As great as a game that would be in your favor, you're suffering from tunnel vision thinking every game will consistently unfold as such. What would you have done if they had a Condemn and Firespout in hand for your creatures? That's 3 to 2 in losses (in their favor), and you'd be sitting at 21 life instead of 22. Birds has that effect.
Well, I'm not getting defensive about you trying to critique my deck, I'm just totally against Birds in this build, regardless of who uses it and for what.
My point in straying from ramping out is that you don't need to with this deck, given that slot could be used for more nit-picky plays. What do you do when you play Birds into more things that get destroyed alongside Wrath/Firespout? Giant Growth won't pitch in unless you have a knack for dumb luck, and the sad truth is you're just timewalking yourself, using up slots in a deck that should be spent in regards to another spell. Tell me, in a general sense, which type of play you'd like to see in this deck
Imagine the same scenario, in which your opponent is on the play
w/ Birds:
Turn 1: Birds (probably pinging yourself from a painland just to get it out consistently, which will hurt you against RDW)
Turn 2: War Monk
Turn 3: Rafiq (your best play, really) swing with War Monk.
Turn 4: Stare at an empty board as your opponent plays Wrath, and consider the fact that your deck is losing steam as you have a max of three other spells you could play.
OR, w/o Birds:
Turn 1: Citadel/Treetop
Turn 2: Mimic
Turn 3: War Monk, swing with Mimic
Turn 4: They Wrath you, but you rebuild with Mimics and Negates, not to mention the slew of other spells you can use to put you on top. Wrath slows them down here, because now you're on the play, basically.
Do you see where I get my point of view now? I've playtested both versions of the build, and having the cards at my disposal, or lacking them, isn't what affects my opinion, but rather I find builds with Birds CAUSE YOU TO LOSE STEAM when the deck is steadfast both early, mid, and lategame in itself.
The Lieges in the board should probably be Cephalid Constables or Gaddock Teegs, against 5-colour (siding out CC of course), but I couldn't resist the possibility of casting them for free against Blightning/Cruel Ultimatum :P.
Err, wouldn't you rather prevent Cruel Ultimatum than have a dinky Liege on your board after it reaps so much card/life advantage? lol
I think Cryptic Command might be one of, if not THE, reasons I crush 5cc. I would not give it up
And the whole "BoP is no more than just one turn ahead", I dont really understand how you think when you start by bashing on slow creatures and plays and then say that a 1 turn quicker clock is not worth much. Like, what the hell?
And as Zooka has posted I think close to 10 times now, with Rafiq, Giant Growth and Warhammer if you run them, it's even a decent beater / blocker.
But tbh, if you dont run Cryptic you might not want to run BoP, as the turn 3 Cryptic is one of the reasons it is as awesome as it is.
I think there is a version of the bant deck running Teeg MD, have you checked that one out? May suit you better
Lmao, hold it. You're judging me for bashing Birds yet where's your argument for it? Is it just there for turn three Cryptic Command? Consider the fact that you lose a pretty valuable resource in Birds when your opponent plays Wrath/Firespout, and that for a consistent manabase, how are you going to usually play it on turn one anyway, considering the fact that it won't really have much of an impact later on? It's like arguing that Manamorphose needs to be put in every three color deck that supports it, so that you can have superior plays, with efficient mana fixing, earlier in the game. Furthermore, I bash on slower creatures and the use of Birds because neither are relevant. If you can find better suited creatures/spells that can curve out easily, why play any creatures/spells that need ramping to make an impact?
I can understand why people run Giant Growth. I'm not advocating for those who play it to drop it, I just have my personal preference in Favor of the Overbeing. Also, regardless of the preference of each player, I'm pretty sure you don't want to waste away early in the game equipping hammer to a bunch of easily removed creatures, it's too tedious a process. Sure, it's nice with Rafiq on the board, but these are just two cards in your deck of 60, and even then, you're playing a maximum of three spells in three turns, if you curve perfectly. The premise of creating a solid deck is defeated when you start to consider individual combos rather than the broad effect each card has on each other card in laying great foundations for your gameplan. Take that into account.
The previous poster mentioned a good point in the creature removal abundance, and necessity for maindeck Negate. I'm taking that into account. Anyway, think of the notion that maindeck Teeg is just as good as maindeck Forge-Tender. What do you do when you play against a Fae/RDW with maindeck Gaddock Teeg? Is game one worth punting due to your sloppy build?
No offense intended, I just hope you can reevaluate my posts and try not to undermine my arguments.
Firstly, congrats to the OP on finding this archetype. It's the only pseudo budget deck I've seen in the meta, and I love playing it. I'm trying to finetune this archetype, and here is what I've put together after playtesting the hell out of it:
Granted, some of these things might have been said before, I have yet to read through a lot of this forum, so here are my comments on many of the builds I've seen:
Chameleon Colossus: virtually a dead card in many situations. With his pumping ability being hindered by the necessity to trigger Shorecrasher's ability, the two cards have a very hard time sharing the limelight. Many times, he is a 4cc 4/4, which is very subpar. The build is has a lot of control going for it anyway, so we could use the slots for something better. (Same comments go for Warhammer)
Slippery Boggle: WTF? Maindeck Forge-Tender would get you better results.
5cc Creatures: way too slow. You want to use your lighter CC creatures in unison with lighter CC spells to tip-toe your way into early/midgame lethal damage. Waiting on a fatty only gets you into the bind of having to settle for late game plays, when sometimes your opponent can stabilize and turn the tables on you.
25+ Land: Maybe if we want to suck and play Spitting Image..?
4 Rafiqs: I don't really like having two in the opening hand, to be honest. As a three-of, you can use the other slot with more ease and security, because the other card would probably squeeze into your curve more easily, which helps in many situations.
Birds of Paradise: Why would you waste a drop on these when you could easily squeeze in four removal cards? The deck is very quick on its own; ramping into a turn two War Monk is plain stupid. Not even win more, stupid. You've wasted a slot that could've been used to trap your opponent later on, when instead you decide to play one turn ahead. Big deal... so you played a turn 2 Monk/3 Rafiq. You could've put in a counterspell, or some instant that gives the deck evasion, so that you don't lose steam with your crappy [lack of] card advantage in the mid-game.
Cryptic Command: I find through testing that it slows the deck's tempo. With maindeck hate against aggro, and the cantrip from Snakeform, all you really need is to side in something that will fill the void. I chose Cancel over Negate/Flashfreeze, because it consistently hits Wrath of God, non-Green creatures in a toast build (imagine hitting their hardcast Mulldrifter), can still counter Fae, and is usually more suitable against the Toast MU because it can be played out more easily, due to the higher casting cost in many of the premier decks. Albeit, Toast has Condemn, Firespout at times, Finks, Esper Charm, Mulldrifter etc., Cancel will hit their gamebreaking cards, I find. The OP mentioned getting landscrewed on occasion, and I think Cancel makes that less of a dilemma.
Rationale for some of my newer(?*) additions:
(*Frankly I don't even know if anyone's tested these)
Garruk Wildspeaker: Adds not only more of a threat on the aggressive, but can be used to ramp into gamebreaking plays. Imagine, after boarding against toast, you hit a turn 4 Garruk, into their turn 4 Wrath. You'd then activate Treetop Village, untap two land, cast Rafiq, and begin the asswhoop. Even if they Condemn/Firespout the Rafiq, they have to get through the Treetop, and even then, you can lay more threats with your lovely ol' Garruk. It can also be used to ramp into your Favor of the Overbeing (if in the build) or Infiltrators/Mimics. It's versatile, as is in most builds that can support it.
Favor of the Overbeing: I know, there are those who have suggested it before. But in their defense, I chose this over Giant Growth simply because even as an occasional 2-for-1, it beats the crap out of Demigod on a War Monk, and if they end up chosing to remove something else, your plays will be all the more vile, with the vigilance and whatnot. Turn 6 Rafiq with one of these and Garruk's overrun is usually when your opponent scoops.
Gaddock Teeg: rapes Toast (and Planeswalkers even, if need be), 'nuff said.
Cancel: I know it's a bit slow, but it really does provide consistency. I hate the Remove Soul vs. Negate dilemma, and with all these Aggro-Control decks on the loose, especially considering the fact that many have answers to this deck which arent R/G, you'll have a hard time keeping your opponent at bay when he's dropping Finks left and right and you're stuck with Negates in hand. Flashfreeze is considerable as well... but it doesn't stop Wrath of God, Profane Command, and other such nuisances. This slot is really a classic case of risk vs. reward, and I like having more rewards (for the price) with less risks.
Primal Command: is something I'm debating. :/ I actually like Memory Plunder over this, but they're both hefty in terms of cost. I'll have to think about it.
I guess my earlier post doesn't fit within the context of this archetype .___.
That's fine. I don't know what to call the deck, but it's like a RGW Midrange... something-ey, with Planeswalkers. It dominates at FNM, but that's irrelevant I suppose.
I've been tinkering with this build that plays along the lines of both early tempo aggro and midgame toolbox. Plenty of credit is due to a States winner, I forget which. My idea for the landbase and 1CC creatures was similar, although he has 4x Rip Clan Crasher over the Harriers and Hexhunter. Also, he runs Siege-Gang Commander over Colossus. Upon his deck's success, I took after the sideboard, so the builds are pretty identical. Before anyone throws out the notion of running four maindeck Wild Nacatl, let me explain why it's in the build (although on paper, it's self-explanatory)
The Nacatls are never 1/1 when I play, unless it's turn one. By the time you can drop one, due to your manabase, you can get it to 3/3 consistently by turn three. Everything in this deck runs so smoothly with the lands listed. People might say, "but this is an aggro deck, why run Terramorphic Expanse over Treetop Village in your CIPT slot??!" Well, Treetop eats up your tempo and only gives you one 3/3. Terramorphic not only helps your curve, tutoring for whichever color you need, but it also makes the Nacatls and Figures SO MUCH MORE PLAYABLE. I mean, with the nine basic R/W lands and all the filter/painlands, you have virtually no hurdles to jump when pumping your Figure to an 8/8.
When the Ranger hits the board, you basically have the choice to turn the tables in your favor, in whatever respect you can afford. The Harriers offer evasion, Hexhunters for those nasty Bitterblossoms and O-Rings, Figures for a threat anytime in the game, and Nacatl for a cheap beatstick. This is the type of deck that likes to play around certain gameplans with a fluid design of its own.
Sarkhan Vol is somewhat the glue that binds these cards together, as you can see. With four maindeck Rangers, you have so many ways to not only reap the benefits of Sarkhan, but you have a bunch of critters that will defend him until you can get those fliers out.
As you can see, my sideboard is geared at tackling my metagame. The Vigors are primarily in there for mono red and this mono green Treefolk that’s played at my shop. Relic not only poops on Reveillark, but getting Demigods removed from the game for good is nice. Not to mention, against Profane Command’s recursion, and Naya Charm in the mirror, it’s all around removal goodness. O-Ring is for those annoying Bant decks with like 8-10 creatures (Stoic Angel and co.) that end up wrecking my gameplan. Austere Command helps against Mimic Rock (Scullers and O-Rings) and maybe in other matchups as well. It can also clear the board in my favor during certain circumstances. Teeg and Shusher are self explanatory.
Wait... err.. Mangcho, were you the guy who commented on the Merfolk pilot being racist, when I played him? Haha if so then I was sitting next to you at the top 8 table after round 5. Anyway, congrats on placing in the top 4, job well done. Your deck is probably my favorite "out of the blue" decklists I've seen to hit States/Provincials this year.
The SB is up for grabs but I'm narrowing candidates down to Runed Halo, Story Circle, Burrenton Forge-Tender, and Pollen Lullaby, although it seems redundant.
I'm also thinking of dropping in a few Soul's Grace. If you target the avatar token you get with Ajani, or any beefy creature in general, it could make for some sick combos with Cradle as well.
Quick thought, what do you guys think of Sunsees Nurturer from SoA in this deck? He provides ramp and lifegain, granted you're turning your midgets into fatties with Cradle of Vitality. Eh?
Read the persist mechanics better, creatures with a -1/-1 counter dont come back to play. Although you might have cancelled out the effect of the -1/-1 counter kitchen finks still have one and thus dont return.
Nope, the general rules state that a -1/-1 counter and a +1/+1 counter cancel each other out if placed on the same creature simultaneously, and both would be removed (if I'm not mistaken.)
I didn't touch Tezz because I don't know if he's really good or not. He's expensive and doesn't really fetch things till late late (need to add counters before getting that Golem). BUT, since I can't proxy and MWS isn't yet updated with ALA, I'll have to wait to playtest the spoiled cards.
Tezzeret is a two-of in the MD imo. If you haven't noticed, there are a lot of artifacts in this deck. The deck needs to be aggro/control to win if you ask me, because it can't pull a win out of the hat by waiting to "go off" late game. The deck is too frail to attempt that. Gah, if only the artifact lands from the Mirrodin block were reprinted... so many shenanigans.
At any rate, if all else fails, and his tutor effects would take too long to help you out, you can just use his last effect and bomb your opponent with low cost artifacts.
It's early, so many of you will most likely have a problem with the SB I threw together. Also, how do I get the sideboard in its proper spot when I use deck tags? D:
Er, why am I seeing Wrath of God in the decklists and no Scourglass? I think the deck needs Story Circles for defense, Scourglass for board control, Ethersworn Canonist for stall, and most definitely Hindering Light for interrupts (obviously) and the cantrip effect. This deck is best suited to be hosted by white and blue spells, apart from the colorless stuff, so Hindering Light is a four-of in my opinion.
There is however, one card I think would give this deck a major advantage in not only win condition and defense, but synergy. I'd run 3 of him. Imagine mid-game, if there's no draw power to the deck, and the pieces aren't out, who's there to save you? Mirror Entity. Not only is the card a good piece on its own, but it helps with the premise of the deck.
Don't forget that he can make all your artifacts scarecrows with his activated ability, which means everyone on your board is good to sac for a draw when the Crone is out. Staff + Crone + Composite Golem + Entity = infinite draw, infinite mana, infinite creature power/toughness. I was wondering why no one else thought of putting him in.
Condemns in the SB are a no brainer, and maybe Elspeth, Knight Errant, but I'm not too sold on the card yet. Maybe, with a few more "key cards" brought to the community's attention, this deck can be playable in at least FNMs.
My point in straying from ramping out is that you don't need to with this deck, given that slot could be used for more nit-picky plays. What do you do when you play Birds into more things that get destroyed alongside Wrath/Firespout? Giant Growth won't pitch in unless you have a knack for dumb luck, and the sad truth is you're just timewalking yourself, using up slots in a deck that should be spent in regards to another spell. Tell me, in a general sense, which type of play you'd like to see in this deck
Imagine the same scenario, in which your opponent is on the play
w/ Birds:
Turn 1: Birds (probably pinging yourself from a painland just to get it out consistently, which will hurt you against RDW)
Turn 2: War Monk
Turn 3: Rafiq (your best play, really) swing with War Monk.
Turn 4: Stare at an empty board as your opponent plays Wrath, and consider the fact that your deck is losing steam as you have a max of three other spells you could play.
OR, w/o Birds:
Turn 1: Citadel/Treetop
Turn 2: Mimic
Turn 3: War Monk, swing with Mimic
Turn 4: They Wrath you, but you rebuild with Mimics and Negates, not to mention the slew of other spells you can use to put you on top. Wrath slows them down here, because now you're on the play, basically.
Do you see where I get my point of view now? I've playtested both versions of the build, and having the cards at my disposal, or lacking them, isn't what affects my opinion, but rather I find builds with Birds CAUSE YOU TO LOSE STEAM when the deck is steadfast both early, mid, and lategame in itself.
Just my $0.02
Err, wouldn't you rather prevent Cruel Ultimatum than have a dinky Liege on your board after it reaps so much card/life advantage? lol
Also, congrats on your run at City Champs.
Lmao, hold it. You're judging me for bashing Birds yet where's your argument for it? Is it just there for turn three Cryptic Command? Consider the fact that you lose a pretty valuable resource in Birds when your opponent plays Wrath/Firespout, and that for a consistent manabase, how are you going to usually play it on turn one anyway, considering the fact that it won't really have much of an impact later on? It's like arguing that Manamorphose needs to be put in every three color deck that supports it, so that you can have superior plays, with efficient mana fixing, earlier in the game. Furthermore, I bash on slower creatures and the use of Birds because neither are relevant. If you can find better suited creatures/spells that can curve out easily, why play any creatures/spells that need ramping to make an impact?
I can understand why people run Giant Growth. I'm not advocating for those who play it to drop it, I just have my personal preference in Favor of the Overbeing. Also, regardless of the preference of each player, I'm pretty sure you don't want to waste away early in the game equipping hammer to a bunch of easily removed creatures, it's too tedious a process. Sure, it's nice with Rafiq on the board, but these are just two cards in your deck of 60, and even then, you're playing a maximum of three spells in three turns, if you curve perfectly. The premise of creating a solid deck is defeated when you start to consider individual combos rather than the broad effect each card has on each other card in laying great foundations for your gameplan. Take that into account.
The previous poster mentioned a good point in the creature removal abundance, and necessity for maindeck Negate. I'm taking that into account. Anyway, think of the notion that maindeck Teeg is just as good as maindeck Forge-Tender. What do you do when you play against a Fae/RDW with maindeck Gaddock Teeg? Is game one worth punting due to your sloppy build?
No offense intended, I just hope you can reevaluate my posts and try not to undermine my arguments.
4x Rhox War Monk
3x Jhessian Infiltrator
3x Rafiq of the Many
3x Garruk Wildspeaker
4x Remove Soul
1x Cancel
4x Oblivion Ring
4x Bant Charm
4x Snakeform
2x Favor of the Overbeing
4x Seaside Citadel
4x Flooded Grove
3x Reflecting Pool
3x Island
2x Yavimaya Coast
2x Mystic Gate
1x Wooded Bastion
1x Plains
3x Gaddock Teeg
3x Cancel
4x Kitchen Finks
3x Burrenton Forge-Tender
2x Primal Command
Granted, some of these things might have been said before, I have yet to read through a lot of this forum, so here are my comments on many of the builds I've seen:
Chameleon Colossus: virtually a dead card in many situations. With his pumping ability being hindered by the necessity to trigger Shorecrasher's ability, the two cards have a very hard time sharing the limelight. Many times, he is a 4cc 4/4, which is very subpar. The build is has a lot of control going for it anyway, so we could use the slots for something better. (Same comments go for Warhammer)
Slippery Boggle: WTF? Maindeck Forge-Tender would get you better results.
5cc Creatures: way too slow. You want to use your lighter CC creatures in unison with lighter CC spells to tip-toe your way into early/midgame lethal damage. Waiting on a fatty only gets you into the bind of having to settle for late game plays, when sometimes your opponent can stabilize and turn the tables on you.
25+ Land: Maybe if we want to suck and play Spitting Image..?
4 Rafiqs: I don't really like having two in the opening hand, to be honest. As a three-of, you can use the other slot with more ease and security, because the other card would probably squeeze into your curve more easily, which helps in many situations.
Birds of Paradise: Why would you waste a drop on these when you could easily squeeze in four removal cards? The deck is very quick on its own; ramping into a turn two War Monk is plain stupid. Not even win more, stupid. You've wasted a slot that could've been used to trap your opponent later on, when instead you decide to play one turn ahead. Big deal... so you played a turn 2 Monk/3 Rafiq. You could've put in a counterspell, or some instant that gives the deck evasion, so that you don't lose steam with your crappy [lack of] card advantage in the mid-game.
Cryptic Command: I find through testing that it slows the deck's tempo. With maindeck hate against aggro, and the cantrip from Snakeform, all you really need is to side in something that will fill the void. I chose Cancel over Negate/Flashfreeze, because it consistently hits Wrath of God, non-Green creatures in a toast build (imagine hitting their hardcast Mulldrifter), can still counter Fae, and is usually more suitable against the Toast MU because it can be played out more easily, due to the higher casting cost in many of the premier decks. Albeit, Toast has Condemn, Firespout at times, Finks, Esper Charm, Mulldrifter etc., Cancel will hit their gamebreaking cards, I find. The OP mentioned getting landscrewed on occasion, and I think Cancel makes that less of a dilemma.
Rationale for some of my newer(?*) additions:
(*Frankly I don't even know if anyone's tested these)
Garruk Wildspeaker: Adds not only more of a threat on the aggressive, but can be used to ramp into gamebreaking plays. Imagine, after boarding against toast, you hit a turn 4 Garruk, into their turn 4 Wrath. You'd then activate Treetop Village, untap two land, cast Rafiq, and begin the asswhoop. Even if they Condemn/Firespout the Rafiq, they have to get through the Treetop, and even then, you can lay more threats with your lovely ol' Garruk. It can also be used to ramp into your Favor of the Overbeing (if in the build) or Infiltrators/Mimics. It's versatile, as is in most builds that can support it.
Favor of the Overbeing: I know, there are those who have suggested it before. But in their defense, I chose this over Giant Growth simply because even as an occasional 2-for-1, it beats the crap out of Demigod on a War Monk, and if they end up chosing to remove something else, your plays will be all the more vile, with the vigilance and whatnot. Turn 6 Rafiq with one of these and Garruk's overrun is usually when your opponent scoops.
Gaddock Teeg: rapes Toast (and Planeswalkers even, if need be), 'nuff said.
Cancel: I know it's a bit slow, but it really does provide consistency. I hate the Remove Soul vs. Negate dilemma, and with all these Aggro-Control decks on the loose, especially considering the fact that many have answers to this deck which arent R/G, you'll have a hard time keeping your opponent at bay when he's dropping Finks left and right and you're stuck with Negates in hand. Flashfreeze is considerable as well... but it doesn't stop Wrath of God, Profane Command, and other such nuisances. This slot is really a classic case of risk vs. reward, and I like having more rewards (for the price) with less risks.
Primal Command: is something I'm debating. :/ I actually like Memory Plunder over this, but they're both hefty in terms of cost. I'll have to think about it.
Any comments/questions?
That's fine. I don't know what to call the deck, but it's like a RGW Midrange... something-ey, with Planeswalkers. It dominates at FNM, but that's irrelevant I suppose.
I've been tinkering with this build that plays along the lines of both early tempo aggro and midgame toolbox. Plenty of credit is due to a States winner, I forget which. My idea for the landbase and 1CC creatures was similar, although he has 4x Rip Clan Crasher over the Harriers and Hexhunter. Also, he runs Siege-Gang Commander over Colossus. Upon his deck's success, I took after the sideboard, so the builds are pretty identical. Before anyone throws out the notion of running four maindeck Wild Nacatl, let me explain why it's in the build (although on paper, it's self-explanatory)
4x Figure of Destiny
4x Woolly Thoctar
3x Goldmeadow Harrier
1x Elvish Hexhunter
4x Ranger of Eos
3x Chameleon Colossus
4x Naya Charm
4x Magma Spray
3x Puncture Blast
3x Sarkhan Vol
2x Karplusan Forest
1x Battlefield Forge
2x Fire-Lit Thicket
2x Wooded Bastion
4x Terramorphic Expanse
5x Mountain
4x Plains
1x Forest
3x Ajani Vengeant
4x Guttural Response
1x Elvish Hexhunter
1x Chameleon Colossus
3x Oblivion Ring
3x Relic of Progenitus
The Nacatls are never 1/1 when I play, unless it's turn one. By the time you can drop one, due to your manabase, you can get it to 3/3 consistently by turn three. Everything in this deck runs so smoothly with the lands listed. People might say, "but this is an aggro deck, why run Terramorphic Expanse over Treetop Village in your CIPT slot??!" Well, Treetop eats up your tempo and only gives you one 3/3. Terramorphic not only helps your curve, tutoring for whichever color you need, but it also makes the Nacatls and Figures SO MUCH MORE PLAYABLE. I mean, with the nine basic R/W lands and all the filter/painlands, you have virtually no hurdles to jump when pumping your Figure to an 8/8.
When the Ranger hits the board, you basically have the choice to turn the tables in your favor, in whatever respect you can afford. The Harriers offer evasion, Hexhunters for those nasty Bitterblossoms and O-Rings, Figures for a threat anytime in the game, and Nacatl for a cheap beatstick. This is the type of deck that likes to play around certain gameplans with a fluid design of its own.
Sarkhan Vol is somewhat the glue that binds these cards together, as you can see. With four maindeck Rangers, you have so many ways to not only reap the benefits of Sarkhan, but you have a bunch of critters that will defend him until you can get those fliers out.
Thoughts, comments, questions?
2x Llanowar Elves
4x Woolly Thoctar
4x Kitchen Finks
4x Chameleon Colossus
2x Oversoul of Dusk
1x Cloudthresher
3x Ajani Vengeant
2x Garruk Wildspeaker
4x Naya Charm
4x Firespout
3x Primal Command
4x Treetop Village
3x Karplusan Forest
3x Brushland
3x Fire-Lit Thicket
2x Wooded Bastion
2x Mountain
2x Plains
3x Gaddock Teeg
3x Vexing Shusher
4x Oblivion Ring
2x Vigor
2x Relic of Progenitus
1x Austere Command
As you can see, my sideboard is geared at tackling my metagame. The Vigors are primarily in there for mono red and this mono green Treefolk that’s played at my shop. Relic not only poops on Reveillark, but getting Demigods removed from the game for good is nice. Not to mention, against Profane Command’s recursion, and Naya Charm in the mirror, it’s all around removal goodness. O-Ring is for those annoying Bant decks with like 8-10 creatures (Stoic Angel and co.) that end up wrecking my gameplan. Austere Command helps against Mimic Rock (Scullers and O-Rings) and maybe in other matchups as well. It can also clear the board in my favor during certain circumstances. Teeg and Shusher are self explanatory.
3x Sunseed Nurturer
4x Goldenglow Moth
4x Knight of Meadowgrain
4x Kitchen Finks
4x Mistmeadow Skulk
1x Idyllic Tutor
2x Ajani Goldmane
4x Oblivion Ring
4x Recumbent Bliss
1x Endless Horizons
2x Soul's Grace
1x Beacon of Immortality
The SB is up for grabs but I'm narrowing candidates down to Runed Halo, Story Circle, Burrenton Forge-Tender, and Pollen Lullaby, although it seems redundant.
Thoughts?
Nope, the general rules state that a -1/-1 counter and a +1/+1 counter cancel each other out if placed on the same creature simultaneously, and both would be removed (if I'm not mistaken.)
Tezzeret is a two-of in the MD imo. If you haven't noticed, there are a lot of artifacts in this deck. The deck needs to be aggro/control to win if you ask me, because it can't pull a win out of the hat by waiting to "go off" late game. The deck is too frail to attempt that. Gah, if only the artifact lands from the Mirrodin block were reprinted... so many shenanigans.
At any rate, if all else fails, and his tutor effects would take too long to help you out, you can just use his last effect and bomb your opponent with low cost artifacts.
A quick attempt at an upgraded decklist:
3x Composite Golem
3x Scuttlemutt
3x Mirror Entity
4x Etherium Sculptor
2x Ethersworn Canonist
2x Tezzeret the Seeker
4x Hindering Light
2x Cancel
3x Story Circle
4x Courier's Capsule
4x Thornbite Staff
4x Reflecting Pool
8x Island
6x Plains
3x Condemn
2x Ethersworn Canonist
4x Master of Etherium
3x Lich's Mirror
It's early, so many of you will most likely have a problem with the SB I threw together.
There is however, one card I think would give this deck a major advantage in not only win condition and defense, but synergy. I'd run 3 of him. Imagine mid-game, if there's no draw power to the deck, and the pieces aren't out, who's there to save you? Mirror Entity. Not only is the card a good piece on its own, but it helps with the premise of the deck.
Don't forget that he can make all your artifacts scarecrows with his activated ability, which means everyone on your board is good to sac for a draw when the Crone is out. Staff + Crone + Composite Golem + Entity = infinite draw, infinite mana, infinite creature power/toughness. I was wondering why no one else thought of putting him in.
Condemns in the SB are a no brainer, and maybe Elspeth, Knight Errant, but I'm not too sold on the card yet. Maybe, with a few more "key cards" brought to the community's attention, this deck can be playable in at least FNMs.