So my deck is a Heartless Hidetsugu burn deck. It's only purpose is to set fire to everyone and everything on the battlefield and to cackle madly whilst I do it, but this obviously creates problems for me when I'm burning myself with spells like Inferno every other turn.
One of my biggest ways to counter this constant life loss is Sun Droplet. Granted, it's not much, but it keeps me going as the game progresses. It's other big advantage is that I can keep myself at an uneven life total, so that when I use Hidetsugu and double his damage with either Furnace of Rath or Overblaze I won't accidentally kill myself as well.
The thing about this is I've had a lot of fun playing Angelheart Vial in drafts at my store. Granted, drafts are a completely different virtue from any constructed deck-making, but it HAS shown me the virtue of slow life gain and draw in an extended format. The other advantage to putting this in my EDH deck would be the draw... It's not like red has a lot of ways of generating card advantage, and together with Illuminated Folio and Mind's Eye it would give me three good (and CHEAP, because I haven't bought a Top or Wheel of Fortune yet) methods of draw.
So advantages of Sun Droplet:
+More life gain in larger games
+No mana cost to activate
+Lower casting cost
+Helps keep life total odd.
versus the Angelheart Vial:
+Gives card advantage while also gaining life
+Less of a target for removal, so perhaps likely to stay out longer
Clearly Sun Droplet has more advantages numerically, but my question is this: Does the value of those advantages outweigh the advantage of additional card draw in red?
One final question: I don't get to play a great variety of opponents locally, so I don't know if Lifegain is generally a big factor or valid strategy in games. Thus, I'm debating playing Leyline of Punishment.... There are other enchantments I can use to inflict damage that I might end up having to cut for it, and it would also cut off my own lifegain. On the other hand, it does give a giant middle finger to any blue counterspell players... What do you think: Play it, or no?
If for some reason you can't, Sun Droplet is the better choice. Unless the game starts to go really long (rare for a Hidetsugu deck), the mana and life you save over Angelheart Vial will usually be worth at least a card. Think about it: for six mana you can gain 2 life and draw a card, or for two mana you can sometimes prevent all damage to you in the first place for no further investment.
The biggest advantage to playing leyline of punishment in edh isn't so that players cant gain life, but that damage cant be prevented. There are plenty of things in white that prevent damage that leyline of punishment will take care of.
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One of my biggest ways to counter this constant life loss is Sun Droplet. Granted, it's not much, but it keeps me going as the game progresses. It's other big advantage is that I can keep myself at an uneven life total, so that when I use Hidetsugu and double his damage with either Furnace of Rath or Overblaze I won't accidentally kill myself as well.
The thing about this is I've had a lot of fun playing Angelheart Vial in drafts at my store. Granted, drafts are a completely different virtue from any constructed deck-making, but it HAS shown me the virtue of slow life gain and draw in an extended format. The other advantage to putting this in my EDH deck would be the draw... It's not like red has a lot of ways of generating card advantage, and together with Illuminated Folio and Mind's Eye it would give me three good (and CHEAP, because I haven't bought a Top or Wheel of Fortune yet) methods of draw.
So advantages of Sun Droplet:
+More life gain in larger games
+No mana cost to activate
+Lower casting cost
+Helps keep life total odd.
versus the Angelheart Vial:
+Gives card advantage while also gaining life
+Less of a target for removal, so perhaps likely to stay out longer
Clearly Sun Droplet has more advantages numerically, but my question is this: Does the value of those advantages outweigh the advantage of additional card draw in red?
One final question: I don't get to play a great variety of opponents locally, so I don't know if Lifegain is generally a big factor or valid strategy in games. Thus, I'm debating playing Leyline of Punishment.... There are other enchantments I can use to inflict damage that I might end up having to cut for it, and it would also cut off my own lifegain. On the other hand, it does give a giant middle finger to any blue counterspell players... What do you think: Play it, or no?
RRRHeartless Hidetsugu: The Ogre for TrollsRRR
BBBSeizan's Perverted VicesBBB
Play both. Both are effects that make the deck run very well.
Leyline of Punishment's viability is questionable. If you really want an effect like that, play Sulfuric Vortex.
If for some reason you can't, Sun Droplet is the better choice. Unless the game starts to go really long (rare for a Hidetsugu deck), the mana and life you save over Angelheart Vial will usually be worth at least a card. Think about it: for six mana you can gain 2 life and draw a card, or for two mana you can sometimes prevent all damage to you in the first place for no further investment.
Draft my Mono-Blue Cube!
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