Simple idea, unblockable creature with a cool weapon. But aside from Invisible Stalker and Quietus Spike I'm not sure where else to go. I'm giving the deck a 'spy' flavor, so looking at unblockable/hexproof/shroud, colors of U/W so far. I'm also going with a human theme so I can use Silver-Inlaid Dagger as another themed weapon. With hexproof shrouded humans Angelic Overseer seemed a good addition, but it's got a hefty CMC and Modern games move fast enough I haven't had a chance to cast it yet. So far I either win with equipped shrouded little guys, or not at all. Here's the deck I've been running on MTGO.
So going for control/sneak in a guy with the Quietus Spike or Dagger. I'm trying to find a balance for counterspells and outright removal since I have blue and white. Any sweeper that deals 1 or 2 damage to all creatures takes me out, so that's a problem. Cho-Manno seems good because he's human and basically indestructible, but he's kinda spendy mana-wise.
Looking for suggestions on creatures and spells. I don't really want to change my equipment package too much. Fancy swords cost too much money, although I admit they'd be good. Besides, I like the 'spy-like' weapons. I had Grand Architect in here at one point because he's a sort of lord for blue creatures and can help bring in/pay activation costs of my artifacts so I can leave mana open for counters. But I figure there has to be a better choice. Considering Swans of Bryn Argoll because that card frustrated the heck out of me the other night when I had to play against it.
Mind Control type effects might be fun, as well as creature copying. But I'm not sure I want to go that route. Anyways, wanted to submit this to the masses and see what ideas percolated up. Thanks for looking!
I know this may end up taking you away from your "spy" theme, but I'll shoot my suggestions anyways and let you decide how you want to balance theme vs competitiveness.
I see this deck having three paths to further explore.
Rogues, Humans, or hard hitting Spike.
Although Rogues gives you prowl, Knowledge Exploitation and Theive's Fortune are the only in color cards worth playing, and they're decent but not worth gimping the deck for at all.
Humans are good, ie Silver-Inlaid Dagge, but I think focusing on the Spike is better. You can easily switch the daggers to Steelshaper's Gift to make sure you get the spike.
Take Kor Duelist, for example. He makes it just sick.
One swing with a spike takes them from 20 life down to just 4.
This is extremely easy by 4th turn, the turn you normally swing with spike anyways.
He also makes the deathtouch very relevant, since the first strike from his doubles means that he kills anything and lives. No more needing to chump block a threat, he can just end it.
The only draw back is that he's a Kor, not a human.
I'm not suggesting he replace the unblockable agents - rather the duelist or commando.
I think sacrificing one relevant card (dagger) for such great synergy is well worth it.
Personally, and this takes you slightly further from the spy theme and more into competition-driven design, I'd splash red for more double strikers and Sunforger. Forger is in line with Spike - same costs to cast & equip (so it stays perfectly with the curve you design around) and same swings-to-win ratio: two hits to kill on a double striker, 4 hits on the unblockables. It's secondary ability is also extremely nice, and should not be undervalued. 5th turn you can clear the way, reattach and swing for that early victory. The flavor of the card isn't spot on, but the ability fits what spies do: find your opponents one weakness at the crucial moment and exploit it.
You could easily create a 4-5 card pile of answers for emergencies.
Don't go all out, but having a few cards that are 1-ofs that you may need is great when you can search them and cast them at instant speed for 2 mana.
Examples:
1 Double Negative. 3cc, but a searchable castable counter. Stop them from stopping you.
1 Odds // Ends. "Find" odds, cast ends. It's true trickery.
1 Hide // Seek. Searchable "disenchant". Seek also stops Sunny Side Up as well, etc.
I think you could easily make it work and still feel "Spy-y"
writ of passage and and distortion strike are great ways to make small creatures unblockable and mirran crusader would be great for a deck like this. I think you also need to work on your counters and such.
Thanks for the ideas. I'll probably try several routes as they aren't expensive. Kor Duelist is a great suggestion.
I'm also tempted to try to work in Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer because it's such a cool card. Repeatable Pacifism seems good. But not sure I want to spend the mana on his ability every turn. I'd rather be attacking I think. I could also go U/B and include some of the black rogues. Oona's Blackguard would mesh nicely with a rogue theme. And then I could use Cloak and Dagger instead of the silver-inlaid dagger. I think Deft Duelist would equip the Cloak and Dagger despite her shroud because it isn't targeted, just equips to a rogue.
Anyways, I'm a tribal player at heart, so I'll have to balance the competitive with theme. Mcpatches, I'm open to suggestions for counters. Modern is tricky as all the 2 mana counters have some kind of stipulation attached. I like having Negate and Psychic Barrier as they're both hard counters and doing 1 damage is a nice bonus. But there have been plenty of times I've had the Negate in hand when my opponent cast a creature I wanted to stop.
Quietus Spike is probably my favorite piece of equipment simply because of the shock factor. A lot of people haven't seen it before for some reason and when they read what it does they do a double take. I like it in EDH with Wound Reflection out as it can easily be a one shot kill. Wound Reflection is way too spendy for Modern though.
I have to admit, I like the rogues approach myself. Looter il-kor seems another good rogue to add, which, while not hexproof/shroud, is the next thing to unblockable and gives you card selection as well.
I play the looter in pauper, not sure why I didn't think of him for this deck. Great idea. I think one of the keys to playing this deck will be to not overextend, as I've learned in my earlier builds... I got a bunch of hexproof guys out there, feeling pretty good, and then a 2 toughness sweeper takes them all out. Maybe some fog effects until I get to my key cards as well. Favorite fogs in W or U?
well, this deck can win with one guy and a spike. Frankly, fogs are all but dead against control decks. I think you'd be better off with something like wall of omens as a cantripping blocker that keeps you going. Also, I would look into more card draw/selection as a means of getting to your core strategy quicker.
a "card drawing base" of
x Neurok Commando
4 Wall of Omens
then finish out with Negates, spell pierces, sleight of hand, etc. to get you to your core cards. Essentially, you're playing aggro/control and need ways to survive.
If you have lands that are giving you trouble, then maybe ghost quarter would be warranted. Otherwise, Perhaps tectonic edge (I feel dirty saying it, too...) to keep them off sweepers or maybe spreading seas.
If you like the looter il kor/neurok commando approach, then I might suggest adding in goldmeadow harrier effects (or any number of these) and then might also add in augury adept as a 3rd way of drawing cards on the attack. This *will* require more counterspells or means of protection, however.
I like the idea of wall of omens. I've read plenty about how effective tappers can be, but I haven't used them much. In standard Feeling of Dread has been coming up as a way of stalling out the opponent's board while you build presence. I like its cheap flashback cost if you're playing U/W.
Yeah, fogs are supposed to be pretty bad, I've never played with them, but that usually means I should try a mechanic out. Spreading seas is a great idea. They play that one mountain and 'bammo', it's sunk, so to speak. And I could then include some islandwalk guys possibly.
So here's the build I'm going to test. Got rid of the Angelic Overseer plan for now. Mostly monoblue except for some dual lands that would let me us Moorland Haunt. The risk is not drawing into Quietus Spike even with Neurok Commando, Looter, and Sleight of Hand. If I have problems I could add more plains and try out Steelshaper's Gift.
So turn one Sleight of Hand, turn two leave mana open for a counter, turn three mana open for a counter and either a Vapor Snag or another Sleight of Hand, turn four drop an unblockable with mana open for a counter, turn five Quietus Spike. I could play it more aggressively if I include Gitaxian Probe so I know what I'm facing. I have a tough time waiting with blue, but I notice people who win with it play the draw-go game.
Not going to work on the sideboard too much til I have a main deck I like.
- psychic barrier, +remand. It's a better general counter for you. yes, I know the spell isn't gone, but you only generally need like two hits anyways.
I have all of those counterspells and sub them in and out. It's a tough meta to plan for when you're playing casually. In a match you can adjust for a creature heavy versus spell heavy deck. One of my favorite counters is actually Familiar's Ruse. It depends on the deck, but I have a deck with Memnites and Ornithopters, so you can hard counter the spell, return the 0 cost critter to your hand and then drop on the battlefield again. Deprive is also good in monoblue where you don't need a lot of mana to cast your spells. I do like rune snag, good for an 'aggressive' control deck because the more you use the more powerful it is.
I played a fun game with this deck last night where my opponent had the cool plan of dropping Phylactery Lichs and putting their counters on a Darksteel Myr. Not so good for him if I'd drawn my oblivion ring, but I didn't and he ended up with 3 of the lichs on the battlefield. But I had my invisible stalker out equipped with the quietus spike and just kept plugging away. It doesn't need a lot to be effective. I find the hardest part of the game is the last few points of damage. First swing brings them to 10 life. Second to 5. Third to 2. Fourth hit finishes them. But you can see the effectiveness of the equipment diminishes as their life gets lower. I'm wondering about splashing red in for a couple of burn spells to make an easier finish. Artillerize might be good. Sacrificing the Quietus Spike for the last few points of damage is kind of funny. I won one game with a Vapor Snag after the spike got them to 1 life. That was fun too.
You want to win with a blue deck finisher? try Psionic blast before you splash another color. It's not the greatest burn spell, but after they're below 4, bye bye!
I think you've got your quietus spike damage confused. First hit (assuming 1 power attacker) *if* they are at 20, they go to 19, and then lose 9.5 life, rounded up, which takes 10, putting them at 9. 2nd hit puts them to 8, whereupon they lose 4 more, putting them at 4. 3 hits puts them at 1, and the last will kill them. Of course, if you're attacking with more than one creature, things get *much* quicker.
Played with this a bit. Sometimes it's just too slow, so maybe more tutor. Fabricate or Steelshaper's Gift. Spreading Seas is great against dual lands. Deck works best when I get Invisible Stalker out on turn two and then Quietus Spike out on turn four with Turn Aside backup. Still needs plenty of refining, but the basic gameplan is pretty solid.
4 Deft Duelist (can't equip it so maybe not)
3 Neurok Commando (this or Invisimancer)
3 Angelic Overseer
4 Blighted Agent (not so much for infect as to carry Quietus Spike, but i'll take the infect)
1 Cho-Manno, Revolutionary (experiment)
3 Silver-Inlaid Dagger
4 Path to Exile
4 Feeling of Dread
3 Negate
3 Psychic Barrier
3 Remand
2 Glacial Fortress
8 Islands
6 Plains
So going for control/sneak in a guy with the Quietus Spike or Dagger. I'm trying to find a balance for counterspells and outright removal since I have blue and white. Any sweeper that deals 1 or 2 damage to all creatures takes me out, so that's a problem. Cho-Manno seems good because he's human and basically indestructible, but he's kinda spendy mana-wise.
Looking for suggestions on creatures and spells. I don't really want to change my equipment package too much. Fancy swords cost too much money, although I admit they'd be good. Besides, I like the 'spy-like' weapons. I had Grand Architect in here at one point because he's a sort of lord for blue creatures and can help bring in/pay activation costs of my artifacts so I can leave mana open for counters. But I figure there has to be a better choice. Considering Swans of Bryn Argoll because that card frustrated the heck out of me the other night when I had to play against it.
Mind Control type effects might be fun, as well as creature copying. But I'm not sure I want to go that route. Anyways, wanted to submit this to the masses and see what ideas percolated up. Thanks for looking!
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
I see this deck having three paths to further explore.
Rogues, Humans, or hard hitting Spike.
Although Rogues gives you prowl, Knowledge Exploitation and Theive's Fortune are the only in color cards worth playing, and they're decent but not worth gimping the deck for at all.
Humans are good, ie Silver-Inlaid Dagge, but I think focusing on the Spike is better. You can easily switch the daggers to Steelshaper's Gift to make sure you get the spike.
Take Kor Duelist, for example. He makes it just sick.
One swing with a spike takes them from 20 life down to just 4.
This is extremely easy by 4th turn, the turn you normally swing with spike anyways.
He also makes the deathtouch very relevant, since the first strike from his doubles means that he kills anything and lives. No more needing to chump block a threat, he can just end it.
The only draw back is that he's a Kor, not a human.
I'm not suggesting he replace the unblockable agents - rather the duelist or commando.
I think sacrificing one relevant card (dagger) for such great synergy is well worth it.
Personally, and this takes you slightly further from the spy theme and more into competition-driven design, I'd splash red for more double strikers and Sunforger. Forger is in line with Spike - same costs to cast & equip (so it stays perfectly with the curve you design around) and same swings-to-win ratio: two hits to kill on a double striker, 4 hits on the unblockables. It's secondary ability is also extremely nice, and should not be undervalued. 5th turn you can clear the way, reattach and swing for that early victory. The flavor of the card isn't spot on, but the ability fits what spies do: find your opponents one weakness at the crucial moment and exploit it.
You could easily create a 4-5 card pile of answers for emergencies.
Don't go all out, but having a few cards that are 1-ofs that you may need is great when you can search them and cast them at instant speed for 2 mana.
Examples:
1 Double Negative. 3cc, but a searchable castable counter. Stop them from stopping you.
1 Odds // Ends. "Find" odds, cast ends. It's true trickery.
1 Hide // Seek. Searchable "disenchant". Seek also stops Sunny Side Up as well, etc.
I think you could easily make it work and still feel "Spy-y"
No longer staff here.
Follow the link for nice cheap clothing.
Playing:
Death's Shadow Jund
Played:
Kiki Chord, Zoo variants, Goblins, Burn
I'm also tempted to try to work in Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer because it's such a cool card. Repeatable Pacifism seems good. But not sure I want to spend the mana on his ability every turn. I'd rather be attacking I think. I could also go U/B and include some of the black rogues. Oona's Blackguard would mesh nicely with a rogue theme. And then I could use Cloak and Dagger instead of the silver-inlaid dagger. I think Deft Duelist would equip the Cloak and Dagger despite her shroud because it isn't targeted, just equips to a rogue.
Anyways, I'm a tribal player at heart, so I'll have to balance the competitive with theme. Mcpatches, I'm open to suggestions for counters. Modern is tricky as all the 2 mana counters have some kind of stipulation attached. I like having Negate and Psychic Barrier as they're both hard counters and doing 1 damage is a nice bonus. But there have been plenty of times I've had the Negate in hand when my opponent cast a creature I wanted to stop.
Quietus Spike is probably my favorite piece of equipment simply because of the shock factor. A lot of people haven't seen it before for some reason and when they read what it does they do a double take. I like it in EDH with Wound Reflection out as it can easily be a one shot kill. Wound Reflection is way too spendy for Modern though.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
Maybe an aggressive base of :
4 quietus spike
4 Looter il-kor
4 Invisible stalker
a "card drawing base" of
x Neurok Commando
4 Wall of Omens
then finish out with Negates, spell pierces, sleight of hand, etc. to get you to your core cards. Essentially, you're playing aggro/control and need ways to survive.
If you have lands that are giving you trouble, then maybe ghost quarter would be warranted. Otherwise, Perhaps tectonic edge (I feel dirty saying it, too...) to keep them off sweepers or maybe spreading seas.
If you like the looter il kor/neurok commando approach, then I might suggest adding in goldmeadow harrier effects (or any number of these) and then might also add in augury adept as a 3rd way of drawing cards on the attack. This *will* require more counterspells or means of protection, however.
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
Yeah, fogs are supposed to be pretty bad, I've never played with them, but that usually means I should try a mechanic out. Spreading seas is a great idea. They play that one mountain and 'bammo', it's sunk, so to speak. And I could then include some islandwalk guys possibly.
Thanks for the suggestions.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
4 Looter il-Kor
4 Neurok Commando
2 Neurok Invisimancer
4 Negate
4 Psychic Barrier
4 Sleight of Hand
4 Turn Aside
2 Vapor Snag
4 Quietus Spike
4 Spreading Seas
2 Seachrome Coast
2 Moorland Haunt
13 Islands
So turn one Sleight of Hand, turn two leave mana open for a counter, turn three mana open for a counter and either a Vapor Snag or another Sleight of Hand, turn four drop an unblockable with mana open for a counter, turn five Quietus Spike. I could play it more aggressively if I include Gitaxian Probe so I know what I'm facing. I have a tough time waiting with blue, but I notice people who win with it play the draw-go game.
Not going to work on the sideboard too much til I have a main deck I like.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
You could likewise consider mana leak or rune snag.
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
I played a fun game with this deck last night where my opponent had the cool plan of dropping Phylactery Lichs and putting their counters on a Darksteel Myr. Not so good for him if I'd drawn my oblivion ring, but I didn't and he ended up with 3 of the lichs on the battlefield. But I had my invisible stalker out equipped with the quietus spike and just kept plugging away. It doesn't need a lot to be effective. I find the hardest part of the game is the last few points of damage. First swing brings them to 10 life. Second to 5. Third to 2. Fourth hit finishes them. But you can see the effectiveness of the equipment diminishes as their life gets lower. I'm wondering about splashing red in for a couple of burn spells to make an easier finish. Artillerize might be good. Sacrificing the Quietus Spike for the last few points of damage is kind of funny. I won one game with a Vapor Snag after the spike got them to 1 life. That was fun too.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
I think you've got your quietus spike damage confused. First hit (assuming 1 power attacker) *if* they are at 20, they go to 19, and then lose 9.5 life, rounded up, which takes 10, putting them at 9. 2nd hit puts them to 8, whereupon they lose 4 more, putting them at 4. 3 hits puts them at 1, and the last will kill them. Of course, if you're attacking with more than one creature, things get *much* quicker.
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck: