Alright I'll change it. I guess I just really like Meloku, we had some good times in Std; I won with him, and I've gotten beaten by him.
Hahaha........ I had the impression that you ran Meloku in addition to beacon... I thought you ran Meloku instead of Spectral Force. Of course you should run 4x Beacon, but that shouldn't keep you from running Meloku... you don't always draw the Beacons every game, and that'd give you a back-up abusive option with Opposition. But like I said, I haven't tested this version out, so maybe I should get to it...
Most likely for the amazing synergy with opposition... Isn't it obvious? I don't see any other reason you'd play Meloku over the Force...
I haven't played the deck since it's been updated(I last played it back when Mystic Snake was actually good in extended :rolleyes:), so I don't know how much better Force is than Meloku, but they're both "I WIN" cards, so there's not much we can say about Meloku by just looking at the list(Although I really think he's worth a try).
@zulo: just take a look at the PE results or the last few post of the comprehensive guide to extended
You're right that Heartbeat isn't showing up in PE Top 8s, but that wasn't a very good explanation. It's not dead... It disappeared. I've watched in on a lot of swiss matches in the last few PEs, and NOBODY is playing it... If it was actually being played in PEs, then we would know how it's actually doing, but as of the last 3 weeks I haven't come across a single Heartbeat deck. And it's not just because it's a bad deck now, it has just taken the boot for the slightly quicker TEPS/Eggs desire-based decks(i.e. more popular). Dead is what happened to Affinity in T2 after it lost its lands... not just when it lost the clamp.
er... where were you getting that from? The MTGS spoiler says this:
Wild Pair :4mana::symg::symg:
Enchantment R
Whenever a creature comes into play, if you played it from your hand, you may search your library for a creature card with the same total power and toughness as that creature and put it into play. If you do, shuffle you library afterwards.
It is a freaking 6-mana enchantment that can be destroyed/countered... and your lion can be killed/countered as well as your opponent making 4x Hellkites irrelevant by gaining life with some fetters and then Wrathing your board away. I don't see how it should be printed differently, it's fine as it is... And more fun, anyway.
I think it'd be a good idea to add more mana elves to the deck, and most definately a couple Angel of Despairs... you could also throw in a 1-of Celestial Crusader(fetchable with the Lion)... so you could keep fetching Akromas/SSS/etc everytime you replay your Lion. And you wouldn't run into the problem of drawing the dragons, etc. Nevermind... It's just easier to get 3+ Hellkites at EOT, and then declare your attack and get a Timbermare into play(via the Lion) before blockers... Gah, all that thinking for nothing.
Something like this:
Turn 5(maybe turn 4): Play Wild Pair.
Turn 6: End of your opponent's turn > Play Lion, fetching Forcemage. Play Lion, fetching Celestial Crusader. Play Lion, fetching Akroma.
Turn 7: Play Lion 3+ times, fetching Hellkite/AoD, win the game.
Might be overkill, but sounds like lots of fun.
And, come to think of it, you could possibly build a Toolbox for help against certain decks(for instance the dragon that hits all creatures for 3 dmg when it hits an oppoent, or the white Ascendant Evincar guy)... might be a decent deck, i'll have to test it out.
This deck has been doing decent in MTGO premiers recently, only being played by one guy though(Kbright)... I think it could be really good with smoe metagame changes. And I can maybe ask Carl a few things about the deck the next time I see him... matchups, etc. Also, do take into consideration that he made T2 in a 37-person PTQ though, not some of those that had 100+ people... Not saying it's a fluke, just that it might not have been as competitive as other PTQs...
EDIT: By the way, 2QT2BSTR8... The deck runs Beacon of Creation, not Beacon of Unrest. It's used to pump out massive amounts of tokens(as squirrel nest did back in the day) so you can more easily lock your opponent down with Opposition(even without the help of Static Orb).
i thought i was forgetting something. Glowrider definately deserves a spot in the sideboard. Overall i think your list is really good but I think it needs two Life // Death. You plan on playing this at a ptq. I am stuck playing my deck TEPS, or Affinity but i would play that if i had the cards. The sideboard is good but I would rather use crypt than EE.
Yeah... I missed the Ft. Worth PTQ(along with the friggin GP trial in Lancaster) because my car decided to break down on friday night... Hopefully I'll actually make it this time. But my deck choice will of course come down to testing... Gifts Rock is playing REALLY good for me right now, but I love where Brunch is headed... just gotta see if some tweaks actually make this deck a force or not. I'll post some results in a couple days, along with PC cards that might possibly see a 1-of slot or not...
I agree with adding a Dread Return, because it does effectively allow you to win a turn earlier(instead of doing so during the following upkeep). But, against some decks you will have problems keeping 2 or more creatures on the board(especially if you're trying to stay alive). Something I don't agree with, though, is the Meddling Mages in the SB... I think there is a way to fit them in the MD(at least 2, possibly 3), because they give you a LOT more time against some decks, especially TEPS/Scepter/Tron/Eggs/etc. Here's what I'd try at first:
We effectively race Boros, Aggro Rock, MGA, 5c Zoo, and Flow Aggro, so I don't think the Explosives are as good in the MD as a needle is(naming Deed/Scepter/Slaver/Ruins/Lavamancer/Fetchland/etc, usually). I also don't think a spellbomb is needed in the maindeck or board, because then we'd have to add that color into our manabase(as well as fetch the appropriate land).
Another thing, I think it's essential to add as many fetches to the deck as possible, making Sensei's Divining Top more effective, thus giving us more consistancy in finding our calls/wishes/illusionists/etc... I tried to squish 2 full sets in, but with the Moxen taking up land slots and the necessity to add a dual of each type(to make sure we get what we need in EVERY situation), there just wasn't enough room. And I dont think its worth taking a spell out of the deck just for a 23rd mana source.
BTW, I find glowrider(along with Meddling Mage) much better against TEPS than True Believer... they're going to get rid of your creature before they go off anyway, so you mise well make em spend more mana.
Ya, I get your point... the only blue cards I actually like from PC are Braids, Dichotomancy, Magus of the Bazaar, Pongify(on Stuffy, of course) and Ovinize... everything else is utter crap when it comes to constructed(Spellshift? Synchronous Sliver? gimme a break, those wouldn't even be playable in a homelands-quality set)... Venarian Glimmer seems like it'd be lots of fun for limited though. Blue toughness-reduction ftw!
Wild Pair + Stonecloaker is better. That makes it "2W: Search your library for a Giant Solifuge and put it into play, then either rescue your Solifuge from combat damage/***/etc, or bounce ~ to your hand so you can go fetch another one." All at INSTANT SPEED. And Vigean Hydropon does go get Angel of Despair/Bogardan Hellkite/etc, so I don't see any problem with it.
Braids + Card-Draw + theusualEmminentDomainpackage could be fun(especially with the new Control Magic + Pillory of the Sleepless hybrid card:D)... You gotta have some way of protecting Braids though, as it's just waaaaaaay too much fun to continue stealing stuff every turn... Could possibly use it with Teferi so that you get the first show and tell effect... in that instance, Aspect of Mongoose/Shielding Plax would be good. I doubt it's competitive, but still fun nonetheless...
Edit: Come to think of it, this type of idea could also use Magus of the Bazaar + Retether to continuously steal all of your opponent's permanents/creatures/whatever...
Great Comparison. Cause you know, Skeletal Vampire only costs 4 and is a very aggressive creature with haste. Right? Don't go apples and oranges on us... and by the way, Skeletal vampire was once in the $3-4 range...
Only use out of this card I could see is to loot through your deck(with courier/looter/bazaar/careful consid), and then play raging goblin(or the new green hasty creature), followed by Retether... but it's easily disruptable and it doesnt win the game outright in very many situations. It would be cool to confiscate all your opponents creatures though...
Very nice card indeed, I think it will see a little bit of play in T2 and certainly in block... too bad there isn't a card that stops triggered abilities of a card too.
Hahaha........ I had the impression that you ran Meloku in addition to beacon... I thought you ran Meloku instead of Spectral Force. Of course you should run 4x Beacon, but that shouldn't keep you from running Meloku... you don't always draw the Beacons every game, and that'd give you a back-up abusive option with Opposition. But like I said, I haven't tested this version out, so maybe I should get to it...
I haven't played the deck since it's been updated(I last played it back when Mystic Snake was actually good in extended :rolleyes:), so I don't know how much better Force is than Meloku, but they're both "I WIN" cards, so there's not much we can say about Meloku by just looking at the list(Although I really think he's worth a try).
You're right that Heartbeat isn't showing up in PE Top 8s, but that wasn't a very good explanation. It's not dead... It disappeared. I've watched in on a lot of swiss matches in the last few PEs, and NOBODY is playing it... If it was actually being played in PEs, then we would know how it's actually doing, but as of the last 3 weeks I haven't come across a single Heartbeat deck. And it's not just because it's a bad deck now, it has just taken the boot for the slightly quicker TEPS/Eggs desire-based decks(i.e. more popular). Dead is what happened to Affinity in T2 after it lost its lands... not just when it lost the clamp.
er... where were you getting that from? The MTGS spoiler says this:
Wild Pair :4mana::symg::symg:
Enchantment R
Whenever a creature comes into play, if you played it from your hand, you may search your library for a creature card with the same total power and toughness as that creature and put it into play. If you do, shuffle you library afterwards.
It is a freaking 6-mana enchantment that can be destroyed/countered... and your lion can be killed/countered as well as your opponent making 4x Hellkites irrelevant by gaining life with some fetters and then Wrathing your board away. I don't see how it should be printed differently, it's fine as it is... And more fun, anyway.
you could also throw in a 1-of Celestial Crusader(fetchable with the Lion)... so you could keep fetching Akromas/SSS/etc everytime you replay your Lion. And you wouldn't run into the problem of drawing the dragons, etc.
Nevermind... It's just easier to get 3+ Hellkites at EOT, and then declare your attack and get a Timbermare into play(via the Lion) before blockers... Gah, all that thinking for nothing.Something like this:
Turn 5(maybe turn 4): Play Wild Pair.
Turn 6: End of your opponent's turn > Play Lion, fetching Forcemage. Play Lion, fetching Celestial Crusader. Play Lion, fetching Akroma.
Turn 7: Play Lion 3+ times, fetching Hellkite/AoD, win the game.
Might be overkill, but sounds like lots of fun.
And, come to think of it, you could possibly build a Toolbox for help against certain decks(for instance the dragon that hits all creatures for 3 dmg when it hits an oppoent, or the white Ascendant Evincar guy)... might be a decent deck, i'll have to test it out.
EDIT: By the way, 2QT2BSTR8... The deck runs Beacon of Creation, not Beacon of Unrest. It's used to pump out massive amounts of tokens(as squirrel nest did back in the day) so you can more easily lock your opponent down with Opposition(even without the help of Static Orb).
Stonecloaker + Calciderm = Neverending Blastoderm
Stonecloaker + Avalanche Riders = Neverending Stone Rain on a body
Akroma + Blink = Turn 5 Akroma
Keldon Marauders + Blink = Shock + Rescue, all in one package.
There might be a RW block deck spawned by all this gating/blinking nuttiness...
Yeah... I missed the Ft. Worth PTQ(along with the friggin GP trial in Lancaster) because my car decided to break down on friday night... Hopefully I'll actually make it this time.
3 Windswept Heath
3 Polluted Delta
2 Starlit Sanctum
1 Temple Garden
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Godless Shrine
1 Breeding Pool
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Watery Grave
1 Plains
1 Forest
1 Island
1 Swamp
Creatures(14):
3 Outrider en-Kor
3 Cephalid Illusionist
3 Meddling Mage
2 Daru Spiritualist
1 Trinket Mage
1 Sutured Ghoul
1 Krosan Cloudscraper
4 Chrome Mox
4 Sensei's Divining Top
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Living Wish
4 Eladamri's Call
2 Duress
1 Life // Death
1 Dread Return
1 Shuko
1 Pithing Needle
1 Krosan Reclamation
1 Dragon Breath
2 Duress
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Trinket Mage
1 Starlit Sanctum
1 Outrider en-Kor
1 Daru Spiritualist
1 Cephalid Illusionist
1 Meddling Mage
1 Kataki, War's Wage
1 Loaming Shaman
1 Blinkmoth Well
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Glowrider
We effectively race Boros, Aggro Rock, MGA, 5c Zoo, and Flow Aggro, so I don't think the Explosives are as good in the MD as a needle is(naming Deed/Scepter/Slaver/Ruins/Lavamancer/Fetchland/etc, usually). I also don't think a spellbomb is needed in the maindeck or board, because then we'd have to add that color into our manabase(as well as fetch the appropriate land).
Another thing, I think it's essential to add as many fetches to the deck as possible, making Sensei's Divining Top more effective, thus giving us more consistancy in finding our calls/wishes/illusionists/etc... I tried to squish 2 full sets in, but with the Moxen taking up land slots and the necessity to add a dual of each type(to make sure we get what we need in EVERY situation), there just wasn't enough room. And I dont think its worth taking a spell out of the deck just for a 23rd mana source.
BTW, I find glowrider(along with Meddling Mage) much better against TEPS than True Believer... they're going to get rid of your creature before they go off anyway, so you mise well make em spend more mana.
Ya, I get your point... the only blue cards I actually like from PC are Braids, Dichotomancy, Magus of the Bazaar, Pongify(on Stuffy, of course) and Ovinize... everything else is utter crap when it comes to constructed(Spellshift? Synchronous Sliver? gimme a break, those wouldn't even be playable in a homelands-quality set)... Venarian Glimmer seems like it'd be lots of fun for limited though. Blue toughness-reduction ftw!
Edit: Come to think of it, this type of idea could also use Magus of the Bazaar + Retether to continuously steal all of your opponent's permanents/creatures/whatever...