Another section that you could add is a cards considered list. It would be a list of cards that you've previously played or are cards that are just generally good in Orzhov colors. I think that it will help make the Primer more complete, although that's really the only thing I can imagine doing to upgrade your Primer at this point. Again, my sincere compliments on its development. While I might have provided the framework for the coding, it still looks really good all by itself.
That's a tough loss you suffered. I am building my own semi-competitive Nicol Bolas deck, and it will be much more tuned than your friend's list. I have no idea why he decided to set Mayael down to that low life level. It almost sounds like there was some collusion going on... Oh well.
Helm of Possession is a great card. It might be a little mana intensive, but being able to steal creatures is far and away the most powerful effect you can have on the table. I say that you should definitely run it. In regards to your ramp package, your CMC curve is so low that it honestly seems that the ramp is unnecessary. You could cut Orzhov Signet if you needed a stronger card in its place.
I bring your attention to a card that I think is one of the best ever printed. I did a very quick glance through your list, and I didn't see Tymna the Weaver. It turns all of your hatebears into legitimate sources of card advantage and is hella cheap. Another card to consider, while fairly expensive CMC wise, is Sadistic Hypnotist. When people don't have hands to interact with you, your hate-bears become very powerful lock pieces that they can't easily get out of. It's an additional sac outlet and creates pseudo card advantage for you. I'm building a casual mono-Black deck, to play with my brother and his playgroup, and the Hypnotist is a house.
I added an X to all cards that were in the list at one point but have lost their spot (due to testing, etc.). These are also cards that could see inclusion in other lists as well.
I have been thinking about cutting the Orzhov Signet for awhile. If this was just a good stuff list that wasn't focused around low cmc creatures I could see it staying. I will look into it further.
I like Tymna. I like that she is a critter that can also get in there and swing. I'll look into picking one up to test. My only beef with Sadistic Hypnotist is that it is a high CMC. Not a bad idea, but I understand where your thought process is bear and I plan on exploring it more as this primer develops.
Had the opportunity to go to GP Portland and I got a 1v1 game in with Athreos. It was a short game but I will write up the report sometime this week.
Looking forward to the game report. I think that you'll find the Hypnotist to be extremely powerful in your list, a way to generate card advantage with spent ETB creatures or useless hate-bears.
I played 2 games with this general. I have bad experience.
Game 1, my life total got too low, i became an unwilling hostage to say yes to all Athreos 'trigger.
Game 2 i was the best player in terms of board/life total yet the Athreos's player keep asking me. got so paranoid I conceded in the end. It's like the Joker finally inject Batman with the joker venom... and became the batman who laughs....
I think it's a good general, but the pilot needsa great amount of tact, and smooth talking makes this general bearable. else it can turn into a pretty toxic general.
I played 2 games with this general. I have bad experience.
Game 1, my life total got too low, i became an unwilling hostage to say yes to all Athreos 'trigger.
Game 2 i was the best player in terms of board/life total yet the Athreos's player keep asking me. got so paranoid I conceded in the end. It's like the Joker finally inject Batman with the joker venom... and became the batman who laughs....
I think it's a good general, but the pilot needsa great amount of tact, and smooth talking makes this general bearable. else it can turn into a pretty toxic general.
U considered Magus of the Abyss?
I can definitely assure you that anytime you are playing against an Athreos player with low life you will most likely be the target every time. This allows us (the Athreos player) to consistently recycle any used synergies and goodstuff creatures. I suggest giving the Athreos the "weak" creatures like Kami of False Hope, Knight of the White Orchid (if they run them), etc. Although those guys may be annoying, its much better to give them those than a Fleshbag Marauder or Grand Abolisher. This general definitely dabbles in politics.
I haven't given Magus of the Abyss any thought until now. I like how destroying our own creatures can get Athreos triggers, but one of the strong points of this deck is to not rely on Athreos (granted we use him a bit). I also am not a fan that our opponents get to choose. I do like the easy cost of 3B though. Perhaps one of these days I will give him a chance with the other options people have recommended. Thanks for the tip. Welcome to the thread.
P.S.
I haven't forgotten about the game report. Will be coming shortly.
11/18/2017: Won
Turn Order: Tana/Tymna, Athreos
Had the chance to play a 1v1 game at GP Portland. My opponent was nice, he drove from Idaho, and only came to the GP to jam commander (Kind of like me…except I play Modern as well). I started with a hand of Viscera Seer, Blood Artist, Demonic Tutor, Orzhov Signet, Karmic Guide, Vindicate, Snow-Covered Swamp. I thought long and hard about this hand. I was so close to looping for an infinite combo. I took the risk and kept it (being on the draw confirmed it for me). Opponent plays Mountain pass. I draw for turn…no land. Play swamp, Seer go. Our opponent untaps and misses is his land drop. From that information I feel as if we are playing a hatebear 1v1 match. This should be interesting. I untap and draw a Snow-Covered Plains. I play the land, cast a signet and pass. Opponent, untaps casts his newly drawn Sol Ring into a Rakdos Signet (no land for turn). I draw a Windswept heath crack it for a Scrubland and throw down the Blood Artist. He plays a Swamp and taps out(ish) for a Phyrexian Arena. I play Urborg Tomb of Yawgmoth for turn casting Athreos, God of Passage and tutoring for a Revillark. Over the course of the next two turns I plan on combing. It is risky but I am afraid I may be buried underneath is soon to be card advantage. He untaps, draws 2, casts Tymna the Weaver and passes. I draw a plains for turn (I am extremely fortunate to be hitting these land drops), cast Revillark with one white open. If everything goes smoothly this turn I will be able to win on our next. Opponent untaps, draws 2, attacks with Tymna, pays 1 to draw 1. Our opponent is sitting on a gold mine of card advantage. Our opponent taps out, and casts Harvester of Souls. Well this is going to be interesting. I untap play out my Karmic Guide and start to loop the combo with Revillark, Viscera Seer, and Blood Artist. Our opponent draws 39 cards, loses 39 life, and is all tapped out (from previous turn). He offers the handshake and that’s game.
Overall we kept a risky hand that found its way because of lands. If I were to redo this match I would almost search up the same Phyrexian Arena to match his card advantage with my own. But a fast and relatively early combo was able to get there.
I played 2 games with this general. I have bad experience.
Game 1, my life total got too low, i became an unwilling hostage to say yes to all Athreos 'trigger.
Game 2 i was the best player in terms of board/life total yet the Athreos's player keep asking me. got so paranoid I conceded in the end. It's like the Joker finally inject Batman with the joker venom... and became the batman who laughs....
I think it's a good general, but the pilot needsa great amount of tact, and smooth talking makes this general bearable. else it can turn into a pretty toxic general.
U considered Magus of the Abyss?
It's almost like he mind-tripped you on the second game. You make a great analogy with the Joker reference, haha.
For Magus of the Abyss, I also don't like how the opponent gets to choose. IT's most often a spent utility dork, a token, or some other non-impactful creature. I think Slum Reaper would be better in that spot since it does practically the same thing and has better synergy with Athreos.
Good job on assembling the combo against Tana/Tymna! I think mana-screw was definitely a factor for that, but Tana/Tymna has the best suite of Hate-Bears and Stax that can be offered plus a card advantage engine in the command zone. I hope it persuades you to consider Tymna the Weaver more seriously. She's a card advantage monster in my experience that fully complements your strategy of Aggro-Control.
Tymna the Weaver is on the wants list. I think she will be a great addition.
I'm also looking into discard creatures as well, based off what you recommended bear. One card that seems to be catching my eye is Liliana, Heretical Healer. Its easy to flip (in this list) and I like that it starts out as a creature. I like that the +2 hits each player, instead of having to target a player like other discard spells do.
Tymna the Weaver is on the wants list. I think she will be a great addition.
I'm also looking into discard creatures as well, based off what you recommended bear. One card that seems to be catching my eye is Liliana, Heretical Healer. Its easy to flip (in this list) and I like that it starts out as a creature. I like that the +2 hits each player, instead of having to target a player like other discard spells do.
This is a great find. She costs low, flips easily, attacks your opponents' card advantage, AND helps to recur the utility creatures. Her ultimate would be totally back breaking too, should it ever occur, and she isn't a bad blocker either. I like her a lot, actually.
I think Tymna will serve you very well. She's a card advantage machine and I highly respect her, as an opponent. In a lot of ways, she reminds me of Edric and the incredible card advantage he generates.
Hello, everyone. I am here doing my first set review. I am currently taking a look at each relevant card for this Athreos list. Some cards will not be included in this review due to their specific synergies/abilieis (think vampire important cards).
Rivals of Ixalan Set Review
Rivals of Ixalan Set Review
White
Bishop of Binding – If we wanted an effect like this we would be playing Fiend Hunter. The bishop is one mana more expensive for the plus side of being able to pump a vampire. Famished Paladin – There is some lifegain in this list. But not enough to make use of him. A 3/3 for 1W is a little underwhelming for EDH. Martyr of Dusk – Seems to be the most abuse-able white creature in the set for us. I would only play this card if I was crafting a list that was going wide or a more aristocrat-style list. Radiant Destiny – Unfrotunately our creature types are a little all over the place. If we were dedicated to one tribe, say clerics, I could see this being included. Slaughter the Strong – I like that this effect makes players sacrifice instead of destroy. We do have a lot of creatures with power under 4. In a meta where you are dealing with heavy stompy lists I can see this making the cut. Perhaps it will be tested in the future. One thing I do not like about it is that it may let our opponents keep their utility creatures. Sphinx’s Decree – Cool little card to slow down our opponents. But because we aren’t running an all-in combo list I am afraid this doesn’t find a home here. Trapjaw Tyrant – Great beefy body for the low cost of 3WW. It would be nice if we could find a way to do damage to ourselves but this list isn’t poised to abuse the dino. In this list he would be a 5/5 that swings in and occasionally gets blocked to exile a creature. Zetalpa, Primal Dawn – Oh my, key word soup. If you are around the kitchen table this is the perfect little timmy card. Unfortunately at the high cost of 6WW this dino won’t be making the cut.
Black
Dead Man’s Chest – Cool little utility card but this does not seem to fit the bill when looking at our list in a nut shell. We are more in the market of creatures with abilities. Dire Fleet Poisoner – I definitely love me some Ambush Viper. The pirate ability is useless to us. As much as I think this is a cool Dusk Charger – The City’s Blessing looks interesting as a mechanic. But I don’t think a 3B potential 5/5 vanilla is suitable for Athreos. Dusk Legion Zealot - I like the Elvish Visionary feels I am getting from this. As of right now I can see this being something we look at if we want to go wide. I feel like this card is much better in an Edgar Markov list. Golden Demise - I definitely like 1 sided board wipes. But I would rather have my wipes be unconditional at removing non-indestructible dudes. The current wraths I have in now do it better. Mastermind’s Acquisition – Great option for people running a budget list, but I would rather have a 2 cmc tutor. Its ability to reach outside of the game is something that you would have to talk to you play group about. Oathsworn Vampire - We do have a very small lifegain sub-theme. I could see this making the cut based on being sac fodder alone. Currently, I do not have plans for this. Pitiless Plunderer - Creatures will be dying in our list, but I do not think the ramp will be very useful to us. Our cmc averages around 2.61, this means additional ramp isn’t necessary. Ravenous Chupacabra - I love the unconditional spot removal. I wish it was 1 mana cheaper. He is a close call, but I definitely like having an edict effect on a creature that hits everyone’s board over this for now. Could be worth testing in a creature-dominated meta. Recover – I like that this cantrips but our commander essentially does what this spell is trying to do. Tetzimoc, Primal Death – I Love the design of this card. But he is a little too expensive for a lower CMC curve. Good beater…that deathtouch is pretty funny on a creature this big. Tomb Robber - Great little card advantage engine. Perfect CMC curve for us and menace to top it off. If we are looking for more card advantage this guy could find a home. Twilight Prophet – Double costed Dark Confidant looks great. I feel like the city’s blessing is easy to achieve in EDH…but I will first be testing how often I can achieve this. Could be a great curve topper in our taxing list. Vona’s Hunger – Cool effect, but I would much rather have this effect stapled onto a value creature.
Multicolored
Elenda, the Dusk Rose – Our list is designed to take advantage of creatures dying. If we are trying to go wide she can definitely be considered for our list.
Artifact
Azor’s Gateway – Unfortunately I do not think we have the range of CMCs to abuse this. Plus, the extra mana isn’t going to be completely useful to us. Golem Guardian – Neat idea, but I am afraid this is just a beater. We have enough of those kind of effects (or at least the amount we want at this moment). The Immortal Sun – I believe this will be a staple in more casual EDH lists. The curve is too high for us. We are a hatebear list and may not have room or want this.
Land
Arch of Orazca – We have a lot of card draw currently, but this could see an inclusion depending on how many of this effect you want. I believe 5 and tap is too high of a cost….especially in our format
---
I am currently not too pumped for this set. But there could be some gems worth testing. Happy testing, everyone!
Have you considered Rings of Brighthearth to synergize with your high ability count?
You know, that is not a half bad idea. I actually run it in my other EDH lists (where my current 2 copies have homes). Rings of Brighthearth has been a powerhouse in those lists, especially when paired with fetch lands. As of right now I have 26 effects for Rings to target. The question is what do I take out? I am still looking for cuts to add Fiend Hunter and Tymna, the Weaver.
I'm starting to think you are right about Leonin Arbiter. His biggest strength to me was not that he shut down searching, but that he made our opponents tutors more expensive. Stopping them from combo'ing on that same turn. Come to think of it, he seems to be pulling mix results. I remember him being quite terrible one game and good the other. I'm taking a hard look at him and he might be on the chopping block very soon.
Phyrexian Arena is something I have had a lot of success with. In the face of cEDH storm lists, etc., this looks lackluster. But I would argue that because I mostly play multiplayer formats the card advantage this guys generates is insane. Other playgroups may see Arena as a real threat, hence why it could be called a lightning rod, but in the face of cutthroat lists it doesn't even bother them. When we have a lot of hateful critters in the list drawing as much as possible has been a great strategy (even if its only on my upkeep).
Having said all that, I am going to start monitoring cards that I thought were "shoe-ins" and keep a tallied list of what they did, when I saw them, did I play it right away, etc. Thanks for all the insight everyone.
Hey, Bear! I do have some updates but I have also been a little out of commission as well. Currently the deck is under some construction but the core is mostly unchanged. I'll give the primer an update to reflect the changes.
Hey man, I've recently been checking out other threads and I've noticed that people have moved away from Triskelion in favor of Walking Ballista. The Ballista has a lower CMC and identical functionality to the Trike, but does require a sac outlet with Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. I figure that this wouldn't be too prohibitive of a requirement in your deck that lowers the CMC of your deck and adds a little flexibility to your decklist (the Ballista costs less and you can funnel excess mana into it to create a large beater).
That's not a bad idea, bear. Unfortunately, I actually ended up cutting this combo. Making it cheaper does make me want to take a good look at it again, though. The deck has been fully embracing the hatebear theme and it has been performing well. The only relevant infinite combo currently in the list is the Karmic Guide/Reveillark combo.
That's a tough loss you suffered. I am building my own semi-competitive Nicol Bolas deck, and it will be much more tuned than your friend's list. I have no idea why he decided to set Mayael down to that low life level. It almost sounds like there was some collusion going on... Oh well.
Helm of Possession is a great card. It might be a little mana intensive, but being able to steal creatures is far and away the most powerful effect you can have on the table. I say that you should definitely run it. In regards to your ramp package, your CMC curve is so low that it honestly seems that the ramp is unnecessary. You could cut Orzhov Signet if you needed a stronger card in its place.
I bring your attention to a card that I think is one of the best ever printed. I did a very quick glance through your list, and I didn't see Tymna the Weaver. It turns all of your hatebears into legitimate sources of card advantage and is hella cheap. Another card to consider, while fairly expensive CMC wise, is Sadistic Hypnotist. When people don't have hands to interact with you, your hate-bears become very powerful lock pieces that they can't easily get out of. It's an additional sac outlet and creates pseudo card advantage for you. I'm building a casual mono-Black deck, to play with my brother and his playgroup, and the Hypnotist is a house.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
I added an X to all cards that were in the list at one point but have lost their spot (due to testing, etc.). These are also cards that could see inclusion in other lists as well.
I have been thinking about cutting the Orzhov Signet for awhile. If this was just a good stuff list that wasn't focused around low cmc creatures I could see it staying. I will look into it further.
I like Tymna. I like that she is a critter that can also get in there and swing. I'll look into picking one up to test. My only beef with Sadistic Hypnotist is that it is a high CMC. Not a bad idea, but I understand where your thought process is bear and I plan on exploring it more as this primer develops.
Had the opportunity to go to GP Portland and I got a 1v1 game in with Athreos. It was a short game but I will write up the report sometime this week.
Two other cards to consider: Phyrexian Delver as another ETB Reanimate effect to complement Karmic Guide and Return to Dust as a modular removal spell.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Game 1, my life total got too low, i became an unwilling hostage to say yes to all Athreos 'trigger.
Game 2 i was the best player in terms of board/life total yet the Athreos's player keep asking me. got so paranoid I conceded in the end. It's like the Joker finally inject Batman with the joker venom... and became the batman who laughs....
I think it's a good general, but the pilot needsa great amount of tact, and smooth talking makes this general bearable. else it can turn into a pretty toxic general.
U considered Magus of the Abyss?
I can definitely assure you that anytime you are playing against an Athreos player with low life you will most likely be the target every time. This allows us (the Athreos player) to consistently recycle any used synergies and goodstuff creatures. I suggest giving the Athreos the "weak" creatures like Kami of False Hope, Knight of the White Orchid (if they run them), etc. Although those guys may be annoying, its much better to give them those than a Fleshbag Marauder or Grand Abolisher. This general definitely dabbles in politics.
I haven't given Magus of the Abyss any thought until now. I like how destroying our own creatures can get Athreos triggers, but one of the strong points of this deck is to not rely on Athreos (granted we use him a bit). I also am not a fan that our opponents get to choose. I do like the easy cost of 3B though. Perhaps one of these days I will give him a chance with the other options people have recommended. Thanks for the tip. Welcome to the thread.
P.S.
I haven't forgotten about the game report. Will be coming shortly.
11/18/2017: Won
Turn Order: Tana/Tymna, Athreos
Had the chance to play a 1v1 game at GP Portland. My opponent was nice, he drove from Idaho, and only came to the GP to jam commander (Kind of like me…except I play Modern as well). I started with a hand of Viscera Seer, Blood Artist, Demonic Tutor, Orzhov Signet, Karmic Guide, Vindicate, Snow-Covered Swamp. I thought long and hard about this hand. I was so close to looping for an infinite combo. I took the risk and kept it (being on the draw confirmed it for me). Opponent plays Mountain pass. I draw for turn…no land. Play swamp, Seer go. Our opponent untaps and misses is his land drop. From that information I feel as if we are playing a hatebear 1v1 match. This should be interesting. I untap and draw a Snow-Covered Plains. I play the land, cast a signet and pass. Opponent, untaps casts his newly drawn Sol Ring into a Rakdos Signet (no land for turn). I draw a Windswept heath crack it for a Scrubland and throw down the Blood Artist. He plays a Swamp and taps out(ish) for a Phyrexian Arena. I play Urborg Tomb of Yawgmoth for turn casting Athreos, God of Passage and tutoring for a Revillark. Over the course of the next two turns I plan on combing. It is risky but I am afraid I may be buried underneath is soon to be card advantage. He untaps, draws 2, casts Tymna the Weaver and passes. I draw a plains for turn (I am extremely fortunate to be hitting these land drops), cast Revillark with one white open. If everything goes smoothly this turn I will be able to win on our next. Opponent untaps, draws 2, attacks with Tymna, pays 1 to draw 1. Our opponent is sitting on a gold mine of card advantage. Our opponent taps out, and casts Harvester of Souls. Well this is going to be interesting. I untap play out my Karmic Guide and start to loop the combo with Revillark, Viscera Seer, and Blood Artist. Our opponent draws 39 cards, loses 39 life, and is all tapped out (from previous turn). He offers the handshake and that’s game.
Overall we kept a risky hand that found its way because of lands. If I were to redo this match I would almost search up the same Phyrexian Arena to match his card advantage with my own. But a fast and relatively early combo was able to get there.
It's almost like he mind-tripped you on the second game. You make a great analogy with the Joker reference, haha.
For Magus of the Abyss, I also don't like how the opponent gets to choose. IT's most often a spent utility dork, a token, or some other non-impactful creature. I think Slum Reaper would be better in that spot since it does practically the same thing and has better synergy with Athreos.
Good job on assembling the combo against Tana/Tymna! I think mana-screw was definitely a factor for that, but Tana/Tymna has the best suite of Hate-Bears and Stax that can be offered plus a card advantage engine in the command zone. I hope it persuades you to consider Tymna the Weaver more seriously. She's a card advantage monster in my experience that fully complements your strategy of Aggro-Control.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
I'm also looking into discard creatures as well, based off what you recommended bear. One card that seems to be catching my eye is Liliana, Heretical Healer. Its easy to flip (in this list) and I like that it starts out as a creature. I like that the +2 hits each player, instead of having to target a player like other discard spells do.
This is a great find. She costs low, flips easily, attacks your opponents' card advantage, AND helps to recur the utility creatures. Her ultimate would be totally back breaking too, should it ever occur, and she isn't a bad blocker either. I like her a lot, actually.
I think Tymna will serve you very well. She's a card advantage machine and I highly respect her, as an opponent. In a lot of ways, she reminds me of Edric and the incredible card advantage he generates.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Rivals of Ixalan Set Review
Famished Paladin – There is some lifegain in this list. But not enough to make use of him. A 3/3 for 1W is a little underwhelming for EDH.
Martyr of Dusk – Seems to be the most abuse-able white creature in the set for us. I would only play this card if I was crafting a list that was going wide or a more aristocrat-style list.
Radiant Destiny – Unfrotunately our creature types are a little all over the place. If we were dedicated to one tribe, say clerics, I could see this being included.
Slaughter the Strong – I like that this effect makes players sacrifice instead of destroy. We do have a lot of creatures with power under 4. In a meta where you are dealing with heavy stompy lists I can see this making the cut. Perhaps it will be tested in the future. One thing I do not like about it is that it may let our opponents keep their utility creatures.
Sphinx’s Decree – Cool little card to slow down our opponents. But because we aren’t running an all-in combo list I am afraid this doesn’t find a home here.
Trapjaw Tyrant – Great beefy body for the low cost of 3WW. It would be nice if we could find a way to do damage to ourselves but this list isn’t poised to abuse the dino. In this list he would be a 5/5 that swings in and occasionally gets blocked to exile a creature.
Zetalpa, Primal Dawn – Oh my, key word soup. If you are around the kitchen table this is the perfect little timmy card. Unfortunately at the high cost of 6WW this dino won’t be making the cut.
Dire Fleet Poisoner – I definitely love me some Ambush Viper. The pirate ability is useless to us. As much as I think this is a cool
Dusk Charger – The City’s Blessing looks interesting as a mechanic. But I don’t think a 3B potential 5/5 vanilla is suitable for Athreos.
Dusk Legion Zealot - I like the Elvish Visionary feels I am getting from this. As of right now I can see this being something we look at if we want to go wide. I feel like this card is much better in an Edgar Markov list.
Golden Demise - I definitely like 1 sided board wipes. But I would rather have my wipes be unconditional at removing non-indestructible dudes. The current wraths I have in now do it better.
Mastermind’s Acquisition – Great option for people running a budget list, but I would rather have a 2 cmc tutor. Its ability to reach outside of the game is something that you would have to talk to you play group about.
Oathsworn Vampire - We do have a very small lifegain sub-theme. I could see this making the cut based on being sac fodder alone. Currently, I do not have plans for this.
Pitiless Plunderer - Creatures will be dying in our list, but I do not think the ramp will be very useful to us. Our cmc averages around 2.61, this means additional ramp isn’t necessary.
Ravenous Chupacabra - I love the unconditional spot removal. I wish it was 1 mana cheaper. He is a close call, but I definitely like having an edict effect on a creature that hits everyone’s board over this for now. Could be worth testing in a creature-dominated meta.
Recover – I like that this cantrips but our commander essentially does what this spell is trying to do.
Tetzimoc, Primal Death – I Love the design of this card. But he is a little too expensive for a lower CMC curve. Good beater…that deathtouch is pretty funny on a creature this big.
Tomb Robber - Great little card advantage engine. Perfect CMC curve for us and menace to top it off. If we are looking for more card advantage this guy could find a home.
Twilight Prophet – Double costed Dark Confidant looks great. I feel like the city’s blessing is easy to achieve in EDH…but I will first be testing how often I can achieve this. Could be a great curve topper in our taxing list.
Vona’s Hunger – Cool effect, but I would much rather have this effect stapled onto a value creature.
Golem Guardian – Neat idea, but I am afraid this is just a beater. We have enough of those kind of effects (or at least the amount we want at this moment).
The Immortal Sun – I believe this will be a staple in more casual EDH lists. The curve is too high for us. We are a hatebear list and may not have room or want this.
---
I am currently not too pumped for this set. But there could be some gems worth testing. Happy testing, everyone!
You know, that is not a half bad idea. I actually run it in my other EDH lists (where my current 2 copies have homes). Rings of Brighthearth has been a powerhouse in those lists, especially when paired with fetch lands. As of right now I have 26 effects for Rings to target. The question is what do I take out? I am still looking for cuts to add Fiend Hunter and Tymna, the Weaver.
Any recommendations? I'm on the fence about it.
I'm starting to think you are right about Leonin Arbiter. His biggest strength to me was not that he shut down searching, but that he made our opponents tutors more expensive. Stopping them from combo'ing on that same turn. Come to think of it, he seems to be pulling mix results. I remember him being quite terrible one game and good the other. I'm taking a hard look at him and he might be on the chopping block very soon.
Phyrexian Arena is something I have had a lot of success with. In the face of cEDH storm lists, etc., this looks lackluster. But I would argue that because I mostly play multiplayer formats the card advantage this guys generates is insane. Other playgroups may see Arena as a real threat, hence why it could be called a lightning rod, but in the face of cutthroat lists it doesn't even bother them. When we have a lot of hateful critters in the list drawing as much as possible has been a great strategy (even if its only on my upkeep).
Having said all that, I am going to start monitoring cards that I thought were "shoe-ins" and keep a tallied list of what they did, when I saw them, did I play it right away, etc. Thanks for all the insight everyone.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Update is coming. Thanks for being patient.