I really like to see Big Thalia back in the lists. She is good not only versus Tron, but against almost every other 3c deck in modern. Jeskai, Grixis and GBx midrange decks are very reliant on their fetches and Non-Basics.
Also, in the aggro mirror Big Thalia can win you the race.
Only problem is you need tot start with Noble into Thalia and Noble needs to survive to have a real impact or it might be too late.
Do you guys think Remorceful Cleric would be any good as a traversable, single sided graveyard hate piece? Or would it be to fragile as opposed to Nihil Spellbomb
Yeah I think Cast Down is really an underplayed card probably.
I've been using Cast Down since it's printing and is has been nothing but great. The only problem creature i have is in fact Tasigur, the Golden Fang. All other problematic legendaries currently played are answered by (revolted)Fatal Push.
tried walking ballista and it seems like a cool tech. actually comes in play for delirium or early removal. its not bad late too.
I've been testing with Walking Balista a lot. In my original, more top heavy Sultai Delirium Build, i didn't even play Baubles. Walking Ballista was that good for me, now when i'm trying out a leaner version of the deck, i've only included one copy to fetch for or use as early removal. I'm not exactly sure what version of that deck i like best.
Using Walking Ballista has different upsides/downsides in the deck than Mishra's Bauble and it's a matter of taste which one to use. To quote my own posts:
Bauble vs. Ballista is a tricky one. It's a matter of fixing, information and cantrip vs. Early game removal, Must deal with Threat and game finisher all while being better in enabling delirium as soon as T2. Used both and eventually took Ballistas over Baubles.
Baubles never won me a game, Ballistas did. They are a way to tutor for the last points of damage.
Ballista adds two types for 0, but better yet, takes a Dark Confidant/Mana Dork/Young Pyrancer and not to forget, Thalia GoT sans tax, with it on T2 in the proces for instance.
Which is why I can get away with less removalspells.
Sideboard looks solid, If you run Gaddock Teeg and feel confident to cast it when it's needed, you could aswell try Qasali Pridemage instead of Reclamation Sage, the card is just stricktly better versus Torpor Orb which has been popping up every now and then. It can also be found with Militia Bugler if you suspect anything like that (or bloodmoon/worship)
About Militia Bugler.
I'm currently testing with 3 copies, i cut 1 Phantasmal Image, 1 Kessig Malcontents and Restoration Angel.
How does everybody feel about the card. Especially Restoration Angel has been very good for me in my recent games. though both cards just don't go well together.
Amongst the best plays where: T3 cast Militia Bugler with Aether Vial on two, and vial in the hit. This has mostly been Thalia's Lieutenant, and is a big hit when applying preasure. Can be anything disruptive if needed though.
One remark and while it has not happened before, the card i want to topdeck most of the time, is also the one we cannot hit with Militia Bugler, which is Mantis Rider obviously. Has this happened to someone?
Is anybody still on this deck? I feel midrange/reanimator shell fits the new Nicol Bolas, the Ravager very well and i'm going to try it out for the last couple of months Liliana, Death's Majesty and The Scarab God are in standard.
Since it's a mostly proven shell it shouldn't be to hard to make it work.
What do you think of this deck? What card could be in it from the latest sets like maybe Goblin Instigator or Exclusion Mage and card what shouldn't in an open meta?
I'm planning to use this on FNM.
As a player who might be interested in putting a commander deck together, would this be a good place to start?
From the looks of it i own most modern legal cards and can probably replace the legacy staples that are in this deck for the time being.
Also could someone give an estimation on the completed cost of the deck?
Yesterday, as we Always do when a new set comes out, me and my playgroup played a little limited tournament.
Amonst the cards i pulled were two Militia Buglers, conveniently a card from the set i'd like to have.
One of them has a strange residue on the card, it looks like glue. Please see the attached images for reference.
A few questions:
Has anybody ever seen this?
Does this count as misprint?
How do i get rid of it (Should i?) without damaging the card?
The curve you describe here costs you 8 life points pretty often (Fetch, Obligatory shock, Thoughtseize, Surgical +T2 Fetch). That's probably 10 life more often if you want to hit LotV or Snap+Discard on T3. Is that really worth it?
By that time you could probably run Death's Shadow.
Treetop is much better for the reasons Brightmist already stated. The only reason to play Shambling Vent is because of mana fixing. Being able to produce only one color of mana in a 3 color deck can be annoying sometimes.
Treetop has trample and costs less to activate. The deck runs well on 3-4 mana and looks to close out game fast with all the tramplers in Rhino/Flayer or a huge Goyf.
Sounds reasonable. The green mana can probably be awkward at times, but is great when traversing for scooze.
Last SB card is missing from everywhere pretty much. I'm running Kambal there atm but open to other suggestions.
I'm going for Plague Mare in my traverse build as a traversable tokens hate card. Should be very good versus Mardu Pyro and other token strategies.
edit: Come to think of it, The trample is obviously allready good versus these strategies.
I noticed the abzan traverse list too. Love to see a deck back at the top similar to my pet-deck. I might try Abzan for a change since i already own all the pieces. Path to Exile is just to good right now.
Two questions:
Does anybody know why the decklist on WotC only contains 14 sideboard cards?
And why Treetop Village over Shambling Vent?
You are absolutely right. It would not do anything versus fumigate unless the target has blocked, which it probably hasn't.
Though versus anything else it functioned exactly the way i planned it.
Played against a friend with JundDS and Tooth and Nail. I won't go into details about the games since the former is highly favoured and the latter highly unfavoured .
On the Bugler though, more often than not i had the oppurtunity to cast Bugler and find a Liutennant or something else impactful which i could immediately vial in. Those are real value plays!
I'm digging those lines so far, The 4card dig is really deep and chances of whiffing are very very slim. The 2/3 (3/4) vigilance body is also nothing to scuff at, attacking and blocking for days afrer getting value.
Eventually i decided to sleeve the deck up and yesterday, i gave it a first "competitive" go. I Took the following list to a 3-1 finish in a 4 rounds tournament in a casual setting, giving room to some experimentation.
Third round: BW Aggro (2-0 win on the play)
Game one, First time i cast Untamed Kavu which has been rotting in hand for most games because i had other things to do. Though in this game it did a ton of work. Bashing through heaps of Knights and tokens while growing it steadily with Rishkar and Shalai, his only removalspell was Seal Away, nuf said. Game two i think he got a little manascrewed. Bristling Hydra ftw.
Didn't Board for game two, to see how it went.
Fourth round: BW Aura's (2-1 win on the play)
It's getting late and this was a pretty tough and grindy matchup. I don't know all the details, but he tries to curve hard from Knight of Grace into Danitha Capashen, Paragon and abuse Kwende, Pride of Femeref.
He has a lot of evasion and pumpspells but i get there eventually. Game two he boards in the lifegain, and at one moment he swings with a 7/something double strike lifelinking thing. I have to sacrifice my Bristling Hydra for the life swing to be a little more manageble. But it prove to be too much to get back from. Game three I played Servant of the Conduit followed by 3 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner in the next two turns, keeping mana up for Vizier of Deferment which he tries to Seal Away. I blink Servant of the Conduit. All the energy of the world and all Siphoners with a very high life total and only one attacker to worry about, nets met so much card advantage that he just can't keep up. I overrun him purely on board state.
Out: 4 Untamed Kavu
In: 2 Thrashing Brontodon and 2 Vraska, Relic Seeker
In the end, it was my first opponent who took the first place overal, and i ended up right behind him with only one point short. Felt pretty good about the deck after wat felt a pretty bad start.
Some observations in hindsight:
-There were no real control decks, so the sideboard was not as usefull as it could have been. Though i prepared for the worst.
-Untamed Kavu, While undiniably strong as a 6/6 and even 5/5 vigilance trample when cast for 5, was rotting in my hands most of the time at two mana.
-Aethergeode Miner and especially Vizier of Deferment were absolute houses against the plethora of (white based) removal. Vizier being best as it also saves a creature from Fumigate if it would happen. But when things get really broken, is when you blink Rishkar or even Servant for energy or mana.
-Thrashing Brontodon sometimes feels a little slow.
-Didn't encouter any of the red based decks, so i cannot comment on the matchup, though i know from experience Snake into Rishkar is a mighty strong opening versus Red based Aggro. Just be sure to take out those Soul-Scar Mages
-The white removal over Vraska's Contempt has played out great. The splash for one white is just easier, never really have to rely on double black, also cycling.
-MVP's: Bristling Hydra, Shalai, Voice of Plenty (Yes the activated ability is sick in the deck) and Vizier of Deferment.
Going forward, i will probably shave a Kavu or two in favor of another vizier and rishkar, or maybe get Verdurous Gearhulk back in the deck. Blinking that seems a lot of fun. I don't think i need Blossoming Defense, though a turn three two drop with push or defense as backup is still very strong.
The sideboard needs some tweeking, might add some more removal or lifegain to cope with the more aggressive strategies Aethersphere Harvester comes to mind. Right now, the board is very focussed on the control matchup which, admiddetly, seems pretty good allready.
Had my doubts at first but had a lot of fun eventually. Let me know what you think!
Can't wait to take it to FNM next week.
4 Swamp
2 Island
2 Mountain
4 Aether Hub
4 Fetid Pools
4 Drowned Catacomb
4 Dragonskull Summit
1 Sulfur Falls
Creatures 16
4 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner
4 Champion of Wits
4 Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
1 Ravenous Chupacabra
1 Hostage Taker
2 The Scarab God
4 Fatal Push
2 Syncopate
3 Abrade
3 Essense Scatter
2 Supreme Will
1 Doomfall
2 Vraska's Contempt
2 Liliana, Death's Majesty
3 Duress
4 Negate
2 Arguel's Blood Fast
2 Gifted Aetherborn
2 Gonti, Lord of Luxury
1 Vraska's Contempt
1 confiscation Coup
It's pretty calm in this thread.
Also, in the aggro mirror Big Thalia can win you the race.
Only problem is you need tot start with Noble into Thalia and Noble needs to survive to have a real impact or it might be too late.
I've been using Cast Down since it's printing and is has been nothing but great. The only problem creature i have is in fact Tasigur, the Golden Fang. All other problematic legendaries currently played are answered by (revolted)Fatal Push.
I've been testing with Walking Balista a lot. In my original, more top heavy Sultai Delirium Build, i didn't even play Baubles. Walking Ballista was that good for me, now when i'm trying out a leaner version of the deck, i've only included one copy to fetch for or use as early removal. I'm not exactly sure what version of that deck i like best.
Using Walking Ballista has different upsides/downsides in the deck than Mishra's Bauble and it's a matter of taste which one to use. To quote my own posts:
About Militia Bugler.
I'm currently testing with 3 copies, i cut 1 Phantasmal Image, 1 Kessig Malcontents and Restoration Angel.
How does everybody feel about the card. Especially Restoration Angel has been very good for me in my recent games. though both cards just don't go well together.
Amongst the best plays where: T3 cast Militia Bugler with Aether Vial on two, and vial in the hit. This has mostly been Thalia's Lieutenant, and is a big hit when applying preasure. Can be anything disruptive if needed though.
One remark and while it has not happened before, the card i want to topdeck most of the time, is also the one we cannot hit with Militia Bugler, which is Mantis Rider obviously. Has this happened to someone?
Since it's a mostly proven shell it shouldn't be to hard to make it work.
I'm currently on something like this:
2 Swamp
2 Island
1 Mountain
4 Aether Hub
3 Canyon Slough
2 Fetid Pools
4 Drowned Catacomb
4 Dragonskull Summit
3 Sulfur Falls
Creatures 19
4 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner
4 Gifted Aetherborn
4 Champion of Wits
3 Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
2 Ravenous Chupacabra
2 The Scarab God
4 Fatal Push
1 Syncopate
4 Abrade
2 Essense Scatter
2 Supreme Will
1 Vraska's Contempt
2 Liliana, Death's Majesty
3 Duress
2 Essence Scatter
4 Negate
2 Lost Legacy
2 Gonti, Lord of Luxury
2 Vraska's Contempt
What do you think of this deck? What card could be in it from the latest sets like maybe Goblin Instigator or Exclusion Mage and card what shouldn't in an open meta?
I'm planning to use this on FNM.
From the looks of it i own most modern legal cards and can probably replace the legacy staples that are in this deck for the time being.
Also could someone give an estimation on the completed cost of the deck?
Amonst the cards i pulled were two Militia Buglers, conveniently a card from the set i'd like to have.
One of them has a strange residue on the card, it looks like glue. Please see the attached images for reference.
A few questions:
Has anybody ever seen this?
Does this count as misprint?
How do i get rid of it (Should i?) without damaging the card?
By that time you could probably run Death's Shadow.
Sounds reasonable. The green mana can probably be awkward at times, but is great when traversing for scooze.
I'm going for Plague Mare in my traverse build as a traversable tokens hate card. Should be very good versus Mardu Pyro and other token strategies.
edit: Come to think of it, The trample is obviously allready good versus these strategies.
Two questions:
Does anybody know why the decklist on WotC only contains 14 sideboard cards?
And why Treetop Village over Shambling Vent?
Yes exactly, and abuse etb triggers.
When attacking with the dreaded hydra, people will try to 1for1 with settle. The look on their face is priceless.
Only small downside is any +1/+1 counters will fall off, but i'd rather keep my creature at base p/t than have nothing at all.
Though versus anything else it functioned exactly the way i planned it.
Played against a friend with JundDS and Tooth and Nail. I won't go into details about the games since the former is highly favoured and the latter highly unfavoured .
On the Bugler though, more often than not i had the oppurtunity to cast Bugler and find a Liutennant or something else impactful which i could immediately vial in. Those are real value plays!
I'm digging those lines so far, The 4card dig is really deep and chances of whiffing are very very slim. The 2/3 (3/4) vigilance body is also nothing to scuff at, attacking and blocking for days afrer getting value.
3 Forest
4 Swamp
1 Plains
4 Aether Hub
4 Woodland Cemetery
4 Sunpetal Grove
4 Scattered Groves
Creatures (27)
4 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner
4 Winding Constrictor
4 Untamed Kavu
4 Servant of the Conduit
2 Vizier of Deferment
2 Rishkar Peema Renegade
4 Bristling Hydra
3 Shalai, Voice of Plenty
2 Blossoming Defense
4 Fatal Push
2 Cast Out
1 Ixalan's Binding
3 Duress
3 Aethergeode Miner
2 Thrashing Brontodon
2 Prowling Serpopard
1 The Eldest Reborn
2 Vraska, Relic Seeker
2 Carnage Tyrant
First round: GW Vehicles (1-2 Loss on the draw)
Started of game one pretty bad versus Traxos, Scourge of Kroog, gained back some faith in game two when i had the removal i needed for Heart of Kiran, Karn, Scion of Urza and Traxos, Scourge of Kroog but got mana screwed pretty bad in game 3. Should probably mulliganed that (very slow) hand.
Eventually lost to a failed removal sweep. Though it must be said, it was a pretty cool and very high stack of spells. I Sac Thrashing Brontodon on Heart of Kiran, In response he animates it with Rhonas the Indomitable to give it hexproof from Shalai, Voice of Plenty, I use a revolted Fatal Push from the sac'd Brontodon on Shalai to keep the spells from resolving, in response he casts Blossoming Defense targetting Shalai. Game over after that.
At this moment i start to doubt my choice of deck or cards. But honestly, Rhonas+Heart of Kiran mixed with protection i just a pain to fight.
Out: 1 Blossoming Defense and 4 Untamed Kavu
In: 1 The Eldest Reborn, 2 Thrashing Brontodon and 2 Vraska, Relic Seeker
Second round: GW Historic Construct tribal (2-0 win on the draw)
Both Pretty Quick games, I had Ixalan's Binding and Cast Out for Karn, Scion of Urza both games which, apart from Traxos, was the main wincon in the deck. Game 2 he tried to keep me from Rishkar, Peema Renegade's Mana, but blanked the removal he had with Vizier of Deferment, gaining a lot of tempo, redistributing counters and used Shalai, Voice of Plenty to pump the team several times. Aethergeode Miner was also a star in keepiong seal away's stuck in hand. Settle the Wreckage did nothing which felt really good.
Out: 4 Untamed Kavu
In: 2 Thrashing Brontodon and 2 Aethergeode Miner
Third round: BW Aggro (2-0 win on the play)
Game one, First time i cast Untamed Kavu which has been rotting in hand for most games because i had other things to do. Though in this game it did a ton of work. Bashing through heaps of Knights and tokens while growing it steadily with Rishkar and Shalai, his only removalspell was Seal Away, nuf said. Game two i think he got a little manascrewed. Bristling Hydra ftw.
Didn't Board for game two, to see how it went.
Fourth round: BW Aura's (2-1 win on the play)
It's getting late and this was a pretty tough and grindy matchup. I don't know all the details, but he tries to curve hard from Knight of Grace into Danitha Capashen, Paragon and abuse Kwende, Pride of Femeref.
He has a lot of evasion and pumpspells but i get there eventually. Game two he boards in the lifegain, and at one moment he swings with a 7/something double strike lifelinking thing. I have to sacrifice my Bristling Hydra for the life swing to be a little more manageble. But it prove to be too much to get back from. Game three I played Servant of the Conduit followed by 3 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner in the next two turns, keeping mana up for Vizier of Deferment which he tries to Seal Away. I blink Servant of the Conduit. All the energy of the world and all Siphoners with a very high life total and only one attacker to worry about, nets met so much card advantage that he just can't keep up. I overrun him purely on board state.
Out: 4 Untamed Kavu
In: 2 Thrashing Brontodon and 2 Vraska, Relic Seeker
In the end, it was my first opponent who took the first place overal, and i ended up right behind him with only one point short. Felt pretty good about the deck after wat felt a pretty bad start.
Some observations in hindsight:
-There were no real control decks, so the sideboard was not as usefull as it could have been. Though i prepared for the worst.
-Untamed Kavu, While undiniably strong as a 6/6 and even 5/5 vigilance trample when cast for 5, was rotting in my hands most of the time at two mana.
-Aethergeode Miner and especially Vizier of Deferment were absolute houses against the plethora of (white based) removal. Vizier being best as it also saves a creature from Fumigate if it would happen. But when things get really broken, is when you blink Rishkar or even Servant for energy or mana.
-Thrashing Brontodon sometimes feels a little slow.
-Didn't encouter any of the red based decks, so i cannot comment on the matchup, though i know from experience Snake into Rishkar is a mighty strong opening versus Red based Aggro. Just be sure to take out those Soul-Scar Mages
-The white removal over Vraska's Contempt has played out great. The splash for one white is just easier, never really have to rely on double black, also cycling.
-MVP's: Bristling Hydra, Shalai, Voice of Plenty (Yes the activated ability is sick in the deck) and Vizier of Deferment.
Going forward, i will probably shave a Kavu or two in favor of another vizier and rishkar, or maybe get Verdurous Gearhulk back in the deck. Blinking that seems a lot of fun. I don't think i need Blossoming Defense, though a turn three two drop with push or defense as backup is still very strong.
The sideboard needs some tweeking, might add some more removal or lifegain to cope with the more aggressive strategies Aethersphere Harvester comes to mind. Right now, the board is very focussed on the control matchup which, admiddetly, seems pretty good allready.
Had my doubts at first but had a lot of fun eventually. Let me know what you think!