I'd probably put this below both the aforementioned Rule of Law as well as Ethersworn Cannonist in terms of usefulness.
Godsend - I don't find it all that useful in theory. Any deck that relies on a small number of creatures isn't going to bother blocking yours, and any Voltron commanders are going to have some sort of evasion that reduces the utility of this equipment as a defensive piece. I'll pass.
Oppressive Rays - A neat little card that's quite efficient. In a 1v1 environment, I think this would be really useful. In multiplayer, I don't think it does enough.
Overall, a few neat tools for specific metagames, but nothing I'm overly excited about. Oh, well.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
In general, I'm not a big fan of the voting cards, because you're giving up too much control over what you actually want to happen. This makes the "extra vote" cards like Brago’s Representative even less appealing to me.
Council’s Judgment - The best of the "Will of the Council" spells for this deck (in my opinion). It can't affect any of your own permanents (good!). It exiles the eventual target (also good!). Due to "choosing" rather than "targeting," you can remove permanents that have shroud and hexproof (...wierd, I guess, but also good!). However, you again don't have full control over the target in any game with 3 or more players in it (bad). Also, unless you're playing against some bad opponents, it's probably pretty rare that you're going to hit more than one permanent with your spell. This means it's relatively inefficient, as a 1-for-1. It could work, but I'm not really thrilled about it.
And, that's about it. Completely unrelated to this thread, but I have to say that I am really impressed with the reprints in this set. Swords to Plowshares? Misdirection? Stifle? Exploration? Ill-Gotten Gains? Pernicious Deed!?! All incredible cards that can always use more copies in circulation. I may sound crazy, but if they did a "cube-like" product such as this every few years with this quality of reprints, I'd be insanely happy.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Ajani Steadfast - Amazing ultimate for this deck, but pretty lackluster otherwise. It does nothing to directly effect the battlefield with either of its other activations, so I don't really find much use in trying to get to that point. You may get away with flying under the radar because of this, but as soon as you approach the 7 loyalty needed for that emblem, nobody is going to allow it to go off.
Avacyn, Guardian Angel - Pretty good overall, but I think the player-focused ability on her is just too prohibitively expensive.
Boonweaver Giant & Heliod's Pilgrim - Pretty neat cards, but not really something I'm looking for in this deck. In an aura focused (rather than enchantment/artifact focused) list, These would both be really good. But like I said, they're not for me.
First Response - Actually a pretty good fit for the deck. It falls right along the lines of Darien, King of Kjeldor and Sun Droplet as more passive attack deterrents, rather than true "rattlesnakes". I could definitely see a build that went in a slightly different direction to mine that really wants to run this card. As mine is currently built however, I think it wouldn't do enough on its own.
Hushwing Gryff - Wow. Just wow. What a great effect to have stapled onto a creature. I only wish it were somehow also an enchantment (like Spirit of the Labyrinth) so I could search it out when I need it. With the limitations on my tutor capabilities, and the narrow application of the creature, I just don't think I can warrant finding a slot for it.
Pillar of Light - Instant-speed exile with no drawback is pretty good. But restrictions on the target is pretty lousy. Pass.
Resolute Archangel - I'm pretty sure you're all aware of my apathy towards life gain with no other function. Getting a french-vanilla 4/4 flier on top of it at this mana cost is not going to sway me. Pass. Having said that, if you're running a mono-white build with Serra Ascendant & Felidar Sovereign, then it's probably worth your while.
Return to the Ranks - Another great card, but another one we can't really utilize here. There aren't too many utility creatures at cmc 2 or less that I expect to be in the grave at any time.
Soul of Theros - Would fit great in a more token-oriented build (or maybe that build with Darien and First Response I mentioned above). I feel that it's just too mana intensive for my build, and I'm much happier to run something like my Mirror Entity in its place.
Spectra Ward - Pretty nice overall, but I think it would be functionally replaced by something as simple as Whispersilk Cloak. I know they're not exactly the same, but I'm just not excited by the 'Ward.
Spirit Bonds - This is a pretty intriguing option. You can't pump out several tokens at once, like Sacred Mesa or White Sun's Zenith, but the secondary activated ability is quite good. Plus these tokens can act as Skullclamp fodder or carry a Sword like a champ. This is definitely one to keep an eye on as a real possibility.
Avarice Amulet - Pairs pretty reasonably with my Soltari Vissionary, but I don't think that's reason enough to consider it. I feel that this is just too fragile a way to gain card advantage when I'm likely to be casting a Wrath effect several times in the game.
Perilous Vault - Deserves consideration along with Nevinryl's Disk and Oblivion Stone. I'm not running either, so I'm going to pass on this one as well.
Soul of New Phyrexia - Now THIS is what Deathless Angel has always wanted to be. Can assuredly lead to blow-outs with Wrath and Armageddon effects, but it is quite the mana guzzler. I'm hesitant to include it because of the high mana requirement, the lack of an immediate effect on the board, and how tempting it is sure to be for Control Magic effects. I'll keep it under consideration though.
So there you go: lots of great and interesting cards, but nothing I'm jumping out of my chair for. I'll try to add some of these options to the initial primer post to give a comprehensive list of options/directions you could use.
Regardless of M15, I do have one update for the list:
-Elspeth, Knight Errant / +Staff of Domination
Elspeth just wasn't doing enough for me, and I never made it to ultimate level to justify it's position in the list. The Staff gives me a tremendous amount of flexibility in this slot. I can tap down a potential attacker. I can re-use some of my utility men (like Weathered wayfarer or Argivian Archaeologist), or bring an attacker back for defense. Or if all else fails, I can just use it to draw some cards.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Also
Hundred-Handed One
Guardian of the Gateless
Commander Eesha
Seraph of the Sword
Renounce the Guilds
Bruse Tarl & Kraum, Ludevic's Opus
Mayael the Anima
Short answer, yes to all, but I don't like any of them.
I've mentioned many, many times throughout the tread that life gain with no other effect is pretty bad. Even repeatable life gain like Pulse of the Fields. The only way that type of card is worthwhile, is if there are several synergies throughout the deck (such as Storm Herd or Felidar Sovereign). Since I'm not currently running those cards which synergize with life gain, it would take a considerable re-vamp of the deck to make them worthwhile.
Regarding the "many blockers" (Hundred-Handed One, Avatar of Hope, et al): They're not bad. They can act as a big deterrent to an alpha-strike. But only for creatures with no evasion. Or without trample. So probably only against some token swarms. I think I'd rather just Wrath.
Regarding Commander Eesha/Dawn Elemental types: just not really good enough. You can endlessly block a single creature per turn. I used to run a Dawn Elemental in the deck, but I was just never impressed by it. Commander Eesha gets bonus points for carrying a Sword like a champ, but still isn't much better.
And finally, I just don't like the variance on Renounce the Guilds. How many decks do you typically play against that you can expect to have a multicolored creature on the battlefield pretty regularly? Now, if you can expect them to consistently have a multicolored permanent on the board, there's probably a good chance that they'll have multiple multicolored permanents by the time you draw/cast your RtG. That gives them the choice of what card to sac', rather than you. So I see it as a high variance card, where you're not likely to be able to really choose what gets removed, and where if you do cast it when you can choose, you're likely trading 1-for-1 with only that opponent. I'd definitely prefer a more flexible removal spell that I can actually get some benefit from.
Thanks for the kind words. It's definitely my favorite deck as well.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Brave the Sands - I think this is a pretty great defensive tool for a deck that has a slightly higher offensive orientation than this. Being able to attack & defend with the same creatures is pretty key, and doubling their blocking abilities is just gravy. I don't think this does enough on its own to warrant a spot in this deck, but I think it is a great potential tool for some others.
End Hostilities - An awesome metagame call in environments with equipment-heavy decks.
Cranial Archive - If this did not exile itself as part of the cost, I would have really liked this card. As printed, I'd prefer several other grave hate effects over this.
Ugin's Nexus - Another awesome metagame slot. If you're playing in an environment where extra turns are prevalent, you should likely find a spot in your deck for this card.
...And that's about it. I told you the set was pretty underwhelming for MK.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
I ran a Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant deck for a while and enjoyed it, but I found mono-white to be fairly weak to infinite combo decks (which my meta has a lot of). It forced me to run cards like Ethersworn Canonist, Rule of Law, Null Rod, Pithing Needle, Linvala, etc which I never really enjoyed. It's pretty annoying how anti-combo cards like that, which prevent the whole table from losing, end up drawing hate from the rest of the table. I remember many games where fair decks would kill me just because of my Rule of Law, and then lose the next turn to a Palinchron-powered combo.
I think if I were to rebuild a mono-white EDH deck, I would definitely use yours as a template. Looks sweet!
Angel of the Dire Hour - I like it a lot more than the Wing Shards I used to run in the deck, but I feel like this just costs too darn much to be useful. It is not only situational in effect (only hitting attackers), but it is also prohibitively expensive to cast, thereby also reducing the actual times when you are able to cast it. I'll pass here, but I am looking forward to giving it a whirl in my Type4 stack.
Angelic Field Marshal - I'm not a big fan of the "Lieutenant" ability, because it is effectively giving you a sub-par creature that can me slightly better on a conditional basis. It is effectively giving opponents an additional reason to target your commander with removal. Also, if I did want the vigilance this guy provides, I'd likely run either Heliod, God of the Sun or the Brave the Sands I mentioned in my last set review.
Comeuppance - A pretty interesting possibility. It would probably be useful to have a Fog-effect in the deck, and this provides a suitably "rattlesnake" twist on the idea for the format to take advantage of. It does however come into direct conflict with the trigger on Michiko. I think I'll leave it out for now.
Containment Priest - A great card that fills a similar role to the Hushwing Gryff I talked about in the M15 set review. This has a very narrow, but very powerful effect in certain situations/metagames. Once again, I feel like this is more of a personal metagame call, but if I had any way to tutor for this creature I'd want to have a copy in here. Until that tutor arrives, I'm going to pass on it.
Fell the Mighty - Another conditional Wrath-effect. I don't think this has enough upside to make me want to use it.
Jazal Goldmane - It just isn't as good as Mirror Entity at producing offense out of a non-threatening board-state. Not interested.
Nahiri, the Lithomancer - Good card. I love that she produces a defense for herself with the tokens. With a critical mass of equipment, this would be really good. I'm looking to add a copy of her in my Basandra deck, but I will not be doing so here.
Other token producers - Meh. Nothing interests me in the slightest.
Loreseeker's Stone - Costs a pretty high amount to cast, and the activation is just way out of where you want it. Even though mono-white is looking for card advantage, you're likely going to have several cards in your hand with this deck between Land Tax, Tithe, Thawing Glaciers and the like. For something in this range, I'd definitely look at Tower of Fortunes before this card.
Unstable Obelisk - I don't need more catch-all removal, but I do like the idea behind this card (ramp in the early game, or removal in the late).
Myriad Landscape - So close, yet so far. If it didn't have to be a basic land, you could get some value from this by fetching duals (which had a basic land type) or something like Mistveil Plains. Since that "basic land" qualifier is present here, it just really doesn't do it for me. On it's own, the land is a huge tempo drain (Cipt, then uses 3 lands to activate, then the targets CipT). It's a "no" from me on this.
And that should just about wrap this up. A bunch of neat cards, but nothing that begs for inclusion in my deck.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
Abzan Advantage - Another removal spell to get around indestructible permanents, but giving the choice to your opponent takes away a lot of the appeal. The secondary Bolster effect doesn't do anything for me at all, either.
Channel Harm - A great Fog effect until you look at the CMC. This would need to cost about half as much as it currently does for me to be interested.
Dragonscale General - If I had built the deck to attack more often than I do now, this would hold a lot of appeal, since it can boost the many small utility creatures I run. However, I think that the slow build-up this leads to would cause players to become much more anxious about my board state, and directly lead to disrupting my perceived position as the "second best" at the table. For the effect this card produces, I definitely prefer Mirror Entity.
Jeskai Barricade - Can act as a combat trick, save one of my creatures from a board-wipe, or re-use an "enters-the-battlefield" effect. I think its a relatively versatile little card, but I don't think I'd be able to abuse it much.
Lotus-Eye Mystics - A better Auramancer in some decks, but since I'm not casting a ton of spells, it wouldn't serve this deck very well. I may decide I want some more enchantment recursion as some point, but I'll want to find something with a little more reach than this.
Mastery of the Unseen - A really neat card, but one I wouldn't get a lot of value from unless I significantly re-tooled the deck. It really needs a more creature-heavy build to shine.
Monastery Mentor - Another good card in the right build, but another one I wouldn't be able to use very well in this deck. More non-creatures, more instants, and more card-draw could potentially make this a monster.
Valorous Stance - A nice, versatile card. Low CMC and 2 good effects. I could see someone trying to find a spot for this in a deck, but I don't think I will.
Wardscale Dragon - I don't run any combat tricks to take advantage of this restriction against my opponents. It is however, a source of disruption, which forces players to make a decision about their combat effects prior to finding out what creatures are attacking. If it were a little cheaper CMC, or a little more potent on offense, I'd consider it for inclusion, but not as printed.
Ugin, the Spirit Dragon - I'm really not too interested in any of these effects. At 8, he's not going to do a lot to stop a creature threat with his +2 ability. As a sweeper, he's conditional in a few ways I don't particularly like. And it's very unlikely that he's going to make it to his ultimate. Not worth it for me.
—Lim-Dul, the Necromancer
EDH/Commander
WWMichiko Konda, Truth Seeker Mono-White Control
RWBasandra, Battle Seraph Sunforger Shenanigans
GRWZacama Loam & Lands
Cube
Draft my "Classic Border Cube"
WUBRG
There are so many more cards available at this point that it's probably still fun. Would have to scour the more recent threads here, on Reddit, etc. to see what all we could add.