The idea is to beat them down with equipped guys, and if that doesn't work, use an infinite mana combo with Blue Sun's Zenith or Steel Hellkite to make them draw their library or just kill them.
I've looked at how to strengthen the idea and I've come up with a few different ways to go.
Delver of Secrets is a strong evasive aggro card, but without Snapcaster Mage available, I'm not convinced that it's worth putting in enough instants and sorceries to make it easy to flip. Every spell I include to activate Delver is a card that's not a blue creature or artifact, which is where Grand Architects can help. If I go this way, does anyone have any nice ideas about which spells to include?
To get to my win conditions, should I go for card draw or tutoring, or a mixture of both? I think that Azure Mage and possibly some artifacts would work for card draw, and Treasure Mage and Trinket Mage for tutoring.
Any thoughts on Adaptive Automaton as a human lord, or Clone as either another Architect or a copy of their best creature?
What toys are fun to include for the infinite mana combo or the Grand Architect ramp? Wurmcoil Engine is out of the budget, but I'm afraid it's hard to resist creating an Orochi Hatchery where X= a billion.
Removal, or counterspells? I'm leaning towards counterspells because I don't want to splash. As far as I know blue removal doesn't get much better than Turn to Frog.
This is just one Delverless take, that I haven't playtested at all. I think it needs removal or counterspells. (My current Grand Architect deck is a proliferate/infect one. Corrupted Conscience my own Ludevic's Abomination = win.)
Any thoughts on using a few Slumbering Dragons as defensive cards? Ring of Valkas can add counters to him or make the Spitfires more potent threats with haste.
Good point about the Ancient Stirrings, though I've found when playing vs. fast decks the Liquimetal Coating + artifact (ok, land) destruction is really important to have out. The early aggro defense vs. things like monogreen undying seems pretty chancy to me, but maybe I'm just playing it wrong. Our budget restriction means we have a bunch of odd scrub decks -- for example, Arachnus Web just owns the Wall of Tanglecord...
In our multiplayer meta, life gain seems to be really strong -- someone with an aggro-ish deck can smash a particular person's face, and have all the work evaporate in a turn or two. I wouldn't run Fangren Marauder in any 1v1 game.
Question for people who've been playing this for a while -- what are your feelings on Ancient Stirrings from Zendikar block? My play group allows cards from that block but is playing on a $25/ deck budget.
Edit: to amplify, I'm thinking of running this -- apologies if you'd prefer to keep this thread standard-only. I'm specifically wanting to compare Ancient Stirrings with Faithless Looting (I have both):
Dies to any artifact hate though, as my buddy found out when busting them out against my peasant Liquimetal Coating deck. Why yes, I would like to pack 20 Vindicate effects in my deck, 12 of which come on sticks...
Does the Titan need to die? An Act of Treason or equivalent gets you their attack trigger and 6 more damage they might not have expected. Follow with a Skinshifter that can at least block it without dying the next turn, assuming you have mana parity.
If that's a dumb idea, please let me know. I'm pretty new to the game (well, after playing it as a teen back in the Revised days).
Speaking of new card hard-ons, does Young Wolf have a place in the Gruul version? I like the resistance to board wipes, and my experience with aggro has often been an empty hand, an empty board, and only a few more points of damage left to go.
Huntmaster's flip side is interesting because it becomes relevant just about when the deck will have run out of gas. You can sit on a burn spell or whatever and get damage in for free when he transforms.
Yeah, but we have to top deck the Brimstone Volley or the Beast Within too.
It does damage the mana base a lot -- in fact, I think including it would hurt the Hero of Oxid Ridge play. But then, the Hero can't kill a Titan by himself...
Oops, my bad -- though the power is all that matters in that scenario. I'm hesitant about Beast Within because it can't ever damage the opponent -- this is an aggro deck after all. KWR doesn't use a spell slot -- though I think it would preclude a Naya build of the deck.
My natural inclination is to just drop white and throw in some different burn (Incinerate/Brimstone Volley), but I'm just a noob. Eager to see how this kind of deck plays out.
My basic idea revolves around these cards:
The idea is to beat them down with equipped guys, and if that doesn't work, use an infinite mana combo with Blue Sun's Zenith or Steel Hellkite to make them draw their library or just kill them.
I've looked at how to strengthen the idea and I've come up with a few different ways to go.
This is just one Delverless take, that I haven't playtested at all. I think it needs removal or counterspells. (My current Grand Architect deck is a proliferate/infect one. Corrupted Conscience my own Ludevic's Abomination = win.)
3 Buried Ruin
18 Island
2 Phyrexia's Core
Aggro
4 Silver-Inlaid Dagger
4 Invisible Stalker
3 Myr Superion
3 Adaptive Automaton
2 Azure Mage
4 Grand Architect
2 Trinket Mage
2 Treasure Mage
3 Pili-Pala
3 Blue Sun's Zenith
1 Orochi Hatchery
2 Steel Hellkite
Utility
2 Clone
1 Necropouncer
1 Spine of Ish Sah
In our multiplayer meta, life gain seems to be really strong -- someone with an aggro-ish deck can smash a particular person's face, and have all the work evaporate in a turn or two. I wouldn't run Fangren Marauder in any 1v1 game.
Edit: to amplify, I'm thinking of running this -- apologies if you'd prefer to keep this thread standard-only. I'm specifically wanting to compare Ancient Stirrings with Faithless Looting (I have both):
4 Evolving Wilds
1 Forest
2 Kazandu Refuge
14 Mountain
3 Rootbound Crag
Spells
3 Ancient Stirrings
2 Faithless Looting
4 Galvanic Blast
3 Ancient Grudge
3 Ichor Wellspring
4 Liquimetal Coating
1 Mimic Vat
2 Perilous Myr
4 Wall of Tanglecord
4 Manic Vandal
1 Oxidda Scrapmelter
4 Kuldotha Phoenix
1 Hoard-Smelter Dragon
2 Red Sun's Zenith
2 Perilous Myr
2 Whipflare
2 Rolling Temblor
3 Sylvok Replica
2 Artillerize
2 Fangren Marauder
The Fangren Marauders are in there because we play both multiplayer and duels
Dies to any artifact hate though, as my buddy found out when busting them out against my peasant Liquimetal Coating deck. Why yes, I would like to pack 20 Vindicate effects in my deck, 12 of which come on sticks...
edit: probably Slash Panther is a little less bad.
If that's a dumb idea, please let me know. I'm pretty new to the game (well, after playing it as a teen back in the Revised days).
It does damage the mana base a lot -- in fact, I think including it would hurt the Hero of Oxid Ridge play. But then, the Hero can't kill a Titan by himself...