MTG Salvation

Greetings,

Since Abzan became a thing and in light of WotC's obsession with +1/+1 counters in Simic, I thought to make a bant deck that combines all of that +1/+1 counter loving goodness. I've read the Primer for Jenara and think it's cool, but I'm trying to do something different here. While Archangel of Thune and Spike Feeder obviously combo out, the design of this deck is more geared toward casual multiplayer and/or an archenemy style of play. Here is my list so far, tell me if you think anything is straight up missing and/or 100% needed! I'm literally just trying to have a consistent, balanced, and synergistic midrange deck here. Thanks in advance



Changes so far:
-Ageless Entity, Cradle of Vitality, Ajani's Pridemate, Felidar Sovereign, Auriok Champion, Azorius Charm
+Experiment Kraj, Inexorable Tide, Contagion Engine, Gilder Bairn, Hinder, Scute Mob

Seems really cool, i was just brewing a deck similar to this one!
Inexorable tide, contagion engine and Primal vigor are really good in my vorel deck, definitely worth a try. Zameck guildmage and Gilder Bairn can also be nuts.

Ah yes! I forgot about Inexorable Tide, one of the cards that inspired me to make this deck bant! Contagion Engine is a good choice too

I'm not sold on Primal Vigor, I don't really do tokens and Doubling Season is better anyway. Plus @#$& helping my opponents. I like Gilder Bairn but short of attacking each turn I think Vorel of the Hull Clade is better simply because I'm running zero tap effects. I certainly want to run Gilder Bairn for my planeswalkers though.. This makes me want to put Experiment Kraj back in, lol. The two of them would be a mighty hammer with which to smash faces.

I need to choose to keep or drop the lifegain aspect. Auriok Champion, Ajani's Pridemate/Ageless Entity, Cradle of Vitality, Primeval Bounty, and Felidar Sovereign seem like the next most likely cuts to that end. I sort of want to keep it in just because it's so easily done in bant, but not all of these cards go towards what the deck is turning out to be.

So -Ageless Entity, Cradle of Vitality, Ajani's Pridemate, and Felidar Sovereign?
and +Experiment Kraj, Inexorable Tide, Contagion Engine, Gilder Bairn?

would you also cut ajani pridemate?
It's a tough call since so many of your other cards give you life while also doing other things (i'm looking at you, everything to do with ajani of any form). I'd probably cut it, but keep primeval bounty since it is the nuts.

Maybe Auriok Champion and Azorius Charm can be chopped for Hinder and Scute Mob (lol)

I agree with your cuts, and think that scute mob and hinder could definitly replace auriok champion and azorius charm.
How much mileage do you get off meadowboon? i noticed to didn't have any sac outlets, and as 3W put a +1/+1 on all my dudes it seems a little weak.

Yeah :-\

Meadowboon can probably go too, lol, as she sort of fits with the now absent lifegain theme. I'm keeping Sphinx's Revelation though, it's too good not to use it, lol. Maybe Lifeblood Hydra works over Meadowboon, but I can always use a Sensei's Divining Top. I just need to keep the creature count ^35 IMO.

Unless I draw Cathars' Crusade, I'll almost always tutor for Doubling Season. When I see the mechanic you're talking about, I think it's more easily used/abused for token generation/pump scenarios. Flickering drops my +1/+1 counters, so that's why i've tried to stay away from it for the most part. Restoration Angel is in there for both saving my dudes from removal (at the cost of their counters) and evolve shenanigans. I dunno, most of my current choices have ways to put +1/+1 counters on themselves, so shifting my reliance to be on Cathars' Crusade and including less attractive +1/+1 counter lacking dudes seems to deviate too far from my intentions.

I think I need to cut some 4+ cmc junk for more ramp or something. I can't put my finger on what exactly I need, but t1-t3 I'm pretty much doing very little. I got a chance to play with Inexorable Tide and it just sat in my hand all night each time I got it. At 5 cmc, I don't think it blends well enough with the deck to be viable. I'm chronically short on mana (mostly because I can dump the rest into Jenara, or save for one of my instants) unless I get Prophet of Kruphix or some ramp between t0-t3.

Should I break out the big guns? Land Tax? Mana Reflection, Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger? o.O

Or should I think simpler and just toss in a trusty ole Counterspell or Ponder and friends?

I got crapped on in 4 player Planechase all last night. My opponents were: Sakashima the Impostor, Keranos, God of Storms, and Daretti, Scrap Savant.

I have an Anafenza list with more or less the same concept so I figured I would add a few cards that might be worth considering.

Forgotten Ancient he goes fairly crazy fast. He just gets huge.

Mindless Automaton card draw and it fits the theme well.

Triskelion great when adding more counters. It also goes infinite with Vigor + Doubling Season by self pinging.

Twilight Shepherd the fact that you can add a +/+ counter and negate the persist counter is really good. Its a solid robust creature.

Woodfall Primus similar with above. You can keep blowing things up.

Greater Good with all the +/+ counters things tend to get big.

One thing I have noticed playing a very similar deck is that wraths tend to be painful for these sort of decks. I think you have a few too many cards that require several other things to be online to work well. Lots of the things you are using are creatures that need multiple turns to really get going in the right direction. This means that this sort of deck has a very painful and slow restart from wraths and it tends to loose a lot of card advantage from the wraths. Its just something to think about is all. I know that in my Anafenza list I have to rely on Living Death and Twighlight's Call a lot of times to bring me back into the game due to this. Focusing on cards that require less other cards in play to make work might be something to consider with this sort of build.