Third-place the last two outings. Not exciting but not too bad. Inability to deal with artifacts and three+ CMC creatures that don't attack or that have evasion are the weak points.
I'm going to add another Kaya to the board to help against Ovens and Cats. I still really have nothing for Clovers. Disenchant just seems So out of place. Splashing R for Battle Display is not out of the question I suppose, but I'm not thrilled about it.
I was thinking evolving wilds could be a option. I just wish there was a shuffle ability so when you mulligan you don't lose cards to the bottom of the deck.
The little fellows played a couple of practice games against a Pioneer Possibility Storm brew. They won both with the second being a nail-biter pulled out by Curry Favor and then some card draw from the Reaper.
Okay, so the current plan to try to up the output a bit is to:
1. Add two more Midnight Reaper's main-deck.
2. Add one more Kaya's Wrath to the side-board.
3. Move the Sorins to the side-board.
The side-board generally needs work. Some thoughts include:
1. Adding some number of Noxious Grasp
2. Adding some number of Legion's End. These may be better than Disfigure for the main-deck, but I doubt it.
I think this deck has a lot of potential especially because brave the elements is so good. And I'm surprised no one mentioned knight of the white orchid yet it fixes Mana, is a knight, ECT.
Anyways, here's my current list that seems to be doing well:
You are running R just for Inspiring Veteran? Unless you have some good R side-board cards, I'd ditch the Veteran and the R and play Metallic Mimic or something else altogether in that slot.
And shield breaker in the side, also all the red sources are white sources so the cost of going three colors is pretty low when you get 8 tri lands
Sorry: I also forgot the 1/2 make-a-token flyer, and truefire paladin which I keep rotating in and out
Embereth Shieldbreaker is a good man. The trouble with adding a third color is you have to run more Shocks and fast lands. It will cost you so it needs to be worthwhile. I get the desire to have a knight with an Adventure for hate when possible.
Another issue I see is Fatal Push; you've got so little to trigger Revolt. I'd think Fabled Passage is a requirement. Less stringent mana requirements would allow you to run a Field of Ruin or two, but it would probably have to take the place of a spell in a Mardu list.
Tournament Grounds and Unclaimed Territory won't make colored mana for Adventures or spells. You've got six sources to cast Battle Display with and no way to search up any of them other than Knight of the White Orchid. You've got seven sources for Fatal Push. Another reason to run Fabled Passage and/or Field of Ruin.
KotWO is a good little man, but he's unreliable especially on the play. He may let you get by with so few lands but it will often be several turns before he can get you a land. Do you hold him until he can come through?
Mimic is bad in non-artifact decks, I think it's a given after years doing absolutely nothing in tribal decks, in any format. Here, Thalia's Lieutenant is always better, while off-tribe.
Mimic is a bad Lord, but not because he's an artifact. But an additional color for a mediocre Lord isn't worth while to me. Thalia's Lieutenant is a better idea as long as you aren't too heavily invested in Knight synergy.
I think this deck has a lot of potential especially because brave the elements is so good. And I'm surprised no one mentioned knight of the white orchid yet it fixes Mana, is a knight, ECT.
Anyways, here's my current list that seems to be doing well:
You are running R just for Inspiring Veteran? Unless you have some good R side-board cards, I'd ditch the Veteran and the R and play Metallic Mimic - or something else altogether - in that slot.
Fabled Passage is horrendous anyway. You're an aggro deck, this card is for midrange and GY abuse only. There's definitely tension between adventure cards and the package Territory + Grounds.
I tested my lists above and found equipments to be rather unnecessary. I fail to find an archetype where Embercleave is good, it needs many creatures yet big ones so the DS + trample gets relevant. Steelclaw and Masterwork are better. I question then the use of Fervent Champion, and red altogether. There's Olivia, Mobilized for War, nice flyer, but discarding when another creature etb is a real sacrifice. Copter seems as good at being a 3/3 flyer that gives pseudo haste to a new comer, also discards cards, but is cheaper and harder to kill.
Why not a heavy black version with the best white knights ? 1-2 Urborgs should do it.
B-heavy is probably the best route. One of the best arguments for R is probably Embereth Shieldbreaker. He's a side-board guy, and could be eschewed in favor of other types of artifact hate, but one of the main things that makes Standard knights work to the extent they do is the pseudo-card-advantage that Adventures give.
Embercleave doesn't really seem appealing to me either.
it's because I plan to include 7-8 non-creature spells. Those would be removal, and some other things.
Unclaimed territory would be redundant with tournament grounds. Having 8 lands that cannot produce colored mana for non creature spells does not feel right.
Four is too many for me, but Mardu may require it. My Standard Orzhov uses two only TG. If I roll into Pioneer with Orzhov, the TGs will get the boot. I wanted to try Boros first and still do, but it means buying cards, so it might be a little while.
I made Top 8 in the 72-player MCQ, going 5-1 over the first six rounds into an ID in round 7. Unfortunately, I scrubbed out in the first round of the single elimination due to some incredible mana flood.
I faced a lot of Oko in the tournament, including the middle four rounds that I played, and I went 3-1 against them. Those Oko matches were bookended by an Azorius deck that never really interacted with me in a meaningful way and a Golgari adventure deck that sputtered in games 2 and 3 after beating me in game 1.
I ended up playing a playset of Noxious Grasp for the tournament alone, though I'd never get away with that in my LGS meta. I was highly relevant and useful every time I drew it, except when my opponent had Summer Veil.
Overall, Corpse Knight was an absolute all-star. It forced through life loss in situations where I could not attack, tore through opposing life totals in conjunction with Worthy Knight, and acted as a valuable source of reach to enable Knight of the Ebon Legion. Sorin and Archon were decidedly less than impressive in the Oko matchup, unfortunately.
Congrats on the result!
Noxious Grasp seems like a good card for the board; I've no idea why I can't ever remember to pick up a couple of copies.
I haven't experienced flood really yet, but I did whiff twice today with Acclaimed Contender; five lands in one occasion and four plus a spell in another.
Imposing Sovereign too. But Authority of the Consuls is much better for white decks. It gains life early VS blitz aggro decks, prevents from crewing vehicles right away, cannot be Oko'ed, stops Arclight Phoenix, in a way it stops every potential boogey man in the format.
It also makes me want to build an enchantress deck !
Blind Obedience does CopyCat in too. I suspect we still haven't gotten them all.
I'm going to add another Kaya to the board to help against Ovens and Cats. I still really have nothing for Clovers. Disenchant just seems So out of place. Splashing R for Battle Display is not out of the question I suppose, but I'm not thrilled about it.
Updated list at top of thread.
The updated list is at the top of the thread.
Sorry, they are Mortify.
1 Foulmire Knight
3 Knight of the Ebon Legion
4 Blacklance Paragon
4 Corpse Knight
3 Order of Midnight
2 Smitten Swordmaster
4 Worthy Knight
4 Murderous Rider
4 Acclaimed Contender
1 Midnight Reaper
1 Blast Zone
2 Castle Ardenvale
3 Castle Locthwain
4 Fabled Passage
4 Godless Shrine
3 Plains
5 Swamp
2 Tournament Grounds
Six Non-Creature Spells
4 Disfigure
2 Sorin, Vengeful Bloodlord
1 Realm-Cloaked Giant
4 Duress
1 Despark
1 The Elderspell
1 Epic Downfall
1 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Kaya, Orzhov Usurper
2 Vindicate
2 Witch's Vengeance
1 Kaya's Wrath
1. Add two more Midnight Reaper's main-deck.
2. Add one more Kaya's Wrath to the side-board.
3. Move the Sorins to the side-board.
The side-board generally needs work. Some thoughts include:
1. Adding some number of Noxious Grasp
2. Adding some number of Legion's End. These may be better than Disfigure for the main-deck, but I doubt it.
Some wild ideas that I'm contemplating:
1. Adding one or two Resolute Rider somewhere in the 75.
2. Adding two-ish Gideon's Sacrifice somewhere in the 75. It's not all bad even without Resolute guy.
3. Adding The Circle of Loyalty.
4. Returning Mace of the Valiant.
What do you think? Do you have any better ideas?
I don't think I ever got to the level of Blasphemous Act abuse, but I played the crap out of Reckoner when he was in Standard.
Another issue I see is Fatal Push; you've got so little to trigger Revolt. I'd think Fabled Passage is a requirement. Less stringent mana requirements would allow you to run a Field of Ruin or two, but it would probably have to take the place of a spell in a Mardu list.
Tournament Grounds and Unclaimed Territory won't make colored mana for Adventures or spells. You've got six sources to cast Battle Display with and no way to search up any of them other than Knight of the White Orchid. You've got seven sources for Fatal Push. Another reason to run Fabled Passage and/or Field of Ruin.
KotWO is a good little man, but he's unreliable especially on the play. He may let you get by with so few lands but it will often be several turns before he can get you a land. Do you hold him until he can come through?
Embercleave doesn't really seem appealing to me either.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth may be just the thing for heavy-B Mardu.
There are some things I really want to try out with Boros, but they may just be cheap tricks - fun, but cheap. We'll see what works.
Noxious Grasp seems like a good card for the board; I've no idea why I can't ever remember to pick up a couple of copies.
I haven't experienced flood really yet, but I did whiff twice today with Acclaimed Contender; five lands in one occasion and four plus a spell in another.