MTG Salvation

This is my take on a Mayael, the Anima EDH deck. My meta is rather scary and very competitive since they allow banned cards. I have this feeling that the deck here can be even more competitive and faster.
I don't have a budget. I'd like to see what you guys come up with. I am open to all suggestions. Thank you for taking the time to view my build.

Hmm they allow banned cards, huh?

Natural Order into any of your big scary green guys is a nice play. You are playing Eternal Witness, Genesis should be in there for recursion antics. It gives you a late game that is really hard to beat without graveyard removal.

Hellkite Tyrant should be included to hose artifact decks and a alt-win condition. Hoarding Dragon is also nice.

Honestly I would like to see a lot more ramp, a la Skyshroud Claim and then Genesis Wave, but it might change the deck too much. To go with the ramp, Oracle of Mul Daya and Seedborn Muse

I think Skullclamp is a must-play. You need more card draw. Harmonize should be in there.

I'm sure I can think of more, but that's just a start.

Archetype of Endurance has always been an all-star in my Mayael build. I'd also give some consideration to swapping out Spellbreaker Behemoth for Dragonlord Dromoka, as Dromoka stops anyone from interfering with your turn.

If you're allowed to run banned cards, you can't go wrong with Sylvan Primordial.

While I'm at it, here is the list that I used to base my build around:

Quote from cyrus101sa »

Hmm they allow banned cards, huh?

Natural Order into any of your big scary green guys is a nice play. You are playing Eternal Witness, Genesis should be in there for recursion antics. It gives you a late game that is really hard to beat without graveyard removal.

Hellkite Tyrant should be included to hose artifact decks and a alt-win condition. Hoarding Dragon is also nice.

Honestly I would like to see a lot more ramp, a la Skyshroud Claim and then Genesis Wave, but it might change the deck too much. To go with the ramp, Oracle of Mul Daya and Seedborn Muse

I think Skullclamp is a must-play. You need more card draw. Harmonize should be in there.

I'm sure I can think of more, but that's just a start.

Do you happen to see anything that can be swapped out for those cards?

Quote from Decimator1 »

Archetype of Endurance has always been an all-star in my Mayael build. I'd also give some consideration to swapping out Spellbreaker Behemoth for Dragonlord Dromoka, as Dromoka stops anyone from interfering with your turn.

If you're allowed to run banned cards, you can't go wrong with Sylvan Primordial.

While I'm at it, here is the list that I used to base my build around:

I just added Dromoka. What do you think could be swapped out for both Archetype of Endurance and Sylvan Primordial?

List of cards I would consider dropping:

Wordly Tutor (I would play Life From the Loam instead, especially given how many fetches you run)
**Together with this last note, where are Wasteland and Strip Mine?? Much more important than Kor Haven or Dryad Arbor if you are hoping to protect yourself from the likes of Cabal Coffers or Academy Ruins

Godsire (too slow)
Scourge of Kher Ridges (Replace with Hellkite Tyrant)
Inferno Titan (it's good, but not quite enough...)
Saffi Eriksdotter (too narrow and not enough impact) Why not Knight of the Reliquary to go with all your cool lands?
Bloom Tender (I would rather draw Skyshroud Claim any day)
Iona, Shield of Emeria (annoys people enough to turn them against you without actually winning the game)

Also... If you add more ramp, Insurrection can just win games on the spot randomly if it's not countered, even those you have no business winning.

And you really need Aura Shards.

Out of the cuts Cyrus suggested, I would agree with cutting Godsire, Inferno, and Saffi. Worldly Tutor has been instrumental for me in getting a perfect Mayael flip to shut down a wrath or removal spell. Bloom Tender is fantastic ramp when Mayael is on the table, and Scourge of Kher Ridges is great for board control, especially once Avacyn is on the table. Iona is one of the few cards that can shut down Cyclonic Rift in our colors, so I would recommend keeping her around for now.

Cut any of my mentioned three for Archetype and Sylvan, and then take out Qasali Pridemage for Aura Shards. Aura Shards is a much better card for you.

^^

Clearly, somebody with superior experience playing this particular commander. I bow to his or her knowledge. Did not consider the interaction between Worldly Tutor and Mayael - good stuff. I would still really like to see Life from the Loam in there though. I could probably give better advice if I knew a little bit more about your meta... what type of decks are you seeing?

Quote from cyrus101sa »

List of cards I would consider dropping:

Wordly Tutor (I would play Life From the Loam instead, especially given how many fetches you run)
**Together with this last note, where are Wasteland and Strip Mine?? Much more important than Kor Haven or Dryad Arbor if you are hoping to protect yourself from the likes of Cabal Coffers or Academy Ruins

Godsire (too slow)
Scourge of Kher Ridges (Replace with Hellkite Tyrant)
Inferno Titan (it's good, but not quite enough...)
Saffi Eriksdotter (too narrow and not enough impact) Why not Knight of the Reliquary to go with all your cool lands?
Bloom Tender (I would rather draw Skyshroud Claim any day)
Iona, Shield of Emeria (annoys people enough to turn them against you without actually winning the game)

Also... If you add more ramp, Insurrection can just win games on the spot randomly if it's not countered, even those you have no business winning.

And you really need Aura Shards.

Changes have been made. How's it looking now? I do want to fit Life From the Loam in the deck. I have played it many times before, and have never had a negative experience with it.

I'd recommend swapping out Warstorm Surge for Gruul Ragebeast. It gives you another body and turns all your giant creatures into removal spells, thus mitigating part of the loss of the Surge.

In addition, you could use a few cheating effects to supplement Mayael and some additional deck manipulation to help with her flips. My recommendations for these would be Scroll Rack, Quicksilver Amulet, and Lurking Predators. Lurking Predators is a fantastic card for cheating out creatures, Amulet lets you play creatures that wind up in your hand without breaking the bank in mana costs, and the Scroll Rack lets you put any creature that you want in play from your hand on top of your deck to be Mayaeled in. It can also get rid of any unwanted cards by sending them to the bottom of the deck with Mayael's ability.

As for additional cuts, I think that Captain Sisay and maybe Grand Abolisher can leave. Sisay cannot be fetched with Mayael and puts creatures in your hand when we want them in the deck, and Dragonlord Dromoka accomplishes the Abolisher's task.

I'd also recommend cutting Akroma and bringing in Balefire Dragon. Akroma, while a resilient creature, is merely a giant beatstick. I personally favor giant beatsticks that also advance the board state, and Balefire can clear someone's board with one good attack.

And, if budget is no objection, Three Visits exists, which is better than the Farseek you have in there currently, but it's a fair bit of money for a minor upgrade (part of the reason why I haven't made it myself).

Watch out for the new Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger

Quote from Decimator1 »

I'd recommend swapping out Warstorm Surge for Gruul Ragebeast. It gives you another body and turns all your giant creatures into removal spells, thus mitigating part of the loss of the Surge.

In addition, you could use a few cheating effects to supplement Mayael and some additional deck manipulation to help with her flips. My recommendations for these would be Scroll Rack, Quicksilver Amulet, and Lurking Predators. Lurking Predators is a fantastic card for cheating out creatures, Amulet lets you play creatures that wind up in your hand without breaking the bank in mana costs, and the Scroll Rack lets you put any creature that you want in play from your hand on top of your deck to be Mayaeled in. It can also get rid of any unwanted cards by sending them to the bottom of the deck with Mayael's ability.

As for additional cuts, I think that Captain Sisay and maybe Grand Abolisher can leave. Sisay cannot be fetched with Mayael and puts creatures in your hand when we want them in the deck, and Dragonlord Dromoka accomplishes the Abolisher's task.

I'd also recommend cutting Akroma and bringing in Balefire Dragon. Akroma, while a resilient creature, is merely a giant beatstick. I personally favor giant beatsticks that also advance the board state, and Balefire can clear someone's board with one good attack.

And, if budget is no objection, Three Visits exists, which is better than the Farseek you have in there currently, but it's a fair bit of money for a minor upgrade (part of the reason why I haven't made it myself).

I actually already have Scroll Rack and Quicksilver Amulet in the deck. I'll definitely try Lurking. I have seen it in action and loved what it can do. I have considered the card.

Ah, didn't see them. Excellent work in that regard.

I'm also a fan of Steel Hellkite and Platinum Emperion, Hellkite for a great way to kill any permanent (or permanents) you wish, and Emperion for protection against things that deal damage in ways besides attacking. I would also say to cut the Craterhoof Behemoth, as you want to be using Mayael on other peoples turns.

On the topic of other peoples turns, you need to find a spot for Seedborn Muse. The Muse is Mayael's greatest friend, as she will be able to go find a creature on every opponents turn with the Muse out.

Quote from kherkeep »

Watch out for the new Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger

That's just so mean, but in a good way. Such a disgusting ability.

Quote from Decimator1 »

Ah, didn't see them. Excellent work in that regard.

I'm also a fan of Steel Hellkite and Platinum Emperion, Hellkite for a great way to kill any permanent (or permanents) you wish, and Emperion for protection against things that deal damage in ways besides attacking. I would also say to cut the Craterhoof Behemoth, as you want to be using Mayael on other peoples turns.

On the topic of other peoples turns, you need to find a spot for Seedborn Muse. The Muse is Mayael's greatest friend, as she will be able to go find a creature on every opponents turn with the Muse out.

- Craterhoof ----> + Seedborn Muse ?

I mean, it definitely looks better. I know personally I would not feel comfortable playing this deck without more card draw. Horn of Greed? Skullclamp?

Skullclamp + Eternal Witness + Genesis = Happy days are here again.

Quote from cyrus101sa »

I mean, it definitely looks better. I know personally I would not feel comfortable playing this deck without more card draw. Horn of Greed? Skullclamp?

Skullclamp + Eternal Witness + Genesis = Happy days are here again.

What do you reccommend should be taken out for more card draw? Don't be afraid to mention any card. Of course the deck is going to be changed a lot, but this is for the best. It's all about making it better. What about Sensei's Divining Top?

Holy smokes that's a lot of fast mana now. careful you don't want fold to Shatterstorm! Personally I would cut like Felwar Stone or something for Skullclamp. I think you can safely do the same for Sensei's Divining Top. Obviously don't cut Moxen though. I'm also thinking that Summoning Trap is a little weak. A card I would like to see is Anger or Genesis. You should be aiming to abuse Survival of the Fittest and Fauna Shamanas much as possible.

Quote from cyrus101sa »

Holy smokes that's a lot of fast mana now. careful you don't want fold to Shatterstorm! Personally I would cut like Felwar Stone or something for Skullclamp. I think you can safely do the same for Sensei's Divining Top. Obviously don't cut Moxen though. I'm also thinking that Summoning Trap is a little weak. A card I would like to see is Anger or Genesis. You should be aiming to abuse Survival of the Fittest and Fauna Shamanas much as possible.

I removed both Monolith's to put in Skullclamp and Sensei's Divining Top.

I found a slot for Genesis.

I mean... it looks really nice now dude. You might want to fire it up and see how it goes. Only small quibble I can find now is back to nature which seems kinda dangerous for your high value enchantments. I would rather slice in twain or krosan grip.

I'm so happy we have a mayael thread that fired back up. I love Mayael so much and no one to share it with!

I don't use any of the eldrazi's in my deck, but with the recent spoilers I might make a switch to it honestly. Anyone have any recommendations for ways to untap mayael to get multiple activations off of her in one turn?

I have Seedborn Muse, and I tried using Thousand-year elixir but I always wound up scrying it away basically with mayaels ability and never got to play it so i took it out.

I think that Spearbreaker Behemoth would serve better in Vigor's spot. Your creatures really don't need to get bigger, as their inclusion in Mayael is indicative of their size, and Spearbreaker makes an excellent pseudo-Avacyn in case the real one hasn't come into play or is already gone.

Quote from Decimator1 »

I think that Spearbreaker Behemoth would serve better in Vigor's spot. Your creatures really don't need to get bigger, as their inclusion in Mayael is indicative of their size, and Spearbreaker makes an excellent pseudo-Avacyn in case the real one hasn't come into play or is already gone.

Do you happen to see anything else you think might need replacing or removing?

Quote from JustJoshingU »

Quote from Decimator1 »

I think that Spearbreaker Behemoth would serve better in Vigor's spot. Your creatures really don't need to get bigger, as their inclusion in Mayael is indicative of their size, and Spearbreaker makes an excellent pseudo-Avacyn in case the real one hasn't come into play or is already gone.

Do you happen to see anything else you think might need replacing or removing?

Krosan Grip could perhaps become Oblation so that it gives you another out to any permanent, but other than that I think you're good for now. You may want to consider finding places for Greenwarden of Murasa and Void Winnower when they come out, though.

Quote from Decimator1 »

Quote from JustJoshingU »

Quote from Decimator1 »

I think that Spearbreaker Behemoth would serve better in Vigor's spot. Your creatures really don't need to get bigger, as their inclusion in Mayael is indicative of their size, and Spearbreaker makes an excellent pseudo-Avacyn in case the real one hasn't come into play or is already gone.

Do you happen to see anything else you think might need replacing or removing?

Krosan Grip could perhaps become Oblation so that it gives you another out to any permanent, but other than that I think you're good for now. You may want to consider finding places for Greenwarden of Murasa and Void Winnower when they come out, though.

I was thinking:

-1 Blightsteel Colossus and add +1 Void Winnower

And I have no idea what to remove for Greenwarden of Murasa.