I had a rather funny idea to build a degenerate combo-control deck, only instead of combos the deck can only include vanilla or french vanilla creatures of common or uncommon rarity for its win condition. This includes any card that could reasonably be expected to win the game (Reins of Power would be out for consistently enabling wins, but Undermine would be fine since it wouldn't be a way to close out a game except in highly unusual circumstances). This also means that the deck can't include utility creatures like Reclamation Sage and Eternal Witness since they could reasonably be expected to win the game if given long enough.
The 'control' part of the deck would, in contrast, feature a very cookie-cutter list of all the best staples aside from win conditions. Probably in Sultai or Bant colors.
As a further constraint, no stax or lockdown. This is a control deck, and should resemble the sort of deck that only runs counters and removal to slow down opponents while it reaches for its combos. If you Capsize all of their lands away then winning with vanilla creatures isn't actually meaningful. You could have won with a single millstone at that point. I'm inclined to say that more easily escapable locks like Counterspell on a Scepter would be allowed, as would sorcery-speed hand attack.
I'm still not sure about highly win-conducive effects like Triumph of the Hordes or Hatred which can lead to an immediate knockout with even a modest board state, though I'm leaning towards 'no'. I'm also unsure about extra turns even of the non-infinite variety. What do you all think?
And what would be a good choice for a commander? (The commander isn't constrained by the creature restrictions, but also shouldn't itself be a win condition except in that it's a creature with middling to respectable P/T for its cost. Muldrotha, the Gravetide, Tasigur, the Golden Fang or some other value engine would be good examples of acceptable commanders. Ideally the sort of thing that would make opponents groan when sitting down against it until the deck reveals its true devious strategy.)
The 'control' part of the deck would, in contrast, feature a very cookie-cutter list of all the best staples aside from win conditions. Probably in Sultai or Bant colors.
As a further constraint, no stax or lockdown. This is a control deck, and should resemble the sort of deck that only runs counters and removal to slow down opponents while it reaches for its combos. If you Capsize all of their lands away then winning with vanilla creatures isn't actually meaningful. You could have won with a single millstone at that point. I'm inclined to say that more easily escapable locks like Counterspell on a Scepter would be allowed, as would sorcery-speed hand attack.
I'm still not sure about highly win-conducive effects like Triumph of the Hordes or Hatred which can lead to an immediate knockout with even a modest board state, though I'm leaning towards 'no'. I'm also unsure about extra turns even of the non-infinite variety. What do you all think?
And what would be a good choice for a commander? (The commander isn't constrained by the creature restrictions, but also shouldn't itself be a win condition except in that it's a creature with middling to respectable P/T for its cost. Muldrotha, the Gravetide, Tasigur, the Golden Fang or some other value engine would be good examples of acceptable commanders. Ideally the sort of thing that would make opponents groan when sitting down against it until the deck reveals its true devious strategy.)
- Rabid Wombat