A "for fun" synergy/combo deck. The idea is to use Fauna Shaman to get the Shifty Doppelganger online, then use it to grab anything I want and cheat it into play with Doppelganger at instant speed. Getting Mikaeus out has some silly implications with Flayer and River Kelpie, which are a little win-more, but this deck is about big, flashy plays and style points. Finks and Thragtusk are more practical and help me live to see my combo go off. Almost everything in the deck nets me some sort of advantage when it comes in and/or dies, so Doppelganger can be pretty snowballish in the amount of card advantage it nets me over the course of the game.
I can cast ~80% of the deck outright using a :symu::symg: manabase, so i don't think off-color things that I'll be using with Body Double and Doppelganger will be too much of a problem.
I think a strong sac outlet would really put this deck over the top, as it would give me opportunities to push the synergies over the top, a la Flayer + Mikaeus + Kelpie/Redcap/Finks/Clique/Primus + Sac Outlet = infinite damage/life, arbitrarily large amounts of combat damage, blow up their board, etc. I might need to find room for Drowned Rusalka or Starved Rusalka, probably a High Market as well.
Ideally the sac outlet would be free to activate, but my only options that I've come across were black creatures and Phyrexian Altar, which i don't really want to run as central combo pieces.
Any help I can get here is greatly appreciated, thanks.
Of course you'll die if you run a ton of big guys and nothing else, so some small guys are in order. With so many etb options, it's not unreasonable to have a blinking subtheme. Aven Riftwatcher, Kitchen Finks, Azorius Justiciar, Lyev Skyknight, Lavinia of the Tenth, Venser, Shaper Savant can all help keep you alive, fill out the bottom of the curve and don't mind being flashed around. Doppelganger and Karmic Guide's abilities each represent two creatures entering the battlefield in one turn, so Soul Warden or Auriok Champion are stronger + can keep you alive enough to do your shenanigans. Judge's Familiar can protect your Doppelganger or be brought in by the Doppelganger to counter a key spell.
If you want it to be vaguely like a combo, you'll need some digging. Repeatable card draw is good, like Thieving Magpie. Looter il-Kor isn't exactly CA, but he can filter the big guys out of your hand if you don't have Doppelganger and also conveniently allows you to reanimate your things with Karmic Guide. Gifts Ungiven, Intuition, Jace, Architect of Thought can all grab specific cards, and might even let you keep them!
I'm not sold on Training Grounds with Doppelganger; a lot of the things that are good with Doppelganger get no real benefit from Training Grounds, forcing you to choose which card you'd rather focus on. The Doppelganger being the deck's namesake, I assume that would be your choice.
Neat. I think Viridian Emissary should be replaced with Looter il-Kor. The Emissary really sticks out here, and is rarely a land when you need one. Looter acts like Fauna Shaman 5-8 and ensure that you don't miss land drops.
The options for sac outlets in UG are pretty sparse. The only decent ones with no other cost are Altar of Dementia, Spawning Pit, Ashnod's Altar and Phyrexian Altar. Personally I'd go with 1-2 Drowned Rusalka if you want a sac outlet. The cost means you can't go infinite and combo kill someone, but you can still get a decent number of activations in and it also does two things this deck wants: digging and Body Double fuel.
1x Murderous Redcap (*)
1x Sun Titan (in case things go horribly wrong)
1x Flayer of the Hatebound (*)
1x Woodfall Primus (*)
1x River Kelpie (*)
1x Sunblast Angel (instant sweeper mid-combat when used with shaman and 'ganger)
1x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed (*)
1x Geralf's Mindcrusher (*)
1x Puppeteer Clique (*)
4x Fauna Shaman
4x Looter il-Kor
2x Body Double
2x Eternal Witness
2x Spellskite (because shaman and 'ganger are removal whores)
4x Thragtusk
2x Drowned Rusalka (*)
22x U/G lands
1x High Market (*)
* = combo implications
A "for fun" synergy/combo deck. The idea is to use Fauna Shaman to get the Shifty Doppelganger online, then use it to grab anything I want and cheat it into play with Doppelganger at instant speed. Getting Mikaeus out has some silly implications with Flayer and River Kelpie, which are a little win-more, but this deck is about big, flashy plays and style points. Finks and Thragtusk are more practical and help me live to see my combo go off. Almost everything in the deck nets me some sort of advantage when it comes in and/or dies, so Doppelganger can be pretty snowballish in the amount of card advantage it nets me over the course of the game.
I can cast ~80% of the deck outright using a :symu::symg: manabase, so i don't think off-color things that I'll be using with Body Double and Doppelganger will be too much of a problem.
I think a strong sac outlet would really put this deck over the top, as it would give me opportunities to push the synergies over the top, a la Flayer + Mikaeus + Kelpie/Redcap/Finks/Clique/Primus + Sac Outlet = infinite damage/life, arbitrarily large amounts of combat damage, blow up their board, etc. I might need to find room for Drowned Rusalka or Starved Rusalka, probably a High Market as well.
Ideally the sac outlet would be free to activate, but my only options that I've come across were black creatures and Phyrexian Altar, which i don't really want to run as central combo pieces.
Any help I can get here is greatly appreciated, thanks.
-Anonymous pompous dink
In your chosen colors there's Kiega, the Tide Star, Yosei, the Morning Star, Geralf's Mindcrusher, Graven Dominator, Twilight Shepherd. Enters the battlefield triggers are relevant too. Sun Titan can get dead Doppelgangers back, there's also Angel of Serenity, Draining Whelk, Frost Titan, Luminate Primordial, Duplicant, Sphinx of Uthuun, Sunblast Angel, Magister Sphinx, Sharuum the Hegemon, Sphinx Summoner, etc. Most of these guys cost a reasonable ~6 mana, keeping the deck from delving too deeply into reanimator territory.
Myojin of Cleansing Fire and Myojin of Seeing Winds have horrifying one-time effects for your to use. They're more reanimatory though.
Of course you'll die if you run a ton of big guys and nothing else, so some small guys are in order. With so many etb options, it's not unreasonable to have a blinking subtheme. Aven Riftwatcher, Kitchen Finks, Azorius Justiciar, Lyev Skyknight, Lavinia of the Tenth, Venser, Shaper Savant can all help keep you alive, fill out the bottom of the curve and don't mind being flashed around. Doppelganger and Karmic Guide's abilities each represent two creatures entering the battlefield in one turn, so Soul Warden or Auriok Champion are stronger + can keep you alive enough to do your shenanigans. Judge's Familiar can protect your Doppelganger or be brought in by the Doppelganger to counter a key spell.
If you want it to be vaguely like a combo, you'll need some digging. Repeatable card draw is good, like Thieving Magpie. Looter il-Kor isn't exactly CA, but he can filter the big guys out of your hand if you don't have Doppelganger and also conveniently allows you to reanimate your things with Karmic Guide. Gifts Ungiven, Intuition, Jace, Architect of Thought can all grab specific cards, and might even let you keep them!
I'm not sold on Training Grounds with Doppelganger; a lot of the things that are good with Doppelganger get no real benefit from Training Grounds, forcing you to choose which card you'd rather focus on. The Doppelganger being the deck's namesake, I assume that would be your choice.
Lastly, only pompous dinks sign their posts.
-Dan
Griselbrand and Emrakul, the Aeons Torn (niether of which are budget unfortunately)
Besides those guys there is always,
Blightsteel Colossus (hilarious with haste)
Progenitus.
4x Brainstorm and Ponder seem like a good move to keep fatties in hand as well.
U FaerieNinjaStandstill U
B Swag Flu B
In Development
BG Nightmare Survival GB
B The Gate B
BRG Jund GRB
You could also play game ending fatties like Blightsteel Colossus or Emrakul, the Aeons Torn.
Gosh seeing this makes me want to build that deck again, it was bad (I was like 10-11 when I played it) but man it was fun.
Like Squandered Resources on Facebook for updates on article releases, deck lists, and more!
Getting Started in Legacy and Legacy Budget Primer 5!
Special thanks to Bornnover for the banner used in those articles.
@Mirari: Takes one to know one, Dinklage.
- Anonymous pompous dink
The options for sac outlets in UG are pretty sparse. The only decent ones with no other cost are Altar of Dementia, Spawning Pit, Ashnod's Altar and Phyrexian Altar. Personally I'd go with 1-2 Drowned Rusalka if you want a sac outlet. The cost means you can't go infinite and combo kill someone, but you can still get a decent number of activations in and it also does two things this deck wants: digging and Body Double fuel.
regards,
-Dolan
BUWGRChilds PlayGRWUB
BUWGR Highlander GRWUB
UBSquee's Shapeshifting PetBU
BW Multiplayer Control WB
RG Changeling GR
UR Mana FlareRU
UMerfolkU
B MBMC B