I have been working on a mill deck that abuses Jace's Erasure and Prosperity ie. have 2 erasure's out and Prosperity for 5 (I draw 5, they draw 5, mill 10 losing 15 cards from library)
I use the typical Glimpse, Mind Funeral, and Archive Trap, but add in the efficient draw spells to abuse Jace's Erasure (even if it doesn't get up and running the draws are great!) Sadistic Sacrament is for pulling Eldrazi or kicking to remove lands to finish with a Mind Funeral.
I use the ensnaring bridge, Bottled cloister combo (makes hand size 0 so opponent can't attack, also why I don't run counterspells) Bottled Cloister also serves as a 1-sided howling mine.
I am looking for feedback on changes to make etc. I don't need to hear the "mill will never be viable" comments.
Jace's erasure could work, but it's better with cards like brainstorm or jace, the mind sculptor or even (my favorite) green's sylvan library. In other words, I don't think prosperity is a great idea here. If you go green, you also get access to tarmogoyf as an alternate win condition if needed.
All this said, if you really do want to keep it just blue/black, then I'd lose the cute combos and stick with what works. IE, archive trap, glimpse the unthinkable, and maybe one or two mind funeral. I'd make sure all the rest are control and survival cards. For example, counter spells like force of will, mental misstep, etc. Or creature removal like innocent blood.
thanks for the suggestions. I think I will keep it blue/black. I own 2 Jace, Memory Adept and 1 JtMS. Should I grab a Beleren and run 1 of each? I see your point with the Prosperity and like the brainstorm JtMS thought. What do you think of the Visions of Beyond? Also does the ensnaring bridge/ bottled cloister combo seem worth the sacrifice of counters? I have a set of Null Brooch which could help with some countering without a hand.
I don't think the bridge combo is effective enough at slowing down attackers, since you're not playing accelerants,meaning that it'll take until turn 4 to lock them with it, if everything goes right and you don't spend the critical turns three and 4 playing anything else crucial. By turn 4 though, combo decks have killed you, the aggro decks have either killed you or put you in very serious hurt. without counters or other solution cards you have no way of dealing with their board, getting rid of something that makes it into play, or stopping them from breaking out of your lock.
I love sadistic sacrement to death, but it's inneffective without dark ritual. anything you want to remove from their deck has already been cast or tutored for by turn three in general.
without getting the nuts draw of all archive traps and your opponent having a fetchland, how quickly can you win? can you race aggro decks and win on turn 4 when there's no disruption, and do it that fast consistently? or is this a strategy that usually takes 5-7 turns to mill out your opponent? If it's the former, consider yourself a combo deck, worry less about the aggro decks and figure out how to beat faster combo that consistently goes off turn 2-3. If it's the latter, then figure out how to stall aggro decks in a more consistent manner, since you're going to have to take the control role here, which might mean cutting a lot of mill for a control package and relegating the mill to be your win conditions.
Think of mill like burn: you're usually ignoring the board and going for their head. Except unlike burn, you have to mill them through about 50 cards, while they'll start with or draw the others. if you were a burn deck, would you play a 2 mana sorcery that takes 20% of your opponent's life? I don't think anyone would pay 2 for 4 damage unless it was an instant and could hit creatures too. Remember that Glimpse is a 2 mana sorcery that takes 20% of your opponent's library, and that's one of the best cards that mill is packing.
I really want to see this work well, but I'm not sure it's cut out for competitive legacy yet. Figure out what decks it will beat consistently, and which it needs the most help with.
Finally, your board had better have Leyline of the Void and/or Extirpate, because otherwise Dredge and Reanimator will be auto-lose, as you'll spend your turns helping them.
Yes my board would run those grave hate cards in the side. I have fun with that dredge deck that runs the 3 dredge lands as the only lands...Mind Funeral FTW!
Updated my decklist, dropping the cloister bridge nonsense and getting some rituals and remands in there. Thoughts on remand as a counter? It seems like a mini timewalk, slow them a turn and draw an extra cards (which can ping away at there deck with an erasure out)
Onto the decklist: 60 Cards
4 Jace's Erasure
4 Brainstorm
4 Glimpse the Unthinkable
4 Mind Funeral
4 Archive Trap
4 Visions of Beyond
1 Jace, Memory Adept
1 Jace Beleren
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
2 Sadistic Sacrament
3 Dark Ritual
1 Damnation
Land
4 Polluted Delta
4 Underground Sea
6 Swamp
9 Island
I use the typical Glimpse, Mind Funeral, and Archive Trap, but add in the efficient draw spells to abuse Jace's Erasure (even if it doesn't get up and running the draws are great!) Sadistic Sacrament is for pulling Eldrazi or kicking to remove lands to finish with a Mind Funeral.
I use the ensnaring bridge, Bottled cloister combo (makes hand size 0 so opponent can't attack, also why I don't run counterspells) Bottled Cloister also serves as a 1-sided howling mine.
I am looking for feedback on changes to make etc. I don't need to hear the "mill will never be viable" comments.
Have any questions or concerns? Come take a dip in my pool.
All this said, if you really do want to keep it just blue/black, then I'd lose the cute combos and stick with what works. IE, archive trap, glimpse the unthinkable, and maybe one or two mind funeral. I'd make sure all the rest are control and survival cards. For example, counter spells like force of will, mental misstep, etc. Or creature removal like innocent blood.
Credit to DolZero for this awesome sig!
I love sadistic sacrement to death, but it's inneffective without dark ritual. anything you want to remove from their deck has already been cast or tutored for by turn three in general.
without getting the nuts draw of all archive traps and your opponent having a fetchland, how quickly can you win? can you race aggro decks and win on turn 4 when there's no disruption, and do it that fast consistently? or is this a strategy that usually takes 5-7 turns to mill out your opponent? If it's the former, consider yourself a combo deck, worry less about the aggro decks and figure out how to beat faster combo that consistently goes off turn 2-3. If it's the latter, then figure out how to stall aggro decks in a more consistent manner, since you're going to have to take the control role here, which might mean cutting a lot of mill for a control package and relegating the mill to be your win conditions.
Think of mill like burn: you're usually ignoring the board and going for their head. Except unlike burn, you have to mill them through about 50 cards, while they'll start with or draw the others. if you were a burn deck, would you play a 2 mana sorcery that takes 20% of your opponent's life? I don't think anyone would pay 2 for 4 damage unless it was an instant and could hit creatures too. Remember that Glimpse is a 2 mana sorcery that takes 20% of your opponent's library, and that's one of the best cards that mill is packing.
I really want to see this work well, but I'm not sure it's cut out for competitive legacy yet. Figure out what decks it will beat consistently, and which it needs the most help with.
Finally, your board had better have Leyline of the Void and/or Extirpate, because otherwise Dredge and Reanimator will be auto-lose, as you'll spend your turns helping them.
Updated my decklist, dropping the cloister bridge nonsense and getting some rituals and remands in there. Thoughts on remand as a counter? It seems like a mini timewalk, slow them a turn and draw an extra cards (which can ping away at there deck with an erasure out)