I think it's possibly a good inclusion. I'm always down for more bolts because I don't think people respect that kind of incremental damage enough in this format. I think you have to run it with the expectation that you're stapling bolts to dead artifacts probably 75% of the time, unless there's a clear threat at the table or you can extort someone with a low life total. The bolts also get better the more incidental damage you're running. Jaya tends to finish games with repeated chunks of damage more than single bursts, so adding onto that is more useful. If you're finishing with something closer to a combo kill, the value of Pia's Revolution is going to drop sharply.
All of that said, it's always tough for me to find space for new things. I'm definitely picking up a copy, but I have no idea how long it will take before I even try it out.
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[Pr]Jaya | Estrid | A rotating cast of decks built out of my box.
There are about 7 card differences compared to my old Diaochan, Artful Beauty list. I need to find room for an Expedition Map. I excluded Gratuitous Violence since I mainly play multiplayer and I wanted to play effects that also helped my opponents deal double damage. Will eventually get some testing done this winter.
I excluded Gratuitous Violence since I mainly play multiplayer and I wanted to play effects that also helped my opponents deal double damage.
Personally, I'm uncomfortable giving double damage to my opponents with an enchantment I can't get rid of easily. Jaya doesn't have many creatures to chump block damage, so I'd rather field Gratuitous Violence and leave the others (Furnace of Rath, Dictate of the Twin Gods) out. If this was my Kazuul, Tyrant of the Cliffs deck where I know I'll have a wall of defense, I might feel differently. I know Weebo runs (ran?) one or two of these effects though.
Some thoughts on other cards:
Reliquary Tower - Jaya's ability discards cards, so I don't think this land is necessary.
Word of Seizing - Without sac outlets, I'm not sure this one is worth it. Have you considered Grab the Reins instead? It has a stapled on sac effect.
Price of Glory - Jaya is more of a control deck and likes to hold mana to cast spells on opponents turns. As such, this card doesn't seem like a great idea.
Ancient Tomb - Have you considered Temple of the False God? Since Jaya tends to grind down everyone at the table (including yourself), the life loss here seems significant enough that I can see it losing games in the end.
I excluded Gratuitous Violence since I mainly play multiplayer and I wanted to play effects that also helped my opponents deal double damage.
Personally, I'm uncomfortable giving double damage to my opponents with an enchantment I can't get rid of easily. Jaya doesn't have many creatures to chump block damage, so I'd rather field Gratuitous Violence and leave the others (Furnace of Rath, Dictate of the Twin Gods) out. If this was my Kazuul, Tyrant of the Cliffs deck where I know I'll have a wall of defense, I might feel differently. I know Weebo runs (ran?) one or two of these effects though.
Some thoughts on other cards:
Reliquary Tower - Jaya's ability discards cards, so I don't think this land is necessary.
Word of Seizing - Without sac outlets, I'm not sure this one is worth it. Have you considered Grab the Reins instead? It has a stapled on sac effect.
Price of Glory - Jaya is more of a control deck and likes to hold mana to cast spells on opponents turns. As such, this card doesn't seem like a great idea.
Ancient Tomb - Have you considered Temple of the False God? Since Jaya tends to grind down everyone at the table (including yourself), the life loss here seems significant enough that I can see it losing games in the end.
I like Dictate of the Twin Gods for the gotcha effect. Love the flash. When my opponents aren't playing blue we have a Karador and a Mayael player running around. I love piggy backing off of them and causing some damage. More likely then not I am able to kill off a player through means of my opponent. It's awesome. A lot of my damage comes through burn spells, Price of Progress, etc. I don't like that Gratuitous Violence doesn't help these out. Eventually I may just slot in and have 3 effects total.
I run Reliquary Tower in all my decks. Just something I do. This deck runs enough draw (plus some of the copy effects have a knack for finding player's Blue Sun's Zenith) power to warrant it in my opinion.
Price of Glory has been an all-star during my games. I don't mind doing Jaya at sorcery speed. The ability to give blue decks a hard time is great.
Word of Seizing has been used a lot as snatching planeswalkers (ulting them has been the best feeling.) or any artifacts/lands/enchantments that are giving me trouble. The split second is such a blessing in my group. I do like Grab the Reins a lot though. I saw that before and may have to grab a copy and slot it in for something. I like the entwine ability a lot.
Thanks for the input. I'll update when I get games in.
I think it's possibly a good inclusion. I'm always down for more bolts because I don't think people respect that kind of incremental damage enough in this format. I think you have to run it with the expectation that you're stapling bolts to dead artifacts probably 75% of the time, unless there's a clear threat at the table or you can extort someone with a low life total. The bolts also get better the more incidental damage you're running. Jaya tends to finish games with repeated chunks of damage more than single bursts, so adding onto that is more useful. If you're finishing with something closer to a combo kill, the value of Pia's Revolution is going to drop sharply.
All of that said, it's always tough for me to find space for new things. I'm definitely picking up a copy, but I have no idea how long it will take before I even try it out.
I think I'll pick one up aswell, but likewise - what to take out? But also just realized, that it will get worse with more players in the game, since an opponent chooses to take the damage. So I can't pick whom to target, and there will be more life for the enchantment to burn through.
I think it's possibly a good inclusion. I'm always down for more bolts because I don't think people respect that kind of incremental damage enough in this format. I think you have to run it with the expectation that you're stapling bolts to dead artifacts probably 75% of the time, unless there's a clear threat at the table or you can extort someone with a low life total. The bolts also get better the more incidental damage you're running. Jaya tends to finish games with repeated chunks of damage more than single bursts, so adding onto that is more useful. If you're finishing with something closer to a combo kill, the value of Pia's Revolution is going to drop sharply.
All of that said, it's always tough for me to find space for new things. I'm definitely picking up a copy, but I have no idea how long it will take before I even try it out.
I think I'll pick one up aswell, but likewise - what to take out? But also just realized, that it will get worse with more players in the game, since an opponent chooses to take the damage. So I can't pick whom to target, and there will be more life for the enchantment to burn through.
MuzzleMuffin: I don't like Furnace very much in this deck, at four mana, I don't usually get to play it, and do something to take advantage of the effect on the same turn, in this way its not even comparable to Dictate, the instant speed makes such a huge difference. Your build is obviously very aggressive, so I can see why you would take the more aggressive route, but for me the chances of Furnace back firing is too great, so thats why I like violence better.
When my list was competitive I ran Price of Glory, Stranglehold, and War's Toll, have you ever tried that card? Forcing blue to to tap down for one counter per turn cycle can be very powerful, especially if the blue player goes right after you, or there are a few seats between you two, it often gave me openings due to them having to deal with threats prior to my turn. I also like one sided effects. Forcing agro to go all in can be pretty powerful as well, it keeps a certain amount of pressure on the game.
Also it seems like there is alot of blue in your meta, I know Red Elemental Blast, and Pyroblast seem silly but they have been amazing for me. I first included them in my deck as a joke, but they are probably the two most fun cards in this deck. It also makes Distorting lens more awesome!
How has Extraplanar lens been treating you? I decided to cut the card a long time ago, many two for one/tempo losses were involved.
Myrmadillo: I believe any threaten effect with instant speed stapled to it can work as pseudo removal, with or with out sac outlets, taking control of an attacking creature has saved my life numerous times defensively, while taking control of a non attack creature to surprise block has rewarded me with great two for one creature kills. For me that is where the power of this deck lays, in doing things that people don't expect red to do,
Without sac outlets, I'd rather run Fissure and know that the creature is going to die than have to count on a favorable board state to kill it. The vast majority of the time I use Grab the Reins I have to pay the entwine cost to eliminate the target.
Thats fine, but Fissure doesn't allow you to steal a creature and attack an open opponent, or use what ever broken ability on that creature either. You like a solid kill spell, I like silly things that sometimes kills
MuzzleMuffin: I don't like Furnace very much in this deck, at four mana, I don't usually get to play it, and do something to take advantage of the effect on the same turn, in this way its not even comparable to Dictate, the instant speed makes such a huge difference. Your build is obviously very aggressive, so I can see why you would take the more aggressive route, but for me the chances of Furnace back firing is too great, so thats why I like violence better.
When my list was competitive I ran Price of Glory, Stranglehold, and War's Toll, have you ever tried that card? Forcing blue to to tap down for one counter per turn cycle can be very powerful, especially if the blue player goes right after you, or there are a few seats between you two, it often gave me openings due to them having to deal with threats prior to my turn. I also like one sided effects. Forcing agro to go all in can be pretty powerful as well, it keeps a certain amount of pressure on the game.
Also it seems like there is alot of blue in your meta, I know Red Elemental Blast, and Pyroblast seem silly but they have been amazing for me. I first included them in my deck as a joke, but they are probably the two most fun cards in this deck. It also makes Distorting lens more awesome!
How has Extraplanar lens been treating you? I decided to cut the card a long time ago, many two for one/tempo losses were involved.
I will definitely admit that most times I have dropped Furnace of Rath I have done nothing the same turn. Luckily, when I am playing Mono-red and when my opponents are playing Zur, Oloro x2, and Momir I am normally not a target. The following turn after being dropped is nuts. Sometimes I sand bag it knowing I could win turns later...or I drop it as soon as I get it and watch our life totals deteriorate...maybe its the red mage in me.
I actually had War's Toll in my old lists. It comes in and out...to be completely honest I have never seen it in any of my games. Thats probably the main driving force behind the exclusion. I know it must be powerful. I just have yet to see it. One of these days I'll throw it in again. I love messing with people's mana/stuff.
On the Elemental Blast effects, I am definitely a huge fan. Lately my group's secondary decks have been non-blue decks. That's the only thing that stops me. If I ran these I may take out a few Reiterate type cards. Definitely awesome cards.
Extraplanar Lens has been awesome for me. Before I had a Gauntlet of Might (brother just got one for me for my birthday) I tried to run as much Mana doubling effects as possible outside of Mana Flare. There have been a few times when someone will target it knowing its a 2 for 1 or it gets swept away in a mass artifact destruction/exile. But outside of those games it has ramped me early enough to drop a Caged Sun, Staff of Nin, or a Steel Hellkite and allows me to go to town.
I appreciate all the info. I just want to say that I really appreciate this primer. I was looking for a Diaochan primer for a long time. Its nice to discuss the ideas here.
The nice thing about Jaya is that no cards are ever dead as long as shes on board. So for me REB, and Pyroblast is just more red flavor.
I actually own a gauntlet, and mana crypt, but this is my casual deck, whipping out $100 cards get me focused alot Now that I think of it, this is also another reason I don't play furnace in this list any more, the decks I play against just run big dumb creatures that would benefit from the furnace much more than I would, they're mostly new players, also why my 'Threaten' package works well. Lots of meta calls. Extra planar lens did alot of work for me back in the day, but I play magic for the feels, and ramping into stuff may feel good, but getting two for one'd feels much worse. This is also why I tried REB, and Pyroblast in the first place, watching their jaw drop as I counter, or destroy their blue bomb Priceless.
Nhan: I'll give 'em a go someday. How do you like Nova Pentacle?
I am a somewhat spikey player. I think that is why I play subpar commanders (Horobi Death's Wail is next on my list. I try to enhance them as much as I can and it makes their power level relatively decent. Our group is competitive/gimmick decks. Its always a good time.
I don't know I haven't gotten to play it yet, it seems good on paper since I run like three creatures but if Jaya is in play and not protected it would seem like a horrible card. I used to play a competitive Karn, Silver Golem, and it worked alright there, but that list also has much more disposable mana, and ways to untap artifact. I ran it in tandem with forcefield, and once it was set up it was actually better.
I'm a very spiky player, like you I tried to pick under powered generals, and in that way make it challenging for myself, but that didn't work out for me. I discovered that I would rather embrace my spiky side and play really spiky generals, while keeping this list so I have something casual to play with, since I've been kicked out of play groups before My spiky group doesn't meet up very often.
As I cut more of the snow interaction from the list, I'm looking at alternate mountain art for if I ever feel like moving away from Snow-Covered Mountains. I don't think I'm going to take advantage of any of it yet (thanks Skred!) but I'm wondering if any of you has picked out specific basic lands and, if they have, which ones you're using.
These are some of the considerations. I'd want them in foil if available, which is everything but the Euro land. I'm a little bit of a masochist when it comes to collecting, so the older and harder to find ones do have some appeal for that reason. I'd still like a thematic link to the snow given Jaya's origins, though I could give that up for good enough art. Any thoughts?
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Well, I actually prefer the original Snow-Covered Mountain, just for nostalgia's sake. Foiling is not an issue.
If you were concerned about foil + theme, I'd probably go with the Rob Alexander piece that was reprinted from Mercadian Masques. It's ubiquitous enough.
I would also recommend these:
I just wish they'd reprinted some of the art from Portal Second Age in a set with foils.
If you want them foil, then you need to see them in foil and evaluate based on that. You don't want to be disappointed by the foiling.
One thing I'll mention because of lore is that the only plane Jaya has been known to have been to besides Dominaria (during the ice age) is Regatha. There are some Regathan mountains in Magic Origins, but they aren't anything special IMO. However, consdiering how WotC has been hitting the origins planes regularly with the new sets, we may be in for a Regatha set at some point in the next few years, which will hopefully have some sexy foil mountains that are also a flavor win for Jaya.
Thanks for the input all. I'm probably not jumping ship for a while if ever, but a couple of those would take some time to track down 20 of and I would rather start now if I'm even considering it.
The old border looks so much more appealing in foil; much more rugged-looking. My vote goes to the Odyssey mountains.
That's my current favorite unless either the COK or KTK one just blows me away in person. I like the Euro one a lot and use those for legacy decks, but I would likely just stick with IA snow-covered if I wasn't looking for more shiny cards.
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As I cut more of the snow interaction from the list, I'm looking at alternate mountain art for if I ever feel like moving away from Snow-Covered Mountains. I don't think I'm going to take advantage of any of it yet (thanks Skred!) but I'm wondering if any of you has picked out specific basic lands and, if they have, which ones you're using.
These are some of the considerations. I'd want them in foil if available, which is everything but the Euro land. I'm a little bit of a masochist when it comes to collecting, so the older and harder to find ones do have some appeal for that reason. I'd still like a thematic link to the snow given Jaya's origins, though I could give that up for good enough art. Any thoughts?
I like top left myself. I'm really into old borders...even white borders.
Just had my first game with Jaya. I played against my brother's Ulrich of The Krallenhorde Werewolf Tribal. He rarely plays, he forgets the rules sometimes, and is the complete definition of Timmy. I built this tribal deck for him so he would play with me and learn the game. I tried to juice Werewolves up as much as possible (turns out its hard).
It starts off like normal, him casting werewolves and me casting Jaya. I start using Jaya's ability along with a Gambled Squee to start pinging dudes. Darksteel plate in the mid game allows me to get close to using Jayas nuke. I miss land drops and my demise looks certain. The game proceeds like this and through his Rage Reflection I am at 1 life. I draw Godo for turn and search up a basilisk collar. Once I equip its a steady roll from there. Once I get nuke mana I gain 36 life and thats pretty much game. Jaya takes it.
If he saw some of the lines of play I would have been dead earlier on. I guess Werewolves when they are curvin' can just get there at times? Overall I was very happy with Jaya. Her discard ability had zero drawback with Squee and it felt soooooo good. I love killin' critters.
Even though I played against a very low tier deck. I think I am here to stay with Jaya. Thanks for the help, all.
Weebo, is it possible to have your last updated list? I want to try it next week =)
Thanks a lot !
I'm about 90% sure its the list in the opening post -Mouth of Ronom and +Inventors' Fair, but I'll double check that at some point when I have the deck handy.
edit: Just confirming that this is the case. Mouth came out for Fair, otherwise the list is up to date. Between the age of the decklist, the amount of tuning that's already gone into it, and the foil content it changes pretty slowly.
so cogwork assembler out of aether revolt just got spoiled. At first I looked at him and thought, huh that's neat, but also pretty expensive. However taking a second look i definitely will be making space for him in my list. While seven mana is a lot we are already trying to hold that open because of Jaya's inferno, so I don't think it will be too hard. Also he copies anyone's artifacts not just yours which can be great. Plus in my list I'm already making use of rings of brighthearth and Illusionist's bracers which both work very well with him. Also his ability exiles at the beginning of the next end step so if you activate him at the end step the token will stick around for a full turn. Finally, while I'm not a huge fan of infinite combo's but because he doesn't have to tap if you can get infinite mana you can make infinite artifacts, which will probably just win you the game if you have a solemn or steel hellkite out.
so cogwork assembler out of aether revolt just got spoiled. At first I looked at him and thought, huh that's neat, but also pretty expensive. However taking a second look i definitely will be making space for him in my list. While seven mana is a lot we are already trying to hold that open because of Jaya's inferno, so I don't think it will be too hard. Also he copies anyone's artifacts not just yours which can be great. Plus in my list I'm already making use of rings of brighthearth and Illusionist's bracers which both work very well with him. Also his ability exiles at the beginning of the next end step so if you activate him at the end step the token will stick around for a full turn. Finally, while I'm not a huge fan of infinite combo's but because he doesn't have to tap if you can get infinite mana you can make infinite artifacts, which will probably just win you the game if you have a solemn or steel hellkite out.
I wish it read target artifact or creature...but I guess that could possibly make it op. I am currently not a fan of it. But if you choose to test it, let us know how it goes. I am always curious.
Anyone else see some spoilers that could give Mono-red a boost?
All of that said, it's always tough for me to find space for new things. I'm definitely picking up a copy, but I have no idea how long it will take before I even try it out.
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/bond-jaya-bonds/
1x Basilisk Collar
1x Caged Sun
1x Darksteel Plate
1x Distorting Lens
1x Extraplanar Lens
1x Gauntlet of Might
1x Gauntlet of Power
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Mana Crypt
1x Mana Vault
1x Mimic Vat
1x Mind Stone
1x Mind's Eye
1x Pyromancer's Goggles
1x Rings of Brighthearth
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x Sol Ring
1x Staff of Nin
1x Sword of Fire and Ice
Creature (11)
1x Dualcaster Mage
1x Goblin Welder
1x Godo, Bandit Warlord
1x Heartless Hidetsugu
1x Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1x Magus of the Moon
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Squee, Goblin Nabob
1x Steel Hellkite
1x Wurmcoil Engine
1x Zealous Conscripts
1x Blood Moon
1x Braid of Fire
1x Dictate of the Twin Gods
1x Furnace of Rath
1x Outpost Siege
1x Price of Glory
1x Pyrohemia
1x Repercussion
1x Stranglehold
Land (37)
1x Ancient Tomb
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1x Buried Ruin
1x Flamekin Village
1x Geier Reach Sanitarium
1x Great Furnace
1x Inventors' Fair
1x Maze of Ith
1x Reliquary Tower
1x Scrying Sheets
25x Snow-Covered Mountain
1x Thawing Glaciers
1x Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
Sorcery (11)
1x All Is Dust
1x Blasphemous Act
1x Faithless Looting
1x Gamble
1x Insurrection
1x Mana Geyser
1x Molten Disaster
1x Reforge the Soul
1x Ruination
1x Vandalblast
1x Wheel of Fortune
1x Comet Storm
1x Commune with Lava
1x Fork
1x Price of Progress
1x Reiterate
1x Reverberate
1x Shattering Pulse
1x Wild Ricochet
1x Word of Seizing
Planeswalker (2)
1x Daretti, Scrap Savant
1x Koth of the Hammer
There are about 7 card differences compared to my old Diaochan, Artful Beauty list. I need to find room for an Expedition Map. I excluded Gratuitous Violence since I mainly play multiplayer and I wanted to play effects that also helped my opponents deal double damage. Will eventually get some testing done this winter.
Personally, I'm uncomfortable giving double damage to my opponents with an enchantment I can't get rid of easily. Jaya doesn't have many creatures to chump block damage, so I'd rather field Gratuitous Violence and leave the others (Furnace of Rath, Dictate of the Twin Gods) out. If this was my Kazuul, Tyrant of the Cliffs deck where I know I'll have a wall of defense, I might feel differently. I know Weebo runs (ran?) one or two of these effects though.
Some thoughts on other cards:
Reliquary Tower - Jaya's ability discards cards, so I don't think this land is necessary.
Word of Seizing - Without sac outlets, I'm not sure this one is worth it. Have you considered Grab the Reins instead? It has a stapled on sac effect.
Price of Glory - Jaya is more of a control deck and likes to hold mana to cast spells on opponents turns. As such, this card doesn't seem like a great idea.
Ancient Tomb - Have you considered Temple of the False God? Since Jaya tends to grind down everyone at the table (including yourself), the life loss here seems significant enough that I can see it losing games in the end.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker - Is there really enough creature density in the deck to field this guy?
Budget Modern: GStompyG | R8-WhackR
I like Dictate of the Twin Gods for the gotcha effect. Love the flash. When my opponents aren't playing blue we have a Karador and a Mayael player running around. I love piggy backing off of them and causing some damage. More likely then not I am able to kill off a player through means of my opponent. It's awesome. A lot of my damage comes through burn spells, Price of Progress, etc. I don't like that Gratuitous Violence doesn't help these out. Eventually I may just slot in and have 3 effects total.
I run Reliquary Tower in all my decks. Just something I do. This deck runs enough draw (plus some of the copy effects have a knack for finding player's Blue Sun's Zenith) power to warrant it in my opinion.
Price of Glory has been an all-star during my games. I don't mind doing Jaya at sorcery speed. The ability to give blue decks a hard time is great.
I like Ancient Tomb for the early interaction. Temple of the False God is great but I think I would rather have this one.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker is in here mainly for the interaction with Zealous Conscripts. I wanted to add a few combos in here besides Reiterate + Mana Geyser | Heartless Hidetsugu + Damage Doublers/Basilisk Collar. Being able to copy an opponents Tooth and Nail has been awesome in the past. With conscripts being great on its own I am ok for now having Kiki be a dead draw. However, I could see these being cut in the future.
Word of Seizing has been used a lot as snatching planeswalkers (ulting them has been the best feeling.) or any artifacts/lands/enchantments that are giving me trouble. The split second is such a blessing in my group. I do like Grab the Reins a lot though. I saw that before and may have to grab a copy and slot it in for something. I like the entwine ability a lot.
Thanks for the input. I'll update when I get games in.
I think I'll pick one up aswell, but likewise - what to take out? But also just realized, that it will get worse with more players in the game, since an opponent chooses to take the damage. So I can't pick whom to target, and there will be more life for the enchantment to burn through.
Actually, you can target an opponent with Pia's Revolution.
When my list was competitive I ran Price of Glory, Stranglehold, and War's Toll, have you ever tried that card? Forcing blue to to tap down for one counter per turn cycle can be very powerful, especially if the blue player goes right after you, or there are a few seats between you two, it often gave me openings due to them having to deal with threats prior to my turn. I also like one sided effects. Forcing agro to go all in can be pretty powerful as well, it keeps a certain amount of pressure on the game.
Also it seems like there is alot of blue in your meta, I know Red Elemental Blast, and Pyroblast seem silly but they have been amazing for me. I first included them in my deck as a joke, but they are probably the two most fun cards in this deck. It also makes Distorting lens more awesome!
How has Extraplanar lens been treating you? I decided to cut the card a long time ago, many two for one/tempo losses were involved.
RIP Karn EDH
RIP Karn EDH
Budget Modern: GStompyG | R8-WhackR
RIP Karn EDH
I will definitely admit that most times I have dropped Furnace of Rath I have done nothing the same turn. Luckily, when I am playing Mono-red and when my opponents are playing Zur, Oloro x2, and Momir I am normally not a target. The following turn after being dropped is nuts. Sometimes I sand bag it knowing I could win turns later...or I drop it as soon as I get it and watch our life totals deteriorate...maybe its the red mage in me.
I actually had War's Toll in my old lists. It comes in and out...to be completely honest I have never seen it in any of my games. Thats probably the main driving force behind the exclusion. I know it must be powerful. I just have yet to see it. One of these days I'll throw it in again. I love messing with people's mana/stuff.
On the Elemental Blast effects, I am definitely a huge fan. Lately my group's secondary decks have been non-blue decks. That's the only thing that stops me. If I ran these I may take out a few Reiterate type cards. Definitely awesome cards.
Extraplanar Lens has been awesome for me. Before I had a Gauntlet of Might (brother just got one for me for my birthday) I tried to run as much Mana doubling effects as possible outside of Mana Flare. There have been a few times when someone will target it knowing its a 2 for 1 or it gets swept away in a mass artifact destruction/exile. But outside of those games it has ramped me early enough to drop a Caged Sun, Staff of Nin, or a Steel Hellkite and allows me to go to town.
I appreciate all the info. I just want to say that I really appreciate this primer. I was looking for a Diaochan primer for a long time. Its nice to discuss the ideas here.
I actually own a gauntlet, and mana crypt, but this is my casual deck, whipping out $100 cards get me focused alot Now that I think of it, this is also another reason I don't play furnace in this list any more, the decks I play against just run big dumb creatures that would benefit from the furnace much more than I would, they're mostly new players, also why my 'Threaten' package works well. Lots of meta calls. Extra planar lens did alot of work for me back in the day, but I play magic for the feels, and ramping into stuff may feel good, but getting two for one'd feels much worse. This is also why I tried REB, and Pyroblast in the first place, watching their jaw drop as I counter, or destroy their blue bomb Priceless.
RIP Karn EDH
I am a somewhat spikey player. I think that is why I play subpar commanders (Horobi Death's Wail is next on my list. I try to enhance them as much as I can and it makes their power level relatively decent. Our group is competitive/gimmick decks. Its always a good time.
I'm a very spiky player, like you I tried to pick under powered generals, and in that way make it challenging for myself, but that didn't work out for me. I discovered that I would rather embrace my spiky side and play really spiky generals, while keeping this list so I have something casual to play with, since I've been kicked out of play groups before My spiky group doesn't meet up very often.
RIP Karn EDH
These are some of the considerations. I'd want them in foil if available, which is everything but the Euro land. I'm a little bit of a masochist when it comes to collecting, so the older and harder to find ones do have some appeal for that reason. I'd still like a thematic link to the snow given Jaya's origins, though I could give that up for good enough art. Any thoughts?
RIP Karn EDH
If you were concerned about foil + theme, I'd probably go with the Rob Alexander piece that was reprinted from Mercadian Masques. It's ubiquitous enough.
I would also recommend these:
I just wish they'd reprinted some of the art from Portal Second Age in a set with foils.
One thing I'll mention because of lore is that the only plane Jaya has been known to have been to besides Dominaria (during the ice age) is Regatha. There are some Regathan mountains in Magic Origins, but they aren't anything special IMO. However, consdiering how WotC has been hitting the origins planes regularly with the new sets, we may be in for a Regatha set at some point in the next few years, which will hopefully have some sexy foil mountains that are also a flavor win for Jaya.
My three favorites (ODY, COK, KTK) out of those are already in the mail.
That's my current favorite unless either the COK or KTK one just blows me away in person. I like the Euro one a lot and use those for legacy decks, but I would likely just stick with IA snow-covered if I wasn't looking for more shiny cards.
I like top left myself. I'm really into old borders...even white borders.
It starts off like normal, him casting werewolves and me casting Jaya. I start using Jaya's ability along with a Gambled Squee to start pinging dudes. Darksteel plate in the mid game allows me to get close to using Jayas nuke. I miss land drops and my demise looks certain. The game proceeds like this and through his Rage Reflection I am at 1 life. I draw Godo for turn and search up a basilisk collar. Once I equip its a steady roll from there. Once I get nuke mana I gain 36 life and thats pretty much game. Jaya takes it.
If he saw some of the lines of play I would have been dead earlier on. I guess Werewolves when they are curvin' can just get there at times? Overall I was very happy with Jaya. Her discard ability had zero drawback with Squee and it felt soooooo good. I love killin' critters.
Even though I played against a very low tier deck. I think I am here to stay with Jaya. Thanks for the help, all.
edit: Just confirming that this is the case. Mouth came out for Fair, otherwise the list is up to date. Between the age of the decklist, the amount of tuning that's already gone into it, and the foil content it changes pretty slowly.
I wish it read target artifact or creature...but I guess that could possibly make it op. I am currently not a fan of it. But if you choose to test it, let us know how it goes. I am always curious.
Anyone else see some spoilers that could give Mono-red a boost?