I've been holding off on building an Alesha deck for Tiny Leaders, because when word of the format hit my LGS almost everyone made an Alesha deck. Not wanting to follow the pack, I made some decks using other commanders. I never forgot about Alesha though, and have been spending the intervening time trying to find the best mix of Humans and Warriors that I could, to maximize the synergy built in to the deck. I think I've come up with a decent list, but am very interested in feedback from this community. The deck is purely theoretical at this point, so I have no practical evidence to support any of my choices and am thus very open to suggestions. I realize I have left some very good cards out of this list, but the first hurdle any creature has to clear is that it *MUST* be either a Human or a Warrior, and being both is definitely worth bonus points. The one exception to this rule is Athreos, who I feel will offer immense value to the deck. With all that being said, here is my list:
If you have any suggestions, please feel free to make them. Please keep in mind that any creatures suggested *MUST* be either a Human or a Warrior. If you could offer at least a few words to explain your suggestions, it would be much appreciated. Thank you!
With Warriors being a sub-theme, then Obsidian Battle-Axe becomes very good, specially when you can equip guys you just got back with Alesha.
In an Alesha deck, Mardu Skullhunter becomes a recurring and disposable source of discard. Arashin Foremost becomes a combat trick and bashes for a lot. Ashenmoor Gouger's drawback becomes irrelevant because either you are turning him sideways or leaving him dead. Also,it trades with almost anything in this format.
Archetype of Aggression can help most thing push damage through, and is also a good warrior. Battle Brawler is a vanilla creature but is big and hard to remove.
I'd leave Jaya Ballard, Task Mage on the Sideboard to make room. Maybe go all in on theme an then make cuts, so I'd try to remove the 'human matters' cards to favore the 'warrior matters'.
oonasrouge: I haven't actually worked out a sideboard for the deck yet, but Manic Vandal absolutely deserves a slot there, if not in the main deck.
balangaz: You make many good points. Obsidian Battle-Axe is a straight-up oversight on my part. I knew the card was out there, it just hadn't occurred to me.
I'll blame my experience of Mardu Skullhunter being no quite good enough for the BW Warriors standard deck for my overlooking him for this deck. He does deserve a place. Arashin Foremost is newer than my most recent work with the deck, but is certainly worthy of a spot. Ashenmoor Gouger is certainly a huge threat in this format, but I think for now I want to stay focused on my two tribal synergies.
The Blood-Chins fall into the same category as the Foremost, printed more recently than the last time I went looking for cards for the deck. The Blood-Chin Rager absolutely deserves a slot, and the Fanatic probably does as well.
The major thing holding me back from Archetype of Aggression is his lack of recurability with Alesha. I'll need to actually build the deck and do some testing to see if I need the extra few points that trample on my team would net me. If I remember correctly, Battle Brawler was one of the last cards I cut, reasoning that Archetype of Courage giving my whole team first strike was more powerful than a single 3-power first striker.
I don't have a Dark Confidant, but even if I did the lack of any serious lifegain in the deck would make me leery of running him. The same is true for Dark Tutelage. Phyrexian Arena is worth considering, but what I like about Faithless Looting and Tormenting Voice is that they allow me to draw cards and pitch dudes that Alesha can bring back. That logic could easily be a hold over from my dabbling with a standard Alesha deck, though, where you can pitch expensive cards and get a massive cost reduction through Alesha, which is certainly not the case in Tiny Leaders. Some actual playtesting is probably needed to see what type of draw options are best suited for the deck.
Thank you for the input and the suggestions. I will mull it over, and in the next day or two update my list to what I intend to actually build and start testing with.
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1 Alesha, Who Smiles at Death
Creatures
1 Bloodsoaked Champion
1 Champion of the Parish
1 Mardu Woe-Reaper
1 Azorius Arrester
1 Chief of the Edge
1 High Priest of Penance
1 Tymaret, the Murder King
1 War-Name Aspirant
1 Archetype of Courage
1 Athreos, God of Passage
1 Blind Zealot
1 Fiend Hunter
1 Ghitu Slinger
1 Grim Haruspex
1 Jaya Ballard, Task Mage
1 Lyzolda, the Blood Witch
1 Mentor of the Meek
1 Riot Ringleader
1 Silverblade Paladin
1 Village Cannibals
1 Xathrid Necromancer
1 Sensei's Divining Top
Sorceries
1 Faithless Looting
1 Mizzium Mortars
1 Tormenting Voice
Instants
1 Lightning Bolt
1 Path to Exile
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Lightning Helix
1 Terminate
1 Mortify
Lands
1 Badlands
1 Blood Crypt
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Clifftop Retreat
1 Command Tower
1 Dragonskull Summit
1 Fetid Heath
1 Godless Shrine
1 Isolated Chapel
1 Marsh Flats
1 Mountain
1 Nomad Outpost
1 Plains
1 Plateau
1 Rugged Prarie
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Scrubland
1 Swamp
If you have any suggestions, please feel free to make them. Please keep in mind that any creatures suggested *MUST* be either a Human or a Warrior. If you could offer at least a few words to explain your suggestions, it would be much appreciated. Thank you!
In an Alesha deck, Mardu Skullhunter becomes a recurring and disposable source of discard. Arashin Foremost becomes a combat trick and bashes for a lot. Ashenmoor Gouger's drawback becomes irrelevant because either you are turning him sideways or leaving him dead. Also,it trades with almost anything in this format.
The Blood-chins, Blood-Chin Fanatic and Blood-Chin Rager are amazing to give you some reach and 'unblockable'.
Archetype of Aggression can help most thing push damage through, and is also a good warrior. Battle Brawler is a vanilla creature but is big and hard to remove.
Dark Confidant, Dark Tutelage and Phyrexian Arena are better than the draw power you have there, so you might want to change them a bit for the enchantment-based draw.
I'd leave Jaya Ballard, Task Mage on the Sideboard to make room. Maybe go all in on theme an then make cuts, so I'd try to remove the 'human matters' cards to favore the 'warrior matters'.
oonasrouge: I haven't actually worked out a sideboard for the deck yet, but Manic Vandal absolutely deserves a slot there, if not in the main deck.
balangaz: You make many good points. Obsidian Battle-Axe is a straight-up oversight on my part. I knew the card was out there, it just hadn't occurred to me.
I'll blame my experience of Mardu Skullhunter being no quite good enough for the BW Warriors standard deck for my overlooking him for this deck. He does deserve a place. Arashin Foremost is newer than my most recent work with the deck, but is certainly worthy of a spot. Ashenmoor Gouger is certainly a huge threat in this format, but I think for now I want to stay focused on my two tribal synergies.
The Blood-Chins fall into the same category as the Foremost, printed more recently than the last time I went looking for cards for the deck. The Blood-Chin Rager absolutely deserves a slot, and the Fanatic probably does as well.
The major thing holding me back from Archetype of Aggression is his lack of recurability with Alesha. I'll need to actually build the deck and do some testing to see if I need the extra few points that trample on my team would net me. If I remember correctly, Battle Brawler was one of the last cards I cut, reasoning that Archetype of Courage giving my whole team first strike was more powerful than a single 3-power first striker.
I don't have a Dark Confidant, but even if I did the lack of any serious lifegain in the deck would make me leery of running him. The same is true for Dark Tutelage. Phyrexian Arena is worth considering, but what I like about Faithless Looting and Tormenting Voice is that they allow me to draw cards and pitch dudes that Alesha can bring back. That logic could easily be a hold over from my dabbling with a standard Alesha deck, though, where you can pitch expensive cards and get a massive cost reduction through Alesha, which is certainly not the case in Tiny Leaders. Some actual playtesting is probably needed to see what type of draw options are best suited for the deck.
Jaya Ballard, Task Mage will most likely get moved to the side to make room for some of the cards mentioned here. I'll probably also wind up cutting Riot Ringleader and Village Cannibals, but since the three creatures I am most interested in adding (Mardu Skullhunter, Arashin Foremost, and Blood-Chin Rager) are Humans, I still think Champion of the Parish and Xathrid Necromancer will provide a lot of value.
Thank you for the input and the suggestions. I will mull it over, and in the next day or two update my list to what I intend to actually build and start testing with.