I understood it. He's saying on Aoi's Orzhov build on page 7, that the only cards he lacked, besides Godless Shrines, were the Agent of the Fates. He then dicusses that the deck drawing/playing is tough with creatures that require 2 white or 2 black mana's. I.E- FiendSlayer Paladin, Agent of the Fates, NightHowler, Fabled Hero. In the tournament I was in, I got screwed when I had two plains & one swamp mana, and the card in my hand were Agent, Nighthowler, Gift of Orzhov, Ethereal Armor, Gods Willing. Could not get any creatures out
Bingo.
Tried it out tonight in casual games: Games where I only had three drops killed me, amd often I lost them if I didn't drop them a turn later for protection. When I got Hoplite/Hopeful things went well. It's a similar similar situation with my W/r: the one-drops run the show. I tried Boon of Erebos and it worked well: most people had never seen it and had to read it.
Actually played a Rakdos Aggro that used madcap skills, Spike Jester, Tymaret, and Ash Zealots. It also ran a few ultimate prices, doomblades, and lightning strikes. It went 4-1 for third place. I'm going to rethink the list I put up and see if it's viable to run Agents with auras/triggers instead of all the removal.
The last variants I want to test are W/u, B/R, and Mono-White. I'll be trying W/u next week.
@Dave Maybe one more Gods Willing to protect your creatures. Mizzium skin is also a good choice against removal if you are keen on using it either side/main board.
4 Favored Hoplite
4 Soldier of the Pantheon
4 Battlewise Hopelite
4 Phalanx Leader
3 Banisher Priest
4 Aqueous Form
3 Ordeal of Heliod
4 Ordeal of Thassa
4 Gods Willing
4 Triton Tactics
3 Azorious Guildgate
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple of Triumph
5 Plains
6 Island
First off I think the 8 protection spells are crucial. I will often wait till turn 2 with a one drop or turn 3 with a 2 drop so I can play them alongside protection spells. If you can survive an encounter with the first removal spell your usually good to go.
The Ordeals are VERY good. Often times enchanting SotP (Soldier of the Pantheon) is the right call if you know their removal suite is based on multicolored cards. Ordeal of Thassa is like this decks Thoughcast. Ordeal of Heliod is used primarily for heroic and the boost in stats but the 10 life has been crucial for racing opposing aggro decks.
Don"t knock Aqueous Form, it can be ridiculous. It's better than Ethereal Armor and doesn't give enough reason to play it in addition. Don't forget Ordeals don't stay in play. If there was a way to make WUR work then it could compliment Chained to the Rocks.
Niv Magus Elemental would play amazingly with Akron Crusaders. I like that you can play all removal as your heroic triggers as long as Niv Magus can exile them on the stack.
you gonna play with 7 third drops (with difficult costs) and only 20 lands? not the best idea, imo...
The Orzhov build on page 7 which I similarly used, utilize nineteen three drops with 21 lands. FNM I went 3-2. 2 of those losses, were 1-2. I also mentioned that I did not use my sideboard properly against those losses, not including Boon of E against deck that utilizes a lot of removals & not adding ratchet bomb against rat pack tokens.
So I don't think it's that bad with 7 third drops. I do however plan to modify this deck some more because I may want Mizzium skin as mainboard to protect my creatures, as well as possibly taking out ethereal armor in favor of Swift Justice.
Thanks Dave for your report. I think W/U biggest concern is indeed removals, with getting our creatures/with enchantments remove with ease unless Gods/Mizzium. I was thinking of ditching the Ethereal Armor in favor if swift justice. Cheap, heroic enabler with lifelink/firststrike. I think 3-4 Fabled Hero is a must. A viable threat if not taken care of.
Maybe a sidedeck of having Gift of Immortality? It doesn't trigger Heroic when the creature dies each time, but against Control, they may have a hard time dealing with this.
I do love Ethereal Armor in the B/W since I can use Orzhov Charm to bounce creature with Enchantments if I don't have Gods Willing in hand or force to sacrifice creature in response to it.
Yeah, Blue has a bunch of great instants. The only auras I'll run 100% will be Aqueous Form and I may run a couple Ordeal of Thassas... but if I drop the Ethereals I'll have to rethink my Hopefuls. Perhaps Judge's Familiar or Cloudfin Raptors?
Also, I run five three-drops with 22 Land in my W/r and I do fine.
Yeah, Blue has a bunch of great instants. The only auras I'll run 100% will be Aqueous Form and I may run a couple Ordeal of Thassas... but if I drop the Ethereals I'll have to rethink my Hopefuls. Perhaps Judge's Familiar or Cloudfin Raptors?
Also, I run five three-drops with 22 Land in my W/r and I do fine.
I think Judge's Familiar. Delays opponent's removal spells an extra turn. Yeah, if we're not using Ethereal Armor in W/U, then we should cut Hopeful Eidolon since those two benefit together well with each other.
My sideboard is currently a wreck, so I didn't list it (I haven't had time to fix it!). I fall on the side of not using Ethereal Armor. With Strings active I never have a problem getting gigantic creatures in a hurry. Also, Gridlock for me ends up being a win condition depending on the situation. Have any of you given thought to Wavecrash Triton to tap down blockers pre combat? I have it in my board and he's been a champ against aggro.
Four Anax, as a legendary creature, may be too much. I'd drop at least one, and consider Legion Loyalist somewhere. I think 1-2 Legion Loyalist would be nice for your deck.
I'm not a big fan of Dauntless Onslaught, but your experience may vary. If Dauntless seems to be a dead-draw mot of the time, Madcap Skills (evasion) and Titan's Strength (cheap, scry). You lose a second target with either card, and Madcap doesn't give well with Young Pyromancer, but they're worth considering.
How's your balance between plaisn and mountains working for you, by the way? I realize it'll look different should you get shocks/scrylands.
Slightly off topic, but I've always wanted to do something similar to your deck with Purphoros and an Assemble the Legion, or maybed Murder King Tymaret.
I'm going to try Orzhov Heroes again in friday tournament, though in the afternoon, since I have other commitments night time. Should have at least 4 matches. Was going to try W/U Heroics, but I still need to tinker it some more. Hopefully some of you post your results on your decks.
Let me know how that goes, and if you've trimmed any of the 3-Drops.
Facing too much removal in my local meta. Among other factors, a couple people that I've droped in T3-T4 before seem to account for me now, and I haven't had a good run with my W/r the last couple of weeks.
Let me know how that goes, and if you've trimmed any of the 3-Drops.
Facing too much removal in my local meta. Among other factors, a couple people that I've droped in T3-T4 before seem to account for me now, and I haven't had a good run with my W/r the last couple of weeks.
Nope, didn't do well this time :P. There was only 6 people(holidays I guess), so only had 3 matches. I still used Duress and one godless shrine.
1st Round: Me vs Simic(1-2). I think what hurt me was again, lacked to use sideboard. I was unfamiliar with the creatures he used, and he told me after the matches, that I should have added ratchet bomb, since majority of his creatures are two mana, and can't protect himself from ratchet bomb. He swarmed me a bit match #3. The one I won was Agent of the Fates as it took out his boon satyr & flash monsters. Agent is deadly.
2nd Round - Me vs Black splashed white(0-2) Another tough match. His deck has about 15+ removals and I just felt overwhelmed. What really killed me, was having three agent of the fates in my hand, with 2 plains and 1 swamp on the field. I side deck Sin Collector, Boon of Erebos, didn't see Sin Collector in my hand in the next matches, but managed to use boon of erebos when he least expected. Still lost, because he had that Baron out, and the only way this deck can actually even manage to kill it is Agent of the Fates, no other cards in the deck has an answer to him unless I had thoughtseize before hand(which I don't).
3rd Round - Me vs Green splash red devotion:(1-2). Another tough match. He just overwhelmed me turned 3, using burn-tree/Sylvan & elvish mystic and from there manage to summon high cost monsters. Match 2, I sided in Ratchet bomb and that bomb'd his 2 mana creatures, and won that match when I pumped favored Hoplite with Ethereal Armors. Match 3: No ratchet bomb draw, I mulligan because only had 1 land in hand. I again was overwhelmed with creatures.
So 0-3. I did manage to trade in a Sphinx Revelation for 3x Godless Shrine, which will help immensely. I just need temple of silence & thoughtseize and to utilize my sidedeck better. I am disappointed by this outcome, but I had fun in the end, and a good preperation for next week FNM's.
Now maybe I do believe nineteen 3-drops is a bit too much ;P. Not sure what I would cut though. I'm going to stick with it for now, but if I see some card that would help, i'll tinker it a bit.
I'd say splashing colors adds a nice flavor. Red and blue get nice enablers. Black seems too clunky at the moment and I've no comment on green.
As far as enchantment vs instants go: it all depends on how you want play and on the colors that your use.
Ethereal Armor's a staple if you go the enchantment route, and if you splash red Madcap Skills is a greta threat.
I think Blue and Red have the best instants: Red for damage, and blue for manipulation.
And how does straight up mono white fare? Has anyone tested this?
Personally I dont like Enchantment Auras and the risk of being 2-1, too risky imo, unless of course the aura is being attached to a hexproof guy. That would be awesome if we got some sort of hexproof 2 color heroic guy (ok maybe that might be a little OP depending on costs)
I think Im gonna start mono white. then buy the cards for blue and white and mess around till I find what I like
Personally I have the opinion that if you're going to make a Voltron with enchantments you might as well play a Hexproof deck.
Problem with running 2 colours is Phalanx leader. The only way I can get Turn 1 Akroan Crusader > Turn 2 Leader is with a Sacred Foundry, which I don't have online. That said, its the most nutty draw there is if you can follow up with a 2-targeter like Dauntless Onslaught.
I would say look at your meta. With lots of green and white decks around, go for WR, because its more explosive and can create much bigger boardstates. If you want a little more consistent deck with more protection/scrying, go for blue, as I think thats a little less vulnerable to removal-laden hands.
Im not much of a tournament guy, simply due to my location and transportation situation
My "meta" if anything is my playgroup of friends
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How am I an Ascended Mage? I only play tabletop casual, and I dont even know if I'm playing the game correctly
So the above list got me a nice 0-4 at my last FNM ... BUT! I was able to get some more cards to help fill out my deck appropriately. I also made a few changes and completely fixed my sideboard. Here's the update:
There is a ton of Mono Black Dev getting run in my meta, hence the preponderance of protections in the main board. I am also thinking of changing the land base a little since I have more double white costs.
I'll have to scope out the W/R version you're all talking about to see if I can have any more success with it.
So the above list got me a nice 0-4 at my last FNM ... BUT! I was able to get some more cards to help fill out my deck appropriately. I also made a few changes and completely fixed my sideboard. Here's the update:
There is a ton of Mono Black Dev getting run in my meta, hence the preponderance of protections in the main board. I am also thinking of changing the land base a little since I have more double white costs.
I'll have to scope out the W/R version you're all talking about to see if I can have any more success with it.
Dalix
I run the W/r enchanents, and it's been difficult facing control decks or decks with a lot of removal. I've been thinking of dropping my two Ajani for two Brave the Elements. Dimilar evasion, sans double attack, but more protection. I'll post what I'm running when I get the chance.
Your decklist looks a lot like what I've been working on, with the exception of a Fabled Hero Playset: I've a Fortune Hunter and Bident. Tried it in three casual matches and it played well, but I've not seen any of the aforementioned cards.
OK, the updated and much more heavily Boros deck. I'm finding this one is much more able to "go wide" but less able to punch single creatures through than the W(r) Enchantment version.
Just curious what people think of this set up. I'm not 100% sold on the balance of the enablers right now. I'm tempted to drop Madcap skills in there, but I'm unsure what to take out to do that.
Not sure how I feel about Akroan Hoplite. You may benefit more from Battalion creatures (Daring Skyjek comes to mind), or maybe Young Pyromancer if you want to better commit to the swarm theme.
Imo, enchantments are best if you focus on pumping a single creature more than the token-swarm aspect of heroics. The downside to enchantments, as has bene mentuoned, is getting 2-for-1'd. You'll know which way you want to sway with more
I'm honestly considering dropping either the Phalanx Leaders or the Fabled Hero's (or splitting 2/2) due to the double white CC. Going with Fortune Hunters may be the way to go since I dropped the Ordeals (just too ... meh). I love the Braves in the board, lots of options. One of the big problems I'm running into (that I've notice just playing it out myself) is card draw and that annoying WW CC. Daxos is in there just for kicks essentially. With any luck I can get *something* with him. We'll see.
I agree with you on pulling Ajani. W/U seems to be more about getting a threat out and keeping it out with a handful of protection. If that's the thought process Brave is the way to go
This is the deck I'm considering running Brave the Elements over Ajani. I've ran this mock-up for four weeks, each week its performance getting worse due to the meta/sideboard changes.
If my threats aren't answered by T3 or T4 i can usually pull a win, but people are quick to catch on. I'm unsure how to adjust it other than trying for more protection, or maybe switching back to instants over enchantments.
I found 4x Fabled Hero to be too much. I removed two and added a couple Boros Reckoners, which provide defense and utility for a more-managable mana cost. I'll swap either of them with Fiendslayers as-needed.
Tried Heliod himself, but a 4-drop can be a pain in this deck. I usually don't have enough Devotion/mana to keep him online/get his tokens, otherwise the Vig is neat. I really wanted to drop him with Ajani the next turn but it never played out.
These are the 2 heroic decks I have been testing out on Cockatrice. They both seem quite fun. Maybe not so budget oriented but still fun. I can put together about 80% of each deck IRL so I could theoretically make them if I wanted. Just wanted to share my thoughts on them
This one sometimes takes a while to get going (unless you get eidolon along with a couple armors and something else and the lands to play them) but I usually am able to stabilize before dying and start making them sac creatures, killing them outright, stripping threats from their hands and/or make the life swings too much for them. I find that any of the heroic creatures with an armor and a gift of orzhova is usually too much for them to handle. Consistently beats the deck below. I did get wrecked by a monoU devotion deck, but post board was able to beat him out. Those tokens just are too hard to kill without any sweepers or instant speed removal.
This deck is fun yet takes a lot of thought. You have to remember a lot of triggers. I dont find it has the explosiveness of the aura heroic decks, but I am usually able to beat a UW aura heroic deck post s/b. Have to use banisher to get rid of threats, and D-sphere on others. Once you have a hoplite or Daxos armed with an aqueous form and any other type of spell it gets out of hand. your scrying, drawing, tapping, untapping, scrying some more, gaining life, sometimes its just too much to handle. but still very fun. Not quite as good as Heroic Life-gain but also quite a bit more budget than it.
All in all, I am really liking the heroic decks. I tried mono W and RW token but they just didnt seem to work for me. Anyway, those are my thoughts.
Anyone have any suggestions on what to change in either of them? I do find that both decks ( UW especially) are lacking in ways to get rid of threats on the board. Most times its very situational with removal. UW really only has soft removal preboard. And BW relies on heroic triggers.
That's the heroic B/W i'm running as well antiping, but no thoughtseize just duress for the time being. I'm not sure about including Murder Investigation & Dying Wish for the B/W deck. Have to play test it, wouldn't know what to get rid of though.
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Bingo.
Tried it out tonight in casual games: Games where I only had three drops killed me, amd often I lost them if I didn't drop them a turn later for protection. When I got Hoplite/Hopeful things went well. It's a similar similar situation with my W/r: the one-drops run the show. I tried Boon of Erebos and it worked well: most people had never seen it and had to read it.
Actually played a Rakdos Aggro that used madcap skills, Spike Jester, Tymaret, and Ash Zealots. It also ran a few ultimate prices, doomblades, and lightning strikes. It went 4-1 for third place. I'm going to rethink the list I put up and see if it's viable to run Agents with auras/triggers instead of all the removal.
The last variants I want to test are W/u, B/R, and Mono-White. I'll be trying W/u next week.
4 Favored Hoplite
4 Soldier of the Pantheon
4 Battlewise Hopelite
4 Phalanx Leader
3 Banisher Priest
4 Aqueous Form
3 Ordeal of Heliod
4 Ordeal of Thassa
4 Gods Willing
4 Triton Tactics
3 Azorious Guildgate
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Temple of Triumph
5 Plains
6 Island
First off I think the 8 protection spells are crucial. I will often wait till turn 2 with a one drop or turn 3 with a 2 drop so I can play them alongside protection spells. If you can survive an encounter with the first removal spell your usually good to go.
The Ordeals are VERY good. Often times enchanting SotP (Soldier of the Pantheon) is the right call if you know their removal suite is based on multicolored cards. Ordeal of Thassa is like this decks Thoughcast. Ordeal of Heliod is used primarily for heroic and the boost in stats but the 10 life has been crucial for racing opposing aggro decks.
Don"t knock Aqueous Form, it can be ridiculous. It's better than Ethereal Armor and doesn't give enough reason to play it in addition. Don't forget Ordeals don't stay in play. If there was a way to make WUR work then it could compliment Chained to the Rocks.
Brave the Elements doesn't target.
There is no good foil for Supreme Verdict.
Ideas?
you gonna play with 7 third drops (with difficult costs) and only 20 lands? not the best idea, imo...
The Orzhov build on page 7 which I similarly used, utilize nineteen three drops with 21 lands. FNM I went 3-2. 2 of those losses, were 1-2. I also mentioned that I did not use my sideboard properly against those losses, not including Boon of E against deck that utilizes a lot of removals & not adding ratchet bomb against rat pack tokens.
So I don't think it's that bad with 7 third drops. I do however plan to modify this deck some more because I may want Mizzium skin as mainboard to protect my creatures, as well as possibly taking out ethereal armor in favor of Swift Justice.
Maybe a sidedeck of having Gift of Immortality? It doesn't trigger Heroic when the creature dies each time, but against Control, they may have a hard time dealing with this.
I do love Ethereal Armor in the B/W since I can use Orzhov Charm to bounce creature with Enchantments if I don't have Gods Willing in hand or force to sacrifice creature in response to it.
Also, I run five three-drops with 22 Land in my W/r and I do fine.
I think Judge's Familiar. Delays opponent's removal spells an extra turn. Yeah, if we're not using Ethereal Armor in W/U, then we should cut Hopeful Eidolon since those two benefit together well with each other.
Here's the List
4 Favored Hoplite
4 Judge's Familiar
2 Triton Fortune Hunter
4 Phalanx Leader
3 Fabled Hero
4 Battlewise Hoplite
Spells(11)
3 Hidden Strings
4 Gods Willing
4 Triton Tactics
4 Aqueous Form
2 Thassa, God of the Sea
1 Bident of Thassa
Land(21)
4 Hallowed Fountain
2 Azorius Guildgate
8 Plains
7 Island
2 Detention Sphere
2 Daxos of Meletis
4 Mizzium Skin
4 Azorius Charm
1 Rootborn Defenses
2 Banisher Priest
4 Favored Hoplite
2 Artisan of Forms
2 Omenspeakers
4 Phalanx Leader
4 Fabled Hero
4 Battlewise Hoplite
4 Hidden Strings
4 Gods Willing
4 Aqueous Form
3 Ordeal of Thassa
3 Gridlock
4 Hallowed Fountain
9 Plains
9 Island
My sideboard is currently a wreck, so I didn't list it (I haven't had time to fix it!). I fall on the side of not using Ethereal Armor. With Strings active I never have a problem getting gigantic creatures in a hurry. Also, Gridlock for me ends up being a win condition depending on the situation. Have any of you given thought to Wavecrash Triton to tap down blockers pre combat? I have it in my board and he's been a champ against aggro.
Dalix
I'm not a big fan of Dauntless Onslaught, but your experience may vary. If Dauntless seems to be a dead-draw mot of the time, Madcap Skills (evasion) and Titan's Strength (cheap, scry). You lose a second target with either card, and Madcap doesn't give well with Young Pyromancer, but they're worth considering.
How's your balance between plaisn and mountains working for you, by the way? I realize it'll look different should you get shocks/scrylands.
Slightly off topic, but I've always wanted to do something similar to your deck with Purphoros and an Assemble the Legion, or maybed Murder King Tymaret.
Facing too much removal in my local meta. Among other factors, a couple people that I've droped in T3-T4 before seem to account for me now, and I haven't had a good run with my W/r the last couple of weeks.
Nope, didn't do well this time :P. There was only 6 people(holidays I guess), so only had 3 matches. I still used Duress and one godless shrine.
1st Round: Me vs Simic(1-2). I think what hurt me was again, lacked to use sideboard. I was unfamiliar with the creatures he used, and he told me after the matches, that I should have added ratchet bomb, since majority of his creatures are two mana, and can't protect himself from ratchet bomb. He swarmed me a bit match #3. The one I won was Agent of the Fates as it took out his boon satyr & flash monsters. Agent is deadly.
2nd Round - Me vs Black splashed white(0-2) Another tough match. His deck has about 15+ removals and I just felt overwhelmed. What really killed me, was having three agent of the fates in my hand, with 2 plains and 1 swamp on the field. I side deck Sin Collector, Boon of Erebos, didn't see Sin Collector in my hand in the next matches, but managed to use boon of erebos when he least expected. Still lost, because he had that Baron out, and the only way this deck can actually even manage to kill it is Agent of the Fates, no other cards in the deck has an answer to him unless I had thoughtseize before hand(which I don't).
3rd Round - Me vs Green splash red devotion:(1-2). Another tough match. He just overwhelmed me turned 3, using burn-tree/Sylvan & elvish mystic and from there manage to summon high cost monsters. Match 2, I sided in Ratchet bomb and that bomb'd his 2 mana creatures, and won that match when I pumped favored Hoplite with Ethereal Armors. Match 3: No ratchet bomb draw, I mulligan because only had 1 land in hand. I again was overwhelmed with creatures.
So 0-3. I did manage to trade in a Sphinx Revelation for 3x Godless Shrine, which will help immensely. I just need temple of silence & thoughtseize and to utilize my sidedeck better. I am disappointed by this outcome, but I had fun in the end, and a good preperation for next week FNM's.
Now maybe I do believe nineteen 3-drops is a bit too much ;P. Not sure what I would cut though. I'm going to stick with it for now, but if I see some card that would help, i'll tinker it a bit.
Which fares better? The aura enchant versions of the decks or just straight up heroics?
Keep in mind that I am mainly asking this question for WU and WR Heroics
Also, is it better to run W/x or straight up Mono white for this particular sort of deck?
How am I an Ascended Mage? I only play tabletop casual, and I dont even know if I'm playing the game correctly
Modern
GStompyG/UBNinjasUB
Legacy
UPhasenoughtU
EDH
RNorin the WaryR
UBRThraximundarUBR
As far as enchantment vs instants go: it all depends on how you want play and on the colors that your use.
Ethereal Armor's a staple if you go the enchantment route, and if you splash red Madcap Skills is a greta threat.
I think Blue and Red have the best instants: Red for damage, and blue for manipulation.
And how does straight up mono white fare? Has anyone tested this?
Personally I dont like Enchantment Auras and the risk of being 2-1, too risky imo, unless of course the aura is being attached to a hexproof guy. That would be awesome if we got some sort of hexproof 2 color heroic guy (ok maybe that might be a little OP depending on costs)
I think Im gonna start mono white. then buy the cards for blue and white and mess around till I find what I like
Im not much of a tournament guy, simply due to my location and transportation situation
My "meta" if anything is my playgroup of friends
How am I an Ascended Mage? I only play tabletop casual, and I dont even know if I'm playing the game correctly
Modern
GStompyG/UBNinjasUB
Legacy
UPhasenoughtU
EDH
RNorin the WaryR
UBRThraximundarUBR
So the above list got me a nice 0-4 at my last FNM ... BUT! I was able to get some more cards to help fill out my deck appropriately. I also made a few changes and completely fixed my sideboard. Here's the update:
4 Favored Hoplite
4 Phalanx Leader
2 Triton Fortune Hunter
2 Daxox of Meletis
4 Fabled Hero
4 Battlewise Hoplite
Spells
4 Hidden Strings
4 Gods Willing
4 Aqueous Form
4 Mizzium Skin
4 Triton Tactics
4 Hallowed Fountain
8 Plains
8 Island
3 Brave the Elements
4 Glare of Heresy
2 Pithing Needle
2 Detention Sphere
2 Gainsay
2 Rapid Hybridization
There is a ton of Mono Black Dev getting run in my meta, hence the preponderance of protections in the main board. I am also thinking of changing the land base a little since I have more double white costs.
I'll have to scope out the W/R version you're all talking about to see if I can have any more success with it.
Dalix
I run the W/r enchanents, and it's been difficult facing control decks or decks with a lot of removal. I've been thinking of dropping my two Ajani for two Brave the Elements. Dimilar evasion, sans double attack, but more protection. I'll post what I'm running when I get the chance.
Your decklist looks a lot like what I've been working on, with the exception of a Fabled Hero Playset: I've a Fortune Hunter and Bident. Tried it in three casual matches and it played well, but I've not seen any of the aforementioned cards.
Not sure how I feel about Akroan Hoplite. You may benefit more from Battalion creatures (Daring Skyjek comes to mind), or maybe Young Pyromancer if you want to better commit to the swarm theme.
Imo, enchantments are best if you focus on pumping a single creature more than the token-swarm aspect of heroics. The downside to enchantments, as has bene mentuoned, is getting 2-for-1'd. You'll know which way you want to sway with more
I agree with you on pulling Ajani. W/U seems to be more about getting a threat out and keeping it out with a handful of protection. If that's the thought process Brave is the way to go
Dalix
4x Favored Hoplite
4x Hopeful Eidolon
3x Phalanx Leader
3x Precinct Captain
2x Fabled Hero
2x Boros Reckoner
Spells (20)
2x Chained to the Rocks
4x Ethereal Armor
4x Gods Willing
4x Boros Charm
4x Madcap Skills
2x Ajani, Caller of the Pride
4x Sacred Foundry
4x Temple of Triumph
9x Plains
5x Mountains
2x Rest in Peace (Golgari/Corpsejack is big in my meta)
2x Skullcrack
2x Electrickery
1x Chained to the Rocks
2x Wear // Tear
2x Fiendslayer Paladin
1x Glare of Heresy
2x Celestial Flare
1x Anger of the Gods
This is the deck I'm considering running Brave the Elements over Ajani. I've ran this mock-up for four weeks, each week its performance getting worse due to the meta/sideboard changes.
If my threats aren't answered by T3 or T4 i can usually pull a win, but people are quick to catch on. I'm unsure how to adjust it other than trying for more protection, or maybe switching back to instants over enchantments.
I found 4x Fabled Hero to be too much. I removed two and added a couple Boros Reckoners, which provide defense and utility for a more-managable mana cost. I'll swap either of them with Fiendslayers as-needed.
Tried Heliod himself, but a 4-drop can be a pain in this deck. I usually don't have enough Devotion/mana to keep him online/get his tokens, otherwise the Vig is neat. I really wanted to drop him with Ajani the next turn but it never played out.
8 Plains
5 Swamp
4 Godless Shrine
4 Temple of Silence
Creatures
4 Favored Hoplite
3 Hopeful Eidolon
3 Nighthowler
3 Fabled Hero
4 Agent of the Fates
3 Fiendslayer Paladin
4 Ethereal Armor
4 Gift of Orzhova
1 Underworld Connections
Spells
4 Gods Willing
4 Orzhov Charm
2 Thoughtseize
4 Boon of Erebos
4 Sin Collector
1 Underworld Connections
4 Ratchet Bomb
2 Thoughtseize
This one sometimes takes a while to get going (unless you get eidolon along with a couple armors and something else and the lands to play them) but I usually am able to stabilize before dying and start making them sac creatures, killing them outright, stripping threats from their hands and/or make the life swings too much for them. I find that any of the heroic creatures with an armor and a gift of orzhova is usually too much for them to handle. Consistently beats the deck below. I did get wrecked by a monoU devotion deck, but post board was able to beat him out. Those tokens just are too hard to kill without any sweepers or instant speed removal.
2 Phalanx Leader
4 Fabled Hero
4 Battlewise Hoplite
3 Daxos of Meletis
Spells
3 Hidden Strings
4 Gods Willing
4 Ordeal of Thassa
3 Mizzium Skin
4 Aqueous Form
2 Triton Tactics
2 Azorius Charm
3 Voyage's End
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Azorius Guildgate
4 Island
10 Plains
3 Brave the Elements
3 Swift Justice
3 Banisher Priest
3 Negate
2 Detention Sphere
This deck is fun yet takes a lot of thought. You have to remember a lot of triggers. I dont find it has the explosiveness of the aura heroic decks, but I am usually able to beat a UW aura heroic deck post s/b. Have to use banisher to get rid of threats, and D-sphere on others. Once you have a hoplite or Daxos armed with an aqueous form and any other type of spell it gets out of hand. your scrying, drawing, tapping, untapping, scrying some more, gaining life, sometimes its just too much to handle. but still very fun. Not quite as good as Heroic Life-gain but also quite a bit more budget than it.
All in all, I am really liking the heroic decks. I tried mono W and RW token but they just didnt seem to work for me. Anyway, those are my thoughts.
Anyone have any suggestions on what to change in either of them? I do find that both decks ( UW especially) are lacking in ways to get rid of threats on the board. Most times its very situational with removal. UW really only has soft removal preboard. And BW relies on heroic triggers.
Thanks