MTG Salvation

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE AN EXPERT TO TALK ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH.

• Talk, but listen, too: simply being there will mean a lot.
• Keep in touch: meet up, phone, email, or text.
• Don't just talk about mental health: chat about everyday things as well.
• Remind them you care: small things can make a big difference.
• Be patient: ups and downs can happen. (source: TimeToChange)

This theme deck is based on my partner's schizophrenic break a few years ago. I'm introducing them to EDH and they wanted me to design a deck for them based on their schizoaffective disorder. Like all of my theme decks, this one's heavy on flavor yet I hope to make it more competitive without sacrificing the original vision. Suggestions are much appreciated. This should go without saying, but please be respectful of the theme and folks with a mental illness. Humor helps, derision does not. THANK YOU!

AVG CMC = 3.21

CHANGELOG

I don't really understand the use for all of the Looting effects. Am I missing some way that you are able to take advantage of having stuff in your graveyard? Or are they just there for the flavor aspect? Otherwise it looks pretty solid to me and quite similar to what I am working towards with my own list.

i love the idea behind this, what do you think are the weak points though? or is this some what more casual?

Quote from DTrain

I don't really understand the use for all of the Looting effects. Am I missing some way that you are able to take advantage of having stuff in your graveyard? Or are they just there for the flavor aspect? Otherwise it looks pretty solid to me and quite similar to what I am working towards with my own list.

There's a flashback sub-theme. In addition, I get to recycle my graveyard with Kozilek, Butcher of Truth. Other than that, it's my understanding that it's less expensive to loot than to draw.

Quote from asteriskreaper

i love the idea behind this, what do you think are the weak points though? or is this some what more casual?

I just made some changes to the deck to better handle other Voltron builds. I also added an additional win-con with an infinite combo. The goal is to further increase the deck's competitiveness while maintaining the flavor.

Love the theme, love the list!

Now, while I'm fairly ignorant to the particulars of Schizophrenia, I can imagine there is quite a bit of loneliness while trying to grapple with the ailment alone. In keeping with that theme, I'd suggest Desolate Lighthouse as a card that fits the theme of struggling with a mental illness as well fitting your looting and flashback theme.

Quote from Variable

Love the theme, love the list!

Now, while I'm fairly ignorant to the particulars of Schizophrenia, I can imagine there is quite a bit of loneliness while trying to grapple with the ailment alone. In keeping with that theme, I'd suggest Desolate Lighthouse as a card that fits the theme of struggling with a mental illness as well fitting your looting and flashback theme.

Thanks, Variable! The Lighthouse is a perfect choice for the deck. Thanks for pointing it out. I'm gonna check and see if I have one and pick up one up if I don't.

In other news, played a 4-person game (Glissa, the Traitor, Maelstrom Wanderer, and Damia, Sage of Stone) tonight. The Maelstrom player cast Blatant Thievery, taking control of Ruhan. Fortunately, I was holding onto Oblation and it gave me a chance to draw two cards and tuck Ruhan away for safe keeping. Then, the Damia player copied Sylvan Primordial with Progenitor Mimic and threatened to keep the table locked down. I'd been holding onto Palinchron and Aurelia's Fury for awhile (with Boseiju, Who Shelters All already on the battlefield) when I drew into Phantasmal Image the turn after the Mimic came into play.

It was the deck's first win and, coincidentally, my first time ever winning with a combo (with any deck)!

While I like having some alternate win conditions to general damage, I enjoy the deck's current random schizophrenic nature and have no desire to make finding the combo pieces more consistent. Either I draw into them via looting or I don't. Along the same lines, I enjoy running a Sunforger package; I'm not interested—yet—in running a Sunforger engine. Hence, the absence of Reito Lantern. (I doubt the deck can support Mistveil Plains with so few white permanents.)

What on-theme suggestions do folks have?

Depending on how you feel about working a planeswalker or two into the deck, an argument could be made for any planeswalkers being a personification of the various voices experienced. Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded seems particularly on theme (although his effectiveness is up for debate). In any case, I think this justification can be a means to include pretty much any planeswalker you'd be interested in adding.

Quote from Variable

Depending on how you feel about working a planeswalker or two into the deck, an argument could be made for any planeswalkers being a personification of the various voices experienced. Tibalt, the Fiend-Blooded seems particularly on theme (although his effectiveness is up for debate). In any case, I think this justification can be a means to include pretty much any planeswalker you'd be interested in adding.

The original list included Tibalt and Chandra Ablaze for flavor (as other patients in the ward), but they weren't nearly as effective as I would like. However, I'm glad you have me revisiting planeswalkers because I can definitely see Karn Liberated and Jace, Memory Adept in the deck. They could both be doctors, with Karn being a proponent of old-school lobotomies and Jace taking a slightly more progressive Freudian approach. I'll need to figure out how to make room for one or both.

Thanks for the suggestions, please keep them coming!

Oh, the irony: after removing Chandra Ablaze from my original list, an Aurelia player used it to great effect against the table while another player then exiled everyone's graveyard. I lost some combo pieces in the process and I'm thinking some redundancy would be a good idea.

Also, I finally realize the power of an overloaded Cyclonic Rift.

So, how to make room for the Rift, Tidespout Tyrant, and Mana Vault? I've already removed Steel of the Godhead and Blast of Genius to make room for Karn Liberated and Jace, Memory Adept.

So far, the deck is performing well. Added another infinite mana combo with the inclusion of 'Spout Tyrant and M-Vault, and more (one-sided) removal in the form of C-Rift. Took out Catalog, Vanish Into Memory, and Incendiary Command. I loved VIM's jank factor, but it had to go.

Oh, and Amnesia continues to be FRIGGIN' AWESOME SAUCE. (Yes, despite the fact it only targets one player.)

Is it in bad taste to suggest Psychosis Crawler?

Quote from Omega Furnace

Is it in bad taste to suggest Psychosis Crawler?

Quote from Jivanmukta

Psychosis is a completely correct term. And yea, card is definitely on theme.

What Jivanmukta said.

Quote from Jivanmukta

Now is this deck supposed to be specifically schizophrenia or are other disorders allowed?

Just salience syndrome/schizophrenia. What would y'all suggest dropping for the Crawler? It seems a bit like overkill to me with seeing as how I'm already running the Curiosity combo.

Probably could cut Caged Sun. That card really belongs in a mono-color deck. Three colors seems to stretch it a bit thin.

Psychotic Fury works well with Ruhan and is on theme.

Don't know if the deck would like Molten Psyche, but i think it's absolutely on theme. With your artifacts, you can even use the metalcraft sometimes.

I suppose this means that you're gonna thinking about including the cards in the decklist?

OMG. This deck would love Dack Fayden…