MTG Salvation

Tolarian academy is restricted, you have 2 and 1 in your list, I assume this is a typo. Otherwise the list looks good, but not competitive.

It is indeed a typo. I've also recently gone -1 Crucible, -1 Mindslaver, -1 Darksteel Citadel, +1 Mox Opal, +1 Seat of the Synod, +1 Unburial Rites.

In what way is it not competitive?

Nevermind, your list looks good. I misread things when I am intoxicated lol.

No problem, I really would like any thoughts or detectd flaws however. I really like the list and want to try and optimize it.

I also apologise for the lack of info; I'll attempt to hit the highlights now.


Obviously, the deck is Tezzeret Combo/Control. You attempt to tutor up specific answers quickly and then drop a Robot, burn with infinite Spellbombs, or assemble the Sands of Time.

Artificer's Intuition is one of the main engines. A lot of people are surprised by it and laugh at you when you drop it Turn 1, but it is brokensauce.

Explosives was going to be cut from the Legacy version that I based this on; then I remembered that Moxen exist. It hits pretty much everything in Vintage easily and can set your opponent back by miles, or just hit a problem permanent.

Pithing Needle hits many relevant targets, from PWs to VaultKey to Bazaar. Yeah, turn 1 Needle naming Bazaar, after they mull to 4 or 5, is nuts.

Cage shuts down both Rites and Tinker-BSC. Doesn't matter. Tinker can still fetch VaultKey, and shutting off Dredge/Oath/YawgWin/Snapcaster/Opposing Tinker/Hermit Druid in game 1 is amazing.

Chalice@1 is as brutal here as it is in MUD, and you can get around it easily because a) most of your 1-drops become uneccessary when you stop Storm dead, and b) Tezz 1.0 can still grab the important ones for you.

Expedition Map feels weak, but finds Academy, Strip Mine, Ruins, Artifact lands when you need them. Probably some utility lands out of the sideboard.

I'm currently running a Brittle Effigy, I really like it for dealing with problems that Pyrite can't hit (Predator, Lodestone, BSC/Emrakul/Prggy/etc).

Unburial Rites is a possible cut later. It's solely there for the Gifts Ungiven synergy or to recover a Forced Salvagers. However, that synergy is amazing. Gifts for Salvagers, Spellbomb, Rites, [random artifact] and then tutoring LED and winning? Awesome.


There's a lot of resiliency against Mana Drain decks, I've only played a few rounds but it's gone well. Academy Ruins is a boss here, forcing your combo pieces through all the countermagic ever.

Combo dies so hard to your tutor'd up hate. I haven't seen Dredge or Oath yet, but Storm loses to Chalice@1 (or a nuts draw of Turn 1 Tezz 1.0 into VaultKey, which I've done twice now).

How do you deal with Null rod or Stony Silence?

Also get the feeling that the deck wants to do so many things. I see bomberman elements, Tezz elements, typical BB control stuff. How does the deck play, what kind of problems do you face?

My best answer so far to Rod/Silence is 4 sideboard Spell Pierce. I honestly can't think of anything else except hoping to power out a Chalice@2 uberfast.

The problems I usually face are decks out-answering my answers; Jace can be a problem if Pithing Needle doesn't find the table, or gets blown up. VaultKey can be bad if it comes down faster than I can tutor up an answer.

Null Rod and Predator are insanely painful; I have only Explosives and Effigy for Predator, and Spell Pierce for Rod.

I haven't faced any MUD, but I could see it being a problem depending on whether I can power out mana fast enough.

Despite working for me so far, I am still thrown off by the fact that some elements simply look frighteningly weak on paper. Artifact lands, Map, Top, all look simply poor in comparison to the rest of the Vintage card pool. I can't think of better slots, but am open to suggestions.

On a personal note, I would like a slightly larger Intuition toolbox. These were the most relevant answers to the meta that I could think of, Pyrite Spellbomb being especially interesting as it kills Thalia, Bob, Gadock Teeg, Revoker, and can ping 'walkers that let themselves get too low. The janky side of me wants to add in Hex Parasite and a Dark Depths to fetch with Map/Tolaria, but that seems entirely too cute.

Yes, the deck tries to do a lot of things. I don't usually find this to be a problem, as the things it tries to do are all friendly with each other. I tend to play towards extremely early combos, turn 1-3, and if that is disrupted, or if I cannot dig for it to happen then, I play a heavy disruption plan with my toolbox until one of several things happen:

1) I reassemble a combo
2) My toolbox answers grind value out of my opponent
3) Tezz 2.0 beats or ult come online for lethal

Usually, the last two will happen together, i.e. get Tezz online, slowly build value until I win off Tezz. His +1 (and his brother's -X) get combos back online quickly, and if they don't, they give me exactly what I need to out-play the opponent for several turns. Indestructible 5/5's are surprisingly hard for a lot of decks to deal with.

I don't have a sideboard yet, but I will post an updated list.



Maindeck Spell Pierce is an interesting idea, I will look into making room. I don't have enough blue to support FoW, but Pierce might be perfect.


I don't really feel the need for multiple Wastelands, since I have two ways to tutor it up, and don't usually need more than one per game, to slow down their game by one or two turns.

I similarly don't play Recall because I often aim for Chalice@1 and use either Tezz to cheat out my stuff, or throw away 1-drops to find other pieces that I can use.

Time Walk will often be Explore in this deck; it only really benefits me when I can drop Tezz and immediately cast Walk for VaultKey (7 mana) or when I can cast Salvagers but can't go off without untapping (6 mana but only 1 white).

I feel the artifact lands, though normally subpar, are too important here to cut. Enabling Metalcraft consistently, and being usable for Intuition fodder, is a lot.
1 Lion's Eye Diamond

You might want to consider Chain of Vapor as an answer to the issues you are having. Recall is strictly better than Thoughtcast, even with chalice at 1. What do you find with Gifts? Salvager, Lotus, and Rites? If so you may want to consider Intuition instead or in addition to, as it is one less mana and unrestricted, plus intuition lets you tutor 3 copies of the same card to ensure you get one of them. If you do go this route you can play 3-4 intuition and only have to play 1 salvager, which is a pretty bad card to draw. Expedition map seems like win more. I probably wouldn't even play chalice. Time walk should probably be in there somewhere. I would probably cut the darksteel citadels for two more wastelands. Brittle effigy seems kinda weak.

Dunno if any of this helps, probably not.