I had a U/B mill deck built as RTR block came out, I was sick of its lack beefiness. Good thing I still have the cards for that build because I think this card could help that deck become viable. Not to mention Nighthowler, Consuming Abberation and other enchantments and gods can help with the whole devotion aspect with regards to milling stuff for a creatures high toughness. This is prob my second favorite God card in BTG....u/b/x devotion might be my thing coming up here in a cpl weeks.
Dude I've been playing mill since like the millstone came out, and U/B has always been at the front of this house. I haven't been more excited about a card for the archetype since Consuming Abberation...I'm looking to play test my modern and standard version of mill against the toughest decks.
I don't know what turns me off the most, if it is how absolutely, disgustingly horrible Phenax is or the hordes of people earnestly claiming he combos with Consuming Aberration. He's worse than Karamethra. At least she draws cards and wears Elesh Norn's hat.
I mean, no offense, if that is your thing then by all means go for it but don't tell me it is even remotely competitive.
I've always thought you can't 100% rely in mill as a strategy to win. Is a sweet alt win or auto win when it happens tho... You might be better off including this card in on a strategy that is already being used or create a new one or a variant...u/b/w seems nice because you would have access to some of the best evasive type creatures but also have access to indestructible through cards like this and have access to hexproof through blue or glaring spotlight...I know it sounds like a far reach but diehard u/b mill fans may have gotten what they needed but don't realize it yet.
So Mogis is in the middle of a guitar solo, and then Phenax jumps in with
"I like big butts and I cannot lie..."
Also, the last multicolored spell is most likely a UB card which hopefully is similar to Wall of Denial but for UB. A 1UB wall with Hexproof and flying could be sweet for Phenax.
I really wish they would stop giving UB jank. Tons of mill cards in RTR block that haven't seen any play, the worst guild mechanic(though that was in fear of UB version of cawblade/deliver), and now this guy.
This is a pretty powerful mill card however. The problem is that a mill deck doesn't have enough good mill cards. Yes this guy+defenders is fun, but if you don't have devotion it's still a several turn clock, and if Phenax gets removed its pretty much gg unless you have another and they have no counter. This totally should have been at 4, should have been far from broken.(unless there are insane mill cards unspoiled/in JOU/core set for him to play with)
A blue wall of blossoms would be promising, but possibly too powerful.
Anything defensive with a trigger upon entering the battlefield would fit nicely. For example, a 1/4 Man-O'-War at 1UB would be a perfect slot as it would fill 2 devotion, do something relevant, and mill for 4.
I wouldn't mind seeing a card like this:
Dead Defenders UB
Creature 1B: Regenerate target creature you control with 1 or less power.
0/4
None of these things will happen of course, as mill is always a strategy that just gets crumbs. But those are the types of things that might make it a little bit more viable.
A blue wall of blossoms would be promising, but possibly too powerful.
Anything defensive with a trigger upon entering the battlefield would fit nicely. For example, a 1/4 Man-O'-War at 1UB would be a perfect slot as it would fill 2 devotion, do something relevant, and mill for 4.
I wouldn't mind seeing a card like this:
Dead Defenders UB
Creature 1B: Regenerate target creature you control with 1 or less power.
0/4
None of these things will happen of course, as mill is always a strategy that just gets crumbs. But those are the types of things that might make it a little bit more viable.
Just want to add that Returned Phalanx already exists
And there could be more on the way.
Why not just run Black Devotion with a slight splash in Blue for Phenax?
Seems like Desecration Demon, Pack Rats, Gray Merchant gives both a damage-portion and mill-portion. Mill is alternative if you cannot get your damage in.
Just want to add that Returned Phalanx already exists
And there could be more on the way.
Returned Phalanx turns into a 3/3 attacker. It doesn't regenerate or otherwise have any other useful features for a Phenax build other than possibly having 3 power.
Unless you're referring to the flavor of the Returned being a UB zombie wall, in which case, I apologize.
Phenax, God of Deception 3UB
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God Mythic Rare
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to blue and black is less than seven, Phenax isn't a creature.
Creatures you control have "T: Each opponent exiles the top card of his or her library. Scry 1." 4/7
Exiling 1 card can be much more relevant against control decks, plus the scry allows you to drill down quickly to the cards you need.
If mill trys to become a thing every deck thats not aggro will play elixir and aggro will just kill you before you set up. For tge moment being mill will not hit close to tier 1 sorry for yah. Also playing mill is just as bad as playing babt auras why would you wanna lose friends like that
I understand that this is a strong card, and pretty good. I just hate the fact that wizards is just falling back on " blue black is mill. I was discussing with some friends, and we thought that if he read. : whenever a card is put into your opponents graveyard for the first time in a turn, you draw a card" would be a good card, but not super OP. balanced you know? But nope. He's mill..
Scary mill engine indeed, lots of good enabler creatures out there. I saw a list someone posted earlier but I don't think they mentioned Guardians of Meletis. With the other two 3-CMC high toughness creatures in standard, the deck destruction mechanic could get quite a speed boost now.
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"There's plenty of Youth in the world. What we need is a fountain of Smart."
Phenax, God of deception is a cool mill card. Mill fans will eat it up.
Im no pro or fortune teller, obviously, but I do not think this will herald in a new powerful mill archetype in Standard.
Personally, I am disappointed in the card because UB should not just default at mill all the time. THere are so many things this guy could have been. If the art were worse I wouldnt care, but I really like the art and dont care much for the dude...shrug
EDIT: one thing I do notice I like after re-reading the card a few times, you can tap your creatures anytime (provided they dont have summoning sickness). So you can leave them to block and mill at Eot. I guess that is cool..still
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The true mind can weather all the lies and illusions without being lost. The true heart can tough the poison of hatred without being harmed. Since beginning-less time, darkness thrives in the void but always yields to purifying light.
I invision a future where one is not mighty when he can silence a crowd with brutality,
but when he leaves them speechless with wisdom.
Although this is very very depressing, it is still a very strong card. This is actually probably one of the strongest mill effects I have seen since original Ravnica.
Remember guys once he is activated you can tap him to mill 7!!!! An that's just him. Not saying its game breaking, but it might be something.
The reason why most Dimir fans hate it is coz its abilities are antithesis to Dimir's philosophy. Most, if not all Dimir players are purist control players; you wouldn't be seeing too many creatures on their side. Look at Dimir master Shouta Yasooka, how many creatures has he packed in his quirky Dimir deck? Or Wafo Tapa and his famed Mystical Teachings deck?
I'm pretty sure Dimir players wouldn't complained if his abilities were switched to lands instead of creatures.
Phenax, God of Deceit3UB
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to blue and black is less than seven, Phenax isn't a creature.
Each land you control has "T: Target player puts the top card of his or her library into his or her graveyard."
4/7
Actually a tough deck to build. I don't know if I have enough creatures to kill with Phenax, but this is a start at least. The other option is to go with BUG and run less control and more ramp, but I'm not sure you could survive long enough
The reason why most Dimir fans hate it is coz its abilities are antithesis to Dimir's philosophy. Most, if not all Dimir players are purist control players; you wouldn't be seeing too many creatures on their side. Look at Dimir master Shouta Yasooka, how many creatures has he packed in his quirky Dimir deck? Or Wafo Tapa and his famed Mystical Teachings deck?
I'm pretty sure Dimir players wouldn't complained if his abilities were switched to lands instead of creatures.
Phenax, God of Deceit3UB
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to blue and black is less than seven, Phenax isn't a creature.
Each land you control has "T: Target player puts the top card of his or her library into his or her graveyard."
4/7
You hit the nail on the head with your comment.
Im running UW Control but I would gladly play UB if it would be even remotely as powerful as UW but sadly they dont give any kind of control tools to UB these days and Phenax could have at least acted like a win con with the ability you made but seeing how every minor god mentions the word "Creature" it shouldnt have come as a surprise
I can see decks being built around this.
t1- cloudfin raptor
t2- murmuring phantasms/frostburn weird, raptor's 1/2
t3- wall of frost/hover barrier, raptor's 2/3
t4- another 2 cost defender (1/4,0/5), raptor's a 3/4, leave mana open
t5- phenax,evolve raptor, you mill 7+4+5+4=20 AND phenax is a creature
t6- You mill for another 27, and play triton tactics/hidden strings/whatever and win.
It's also interesting in BUG control, where you can ramp, and play some really interesting combinations. Prophet of kruphix anyone? You also get an easy answer to this guy's biggest weakness(verdict) in golgari charm.
Yea I get you. With the templating, Wizards have restricted themselves (or one could say made their life easier), thinking that Devotion can only be met by having creatures. I would argue that enchantments can be a form of devotion that devotees bring to the gods.
C'mon, all they needed to do was organize a birthday party to Xenagos for him to ascend! Wouldn't Phenax be thrilled with some CSI crime scene or something? That's devotion too!
Alas, for simplicity's sake "control" guilds like Azorius and Dimir players have to suck their sorry thumbs and play "bad" cards like creatures. lol
Yea I get you. With the templating, Wizards have restricted themselves (or one could say made their life easier), thinking that Devotion can only be met by having creatures. I would argue that enchantments can be a form of devotion that devotees bring to the gods.
C'mon, all they needed to do was organize a birthday party to Xenagos for him to ascend! Wouldn't Phenax be thrilled with some CSI crime scene or something? That's devotion too!
Alas, for simplicity's sake "control" guilds like Azorius and Dimir players have to suck their sorry thumbs and play "bad" cards like creatures. lol
Ohh dont get me wrong I have no problem with playing creatures as long as they are useful for stabilizing or are pretty hard for my opponent to beat like Blood Baron of Vizkopa, Fiendslayer Paladin or Archangel of Thune.
Even the spoiled Brimaz, King of Oreskos has my interest since most aggro decks will have a hard time with him.
But Phenax requires far too many creatures to make him work in a control deck I think.
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Modern: UW Control
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I mean, no offense, if that is your thing then by all means go for it but don't tell me it is even remotely competitive.
Yes, I suppose in a technical sense, it is.
"I like big butts and I cannot lie..."
How about a straight up combination of Wall of souls and Wall of tears for UB?
This is a pretty powerful mill card however. The problem is that a mill deck doesn't have enough good mill cards. Yes this guy+defenders is fun, but if you don't have devotion it's still a several turn clock, and if Phenax gets removed its pretty much gg unless you have another and they have no counter. This totally should have been at 4, should have been far from broken.(unless there are insane mill cards unspoiled/in JOU/core set for him to play with)
A blue wall of blossoms would be promising, but possibly too powerful.
Anything defensive with a trigger upon entering the battlefield would fit nicely. For example, a 1/4 Man-O'-War at 1UB would be a perfect slot as it would fill 2 devotion, do something relevant, and mill for 4.
I wouldn't mind seeing a card like this:
Dead Defenders UB
Creature
1B: Regenerate target creature you control with 1 or less power.
0/4
None of these things will happen of course, as mill is always a strategy that just gets crumbs. But those are the types of things that might make it a little bit more viable.
Just want to add that Returned Phalanx already exists
And there could be more on the way.
Seems like Desecration Demon, Pack Rats, Gray Merchant gives both a damage-portion and mill-portion. Mill is alternative if you cannot get your damage in.
Returned Phalanx turns into a 3/3 attacker. It doesn't regenerate or otherwise have any other useful features for a Phenax build other than possibly having 3 power.
Unless you're referring to the flavor of the Returned being a UB zombie wall, in which case, I apologize.
Phenax, God of Deception
3UB
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God Mythic Rare
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to blue and black is less than seven, Phenax isn't a creature.
Creatures you control have "T: Each opponent exiles the top card of his or her library. Scry 1."
4/7
Exiling 1 card can be much more relevant against control decks, plus the scry allows you to drill down quickly to the cards you need.
Im no pro or fortune teller, obviously, but I do not think this will herald in a new powerful mill archetype in Standard.
Personally, I am disappointed in the card because UB should not just default at mill all the time. THere are so many things this guy could have been. If the art were worse I wouldnt care, but I really like the art and dont care much for the dude...shrug
EDIT: one thing I do notice I like after re-reading the card a few times, you can tap your creatures anytime (provided they dont have summoning sickness). So you can leave them to block and mill at Eot. I guess that is cool..still
I invision a future where one is not mighty when he can silence a crowd with brutality,
but when he leaves them speechless with wisdom.
Remember guys once he is activated you can tap him to mill 7!!!! An that's just him. Not saying its game breaking, but it might be something.
I'm pretty sure Dimir players wouldn't complained if his abilities were switched to lands instead of creatures.
Phenax, God of Deceit 3UB
Legendary Enchantment Creature - God
Indestructible
As long as your devotion to blue and black is less than seven, Phenax isn't a creature.
Each land you control has "T: Target player puts the top card of his or her library into his or her graveyard."
4/7
UR Melek, Izzet ParagonUR, B Shirei, Shizo's CaretakerB, R Jaya Ballard, Task MageR,RW Tajic, Blade of the LegionRW, UB Lazav, Dimir MastermindUB, UB Circu, Dimir LobotomistUB, RWU Zedruu the GreatheartedRWU, GUBThe MimeoplasmGUB, UGExperiment Kraj UG, WDarien, King of KjeldorW, BMarrow-GnawerB, WBGKarador, Ghost ChieftainWBG, UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU, GWUDerevi, Empyrial TacticianGWU, RDaretti, Scrap SavantR, UTalrand, Sky SummonerU, GEzuri, Renegade LeaderG, WUBRGReaper KingWUBRG, RGXenagos, God of RevelsRG, CKozilek, Butcher of TruthC, WUBRGGeneral TazriWUBRG, GTitania, Protector of ArgothG
3 Nightveil Specter
3 Omenspeaker
2 Wall of Frost
2 Pack Rat
1 AEtherling
Spells(15):
2 Devour Flesh
3 Dissolve
3 Read the Bones
3 Thoughtseize
2 Hero's Downfall
2 Ultimate Price
3 Phenax, God of Deception
Enchantments(2):
2 Underworld Connections
Planeswalkers(4):
3 Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver
1 Jace, Memory Adept
Lands(25):
2 Mutavault
4 Temple of Deceit
4 Watery Grave
8 Swamp
7 Island
Actually a tough deck to build. I don't know if I have enough creatures to kill with Phenax, but this is a start at least. The other option is to go with BUG and run less control and more ramp, but I'm not sure you could survive long enough
Standard:
GU Prophet
Legacy:
WBU Shared Fate
Trades
You hit the nail on the head with your comment.
Im running UW Control but I would gladly play UB if it would be even remotely as powerful as UW but sadly they dont give any kind of control tools to UB these days and Phenax could have at least acted like a win con with the ability you made but seeing how every minor god mentions the word "Creature" it shouldnt have come as a surprise
t1- cloudfin raptor
t2- murmuring phantasms/frostburn weird, raptor's 1/2
t3- wall of frost/hover barrier, raptor's 2/3
t4- another 2 cost defender (1/4,0/5), raptor's a 3/4, leave mana open
t5- phenax,evolve raptor, you mill 7+4+5+4=20 AND phenax is a creature
t6- You mill for another 27, and play triton tactics/hidden strings/whatever and win.
It's also interesting in BUG control, where you can ramp, and play some really interesting combinations. Prophet of kruphix anyone? You also get an easy answer to this guy's biggest weakness(verdict) in golgari charm.
C'mon, all they needed to do was organize a birthday party to Xenagos for him to ascend! Wouldn't Phenax be thrilled with some CSI crime scene or something? That's devotion too!
Alas, for simplicity's sake "control" guilds like Azorius and Dimir players have to suck their sorry thumbs and play "bad" cards like creatures. lol
UR Melek, Izzet ParagonUR, B Shirei, Shizo's CaretakerB, R Jaya Ballard, Task MageR,RW Tajic, Blade of the LegionRW, UB Lazav, Dimir MastermindUB, UB Circu, Dimir LobotomistUB, RWU Zedruu the GreatheartedRWU, GUBThe MimeoplasmGUB, UGExperiment Kraj UG, WDarien, King of KjeldorW, BMarrow-GnawerB, WBGKarador, Ghost ChieftainWBG, UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU, GWUDerevi, Empyrial TacticianGWU, RDaretti, Scrap SavantR, UTalrand, Sky SummonerU, GEzuri, Renegade LeaderG, WUBRGReaper KingWUBRG, RGXenagos, God of RevelsRG, CKozilek, Butcher of TruthC, WUBRGGeneral TazriWUBRG, GTitania, Protector of ArgothG
Ohh dont get me wrong I have no problem with playing creatures as long as they are useful for stabilizing or are pretty hard for my opponent to beat like Blood Baron of Vizkopa, Fiendslayer Paladin or Archangel of Thune.
Even the spoiled Brimaz, King of Oreskos has my interest since most aggro decks will have a hard time with him.
But Phenax requires far too many creatures to make him work in a control deck I think.