This deck is one that my play group and I have been tuning for some time. While I know our meta is most likely different than the next persons some decks stand out and excel. This appears to be one of them.
What this deck does is shred hands and plays a good threat that has to be answered in top deck fashion. Strong hand discard with a touch of counter magic.
Ideal: early discard and visions to set keep opponents off key plays and combos.
Mid: Finish shredding the opponents hand and play down something with a decent enough clock
Late: Get the final swing in to win the game.
This deck prays on combo decks. Toughest matchups are burn and cheap aggro decks with good hands
The deck is very similar to "BW Eldrazi Processors" or "BW Eldrazi & Taxes" from first look.
(But the deck operates in a completely different fashion. This is a hybrid of tempo, card control, and aggro.)
Delirium Skeins looks like a very questionable card to me, it is like a bad Mind Rot imho, similar cards that can replace it are Wrench Mind or Esper Charm (or Consult the Necrosages/Unburden).
(Eaper charm would be a good choice if white was an option. However it's very difficult to play 3 colors and colorless at the same time.
In this deck Skeins is not a bad or questionable card at all really. Think of it as a wrath of God for hands. Or Armageddon for hands is probably more symbiotic. You are holding it and don't have to play it at all. Can be fodder for Liliana or Brutality if you don't need it, but when it shines it shines bright. (You can easily take a double skein hand with 3 lands against a slow combo deck and win.) But you play it when you are ahead. Land a guy eot that puts the board in your favor then shred their hand. The ability of this card in this deck can't be over exaggerated.
Trust me, you think I didn't try to push this card out the deck repeatedly? It's just too good at finishing them off in this deck.)
(These two grouped together since, while separate, they are extremely good together.
Gang bang provides that extra little discard effect that the deck needs. While comboing ever so gracefully with a good portion of the deck. Eot vapor snag a blocker then swing and ninja in this guy to get the last remain card and the guy you just bounced. Then that have a small but decent enough clock to worry about. Notice how a good portion of the creatures have flash. This was designed on purpose. Gang bang allows such plays as eot Snapcaster targeting Push then swing in make them pitch the last 2 cards and get Snapcaster back for more action.
The Sprite is just really good at being flash, has evasion, and most importantly it stops a very large bit of important plays all by itself. Counters push, bolt, path in the removal department. Counters iok, seize, serum visions, opt, etc. When they are trying to control you. Then also counters shadow, delver, guide. Lastly it has the ability to counter any of the specific deck types of living end, visions, balance. This is just too much to not warrant a spot. There is another in the SB, along with bitterblossom for some matchups.
But when you combo the 2 together it's priceless. I've seen games where in response to a removal spell my friend flashed in Sprite. Next combat the Ninja took the little fae's spot. Then the Farie came back to eat another spell some turns later. Effectively 4-0ing the opponent.)
If you go down the processor route Wasteland Strangler would be an obvious addition and would help against aggro decks.
(If I were to go that route it would indeed be a great choice.
However this is not processors. It's shredders. 2 completely differently functioning decks.)
We played this this week's FNM. I went 3-1 and the original creator went 4-0. Still rocking especially since storm is gaining in popularity.
Round 1 for me was BUGr Death's Shadow.
Turn 1 I got hit by a toughtseize. Discarding my IoK. I Serum visions to set up some control since I already know what he's on.
Next turn he plays a goyf. I respond on my turn by pushing the goyf. He plays DS and keeps mana up. I snag the DS which is getting pretty big at this point but it's countered. On my turn I play Lilly and make him sacrifice DS. His turn he shoots a command my way pulls back DS. This time I have Snapcaster push to end the threat. His next turn was pretty uneventful and when I attack with snappy he attempted to push it. I play a Spellstutter Sprite and take over the game as his hand is pretty well shredded at this point.
Game 2 was pretty much more of the same. Most eventful play was when I played a stutter Sprite in response to his push targeting Seer. He responded with a command to kill the Sprite and I played a clique targeting me since he was shredded. The ability still saw 1 faery in play and saved my see which the 7 power won the game before he could top deck an answer or threat.
Round 2 was burn. I really need something to fight against this. Brutality and IoK just doesn't do it.
I start with a land and again this player is pretty common and usually is on red so I play to that. He guides and attacks. After trigger I get the land and snag the poor fellah. Next turn when he plays it again I attempted to stutter it but the Sprite doesn't have it against a bolt. I get another land. But this time he connects. I attempt to set up a good play with Snapcaster snag but he plays another one and while I can take no damage off of a block and bounce he plays the bounced one back out and that one gets in a few times while I'm shredding his hand. My life is at 7 when I finally get it answered and have him hell-bent. Due to a series of good too decks he pulls it out though.
Next game was me in pretty much control. Boarding in Brutality and out Thoughtseize. Almost lost to Eidolon which I took a lot of damage to clear because only option was snappy into push.
Game 3 is just a nightmare. Sometimes you draw the wrong answers. While I skein him to madness turn 3 the guide Eidolon s prove too much.
Round 3 is against an affinity player. Newish player so I don't take this win with too much credit. Affinity goes nuts and plays out most of the hand and I get an IoK on plating turn 1. Player never drew any stat raising guys and pretty much attempted to get there on the backs of 1/1s.
Game 2 I pull out most discard and put in recall, BB,and Collective Brutality. It's such a cake walk.
Round 4 I go against a paired down affinity player. This guy is pretty good and 2-1 is respectable enough here.
Game 1 get the play and Thoughtseize a ravager. He does what affinity does. I play Brutality and pitch skein, as it's a dead card here, killing a dude and ripping out their burn spell. He top decks a plating and plays it. Equips and swings for a good bit if damage. I'm able to survive by cliquiness and then push snap push to remove any real threats.
Game 2 I get steamrolled. No removal hand. Able to recall his board but had to do it pre combat and it all came back down the same turn. Hate this feeling.
But game 3 was the best game of the night. I lead with a visions since I don't have much discard post board. He splooges on the board. My turn I play BB to tie up his guys. He gets in some damage. Turn 3 I'm able to block the plated attacker and his EoT I cast recall. Play a Seer and take something. Plating I believe. He poops everything else back out. My turn I pass turn. He attacks with some fliers but the team far hold the air for me. I snapped back recall. My turn was me attacking with snappy and and Ninja in gangbang. Next turn eot recall and ended the game with recasting snappy and recalling him yet again.
We go to top 4.
Round 1 was against storm. After I win my bye I split with a last opponent so we can go home early. I know my opponent was on BU control, which is typically a good match up for us, but takes a long time to play out.
Thoughts on the tournament. I need something to improve my odds with burn. Main problem is the Eidolon. I do value it very high with iok and seize, but sometimes it gets through. Like when we have lead with Visions due to a not spectacular hand. Sprite is amazing. And Thought-knot was probably the least spectacular creature but still pretty darn good.
What this deck does is shred hands and plays a good threat that has to be answered in top deck fashion. Strong hand discard with a touch of counter magic.
Ideal: early discard and visions to set keep opponents off key plays and combos.
Mid: Finish shredding the opponents hand and play down something with a decent enough clock
Late: Get the final swing in to win the game.
This deck prays on combo decks. Toughest matchups are burn and cheap aggro decks with good hands
2 Spellstutter Sprite
3 Eldrazi Displacer
1 Chittering Rats
2 Vendilion Clique
4 Thought-knot Seer
2 Okiba-Gang Shinobi
3 Fatal Push
4 Serum Visions
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
3 Thoughtseize
3 Delirium Skeins
1 Collective Brutality
4 Underground River
4 Eldrazi Temple
1 Drowned Catacomb
2 Sea Gate Wreckage
4 Polluted Delta
3 Watery Grave
2 Swamp
1 Island
Delirium Skeins looks like a very questionable card to me, it is like a bad Mind Rot imho, similar cards that can replace it are Wrench Mind or Esper Charm (or Consult the Necrosages/Unburden).
Okiba-Gang Shinobi also seems no optimal as it comes down pretty late (even with ninjitsu) and then its ability is usually less relevant.
I'd probably prefer a creature like Tidehollow Sculler instead.
With Eldrazi Temple in the deck and some more support (maindeck Relic/Delay over Delirium Skeins) even something like Ulamog's Nullifier can be playable here.
Spellstutter Sprite is probably not great with only 2x other faeries in the deck, Spell Queller seems better.
Or even a spell like Remand.
If you go down the processor route Wasteland Strangler would be an obvious addition and would help against aggro decks.
Reply in parentheses
2 Bitterblossom
1 Spellstutter Sprite
1 Fatal Push
2 Collective Brutality
2 Cranial Extraction
2 Creeping Tar Pit
2 Echoing Truth
Round 1 for me was BUGr Death's Shadow.
Turn 1 I got hit by a toughtseize. Discarding my IoK. I Serum visions to set up some control since I already know what he's on.
Next turn he plays a goyf. I respond on my turn by pushing the goyf. He plays DS and keeps mana up. I snag the DS which is getting pretty big at this point but it's countered. On my turn I play Lilly and make him sacrifice DS. His turn he shoots a command my way pulls back DS. This time I have Snapcaster push to end the threat. His next turn was pretty uneventful and when I attack with snappy he attempted to push it. I play a Spellstutter Sprite and take over the game as his hand is pretty well shredded at this point.
Game 2 was pretty much more of the same. Most eventful play was when I played a stutter Sprite in response to his push targeting Seer. He responded with a command to kill the Sprite and I played a clique targeting me since he was shredded. The ability still saw 1 faery in play and saved my see which the 7 power won the game before he could top deck an answer or threat.
Round 2 was burn. I really need something to fight against this. Brutality and IoK just doesn't do it.
I start with a land and again this player is pretty common and usually is on red so I play to that. He guides and attacks. After trigger I get the land and snag the poor fellah. Next turn when he plays it again I attempted to stutter it but the Sprite doesn't have it against a bolt. I get another land. But this time he connects. I attempt to set up a good play with Snapcaster snag but he plays another one and while I can take no damage off of a block and bounce he plays the bounced one back out and that one gets in a few times while I'm shredding his hand. My life is at 7 when I finally get it answered and have him hell-bent. Due to a series of good too decks he pulls it out though.
Next game was me in pretty much control. Boarding in Brutality and out Thoughtseize. Almost lost to Eidolon which I took a lot of damage to clear because only option was snappy into push.
Game 3 is just a nightmare. Sometimes you draw the wrong answers. While I skein him to madness turn 3 the guide Eidolon s prove too much.
Round 3 is against an affinity player. Newish player so I don't take this win with too much credit. Affinity goes nuts and plays out most of the hand and I get an IoK on plating turn 1. Player never drew any stat raising guys and pretty much attempted to get there on the backs of 1/1s.
Game 2 I pull out most discard and put in recall, BB,and Collective Brutality. It's such a cake walk.
Round 4 I go against a paired down affinity player. This guy is pretty good and 2-1 is respectable enough here.
Game 1 get the play and Thoughtseize a ravager. He does what affinity does. I play Brutality and pitch skein, as it's a dead card here, killing a dude and ripping out their burn spell. He top decks a plating and plays it. Equips and swings for a good bit if damage. I'm able to survive by cliquiness and then push snap push to remove any real threats.
Game 2 I get steamrolled. No removal hand. Able to recall his board but had to do it pre combat and it all came back down the same turn. Hate this feeling.
But game 3 was the best game of the night. I lead with a visions since I don't have much discard post board. He splooges on the board. My turn I play BB to tie up his guys. He gets in some damage. Turn 3 I'm able to block the plated attacker and his EoT I cast recall. Play a Seer and take something. Plating I believe. He poops everything else back out. My turn I pass turn. He attacks with some fliers but the team far hold the air for me. I snapped back recall. My turn was me attacking with snappy and and Ninja in gangbang. Next turn eot recall and ended the game with recasting snappy and recalling him yet again.
We go to top 4.
Round 1 was against storm. After I win my bye I split with a last opponent so we can go home early. I know my opponent was on BU control, which is typically a good match up for us, but takes a long time to play out.
Thoughts on the tournament. I need something to improve my odds with burn. Main problem is the Eidolon. I do value it very high with iok and seize, but sometimes it gets through. Like when we have lead with Visions due to a not spectacular hand. Sprite is amazing. And Thought-knot was probably the least spectacular creature but still pretty darn good.