MTG Salvation

BTW I fully agree that this card will cause some grief, but isn't that what blue is all about? Playing head games, frustrating your opponent

I originally coated this at 3UU for the reasons stated. I think the card this is most compatible to is Pact of Negation, because with that card you can tap out THEN counter, while with this you counter THEN tap out. I believe my card is stronger though because it guarantees card advantage and is less risky to play.

FDW, is Urza summoning up a condom there?

Edited my original post to 2UU! My idea is that if your opponent is in top-deck mode, this will allow the blue mage to safely tap out to drop the win-condition next turn.

Rules of pauper are if a card was ever printed as a common, it is legal. Since Crypt Rats was a common in Visions, it is pauper legal.

I playtested tonight and after making a couple changes (my deck has been updated in the original post) was very evenly matched against a Demigod / Animate Dead / Buried Alive combo deck.

Thanks Selvaxri for the brilliant suggestions, both cards can fit right into this deck. Urza's was truly the best block in Magic's history, one day I'll complete that old school Mono-Blue deck with Masticore and Morphling.

2:symu::symu:

Instant.

Counter target spell.

That spell's controller skips
their next draw phase.


I think this is a proper counter that I'd love to add to my deck. Thoughts?

No room for Duress. I already have 11 1cc cards and 10 discard cards.

Edicts are great, but I prefer Grasp of Darkness for pauper. I would add 2 if I decided the deck needs more removal, but with Crypt Rats, Quicksand, Fume Spitter AND Grasp, I've got my removal covered.

Gravedigger is here to fill out the 4+ casting cost slots. I already have plenty of cards in the 3cc spot and I'd rather have a 2/2 over a 1/1 flier, so Gravedigger > Cadaver Imp. Grim Discovery/Harvest are both great, but I like having a body attached to the effect.

The one creature i'd swap digger out for is Order of the Ebon Hand. If the digger proves to be not as useful as I hope, I'll swap it out.

I'd go with a Unicorn tribal theme and add Coat of Arms.

Here is an all common deck I sleeved up tonight



Strategy is Aggro-control with a focus on card advantage and creatures with useful, "sorcery"-like abilities. The cards explained,

Dark Ritual enables a turn 1 three-drop, turn 2 Ninjutsu'ed-in Shinobi, and pump for the powerful Crypt Rat. Hardly ever wasted, even in the late game

Fume Spitter is the aggressive one-drop, the black Mogg Fanatic. Excellent for getting the surprise ninjutsu from Shinobi to connect

Bonesplitter provides an offensive tool to boost the otherwise small bodies in the creature base

Hymn to Tourach, one of the most powerful cards in magic. Few can recover from a turn 2 Hymn. With Dark Ritual on tap, a turn 1 Hymn is very likely

Grasp of Darkness forces a sacrifice on creatures costing much more than 2 mana. I haven't encountered a common with Shroud so far, so this powerful targeted removal spell takes precedence over Diabolic Edict in Pauper

Order of the Ebon Hand is an excellent creature that makes good use of left-over mana. Especially powerful wielding a Bonesplitter

Phyrexian Rager provides a 2/2 body and card advantage. 2-for-1 isn't bad for a three-drop. Ninjutsu him and make it 3-for-1

Crypt Rats, the MVP (well, next to Hymn of course). Provides a Wrath of God effect and delivers game-winning amounts of damage to your opponent

Liliana's Spectre is a perfect candidate for Bonesplitter or Shinobi's Ninjutsu. I'd run 4 if my 3-mana and discard slots weren't filled. Simply ran out of room for the last 2 copies

Faceless Butcher. Journey to Nowhere on a 2/3. An excellent card, but an appropriate 2-of here due to negative synergy with Crypt Rats

Okiba-Gang Shinobi's Ninjutsu effect is devastating when it lands, leaving a 3/2 body in its wake

Quicksand is the defensive tool. Use it to hold off weenie hoards or with Grasp of Darkness to take down the real fatties


There it is! I think it's a balanced, effective, fun-to-play deck. Suggestions?

Some notes on Tog:

1) I've found daze to be, meh. Dazing first turn sucks, since Tog is a 2cc heavy deck. Getting to 4 mana ASAP is recommended to start your fact-or-fictions going. For that first turn counter spot i like spell pierce since i run heavy creature removal.

2) Run 4 togs. If you draw extras and you have a few creatures staring you down, use it as a blocker. Also think of your FoF splits: You opponent will always put tog in one pile and 4 cards in another. With 4 togs you can afford to lose one this way. With 3, you can't.

3) run 4 Fact or Fiction, no questions asked. It is insanely good. Digs 5 cards in, major card advantage, major Tog food. instant speed means you can have a counterspell and FoF in hand and decide which to play. Often the right move is to let a less-than-threatening spell resolve to play FoF.

4) no more than 1 wonder. with all the card drawing here, you will find him.

5) 4 copies of innocent blood is a must. having one in the opening hand while on the draw is amazing. being able to creature kill AND save mana for a counter on turn 3 is amazing too. it gives tog decks much needed speed. never mind sacing your own tog, I always run 4 and have NEVER been forced to sac a tog because tog is almost always played 1-3 turns before you go for the kill swing.

For a legacy deck you can build for less than $125, tog is a great choice.

I've been working on legacy tog for a while, here is my current deck:



It's budget priced, the most expensive card in hereis watery grave at $10. Its been successful, can win about 25-33% of the time against top tier, unlimited budget decks.

I'd say it's too reliant on the 3-4 mana spells. If you get a first turn BoP that's great, but you most likely won't. Also, the land count is high for an aggressive deck. Drawing lands and birds suck after turn 3-4. I think more burn would be good; Fireblast is a must, and incinerate is an excellent burn spell. Rancor is a must, it is INSANELY powerful. I built a similar budget deck that has been successful (I'm aware of the lack of dual/fetch lands, I just can't afford them. If you have them swap them in).

Thanks for the help. Boa is gone for sure, you are right he is too defensive here.

Sure about Mongrel and Rootwalla? Dropping the Rancor on either is a great play, since both can pump. Plus the free rootwalla is always awesome for a fast deck. And if I'm losing Rootwalla, Mongrel, and Boa, why not just make a RDW?

To clarify, Boggart Ram-Gang > Eternal Witness here?