I run a Barrin deck with no extra turn cards and it still works fairly well. Extra turns really do generate the most value, but my group frowns on abused extra turns as well. I opted for more of a toolbox approach to the deck. Floodgate, Scourge of Fleets, and Lifeline are three fantastic cards for my version of the deck. I've also been toying with the idea of a Barrin Stasis build.
Sorry for the double post, but it's been almost two months.
What do we think of cards from Origins? My build of this deck is a little more artifact-focused than the list in the primer, and I'm certainly going to be trying out Thopter Spy Network and Hangarback Walker.
Also, Oblivion Sower is definitely going straight into this deck.
I love Hangarback Walker in my Barrin deck. Provides so much necessary fodder, plus it's easily recurrable if need be. I haven't tried out Thopter Spy Network, but the free fodder each turn sounds fantastic. Unfortunately, I don't like Jace, Vryn's Prodigy for my build of the deck. I could see his -3 working well in an extra turn focused version. Other than those, I don't see anything that's really an auto-include, at least in my deck. Hoping Zendikar brings some interesting stuff for us to add.
Yeah, new Jace doesn't really do anything I want to do.
I suggest trying Thopter Spy Network at least. My list is more artifact focused than the list in the primer (link in my signature) so it works more often for me than it would otherwise, but still. It's a great value engine.
Double posting again, sorry. I'm sad this thread is so inactive.
Anyway, I finally got a chance to test out Hangarback Walker and Oblivion Sower last night. Both were pretty fantastic. Hangarback came down on turn two and grew to 9/9 before it got sacrificed. Thopter Spy Network was also a fine addition, though less notably so than the other two.
There's a slight disconnect between the goals of this list and the ramp requirements Omniscience or the Eldrazi demand. I was also quite surprised to run across a Tabernacle in this list. It's a very specialized land to hate on creature-based lists. I'd probably do without it and run High Market in its place. And supplement our removal with maybe something like that new 4 cmc exploit blue creature that bounces guys and that whale. The list needs more draw.
My list regularly gets up to boatloads of mana. I've cast Kozilek three times in one turn, for example. I don't play Tabernacle, as I don't have one and don't see the need. I don't mind creatures, since I can bounce whichever ones pose a threat. High Market doesn't seem to do anything I want though. The deck also draws a lot of cards, and refills its hand often. Since I added Salvaging Station, I often end up drawing five or six cards a turn.
You're right about High Market. Thawing Glaciers. The ramp and draw density run in this list is literally half of what I'm used to running. The list has more bombs than ramp pieces. It's going to run awkwardly.
Sorry for stagnancy here guys. I haven't been catching many games lately with my playgroup because everyone has differing schedules etc and I get carried away with custom card design and neglect keeping up with this as I should.
That said, I also didn't like any blue/colorless/land cards that have come out of the past few blocks, origins, khans etc.
Battle for Zendikar had a few cards that appealed to me. I'm not sure about Oblivion Sewer how has that card been treating you? It seems like clunky ramp and not much else. I opted to make a few cuts and put Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger in place of Jin-Gitaxias and Blighted Cataract as some late game draw and synergy with crucible of worlds.
Cut some other cards and put some other ones that I had played with in the past as well such as Spelltwine and cut Tabernacle as it suited my brother's Planeswalker EDH much better than mine.
I like your list cromonolith. Mine is bit more geared toward counter-magic control than artifact synergy like yours is but I think both options are viable. My meta has lots of White in it so Austere Command other strong spot removal and the like geared me away from that strategy mostly.
Will add some card reviews for BFZ and update the change list soon!!
Oblivion Sower has been great for me. I tend to want a lot of ramp in my deck, since this is fundamentally a "big mana blue" sort of deck. I often find myself Trinket Maging for Wayfarer's Bauble and finding Academy Ruins early and such. I find that once I can get a mana advantage, I'm in pretty good shape. Myriad Landscape has been unbelievable, by the way. Thada Adel and Acquire also help do this. My group isn't super cutthroat though, so I don't need to worry about dying in the first few turns to a fast combo or something.
Blighted Cataract is certainly an auto-include. Can't wait to try it out.
And yeah, Salvaging Station is a key part of this deck for me. I like durdling with artifacts. That said, I have been thinking of adding a bit of countermagic back in.
Looking at your deck again, Remand stands out to me. I wouldn't ordinarily think much of that card in EDH. Do you use it for some specific purpose?
Oblivion Sower has been great for me. I tend to want a lot of ramp in my deck, since this is fundamentally a "big mana blue" sort of deck. I often find myself Trinket Maging for Wayfarer's Bauble and finding Academy Ruins early and such. I find that once I can get a mana advantage, I'm in pretty good shape. Myriad Landscape has been unbelievable, by the way. Thada Adel and Acquire also help do this. My group isn't super cutthroat though, so I don't need to worry about dying in the first few turns to a fast combo or something.
Blighted Cataract is certainly an auto-include. Can't wait to try it out.
And yeah, Salvaging Station is a key part of this deck for me. I like durdling with artifacts. That said, I have been thinking of adding a bit of countermagic back in.
Looking at your deck again, Remand stands out to me. I wouldn't ordinarily think much of that card in EDH. Do you use it for some specific purpose?
Remand I really love playing because for the most part, it counters their big play for the turn since they usually tap out, while allowing me to draw a card at the same time for super cheap. By the time it comes around to their turn again to cast the spell again,the board state has changed enough that the impact of their play is lessened and/or gives me time to draw into more counter magic. I'm always happy to draw into it, much more so than Venser, Shaper Savant a lot of time - Whom I would maybe consider cutting to put Thada Adel back in. Not much blue in my meta either is another reason I cut her after playing with her for a while.
Managed to get the first couple of games in awhile! Whew. Won 3/3 games, one 4v4 and two 5v5 games rather quickly so much so that one opponent(a stranger from the shop) commented that the consecutive extra turns were neither infinite/nor taking too long to move so they didn't feel as offended by them as usual.
The new Ulamog is a real winner here, I didn't even manage to swing with him, but exiled more than enough threats and ate enough removal cards to satisfy him as a guaranteed player from here forward! Blighted Cataract however I think is still a little slow for my tastes and less relevant seeing how consistent the draw power was to keep the hand filled each game.
I think the only Oath card I'm considering is Crush of Tentacles. Seems pretty solid and a high chance the surge cost will be available. I might try Void Shatter as an additional Dissipate.
As far as Oath cards, or any Battle for Zendikar stuffs, I'm just going to be running the new Kozilek, the Great Distortion and Conduit of Ruin. I played three games today and lost all of them but most due to mana floods. So I'm going to be making some changes tonight or the next few days and give the thread a big overhaul. Sorry for lack of activity, my playgroup has been someone hibernating due to cold weather as of late and I've been busy working on some custom MTG sets (Links in my signature!!)
Alright so big update concerning the deck regarding everything that's come out recently. I did a lot of knob twisting with some artifacts and lands to get the flow of mana where I wanted it for the most part.
Other cards are also helping to facilitate draw as despite the Timetwister cards, I would consistently come up top decking... So Jace Beleren makes his first visit to the list! My playgroup is finally becoming activate again after a long hiatus mostly due to all of us being between jobs ect. Should be getting to a overhaul of the guide sometime early February at the latest.
Also with the current testing of dropping Extraplanar Lens Snow-Covered Basics may soon be turning into 21 Unglued Islands!
CREATURES:
- Duplicant
- Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
+ Conduit of Ruin
+ Kozilek, the Great Distortion
Next game, again with Barrin, Sliver Queen, Jarad and Multani ...
Started off really slow, missing 7 land drops in a row. With 4 lands on the table I was able to top and draw for a Surveyor's Scope and restabalize my lands base and begin to catch up to the rest of the table. The game escalated until I was able to drop Omniscience and land several permanents including Kozilek, the Great Distortion managing to snag other cards to cast before passing the turn. At which point Reclamation Sage destroyed my Omniscience leaving me to hard cast spells again as I had just become arch-enemy. Luckily, by being able to bounce Kozliek with Barrin, Master Wizard and recast him, I was able to counter the removal targeted at Kozilek by discarding the cards I kept drawing until I could swing in for 12 damage a turn on the other players. To ensure the win I cast Intuition for Time Warp, Spelltwine and Snapcaster Mage striking the Multani player for 24 damage over 2 turns winning the game.
Hoping to get a deck-tech video posted and revamp the strategy guide and card analysis in the original post to reflect the recent changes soon.
Thank you for constructing and expanding Barrin deck idea! Found it few days ago and can't wait to see more!
(Decided to create and build on your current deck list aswell.)
I especially like, how you wish to keep it versatile and not too OP, with obvious combos. (unless I understood it wrong)
Best to you
Rupananda
Thank you Rupananda. And yes, non-combo and versatile was the aim of the deck. Although games can tend more toward being linear (stalling board and casting eldrazi) there is still enough variety to keep the games new and exciting for me each time. I will update the Budget recommendations tomorrow sometime for those aspiring to expand on my current playstyle decklist.
As for recent updates I haven't had much time to play as my playgroup and myself have had obligations relating to school and work but in light of the new innistrad and conspiracy releases, Thwart had been cut from the main list in favor of Unsubstantiate. Its low cost and versatility resembling Venser, Shaper Savant made for some great plays in a recent 1v1 match against a Skithiryx deck. Hope to have more to update the OP with soon.
Hey Foo!
Might I ask for an update on your Intuition piles? Got the strong feeling I am missing something.
Thx again for this awesome primer!
Edit:
Could you also please elaborate on why you cut Extraplanar Lense and / or Crucible of Worlds? The ramp was insane and crucible turned your land into fodder for Barrin. Why cut em?
Why discard Expedition Map? Eye of Ugin is a key piece. It is valuable to apply pressure while providing a control element at the same time.
Also Isnt Jace, the Mind Sculptor striclty better than Jace Beleren?
Let me state that I can hardly rival your authority on this build but your cuts make me wonder. Why lose out on all this inevitability? Cheers!
Hey sorry for late reply. Been busy with end of semester power-point/term papers etc. I should be getting a card review for Kaladesh and the Aether Revolt cards soon as for the first time in a long time a card is being printed I am thinking of putting in the list. Likely to cut Stoic Rebuttal for Disallow.
I agree that extraplanar lens should probably not have been cut and I think I'll likely find a way to bring it back into the list. As far as Jace Beleren over Jace the Mind Sculptor, I find that baby Jace generally tends to attract less aggression from my playgroup's removal spells and I get more value over time with him. As for expedition map I think I could maybe cut Wayfarer's Bauble for again but generally I think my line of thought was that by upping the draw/tutor capacities of the deck its been stremlined to the point where tutoring for eye of ugin becomes clunky in comparison to say just landing Conduit of Ruin
Again sorry for late reply hope you end up seeing this Shift.
Aethertide Whale - This card doesn't really seem to have a place in Barrin due to the overall lack of need for Energy as well as Barrin's ability to bounce things making the Whale's second ability a bit lacklust.
Baral, Chief of Compliance - Baral seems really cool and could actually be relevant alongside Barrin over some of the other mana acceleration depending on how many counterspells you have, though I would say he's better off as a general himself than alongside Barrin.
Baral's Expertise - This cycle was interesting and I could see this card being relevant, however at sorcery speed and 5 mana I would rather keep Mystic Confluence in the slot for that curve.
Disallow - This card is definitely getting a spot. Cannot stress how many time's I've wanted to be able to counter abilities but didn't want to run narrow Stifle. I think we will be cutting Stoic Rebuttal here but don't want to commit to that statement just yet...
Efficient Construction - Again depending on your build with Barrin, this card could be an all-star. Since my list focuse on control and then landing fatty finishers rather than exploiting resource advantage with Barrin's sac ability, this card won't make the cut here, but worth looking into for a token strategy for sure.
Illusionist's Stratagem - Maybe if this card allowed me to target my opponent's creatures it'd be worth looking at, but as of right now, I'd rather stick to using Barrin for these types of effects that cutting something like a counterspell for this.
Mechanized Production - Again depending on your build this card could be fun, but it seems to easy to get 2-for-1'ed by a Krosan Grip or other artifact removal. It could ramp really quickly with cards like Sol Ring getting duplicated, but I don't see this card gaining a lot of advantage over a long period without getting hated on by the table.
Quicksmith Spy - I like this card but would only play it if it cost 1 less. At 4-CMC I'd rather just be running a Jace variant.
Reverse Engineer - Interesting card, again something I think I'd only run if it were an Instant. Other cards in the deck like Mystic Confluence outlcass it currently.
Salvage Scuttler - Too high CMC for what it does and Barrin likely does better anyway.
Skyshi Plunderer - I like this card, but not for this deck. Not really many targets for it in here to be worth running it.
Trophy Mage - This card might be worth running depending on your artifact list. Since Vedalken Shackles is currently the only target I have for it, its not making the cut right now but might be right for your list if it has more synergy.
Whir of Invention - Blue Chord of Calling! This card probably deserves a slot and I may end up cutting Mystic Remora for it and see how that plays out for a while. Depdning on how Whir performs and whether or not I miss the card advantage Remora brought, will determine whether Whir sticks here.
Aethersphere Harvester - Again vehicles, equipment and energy for the most part aren't really in alignment with the draw-go strategy that Barrin brings in this list.
Cogwork Assembler - Cute card and could be useful for certain Barrin lists but too big a mana investment here and not the best of targets as most artifacts in this deck aren't threats but mana rocks.
Hope of Ghirapur - Cool as a commander, possible relevant here or in another Barrin list more focused on sacing low cost stuff but not quite making the cut today.
Implement of Examination - Would definitely play if it was 2 and 1U to activate the ability but as is its just too expensive compared to Ichor Wellspring and its cousin.
Inspiring Statuary - Since most artifacts in this deck are mana rocks or lands already, this card doesn't really offer us as much as it might seem.
Merchant's Dockhand - This card on the other hand may be worth toying around with as a Trinket Mage target. Though I'm not sure about its fragility as a creature. Though the hefty 4 mana investment and tapping 2 or more permanents seems too clunky of card advantage.
Metallic Mimic - Cool was to make a more aggressive Adaptive Automoton for tribal decks. That however is not our strategy so this little gem won't make the cut today.
Pacification Array This is another interesting little card for Trinket Mage to target. . . Perhaps depending on the contexts better than Brittle Effigy something I may look into making room for here yet. What do you think? Possible cuts for it?
Planar Bridge - Too costly for my tastes but could be good here depending on your build and meta.
Paradox Engine this will mostly untap artifacts which can be good for Mana Vault and Grim Monolith. 5-mana is a heavy investement though and this will arguably eat removal quickly because it can become degenerate. Might playtest over Surveyor's Scope however.
Scrap Trawler - A good card alongside Barrin, just not too sure how well it would run alongside the list of artifacts in this deck as well as the grave shuffle that accompanies the Timetwister effects. Might play around with this card but can't think of what to cut for it yet.
So that's the Aether Revolt review. So far the only definite changes are:
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
What do we think of cards from Origins? My build of this deck is a little more artifact-focused than the list in the primer, and I'm certainly going to be trying out Thopter Spy Network and Hangarback Walker.
Also, Oblivion Sower is definitely going straight into this deck.
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
I suggest trying Thopter Spy Network at least. My list is more artifact focused than the list in the primer (link in my signature) so it works more often for me than it would otherwise, but still. It's a great value engine.
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
Anyway, I finally got a chance to test out Hangarback Walker and Oblivion Sower last night. Both were pretty fantastic. Hangarback came down on turn two and grew to 9/9 before it got sacrificed. Thopter Spy Network was also a fine addition, though less notably so than the other two.
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
BRGrenzo, Dungeon Warden EDH
GAzusa, Always in a Rush EDH
GWUDerevi, Empyrial Warlord EDH
Trade thread on MOTL
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
BRGrenzo, Dungeon Warden EDH
GAzusa, Always in a Rush EDH
GWUDerevi, Empyrial Warlord EDH
Trade thread on MOTL
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
That said, I also didn't like any blue/colorless/land cards that have come out of the past few blocks, origins, khans etc.
Battle for Zendikar had a few cards that appealed to me. I'm not sure about Oblivion Sewer how has that card been treating you? It seems like clunky ramp and not much else. I opted to make a few cuts and put Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger in place of Jin-Gitaxias and Blighted Cataract as some late game draw and synergy with crucible of worlds.
Cut some other cards and put some other ones that I had played with in the past as well such as Spelltwine and cut Tabernacle as it suited my brother's Planeswalker EDH much better than mine.
I like your list cromonolith. Mine is bit more geared toward counter-magic control than artifact synergy like yours is but I think both options are viable. My meta has lots of White in it so Austere Command other strong spot removal and the like geared me away from that strategy mostly.
Will add some card reviews for BFZ and update the change list soon!!
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Blighted Cataract is certainly an auto-include. Can't wait to try it out.
And yeah, Salvaging Station is a key part of this deck for me. I like durdling with artifacts. That said, I have been thinking of adding a bit of countermagic back in.
Looking at your deck again, Remand stands out to me. I wouldn't ordinarily think much of that card in EDH. Do you use it for some specific purpose?
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
Remand I really love playing because for the most part, it counters their big play for the turn since they usually tap out, while allowing me to draw a card at the same time for super cheap. By the time it comes around to their turn again to cast the spell again,the board state has changed enough that the impact of their play is lessened and/or gives me time to draw into more counter magic. I'm always happy to draw into it, much more so than Venser, Shaper Savant a lot of time - Whom I would maybe consider cutting to put Thada Adel back in. Not much blue in my meta either is another reason I cut her after playing with her for a while.
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
The new Ulamog is a real winner here, I didn't even manage to swing with him, but exiled more than enough threats and ate enough removal cards to satisfy him as a guaranteed player from here forward! Blighted Cataract however I think is still a little slow for my tastes and less relevant seeing how consistent the draw power was to keep the hand filled each game.
Most games ended up powering out Tezzeret the Seeker early on with Mana Crypt/Mana Vault/Grim Monolith then untapping them then following up with powerful plays with Barrin and Archaeomancer and extra turns until I'd ramped enough to cast Omniscience and/or one game a Reliquary Tower/Consecrated Sphinx/Timetwister.
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
(I also just want to see some more activity in this thread, because this deck is incredibly sweet and more people should see it.)
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Some changes to finishers, swapping Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur out for Kozilek, the Great Distortion and other creatures like Duplicant and Clever Impersonator to help facilitate that change with cards like the new Conduit of Ruin.
Also with instants and sorceries ... Thwart and Surveyor's Scope are cards I'm going to be testing as Intuition can make an interesting pile with Thwart , Force of Will and Pact of Negation.
Other cards are also helping to facilitate draw as despite the Timetwister cards, I would consistently come up top decking... So Jace Beleren makes his first visit to the list! My playgroup is finally becoming activate again after a long hiatus mostly due to all of us being between jobs ect. Should be getting to a overhaul of the guide sometime early February at the latest.
Also with the current testing of dropping Extraplanar Lens Snow-Covered Basics may soon be turning into 21 Unglued Islands!
- Duplicant
- Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
+ Conduit of Ruin
+ Kozilek, the Great Distortion
PLANESWALKER:
+ Jace Beleren
INSTANT:
- Dream Fracture
+ Pongify
+ Thwart
+ Mystic COnfluence
SORCERY:
- Curse of the Swine
+ Spelltwine
ENCHANTMENT:
+ Mystic Remora
ARTIFACT:
- Tormod's Crypt
- Expedition Map
- Terrarion
- Extraplanar Lens
- Crucible of Worlds
- Oblivion Stone
- Ugin's Nexsus
+ Wayfarer's Bauble
+ Prophetic Prism
+ Surveyor's Scope
LAND:
- Maze of Ith
- Myriad Landscape
- The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
- x2 Islands
+ Crystal Vein
+ Blighted Cataract
+ Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Next game, again with Barrin, Sliver Queen, Jarad and Multani ...
Started off really slow, missing 7 land drops in a row. With 4 lands on the table I was able to top and draw for a Surveyor's Scope and restabalize my lands base and begin to catch up to the rest of the table. The game escalated until I was able to drop Omniscience and land several permanents including Kozilek, the Great Distortion managing to snag other cards to cast before passing the turn. At which point Reclamation Sage destroyed my Omniscience leaving me to hard cast spells again as I had just become arch-enemy. Luckily, by being able to bounce Kozliek with Barrin, Master Wizard and recast him, I was able to counter the removal targeted at Kozilek by discarding the cards I kept drawing until I could swing in for 12 damage a turn on the other players. To ensure the win I cast Intuition for Time Warp, Spelltwine and Snapcaster Mage striking the Multani player for 24 damage over 2 turns winning the game.
Hoping to get a deck-tech video posted and revamp the strategy guide and card analysis in the original post to reflect the recent changes soon.
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Thank you Rupananda. And yes, non-combo and versatile was the aim of the deck. Although games can tend more toward being linear (stalling board and casting eldrazi) there is still enough variety to keep the games new and exciting for me each time. I will update the Budget recommendations tomorrow sometime for those aspiring to expand on my current playstyle decklist.
Best to you Rupananda,
foo_intherain
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Hey sorry for late reply. Been busy with end of semester power-point/term papers etc. I should be getting a card review for Kaladesh and the Aether Revolt cards soon as for the first time in a long time a card is being printed I am thinking of putting in the list. Likely to cut Stoic Rebuttal for Disallow.
I agree that extraplanar lens should probably not have been cut and I think I'll likely find a way to bring it back into the list. As far as Jace Beleren over Jace the Mind Sculptor, I find that baby Jace generally tends to attract less aggression from my playgroup's removal spells and I get more value over time with him. As for expedition map I think I could maybe cut Wayfarer's Bauble for again but generally I think my line of thought was that by upping the draw/tutor capacities of the deck its been stremlined to the point where tutoring for eye of ugin becomes clunky in comparison to say just landing Conduit of Ruin
Again sorry for late reply hope you end up seeing this Shift.
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Baral, Chief of Compliance - Baral seems really cool and could actually be relevant alongside Barrin over some of the other mana acceleration depending on how many counterspells you have, though I would say he's better off as a general himself than alongside Barrin.
Baral's Expertise - This cycle was interesting and I could see this card being relevant, however at sorcery speed and 5 mana I would rather keep Mystic Confluence in the slot for that curve.
Disallow - This card is definitely getting a spot. Cannot stress how many time's I've wanted to be able to counter abilities but didn't want to run narrow Stifle. I think we will be cutting Stoic Rebuttal here but don't want to commit to that statement just yet...
Efficient Construction - Again depending on your build with Barrin, this card could be an all-star. Since my list focuse on control and then landing fatty finishers rather than exploiting resource advantage with Barrin's sac ability, this card won't make the cut here, but worth looking into for a token strategy for sure.
Illusionist's Stratagem - Maybe if this card allowed me to target my opponent's creatures it'd be worth looking at, but as of right now, I'd rather stick to using Barrin for these types of effects that cutting something like a counterspell for this.
Mechanized Production - Again depending on your build this card could be fun, but it seems to easy to get 2-for-1'ed by a Krosan Grip or other artifact removal. It could ramp really quickly with cards like Sol Ring getting duplicated, but I don't see this card gaining a lot of advantage over a long period without getting hated on by the table.
Quicksmith Spy - I like this card but would only play it if it cost 1 less. At 4-CMC I'd rather just be running a Jace variant.
Reverse Engineer - Interesting card, again something I think I'd only run if it were an Instant. Other cards in the deck like Mystic Confluence outlcass it currently.
Salvage Scuttler - Too high CMC for what it does and Barrin likely does better anyway.
Shielded Aether Thief - Again, not much synergy with the rest of the deck.
Skyshi Plunderer - I like this card, but not for this deck. Not really many targets for it in here to be worth running it.
Trophy Mage - This card might be worth running depending on your artifact list. Since Vedalken Shackles is currently the only target I have for it, its not making the cut right now but might be right for your list if it has more synergy.
Whir of Invention - Blue Chord of Calling! This card probably deserves a slot and I may end up cutting Mystic Remora for it and see how that plays out for a while. Depdning on how Whir performs and whether or not I miss the card advantage Remora brought, will determine whether Whir sticks here.
Aethersphere Harvester - Again vehicles, equipment and energy for the most part aren't really in alignment with the draw-go strategy that Barrin brings in this list.
Cogwork Assembler - Cute card and could be useful for certain Barrin lists but too big a mana investment here and not the best of targets as most artifacts in this deck aren't threats but mana rocks.
Gonti's Aether Heart - Again maybe if the deck ran more energy, but as is, this is a bad Ugin's Nexus for us.
Hope of Ghirapur - Cool as a commander, possible relevant here or in another Barrin list more focused on sacing low cost stuff but not quite making the cut today.
Implement of Examination - Would definitely play if it was 2 and 1U to activate the ability but as is its just too expensive compared to Ichor Wellspring and its cousin.
Inspiring Statuary - Since most artifacts in this deck are mana rocks or lands already, this card doesn't really offer us as much as it might seem.
Merchant's Dockhand - This card on the other hand may be worth toying around with as a Trinket Mage target. Though I'm not sure about its fragility as a creature. Though the hefty 4 mana investment and tapping 2 or more permanents seems too clunky of card advantage.
Metallic Mimic - Cool was to make a more aggressive Adaptive Automoton for tribal decks. That however is not our strategy so this little gem won't make the cut today.
Pacification Array This is another interesting little card for Trinket Mage to target. . . Perhaps depending on the contexts better than Brittle Effigy something I may look into making room for here yet. What do you think? Possible cuts for it?
Planar Bridge - Too costly for my tastes but could be good here depending on your build and meta.
Paradox Engine this will mostly untap artifacts which can be good for Mana Vault and Grim Monolith. 5-mana is a heavy investement though and this will arguably eat removal quickly because it can become degenerate. Might playtest over Surveyor's Scope however.
Scrap Trawler - A good card alongside Barrin, just not too sure how well it would run alongside the list of artifacts in this deck as well as the grave shuffle that accompanies the Timetwister effects. Might play around with this card but can't think of what to cut for it yet.
So that's the Aether Revolt review. So far the only definite changes are:
+ Disallow
Though other cards are being considered. Playtesting:
+ Whir of Invention
Avalon: The Legend Begins :: Pirate Set :: Babel: The Æther Wars
Favorite Magic Card: Fowl Play
[Primer] [Barrin's Tome]: A Master Wizard's Spellbook.
Legacy: UBRG Czech Pile, WWW Death & Taxes, many other things
Modern: UBR Grixis, RWG Burn, UR UR Storm, BBB 8 Rack, whatever other control deck I can force
Multiplayer EDH: RR Norin the Wary, UU Barrin, Master Wizard, UB Wrexial, the Risen Deep, GR Borborygmos, Enraged