This is my, lets say, Pre-Primer for Maelstrom Wanderer, the new legend spoiled from Planechase 2012. As I test it further, I will upgrade it completely to a primer, hopefully before it actually is released. I hope they start to spoil some of the other new cards that will be included in the decks soon.
One thing to remember in this guide is that when I talk about first and second cascade triggers, the first will refer to the first to resolve, and the same for the second.
Riku of Two Reflections was great when he came out, but now he has too much of a target, and is often targeted for removal before he can be made use of. I previously played Riku, and as the deck developed, I found myself rarely casting him, because I would usually have better things to cast.
Animar, Soul of Elements is too combo-ish, and requires you to play too many creatures to b
e good.
And then came, or is foretold to be coming, Maelstrom Wanderer. The hefty 8 mana cost is more than outweighed considering we are playing green and the double cascade really wants a higher mana cost. Plus, Global haste is super great in RUG colors.
Deck Strategy
The List has multiple ways to function, as it can win without the General if he gets tucked or something, but it is much more powerful with the general.
Set it up so that Jokulhaups casts off the first cascade, so you get your general and something else, while destroying most of the rest of the table. Even better if you can use worldly tutor to get primeval titan off the second cascade
Set it up so that Mind's Desire casts off the second cascade, netting you 3 casts (original + 2 storm), and 4 if you mystical tutor to set it up.
Also use Cloudstone Curio Triggers to bounce him back to your hand so you can recast and get more cascades.
Coiling Oracle - Obvious choice for RUG colors, He either gets you a land (any land it may be!) to the battlefield untapped, or he draws you a card. Either way, he is a dude.
Snapcaster Mage - The deck has ~20 instants and sorcerys that you could or would want to flash back. He provides amazing utility as since he has flash he can get back a ramp spell, a hinder, a tutor, or a haymaker spell. Again, he also chumps.
Lotus Cobra - The deck runs 5 Fetches at the moment (more later probably), which just abuse the trigger, but every land provides at least 1 extra mana when it comes in. Good acceleration.
Sakura-Tribe Elder - Classic Rampant growth on a body. Can block once against something late game, or against aggro decks.
Phantasmal Image - Provides a lot of utility for 2 mana. Can kill an opposing general or copy the best guy on the board. The illusion clause isn't usually that big of a drawback, as the things people will target him with in EDH will usually get rid of him either way.
Wood Elves - Hes another rampant growth, but he gets some duals and you dont have to sac him for it. Works well with Birthing Pod.
Eternal Witness - She gets back any card in your GY for 3 mana. Why not?
Glen Elendra Archmage - Protection from Wraths, Removal, and other spells for a very small mana investment. The key thing about her is that once she is out, you only need to leave up U to counter something, which is amazing in a deck that likes to sling mana around like it is nobody's business. Plus, she has persist!
Oracle of Mul Daya - Playing an extra land for turn, and speeding through land pockets off the top of your deck? Yes Please. The reveal isn't that big of a drawback for oracle in most decks, but here it is actually an advantage, so you can know if it is a good idea to cast your general.
Phyrexian Metamorph - Clone that can cost 3 if it has to, and can also copy artifacts.
Clone - Pretty Simple, legend killer, or another copy of the best guy on the board.
Solemn Simulacrum - Gets a land when he comes in, can block or get in the red zone, and draws a card when he dies.
Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir - Gives all your guys flash, and has flash himself. The most valuable part, especially against blue and black decks is that your opponent can now only play during their turn, so it forces them to tap out during their turn if they want to play anything.
Body Double - Clone, but for one of your creatures that is in your graveyard.
Urabrask the Hidden - One of the powerhouses in the deck, especially off a Genesis Wave. When your general isn't out, he really shines, but even when the general is out, he sets your opponent behind a turn on being able to play blockers.
Acidic Slime - 2/2 rattlesnake dude who gets rid of a problem land, artifact, or enchantment. Great 5 mana target for Birthing Pod.
Inferno Titan, Primeval Titan, and Frost Titan - The Three on color titans, all of which are great. Inferno does massive damage and can kill utility dudes. Primeval is obvious, he gets two lands on entering and swinging, and his body isnt irrelevant. Frost taps down any permanent and has a built in spell pierce on things that your opponents target him with.
Consecrated Sphinx - Regardless of the fact that he draws massive hate, he is still one of the best draw engines in the game, and on a 4/6 body.
Avenger of Zendikar - What is to be said about avenger? A powerhouse, game winning card, especially with Tooth and Nail into Avenger and Primeval Titan.
Balefire Dragon - Awesome removal creature, especially with a haste engine like the General. Gets rid of most creatures if he connects to the opponents face.
Sphinx of Uthuun - Possibly on the chopping block. Flying Body plus fact or fiction isnt bad in Riku, but it is slightly less impressive here.
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger - 7/6 Trampler + Mana Doubler + Their lands dont untap when tapped. Enough said.
Terastodon - Gets rid of three problem permanents, or blows up your own lands for tokens with a haste outlet for lots of damage.
Bogardan Hellkite - One of, if not the best Dragon in all of magic. Flash, 5 damage divided anyway you choose, and a 5/5 flyer.
Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur This deck does not have a problem getting to 10 mana, and he is huge super mega bomb, especially when played in your opponents end step.
Jace Beleren - Slow drawing, but if you use his abilities right, people won't usually prioritize getting rid of him.
Chandra, the Firebrand - Pings, but the most important thing there is the -2 ability to copy one of the many high powered instant or sorcery spells the deck runs. A copied Tooth and Nail, Time Stretch or Big Genesis Wave can easily end the game right there.
Garruk, Primal Hunter - Adds counters to make 3/3 guys, If you are low on cards, he draws you a lot of them if you have a good creature out, if you can get his ultimate, makes a ton of wurms which will usually win the game outright with a haste outlet.
Gamble - It's not, and will never be, Demonic Tutor, but you should rarely be low on cards in hand with this deck, so it does not often whiff out.
Green Sun's Zenith - An amazing tutor, even though it only hits green creatures, it gets them straight to the battlefield for just 1 more than the creature's CMC, and then shuffles itself back into your library
Kodama's Reach and Cultivate - not really much to say about these, they get you 1 basic to hand and one to the battlefield. I hear ramp is good.
Genesis Wave - This deck likes a lot of mana, and the General gives everything haste, along with 2 other permanents in the deck that also give mass haste. What more is there to say?
Rite of Replication - Every blue deck should play it. Five copies of something for 9 mana, how good is that?
Time Warp - I get to draw an extra card, untap everything, and play another land? Okay. unless this gets countered, there is really no downside to it.
Jokulhaups - Can be cascaded into, even set up with Mystical Tutor as the first cascade so you get your General and something else while blowing up the rest of the table.
Devastation - Another Mass Wipe effect that can be cascaded into, still good, even though it doesnt hit artifacts.
Tooth and Nail - Get 2 guys straight to the field? Teferi + Jin-Gitaxias, Primeval + Avenger, etc, hilarity ensues.
Blasphemous Act - No, it cant be cascaded into off the General, but it is essentially a wrath, and usually a cheap one, which is hard to find in these colors.
Brainstorm - Good card filtration considering the amount of fetchlands, tutors and other shuffle effects I play. Can also be used in response to casting the General to draw 3 cards, then put the best 2 back on top to cast for free off the cascades.
Worldy Tutor - Plain out good tutor, which can also be used in response to either cascade trigger of the general to pick what you get for free.
Mystical Tutor - See Worldly Tutor. Mystical Tutor is one of the key pieces to one of the best combos in the deck, setting up Jokulhaups off the first cascade trigger, or for setting up Minds Desire off the second cascade trigger.
Chaos Warp - Possibly the best piece of red spot removal. Tucks any permanent, and sometimes they don't get anything back
Krosan Grip - The best piece of spot removal for artifacts and enchantments, period. It cant be countered, and cant be responded to.
Beast Within - Kills any permanent, and the 3/3 beast is much less relevant in EDH than in other formats.
Fact or Fiction - I don't feel like I need to sing the praises of fact or fiction, as they are pretty obvious.
Spin into Myth - Tuck, but unlike Hinder and Spell Crumple, can be cascaded into. Not only can it semi-permanently deal with a trouble creature, but it can also bounce a bad creature and potentially make your opponents next 1-2 draws worse.
Sol Ring Why would anyone except possibly some five color decks not play sol ring? It is mana accel that is to the point of being broken.
Sensei's Divining Top - Aside from the normal utility of being able to rearrange your next three cards, while running several shuffle effects, Top also allows you to look at the top 3 and see what you want to Cascade into (assuming you have 3 choices from the Top)
Scroll Rack - A powerhouse of topdeck manipulation. You can put whatever you want from your hand back on top in any order to cascade into.
Cloudstone Curio - Allows you to repeatedly reuse ETB effects, along with bouncing your general to hand so you can keep casting and cascading.
Thran Dynamo - Turn 4 Thran Dynamo is your general on turn 5. Yeah...
Birthing Pod - The deck has a careful curve to give a smooth birthing pod chain, which, when coupled with ETB effects, makes Birthing Pod a very solid choice.
Akroma's Memorial - Mass Haste, Trample, etc outlet, plus protection from one of the strongest removal colors. To beat it all, it can be cascaded into with Wanderer to make him even better once he hits play.
Enchantment
Dream Halls lets your discard any colored card in the deck to cast your general. Really helps when recasting, as all you have to pay is the general tax.
Mana Reflection What, else can I say? Mana doublers are awesome.
Emmara is like the worst parts of Legends and Homelands got pregnant, aborted the fetus, tossed it in the trashcan, set it on fire and wrapped the corpse in a Dragon's Maze pack wrapper.
Not derped, I am still working on it. My internet tends to crash sometimes, so I am trying not to type too much at once without saving it. Also, the basis for this deck was my Riku deck, so though it has 100 cards, there are more changes coming.
Damn.... I would post in the one nobody else is posting in.... just a sec I am going to port over my comments as the otherone is likely to be removed.
EDIT: ported my response from the other one over here and deleted the comment from there.
It looks like you did a good job for a first draft on this one. Just going to coin in that you might drop Banefire as it is difficult to cascade into nicely. Chaos Warp might be a better replacement for it. Green Sun's Zenith is also difficult but I think worth including in here.
Scroll Rack is another great tool to consider as you can then set up your 2 cascade triggers. I would likely also run Sensei's Divining Top and Sylvan Library as well as all 3 of these will be monsters for your commander.
Jokulhaups assuming you want to go there is an amazing card to set up on top of the deck for him to cascade into first.
Trinket Mage toolbox could be good as well and give you an outlet to go get a topdeck maniuplation effect if you need one for your commander.
EDIT 2: You need a ton more ramp in here. My whole goal for the deck would be like 15 ramp cards just to ramp hard into him and use him as card draw and powering things out. Also.... why use 8+ mana stuff in your list considering you cant cascade into it??? If I were going to run anything at 8+ it would probably be eldrazi considering they will have haste anyways.
You know.... I think Long-Term Plans is also probably worth inclusion in here... Especially if you cast it at instant speed it will guearentee you hit your target with 2 cascades after drawing a card and then casting your commander.
I have decided I must try to assemble a list of my own.... brb with my own list for him...
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Any thought of swapping Garruk, Primal Hunter out for Recurring Insight? Unless you really plan on doing something with him other than drawing cards I dont see a reason not to run the Insight in this list over him... I guess the hunter has the advantage of having more versatility however the Insight beats its pants off for card draw for one more mana.
Also, I dont know how much i like the idea of running storm in this deck. I could see perhaps one or two of the bigger effect ones I just dont see how we are going to cast the commander then pay 5-6 mana for a big effect storm card and just casting our commander and hitting a storm card for a whole 2 copies doesnt sound that effective.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Why Doubling Season? There is barely any synergy for it in this deck, just the planeswalkers, Avenger and Rite of Replication/Cackling Counterpart. Not worth it.
Doubling Season will probably come out. I am a big fan of Garruk for his versatility, so he will probably stay in. Boom/Bust and Devastation are good calls too.
Also, as for the storm, Dragonstorm and Minds Desire are the only ones I would run.
Wanderer + First Cascade + Mystical Tutor + One of the Storm Cards gets 4 of whatever spell it is. The problem with that is that I only have 3 dragons.
I'm not liking dragonstorm... There isn't even that much ramp in here, Wanderer can't even cascade into it. I'm also not too fond of the things that cost 8+ here, like I said, not a lot of ramp here, and they aren't synergistic with Wanderer.
I do like the mind's desire though, I wish there could be more tutors though. The more tutors this deck has that put stuff on top, the better. I think this doesn't work because the order they're worded in and because the second one doesn't say may, but if it does Momir Vig would be awesome.
Bloodbraid Elf more cute than anything but I figure we are already on a cascade deck it could be a fun add. Not really necessary as much as sticking to the theme.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker one of the best red creatures ever printed. It would make for a strong add.
Brainstorm instant speed setup for the commander. If you end up drawing some things you want to use for the cascade triggers it only costs 2 extra mana to set them up from hand. Plus you get to scope out what the next three cards are and pick what goes into the cascade.
Lurking Predators this deck has a high creature curve and is all about controlling what is on top of the deck. I think this is a great add as it fits right in with the theme.
CUT:
Bogardan Hellkite the dragonstorm is gone and he cant be cascaded into. I think his time has come.
Jace Beleren I have never been impressed by him. He is so slow at drawing cards and easily dies to like everything.
Spitting Image / Cackling Counterpart Personally I think you have too many clone effects. These two are your worst in my mind. I dont like the Image as it costs an arm and a leg to cast and usually I need my lands so I dont bother using it again. It targets which sucks and is prone to grave hate. Counterpart sucks because of the limitation on your own creature. If I want a clone it is probably because someone else has something I want or I need to kill an opposing commander.
Really? You have enough grasp of a deck you just made to make a primer for it?
I would give it some time before claiming this a comprehensive explanation of a deck that is still in early draft stage.
They may seem poor, but you need more ways to manipulate your library, Scroll Rack would work great with general, as would Crystal Shard, Cloudstone Curio or Erratic Portal to reuse general. Soothsaying may also be an idea.
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Emmara is like the worst parts of Legends and Homelands got pregnant, aborted the fetus, tossed it in the trashcan, set it on fire and wrapped the corpse in a Dragon's Maze pack wrapper.
Primer tag removed until I actually finish typing all the info out. didnt realize it would piss so many people off, I set off intending to make a primer, and then just put the label on it while I was creating it so I wouldnt have to go back and change it later.
@Ste4lth - That may be because my Riku list, which is what became this, was pretty much a RUG goodstuff deck, I am in the process of changing stuff and writing the guide still, but have no fear, in a couple of days it should all be finished.
The problem with a strong ramp package is avoiding wasting Cascades on them. That's what makes Wanderer a poor commander as a whole.
Any sort of primer should not even be created without proper understanding of card choices, weaknesses, matchups, etc. To want to do a primer is cool, but to just go to it with the only information you have being a port of a different commander is just asinine. Even if you were to judge every RUG card available, you still have 0 idea how it plays or what its matchups are. Not only that, but you have no concept of other directions the deck can go other than your limited exposure to RUG Goodstuff.
The problem with a strong ramp package is avoiding wasting Cascades on them. That's what makes Wanderer a poor commander as a whole.
Any sort of primer should not even be created without proper understanding of card choices, weaknesses, matchups, etc. To want to do a primer is cool, but to just go to it with the only information you have being a port of a different commander is just asinine. Even if you were to judge every RUG card available, you still have 0 idea how it plays or what its matchups are. Not only that, but you have no concept of other directions the deck can go other than your limited exposure to RUG Goodstuff.
I think he can be powerful, you just need to have cards like Scroll Rack, Soothsaying, and Mystical Tutor to make him consistently powerful. The potential to hit Bribery and Jokulhaulps or something similar is cool enough (I think) to build around him.
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"I don't know why people say a double-edged sword is bad. It's a sword. With two edges." - Kamahl, Pit Fighter
I have a scroll rack in my Doran deck, but it doesnt really do that much, so I think ill throw it in here. It is def one of the best for stacking the top of your deck.
Once I get ahold of one, I will most likely replace Jace Beleren with Jace, the Mind Sculptor for another brainstorm effect, plus other utility.
That can be confusing because of the way the reminder text on the card reads, but the CR says that
702.83a Cascade is a triggered ability that functions only while the spell with cascade is on the stack. “Cascade” means “When you cast this spell, exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card whose converted mana cost is less than this spell’s converted mana cost. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost. Then put all cards exiled this way that weren’t cast on the bottom of your library in a random order.”
The key being that a spells converted mana cost is not changed by extra costs, cost increases, reductions, etc. The CMC is always what is printed on the card.
i was waiting for this guy to start getting some recognition. I was just spewing out random **** at y local cardshop saying how they are releasing another planechase soon etc... next thing you know the cashier is looking it up and he is like like "Hey man have you seen the new spoiler for planechase 2012?
This isn't the first time but it was still cool. Just like when i said they are bringing poison back in Scars, Or how the next set would have werewolves (But i was a set off, i said that back in zendikar... scars was in between)
But yea i was estatic to see this guy. I wish to redo what i did with Nin and build a deck proxying the general to test play decks first.
Oh and just to say it in hopes that my random bull**** spew is making a comeback to always be right. Slivers are coming back.
One thing to remember in this guide is that when I talk about first and second cascade triggers, the first will refer to the first to resolve, and the same for the second.
[IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGSCO/minds_desire.jpg[IMG][IMG]http://media-dominaria.cursecdn.com/attachments/93/773/635032496332188092.jpg[/IMG][IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGICE/jokulhaups.jpg[IMG]
[IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGMIR/worldly_tutor.jpg[IMG][IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGMER/brainstorm.jpg[IMG][IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGTEM/scroll_rack.jpg[IMG][IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGMIR/mystical_tutor.jpg[IMG]
Why Maelstrom Wanderer?
Riku of Two Reflections was great when he came out, but now he has too much of a target, and is often targeted for removal before he can be made use of. I previously played Riku, and as the deck developed, I found myself rarely casting him, because I would usually have better things to cast.
Animar, Soul of Elements is too combo-ish, and requires you to play too many creatures to b
e good.
Intet, the Dreamer is just, well, kind of meh.
And then came, or is foretold to be coming, Maelstrom Wanderer. The hefty 8 mana cost is more than outweighed considering we are playing green and the double cascade really wants a higher mana cost. Plus, Global haste is super great in RUG colors.
Deck Strategy
The List has multiple ways to function, as it can win without the General if he gets tucked or something, but it is much more powerful with the general.
The idea concerning the general is to set up your topdeck using something like Brainstorm, Sensei's Divining Top, Scroll Rack, Mystical Tutor or Worldly Tutor so you can cascade into big guys, powerful sorceries and other stuff.
Some fun things to do:
Set it up so that Jokulhaups casts off the first cascade, so you get your general and something else, while destroying most of the rest of the table. Even better if you can use worldly tutor to get primeval titan off the second cascade
Set it up so that Mind's Desire casts off the second cascade, netting you 3 casts (original + 2 storm), and 4 if you mystical tutor to set it up.
Also use Cloudstone Curio Triggers to bounce him back to your hand so you can recast and get more cascades.
The Deck
2 Coiling Oracle
2 Snapcaster Mage
2 Lotus Cobra
2 Sakura-Tribe Elder
2 Phantasmal Image
3 Eternal Witness
3 Wood Elves
4 Glen Elendra Archmage
4 Oracle of Mul Daya
4 Phyrexian Metamorph
4 Clone
4 Solemn Simulacrum
5 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
5 Body Double
5 Urabrask the Hidden
5 Acidic Slime
6 Inferno Titan
6 Frost Titan
6 Primeval Titan
6 Consecrated Sphinx
7 Avenger of Zendikar
7 Balefire Dragon
7 Sphinx of Uthuun
8 Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger
8 Terastodon
8 Bogardan Hellkite
10 Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
4 Chandra, the Firebrand
5 Garruk, Primal Hunter
Sorcery
1 Gamble
1 Green Sun's Zenith
3 Kodama's Reach
3 Cultivate
3 Genesis Wave
4 Rite of Replication
5 Time Warp
5 Bribery
6 Mind's Desire
6 Jokulhaups
7 Devastation
7 Tooth and Nail
9 Blasphemous Act
10 Time Stretch
1 Brainstorm
1 Worldly Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
3 Chaos Warp
3 Krosan Grip
3 Beast Within
4 Fact or Fiction
5 Spin Into Myth
1 Sol Ring
1 Sensei's Divining Top
2 Scroll Rack
3 Cloudstone Curio
4 Thran Dynamo
4 Birthing Pod
7 Akroma's Memorial
6 Mana Reflection
1 Reflecting Pool
1 Command Tower
1 Tropical Island
1 Breeding Pool
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Flooded Grove
1 Hinterland Harbor
1 Steam Vents
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Cascade Bluffs
1 Sulfur Falls
1 Stomping Ground
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Fire-Lit Thicket
1 Rootbound Crag
1 Arid Mesa
1 Verdant Catacombs
6 Forest
6 Island
6 Mountain
1 Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
1 Temple of the False God
1 Homeward Path
Card Explanations
Creatures
Snapcaster Mage - The deck has ~20 instants and sorcerys that you could or would want to flash back. He provides amazing utility as since he has flash he can get back a ramp spell, a hinder, a tutor, or a haymaker spell. Again, he also chumps.
Lotus Cobra - The deck runs 5 Fetches at the moment (more later probably), which just abuse the trigger, but every land provides at least 1 extra mana when it comes in. Good acceleration.
Sakura-Tribe Elder - Classic Rampant growth on a body. Can block once against something late game, or against aggro decks.
Phantasmal Image - Provides a lot of utility for 2 mana. Can kill an opposing general or copy the best guy on the board. The illusion clause isn't usually that big of a drawback, as the things people will target him with in EDH will usually get rid of him either way.
Eternal Witness - She gets back any card in your GY for 3 mana. Why not?
Glen Elendra Archmage - Protection from Wraths, Removal, and other spells for a very small mana investment. The key thing about her is that once she is out, you only need to leave up U to counter something, which is amazing in a deck that likes to sling mana around like it is nobody's business. Plus, she has persist!
Oracle of Mul Daya - Playing an extra land for turn, and speeding through land pockets off the top of your deck? Yes Please. The reveal isn't that big of a drawback for oracle in most decks, but here it is actually an advantage, so you can know if it is a good idea to cast your general.
Phyrexian Metamorph - Clone that can cost 3 if it has to, and can also copy artifacts.
Clone - Pretty Simple, legend killer, or another copy of the best guy on the board.
Solemn Simulacrum - Gets a land when he comes in, can block or get in the red zone, and draws a card when he dies.
Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir - Gives all your guys flash, and has flash himself. The most valuable part, especially against blue and black decks is that your opponent can now only play during their turn, so it forces them to tap out during their turn if they want to play anything.
Body Double - Clone, but for one of your creatures that is in your graveyard.
Acidic Slime - 2/2 rattlesnake dude who gets rid of a problem land, artifact, or enchantment. Great 5 mana target for Birthing Pod.
Inferno Titan, Primeval Titan, and Frost Titan - The Three on color titans, all of which are great. Inferno does massive damage and can kill utility dudes. Primeval is obvious, he gets two lands on entering and swinging, and his body isnt irrelevant. Frost taps down any permanent and has a built in spell pierce on things that your opponents target him with.
Consecrated Sphinx - Regardless of the fact that he draws massive hate, he is still one of the best draw engines in the game, and on a 4/6 body.
Balefire Dragon - Awesome removal creature, especially with a haste engine like the General. Gets rid of most creatures if he connects to the opponents face.
Sphinx of Uthuun - Possibly on the chopping block. Flying Body plus fact or fiction isnt bad in Riku, but it is slightly less impressive here.
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger - 7/6 Trampler + Mana Doubler + Their lands dont untap when tapped. Enough said.
Terastodon - Gets rid of three problem permanents, or blows up your own lands for tokens with a haste outlet for lots of damage.
Bogardan Hellkite - One of, if not the best Dragon in all of magic. Flash, 5 damage divided anyway you choose, and a 5/5 flyer.
Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur This deck does not have a problem getting to 10 mana, and he is huge super mega bomb, especially when played in your opponents end step.
Planeswalkers
Chandra, the Firebrand - Pings, but the most important thing there is the -2 ability to copy one of the many high powered instant or sorcery spells the deck runs. A copied Tooth and Nail, Time Stretch or Big Genesis Wave can easily end the game right there.
Garruk, Primal Hunter - Adds counters to make 3/3 guys, If you are low on cards, he draws you a lot of them if you have a good creature out, if you can get his ultimate, makes a ton of wurms which will usually win the game outright with a haste outlet.
Gamble - It's not, and will never be, Demonic Tutor, but you should rarely be low on cards in hand with this deck, so it does not often whiff out.
Green Sun's Zenith - An amazing tutor, even though it only hits green creatures, it gets them straight to the battlefield for just 1 more than the creature's CMC, and then shuffles itself back into your library
Kodama's Reach and Cultivate - not really much to say about these, they get you 1 basic to hand and one to the battlefield. I hear ramp is good.
Genesis Wave - This deck likes a lot of mana, and the General gives everything haste, along with 2 other permanents in the deck that also give mass haste. What more is there to say?
Rite of Replication - Every blue deck should play it. Five copies of something for 9 mana, how good is that?
Time Warp - I get to draw an extra card, untap everything, and play another land? Okay. unless this gets countered, there is really no downside to it.
Mind's Desire - Can be cascaded into off the General. Example Maelstrom Wanderer + First Cascade + Mystical Tutor + Mind's Desire off the second cascade = 7 things for 9 mana.
Jokulhaups - Can be cascaded into, even set up with Mystical Tutor as the first cascade so you get your General and something else while blowing up the rest of the table.
Devastation - Another Mass Wipe effect that can be cascaded into, still good, even though it doesnt hit artifacts.
Tooth and Nail - Get 2 guys straight to the field? Teferi + Jin-Gitaxias, Primeval + Avenger, etc, hilarity ensues.
Blasphemous Act - No, it cant be cascaded into off the General, but it is essentially a wrath, and usually a cheap one, which is hard to find in these colors.
Time Stretch - See Time Warp x2
Worldy Tutor - Plain out good tutor, which can also be used in response to either cascade trigger of the general to pick what you get for free.
Mystical Tutor - See Worldly Tutor. Mystical Tutor is one of the key pieces to one of the best combos in the deck, setting up Jokulhaups off the first cascade trigger, or for setting up Minds Desire off the second cascade trigger.
Chaos Warp - Possibly the best piece of red spot removal. Tucks any permanent, and sometimes they don't get anything back
Krosan Grip - The best piece of spot removal for artifacts and enchantments, period. It cant be countered, and cant be responded to.
Beast Within - Kills any permanent, and the 3/3 beast is much less relevant in EDH than in other formats.
Fact or Fiction - I don't feel like I need to sing the praises of fact or fiction, as they are pretty obvious.
Spin into Myth - Tuck, but unlike Hinder and Spell Crumple, can be cascaded into. Not only can it semi-permanently deal with a trouble creature, but it can also bounce a bad creature and potentially make your opponents next 1-2 draws worse.
Sol Ring Why would anyone except possibly some five color decks not play sol ring? It is mana accel that is to the point of being broken.
Sensei's Divining Top - Aside from the normal utility of being able to rearrange your next three cards, while running several shuffle effects, Top also allows you to look at the top 3 and see what you want to Cascade into (assuming you have 3 choices from the Top)
Scroll Rack - A powerhouse of topdeck manipulation. You can put whatever you want from your hand back on top in any order to cascade into.
Cloudstone Curio - Allows you to repeatedly reuse ETB effects, along with bouncing your general to hand so you can keep casting and cascading.
Thran Dynamo - Turn 4 Thran Dynamo is your general on turn 5. Yeah...
Birthing Pod - The deck has a careful curve to give a smooth birthing pod chain, which, when coupled with ETB effects, makes Birthing Pod a very solid choice.
Akroma's Memorial - Mass Haste, Trample, etc outlet, plus protection from one of the strongest removal colors. To beat it all, it can be cascaded into with Wanderer to make him even better once he hits play.
Enchantment
Dream Halls lets your discard any colored card in the deck to cast your general. Really helps when recasting, as all you have to pay is the general tax.
Mana Reflection What, else can I say? Mana doublers are awesome.
Lands
[IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGSHA/reflecting_pool.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_CMD/CommandTower.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGREV/tropical_island.jpg[IMG][IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGDIS/breeding_pool.jpg[IMG] [img]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ZEN/MistyRainforest.jpg[img] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGEVE/flooded_grove.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ISD/HinterlandHarbor.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGGUI/steam_vents.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ZEN/ScaldingTarn.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGEVE/cascade_bluffs.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ISD/SulfurFalls.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGGUI/stomping_ground.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGONS/wooded_foothills.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGSHA/fire-lit_thicket.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_M10/RootboundCrag.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ZEN/AridMesa.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_ZEN/VerdantCatacombs.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAGSOK/mikokoro_center_of_the_sea.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_CMD/TempleoftheFalseGod.jpg[IMG] [IMG]http://static.starcitygames.com/sales/cardscans/MAG_CMD/HomewardPath.jpg[IMG]
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RUG goodstuff?
The Commandments of EDH
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EDIT: ported my response from the other one over here and deleted the comment from there.
It looks like you did a good job for a first draft on this one. Just going to coin in that you might drop Banefire as it is difficult to cascade into nicely. Chaos Warp might be a better replacement for it. Green Sun's Zenith is also difficult but I think worth including in here.
Scroll Rack is another great tool to consider as you can then set up your 2 cascade triggers. I would likely also run Sensei's Divining Top and Sylvan Library as well as all 3 of these will be monsters for your commander.
Jokulhaups assuming you want to go there is an amazing card to set up on top of the deck for him to cascade into first.
Trinket Mage toolbox could be good as well and give you an outlet to go get a topdeck maniuplation effect if you need one for your commander.
EDIT 2: You need a ton more ramp in here. My whole goal for the deck would be like 15 ramp cards just to ramp hard into him and use him as card draw and powering things out. Also.... why use 8+ mana stuff in your list considering you cant cascade into it??? If I were going to run anything at 8+ it would probably be eldrazi considering they will have haste anyways.
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[Modern] Allies
I have decided I must try to assemble a list of my own.... brb with my own list for him...
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[Modern] Allies
Also, Imagine Maelstrom Wanderer, then using Mystical Tutor to Jokulhaups on the 1st cascade, float a Green, then Worldly Tutor to get Primeval Titan on the 2nd cascade, Swing 13, get 4 lands, pass turn
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Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
Also, I dont know how much i like the idea of running storm in this deck. I could see perhaps one or two of the bigger effect ones I just dont see how we are going to cast the commander then pay 5-6 mana for a big effect storm card and just casting our commander and hitting a storm card for a whole 2 copies doesnt sound that effective.
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[Modern] Allies
It is probably worth having Sylvan Tutor to put a good creature on top. Wildfire, Destructive Force, Boom//Bust, and/or Devastation might be worth having too.
Also, as for the storm, Dragonstorm and Minds Desire are the only ones I would run.
Wanderer + First Cascade + Mystical Tutor + One of the Storm Cards gets 4 of whatever spell it is. The problem with that is that I only have 3 dragons.
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I do like the mind's desire though, I wish there could be more tutors though. The more tutors this deck has that put stuff on top, the better. I think this doesn't work because the order they're worded in and because the second one doesn't say may, but if it does Momir Vig would be awesome.
My Helpdesk: http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?p=7776298#post7776298
My friend's awesome mtg dice: http://www.etsy.com/listing/120956030/magic-the-gathering-mini-d6-dice-set
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Gilded Drake amazing cheap theft.
Bloodbraid Elf more cute than anything but I figure we are already on a cascade deck it could be a fun add. Not really necessary as much as sticking to the theme.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker one of the best red creatures ever printed. It would make for a strong add.
Brainstorm instant speed setup for the commander. If you end up drawing some things you want to use for the cascade triggers it only costs 2 extra mana to set them up from hand. Plus you get to scope out what the next three cards are and pick what goes into the cascade.
Lurking Predators this deck has a high creature curve and is all about controlling what is on top of the deck. I think this is a great add as it fits right in with the theme.
CUT:
Bogardan Hellkite the dragonstorm is gone and he cant be cascaded into. I think his time has come.
Jace Beleren I have never been impressed by him. He is so slow at drawing cards and easily dies to like everything.
Spitting Image / Cackling Counterpart Personally I think you have too many clone effects. These two are your worst in my mind. I dont like the Image as it costs an arm and a leg to cast and usually I need my lands so I dont bother using it again. It targets which sucks and is prone to grave hate. Counterpart sucks because of the limitation on your own creature. If I want a clone it is probably because someone else has something I want or I need to kill an opposing commander.
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[Modern] Allies
I would give it some time before claiming this a comprehensive explanation of a deck that is still in early draft stage.
They may seem poor, but you need more ways to manipulate your library, Scroll Rack would work great with general, as would Crystal Shard, Cloudstone Curio or Erratic Portal to reuse general. Soothsaying may also be an idea.
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
I agree. I disapprove of hurrying to be the first to pick up a new general. Putting a primer tag on it is even more ridiculous.
But I digress.
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Any sort of primer should not even be created without proper understanding of card choices, weaknesses, matchups, etc. To want to do a primer is cool, but to just go to it with the only information you have being a port of a different commander is just asinine. Even if you were to judge every RUG card available, you still have 0 idea how it plays or what its matchups are. Not only that, but you have no concept of other directions the deck can go other than your limited exposure to RUG Goodstuff.
My Blog About It
I think he can be powerful, you just need to have cards like Scroll Rack, Soothsaying, and Mystical Tutor to make him consistently powerful. The potential to hit Bribery and Jokulhaulps or something similar is cool enough (I think) to build around him.
Once I get ahold of one, I will most likely replace Jace Beleren with Jace, the Mind Sculptor for another brainstorm effect, plus other utility.
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Shoutout to Hakai Studios for the awesome sig!
EDH Decks
WUB Sydri, Galvanic Genius WUB
R Daretti, Scrap Savant R
UBR Thraximundar UBR
GW Krond, the Dawn Clad GW
GR Wort, the Raidmother GR
"Destruction purifies. The furnaces cleanse. Words can always be twisted, but the fire cannot."
—Urabrask the Hidden
702.83a Cascade is a triggered ability that functions only while the spell with cascade is on the stack. “Cascade” means “When you cast this spell, exile cards from the top of your library until you exile a nonland card whose converted mana cost is less than this spell’s converted mana cost. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost. Then put all cards exiled this way that weren’t cast on the bottom of your library in a random order.”
The key being that a spells converted mana cost is not changed by extra costs, cost increases, reductions, etc. The CMC is always what is printed on the card.
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This isn't the first time but it was still cool. Just like when i said they are bringing poison back in Scars, Or how the next set would have werewolves (But i was a set off, i said that back in zendikar... scars was in between)
But yea i was estatic to see this guy. I wish to redo what i did with Nin and build a deck proxying the general to test play decks first.
Oh and just to say it in hopes that my random bull**** spew is making a comeback to always be right. Slivers are coming back.
UB Vela the Night-Clad BUDecklist
WBG Ghave, Guru of Spores GBW
WUBRGThe Ur-DragonWUBRGDecklist