I play Gamble and Life from the Loam in my Windgrace list, but I'm also playing a large amount of utility lands and spot landkill (Strip Mine, Wasteland, Dust Bowl, and Ghost Quarter). You also don't always Gamble for Loam, sometimes you have a full mit and need a removal spell, or a key creature, and Gamble is the best tutor for the job (assuming you're running all the others, my list is a little more pod competitive with Demonic, Beseech, GSZ, Vampiric, and Time of Need).
Just wanted to know if anyone else has been keeping up with this commander now that War of the Spark has come and blessed us with so many fun new spells, and lands! At the very least, Blast Zone and Evolution Sage should be staples, and I counted about a half dozen other possibilities depending on the style of your deck.
Blast Zone for sure seems like a shoo-in and would only be hindered my other lands that don't produce color. There is a limit to the number of lands that don't produce color that a 3 color deck can support. And Evolution Sage potentially gives a ton of power to the deck and makes it so Windgrace's -3 only costs 1 (at most). The Sage becomes much better if there are other cards with counters.
Nissa, Who Shakes the World seems reasonable as well. I don't like that her +1 opens up the land to easy destruction but her ultimate eventually protects it. It really comes down to how much effort the ultimate takes to get to.
Blast Zone for sure seems like a shoo-in and would only be hindered my other lands that don't produce color. There is a limit to the number of lands that don't produce color that a 3 color deck can support. And Evolution Sage potentially gives a ton of power to the deck and makes it so Windgrace's -3 only costs 1 (at most). The Sage becomes much better if there are other cards with counters.
Nissa, Who Shakes the World seems reasonable as well. I don't like that her +1 opens up the land to easy destruction but her ultimate eventually protects it. It really comes down to how much effort the ultimate takes to get to.
I plan to have a bunch of other planeswalkers join the cast, since they naturally work well with all of the mass destruction spells that Jund decks always seem to have.
New Nissa probably won't make my list. The +1 is just not good in every way: opens lands up to easier destruction, requires new targets every time. How many Forests are you really gonna have in a 3-color deck, even if you manage to find all the duals? Not to mention that Nissa, Vital Force is incredible.
Karn's Bastion could make the list again if there are enough things to proliferate, and having your commander as one of them might be reason enough. Liliana and Ugin are always good. God-Eternal Bontu could be a decent draw engine if you sac a few lands for profit, but I've found that this deck doesn't lack for draw power when your commander does that very well. Emergence Zone could be a reasonable substitute if you can't find a Winding Canyons.
With some of the new cards in Modern Horizons, I am looking to potentially revisit this deck. I stopped playing it a few months back as I was focused on a new league deck and I haven't been playing Commander much lately anyway. But, Wrenn and Six looks like it was really made for this deck and I am willing to give Springbloom Druid a chance as it seems like it could work out decently with Windgrace.
I never really did a lot with the idea of Windgrace once the league was done since I don't think I really gave this deck a fair chance. One big reason I took it apart was because I felt it played too closely to Karador and it is a concern I have had with pretty much every Jund deck I have built. As such, I want to try this deck again and I want to see if I can give it more of its own identity. I might have to be willing to go more into the Land Destruction aspect of the deck since Windgrace really wants that but I will still try to avoid MLD.
Based on a previous conversation (something Pokken brought up), I want to try to do as much as possible keeping the board clear. Now, most wraths are not Instants so I will still have some spot removal here, but I think going a little heavier on the board clearing is where I want to be. I also can't go too low on the creature count as there are still a lot that I want here for different reasons.
So, with that in mind I want to try to switch up the deck. I am not sure of everything I want to move around, but here are some of the cards I am thinking of cutting:
CUTS
Comet Storm - I don't think this is really all the necessary as I either have other ways to deal with the board or other ways to kill opponents.
Diabolic Intent - I don't really like unconditional tutors and I no longer need this one as I really just had it for the ability to get to my MLD.
Gaze of Granite - I don't like this as much as some of my other wraths. Not sure if it is a mistake or not to cut, but the mana investment is significant.
Hero’s Downfall - Bedevil is better and there aren't a ton of Planeswalkers running around right now where I feel I need both.
Last One Standing - I am on the fence on this one. I like the 3 mana wrath but I am not sure how much it matters that something gets left behind. I will probably hang on to this one longer than the others but it basically comes down to how many wraths I think I need.
Mogis, God of Slaughter - He is basically a big dumb beater that can't be destroyed. His ability isn't the worst but 2 damage isn't likely enough for people to start sacrificing their good creatures anyway.
Skullwinder - Again, another I am on the fence about. I don't know how much this effect is needed but, if is is enough, Regrowth might be better here as it is cheaper and doesn't give my opponents stuff. Honestly, I could see where Noxious Revival might be better in some cases.
Xantcha, Sleeper Agent - She dies pretty often and I don't think I need the card draw. She often dies pretty quickly as well and I don't like that my opponents can draw off her.
Anger - As I am moving away from a more aggressive, creature based strategy, giving them all haste becomes less relevant.
Noxious Gearhulk - Not sure on this as he is a destroy and lifegain spell all in one. He is high on the curve though which is why I am thinking about potentially cutting him.
Phyrexian Delver - Moving away from reanimation leads to the potential of cutting this. As it is a one-shot, it isn't too bad. I am not sure yet.
Now, some of these are more "if I have to" kind of cuts. I really like Gearhulk and Delver for example. But, as I try to move away from a reanimation based strategy, Delver and Chainer are things I might want to shy away from as well as the creature based destruction. I am not sure which way I want to go with everything yet. Since my list of Adds is so far pretty short, I will likely keep most of the cards above for now anyway.
Speaking of which:
ADDS
Wrenn and Six - A big reason I wanted to revisit this deck as I think it has some pretty good applications here. Getting back lands for Borborygmos, getting back fetches, or just getting back lands to discard to Windgrace. The minus ability is likely not really useful but turn 2, shoot a bird, can be good. And their ultimate can be pretty good with some of the cards I have in the deck.
Blast Zone - As OCPunisher stated, this should be a staple in these kinds of decks. Repeatable wrath, though limited in scope each time, might not be the worst thing. I am willing to give it a try anyway.
Wave of Vitriol - Another wrath that deals with important Artifacts and Enchantments. Hitting nonbasics actually kind of hurts but I have enough ways to get things back. This is one I will evaluate more during gameplay to see if the nonbasic part hurts me too much.
Borborygmos Enraged - Another wincon and an answer to creature or planeswalker based threats.
Springbloom Druid - Something I am willing to try. Though, since I am going a little lower on the reanimation, I am not entirely sure it is worth a slot as I already don't run Harrow.
Nissa, Vital Force - I still don't like animating my lands, but her minus ability is really good and her Ultimate super good. If she survives the first turn, which that animated land can help with, her Emblem can let me run away with the game.
Evolution Sage - This might be worth a try, even though it really only works with Windgrace, Wrenn, and Nissa right now. They might be enough especially since dropping Nissa and being able to Ultimate her right away can be a huge swing.
Wasteland, Dust Bowl and Tectonic Edge - Colorless sources are hard to fit in without messing up my ability to cast everything else, but I think these are good sources of targeted LD that also work with with Windgrace and a few other cards.
I am still keeping The Gitrog Monster and I am adding in Borborygmos Enraged. Both of which are the opposite of Pokken's suggestions but I feel Gitrog can still be good in this deck (albeit a little slow sometimes) and I want to give him a fair chance to see what else he can do. It is entirely possible he doesn't do what I want or need him to do but I like playing with the card and the card advantage can be pretty good. Borborygmos is meant to be a win-con and, while I cut him before, I think in a "fair" deck he has a place.
I did end up keeping Phyrexian Delver and Noxious Gearhulk for now and I decided against Dust Bowl since it is slow and Springbloom Druid since I don't think it is needed. I do plan on finding a spot for Tectonic Reformation and I am hoping to get a couple games in with the deck tonight so hopefully I can find something to cut.
I played this deck the other day and did well with it. I basically won with the help of Borborygmos (getting him back from Nissa) and being able to keep things off the board. Gitrog helped to ensure I didn't lose cards as I was discarding lands. There were a couple good plays in the game, such as pitching a ton of lands to Windgrace and then getting everything back with Splendid Reclamation. I think I ended up with 25+ lands on the field. Since I don't remember everything about it, I can't write up a proper summary.
However, I did play this deck today and, again, it performed well. I played against Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain and Ruric Thar, the unbowed I didn't win but I think that was more due to play mistakes and not reading the board properly. One play in particular really killed me. Basically, I was able to get some ramp going and get Windgrace down around turn 6. I used him to filter through cards in my hand and, eventually, ramp a bit. I also got down a Glacial Chasm that *should* have been able to keep me alive for a while. It was actually super important due to Ruric Thar as the Chasm prevented his damage to me. I even got down a Kozilek during this but never swung due to the Chasm.
I also got Life from the Loam on turn 3 with Entomb and that fueled me for a long time. I ended up getting 2 cycle lands which also helped keep Life from the Loam in my hand and allowed me to draw cards as I needed them.
The main misplay I had was when I tried to blow up Jhoira's board. They had a bunch of artifacts, Jhoira, and a Keranos. The main thing they had was a Master Transmuter. I had a Pernicious Deed that I wanted to crack for 4. This would keep my Gitrog Monster alive and leave them with a couple Gilded Lotus which I figured was acceptable. I cracked the Deed and they Transmuted in a Darksteel Forge. I knew they could possibly have the Forge and I should have played around it better as I had a Assassin's Trophy in hand. Now, I don't know if they had a counter spell or not, but I should have tried to destroy the Transmuter which may have caused them to activate it. In response to the activation, I would then blow up the board.
This misplay eventually cost us the game as they were able to run away with the game. Ruric Thar did end up copying my Glacial Chasm with Vesuva but Jhoira blew it up and attacked them. I eventually died due to them having two Psychosis Crawler and drawing a bunch of cards. Another misplay around this time was overextending and not leaving up Miren, the Moaning Well to sac my Kozilek, but looking at the cards I would have drawn, it wouldn't have mattered since I still wouldn't have been able to deal with Jhoira's board.
I will note that at one point, Jhoira had Mycosynth Lattice and tried to Vandalblast but I was able to destroy the Lattice with Windgrace's Judgment so it saved our stuff. I really wanted to get rid of the Lattice but they shuffled it back in with Elixir of Immortality and drew it again.
In the end, I think the game got away from me due to a few misplays and underestimating my opponents (mostly Jhoira) but I am definitely liking the way the deck has been playing with some of the changes I have made. While it is sometimes tough knowing that I can't recur things quite as easily as Karador (by design) I enjoy that the playstyles are completely different.
Nissa, Who Shakes the World seems reasonable as well. I don't like that her +1 opens up the land to easy destruction but her ultimate eventually protects it. It really comes down to how much effort the ultimate takes to get to.
I plan to have a bunch of other planeswalkers join the cast, since they naturally work well with all of the mass destruction spells that Jund decks always seem to have.
New Nissa probably won't make my list. The +1 is just not good in every way: opens lands up to easier destruction, requires new targets every time. How many Forests are you really gonna have in a 3-color deck, even if you manage to find all the duals? Not to mention that Nissa, Vital Force is incredible.
Karn's Bastion could make the list again if there are enough things to proliferate, and having your commander as one of them might be reason enough. Liliana and Ugin are always good. God-Eternal Bontu could be a decent draw engine if you sac a few lands for profit, but I've found that this deck doesn't lack for draw power when your commander does that very well. Emergence Zone could be a reasonable substitute if you can't find a Winding Canyons.
I never really did a lot with the idea of Windgrace once the league was done since I don't think I really gave this deck a fair chance. One big reason I took it apart was because I felt it played too closely to Karador and it is a concern I have had with pretty much every Jund deck I have built. As such, I want to try this deck again and I want to see if I can give it more of its own identity. I might have to be willing to go more into the Land Destruction aspect of the deck since Windgrace really wants that but I will still try to avoid MLD.
Based on a previous conversation (something Pokken brought up), I want to try to do as much as possible keeping the board clear. Now, most wraths are not Instants so I will still have some spot removal here, but I think going a little heavier on the board clearing is where I want to be. I also can't go too low on the creature count as there are still a lot that I want here for different reasons.
So, with that in mind I want to try to switch up the deck. I am not sure of everything I want to move around, but here are some of the cards I am thinking of cutting:
CUTS
Now, some of these are more "if I have to" kind of cuts. I really like Gearhulk and Delver for example. But, as I try to move away from a reanimation based strategy, Delver and Chainer are things I might want to shy away from as well as the creature based destruction. I am not sure which way I want to go with everything yet. Since my list of Adds is so far pretty short, I will likely keep most of the cards above for now anyway.
Speaking of which:
ADDS
I am still keeping The Gitrog Monster and I am adding in Borborygmos Enraged. Both of which are the opposite of Pokken's suggestions but I feel Gitrog can still be good in this deck (albeit a little slow sometimes) and I want to give him a fair chance to see what else he can do. It is entirely possible he doesn't do what I want or need him to do but I like playing with the card and the card advantage can be pretty good. Borborygmos is meant to be a win-con and, while I cut him before, I think in a "fair" deck he has a place.
1 Comet Storm
1 Diabolic Intent
1 Gaze of Granite
1 Mogis, God of Slaughter
1 Skullwinder
1 Xantcha, Sleeper Agent
1 Anger
1 Chainer, Dementia Master
1 Wrenn and Six
1 Bedevil
1 Borborygmos Enraged
1 Wave of Vitriol
1 Nissa, Vital Force
1 Evolution Sage
1 Wasteland
1 Tectonic Edge
I did end up keeping Phyrexian Delver and Noxious Gearhulk for now and I decided against Dust Bowl since it is slow and Springbloom Druid since I don't think it is needed. I do plan on finding a spot for Tectonic Reformation and I am hoping to get a couple games in with the deck tonight so hopefully I can find something to cut.
However, I did play this deck today and, again, it performed well. I played against Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain and Ruric Thar, the unbowed I didn't win but I think that was more due to play mistakes and not reading the board properly. One play in particular really killed me. Basically, I was able to get some ramp going and get Windgrace down around turn 6. I used him to filter through cards in my hand and, eventually, ramp a bit. I also got down a Glacial Chasm that *should* have been able to keep me alive for a while. It was actually super important due to Ruric Thar as the Chasm prevented his damage to me. I even got down a Kozilek during this but never swung due to the Chasm.
I also got Life from the Loam on turn 3 with Entomb and that fueled me for a long time. I ended up getting 2 cycle lands which also helped keep Life from the Loam in my hand and allowed me to draw cards as I needed them.
The main misplay I had was when I tried to blow up Jhoira's board. They had a bunch of artifacts, Jhoira, and a Keranos. The main thing they had was a Master Transmuter. I had a Pernicious Deed that I wanted to crack for 4. This would keep my Gitrog Monster alive and leave them with a couple Gilded Lotus which I figured was acceptable. I cracked the Deed and they Transmuted in a Darksteel Forge. I knew they could possibly have the Forge and I should have played around it better as I had a Assassin's Trophy in hand. Now, I don't know if they had a counter spell or not, but I should have tried to destroy the Transmuter which may have caused them to activate it. In response to the activation, I would then blow up the board.
This misplay eventually cost us the game as they were able to run away with the game. Ruric Thar did end up copying my Glacial Chasm with Vesuva but Jhoira blew it up and attacked them. I eventually died due to them having two Psychosis Crawler and drawing a bunch of cards. Another misplay around this time was overextending and not leaving up Miren, the Moaning Well to sac my Kozilek, but looking at the cards I would have drawn, it wouldn't have mattered since I still wouldn't have been able to deal with Jhoira's board.
I will note that at one point, Jhoira had Mycosynth Lattice and tried to Vandalblast but I was able to destroy the Lattice with Windgrace's Judgment so it saved our stuff. I really wanted to get rid of the Lattice but they shuffled it back in with Elixir of Immortality and drew it again.
In the end, I think the game got away from me due to a few misplays and underestimating my opponents (mostly Jhoira) but I am definitely liking the way the deck has been playing with some of the changes I have made. While it is sometimes tough knowing that I can't recur things quite as easily as Karador (by design) I enjoy that the playstyles are completely different.