I have considered all of those cards, but in the end I wanted a particular "feel" to playing the deck and Sundering Titan just doesn't fit the mood I want - nor has he been particularly necessary. Wurmcoil Engine is super efficient but is just a dude. The only reason I run any of the token makers is for Regal Force draw and Cradle Mana, so he doesn't really make sense to what I am aiming at. Skullclamp is an interesting one that for 2 years now I know should be in the deck. It's just too good with all those 1/1s running around right? But it just never seems any better than any of the other draw options I have. That said, your next two suggestions assume I have a graveyard and it almost always gets nuked before I can do anything. At this point even Praetor's Counsel is more like an 8 mana Reliquary Tower most of the time... at least E-Witness can swing right?
So, the logical move would be to dump Genesis for Clamp because as long as I can remember I think I have used genesis once or twice. He usually comes in as a dumb dude off Genesis Wave, gets sac'd to Greater Good, and I win. [pause] Screw it, that's what I will do. Now I am back to 99% complete and I hate you.
I have considered all of those cards, but in the end I wanted a particular "feel" to playing the deck and Sundering Titan just doesn't fit the mood I want - nor has he been particularly necessary. Wurmcoil Engine is super efficient but is just a dude. The only reason I run any of the token makers is for Regal Force draw and Cradle Mana, so he doesn't really make sense to what I am aiming at. Skullclamp is an interesting one that for 2 years now I know should be in the deck. It's just too good with all those 1/1s running around right? But it just never seems any better than any of the other draw options I have. That said, your next two suggestions assume I have a graveyard and it almost always gets nuked before I can do anything. At this point even Praetor's Counsel is more like an 8 mana Reliquary Tower most of the time... at least E-Witness can swing right?
So, the logical move would be to dump Genesis for Clamp because as long as I can remember I think I have used genesis once or twice. He usually comes in as a dumb dude off Genesis Wave, gets sac'd to Greater Good, and I win. [pause] Screw it, that's what I will do. Now I am back to 99% complete and I hate you.
Haha. Come on! Altering a clamp will be fun! What with the big veiny head and all!
This is actually a very tight (strong) list. I'll look into examining it. You should make this a primer! Everybody knows your pet general is Kamahl!
Emmara is like the worst parts of Legends and Homelands got pregnant, aborted the fetus, tossed it in the trashcan, set it on fire and wrapped the corpse in a Dragon's Maze pack wrapper.
Haha. Come on! Altering a clamp will be fun! What with the big veiny head all!
This is actually a very tight (strong) list. I'll look into examining it. You should make this a primer! Everybody knows your pet general is Kamahl!
I actually made a Clamp a couple years ago and it's still my favorite alteration ever... I am a bit nervous about doing another one since there is no way it will turn out that good again. But whatever, this deck isn't about creativity, it's about aesthetic unity.
And yes, Kamahl and Thada are definitely my "OMG THEY ARE NUTZ!!!" generals that nobody else seems to care about.
I actually made a Clamp a couple years ago and it's still my favorite alteration ever... I am a bit nervous about doing another one since there is no way it will turn out that good again. But whatever, this deck isn't about creativity, it's about aesthetic unity.
And yes, Kamahl and Thada are definitely my "OMG THEY ARE NUTZ!!!" generals that nobody else seems to care about.
Damn, that's actually ridiculously good. I'm pretty sure I've seen it before way back when on the Altered Art thread.
All the more reason to add it in (if I had one like that, I wouldn't be able to just keep in a case or whatever!). If by unity you mean you're going to extend the border on a new clamp, then that's understandable, but I would definitely put that clamp to good use if I were you!
Emmara is like the worst parts of Legends and Homelands got pregnant, aborted the fetus, tossed it in the trashcan, set it on fire and wrapped the corpse in a Dragon's Maze pack wrapper.
When I look at your list I see that these are the "expensive" cards you are missing (below). Obviously I think they are important to run, but you have the cards that I personally think are the most important.
*Gaea's Cradle - Huge amounts of mana and I do everything I can to tutor for this land every game. It's at $50-$60 now, but if you get it you will feel like it's well worth the money. But it was also one of the last cards I got for the deck for that exact reason
*Windswept Heath - The more fetches the better to me. They trigger landfall and make Sylvan Library, Mirri's Guile, Oracle of Muly Daya, and Sensei's Divining Top a lot better. You have two, which is probably okay. One or two more is nice too, but I wouldn't sweat it.
*Exploration - I really wanted a turn 1 move every game in this deck and currently I have 6. Exploration is solid and can set you up with some crazy openings. Is it necessary? Nope. I love it though and have gone Forest (1), Exploration, Forest (3), Green Sun's Zenith fetching Dryad Arbor (3) on my first turn. Then I untapped, played two lands (4 and 5), played a Wood Elves (6), and still had 3 mana open. I think I actually lost that game since I ran out of gas, but it was really amazing finishing turn 2 with 6 lands!
*Gauntlet of Power - It's a really good mana doubler. I think you want it. But, with all the others it's probably okay to skip it. Extraplanar Lens is a great option too and doesn't ruin Skullclamp shenanigans like Gauntlet.
*Sensei's Divining Top - In this deck I need top. With Fetches it's amazing. With Lurking Predators it is absolutely nuts. My favorite play is using to look at the top 3, seeing Genesis Wave, casting Wave for 15 and getting my top back.
*Tooth and Nail - This would be the card to get after Cradle. In Monogreen there aren't any game enders that I can think of (like Kiki-Jiki and Pestermite) but it's ALWAYS amazing when you kick it. I usually grab Avenger and Regal Force to drop an army and draw 10. Ant Queen and Seddborn Muse are also great. Even Primeval Titan and Eternal Witness can get you there. It's one of the 4 most powerful cards in MonoGreen that I can think of.
*Worldly Tutor - A turn 1 move that can set up turn 2 quite well, but it's almost always going to do something worth 1 mana and one card.
I should mention that Liege of the Tangle is not universally good. Sometimes he is an absolute dog, but he's a pet card of mine and I'll stand behind him. The two cards that you mentioned can be good, but Elder seems like overkill. If it's good you don't need it and if it's not good... wait, I think you just said "win-more." Essense is bad. So many of the creatures you play need those ETB effects and he shuts those off. Making 1/1s into 6/6 for free is awesome, but totally not as necessary as the ETB effects.
I think your deck should do just fine though. Mine has more redundancy built in, but it's pretty much the same deck.
I do take commissions but only for the people in the local EDH circles... so if you move to Portland and come over to my place on Saturdays to drink beer and kick my ass with cards, then we can talk
Rude Awakening is amazing. Early Harvest is an instant and only untaps basics, but R.A. has so much more power as a finisher. It can be overkill sometimes, but usually I will tap out for 14 or so mana, spend 5 to untap, tap for 14 more and I have 23 sitting there. As sad as this sounds, 20 mana is kind of the magic number for the deck and this makes it happen. In a pinch you can also make your lands into guys, but it's too risky with the guys I play with. I don't know, it's really just a great way of going from "a lot" of mana to "OH ****!!!" mana.
Out of curiosity what did you use to make that original skullclamp??? Did you use white out first then use some sort of pencils on it??
Looking back at it again it looks like possibly used white out to cover it then painted followed by using some sort of ball point pen... I would be interested to hear the process you went through to do it... I would love to do some custom jobs myself as it seems that is the best way to get alters done...
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Hey Galspanic.. really like your deck, so nice to hear you did all the paintjobs in the desired timeframe..
About the deck itself i was wondering, what was your train of thought while changing from token beatdown theme to more comboish approach you run now?
I can see some of the "not the best, but redundancy matters" cards have been cut (Extraplanar Lens, Heartbeat of Spring) but also some very good cards like Skyshroud Claim and Crop Rotation.
I also frowned at Genesis, but i guess it can be randomly good and can also be tutored/sacked via Birthing Pod..
Out of curiosity what did you use to make that original skullclamp??? Did you use white out first then use some sort of pencils on it??
I assume you mean THIS ONE, right? I erased the entire image within the frames using a Magic Rub eraser and then sketched it in with a 9H pencil. Then it was just a regular old pen and ink with a .005 Micron. Once that was done I let it dry for a few days and then went over it with transparent brown paint to give it that "old timey" sepia tone look.
About the deck itself i was wondering, what was your train of thought while changing from token beatdown theme to more comboish approach you run now?
This way is more fun... simple as that. Monogreen Overrun is really good, but it's the exact same game every single time. By hybridizing the deck it's still really good, but it can combo off, aggro out, and even play the control angle pretty well. I don't know if it wins more or less than it did before, but it requires more thinking and ends up being more fun to play.
Skyshroud, Crop Rotation, Kodama's Reach, and Cultivate are all amazing cards but they aren't permanents and they aren't creatures. I actually use Lurking Predators, Primordial Sage, and Genesis Wave a lot and I found that they are a lot more efficient if my spells are creatures. Also, board presence is a big thing for me. I can easily win with little 1/1s, but they also play defense - which is handy - and power up Cradle and Regal Force. If there is a spell that can have a guy attached to it efficiently, I will play it.
I play a lot of guys that run Relic or Progenitus, Nihil Spellbomb, Bojuka Bog, and Tormod's Crypt in every deck so Genesis just doesn't make the cut.
I assume you mean THIS ONE, right? I erased the entire image within the frames using a Magic Rub eraser and then sketched it in with a 9H pencil. Then it was just a regular old pen and ink with a .005 Micron. Once that was done I let it dry for a few days and then went over it with transparent brown paint to give it that "old timey" sepia tone look. This way is more fun... simple as that.
That is so cool... I have to figure out what sort of eraser does that for me... I guess I will stop trolling your Kamahl list but bravo on all of the alters they look great. I would love to get into some of that stuff myself as I feel like an alter actually feels a lot more personal than a foil and can save a lot of money foiling out a deck by altering it instead...
I am assuming you have tons of paints considering how intricate extending the borders of the cards can be... Do you do art related projects as a trade or is it just a hobby for you?
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That is so cool... I have to figure out what sort of eraser does that for me... I guess I will stop trolling your Kamahl list but bravo on all of the alters they look great. I would love to get into some of that stuff myself as I feel like an alter actually feels a lot more personal than a foil and can save a lot of money foiling out a deck by altering it instead...
I am assuming you have tons of paints considering how intricate extending the borders of the cards can be... Do you do art related projects as a trade or is it just a hobby for you?
I do have a lot of paint but for the entire deck here I used:
Titanium White
Carbon Black
Burnt Sienna
Yellow Ochre
Cadmium Yellow
Pthalo Blue (red shade)
- and a tiny tiny bit of -
Dioxazine Violet
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red
Ultramarine Blue
Pthalo Green
I would guess that for the entire deck I used 1/2 ounce of paint total. I have thousands of dollars worth of oil paints that I can't use on cards, but it's really amazing how little cards take to paint.
To erase the best brand is Magic Rub ironically enough. But if you are painting (as opposed to drawing with ink) a thing gray layer works just as well and takes 10 times less time.
I do have a lot of paint but for the entire deck here I used:
Titanium White
Carbon Black
Burnt Sienna
Yellow Ochre
Cadmium Yellow
Pthalo Blue (red shade)
- and a tiny tiny bit of -
Dioxazine Violet
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red
Ultramarine Blue
Pthalo Green
I would guess that for the entire deck I used 1/2 ounce of paint total. I have thousands of dollars worth of oil paints that I can't use on cards, but it's really amazing how little cards take to paint.
To erase the best brand is Magic Rub ironically enough. But if you are painting (as opposed to drawing with ink) a thing gray layer works just as well and takes 10 times less time.
Unfortunately I was never great with a brush so my alters are more likely to be drawing pencil with a ballpoint overcoat. Thanks for the advice I will see if I cant look into getting a Magic Eraser
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Galspanic,
Can you tell me about the combos in the deck? What are some tips when playing a deck like this?
Also why no strip mine type lands?
Thank you.
There's nothing too crazy when it comes to combos, but I do get Aluren and Cloudstone Curio to blow up whenever they come in together. Usually it's used to bounce and play mana Elves to draw out all the forests in my deck by bouncing them in and out of my hand. With an Elvish Visionary you draw the deck too. With Primordial Sage you draw the deck. With Azusa it's easy to bounce things in and out to get infinite mana by getting infinite land drops and Dryad Arbor helps fuel that by returning both lands and creatures to your hand. Storm Cauldron + Azusa means I can play the Cradle 4 times per turn. You can also respond to the bounce effect from Cauldron with Deserted Temple and get a 5th tap. Even without Azusa that's 3 taps of the Cradle. Add Mana Reflection to the mix and it's very easy to get 30+ mana per turn while your opponents are sitting on Armageddon'ing themselves if they play anything. Also, that Mosswort Bridge with garbage under it? Tap for green and replay it with something better.
Oblivion Stone is just good. Liege of the Tangle is surprisingly good in a Kamahl deck because it puts pressure on people to Wrath. But when they do, I turn their lands into creatures and walk away WAY ahead of the curve. But, if you put the two together you wipe the board of all non-land permanents... so I am the guy with 2-3 8/8s while everyone else is left naked. My dudes also survive your Kederekt Leviathan.
Seedborn Muse and O-stone are also an obvious combo since you can easily pick what lives and what dies that way. Seedborn and Ant Queen adds up fast too. Usually I spit out 5-6 guys each turn and then tap Cradle to overrun with lots of Ants with Kamahl. Seedborn Muse and Kamahl can put up a good defense every turn... especially with Akroma's Memorial. Add an online Magus of the Candelabra to that and things get just silly.
Lurking Predators is better in decks with more creatures, but I have Mirri's Guile, Sylvan Library, and Top to help get things set. It works.
I have a Birthing Pod chain that goes smoothly from 0 to 8.
Greater Good is a one card combo really. I get a lot of big creatures down and need to dig the deck sometimes. Play Kozilek, draw 4, sac, shuffle him in, draw 12, Discard 3. Sounds good. Gelatinous Genesis tokens are about at good. I will often have a ton of big dudes and everyone is just twitching waiting for me to say go so they can untap and kill me. I can have 200 points of power on the board, but unless I can dig for haste it ~might~ be a problem.
Finally, there isn't really a need for Strip Mine and friends. Forest is the best card in the deck so a Strip Mine would be taking one out. Terrastodon, Woodfall Primus, and Acidic Slime have been enough and they are pretty easy to get into play.
Thanks for the info. I plan on building something similar inspired by a lot ideas I've found here. I like the general because it gives you sone protectionagainst wraths. What do you feel are the decks biggest weaknesses are? Are wrath effects that slip through a blow out? Like if they take out Kamahl EOT with spot removal then wrath? Also how do you feel about lightning greaves to make you're really big dudes attack faster or just make Kamahl safe from spot removal?
Thanks for the info. I plan on building something similar inspired by a lot ideas I've found here. I like the general because it gives you sone protectionagainst wraths. What do you feel are the decks biggest weaknesses are? Are wrath effects that slip through a blow out? Like if they take out Kamahl EOT with spot removal then wrath? Also how do you feel about lightning greaves to make you're really big dudes attack faster or just make Kamahl safe from spot removal?
Because I don't run much artifact mana a lot of land destruction kills me. I can recoup faster than most if I know it's coming, but without mana rocks I will be starting from 0. Wrath doesn't hurt that much because I don't overcommit to the board. I can theoretically put a lot of guys on the board, wait a full cycle, and then go for it... but that leaves me way to open. So, usually I will try to sit on a few creatures and a mana-doubler, untap, and then run with that.
Mind Twist, Stranglehold, Elesh Norn, Wake of Destruction, Omen Machine, and a lot of other single cards can be huge pains in my ass but I wouldn't say that there is a particular weakness.
Greaves would be fine, but with Memorial and Crossroads I can usually swing the turn I want to. It can grind it out with others, but it is really designed to build up a bit of offense and the explode on one turn tow in.
I've noticed there's no GY hate. Is there a reason for this? If you were going to play GY hate in this deck what would a good choice? And thanks again for all the help and explanations.
I don't run graveyard hate because I haven't needed to. I play with a bunch of people that run it for me, so why waste the slots? Right? If I were to add some, I would put in Loaming Shaman and Scavenging Ooze first. They are graveyard hate that can attack, trigger off Lurking Predators, and it tutorable with tons of stuff. If that wasn't enough I would go the lame route with Tormod's Crypt, Vesuva (because there is always a Bojuka Bog floating around), Relic of Progenitus, and maybe Scrabbling Claws or Phyrexian Furnace.
Really though, I haven't needed to hit the yards too hard. This deck is dumb. It's got some fun interactions that take some thinking and planning. But, in the end, when presented with obstacles it tries to Hulk Smash the hell out whatever is in its way. If it can't, it loses. I wanted Combo-Aggro and I know most EDH is Control-Aggro I run a Karrthus Rock type deck that is all about ramp, fatties, and lots and lots of answers if I want to go that route, but this one is all about getting ripped and taking the Camaro for a ride.
I'm waiting on Sylvan Ranger and Dosan, the falling leaf to arrive. My basic plan is to throw a bunch of monstrosities via fast mana and hopefully win. Also thinking of taking out birthing pod for Genesis since I'm running survival of the fittest.
I had Genesis in there, but that thing about my group running my graveyard hate for me... yeah.... Genesis simply didn't work enough to make him worth a slot (I realized this after I painted him too!). If you find that your guys go the graveyard and stick, then go for it.
I just picked up a Survival but don't really know where to put it, so for now it's out. Birthing Pod is really good at reusable tutoring, but Natural Order is good too... so whatever works works.
You run Ulamog and BSC. What do you run to kill them if they get stolen or Bribery'd? Be careful with them since they can actually be liabilities if you can't address them coming at you.
Defense of the Heart is amazing. It's a cheap Tooth and Nail that usually goes off the turn after I play it. Since I don't have a ton of lands when I play it, I don't grab Avenger/Regal as much, but Primeval Titan and Vorinclex are great early game "OMFGers" with Defense.
I wouldn't worry too much about Sylvan Ranger. I like her, but Fynhorn Elves probably takes that slot already and without Lurking Predators you don't need to go all creature crazy like I did.
You run Ulamog and BSC. What do you run to kill them if they get stolen or Bribery'd? Be careful with them since they can actually be liabilities if you can't address them coming at you.
I run Duplicant and a bunch of creature tutors. Also since you mentioned the deck is vulnerable to LD I added the Llanowar and Fyndhorn elves Plus sol ring and crucible of worlds. Crucible seems good with exploration effects and either fetches or strip mineeffects.
I didn't include city of solitude because you said it sucks sometimes and I agree if it's shutting off our wrath protection it does kind of suck, so I'm going to try Dosan, The Falling Leaf which I know you're familiar with.
All of this is theory right now and I'll see how it goes this weekend.
I have considered all of those cards, but in the end I wanted a particular "feel" to playing the deck and Sundering Titan just doesn't fit the mood I want - nor has he been particularly necessary. Wurmcoil Engine is super efficient but is just a dude. The only reason I run any of the token makers is for Regal Force draw and Cradle Mana, so he doesn't really make sense to what I am aiming at. Skullclamp is an interesting one that for 2 years now I know should be in the deck. It's just too good with all those 1/1s running around right? But it just never seems any better than any of the other draw options I have. That said, your next two suggestions assume I have a graveyard and it almost always gets nuked before I can do anything. At this point even Praetor's Counsel is more like an 8 mana Reliquary Tower most of the time... at least E-Witness can swing right?
So, the logical move would be to dump Genesis for Clamp because as long as I can remember I think I have used genesis once or twice. He usually comes in as a dumb dude off Genesis Wave, gets sac'd to Greater Good, and I win. [pause] Screw it, that's what I will do. Now I am back to 99% complete and I hate you.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Haha. Come on! Altering a clamp will be fun! What with the big veiny head and all!
This is actually a very tight (strong) list. I'll look into examining it. You should make this a primer! Everybody knows your pet general is Kamahl!
I actually made a Clamp a couple years ago and it's still my favorite alteration ever... I am a bit nervous about doing another one since there is no way it will turn out that good again. But whatever, this deck isn't about creativity, it's about aesthetic unity.
And yes, Kamahl and Thada are definitely my "OMG THEY ARE NUTZ!!!" generals that nobody else seems to care about.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Damn, that's actually ridiculously good. I'm pretty sure I've seen it before way back when on the Altered Art thread.
All the more reason to add it in (if I had one like that, I wouldn't be able to just keep in a case or whatever!). If by unity you mean you're going to extend the border on a new clamp, then that's understandable, but I would definitely put that clamp to good use if I were you!
I swear you should turn this into a primer.
Are there a budget replacements for some of the more expensive cards of the deck? This is the best list I could do as the moment with my budget:
1 Kamahl, Fist of Krosa
LANDS
1 Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1 Deserted Temple
1 Dryad Arbor
27 Forest
1 Inkmoth Nexus
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Mosswort Bridge
1 Oran-Rief, the Vastwood
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Turntimber Grove
1 Verdant Catacombs
CREATURES
1 Magus of the Candelabra
1 Elvish Visionary
1 Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Sylvan Ranger
1 Azusa, Lost but Seeking
1 Eternal Witness
1 Farhaven Elf
1 Fierce Empath
1 Omnath, Locus of Mana
1 Wood Elves
1 Yavimaya Dryad
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Ondu Giant
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Wolfbriar Elemental
1 Acidic Slime
1 Ant Queen
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Seedborn Muse
1 Primeval Titan
1 Primordial Sage
1 Rampaging Baloths
1 Avenger of Zendikar
1 Regal Force
1 Liege of the Tangle
1 Terastodon
1 Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger
1 Woodfall Primus
1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
1 Beast Within
1 Chord of Calling
1 Early Harvest
1 Krosan Grip
SORCERIES
1 Gelatinous Genesis
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Genesis Wave
1 Primal Command
1 Rude Awakening
1 Praetor's Counsel
ARTIFACTS
1 Skullclamp
1 Doubling Cube
1 Cloudstone Curio
1 Crystal Ball
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Birthing Pod
1 Akroma's Memorial
1 Caged Sun
ENCHANTMENTS
1 Mirri's Guile
1 Sylvan Library
1 City of Solitude
1 Rites of Flourishing
1 Aluren
1 Defense of the Heart
1 Greater Good
1 Vernal Bloom
1 Lurking Predators
1 Mana Reflection
1 Garruk Wildspeaker
Edit:I was looking through the Innistrad cards and aside from Liege of the Tangle, are Elder of Laurels and Essence of the Wild any good? Or are they win-more kind of cards?
*Gaea's Cradle - Huge amounts of mana and I do everything I can to tutor for this land every game. It's at $50-$60 now, but if you get it you will feel like it's well worth the money. But it was also one of the last cards I got for the deck for that exact reason
*Windswept Heath - The more fetches the better to me. They trigger landfall and make Sylvan Library, Mirri's Guile, Oracle of Muly Daya, and Sensei's Divining Top a lot better. You have two, which is probably okay. One or two more is nice too, but I wouldn't sweat it.
*Exploration - I really wanted a turn 1 move every game in this deck and currently I have 6. Exploration is solid and can set you up with some crazy openings. Is it necessary? Nope. I love it though and have gone Forest (1), Exploration, Forest (3), Green Sun's Zenith fetching Dryad Arbor (3) on my first turn. Then I untapped, played two lands (4 and 5), played a Wood Elves (6), and still had 3 mana open. I think I actually lost that game since I ran out of gas, but it was really amazing finishing turn 2 with 6 lands!
*Gauntlet of Power - It's a really good mana doubler. I think you want it. But, with all the others it's probably okay to skip it. Extraplanar Lens is a great option too and doesn't ruin Skullclamp shenanigans like Gauntlet.
*Sensei's Divining Top - In this deck I need top. With Fetches it's amazing. With Lurking Predators it is absolutely nuts. My favorite play is using to look at the top 3, seeing Genesis Wave, casting Wave for 15 and getting my top back.
*Tooth and Nail - This would be the card to get after Cradle. In Monogreen there aren't any game enders that I can think of (like Kiki-Jiki and Pestermite) but it's ALWAYS amazing when you kick it. I usually grab Avenger and Regal Force to drop an army and draw 10. Ant Queen and Seddborn Muse are also great. Even Primeval Titan and Eternal Witness can get you there. It's one of the 4 most powerful cards in MonoGreen that I can think of.
*Worldly Tutor - A turn 1 move that can set up turn 2 quite well, but it's almost always going to do something worth 1 mana and one card.
I should mention that Liege of the Tangle is not universally good. Sometimes he is an absolute dog, but he's a pet card of mine and I'll stand behind him. The two cards that you mentioned can be good, but Elder seems like overkill. If it's good you don't need it and if it's not good... wait, I think you just said "win-more." Essense is bad. So many of the creatures you play need those ETB effects and he shuts those off. Making 1/1s into 6/6 for free is awesome, but totally not as necessary as the ETB effects.
I think your deck should do just fine though. Mine has more redundancy built in, but it's pretty much the same deck.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
I have a Rude Awakening of my own, but I'm both seeing the value of it and not seeing the value of it in a deck. Can you give me the rundown on it?
How's Howl of the Night Pack worked for you?
--- Meren of Clan Nel Toth --- Jhoira of the Ghitu --- Prime Speaker Zegana ---
--- Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief --- Ghoulcaller Gisa --- Akroma, Angel of Fury --- Titania, Protector of Argoth ---
I do take commissions but only for the people in the local EDH circles... so if you move to Portland and come over to my place on Saturdays to drink beer and kick my ass with cards, then we can talk
Rude Awakening is amazing. Early Harvest is an instant and only untaps basics, but R.A. has so much more power as a finisher. It can be overkill sometimes, but usually I will tap out for 14 or so mana, spend 5 to untap, tap for 14 more and I have 23 sitting there. As sad as this sounds, 20 mana is kind of the magic number for the deck and this makes it happen. In a pinch you can also make your lands into guys, but it's too risky with the guys I play with. I don't know, it's really just a great way of going from "a lot" of mana to "OH ****!!!" mana.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Hmm. Oregon is kind of a long drive...
--- Meren of Clan Nel Toth --- Jhoira of the Ghitu --- Prime Speaker Zegana ---
--- Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief --- Ghoulcaller Gisa --- Akroma, Angel of Fury --- Titania, Protector of Argoth ---
Looking back at it again it looks like possibly used white out to cover it then painted followed by using some sort of ball point pen... I would be interested to hear the process you went through to do it... I would love to do some custom jobs myself as it seems that is the best way to get alters done...
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[Modern] Allies
About the deck itself i was wondering, what was your train of thought while changing from token beatdown theme to more comboish approach you run now?
I can see some of the "not the best, but redundancy matters" cards have been cut (Extraplanar Lens, Heartbeat of Spring) but also some very good cards like Skyshroud Claim and Crop Rotation.
I also frowned at Genesis, but i guess it can be randomly good and can also be tutored/sacked via Birthing Pod..
I assume you mean THIS ONE, right? I erased the entire image within the frames using a Magic Rub eraser and then sketched it in with a 9H pencil. Then it was just a regular old pen and ink with a .005 Micron. Once that was done I let it dry for a few days and then went over it with transparent brown paint to give it that "old timey" sepia tone look. This way is more fun... simple as that. Monogreen Overrun is really good, but it's the exact same game every single time. By hybridizing the deck it's still really good, but it can combo off, aggro out, and even play the control angle pretty well. I don't know if it wins more or less than it did before, but it requires more thinking and ends up being more fun to play. Skyshroud, Crop Rotation, Kodama's Reach, and Cultivate are all amazing cards but they aren't permanents and they aren't creatures. I actually use Lurking Predators, Primordial Sage, and Genesis Wave a lot and I found that they are a lot more efficient if my spells are creatures. Also, board presence is a big thing for me. I can easily win with little 1/1s, but they also play defense - which is handy - and power up Cradle and Regal Force. If there is a spell that can have a guy attached to it efficiently, I will play it.
I play a lot of guys that run Relic or Progenitus, Nihil Spellbomb, Bojuka Bog, and Tormod's Crypt in every deck so Genesis just doesn't make the cut.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
That is so cool... I have to figure out what sort of eraser does that for me... I guess I will stop trolling your Kamahl list but bravo on all of the alters they look great. I would love to get into some of that stuff myself as I feel like an alter actually feels a lot more personal than a foil and can save a lot of money foiling out a deck by altering it instead...
I am assuming you have tons of paints considering how intricate extending the borders of the cards can be... Do you do art related projects as a trade or is it just a hobby for you?
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
I do have a lot of paint but for the entire deck here I used:
Titanium White
Carbon Black
Burnt Sienna
Yellow Ochre
Cadmium Yellow
Pthalo Blue (red shade)
- and a tiny tiny bit of -
Dioxazine Violet
Cadmium Orange
Cadmium Red
Ultramarine Blue
Pthalo Green
I would guess that for the entire deck I used 1/2 ounce of paint total. I have thousands of dollars worth of oil paints that I can't use on cards, but it's really amazing how little cards take to paint.
To erase the best brand is Magic Rub ironically enough. But if you are painting (as opposed to drawing with ink) a thing gray layer works just as well and takes 10 times less time.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Unfortunately I was never great with a brush so my alters are more likely to be drawing pencil with a ballpoint overcoat. Thanks for the advice I will see if I cant look into getting a Magic Eraser
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[Modern] Allies
Can you tell me about the combos in the deck? What are some tips when playing a deck like this?
Also why no strip mine type lands?
Thank you.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
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There's nothing too crazy when it comes to combos, but I do get Aluren and Cloudstone Curio to blow up whenever they come in together. Usually it's used to bounce and play mana Elves to draw out all the forests in my deck by bouncing them in and out of my hand. With an Elvish Visionary you draw the deck too. With Primordial Sage you draw the deck. With Azusa it's easy to bounce things in and out to get infinite mana by getting infinite land drops and Dryad Arbor helps fuel that by returning both lands and creatures to your hand.
Storm Cauldron + Azusa means I can play the Cradle 4 times per turn. You can also respond to the bounce effect from Cauldron with Deserted Temple and get a 5th tap. Even without Azusa that's 3 taps of the Cradle. Add Mana Reflection to the mix and it's very easy to get 30+ mana per turn while your opponents are sitting on Armageddon'ing themselves if they play anything. Also, that Mosswort Bridge with garbage under it? Tap for green and replay it with something better.
Oblivion Stone is just good. Liege of the Tangle is surprisingly good in a Kamahl deck because it puts pressure on people to Wrath. But when they do, I turn their lands into creatures and walk away WAY ahead of the curve. But, if you put the two together you wipe the board of all non-land permanents... so I am the guy with 2-3 8/8s while everyone else is left naked. My dudes also survive your Kederekt Leviathan.
Seedborn Muse and O-stone are also an obvious combo since you can easily pick what lives and what dies that way. Seedborn and Ant Queen adds up fast too. Usually I spit out 5-6 guys each turn and then tap Cradle to overrun with lots of Ants with Kamahl. Seedborn Muse and Kamahl can put up a good defense every turn... especially with Akroma's Memorial. Add an online Magus of the Candelabra to that and things get just silly.
Lurking Predators is better in decks with more creatures, but I have Mirri's Guile, Sylvan Library, and Top to help get things set. It works.
I have a Birthing Pod chain that goes smoothly from 0 to 8.
Greater Good is a one card combo really. I get a lot of big creatures down and need to dig the deck sometimes. Play Kozilek, draw 4, sac, shuffle him in, draw 12, Discard 3. Sounds good. Gelatinous Genesis tokens are about at good. I will often have a ton of big dudes and everyone is just twitching waiting for me to say go so they can untap and kill me. I can have 200 points of power on the board, but unless I can dig for haste it ~might~ be a problem.
City of Solitude sucks sometimes.
Finally, there isn't really a need for Strip Mine and friends. Forest is the best card in the deck so a Strip Mine would be taking one out. Terrastodon, Woodfall Primus, and Acidic Slime have been enough and they are pretty easy to get into play.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
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Because I don't run much artifact mana a lot of land destruction kills me. I can recoup faster than most if I know it's coming, but without mana rocks I will be starting from 0. Wrath doesn't hurt that much because I don't overcommit to the board. I can theoretically put a lot of guys on the board, wait a full cycle, and then go for it... but that leaves me way to open. So, usually I will try to sit on a few creatures and a mana-doubler, untap, and then run with that.
Mind Twist, Stranglehold, Elesh Norn, Wake of Destruction, Omen Machine, and a lot of other single cards can be huge pains in my ass but I wouldn't say that there is a particular weakness.
Greaves would be fine, but with Memorial and Crossroads I can usually swing the turn I want to. It can grind it out with others, but it is really designed to build up a bit of offense and the explode on one turn tow in.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU
Really though, I haven't needed to hit the yards too hard. This deck is dumb. It's got some fun interactions that take some thinking and planning. But, in the end, when presented with obstacles it tries to Hulk Smash the hell out whatever is in its way. If it can't, it loses. I wanted Combo-Aggro and I know most EDH is Control-Aggro I run a Karrthus Rock type deck that is all about ramp, fatties, and lots and lots of answers if I want to go that route, but this one is all about getting ripped and taking the Camaro for a ride.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
Nothing constructive deck-construction-wise to say here, but your alts are excellent.
1 Acidic Slime
1 Ant Queen
1 Avenger Of Zendikar
1 Azusa, Lost But Seeking
1 Blightsteel Colossus
1 Duplicant
1 Eternal Witness
1 Farhaven Elf
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Kozilek, Butcher Of Truth
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Magus Of The Candelabra
1 Ondu Giant
1 Oracle Of Mul Daya
1 Primeval Titan
1 Primordial Sage
1 Rampaging Baloths
1 Regal Force
1 Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary
1 Sakura Tribe Elder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Terastadon
1 Ulamog, The Infinite Gyre
1 Vorinclex, Voice Of Hunger
1 Wolfbriar Elemental
1 Wood Elves
1 Woodfall Primus
1 Yavimaya Dryad
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Birthing Pod
1 Caged Sun
1 Crucible Of Worlds
1 Doubling Cube
1 Gauntlet Of Power
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Skull Clamp
1 Concordant Crossroads
1 Exploration
1 Greater Good
1 Mana Reflection
1 Mirri's Guile
1 Survival Of The Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Vernal Bloom
1 Beast Withinh
1 Chord Of Calling
1 Early Harvest
1 Krosan Grip
1 Worldly Tutor
1 Gelatinous Genesis
1 Genesis Wave
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Harmonize
1 Natural Order
1 Rude Awakening
1 Tooth And Nail
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Inkmoth Nexus
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Strip Mine
1 Wasteland
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
26 Forest
I'm waiting on Sylvan Ranger and Dosan, the falling leaf to arrive. My basic plan is to throw a bunch of monstrosities via fast mana and hopefully win. Also thinking of taking out birthing pod for Genesis since I'm running survival of the fittest.
How has Defense Of The Heart been? I'm running Natural Order instead because I had one laying around.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
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I just picked up a Survival but don't really know where to put it, so for now it's out. Birthing Pod is really good at reusable tutoring, but Natural Order is good too... so whatever works works.
You run Ulamog and BSC. What do you run to kill them if they get stolen or Bribery'd? Be careful with them since they can actually be liabilities if you can't address them coming at you.
Defense of the Heart is amazing. It's a cheap Tooth and Nail that usually goes off the turn after I play it. Since I don't have a ton of lands when I play it, I don't grab Avenger/Regal as much, but Primeval Titan and Vorinclex are great early game "OMFGers" with Defense.
I wouldn't worry too much about Sylvan Ranger. I like her, but Fynhorn Elves probably takes that slot already and without Lurking Predators you don't need to go all creature crazy like I did.
WUBRGPauper Battle BoxWUBRG ... and why I am not a fan of Wayne Reynolds' Illustrations.
I run Duplicant and a bunch of creature tutors. Also since you mentioned the deck is vulnerable to LD I added the Llanowar and Fyndhorn elves Plus sol ring and crucible of worlds. Crucible seems good with exploration effects and either fetches or strip mineeffects.
I didn't include city of solitude because you said it sucks sometimes and I agree if it's shutting off our wrath protection it does kind of suck, so I'm going to try Dosan, The Falling Leaf which I know you're familiar with.
All of this is theory right now and I'll see how it goes this weekend.
Thank You Rivenor/Miraculous Recovery Studios!
GGGSKamahl's Band of Monstosities SGGG
RRRSFreaki-Kiki, The Goblin DoucheSRRR
BBGGNath, Raper of Hands and Spewer of Tokens!GGBB
BUGDamia, Sage of AnswersBUG
WIPs
BBBXiahou Dun, the Bitter Stax Enabling BastardBBB
On Break
BBBSKagemaro, First to RetireSBBB
BBBThe Walking DeadBBB
UUUSTeferi Combo PrimerSUUU