So far out of the new set I am loving Quartzwood Crasher and Footfall Crater so I am brewing up a Gruul list that goes higher than current Gruul lists but hopefully the hastily bigger creatures win. Here is my first draft:
Creatures - 27 4 Pelt Collector - early attack and grows to trample 4 Paradise Druid - accelerate, color fix, pumps pelt 4 Stonecoil Serpent - I think this might be a better play then Kraul Harpooner, opens 3 slots in the SB 4 Lovestruck Beast - I like the thought of hasting this guy with trample 4 Bonecrusher Giant - choosing this over Gruul Spellbreaker due to its flexibility 3 Questing Beast - play green, play Beast 2 Proud Wildbonder - I am considering this a finisher 2 Quartzwood Crasher - Hopefully it pulls it's weight
Spells - 9 4 Footfall Crater - reason for the deck, "free" haste and trample, I know control decks will love this cards and its never dead since it cycles. 3 Vivien, Arkbow Ranger - removal, gives trample. Imagine giving 2 creatures trample with wildbonder in play, GG? 2 Embercleave - I am seeing Wildbonder as a potential finisher so we'll see which preforms better and they might even compliment each other!
Lands - 24 definitely want to get to Crasher on curve 12 Forest - to play Pelt and Druid on time, crater can be played on any turn, ensure vivien anytime 5 Mountain 4 Stomping Ground 3 Temple of Abandon
Hopefully I'll be able to play it on Arena and find out how bad it is
Some points/information.
- Bonder can enable more efficient attacks when a planeswalker is in play in that some times you have to dedicate 2/3 attacks to one planes walker just to ensure it dies due to the 1/2 blockers your opponent might have. Thus because a trampler can deal combat damage as though it was unblocked, you now only have to send one.
- Hasting paradise Druid can give you your second red or more in a rare pinch.
- I wanted at least 3 Vivien and at least 2 bonder and 9 4 drops were too many so I cut a Questing beast for a Bonecrusher, lower the curve. With 4 Druids maybe thats a mistake? I'll have to mark that card to see if it being a Questing beast would be better.
- Crater can be used mid combat to give any attacker trample based on your OP's blocking. Trample on questing beast is naturally great!
- Voracious Hydra and Gruul Spellbreaker are other possible options. I like the idea of doubling hydras counters and giving it haste!
- Mana curve is: 15 1 drops; 4 pelts, 4 crater, 4 Heart's desire, 3 Temple of abandon (2 might be the right number). 11 2 drops;4 druid, 4 Harpooner, 3 stomp. 7 3 drops; 4 lovestruck beast, 3 giant. 8 4 drops; 3 Questing Beast, 3 Vivien, 2 Bonder. 3 5 drops; 3 Crasher and 2 6 drops with Embercleave.
- I want the deck to still get out early and be aggro deal some initial damage then use its top end to finish the opponent by using Embercleave or Bonder to deal damage directly.
- Harpooner and crasher are great post wipe threats with crater in play in that harpooner can hit them for 7 or 8 total damage and crasher can make a another threat.
- If you Mutate a Gemrazer onto a Pelt Collector on T3 does it get teh counter AND turn into a 4/4 with trample and reach?!?!?!!?
- With 3 vivien it might be worth it to put in 1 God-Eternal Rhonas or Voracious Hydra to 'Fireball' the opponent.
-Ram through might be a good removal spell in this deck
So what are your thoughts? What are you ideas for the trample theme from Ikora and how would create Gruul in this new standard?
Major edit:
4/15/20: -4 Kraul Harpooner, +4 Stonecoil Serpent. I think new standard will feature more multicolored decks so sacrificing the conditional removal for a creature that is harder to deal with and scales better as the game goes on is worth it. Thinking about the popular cards that cant deal with Serpent I think it is worth it in anycase. Also frees up 3 sideboards slots.
-3 Serpent from Sideboard to main deck, +1 redcap Melee, +2 Thrashing Brontodon
4/17/20: up to 12 forest from 11 and -1 mountain +1 Temple. Have to be able to cast vivien on time, matches color requirements better I think. Wildbonder is more of a card that shows up for the final blow, down to 2, +1 bonecrusher
4/23/20: Dammit this deck sucks, LMAO. Its it just too slow. If one is going to make a trample themed deck then I think it will involve reliable ramping the first 3 turns then start dropping creatures with Trample so that you can drop bonder and get damage in directly, which I HAVE accomplished with this prior draft. I'll look into that and report. Footfall crater only seems good late game when you are in top deck mode, otherwise you are casting creatures on curve.
So far out of the new set I am loving Quartzwood Crasher and Footfall Crater so I am brewing up a Gruul list that goes higher than current Gruul lists but hopefully the hastily bigger creatures win. Here is my first draft:
4 Pelt Collector - early attack and grows to trample
4 Paradise Druid - accelerate, color fix, pumps pelt
4 Stonecoil Serpent - I think this might be a better play then Kraul Harpooner, opens 3 slots in the SB
4 Lovestruck Beast - I like the thought of hasting this guy with trample
4 Bonecrusher Giant - choosing this over Gruul Spellbreaker due to its flexibility
3 Questing Beast - play green, play Beast
2 Proud Wildbonder - I am considering this a finisher
2 Quartzwood Crasher - Hopefully it pulls it's weight
4 Footfall Crater - reason for the deck, "free" haste and trample, I know control decks will love this cards and its never dead since it cycles.
3 Vivien, Arkbow Ranger - removal, gives trample. Imagine giving 2 creatures trample with wildbonder in play, GG?
2 Embercleave - I am seeing Wildbonder as a potential finisher so we'll see which preforms better and they might even compliment each other!
Lands - 24 definitely want to get to Crasher on curve
12 Forest - to play Pelt and Druid on time, crater can be played on any turn, ensure vivien anytime
5 Mountain
4 Stomping Ground
3 Temple of Abandon
4 Gemrazer - Lets see if this card is better than Thrashing Brontodon
4 Redcap Melee - Mono Red
3 Shifting Ceratops - control, Flash, has trample
2 Shadowspear - mono red and creature mirrors, fits theme
2 Thrashing Brontodon - more artifact/enchantment removal
Hopefully I'll be able to play it on Arena and find out how bad it is
Some points/information.
- Bonder can enable more efficient attacks when a planeswalker is in play in that some times you have to dedicate 2/3 attacks to one planes walker just to ensure it dies due to the 1/2 blockers your opponent might have. Thus because a trampler can deal combat damage as though it was unblocked, you now only have to send one.
- Hasting paradise Druid can give you your second red or more in a rare pinch.
- I wanted at least 3 Vivien and at least 2 bonder and 9 4 drops were too many so I cut a Questing beast for a Bonecrusher, lower the curve. With 4 Druids maybe thats a mistake? I'll have to mark that card to see if it being a Questing beast would be better.
- Crater can be used mid combat to give any attacker trample based on your OP's blocking. Trample on questing beast is naturally great!
- Voracious Hydra and Gruul Spellbreaker are other possible options. I like the idea of doubling hydras counters and giving it haste!
- Mana curve is: 15 1 drops; 4 pelts, 4 crater, 4 Heart's desire, 3 Temple of abandon (2 might be the right number). 11 2 drops;4 druid, 4 Harpooner, 3 stomp. 7 3 drops; 4 lovestruck beast, 3 giant. 8 4 drops; 3 Questing Beast, 3 Vivien, 2 Bonder. 3 5 drops; 3 Crasher and 2 6 drops with Embercleave.
- I want the deck to still get out early and be aggro deal some initial damage then use its top end to finish the opponent by using Embercleave or Bonder to deal damage directly.
- Harpooner and crasher are great post wipe threats with crater in play in that harpooner can hit them for 7 or 8 total damage and crasher can make a another threat.
- If you Mutate a Gemrazer onto a Pelt Collector on T3 does it get teh counter AND turn into a 4/4 with trample and reach?!?!?!!?
- With 3 vivien it might be worth it to put in 1 God-Eternal Rhonas or Voracious Hydra to 'Fireball' the opponent.
-Ram through might be a good removal spell in this deck
So what are your thoughts? What are you ideas for the trample theme from Ikora and how would create Gruul in this new standard?
Major edit:
4/15/20: -4 Kraul Harpooner, +4 Stonecoil Serpent. I think new standard will feature more multicolored decks so sacrificing the conditional removal for a creature that is harder to deal with and scales better as the game goes on is worth it. Thinking about the popular cards that cant deal with Serpent I think it is worth it in anycase. Also frees up 3 sideboards slots.
-3 Serpent from Sideboard to main deck, +1 redcap Melee, +2 Thrashing Brontodon
4/17/20: up to 12 forest from 11 and -1 mountain +1 Temple. Have to be able to cast vivien on time, matches color requirements better I think. Wildbonder is more of a card that shows up for the final blow, down to 2, +1 bonecrusher
4/23/20: Dammit this deck sucks, LMAO. Its it just too slow. If one is going to make a trample themed deck then I think it will involve reliable ramping the first 3 turns then start dropping creatures with Trample so that you can drop bonder and get damage in directly, which I HAVE accomplished with this prior draft. I'll look into that and report. Footfall crater only seems good late game when you are in top deck mode, otherwise you are casting creatures on curve.
Props to DarkNightCavalier 4 da banner and SGT_Chubbz 4 avvie, here
Standard
GRAggro
GRWNaya Purphoros
GWAggro Retired 9/19/2014
RGPrimeval Titan RIP
1/5/2010 - 9/30/2011
Top 4 Channelfireball Winter series 5k Feb. 2011
3rd at California National Qualifiers 2011
40th at GP SLC 2012
Find me on MTGO @ Ruslvmusl91