So I've been looking at a few different ideas for a deck with tons of moving parts. I love decks like Eggs and Storm, so this is meant to exist in a similar vein. The engine that I found is a three card synergy where two of the pieces are interchangeable with other cards. I want to make this engine into something more intimidating.
First, you need to have a Prototype Portal in play. You need to imprint either a Darksteel Citadel, Mox Opal, or Lotus Bloom onto the portal. Next, you need either the fragile Synod Artificer or the more durable Voltaic Key. Once you have the engine in place, you activate the Prototype Portal, which produces either a Mox Opal, Darksteel Citadel, or Lotus Bloom, and then untap the portal with your Voltaic Key or the Synod Artificer by spending the mana that your new permanent produces. You're either getting two indestructible lands each turn, two free mana rocks each turn, or an extra five mana each turn depending on which route you take.
I personally like the Citadel+Key+Portal engine as the lands are indestructible, produce mana, and can be sacrificed to various cards for some benefit, such as Arcbound Ravager.
Making this engine go infinite somehow would be ideal, especially through some Rube Goldberg-styled monstrosity like Eggs is. If you add in an Unwinding Clock, then you can effectively double your output of whatever you're doing. I had also looked at Clock of Omens as it is a card that I have always wanted to break, but I can't seem to figure out the appropriate tapping and math in my head.
It's just a shame that I can't think of a way to untap the Voltaic Key repeatedly.
If you want to just churn out artifacts for profit then imprinting a Voltaic Key would be best. I'm sure you can find something that helps by drawing or looting when an artifact enters the battlefield.
Power stone is interesting. I'm always trying to build something with it. Not really needing the productions if you can start with one and use t mage to grab another. Just always feels too slow for modern. I do like the way it kinda plays a tronless torn approach. Turn 3 stone turn 4 stone thoughtknot is idea. Follow by a Eugene or Karn.
If you're going to run Clock of Omens with this engine, I think your best bet for abusing it is Grinding Station. The problem is, that card is not good at a lot other than untapping, unless you want to go for the mill kill. As suggested earlier, Battered Golem is basically the same thing, other than having a body, with the various pros and cons associated with that.
Enter Ghirapur AEther Grid. Until you get an engine going, it gives you a way to keep the board under control with all of the random artifacts in play. Pyrite Spellbomb helps this plan, because it's control when you need it, taps to Clock or Grid, and digs. You can also copy it with the Portal as a win condition.
The only other card I'd look at if you are going to use Clock and/or Grid is Howling Mine. The ability to tap it whenever breaks the symmetry. I've noodled with it for this, and 4 is probably wrong, but it's a nice trick to have.
A Paradox Engine might work well with this shell. Check out the Dice Factory thread for some ideas. Your shell is different, but I feel there might be some ideas you could mine.
The Battered Golem idea is pretty cute, as is turning Howling Mine into asymmetrical card advantage. Making an ungodly amount of artifacts that gets followed-up with a Ghirapur Aether Grid sounds really solid.
I really appreciate you guys offering suggestions. I had looked at Mechanized Production, but that feels like it wants to be in a different list. I'll start tinkering a bit and post anything I learn. Thanks, guys!
Well there are more cards to look at, to nreak the symmetry of them. Howling mine and trinisphere were mentioned, but Storage matrix is also a card to look at. This could be a prison/control style of deck with Ghirapur Aether Grid as a wincon and an engine for the deck.
I would be interested in developing this strategy further. If you are interested to work on that here, this would be nice. Otherwise I would open a new thread for discussion.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"Master they threatened to darken the sky with their arrows!"
"Well, then we will at least fight in the shadow"
"There is no glory to be gained in the kingdom of the dead!"
Post by Narah about unbanning Mind Twist in legacy and that this would be evil:
Yeah, but it's really more "Disney Evil" than practical. It's like being a bond villain and giving a monologue rather then just shooting them.
If you want to play on MTGO add me I'm HeskatetAS, playing Modern and Legacy
I've been tinkering with a few things and I've liked this particular list so far. Behold, the combo-monstrosity known as "Cyndi Lauper" due to the fact that it goes infinite with Clock of Omens... Time after time...
This deck has multiple infinite combos to close out the game and most of the individual pieces work well on their own. The general combo mechanism is:
[Some two-card combination of Battered Golem and Grinding Station] + [Clock of Omens] + [Myr Turbine].
Most of the deck will help stall or accelerate to the combo. Buried Ruin gets our important artifacts back, while Inventors' Fair helps us find those necessary artifacts.
I have considered Welding Jarin the main since we can go infinite with it and either kill with Ghirapur Aether Grid or regenerate nearly every permanent in our deck.
First, you need to have a Prototype Portal in play. You need to imprint either a Darksteel Citadel, Mox Opal, or Lotus Bloom onto the portal. Next, you need either the fragile Synod Artificer or the more durable Voltaic Key. Once you have the engine in place, you activate the Prototype Portal, which produces either a Mox Opal, Darksteel Citadel, or Lotus Bloom, and then untap the portal with your Voltaic Key or the Synod Artificer by spending the mana that your new permanent produces. You're either getting two indestructible lands each turn, two free mana rocks each turn, or an extra five mana each turn depending on which route you take.
I personally like the Citadel+Key+Portal engine as the lands are indestructible, produce mana, and can be sacrificed to various cards for some benefit, such as Arcbound Ravager.
Making this engine go infinite somehow would be ideal, especially through some Rube Goldberg-styled monstrosity like Eggs is. If you add in an Unwinding Clock, then you can effectively double your output of whatever you're doing. I had also looked at Clock of Omens as it is a card that I have always wanted to break, but I can't seem to figure out the appropriate tapping and math in my head.
It's just a shame that I can't think of a way to untap the Voltaic Key repeatedly.
Any suggestions, folks?
The Modern-Legal Crap Cube
The Modern-Legal Crap Cube
"Well, then we will at least fight in the shadow"
"There is no glory to be gained in the kingdom of the dead!"
Post by Narah about unbanning Mind Twist in legacy and that this would be evil:
If you want to play on MTGO add me I'm HeskatetAS, playing Modern and Legacy
Enter Ghirapur AEther Grid. Until you get an engine going, it gives you a way to keep the board under control with all of the random artifacts in play. Pyrite Spellbomb helps this plan, because it's control when you need it, taps to Clock or Grid, and digs. You can also copy it with the Portal as a win condition.
The only other card I'd look at if you are going to use Clock and/or Grid is Howling Mine. The ability to tap it whenever breaks the symmetry. I've noodled with it for this, and 4 is probably wrong, but it's a nice trick to have.
I really appreciate you guys offering suggestions. I had looked at Mechanized Production, but that feels like it wants to be in a different list. I'll start tinkering a bit and post anything I learn. Thanks, guys!
The Modern-Legal Crap Cube
I would be interested in developing this strategy further. If you are interested to work on that here, this would be nice. Otherwise I would open a new thread for discussion.
"Well, then we will at least fight in the shadow"
"There is no glory to be gained in the kingdom of the dead!"
Post by Narah about unbanning Mind Twist in legacy and that this would be evil:
If you want to play on MTGO add me I'm HeskatetAS, playing Modern and Legacy
4x Battered Golem
4x Memnite
4x Ornithopter
Artifacts (22)
4x Mox Opal
2x Myr Turbine
4x Prototype Portal
4x Clock of Omens
4x Grinding Station
4x Lotus Bloom
2x Ghirapur AEther Grid
Lands (24)
4x Darksteel Citadel
2x Inventors' Fair
14x Mountain
4x Buried Ruin
4x Pyroclasm
4x Scour from Existence
4x Welding Jar
3x Witchbane Orb
This deck has multiple infinite combos to close out the game and most of the individual pieces work well on their own. The general combo mechanism is:
[Some two-card combination of Battered Golem and Grinding Station] + [Clock of Omens] + [Myr Turbine].
You can substitute Myr Turbine for Prototype Portal with a Memnite, Ornithopter, Mox Opal, Lotus Bloom, or Darksteel Citadel imprinted on it. That offers everything from infinite mana of any color to infinite dudes to attack/block with. If you're feeling extra spicy, you can make infinite copies of anything (other than Mox Opal) and hit your opponent for infinite damage with a Ghirapur Aether Grid.
Most of the deck will help stall or accelerate to the combo. Buried Ruin gets our important artifacts back, while Inventors' Fair helps us find those necessary artifacts.
I have considered Welding Jarin the main since we can go infinite with it and either kill with Ghirapur Aether Grid or regenerate nearly every permanent in our deck.
The Modern-Legal Crap Cube