so here's a new archetype that doesn't seem too bad at first sight (I actually won games vs very good Pioneer decks while I had absolutely no expectation). I thought there wouldn't be enough material, but there's actually quite some stuff to test, and a few variants available.
Jeskai has worse mana than Mardu, since the strong pairs are VS (or ), and we know wedge colors are miles better in the format.
The companions are very strong additions if they can be added as a commander in a competitive format, so exciting times I'd say.
This deck's strategy seems to be a bit unfocused. Flourishing Fox, Valiant Rescuer, and Hollow One give the deck an aggro bent to it in which you want to stack lots of cycles on efficient creatures. On the other hand, you have something like Yidaro, Wandering Monster, who wants to be in a deck slow enough to see him four times in a game, Censor, which works best if you leave mana open on turns you'd like to play threats, and Go for Blood, which looks terrible in constructed. Zirda places no restrains on instants and sorceries, so you'd be better off using those slots for cards you'd actually like to play rather than just bin.
Yes you're very right, I gathered the whole package of cycling cards and tested them. Indeed, Go for Blood is bad, and the primary reason is the creatures are too weak in the deck. No way to fight favorably often enough.
I did hardcast Yidaro once and returned it once amongst a dozen games. It was indeed not stellar... I usually had time to cycle him twice, sometimes thrice.
Zirda is cute but doesn't really make the deck stronger so far. Turn 3 make a 3/3 wasn't crazy. I think it shouldn't be a card that prevents us from playing permanents with no activated ability if it makes the maindeck strictly better.
As I put a ton of cards in the yard, the payoff so far is Zenith Flare, but it could instead be a delve spell : Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time in blue, Murderous Cut and Gurmag Angler in black.
I won games with Flare because I had the cycling cards you suggest I should cut. Without them, Flare becomes much worse !
Censor can be replaced by a cheap spell to get better aggro starts.
If you have specific suggestions, feel free to help.
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Pioneer - A bunch of stuff Modern - Humans Legacy - Grixis Phoenix / Death & Taxes
Broadly speaking, a cycling deck can go one of two ways. The first is based on small creatures that love you see you cycle cards - Hollow One, Flourishing Fox, and Valiant Rescuer here, Flameblade Adept if you choose to go red, Cunning Survivor in blue, Shadowstorm Vizier in Esper or Grixis. You play some combination of these creatures in combination with cheap cyclers that double as powerful combat tricks to play an aggro or tempo game.
The second is a slower, control-focused list. Here Yidaro becomes more viable, and filling your graveyard over a longer time makes Zenith Flare more deadly. The control version gets Sweltering Suns and/or Archfiend of Ifnir as board clears and Drake Haven and Ominous Seas as payoffs. You can even go combo with New Perspectives or Unpredictable Cyclone. One benefit of the control-based cycling idea is that it gets away with more cycling lands that ETB tapped.
Other spells 28:
4x Ominous Seas closer number 1 in the deck: cheap and quite fast to be charged in this deck: even the regular draws helps to reach the required amount of charging counters.
4x Sweltering Suns this is a very nice sweeper that cleans the board from middling creatures without protection from red. It is one of the best cards the R offers.
4x Shredded Sails I think that this card can be in the main 60 as 4x because it allows to choose between 2 useful effects.
4x Hampering Snare simply put, it is useful to gain one extra turn towards Aggro decks: the casting cost is low, but it can save our day even in the late game.
3x Tectonic Reformation after you have 6 lands on the battlefield you don't really need them anymore and this card helps to use them wisely.
3x Hieroglyphic Illumination only 3 because CC 4 to draw 2 cards is not-so-good, but we still need this card to use the following card...to win.
3x New Perspectives only 3 because the CC is really high, but with this you can close the game with relative ease.
3x Cyclonic Rift in order to have a cleaner for non-creature permanents; in late game is very strong, but if necessary, you can use it even from turn 2 onwards.
so here's a new archetype that doesn't seem too bad at first sight (I actually won games vs very good Pioneer decks while I had absolutely no expectation). I thought there wouldn't be enough material, but there's actually quite some stuff to test, and a few variants available.
Jeskai has worse mana than Mardu, since the strong pairs are VS (or ), and we know wedge colors are miles better in the format.
The companions are very strong additions if they can be added as a commander in a competitive format, so exciting times I'd say.
1 Zirda, the Dawnwaker
Deck:
4 Flourishing Fox
4 Valiant Rescuer
4 Curator of Mysteries
4 Hollow One
4 Yidaro, Wandering Monster
4 Go for Blood
4 Censor
4 Zenith Flare
3 Teferi, Time Raveler
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Sacred Foundry
2 Steam Vents
4 Inspiring Vantage
2 Spirebluff Canal
2 Glacial Fortress
3 Raugrin Triome
Yes you're very right, I gathered the whole package of cycling cards and tested them. Indeed, Go for Blood is bad, and the primary reason is the creatures are too weak in the deck. No way to fight favorably often enough.
I did hardcast Yidaro once and returned it once amongst a dozen games. It was indeed not stellar... I usually had time to cycle him twice, sometimes thrice.
Zirda is cute but doesn't really make the deck stronger so far. Turn 3 make a 3/3 wasn't crazy. I think it shouldn't be a card that prevents us from playing permanents with no activated ability if it makes the maindeck strictly better.
As I put a ton of cards in the yard, the payoff so far is Zenith Flare, but it could instead be a delve spell : Treasure Cruise and Dig Through Time in blue, Murderous Cut and Gurmag Angler in black.
I won games with Flare because I had the cycling cards you suggest I should cut. Without them, Flare becomes much worse !
Censor can be replaced by a cheap spell to get better aggro starts.
If you have specific suggestions, feel free to help.
The second is a slower, control-focused list. Here Yidaro becomes more viable, and filling your graveyard over a longer time makes Zenith Flare more deadly. The control version gets Sweltering Suns and/or Archfiend of Ifnir as board clears and Drake Haven and Ominous Seas as payoffs. You can even go combo with New Perspectives or Unpredictable Cyclone. One benefit of the control-based cycling idea is that it gets away with more cycling lands that ETB tapped.
Lands 24
We absolutely need to reach 6 mana with this deck up turn 8 at most, so 24 lands is the minimum.
Other spells 36
Creatures 8:
4x Curator of Mysteries
4x Yidaro, Wandering Monster
Other spells 28:
4x Ominous Seas closer number 1 in the deck: cheap and quite fast to be charged in this deck: even the regular draws helps to reach the required amount of charging counters.
4x Sweltering Suns this is a very nice sweeper that cleans the board from middling creatures without protection from red. It is one of the best cards the R offers.
4x Shredded Sails I think that this card can be in the main 60 as 4x because it allows to choose between 2 useful effects.
4x Hampering Snare simply put, it is useful to gain one extra turn towards Aggro decks: the casting cost is low, but it can save our day even in the late game.
3x Tectonic Reformation after you have 6 lands on the battlefield you don't really need them anymore and this card helps to use them wisely.
3x Hieroglyphic Illumination only 3 because CC 4 to draw 2 cards is not-so-good, but we still need this card to use the following card...to win.
3x New Perspectives only 3 because the CC is really high, but with this you can close the game with relative ease.
3x Cyclonic Rift in order to have a cleaner for non-creature permanents; in late game is very strong, but if necessary, you can use it even from turn 2 onwards.