I have been looking through all the cards in Standard for a W/B Enchantment deck. At first I kind of assumed the basis would be using Underworld Coinsmith to drain...but after looking at lots of cards, I finally got around to putting it together this weekend and ended up going with more of an aggro based approach that allows for Coinsmith to help finish the job with somewhere to put extra mana.
I still have some work to do, and will playtest it for the first time today. One assumption I have is that even if I get another Athreos in hand, I can re-cast him, causing the original to go to the graveyard, which will activate his ability for 3 dmg, or return to my hand...and theoretically I'm fine w/either so long as it's triggering some Constellation. That is why I still have 4 Athreos in the deck. Also I really feel like Blind Obedience probably needs to be main decked but I'm not sure where to put it yet, as even against control it can be used for extort. I haven't figured out if I want Thoughtseize, Brain Maggot in the main or sideboard specifically for Hexproof and Control strategies. I'm also thinking an Erebos, God of the Dead will end up going into the Sideboard, possibly replacing Extinguish All Hope. Also considering a Blood Baron of Vizkopa in the deck.
I also was thinking if you hit your curve on this deck and cast a Master of the Feast on T3...you could T4 give it Ethereal Armor and Armament of Nyx to send it for 10 in the air w/double strike. It seems like a lot to try and count on, which is why there are no Armaments right now, but I'm really tempted to throw one or two Armaments in to try it out.
Thoughts? What does it look particularly susceptible to? I watch a lot of tourney coverage so I know a lot of the cards and know most of the main decks, but I'm still fairly new to the game (started late January), so I still have a lot to learn.
I would recommend finding a place for Spiteful Returned. Definitely fits an aggro deck descriptor more than the Coinsmith. Not sure why Godless Shrine isn't in the mana base.
It’s like the universe screams in your face, “Do you know what I am? How grand I am? How old I am? Can you even comprehend what I am? What are you, compared to me?” And when you know enough science, you can just smile up at the universe and reply, “Dude, I am you.”
Yes. When casted for bestow it is actually being casted as an aura and thus it can be negated.
No Godless Shrine because I'm new and haven't wanted to pay 40 for lands that fall off so soon. Also this is my first go at BW. I may have to play test with them though. Ethereal Armor on Coinsmith is an easy 4/4 with first strike and the ability to drain.
Also Spiteful Returned could work very nicely. Definitely a consideration though at a 1/1 it opens it up to more removal options.
I ended up playing against a BG Constellation deck. We split 2 games a piece. I definitely think I need to remove an Athreos, and add a Grim Guardian. I think I need two Blind Obedience main deck. Possibly coming from a Coinsmith and a God's Willing. Brain Maggot is great but it is a sideboard card at best in this deck beinh an aggro first build. I'm also thinkong I'll need to make room for two Armament of Nyx. Ethereal Armor is awesome but there is only 4 in the deck so I need another buff type enchantment.
Spirit of the Labyrinth is in because of its 3/1 body. Ideally T3 it gets Ethereal Armor or Armament of Nyx on it turning it either into a 6/4 with first strike or 3/1 with double strike. Remember this is ideally aggro with drain functionality for when the game runs longer.
This is the deck I played with today. I played Rwb Aggro and won 2-0, then lost 2-1 to a B/W Constellation Lifegain deck.
Spells
So I'm thinking creature count is a little low. I'm thinking about going (-1) on Pacifism and adding another Oppressive Rays instead. As fast as I'm trying to play I feel like that is far more effective and allows me to possibly get an extra dmg out of Ethereal Armor one turn faster. So far I haven't seen Dictate of Heliod in play, but having gotten a feel for the deck so far, I really feel like it takes away from the purpose of getting creatures out on the board with pumps to do "Enchantment +" damage. I'd rather get some more creatures in for it's place. Likewise I'm thinking about siding out Banishing Light. I think it becomes more of a sideboard in card in this deck...if that. Spear of Heliod is also good...but I feel like I'm losing another potential enchantment creature to hit on my 2 drop. If I drop Dictate of Heliod, Banishing Light and Spear of Heliod, that gives me the ability to get an extra 3 creatures in...and in an effort to get an extra 2 drop creature in I am going to remove a Blind Obedience
Creatures Eidolon of Countless Battles seems like a great addition. It's an Ethereal Armor type effect and adds 2 towards devotion for Athreos. Spiteful Returned...I might only run two. I like that I can bestow and attack for the 2 dmg right away, but dropping him T2 is less than ideal, especially on the draw. Underworld Coinsmith seems like it's going to make its way back into this deck. A few things here, it starts with a 2/2 body, two, it is two devotion towards Athreos, and three it gives me something to do with extra mana. Oh and it also has Constellation life gain. Fate Unraveler every time I play a Master of the Feast I think how nice it would be to follow up with a Fate Unraveler...then I forget about the card again. I think I might add this to the sideboard for when I plan on playing a slower game. (Note - couldn't find room for it)
So I'm thinking with the changes I'll be looking something like this...
I will note with the sideboard I've thought about going another route where I side in 4 Thoughtseize and 4 Brain Maggot replacing some of the higher costed cards in my deck to go with a maximum interruption effect, but I'm not sure how well it would fit in with the rest of the deck.
Played against Jund Monsters and BW Midrange tonight.
Jund Monsters Matchup: Lost 2-1
Game 1 - Jund had a normal start, Elvish Mystic into Domri Rade. I was putting the pressure on but a T3 Dreadbore took out my ethereal armor creature, and an Abrupt Decay took out my freshly cast Master of the Feast. T4 he was able to cast Polukranos, World Eater, and T5 monstrous him to take my newly added creatures out...and that was pretty much that.
Game 2 - Got out to a very fast start, T1 Gnarled Scarhide. T2 Ethereal Armor and Oppressive Rays on his Elvish Mystic. T3 was another Gnarled Scarhide and a Spiteful Returned. T4 I would have gotten the kill but he chumped to delay it a turn. I find Oppressive Rays very effective in this deck...specifically when paired with Ethereal Armor. Unfortunately it's terrible against Hexproof and Control, so I only run 2...though I may increase that to 3...and there is no reason I couldn't cast it on my own creatures in a pinch...as I could have done in game 3 for the win if I wasn't 1 white source short...
Game 3 - So I made several mistakes in this game...comes with the territory in learning a new deck, but also I'm still fairly new to the game in general so it's bound to happen. Short story long is I have the pressure on a little light. Maybe have Jund Monsters down to 13, but I'm up to like 27 life. Polukranos comes out, I had Blind Obedience out, so I swing in with at that point 2 Hopeful Eidolon. My opponent up ticks Domri to 7 on his turn and casts a second creature...well didn't realize Domri Rade was so close to ultimating. Then on my turn I'm looking at Oppressive Rays and Armament of Nyx. Worried about Polukranos knocking my Eidolons out the next turn I decide to cast Armament of Nyx on him. I then proceed to attack Domri Rade only to get both creatures blocked. He ultimated the next turn, cast a Xenagos, and then upticked to cast a Stormbreath Dragon...thought that may have been over two turns, but short story was I really missed two turns to attack Domri Rade, and he shouldn't have been anywhere near ultimating. Live and learn.
BW Midrange Matchup: Won 2-1
Game 1: Got in and out fast. T4 Master of Feast w/Armament of Nyx enchanted onto it for 10, and no answer came for my opponent T5.
Game 2: Mulliganed down to 6, then got Thoughtseize, Thoughtseized...beyond that when I started to gain some board presence and draining my opponent with Grim Guardian they were able to cast a Blood Baron of Vizkopa that pretty much sealed the deal.
Game 3: This was tight, but again I was putting the pressure on early. My opponent cast a T4 Whip of Erebos with a Lifebane Zombie on the board that I had cast Oppressive Rays on. I believe I had a Gnarled Scarhide on the board at the time and was able to cast Grim Guardian and another Gnarled Scarhide, after attacks getting him down to 6. He cast Desecration Demon. I hit my 4th land, a much needed swamp allowing me to cast one of the two Master of the Feast in hand. The Grim Guardian trigger took him down to 5. I sacrificed the Master of the Feast to tap the Demon and swung in for lethal. For what it was worth, my opponent knew the two cards in my hand were both Master of the Feast while I was sitting on a W/B Temple, Plains, Plains when he made the Demon play.
So what did I learn.
Oppressive Rays - Fits really really well into the aggro build of this deck. I'm going to sleep over night on this, but I'm going to probably add at least 1 mainboard bumping it to 3. It's terrible against Hexproof and Control though.
Brain Maggot - Thoughtseize is a powerful card...this is not Thoughtseize, but versus Hexproof, Control and decks that like to combo/ramp into faster bigs it is far more powerful than Spiteful Returned. I will probably sideboard 3 of these in...possibly 4 to interrupt. Typically that interrupt comes at the price of a 1/1 body, but the potential to still cast an Ethereal armor or Eidolon of Countless battles on them, or even using them makes this card better than normal in this deck and still can help w/my aggro.
Thoughtseize - I may side in two of these here on the same matchups I would play Brain Maggot to maximize my chances to interrupt.
Hero's Downfall - Against decks carrying big hitters, like Jund Monsters, when I don't pull out my pumps, I want to be pulling this to deal with Walkers and other big threats. I may side in 3 of these.
Eidolon of Rhetoric - I think this card is only really useful to me when I have mana to spare and Underworld Coinsmith on the board. It's coming out of the sideboard.
Mana Confluence - I've had a little more trouble consistently hitting my colors than I would have expected. I may pull a plains for another Mana Confluence. I'm also considering swapping 1 more Plains for an Orzhov Guildgate, but I need more play testing before I get to that point and would like to avoid it to maximize the amount of lands coming in untapped.
Duress - Potentially another interruption card worth having. My concern here is it can't hit creatures and tied with Thoughtseize would really hurt my Enchantment aggro benefits.
Lifebane Zombie - not an Enchantment, but out of the sideboard with Intimidate could be very good in this deck, double good against Green and White decks.
I originally posted this in the budget forum because this version of the deck is actually really cheap to build. Other than the manabase this deck was put together with complete disregard to budget but it still ended up being super inexpensive. This is the deck I've been brewing. I've tried to keep it simple. It's pretty explosive. I have stayed purely on the aggro route. I don't run any "hatebears" because I want to swing with every creature and not really care if it gets killed in combat. Also, I wanted each creature I played to be able to be cast with Bestow. It helps out against removal heavy decks so you don't really have to hold back once you get about 4 mana you can just start dumping your hand onto the table. If they remove your guy, so what. Every dood ends up being an army in a can. I really wanted as many 1 drops as possible because I want to start attacking as soon as I can. Also it makes Orzhov Charm much more useful.
Also, Heliod + Gifts of Orzhova + Spear = awesome. There aren't many ways of dealing with that. My list is an aggro list with lots of cheap creatures but it isn't as fast as something like RDW. Against control I am aggro, against aggro I am kind of control, or at least tempo. Against mid-range I start off aggro and transform to control after they try and stabilize. Heliod alone can win the game like that. If for whatever reason that isn't enough you have repeatable instant speed removal and repeatable instant speed critter makers on the field which is pretty much all you could ever ask for.
The one card I hadn't ever really considered was Underworld Coinsmith. I think he could be good. He provides reach and extra life gain as well as a decent body. I'm not sure what I would want to cut for him though. It would either need to be Baleful Eidolon or Spiteful Returned. Baleful is there for removal which works well with Ethereal Armor (First Strike) or because when Bestowed he grants Deathtouch. It isn't something I want all the time because I also have Orzhov Charm and Spear of Heliod for removal as well. Spiteful Returned has reach just like the Coinsmith but at the cost of attacking instead of at the cost of life and mana. Coinsmith is more likely to stick around since I won't be attacking but paying for his ability means I don't use Heliod or his Spear's ability or drop more threats. On the other hand attacking is what I want to be doing anyway so Spiteful Returned works well in that scenario. With Ethereal Armor, Bestowed Baleful, or Spear of Heliod he isn't as enticing to block because it could cost them their blocker as well.
-For the sideboard I've basically opted to forgo Eidolon of Rhetoric in favor of Duress because Duress works against both Control and Burn. I feel like Brain Maggot is too fragile.
-If I want to get more aggressive I would probably bring in more Gift of Orzhova to try and help get Heliod online. I worry about following this route because having two many enchantments starts putting you in 2-for-1 territory. Heliod is just such a boss in this deck though because he is an endless supply of chumps if you are put in that position.
The following link is an invitation to join Pucatrade (card trading service though similar to TCGPLayer). If you follow the link then it awards me with tokens to exchange for actual cards. Thanks! https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
I appreciate the response. I'm trying to make a competitive deck in the current meta, so not all of the concepts between your deck and mine will necessarily match. That being said, sometimes the best innovations are bred from having less available to you. I think I foresee your comments leading me to at least try 3 Duress in the side in place of Maggot and potentially put another 1 or 2 drop with bestow, probably spiteful returned, in the main at the cost of a Master, Baron or Armament. Thank you again for the insight.
I appreciate the response. I'm trying to make a competitive deck in the current meta, so not all of the concepts between your deck and mine will necessarily match. That being said, sometimes the best innovations are bred from having less available to you. I think I foresee your comments leading me to at least try 3 Duress in the side in place of Maggot and potentially put another 1 or 2 drop with bestow, probably spiteful returned, in the main at the cost of a Master, Baron or Armament. Thank you again for the insight.
You have Orzhov Charm in your budget deck but not the deck you want to be competitive.
Why? Especially with so much removal? And have you considered Auramancer or Odunnos River Trawler? They're like free draws and are a + in card advantage.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
current decks: Modern - Bogle, Infect (hey, i'm new!) EDH - Prime Speaker Zegana, Reaper King Standard - MBD, G/b Devotion, Blue Devotion, Boros Burn, BG Dredge, W/G Aggro, Dimir Heroic
Yeah, the goal of our decks is a little different. I'm trying to go for a more aggressive, explosive, WW style of build that looks to ride a suited up 1-drop as long as I can and then eventually finish off the opponent with either a Heliod or Eidolon of Countless Battles. I also wanted to try and milk Orzhov Charm for as much value as possible.
As for Brain Maggot, I play a little bit of Modern and one of the decks I play on occasion is B/W Tokens. A card that used to be a staple of the deck, Tidehollow Sculler, is essentially the same thing as Brain Maggot. It fell out of favor with the community because you normally wanted it to work like a Thoughtsieze, or at least a Duress, and it normally just dies and all you did was waste a card. I "learned my lesson" so to speak so that is why I don't like Brain Maggot. Standard decks usually run more removal than Modern decks too so if its bad in Modern I can only imagine how much more frustrating it can be in Standard.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
The following link is an invitation to join Pucatrade (card trading service though similar to TCGPLayer). If you follow the link then it awards me with tokens to exchange for actual cards. Thanks! https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
I appreciate the response. I'm trying to make a competitive deck in the current meta, so not all of the concepts between your deck and mine will necessarily match. That being said, sometimes the best innovations are bred from having less available to you. I think I foresee your comments leading me to at least try 3 Duress in the side in place of Maggot and potentially put another 1 or 2 drop with bestow, probably spiteful returned, in the main at the cost of a Master, Baron or Armament. Thank you again for the insight.
You have Orzhov Charm in your budget deck but not the deck you want to be competitive.
Why? Especially with so much removal? And have you considered Auramancer or Odunnos River Trawler? They're like free draws and are a + in card advantage.
I'm not sure who you're asking what here. I think you may be thinking two of the above posts were by the same person as I didn't list a budget deck and a competitive deck. Auramancer could be a good card, but I'm not sure it quite fits in this deck. I am maximizing enchantments to make a deck collectively stronger that the sum of its parts. Each non enchantment card in the deck minimizes the effect of Ethereal Armor and Eidolon of Countless Battles, and severely effects the dual positives Armament of Nyx can provide.
Yeah, the goal of our decks is a little different. I'm trying to go for a more aggressive, explosive, WW style of build that looks to ride a suited up 1-drop as long as I can and then eventually finish off the opponent with either a Heliod or Eidolon of Countless Battles. I also wanted to try and milk Orzhov Charm for as much value as possible.
As for Brain Maggot, I play a little bit of Modern and one of the decks I play on occasion is B/W Tokens. A card that used to be a staple of the deck, Tidehollow Sculler, is essentially the same thing as Brain Maggot. It fell out of favor with the community because you normally wanted it to work like a Thoughtsieze, or at least a Duress, and it normally just dies and all you did was waste a card. I "learned my lesson" so to speak so that is why I don't like Brain Maggot. Standard decks usually run more removal than Modern decks too so if its bad in Modern I can only imagine how much more frustrating it can be in Standard.
I definitely have considered Orzhov Charm most notably for trying to save an Ethereal Armor as that is the real all-star card of this deck. With the life gain present in this deck, it may be an effective card for removal as well in spots. I'll have to try it out of the sideboard.
As for Brain Maggot I had been working on a deck I called BAD (Black Aggro Devotion) that was running Maggot out of the side. It was effective for two reasons in an aggro deck I felt. 1, I got to see what was potentially coming down the pipe from my opponent, and two if they decided to take it out that means they weren't using that removal on a more powerful creature and spending mana that might otherwise be spent putting creatures in my way. As it was that deck just did not have quite enough oomph. I'm actually quite pleased with the potential of this deck so far, and the fact that Brain Maggot also adds one "Enchantment Devotion" to Ethereal Armor and Eidolon of Countless Battles makes me think it could be a key contributor in this deck.
It's kind of funny because one look at the deck list doesn't produce much "awe" towards the aggro abilities this deck can produce. There are all these 1 toughness, or 1 power cards, but one ethereal armor and oppressive rays and things get really tense really quick for the opponent. In a lot of cases I'm not even trading creatures because of the first strike. You don't kill my Master of the Feast on your T3 there is a risk of it coming in for 10 with Armament of Nyx over the top at you. Then the Grim Guardian, Underworld Coinsmith, and Athreos, God of Passage help give it reach later in the game if you stall out.
I beat Jund Monsters today in a game one with this deck. In fairness to Jund they got a bit flooded. I then set it up for online play.
I beat a Naya Hexproof/Midrange type deck 2-0. Game 1 was a T4 kill off the backs of a T1 Gnarled Scarhide, T2 Spirit of the Labyrinth, T3 Armament of Nyx on Spirit, T4 Oppressive Rays on opponents Fiendslayer Paladin and Ethereal Armor on Spirit of the Labyrinth. I can't believe that was the best start for him, but another way this deck can pull out a T4 win. Game 2 was a lot more back and forth, and was pretty hectic. Late game he bestowed Chromanticore onto a monstrous Fleecemane Lion putting him probably a turn away from the win. However I was able to get the final 10 damage I needed in through a combination of factors. Primarily I swung with the team, my opponent blocked my Erebos and Coinsmith, however the remainder of my team was able to cobble together 7 points of damage, however an Armament of Nyx was cast to trigger Grim Guardian before combat which accounted for another point of damage, and I was able to ding the final two via Coinsmith. It was good to see this deck able to provide the late game reach it needed.
I also beat a mono black deck 2-0 though I'm not certain what build it was playing as I beat it down pretty fast. I only remember seeing Durress, Nightveil, and Herald of Torment. I also beat another hexproof deck 1-0 but they didn't stay for a match.
This deck really gets rocking when a 1 drop creature hits, so I'm thinking that I may end up sideboarding 1 of the Blood Baron's to get another Gnarled Scarhide or Hopeful Eidolon in the main. If I do it may be Brain Maggot that is replaced, although I'm wondering how much I really need some of the removal. I almost wonder if some of the threats would be best avoided by merely adding more flyers like Herald of Torment.
Did you tried your deck against UW control or MBD decks?
Also if you want to use the Aggro core, maybe add Pain Seer, because you lack the ability for card advantage.
Sorry I seemed to have missed this one. I have played a UW control and lost 2-0, but I have done quite a few changes since then. I'll plan on having my buddy play his UW control deck against me tomorrow evening. I haven't added much card advantage into the deck as of yet b/c Spirit of the Labyrnith would counter my card draw as well, and his 3/1 body helps get this aggro train rolling.
As a side, I feel like Agent of the Fates best days are ahead of him, I just haven't been able to build a deck that makes great use of him as of yet, and he's not right for this particular deck.
For me Orzhov Charm has been an absolute all-star. My curve is low enough that I can regularly make use of all of its modes.
Brain Maggot could be really good in a deck that wants to out tempo the opponent kind of like the way Remand and Vapor Snag are used in Modern.
You are right about it being underestimated though. A turn Gnarled Scarhide into a turn 2 Ethereal Armor + other Enchantment 1 drop is a swing for 5 on Turn 2. That is on par with most Modern RDW decks or at least Goblins. If you consider Turn 1: Foundry Street Denizen into Turn 2: Kicked Goblin Bushwhacker thats 5 damage on turn 2 across 2 bodies. We are doing it with 1 and leaving back a chump to block. Or Turn 1: Goblin Guide into Turn 2: Kicked Goblin Bushwhacker that's 7 total damage by turn 2 and we are rivaling that with $0.05 creatures instead of the $10 Goblin guide. That's nothing to sneeze at. Thinks like Athreos, or my deck uses Heliod, give us a lot of reach and inevitibility. Spear of Heliod is really good here too. Orzhov Charm and Eidolon of Countless Battles provide resilience. I just think there is so much potential in this archtype. Its extremely deceptive.
EDIT: I was just thinking about this and I wonder if Athreos wouldn't be a better fit for my deck as well. I really like that Heliod can pump out tokens but that's a little slow. By comparison Athreos lowers my curve a little, provides more reach, and think about how he works with Bestow. Let's say you have Hopeful Eidolon a Bestowed Spiteful Returned on him with Athreos on the board. You swing, opponent takes 2 automatically because of Spiteful Returned. They block and Hopeful Eidolon dies. They are now forced to choose to take another 3 or let you have your creature back. They can either take 5 for a turn you didn't even get through or give you back your creature which you can Bestow back onto you Spiteful Returned, essentially rebuilding the exact same creature you just lost. This seems a little slow and they could still just have you pitch you critter and take the 3 simply to slow your roll. I guess with Orzhov Charm you could just recur it if the guy was small enough. Hmm.
The following link is an invitation to join Pucatrade (card trading service though similar to TCGPLayer). If you follow the link then it awards me with tokens to exchange for actual cards. Thanks! https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
Fell asleep on the couch writing last nights update. I'll try and finish it when I get home. Short story was I played UW Control and it didn't go well. The Boros Burn matchup was better and I won it 2-1. Also I played Orzhov Charm and found it very relevant, though I can't imagine running more than 2 without sacrificing my other strategies. I am officially looking for tthoughts to improve my matchup with control. My initial thoughts are 4 Thoughtseize and 4 Brain Maggot in the sideboard. What do you guys think?
You could maybe give up one charm and one Heliod for two Athreos. Heliod is still relevant and I've found more than 2 Athreos can be less than efficient bc you only want to play him T3 if you can activate him T4 which iant easy.
That's an interesting thought on Athreos. For me Heliod and Orzhov Charm are my plan against control lol. Since Orzhov Charm let's me bring back my guys it helps to build resilience to removal and late game Heliod is a mana dump that is hard to deal with and generates threats/chumps. I have 4 Duress in my board for Control. I'm less concerned with their creatures than their removal because against Control I play an aggro game. I think Brain Maggot could be helpful against Control if you try and play a more tempo game. Hold him for turn 3 or 4 and try and grab a sweeper. Late game drop him and grab a win-con. That kind of thing.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
The following link is an invitation to join Pucatrade (card trading service though similar to TCGPLayer). If you follow the link then it awards me with tokens to exchange for actual cards. Thanks! https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
I played UW Control...it was pretty bad. First game I was on the draw and I just couldn't get enough rolling. I tried slow playing which I think is the wrong angle in that matchup...if anything a controlled aggressiveness. Game 2 I was on the play but had to mulligan down to 4. 1 of my first 8 cards was not a land it was a Hopeful Eidolon. Despite that I drew both Mutavaults which allowed me to put some pressure on, but it was not enough. Any thoughts on how to adjust my deck to help against Control. It feels like my worst match up hands down. Being mostly enchantments will all the enchant hate right now doesn't help in the matchup, but also a lot of my decks aggro power comes from synergy.
Second match I played Boros Burn and won 2-1. Game one was close I just couldn't bring enough heat. Game 2 I rolled them in 4 or 5 turns. Game 3 was a knockdown slugfest. I don't know how many turns the game went, but I had something like 20 cards in my graveyard when I won. Part of the issue was I was pinched on mana for a long time in game 3 and I ended up having to trade my Mutavaults off to keep playing which set me back even further in the land department.
Thoughts on cards after today.
Orzhov Charm - Very relevant. I used it twice to bounce a creature/aura back to my hand, and 3 or 4 times to destroy another creature. I never had the chance to bring a 1 mana creature back, but I could see where it would be useful. That being said, I think 2 is the right number for the deck.
Mutavault - It's the truth. I didn't want to buy these because I'm new, we're coming up on rotation and I don't play modern. I wish I bought it earlier. It offers a lot of flexibility, and even when I was drawing dead on my mulligan down to 4 cards against control it gave me a chance to put the pressure on.
Brain Maggot - I don't know if it is or isn't right against Boros Burn/Removal Heavy decks. The times I used it my opponents were forced to use removal on it for if no other reason than to weaken my ethereal armor on a different creature. I just wonder if a bigger body isn't more effective.
1) I'm going to try replacing the Gnarled Scarhide with Nyxborn Shieldmate. Both can kill the opponent off in 3 turns if I get the "nut draw", so it doesn't really slow me down. Sheildmate can also bestow T3 though, which is why I think it might be better, and it has 2 toughness to start which means it has a little more protetction from Golgari Charm. I almost never cast Gnarled Scarhide to make my opponent be unable to block so I think this could be better overall.
2) I'm going to try out replacing Master of the Feast with Herald of Torment. Obviously Master of the Feast is beast, but since my card lacks in card advantage I find myself getting on the wrong side of card advantage all to often with it. Torment is a smaller body but it can be bestowed, the lifegain loss is minimal to me because I have life gain in the deck...and I'm trying to win fast.
3) Sideboard. I'm going to be focusing my sideboard on my worst matchup...control. Duress, Thoughtseize and Brain Maggot en force for those matchups, plus I will likely try out some Underworld Connections to try and keep my hands full. I'll need to minimize if not pull the Spirit of the Labyrinth when I do that but it might be for the best. Only testing will tell.
I'm going to adjust my deck a little bit. I'd like to try Nyxborn Shieldmate over Gnarled Scarhide. I may go back, but I'm going to try it out as Shieldmate has the ability to bestow T3 and acts as a stronger blocker. Scarhide can bestow to make an opponent be unable to block, but regardless I want to try it out. Also I'm going to try to put some Herald of Torment into the deck in place of Master of the Feast. I don't know if I'm going to replace them all or go 3/1, but since I typically don't have any card advantage I feel the loss in body size is worth not falling behind to card advantage. I will note that Nyxborn Shieldmate has just as much ability to win T3 with a nut draw, and Herald through the air can still hit for 14 unblocked if I hit my curve and get an Ethereal Armor plus Armament of Nyx T4.
While those are big changes. The bigger change is the sideboard. Control hurts me...bad. So I'm siding up primarily for them.
3x Hopeful Eidolon
3x Gnarled Scarhide
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
4x Underworld Coinsmith
4x Athreos, God of Passage
4x Master of the Feast
1x Herald of Torment
3x Grim Guardian
Spells
4x Ethereal Armor
3x Gods Willing
1x Ajani's Presence
1x Spear of Heliod
2x Banishing Light
1x Dictate of Heliod
4x Temple of Silence
4x Mana Confluence
8x Plains
6x Swamp
1x Gods Willing
2x Ajani's Presence
2x Reprisal
3x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Blind Obedience
1x Glare of Heresy
1x Banishing Light
2x Eidolon of Rhetoric
1x Extinguish All Hope
I still have some work to do, and will playtest it for the first time today. One assumption I have is that even if I get another Athreos in hand, I can re-cast him, causing the original to go to the graveyard, which will activate his ability for 3 dmg, or return to my hand...and theoretically I'm fine w/either so long as it's triggering some Constellation. That is why I still have 4 Athreos in the deck. Also I really feel like Blind Obedience probably needs to be main decked but I'm not sure where to put it yet, as even against control it can be used for extort. I haven't figured out if I want Thoughtseize, Brain Maggot in the main or sideboard specifically for Hexproof and Control strategies. I'm also thinking an Erebos, God of the Dead will end up going into the Sideboard, possibly replacing Extinguish All Hope. Also considering a Blood Baron of Vizkopa in the deck.
I also was thinking if you hit your curve on this deck and cast a Master of the Feast on T3...you could T4 give it Ethereal Armor and Armament of Nyx to send it for 10 in the air w/double strike. It seems like a lot to try and count on, which is why there are no Armaments right now, but I'm really tempted to throw one or two Armaments in to try it out.
Thoughts? What does it look particularly susceptible to? I watch a lot of tourney coverage so I know a lot of the cards and know most of the main decks, but I'm still fairly new to the game (started late January), so I still have a lot to learn.
Thanks for any thoughts.
Also, other alternatives:
Eidolon of Countless Battles
Gift of Orzhova
Armament of Nyx
I stepped out of a supernova...and so did you.
thanks
No Godless Shrine because I'm new and haven't wanted to pay 40 for lands that fall off so soon. Also this is my first go at BW. I may have to play test with them though. Ethereal Armor on Coinsmith is an easy 4/4 with first strike and the ability to drain.
Also Spiteful Returned could work very nicely. Definitely a consideration though at a 1/1 it opens it up to more removal options.
My newest iteration has moved to as follows...and yes I splurged on a few cards...mostly land.
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
1x Mana Confluence
6x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 24
3x Gnarled Scarhide
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos God of Passage
3x Grim Guardian
4x Master of the Feast
2x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4x Ethereal Armor
1x Ajani's Presence
1x Oppressive Rays
1x Pacifism
2x Blind Obedience
1x Spear of Heliod
2x Armament of Nyx
1x Banishing Light
1x Dictate of Heliod
1x Ajani's Presence
1x Devour Flesh
2x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Eidolon of Rhetoric
1x Glare of Heresy
1x Reprisal
2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Banishing Light
1x Blind Obedience
This is the deck I played with today. I played Rwb Aggro and won 2-0, then lost 2-1 to a B/W Constellation Lifegain deck.
Spells
So I'm thinking creature count is a little low. I'm thinking about going (-1) on Pacifism and adding another Oppressive Rays instead. As fast as I'm trying to play I feel like that is far more effective and allows me to possibly get an extra dmg out of Ethereal Armor one turn faster. So far I haven't seen Dictate of Heliod in play, but having gotten a feel for the deck so far, I really feel like it takes away from the purpose of getting creatures out on the board with pumps to do "Enchantment +" damage. I'd rather get some more creatures in for it's place. Likewise I'm thinking about siding out Banishing Light. I think it becomes more of a sideboard in card in this deck...if that. Spear of Heliod is also good...but I feel like I'm losing another potential enchantment creature to hit on my 2 drop. If I drop Dictate of Heliod, Banishing Light and Spear of Heliod, that gives me the ability to get an extra 3 creatures in...and in an effort to get an extra 2 drop creature in I am going to remove a Blind Obedience
Creatures
Eidolon of Countless Battles seems like a great addition. It's an Ethereal Armor type effect and adds 2 towards devotion for Athreos.
Spiteful Returned...I might only run two. I like that I can bestow and attack for the 2 dmg right away, but dropping him T2 is less than ideal, especially on the draw.
Underworld Coinsmith seems like it's going to make its way back into this deck. A few things here, it starts with a 2/2 body, two, it is two devotion towards Athreos, and three it gives me something to do with extra mana. Oh and it also has Constellation life gain.
Fate Unraveler every time I play a Master of the Feast I think how nice it would be to follow up with a Fate Unraveler...then I forget about the card again. I think I might add this to the sideboard for when I plan on playing a slower game. (Note - couldn't find room for it)
So I'm thinking with the changes I'll be looking something like this...
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
1x Mana Confluence
6x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 28
3x Gnarled Scarhide
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Underworld Coinsmith
2x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos God of Passage
3x Grim Guardian
2x Eidolon of Countless Battles
4x Master of the Feast
2x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4x Ethereal Armor
1x Ajani's Presence
2x Oppressive Rays
1x Blind Obedience
2x Armament of Nyx
1x Ajani's Presence
2x Deicide
2x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Eidolon of Rhetoric
1x Glare of Heresy
1x Reprisal
2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3x Nyx-Fleece Ram
1x Banishing Light
Sideboard Thoughts
I will note with the sideboard I've thought about going another route where I side in 4 Thoughtseize and 4 Brain Maggot replacing some of the higher costed cards in my deck to go with a maximum interruption effect, but I'm not sure how well it would fit in with the rest of the deck.
Jund Monsters Matchup: Lost 2-1
Game 1 - Jund had a normal start, Elvish Mystic into Domri Rade. I was putting the pressure on but a T3 Dreadbore took out my ethereal armor creature, and an Abrupt Decay took out my freshly cast Master of the Feast. T4 he was able to cast Polukranos, World Eater, and T5 monstrous him to take my newly added creatures out...and that was pretty much that.
Game 2 - Got out to a very fast start, T1 Gnarled Scarhide. T2 Ethereal Armor and Oppressive Rays on his Elvish Mystic. T3 was another Gnarled Scarhide and a Spiteful Returned. T4 I would have gotten the kill but he chumped to delay it a turn. I find Oppressive Rays very effective in this deck...specifically when paired with Ethereal Armor. Unfortunately it's terrible against Hexproof and Control, so I only run 2...though I may increase that to 3...and there is no reason I couldn't cast it on my own creatures in a pinch...as I could have done in game 3 for the win if I wasn't 1 white source short...
Game 3 - So I made several mistakes in this game...comes with the territory in learning a new deck, but also I'm still fairly new to the game in general so it's bound to happen. Short story long is I have the pressure on a little light. Maybe have Jund Monsters down to 13, but I'm up to like 27 life. Polukranos comes out, I had Blind Obedience out, so I swing in with at that point 2 Hopeful Eidolon. My opponent up ticks Domri to 7 on his turn and casts a second creature...well didn't realize Domri Rade was so close to ultimating. Then on my turn I'm looking at Oppressive Rays and Armament of Nyx. Worried about Polukranos knocking my Eidolons out the next turn I decide to cast Armament of Nyx on him. I then proceed to attack Domri Rade only to get both creatures blocked. He ultimated the next turn, cast a Xenagos, and then upticked to cast a Stormbreath Dragon...thought that may have been over two turns, but short story was I really missed two turns to attack Domri Rade, and he shouldn't have been anywhere near ultimating. Live and learn.
BW Midrange Matchup: Won 2-1
Game 1: Got in and out fast. T4 Master of Feast w/Armament of Nyx enchanted onto it for 10, and no answer came for my opponent T5.
Game 2: Mulliganed down to 6, then got Thoughtseize, Thoughtseized...beyond that when I started to gain some board presence and draining my opponent with Grim Guardian they were able to cast a Blood Baron of Vizkopa that pretty much sealed the deal.
Game 3: This was tight, but again I was putting the pressure on early. My opponent cast a T4 Whip of Erebos with a Lifebane Zombie on the board that I had cast Oppressive Rays on. I believe I had a Gnarled Scarhide on the board at the time and was able to cast Grim Guardian and another Gnarled Scarhide, after attacks getting him down to 6. He cast Desecration Demon. I hit my 4th land, a much needed swamp allowing me to cast one of the two Master of the Feast in hand. The Grim Guardian trigger took him down to 5. I sacrificed the Master of the Feast to tap the Demon and swung in for lethal. For what it was worth, my opponent knew the two cards in my hand were both Master of the Feast while I was sitting on a W/B Temple, Plains, Plains when he made the Demon play.
So what did I learn.
3x Brain Maggot
1x Ajani's Presence
2x Hero's Downfall
2x Thoughtseize
2x Deicide
2x Erebos
2x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
Cutting down to 15 is hard...maybe I can do better tomorrow.
Also, Heliod + Gifts of Orzhova + Spear = awesome. There aren't many ways of dealing with that. My list is an aggro list with lots of cheap creatures but it isn't as fast as something like RDW. Against control I am aggro, against aggro I am kind of control, or at least tempo. Against mid-range I start off aggro and transform to control after they try and stabilize. Heliod alone can win the game like that. If for whatever reason that isn't enough you have repeatable instant speed removal and repeatable instant speed critter makers on the field which is pretty much all you could ever ask for.
The one card I hadn't ever really considered was Underworld Coinsmith. I think he could be good. He provides reach and extra life gain as well as a decent body. I'm not sure what I would want to cut for him though. It would either need to be Baleful Eidolon or Spiteful Returned. Baleful is there for removal which works well with Ethereal Armor (First Strike) or because when Bestowed he grants Deathtouch. It isn't something I want all the time because I also have Orzhov Charm and Spear of Heliod for removal as well. Spiteful Returned has reach just like the Coinsmith but at the cost of attacking instead of at the cost of life and mana. Coinsmith is more likely to stick around since I won't be attacking but paying for his ability means I don't use Heliod or his Spear's ability or drop more threats. On the other hand attacking is what I want to be doing anyway so Spiteful Returned works well in that scenario. With Ethereal Armor, Bestowed Baleful, or Spear of Heliod he isn't as enticing to block because it could cost them their blocker as well.
12 Plains
10 Swamp
CREATURES (25)
4 Hopeful Eidolon
4 Nyxborn Shieldmate
4 Gnarled Scarhide
2 Baleful Eidolon
3 Spiteful Returned
4 Eidolon of Countless Battles
3 Heliod, God of the Sun
4 Orzhov Charm
4 Ethereal Armor
2 Gift of Orzhova
3 Spear of Heliod
3 Gods Willing
4 Duress
3 Banishing Light
3 ???
2 ???
-For the sideboard I've basically opted to forgo Eidolon of Rhetoric in favor of Duress because Duress works against both Control and Burn. I feel like Brain Maggot is too fragile.
-If I want to get more aggressive I would probably bring in more Gift of Orzhova to try and help get Heliod online. I worry about following this route because having two many enchantments starts putting you in 2-for-1 territory. Heliod is just such a boss in this deck though because he is an endless supply of chumps if you are put in that position.
https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
You have Orzhov Charm in your budget deck but not the deck you want to be competitive.
Why? Especially with so much removal? And have you considered Auramancer or Odunnos River Trawler? They're like free draws and are a + in card advantage.
Modern - Bogle, Infect (hey, i'm new!)
EDH - Prime Speaker Zegana, Reaper King
Standard - MBD, G/b Devotion, Blue Devotion, Boros Burn, BG Dredge, W/G Aggro, Dimir Heroic
ENCHANTMENT AGGRO!
As for Brain Maggot, I play a little bit of Modern and one of the decks I play on occasion is B/W Tokens. A card that used to be a staple of the deck, Tidehollow Sculler, is essentially the same thing as Brain Maggot. It fell out of favor with the community because you normally wanted it to work like a Thoughtsieze, or at least a Duress, and it normally just dies and all you did was waste a card. I "learned my lesson" so to speak so that is why I don't like Brain Maggot. Standard decks usually run more removal than Modern decks too so if its bad in Modern I can only imagine how much more frustrating it can be in Standard.
https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
Linkage
http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/article.asp?ID=11670
The B/W Heroic list is about a quarter or halfway down the page. It is a little dated but it is at least another angle for inspiration.
I'm not sure who you're asking what here. I think you may be thinking two of the above posts were by the same person as I didn't list a budget deck and a competitive deck. Auramancer could be a good card, but I'm not sure it quite fits in this deck. I am maximizing enchantments to make a deck collectively stronger that the sum of its parts. Each non enchantment card in the deck minimizes the effect of Ethereal Armor and Eidolon of Countless Battles, and severely effects the dual positives Armament of Nyx can provide.
I definitely have considered Orzhov Charm most notably for trying to save an Ethereal Armor as that is the real all-star card of this deck. With the life gain present in this deck, it may be an effective card for removal as well in spots. I'll have to try it out of the sideboard.
As for Brain Maggot I had been working on a deck I called BAD (Black Aggro Devotion) that was running Maggot out of the side. It was effective for two reasons in an aggro deck I felt. 1, I got to see what was potentially coming down the pipe from my opponent, and two if they decided to take it out that means they weren't using that removal on a more powerful creature and spending mana that might otherwise be spent putting creatures in my way. As it was that deck just did not have quite enough oomph. I'm actually quite pleased with the potential of this deck so far, and the fact that Brain Maggot also adds one "Enchantment Devotion" to Ethereal Armor and Eidolon of Countless Battles makes me think it could be a key contributor in this deck.
It's kind of funny because one look at the deck list doesn't produce much "awe" towards the aggro abilities this deck can produce. There are all these 1 toughness, or 1 power cards, but one ethereal armor and oppressive rays and things get really tense really quick for the opponent. In a lot of cases I'm not even trading creatures because of the first strike. You don't kill my Master of the Feast on your T3 there is a risk of it coming in for 10 with Armament of Nyx over the top at you. Then the Grim Guardian, Underworld Coinsmith, and Athreos, God of Passage help give it reach later in the game if you stall out.
I beat a Naya Hexproof/Midrange type deck 2-0. Game 1 was a T4 kill off the backs of a T1 Gnarled Scarhide, T2 Spirit of the Labyrinth, T3 Armament of Nyx on Spirit, T4 Oppressive Rays on opponents Fiendslayer Paladin and Ethereal Armor on Spirit of the Labyrinth. I can't believe that was the best start for him, but another way this deck can pull out a T4 win. Game 2 was a lot more back and forth, and was pretty hectic. Late game he bestowed Chromanticore onto a monstrous Fleecemane Lion putting him probably a turn away from the win. However I was able to get the final 10 damage I needed in through a combination of factors. Primarily I swung with the team, my opponent blocked my Erebos and Coinsmith, however the remainder of my team was able to cobble together 7 points of damage, however an Armament of Nyx was cast to trigger Grim Guardian before combat which accounted for another point of damage, and I was able to ding the final two via Coinsmith. It was good to see this deck able to provide the late game reach it needed.
I also beat a mono black deck 2-0 though I'm not certain what build it was playing as I beat it down pretty fast. I only remember seeing Durress, Nightveil, and Herald of Torment. I also beat another hexproof deck 1-0 but they didn't stay for a match.
My current list is as follows:
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
2x Mana Confluence
5x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 28
3x Gnarled Scarhide
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Underworld Coinsmith
2x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos, God of Passage
2x Eidolon of Countless Battles
3x Grim Guardian
4x Master of the Feast
2x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4x Ethereal Armor
1x Ajani's Presence
3x Oppressive Rays
2x Armament of Nyx
1x Ajani's Presence
2x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Hero's Downfall
2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3x Brain Maggot
2x Deicide
1x Banishing Light
This deck really gets rocking when a 1 drop creature hits, so I'm thinking that I may end up sideboarding 1 of the Blood Baron's to get another Gnarled Scarhide or Hopeful Eidolon in the main. If I do it may be Brain Maggot that is replaced, although I'm wondering how much I really need some of the removal. I almost wonder if some of the threats would be best avoided by merely adding more flyers like Herald of Torment.
Sorry I seemed to have missed this one. I have played a UW control and lost 2-0, but I have done quite a few changes since then. I'll plan on having my buddy play his UW control deck against me tomorrow evening. I haven't added much card advantage into the deck as of yet b/c Spirit of the Labyrnith would counter my card draw as well, and his 3/1 body helps get this aggro train rolling.
As a side, I feel like Agent of the Fates best days are ahead of him, I just haven't been able to build a deck that makes great use of him as of yet, and he's not right for this particular deck.
Brain Maggot could be really good in a deck that wants to out tempo the opponent kind of like the way Remand and Vapor Snag are used in Modern.
You are right about it being underestimated though. A turn Gnarled Scarhide into a turn 2 Ethereal Armor + other Enchantment 1 drop is a swing for 5 on Turn 2. That is on par with most Modern RDW decks or at least Goblins. If you consider Turn 1: Foundry Street Denizen into Turn 2: Kicked Goblin Bushwhacker thats 5 damage on turn 2 across 2 bodies. We are doing it with 1 and leaving back a chump to block. Or Turn 1: Goblin Guide into Turn 2: Kicked Goblin Bushwhacker that's 7 total damage by turn 2 and we are rivaling that with $0.05 creatures instead of the $10 Goblin guide. That's nothing to sneeze at. Thinks like Athreos, or my deck uses Heliod, give us a lot of reach and inevitibility. Spear of Heliod is really good here too. Orzhov Charm and Eidolon of Countless Battles provide resilience. I just think there is so much potential in this archtype. Its extremely deceptive.
EDIT: I was just thinking about this and I wonder if Athreos wouldn't be a better fit for my deck as well. I really like that Heliod can pump out tokens but that's a little slow. By comparison Athreos lowers my curve a little, provides more reach, and think about how he works with Bestow. Let's say you have Hopeful Eidolon a Bestowed Spiteful Returned on him with Athreos on the board. You swing, opponent takes 2 automatically because of Spiteful Returned. They block and Hopeful Eidolon dies. They are now forced to choose to take another 3 or let you have your creature back. They can either take 5 for a turn you didn't even get through or give you back your creature which you can Bestow back onto you Spiteful Returned, essentially rebuilding the exact same creature you just lost. This seems a little slow and they could still just have you pitch you critter and take the 3 simply to slow your roll. I guess with Orzhov Charm you could just recur it if the guy was small enough. Hmm.
https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
https://pucatrade.com/invite/gift/86097
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
2x Mana Confluence
5x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 27
4x Gnarled Scarhide
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Underworld Coinsmith
2x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos, God of Passage
2x Eidolon of Countless Battles
3x Grim Guardian
4x Master of the Feast
4x Ethereal Armor
2x Orzhov Charm
3x Oppressive Rays
2x Armament of Nyx
2x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
2x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Hero's Downfall
2x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
3x Brain Maggot
2x Deicide
I played UW Control...it was pretty bad. First game I was on the draw and I just couldn't get enough rolling. I tried slow playing which I think is the wrong angle in that matchup...if anything a controlled aggressiveness. Game 2 I was on the play but had to mulligan down to 4. 1 of my first 8 cards was not a land it was a Hopeful Eidolon. Despite that I drew both Mutavaults which allowed me to put some pressure on, but it was not enough. Any thoughts on how to adjust my deck to help against Control. It feels like my worst match up hands down. Being mostly enchantments will all the enchant hate right now doesn't help in the matchup, but also a lot of my decks aggro power comes from synergy.
Second match I played Boros Burn and won 2-1. Game one was close I just couldn't bring enough heat. Game 2 I rolled them in 4 or 5 turns. Game 3 was a knockdown slugfest. I don't know how many turns the game went, but I had something like 20 cards in my graveyard when I won. Part of the issue was I was pinched on mana for a long time in game 3 and I ended up having to trade my Mutavaults off to keep playing which set me back even further in the land department.
Thoughts on cards after today.
1) I'm going to try replacing the Gnarled Scarhide with Nyxborn Shieldmate. Both can kill the opponent off in 3 turns if I get the "nut draw", so it doesn't really slow me down. Sheildmate can also bestow T3 though, which is why I think it might be better, and it has 2 toughness to start which means it has a little more protetction from Golgari Charm. I almost never cast Gnarled Scarhide to make my opponent be unable to block so I think this could be better overall.
2) I'm going to try out replacing Master of the Feast with Herald of Torment. Obviously Master of the Feast is beast, but since my card lacks in card advantage I find myself getting on the wrong side of card advantage all to often with it. Torment is a smaller body but it can be bestowed, the lifegain loss is minimal to me because I have life gain in the deck...and I'm trying to win fast.
3) Sideboard. I'm going to be focusing my sideboard on my worst matchup...control. Duress, Thoughtseize and Brain Maggot en force for those matchups, plus I will likely try out some Underworld Connections to try and keep my hands full. I'll need to minimize if not pull the Spirit of the Labyrinth when I do that but it might be for the best. Only testing will tell.
New testing looks like this:
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
2x Mana Confluence
5x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 28
4x Nyxborn Sheildmate
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Underworld Coinsmith
2x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos, God of Passage
2x Eidolon of Countless Battles
3x Grim Guardian
4x Herald of Torment
1x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4x Ethereal Armor
2x Orzhov Charm
3x Oppressive Rays
1x Armament of Nyx
1x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
1x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Nyx-Fleece Ram
4x Duress
2x Thoughtseize
3x Brain Maggot
2x Underworld Connections
While those are big changes. The bigger change is the sideboard. Control hurts me...bad. So I'm siding up primarily for them.
4x Godless Shrine
4x Temple of Silence
2x Mutavault
2x Mana Confluence
5x Plains
5x Swamp
Creatures - 28
4x Nyxborn Shieldmate
3x Hopeful Eidolon
4x Spirit of the Labyrinth
3x Underworld Coinsmith
2x Spiteful Returned
2x Athreos, God of Passage
2x Eidolon of Countless Battles
3x Grim Guardian
4x Herald of Torment
1x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
4x Ethereal Armor
2x Orzhov Charm
3x Oppressive Rays
1x Armament of Nyx
1x Blood Baron of Vizkopa
1x Erebos, God of the Dead
2x Nyx-Fleece Ram
2x Underworld Connections
4x Duress
3x Brain Maggot
2x Thoughseize
I'll be trying it out today.