That is good to know about Abzan. I always worry about the mana base of three colors. I also have thought about splashing green just for Gavony Township alone.
I find that the scullers are very good against combo and control; keeping some of the decks off of their plan. In a fast meta, they seem to hurt. There is one store that I visit where I will always use scullers and my walkers. The other one I leave the scullers at home and seriously consider not using walkers. Sculler is definitely a meta decision, IMO. They are cheap too so it is easy to try them out for a test run.
The MOMENT that something other than a token hits the board we are going to lose it to removal. In that regard, sculler is clearly superior to the Hero. If you can play to ensure a clear hand and then play you creatures, that is ideal. That is why I find any of the creature choices given here problematic. I don't know how often people check to see if the coast is clear before they play their creatures. Again, an advantage of sculler is that you can see the removal and take it before you play your big threat.
On the other hand, if you play against a lot of threats, then more removal makes sense because at least your opponent has to tap in resources to put it down before you kill it. That argues for a lower mana curve and token creatures like Raise the Alarm.
My main issue with bitterblossom is that it is a clock on you without any life gain. Basically, I have to combo two cards to get an advantage. On the other hand, it is another threat on the board.
What I mean by a hole is that we don't really have good threats at one and two mana. Young pyromancer, if it was white, would be an auto include. We have anthems and other stuff, but nothing that gives an immediate board advantage like Tarmogoyf. Even the blossom incurs a cost and sets us back. Basically, if you play tokens, you give your opponent two free turns before snything really threatening resolves.
Have you thought of going to 23 lands and cutting a sculler for two hero of bladehold?
As an avid tokens proponent since I returned to Magic after a hiatus of about 18 years, bought the Sorin/Tibalt duel deck and decided that I loved BW tokens, I spent the past two days reading through the thread because, as Masterflex put it: there are many agreed upon cards and then a lot of areas where there is less certainty. I was hoping to get some questions answered. Namely, once one has their build of 23 lands, 4 each of spectral processions and lingering souls, paths, and anthems, where do we go from here? The answer: no one seems to have a good answer. About the only thing I learned for sure is that Elspeth Tirel is awesome.
Based upon my experiences playing in several different levels of competitive meta, there are a few things that I have seen:
1) Your choice of walkers or walker-less is very meta and personality dependent.
2) There is a big hole in tokens at the 2-3 drop level that we are all trying desperately to fill with substandard cards.
3) Our choice of creatures is clearly varied. There is widespread agreement on 2-3 Hero of Bladehold. What is less certain is whether or not we want more such as Brimaz, Monastery Mentor, or Tidehollow Sculler.
4) Tokens has great blow out card advantage. We can three for one and two for one unlike any other deck in the format. Moreover, unlike many of the decks that have card advantage, our deck isn't fragile. This is what makes the deck.
5) Evasion is extremely relevant in Modern. When we can get a few fliers online and a relatively clear battlefield, the game is ours.
So, my experiences with some of the cards is as follows: Raise the Alarm: Saved my game a few times. When I drew into fliers, they were taken out by Maelstrom Pulse, all I had left were soldiers and a couple of anthems. When Elspeth, Knight Errant took the field, they became flying soldiers for the win. Elspeth, Knight Errant: I tend to use her second +1 more than the first to create fliers or buff creatures already in play. My feeling is that this is weaker than what I really want. Sorin, Lord of Innistrad: Is amazing. I remember one jund matchup where I got to ultimate him in the face of repeating discard effects. It turned the game after chump blocking for several turns. Marsh Flats: Is not necessary for FNM. Someone earlier asked about a budget build and was jumped on by someone saying that in a field of more than a dozen or so you would lose. As someone who top 8 a fairly competitive group of about 30 with a budget build, it wasn't a hindrance until I hit burn. Having said this, I encourage the purchase because of Windbrisk Heights. Windbrisk Heights: Is good. At the least, it forces a decision about whether or not to kill the third spirit token before they attack with it. This can be good, especially if you want to drop your Hero that turn. If not, then you have the option of activating heights. Choices are good. Thoughtseize: everyone should read the article by Reid Duke on Thoughtseize You. I have read it probably four times in the past three days. My perspective on the effect and its utility has changed dramatically. Never again will I thought seize within the first turn or two unless I have a couple. Likewise, I will board the effect out when I encounter decks that have a lot of similar cards. Castigate: Evicerates Tron. Auriok Champion: Is a win more in most match-ups. In every scenario that I won, with the exception of some burn, I was basically going to win it anyway without life gain.
I am currently messing around with Monastery Mentor. One player basically addressed the dies to removal argument this way: "Unless you are in a persistent vegetative state, there is no way that mentor is going to die to removal before you get utility out of him." I tend to agree. My experience with Tidehollow Sculler and Hero of Bladehold is just that: if you know what you are walking into and or pressure the board correctly, then you are going to lose your creatures. One thing I have found with tokens is, as someone else noted, that it punishes poor play. You make a dumb more turn 2 and you will be paying for it throughout the game. The same applies to just playing your threat because it is in your hand. Don't flood the board with tokens and don't just play your creatures because you have some open mana.
Monastery mentor also has the advantage of overtaking a maelstrom pulse: it gives us more token variety in the face of board wipes naming specific cards. But, so does Brimaz.
Having said all of this, I think that I am moving a bit more into the Brimaz camp despite only having played a few games with him.
I encourage everyone playing tokens to use some more creativity in their play. I find that the strategic use of threats can encourage opponents to misplay. Opponents unfamiliar with zealous persecution are caught off guard when you attack with your 1/1 soldiers and open mana into their 2/3 Tarmogoyf. They start second guessing their own attacks and mis-using their removal when you attack with three 1/1 spirits and you turned over you Windbrisk Heights last game revealing an Honor of the Pure. Some of the strength of tokens is the mind game that you can play when everything on the board could transform at a moments notice. Offering your opponent a lot of choices repeatedly also encourages them to make mistakes and this can be increased by playing in what is a seemingly random or even errant fashion (dropping your land every turn in the first main and then switching to the second or playing your cards in the first main sometimes and then your second main others). Tokens offers a lot of utility in this area and we have to maximize it.
Anybody ever try Kitchen Finks? Murderous Redcap? Serra Avenger?
The MOMENT that something other than a token hits the board we are going to lose it to removal. In that regard, sculler is clearly superior to the Hero. If you can play to ensure a clear hand and then play you creatures, that is ideal. That is why I find any of the creature choices given here problematic. I don't know how often people check to see if the coast is clear before they play their creatures. Again, an advantage of sculler is that you can see the removal and take it before you play your big threat.
On the other hand, if you play against a lot of threats, then more removal makes sense because at least your opponent has to tap in resources to put it down before you kill it. That argues for a lower mana curve and token creatures like Raise the Alarm.
What I mean by a hole is that we don't really have good threats at one and two mana. Young pyromancer, if it was white, would be an auto include. We have anthems and other stuff, but nothing that gives an immediate board advantage like Tarmogoyf. Even the blossom incurs a cost and sets us back. Basically, if you play tokens, you give your opponent two free turns before snything really threatening resolves.
Have you thought of going to 23 lands and cutting a sculler for two hero of bladehold?
I side 2 burrenton forge-tender; 2 stony silence; 1 wrath of god;1 nevermore; 1 chalice of the void; 1 rule of law; 2 aven mindcensor; and some of the same effects you have.
Based upon my experiences playing in several different levels of competitive meta, there are a few things that I have seen:
1) Your choice of walkers or walker-less is very meta and personality dependent.
2) There is a big hole in tokens at the 2-3 drop level that we are all trying desperately to fill with substandard cards.
3) Our choice of creatures is clearly varied. There is widespread agreement on 2-3 Hero of Bladehold. What is less certain is whether or not we want more such as Brimaz, Monastery Mentor, or Tidehollow Sculler.
4) Tokens has great blow out card advantage. We can three for one and two for one unlike any other deck in the format. Moreover, unlike many of the decks that have card advantage, our deck isn't fragile. This is what makes the deck.
5) Evasion is extremely relevant in Modern. When we can get a few fliers online and a relatively clear battlefield, the game is ours.
So, my experiences with some of the cards is as follows:
Raise the Alarm: Saved my game a few times. When I drew into fliers, they were taken out by Maelstrom Pulse, all I had left were soldiers and a couple of anthems. When Elspeth, Knight Errant took the field, they became flying soldiers for the win.
Elspeth, Knight Errant: I tend to use her second +1 more than the first to create fliers or buff creatures already in play. My feeling is that this is weaker than what I really want.
Sorin, Lord of Innistrad: Is amazing. I remember one jund matchup where I got to ultimate him in the face of repeating discard effects. It turned the game after chump blocking for several turns.
Marsh Flats: Is not necessary for FNM. Someone earlier asked about a budget build and was jumped on by someone saying that in a field of more than a dozen or so you would lose. As someone who top 8 a fairly competitive group of about 30 with a budget build, it wasn't a hindrance until I hit burn. Having said this, I encourage the purchase because of Windbrisk Heights.
Windbrisk Heights: Is good. At the least, it forces a decision about whether or not to kill the third spirit token before they attack with it. This can be good, especially if you want to drop your Hero that turn. If not, then you have the option of activating heights. Choices are good.
Thoughtseize: everyone should read the article by Reid Duke on Thoughtseize You. I have read it probably four times in the past three days. My perspective on the effect and its utility has changed dramatically. Never again will I thought seize within the first turn or two unless I have a couple. Likewise, I will board the effect out when I encounter decks that have a lot of similar cards.
Castigate: Evicerates Tron.
Auriok Champion: Is a win more in most match-ups. In every scenario that I won, with the exception of some burn, I was basically going to win it anyway without life gain.
I am currently messing around with Monastery Mentor. One player basically addressed the dies to removal argument this way: "Unless you are in a persistent vegetative state, there is no way that mentor is going to die to removal before you get utility out of him." I tend to agree. My experience with Tidehollow Sculler and Hero of Bladehold is just that: if you know what you are walking into and or pressure the board correctly, then you are going to lose your creatures. One thing I have found with tokens is, as someone else noted, that it punishes poor play. You make a dumb more turn 2 and you will be paying for it throughout the game. The same applies to just playing your threat because it is in your hand. Don't flood the board with tokens and don't just play your creatures because you have some open mana.
Monastery mentor also has the advantage of overtaking a maelstrom pulse: it gives us more token variety in the face of board wipes naming specific cards. But, so does Brimaz.
Having said all of this, I think that I am moving a bit more into the Brimaz camp despite only having played a few games with him.
I encourage everyone playing tokens to use some more creativity in their play. I find that the strategic use of threats can encourage opponents to misplay. Opponents unfamiliar with zealous persecution are caught off guard when you attack with your 1/1 soldiers and open mana into their 2/3 Tarmogoyf. They start second guessing their own attacks and mis-using their removal when you attack with three 1/1 spirits and you turned over you Windbrisk Heights last game revealing an Honor of the Pure. Some of the strength of tokens is the mind game that you can play when everything on the board could transform at a moments notice. Offering your opponent a lot of choices repeatedly also encourages them to make mistakes and this can be increased by playing in what is a seemingly random or even errant fashion (dropping your land every turn in the first main and then switching to the second or playing your cards in the first main sometimes and then your second main others). Tokens offers a lot of utility in this area and we have to maximize it.