So, I posted a deck similar to this in the budget section, but then I got the idea that the addition Pyromancer's Goggles and poof the deck isn't budget anymore. The card drawing in this deck is insanely good.
Individually, these cards can net some serious draws. Together, it's insane. Pair that with some hand destruction and you can draw even more cards. In this version of the deck, I decided to add in some ramp to dive into the Dragon as soon as possible. I also decided to use Harness the Storm to do something with all that extra mana when I have it. An early iteration of this deck used madness cards to deal some cheap damage, but they don't play nice with Harness, so I swapped to more conventional cards. Theoretically, that will work fine since there's a lot of mana.
This deck wants to shove that dragon out there as soon as possible. Even if it means discarding instants and sorceries. It's ok. You'll get to cast them again. After you you've got the dragon out, and possibly Asylum Visitor, you'll be getting a ton of cards.
(Goggles are now removed from the deck Ver 3)
Either of these cards are gonna give you some great extra casts. They will do it even better together.
Molten Vortex is such a great card in this deck. Drawing multiple cards per turn, you can expect to have multiple land draws. Being able to salvage those as Shocks will make you feel so much better.
The side board is set up to deal with heavy creature decks and decks that are stretching their mana bases. But honestly, it's a sideboard. It can be whatever needs to be addressed. (Ver 3 I'm not sure what i'll put in the SB to replace what's been taken out. Maybe something like Foul-Tongue Invocation)
I just built it today, and my playgroup doesn't get together as often as I'd like. I have used my deck building app to do some simulated hands/draws. I know that's not real world testing, but it does offer some insight.
Corrupted Grafstone really needs Duress with it in the opening hand to be effective. It might warrant putting in another 1 drop to facilitate the mana ramp. Perhaps Insolent Neonate?
2 seems to be the perfect number of Pyromancer's Goggles. Since we're shooting for a 3rd turn Avaricious Dragon, you don't really want it in the opening hand. Also, if you have a Asylum Visitor by itself, drawing a 2nd Goggles will really mess up your hellbent drawing.
Harness the Storm seems really good in this deck. However, since you don't want it early (you won't have any instants/sorceries in the GY yet), it also doesn't feel like something you want in your opening hand. 2 feels like a good number for that too.
I also feel like I might need a sweeper in some matchups. I'm thinking maybe something like Boiling Earth or Chandra's Fury to just hit my opponent's creatures, and rely on Goggles or Harness the Storm to double it. Chandra's Ignition could possibly be a better option. Cast on either of my creatures (not counting Hedron Crawler) that should be enough to sweep most creature heavy decks. Plus I could cast it on Asylum Visitor without killing the dragon. If I only have one out, I could double up the damage with Goggles or Harness and kill nearly every creature being played.
I also think I'm gonna take out one or two of those Mortuary Mires and replace them with Blighted Fens. (Confession, I meant those to be Fens in the first place, but I can see the benefit of having both; probably not as 4-ofs though.)
I think that you could do without the Mind Rot and Touch of the Void, in their places I would suggest Roast and Fiery Temper. (maybe also Ultimate Price)
I feel that the Corrupted Grafstone isn't going to get you anything most of the time unless you can open the first turn with Duress, and that just isn't likely. But I do think you can run Dragonlord's Servant to provide that turn three avaricious dragon you're looking for, but I think the deck would be better just not depending on it. I think having more control cards would be better because you're running so few creatures.
In fact, I would lean the whole design more towards red, and have only the necessary black cards in the cheap spectrum of cards as well as the very late in the game expensive card spectrum. One card that recently caught my eye as a finisher for control is Remorseless Punishment (Not recommending just pointing it out.) If you gear towards red primarily, you'll get more consistency with the goggles and simplify your mana base.
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The red mage lives by the variance and dies by the variance. May the variance be with you, always.
I can see what you're saying. When I imagine playing the deck, I don't really think about attacking. I think about sitting back, drawing a bunch of cards, and burning my opponent down. To facilitate that, I'm likely to mainboard Chandra's Ignition and move something else to the sideboard.
I'm against Roast at least in the main board, because it only hits creatures. Since I'm looking to burn my opponent down and not clear the way for an attack, I'm not likely to go the Roast route. At least not in the main board. If my FNM meta means I need Roast, I'll definitely find a spot for it.
An early version of the deck had Fiery Temper in it, but when I added in Harness the Storm, I took it out because Madness doesn't play nice with it.
Harness the Storm is also why I'll likely keep Corrupted Grafstone in instead of switching to Dragonlord's Servant. That's a GREAT suggestion by the way. I'm coming back to Magic after missing nearly the last decade, so I didn't know that card existed. Since I'm running Harness the Storm, I want to have as much mana out as possible, so I can take advantage of those multiple casts. I also don't mind adding in another 1 drop like Insolent Neonate to support it. Having a 1 drop to chump block isn't a bad idea. Plus he can enable my Grafstone.
I also like the hand destruction in the deck. Not only does it have the potential to clear out threats from my opponent's hands, but it also can enable more card draw through Asylum Visitor.
Thanks for the feedback. It helps me to think through the choices I've made and either justify them or change. Very helpful.
its not anywhere near budget friendly but If you want playable hand disruption over mind rot ( not a standard playable card) then I suggest kolagan's command. is good hand disruption adds removal to reduce your reliance on the burn and gives you answers to other artifacts such as goggles and hedron crawlers/archives. also I personally don't like touch of the void for efficiency reason. even without madness fiery temper is almost always better because its an instant, although the exile clause comes in handy.
I love the core of deck, comboing asylum visitor with avaricious dragon is genius original and powerful, but even though you do have a lot of card draw since you have to pitch your hand to the dragon every turn you want to be more aggressive, a tempo deck where you tap out every turn. not trying to win going wide with many creatures but on just being fast disruptive and gaining tempo and card advantage the longer the deck goes.
other really good options that seem to me worth testing are fiery impulse ( cheap removal that's good with a full grave) pick the brains ( budget option that still better than mind rot) transgress the mind (same)and infinite obliteration ( once there hand is empty attack there library and goblin dark-dwellers for a good secondary finisher that adds value for your full grave
for lands I would try drownyard temple as even more ramp that loses you no slots
the dragon should finish games fast and the removal; and hand disruption should keep your opponent off balance long enough to seal the deal. I may build and test this.
"Please don't disillusion me. I haven't had breakfast yet."
-Children of the Mind
to whom it may concern: i apologize in advance for any gspelling or grammar errors in py posts. for some reason i am just not as
good at tyoing or proofreading as i would like to be
Everything you've said is true. When I do settle down and buy this deck, I will have to keep budget in mind since I can't in good conscience throw a ton of money at it and monopolize my family's income lol. I will defend a couple of things though.
With Avaricious Dragon, being an instant isn't a bonus over being a sorcery since I have to dump my hand each turn anyway. That's the main reason I didn't go with Fiery Temper instead of Touch of the Void. I do bat around the idea of Draconic Roar in the main deck since I am Dragon-centric.
The only reason I picked Mind Rot was because it hits the most cards for the least mana. Combined with Harness the Storm it can wreck a whole hand. Realisitcally, in games when I get to double (or triple) Mind Rot, it'll be later in the game and I'll only need to hit 2 cards, not 6. I'm sure it'll take some playtesting. It's something I'll check out.
I might check out Downyard Temple. I suppose I could technically toss it to Molten Vortex just to get it back as ramp later.
here would be my starting list if I was to test it
( touch of the void actually is better in here over fiery temper because instant speed offers no advantage since you go hell-bent EOT and it is slightly easier on the mana
"Please don't disillusion me. I haven't had breakfast yet."
-Children of the Mind
to whom it may concern: i apologize in advance for any gspelling or grammar errors in py posts. for some reason i am just not as
good at tyoing or proofreading as i would like to be
Interestingly, I was running over this deck in my head today, and I decided to take the goggles out. I also think Draconic Roar will be moved mainboard along with Chandra's Ignition. I'll update the list at the top.
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Individually, these cards can net some serious draws. Together, it's insane. Pair that with some hand destruction and you can draw even more cards. In this version of the deck, I decided to add in some ramp to dive into the Dragon as soon as possible. I also decided to use Harness the Storm to do something with all that extra mana when I have it. An early iteration of this deck used madness cards to deal some cheap damage, but they don't play nice with Harness, so I swapped to more conventional cards. Theoretically, that will work fine since there's a lot of mana.
**Edited to reflect current build**
4 Asylum Visitor
4 Avaricious Dragon
4 Hedron Crawler
2 Insolent Neonate
Sorceries 15
4 Duress
4 Exquisite Firecraft
4 Mind Rot
3 Chandra's Ignition
4 Draconic Roar
Enchantments 5
2 Harness the Storm
3 Molten Vortex
Artifacts 2
2 Corrupted Grafstone
Lands 20
4 Foreboding Ruins
3 Mortuary Mire
3 Blighted Fen
7 Mountain
3 Swamp
4 Crumble to Dust
4 Structural Distortion
This deck wants to shove that dragon out there as soon as possible. Even if it means discarding instants and sorceries. It's ok. You'll get to cast them again. After you you've got the dragon out, and possibly Asylum Visitor, you'll be getting a ton of cards.
(Goggles are now removed from the deck Ver 3)
Either of these cards are gonna give you some great extra casts. They will do it even better together.
Molten Vortex is such a great card in this deck. Drawing multiple cards per turn, you can expect to have multiple land draws. Being able to salvage those as Shocks will make you feel so much better.
The side board is set up to deal with heavy creature decks and decks that are stretching their mana bases. But honestly, it's a sideboard. It can be whatever needs to be addressed. (Ver 3 I'm not sure what i'll put in the SB to replace what's been taken out. Maybe something like Foul-Tongue Invocation)
Corrupted Grafstone really needs Duress with it in the opening hand to be effective. It might warrant putting in another 1 drop to facilitate the mana ramp. Perhaps Insolent Neonate?
2 seems to be the perfect number of Pyromancer's Goggles. Since we're shooting for a 3rd turn Avaricious Dragon, you don't really want it in the opening hand. Also, if you have a Asylum Visitor by itself, drawing a 2nd Goggles will really mess up your hellbent drawing.
Harness the Storm seems really good in this deck. However, since you don't want it early (you won't have any instants/sorceries in the GY yet), it also doesn't feel like something you want in your opening hand. 2 feels like a good number for that too.
I also feel like I might need a sweeper in some matchups. I'm thinking maybe something like Boiling Earth or Chandra's Fury to just hit my opponent's creatures, and rely on Goggles or Harness the Storm to double it. Chandra's Ignition could possibly be a better option. Cast on either of my creatures (not counting Hedron Crawler) that should be enough to sweep most creature heavy decks. Plus I could cast it on Asylum Visitor without killing the dragon. If I only have one out, I could double up the damage with Goggles or Harness and kill nearly every creature being played.
I also think I'm gonna take out one or two of those Mortuary Mires and replace them with Blighted Fens. (Confession, I meant those to be Fens in the first place, but I can see the benefit of having both; probably not as 4-ofs though.)
I feel that the Corrupted Grafstone isn't going to get you anything most of the time unless you can open the first turn with Duress, and that just isn't likely. But I do think you can run Dragonlord's Servant to provide that turn three avaricious dragon you're looking for, but I think the deck would be better just not depending on it. I think having more control cards would be better because you're running so few creatures.
In fact, I would lean the whole design more towards red, and have only the necessary black cards in the cheap spectrum of cards as well as the very late in the game expensive card spectrum. One card that recently caught my eye as a finisher for control is Remorseless Punishment (Not recommending just pointing it out.) If you gear towards red primarily, you'll get more consistency with the goggles and simplify your mana base.
I'm against Roast at least in the main board, because it only hits creatures. Since I'm looking to burn my opponent down and not clear the way for an attack, I'm not likely to go the Roast route. At least not in the main board. If my FNM meta means I need Roast, I'll definitely find a spot for it.
An early version of the deck had Fiery Temper in it, but when I added in Harness the Storm, I took it out because Madness doesn't play nice with it.
Harness the Storm is also why I'll likely keep Corrupted Grafstone in instead of switching to Dragonlord's Servant. That's a GREAT suggestion by the way. I'm coming back to Magic after missing nearly the last decade, so I didn't know that card existed. Since I'm running Harness the Storm, I want to have as much mana out as possible, so I can take advantage of those multiple casts. I also don't mind adding in another 1 drop like Insolent Neonate to support it. Having a 1 drop to chump block isn't a bad idea. Plus he can enable my Grafstone.
I also like the hand destruction in the deck. Not only does it have the potential to clear out threats from my opponent's hands, but it also can enable more card draw through Asylum Visitor.
Thanks for the feedback. It helps me to think through the choices I've made and either justify them or change. Very helpful.
I love the core of deck, comboing asylum visitor with avaricious dragon is genius original and powerful, but even though you do have a lot of card draw since you have to pitch your hand to the dragon every turn you want to be more aggressive, a tempo deck where you tap out every turn. not trying to win going wide with many creatures but on just being fast disruptive and gaining tempo and card advantage the longer the deck goes.
other really good options that seem to me worth testing are fiery impulse ( cheap removal that's good with a full grave) pick the brains ( budget option that still better than mind rot) transgress the mind (same)and infinite obliteration ( once there hand is empty attack there library and goblin dark-dwellers for a good secondary finisher that adds value for your full grave
for lands I would try drownyard temple as even more ramp that loses you no slots
the dragon should finish games fast and the removal; and hand disruption should keep your opponent off balance long enough to seal the deal. I may build and test this.
Click here for free Mudholes
to whom it may concern: i apologize in advance for any gspelling or grammar errors in py posts. for some reason i am just not as
good at tyoing or proofreading as i would like to be
With Avaricious Dragon, being an instant isn't a bonus over being a sorcery since I have to dump my hand each turn anyway. That's the main reason I didn't go with Fiery Temper instead of Touch of the Void. I do bat around the idea of Draconic Roar in the main deck since I am Dragon-centric.
The only reason I picked Mind Rot was because it hits the most cards for the least mana. Combined with Harness the Storm it can wreck a whole hand. Realisitcally, in games when I get to double (or triple) Mind Rot, it'll be later in the game and I'll only need to hit 2 cards, not 6. I'm sure it'll take some playtesting. It's something I'll check out.
I might check out Downyard Temple. I suppose I could technically toss it to Molten Vortex just to get it back as ramp later.
( touch of the void actually is better in here over fiery temper because instant speed offers no advantage since you go hell-bent EOT and it is slightly easier on the mana
4 avaricious dragon
2 thunderbreak regent
2 goblin dark-dwellers
4 fiery impulse
2 duress
4 transgress the mind
2 touch of the void
2 pick the brain
2 pyromancer's goggles
4 draconic roar
3 Exquisite Firecraft
1 fall of the titan
4 smoldering marsh
10 mountain
7 swamp
I would also test the more expesnive options of Chandra, Flamecaller and kolaghan's command in place of the pick the brain and exquisite firecraft probably.
Click here for free Mudholes
to whom it may concern: i apologize in advance for any gspelling or grammar errors in py posts. for some reason i am just not as
good at tyoing or proofreading as i would like to be