This thread is for the discussion of my latest article, Dan's Deckshop - A New Beginning. We would be grateful if you would let us know what you think, but please keep your comments on topic.
Ooh man, I knew Master Transmuter was a lovely little lady when I first laid eyes on her back in the day, but I was still new to the game at the time, so I had no idea just how insane she was at the time.
To think they accidentally mis-printed her rarity as Gold instead of Red...
Anyway, I was thinking that it would be fun to run a predominantly white flight of the angels deck. Obviously, Luminarch Ascension and Sigil of the Empty throne would both be at home in this deck, as well as the shiny new Geist of Saint Traft, Angelic Destiny combo, but what else would be at home in a deck where angels rule?
The article was thoughtful, well-written, and provided multiple approaches to successfully using the submitted deck idea. Even though I am much more competitive than I am casual, I'd very much like to see more articles involving Dan's Deckshop. Sometimes, using a rogue deck can be more fun than using a net deck, even if the win/loss ratio isn't as high. We all need breaks, and that doesen't have to mean not winning.
I'm kinda getting sick of seeing the same deck idea over and over and over again. If you bring something new to the table next time, I'm sure this can be a great addition to the site though!
Thanks for the support everyone! The deck really was a blast to play, especially taking it into casual design without focusing so heavily on killing a particular metagame. The nice thing about playing Little Big Things is that it's got things for Timmy, Johnny and Spike all rolled into one delicious package.
An awesome way of talking though deck creation, love the voice in your writing and of course the content of casual deck building. If you look at how Wizards designs the cards, they have not forgotten their casual players, making fun and interesting cards even knowing they aren't destined for the top 8. And so as deck builders we should do the same, making decks well thought out, yet made to be fun and interesting, even if they might not fare as well as competitive style decks. I also love the way you've worked this- not merely to show off your ideas, but to kindle the spark of ideas others may give to you, making "Dan's Deckshop" aptly named.
The article was very well-written, and I really love the transmuter deck. I have to agree with SClone though - the deck has been done and written about in great detail several times before, so the article doesn't contribute with something really innovative. I'd much rather read about new, cool casual decks that'll open my eyes to new cards, mini-combos or synergies. I'd also prefer it if the coming decks were a little cheaper to make. A playset of Master Transmuter alone is about $24, and with many of the other cards costing $2-6 apiece, the deck is a bit expensive for some casual players, myself included.
You definitely have the deck-building skills required for building creative and pocket-friendly decks so IMO you should go for it!:-) I'll definitely read the coming articles.
Damn you, Mr. Sinister, for wording it better than I could!
Hey Stairc, where can I request decks?
I was thinking about Mortal Combat + Dimir House Guard, but would love to see suggestions for the rest of the deck.
Damn you, Mr. Sinister, for wording it better than I could!
Hey Stairc, where can I request decks?
I was thinking about Mortal Combat + Dimir House Guard, but would love to see suggestions for the rest of the deck.
i want to see him make a deck that can abuse an underrated rare from kamigawa. Anyone that didnt see much play, but would appeal to JTS all the same.
That was a pretty sweet article! It was very informative and well written.
Also, I'm pretty proud of my Norin the Wary deck (in my sig), check it out if you want.
Quote from Macius »
i want to see him make a deck that can abuse an underrated rare from kamigawa. Anyone that didnt see much play, but would appeal to JTS all the same.
I second this. Also, time spiral is full of really cool cards.
Great read! I look forward to more of these articles in the future and may even end up stealing one of the decks myself
My only suggestion: Although you did stay within the original guidelines ("budget is not high but not too low either") I think that, for the sake of casual, you should maybe discuss more budget options for the expensive cards, either during creation or at the end. Maybe explain the key differences between the original card and the budget option, like what you lose or gain for the extra money, and how the two cards function similarly. I know that in a casual environment, no matter how cool the deck is some people are loathe to spend $10 on a single card and showing them another option, while pointing out the difference between them, could either convince them to buy the expensive card or allow them to still play the deck within their monetary constraint
I did have one question, why not run the artifact lands and thoughtcasts( draw 2 for a blue is pretty sexy), and possibly 2-3 mox opals (targets for trinket mage, mana ramp, and you get a target for MT put it out tap for mana transmute and drop for free and still have an open mana (free creatures anyone???)?
Well, you sold me a new casual deck. Weirdly, Etherium Sculptor is the card I was most excited to see. I've wanted to use him for awhile now, but hadn't quite figured out how. Great stuff.
I've got a challenge for you. I loved Invasion block, and I used to run a casual deck based off Desolation Angel. It was ramp/aggro with a side of land destruction, and likely it would be labeled "midrange" today. I would love to see an aggro deck based off Desolation Angel, or even a deck that employs Desolation Angel in a clever or synergistic way. Whether or not you want to keep it Invasion-block themed is up to you.
Desolation Angel.... My first thoughts were to run combo heavy, throwing a Pariah onto a Stuffy Doll while Dingus Egg is out. Of course, the doll will end up stealing the show, and i'm pretty sure it won't be cheap, either...
Wow. This is literally my brothers deck. happy to see that other people understand just how degenerate this archetype really is. Great read, maybe try out building soem multiplayer deck next, preferably something with black in it
As far as the next article goes, i'd like to see a deck based around Kiln Fiend. That or a Naya Standard legal deck. (Must have a dragon, preferably the Furyborn Hellkite.)
Budget: $180 for Naya, $40 for Kiln Fiend.
I'm going to miss Kiln Fiend in standard. Just when I started being able to play that deck amazingly well too...
Hi there, I literaly just signed up after I read this article. What I would really like to is to get your thoughts on an angel themed deck. I think as a whole, they are the most untapped resources that MTG developers failed to really, well, develope. On an individual level they are fantastic, but I've never seen anything like "destroy all non-angels" or an enchanment that gives all angels +1/+0 and lifelink. Unless you are creating angel tokens, you almost never see "angel" mentioned in the text box (minus flavor text of course). I may be wrong about that and if I missed a card, my bad. But I would really like to see a casual angel deck, with a mix of old and new. I think mono-white would be the most challenging build, but it would be unique! I have been playing MTG so long that I try to go for something different and fun. I don't mind if it loses sometimes, as long as it is fun for both players. However, if it it too unique and ends up failing too much, then what would be the best color combo? Adding red comes to mind with lightning angel and Akroma, Angel of Fury. So how about it?
Here's an example of when I say unique: I have a casual 5 color dragon deck. It doesn't win every game (id say over half though) but both players have fun when playing it. Now if I took it up against competitive decks I would lose. But then again I'm not playing to win. And yes the people I am playing against are good. We just have our fun decks and out competitive decks separate.can you guess which ones get used most?
Remaking Magic - A Podcast for those that love MTG and Game Design
The Dungeon Master's Guide - A Podcast for those that love RPGs and Game Design
Sig-Heroes of the Plane
To think they accidentally mis-printed her rarity as Gold instead of Red...
Anyway, I was thinking that it would be fun to run a predominantly white flight of the angels deck. Obviously, Luminarch Ascension and Sigil of the Empty throne would both be at home in this deck, as well as the shiny new Geist of Saint Traft, Angelic Destiny combo, but what else would be at home in a deck where angels rule?
^ Courtesy of Sgt. Chubbz from Damnation Studios.
http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/boab/28
http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/boab/129
I'm kinda getting sick of seeing the same deck idea over and over and over again. If you bring something new to the table next time, I'm sure this can be a great addition to the site though!
Remaking Magic - A Podcast for those that love MTG and Game Design
The Dungeon Master's Guide - A Podcast for those that love RPGs and Game Design
Sig-Heroes of the Plane
You definitely have the deck-building skills required for building creative and pocket-friendly decks so IMO you should go for it!:-) I'll definitely read the coming articles.
Hey Stairc, where can I request decks?
I was thinking about Mortal Combat + Dimir House Guard, but would love to see suggestions for the rest of the deck.
i want to see him make a deck that can abuse an underrated rare from kamigawa. Anyone that didnt see much play, but would appeal to JTS all the same.
540 Peasant cube- Gold EditionSomething SpicySomething like Yomiji, Who Bars the Way? Kamigawa is a bit of an empty set; so many crappy cards that Spike, Johnny and Timmy all don't like.
Mortal Combat + Iname, Death Aspect = instant win.
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Congrats on the article.
I'm very fond (and proud) of my Battle of Wits deck. I'm curious of what your approach to that would be.
Keep up the good work.
My YouTube Channel
Also, I'm pretty proud of my Norin the Wary deck (in my sig), check it out if you want.
I second this. Also, time spiral is full of really cool cards.
Norin the WaryRW
Legacy
BurnR
However this is quite expensive for newbs and casuals.
And the sphinxes in question are not the stars of the deck really...
My only suggestion: Although you did stay within the original guidelines ("budget is not high but not too low either") I think that, for the sake of casual, you should maybe discuss more budget options for the expensive cards, either during creation or at the end. Maybe explain the key differences between the original card and the budget option, like what you lose or gain for the extra money, and how the two cards function similarly. I know that in a casual environment, no matter how cool the deck is some people are loathe to spend $10 on a single card and showing them another option, while pointing out the difference between them, could either convince them to buy the expensive card or allow them to still play the deck within their monetary constraint
I did have one question, why not run the artifact lands and thoughtcasts( draw 2 for a blue is pretty sexy), and possibly 2-3 mox opals (targets for trinket mage, mana ramp, and you get a target for MT put it out tap for mana transmute and drop for free and still have an open mana (free creatures anyone???)?
I've got a challenge for you. I loved Invasion block, and I used to run a casual deck based off Desolation Angel. It was ramp/aggro with a side of land destruction, and likely it would be labeled "midrange" today. I would love to see an aggro deck based off Desolation Angel, or even a deck that employs Desolation Angel in a clever or synergistic way. Whether or not you want to keep it Invasion-block themed is up to you.
Looking forward to your next article!
YOU FIND A NEW GOD
Budget: $180 for Naya, $40 for Kiln Fiend.
I'm going to miss Kiln Fiend in standard. Just when I started being able to play that deck amazingly well too...
Very witty and enjoyable to read.
I for one would love to see more.
Here's an example of when I say unique: I have a casual 5 color dragon deck. It doesn't win every game (id say over half though) but both players have fun when playing it. Now if I took it up against competitive decks I would lose. But then again I'm not playing to win. And yes the people I am playing against are good. We just have our fun decks and out competitive decks separate.can you guess which ones get used most?