Why play Rubinia Soulsinger?
- Colors, colors, colors! White Blue and Green are some of the best synergizing colors in Magic.
- With AVR her theft streak is no longer relegated to just one creature per turn, or even having to give it back.
- She can operate like Merieke Ri Berit with the inclusion of a sac outlet, but still offers the ramp of big green.
- Rubinia is completely off the grid on threat index, and the swarm of little creatures never really raises that in a game. Think of her as Littlefinger from Game of Thrones.
- The deck offers a little bit of everything, taxing, land ramp, plenty of draw, theft, recursion and lots of removal!
- Most importantly, every blink spell, is a 2 mana spell that matches a creature on the fields ETB ability.
Why not play Rubinia
- You prefer playing an archtype full in, no dabbling here and there for you.
- Your playgroup has plenty of removal already.
- You enjoy the experience of Rubinia players stomping on you.
Deck History
So I was debating writing a primer for a while on Rubinia because there was a time when I actually did not like her very much. She was a show piece and a place holder for Angus MacKenzie, but I didn't want to spend the coin on Angus. This all changed with Avacyn Restored with Wizard changing just how blink actually functions on a large scale. Instead of returning blinked creatures to their owners, you could now hold onto them with the help of Ghostly Flicker, Deadeye Navigator, Conjurers Closet and Cloudshift. It also has expanded over time from pretty much all 3 CMC and under creatures to have a Birth Pod chain all the way up to the board hoser that is Elesh Norn.
Strategy
To be updated to match new list.
Personal Info
All about me, I am not sure how I feel about that. I played Magic many moons ago while in High School with completely kitchen table rules, loved deck building almost more then playing. Couple of years ago I decided to get back into it after a pack of cards was calling me from a comic store counter. I have been playing solely EDH / Commander since returning. I feel in love with not only the non-competitive environment, but also the lack of restriction, it was a deck builders dream. I have played a ton of decks, from Arcum Daggson combo, to Scion of the Ur-Dragon smash, which turned into combo to even Mikaeus tribal soldiers and Grim zombie tribal. I went through a phase of everything being combo, and I quickly got out of that after turning over some extremely quick wins with those combo decks, the battle seemed anti-climatic. So here I am, I play very Monday at a meetup myself and Riley host in NYC that draws in anywhere from 25-40+ players every Monday, and I play Commander the whole time ... This is my confession ... o wait, we aren't doing confessions.
Card Options:
To be updated. Recently Removed / Tested:
Mulldrifter - Too much for too little. With most of the draw cards in the deck costing just 2, and some coming with a bonus like Coiling Oracle, there is little reason to keep such an expensive 2 draw with no added bonus. Yes if you blink it you get 4 total, but at the cost of a better 5 drop.
Slithermuse - Another too expensive card with little benefit in actual play. While the idea of going to from an empty hand to a full one is enticing, I found it rarely happened, and I ended up holding Slithermuse until I got my hand largely empty, which rarely happens thanks to the multitude of draw and blinks. It also would fall into the already crowded 4 drop position.
Yavimaya Dryad - Cut due to redundancy. In earlier tests it was fine, but the deck then had little finishing options, and as the power level of creatures grew, some of the redundant utility creatures had to go.
Suggestions:
If the Rishadan crew is not working out for you, you can always sub in some more support in their place. Some great suggestions were made by other players and will be incorporated here. Mystical Snake / Venser, Shaper Savant and Glen Elendra Archmage will all give some serious counter backup, or the threat of it. These three are seriously being considered as substitutes over the next month depending on how the taxers continue to operate for me.
Game 2: Didn't hold it together as well. I was able to pod into Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, but he died shortly after. The fear it illicted made me think the deck should swing more toward control. This didn't go so well, the game dragged on for a bit with some "odd choices" in what to blow up, and then a lack of removal that allowed things to get out of hand. I ended up losing as the token deck was able to get an absurd lead over time.
Changes:
-Court Hussar - Had enough draw already, the extra drop wasn't making the cut.
-Djinn of Wishes - Worked in a few games, only swapping out to try the minor tax plan, might add back, good body, helpful with top, or low hand.
-Flicker - Have a ton of blink, removed it for Momentary Blink which I somehow forgot.
-Mentor of the Meek - Wasn't getting enough work, great card, just wasn't fitting into my play style.
-Mass Polymorph - Tested really well, but its also too random and works against Seance.
-Nephalia Smuggler - Wasn't doing enough work, too slow.
+Drogskol Reaver - Was looking for another big creature to do work, hopefully provide card advantage. May look for a different 7 drop if it doesn't work out.
+Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker - Just a test, don't think I am going to keep it, but will test to see how hard it is to keep alive.
+Rasputin Dreamweaver - Can combo with Nim Deathmantle and a sac outlet. Had most of the cards, no harm in expanding the options.
+Spelltithe Enforcer - The Rishadan crew was doing good work on their own, attempting to see how much better I can make it without going all out in the tax direction.
+Martyr's Cause - Sacrifice outlet for Karmic / Rev combo and puts to great work the fodder creatures.
+Momentary Blink - Didn't realize this was even missing, swapped for Liberate.
Most of these changes took place after the two games or are cards still in the mail.
Riptide Shapeshifter seems like it would be pretty good in this deck. If your deck is setup right that card is basically UU2: "put a creature from your library into play". With so many different creature types you should be able to find an answer whenever you need it. The deck seems pretty mana intensive so at the very least you should probably throw in mana reflection. I've been running that and Mirari's Wake in my Rubinia deck. I don't really like the one shot blink instants since there aren't that many ways to recur them. If you're going to run them then Isochron Scepter would probably be pretty good. Restoration Angel seems like an auto include, too.
My deck is kind of similar to yours but I don't have all of the "opponent's sac their stuff" effects. I will be making room for those. I also run counters rather than all of the blink instants. Overall, it's a pretty fun deck that fits my playstyle perfectly. Basically, I just sit back and look unassuming until I can take over the game. I'm not sure how I feel about all of the taxes. Unless you're already way ahead it's going to draw a ton of hate. It would be awesome in emperor, though. I'll be trying it out for sure.
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Spike cares more about the quantity of wins than the quality. For example, Spike plays ten games and wins nine of them. If Spike feels he should have won the tenth, he walks away unhappy.
I really like Cloudstone Curio in blink decks to chain a couple of creatures together. This way you don't have to overextend as much.
Another card that worked really well for me is Gaddock Teeg. It's surprisingly easy to build around him and if you want to cast expensive spells then you can just bounce or flicker him away, cast the spell and the replay him. Plus he's a nightmare for other decks to get rid of with all the blinking and bouncing to protect him.
Lastly I'd find room for Wild Pair. This card is really busted in a creature heavy deck but it does take a little extra effort to get maximum value out of. The most important card is Venser, Shaper Savant since you can tutor him out then cast him over and over (bouncing himself of course). Glen Elendra Archmage is a great card in blink because you can reset the counters and her fetching Teeg or Teeg fetching her is really rough to handle. Another card that really helps is Sakashima, the Impostor as it gives you a Clone to fetch that has P + T = 4. Lastly focusing on P + T = 4 gives you a large toolbox to work with.
I'd cut some of the more durdly creatures like Drogskul Reaver & SSS that just don't go with your strategy very well. You can win with Teeg lockdown, combo or durdle beats. Finishers aren't really needed with the exception of maybe Elesh Norn because she's such a beating.
Some great suggestions here. I seen someone, possibly you, mention a Riptide Shapeshifter package that looked really good. My issue is that its going to cost 5 mana to put it out, then 4 for a one shot use. While it would guarantee I get what I want, its 9 mana to do it.
Isochron Scepter - I have been considering this, but there is only a 1 in 11 chance I will have a spell useable with it, and I will be paying 4 in order to cast it the first time.
Restoration Angel - I like the angel, but I think Galepowder Mage would go back in before Restoration Angel, much more abuseable, fills the same slot if podding up. I think if someone plays the deck and keeps more mana open, then it may be a better option.
Mana doublers - I don't use any because I try to get some abuse in with Wood Elves, Coiling Oracle and the Yavimaya Dryad that finds its way in and out of the deck at times.
Cloudstone Curio - I ran this when I had Aluren in the deck and it found its way out once Aluren did and the creatures got bigger. I mainly took it out because I had plenty of cards in hand often, and didn't really need to keep bouncing, but with the Rishadan crew I may look to readd it. Thanks for putting it back in my view.
Gaddock Teeg - I don't run it because it works against me, and because it will bring hate. The deck is often able to function because its not to in anyone's face early and is allowed to formulate a field before taking over.
Body Double - I might run this because I can get double work out of my own stuff, or possible rekick start a combo with Rev / Karmic Guide as you pointed out.
Wild Pair / Venser, Shaper Savant - I had been considering Venser just to have increased defense, however he does work well with Wild Pair to find Karmic Guide, Sower and tons of the other more useful creatures. I just feel like Wild Pair is too large of an investment for something that may get blown up before it comes around.
I may look into Wild Pair, Sakashima, Venser and Glen Elendra and pull back on some of the bigger guys. The problem I had before is that there was tons of tricks, with little way to actually finish anything and that was a huge issue.
Simic was added to avoid removal and stay on the board to do work, and Drogskol was added to hopefully get some card advantage moving while also swinging the game in my favor. If added these cards can help me maintain longer so that Elesh Norn can finish the game, that would be great, but I have doubts they will be able to hold on long enough. I am probably going to give them a try to see through.
My big issue with Venser is he just delays the inevitable unless he is targeting my own stuff, but in a game of politics it could hold someone off enough for someone else to respond.
Appreciate all of the suggestions.
Edit: The more I look at Wild Pair and what I have in the list, I am going to sub it in next week for a definite test. Hopefully it doesn't get blown up before it comes around =(
Gaddock Teeg - I don't run it because it works against me, and because it will bring hate. The deck is often able to function because its not to in anyone's face early and is allowed to formulate a field before taking over.
You already have a very low number of cards affected and it really is easy to just flicker or bounce him away for a bit. He never hampers me when I play him and he's way better in this deck than he is as a commander because he's so much easier to protect. Sure he draws hate but what are they going to do? They can't cast their spells. Just never ever cast him on turn 2.
Body Double - I might run this because I can get double work out of my own stuff, or possible rekick start a combo with Rev / Karmic Guide as you pointed out.
I actually like him more because of how powerful being able to blink him is. Reveillark combo is just delicious gravy.
I may look into Wild Pair, Sakashima, Venser and Glen Elendra and pull back on some of the bigger guys. The problem I had before is that there was tons of tricks, with little way to actually finish anything and that was a huge issue.
I think you'll be really happy with all of these cards, at least they all do fantastic work for me. I put Sakashima on par with Clone, she's randomly awesome with certain legendary creatures. Copying Gaddock Teeg with Sakashima is really awesome and having 2 Elesh Norns in play seems like all kinds of win. Also Sakashima has the cute Gilded Drake interaction where you drop her copying the drake and with the exchange trigger on the stack you activate her ability.
Simic was added to avoid removal and stay on the board to do work, and Drogskol was added to hopefully get some card advantage moving while also swinging the game in my favor. If added these cards can help me maintain longer so that Elesh Norn can finish the game, that would be great, but I have doubts they will be able to hold on long enough. I am probably going to give them a try to see through.
My main win condition in my deck is Gaddock Teeg lockdown. He just will not go away. This lets you go crazy overextending and I eventually just build up some huge army. This isn't always enough so I usually try to play some fun, suboptimal type of finisher like Day of Dragons or Myojin of Seeing Winds into Myojin of Life's Web (the Myojin are awesome with Body Double and Sakashima). There are a lot more efficient ways to win but it doesn't really matter what you use after. I'd prefer relying on just Elesh Norn, Lark combo and durdle beatdown. Possibly Mirror Entity as well since this deck spams durdles and he also works as a sac outlet for Lark combo.
My big issue with Venser is he just delays the inevitable unless he is targeting my own stuff, but in a game of politics it could hold someone off enough for someone else to respond.
Venser is all kinds of obnoxious and will always have quality targets to bounce. He's great at bouncing something in response to a draw 7, bounce a permanent that costs a lot of mana, slow down Primeval Titan for a turn (which is huge). Plus he's a Wizard so you can add in Riptide Laboratory for even more annoyance. It also works with Glen Elendra Archmage and some other random cards like Rasputin.
Edit: The more I look at Wild Pair and what I have in the list, I am going to sub it in next week for a definite test. Hopefully it doesn't get blown up before it comes around =(
There's a dude that lets you fetch a card that's been removed from the game. I can't remember his name right now, though. Maybe that's enough to make Temporal Mastery worth playing. We'd just need some Brainstorm effects to keep putting it back on top of our library when we want it there. Throw in some Terminus and Devestation Tide action and you've got another control element. Use stuff like Noxious Revival to recur the stuff that goes to your graveyard and blink the dude who brings back removed cards to get back Temporal Mastery. Jace, the mind sculptor would be good here. I'm probably delving into the territory of a completely different deck, though, so it's probably not as good as the Johnny in my head is making it sound.
Mist Raven seems like another good creature for the wild pair package. It's not quite as good as Venser but it works. I think maximizing that package might be a good idea. I'll probably throw in Academy Rector to add some consistency. It can also fetch up mana reflection or mirari's wake if we use wild pair to get it in the first place.
Brutalizer Exarch and Deadeye Navigator are both in my build. Those two are insane together. I'm also thinking about throwing in Deceiver Exarch. Get Deadeye online with him while you have Mana Reflection out and you've got infinite mana if you're running double mana lands. Then again, he's also a cleric and I might not always want to see him if I Riptide Shapeshifter and want the other one or vice versa.
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Spike cares more about the quantity of wins than the quality. For example, Spike plays ten games and wins nine of them. If Spike feels he should have won the tenth, he walks away unhappy.
Mist Raven seems like another good creature for the wild pair package. It's not quite as good as Venser but it works. I think maximizing that package might be a good idea. I'll probably throw in Academy Rector to add some consistency. It can also fetch up mana reflection or mirari's wake if we use wild pair to get it in the first place.
If you put in a card just to abuse Wild Pair it would be Whitemane Lion but I think Wild Pair is good enough on it's own once you add in the support cards that are also good on their own.
Mist Raven is good on it's own, too. I've been running it even without Wild Pair. It gets really good when you start blinking it when you start blinking it. It also allows you to use Venser on another target and easily return him to your hand.
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Spike cares more about the quantity of wins than the quality. For example, Spike plays ten games and wins nine of them. If Spike feels he should have won the tenth, he walks away unhappy.
I'd rather use Man-O'-War for a versatile card that happens to work well with Wild Pair. I don't think Flying is worth the more difficult and expensive mana cost.
Looking to add Sigarda, Host of Herons, Enduring Renewal and Gaddock Teeg. Came around on Teeg, he allows me to wrath proof the board if I can pull far enough ahead. Just have to pick these up and figure out what to replace.
Update: Useless for testing Game 1: Didn't really get to test the deck in any of these matches. First game, land screwed. Kept a hand of 2 lands and got stuck on 2 while I drew everything that cost 4+. By the time I got over to my 3rd land, it wasn't helping me, had a Mimic Vat and a Proteus Staff in hand as my cheapest items.
Game 2: Not much better, had a slow land start but a combo deck ended up getting a bounce lock on the board with Aluren and Cloudstone Curio. It played something that shelled out dmg and combo'd out. Not much the deck could have done to stop it. All of these games were played in the same 3 person group where removal was seriously lacking. If I wasn't removing it, it was sticking it seemed. I was also target #1 most of the time, which kind of helped the combo deck setup as I had to pop the Gisela's deck load of equipment and couldn't really stop the other mess amassing.
Game 3:Phelddagrif deck combo'd out because people do not realize that the hug will only go on so long. It eventually went into infinite mana thanks to Pemmin's Aura on a Krosan Restorer. Once I setup to pop the Aura, they just made everyone draw their deck and the game ended in a draw.
Game 4: This was a good well played 3 way game. I was able to get a Clone on a Mimic Vat and hold off what probably would have been tons of Legendary creatures for quite a bit. I was basically stalling looking to build a mana base and draw into a beater like Elesh Norn or Sigarda. One opponent was playing Intet, the Dreamer and the other was playing a suicide black deck. I held both off even though I was again the target for some unknown reason. Toward the end we were all sitting under 20 life. I had a Parallax Wave, Mimic Vat holding a Clone, and some other defensive measures set up like Martyr's Cause. I ended up just wanting the game to end because it was dragging, I wasn't drawing any land or a beater, or any of my ramp, so I kicked my Rite of Replication on their Caustic Hound and sac'd them all to end the game in a draw.
Conclusion: Going to leave the deck as is for more testing next week. I feel like the lack of removal in that group I was playing allowed too much to happen and under normal circumstances the deck would hold together better. Will make changes to main listing.
I have been considering Mystic Snake. Mainly because someone put Venser, Shaper Savant on my radar and I think for the same cost, though slightly more restrictive, I can just counter the spell instead.
I have also been considering cutting down the Rishadan guys, going to give them a couple of weeks first to see how they work out. In the late game, they just end up being dead draws usually. I may keep the cheaper 2 since they can get caught in Karmic Guide / Reveillark combo's.
Got to play 2 games yesterday with Rubinia and made some changes in the decklist recently.
Game 1: This match was against Edric to my left and a Jenara blink variant. From the beginning I was in a bad place because I was worried about his blink spells since I knew how I would use them defensively. The Edric player really wasn't an issue most of the game. I was able to get a solid board position setup and the game was remaining relatively at ease until I decided to Proteus Staff a Stonehorn Dignitary that was forcing me to skip my attack phases and put them right into an Avacyn, Angel of Hope. I only ended up using the staff on the Diginitary because they had it bonded with a Deadeye Navigator and I got them to force the blink and finally had an opening after they tapped out to protect it.
The game devolved into a battle for Avacyn with me stealing it with Rubinia, then Edric stealing it with Control Magic. I ended up getting it back, and stealing with Deadeye Navigator, but ended up tapped out. Edric returned the Navigator to Jenara and bounced Avacyn as well back to Jenara's hand and I pretty much gave up at that time. I was holding a Retribution of the Meek, and was going to wipe the board, but the match had been dragging on for over 2 hours at that point and was not very entertaining. I scooped, largely because it just seemed like the Edric deck was making terrible plays. To me, we had both dumped a ton of steam to stop the Elgaud Shieldmate and Deadeye Navigator from bonding with Avacyn, and they basically were handing it all back to Jenara to do correctly and they tapped out to do it. It seemed like they were making terrible plays that were just going to drag the game on for even longer. For reference sake, there was over 18 lands in play per player except Edric who was far short of that, the game was just becoming absurd on all fronts.
Game 2: This game was more interesting and kind of highlights just why I play Rubinia. I was up against a Mikaeus, the Unhallowed zombie tribal deck, Gisela, Blade of Goldnight and Omnath, Locus of Mana. Omnath ended up leaving early just as board positions were starting to stabilize. Then the Mikaeus player dropped Living Death which brought back an army of little guys who had died earlier but gave them an amazing board position. I didn't do much because I didn't have much to do, so I cast my general and passed turn. Gisela went and cast Malignus after having received their Baneslayer Angel and Angel of Jubilation back from the GY. The zombies came at me, well 5 of them or so, and pretty much wrecked my field of little utility guys. My turn comes up again, I pass turn and wait. Gisela finally hits the field and reveals they have Chaos (Order/Chaos) in hand. Mikaeus tries to argue that I am a bigger threat and Gisela wasn't hearing it. They play Chaos, Malignus gets in and kills off Mikaeus off. My turn starts and I steal Malignus with Rubinia, then flash in Snapcaster Mage, Rite of Replication it kicked, and pass turn. I am still holding a Ghostly Flicker in hand for protection with enough mana to save myself if needed. Gisela tries to kill Rubinia, forgot the spell, but it was 3 dmg to her, I cast Ghostly Flicker in response, flickering his original Malignus and my Rubinia, keeping Malignus for good, plus my 5 token versions. Gisela argues that I can't kill them this turn because the Malignus will do half damage and they have 3 blockers. I tap Rubinia, take Gisela from them, and they scoop.
Sorry I know this was long but the end of the match details are rather important because the flicker spells can really swing a match by either protecting a key piece or turning weenie creatures into great utility. A flicker spell is basically every spell that you have a creature on the board to match it, plus a counter for targeted removal. I typically save mine for protection, especially once I have something important out like Elesh Norn, etc. Also and very important for this deck, an army of little guys is often overlooked, even though a flicker later and they could be permanently stealing your biggest threat, blowing up your biggest protection piece, or just ramping me lands.
Changes:
-Wild Pair: Tried it out, felt it cost too much, often blown up the minute it hit the field.
+Sakashima's Student: While 2 games later I have yet to even see it, I am excited about the insane possibilities, removal for legendary creatures, or turn into something insane and huge on the field, or even just a utility creature, all for 2 mana. I mean who blocks the crap I run?
Thanks for the game reports. It's good to hear how the bounce spells work out for you. I hadn't included any because they weren't the value of being on a creature. I often forget how important it is to have an instant that nobody knows about.
Probably doesn't fit into your deck plan, but I'm thinking about putting in Inquisitor Exarch as a fun bounce target. If you had Aluren in this deck as well as Cloudstone Curio, then it's a win condition. But you don't run a lot of 3 cmc critters, so Aluren doesn't really fit.
Another idea I'm using is Helm of Possession. Sac what you steal with Rubinia to steal something else.
- Colors, colors, colors! White Blue and Green are some of the best synergizing colors in Magic.
- With AVR her theft streak is no longer relegated to just one creature per turn, or even having to give it back.
- She can operate like Merieke Ri Berit with the inclusion of a sac outlet, but still offers the ramp of big green.
- Rubinia is completely off the grid on threat index, and the swarm of little creatures never really raises that in a game. Think of her as Littlefinger from Game of Thrones.
- The deck offers a little bit of everything, taxing, land ramp, plenty of draw, theft, recursion and lots of removal!
- Most importantly, every blink spell, is a 2 mana spell that matches a creature on the fields ETB ability.
Why not play Rubinia
- You prefer playing an archtype full in, no dabbling here and there for you.
- Your playgroup has plenty of removal already.
- You enjoy the experience of Rubinia players stomping on you.
Deck History
So I was debating writing a primer for a while on Rubinia because there was a time when I actually did not like her very much. She was a show piece and a place holder for Angus MacKenzie, but I didn't want to spend the coin on Angus. This all changed with Avacyn Restored with Wizard changing just how blink actually functions on a large scale. Instead of returning blinked creatures to their owners, you could now hold onto them with the help of Ghostly Flicker, Deadeye Navigator, Conjurers Closet and Cloudshift. It also has expanded over time from pretty much all 3 CMC and under creatures to have a Birth Pod chain all the way up to the board hoser that is Elesh Norn.
Strategy
To be updated to match new list.
Personal Info
All about me, I am not sure how I feel about that. I played Magic many moons ago while in High School with completely kitchen table rules, loved deck building almost more then playing. Couple of years ago I decided to get back into it after a pack of cards was calling me from a comic store counter. I have been playing solely EDH / Commander since returning. I feel in love with not only the non-competitive environment, but also the lack of restriction, it was a deck builders dream. I have played a ton of decks, from Arcum Daggson combo, to Scion of the Ur-Dragon smash, which turned into combo to even Mikaeus tribal soldiers and Grim zombie tribal. I went through a phase of everything being combo, and I quickly got out of that after turning over some extremely quick wins with those combo decks, the battle seemed anti-climatic. So here I am, I play very Monday at a meetup myself and Riley host in NYC that draws in anywhere from 25-40+ players every Monday, and I play Commander the whole time ... This is my confession ... o wait, we aren't doing confessions.
1 Rubinia Soulsinger
Creature: 31
1 Acidic Slime
1 Angel of Serenity
1 Angelic Skirmisher
1 Armada Wurm
1 Avacyn, Angel of Hope
1 Clone
1 Coiling Oracle
1 Consecrated Sphinx
1 Deadeye Navigator
1 Diluvian Primordial
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1 Elvish Visionary
1 Farhaven Elf
1 Gilded Drake
1 Hanna, Ship's Navigator
1 Harmonic Sliver
1 Karmic Guide
1 Momir Vig, Simic Visionary
1 Monk Realist
1 Prime Speaker Zegana
1 Rasputin Dreamweaver
1 Reveillark
1 Sigarda, Host of Herons
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Soul of the Harvest
1 Sun Titan
1 Sylvan Primordial
1 Thragtusk
1 Uktabi Orangutan
1 Wispmare
1 Wood Elves
1 Ashnod's Altar
1 Birthing Pod
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Conjurer's Closet
1 Mimic Vat
1 Phyrexian Altar
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Skullclamp
1 Sol Ring
1 Tawnos's Coffin
Sorcery: 4
1 Austere Command
1 Final Judgment
1 Life from the Loam
1 Rite of Replication
Planeswalker: 1
1 Venser, the Sojourner
Enchantment: 6
1 Astral Slide
1 Aura Shards
1 Blind Obedience
1 Parallax Wave
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
Instant: 10
1 Bant Charm
1 Cloudshift
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Ghostly Flicker
1 Ghostway
1 Momentary Blink
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Otherworldly Journey
1 Repopulate
1 Worldly Tutor
Land: 37
1 Academy Ruins
1 Alchemist's Refuge
1 Ancient Ziggurat
1 Breeding Pool
1 Celestial Colonnade
1 Command Tower
1 Exotic Orchard
1 Glacial Fortress
1 Grand Coliseum
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Hinterland Harbor
1 Kor Haven
1 Lonely Sandbar
1 Maze of Ith
1 Mystic Gate
1 Nimbus Maze
1 Razorverge Thicket
1 Remote Isle
1 Savannah
1 Secluded Steppe
1 Skycloud Expanse
1 Slippery Karst
3 Snow-Covered Forest
1 Snow-Covered Island
1 Snow-Covered Plains
1 Sungrass Prairie
1 Sunpetal Grove
1 Temple Garden
1 Temple of the False God
1 Thespian's Stage
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Tropical Island
1 Tundra
1 Wooded Bastion
1 Yavimaya Hollow
Card Options:
To be updated.
Recently Removed / Tested:
Considering:
Suggestions:
If the Rishadan crew is not working out for you, you can always sub in some more support in their place. Some great suggestions were made by other players and will be incorporated here. Mystical Snake / Venser, Shaper Savant and Glen Elendra Archmage will all give some serious counter backup, or the threat of it. These three are seriously being considered as substitutes over the next month depending on how the taxers continue to operate for me.
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
Game 1: I was able to setup Karmic Guide / Reveillark with Coiling Oracle to draw up and into Rishadan Cutpurse, who then got caught into the chain and wiped the board eliciting a surrender from everyone.
Game 2: Didn't hold it together as well. I was able to pod into Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, but he died shortly after. The fear it illicted made me think the deck should swing more toward control. This didn't go so well, the game dragged on for a bit with some "odd choices" in what to blow up, and then a lack of removal that allowed things to get out of hand. I ended up losing as the token deck was able to get an absurd lead over time.
Changes:
-Court Hussar - Had enough draw already, the extra drop wasn't making the cut.
-Djinn of Wishes - Worked in a few games, only swapping out to try the minor tax plan, might add back, good body, helpful with top, or low hand.
-Flicker - Have a ton of blink, removed it for Momentary Blink which I somehow forgot.
-Mentor of the Meek - Wasn't getting enough work, great card, just wasn't fitting into my play style.
-Mass Polymorph - Tested really well, but its also too random and works against Seance.
-Nephalia Smuggler - Wasn't doing enough work, too slow.
+Drogskol Reaver - Was looking for another big creature to do work, hopefully provide card advantage. May look for a different 7 drop if it doesn't work out.
+Michiko Konda, Truth Seeker - Just a test, don't think I am going to keep it, but will test to see how hard it is to keep alive.
+Rasputin Dreamweaver - Can combo with Nim Deathmantle and a sac outlet. Had most of the cards, no harm in expanding the options.
+Spelltithe Enforcer - The Rishadan crew was doing good work on their own, attempting to see how much better I can make it without going all out in the tax direction.
+Martyr's Cause - Sacrifice outlet for Karmic / Rev combo and puts to great work the fodder creatures.
+Momentary Blink - Didn't realize this was even missing, swapped for Liberate.
Most of these changes took place after the two games or are cards still in the mail.
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
My deck is kind of similar to yours but I don't have all of the "opponent's sac their stuff" effects. I will be making room for those. I also run counters rather than all of the blink instants. Overall, it's a pretty fun deck that fits my playstyle perfectly. Basically, I just sit back and look unassuming until I can take over the game. I'm not sure how I feel about all of the taxes. Unless you're already way ahead it's going to draw a ton of hate. It would be awesome in emperor, though. I'll be trying it out for sure.
That pretty much sums it up...
Another card that worked really well for me is Gaddock Teeg. It's surprisingly easy to build around him and if you want to cast expensive spells then you can just bounce or flicker him away, cast the spell and the replay him. Plus he's a nightmare for other decks to get rid of with all the blinking and bouncing to protect him.
Body Double is pretty absurd and works with Reveillark so I'd find room for it.
Lastly I'd find room for Wild Pair. This card is really busted in a creature heavy deck but it does take a little extra effort to get maximum value out of. The most important card is Venser, Shaper Savant since you can tutor him out then cast him over and over (bouncing himself of course). Glen Elendra Archmage is a great card in blink because you can reset the counters and her fetching Teeg or Teeg fetching her is really rough to handle. Another card that really helps is Sakashima, the Impostor as it gives you a Clone to fetch that has P + T = 4. Lastly focusing on P + T = 4 gives you a large toolbox to work with.
I'd cut some of the more durdly creatures like Drogskul Reaver & SSS that just don't go with your strategy very well. You can win with Teeg lockdown, combo or durdle beats. Finishers aren't really needed with the exception of maybe Elesh Norn because she's such a beating.
Isochron Scepter - I have been considering this, but there is only a 1 in 11 chance I will have a spell useable with it, and I will be paying 4 in order to cast it the first time.
Restoration Angel - I like the angel, but I think Galepowder Mage would go back in before Restoration Angel, much more abuseable, fills the same slot if podding up. I think if someone plays the deck and keeps more mana open, then it may be a better option.
Mana doublers - I don't use any because I try to get some abuse in with Wood Elves, Coiling Oracle and the Yavimaya Dryad that finds its way in and out of the deck at times.
Cloudstone Curio - I ran this when I had Aluren in the deck and it found its way out once Aluren did and the creatures got bigger. I mainly took it out because I had plenty of cards in hand often, and didn't really need to keep bouncing, but with the Rishadan crew I may look to readd it. Thanks for putting it back in my view.
Gaddock Teeg - I don't run it because it works against me, and because it will bring hate. The deck is often able to function because its not to in anyone's face early and is allowed to formulate a field before taking over.
Body Double - I might run this because I can get double work out of my own stuff, or possible rekick start a combo with Rev / Karmic Guide as you pointed out.
Wild Pair / Venser, Shaper Savant - I had been considering Venser just to have increased defense, however he does work well with Wild Pair to find Karmic Guide, Sower and tons of the other more useful creatures. I just feel like Wild Pair is too large of an investment for something that may get blown up before it comes around.
I may look into Wild Pair, Sakashima, Venser and Glen Elendra and pull back on some of the bigger guys. The problem I had before is that there was tons of tricks, with little way to actually finish anything and that was a huge issue.
Simic was added to avoid removal and stay on the board to do work, and Drogskol was added to hopefully get some card advantage moving while also swinging the game in my favor. If added these cards can help me maintain longer so that Elesh Norn can finish the game, that would be great, but I have doubts they will be able to hold on long enough. I am probably going to give them a try to see through.
My big issue with Venser is he just delays the inevitable unless he is targeting my own stuff, but in a game of politics it could hold someone off enough for someone else to respond.
Appreciate all of the suggestions.
Edit: The more I look at Wild Pair and what I have in the list, I am going to sub it in next week for a definite test. Hopefully it doesn't get blown up before it comes around =(
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
I actually like him more because of how powerful being able to blink him is. Reveillark combo is just delicious gravy.
I think you'll be really happy with all of these cards, at least they all do fantastic work for me. I put Sakashima on par with Clone, she's randomly awesome with certain legendary creatures. Copying Gaddock Teeg with Sakashima is really awesome and having 2 Elesh Norns in play seems like all kinds of win. Also Sakashima has the cute Gilded Drake interaction where you drop her copying the drake and with the exchange trigger on the stack you activate her ability.
My main win condition in my deck is Gaddock Teeg lockdown. He just will not go away. This lets you go crazy overextending and I eventually just build up some huge army. This isn't always enough so I usually try to play some fun, suboptimal type of finisher like Day of Dragons or Myojin of Seeing Winds into Myojin of Life's Web (the Myojin are awesome with Body Double and Sakashima). There are a lot more efficient ways to win but it doesn't really matter what you use after. I'd prefer relying on just Elesh Norn, Lark combo and durdle beatdown. Possibly Mirror Entity as well since this deck spams durdles and he also works as a sac outlet for Lark combo.
Venser is all kinds of obnoxious and will always have quality targets to bounce. He's great at bouncing something in response to a draw 7, bounce a permanent that costs a lot of mana, slow down Primeval Titan for a turn (which is huge). Plus he's a Wizard so you can add in Riptide Laboratory for even more annoyance. It also works with Glen Elendra Archmage and some other random cards like Rasputin.
Well if they don't blow it up they'll lose.;)
Mist Raven seems like another good creature for the wild pair package. It's not quite as good as Venser but it works. I think maximizing that package might be a good idea. I'll probably throw in Academy Rector to add some consistency. It can also fetch up mana reflection or mirari's wake if we use wild pair to get it in the first place.
Brutalizer Exarch and Deadeye Navigator are both in my build. Those two are insane together. I'm also thinking about throwing in Deceiver Exarch. Get Deadeye online with him while you have Mana Reflection out and you've got infinite mana if you're running double mana lands. Then again, he's also a cleric and I might not always want to see him if I Riptide Shapeshifter and want the other one or vice versa.
That pretty much sums it up...
If you put in a card just to abuse Wild Pair it would be Whitemane Lion but I think Wild Pair is good enough on it's own once you add in the support cards that are also good on their own.
That pretty much sums it up...
Looking to add Sigarda, Host of Herons, Enduring Renewal and Gaddock Teeg. Came around on Teeg, he allows me to wrath proof the board if I can pull far enough ahead. Just have to pick these up and figure out what to replace.
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
Game 1: Didn't really get to test the deck in any of these matches. First game, land screwed. Kept a hand of 2 lands and got stuck on 2 while I drew everything that cost 4+. By the time I got over to my 3rd land, it wasn't helping me, had a Mimic Vat and a Proteus Staff in hand as my cheapest items.
Game 2: Not much better, had a slow land start but a combo deck ended up getting a bounce lock on the board with Aluren and Cloudstone Curio. It played something that shelled out dmg and combo'd out. Not much the deck could have done to stop it. All of these games were played in the same 3 person group where removal was seriously lacking. If I wasn't removing it, it was sticking it seemed. I was also target #1 most of the time, which kind of helped the combo deck setup as I had to pop the Gisela's deck load of equipment and couldn't really stop the other mess amassing.
Game 3: Phelddagrif deck combo'd out because people do not realize that the hug will only go on so long. It eventually went into infinite mana thanks to Pemmin's Aura on a Krosan Restorer. Once I setup to pop the Aura, they just made everyone draw their deck and the game ended in a draw.
Game 4: This was a good well played 3 way game. I was able to get a Clone on a Mimic Vat and hold off what probably would have been tons of Legendary creatures for quite a bit. I was basically stalling looking to build a mana base and draw into a beater like Elesh Norn or Sigarda. One opponent was playing Intet, the Dreamer and the other was playing a suicide black deck. I held both off even though I was again the target for some unknown reason. Toward the end we were all sitting under 20 life. I had a Parallax Wave, Mimic Vat holding a Clone, and some other defensive measures set up like Martyr's Cause. I ended up just wanting the game to end because it was dragging, I wasn't drawing any land or a beater, or any of my ramp, so I kicked my Rite of Replication on their Caustic Hound and sac'd them all to end the game in a draw.
Conclusion: Going to leave the deck as is for more testing next week. I feel like the lack of removal in that group I was playing allowed too much to happen and under normal circumstances the deck would hold together better. Will make changes to main listing.
Changes:
- Equilibrium
- Drogskol Reaver
- Simic Sky Swallower
- Rhystic Study
+ Sigarda, Heron of Truth
+ Sigil of the New Dawn
+ Gaddock Teeg
+ Wild Pair
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
I hadn't seen the Rishadan package. That would be pretty awesome in my meta and I may have to try it out.
No love for Mystic Snake? Phyrexian Ingester or Duplicant might help up your removal abilities.
Looking forward to hearing more about the deck's performance.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
I have also been considering cutting down the Rishadan guys, going to give them a couple of weeks first to see how they work out. In the late game, they just end up being dead draws usually. I may keep the cheaper 2 since they can get caught in Karmic Guide / Reveillark combo's.
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
Game 1: This match was against Edric to my left and a Jenara blink variant. From the beginning I was in a bad place because I was worried about his blink spells since I knew how I would use them defensively. The Edric player really wasn't an issue most of the game. I was able to get a solid board position setup and the game was remaining relatively at ease until I decided to Proteus Staff a Stonehorn Dignitary that was forcing me to skip my attack phases and put them right into an Avacyn, Angel of Hope. I only ended up using the staff on the Diginitary because they had it bonded with a Deadeye Navigator and I got them to force the blink and finally had an opening after they tapped out to protect it.
The game devolved into a battle for Avacyn with me stealing it with Rubinia, then Edric stealing it with Control Magic. I ended up getting it back, and stealing with Deadeye Navigator, but ended up tapped out. Edric returned the Navigator to Jenara and bounced Avacyn as well back to Jenara's hand and I pretty much gave up at that time. I was holding a Retribution of the Meek, and was going to wipe the board, but the match had been dragging on for over 2 hours at that point and was not very entertaining. I scooped, largely because it just seemed like the Edric deck was making terrible plays. To me, we had both dumped a ton of steam to stop the Elgaud Shieldmate and Deadeye Navigator from bonding with Avacyn, and they basically were handing it all back to Jenara to do correctly and they tapped out to do it. It seemed like they were making terrible plays that were just going to drag the game on for even longer. For reference sake, there was over 18 lands in play per player except Edric who was far short of that, the game was just becoming absurd on all fronts.
Game 2: This game was more interesting and kind of highlights just why I play Rubinia. I was up against a Mikaeus, the Unhallowed zombie tribal deck, Gisela, Blade of Goldnight and Omnath, Locus of Mana. Omnath ended up leaving early just as board positions were starting to stabilize. Then the Mikaeus player dropped Living Death which brought back an army of little guys who had died earlier but gave them an amazing board position. I didn't do much because I didn't have much to do, so I cast my general and passed turn. Gisela went and cast Malignus after having received their Baneslayer Angel and Angel of Jubilation back from the GY. The zombies came at me, well 5 of them or so, and pretty much wrecked my field of little utility guys. My turn comes up again, I pass turn and wait. Gisela finally hits the field and reveals they have Chaos (Order/Chaos) in hand. Mikaeus tries to argue that I am a bigger threat and Gisela wasn't hearing it. They play Chaos, Malignus gets in and kills off Mikaeus off. My turn starts and I steal Malignus with Rubinia, then flash in Snapcaster Mage, Rite of Replication it kicked, and pass turn. I am still holding a Ghostly Flicker in hand for protection with enough mana to save myself if needed. Gisela tries to kill Rubinia, forgot the spell, but it was 3 dmg to her, I cast Ghostly Flicker in response, flickering his original Malignus and my Rubinia, keeping Malignus for good, plus my 5 token versions. Gisela argues that I can't kill them this turn because the Malignus will do half damage and they have 3 blockers. I tap Rubinia, take Gisela from them, and they scoop.
Sorry I know this was long but the end of the match details are rather important because the flicker spells can really swing a match by either protecting a key piece or turning weenie creatures into great utility. A flicker spell is basically every spell that you have a creature on the board to match it, plus a counter for targeted removal. I typically save mine for protection, especially once I have something important out like Elesh Norn, etc. Also and very important for this deck, an army of little guys is often overlooked, even though a flicker later and they could be permanently stealing your biggest threat, blowing up your biggest protection piece, or just ramping me lands.
Changes:
-Wild Pair: Tried it out, felt it cost too much, often blown up the minute it hit the field.
+Sakashima's Student: While 2 games later I have yet to even see it, I am excited about the insane possibilities, removal for legendary creatures, or turn into something insane and huge on the field, or even just a utility creature, all for 2 mana. I mean who blocks the crap I run?
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
Probably doesn't fit into your deck plan, but I'm thinking about putting in Inquisitor Exarch as a fun bounce target. If you had Aluren in this deck as well as Cloudstone Curio, then it's a win condition. But you don't run a lot of 3 cmc critters, so Aluren doesn't really fit.
Another idea I'm using is Helm of Possession. Sac what you steal with Rubinia to steal something else.
WUBRG Some of these decks can actually win games...WUBRG
How I know I should build a deck:
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG