If I got rid of Elspeth, Knight-Errant I would most likely put the extra Ghor-Clan Rampager back into the main board and another copy of Destructive Revelry back into the sideboard. With a little help with one of Latern's video I was able to add Sejiri Steppe into my deck to help protect my animals from removal. I have to say I like how my deck seems like its constantly evolving for the better. With that said currently will be running Verdant Catacombs in place of Arid Mesa til I get the couple that I need. Sorry for the many posts that I make with the deck, however; I enjoy getting help from people that has play or is playing Zoo. I have hopes of taking this to a bigger tournament such as a 1k or bigger. Thanks you everyone for the help with my deck, in the past, present, and future.
Also I was seeing that Lightning Bolt is pretty much like how Deathrite Shaman was before it got the ban hammer. The card being good in the beginning, middle, and end of games. Granted Deathrite had a couple other abilities, but it was ban for being to efficient. A case of this could be made for bolt. Granted I don't want to see Lightning Bolt getting banned though.. its just so good!
I'm liking that Domain Zoo is doing good. I hope it continues into the next day, I would love to see him win it all to be honest.
On a different note Im currently thinking about adding Knight of the Reliquary into my deck due to it being total boss with at least 10 fetches in the deck. Its a three drop however and think it will mix pretty well with all my one drops, I would have 16 one drops and a couple Qasali Pridemage for a few answer to any enchantment/artifact that I don't like.
Along with that people tend to let Goblin Guide hit them more often in hopes of getting another land into their hand.
Could you elaborate on this? I'm having trouble grasping this concept. Let's say your opponent's next 2 draws is an Island and then a Cryptic Command. You attacked with Goblin Guide, opponent draw's the island, then next turn he draws the Cryptic Command, so he gets the Command one turn sooner. How is that a good thing? Btw I run 4 Goblin Guides and think he's very good but I'm just wondering about this statement you said.
All things considered, the guy swinging in with GG doesn't usually know nor care what cards are underneath the lands he's giving his opponent, unknowns are unknowns.
By the time he helped someone see Cryptic Command a turn earlier, odds are the GG controller has put the guy who drew CC into the red, and what good is a 4cmc counterspell against an onslaught of cheap burn (unless you try mainphasing a Bolt pre-combat, walking into CrypCom set to counter + tap)?
Anyway he means that some people fall into a trap of thinking that they can gain value off of GG attack triggers. Which they can, to be fair, but putting a lot of concern into milking that distorts their lines of play towards taking risks just for free lands. Of course they can kill Guide between the attack trigger and the applying of combat damage, but nonetheless there's a warping of logic going on in letting GG just chip away like that.
Thanks for the help, sorry I was at work and wasn't able to respond until now. Yeah people would let you swing away with Goblin Guide, yes they possibly give up information about their deck/what they draw. However it may allow them to draw that land, thinning out the deck so the pull more of that good stuff that all magic players like doing. Yes, its taking a chance of them getting that mana off the top (which on average its a 33 percent of the time they will pull a land) but when they don't it allows me to have the knowledge of what they are going draw. It allows you change how you want to play since you know of at least one card that is in their hand or about into their hand.
Maxed out voice so instants shouldn't bother me on my turn, if they try to path my voice and just bolt/helix my own voice for the token.
Enough spells to have swiftspear become a 2/3 each turn as well as rancor pumping to a 3/2 trampler and upgrading her status or my other drops.
Myself personally like having Goblin Guide over Monastery Swiftspear, this is because with Monastery Swiftspear you have to play your spells first instead of being able to wait and react to what the other player is playing. Plus Goblin Guide gives you the knowledge of what the other player is going to draw, rather its a land (that would go to their hand) or that kill spell. Along with that people tend to let Goblin Guide hit them more often in hopes of getting another land into their hand. However in my build I run Steppe Lynx instead of Experiment One cause I run less creatures and more spells. It also seems like I have made my meta scared of the lynx since its normally the first thing they rip from my hand instead of proper creatures that are more constant such as Kird Ape or Wild Nacatl. Also if your wanting to run blue you should looking into Domain/Tribal Zoo, blue is kinda weak color for Zoo. Domain/Tribal Zoo is quite mean, but from what I have seen a little bit more work on your fetching. Moral of the story run/build what you want, and learn from there. With magic there isn't one way to build a deck.
Okay I went 2-1 at the tourney today. I ended up getting mana flooded, in the late games of the one I have lost. The first deck was a blue/red homebrew (which I went 2-0), Tezzeret Control Blue/Black artifact (went 1-2), and Black/White Token (2-1). Against the black/white deck the final game I had to maul down to five with a one lander and pulled out the win. Through out the night I was mana flooded, which brought me bringing down the mana amount from 21 to 20 and adding Qasali Pridemage to my deck. Rough night with a bunch of real grindy games... only match that didn't have a grindy game was the first game.
Here is what I think to be my Final Draft of my Small Zoo deck. What do you all think about this deck list? I have Elspeth, Knight-Errant in there to add some spice to the deck.
Think you'll find its tough to hit 4 mana... but hey, shes a great card, so I wont fault you for it. I tend to stick in domri where he shouldnt be because I love him.
My girlfriend just bought an elspeth pop vinyl figure. She was getting jellies of my ajani.
Isn't Ajani and Elspeth secret lovers anyways lol. Yeah its going to be tough to get to where I can use her, but I can she her changing games in my favor. Where if I added another Loam Lion or another Path to Exile just seems to be an Ehh in the deck. I want to try Domri Rade in the deck, but I am not sure about being only as a one of to be honest. It seems like there should be more copies if you happen to run that planeswalker.
I think I am going have to run without arid mesa.. I am not able to get ahold of them in time for the tourney tomorrow. I will post the results from it as well. I have high hopes for good results tomorrow.
I cut the land to 20, where i can draw enough lands to keep a hand and enough so that when i TC, i don't require to do anything afterwards. A bunch of Ash Zealots against snaps makes it prime to removal, so hopefully we are okay with out one drops. Originally i wanted to play spark elemental for their 3 power, and seeing if the 3 power really mattered, it will require more thorough testing since it helps TC.
Sideboard gets me into more of the normal style zoo and helps me get out of being pyroclasmed or anger. Though Boros Charm would definitely help in that regard.
Enough Burn spells to help get the magical twenty. Any deck will require some sort of removal or even PTE the strangleroot, or they take 2 and it does scale when it dies. So they need to remove it again, and swiftspear should be a good 1 drop here. Spear scales very well, So i think she will be a very nice addition to the deck. I was also thinking of Become Immense, where +6/+6 is useful but i just perished the thought when im already looking at 4 TC, maybe i will cut TC and add 4 become immense and see how that goes cutting off blue completely.
But i do plan to take this to my locals sometime soon.
There is counter cat, that seemed to be pretty interesting when I saw it from channel fireball.
Hi everyone!
I started to test zoo a few days ago on cockatrice, Im not new to Magic but due to I never had a lot of money, I never got a complete competitive deck, and Im trying now to finally buy, slowly, a fun and competitive one, I think zoo is interesting.
I would like to read your oppinions of this build (Thalia Zoo), I got nice results on cockatrice against Tarmotwin, sisters, UR delver, burn, etc.
Because of budget Im not including 'Goyfs and Arid Mesa, but as far as I tested 8 fetchland goes well.
The game plan is to start and go with nacatl and ape/lions, and 2 things can happen: opponent spent their removal on them, leaving them with no mana in first turns plus leting me go with my big guys at third turn, or they drop a creature (strange) on first turns that can do 3 damage to my cc1 guys, in which case I simply atack and, if block, disrupt their game with a ghor-clan. Fleecemane can be a serious threat too here, but im thinking about -2 Fleecemane, +1 Ape +1 Loam lion. Thalia slow the opponent and can block without problem almost every turn 1-2 creature they drop, and is a serious card against control and combo. Loxodon is so easy to drop at turn 3, and reliquary can tutor lands and then, with slayers stronghold, atack without problem each turn and still tutor.
EDIT:
This is other build without Thalia, but I have to sell her if I want to use this build, the money is really a thing for me here.
The later deck looks like more zoo.. but I haven't tested Thalia in deck yet. I built small zoo to be more budgety... Granted guides and arid mesas are pretty un there
I haven't tried it... I like having the combos in there. Just for the fact that you can pull victories in the jaws of defeat. I would go with Aven Mindcensor not just for scapeshift but for other mirror decks as well. That't why I have it in my sideboard.
Here is what I think to be my Final Draft of my Small Zoo deck. What do you all think about this deck list? I have Elspeth, Knight-Errant in there to add some spice to the deck.
Think you'll find its tough to hit 4 mana... but hey, shes a great card, so I wont fault you for it. I tend to stick in domri where he shouldnt be because I love him.
My girlfriend just bought an elspeth pop vinyl figure. She was getting jellies of my ajani.
Isn't Ajani and Elspeth secret lovers anyways lol. Yeah its going to be tough to get to where I can use her, but I can she her changing games in my favor. Where if I added another Loam Lion or another Path to Exile just seems to be an Ehh in the deck. I want to try Domri Rade in the deck, but I am not sure about being only as a one of to be honest. It seems like there should be more copies if you happen to run that planeswalker.
2x Arid Mesa
1x Forest
1x Mountain
1x Plains
1x Sacred Foundry
1x Sejiri Steppe
1x Slayers' Stronghold
2x Stomping Ground
2x Temple Garden
4x Windswept Heath
4x Wooded Foothills
3x Ghor-Clan Rampager
4x Goblin Guide
4x Kird Ape
3x Knight of the Reliquary
2x Qasali Pridemage
4x Steppe Lynx
4x Wild Nacatl
Instant
4x Boros Charm
4x Lightning Bolt
4x Lightning Helix
3x Path to Exile
1x Elspeth, Knight-Errant
2x Combust
1x Destructive Revelry
1x Ghor-Clan Rampager
2x Grafdigger's Cage
2x Loxodon Smiter
2x Molten Rain
2x Stony Silence
1x Thrun, the Last Troll
2x Volcanic Fallout
If I got rid of Elspeth, Knight-Errant I would most likely put the extra Ghor-Clan Rampager back into the main board and another copy of Destructive Revelry back into the sideboard. With a little help with one of Latern's video I was able to add Sejiri Steppe into my deck to help protect my animals from removal. I have to say I like how my deck seems like its constantly evolving for the better. With that said currently will be running Verdant Catacombs in place of Arid Mesa til I get the couple that I need. Sorry for the many posts that I make with the deck, however; I enjoy getting help from people that has play or is playing Zoo. I have hopes of taking this to a bigger tournament such as a 1k or bigger. Thanks you everyone for the help with my deck, in the past, present, and future.
Good. I just see as bolt as the go to burn spell.. it can't get any better doing three damage for one at instant speed.
Also I was seeing that Lightning Bolt is pretty much like how Deathrite Shaman was before it got the ban hammer. The card being good in the beginning, middle, and end of games. Granted Deathrite had a couple other abilities, but it was ban for being to efficient. A case of this could be made for bolt. Granted I don't want to see Lightning Bolt getting banned though.. its just so good!
On a different note Im currently thinking about adding Knight of the Reliquary into my deck due to it being total boss with at least 10 fetches in the deck. Its a three drop however and think it will mix pretty well with all my one drops, I would have 16 one drops and a couple Qasali Pridemage for a few answer to any enchantment/artifact that I don't like.
Thanks for the help, sorry I was at work and wasn't able to respond until now. Yeah people would let you swing away with Goblin Guide, yes they possibly give up information about their deck/what they draw. However it may allow them to draw that land, thinning out the deck so the pull more of that good stuff that all magic players like doing. Yes, its taking a chance of them getting that mana off the top (which on average its a 33 percent of the time they will pull a land) but when they don't it allows me to have the knowledge of what they are going draw. It allows you change how you want to play since you know of at least one card that is in their hand or about into their hand.
Myself personally like having Goblin Guide over Monastery Swiftspear, this is because with Monastery Swiftspear you have to play your spells first instead of being able to wait and react to what the other player is playing. Plus Goblin Guide gives you the knowledge of what the other player is going to draw, rather its a land (that would go to their hand) or that kill spell. Along with that people tend to let Goblin Guide hit them more often in hopes of getting another land into their hand. However in my build I run Steppe Lynx instead of Experiment One cause I run less creatures and more spells. It also seems like I have made my meta scared of the lynx since its normally the first thing they rip from my hand instead of proper creatures that are more constant such as Kird Ape or Wild Nacatl. Also if your wanting to run blue you should looking into Domain/Tribal Zoo, blue is kinda weak color for Zoo. Domain/Tribal Zoo is quite mean, but from what I have seen a little bit more work on your fetching. Moral of the story run/build what you want, and learn from there. With magic there isn't one way to build a deck.
I ended up putting Verdant Catacombs instead of Arid Mesa.. less efficient but you gotta play what you have.
I think I am going have to run without arid mesa.. I am not able to get ahold of them in time for the tourney tomorrow. I will post the results from it as well. I have high hopes for good results tomorrow.
There is counter cat, that seemed to be pretty interesting when I saw it from channel fireball.
The later deck looks like more zoo.. but I haven't tested Thalia in deck yet. I built small zoo to be more budgety... Granted guides and arid mesas are pretty un there
Isn't Ajani and Elspeth secret lovers anyways lol. Yeah its going to be tough to get to where I can use her, but I can she her changing games in my favor. Where if I added another Loam Lion or another Path to Exile just seems to be an Ehh in the deck. I want to try Domri Rade in the deck, but I am not sure about being only as a one of to be honest. It seems like there should be more copies if you happen to run that planeswalker.