It's rough. I know but in general I'm trying to drop early game token style creatures to die off under a journey to eternity. At the same time I want to ramp land and dump cards in the grave with robber.
It's complex and honestly I'm not sure it's any good.
Could do a mardu list that makes use of more self sufficient creatures. Plus that color pairing gives far more ways to have things die incidentally via cards like Slaughter the Strong and Cataclysmic Gearhulk that can also help deal with opposing threats when setting up. Plus red gives access to Rekindling Phoenix, which is a solid mid-range flier capable of being a decent defender and helping hold the fort while building up.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I've been testing in Green/Black, which could take another color (I'm thinking Jund might be a good way to go).
Here's the BIG dilemma with this type of deck:
0. Sacrifice outlets
1. Have solid reanimation targets
2. Solid ETB effects
3. Hold-off aggro or midrange decks
Look at the perfect setup, and you start reanimating on turn 5 at best. It's ungodly slow since you're playing zero counter magic or disruption of any kind, you're letting the opponent develop and totally run over you for the first FOUR turns.
3. can be accomplished with ETB which gains you life.
Journey to Eternity is highly questionable in Standard. I want to love this card, but I just cannot make it consistently work.
Land base is just vanilla, if the deck has any chance to do anything, it can be perfected. I'm running quite a few creatures with Explore in order to dump stuff into the graveyard and get to Journey to Eternity faster, ditto with Benefaction of Rhonas, which is the only decent graveyard filler in green, which also fetches Journey to Eternity. Ravenous Chupacabra and Noxious Gearhulk are ways to kill opponent creatures, but after testing, don't get too excited since it's sloooooooow. Filigree Familiar and Arborback Stomper are ways to gain life - Familiar also draws us a card when it dies, which is quite nice, especially when sac'ed to Bontu. Yahenni, Undying Partisan and Bontu the Glorified are the sac outlets. Vicious Conquistador is just a one-drop, Narnam Renegade is another option.
This deck is very weak to flyers, so a few things probably need to be tweaked.
Back in the days of BG Delirium, this would have been fantastic. It just comes too late to the party I think to make a tier1 deck. Deck is fun to play though.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I think this deck needs ways to fill the yard faster. Like someone said, sac outlets of some sort. Ruthless knave could be a great one as well. Sac a creature, get some treasures, etc.
Also, with ruthless knave, you can then run things like Renegade rallier and green wheel liberator. Being able to sac a treasure to trigger revolt then use that mana to cast a renegade then pull a revolted 4/3 green wheel out of the yard is a strong line.
Edit: Deck is weak to fliers, good thing plummet is standard legal next week.
Edit#2. The world shaper could be really solid here as well. It dies and any lands Lilly put into the yard come into play. Not too shabby. This deck has lots of interesting options. I've been on sultai reanimator but am gonna spend some time on this tonight.
2x Tetzimoc, Primal Death
4x Tomb Robber
2x World Shaper
4x Zetalpa, Primal Dawn
Sorceries (8)
4x Enter the Unknown
4x Servo Exhibition
4x Blossoming Defense
4x Fatal Push
Planeswalkers (2)
2x Liliana, Death's Majesty
Enchantments (8)
4x Journey to Eternity
4x Legion's Landing
4x Blooming Marsh
4x Concealed Courtyard
4x Forest
4x Plains
2x Sunpetal Grove
4x Swamp
It's rough. I know but in general I'm trying to drop early game token style creatures to die off under a journey to eternity. At the same time I want to ramp land and dump cards in the grave with robber.
It's complex and honestly I'm not sure it's any good.
Thoughts?
I'd say for reanimation going Jund might be better given how strong the removal is right now in black. Ravenous Chupacabra, reaver ambush, vraska's contempt, and moment of craving are all decent removal right now. I still yearn for the days we had Hero's Downfall as a card, but until those days get revisited this is what black has outside Fatal Push. Also Thrashing Brontodon exists as a way to help flip Journey to Eternity. Red gives you access to Combustable Gearhulk and Etali, Primal Storm. I think that going blue might be a good option as well since that gives access to Nezahal, Primal Tide, which can flicker itself if you have the cards in hand. That and blue card draw is always good.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Here's the BIG dilemma with this type of deck:
0. Sacrifice outlets
1. Have solid reanimation targets
2. Solid ETB effects
3. Hold-off aggro or midrange decks
Look at the perfect setup, and you start reanimating on turn 5 at best. It's ungodly slow since you're playing zero counter magic or disruption of any kind, you're letting the opponent develop and totally run over you for the first FOUR turns.
3. can be accomplished with ETB which gains you life.
Journey to Eternity is highly questionable in Standard. I want to love this card, but I just cannot make it consistently work.
Here's the list I'm currently working with:
# 24 LANDS
4 Blooming Marsh
10 Forest
10 Swamp
# 28 CREATURES
4 Vicious Conquistador
3 Merfolk Branchwalker
3 Skymarch Bloodletter
2 Bontu the Glorified
4 Filigree Familiar
3 Arborback Stomper
2 Noxious Gearhulk
4 Ravenous Chupacabra
3 Yahenni, Undying Partisan
# 8 Others
4 Benefaction of Rhonas
4 Journey to Eternity
>>>
Land base is just vanilla, if the deck has any chance to do anything, it can be perfected. I'm running quite a few creatures with Explore in order to dump stuff into the graveyard and get to Journey to Eternity faster, ditto with Benefaction of Rhonas, which is the only decent graveyard filler in green, which also fetches Journey to Eternity.
Ravenous Chupacabra and Noxious Gearhulk are ways to kill opponent creatures, but after testing, don't get too excited since it's sloooooooow. Filigree Familiar and Arborback Stomper are ways to gain life - Familiar also draws us a card when it dies, which is quite nice, especially when sac'ed to Bontu.
Yahenni, Undying Partisan and Bontu the Glorified are the sac outlets.
Vicious Conquistador is just a one-drop, Narnam Renegade is another option.
This deck is very weak to flyers, so a few things probably need to be tweaked.
Back in the days of BG Delirium, this would have been fantastic. It just comes too late to the party I think to make a tier1 deck. Deck is fun to play though.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
Also, with ruthless knave, you can then run things like Renegade rallier and green wheel liberator. Being able to sac a treasure to trigger revolt then use that mana to cast a renegade then pull a revolted 4/3 green wheel out of the yard is a strong line.
Edit: Deck is weak to fliers, good thing plummet is standard legal next week.
Edit#2. The world shaper could be really solid here as well. It dies and any lands Lilly put into the yard come into play. Not too shabby. This deck has lots of interesting options. I've been on sultai reanimator but am gonna spend some time on this tonight.