Yay another rogue deck . How absolutely rebellious .
I've been playtesting Rebels for quite some time now and played a few rounds in a small tourney with it . It hit my 3rd loss on round 5 . I have logged an almost stupid number of Legacy matches in MWS and have tested against most of the significant decks in Legacy . I have also completely fallen in Love with ...
...and would gladly sell all of your first born Children (s of Korlis ) to win her hand in marriage.
I'll present my decklist , explain how it tends to work , go over my individual card choices , current SB plans and do a rough match-up analysis .
Rebels plays very reactivity so it plays as a control deck , forcing decks to kill it before it can assemble one of the win conditions or a Mirror Entity. It plays a very diverse toolbox that can answer a great deal of the commonly played creatures in legacy .
#1 ) Tutor for and or resolve a Mirror Entity and push for lethal damage .
#2 ) Tutor for or resolve an evasive rebel and push for lethal , hopefully with Umezawa's Jitte .
[B]The Manabase[/B]
12 Plains - The manabase I have settled on is a 23 card base that runs 16 white sources . I added the 16th source (the 12th Plains) because of my addition of Story Circle into my SB and to help strengthen the manabase against non basic disruption .
1 Karakas - I run a single Karakas in the MD and I personally love this card . It has occasionally saved me from some very strange games that I should have lost . It also saves Lin Sivvi from removal which is fine by me . I feel that it justifies its place in here over another Plains .
3 Gaea's Cradle - I run 3 Gaea's Cradle because of the inherent synergy with the rebel engine . If Gaea's Cradle stays in play you this deck will very quickly get out of hand and swing for lethal . If it's game 2 or 3 my opponent will always save their Wastelands for this . It's part of what I feel is this decks best start. Turn 1 Plains , Ramosian Sergeant , Turn 2 Mother of Runes , Gaea's Cradle , Umezawa's Jitte .
4 Wasteland - I run Wasteland as a 4 of in here to give the deck a little disruption . This deck wants to buy time to develop and since this IS Legacy I thought it would help a little bit.
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the manabase but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Rishadan Port - I've tested 2 (in place of Plains #12-13) and I found it VERY useful . It was great with Cataclysm . The main problem I ran into was that I was either running 14 White (which does not feel like enough W to support a mono color list , or that it was ok up until I needed to resolve a Cataclysm at which point I had a hard time drawing into more W sources of mana . Another option was going up to 24 lands and if I do then Ports are the first land I'll look at including . I tested Ports in place of Wastelands before realizing I had completely lost my mind and Wasteland is just better then Port .
Mishra's Factory - I tested Mishra's Factory in the Port slot and had varying results . I initially though that this inclusion would greatly improved the match-up vs decks packing Standstill but again after testing those decks [B]all[/B] pack Wasteland and that the weakening of the manabase wasn't worth it .
Mutavault - Rebels does not have access to a "Lord". Mutavault is also weaker against Engineered Plague . The main reason I tried this is because Lord of Atlantis and Elvish Champion both pump and landwalk my Mutavaults (and if I can both land and activate a Mirror Entity my whole board) . In the end Mutavaults weakness to E Plague and its lack of the ability to pump and block at 3/3 made me lean towards Mishra's Factory as a manland in this deck .
Kor Haven - Was a card that I considered running but didn't test because for 3 mana Rebels should start winning . Kor Havens ability to stall vs fast aggro decks (Zoo , Goblins and etc) wasn't worth a 3 mana early game investment because Rebels needs all its mana every turn . Even still , it is a consideration over the 13th Plains making the deck run out of 15 W sources .
Mistveil Plains - I used to run this card in the manabase because of the synergy with Flagstones of Trokair and Cataclysm but I found that even as a 1 of drawing it in the early game was just terrible since it CIPT . I no longer consider any card that CIPT as again , Rebels needs its mana to win .
I would like to add that the reason I tested a 14 W manabase for a very long time was because of two considerations . Firstly , I honestly felt that a deck could operate with 14 W sources and 4 AEther Vial . The second was that if I ran 2 more non basic lands it would help save my Gaea's Cradle from Wasteland later . Unfortunatley a few decks are running Back to Basics to answer decks like 43 Lands and slow down Zoo or Counterbalance builds . In testing a lost too many games to mulligans where I would have kept had those 2 non basics been W sources .
[B]The Creatures[/B]
There is quite some agreement on the correct number of a certain type of card you run so that you can hit 1 of them with a 7 or a mull . I borrowed this logic from the vast majority of Belcher lists that run 4 Goblin Charbelcher / 4 Burning Wish / 3 Empty the Warrens. In this deck those 11 cards are...
This list comprises what you hope to draw in your hand when you fan it open . I will more often mulligan a hand that lacks one of the 11 unless I know my hand can handle the match-up without it . The deck relies on it almost as much as a deck like belcher relies on its own won conditions . I run the Defiant Falcons for Flying and the single Ramosian Lieutenant over the 2nd Amrou Scout to help combat Mogg Fanatic , Engineered Plague and the occasional 1 power creature . I'd like to note that the mana curve for the searchers is 4/4/3 , and helps very much against decks that rely on Chalice of the Void and/or Counterbalance to gain control.
The supporting cast is ...
4 Mother of Runes - I include a full set of MoR because of the importance of being able to activate a Rebel searcher . Mother helps vs any deck running removal or any deck trying to win with the combat step . I tested only running 3 but since one of the weak match-ups for Rebels is Zoo I now run 4.
1 Children of Korlis - Rebels is a control deck . That's how I play it (unless my opponent is mana short because he kept a weak land hand) and that is the only was I happen to do well . As such I run this for life gain and it has helped in a great number of games . CoK has be itself won me a few games vs Tendrils of Agony but once they know about it they play around it . Cok also has great synergy with Lin Sivvi as for 4 colorless you can stall the game almost indefinitely . Once I was able to take Progenitus because of this but the main reason is as an out to Burn game 1 .
1 Aven Riftwatcher - I run this as a 2nd card vs Burn , because it is a 2/3 flyer , it is an excellent blocker , because of the synergy with Lin Sivvi and because it will survive vs a Tombstalker while giving me 4 life .
1 Whipcorder - I almost want to run 2 of this since Legacy is so creature heavy but paying 1 mana to activate it every turn turned out to be a serious problem in a deck that wants to hold as much mana up as possible . Also it has beaten a resolved Iona, Shield of Emeria on white because it has the Morph .
1 Defiant Vanguard - Defiant Vanguard serves so many purposes in this deck . Firstly it is the 11th searching rebel and is better then a 3rd Defiant Falcon and a 2nd Ramosian Lieutenant or a 2nd Amrou Scout because of it a 2/2 . Secondly its ridiculous ability to kill anything that it can block that doesn't have either regenerate or indestructibility . It is often the absolute best rebel to search out when blocking because of its defensive ability .
1 Dunerider Outlaw - There is some hilarity to this card since it is a BB card in a completely Mono W deck but the ever dominating presence of Tarmogoyf in the format and Zoo's other G creatures ( Qasali Pridemage , Knight of the Reliquary & Wild Nacatl) . You have the option of searching for it or using AEther Vial .
1 Thermal Glider - This another nod towards aggro , answering Goblins and to a lesser extent Zoo . Its flying ability makes late game finishes with Mirror Entity + flyers very possible against a ground stall .
2 Mirror Entity - This is the main win condition in Rebels . It helps a few Lords for the other tribal decks in Legacy and allows for some awe inspiring epic ballads with Gaea's Cradle . I run this as a 2 of to reflect the importance of the card , because it is often the 1st target for removal , and because this + AEther Vial makes for some occasional very VERY sneaky attacking and blocking situations .
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the creature base but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Shield Dancer - I'm currently testing Shield Dancer in the slot for Aven Riftwatcher as an answer to Zoo . It can be used as soon as it comes into play which is nice but running this was a problem given that in order to use it to the greatest effect meant having to use 6 mana as best ( searching with Sivvi and activating immediately to block and destroy ) . If you have search capability and mana you will almost always have better options available to you .
Nightwind Glider - I recently dropped this card in favor for the 4th Mother of Runes and I am very happy with this drop . Yes I can acknowledge that it is a fantastic answer to Tombstalker and that it would be the decks 5th flying creature . One of the reasons I dropped it was because heavy B decks can run untargeted removal or board wipe to answer it and it still dies to Engineered Plague .
Big Game Hunter - It was in my Sb for a while so I'll discuss it in that section .
Outrider en-Kor + Task Force - This enables an infinite Life combo but you'd have to drop the Swords to Plowshares and run Condemn in the slot . Condemn is completely inferior to Plow ( this shouldn't raise any eyebrows ) .
Rappelling Scouts - It's a decent card that can be used immediately after a search , but again that means using tons of mana to stop 1 thing ( 7 in this case ) and Mother of Runes is a much stronger card .
Tarmogoyf - Don't laugh , Tarmo was completely considered . Running the green beast means having access to Krosan Grip vs Counterbalance . Honestly tho Rebels can handle Counterbalance fine without it as they have to keep everything off of the table or CB becomes useless . It also weakens the manabase to the point that an early Wasteland will keep you off of 4 mana too often to merit its inclusion .
[B]
The Spells[/B]
4 AEther Vial - The deck runs 22 creatures and Vial means you can brush off Counterspells and such . It's included as a 4 of and I haven't ever wanted to take these out of the MD .
4 Swords to Plowshares - I run 4 Plows and not the 2/2 split with Path to Exile because Rebels can deal with giving the opponent Life better then giving the opponent a Land .
2 Umezawa's Jitte - I run 2 Jitte's and not 3 because sometimes you just don't need Jitte in the match-up . I don't run 3 because you never want to see 2 in game 1 , since most decks don't run an artifact removal MD .
3 Oblivion Ring - Oblivion Ring is a card that you fall back on a lot . I'll admit that the 3rd Oblivion Ring instead of a 3rd Jitte is always up to debate and the slot shifts depending on what I expect to face . In an open metagame I prefer the 3rd Oring as it answers almost anything and it is the only enchantment preboard I run , and works well with pre-Cataclysm.
2 Cataclysm - I am simply amazed by this card . It's ability to equalize the board is unparalleled . I have tested running a 3rd MD copy but I often drew it when I was either already winning and 3 felt like 1 too many . You can set up a situation with Lin Sivvi , Jitte and Cradle in play quite often in games where you are playing defensively and completely take control of that game after that .
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the spell base but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Path to Exile - Giving the opponent lands is a great idea for an aggro deck . Rebels isn't one . Please do not try and tell me that rebels is an aggro deck . It's a horrible aggro deck and if you play it like that you will lose to any decent deck you'll see at an event .
Seal of Cleansing / Disenchant - I tested these over the 3 Orings but I found myself lacking for more flexible removal .
I chose to run an Enlightened Tutor package because Rebels can mostly generate more card advantage then Enlightened Tutor can take away , and because it increases the number of cards you can bring into a match-up . I dedicated my Sb into answer aggro , combo , graveyards and to provide Artifact and Enchantment hate .
Merfolk - You match their decks but for one great weakness . Where they play 10-12 Lords you play Utility Rebels . Both of you run Vial , Waste and Jitte , but where they run Muta you run Cradle . This means that they'll have more creatures then you have removal . The key to winning this match is to play around Daze , use your Wasteland on theirs so you can play your own Cradle safely and to find Mirror Entity and make your Rebels Changelings to benefit from their Lord of Atlantis . Your advantage here is that they don't run removal at all and rely on tempo and Lords to win .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Story Circle
- 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Children of Korlis / 3 Oblivion Ring
Countertop - This is a pretty good match-up . The NO Bant CB lists run a very small amount of removal , assuming their ability to play a creature and land a Counterbalance enough to beat you . It's not . You run 8 must counter 1 drops (Vial and Sergeant) along with Dunerider and you also happen to be able to beat a mid to late game Progenitus by looping Children of Korlis with Lin Sivvi . Nothing beats an early Natural Order into Prog . Get over it and go to the next game .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Aura of Silence / 1 Story Circle
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 2 Cataclysm / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Oblivion Ring
Zoo - This is one of the worst match-ups in the gauntlet and I am constantly trying to find a wat to win this match-up . Zoo runs 12-14 removal spells and a tri color attack force . They will usually make sur eyou don't get to untap with Mother of Runes or any of the 11 searchers and just roll over you . Also , they run Pridemage , which severely hurts the number of cards you can bring in that will swing the game back for you . I'll mention that similar White Weenie Decks ( Death and Taxes , GW Aggro , and Excalibur all have problems against it because 1 , Zoo is a just a better aggro deck then any of these mentioned and 2 , because Zoo runs so much removal ) . That said your best card in this match is Mother of Runes hands down , and untapping with her goes a long way to enabling you to control the game . Use Mother to save your creatures from removal and not to block defensively because you need to search to beat Zoo . I have put a great deal of time into increasing the % of this match-up I've come to the conclusion that this will always be a hard pairing .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Absolute Law
- 2 AEther Vial / 1 Children of Korlis / 3 Oblivion Ring
Reanimator - You will lose Game 1 unless they use Show and Tell or give you time . You'll need to mulligan to beat this post board but you have answers to reanimate given time . But time with the Canonist and push this into a long game to win . Protect Canonist with Mother if you can .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ethersworn Canonist / 1 Rule of Law / 2 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Children of Korlis / 1 Oblivion Ring / 2 Cataclysm
Ad Nauseam - You will lose Game 1 unless by some miracle you either have Vial @ 1 with Children in hand or Rebel + search capability ( so yeah , you just lose Game 1) . This match-up is a lot like Reanimator , in the sense that you need to hit those Sb cards to have a shot .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ethersworn Canonist / 1 Rule of Law
- 2 Cataclysm / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 3 Oblivion Ring
Goblins - I tested this a lot . There are a lot of Goblins out there and I've been told that it feels like an even match-up (from their perspective) I think its slightly in their favor pre board but the good news is that you have a lot to bring in post board vs Goblins . Stop that Lackey and you'll go a long way to winning . You can do that with 13 cards on the draw game 1 ( Mother of Runes , Ramosian Sergeant, Swords to Plowshares and Children of Korlis ) .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Story Circle / 1 Absolute Law
- 3 Oblivion Ring / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Whipcorder / 1 Children of Korlis / 1 Aven Riftwatcher
Dredge - Game 1 Plow anything that isn't a token and find that Children of Korlis immediately . This match-up isn't as bad as you'd think as you have decent chances pre board and you'll bring in a ton of hate post board .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 3 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 2 Cataclysm / 1 Whipcorder / 1 Oblivion Ring
Enchantress - They need a very explosive start to deal with your searching and card advantage , you also run Cataclysm . This is a very good match-up for Rebels as Enchantress will have to be the Beatdown Deck in this match-up . Your entire creature base happens to all be relevant so drop your removal for games 2/3 .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Aura of Silence / 1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
- 4 Swords to Plowshares / 2 Umezawa's Jitte
Additionally , please note that Aura of Silence is the only answer to SB's that run Engineered Plague . Against anything you suspect of pakcing that SB card run +3 Enlightened Tutor + 2 Aura of Silence and keep the 3 Oblivion Rings MD . That's 8 Cards vs their 4 . It's the best shot you have to beat that card .
Well , that's about it . I am thoroughly exhausted with this write up and hope for some feedback . I welcome all questions and comments .
vs Zoo: the Story Circle may need to come in for their burn
vs Reanimator: I don't think canonist is a good answer. They can tutor during your turn and drop win conditions during their turn. Wheel of Sun and Moon looks like it could be included, because they have no way to tutor for their creatures and would have to use show and tell to put them out. And since it takes them a while to get a second creature out, recycling children of korlis could keep you alive for a while. Why not try this:
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 1 Wheel of Sun and Moon / 2 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 2 Cataclysm
Dredge: 1 of those Tormod's Crypts should be a Wheel of Sun and Moon. How much help is children of korlis? Often, they'll just be swinging for like 5 damage, or they're swinging for lethal, right?
Enchantress: I don't know about Wheel of Sun and Moon here. If you're expecting them to Replenish, why not run crypt? The way you have it, they can search for the enchantments they lost with grove, which shuffles all the other enchantments away from the bottom of their library. It stops them from decking themselves and allows them to play every enchantment an infinite number of times. Unless you were planning on playing it on yourself, but you'd have no way to search so it isn't worth it. I'd run a story circle instead since their kill condition is bound to be white, and it could save you time until you draw into a cataclysm.
I think you need a little excelleration to make Rebels run in legacy, assuming your mulligan condition is either Sergeant / or fast mana Falcon. You are asking quite a bit to have a 1/1 get back around to you to activate.
I've been playtesting Rebels for quite some time now and played a few rounds in a small tourney with it . It hit my 3rd loss on round 5 . I have logged an almost stupid number of Legacy matches in MWS and have tested against most of the significant decks in Legacy . I have also completely fallen in Love with ...
...and would gladly sell all of your first born Children (s of Korlis ) to win her hand in marriage.
I'll present my decklist , explain how it tends to work , go over my individual card choices , current SB plans and do a rough match-up analysis .
This is the list I am currently running.
12 [UNH] Plains
3 [TSP] Flagstones of Trokair
1 [LG] Karakas
3 [US] Gaea's Cradle
4 [TE] Wasteland
// Creatures
4 [UL] Mother of Runes
4 [MM] Ramosian Sergeant
2 [NE] Defiant Falcon
1 [TSP] Amrou Scout
1 [MM] Ramosian Lieutenant
2 [NE] Lin Sivvi, Defiant Hero
1 [TSP] Children of Korlis
1 [PLC] Aven Riftwatcher
1 [ON] Whipcorder
1 [NE] Defiant Vanguard
1 [PLC] Dunerider Outlaw
1 [MM] Thermal Glider
2 [LRW] Mirror Entity
4 [DS] AEther Vial
4 [b] Swords to Plowshares
2 [BOK] Umezawa's Jitte
3 [LRW] Oblivion Ring
2 [EX] Cataclysm
Rebels plays very reactivity so it plays as a control deck , forcing decks to kill it before it can assemble one of the win conditions or a Mirror Entity. It plays a very diverse toolbox that can answer a great deal of the commonly played creatures in legacy .
#1 ) Tutor for and or resolve a Mirror Entity and push for lethal damage .
#2 ) Tutor for or resolve an evasive rebel and push for lethal , hopefully with Umezawa's Jitte .
12 Plains - The manabase I have settled on is a 23 card base that runs 16 white sources . I added the 16th source (the 12th Plains) because of my addition of Story Circle into my SB and to help strengthen the manabase against non basic disruption .
3 Flagstones of Trokair - I run 3 Flagstones of Trokair to vary my manabase and because I choose to also run Cataclysm . Its a helps vs Smokestack and Armageddon but those cards don't see a much daylight anymore .
1 Karakas - I run a single Karakas in the MD and I personally love this card . It has occasionally saved me from some very strange games that I should have lost . It also saves Lin Sivvi from removal which is fine by me . I feel that it justifies its place in here over another Plains .
3 Gaea's Cradle - I run 3 Gaea's Cradle because of the inherent synergy with the rebel engine . If Gaea's Cradle stays in play you this deck will very quickly get out of hand and swing for lethal . If it's game 2 or 3 my opponent will always save their Wastelands for this . It's part of what I feel is this decks best start. Turn 1 Plains , Ramosian Sergeant , Turn 2 Mother of Runes , Gaea's Cradle , Umezawa's Jitte .
4 Wasteland - I run Wasteland as a 4 of in here to give the deck a little disruption . This deck wants to buy time to develop and since this IS Legacy I thought it would help a little bit.
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the manabase but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Rishadan Port - I've tested 2 (in place of Plains #12-13) and I found it VERY useful . It was great with Cataclysm . The main problem I ran into was that I was either running 14 White (which does not feel like enough W to support a mono color list , or that it was ok up until I needed to resolve a Cataclysm at which point I had a hard time drawing into more W sources of mana . Another option was going up to 24 lands and if I do then Ports are the first land I'll look at including . I tested Ports in place of Wastelands before realizing I had completely lost my mind and Wasteland is just better then Port .
Mishra's Factory - I tested Mishra's Factory in the Port slot and had varying results . I initially though that this inclusion would greatly improved the match-up vs decks packing Standstill but again after testing those decks [B]all[/B] pack Wasteland and that the weakening of the manabase wasn't worth it .
Mutavault - Rebels does not have access to a "Lord". Mutavault is also weaker against Engineered Plague . The main reason I tried this is because Lord of Atlantis and Elvish Champion both pump and landwalk my Mutavaults (and if I can both land and activate a Mirror Entity my whole board) . In the end Mutavaults weakness to E Plague and its lack of the ability to pump and block at 3/3 made me lean towards Mishra's Factory as a manland in this deck .
Kor Haven - Was a card that I considered running but didn't test because for 3 mana Rebels should start winning . Kor Havens ability to stall vs fast aggro decks (Zoo , Goblins and etc) wasn't worth a 3 mana early game investment because Rebels needs all its mana every turn . Even still , it is a consideration over the 13th Plains making the deck run out of 15 W sources .
Mistveil Plains - I used to run this card in the manabase because of the synergy with Flagstones of Trokair and Cataclysm but I found that even as a 1 of drawing it in the early game was just terrible since it CIPT . I no longer consider any card that CIPT as again , Rebels needs its mana to win .
I would like to add that the reason I tested a 14 W manabase for a very long time was because of two considerations . Firstly , I honestly felt that a deck could operate with 14 W sources and 4 AEther Vial . The second was that if I ran 2 more non basic lands it would help save my Gaea's Cradle from Wasteland later . Unfortunatley a few decks are running Back to Basics to answer decks like 43 Lands and slow down Zoo or Counterbalance builds . In testing a lost too many games to mulligans where I would have kept had those 2 non basics been W sources .
There is quite some agreement on the correct number of a certain type of card you run so that you can hit 1 of them with a 7 or a mull . I borrowed this logic from the vast majority of Belcher lists that run 4 Goblin Charbelcher / 4 Burning Wish / 3 Empty the Warrens. In this deck those 11 cards are...
4 Ramosian Sergeant
2 Defiant Falcon
1 Amrou Scout
1 Ramosian Lieutenant
2 Lin Sivvi, Defiant Hero
1 Defiant Vanguard
This list comprises what you hope to draw in your hand when you fan it open . I will more often mulligan a hand that lacks one of the 11 unless I know my hand can handle the match-up without it . The deck relies on it almost as much as a deck like belcher relies on its own won conditions . I run the Defiant Falcons for Flying and the single Ramosian Lieutenant over the 2nd Amrou Scout to help combat Mogg Fanatic , Engineered Plague and the occasional 1 power creature . I'd like to note that the mana curve for the searchers is 4/4/3 , and helps very much against decks that rely on Chalice of the Void and/or Counterbalance to gain control.
The supporting cast is ...
4 Mother of Runes - I include a full set of MoR because of the importance of being able to activate a Rebel searcher . Mother helps vs any deck running removal or any deck trying to win with the combat step . I tested only running 3 but since one of the weak match-ups for Rebels is Zoo I now run 4.
1 Children of Korlis - Rebels is a control deck . That's how I play it (unless my opponent is mana short because he kept a weak land hand) and that is the only was I happen to do well . As such I run this for life gain and it has helped in a great number of games . CoK has be itself won me a few games vs Tendrils of Agony but once they know about it they play around it . Cok also has great synergy with Lin Sivvi as for 4 colorless you can stall the game almost indefinitely . Once I was able to take Progenitus because of this but the main reason is as an out to Burn game 1 .
1 Aven Riftwatcher - I run this as a 2nd card vs Burn , because it is a 2/3 flyer , it is an excellent blocker , because of the synergy with Lin Sivvi and because it will survive vs a Tombstalker while giving me 4 life .
1 Whipcorder - I almost want to run 2 of this since Legacy is so creature heavy but paying 1 mana to activate it every turn turned out to be a serious problem in a deck that wants to hold as much mana up as possible . Also it has beaten a resolved Iona, Shield of Emeria on white because it has the Morph .
1 Defiant Vanguard - Defiant Vanguard serves so many purposes in this deck . Firstly it is the 11th searching rebel and is better then a 3rd Defiant Falcon and a 2nd Ramosian Lieutenant or a 2nd Amrou Scout because of it a 2/2 . Secondly its ridiculous ability to kill anything that it can block that doesn't have either regenerate or indestructibility . It is often the absolute best rebel to search out when blocking because of its defensive ability .
1 Dunerider Outlaw - There is some hilarity to this card since it is a BB card in a completely Mono W deck but the ever dominating presence of Tarmogoyf in the format and Zoo's other G creatures ( Qasali Pridemage , Knight of the Reliquary & Wild Nacatl) . You have the option of searching for it or using AEther Vial .
1 Thermal Glider - This another nod towards aggro , answering Goblins and to a lesser extent Zoo . Its flying ability makes late game finishes with Mirror Entity + flyers very possible against a ground stall .
2 Mirror Entity - This is the main win condition in Rebels . It helps a few Lords for the other tribal decks in Legacy and allows for some awe inspiring epic ballads with Gaea's Cradle . I run this as a 2 of to reflect the importance of the card , because it is often the 1st target for removal , and because this + AEther Vial makes for some occasional very VERY sneaky attacking and blocking situations .
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the creature base but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Shield Dancer - I'm currently testing Shield Dancer in the slot for Aven Riftwatcher as an answer to Zoo . It can be used as soon as it comes into play which is nice but running this was a problem given that in order to use it to the greatest effect meant having to use 6 mana as best ( searching with Sivvi and activating immediately to block and destroy ) . If you have search capability and mana you will almost always have better options available to you .
Nightwind Glider - I recently dropped this card in favor for the 4th Mother of Runes and I am very happy with this drop . Yes I can acknowledge that it is a fantastic answer to Tombstalker and that it would be the decks 5th flying creature . One of the reasons I dropped it was because heavy B decks can run untargeted removal or board wipe to answer it and it still dies to Engineered Plague .
Big Game Hunter - It was in my Sb for a while so I'll discuss it in that section .
Outrider en-Kor + Task Force - This enables an infinite Life combo but you'd have to drop the Swords to Plowshares and run Condemn in the slot . Condemn is completely inferior to Plow ( this shouldn't raise any eyebrows ) .
Rappelling Scouts - It's a decent card that can be used immediately after a search , but again that means using tons of mana to stop 1 thing ( 7 in this case ) and Mother of Runes is a much stronger card .
Tarmogoyf - Don't laugh , Tarmo was completely considered . Running the green beast means having access to Krosan Grip vs Counterbalance . Honestly tho Rebels can handle Counterbalance fine without it as they have to keep everything off of the table or CB becomes useless . It also weakens the manabase to the point that an early Wasteland will keep you off of 4 mana too often to merit its inclusion .
[B]
The Spells[/B]
4 Swords to Plowshares - I run 4 Plows and not the 2/2 split with Path to Exile because Rebels can deal with giving the opponent Life better then giving the opponent a Land .
2 Umezawa's Jitte - I run 2 Jitte's and not 3 because sometimes you just don't need Jitte in the match-up . I don't run 3 because you never want to see 2 in game 1 , since most decks don't run an artifact removal MD .
3 Oblivion Ring - Oblivion Ring is a card that you fall back on a lot . I'll admit that the 3rd Oblivion Ring instead of a 3rd Jitte is always up to debate and the slot shifts depending on what I expect to face . In an open metagame I prefer the 3rd Oring as it answers almost anything and it is the only enchantment preboard I run , and works well with pre-Cataclysm.
2 Cataclysm - I am simply amazed by this card . It's ability to equalize the board is unparalleled . I have tested running a 3rd MD copy but I often drew it when I was either already winning and 3 felt like 1 too many . You can set up a situation with Lin Sivvi , Jitte and Cradle in play quite often in games where you are playing defensively and completely take control of that game after that .
Below is a list of a few cards I've tested in the spell base but that I dont use , as well as an explanation of the reason for my exclusion of said cards .
Path to Exile - Giving the opponent lands is a great idea for an aggro deck . Rebels isn't one . Please do not try and tell me that rebels is an aggro deck . It's a horrible aggro deck and if you play it like that you will lose to any decent deck you'll see at an event .
Seal of Cleansing / Disenchant - I tested these over the 3 Orings but I found myself lacking for more flexible removal .
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SB: 1 Story Circle
SB: 1 Absolute Law
SB: 2 Ethersworn Canonist
SB: 1 Rule of Law
SB: 2 Tormod's Crypt
SB: 1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
SB: 2 Aura of Silence
I chose to run an Enlightened Tutor package because Rebels can mostly generate more card advantage then Enlightened Tutor can take away , and because it increases the number of cards you can bring into a match-up . I dedicated my Sb into answer aggro , combo , graveyards and to provide Artifact and Enchantment hate .
Merfolk - You match their decks but for one great weakness . Where they play 10-12 Lords you play Utility Rebels . Both of you run Vial , Waste and Jitte , but where they run Muta you run Cradle . This means that they'll have more creatures then you have removal . The key to winning this match is to play around Daze , use your Wasteland on theirs so you can play your own Cradle safely and to find Mirror Entity and make your Rebels Changelings to benefit from their Lord of Atlantis . Your advantage here is that they don't run removal at all and rely on tempo and Lords to win .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Story Circle
- 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Children of Korlis / 3 Oblivion Ring
Countertop - This is a pretty good match-up . The NO Bant CB lists run a very small amount of removal , assuming their ability to play a creature and land a Counterbalance enough to beat you . It's not . You run 8 must counter 1 drops (Vial and Sergeant) along with Dunerider and you also happen to be able to beat a mid to late game Progenitus by looping Children of Korlis with Lin Sivvi . Nothing beats an early Natural Order into Prog . Get over it and go to the next game .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Aura of Silence / 1 Story Circle
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 2 Cataclysm / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Oblivion Ring
Zoo - This is one of the worst match-ups in the gauntlet and I am constantly trying to find a wat to win this match-up . Zoo runs 12-14 removal spells and a tri color attack force . They will usually make sur eyou don't get to untap with Mother of Runes or any of the 11 searchers and just roll over you . Also , they run Pridemage , which severely hurts the number of cards you can bring in that will swing the game back for you . I'll mention that similar White Weenie Decks ( Death and Taxes , GW Aggro , and Excalibur all have problems against it because 1 , Zoo is a just a better aggro deck then any of these mentioned and 2 , because Zoo runs so much removal ) . That said your best card in this match is Mother of Runes hands down , and untapping with her goes a long way to enabling you to control the game . Use Mother to save your creatures from removal and not to block defensively because you need to search to beat Zoo . I have put a great deal of time into increasing the % of this match-up I've come to the conclusion that this will always be a hard pairing .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Absolute Law
- 2 AEther Vial / 1 Children of Korlis / 3 Oblivion Ring
Reanimator - You will lose Game 1 unless they use Show and Tell or give you time . You'll need to mulligan to beat this post board but you have answers to reanimate given time . But time with the Canonist and push this into a long game to win . Protect Canonist with Mother if you can .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ethersworn Canonist / 1 Rule of Law / 2 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 1 Children of Korlis / 1 Oblivion Ring / 2 Cataclysm
Ad Nauseam - You will lose Game 1 unless by some miracle you either have Vial @ 1 with Children in hand or Rebel + search capability ( so yeah , you just lose Game 1) . This match-up is a lot like Reanimator , in the sense that you need to hit those Sb cards to have a shot .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ethersworn Canonist / 1 Rule of Law
- 2 Cataclysm / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 3 Oblivion Ring
Goblins - I tested this a lot . There are a lot of Goblins out there and I've been told that it feels like an even match-up (from their perspective) I think its slightly in their favor pre board but the good news is that you have a lot to bring in post board vs Goblins . Stop that Lackey and you'll go a long way to winning . You can do that with 13 cards on the draw game 1 ( Mother of Runes , Ramosian Sergeant, Swords to Plowshares and Children of Korlis ) .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 1 Story Circle / 1 Absolute Law
- 3 Oblivion Ring / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Whipcorder / 1 Children of Korlis / 1 Aven Riftwatcher
Dredge - Game 1 Plow anything that isn't a token and find that Children of Korlis immediately . This match-up isn't as bad as you'd think as you have decent chances pre board and you'll bring in a ton of hate post board .
SB Plans
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Ghostly Prison / 3 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 2 Cataclysm / 1 Whipcorder / 1 Oblivion Ring
Enchantress - They need a very explosive start to deal with your searching and card advantage , you also run Cataclysm . This is a very good match-up for Rebels as Enchantress will have to be the Beatdown Deck in this match-up . Your entire creature base happens to all be relevant so drop your removal for games 2/3 .
SB Plan
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 2 Aura of Silence / 1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
- 4 Swords to Plowshares / 2 Umezawa's Jitte
Additionally , please note that Aura of Silence is the only answer to SB's that run Engineered Plague . Against anything you suspect of pakcing that SB card run +3 Enlightened Tutor + 2 Aura of Silence and keep the 3 Oblivion Rings MD . That's 8 Cards vs their 4 . It's the best shot you have to beat that card .
Well , that's about it . I am thoroughly exhausted with this write up and hope for some feedback . I welcome all questions and comments .
vs Reanimator: I don't think canonist is a good answer. They can tutor during your turn and drop win conditions during their turn. Wheel of Sun and Moon looks like it could be included, because they have no way to tutor for their creatures and would have to use show and tell to put them out. And since it takes them a while to get a second creature out, recycling children of korlis could keep you alive for a while. Why not try this:
+ 3 Enlightened Tutor / 1 Wheel of Sun and Moon / 2 Tormod's Crypt
- 2 Umezawa's Jitte / 1 Dunerider Outlaw / 1 Thermal Glider / 2 Cataclysm
Dredge: 1 of those Tormod's Crypts should be a Wheel of Sun and Moon. How much help is children of korlis? Often, they'll just be swinging for like 5 damage, or they're swinging for lethal, right?
Enchantress: I don't know about Wheel of Sun and Moon here. If you're expecting them to Replenish, why not run crypt? The way you have it, they can search for the enchantments they lost with grove, which shuffles all the other enchantments away from the bottom of their library. It stops them from decking themselves and allows them to play every enchantment an infinite number of times. Unless you were planning on playing it on yourself, but you'd have no way to search so it isn't worth it. I'd run a story circle instead since their kill condition is bound to be white, and it could save you time until you draw into a cataclysm.
- City of Traitors
- Ancient Tomb
- Mox Diamond (in a W/b build)
Maybe splashing black isn't a bad idea ... you'd get access to Vindicate
Also I think a one of Bound in Silence and a more than one of Defiant Vanguard is a must. Instant speed dropping a Vanguard in combat is pretty good.
Agreed. Training Grounds makes almost makes Rebels viable. You certainly ought to include it in your list.
(nameless one) did a lot of work on this on TheSource. This should be a good resource to help you out:
http://www.mtgthesource.com/forums/showthread.php?15683-Counter-Rebel-Still
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