What is your preferred method of getting infinite turns? DEN and EWit? Or EWit, Sun Titan, Skullclamp?
I just cut him to test the new Linvala, the Preserver as I felt she was a great, grindy value card that lets you take back the board and catch up in life, which, as an attrition/value deck, this list generally loves this type of card. I also thought that DEN got far weaker with PoK's banning, although he may still be useful for the infinite turn loop as well as getting excellent value with our ETB suite without being too much of a lightning rod like it was with PoK out.
Seedborn Muse was an option for me, but I decided on going with Time Warp in the list to replace PoK as I didn't have any extra turn effects previously and had been looking to get one in the list.
How has Resolute Archangel been for you? She's long been a pet card of mine and I've wanted to find her a slot, but could never decide on what to cut for her. Avacyn, Angel of Hope may be my best choice were I to do that.
Resolute Archangel has been one of my favourite cards in the deck since the day I added her. Not only does resetting your life multiple times help you grind out the most aggressive/painful decks out there, but I also have a tendency to be very self-abusive. I don't remember the last time I ever paid full mana for a Birthing Pod (or activation), or a Metamorph. I also don't shy away from using painful lands, and Sylvan Library is one hell of a drug. Real men take 8.
Let me know how you feel about Linvala, the Preserver. She looks super underwhelming to me. Her ability is conditional and doesn't actually do all that much in the scheme of things. Mostly I don't like that she's only good when you're losing. Drawing dead cards while you're ahead is a sure-fire way to lose that lead.
As for Deadeye Navigator, I actually had similar thoughts, and spent a long time today thinking about and discussing him with a friend. At first, I thought I was okay cutting him, but when it came down to it, I just can't do it. I still find him to be one of my most frequent end-game plays. There are just so many cards that, when paired with him, take over the game. Yes, losing Prophet of Kruphix has made him worse, but I don't think it made him worse enough to cut.
Is Scrabbling Claws better than Tormod's Crypt in your meta?
With Claws and Stonecloaker you have 2 targeted graveyard hate cards. What if somebody attempts to combo off with more resilient graveyard combo shenanigans that can survive 1 exile per turn? Tormod's Crypt can be easily recurred via Eternal Witness, Sun Titan, and Academy Ruins.
ADDENDUM: I also wondered how you deal with something like Darksteel Forge. A niche card, for sure, but it sees a lot of play in Arcum Dagsson and Sharuum decks.
Scrabbling Claws over Tormod's Crypt is mostly just a personal preference thing. I like that it can draw a card, I like that it offers a lot of incremental value, etc. It would definitely be a Relic of Progenitus if I didn't love my own graveyard so much. I don't generally feel like I need much more graveyard hate than I have. If ever really feel like I do I'll probably just find room to put Angel of Finality back in. Also, it's worth noting that Claws and Stonecloaker also both come back just as easily as a Crypt.
As for Darksteel Forge, there are generally several ways of dealing.
1) Timely counterspells.
2) Destroy relevant artifacts in response to the Forge and then not really care about a 9 CMC do-nothing.
3) Bounce the Forge with a Venser, Shaper Savant or Cryptic Command (or Cyclonic Rift, which is another solid choice here), and then either follow up with blowing things up or counter the Forge when it comes back down.
I can't really think of any times when I've ever been too concerned about a Darksteel Forge.
Something I HAVE had a bit of a harder time dealing with, though, is a resolved board state that includes Privileged Position, Greater Auramancy, and Karmic Justice. One of my most frequent opponents plays an Enchantresses deck, and that board state alone is 90% of the reason I keep considering finding room to put Cyclonic Rift back in.
Something I HAVE had a bit of a harder time dealing with, though, is a resolved board state that includes Privileged Position, Greater Auramancy, and Karmic Justice. One of my most frequent opponents plays an Enchantresses deck, and that board state alone is 90% of the reason I keep considering finding room to put Cyclonic Rift back in.
Consider Tragic Arrogance. That card has single-handedly risen to the near top of my prefered wrath options. Keeping your best stuff, while setting opponents back to their worst, is fantastic.
It hits artifacts, enchantments, and anything else, so it's a global answer to anything and everything. To top it off, the sacrifice will answer any potential Darksteel Forge problem, and won't trigger the Karmic Justice.
Further, if they have artifact creatures (or enchantment creatures, etc), you can double dip, selecting the same permanent for the different types.
Something I HAVE had a bit of a harder time dealing with, though, is a resolved board state that includes Privileged Position, Greater Auramancy, and Karmic Justice. One of my most frequent opponents plays an Enchantresses deck, and that board state alone is 90% of the reason I keep considering finding room to put Cyclonic Rift back in.
Consider Tragic Arrogance. That card has single-handedly risen to the near top of my prefered wrath options. Keeping your best stuff, while setting opponents back to their worst, is fantastic.
It hits artifacts, enchantments, and anything else, so it's a global answer to anything and everything. To top it off, the sacrifice will answer any potential Darksteel Forge problem, and won't trigger the Karmic Justice.
Further, if they have artifact creatures (or enchantment creatures, etc), you can double dip, selecting the same permanent for the different types.
Yeah, as I said, it has quickly risen to the top of my list. I initially put it in to test because it looked decent on paper, but in 3 different decks now I have never been sorry to draw it, and it has multiple times destroyed winning positions, and/or placed me solidly in a winning position.
I'm kind of curious to hear other people's experiences with it, but oddly, no one seems to really run it. I know that ISB has had some success with it, and also considers it a hidden gem, but I'm still looking for more.
The LGS I play at has quite a few graveyard-based combo decks, which I suppose is why I much prefer mass and repeatable targeted graveyard hate like Crypt and Scavenging Ooze. The Stonecloaker interaction with all the ETB creatures is a nice touch. In this particular deck and this particular format, I honestly think it edges out Restoration Angel. However, I do think that Ooze is optimal when you have more than one graveyard to worry about.
Two cards in this deck that I'm iffy on are Mystic Snake and Solemn Simulacrum. This deck can cast Snake more reliably than most, but it can still be difficult to keep up the 4 mana for that bomb you think your opponent may cast on his next turn. I can see that this topic has been discussed in this thread already, so I think it ultimately just boils down to how well one can pilot the deck and, frankly, personal preference. I've never felt good fetching Simulacrum with Birthing Pod. It does draw when you sac him to find a 5-drop, but I almost always would rather find an answer card like Clever Impersonator or Glen Elendra Archmage.
Two cards I was considering replacing them with are Sower of Temptation and Thought-Knot Seer. Sower helps deal with problem creatures, and even if eats removal, that's one less removal spell in play. It's also a great Reveillark target. Seer is a beefier Vendilion Clique and exiles their best card in hand. It may be fringe-castable with so few lands that tap for colourless mana, but I think it's doable. Both of these make awesome targets for Venser or DEN.
Scavenging Ooze is a great card for any green deck worried about graveyards, that's for sure. He's been in here before, and he'd definitely be on the short list of cards I'd consider if I ever decide I want/need more graveyard hate. There's only one really potent graveyard deck in my usual playgroup, and it's usually sufficient to take out just his best couple cards from the yard.
Thought-Knot Seer is definitely a card that got on my radar when it got spoiled, but my primary concern with it is the same as my primary concern with Eldrazi Displacer, and you hit that nail right on the head. The reliability of making colorless mana to cast is is questionable. It's something I need to get around to doing some math on and testing out at some point, but I just haven't yet had the time.
I've just updated the primer, including a couple changes to the deck.
1) I fixed some typos and whatnot that I found.
2) Added a handful of cards to the card options section.
3) Swapped Supreme Verdict for Tragic Arrogance. Still testing it out, we'll see how it goes.
4) As I'd mentioned possibly doing in a previous post, I've swapped Palinchron for Noble Hierarch.
So I really want to get DEN back into my 99, but I want to test out Linvala (she's obviously much better with an engine like DEN in the list as well), what are the top 3 or so cards you would cut from my list in order to put DEN back in?
Sigarda has definitely been a meta card for me. Too much Grixis running around. I'm leaning towards Avenger because he so seldom wins me the game any more. I'm pretty light at 5 drops as well and don't like replacing anything with a higher cost card.
One thing that drives me nuts is that I love Restoration Angel and it is my favorite art in Magic, but I feel like she's a nonbo with my general and 3 higher curve cards being angels. Ostensibly, Sigarda doesn't need to be blinked, but Linvala would love it, as would Avacyn for exile protection. Saving Jenara is not a big deal either. Your thoughts? Considering tossing in Resolute Archangel for Avacyn. Really wish she was bigger than 4/4 for 7 though. Akroma has been on my radar too.
Honestly, I still really find Linvala to be a little underwhelming. For what she does you'd probably just be better off playing Thragtusk. It's another 5 drop, too.
Also, Resolute Archangel is awesome. If you abuse your life total anywhere near as much as I do mine then you'll love it. I think you could easily swap Avacyn for it, then take it Linvala for something else, since you wouldn't need the life gain from her anymore. Maybe some decent 5 drop. That would just lower your curve overall.
As for Restoration Angel, as much as I love the card, I feel the impact isn't enough. I've been happy using Stonecloaker for similar jobs.
Sorry for the lack of card tags in this post. Typing it on my phone and tags are a hassle.
Honestly, I still really find Linvala to be a little underwhelming. For what she does you'd probably just be better off playing Thragtusk. It's another 5 drop, too.
Also, Resolute Archangel is awesome. If you abuse your life total anywhere near as much as I do mine then you'll love it. I think you could easily swap Avacyn for it, then take it Linvala for something else, since you wouldn't need the life gain from her anymore. Maybe some decent 5 drop. That would just lower your curve overall.
As for Restoration Angel, as much as I love the card, I feel the impact isn't enough. I've been happy using Stonecloaker for similar jobs.
Sorry for the lack of card tags in this post. Typing it on my phone and tags are a hassle.
I was typing from mine earlier as well. And no worries. I agree on Resto-Angel, it just makes me sad. It's the reason I don't run her. Less angels in the list or the general isn't an angel and I think she'd be a shoo-in because she does everything that you'd want in a deck like this.
Linvala, the Preserver is more grindy than Avenger of Zendikar so I'm thinking that I'll make that swap. DEN is still in the list as of now too, which is a bonus. Blinking Linvala also has potentially greater board impact, swinging a lot of life and giving 3/3s with evasion. She has evasion herself too. I think that is worth a bit more than 7 0/1 plants in most cases where you don't get a chance to untap with Avenger up. Landfall can be pretty fickle and I feel like he seldom wins a game for me any more. Linvala is a easier card to play out without an immediate response being required and she seizes back the board with incremental advantage (lifegain) built in. She's excellent, almost guaranteed value at 6 mana, especially in a STAR game, and this deck loves that type of card. Avenger needs a certain situation to drop him, but Linvala seems like she is almost always a good card to drop.
Resolute Archangel (with the sweet pre-release art that I picked white just to get) will probably swap in for Avacyn. I think less power on board and less protection for my permanents is worth the swing that the life total can have. I guess we don't care about other players cloning her too much either because we're better positioned to win the long game with our recursion and removal suites.
With more lifegain in the list, it makes it a lot easier to go greedy with Sylvan Library, which I need to find a slot for.
Okay so I've got a Sylvan Library and cut Farhaven Elf for it. Everything else was too impactful to cut, to be honest.
I'd really like to advocate for Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite again. The card is just one of the best curve toppers in our colors and is wonderful against tokens and works great with our value creatures, that sacrifice power for their ETBs. This list can't go wide like token lists do, so I think having a tutorable board wipe against them (or at least a card to hold them back if they are 3/3 or bigger) and a functional pump for us is a boon. Without an Avenger, I do think that it is a bit weaker, but not by much, as that is a fringe play you'd really only hit off of T&N.
Elesh Norn is strong for her immediate value. She is one of my favorite answers against tokens and or ETB / value creatures as she kills most of them outright. I always found her a very valuable curve topper.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Norn is definitely powerful, no arguments there. I've looked at adding her a few times. It still may happen at some point. As it stands, every time I look at adding her I just find I'd rather have my existing 7 drops. Who knows, I could be crazy.
I think the toss-up is between Norn and Angel of Serenity. Serenity provides more utility for sure, being able to recur 3 of your dead creatures or exile 3 of your opponent's. I think it's probably a meta or a personal call, really. I do personally prefer the Angel though.
I think the toss-up is between Norn and Angel of Serenity. Serenity provides more utility for sure, being able to recur 3 of your dead creatures or exile 3 of your opponent's. I think it's probably a meta or a personal call, really. I do personally prefer the Angel though.
My first inclination is to agree. I very much like the additional recursion, and the Angel is super helpful for grinding out opponents. Especially when you start looping them with clones.
Norn, rather than being grindy, is just a powerhouse. Almost an ETB Wrath, massive anthem. It would offer up more opportunities to just straight up close out the game. One concern I have, though, is that she paints a giant target, which is the same reason I've cut some previous cards (like Vorinclex).
The big difference I have seen when I play Norn is that I drop her in and she gets immediate value. I have seen before when people float mana and spot remove Vorinclex (I did this earlier this week in fact). Elesh will get her immediate value of removing opponents creatures. I didnt just drop her randomly but she is amazing as a tutor target because of the fact that she immediately has that value. If she lives it means that opponents will be limited in their plays moving forward as well as letting you punch for good numbers with utility creatures. Overall she has been huge for me in a number of decks.
Her counterpart for me was Ixidron. If my opponents were swarming with small stuff I would go for Norn. If they were swarming out eldrazi and crap like that I would go for Ixidron. Between the two I had an answer to most situations in my creature base. Having creatures who act as wraths means that any creature tutor you have can be a wrath if you need it to. Toolboxing utility is useful. I still like the Angel of Serenity but its more of a card I tend to play in a deck with more sacrifice as I like the ability to control her death over just running her out.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Having a Marath and an Elfball player in my meta makes Norn that much better for me, although I think she's generally great in most circumstances other than facing down draw-go.
I noticed you aren't running Stoneforge Mystic and was curious as to why. I run the 3-swords package + Skullclamp and it looks like you swap Lightning Greaves for SoLaS where I prefer the protections and creature recursion (and nominal life gain is cool too, I guess). So you aren't running with any fewer equipments and any of the ones you do have are very impactful. Is it just because our most expensive equipment card is at 3 that her tap ability isn't as great because of that? I think that the tutor alone at her cost where we can abuse creatures justifies her use even still.
I just cut him to test the new Linvala, the Preserver as I felt she was a great, grindy value card that lets you take back the board and catch up in life, which, as an attrition/value deck, this list generally loves this type of card. I also thought that DEN got far weaker with PoK's banning, although he may still be useful for the infinite turn loop as well as getting excellent value with our ETB suite without being too much of a lightning rod like it was with PoK out.
Seedborn Muse was an option for me, but I decided on going with Time Warp in the list to replace PoK as I didn't have any extra turn effects previously and had been looking to get one in the list.
How has Resolute Archangel been for you? She's long been a pet card of mine and I've wanted to find her a slot, but could never decide on what to cut for her. Avacyn, Angel of Hope may be my best choice were I to do that.
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU
Let me know how you feel about Linvala, the Preserver. She looks super underwhelming to me. Her ability is conditional and doesn't actually do all that much in the scheme of things. Mostly I don't like that she's only good when you're losing. Drawing dead cards while you're ahead is a sure-fire way to lose that lead.
As for Deadeye Navigator, I actually had similar thoughts, and spent a long time today thinking about and discussing him with a friend. At first, I thought I was okay cutting him, but when it came down to it, I just can't do it. I still find him to be one of my most frequent end-game plays. There are just so many cards that, when paired with him, take over the game. Yes, losing Prophet of Kruphix has made him worse, but I don't think it made him worse enough to cut.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
With Claws and Stonecloaker you have 2 targeted graveyard hate cards. What if somebody attempts to combo off with more resilient graveyard combo shenanigans that can survive 1 exile per turn? Tormod's Crypt can be easily recurred via Eternal Witness, Sun Titan, and Academy Ruins.
ADDENDUM: I also wondered how you deal with something like Darksteel Forge. A niche card, for sure, but it sees a lot of play in Arcum Dagsson and Sharuum decks.
As for Darksteel Forge, there are generally several ways of dealing.
1) Timely counterspells.
2) Destroy relevant artifacts in response to the Forge and then not really care about a 9 CMC do-nothing.
3) Bounce the Forge with a Venser, Shaper Savant or Cryptic Command (or Cyclonic Rift, which is another solid choice here), and then either follow up with blowing things up or counter the Forge when it comes back down.
I can't really think of any times when I've ever been too concerned about a Darksteel Forge.
Something I HAVE had a bit of a harder time dealing with, though, is a resolved board state that includes Privileged Position, Greater Auramancy, and Karmic Justice. One of my most frequent opponents plays an Enchantresses deck, and that board state alone is 90% of the reason I keep considering finding room to put Cyclonic Rift back in.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
Consider Tragic Arrogance. That card has single-handedly risen to the near top of my prefered wrath options. Keeping your best stuff, while setting opponents back to their worst, is fantastic.
It hits artifacts, enchantments, and anything else, so it's a global answer to anything and everything. To top it off, the sacrifice will answer any potential Darksteel Forge problem, and won't trigger the Karmic Justice.
Further, if they have artifact creatures (or enchantment creatures, etc), you can double dip, selecting the same permanent for the different types.
Retired EDH - Tibor and Lumia | [PR]Nemata |Ramirez dePietro | [C]Edric | Riku | Jenara | Lazav | Heliod | Daxos | Roon | Kozilek
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
I'm kind of curious to hear other people's experiences with it, but oddly, no one seems to really run it. I know that ISB has had some success with it, and also considers it a hidden gem, but I'm still looking for more.
Retired EDH - Tibor and Lumia | [PR]Nemata |Ramirez dePietro | [C]Edric | Riku | Jenara | Lazav | Heliod | Daxos | Roon | Kozilek
If it's as good as you say I may end up needing a couple more.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
Fair points about Darksteel Forge. Like I said, it is a niche card that only sees play in dedicated artifact decks. I've been wrecked turn 4 by the Nevinyrral's Disk + Mycosynth Lattice + Darksteel Forge combo by at least three different commanders (Arcum Dagsson, Sharuum the Hegemon, Sydri, Galvanic Genius), so I just remain wary of such things and like to sleeve up Return to Dust in any white deck I play.
Two cards in this deck that I'm iffy on are Mystic Snake and Solemn Simulacrum. This deck can cast Snake more reliably than most, but it can still be difficult to keep up the 4 mana for that bomb you think your opponent may cast on his next turn. I can see that this topic has been discussed in this thread already, so I think it ultimately just boils down to how well one can pilot the deck and, frankly, personal preference. I've never felt good fetching Simulacrum with Birthing Pod. It does draw when you sac him to find a 5-drop, but I almost always would rather find an answer card like Clever Impersonator or Glen Elendra Archmage.
Two cards I was considering replacing them with are Sower of Temptation and Thought-Knot Seer. Sower helps deal with problem creatures, and even if eats removal, that's one less removal spell in play. It's also a great Reveillark target. Seer is a beefier Vendilion Clique and exiles their best card in hand. It may be fringe-castable with so few lands that tap for colourless mana, but I think it's doable. Both of these make awesome targets for Venser or DEN.
I absolutely adore both Mystic Snake and Solemn Simulacrum in this deck. For the Snake, not only is having a hard counter that I can find off of Survival of the Fittest/Eledamri's Call/Chord of Calling absolutely fantastic, but Mystic Snake + Deadeye Navigator very frequently takes over a game. For Solemn, it's funny to me that you say you don't like Podding for him, as he's one of my favourite parts of the early Pod chain. He's almost always the first 4 I go for.
Thought-Knot Seer is definitely a card that got on my radar when it got spoiled, but my primary concern with it is the same as my primary concern with Eldrazi Displacer, and you hit that nail right on the head. The reliability of making colorless mana to cast is is questionable. It's something I need to get around to doing some math on and testing out at some point, but I just haven't yet had the time.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
1) I fixed some typos and whatnot that I found.
2) Added a handful of cards to the card options section.
3) Swapped Supreme Verdict for Tragic Arrogance. Still testing it out, we'll see how it goes.
4) As I'd mentioned possibly doing in a previous post, I've swapped Palinchron for Noble Hierarch.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU
BRGrenzo, Dungeon Warden EDH
GAzusa, Always in a Rush EDH
GWUDerevi, Empyrial Warlord EDH
Trade thread on MOTL
Also, you should really be playing Sylvan Library. Just throwing that out there.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
One thing that drives me nuts is that I love Restoration Angel and it is my favorite art in Magic, but I feel like she's a nonbo with my general and 3 higher curve cards being angels. Ostensibly, Sigarda doesn't need to be blinked, but Linvala would love it, as would Avacyn for exile protection. Saving Jenara is not a big deal either. Your thoughts? Considering tossing in Resolute Archangel for Avacyn. Really wish she was bigger than 4/4 for 7 though. Akroma has been on my radar too.
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU
Also, Resolute Archangel is awesome. If you abuse your life total anywhere near as much as I do mine then you'll love it. I think you could easily swap Avacyn for it, then take it Linvala for something else, since you wouldn't need the life gain from her anymore. Maybe some decent 5 drop. That would just lower your curve overall.
As for Restoration Angel, as much as I love the card, I feel the impact isn't enough. I've been happy using Stonecloaker for similar jobs.
Sorry for the lack of card tags in this post. Typing it on my phone and tags are a hassle.
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
I was typing from mine earlier as well. And no worries. I agree on Resto-Angel, it just makes me sad. It's the reason I don't run her. Less angels in the list or the general isn't an angel and I think she'd be a shoo-in because she does everything that you'd want in a deck like this.
Linvala, the Preserver is more grindy than Avenger of Zendikar so I'm thinking that I'll make that swap. DEN is still in the list as of now too, which is a bonus. Blinking Linvala also has potentially greater board impact, swinging a lot of life and giving 3/3s with evasion. She has evasion herself too. I think that is worth a bit more than 7 0/1 plants in most cases where you don't get a chance to untap with Avenger up. Landfall can be pretty fickle and I feel like he seldom wins a game for me any more. Linvala is a easier card to play out without an immediate response being required and she seizes back the board with incremental advantage (lifegain) built in. She's excellent, almost guaranteed value at 6 mana, especially in a STAR game, and this deck loves that type of card. Avenger needs a certain situation to drop him, but Linvala seems like she is almost always a good card to drop.
Resolute Archangel (with the sweet pre-release art that I picked white just to get) will probably swap in for Avacyn. I think less power on board and less protection for my permanents is worth the swing that the life total can have. I guess we don't care about other players cloning her too much either because we're better positioned to win the long game with our recursion and removal suites.
With more lifegain in the list, it makes it a lot easier to go greedy with Sylvan Library, which I need to find a slot for.
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU
I'd really like to advocate for Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite again. The card is just one of the best curve toppers in our colors and is wonderful against tokens and works great with our value creatures, that sacrifice power for their ETBs. This list can't go wide like token lists do, so I think having a tutorable board wipe against them (or at least a card to hold them back if they are 3/3 or bigger) and a functional pump for us is a boon. Without an Avenger, I do think that it is a bit weaker, but not by much, as that is a fringe play you'd really only hit off of T&N.
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
Norn, rather than being grindy, is just a powerhouse. Almost an ETB Wrath, massive anthem. It would offer up more opportunities to just straight up close out the game. One concern I have, though, is that she paints a giant target, which is the same reason I've cut some previous cards (like Vorinclex).
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Current Commanders: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician (coming soon) | [Primer] Sedris, the Traitor King | Maelstrom Wanderer | Najeela, the Blade Blossom | Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow
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Retired Commanders: [Primer] Jenara, Asura of War | [Primer] Ghave, Guru of Spores | Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury | Saskia the Unyielding | Sydri, Galvanic Genius
Her counterpart for me was Ixidron. If my opponents were swarming with small stuff I would go for Norn. If they were swarming out eldrazi and crap like that I would go for Ixidron. Between the two I had an answer to most situations in my creature base. Having creatures who act as wraths means that any creature tutor you have can be a wrath if you need it to. Toolboxing utility is useful. I still like the Angel of Serenity but its more of a card I tend to play in a deck with more sacrifice as I like the ability to control her death over just running her out.
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
I noticed you aren't running Stoneforge Mystic and was curious as to why. I run the 3-swords package + Skullclamp and it looks like you swap Lightning Greaves for SoLaS where I prefer the protections and creature recursion (and nominal life gain is cool too, I guess). So you aren't running with any fewer equipments and any of the ones you do have are very impactful. Is it just because our most expensive equipment card is at 3 that her tap ability isn't as great because of that? I think that the tutor alone at her cost where we can abuse creatures justifies her use even still.
EDH:
G[cEDH] Selvala, Heart of the StormG
URW[cEDH] Narset, the Last AirmericanURW
GWUSt. Jenara, the ArchangelGWU
UBGrimgrin, Chaos MarineUB
GOmnath, Mana BaronG
URWNarset, Justice League AmericaURW
GWUBAtraxa, Countess of CountersGWUB
GWUEstrid, Enbantress PrimeGWU