I never thought I'd see the day where Knight Tribal was a supported theme within a set. Incredible.
I think the best plan is just to pick one of the core flavours of knight archetype and go from there. It's clear that there are now ample cards to support an aggro plan, an equipment/value plan, and the Haakon, Stromgald Scourge plan. Trying to mix all of these things together is probably a mistake. This is why I think Mardu is the wrong direction to go. It seems to me that it gets pulled in too many directions at once.
I've tried out of a few of these over the past week and have really been liking the WR aggro build. This is what I've been running:
To no one's surprise, Worthy Knight and the humans-matter cards work exceptionally well together. The fact that it triggers on casting a knight rather than on ETB means that you get the token even if they kill Worthy Knight in response. It was not uncommon to grow Champion of the Parish 4 power per turn. Turn 4 kills were common. There were also two occasions where I was trapped behind an Ensnaring Bridge and won by flinging a 12 power Champion into the face of the opponent on their end step.
I was less impressed with Fervent Champion. I think this creature best belongs in some sort of equipment shell rather than as a staple in an aggro deck. Without playing a critical mass of equipment it just did not feel powerful.
I also really enjoyed messing around with Haakon, Stromgald Scourge and Corpse Knight. It was slower and grindier compared to the blistering speed of the first build, but it felt good to totally ignore board-wipes.
The combo between Dauntless Bodyguard, Midnight Reaper, and Haakon, Stromgald Scourge was very good. Since the bodyguard can sacrifice itself whenever, this allows you to draw a card and lose a life for the low low price of W. Even if the board stalled out, this, coupled with Corpse Knight, allowed me to close out a number of games.
Ultimately, I don't think anyone is going to pick up Knight Tribal with the expectation that it's the best thing going on in Modern. You might as well play humans if that's how you feel. Personally, there are few better feelings than scraping out a win against a Tier 1 or 2 deck on the back of this under-powered albeit flavourful tribe.
I think the best plan is just to pick one of the core flavours of knight archetype and go from there. It's clear that there are now ample cards to support an aggro plan, an equipment/value plan, and the Haakon, Stromgald Scourge plan. Trying to mix all of these things together is probably a mistake. This is why I think Mardu is the wrong direction to go. It seems to me that it gets pulled in too many directions at once.
I've tried out of a few of these over the past week and have really been liking the WR aggro build. This is what I've been running:
4 Arid Mesa
3 Sunbaked Canyon
3 Inspiring Vantage
2 Castle Ardenvale
5 Snow-Covered Plains
3 Sacred Foundry
Creatures
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Student of Warfare
3 Venerable Knight
4 Inspiring Veteran
4 Worthy Knight
3 Thalia's Lieutenant
4 Knight Exemplar
3 Acclaimed Contender
3 On Thin Ice
3 Lightning Bolt
1 Fling
Artifacts
4 Aether Vial
3 Wheel of Sun and Moon
1 On Thin Ice
1 Lightning Bolt
1 Worship
2 Stony Silence
1 Paladin en-Vec
3 Wear // Tear
3 Damping Sphere
3 Unclaimed Territory
1 Cavern of Souls
4 Marsh Flats
4 Windswept Heath
1 Temple Garden
1 Overgrown Tomb
3 Godless Shrine
2 Silent Clearing
1 Forest
1 Swamp
2 Knight of the Ebon Legion
3 Dauntless Bodyguard
4 Corpse Knight
4 Worthy Knight
2 Blacklance Paragon
4 Haakon, Stromgald Scourge
1 Knight Exemplar
2 Acclaimed Contender
2 Knight of Autumn
2 Midnight Reaper
2 Murderous Rider
4 Grisly Salvage
1 Cribswap
Enchantments
1 Etchings of the Chosen
1 Survival Cache
Artifacts
4 Aether Vial
Ultimately, I don't think anyone is going to pick up Knight Tribal with the expectation that it's the best thing going on in Modern. You might as well play humans if that's how you feel. Personally, there are few better feelings than scraping out a win against a Tier 1 or 2 deck on the back of this under-powered albeit flavourful tribe.