If you don't mind me asking, how should I expect games to play out? Do I generally want to run Geist out on t3 and kill them as fast as possible while countering/removing their guys? Or should I wait until ~t5 so that I can play him with counter backup, and take a more controlling approach to the games?
Are there advantages/disadvantages to either of these strategies?
Also, would you recommend Armageddon effects in a slower meta/now that Edric has been banned?
The speed and turn of which you play geist completely depends on the matchup. Some games it's best to curve into him as quickly as possible, and play a much more aggressive matchup, while others dropping him on turn 3 is a huge mistake and will only get you killed.
As a general rule of thumb - versus blue I want to ensure I can cast geist with counterbackup - it's almost impossible for them to deal with him afterwards. Against blue swords and manlands generally go the distance anyways.
Against black or red, check first to see if it's a deck that generally produces edicts or pyroclasms. Both of them mean jumping straight into geist is a bad idea. This is okay, you can hold the fort with other creatures or through stack control until you feel you can cast geist.
Green warrants dropping geist only if they've been slow up to that point - odds are they wont be suddenly dumping a threat you need to stop on turn 3 if this is true. If they're quick, hold off on geist until you have a more stable control over the board.
There are some games when you'll never cast geist and still win - this is okay too.
I would recommend geddon cards only in a black and redless meta. Both have instant speed sweepers or edicts and are prone to running manarocks. Both are bad news.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Spectral Flight is good because it helps you avoid the most common red sweepers, it let's Geist swing through a crowded battlefield, and it lets you kill in 4 attacks instead of 5.
Found out my store is using the MP banned list, which means Mana Drain, fast mana, etc is a go. I'll probably add Drain, Crucible, and Strip Mine, but are Sol Ring/Mana Vault worth it? I guess I just cut lands for them?
What about Rootborn Defenses ? Played after blockers are declared, it saves Geist as well as your other creatures, while giving you an additional 4/4 flyer ready to block, which stays on the battlefield forever. And in case of emergency, it is a Counterspell for Damnation, Volcanic Fallout and alike, sometimes even better because your opponent's creatures die in the process. Maybe a bit too high in the curve ?
Doesn't seem necessary. I've actually seen a huge decrease in the number of sweepers since Edric was tossed, which is plenty fine for me. I don't feel the need for a three mana (expensive) one-shot protection spell. It'd be nice to make another angel, but is ultimately not necessary. Too much mana, few other uses.
And what about Eel Umbra ? A friend of mine played it in tournament, and had some success with it. In fact, she made great winning combat tricks with it. Again it saves Geist from Damnation and alike, it also dodges Pyroclasm with its boost, and allows some surprise crushing of 2/2 blockers.
I did look at these sort of combat trick auras previously, but, once again, are rather pointless without Edric. For the standard creature packages a lot of so called "extintction builds" are running are far larger than geist anyways.
Right now, if I wanted this effect, I'd probably play Spectral Flight.
Is Detention Sphere worth it ? After all, it's an additional Oblivion Ring and you are playing it in addition to Journey to Nowhere. It has the same cost as Fiend Hunter, a bit easier to cast, tutorable on Enlightened Tutor, more difficult to remove, and is a nice way to deal with a bunch of opponent's tokens. Fiend Hunter has the only upside of having a 1/3 body, which seems pretty irrelevant in most situations.
I think it's worth it, yes. I have very few ways to deal with stuff like Karn or Oath, and more Oring effects are welcomed.
I might be cutting Sunlance and/or Last Breath in favor of Mystical Tutor and/or Supreme Verdict. Having at least one sweeper is probably a good idea. If anything, Sunlance should go, as Last Breath is rather good against Zur and a larger range of "must kill" creatures.
Overall, I found Azorius mostly disappointing, I hoped for RTR to be a bit more filled with better average cards for this color combination. Add the fact that Guildcrash will probably have nothing relevant for the deck, we'll probably have to wait a long time for the next great update.
My two cents, Emether.
Yup. I hope Gatecrash gives me at least one toy. Skymark Roc was the best of the set, in my opinion, but without Edric it's useless.
Grand Abolisher is, as of now, pretty much just a bear. It's a good bear, and will likely pop back into the deck at some point, should it turn towards stack control, but for now takes up a slot that something else can use.
Sakashima's Student - Edric is gone. It's no longer important to have as many answers for the turn 2/3 Edric as possible. Student is an alright card, but I'd rather push damage with geist and don't want to reset many of my creatures except for those which are already gamebreaking alone. What's the point in bouncing them, doing no damage, to copy something, when I can instead get a sword trigger?
Seal of Removal - Hey look, more anti-Edric tech. I had opted to go purely for tempo versus Edric, ignoring board wipes in favor of more relevant hands. Seal helped this along. With Edric gone, I don't need it, but this effect isn't leaving.
Peek - Finally going. I need business in that slot, although this is still a perfectly fine card.
Sunlance - Remember the Edric mantra? Yeah. As of now, the only creatures I care to hit with Sunlance are either white or have pro white. I'll skip on this, and go for something bigger. Say... a wrath?
Detention Sphere is another Oblivion Ring! That crushes tokens! This gives me more answers to stuff, and answers to stuff is great. Also pitches to force.
Cyclonic Rift is Seal of Removal's replacement. As a straight up bounce instant, it's alright - mostly to let Geist get in with a sword or to stop Oath for a turn. Late game, it's a one sided wipe that will guarantee you the win. Unless you're bad. Don't be bad.
Disenchant - The focus has switched from Creatures to Artifacts and Enchantments. I need more answers to them. Two mana. Solves the problem. Done.
Memory Lapse - Curves are getting slightly bigger. Tempo is getting slightly better. It's a two mana counterspell and draw-step fixer. It's in.
Supreme Verdict - Likely time for wraths again. I elected to go for the uncounterable one that pitches to Force if I want.
Windswept Heath - So it turns out in the time since I've been playing the deck.. I forgot a fetchland. The G/W fetch is now where it's supposed to be... in the deck. Oops.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Hey Gaka, been following your list and posts. We had a 1v1 commander tournament here in the Philadelphia PA region on Oct. 6, and I emerged victorious with the ghost with the most. Round one was against Talrand, and I just beat in with flash guys and manlands, nothing much to see here. Round two was my hardest matchup, a very tuned Lyzolda. I got lucky game one on the back of some ridiculous boardstate, something like playing Phyrexian Metamorph copying my Sword of Feast and Famine which is equippped to geist, equip to my snapcaster mage, beat in with both, untap and cast vendilion clique, equip, pass with enough blockers to not die, kill on next swing. I was at 3. Game two i died fast, game three i crushed him. Round 3 was Kaalia of the vast, which had crazy things. Game one i spell pierced a demonic tutor, then mana leaked Kaalia, game was over from there. Game 2 i probed him early, saw big bombs, dropped geist then cataclysm, game over. Semifinals was against sharuum. Game one went really long, like 30 minutes. I won on the back of sword of fire and ice on geist. Sharuum is blue, thopter foundry make blue thopters. Go figure. Game two was kick rushing river, then cataclysm on my turn with geist out. Finals were a formality since we got the same prize, but we played anyway. It was Lyzolda, and I crushed him in two games, losing just one game all day. Thanks for all the advice Gaka, and other assorted community at large. List I played as follows:
Cyclonic Rift Isn't your deck design to win before you could reach the overload mana?
Most of the time, it is just a bounce for two.
The slightly overcosted unsummon is quite decent on its own but long drawn out games do happen depending on the matchups and it is not uncommon for overload mana to be reached.
The slightly overcosted unsummon is quite decent on its own but long drawn out games do happen depending on the matchups and it is not uncommon for overload mana to be reached.
It is designed to win before I reach the overload, but, as Fzian said, it does sometimes happen.
Also, Rift isn't actually bad without overload. It still works perfectly well for the deck as a tempo piece. Note Into the Roil, which frequently gets casted but not kicked if I need it. It's the same principle.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
I think Chain of Vapor is better. (I have suggested this card to you last page Gaka, I think you've missed it. It would be nice to you could kindly look at it again and let me know your thought on other cards)
Chain of Vapor It's an one drop! You can even bounce your Journey to Nowhere that used on opponent's general, sac a land, bounce another target.
I think Chain of Vapor is better. (I have suggested this card to you last page Gaka, I think you've missed it. It would be nice to you could kindly look at it again and let me know your thought on other cards)
Chain of Vapor It's an one drop! You can even bounce your Journey to Nowhere that used on opponent's general, sac a land, bounce another target.
I've used Chain of Vapor in the past (I think it's still in the paper version while I wait for one more card to arrive) and do like it, but every time I play it it doesn't work out all that well. If I target my own things for trigger manipulation, I'm still down a land if I want to reuse it unless I have Flagstones of Trokair out. I've been playing with Rushing River and it's got the same things, although I like it slightly more because my opponent's can't hijack it, which is huge. Why? I now run five to seven oblivion ring-esque effects.
Chain can be used against me. If I need to clear the way so that Geist can get in with a lethal or necessary sword strike.. my opponent can bounce the sword. Am I willing to spend another five mana to play and equip it again?
I love chain in the proper deck - I have two on hand for Legacy TES boarding if I want it, but I don't think this is the deck for it. Sad as it is about my harping on the curve, I'd rather play the three drop bounce in Rushing River.
I'm an absolute fan of Cataclysm. I play it in Geist, Doran and Zur, in those three decks it's one of the three best cards of each deck. That spell is really wonderful.
I think I need to test Cataclysm again. I'm still of the opinion that it's winmore and unnecessary, but with many good results from other players, it's probably a good idea to try it out in the new meta anyways. I wish it were Balance.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
It's about 50/50. Not letting Zur resolve is the main plan. If it does, Last Breath, Phantasmal Image, Vedalken Shackles + the other removal is excellent at making Zur less than useful. Play purely control, getting in with manlands if you can safely do so.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
I would definitely be running Tangle Wire in a list like this. If you can land a Tangle Wire the turn after you cast your general, then you really "tangle" them up for a long while, particularly against generals like Uril, and sometimes Zur, if you're on the play.
Someone else in the thread mentioned Tangle Wire, but I don't think it got the attention it deserved. Seems like a shoe-in for a tempo based deck like this.
I would definitely be running Tangle Wire in a list like this. If you can land a Tangle Wire the turn after you cast your general, then you really "tangle" them up for a long while, particularly against generals like Uril, and sometimes Zur, if you're on the play.
Someone else in the thread mentioned Tangle Wire, but I don't think it got the attention it deserved. Seems like a shoe-in for a tempo based deck like this.
Nah. You really want to have mana available to do things with, and you want topdecks that are live as many times out of a hundred as possible.
Wire is often an irrelevant turn 4 play, doesn't do anything against the slower decks who are durdling anyways, and only slows down my own production. I can't think of any situation where I'd want Tangle Wire over anything else in the deck.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Nah. You really want to have mana available to do things with, and you want topdecks that are live as many times out of a hundred as possible.
Wire is often an irrelevant turn 4 play, doesn't do anything against the slower decks who are durdling anyways, and only slows down my own production. I can't think of any situation where I'd want Tangle Wire over anything else in the deck.
If you play it right (i.e. removing a counter before you tap down, and also tapping the tangle wire as part of the effect), the tempo advantage is often devastating. Sure, it slows down your production, but it slows down their production even more, and it's awesome when you're also swinging each turn. I think it's one of the best cards for 1v1 if you're running a cheap beatdown general. If you haven't tried it already, I suggest you do.
Edit: I get what you mean about wanting your cards to be just as good on turn 1 as turn 15, but there are just some tempo cards that are so worth it for the early game that it's worth putting in the deck. I think Tangle Wire is one of those cards. I see you're running a buttload of other great tempo cards. I definitely think Man-o'-War is worth using in this deck too.
Good matchups. Manlands are enough to beat Wydwen, or just resolving Geist through a steady diet of counters and threats. The tempo version can't generate enough advantage to outlast Geist, and has minimal ways to deal with it.
Ruhan is slightly harder, but doable. Swords are the key to this matchup. Resolve geist and a sword, then proceed to win. If they still run clasm effects, it can be troublesome but saving counters and removal for ruhan makes this much better.
It's probably 55-60 in Geist's favor for both.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
I've never felt a need for it. As soon as it becomes less important to get there with Geist instead of stealing a creature I'll play Drake. Right now it's not necessary.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
Makes sense but then again you can always get him back with Shackles, Venser, Sower etc.
Another question. Whats the deal with Delay? Why play it and not another 2cmc counter.
Why waste other theft to get back your own theft?
Delay is really, really good. By the time the third turn has rolled around, I either have a permanent answer, have made it irrelevant, or won. It's got a really cheap color cost for a 2cc counter as well, instead of a more direct UU which makes it much easier on my blue sources.
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Tantarus: It didn't make the gaka greifer level, so it should be fine
The speed and turn of which you play geist completely depends on the matchup. Some games it's best to curve into him as quickly as possible, and play a much more aggressive matchup, while others dropping him on turn 3 is a huge mistake and will only get you killed.
As a general rule of thumb - versus blue I want to ensure I can cast geist with counterbackup - it's almost impossible for them to deal with him afterwards. Against blue swords and manlands generally go the distance anyways.
Against black or red, check first to see if it's a deck that generally produces edicts or pyroclasms. Both of them mean jumping straight into geist is a bad idea. This is okay, you can hold the fort with other creatures or through stack control until you feel you can cast geist.
Green warrants dropping geist only if they've been slow up to that point - odds are they wont be suddenly dumping a threat you need to stop on turn 3 if this is true. If they're quick, hold off on geist until you have a more stable control over the board.
There are some games when you'll never cast geist and still win - this is okay too.
I would recommend geddon cards only in a black and redless meta. Both have instant speed sweepers or edicts and are prone to running manarocks. Both are bad news.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
I'll try to get a few games in with the deck later this week to get a feel for it, and see how that goes!
What do you think of
Chain of Vapor Geist can't be targeted and most of your creatures have ETB
Glen Elendra Archmage I am thinking of cutting Negate mostly because I hate Negate artwork
Submerge The tempo gain from this card is awesome. I am playing the WOTC banlist, so there are still plenty of Edric
Remove Soul Is this too narrow?
Thanks in advance.
It is too good to cute. Get this version: http://sales.starcitygames.com/carddisplay.php?product=57895
Spectral Flight is good because it helps you avoid the most common red sweepers, it let's Geist swing through a crowded battlefield, and it lets you kill in 4 attacks instead of 5.
Level 1 Judge
WUBRG
Doesn't seem necessary. I've actually seen a huge decrease in the number of sweepers since Edric was tossed, which is plenty fine for me. I don't feel the need for a three mana (expensive) one-shot protection spell. It'd be nice to make another angel, but is ultimately not necessary. Too much mana, few other uses.
I did look at these sort of combat trick auras previously, but, once again, are rather pointless without Edric. For the standard creature packages a lot of so called "extintction builds" are running are far larger than geist anyways.
Right now, if I wanted this effect, I'd probably play Spectral Flight.
This was my feeling too. I thought it was bad, tried it, and nothing changed my mind about it. Oh well.
I think it's worth it, yes. I have very few ways to deal with stuff like Karn or Oath, and more Oring effects are welcomed.
I might be cutting Sunlance and/or Last Breath in favor of Mystical Tutor and/or Supreme Verdict. Having at least one sweeper is probably a good idea. If anything, Sunlance should go, as Last Breath is rather good against Zur and a larger range of "must kill" creatures.
Yup. I hope Gatecrash gives me at least one toy. Skymark Roc was the best of the set, in my opinion, but without Edric it's useless.
Hoping!
When I have more time I'll update with the changes I'm sure of and then continue to test other ideas.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
- Grand Abolisher
- Sakashima's Student
- Seal of Removal
- Peek
- Sunlance
- Island
+ Detention Sphere
+ Cyclonic Rift
+ Disenchant
+ Memory Lapse
+ Supreme Verdict
+ Windswept Heath
Cuts
Grand Abolisher is, as of now, pretty much just a bear. It's a good bear, and will likely pop back into the deck at some point, should it turn towards stack control, but for now takes up a slot that something else can use.
Sakashima's Student - Edric is gone. It's no longer important to have as many answers for the turn 2/3 Edric as possible. Student is an alright card, but I'd rather push damage with geist and don't want to reset many of my creatures except for those which are already gamebreaking alone. What's the point in bouncing them, doing no damage, to copy something, when I can instead get a sword trigger?
Seal of Removal - Hey look, more anti-Edric tech. I had opted to go purely for tempo versus Edric, ignoring board wipes in favor of more relevant hands. Seal helped this along. With Edric gone, I don't need it, but this effect isn't leaving.
Peek - Finally going. I need business in that slot, although this is still a perfectly fine card.
Sunlance - Remember the Edric mantra? Yeah. As of now, the only creatures I care to hit with Sunlance are either white or have pro white. I'll skip on this, and go for something bigger. Say... a wrath?
Island - ...You'll see why.
Adds
Detention Sphere is another Oblivion Ring! That crushes tokens! This gives me more answers to stuff, and answers to stuff is great. Also pitches to force.
Cyclonic Rift is Seal of Removal's replacement. As a straight up bounce instant, it's alright - mostly to let Geist get in with a sword or to stop Oath for a turn. Late game, it's a one sided wipe that will guarantee you the win. Unless you're bad. Don't be bad.
Disenchant - The focus has switched from Creatures to Artifacts and Enchantments. I need more answers to them. Two mana. Solves the problem. Done.
Memory Lapse - Curves are getting slightly bigger. Tempo is getting slightly better. It's a two mana counterspell and draw-step fixer. It's in.
Supreme Verdict - Likely time for wraths again. I elected to go for the uncounterable one that pitches to Force if I want.
Windswept Heath - So it turns out in the time since I've been playing the deck.. I forgot a fetchland. The G/W fetch is now where it's supposed to be... in the deck. Oops.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
1 Mirran Crusader
1 Grand Abolisher
1 Looter il-Kor
1 Mother of Runes
1 Phantasmal Image
1 Restoration Angel
1 Sakashima's Student
1 Silverblade Paladin
1 Snapcaster Mage
1 Stoneforge Mystic
1 Vendilion Clique
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Weathered Wayfarer
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Umezawa's Jitte
1 Journey to Nowhere
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Steel of the Godhead
1 Brainstorm
1 Counterspell
1 Cryptic Command
1 Daze
1 Delay
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Force of Will
1 Into the Roil
1 Muddle the Mixture
1 Mana Leak
1 Memory Lapse
1 Miscalculation
1 Negate
1 Path to Exile
1 Peek
1 Remand
1 Spell Pierce
1 Spell Snare
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1 Ancestral Vision
1 Gitaxian Probe
1 Ponder
1 Preordain
1 Steelshaper's Gift
1 Sunlance
1 Temporal Mastery
1 Wrath of God
1 Cataclysm
1 Adarkar Wastes
1 Celestial Colonnade
1 Command Tower
1 Eiganjo Castle
1 Faerie Conclave
1 Flagstones of Trokair
1 Flooded Strand
1 Glacial Fortress
1 Hallowed Fountain
8 Island
1 Marsh Flats
1 Mishra's Factory
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Moorland Haunt
1 Mutavault
1 Mystic Gate
1 Nimbus Maze
4 Plains
1 Polluted Delta
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Seachrome Coast
1 Tectonic Edge
1 Tundra
1 Wasteland
1 Day of Judgment
1 Halimar Depths
1 Condescend
1 Condemn
1 Oust
1 Disenchant
1 Misdirection
1 Rushing River
1 Knight of the White Orchid
1 Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
1 Kor Haven
1 Detention Sphere
1 Supreme Verdict
1 Jace, Architect of Thought
Cyclonic Rift Isn't your deck design to win before you could reach the overload mana?
Most of the time, it is just a bounce for two.
The slightly overcosted unsummon is quite decent on its own but long drawn out games do happen depending on the matchups and it is not uncommon for overload mana to be reached.
It is designed to win before I reach the overload, but, as Fzian said, it does sometimes happen.
Also, Rift isn't actually bad without overload. It still works perfectly well for the deck as a tempo piece. Note Into the Roil, which frequently gets casted but not kicked if I need it. It's the same principle.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Chain of Vapor It's an one drop! You can even bounce your Journey to Nowhere that used on opponent's general, sac a land, bounce another target.
I've used Chain of Vapor in the past (I think it's still in the paper version while I wait for one more card to arrive) and do like it, but every time I play it it doesn't work out all that well. If I target my own things for trigger manipulation, I'm still down a land if I want to reuse it unless I have Flagstones of Trokair out. I've been playing with Rushing River and it's got the same things, although I like it slightly more because my opponent's can't hijack it, which is huge. Why? I now run five to seven oblivion ring-esque effects.
Chain can be used against me. If I need to clear the way so that Geist can get in with a lethal or necessary sword strike.. my opponent can bounce the sword. Am I willing to spend another five mana to play and equip it again?
I love chain in the proper deck - I have two on hand for Legacy TES boarding if I want it, but I don't think this is the deck for it. Sad as it is about my harping on the curve, I'd rather play the three drop bounce in Rushing River.
I think I need to test Cataclysm again. I'm still of the opinion that it's winmore and unnecessary, but with many good results from other players, it's probably a good idea to try it out in the new meta anyways. I wish it were Balance.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
It's about 50/50. Not letting Zur resolve is the main plan. If it does, Last Breath, Phantasmal Image, Vedalken Shackles + the other removal is excellent at making Zur less than useful. Play purely control, getting in with manlands if you can safely do so.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Someone else in the thread mentioned Tangle Wire, but I don't think it got the attention it deserved. Seems like a shoe-in for a tempo based deck like this.
Juju Alters - Altered MTG Cards
Nah. You really want to have mana available to do things with, and you want topdecks that are live as many times out of a hundred as possible.
Wire is often an irrelevant turn 4 play, doesn't do anything against the slower decks who are durdling anyways, and only slows down my own production. I can't think of any situation where I'd want Tangle Wire over anything else in the deck.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
If you play it right (i.e. removing a counter before you tap down, and also tapping the tangle wire as part of the effect), the tempo advantage is often devastating. Sure, it slows down your production, but it slows down their production even more, and it's awesome when you're also swinging each turn. I think it's one of the best cards for 1v1 if you're running a cheap beatdown general. If you haven't tried it already, I suggest you do.
Edit: I get what you mean about wanting your cards to be just as good on turn 1 as turn 15, but there are just some tempo cards that are so worth it for the early game that it's worth putting in the deck. I think Tangle Wire is one of those cards. I see you're running a buttload of other great tempo cards. I definitely think Man-o'-War is worth using in this deck too.
Juju Alters - Altered MTG Cards
Another jace, island, plains, blinkmoth nexus if you really need to drop these.
Jace is far harder to replace, though. He's too good.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Good matchups. Manlands are enough to beat Wydwen, or just resolving Geist through a steady diet of counters and threats. The tempo version can't generate enough advantage to outlast Geist, and has minimal ways to deal with it.
Ruhan is slightly harder, but doable. Swords are the key to this matchup. Resolve geist and a sword, then proceed to win. If they still run clasm effects, it can be troublesome but saving counters and removal for ruhan makes this much better.
It's probably 55-60 in Geist's favor for both.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Gets in the way of Geist. Simple as that.
I've never felt a need for it. As soon as it becomes less important to get there with Geist instead of stealing a creature I'll play Drake. Right now it's not necessary.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
Why waste other theft to get back your own theft?
Delay is really, really good. By the time the third turn has rolled around, I either have a permanent answer, have made it irrelevant, or won. It's got a really cheap color cost for a 2cc counter as well, instead of a more direct UU which makes it much easier on my blue sources.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary
I'll take the Chaos Warp as a finder's fee?
Good job; what did you face and what did you have trouble with? What didn't you like and what did you? Any changes you made//would make?
Also yes, plays like that are why Delay is insanely good.
EDH:
RNorin the WaryR <-Link! (Primer - Mono Red Control)
GUEdric, Spymaster of TrestUG <- Link! (Mini-Primer - Dredge)
Duel Commander:
WUGeist of Saint TraftUW <- Link! (Aggro-Control)
BGSkullbriar, the Walking GraveGB <- Link! (Aggro)
BUGDamia, Sage of StoneGUB <- Link! (Extinction Control)
Church of the Wary