Hello everyone! I'm slowly getting back into mtg after a little hiatus. I've always loved Sliver Queen and really want to abuse her as a 5c Commander. Now, I have seen some deck variants to her builds and realized that I want to play them all depending on the situation. The idea is this: I want to make the most competitive deck possible that can swap out 40 cards (59 core) to completely change the theme and playstyle of the deck. I want to call it a modular EDH deck, but since modular is an ability in mtg I think "package" works. I know it makes each package not completely optimized, but playing the same Commander and people not knowing which variant I'm running is really appealing to me.
For now, the plan is to make Superfriends, Sliver Tribal, and Control packages. A lot of the ideas I got were from other users' lists here.
I can talk more about the idea/strategies later. I only had time to post the list to see if there is any feedback. Specifically, I think the Control variant is weak and without a solid WinCon. It can create infinite mana and slivers with Queen Sliver, but finding a better way to win would be nice (non-infinite combo but still plays into the control theme).
All suggestions are welcome, if you do suggest a card - I only ask that you also suggest what it should replace. Thank you!
Has anyone thought about replacing DD with RotW all together? Yes it is 1 less devotion, but I feel like the scrying we get from RotW will help improve consistency much more than the Demon who is the epitome of inconsistent.
I've been running a list very similar to the 2nd place SCG and there a few issues. First off is Scooze, I just feel it is really weak in this deck and I am currently testing several replacements (Lion, Experiment one, MD thoughtseize). Second, I think the deck really needs read the bones because a lot of times I keep running into lands/dorks and run out of gas, so I think the drawing is needed. While on the topic of dorks, I cut the mystics completely and up the carythids to 4. I've been doing some play testing with the following list
:
I've been doing moderately well with the list overall, but it doesn't feel smooth at all, and at times really janky. Ontop of that , the mana is maddening as I either flood out (often) or don't draw enough (arguably can be said about any deck, but feels more prevalent here). This is my third iteration of the deck and I am still not satisfied. I think the biggest issue is threat density as a lot of times if my early threats are answered I run out of gas and that's all she wrote. Anyway, if anyone has any advice/questions/comments throw them my way. Thanks in advance.
So the question is do we still need the Scooze? Rhetorical question there. Control no longer interacts with its GY so not needed in the matchup. But against Red aggro, I am afraid that I will take enough damage from shocks, MB thoughtseize, or even RtB that I will need it to even have a chance to stabilize. I think scooze is also really good in the mirror. Now, VoR is better for control, it can be a 2 for 1 against aggro, but we loose all interactions with opponent's GY. Maybe Scooze is only a SB card now, but I wouldn't remove it completely.
As for decks, I have been testing this deck out and it has worked really well. The land base had been solid so far and I really, really want to go to 4 Reaper of the Wilds. They are that good. Maybe one less Advent?
I looked at your list a few pages ago and understand using fiendslayer over smiter, but what about VoR or Advent? I think they are very solid cards that make many of our matchups (control and mirror) much better.
I have two variants to the deck currently, one is GB with lotleth trolls but I do feel GBw is better with smiter(or fiendslayer), VoR, Advent, and Obzedat. It just takes the deck over the top.
The problem that I see with these decklists is that you guys are running merchants without enough devotion.
Schwartzy's list runs 3 demons, 3 reapers, 2 whips, and 2 connections main with 3 merchants.
Even counting the merchants, that's just 13 cards with black sources.
Mappo's list has 2 demons, 4 reapers, 2 erebos, 2 whips, and 2 connections along with 3 merchants. Which is 15 cards with black sources.
In my experience that's not enough. Merchant is either rediculously good, or really bad. You'll be facing decks that will be able to deal with your creatures, some (like control decks) will be able to take out your enchantments. You guys need more redundant casting costs in your decks. I run 4 demons, 3 reapers, 2 connections, 2 whips, 3 lifebane zombie, and 2 liliana with 4 merchants (20 cards, 17 with 2 black sources) and I can still have some issue getting a merchant to do more than 4 to an opponent off of the trigger, although It's usually 6-8.
Mappo will also have a hard time keeping erebos active. He's really not maindeck material either. It's different for connections since it only cost one life. You really just want to bring in erebos in matchups where the opponent can gain life off of things like revelation, blood baron, or obzedat.
I also used to play a more aggresive version of this deck with manglers, satyrs, and experiment ones. To me, Boon Satyr is only good if you are either in a racing situation where the opponent won't block, or you can bestow him. He's not good on defence. I don't think he belongs in either of these lists, he doesn't work with the merchants and he's strictly an aggresive card. We are looking to grind out matches and cast big threats that demand immediate answers, Boon Satyr doesn't do that. Sure you can look at him as a possible removal spell, but it's an extremely narrow removal spell, and he dies to almost anything.
I think they should either be lifebane zombies, lotleth trolls, even dreg mangler is better for this deck. Boon Satyr is for aggresive decks with higher creature counts.
Thank you for the insight on black devotion count! I haven't had a chance to playtest (going tomorrow night to local magic for that), so did not realize that would be an issue.
I have also considered removing the 3 Boon, 3 Gray Merchants, 2 Underworld Connections, 2 Polukranos, and maybe a few other cards for 4 Commune, 4 Grisly Salvage, X Deathrites, 1 Whip, and a few big guys like Obzedat to make the deck more GBw reanimate with whip. But that is a different deck concept than this thread though I think they both are very similar in style besides having specific reanimate targets.
What do you guys think? I have Deathrites for Legacy, but I feel like they under perform in standard since they will almost never will be used as ramp, which is very important for a 1 drop.
Another thing is, I would do 4 MB Thoughtseize if possible. Unless I'm playing RDW, Thoughtseize is fantastic removal and hand information. I want to control as much of the game as possible while beating face and thoughtseize is the epitome of control.
Boon Satyr is another great pseudo removal. My only question is, does anyone ever hold Satyr for the bestow? Since we are light on 3 drops, I see playing Satyr ASAP as priority (obviously not during main phase tho).
Any other insights to this deck is greatly appreciated!
Here is what I have come with. I went with a more control build. All advice is greatly appreciated, especially if I am missing some key aspect that makes my deck inferior. So far in testing it struggles in game one (the deck is trying to do too much at once I know), but I can transform into more control post-sideboard or bring in Mom to turn into a more maverick style deck. Also GoST is amazing in this deck, I would take out a KotR before a geist.
How would Domri Rade work in Pun Mav? It might be pretty good with high creature count and Sylvan Library.
Domri Rade could be really good in a hard aggro Pun Mav, but I don't see Pun Mav being that kind of deck. What would you take out? Most likely a creature.
Has anyone tried out Voice of Resurgence yet? I am really curious on how he would do in Maverick. Seems like a perfect fit to me.
Voice of Resurgence is a great card, but I don't think he is right for the deck. While he makes the opponent think twice about using a counter, most creatures in maverick contribute to the win condition with some sort of activated ability whereas VoR's ability is at the mercy (and normally avoided) by the opponent. Voice of Resurgence seems like a better fit for Junk or Bant.
Just my opinion, I traded for a playset of VoR at the prerelease just in case I'm wrong as I really, really like the card.
Also on other topic, I have been playing with traditional Maverick. I am starting to acquire the cards for a Maverick GWu with Geists as I see blue a necessity right now. Gaea's Cradle will come out for sure, but other wise I think the land base stays the same with some added Trops and Tundras. I was wondering what other blue spells are best fit? Spell pierce only? FoW is not the answer with little fodder to pitch to it, plus card disadvantage is not good for us.
For now, the plan is to make Superfriends, Sliver Tribal, and Control packages. A lot of the ideas I got were from other users' lists here.
1 Sliver Queen
Lands 33
1 Tundra
1 Underground Sea
1 Badlands
1 Taiga
1 Savannah
1 Scrubland
1 Plateau
1 Volcanic Island
1 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Watery Grave
1 Blood Crypt
1 Stomping Ground
1 Temple Garden
1 Godless Shrine
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Steam Vents
1 Breeding Pool
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Flooded Strand
1 Polluted Delta
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Windswept Heath
1 Marsh Flats
1 Arid Mesa
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Reflecting Pool
1 Command Tower
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
Artifacts 6
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Coalition Relic
1 Rings of Brighthearth
1 Crucible of Worlds
Enchantments 3
1 Sylvan Library
1 Doubling Season
1 Mana Echoes
Sorceries 11
1 Austere Command
1 Imperial Seal
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Regrowth
1 Farseek
1 Nature's Lore
1 Skyshroud Claim
1 Vindicate
1 Merciless Eviction
1 Wargate
Instants 6
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Anguished Unmaking
1 Utter End
1 Naya Charm
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Mana Drain
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
1 Dack Fayden
1 Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast
1 Dovin Baan
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
1 Elspeth, Sun's Champion
1 Garruk Wildspeaker
1 Gideon Jura
1 Gideon of the Trials
1 Jace Beleren
1 Jace, Architect of Thought
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Karn Liberated
1 Kaya, Ghost Assassin
1 Liliana Vess
1 Narset Transcendent
1 Nicol Bolas, God-Pharaoh
1 Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker
1 Nissa, Vital Force
1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
1 Ral Zarek
1 Sorin Markov
1 Tamiyo, Field Researcher
1 Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
1 Teferi, Temporal Archmage
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
1 Torpor Orb
1 The Chain Veil
1 Skullclamp
1 Humility
1 Oath of Gideon
1 Oath of Nissa
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Akroma’s Vengeance
1 Supreme Verdict
1 Kor Haven
1 Strip Mine
1 Maze of Ith
1 Mana Confluence
Sliver Package 40
1 Basal Sliver
1 Blur Sliver
1 Bonescythe Sliver
1 Crystalline Sliver
1 Essence Sliver
1 Galerider Sliver
1 Gemhide Sliver
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Heart Sliver
1 Hibernation Sliver
1 Homing Sliver
1 Magma Sliver
1 Manaweft Sliver
1 Necrotic Sliver
1 Psionic Sliver
1 Quick Sliver
1 Root Sliver
1 Sentinel Sliver
1 Shifting Sliver
1 Sliver Hivelord
1 Sliver Legion
1 Sliver Overlord
1 Synapse Sliver
1 Syphon Sliver
1 Telekinetic Sliver
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Kindred Discovery
1 Training Grounds
1 Door of Destinies
1 Coat of Arms
1 Urza’s Incubator
1 Kindred Summons
1 Kindred Dominance
1 Bring to Light
1 Silver Hive
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Path of Ancestry
1 Gaea’s Cradle
1 Volrath’s Stronghold
Control Package 40
1 Blue Sun's Zenith
1 Brainstorm
1 Bribery
1 Bring to Light
1 Chaos Warp
1 Capsize
1 Dig Through Time
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Enter the Infinite
1 Time Spiral
1 Show and Tell
1 Sphinx's Revelation
1 Supreme Verdict
1 Terminus
1 Tooth and Nail
1 Treachery
1 Vandalblast
1 Counterspell
1 Pact of Negation
1 Swan Song
1 Mystic Confluence
1 Aven Mindcensor
1 Academy Rector
1 Consecrated Sphinx
1 Deadeye Navigator
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Eternal Witness
1 Notion Thief
1 Palinchron
1 Snapcaster Mage
1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Rhystic Study
1 Dream Halls
1 Stranglehold
1 Aura Shards
1 Omniscience
1 Strip Mine
1 Maze of Ith
SuperFriends Maybeboard
Control Maybeboard
I can talk more about the idea/strategies later. I only had time to post the list to see if there is any feedback. Specifically, I think the Control variant is weak and without a solid WinCon. It can create infinite mana and slivers with Queen Sliver, but finding a better way to win would be nice (non-infinite combo but still plays into the control theme).
All suggestions are welcome, if you do suggest a card - I only ask that you also suggest what it should replace. Thank you!
So the question is do we still need the Scooze? Rhetorical question there. Control no longer interacts with its GY so not needed in the matchup. But against Red aggro, I am afraid that I will take enough damage from shocks, MB thoughtseize, or even RtB that I will need it to even have a chance to stabilize. I think scooze is also really good in the mirror. Now, VoR is better for control, it can be a 2 for 1 against aggro, but we loose all interactions with opponent's GY. Maybe Scooze is only a SB card now, but I wouldn't remove it completely.
As for decks, I have been testing this deck out and it has worked really well. The land base had been solid so far and I really, really want to go to 4 Reaper of the Wilds. They are that good. Maybe one less Advent?
4 Sylvan Caryatid
3 Desecration Demon
3 Reaper of the Wilds
2 Scavenging Ooze
4 Voice of Resurgence
3 Loxodon Smiter
3 Advent of the Wurm
2 Obzedat, Ghost Council
Spells 12
2 Whip of Erebos
3 Thoughtseize
3 Abrupt Decay
2 Hero's Downfall
2 Doom Blade
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Temple Garden
4 Godless Shrine
2 Temple of Silence
1 Plains
4 Swamp
5 Forest
3 Pithing Needle
3 Golgari Charm
1 Thoughtseize
1 Duress
1 Abrup Decay
2 Sin Collector
1 Hero's Down Fall
3 Lifebane Zombie
I looked at your list a few pages ago and understand using fiendslayer over smiter, but what about VoR or Advent? I think they are very solid cards that make many of our matchups (control and mirror) much better.
I have two variants to the deck currently, one is GB with lotleth trolls but I do feel GBw is better with smiter(or fiendslayer), VoR, Advent, and Obzedat. It just takes the deck over the top.
Thank you for the insight on black devotion count! I haven't had a chance to playtest (going tomorrow night to local magic for that), so did not realize that would be an issue.
I have also considered removing the 3 Boon, 3 Gray Merchants, 2 Underworld Connections, 2 Polukranos, and maybe a few other cards for 4 Commune, 4 Grisly Salvage, X Deathrites, 1 Whip, and a few big guys like Obzedat to make the deck more GBw reanimate with whip. But that is a different deck concept than this thread though I think they both are very similar in style besides having specific reanimate targets.
4 Sylvan Caryatid
3 Desecration Demon
3 Reaper of the Wilds
3 Boon Satyr
2 Scavenging Ooze
2 Polukranos, World Eater
3 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
Artifacts 4
2 Whip of Erebos
2 Underworld Connections
3 Abrupt Decay
2 Doom Blade
2 Hero's Downfall
2 Putrefy
3 Thoughtseize
Land 24
8 Forest
7 Swamp
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Golgari Gate
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
3 Pithing Needle
3 Golgari Charm
1 Thoughtseize
3 Duress
1 Abrupt Decay
2 Pharika's Cure
2 Putrefy
What do you guys think? I have Deathrites for Legacy, but I feel like they under perform in standard since they will almost never will be used as ramp, which is very important for a 1 drop.
Another thing is, I would do 4 MB Thoughtseize if possible. Unless I'm playing RDW, Thoughtseize is fantastic removal and hand information. I want to control as much of the game as possible while beating face and thoughtseize is the epitome of control.
Boon Satyr is another great pseudo removal. My only question is, does anyone ever hold Satyr for the bestow? Since we are light on 3 drops, I see playing Satyr ASAP as priority (obviously not during main phase tho).
Any other insights to this deck is greatly appreciated!
Don't forget the RED overlords as well.
3 Tropical Island
2 Savannah
2 Tundra
3 Flooded Strand
4 Windswept Heath
3 Misty Rainforest
2 Karakas
2 Island
1 Forest
1 Plains
Creatures: 21
4 Noble Hierarch
2 Scavenging Ooze
2 Scryb Ranger
2 Qasali Pridemage
3 Vendilion Clique
3 Geist of Saint Traft
3 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Gaddock Teeg
2 Force of Will
4 Swords to Plowshares
2 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
3 Brainstorm
2 Umezawa's Jitte
3 Green Sun's Zenith
2 Force of Will
3 Spell Pierce
3 Rest in Peace
3 Mother of Runes
3 Stifle
1 Flusterstorm
Domri Rade could be really good in a hard aggro Pun Mav, but I don't see Pun Mav being that kind of deck. What would you take out? Most likely a creature.
Voice of Resurgence is a great card, but I don't think he is right for the deck. While he makes the opponent think twice about using a counter, most creatures in maverick contribute to the win condition with some sort of activated ability whereas VoR's ability is at the mercy (and normally avoided) by the opponent. Voice of Resurgence seems like a better fit for Junk or Bant.
Just my opinion, I traded for a playset of VoR at the prerelease just in case I'm wrong as I really, really like the card.
Also on other topic, I have been playing with traditional Maverick. I am starting to acquire the cards for a Maverick GWu with Geists as I see blue a necessity right now. Gaea's Cradle will come out for sure, but other wise I think the land base stays the same with some added Trops and Tundras. I was wondering what other blue spells are best fit? Spell pierce only? FoW is not the answer with little fodder to pitch to it, plus card disadvantage is not good for us.