MTG Salvation

In my EDH decks, I've often had trouble establishing a proper curve for the creatures I play. I've had decks with too many measly utility creatures and decks with too many expensive fatties. This is an issue that will certainly vary based on the deck one is playing.

So, for the purpose of discussion, let's say you're playing generic goodstuff: How many utility creatures should you have compared to fatties do you aim for? What are some good rules of thumb for developing a good curve?

One other question --

Is it true that there is NO chance that the guild packs will contain planeswalkers (i.e., Gideon or Domri Rade)?

I agree that is overrated, although I disagree that it is because decks end up becoming mediocre because of it.

My primary reasoning for why it's overrated is its slowness. Compared to other limited bombs, Pack Rats takes long time to get going and is very susceptible to removal. When was the last time you saw a Desecration Demon get offed by an Electrickery? That said, non-removal heavy decks (e.g., G/W) are going to have a lot of trouble with it.

You don't, and the payout is in more cube tickets. So winning more typically ony grants you more opportunity to play cube. The one exception are the single-elim formats, which I believe gives the opportunity for real packs. For those of us that primarily play limited anyway, it's a great deal.

Quote from Jhono

I'd open the premium decks and masters boosters thats it. But really depends what kind of player you are:

-Casual (open everything)
-Standard/limited (open nothing and trade all for tix)
-Collector (open everything)

That's a good way of thinking about it. I mostly play limited and pauper, so I probably would fall in the second category. That said, if there's higher expected value (tix-wise) to opening them, then I'd definitely do that. I'll do a little more research on the premium decks and masters boosters before I open them for sure. Thanks for the input!

I recall reading that they are planning more cube events throughout the year in a recent post, if that helps. (Can't remember the source)

It's a common maxim that opening sealed product is unprofitable. However, I've landed in a special situation that may be an exception to this rule. I bumped into an old friend recently who quit MTGO a couple years ago, so he gave me a great variety of packs he never got rid of. I've also accumulated a couple free pre-made decks (e.g., Graveborn, Fire and Lightning). I've attached a picture below.

I see three options:

1) Sell to Bots. But which ones tend to give you the best payback for old boosters?
2.) Crack the Packs. Maybe some packs have higher expected value than their bot sell value.
3.)Wait for Special Limited Events. I'm a limited player first. Which blocks are more likely to offered for limited events in the future (e.g., like Urza block over the holidays).

What would you guys recommend?


http://i.imgur.com/PBLgC.jpg

Bruna, Light of Alabaster
Ghost Council of Orzhova
Nin, The Pain Artist
Scion of the Ur-Dragon
Yeva, Nature's Herald

It seems to me like it may have been a decade or two based on the fact that Teysa is still hanging around. But that evidence is indirectl - is there more direct evidence for how long it's been between the two blocks?

A good read on their relationship could be found in the recent dailymtg articles on the respective guilds:
Azorious

Boros

What JetKinen wrote is on point. Interestingly, these new posts suggest that Boros is now better allies with Izzet (who supplement their weapons and armor) than Azorious.

There has been a decent amount of back-and-forth between the Anthem and G/W Aggro Builds on these forums.

There are certainly certain matchups were Anthem may be better-positioned than G/W Aggro. Certain local metagames might better for Anthem builds (for example, my local meta has a lot of U/B Control). But in general, G/W Aggro has more success across a wide variety of match-ups. Sure, it suffers from inconsistency and a reliance on mana dorks. Sure, it is less resilient to board wipes. But its speed is what makes the deck place highly again and again. That's how G/W Aggro can often mull down to 4-card hands and still pull out wins.

I'm a fan of both builds, but I don't think we're at a point were Anthem builds can do well consistently. For all we know, Intangible Virtue could become the Tempered Steel of this block (or the next). But the card pool isn't there yet. G/W Aggro has many weaknesses and inconsistencies, and Garryth has pointed them out. But Anthem has even more weaknesses in the current metagame, and it hasn't placed highly. When we start seeing quantitative markers of success with the Anthem build, then I'll be comfortable with switching back from playing G/W Aggro.

I ran against it last night at FNM. It's clear that the planeswalkers do not work well against this deck - they're slow, and Grixis Control have enough answers to get the planeswalkers off the board post-casting (especially compared to UB Control).

I think another important interaction (if you can get it to stick) is Mirran Crusader + Sword of War and Peace. That makes the Crusader immune to almost all removal except Liliana, Ratchet Bomb, Black Sun's Zenith. It still won't get past a wall of Precursor Golems, however.

I don't think Sword of Feast and Famine is worth boarding in -- it's slower than War and Peace, and it's easier for the deck to work around.

For me, my SB plan would be something like this:

-2 Overrun*
-3 Elspeth Tirel
-2 Mortarpod
-2 Mikaeus, the Lunarch

+ 2 Sword of War and Peace
+ 2 Thrun, The Last Troll
+ 2 Naturalize
+ 3 Dismember

*I only run 2 Overrun in my decklist, compared to the basic Juza Build.

Grixis Control is a thing. How do we combat it? I thought UB Control was our most difficult match-up, but this is even worse. For reference, here's Patrick Chapin's decklist:



Slagstorms, Curse of Death's Hold (or Black Sun Zenith), Olivia Voldaren, Ratchet Bomb, Precursor Golem, etc...the list goes on. This is a deck designed to stop W/x aggro decks. What are changes we can make in how we play and how our decks are designed? Here are some initial thoughts I've had (assuming you're using the Martin Juza Build):

1) Cut Mortarpod, put Dismember in (for Precursor Golem and Olivia Voldaren). Inkmoth nexuses, mana dorks, etc. are a problem, but Wolf Run / mirror is not our worst matchup.

2) More naturalize/revoke existence in the sideboard?

A contributing factor to the rise of G/W Overrun was that Wolf Run Ramp started taking Slagstorm out of their decks and playing Dungrove elders. With Slagstorm (and other cards) coming back, understanding how to blunt the blow of so much disruption/removal will be important for the long-term viability of this deck type.

At the 5 CMC range, Elspeth seems to be a better bet with less color commitment. Making three small tokens (instead of one) synergizes with Battle Cry, Mikaeus, and Gavony. Elspeth also allows room for Garruk Relentless; the two Garruks have to compete for deckspace if you're running Primal Hunter.

That said, I've noticed several ROFLSTOMP decklists running a Primal Hunter in the sideboard. I haven't been able to figure out what it's sided in against (the mirror?).

GW Brisbane 2.0


Here's the revised decklist that the original deck developer discusses in the article. I feel a little iffy about dropping Elspeth, but that rationale for it sounds good.