Hey guys, I've been playing Soul Sisters for almost over six months now and love it so much, in fact this primer
helped me build and learn how to play it! However, I think it could definitely be a 'tier 1' deck; I was hoping for some input on my take on the only deck I even bother playing... It's a Human Tribal version that abuses the new Humans from SOI. Since the core of Soul Sisters are all Human anyway, I figured that the new Humans would fit in very snugly. There was also other Humans we already had access to, like: Thalia, Champion and Mikaeus; the deck practically built itself! This version DECIMATES Control, which Sisters historically to very poorly against. I believe this version is more competitive against lot more of the field.
After a month break from paper Magic and now that school is over, I finally got the chance to go to FNM tonight. Not a long report but...
Round 1 - Bant Company (2-0): No comments, very easy matchup. Round 2 - Kiki Chord (1-2): Game 1, he combo'd off and won the game. Game 2, mulligan to 6, managed to get turn 2 Martyr/Serra combo. Game 3, he actually played Ghostly Prison... didn't draw my O-Ring, and lost the game. I didn't see any Paths the whole round. Round 3 - VERY budget BW Tokens (2-0): Budget, but still powerful. Very grindy. He didn't get to play his Sorin. Sorin is killer against SS.
Overall, it was a great night, I am very comfortable with my build. Happy with my result and enjoyed my night.
Notes:
- I wish our deck can somehow deal with enchantments... Anguished is the card, but I'm not sure if I can play it consistently. We need something that can deal with planeswalkers and enchantments main deck. I believe it would help us a lot.
- I talked to a girl today who played Soul Sisters. She was 6-0 before losing today. I, myself, have never went 3-0 with this deck. She plays the traditional build. She said, she just likes to have a 6/6 on turn 2. I don't know, maybe I'll try the traditional build again.
Hey guys, I've been playing Soul Sisters for almost over six months now and love it so much, in fact this primer
helped me build and learn how to play it! However, I think it could definitely be a 'tier 1' deck; I was hoping for some input on my take on the only deck I even bother playing... It's a Human Tribal version that abuses the new Humans from SOI. Since the core of Soul Sisters are all Human anyway, I figured that the new Humans would fit in very snugly. There was also other Humans we already had access to, like: Thalia, Champion and Mikaeus; the deck practically built itself! This version DECIMATES Control, which Sisters historically to very poorly against. I believe this version is more competitive against lot more of the field.
An interesting take on SS. I imagine this version would get some super explosive starts, but I think it would have trouble in the mid-late game. You've cut path to exile, which means you have almost no interaction, and honor of the pure, which makes all your 1/1's pretty poor topdeck. Champion, lieutenant, and captain are also bad topdeck if you're behind. I do like Mikaeus, though as a ranger target.
Notes:
- I wish our deck can somehow deal with enchantments... Anguished is the card, but I'm not sure if I can play it consistently. We need something that can deal with planeswalkers and enchantments main deck. I believe it would help us a lot.
- I talked to a girl today who played Soul Sisters. She was 6-0 before losing today. I, myself, have never went 3-0 with this deck. She plays the traditional build. She said, she just likes to have a 6/6 on turn 2. I don't know, maybe I'll try the traditional build again.
curious what enchantments you're having problems with? Aside from a random leyline of punishment, I can't think of any that are a big problem, especially maindeck.
Anguished unmaking is certainly playable, but if you're splashing then there's a lot more you can get from black, particularly lingering souls. Lately, I've been contemplating moving away from martyr/squawks and replacing them with dark confidant and secure the wastes.
If you're staying mono-white and need an answer to walkers & enchantments, You could probably justify a singleton oblivion ring.
@ArnezW: I LOVE your list, but I have a few suggestions:
1. Ajanis Pridemate may initially seem like a nonbo to your tribal theme, but remember: he's going to get bigger every single time you play a creature if you have a Sister in play. He'll race Champion of the Parish all day.
2. Mickaeus and Militia Captain were, in my testing, too slow. Maybe cut them for Honor of the Pure and Pridemate?
3. Yeah, you need Path. Early bigs or troublesome creatures like Kalitas are going to wreck your plans. I understand they're in the side, but sometimes that will cost you the first game.
Keep testing it and keep us posted on your findings.
Sometimes, after G1 and G2, you don't see any problematic enchantments that your opponents is playing, but like we all know, that doesn't mean he hasn't sided it in, your opponent just didn't draw it. And all of the sudden... G3, he plays a card you weren't expecting and... bam, you lose because you didn't side in any enchantment/artifact removal.
I've been very okay with two maindeck Oblivion Rings for non-creature hate. It's slow, but decks don't really deal with it well. Anguished Unmaking was just very awkward when I ran it.
Dark Confidant is a brave call in most Soul Sisters builds. Our life gain is good, but if you topdeck a Spectral or two, you really hurt yourself. That's not even counting if you run Archangel of Thune. It's certainly liveable (decks run Batterskull and other non-sense with Bob and do fine) but it can be scary.
I've been very okay with two maindeck Oblivion Rings for non-creature hate. It's slow, but decks don't really deal with it well. Anguished Unmaking was just very awkward when I ran it.
Dark Confidant is a brave call in most Soul Sisters builds. Our life gain is good, but if you topdeck a Spectral or two, you really hurt yourself. That's not even counting if you run Archangel of Thune. It's certainly liveable (decks run Batterskull and other non-sense with Bob and do fine) but it can be scary.
For sure it's a different build, and I haven't tested it yet. With black you can run souls over spectral, and I have left the angel out. Here's my first draft:
I rarely win off serra ascendant anyway, it's usually swarm + honor. Between Bob, ranger, souls, and secure the wastes I've got a surprising amount of card advantage. Charm can re-cur ascendant or martyr at instant speed.
rogue's passage is a test card also. I can not tell you the number of games I have lost because a deck like kiki-chord or junk company clogged up the board and chumped a 23/23 pridemate for like 6 turns and then combo'd out... this should help mitigate that.
The deck's converted CC is 1.26, down there with Jund, so barring some really bad luck, bob should be fine. I could see running an archangel over the 3rd ascendant or the 2nd sorin. Most of the time I'd rather cast serra ascendant late and can just grab her with ranger, so 4 is overkill.
Martyr is much worse with no squawks AND with bob, so only 1 copy. To be honest I rarely have trouble hitting 30 with just sisters anyway, and people save their removal for pridemate/ascendant, so the sisters tend to live. Having Bob as a 3rd "must kill" should help my fatties have a greater chance of surviving.
I tried it with x2 sword/foundry + time sieve. It was pretty sweet the one time it went off but the other 20 times it was just terrible. I actually just traded my auriok champions for a bunch of shocks and a few fetches. I love soul sisters so much. It is a fun deck to play but I rarely ever won with it.
To get the combo to work you need various copies of each card and/or tutor to get them, so i don't think you can splash it, it requires a lot of space in your deck
I have honestly long thought Bob was the missing piece for our deck. I hope you post some results with him so I can justify the $150 to myself. I haven't the slightest idea what I'd cut, though.
@ashley25746, @mnelson325: Thanks for the feedback; I'm glad you like my list! I feel like I should've mentioned, relating to Path to Exile in the sideboard, that the meta I am currently in is very Control heavy... Otherwise, Path to Exile would be mainboard and Thalia would be in the side. And maybe I might keep playing with Pridemate and Honor of the Pure, the thought alone of running 12 Tarmogoyfs in a deck is hilarious.
BTW, this current list just stomped on an Esper Thopter Gifts deck during testing; greatest match ever! Thalia + Cavern of Souls is an absolute nightmare for Control, and yes it can be explosive. I raced his Supreme Verdict in game one. 2-1.
Interesting that you got there racing vs. a Supreme Verdict. I find my wins against control come when I force the Verdict into a board where I haven't extended too much.
Hi there, pretty new to MtG, only been playing a few months now.
I finally decided I'd splurge on a deck, and I had played a budget version of Soul Sisters when I started, so I decided I was fond enough of it to make the full thing. Problem is, I'm not quite sure what to do-- I've built the core of the deck, but I'm not sure what to add/remove so I can fit enough land in. Here's what I've decided on so far:
My local meta is very heavy on control, combo, and affinity players, so I figured loading the deck and sideboard thusly worked best. Grand Abolisher and Aven Mindcensor are mainboard for that reason, after all, and the sideboard is stuffed with artifact, combo, and Snapcaster hate. Eerie Interlude is one I'm not totally sure of, but it's one of my new favorite cards due to its sheer versatility (anti-boardwipe that also lets me reap all the ETB benefits? Yes please), so I threw some in (and would love to add more). The Witchbane Orbs and Orbs of Warding will likely be replaced with Leylines of Sanctity if I decide they're necessary enough to get.
As for the stuff I'm undecided on:
Fiendslayer Paladin seems great due to being able to do a lot while being immune to burn and kill spells, but he doesn't have protection, which didn't seem like a #1 choice.
Kor Firewalker would be a sideboard card at best, but I don't know if I can drop anything to fit him in.
Brave the Elements would be fantastic, but again, can't fit it anywhere.
Suppression Field and Pithing Needle are merely on standby in case my local meta starts using activated abilities more (and this is not super common-- if it is, it's done by artifacts, and Stony Silence/Sundering Growth shuts those down).
Victory's Herald is a win-more card at best compared to Archangel of Thune, but I considered it.
Rune-Tail is one I'm super torn on. It's so easy to get over 30 life, and if Serra Ascendant can make use of that life, so can this. I figured it'd be great against Infect?
But my biggest problem is that my deck is too stuffed full for me to fit enough land in.
What would be advisable, from those of you who've been using Soul Sisters for a long time?
@MatsuriFramboise yep you have a ton going on in your maindeck. You didn't mention your plains count, but the spells you listed add up to 46, which leaves room for only 14 land, less than what Affinity plays (and they don't have any 5-drops). Unless your deck is >60 cards?
The thing to remember about Sisters is that it's a linear deck, not a midrange one. Jund has a ton of flex slots, and Death & Taxes can customize their bears and add things like Grand Abolisher, but Soul Sisters is under the same umbrella as Burn or Affinity or Infect. It has a very specific gameplan that requires a critical mass of the right synergistic pieces. Therefore, there's very little wiggle room in the main, maybe 2 slots tops. It hurts, but if you want a functioning classic sisters deck, you need to cut all those spicy creatures, or move them to the SB, and play at least 21 land, more if you want to cast Ranger/Archangel reliably. If you really want to play Mindcensors and Abolishers and Mirran Crusaders maindeck, the only way is Hatebears/D&T.
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helped me build and learn how to play it! However, I think it could definitely be a 'tier 1' deck; I was hoping for some input on my take on the only deck I even bother playing... It's a Human Tribal version that abuses the new Humans from SOI. Since the core of Soul Sisters are all Human anyway, I figured that the new Humans would fit in very snugly. There was also other Humans we already had access to, like: Thalia, Champion and Mikaeus; the deck practically built itself! This version DECIMATES Control, which Sisters historically to very poorly against. I believe this version is more competitive against lot more of the field.
Here's the deck:
3 Mikaeus, the Lunarch
4 Hanweir Militia Captain
4 Thalia's Lieutenant
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Serra Ascendant
4 Martyr of Sands
4 Soul Warden
4 Soul's Attendant
3 Ranger of Eos
3 Return to The Ranks
1 Westvale Abbey
4 Cavern of Souls
3 Ghost Quarter
12 Plains
2 Leyline of Sanctity
2 Brave the Elements
2 Disenchant
2 Stony Silence
2 Rest in Peace
2 Suppression Field
Tell me what you think! Thanks.
Round 1 - Bant Company (2-0): No comments, very easy matchup.
Round 2 - Kiki Chord (1-2): Game 1, he combo'd off and won the game. Game 2, mulligan to 6, managed to get turn 2 Martyr/Serra combo. Game 3, he actually played Ghostly Prison... didn't draw my O-Ring, and lost the game. I didn't see any Paths the whole round.
Round 3 - VERY budget BW Tokens (2-0): Budget, but still powerful. Very grindy. He didn't get to play his Sorin. Sorin is killer against SS.
Overall, it was a great night, I am very comfortable with my build. Happy with my result and enjoyed my night.
Notes:
- I wish our deck can somehow deal with enchantments... Anguished is the card, but I'm not sure if I can play it consistently. We need something that can deal with planeswalkers and enchantments main deck. I believe it would help us a lot.
- I talked to a girl today who played Soul Sisters. She was 6-0 before losing today. I, myself, have never went 3-0 with this deck. She plays the traditional build. She said, she just likes to have a 6/6 on turn 2. I don't know, maybe I'll try the traditional build again.
An interesting take on SS. I imagine this version would get some super explosive starts, but I think it would have trouble in the mid-late game. You've cut path to exile, which means you have almost no interaction, and honor of the pure, which makes all your 1/1's pretty poor topdeck. Champion, lieutenant, and captain are also bad topdeck if you're behind. I do like Mikaeus, though as a ranger target.
curious what enchantments you're having problems with? Aside from a random leyline of punishment, I can't think of any that are a big problem, especially maindeck.
Anguished unmaking is certainly playable, but if you're splashing then there's a lot more you can get from black, particularly lingering souls. Lately, I've been contemplating moving away from martyr/squawks and replacing them with dark confidant and secure the wastes.
If you're staying mono-white and need an answer to walkers & enchantments, You could probably justify a singleton oblivion ring.
1. Ajanis Pridemate may initially seem like a nonbo to your tribal theme, but remember: he's going to get bigger every single time you play a creature if you have a Sister in play. He'll race Champion of the Parish all day.
2. Mickaeus and Militia Captain were, in my testing, too slow. Maybe cut them for Honor of the Pure and Pridemate?
3. Yeah, you need Path. Early bigs or troublesome creatures like Kalitas are going to wreck your plans. I understand they're in the side, but sometimes that will cost you the first game.
Keep testing it and keep us posted on your findings.
@deathstroke: What enchantment/artifact hate do you run in the side?
Sometimes, after G1 and G2, you don't see any problematic enchantments that your opponents is playing, but like we all know, that doesn't mean he hasn't sided it in, your opponent just didn't draw it. And all of the sudden... G3, he plays a card you weren't expecting and... bam, you lose because you didn't side in any enchantment/artifact removal.
Dark Confidant is a brave call in most Soul Sisters builds. Our life gain is good, but if you topdeck a Spectral or two, you really hurt yourself. That's not even counting if you run Archangel of Thune. It's certainly liveable (decks run Batterskull and other non-sense with Bob and do fine) but it can be scary.
Do WB players use Ghost Quarter?
For sure it's a different build, and I haven't tested it yet. With black you can run souls over spectral, and I have left the angel out. Here's my first draft:
4 ajani's pridemate
3 soul warden
4 soul's attendant
4 dark confidant
3 secure the wastes
3 lingering souls
1 martyr of sands
4 ranger of eos
4 honor of the pure
2 path to exile
2 orzhov charm
1 vault of the archangel
1 swamp
4 godless shrine
2 isolated chapel
2 shambling vent
6 plains
2 rogue's passage
4 marsh flats
I rarely win off serra ascendant anyway, it's usually swarm + honor. Between Bob, ranger, souls, and secure the wastes I've got a surprising amount of card advantage. Charm can re-cur ascendant or martyr at instant speed.
rogue's passage is a test card also. I can not tell you the number of games I have lost because a deck like kiki-chord or junk company clogged up the board and chumped a 23/23 pridemate for like 6 turns and then combo'd out... this should help mitigate that.
The deck's converted CC is 1.26, down there with Jund, so barring some really bad luck, bob should be fine. I could see running an archangel over the 3rd ascendant or the 2nd sorin. Most of the time I'd rather cast serra ascendant late and can just grab her with ranger, so 4 is overkill.
Martyr is much worse with no squawks AND with bob, so only 1 copy. To be honest I rarely have trouble hitting 30 with just sisters anyway, and people save their removal for pridemate/ascendant, so the sisters tend to live. Having Bob as a 3rd "must kill" should help my fatties have a greater chance of surviving.
Lol join the Dark Side! I cashed with tokens for the first time yesterday did miserably at States
BTW, this current list just stomped on an Esper Thopter Gifts deck during testing; greatest match ever! Thalia + Cavern of Souls is an absolute nightmare for Control, and yes it can be explosive. I raced his Supreme Verdict in game one. 2-1.
I finally decided I'd splurge on a deck, and I had played a budget version of Soul Sisters when I started, so I decided I was fond enough of it to make the full thing. Problem is, I'm not quite sure what to do-- I've built the core of the deck, but I'm not sure what to add/remove so I can fit enough land in. Here's what I've decided on so far:
4 Soul's Attendant
4 Serra Ascendant
4 Martyr of Sands
4 Ajani's Pridemate
4 Squadron Hawk
2 Grand Abolisher
1 Mirran Crusader
2 Aven Mindcensor
3 Ranger of Eos
2 Archangel of Thune
4 Path to Exile
4 Spectral Procession
4 Windbrisk Heights
2 Ghost Quarter
3 Stony Silence
3 Sundering Growth
1 Rule of Law
1 Eidolon of Rhetoric
2 Rest in Peace
2 Eerie Interlude
2 Witchbane Orb
1 Orbs of Warding
3 Fiendslayer Paladin
2 Kor Firewalker
4 Brave the Elements
1 Suppression Field
2 Pithing Needle
2 Victory's Herald
2 Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant
My local meta is very heavy on control, combo, and affinity players, so I figured loading the deck and sideboard thusly worked best. Grand Abolisher and Aven Mindcensor are mainboard for that reason, after all, and the sideboard is stuffed with artifact, combo, and Snapcaster hate. Eerie Interlude is one I'm not totally sure of, but it's one of my new favorite cards due to its sheer versatility (anti-boardwipe that also lets me reap all the ETB benefits? Yes please), so I threw some in (and would love to add more). The Witchbane Orbs and Orbs of Warding will likely be replaced with Leylines of Sanctity if I decide they're necessary enough to get.
As for the stuff I'm undecided on:
Fiendslayer Paladin seems great due to being able to do a lot while being immune to burn and kill spells, but he doesn't have protection, which didn't seem like a #1 choice.
Kor Firewalker would be a sideboard card at best, but I don't know if I can drop anything to fit him in.
Brave the Elements would be fantastic, but again, can't fit it anywhere.
Suppression Field and Pithing Needle are merely on standby in case my local meta starts using activated abilities more (and this is not super common-- if it is, it's done by artifacts, and Stony Silence/Sundering Growth shuts those down).
Victory's Herald is a win-more card at best compared to Archangel of Thune, but I considered it.
Rune-Tail is one I'm super torn on. It's so easy to get over 30 life, and if Serra Ascendant can make use of that life, so can this. I figured it'd be great against Infect?
But my biggest problem is that my deck is too stuffed full for me to fit enough land in.
What would be advisable, from those of you who've been using Soul Sisters for a long time?
WB Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim | WBR Queen Marchesa | WUBR Breya, Etherium Shaper
Modern:
/ Death and Taxes | W/ Soul Sisters | Spirits | U Faeries | Tempered Steel Affinity
The thing to remember about Sisters is that it's a linear deck, not a midrange one. Jund has a ton of flex slots, and Death & Taxes can customize their bears and add things like Grand Abolisher, but Soul Sisters is under the same umbrella as Burn or Affinity or Infect. It has a very specific gameplan that requires a critical mass of the right synergistic pieces. Therefore, there's very little wiggle room in the main, maybe 2 slots tops. It hurts, but if you want a functioning classic sisters deck, you need to cut all those spicy creatures, or move them to the SB, and play at least 21 land, more if you want to cast Ranger/Archangel reliably. If you really want to play Mindcensors and Abolishers and Mirran Crusaders maindeck, the only way is Hatebears/D&T.