How do I play this deck?
Find warp world. Cast responsibly. Scratch that - cast repeatedly. Maybe win, maybe lose.
Is Warp World seriously all this deck does?
Kinda. But it's a whole lot of fun in the process. Also if Maelstrom Wanderer doesn't wander off into my deck then he has pretty good potential to beat face.
What do I do if Warp World gets countered/exiled?
Choose one or more - Become irate. Pray for Riftsweeper, Burning Wish, or Anarchist and his ilk. Break down and purchase Vexing Shusher.
When does this deck do well?
If I have ~15 permanents when Warp World resolves, the end is near.
Maelstrom Wanderer: Riku of Two Reflections and Sliver Queen seem to be the predominant generals for decks centered around Warp World. For starters, I don't have the mana base to reliably obtain RRR in a five-color deck. Optimally, I'd be casting Warp World as soon as possible, and in a five-color deck it's likely going to be happening turns later (ain't nobody got time fo dat). Ob Nixilis, The Fallen, Emeria Angel, and any of the black tutors would be nice additions, but when push comes to shove I can live without them. Riku happens to be the same colors as Wanderer and he's pretty good at upping your permanent count, but his ability to do so requires additional blue and green mana. Warp World requires multiple red mana. Blue and green is not red. If you don't believe me look it up. Also, Riku's a fragile little man-baby. A man-baby that everyone wants to kill. On top of that, even a beeble could kick his butt. What even is a beeble anyway? I don't know. No Riku.
Maelstrom Wanderer, on the other hand, is a match made in heaven for this. Once I hit eight mana, if my permanent count is too low, casting the Wanderer will reliably net me three or more permanents. Alternatively, he can stay in his room for the duration of any world warping and come out of the command zone to hastify everyone. Good job, let's hear it for Maelstrom Wanderer.
Jade Mage, Ant Queen: These two allow me to do something on my 6-7 mana phase (helps my deck get through its awkward tween years before it can cast Warp/Wanderer).
Dragon Broodmother, Verdant Embrace: Not a huge fan of these two considering they need to stick around for a full turn cycle to be useful. Neither of them stick around for a full turn cycle. Ever. Besides, who's gonna raise the baby dragons after their broodmother dies? They'll realize Wanderer isn't their real dad.
Shardless Agent, Etherium-Horn Sorcerer: Don't let Shardless Agent fool you. You'd think it would be good at getting mana ramp or tutors, but all it ever cascades is Riftsweeper. They both have a decent cost-to-permanent ratio when cast, but they'll do nothing off a Warp World. What lazy jerks.
Beetleback Chief: Four mana for three permanents. Plus those permanents are riding on bugs. Gotta watch out for that.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker: A bad, bad dude who breaks mirrors as well as hearts (possibly). He doesn't like to stick around long though, everyone is eager to introduce him to their removal.
Win Me the Game (or backfire horribly)
Monkey Cage: If any card could be considered perfect for this deck, it's Monkey Cage. Except when you draw it (but hey, that's what Brainstorm is for, right?) Attacking with a number of 2/2 Monkeys equal to the total converted mana cost of all creatures that were Warped into grants a certain indescribable simian satisfaction.
Dual Casting, Wort, the Raidmother: When I was a kid, my grandmother always used to say "Two Warp Worlds are always better than one." I took that to heart. Also, Wort is three permanents, and that's just dandy. (Perhaps Nivix Guildmage will find a home here too?)
Utility Junk
Brainstorm: This isn't a permanent so I'm not quite sure how it found its way in here. Either way, it's a great topdeck manipulation with Maelstrom Wanderer, helps dig for Warp World, and makes that Archaeomancer I didn't want to draw at least somewhat useful.
Tornado Elemental: Yeah, I realize it nonbo's with Roil Elemental, but fliers are really the worst. Especially when they aren't mine. Good riddance I say.
Fervor, Fires of Yavimaya, Emblem of the Warmind: I REALLY want my creatures to have haste. I'd like to cut at least one considering they're redundant (especially with Wanderer), but I don't have anything else to fill the slot with at the moment.
Loaming Shaman: Ideally I'd like to keep my win-cons out of my graveyard. Monkey Cage inevitably ends up there one way or another.
Peregrine Drake: Free permanent. Free mana off of Warp World. Free flier. Lets me cast Warp World even if I only have two R producing lands. It's good. I like it. It's nice.
Acidic Slime: Considering running some more durdles like these. Not fun when someone has a Grand Arbiter or a Crawlspace.
Halimar Depths: Takes the excitement out of the next three turns and makes me sad. It's okay with Maelstrom Wanderer I suppose.
Boseiju, Who Shelters All: The name is pretty misleading, seeing as it rarely shelters all. In fact, it should really be called Boseiju, Who Shelters Warp World and Occasionally Burning Wish, Too. I'm not really into the whole brevity thing.
Exclusions:
Selective Memory: Allows you to cast Maelstrom Wanderer and then win. Exciting stuff, right? Wrong. No Selective Memory.
Simic Signet: Wait, you're telling me this signet doesn't make red mana? What a piece of junk.
Deadeye Navigator: Wait, why isn't he in here? Oh, I don't have one yet. Soon to replace Emblem of the Warmind.
Nivix Guildmage: Might consider adding it. Both of his abilities are pertinent to my interests.
That's all for now!
Let me know how I can improve the deck or the thread, pretty please?
Very fun deck and also fun to read! I too have a warp world based deck with Riku at the helm. I've found that genesis wave works great in this deck as well. I can help with your manabase if you have money to blow just let me know.
Thanks for the feedback, I had a lot of fun writing it
I toyed with the idea of having Genesis Wave in the deck for a while. With Maelstrom Wanderer out it can easily be a wincon, and with topdeck manipulation from Brainstorm, Cream of the Crop, and Cryptic Annelid, it can easily get me the cards that I want. Unfortunately, it'll ultimately be cut in the future for the following reasons:
Technically not a permanent.
This deck doesn't generate super crazy g-wave level mana until after I start warping.
Riku breaks it. Maelstrom Wanderer simply makes it. Break > make.
So there you have it. As for the mana base, finding good dual lands for the deck is a bit difficult considering most of the ones I own enter the battlefield tapped. What kind of lands are too lazy to tap for mana after I warp into them? Not the kind I want in my deck. I'll have to invest in some of the nice shocklands that RtR and Gatecrash have to offer, as well as the in-color painlands.
(alternatively, how to lose friends and warp worlds)
1 Maelstrom Wanderer
The Real General:
1 Warp World
Producing Permanents (17):
1 Emrakul's Hatcher
1 Farhaven Elf
1 Shardless Agent
1 Beetleback Chief
1 Coiling Oracle
1 Kozilek's Predator
1 Wood Elves
1 Ant Queen
1 Ondu Giant
1 Silverglade Elemental
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1 Awakening Zone
1 Jade Mage
1 Dragon Broodmother
1 Etherium-Horn Sorcerer
1 Verdant Embrace
1 Nest Invader
Oh boy look at what I Warp'd into (15):
1 Rampaging Baloths
1 Avenger of Zendikar
1 Craterhoof Behemoth
1 Monkey Cage
1 Roil Elemental
1 Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger
1 Sun Quan, Lord of Wu
1 Baloth Woodcrasher
1 Nucklavee
1 Izzet Chronarch
1 Anarchist
1 Archaeomancer
1 Eternal Witness
1 Essence Warden
1 Wort, the Raidmother
1 Dual Casting
Utility Junk (11):
1 Brainstorm
1 Duplicant
1 Fervor
1 Peregrine Drake
1 Acidic Slime
1 Tornado Elemental
1 Phyrexian Ingester
1 Loaming Shaman
1 Fires of Yavimaya
1 Emblem of the Warmind
1 Riftsweeper
Ninety-one warp worlds and
eight mountains...within city
limits...that ain't legal either (6):
1 Burning Wish
1 Cream of the Crop
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Personal Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Gamble
But they both cost eight mana! (8):
1 Joiner Adept
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Sol Ring
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Darksteel Ingot
1 Gruul Signet
1 Izzet Signet
12 Mountain
12 Forest
7 Island
1 Command Tower
1 Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1 Temple of the False God
1 Rootbound Crag
1 Halimar Depths
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Kazandu Refuge
How do I play this deck?
Find warp world. Cast responsibly. Scratch that - cast repeatedly. Maybe win, maybe lose.
Is Warp World seriously all this deck does?
Kinda. But it's a whole lot of fun in the process. Also if Maelstrom Wanderer doesn't wander off into my deck then he has pretty good potential to beat face.
What do I do if Warp World gets countered/exiled?
Choose one or more - Become irate. Pray for Riftsweeper, Burning Wish, or Anarchist and his ilk. Break down and purchase Vexing Shusher.
When does this deck do well?
If I have ~15 permanents when Warp World resolves, the end is near.
When does this deck do poorly?
Massacre Wurm, Kederekt Leviathan, Elesh Norn, early board wipes = sad days for all.
Ideology behind certain card choices
Maelstrom Wanderer: Riku of Two Reflections and Sliver Queen seem to be the predominant generals for decks centered around Warp World. For starters, I don't have the mana base to reliably obtain RRR in a five-color deck. Optimally, I'd be casting Warp World as soon as possible, and in a five-color deck it's likely going to be happening turns later (ain't nobody got time fo dat). Ob Nixilis, The Fallen, Emeria Angel, and any of the black tutors would be nice additions, but when push comes to shove I can live without them. Riku happens to be the same colors as Wanderer and he's pretty good at upping your permanent count, but his ability to do so requires additional blue and green mana. Warp World requires multiple red mana. Blue and green is not red. If you don't believe me look it up. Also, Riku's a fragile little man-baby. A man-baby that everyone wants to kill. On top of that, even a beeble could kick his butt. What even is a beeble anyway? I don't know. No Riku.
Maelstrom Wanderer, on the other hand, is a match made in heaven for this. Once I hit eight mana, if my permanent count is too low, casting the Wanderer will reliably net me three or more permanents. Alternatively, he can stay in his room for the duration of any world warping and come out of the command zone to hastify everyone. Good job, let's hear it for Maelstrom Wanderer.
Permanent Producers
Nest Invader, Kozilek's Predator, Emrakul's Hatcher, Awakening Zone: Boost permanent count in addition to optional mana. Because nothing is worse than being stuck at 7 mana.
Farhaven Elf, Wood Elves, Coiling Oracle, Ondu Giant, Silverglade Elemental: Permanent-based ramp. Silverglade makes the cut simply because of the Forest coming in untapped (after all, I need all the untapped lands I can get).
Jade Mage, Ant Queen: These two allow me to do something on my 6-7 mana phase (helps my deck get through its awkward tween years before it can cast Warp/Wanderer).
Dragon Broodmother, Verdant Embrace: Not a huge fan of these two considering they need to stick around for a full turn cycle to be useful. Neither of them stick around for a full turn cycle. Ever. Besides, who's gonna raise the baby dragons after their broodmother dies? They'll realize Wanderer isn't their real dad.
Shardless Agent, Etherium-Horn Sorcerer: Don't let Shardless Agent fool you. You'd think it would be good at getting mana ramp or tutors, but all it ever cascades is Riftsweeper. They both have a decent cost-to-permanent ratio when cast, but they'll do nothing off a Warp World. What lazy jerks.
Beetleback Chief: Four mana for three permanents. Plus those permanents are riding on bugs. Gotta watch out for that.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker: A bad, bad dude who breaks mirrors as well as hearts (possibly). He doesn't like to stick around long though, everyone is eager to introduce him to their removal.
Win Me the Game (or backfire horribly)
Monkey Cage: If any card could be considered perfect for this deck, it's Monkey Cage. Except when you draw it (but hey, that's what Brainstorm is for, right?) Attacking with a number of 2/2 Monkeys equal to the total converted mana cost of all creatures that were Warped into grants a certain indescribable simian satisfaction.
Rampaging Baloths, Avenger of Zendikar, Roil Elemental, Baloth Woodcrasher, Craterhoof Behemoth, Sun Quan, Lord of Wu: Not as good as Monkey Cage because they aren't monkeys. They get the job done, though.
Essence Warden: Gains you a respectable amount of life.
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger: Enables stupid to occur.
Izzet Chronarch, Archaeomancer, Anarchist, Nucklavee, Eternal Witness: Coincidentally, the last statement on Maelstrom Wanderer's reminder text.
Speaking of Which...
Dual Casting, Wort, the Raidmother: When I was a kid, my grandmother always used to say "Two Warp Worlds are always better than one." I took that to heart. Also, Wort is three permanents, and that's just dandy. (Perhaps Nivix Guildmage will find a home here too?)
Utility Junk
Brainstorm: This isn't a permanent so I'm not quite sure how it found its way in here. Either way, it's a great topdeck manipulation with Maelstrom Wanderer, helps dig for Warp World, and makes that Archaeomancer I didn't want to draw at least somewhat useful.
Tornado Elemental: Yeah, I realize it nonbo's with Roil Elemental, but fliers are really the worst. Especially when they aren't mine. Good riddance I say.
Fervor, Fires of Yavimaya, Emblem of the Warmind: I REALLY want my creatures to have haste. I'd like to cut at least one considering they're redundant (especially with Wanderer), but I don't have anything else to fill the slot with at the moment.
Loaming Shaman: Ideally I'd like to keep my win-cons out of my graveyard. Monkey Cage inevitably ends up there one way or another.
Peregrine Drake: Free permanent. Free mana off of Warp World. Free flier. Lets me cast Warp World even if I only have two R producing lands. It's good. I like it. It's nice.
Acidic Slime: Considering running some more durdles like these. Not fun when someone has a Grand Arbiter or a Crawlspace.
Duplicant, Phyrexian Ingester: If Kiki-Jiki likes them, they're good enough for me.
Riftsweeper: For when those jerks get their Diluvian Primordials and their Wrexials. Trust me, they'll get 'em, too.
RRRRRRRRRR and some GU too
Joiner Adept, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Gilded Lotus, Sol Ring, Chromatic Lantern, Darksteel Ingot, Gruul Signet, Izzet Signet: All the mana I will ever need, and then some.
Halimar Depths: Takes the excitement out of the next three turns and makes me sad. It's okay with Maelstrom Wanderer I suppose.
Boseiju, Who Shelters All: The name is pretty misleading, seeing as it rarely shelters all. In fact, it should really be called Boseiju, Who Shelters Warp World and Occasionally Burning Wish, Too. I'm not really into the whole brevity thing.
Exclusions:
Selective Memory: Allows you to cast Maelstrom Wanderer and then win. Exciting stuff, right? Wrong. No Selective Memory.
Simic Signet: Wait, you're telling me this signet doesn't make red mana? What a piece of junk.
Deadeye Navigator: Wait, why isn't he in here? Oh, I don't have one yet. Soon to replace Emblem of the Warmind.
Nivix Guildmage: Might consider adding it. Both of his abilities are pertinent to my interests.
Let me know how I can improve the deck or the thread, pretty please?
UGCrazy Combo CrajUG
I toyed with the idea of having Genesis Wave in the deck for a while. With Maelstrom Wanderer out it can easily be a wincon, and with topdeck manipulation from Brainstorm, Cream of the Crop, and Cryptic Annelid, it can easily get me the cards that I want. Unfortunately, it'll ultimately be cut in the future for the following reasons:
Technically not a permanent.
This deck doesn't generate super crazy g-wave level mana until after I start warping.
Riku breaks it. Maelstrom Wanderer simply makes it. Break > make.
So there you have it. As for the mana base, finding good dual lands for the deck is a bit difficult considering most of the ones I own enter the battlefield tapped. What kind of lands are too lazy to tap for mana after I warp into them? Not the kind I want in my deck. I'll have to invest in some of the nice shocklands that RtR and Gatecrash have to offer, as well as the in-color painlands.
UGCrazy Combo CrajUG
UGCrazy Combo CrajUG