Vial is much more consistent in its ramp than SSG, as it enables you to play two creatures every turn. A very strong pattern of play is something like:
Turn 1: Vial
Turn 2: Unsettled Mariner (gives a bit of protection to your follow-up plays)
Turn 3: Skelemental/Reef + Phantasmal Image -> Attack for 14 & Discard 4 / Draw or Ramp 2 in this turn
Turn 4 (After Reef on Turn 3): Play Harbinger and Fetch a Skelemental, while also getting massive CA, so you might be able to get two Skelementals out this turn
I admit that I have never used unearth, but will try it out soon. The mana base is more painful if we need access to black I assume though.
Pro Reef:
- Strong matchup against grindy decks
- Strong plays involving phantasmal image and vials are possible, like attacking with 2 skelementals on turn 3.
harbinger gives more consistency and can fetch removal, card draw, action or unconditonal removal (for one turn - flickerwisp) and also silver bullets from the sideboard for land/artifact destruction or lifegain
- Not 100% relying on skelemental to win
- Draw from Reef can make up for the Card disadvantage of neonate and simian spirit guide
Cons:
- Less discard, makes combo decks harder, especially spell based ones
- Not as many turn 2 skelementals
- Less removal, harder to stop creature combos
I tried to neglect the cons in my list a bit my adding some lightning bolts, spirit guides and neonates in order to have a little more interaction with my opponents creatures or annoying planeswalkers (W6) and also increase the number of turn 2 skelemental attacks, while also keeping all of the pros. It's only 4,5$ to rent per week on cardhoarder for MTGO. I use their service to be able to play with a deck for a week or two whenever I want, and then cancel the subscription again.
I think the Insolent Neonate are a cool idea! I included them into my list and will test how they will do.
The focus on dreding and all in into the combo, as well as the freeboters and the bladesplicers do not look that promising to me. I also try to minimize the amount of non-creatures and the amount of non-creature non-red spells, in order to make vial and the elemental-based lands work.
I have been playing around with this type of deck a lot lately, so here is the list I currently want to try:
Aether vial and Smokebraider help casting creatures when stuck with the wrong colours of the 5c manabase, and also help to power out a mass of creatures early.
I choose the draw lands instead of fetches, to be able to draw cards tutored to the top of your deck instantly, and also to get some additional draws from the extra lands from risen reef.
Im not sure yet about the Voice of Resurgence, but it can be a good tutor target against grindy decks.
Turn 1: Vial
Turn 2: Unsettled Mariner (gives a bit of protection to your follow-up plays)
Turn 3: Skelemental/Reef + Phantasmal Image -> Attack for 14 & Discard 4 / Draw or Ramp 2 in this turn
Turn 4 (After Reef on Turn 3): Play Harbinger and Fetch a Skelemental, while also getting massive CA, so you might be able to get two Skelementals out this turn
I admit that I have never used unearth, but will try it out soon. The mana base is more painful if we need access to black I assume though.
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2174686#paper
Pro Reef:
- Strong matchup against grindy decks
- Strong plays involving phantasmal image and vials are possible, like attacking with 2 skelementals on turn 3.
harbinger gives more consistency and can fetch removal, card draw, action or unconditonal removal (for one turn - flickerwisp) and also silver bullets from the sideboard for land/artifact destruction or lifegain
- Not 100% relying on skelemental to win
- Draw from Reef can make up for the Card disadvantage of neonate and simian spirit guide
Cons:
- Less discard, makes combo decks harder, especially spell based ones
- Not as many turn 2 skelementals
- Less removal, harder to stop creature combos
I tried to neglect the cons in my list a bit my adding some lightning bolts, spirit guides and neonates in order to have a little more interaction with my opponents creatures or annoying planeswalkers (W6) and also increase the number of turn 2 skelemental attacks, while also keeping all of the pros. It's only 4,5$ to rent per week on cardhoarder for MTGO. I use their service to be able to play with a deck for a week or two whenever I want, and then cancel the subscription again.
The focus on dreding and all in into the combo, as well as the freeboters and the bladesplicers do not look that promising to me. I also try to minimize the amount of non-creatures and the amount of non-creature non-red spells, in order to make vial and the elemental-based lands work.
I have been playing around with this type of deck a lot lately, so here is the list I currently want to try:
3 Ancient Ziggurat
4 Sunbaked Canyon
4 Copperline Gorge
1 Fiery Islet
4 Cavern of Souls
3 Unclaimed Territory
2 Mountain
Spells
4 Aether Vial
4 Faithless Looting
Creatures
4 Flamekin Harbinger
3 Smokebraider
3 Insolent Neonate
1 Mirror Entity
4 Lightning Skelemental
1 Omnath, Locus of the Roil
4 Risen Reef
4 Thunderkin Awakener
4 Vesperlark
1 Flickerwisp
1 Voice of Resurgence
1 Spitebellows
1 Abrade
1 Shriekmaw
2 Fulminator Mage
2 Alpine Moon
1 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Ingot Chewer
1 Plague Engineer
1 Collector Ouphe
2 Surgical Extraction
1 Dragon's Claw
1 Healer of the Glade
1 Wispmare
I tried to combine the grindy elemental synergies with the explosiveness of Thunderkin Awakener into lightning skelemental starts. Faithless Looting, Insolent Neonates and Flamekin Harbinger give this a lot of consistency.
Risen reef is insane value and can draw 5+ cards until turn 4 if you get some thunderkin or vesperlark tirggers.
Spitebellows and flickerwisp are tutorable with harbinger and can help to remove problematic stuff and are also recurable.
Mirror Entity and Omnath, Locus of the Roil are 1 of alternate Wincons you can tutor up.
Aether vial and Smokebraider help casting creatures when stuck with the wrong colours of the 5c manabase, and also help to power out a mass of creatures early.
I choose the draw lands instead of fetches, to be able to draw cards tutored to the top of your deck instantly, and also to get some additional draws from the extra lands from risen reef.
Im not sure yet about the Voice of Resurgence, but it can be a good tutor target against grindy decks.
Changes I could see for this deck are either dropping or increasing the number of Voice of Resurgence and/or smokebraider, and including the last copy of the Insolent Neonate, maybe an Unsettled Mariner or an additonal Flickerwisp, or a mainboard Fulminator Mage.
Some amount of Lightning Bolt is also something I have to test.
Also: I think we can merge this thread and https://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/deck-creation-modern/811776-vesper-lark-and-thunderkin-awakener-elementals because they basicly discuss the same deck idea.