Balance. One of my favorite Vintage Cards ever, and the basis of nearly every viable 60-card deck I've built in my MTG-playing career.
I recently am getting away from an EDH-only kick, and am going to start building little decks again. And so, I finally will get to use Balance again.
Prison decks have been my forte since I started to really understand the game and how it's played. Resource denial, for whatever reason, appeals to me, and Chalice of the Void and Smokestack have been staples in many of the decks I've built, both with 60 cards and 100. As such, I'm starting Vintage again with this prison idea, though I'm moving in a different direction than the usual STAX build.
Below are the reasons behind my choices of cards, along with the layout of their interactions within the deck. Note: I have built this deck based on the metagame I remember within my playgroup from before our foray into the EDH format. As such, I expect these same old decks to come forth once more, before the metagame diversifies into something new, and have built this deck accordingly. If you have issue with any of the card choices, I will listen to and respect your input, but may offer counterarguments based on how I know my playgroup operates. I am not disagreeing with any of your critiques because they are wrong; moreso, because your views and the views of my playgroup could be different, and thus your ideas might not be applicable in my situation.
Thank you for your understanding.
Card Choices Balance - the namesake of the deck. When used properly, this card is anything but what its name would indicate. The resolution of this spell should almost always greatly hinder the opponent without causing any harm to the caster. The saccing of lands and spending of cards in hand should always precede this spell. If you can always walk away with your opponent's field clear, and still be able to continue on with your day, then you've done something right.
Balancing Act - The backup spell, in a big way. Because it says 'permanents' and not 'creature' or 'land', there's a chance it could backfire more easily, and yet also could cause more harm to your opponent (and be a bigger advantage for you). Because it can also kill off the artifacts and enchantments you need to build a superior board position, handle with care. But when used right, it can really, REALLY be abusive.
Life from the Loam - Ghetto Life Insurance. No, really. Being able to recur your lands after you sac them to screw over your opponent is essential. Milling your library is harsh, though there are cards in the deck that mitigate this setback, as well as your ability to use discretion when choosing to dredge. It's a great card. Just be careful with it.
Crop Rotation - Finding that land you need, whether it's a Strip Mine to handle your opponent's Tolarian Academy, or getting that Maze of Ith at instant speed to surprise an attacker, is always a good thing to do. Even just finding the right color can be useful, and thus having Crop Rotation is never a bad thing. Bonus: you can fail to find a land. So, Rotating a land away in response to casting Balance or its Acting counterpart can also be useful, if a bit of a fringe event.
Regrowth - Gets back cards you need again. Very self explanatory. Also useful if you end of dredging away all of a win piece.
Acorn Harvest - A weird one, probably. But, blockers are awesome. And being able to cast it from your graveyard? More likely than you'd think.
Zuran Orb - Big, big deal here. Getting rid of your lands when you need to get rid of your opponents' is key. Getting life for it? Also awesome. I'm so used to Commander Damage being relevant, that not dying no matter how much damage you've accrued in total over the course of a game is sure to be refreshing. And being able to get land, and thus life, over and over? Seems like a solid way to win a game of attrition.
Crucible of Worlds - The all-star of the deck. Playing back lands from your graveyard is exactly what you want to do every game. Strip Mine? Awesome. Maze of Ith? If someone blows it up, you might want it back at some point, right? And any of your lands at all coming back a second time is always relevant.
The Rack - You're gonna be picking apart your opponent's hand with your multiple 'Balancing' acts, so a way to passively punish your opponent for that is good.
Ensnaring Bridge - A good deterrent for those creatures that your opponents can stick. They'll likely not be there for long anyway, but if there comes a point where you can't find another answer, simply keeping their creatures from coming over at you at all can be just the time-biding answer you need.
Sol Ring - It's Vintage. This is mana. GOOD mana. And there's quite a bit of colorless mana requirements in the costs of this deck. I don't think this needs all that much an explanation.
Thunder Totem - Like Acorn Harvest, this might seem one of the stranger additions. But, a creature that can block fliers, strike first, and survive your balance effects when you need it to? Always a good thing.
Blind Obedience - I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sold on the Extort mechanic, as happy as I am to see it. I'm not sure how well it'll do outside Limited, but I think the effect as used here, on a card that already seems pretty okay (especially for its cost!), might be more than useful. You'll be wanting to cast spells as they come into your hand, and the Extort ability makes redundant copies of this card on the 'field, well, not redundant! I'm gonna try it to see how it works, but I'm thinking any extra lifeloss being rewarded for doing things you'll already do, is a good thing.
Seal of Cleansing - This might become Aura of Silence, depending on how many artifacts and enchantments my group brings back (and how many those of you who build this run into), but I have always liked this card. Enough to run it in EDH, even. So, I'm using this here, as I have run into the odd Sol Ring, Smokestack, and various other goodies and baddies on the other side of the table.
Sylvan Library - The card draw in Green that stays and continues drawing. The life loss isn't that big a deal, especially in this deck, and the extra draw triggers help with dredging. Thus, it's a good deal to run this.
Flagstones of Trokair - It's a land. It gets other lands when it dies. And when you play a second with one of the field, it becomes "Find two target Temple Gardens and put them onto the battlefield tapped." I can dig it.
Strip Mine - Read the argument for Sol Ring. Only this one can be recurred in this deck. Brutal.
Ghost Quarter - Okay, this may sound weird for Vintage. Why not Wasteland? The answer is simple. When you first play the deck, your opponent will likely search for those basics, putting them into play thinking they're just losing a utility or dual land. However, they're now down a land to your one Quarter, and still have a land that they can now lose to Balance, with fewer lands in their deck that can be destroyed in a similar fashion. And, when your opponents wise up and don't go finding those replacement lands, you're now able to target like a Strip Mine, rather than just non-basics like a Wasteland could. Also, recur-able.
Temple Garden - Will hopefully by Savannahs soon. But, even then, when finding them off of Flagstones, they'd come into play tapped anyway. So, I'm not too worried. And, once again, lifeloss isn't a bit deal here in the long run.
Maze of Ith - The answer to problem creatures. Don't like them attacking? Get this, get this in play, and then proceed to not care about creatures.
Plains and Forest - Well, you need to cast spells. And some of those spells have color requirements that only these cards can fill. Makes sense? Good.
Without actually knowing your meta, im willing to bet that it is unpowered and full of critters. So instead of derailing your enthusiastic approach to vintage deck building, here is my constructive criticism:
White and green are arguably the weakest colors in vintage. While offering board control, you lack hand disruption and hard counters. Balance is a form of hand and board control. However, you lack any tutors to find your one copy. Additionally, Balance works best when you dump your hand, essentially making it a Mind Twist. You lack the ability to dump your hand quickly while maintaining positive control of the board. Balancing Act is far worse in that not only does it cost 4, but it leaves your opponent a choice.
The best creatures in vintage are CMC 1's and 2's. Take Dark Confidant for example. In theory, you wipe their board and pass the turn. They play a mana rock, a land, and Dark Confidant. Now, you are in a situation where they will slap you for 2 while generating card advantage. Meanwhile, you are in topdeck mode. Merfolk and goblins will continue to swarm while you wait for the next boardwipe.
I cannot offer any real solutions here, so here are a few suggestions:
Delete the totems and the acorns. If it's crowd control youre after, consider Moat Humility Swords to plowshares path to exile
These are in color, are much more efficient at doing the job, and take up considerably fewer slots.
If the crucible lock is your go to lock down, fastbond is what you need. It also makes oodles of life with Zuran orb.
I cannot offer a better win condition in this shell of an idea. However, the rack has got to be way too slow. Maybe, a fatty the way Angel Stax used to do it. Or hell, toss in Earthcraft and Squirrel's Nest.
The bottom line from what I see, is that you lack tutors, consistent hand disruption, hard counters, an immediate board presence, and an active win condition. I hope this helped somewhat. If anything, your deck idea is something new to dissect.
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I recently am getting away from an EDH-only kick, and am going to start building little decks again. And so, I finally will get to use Balance again.
Prison decks have been my forte since I started to really understand the game and how it's played. Resource denial, for whatever reason, appeals to me, and Chalice of the Void and Smokestack have been staples in many of the decks I've built, both with 60 cards and 100. As such, I'm starting Vintage again with this prison idea, though I'm moving in a different direction than the usual STAX build.
And so, without further ado, here is Balance.dec.
1 Balance
3 Balancing Act
3 Life from the Loam
3 Crop Rotation
1 Regrowth
3 Acorn Harvest
Artifacts
3 Zuran Orb
2 Crucible of Worlds
4 The Rack
2 Ensnaring Bridge
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Vault
3 Thunder Totem
4 Blind Obedience
3 Seal of Cleansing
2 Sylvan Library
Lands
3 Flagstones of Trokair
1 Strip Mine
4 Ghost Quarter
4 Temple Garden
1 Maze of Ith
5 Plains
3 Forest
Below are the reasons behind my choices of cards, along with the layout of their interactions within the deck.
Note: I have built this deck based on the metagame I remember within my playgroup from before our foray into the EDH format. As such, I expect these same old decks to come forth once more, before the metagame diversifies into something new, and have built this deck accordingly. If you have issue with any of the card choices, I will listen to and respect your input, but may offer counterarguments based on how I know my playgroup operates. I am not disagreeing with any of your critiques because they are wrong; moreso, because your views and the views of my playgroup could be different, and thus your ideas might not be applicable in my situation.
Thank you for your understanding.
Card Choices
Balance - the namesake of the deck. When used properly, this card is anything but what its name would indicate. The resolution of this spell should almost always greatly hinder the opponent without causing any harm to the caster. The saccing of lands and spending of cards in hand should always precede this spell. If you can always walk away with your opponent's field clear, and still be able to continue on with your day, then you've done something right.
Balancing Act - The backup spell, in a big way. Because it says 'permanents' and not 'creature' or 'land', there's a chance it could backfire more easily, and yet also could cause more harm to your opponent (and be a bigger advantage for you). Because it can also kill off the artifacts and enchantments you need to build a superior board position, handle with care. But when used right, it can really, REALLY be abusive.
Life from the Loam - Ghetto Life Insurance. No, really. Being able to recur your lands after you sac them to screw over your opponent is essential. Milling your library is harsh, though there are cards in the deck that mitigate this setback, as well as your ability to use discretion when choosing to dredge. It's a great card. Just be careful with it.
Crop Rotation - Finding that land you need, whether it's a Strip Mine to handle your opponent's Tolarian Academy, or getting that Maze of Ith at instant speed to surprise an attacker, is always a good thing to do. Even just finding the right color can be useful, and thus having Crop Rotation is never a bad thing. Bonus: you can fail to find a land. So, Rotating a land away in response to casting Balance or its Acting counterpart can also be useful, if a bit of a fringe event.
Regrowth - Gets back cards you need again. Very self explanatory. Also useful if you end of dredging away all of a win piece.
Acorn Harvest - A weird one, probably. But, blockers are awesome. And being able to cast it from your graveyard? More likely than you'd think.
Zuran Orb - Big, big deal here. Getting rid of your lands when you need to get rid of your opponents' is key. Getting life for it? Also awesome. I'm so used to Commander Damage being relevant, that not dying no matter how much damage you've accrued in total over the course of a game is sure to be refreshing. And being able to get land, and thus life, over and over? Seems like a solid way to win a game of attrition.
Crucible of Worlds - The all-star of the deck. Playing back lands from your graveyard is exactly what you want to do every game. Strip Mine? Awesome. Maze of Ith? If someone blows it up, you might want it back at some point, right? And any of your lands at all coming back a second time is always relevant.
The Rack - You're gonna be picking apart your opponent's hand with your multiple 'Balancing' acts, so a way to passively punish your opponent for that is good.
Ensnaring Bridge - A good deterrent for those creatures that your opponents can stick. They'll likely not be there for long anyway, but if there comes a point where you can't find another answer, simply keeping their creatures from coming over at you at all can be just the time-biding answer you need.
Sol Ring - It's Vintage. This is mana. GOOD mana. And there's quite a bit of colorless mana requirements in the costs of this deck. I don't think this needs all that much an explanation.
Mana Vault - Sol Ring #2. Read above.
Thunder Totem - Like Acorn Harvest, this might seem one of the stranger additions. But, a creature that can block fliers, strike first, and survive your balance effects when you need it to? Always a good thing.
Blind Obedience - I'll be honest, I'm not entirely sold on the Extort mechanic, as happy as I am to see it. I'm not sure how well it'll do outside Limited, but I think the effect as used here, on a card that already seems pretty okay (especially for its cost!), might be more than useful. You'll be wanting to cast spells as they come into your hand, and the Extort ability makes redundant copies of this card on the 'field, well, not redundant! I'm gonna try it to see how it works, but I'm thinking any extra lifeloss being rewarded for doing things you'll already do, is a good thing.
Seal of Cleansing - This might become Aura of Silence, depending on how many artifacts and enchantments my group brings back (and how many those of you who build this run into), but I have always liked this card. Enough to run it in EDH, even. So, I'm using this here, as I have run into the odd Sol Ring, Smokestack, and various other goodies and baddies on the other side of the table.
Sylvan Library - The card draw in Green that stays and continues drawing. The life loss isn't that big a deal, especially in this deck, and the extra draw triggers help with dredging. Thus, it's a good deal to run this.
Flagstones of Trokair - It's a land. It gets other lands when it dies. And when you play a second with one of the field, it becomes "Find two target Temple Gardens and put them onto the battlefield tapped." I can dig it.
Strip Mine - Read the argument for Sol Ring. Only this one can be recurred in this deck. Brutal.
Ghost Quarter - Okay, this may sound weird for Vintage. Why not Wasteland? The answer is simple. When you first play the deck, your opponent will likely search for those basics, putting them into play thinking they're just losing a utility or dual land. However, they're now down a land to your one Quarter, and still have a land that they can now lose to Balance, with fewer lands in their deck that can be destroyed in a similar fashion. And, when your opponents wise up and don't go finding those replacement lands, you're now able to target like a Strip Mine, rather than just non-basics like a Wasteland could. Also, recur-able.
Temple Garden - Will hopefully by Savannahs soon. But, even then, when finding them off of Flagstones, they'd come into play tapped anyway. So, I'm not too worried. And, once again, lifeloss isn't a bit deal here in the long run.
Maze of Ith - The answer to problem creatures. Don't like them attacking? Get this, get this in play, and then proceed to not care about creatures.
Plains and Forest - Well, you need to cast spells. And some of those spells have color requirements that only these cards can fill. Makes sense? Good.
Alters done! Check often for additions.
White and green are arguably the weakest colors in vintage. While offering board control, you lack hand disruption and hard counters. Balance is a form of hand and board control. However, you lack any tutors to find your one copy. Additionally, Balance works best when you dump your hand, essentially making it a Mind Twist. You lack the ability to dump your hand quickly while maintaining positive control of the board.
Balancing Act is far worse in that not only does it cost 4, but it leaves your opponent a choice.
The best creatures in vintage are CMC 1's and 2's. Take Dark Confidant for example. In theory, you wipe their board and pass the turn. They play a mana rock, a land, and Dark Confidant. Now, you are in a situation where they will slap you for 2 while generating card advantage. Meanwhile, you are in topdeck mode. Merfolk and goblins will continue to swarm while you wait for the next boardwipe.
I cannot offer any real solutions here, so here are a few suggestions:
Delete the totems and the acorns. If it's crowd control youre after, consider
Moat
Humility
Swords to plowshares
path to exile
These are in color, are much more efficient at doing the job, and take up considerably fewer slots.
If the crucible lock is your go to lock down, fastbond is what you need. It also makes oodles of life with Zuran orb.
I cannot offer a better win condition in this shell of an idea. However, the rack has got to be way too slow. Maybe, a fatty the way Angel Stax used to do it. Or hell, toss in Earthcraft and Squirrel's Nest.
The bottom line from what I see, is that you lack tutors, consistent hand disruption, hard counters, an immediate board presence, and an active win condition. I hope this helped somewhat. If anything, your deck idea is something new to dissect.