So this is a deck that I've been tweaking that's I think is very competitive. I've been playing at LGS with very competitive/tournament tested players and am 12-0 with it, plus many, many hours of testing on Cockatrice. I think it's slotted really well in the meta right now. It's just playing a ton of cards that we want to be playing and I think it matches up really well against a lot of T1 decks. Any creature we're playing our opponents either likely need to kill right away, or have a large impact on the game when they are played. We're playing the best and most unconditional removal, we have no end of mana sinks, and we're disrupting our opponents hands, all in the same deck.
Card Choices
Land Base
This is actually what I'm still working on most (and the sideboard). I like the full suite of manlands with Shambling Vent and Hissing Quagmire. Quagmire is a removal spell for most anything coming through the ground and Vents is still the best manland in standard right now, IMO - and helps wriggle you back out of low life situations. Both are considerably better with Sylvan Advocate, obviously.
Caves of Koilos and Llanowar Wastes are painful, but other areas help offset. They are worth it for the untapped access to dual colors and paired with the solo copy of Westvale Abby - we have a colorless source on turn 4 well over 80% of the time, (I analyzed it on deck stats once but it's down at the moment) which is when we need it most of the time to effectively use our Eldrazi. I don't think we want MORE Abby, both because were going to be using our colors and because most of the time we're not going the route of Ormendahl, Profane Prince, anyway. It's there primarily to ensure we're on time with our Eldrazi needs and then for any late game situations where we need a chump blocker or if we absolutely have to get through a board stall.
I may switch the solo swamp out for a plains - still unsure of this. The only place I'm finding I'm ever getting hung up on mana with any frequency is sometimes having that second white - but then our sideboard really likes double black. The instances where we don't have the double white we need are so few and far inbetween, and usually aren't as time sensitive that I think I like it as-is right now.
Also note that we are NOT playing Evolving Wilds or Canopy Vista or Fortified Village - primarily because we already have 8 lands that come into play tapped and we want to limit that. I haven't felt like we've needed them except for the afore mentioned double white scenario, which is rare.
Creatures
So. Much. Value. In my opinion, this is the most dynamic, versatile, and value providing creature suite that you can find:
Just Rull Good
Sylvan Advocate - the green two drop in the format. Don't have to say too much about him that hasn't been said, but I also really like him with our particular manlands. Shambling Vent can help swing a race so well with advocate in play, as can punching through a 4/4 Hissing Quagmire that's taking down whatever is blocking it and possibly multiples. He blocks well, he attacks well... and he can also be held until turn 6 to get around opposing Languish, Chandra, Flamecaller and Grasp of Darkness, which are key right now.
Archangel Avacyn - we also get to play this card, which is fantastic. But, instead of saving armies of tokens, she's saving a bunch of value creatures and applying a good deal of pressure. Also, many of our guys (if not most) are resilient to her flip, which is very relevant. I don't think we want four of her though, and what's great is that we don't have to. She isn't great in multiples unless you're flipping one and we're also playing another card in our five drop slot...
Reality Smasher - A lot of people are running this as a sideboard card right now because it's so good against almost all of the top decks... so... why not just run it main deck? It's adding so much pressure to the board, trampling over tokens, taking out unsuspecting planeswalkers, dodging Languish, Grasp of Darkness, Chandra, Flamecaller and Ultimate Price, and is giving you card advantage if your opponent is targeting it. Three feels clunky to me, but this is a great top end and can really swing a game.
Thought-Knot Seer - Probably my favorite card in standard, this card is doing so much for you. Not only is it a hefty body for aggro or defense, but you're assassinating your opponent's hand. Pick off your opponent's best removal spell, planeswalker, or opposing ramp spells - but can also severely punish prospective hands or hands heavily reliant on certain cards to get them where they need to be. Also blanks Ultimate Price and Radiant Flames and can be extra hard to remove with a supporting Dromoka's Command to tick up to that all important 5 toughness.
Utility, Utility
Tireless Tracker - Depending on the opponent, you're usually playing this on turn four and, if so, you're netting yourself a clue and establishing a creature that most opponents are going to feel the need to kill right away, lest they get lost to the card advantage/size. Tracker is just a fantastic way to ensure you aren't running out of gas and can be a suitable threat.
Duskwatch Recruiter - 21 creatures means you aren't missing often, and if you can flip him early then you're enabling some explosive plays like Turn 3 Thought-Knot into Turn 4 Avacyn or Smasher, which is usually gg. Another card that your opponents are going to want dead quickly or run the risk of being buried in card advantage or acceleration. Turn 2 Recruiter, Turn 3 flip, play any combo of Thought-Knot OR Advocate and Displacer OR Tracker, land, Advocate OR Advocate, Advocate, Recruiter, etc, then flip back and be ready to re-gas your hand again? Yes, please.
Eldrazi Displacer - On curve, is yet another colorless creature (we blank Ultimate Price so often), but he still turns the tide of battle without having to Brood combo - and you aren't playing cards that are weaker in a vacuum like Brood Monitor or Zulaport Cutthroat. You're eliminating tokens, making combat a nightmare for your opponents, ensuring that your other creatures can't be the target of the first round of spot removal, and providing endless other utility, like blanking Ormendahl, Profane Prince, or comboing with Thought-Knot to lock our your opponent's draw step, or comboing with Avacyn to make your team consistently indestructible.
So... yeah. Dirty pool. If your creatures aren't just offering you insane value on their own, here are all of the places you can sink your mana in the maindeck - Manland activations, Displacer activations, Tracker clues, Recruiter activations, Abby activations. You're almost assuredly using all of your mana every turn or, if not all, close.
Spells
It's worth noting that Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet is worse for us because most of the time we're exiling stuff but, on the plus side, most of the time we're exiling stuff. He's still really good, though (although you may note we're not playing him main because he's not better than the above, I've found). Another thing I'll say is that so much of removal in standard right now is conditional. Ultimate Price, Languish, Radiant Flames, Fiery Temper/Impulse, Chandra, Grasp of Darkness, etc. Our MB removal basically just gets rid of whatever we need it to... with the exception of Dromoka's Command which is conditional, but is also so versatile and can add value even without using it as a creature removal spell.
Dromoka's Command - Our creatures are tough. As such, it's very rare that they aren't winning a fight after a Command counter has been added to them. This card is so good right now, especially against Cryptolith Rites based decks. It's absolutely brutal against Always Watching and is also great against Evolutionary Leap, or the enchantment removal suite. It's also stopping the majority of red based removal and limiting Pyromancer's Goggles shennanigans. But sneakily, even against many control strategies, it's saving Thought-Knot Seer and Avacyn from the -4/-4 removal spells and isn't worthless.
Anguished Unmaking - we don't want more than two because the life loss along with our painlands is a real thing - but this is just the all purpose instant removal spell that lets us deal with anything we damn well please and exiles it for good.
Declaration in Stone - Also great and cheap removal, fantastic when applying pressure to an opponent or when dealing with the rare threat that we can't otherwise handle - the Worldbreaker, Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger and Dragonlord Atarka's of the world. Also wonderful as a MB answer against token based strategies.
Transgress the Mind - Main board, you say? Absolutely. White Weenie is far less of a thing than it was and, even though that's the worst deck to see with this main, you're otherwise set up well to deal with them. Even in that matchup you can find Always Watching or higher costed angels, depending on their build. Against virtually ever other top tier deck, this card is hitting and exiling the majority of the best stuff in the format. 4 color rites or the Aristocrats build you're taking: Collected Company and, if not Brood Monitor or Eldrazi Displacer or Nantuko Husk or Catacomb Sifter, control you're taking a planeswalker or mass removal spell (or even card draw or spot removal if they're mana light), against ramp you're taking the most relevant thing - usually goggles or chandra, or aurora, or the top end creature, though. You're also stripping out Seasons PastWorld Breaker and other graveyard relevant strategies. It's this card, along with Thought-Knot Seer that make the matchups against control and ramp so good. Our deck is still so disruptive G1.
The Planeswalker
Sorin, Grim Nemesis - is in there as a one off (and we bring in another copy in certain matchups which I'll discuss). Most of the time, we don't need this card to execute our strategies and we have only the one copy to limit clunkiness. G1 against an unknown opponent, I don't really want this in my opening hand. He's a fantastic top deck during a stalled board state, though, or if you need to eat an especially troublesome planeswalker or creature and gain some life back. He's not an overly exciting draw if you're already way behind on the board, though. And he's not too exciting when your opponents are going wide, which many are wont to do. That being said - most of the time you're playing him and are able to keep him alive, you're probably in a position where he's going to win you the game, either through his card draw and ancillary damage, or by helping you to stabilize an awkward but stalled board state. He's also very good against Chandra as he's able to eat her after she's plus oned.
So, okay...
Sideboard
Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim - Brought in against aggro, mostly, or if we just feel we need another cheap creature. Blocks well and either trades or blanks many aggressive/midrange creatures. Also the lifegain can be very relevant. Also can use her sac ability to activate Avacyn's flip under certain circumstances, which is quite useful.
Den Protector - Primarily used against control as another source of card advantage and to get the most relevant thing. Also will bring in against go wide strategies if I'm on the play and want to be aggro. I especially like it against GW Tokens. I'll make him unblockable by your plants and knight allies and will get back my Virulent Plague that you Dromoka's Commanded, thanks!
Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet - worse for us main deck than many black-based control or midrange decks because they're killing more things as opposed to exiling the things. However, after side board, we can kill more things if we want to. Also, he's just awesome in some matchups like 4 color-rites, aggro, etc. Yet another possible mana sink for us.
Dead Weight - primarily against white weenie based aggro. We may not need these in the matchup, I'm still deciding, but you feel like you're in very good shape after boarding against them with these in. This is my most debatable side board slot... but I think our matchup against control and ramp/midrange is already good enough that I don't mind having extra defense to aggro. I could see one of these being a fourth Declaration in Stone, as well.
Virulent Plague - against GW tokens, but also against other Secure the Wastes/Westvale Abby based decks. Really strong hoser and makes the GW matchup feel really good. Also good against Brood combo.
Sorin, Grim Nemesis - add against control and then just general matchups where one of your other spells doesn't feel as good.
Flaying Tendrils - this is why we may not need Dead Weight. Huge and timely blow out against WW - also very good against GW tokens and 4-color rites (doesn't allow Zulpaport Cutthroat to drain) also doesn't kill any of our creatures except for an unflipped Duskwatch Recruiter, which you can play around.
Tragic Arrogance - Good against decks like Bant Company where you can target a scion token, good if you need the extra pop against midrange or aggro based creature decks, good against GW (keep a token, and Nissa, lose Gideon and a ton of other dudes). It also allows us to keep our best creature which is usually the best guy on the board and we've played our hand accordingly knowing this is coming. Solid in most matchups except for Ramp and Control.
So, there you have it. Happy to entertain any side boarding discussions below, matchups, or to talk about card choices.
Hey there! saw this thread a while ago, but didn't want to comment on it before my brewing was done.
I opted for an Abzan Midrange with a couple of subthemes: Delirium, Humans and Allies. This might seem like going too wide with the deck and not focusing enough but I think my card choices make the synergies come full circle.
Now to be honest, testing hasn't been favorable (at least for past iterations, this one hasn't been tested yet). I've had good matches vs most of the archetypes, but there's always one final oomph needed to close out the game it seems.
Creature Choices:
Deathcap Cultivator: Is a human and a mana dork with decent attack and a potential for deathtouch later on. Allows for cute stuff like T3 Demon or Tireless with clue.
Mindwrack Demon: Tbh, it's a pet card I'm kinda holding onto. I still think a 4/5 flyer with trample on T3 could really put the pressure in (ala Tasigur), but the drawbacks might be just too much.
Sigarda, Heron's Grace: Protects mana dorks, the lifelink engine and the ticked up Trackers; uses the graveyard provided by Demon to generate blockers with less drawback than Abbey.
Lantern Scout: There's 8 other allies in the deck (not counting gideon tokens) that can proc this lifelink reliably. The Advocates have extreme lifelink potential post T6.
Spell Choices:
Oath of Nissa: Looks better to filter 3 than tutor a land early and a creature late compared with Traverse. Multiple copies provide value and fuel delirium.
3 Archangel Avacyn
3 Duskwatch Recruiter
3 Eldrazi Displacer
2 Reality Smasher
4 Sylvan Advocate
4 Thought-Knot Seer
2 Tireless Tracker
Planeswalkers (1)
1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
Instant (6)
2 Anguished Unmaking
4 Dromoka's Command
3 Declaration in Stone
3 Transgress the Mind
Land (26)
4 Caves of Koilos
5 Forest
4 Hissing Quagmire
4 Llanowar Wastes
3 Plains
4 Shambling Vent
1 Swamp
1 Westvale Abby
1 Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim
1 Den Protector
2 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
2 Dead Weight
2 Virulent Plague
1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
2 Duress
2 Flaying Tendrils
2 Tragic Arrogance
So this is a deck that I've been tweaking that's I think is very competitive. I've been playing at LGS with very competitive/tournament tested players and am 12-0 with it, plus many, many hours of testing on Cockatrice. I think it's slotted really well in the meta right now. It's just playing a ton of cards that we want to be playing and I think it matches up really well against a lot of T1 decks. Any creature we're playing our opponents either likely need to kill right away, or have a large impact on the game when they are played. We're playing the best and most unconditional removal, we have no end of mana sinks, and we're disrupting our opponents hands, all in the same deck.
Land Base
This is actually what I'm still working on most (and the sideboard). I like the full suite of manlands with Shambling Vent and Hissing Quagmire. Quagmire is a removal spell for most anything coming through the ground and Vents is still the best manland in standard right now, IMO - and helps wriggle you back out of low life situations. Both are considerably better with Sylvan Advocate, obviously.
Caves of Koilos and Llanowar Wastes are painful, but other areas help offset. They are worth it for the untapped access to dual colors and paired with the solo copy of Westvale Abby - we have a colorless source on turn 4 well over 80% of the time, (I analyzed it on deck stats once but it's down at the moment) which is when we need it most of the time to effectively use our Eldrazi. I don't think we want MORE Abby, both because were going to be using our colors and because most of the time we're not going the route of Ormendahl, Profane Prince, anyway. It's there primarily to ensure we're on time with our Eldrazi needs and then for any late game situations where we need a chump blocker or if we absolutely have to get through a board stall.
I may switch the solo swamp out for a plains - still unsure of this. The only place I'm finding I'm ever getting hung up on mana with any frequency is sometimes having that second white - but then our sideboard really likes double black. The instances where we don't have the double white we need are so few and far inbetween, and usually aren't as time sensitive that I think I like it as-is right now.
Also note that we are NOT playing Evolving Wilds or Canopy Vista or Fortified Village - primarily because we already have 8 lands that come into play tapped and we want to limit that. I haven't felt like we've needed them except for the afore mentioned double white scenario, which is rare.
Creatures
So. Much. Value. In my opinion, this is the most dynamic, versatile, and value providing creature suite that you can find:
Just Rull Good
Sylvan Advocate - the green two drop in the format. Don't have to say too much about him that hasn't been said, but I also really like him with our particular manlands. Shambling Vent can help swing a race so well with advocate in play, as can punching through a 4/4 Hissing Quagmire that's taking down whatever is blocking it and possibly multiples. He blocks well, he attacks well... and he can also be held until turn 6 to get around opposing Languish, Chandra, Flamecaller and Grasp of Darkness, which are key right now.
Archangel Avacyn - we also get to play this card, which is fantastic. But, instead of saving armies of tokens, she's saving a bunch of value creatures and applying a good deal of pressure. Also, many of our guys (if not most) are resilient to her flip, which is very relevant. I don't think we want four of her though, and what's great is that we don't have to. She isn't great in multiples unless you're flipping one and we're also playing another card in our five drop slot...
Reality Smasher - A lot of people are running this as a sideboard card right now because it's so good against almost all of the top decks... so... why not just run it main deck? It's adding so much pressure to the board, trampling over tokens, taking out unsuspecting planeswalkers, dodging Languish, Grasp of Darkness, Chandra, Flamecaller and Ultimate Price, and is giving you card advantage if your opponent is targeting it. Three feels clunky to me, but this is a great top end and can really swing a game.
Thought-Knot Seer - Probably my favorite card in standard, this card is doing so much for you. Not only is it a hefty body for aggro or defense, but you're assassinating your opponent's hand. Pick off your opponent's best removal spell, planeswalker, or opposing ramp spells - but can also severely punish prospective hands or hands heavily reliant on certain cards to get them where they need to be. Also blanks Ultimate Price and Radiant Flames and can be extra hard to remove with a supporting Dromoka's Command to tick up to that all important 5 toughness.
Utility, Utility
Tireless Tracker - Depending on the opponent, you're usually playing this on turn four and, if so, you're netting yourself a clue and establishing a creature that most opponents are going to feel the need to kill right away, lest they get lost to the card advantage/size. Tracker is just a fantastic way to ensure you aren't running out of gas and can be a suitable threat.
Duskwatch Recruiter - 21 creatures means you aren't missing often, and if you can flip him early then you're enabling some explosive plays like Turn 3 Thought-Knot into Turn 4 Avacyn or Smasher, which is usually gg. Another card that your opponents are going to want dead quickly or run the risk of being buried in card advantage or acceleration. Turn 2 Recruiter, Turn 3 flip, play any combo of Thought-Knot OR Advocate and Displacer OR Tracker, land, Advocate OR Advocate, Advocate, Recruiter, etc, then flip back and be ready to re-gas your hand again? Yes, please.
Eldrazi Displacer - On curve, is yet another colorless creature (we blank Ultimate Price so often), but he still turns the tide of battle without having to Brood combo - and you aren't playing cards that are weaker in a vacuum like Brood Monitor or Zulaport Cutthroat. You're eliminating tokens, making combat a nightmare for your opponents, ensuring that your other creatures can't be the target of the first round of spot removal, and providing endless other utility, like blanking Ormendahl, Profane Prince, or comboing with Thought-Knot to lock our your opponent's draw step, or comboing with Avacyn to make your team consistently indestructible.
So... yeah. Dirty pool. If your creatures aren't just offering you insane value on their own, here are all of the places you can sink your mana in the maindeck - Manland activations, Displacer activations, Tracker clues, Recruiter activations, Abby activations. You're almost assuredly using all of your mana every turn or, if not all, close.
Spells
It's worth noting that Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet is worse for us because most of the time we're exiling stuff but, on the plus side, most of the time we're exiling stuff. He's still really good, though (although you may note we're not playing him main because he's not better than the above, I've found). Another thing I'll say is that so much of removal in standard right now is conditional. Ultimate Price, Languish, Radiant Flames, Fiery Temper/Impulse, Chandra, Grasp of Darkness, etc. Our MB removal basically just gets rid of whatever we need it to... with the exception of Dromoka's Command which is conditional, but is also so versatile and can add value even without using it as a creature removal spell.
Dromoka's Command - Our creatures are tough. As such, it's very rare that they aren't winning a fight after a Command counter has been added to them. This card is so good right now, especially against Cryptolith Rites based decks. It's absolutely brutal against Always Watching and is also great against Evolutionary Leap, or the enchantment removal suite. It's also stopping the majority of red based removal and limiting Pyromancer's Goggles shennanigans. But sneakily, even against many control strategies, it's saving Thought-Knot Seer and Avacyn from the -4/-4 removal spells and isn't worthless.
Anguished Unmaking - we don't want more than two because the life loss along with our painlands is a real thing - but this is just the all purpose instant removal spell that lets us deal with anything we damn well please and exiles it for good.
Declaration in Stone - Also great and cheap removal, fantastic when applying pressure to an opponent or when dealing with the rare threat that we can't otherwise handle - the Worldbreaker, Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger and Dragonlord Atarka's of the world. Also wonderful as a MB answer against token based strategies.
Transgress the Mind - Main board, you say? Absolutely. White Weenie is far less of a thing than it was and, even though that's the worst deck to see with this main, you're otherwise set up well to deal with them. Even in that matchup you can find Always Watching or higher costed angels, depending on their build. Against virtually ever other top tier deck, this card is hitting and exiling the majority of the best stuff in the format. 4 color rites or the Aristocrats build you're taking: Collected Company and, if not Brood Monitor or Eldrazi Displacer or Nantuko Husk or Catacomb Sifter, control you're taking a planeswalker or mass removal spell (or even card draw or spot removal if they're mana light), against ramp you're taking the most relevant thing - usually goggles or chandra, or aurora, or the top end creature, though. You're also stripping out Seasons Past World Breaker and other graveyard relevant strategies. It's this card, along with Thought-Knot Seer that make the matchups against control and ramp so good. Our deck is still so disruptive G1.
The Planeswalker
Sorin, Grim Nemesis - is in there as a one off (and we bring in another copy in certain matchups which I'll discuss). Most of the time, we don't need this card to execute our strategies and we have only the one copy to limit clunkiness. G1 against an unknown opponent, I don't really want this in my opening hand. He's a fantastic top deck during a stalled board state, though, or if you need to eat an especially troublesome planeswalker or creature and gain some life back. He's not an overly exciting draw if you're already way behind on the board, though. And he's not too exciting when your opponents are going wide, which many are wont to do. That being said - most of the time you're playing him and are able to keep him alive, you're probably in a position where he's going to win you the game, either through his card draw and ancillary damage, or by helping you to stabilize an awkward but stalled board state. He's also very good against Chandra as he's able to eat her after she's plus oned.
So, okay...
Sideboard
Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim - Brought in against aggro, mostly, or if we just feel we need another cheap creature. Blocks well and either trades or blanks many aggressive/midrange creatures. Also the lifegain can be very relevant. Also can use her sac ability to activate Avacyn's flip under certain circumstances, which is quite useful.
Den Protector - Primarily used against control as another source of card advantage and to get the most relevant thing. Also will bring in against go wide strategies if I'm on the play and want to be aggro. I especially like it against GW Tokens. I'll make him unblockable by your plants and knight allies and will get back my Virulent Plague that you Dromoka's Commanded, thanks!
Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet - worse for us main deck than many black-based control or midrange decks because they're killing more things as opposed to exiling the things. However, after side board, we can kill more things if we want to. Also, he's just awesome in some matchups like 4 color-rites, aggro, etc. Yet another possible mana sink for us.
Dead Weight - primarily against white weenie based aggro. We may not need these in the matchup, I'm still deciding, but you feel like you're in very good shape after boarding against them with these in. This is my most debatable side board slot... but I think our matchup against control and ramp/midrange is already good enough that I don't mind having extra defense to aggro. I could see one of these being a fourth Declaration in Stone, as well.
Virulent Plague - against GW tokens, but also against other Secure the Wastes/Westvale Abby based decks. Really strong hoser and makes the GW matchup feel really good. Also good against Brood combo.
Sorin, Grim Nemesis - add against control and then just general matchups where one of your other spells doesn't feel as good.
Duress - vs. control and ramp.
Flaying Tendrils - this is why we may not need Dead Weight. Huge and timely blow out against WW - also very good against GW tokens and 4-color rites (doesn't allow Zulpaport Cutthroat to drain) also doesn't kill any of our creatures except for an unflipped Duskwatch Recruiter, which you can play around.
Tragic Arrogance - Good against decks like Bant Company where you can target a scion token, good if you need the extra pop against midrange or aggro based creature decks, good against GW (keep a token, and Nissa, lose Gideon and a ton of other dudes). It also allows us to keep our best creature which is usually the best guy on the board and we've played our hand accordingly knowing this is coming. Solid in most matchups except for Ramp and Control.
So, there you have it. Happy to entertain any side boarding discussions below, matchups, or to talk about card choices.
Town Win % = 75%
Mafia Win % = 75%
Overall Win % = 75%
Completed Game Log
2014: Best Mafia Performance (Group)
2014: Most Improved Player
2014: Best Town Player
2014: Best Overall Player
I opted for an Abzan Midrange with a couple of subthemes: Delirium, Humans and Allies. This might seem like going too wide with the deck and not focusing enough but I think my card choices make the synergies come full circle.
2x Canopy Vista
2x Caves of Koilos
5x Forest
4x Fortified Village
4x Llanowar Wastes
2x Plains
2x Shambling Vent
4x Swamp
Enchantment (6)
4x Oath of Nissa
2x Sinister Concoction
Creature (21)
2x Archangel Avacyn
4x Deathcap Cultivator
2x Lantern Scout
4x Mindwrack Demon
1x Sigarda, Heron's Grace
4x Sylvan Advocate
4x Tireless Tracker
2x Anguished Unmaking
1x Ultimate Price
Planeswalker (4)
2x Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
2x Sorin, Grim Nemesis
Sorcery (1)
1x Ruinous Path
2x Declaration in Stone
1x Descend upon the Sinful
1x Dragonlord Dromoka
2x Dromoka's Command
1x Duress
2x Flaying Tendrils
2x Hallowed Moonlight
2x Languish
2x Transgress the Mind
Now to be honest, testing hasn't been favorable (at least for past iterations, this one hasn't been tested yet). I've had good matches vs most of the archetypes, but there's always one final oomph needed to close out the game it seems.
Creature Choices:
Deathcap Cultivator: Is a human and a mana dork with decent attack and a potential for deathtouch later on. Allows for cute stuff like T3 Demon or Tireless with clue.
Mindwrack Demon: Tbh, it's a pet card I'm kinda holding onto. I still think a 4/5 flyer with trample on T3 could really put the pressure in (ala Tasigur), but the drawbacks might be just too much.
Sigarda, Heron's Grace: Protects mana dorks, the lifelink engine and the ticked up Trackers; uses the graveyard provided by Demon to generate blockers with less drawback than Abbey.
Lantern Scout: There's 8 other allies in the deck (not counting gideon tokens) that can proc this lifelink reliably. The Advocates have extreme lifelink potential post T6.
Spell Choices:
Oath of Nissa: Looks better to filter 3 than tutor a land early and a creature late compared with Traverse. Multiple copies provide value and fuel delirium.
Sinister Concoction: Unconditional cheap removal that fuels delirium.
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar: Good card overall, with tokens activating lifelink endlessly.
Possible Changes:
- Take out 2 Oath of Nissa and put in 2 Traverse the Ulvenwald, for card type variety.
- Take out 2 Tireless Tracker and put in 2 more Lantern Scout to maximize on the lifegain aspect.
- If going for the lifegain, cut 2 Deathcap Cultivator and put in 2 Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim to provide an alternate wincon.
- Optimize the removal package instead of trying to go in 7 different directions.
You can goldfish it here: http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/abzan-midrange-control-4/
Comments are much appreciated. I'd love to push this deck forward, but I also wouldn't like to be building a dead end shell.