Thanks for the reply. Akroma's Memorial is a really solid buff to go in for the finish but I've found that Eldrazi Monument's buff and granting indestructible is more powerful and cheaper to cast. Tempt with Vengeance is a really solid token maker but at least in my meta there are quite a few decks that can abuse the tokens as well as I can and when i tested it I had a few people turn the fact I gave them tokens on me pretty hard. If your meta does not take the offer often or has decks that can't make great use of the tokens it can be a solid swap in for Secure the wastes or a backup of that effect. Primal Vigor is a solid backup to Doubling Season, but in the end Parallel Lives is cheaper and safer. While lives does not double the counters most of the time that effect of Primal Vigor and Doubling Season is not relevant. Grand Abolisher is a nice utility card but he dosen't seem to make a huge difference in most of my plays since most of what I use has immediate impact or would need to make it around the table anyway. Slate of Ancestry is a really good draw engine when you have a decent board but I found it way to dead of a draw after a wrath or when I was behind, for a heavy draw I would almost run Shamanic Revelation over Slate of Ancestry since it's only 5 mana to get card draw over 8. Birds of Paradise is a good mana dork but the current decks curve feels just about right and I don't feel like I need more ramp.
Commander 2015 Bloodspore Thrinax - This card is a little all in for my tastes but I can't deny the huge buff it can give all new tokens, not sure it will make the cut but seems worth testing. Ezuri's Predation - This is an insane card, a token spell that can remove chump and utility creatures seems insanely strong, even better with a token doubler out. I think this will definitely make the cut but I do need to find a place for it. Pathbreaker Ibex - This little creature is kinda crazy and reminds me of Thunderfoot Baloth better in someways but worse in others. Overall he can give a buff with or without Rith on the board and will normally buff for at least +3/+3 and with Rith out will normally buff for +6/+6 which blows Baloth out of the water. Downside is he has to attack for any buff at all and without a way to give him haste I can't drop him and have everything else that is out get a buff. Overall he seems stronger than Baloth but I will be testing to see if he deserves that spot.
Been a while since I messed with this list but I'm looking to make room to test out Dream Pillager and Dragonlord Ojutai. I think those are the only cards that have come out recently that fit this build.
Do you have a recommendation of what to cut for Rhystic Study? Reanimate was a late add and I'm not sure I need it but do you have something you'd pull out a head of it?
Good list, my only suggestion would be to try out Rhystic Study as an early, powerful source of card advantage.
Rhystic Study can be a very good card but my meta has learned to play around it so the draw is only alright. Mystic Remora sometimes does a little better as the tax is usually unpayable but some decks I play against will feed me tons of cards and others will give almost none.
One of the most brutal things you can do with Bolas is put your opponents on instant-speed hand discard. Trigger it off the end of their Draw step and nobody else can play anything but instants for the rest of the game.
Having the instant speed hand removal would be an incredibly powerful effect but it seems to require a lot of setup and my meta is fairly aggressive on spot removal so I don't think I'd ever get to pull it off. Also Grixis is pretty bad at enchantment recursion so if the enchantments get destroyed it would be difficult to try again.
Has anyone had any experience with Sire of Stagnation? It seems like a decent control effect plus card draw but since it's 6 I'm not sure if it's worth it in the end.
Olivia most likely to cute over all since she has very little staying power without being more focused on and overall would be to much of a mana sink. Relic of Progenitus overall would be safer than Agent so I'll make that swap. Time Warp I think ended getting left over from when I was running more planeswalkers but with out them it probably does not do enough. I was looking at bitter blossom as a more defensive enchantment but something like No Mercy might be better. Bribery and Hellkite tyrant were a little more good stuffy and were closer to the threat side of things which I felt I was lacking on. Venser, shaper savant seems somewhat solid as an answer but I'll have to see how much I can milk him, for now I think I will let him take Olivia's spot.
Out of the cards you have listed for trinket mage that I'm not currently running I think Relic of Progenitus and Viridian Longbow might be worth it. While I'm sold on relic the bow I'm still on the fence about. With bolas costing 8 I doubt I'll ever have the 3 to equip the turn I land him. Then after that I need to pay his upkeep which eats 3 mana and then pay 3 to equip the bow. Which is doable but it's similar to making him unblockable but doing a lot less damage. Getting rid of their hand is nice but it feels expensive to get that ping off. Tormod's Crypt is good grave hate but with Nihil Spellbomb and Relic of Progenitus I don't think I need a third and it feels the weakest since it can't cantrip. Mana Vault is a good rock but it only helps me out so much since at best I could use 2 to get to the initial casting of Bolas and i normally only like to run it if it curves me into my general super early. Other cards I had considered for Trinket Mage were the three artifact lands which would let me color fix with him. They also have the benefit of being untapable by Tezzeret but I'm not sure if such little synergy is worth running lands that are a lot more likely to get destroyed.
I'm running a lot of board wipe spells to help with the fact that he costs 8 mana to cast and that the colors needed are restrictive. Oblivion Stone and Perilous Vault can act as deterrents for over committing while also being able to be used right before my turn so my mana is still open. Cyclonic Rift and Evacuation as have the nice instant speed attached to them and if I hit with Bolas after it's the same as a hard wipe. Toxic Deluge and Crux of Fate both let me clear the board but leave Bolas around. Ugin, the Spirit Dragon can also remove lower costing things while leaving Bolas around and can also ping away at utility creatures.
Chandra's Ignition seems like it could be good on paper as it lets me wipe out the board with Bolas while also taking out everyone's hands. In a similar vein Soul's Fire, Scourge of Valkas, and Dragon Tempest all let Bolas damage a player directly to get rid of their hand. A few other cards would give the same effect but I'm not sure if including them would be worth it. The other cards that let you do this are
Cryptic Command and Turnabout are both cards with a lot of utility. Turnabout can either ramp me up or lock someone down, while Cryptic Command can remove a threat, tap down blockers, cantrip and counter a problematic spell. For other counter spells I have Mana Drain which is stupid good at providing ramp, Arcane Denial which is an easy counter to cast, Pact of Negation as a surprise counter spell and Glen Elendra Archmage as a multi use counter spell.
A few cards in the list I'm not sold on are Olivia Voldaren, Mindslicer, Agent of Erebos, and Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. Olivia Voldaren seems like a nice way to remove utility creatures and provide a threat in creature steal. Overall her effect is expensive and I'm not sure it will be worth running in the long run. Mindslicer seems like a good way to defend myself on the ground as I don't see many people wanting to attack into him. He also works well with Cyclonic Rift and Evacuation for large blowouts with his trigger on the stack. Agent of Erebos seems like strong grave hate that can be used more than once. He reminds me of Angel of Finality but with a less relevant body. Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir is in mainly as a way to prevent my opponent from using spot removal during my turn to protect Bolas. In the long run he can also be used to give Bolas pseudo haste by casting him at the end of the player before me's turn.
The deck mainly looks to Bolas as a way to finish but his Planeswalker self is also a nice way to blow people out by providing a way to remove non creature threats and take threatening creatures for myself. So that's the general run down of the deck. If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them or if you have suggestions I'd be happy to hear them. Thanks
Sorry for the delay in updating on cards from recent sets, life has been kinda crazy last couple months. So a bit behind but the last three sets reviewed.
Battle for Zendikar
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar - seems like a really powerful planeswalker, much like Elspeth, Knight-Errant. He may beat her out for the slot since burning him to get a permanent Glorious Anthem seems stronger than the buff Elspeth gives with her second ability. Elspeth has a strong ultimate but without doubling season it just dosen't happen, although she is a useful magnet for removal for that same reason. For now he will be taking her spot.
Retreat to Emeria - this card doesn't seem bad, reminds me of an enchantment version of Emeria Angel in one mode but has the ability to do a field wide buff. I think it's to little of an effect for the cost but its not a bad card overall.
Emeria Shepherd - this card is really strong but at 7 mana I want to be playing finishers and this is more of a setup card. In the right deck she would be crazy but I don't think this deck has room for her.
Omnath, Locus of Rage - the tokens he makes are really strong and for 1 more he may be worth swapping Rampaging Baloths for. His tokens are bigger and have a nice effect when they die if he sticks around.
Hedron Archive - if I ran more rocks this may be worth it but at 4 it will ramp me to 7 the next turn which while nice isn't worth the turn. Soild rock but no room for it with the current curve.
Blighted Woodland - strong utility on land, I will find a land slot for it and test it out.
Canopy Vista and Cinder Glade - the new lands are interesting and I think I will try and make room for them but not sure which lands I'm cutting yet.
Magic Origins
Archangel of Tithes - A nice defense buff that also makes it even harder to block swarms of creatures. Might need to try and find a spot for her.
Gideon's Phalanx - an interesting effect but for 7 I feel like its to expensive.
Tragic Arrogance - seems worth it for a board wipe since I can leave my best stuff and rebuild quickly, seems like it may be meta dependent, I may try in place of Hour of Reckoning.
Evolutionary Leap - Seems interesting but I'm not sure what to pull out to test it, maybe Eladamri's Call since they both dig for creatures. While call gets me one I really want I can possible dig a few out with leap.
Dragons of Tarkir
Shaman of Forgotten Ways - His first effect is ok since I can use it to play Rith quicker and it curvers nicley, him turn 3 then her turn 4. Also with just him and Rith out I become able to use his second ability. So a mana dork that can help finish the game off. It's hard to judge as 11 mana is a really high cost but the effect seems strong.
Dragonlord Dromoka - the Grand Abolisher effect is nice and so is her power and toughness but it's not an effect I feel this deck really needs
Dragon Whisperer - if it did more by itself I'd say it would be worth it but it's just a 2/2 with fairly weak abilities if I can't turn it on. 6 mana for a 4/4 token is not bad but I don't think she is worth a slot.
Secure the Wastes - first card in a long time that I would say that is an auto include. Only though choice to make is weather I cut white sun zenith for it or run both.
Descent of the Dragons - a way to turn tiny tokens into huge threats, with a haste outlet this could easily be a game ender but it requires a good board state and to many times I think it would just wiff. I'll be passing on it but it is nice that you can use it to remove things your opponents have as well.
Impact Tremors - a light version of Purphoros, God of the Forge for half the cost. For a combo deck this would be great but the difference between 1 damage a creature and 2 is huge and Purphoros' pump abilty has closed out games
for me before.
I will be working on a list of what I am actually swapping out in the next few days and then I will post changes to the deck. Please let me know if you feel like I missed any of the cards from the last few sets that you think would work well here.
The modular build is pretty fun to play, if anyone is interested my list and DirkGently list are built that way.
Also for a build closer to rune's I've been considering cutting Rune-Scarred Demon for Sidisi, Undead Vizier for the overall lower mana cost. Anybody else doing a similar swap or keeping demon over Sidisi?
Squirrel Wrangler had a hard doing enough for me and the temple lands are good but I think the cycling lands will do more for me overall. Should be a ton of fun with life from the loam
Enchantress might be an interesting way to go with this, I'll give it some more thought but that also does open up things like Kataki, War's Wage and Stony Silence for heavy artifact hate.
don't run dosan in this deck, your commander and abolisher are enough, if you must run a third, use City of solitude, it's harder to get rid of and stops abilities as well, at 3cmc but 1 green less it's better in all ways except you can't attack with it
most people when making a deck like this put so many ways to say no to your opponent, you're also saying no to yourself because you have no threats, keep that in mind when building
you don't have to literally say no either, you can give your opponents a choice where they will most likely say no, like defense of the heart , sure your opponent could play 3 creatures, but then you get 2 free ones right out of your deck at your upkeep, and with forbidden orchard you can set it off whether they want to or not
I could see not using Dosan the Falling Leaf since he is a weaker abolisher and most of the time I should have the effect active from the command zone often. City of Solitude I have mixed feelings for in GW given that white has a ton of good instant speed answers. Might still consider it but not sold on it just yet. I do like how defense of the heart plays into the theme and seems like it could lead to strong finishes.
Looking at Dragonlord Dromoka and thinking about building a list that just says no as much as possible. So hatebears seems like a good way to accomplish this. What are the best ones for a GW control strategy?
Also for those who have played a strategy like this before what ways do you like to close the game out, was considering Voltron but without pump five swings per player is a lot.
IMO Derevi, Empyrial Tactician is a strong general but I don't think losing tuck makes her much stronger. She already could get around Hinder and Spell Crumple and any sac outlet kept her away from Chaos Warp, Oblation and Terminus. Also in the instance that tuck was going to hit her and she could not be sacced blue could try and counter the spell or one of green's many creature tutor could just get her back. I think Tuck was only an ok answer for her in the first place, she is just hard to deal with but given that she hasn't been banned yet I don't think this is the change that would push her over the edge.
If anything the changes make the Gods harder to deal with, I think it becomes more about running cards that mess them up instead of a silver bullet answer that can tuck any given one. Graveyard hate for Athreos, God of Passage, ETB hate for Ephara, God of the Polis and Purphoros, God of the Forge etc.
Thanks for the reply.
Akroma's Memorial is a really solid buff to go in for the finish but I've found that Eldrazi Monument's buff and granting indestructible is more powerful and cheaper to cast.
Tempt with Vengeance is a really solid token maker but at least in my meta there are quite a few decks that can abuse the tokens as well as I can and when i tested it I had a few people turn the fact I gave them tokens on me pretty hard. If your meta does not take the offer often or has decks that can't make great use of the tokens it can be a solid swap in for Secure the wastes or a backup of that effect.
Primal Vigor is a solid backup to Doubling Season, but in the end Parallel Lives is cheaper and safer. While lives does not double the counters most of the time that effect of Primal Vigor and Doubling Season is not relevant.
Grand Abolisher is a nice utility card but he dosen't seem to make a huge difference in most of my plays since most of what I use has immediate impact or would need to make it around the table anyway.
Slate of Ancestry is a really good draw engine when you have a decent board but I found it way to dead of a draw after a wrath or when I was behind, for a heavy draw I would almost run Shamanic Revelation over Slate of Ancestry since it's only 5 mana to get card draw over 8.
Birds of Paradise is a good mana dork but the current decks curve feels just about right and I don't feel like I need more ramp.
Commander 2015
Bloodspore Thrinax - This card is a little all in for my tastes but I can't deny the huge buff it can give all new tokens, not sure it will make the cut but seems worth testing.
Ezuri's Predation - This is an insane card, a token spell that can remove chump and utility creatures seems insanely strong, even better with a token doubler out. I think this will definitely make the cut but I do need to find a place for it.
Pathbreaker Ibex - This little creature is kinda crazy and reminds me of Thunderfoot Baloth better in someways but worse in others. Overall he can give a buff with or without Rith on the board and will normally buff for at least +3/+3 and with Rith out will normally buff for +6/+6 which blows Baloth out of the water. Downside is he has to attack for any buff at all and without a way to give him haste I can't drop him and have everything else that is out get a buff. Overall he seems stronger than Baloth but I will be testing to see if he deserves that spot.
Rhystic Study can be a very good card but my meta has learned to play around it so the draw is only alright. Mystic Remora sometimes does a little better as the tax is usually unpayable but some decks I play against will feed me tons of cards and others will give almost none.
+Shaman of Forgotten ways - good ramp with a nice secondary effect
+Thunderfoot Baloth - gives evasion and pump to the entire board
+Secure the Wastes - cheap instant speed token generator
+Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury - makes tokens that ramps, acts as removal, and can draw cards
+Xenagos, the Reveler - makes decent tokens and gives tons of ramp
+Canopy Vista - fetchable dual
+Reflecting Pool - rainbow land
+Windswept Heath - finally added the last fetch I needed
+Savannah - added the last dual I needed
+Ancient Tomb - the life loss does not even come close to making this fair
+Haven of the Spirit Dragon - color fixing for my general as well as a way to get her back a bit cheaper late game
-Sundering Growth - less artifact and enchantment threats in my meta as of late
-Vandalblast - less heavy artifact threats in my meta as of late
-Selesnya Guildmage - not bad but a little on the slow side
-Garruk Wildspeaker - strong but only Stronger than Xenagos, the Reveler if Gaea's Cradle is out
-Plains - mana base tweaking
-Evolving Wilds - moving away from come into play tap lands
-Rith's Grove - the tempo loss isn't worth the color fixing
-Rupture Spire - moving away from come into play tap lands
-Sunhome, Fortress of the Legion - strong buff but to expensive
-Forest - mana base tweaking
-Jungle Shrine - moving away from come into play tap lands
Also I'm working on getting a copy of Omnath, Locus of Rage who is going to replace Rampaging Baloths. Also I'm going to see how Canopy Vista runs and if I like it I will be getting a copy of Cinder Glade and the RW tango land when they make it.
Having the instant speed hand removal would be an incredibly powerful effect but it seems to require a lot of setup and my meta is fairly aggressive on spot removal so I don't think I'd ever get to pull it off. Also Grixis is pretty bad at enchantment recursion so if the enchantments get destroyed it would be difficult to try again.
Has anyone had any experience with Sire of Stagnation? It seems like a decent control effect plus card draw but since it's 6 I'm not sure if it's worth it in the end.
Out of the cards you have listed for trinket mage that I'm not currently running I think Relic of Progenitus and Viridian Longbow might be worth it. While I'm sold on relic the bow I'm still on the fence about. With bolas costing 8 I doubt I'll ever have the 3 to equip the turn I land him. Then after that I need to pay his upkeep which eats 3 mana and then pay 3 to equip the bow. Which is doable but it's similar to making him unblockable but doing a lot less damage. Getting rid of their hand is nice but it feels expensive to get that ping off. Tormod's Crypt is good grave hate but with Nihil Spellbomb and Relic of Progenitus I don't think I need a third and it feels the weakest since it can't cantrip. Mana Vault is a good rock but it only helps me out so much since at best I could use 2 to get to the initial casting of Bolas and i normally only like to run it if it curves me into my general super early. Other cards I had considered for Trinket Mage were the three artifact lands which would let me color fix with him. They also have the benefit of being untapable by Tezzeret but I'm not sure if such little synergy is worth running lands that are a lot more likely to get destroyed.
Current swaps I'm looking at trying are
Out:
Olivia Voldaren
Agent of Erebos
Bitterblossom
time warp
sudden spoiling
In:
Venser, shaper savant
Relic of Progenitus
No Mercy
Fact or Fiction
Chaos Warp
I will also look more into Dark Confidant but I want to be more sure of him fitting in with the current curve, it seems like he would be fine though.
Creatures(14)
1 Baleful Strix
1 Snapcaster Mage
1 Trinket Mage
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Mindslicer
1 Notion Thief
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
1 Venser, shaper savant
1 Scourge of Valkas
1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius
1 Dragonlord Silumgar
1 Hellkite Tyrant
1 Scourge of the Throne
Artifacts(14)
1 Expedition Map
1 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Dimir Signet
1 Izzet Signet
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Rakdos Signet
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Unstable Obelisk
1 Perilous Vault
1 Gilded Lotus
Enchantments(5)
1 Dragon Tempest
1 Dragon Breath
1 Necropotence
1 Phyrexian Arena
1 No Mercy
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker
1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
Instants(16)
1 Pact of Negation
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Arcane Denial
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Mana Drain
1 Terminate
1 Starstorm
1 Chaos Warp
1 Hero's Downfall
1 Soul's Fire
1 Cryptic Command
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Turnabout
1 Evacuation
1 Dragonlord's Prerogative
1 Dig Through Time
Sorceries(10)
1 Reanimate
1 Vandalblast
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Wheel of Fortune
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Damnation
1 Bribery
1 Chandra's Ignition
1 Crux of Fate
1 All Is Dust
Land(37)
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Academy Ruins
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
1 Strip Mine
1 Ancient Tomb
1 Command Tower
1 Reflecting Pool
1 Underground Sea
1 Volcanic Island
1 Badlands
1 Watery Grave
1 Steam Vents
1 Blood Crypt
1 Polluted Delta
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Drowned Catacomb
1 Sulfur Falls
1 Dragonskull Summit
1 Graven Cairns
1 Cascade Bluffs
1 Sunken Ruins
4 Island
4 Swamp
4 Mountain
I'm running a lot of board wipe spells to help with the fact that he costs 8 mana to cast and that the colors needed are restrictive. Oblivion Stone and Perilous Vault can act as deterrents for over committing while also being able to be used right before my turn so my mana is still open. Cyclonic Rift and Evacuation as have the nice instant speed attached to them and if I hit with Bolas after it's the same as a hard wipe. Toxic Deluge and Crux of Fate both let me clear the board but leave Bolas around. Ugin, the Spirit Dragon can also remove lower costing things while leaving Bolas around and can also ping away at utility creatures.
Chandra's Ignition seems like it could be good on paper as it lets me wipe out the board with Bolas while also taking out everyone's hands. In a similar vein Soul's Fire, Scourge of Valkas, and Dragon Tempest all let Bolas damage a player directly to get rid of their hand. A few other cards would give the same effect but I'm not sure if including them would be worth it. The other cards that let you do this are
Cryptic Command and Turnabout are both cards with a lot of utility. Turnabout can either ramp me up or lock someone down, while Cryptic Command can remove a threat, tap down blockers, cantrip and counter a problematic spell. For other counter spells I have Mana Drain which is stupid good at providing ramp, Arcane Denial which is an easy counter to cast, Pact of Negation as a surprise counter spell and Glen Elendra Archmage as a multi use counter spell.
I've added a small Dragon package to make better use of Cavern of Souls and Haven of the Spirit Dragon as well as Dragon Tempest. Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius provides good card advantage and benefits from Dragon Tempest's ping since you draw off any hit from him. Hellkite Tyrant can aid me by stealing ramp or equipment and Scourge of the Throne provides a way to hit with Bolas more often. Dragonlord Silumgar makes a strong rattlesnake blocker and can also steal a threat.
For draw I have Dragonlord's Prerogative, Dig Through Time, Necropotence, Phyrexian Arena, Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius, and Wheel of Fortune. Notion Thief is also intended to act as card draw but he can also act as a blocker to opponents playing draw spells. I'll be honest in that he is more of a card I really wanted to give a shot at running, I'm not actually sure how solid he will be overall.
For tutors I'm running the standard Demonic Tutor and Vampiric Tutor as well as Trinket Mage which can grab Expedition Map for land tutor, Nihil Spellbomb for graveyard hate, Sensei's Divining Top for filtering, or Sol Ring for Ramp. Tezzeret the Seeker lets me search for an artifact I need weather it be a board wipe, protection, ramp or removal and can also ramp me but untapping some of my rocks.
A few cards in the list I'm not sold on are Olivia Voldaren, Mindslicer, Agent of Erebos, and Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. Olivia Voldaren seems like a nice way to remove utility creatures and provide a threat in creature steal. Overall her effect is expensive and I'm not sure it will be worth running in the long run. Mindslicer seems like a good way to defend myself on the ground as I don't see many people wanting to attack into him. He also works well with Cyclonic Rift and Evacuation for large blowouts with his trigger on the stack. Agent of Erebos seems like strong grave hate that can be used more than once. He reminds me of Angel of Finality but with a less relevant body. Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir is in mainly as a way to prevent my opponent from using spot removal during my turn to protect Bolas. In the long run he can also be used to give Bolas pseudo haste by casting him at the end of the player before me's turn.
The deck mainly looks to Bolas as a way to finish but his Planeswalker self is also a nice way to blow people out by providing a way to remove non creature threats and take threatening creatures for myself. So that's the general run down of the deck. If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them or if you have suggestions I'd be happy to hear them. Thanks
Battle for Zendikar
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar - seems like a really powerful planeswalker, much like Elspeth, Knight-Errant. He may beat her out for the slot since burning him to get a permanent Glorious Anthem seems stronger than the buff Elspeth gives with her second ability. Elspeth has a strong ultimate but without doubling season it just dosen't happen, although she is a useful magnet for removal for that same reason. For now he will be taking her spot.
Retreat to Emeria - this card doesn't seem bad, reminds me of an enchantment version of Emeria Angel in one mode but has the ability to do a field wide buff. I think it's to little of an effect for the cost but its not a bad card overall.
Emeria Shepherd - this card is really strong but at 7 mana I want to be playing finishers and this is more of a setup card. In the right deck she would be crazy but I don't think this deck has room for her.
Omnath, Locus of Rage - the tokens he makes are really strong and for 1 more he may be worth swapping Rampaging Baloths for. His tokens are bigger and have a nice effect when they die if he sticks around.
Hedron Archive - if I ran more rocks this may be worth it but at 4 it will ramp me to 7 the next turn which while nice isn't worth the turn. Soild rock but no room for it with the current curve.
Blighted Woodland - strong utility on land, I will find a land slot for it and test it out.
Canopy Vista and Cinder Glade - the new lands are interesting and I think I will try and make room for them but not sure which lands I'm cutting yet.
Magic Origins
Archangel of Tithes - A nice defense buff that also makes it even harder to block swarms of creatures. Might need to try and find a spot for her.
Gideon's Phalanx - an interesting effect but for 7 I feel like its to expensive.
Tragic Arrogance - seems worth it for a board wipe since I can leave my best stuff and rebuild quickly, seems like it may be meta dependent, I may try in place of Hour of Reckoning.
Evolutionary Leap - Seems interesting but I'm not sure what to pull out to test it, maybe Eladamri's Call since they both dig for creatures. While call gets me one I really want I can possible dig a few out with leap.
Dragons of Tarkir
Shaman of Forgotten Ways - His first effect is ok since I can use it to play Rith quicker and it curvers nicley, him turn 3 then her turn 4. Also with just him and Rith out I become able to use his second ability. So a mana dork that can help finish the game off. It's hard to judge as 11 mana is a really high cost but the effect seems strong.
Dragonlord Dromoka - the Grand Abolisher effect is nice and so is her power and toughness but it's not an effect I feel this deck really needs
Haven of the Spirit Dragon - a decent land that can be any color for casting Rith or Dragon Broodmother and a nice way to recur them as well.
Dragon Whisperer - if it did more by itself I'd say it would be worth it but it's just a 2/2 with fairly weak abilities if I can't turn it on. 6 mana for a 4/4 token is not bad but I don't think she is worth a slot.
Secure the Wastes - first card in a long time that I would say that is an auto include. Only though choice to make is weather I cut white sun zenith for it or run both.
Descent of the Dragons - a way to turn tiny tokens into huge threats, with a haste outlet this could easily be a game ender but it requires a good board state and to many times I think it would just wiff. I'll be passing on it but it is nice that you can use it to remove things your opponents have as well.
Impact Tremors - a light version of Purphoros, God of the Forge for half the cost. For a combo deck this would be great but the difference between 1 damage a creature and 2 is huge and Purphoros' pump abilty has closed out games
for me before.
I will be working on a list of what I am actually swapping out in the next few days and then I will post changes to the deck. Please let me know if you feel like I missed any of the cards from the last few sets that you think would work well here.
Also for a build closer to rune's I've been considering cutting Rune-Scarred Demon for Sidisi, Undead Vizier for the overall lower mana cost. Anybody else doing a similar swap or keeping demon over Sidisi?
Out:
In:
Squirrel Wrangler had a hard doing enough for me and the temple lands are good but I think the cycling lands will do more for me overall. Should be a ton of fun with life from the loam
Linvala, Keeper of Silence, Aven Mindcensor, and Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite are seem great here. Crovax, Ascendant Hero will be a maybe depending on how many mono green creatures make the cut but the ability seems solid. Elesh and him go pretty well with Kamahl, Fist of Krosa who also is anti wrath. Spirit of the Labyrinth seems interesting as well.
Enchantress might be an interesting way to go with this, I'll give it some more thought but that also does open up things like Kataki, War's Wage and Stony Silence for heavy artifact hate.
I could see not using Dosan the Falling Leaf since he is a weaker abolisher and most of the time I should have the effect active from the command zone often. City of Solitude I have mixed feelings for in GW given that white has a ton of good instant speed answers. Might still consider it but not sold on it just yet. I do like how defense of the heart plays into the theme and seems like it could lead to strong finishes.
Was thinking about using the following
Also for those who have played a strategy like this before what ways do you like to close the game out, was considering Voltron but without pump five swings per player is a lot.
If anything the changes make the Gods harder to deal with, I think it becomes more about running cards that mess them up instead of a silver bullet answer that can tuck any given one. Graveyard hate for Athreos, God of Passage, ETB hate for Ephara, God of the Polis and Purphoros, God of the Forge etc.