(04/15/20): Beginning with Ikoria, I will no longer be updating this primer location. You can find my primer continued HERE, along with a consistently updated decklist. Thank you all for your ongoing support over the years, I have been proud to continue to keep this primer alive and well, and will continue to do so elsewhere.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary – A Simic Combonary
Introduction:
Momir Vig, as a card, commander, and deck, is predicated on synthesis: A fusion of two very different elements. It brings together the best of blue and the best of green into an unstoppable monstrosity… Just like Vig created Experiment Kraj. As you enter into this deck primer, be prepared to experience just that – a synthesis of knowledge and strength.
This is a competitive EDH deck primer. If you are looking to play a more casual game with Momir Vig, please ask, I would be happy to give some input on how you can do this.
Short history and bio:
This deck was the very first deck that I built going into Commander. I chose to play EDH exactly because of one card: Prophet of Kruphix. While the time of Prophet has passed, Momir Vig lives on, honing his strength, hoping for the eventual return of his fair maiden. I have piloted, shaped, and cultivated this deck consistently since building it in late 2013. I have playtested it for hundreds of hours, and have logged well over a hundred games with it. Look no further to a Momir Vig expert – I’m your guy.
The deck has undergone many changes over the years, and I have whittled the average mana cost down. For a time I used to play mostly 3 and 4-cost spells and creatures; now I have a concentration at CMC 2. What started as goodstuff.dec has evolved into a lean competitive control-combo deck. Rather than play cards like Craterhoof Behemoth, Consecrated Sphinx, and Deadeye Navigator, this deck focuses on low-cost, high value creatures.
Much of the change that this deck has gone through was as a result of meta calls at the time. After a time though, changes were less dependent on what I needed to play against specific decks, and focused more on making the deck better at what it tries to do. Faster ways of making infinite mana, while keeping the deck reliable and consistent. This deck, and commander, specialize in creature tutoring. I have tried to make it consistent and hard to beat at that, and so there are multiple failsafes in place before you can truly throw your hands up and say "there's no way I can win."
One small note about the deck: THIS IS NOT ELF/HACKBALL MOMIR VIG. Different Vig builds exist that rely heavily on cheap mana dorks to trigger Vig’s green ability, and run a package of elf dorks. This deck plays only a few mana dorks. Personally, I believe that this gives you a lot more resiliency, even if it makes you a little slower. Toxic Deluge is not your friend, and if you’re risking your mana base in a wrath, then that just sets you back even more.
The Play of the deck:
This deck is designed as a competitive creature-based combo deck that has the added bonus of not relying on graveyard shenanigans. Very basically, you use Momir Vig’s ability to tutor up whatever your heart desires, and assemble a win by making infinite mana, or drawing your entire deck.
Why do I want to play this deck?
This deck is for you if:
You like to play the colors blue and green – objectively the best colors in Commander.
You like to win with creatures on the board.
You like to play counterspells.
You like to win out of nowhere with a totally empty board.
This deck may not be for you if:
You feel bad when your turns take ten minutes while your opponents wait for you to finish.
You dislike stacking triggers and sequencing cards.
You don’t like winning with creatures/dislike playing permanents.
You like winning with creatures, but only when they attack. This deck NEVER attacks.
Other commander options:
Momir Vig is a tutor on demand. He freely tutors things into your hand or on top of your library any time you do what your deck already likes to do – just casting creatures. For a competitive deck in these colors, he is probably your best choice, but you may be able to find some similar replacements:
Prime Speaker Vannifar - This is probably the only card I have ever considered replacing Momir Vig with. Like Vig, Vannifar operates on a specific combo, and can win a single turn after coming down. However, Vannifar has important issues that cannot be solved easily. One of Vig's strengths is that there is no over-reliance on the commander, whereas you NEED Vannifar to win the game. If you are interested in playing UG combo decks, Vannifar would be my second recommendation behind Vig.
Prime Speaker Zegana – This deck requires a slightly different build, with more in-deck tutors and bigger creatures, but works on generally the same principle. You have a draw engine in the command zone, which you should be able to easily abuse to draw a bunch of cards, more or less netting the same effect as Vig, which is card advantage. She is a good choice for a more casual build, or a deck that wants to play bigger creatures that do more things.
Ezuri, Claw of Progress – While the two decks play very differently, both rely heavily on small high-value creatures. If you’re picking this deck up to play small creatures efficiently and do crazy things with them, Ezuri might not be bad alternative pick for you.
Rashmi, Eternities Crafter/Thrasios, Triton Hero – Rashmi employs the same kind of value strategy that Vig likes to play: getting things off the top of your library for free. She is a little less efficient than Zegana or Vig, but you can tailor the deck to be more of a control-combo deck, rather than combo-control (meaning that you can play a dedicated UG control deck with a combo finish, rather than a deck that seeks to combo, with control elements). Thrasios also offers you a more traditional card advantage route, ignoring for a moment the storm deck potentials he has.
Kruphix, God of Horizons/Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix - Both of these commanders serve to help you generate loads of mana, and allow you to then put that mana to to good use by casting a giant Genesis Wave or sinking it into Helix Pinnacle. While Vig used to run both of these cards, it has since moved away to becoming more creature-focused.
Below you will find the nonland cards organized by what role they play. Some of these cards fit into multiple roles, and so I tried to pick the best roles for them, and how I use them most often. For example, I have Genesis Hydra listed under “protection” because while it can also be placed under “Card advantage” (because it puts another permanent in addition to itself on the field) 9/10 times I use it as a means of getting a creature onto the field in an uncounterable manner, thus using it as “protection.”
Individual Card Analysis:
The deck has a nearly 3-way split for each portion of the deck: 1/3 creatures, 1/3 lands, 1/3 noncreature, nonlands. I will first address cards by type and CMC, and then sort them into a second decklist by function.
Creatures: The Commander
Momir Vig triggers when you cast either green or blue creatures. Green creatures will allow you to effectively cast a Sylvan Tutor, placing the creature you tutor for on top of the library. Blue creatures will allow you to reveal the top card of your library, and put it into your hand if it’s a creature (NOT draw, a key distinction!). Green-Blue creatures will let you do both, in whatever order you choose.
More often than not you will want to stack Blue then Green triggers, wanting the Green to resolve BEFORE the Blue trigger (resolves in reverse order). But sometimes there is a card on top that you want in your hand, and you can take that and then resolve the green trigger.
Arbor Elf: The first of my three mana dorks! This guy has the most variance of all the mana dorks. While it usually isn't a problem, sometimes there may not be a valid target for Arbor Elf to untap. Conversely, if I have a Utopia Sprawl on one of my lands, particularly a Tropical Island or Breeding Pool, this dork is able to produce +2 mana, possibly even UU. With the change of the deck to add the Druid combo, removal of basic lands makes this card a lot less of a sure pick than it used to be.
Birds of Paradise: Probably the best mana dork out there, this has been a mainstay longer than the other two dorks here. Being able to tap for any color is critically important, and being a flying blocker doesn't hurt either.
Llanowar Elves/Fyndhorn Elves: Llanowar Elves and its counterpart are the most limited mana dorks in scope given that they tap only for G, but this also makes them highly consistent, as opposed to Arbor Elf.
Elvish Reclaimer: Crop Rotation on a body! The +2/+2 is pretty irrelevant, but being able to tutor for a Cradle tutor is very important. It does take three turns to get the Cradle online without other untapping mechanisms though (T1 play Reclaimer, T2 bring Cradle in tapped, T3 untap Cradle), so be warned this can potentially be a slower card, but is great as a T1/T2 play.
Sylvan Safekeeper: Creatures in this deck are high-value targets. Removing them is always a priority for opponents, especially those that know the power of this deck. Safekeeper keeps them, well, safe. Its activation does come at a steep cost, but it usually is around to protect the combo when the deck is about to go off.
Caustic Caterpillar: This little guy is fantastic at blowing up troublesome permanents. With no ETB, he gets around Torpor Orb (which shuts us down anyway) and is extremely easy to get out and play. At CMC 1, he also triggers Vig very early on.
Cloud of Faeries: Critical Wincon piece in the deck. The Faeries will generate the infinite mana needed for victory! With a deck focused on low-cost creatures, this can happen as early as turn 2 or 3.
Hermit Druid: A key piece of the combo with Thassa's Oracle to win the game immediately. Only exists in the deck as long as Thassa's Oracle does.
Thassa's Oracle: This is an incredibly powerful card that wins the game on the spot, and doubles as a card selection tool in a pinch. Wins with either Hermit Druid or infinite mana combos.
Thrasios, Triton Hero: Along with Duskwatch Recruiter, Thrasios serves as the infinite mana sink to draw the entire deck. At UG he also triggers Vig easily, and his ability becomes extraordinarily powerful when Training Grounds is out. He’s also great to have when you curve into Seedborn Muse, but don’t have a way to flash creatures in, allowing you to scry every turn for added value. Also a Wizard for Azami, Lady of Scrolls.
Kiora's Follower: This is a fantastic “mana dork” that untaps any permanent you might need. My favorite targets are Gaea's Cradle, Nykthos, and Prime Speaker Vannifar. A cheap Vig activation, Kiora’s Follower is a great addition to the deck.
Biomancer's Familiar: A creature version of Training Grounds, this card is very useful in enabling many of my combos to go off faster, or to produce additional value. Use with Temur Sabertooth, Thrasios, or Duskwatch Recruiter.
Painter's Servant: One of the, if not the most important card in the deck, this card lets you trigger two of Vig's abilities for the price of one. Make all your green creatures part blue, or vice versa. The color you pick is heavily context dependent: If you have a hand of blue creatures, naturally you'll want to pick green.
Destiny Spinner: It's important to make sure that your creatures resolve. Spinner is a one-sided effect that only cost 2 mana, and has an upside of protecting your high value enchantments as well.
Gilded Drake: One of my favorite things to do is to steal people’s creatures at instant speed, which this deck is fully capable of doing. Tutor for a Mind Control effect is very strong in a format based on generals. I’ve stolen Sen Triplets, Nekusar, the Mindrazer, Zur the Enchanter, you name it. I’ve even had to steal my Momir Vig back on occasion. I take great pleasure in bouncing it back to my hand afterward with a Cyclonic Rift for added value.
Lotus Cobra: Arguably the best turn-2 play this deck can make, Lotus Cobra accelerates the deck to incredible levels, especially given the full suite of fetchlands. It has a very high value, and has allowed me to do many broken things very quickly.
Priest of Titania: A very powerful mana dork that turns to more than 1 mana very quickly, especially if another opponent is playing elves.
Coiling Oracle: A cheap Vig activation, it is often paired with Shardless Agent for a potential 4-for-1 combo (explained in deck synergies below). It’s also an infinite mana outlet with Temur Sabertooth flickers.
Phantasmal Image: A relic of the Palinchron/Image infinite mana combo, this card remains in the deck as an additional way to ramp up temporarily by copying Cloud of Faeries to ensure victory. While it was much better when Palinchron was still in the deck, it still serves a useful role.
Collector Ouphe: Representing one of the flex spots in the deck, Ouphe is a must-have in an artifact-heavy meta.
Genesis Hydra: While technically a 2 drop, Hydra is never actually cast for 2, and is usually cast for X=5. Because it triggers on cast, it allows you to stack with the Momir Vig green trigger. The common play is to cast the Hydra for X=5, stack the triggers to resolve the Vig search trigger first, finding Seedborn Muse or Azami, Lady of Scrolls if you already have Seedborn. Then you resolve the Hydra trigger, revealing the top X cards of your library, and putting a nonland permanent from among them with CMC X or less onto the field, and shuffling the rest away (shuffle, not bottom of library!). This enables you to put high-value creatures directly onto the field instead of having them be countered (Unless the opponent has a Stifle, but that is rarely the case in my experience). Getting around counterspells is fantastic.
Kira, Great Glass-Spinner: Kira serves the same role as Sylvan Safekeeper, which is to protect your creatures. She does this job superbly well, but watch out! She won’t prevent you from having to sacrifice your Phantasmal Image if it is targeted.
Eternal Witness: A must-have piece of recursion in the deck in case things go wrong. While a few other cards play similar roles, none do it as well as she does.
Reclamation Sage: Just like the Caterpillar, it is a tutorable effect to deal with artifacts and enchantments. It costs more mana, but requires no activation cost. Paired with the Caterpillar to get around different hate cards (Caterpillar hits Torpor Orb, Sage hits Cursed Totem, both of which are combo disablers against this deck).
Shaman of Forgotten Ways: A critical wincon piece, the way you actually kill people. Plus a very useful mana dork. Being able to tap for GG, GU, or UU comes in very handy.
Shardless Agent: A very high-value creature, often paired with Coiling Oracle (interaction explained in detail below). Often with Vig out you will want to stack the 3 cast triggers as Green, Cascade, Blue, enabling to you cascade into any CMC 1 or CMC 2 creature you choose.
Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath: This is a flex card along the lines of Coiling Oracle. It is included as a backup to Oracle to draw the deck, as well as a niche situational card where casting it from the yard is necessary when there are no other creatures to cast in hand for Vig triggers. May come out in a future update.
Somberwald Sage: One of the two mana bigger dorks in the deck, Somberwald Sage accelerates you very quickly. She is never a disappointment to see, because she will often supply the UUU you need for the likes of Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir.
Spellseeker: Being able to tutor for a noncreature spell in this deck is no easy feat. Being able to tutor for a noncreature spell with a creature is amazing. This card can get Crop Rotation, almost every counter in the deck, Nature's Claim, and many other valuable effects. Crop Rotation is the most common tutor target, but I have also had the pleasure of getting Cyclonic Rift and Pact of Negation. After establishing infinite mana, she will be needed to get Rift and Finale of Devastation to win.
Trophy Mage: This card was initially discounted as being too narrow to play in the deck. However, the cards it is able to tutor for are powerful enough that it warrants having a tutor. Trophy Mage gets Cloudstone Curio, a highly abusable card that helps win the game much faster than normally. As a backup, Trophy Mage also tutors for Shardless Agent, arguably the most powerful UG creature in the deck! Plus it helps ensure a UG Vig trigger.
Temur Sabertooth: The Deadeye Navigator replacement! Sabertooth bounces all of your high-value creatures, whether you’re trying to make infinite mana, or just trying to activate Coiling Oracle again, Sabertooth will help you out! Also an indestructible blocker in a niche situation.
Nylea, Keen-Eyed: One of the infinite mana outlets along with Thrasios, Triton Hero. Nylea is a high-value card that replaced Duskwatch Recruiter, containing both sides of Duskwatch in one go. Nylea is useful every which way. She gets very powerful when Biomancer's Familiar is on the field, activating for only G. Most importantly however, is her cost reduction for your creatures. The combo speeds up significantly when she is on the field.
Prime Speaker Vannifar: Birthing Pod on a stick! This card does it all and more. Also triggers Vig for U and G. Tutor up answers or combo pieces at will.
Vizier of the Menagerie: Vizier is Momir Vig’s best friend (after Prophet, RIP). It allows you to turn all Green Vig triggers into effective UG triggers. It also provides incidental card advantage, plus it is on curve! Also does very good, and very gross, things with Aluren. Its last ability is incidentally useful to no longer need a certain number of blue lands to make infinite GUCloud of Faeries..
Beast Whisperer: Whisperer actually has a very old predecessor in this deck! Before I replaced it with Azami, Lady of Scrolls, I ran Primordial Sage for a very short time to generate card advantage. Now Beast Whisperer has come to send both these cards packing! At four mana, This card is a house. Triggering on cast is also critically important, as it allows us to tutor for something with Vig when casting a G creature, and then putting the tutor target directly into the hand. This card is on par for power level with Vizier of the Menagerie, and has earned a permanent spot in the deck.
Prophet of Kruphix: You shall be missed. Rest in peace. May you return to us someday.
Noncreature, nonland cards
Mystic Remora: This card provides insane card advantage for very little upfront cost. The moment you have drawn two cards, you have turned this enchantment into card advantage. A tax of 4 is nothing to scoff at.
Utopia Sprawl: While initially skeptical of cards like these, I have come to greatly appreciate Utopia Sprawl in its utility. Despite being restricted to enchanting Forests only, it offers a number of useful upsides. Not only does it fix your colors, but it enables comboing off that much faster. It also adds to devotion with Nykthos, which is a valuable asset.
Wild Growth: I am running this for the same reasons as Utopia Sprawl. It helps me combo off faster. One important note is that Wild Growth, while it only adds G, it can enchant any land! Sprawl is restricted to Forests.
Sylvan Library: A fantastic enchantment and early play, the Library offers card selection and card advantage all in one neat package. If your choice is between this and another 2 drop on turn 1 or 2, play this. In very narrow situations it may be more appropriate to play Lotus Cobra to power into multiple plays next turn if you have a fetch in hand, but 9/10 times the Library is the correct play.
Survival of the Fittest: The most efficient creature tutor in Magic. This card will win you the game, no sweat, if left unchecked.
Growing Rites of Itlimoc: This is a very powerful card that doubles as a second Gaea's Cradle. When ti comes down it allows you to dig four deep for a creature. Its flip condition is incredibly easy to achieve in this deck, and so it makes for a potent threat whether early or late game.
Aluren: A card I was initially skeptical about given its proclivity to help others as well, it has no compare in its ability to be abused. Particularly disgusting with Vizier of the Menagerie. Momir Vig and Aluren allow you to chain through most of your deck’s creatures in one turn. This card overwhelms and overpowers.
Mox Diamond/Chrome Mox: Both very efficient early game accelerants and terrible late-game topdecks, these cards offer enough advantage to put me ahead of the pack that they are absolutely worth running. I don’t know that I would necessarily run them if Prophet of Kruphix was legal, but both cards are very much worth it.
Sensei's Divining Top: This deck manipulates the top of the deck a lot. It shuffles even more than that, usually multiple times a turn. Top allows you the best opportunities to take advantage of that. Don’t be afraid to crack Top to draw a card you need and shuffle it away; it’s often the correct play.
Cloudstone Curio: I initially had deep reservations against this card, because I disdain including non-creature spells as a part of my wincon in this deck (because I can tutor for creatures, but not non-creatures without adding additional dead cards)! However, after further testing and re-evaluating the card, coupled with the inclusion of Aluren in the deck, I have come to realize that it's a very powerful utility card. It also enables very fast wins out of nowhere, with or without Aluren. Cloud of Faeries with a 1 drop creature goes infinite with Cradle that taps for 3 and another land.
Sylvan Tutor: While I was initially skeptical that Sylvan/Worldly tutors were cards that were worth running, ultimately the call was made to add them because of their sheer efficiency. When Momir Vig turns each green creature into a Sylvan Tutor, why not run an unconditional version of this effect (not conditioned on the presence of Momir Vig on the field)?
Neoform: A reuseable Birthing Pod effect (it doesn't exile like Eldritch Evolution below). Very useful to get creature cards directly onto the battlefield.
Eldritch Evolution: A one-time use, it’s meant to power unexpectedly into wins or high value creatures. Good for turning one-time use cards (such as Reclamation Sage) into Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir to protect your combo. Putting the creature directly onto the field is very strong.
Timetwister: A fantastic way to refill your hand when behind, or to shuffle your used up resources back into your library (where they can be easily tutored for again). It’s also not incorrect to sometimes play it out on turn 2 or 3 if you feel your hand is about to run out of resources, to deny opponents the opportunity to play the hands they decided to keep. Time Spiral is a decent substitution, one I keep on hand as a backup.
Pact of Negation: The cheapest card of my Counter suite, it serves to protect the combo. Its usefulness is surpassed only by Force of Will.
Noxious Revival: This card serves two primary functions: One, it allows us to recover lost pieces of the combo at instant speed. Did someone Strip Mine your Cradle right before you were going to combo? Bring it back. Being able to do so at instant speed, for zero mana, is incredibly powerful.
Flusterstorm: This was another counterspell I had initially been very skeptical of. I was not sure I would ever get enough storm count for it to be relevant. Plus, given that it is limited to instants and sorceries also had me disapprove of the card. However, recent testing has turned my doubts around. Counter magic in this deck is primarily designed to protect our combo from interference, and when someone is interfering on our turn, it's usually with instants. I have also come to discover that reaching storm 3-4 is pretty easy to do in a given turn, and anything more than that is fairly common as well. This turns into an extremely powerful counter for just U.
Muddle the Mixture: Protects the combo, but most of the time serves as a useful Transmute. What do you get? Hermit Druid, Thassa's Oracle, and Cloud of Faeries are all CMC 2.
Cyclonic Rift: If you’re playing blue, you’re playing this card. No questions asked. Also helps combo off to win with a Shaman of Forgotten Ways activation.
Memory's Journey: This card has multiple purposes as a combo enabler, combo killer, and recursion. Not only will this allow me to combo off faster with Hermit Druid, I can also disable combos from other people who rely on cards in their graveyards. Finally, I can save creatures or other cards I care about at instant speed from my own yard by shuffling them back into my library.
Chord of Calling: The best instant speed, straight-to-the-battlefield tutor you can play. Gets any color creature too, unlike Green Sun’s Zenith.
Force of Negation: One of the free counters in the deck, generally used as a means of protecting yourself from wipes/sorcery speed removal, or other wincons.
Force of Will: Speaks for itself. Best counterspell in the game.
Oko, Thief of Crowns: This is an important card to deal with troublesome permanents in a definitive manner. Turning off opposing Hermit Druids, Torpor Orbs, and other pesky artifacts and creatures, this is a very flexible planeswalker. Also lets you exchange your Food tokens for their valuable creatures.
Tamiyo, Collector of Tales: Tamiyo performs multiple roles in one card, making her one of the best planeswalkers printed for this deck. First and foremost, Tamiyo protects the player from problematic sources like edicts and wheels from your opponents, effectively doing what Tajuru Preserver does but better. Her +1 is effectively a repeatable Wood Sage. While the effect is not spectacular in EDH, she allows you to recur anything you put in the graveyard with her -3 ability, effectively Eternal Witness. As such, Tamiyo serves as combo protection, card selection (you can tutor for something with a green creature off Vig and then put the card in your hand in the same turn), and recursion. At four mana she is fairly steep, but her price has paid off time and again.
Lands:
7 Island/7 Forest: The bread and butter of the deck. Playing a critical mass of basics is both good and necessary. It protects you from Blood Moon/Ruination effects, and are easy to tutor for with the full fetchland suite. The fixing isn’t necessary to run more nonbasics, and I would even consider cutting Command Tower if they print a half-decent UG land sometime soon. I would go down to 12 basics if they printed more enemy-paired lands with basic subtypes.
EDIT: With the swap to the Hermit Druid combo, basic lands have been removed from the deck. While it remains to be seen if this combo persists, it is important to note that the deck does become much weaker to Blood Moon effects, as well as nonbasic land destruction. The land base also becomes more unstable as a result.
Waterlogged Grove: Paying 1 life for mana is a small price to pay to be able to crack for an instant-speed draw. Warning: Do NOT attempt to go infinite with this land.
Lotus Field: This card is a backup to Cradle/Nykthos wins. With Cloud of Faeries, Cloudstone Curio, a CMC 1 creature, and any other land, you can make infinite mana.
Cavern of Souls: There are a lot of tribes in this deck, and a great number of cards in the tribes. Wizard, Shaman, Elf, Human, Druid, the list goes on. Most of the time the correct play is Wizard, as it makes Vig and Thassa's Oracle uncounterable.
Gaea's Cradle/Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx: Objectively the best lands in the deck. Both are crucial for piloting the deck. If you are trying to run a budget Vig, splurge and get a Cradle. It’s WORTH IT!
Below are lands included with the Hermit Druid combo. When not playing this combo, replace these with basic Islands and Forests.
Cards that didn't make the cut:
This section is about cards that didn't quite get there for me, or that I'm not currently playing for one reason or another. This list will be expanded as necessary. Many of these cards are meta choices that can come in and out of the deck depending on what your meta requires.
Mana Vault: I very much dislike one-time effects of mana. It's true this would be a turn 2 Momir Vig, but then what? On turn 3 I would have 3 lands, and while that may be incidentally useful to get a few cast triggers off Vig, it wouldn't ultimately do much for me with so few resources until I get Kiora's Follower or Seedborn Muse. As the deck is designed to win with powerful lands (or a high number of them) it's imperative to be able to match my board state growth with my mana base growth. If I over-extend with no hope of recovery, then I've lost the game, whereas if I have the mana to recast things, I can recover.
Nature's Lore/Three Visits: While lands are important to the game plan, creature ramp has made the deck much faster than it used to be. Thus I tend to prefer running mana dorks over land ramp spells.
Palinchron: This used to be the mainstay combo piece of the deck, however at 7 mana it has become unjustifiably mana intensive. Cloud of Faeries performs the same task far more efficiently. The most controversial change I have made since the deck's inception. Since adding Cloud of Faeries, Palinchron moved from being the primary to the backup wincon in the deck. CoF is much faster and more reliable than Palinchron, and supporting an otherwise dead 7 drop in the deck takes a lot of resources to go off. With CoF, I can go off on two lands, whereas Palinchron would always need more lands. I have kept a copy in reserve in case I ever feel that Cloud of Faeries is being removed too easily.
Peregrine Drake/Deadeye Navigator: This combo is a little too slow to reliably cast. Trying to get up to 6 mana to get DEN out is not fast enough.
Ramunap Excavator: I would play this card only if you suffer from a lot of MLD in your meta.
River Hoopoe, Duskwatch Recruiter, Spectral Sailor: All three cards act as viable replacements for Thrasios and Nylea as infinite mana sinks, less so the Duskwatch Recruiter (does not allow for Thassa's Oracle wins, can't draw the whole deck).
Command Beacon: When your commander has been countered 4 times and now costs 13 mana to cast. Yes, it has happened to me. Best slotted in for control-heavy metas, but otherwise makes the mana base too unstable with a colorless land.
Synergies, Combos, and Tips:
Here is the section on explaining the basic interactions in the deck. Remember, you must have a way to USE infinite mana once you have generated it!
Making infinite mana: Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries
This combo is generally used at earlier stages in the game. It requires Gaea's Cradle that taps for GGGG, and 2 Islands or U producing lands. To cast and bounce Cloud of Faeries costs 2GU for the process. Any time you can tap 2 lands to produce 5+ mana you will make infinite mana. Once you have made infinite G with Cradle and 1 Island, repeat the process by untapping 2 Islands instead of 1 with Faeries, generating infinite U at a conversion rate of GGG = U. Also works with Nykthos (as long as you can produce enough G or U to keep it going and adding mana to your pool).
Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries + Aluren
Allows you to make infinite mana with Cradle only tapping for GG, which is literally just the Sabertooth and Faeries on the field. Aluren lets you cast the Faeries for free, reducing the cost of the cycle to just 1G. The second land you untap with CoF generates the infinite mana.
Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries + Aluren + Biomancer's Familiar
Allows you to combo infinitely with any 2 lands. Faeries is free, Temur Sabertooth only costs G to activate. You spend G to untap 2 lands, making infinite mana. Can also make infinite without Aluren (just Biomancer's Familiar) if 2 lands untap for at least 4 mana (Since cycle will cost 1GU to repeat).
Cloud of Faeries + Aluren + Cloudstone Curio
You need only Faeries and another creature with CMC 3 or less to go infinite. You just keep recasting one and bouncing the other for free.
Cloud of Faeries + Cloudstone Curio
In order for these to go infinite with Curio, all you need is a second creature that costs less than the mana you make. So if you have Cloud of Faeries, Cradle, and Curio on the field, and a second creature to let cradle tap for GG, all you need is a CMC 1 creature (mana dork or otherwise), you can go infinite right there! Cradle taps for 3 mana, a blue land taps for U, and you make UGGG while spending UGG, generating a net G each cycle.
Cast Finale of Devastation for X=10+: This is to ensure all your creatures have haste.
Activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways’ second ability, the Biorhythm effect. Use it to put people’s life totals to 0 after a Cyclonic Rift.
NOTE: Optionally, once you have all your creatures on the field, you can swing for lethal when every creature has nearly infinite power from Finale of Devastation.
The Other Combo
With the printing of Thassa's Oracle, winning the game has never been easier. Oracle helps us win in one of two simple ways:
1. After drawing your entire deck, simply cast Thassa's Oracle on an empty library. Once the ETB trigger resolves, even if the Oracle is removed and you otherwise have 0 devotion (highly unlikely), you will win the game on the spot.
2. Casting the Oracle when you control a Hermit Druid that does not have summoning sickness. Once the Oracle resolves and the ETB trigger is on the stack, activate Druid to mill your entire library. This will allow for the Oracle's ability to resolve right after you mill your library, winning you the game.
NOTE: Do NOT attempt to activate Hermit Druid BEFORE the Oracle has resolved and the ETB trigger is on the stack. If the Oracle gets countered, you will lose the game next draw step for having no cards in library. The only thing that would save you then is a Timetwister cast before you untap next turn.
The risky win: Speed at the cost of security
There is one other means of winning with the Hermit Oracle combo. This is by far the fastest, as well as riskiest way to win. Do NOT attempt this mode if you suspect or see any kind of graveyard hate.
With this method, you do not need to have Thassa's Oracle in your hand to win the game. After casting Hermit Druid, pass the turn and proceed with the following actions on your next turn:
Using this method negates the need to have tutored Thassa's Oracle to hand to go off. Memory's Journey effectively acts as a tutor in this case.
*NOTE: Sometimes it is important to play it safe when choosing what to return. If you suspect people can interfere with the top card of your library, or may have targeted exile effects to get rid of Thassa's Oracle, you must decide if you wish to save yourself by getting back other cards - which reduces your chances of winning that turn if you do not have any form of topdeck manipulation available. Getting back Oracle alone guarantees a 100% chance of drawing it. Oracle + 1 card gives you a 50% chance, and Oracle + 2 cards gives you a 33% chance to win that turn. Determining the willingness to take the risk is ultimately up to the pilot.
Q: What cards should I get back with Memory's Journey apart from Thassa's Oracle?
A: This depends on the situation. Destiny Spinner and Cavern of Souls protect Thassa's Oracle from being countered. Timetwister refills your deck in the event of a combo failure. Tamiyo, Collector of Tales, Noxious Revival, and Eternal Witness further protect you from losing immediately (Noxous Revival gives you an extra draw step as well by putting a card on top of your library instead of into your hand).
Synergistic interactions: Momir Vig, Simic Visionary + Shardless Agent + Coiling Oracle.
One of the best sequences nets you a possible 4-for-1, and populating the board aplenty (which helps massively when you have Gaea's Cradle down). Cast Shardless Agent, and stack the Momir Vig triggers and Cascade triggers like so:
Resolve the green trigger first, search for Coiling Oracle, put it on top of your library.
Cascade into the Coiling Oracle, which triggers Momir Vig once again. Search for whatever you want (I tend to prefer Kiora's Follower, as untapping your Cradle is so sweet.) and use both the new Green and Blue triggers to put what you search for in your hand.
Follow it up with the Coiling Oracle ETB trigger. If you get lucky once again, you've just ramped into a land. If not, you draw a card.
Use the additional blue trigger from the Shardless Agent cast. If you're lucky, you'll reveal a creature, and bam! Another free card. Best case scenario, you'll gain four cards for just 1GU.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary + Vizier of the Menagerie OR Beast Whisperer OR Painter's Servant + Aluren
Having these 3 cards enables you to cast any green creature, and tutoring for a cheap creature (CMC 3 or less) and put it on top of your library. Vizier lets you cast the top card, and Aluren lets you do it for free. Vig allows you to replace the card you just cast with another card put on top. It creates an endless cycle that allows you to power out most of the creatures in your deck.
How do I win if...
...Cloud of Faeries gets exiled?
Cloud of Faeries is the lynchpin of the deck. It is what singlehandedly enables you to generate infinite mana. Without it, you can make a lot of mana, but it's very difficult to go infinite. Palinchron may come back into the deck to compensate if CoF is getting removed a lot. In case of emergency, the alternate wincon is to overload Cyclonic Rift and then activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways' Biorhythm effect. It's not pretty, but it gets the job done.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
...Temur Sabertooth gets exiled?
A: You will have to rely on Cloudstone Curio to carry the day. You can still make infinite mana with Cloud of Faeries and another creature and proceed with your combo as planned. Curio offers redundancy for Sabertooth.
...My good lands like Gaea's Cradle and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx get removed?
A: If they're destroyed, there are a number of different ways to get them back from the graveyard. If they're exiled, you can still make infinite mana with other options like Growing Rites of Itlimoc as a backup, though it's harder to find, as you can't tutor for it. Lotus Field, or lands enchanted with Utopia Sprawl/Wild Growth can all serve as infinite mana enablers in a pinch.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
...Shaman of Forgotten Ways gets exiled?
A: Play all your creatures, then cast Finale of Devastation for X=infinite. Swing at all your opponents for super lethal.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
A: You can still win in the traditional manner without winning "on the spot" with an Oracle ETB. Go infinite, cast Finale for a billion, and activate Shaman or swing with your board for lethal.
...Thassa's Oracle gets exiled after I have activated Hermit Druid, in response to me using Memory's Journey to put it back in my deck?
A: This kind of situation is the diciest. In most cases, you will simply end up losing regrettably. Mass graveyard removal is essentially game over. Faerie Macabre spells doom as well. To play around Faerie Macabre, your goal should be to use Memory's Journey to get back Eternal Witness, Noxious Revival, and Thassa's Oracle. Ideally, with the Macabre they will likely select Thassa's Oracle and Eternal Witness to exile, leaving you Noxious Revival (or potentially E-Wit if they want to keep your deck empty). You do this so that you may use the one card that has not been exiled to retrieve Timetwister, to refill your library if your Hermit Oracle combo is disrupted.
...Multiple pieces of the wincon gets exiled/removed?
A: This is the toughest problem, and it very much decreases your chances of winning. But you can STILL win! In one very improbable game, after having all my infinite mana outlets removed, I had a bunch of creatures out with a Nykthos. After some shenanigans (like casting Eternal Witness to get a land from the yard) I was able to generate exactly 18 mana, overload a Cyclonic Rift for 7, and then activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways for the other 11, winning me the game all in one turn. Unless you get hit with a particularly unfortunate Ulamog attack and he exiles almost every wincon piece, this deck has a ton of recovery options and backups to still win the game.
Important Tips: Earthcraft + infinite mana engine
With Earthcraft, you are able to tap the creature you just cast for mana as well, reducing the land requirements (and color requirements as well, if you can untap a basic Island). Cloud of Faeries lets you effectively untap three lands this way, making infinite much easier.
Hermit Oracle NOTE: This section does not apply with the Hermit Oracle combo in the deck: There are no basics, so you cannot run Earthcraft.
Building your landbase:
This is a tip that should generally apply to all decks, but is especially important for this, and other competitive decks. Right now, the only land that I run that enters the battlefield tapped is Tolaria West. In constructing the land base for this deck, I would recommend running as few lands that ETB tapped as possible. The less your lands ETB tapped, the faster your deck is. Half the battle is being able to cast a 2 drop on turn 2, instead of having to wait until turn 3 to cast a 2 drop. Fixing is important, but you shouldn't sacrifice speed for it, especially not in only a 2-color deck. On a budget, running a few cards like Temple of Mystery is okay, but I would try to avoid playing too many, especially bad ones like Thornwood Falls or Lumbering Falls.
Hermit Oracle combo EDIT: The above text applies in the case of running no basic lands, though somewhat less so. There will inevitably be more lands that enter tapped or do less, such as Dryad Arbor or Hinterland Harbor with only 2 Islands or 3 Forests in the deck to let it ETB untapped. While regrettable, the efficiency and speed of the Hermit Oracle combo is such that these sacrifices are worthwhile.
How to play the deck:
Momir Vig operates on slightly slower timetable from T1 CEDH combo decks. Where those decks can win as soon as T2-3 Vig will usually go off on turns 4-5, and sometimes turn 3. A turn 2 win is possible, but it requires nearly perfect draws. Some may complain that this is too slow to go toe-to-toe with the top competitive decks, and they may be correct in that assessment. However, in my personal experience, the deck pilots much more consistently when you can reliably win later on, and set up a lot of value to get you there, rather than try to explode as quickly as possible and pray they don’t have a Toxic Deluge.
In typical CEDH pods in my experience, decks faceoff in a "Mexican standoff" where everyone tries to be the second person to combo. Combo too soon and your opponents will meet you with counters and removal. Combo too late and you'll let someone else win. My personal experience tells me that a T4 win (most common in this deck) is the perfect balance between keeping up answers/counters for your opponents, and comboing off after others have spent their resources and getting shut down.
Draw your opening hand:
In your opening hand you usually want to have anywhere between 2 and 3 lands. 4 often too much, especially if you have mana dorks in hand. Anything less or more will make you too unreliable. Too few lands and you get screwed and you’re out of the game. Too many and you’re flooded. If you have artifact or creature based ramp, or card selection, you can afford to keep fewer lands. For instance, keeping 2 lands and a Sylvan Library is somewhat risky, but can potentially lead to high payoffs.
An opening hand should have lots of early action. You should be playing lots of ramp and tutors, as well as powering out your small creatures. If you're casting Momir Vig on turn 5, you're already going too slow. Make sure your hand allows you to have some card advantage in the early turns.
Start of the game:
Your first two turns should be focused on ramping and establishing a board presence. The deck offers a multitude of options and paths to take, and so it’s important to learn how to respond to different cards through playtesting.
Turns 1-2: Build up the board
The first two turns are usually the safest turns. People are still building their boards themselves, so this is when you should take the opportunity to play your most valuable cards as quickly as possible. It's important to balance casting creatures and holding them up for Vig triggers. This changes from game to game, and from hand to hand, but sometimes you need to hold creatures back so they can provide more advantage later. If you topdeck a turn 2 Llanowar Elves, casting them may provide +1 mana on turn 3, but if you know you can cast Momir Vig on turn 3, you may want to hold the Elves to cast them and trigger Vig for cheap.
Remember that Momir Vig is a toolbox commander: You should tutor for things that you need when you need them. A default “value play” would be casting Shardless Agent into Coiling Oracle. It generates a potential 4-for-1 card advantage, plus establishes greater board presence (interaction explained in Synergies and Combos section). Another good play would be to get Sylvan Safekeeper or Kira out to protect your creatures.
Turn 3: Protecting what you’ve got and setting up to win
By the time Turn 3 rolls around, assuming you haven’t been interacted with too strongly, the deck should be poised to set up for a win in the next two turns. Once a sufficient board presence has been established, you should be tutoring to put that board to good use. Tutor for cards that you think will assist you in the given context. If the board is cleared and people are tapped out, tutor for your wincons and try to setup a win next turn. If you’re running low on resources, Seedborn Muse + Thrasios, Triton Hero or Duskwatch Recruiter is a fine play, to activate on each player’s turn. If people are holding up mana and counterspells, bring in some protection like Teferi, Kira, or Sylvan Safekeeper.
Turns 4-5: Winning the game.
For all intents and purposes, these should be the last turns of your deck in most cases. Sometimes turns take longer because you did not draw as expected. Sometimes they can go faster and you can be looking at an infinite combo on turn 3. Turn 4 is usually the average turn to win. Cast Spellseeker, go get Crop Rotation, find Gaea's Cradle, and go to town.
Strengths:
Consistency: Momir Vig has a lot of built-in consistency in the deck. There go many games where casting Vig is unnecessary; the cards you draw will get you across the finish line by themselves. And if one door closes, another one opens. If Temur Sabertooth is exiled, you still have Cloudstone Curio. And in the direst of circumstances, you can EOT (end of turn) Overload a Cyclonic Rift, and follow up with a Biorhythm effect from Shaman of Forgotten Ways. There are many paths to victory with this deck.
Resilience: The deck has the ability to bounce back and win out of nowhere. In one awful six-player game, I was once down in the dumps. I was hitting no good cards to cast. One player landed a turn 2 Luminarch Ascension and started hitting me with angels because he was afraid of my deck. In a matter of turns I was put to 8 life without so much as casting a spell. I literally only had lands on the field. As another player, playing Chainer, Dementia Master started to get out of control, people eventually started to ignore me and try to deal with the Chainer player, who was controlling the playing field by preventing the other 2 reanimation decks from using their graveyards. Finally, someone committed all their resources to casting a Grave Titan, followed by Diabolic Intent, into Damnation, to deal with the Chainer issue. With all potential threats tapped out and problem cards removed, I drew, and with just enough lands, played Palinchron into Phantasmal Image for an instant victory. Time and again the deck has been able to power out a win after being completely destroyed otherwise.
Combo-control: As a combo deck with control elements, you are able to master your own fate, while still denying others the opportunity to do what they want. Unlike direct combo, which has very little interactions with others, Vig offers you the ability to play an intermediary game, one that doesn’t explode and fizzle in flashfire, or take too long like a big-mana deck.
Weaknesses:
Toxic Deluge and Wraths: A common play against this deck is to go “Turn 2 Demonic Tutor for Turn 3 Toxic Deluge”. The deck runs many cheap counters for a reason! Protect your board at all costs! This goes for all kinds of wraths. Clearing your board of creatures is not the end of the world, but it’s definitely a setback we would rather not have.
Control: This deck plays lots of counterspells, very little removal. The purpose of this is to play ways to protect your combo, rather than play control. If you’re in the situation where you can afford to play control after establishing a large board presence, great, you’re about to win! Otherwise, if you’re playing control with a lack of resources, you’re fighting against the tide; you’re going to lose. If you’re getting into counter wars, you’re not doing well. Decks with more answers than you have protection are going to be an issue, especially if those answers are uncounterable or plenty of spot removal.
Dedicated hate cards: The three big ones are Linvala, Keeper of Silence, Cursed Totem, and Torpor Orb, or their counterparts, such as Hushwing Gryff. Aven Mindcensor and Stranglehold turn off most of the deck too. Humility is also a headache and a half. If you can’t activate your creature’s abilities to make infinite mana, you can’t win. Period. At this point my recommendation is to rely on the card filtering to hope you draw the Cyclonic Rift or removal you need to clear the problem cards. Prevent these from resolving AT ALL COSTS. Surprisingly, I would also watch out for Phenax, God of Deception. While it's definitely not a competitive commander, keep in mind that they can mill at instant speed. If you have G and U Momir Vig triggers, they can let the G resolve (search for a creature and put it on top) and then while the blue one is on the stack, tap a creature to mill your tutor into the graveyard.
Slower deck: This deck is definitely not as fast as it used to be. Prophet of Kruphix ban significantly hurt this deck, moreso than other decks who used her. What the deck lacks in speed it makes up in resiliency, but sometimes people are just going to be faster than you, and there’s nothing you can do about it. It comes with the territory of playing a Tier 2 competitive commander.
Budget Options:
After reading this primer, your reaction may be "Oh wow, this is an awesome deck! I really want to build this! ...But I don't have the money to buy all those awesome expensive cards." This deck contains a large quantity of expensive cards. Below I have listed every card that is near $20 or more at time of writing, and talk about its importance/necessity in the deck, and talk about potential replacements! Please keep in mind that with every budget version you go with, you are decreasing the consistency and speed of the deck.
Gaea's Cradle: This is the most important card to splurge on, bar none. It makes the deck very fast, and is very easily abusable. The only card that could replace it is Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, and that card is already in the deck. This should be the first big-ticket item you buy when you get the chance. If you absolutely cannot afford it, I would first ask my playgroup to let me proxy it. Past that, there really aren't any viable replacements.
Tropical Island: I would rate this card at pretty high importance. Being able to grab a blue source with a Wooded Foothills, or a Skyshroud Claim, is crucial. If Wizards had decided to print more enemy-colored lands with basic subtypes, then I would recommend playing one of those instead. As it stands, a Tropical Island should be "up there" with cards worthy of splurging on. But then again, so are all ABUR duals. If you can't afford one, I would recommend playing a basic Island, Yavimaya Coast, or Botanical Sanctum.
Gilded Drake: This card is not very important for the main purpose of the deck. If you can't afford it, you can run a UG creature in its place to trigger Momir Vig, but I would still try to run something to steal high-value cards from opponents. You never know when you need to steal a Turn 2 Hermit Druid from someone.
Painter's Servant: This is a fairly important card to run. I would try to acquire it when possible, though it's not absolutely essential to play the deck. There are not many replacements for this card.
Thrasios, Triton Hero: While not an essential card, it is the best way to generate card advantage and to draw your deck. I would try to get this card when possible. River Hoopoe is an acceptable, albeit much slower replacement if need be.
Mana Crypt/Mox Diamond: In a competitive environment, it is important to be as fast as possible. Fast mana rocks such as these allow you to do just that. Not running them severely impairs your ability to keep up the pace with faster decks. If you have to pick one, go with the Mana Crypt. If you can't afford either, I would recommend playing Nature's Lore or Birds of Paradise instead. Voyaging Satyr works as well, but remember that your wincon in the deck is to untap lands, so you need lots of them on the field!
Mana Drain: Another fantastic card, but one that is not super important to have. You can cut this for Arcane Denial, Disallow, Dissipate, or any other counter you feel you can reasonably run instead.
Force of Will/Pact of Negation/Force of Negation/Flusterstorm/Mana Drain: These counterspells are very important tools to keep your combo safe when you are trying to win the game. If you can only get one, get the Force of Will. If you can't get any, I would recommend running low CMC counterspells instead like Delay, Arcane Denial, and Counterspell.
Survival of the Fittest: This is probably the best tutor for creatures in the game. While it is not a core component of the deck, it is a very powerful card, and if you can get it, I would try to. In dire situations, you can replace it with Fauna Shaman, but the creature version is a lot more fragile, and much slower.
Earthcraft: This is a very important card to have. In this deck, when you swarm the field with creatures, you want to be able to put them to good use in generating high levels of mana. This card allows you to do that. I would not cut this card unless you absolutely had to. Citanul Hierophants or Cryptolith Rite are worse versions of this card if you really can't afford it.
Aluren: While this deck does not need Aluren, having the card can make it bonkers. If you can get it, I would recommend picking a copy up. But it is of a lower priority. Of the three aforementioned reserved list enchantments (Aluren/Earthcraft/Survival) I would personally say that their order of importance should be 1. Earthcraft 2. Survival 3. Aluren.
Sylvan Library: A very useful piece of card advantage, I would prioritize this card fairly early. Mirri's Guile, while still expensive, may be an acceptable replacement.
Timetwister: It is the most expensive card in the deck, bar none. You are not at fault whatsoever if you can't afford to splurge on a piece of Power. If you still want the effect, I would try running Time Spiral or Echo of Eons.
Time Spiral offers a different kind of flexibility to Timetwister, in that it untaps 6 of your lands and refills your hand. This allows you to make full use of the turn, essentially giving yourself what amounts to an extra turn. However Echo of Eons adds a whole new dimension to this debate. I would recommend playtesting between Time Spiral and Echo of Eons.
One caution with this card is that it does in fact cost double the amount of mana needed for Timetwister. In tight situations, you may need to cast Twister with less mana open, and Time Spiral doesn't allow you to do that.
Echo of Eons is one of the dicier cards because of its high upfront cost, without the benefit of untapping lands. However, one crucial aspect of this card is its Flashback ability. If you attempt to win with a Hermit Oracle combo (along with Memory's Journey to put cards back into your library), in a worst case scenario, your combo is disrupted before you can draw the Thassa's Oracle to win. In this case, being able to Flashback Echo of Eons can save you the game. This is one data point to consider when examining cards other than Timetwister to fill this role.
Cavern of Souls: If your meta does not run many blue decks with counterspells, this card becomes less important. I would rate it at moderate importance. Your deck won't suffer too much without it, but I would recommend getting one at your nearest convenience.
Fetchlands of all kinds: Fetchlands make this deck sing. This deck shuffles itself a lot, and as such can support a lot of very good card selection tools that make use of shuffling decks. I would prioritize fetchlands pretty highly. If you can't get them all, then at least get the KTK fetches, because they are cheaper. For the rest, I would run basics, even split of Forests and Islands (so if you're missing a Verdant Catacombs, run a Forest. If a Scalding Tarn, run an Island).
NOTE: This advice on running basics does NOT apply if you are running the Hermit Oracle combo, as you can ONLY run nonbasics. With this in mind, I would play any and all nonbasic lands you can that either provide mana fixing, or come in untapped. The faster your mana, the faster your deck operates, the better off you are.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Thank you for looking at my primer!
Changelog: See what cards replaced others!
If you want to see another source to discover the deck, please check out my Tappedout page!
Date: 03/16/20
Removed: Gemstone Caverns, Mental Misstep
Added: Minamo, School at Water's Edge, Memory's Journey
Notes: So this change is pretty much my fault for not reading cards properly. I have been under the impression for years now that Minamo only untapped creatures. Boy was I wrong! I am slotting it in as an untapped blue source, as well as a second Deserted Temple - and sometimes I can untap Prime Speaker Vannifar too! Gemstone Caverns removed because while the early ramp is useful, it is too volatile, and colored sources are incredibly important in this deck. Drawing this card later than the opening hand makes it nearly useless.
Memory's Journey is an important add that enables my combo to be achieved without requiring me to have Thassa's Oracle in my hand at the time. When I activate Hermit Druid to dump my library into the yard, I can Flashback this card to put Oracle back on top of my library during my upkeep, and draw it for the turn, assuring me a win with an empty library.
Overall the changes have brought a measure of speed at the expense of stability. These changes are *not* permanent, either because I may prefer to revert to a more solid gameplan, or I expect Oracle to be hit with a possible ban.
Dryad of the Ilysian Grove is a little too cute for how fast this deck is trying to be. High Tide out with it for Mental Misstep, and lack of Islands.
Earthcraft out for lack of basics, will slot back in if the deck reverts to old form.
Notes: Major changes with Theros Beyond Death. Nylea strict upgrade to Duskwatch Recruiter. Dryad of the Ilysian Grove and High Tide pair very well together, both added. Uro promises to be better card advantage/ramp mix than Maraleaf alone. Frilled Mystic too cumbersome to cast with regularity, despite being a creature counter. Force of Vigor replaced with Oko for removing troublesome artifacts and creatures, currently testing.
Notes: Shared Summons at instant speed is far more effective to grab both pieces of the wincon than Uncage at sorcery speed, which is also restricted to CMC. Maraleaf Pixie serves as a UG creature that also ramps. Misstep replaced High Tide as a test of the card's effectiveness in non-blue metas.
Notes: The Servant is set free! This is a powerful combo enabler in Momir Vig that is sure to make the deck run much faster. I have temporarily taken out Seeborn Muse, though I may revisit this decision in the future. Seeborn and Azami are two extremely powerful cards that I have taken out and put back in repeatedly, so this may yet change. However, Seeborn was cut because this deck no longer relies on doing things on other people's turns as much as it did back in the Prophet of Kruphix days of old.
Date: 02/26/19 Removed: Training Grounds, Birthing Pod, Counterspell
Added: Biomancer's Familiar, Prime Speaker Vannifar, Frilled Mystic
Notes: First update of 2019, and lots of strict upgrades here! Biomancer's Familiar and Prime Speaker Vannifar are both better versions of their noncreature variants, Training Grounds and Birthing Pod, mostly because they are both creatures, and help Momir Vig's game plan all the more. Plus, they are both UG, which makes it even better.
Counterspell and Frilled Mystic is a tough choice at best. Naturally, Counterspell is better because it costs half the CMC of Frilled Mystic, and Mystic is just a harder to cast Mystic Snake. That said, I felt it was necessary to try the Mystic as yet another UG creature, and another counterspell that you can tutor for. Additionally, I am not entirely pleased with Counterspell itself, because while it is the gold standard for counters, it simply does not do enough on its own. I consider this to be one of the few flex spots in the deck, and may switch the two cards again.
Pir's Whim proved to be too slow at four mana. Bringing the land in tapped is a real drawback. I have been tempted to try Tempt with Discovery, as it brings the lands in untapped, but that is very risky, and no maindeck Ramunap Excavator increases that risk tremendously.
Chrome Mox was routinely difficult to cast and to take advantage from. I would almost always prefer the card I'd imprint over the Mox. It remains in the list of flex cards, though has been replaced with Noxious Revival for more recursion. Revival offers a very fast and cheap way to bring back lost cards. It also interferes with reanimation-based game plans, and can even stop a Laboratory Maniac from winning.
Beast Whisperer beats out Azami on mana cost and color concentration, and offers a potentially much more powerful way of drawing cards. I'd consider playing both if I felt I really needed the draw.
Flusterstorm is an incredibly powerful counter I should have been running a long time ago. Snapcaster Mage was cut because the lack of Azami and made him less useful, and it is very rare for me to be flashing cards back. He largely became useless.
Harrow was cut for Wild Growth to enable faster combos. Harrow also opened the deck up to getting seriously set back. Countering a ramp spell is one thing. Countering a ramp spell that had us sac a land is really strong.
Trophy Mage was put in to tutor for Cloudstone Curio and Shardless Agent. Curio is an incredibly powerful card that enables very fast combos. It is worth having a dedicated tutor for, especially one that is a creature. Mage had previous synergies with Azami, though that is no longer relevant.
Ponder is a perfectly fine card, but has been temporarily cut for Runic Armasaur for testing purposes. Armasaur is a green creature card, and more creatures is always better in this deck.
Familiar's Ruse was too limited of a card to be of much use. Hour of Promise was too expensive for the deck. Anything that is CMC 5 must be highly compelling to keep. Glen Elendra Archmage was effectively CMC 5 to make use of its ability, and it did not provide enough payoff to maintain a spot in the deck.
JVP likewise, while useful early on, often found himself flipping into a nearly useless planeswalker. I prefer to keep the loot function over the Walker function. Nissa, Vastwood Seer was often too slow and limited in her utility to be very useful.
While I personally would like to keep Carpet of Flowers and Autumn's Veil, both cards were not useful in my meta. Until there is a resurgence of blue decks, these cards are not quite as useful. Ramunap Excavator earned a cut for testing with mana dorks, but I am quite fond of the Excavator despite.
Bramble Sovereign offers an additional out for making infinite mana to Temur Sabertooth. Spellseeker is an instant/sorcery tutor on a creature, which makes it very versatile. Utopia Sprawl is an excellent bit of ramp and fixing that helps me go infinite more quickly.
Date: 10/02/17
Removed: Nissa, Steward of Elements
Added: Growing Rites of Itlimoc
Notes: Growing Rites of Itlimoc is an extraordinarily powerful card to have out when it flips. It is a second Gaea's Cradle, effectively a third or fourth one really (when counting lands such as Deserted Temple and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Hitting four creatures in this deck is relatively easy, and can be done on-curve with casting Growing Rites on turn 3.
The card to cut was a very difficult choice. As a rule of thumb, I do not cut creatures for noncreature spells. I had done that multiple times in the past, and as a result the deck has ended up containing more noncreatures than creatures. While this is not currently an issue, it's not an imbalance I wish to exacerbate further. If I am going to add a noncreature spell, a noncreature spell has to go. To that end, I cut Nissa, Steward of Elements. Like the Nissa, Vital Force she replaced, she was a very good card, but just not quite what I was looking for in this deck. Being a planeswalker leaves her inevitably very vulnerable to attacking, and this is a deck that rarely, if ever blocks at the cost of losing my creatures. As such she often became a 1GU: Scry 2 card, which often is not playable enough. Additionally, Nissa and Growing Rites do somewhat of the same thing: They try to get creatures and mana (through lands/ramp) from my deck and give them to me, either into the hand or onto the field, as card advantage. Ultimately, she was the safest cut to make. Though if the deck was less competitive, I would recommend playing both her and Nissa, Vital Force, as they are superb cards.
Date: 08/29/17
Removed: Commit / Memory, Scroll Rack, Forest
Added: Autumn's Veil, Uncage the Menagerie (testing), Path of Ancestry (testing)
Notes: Commit to Memory was a card that I have not yet had the pleasure of testing with all that much in this deck. However, I am taking it out because after having played with it in other decks, I can tell how unwieldly it can be. Holding up four mana for a counter is never ideal. This is the same reason why I am not placing Cryptic Command back in the deck (the card it had replaced). I am instead putting in Autumn's Veil. It has the dual effect of both protecting my creatures, and keeping my spells uncounterable for a turn. When I'm trying to combo off, this can be absolutely essential. It can even effectively be used as a counterspell itself (countering other counters and targeted removal, which are really the two most important kinds of spells used against this deck). At just G it's a very powerful effect.
Scroll Rack is coming out of the deck honestly for lack of a better card to remove. There are a number of potential candidates to take out as well, but Scroll Rack on its own can be somewhat clunky. This isn't a permanent replacement, and I may later decide to cut something else. Uncage the Menagerie promises to be a very powerful tutor spell, getting me 2 creatures for 2GG, and 3 for 3GG. I believe that's something worth testing with, and look forward to playing with it here.
Finally, I am breaking basic land parity after years of keeping them at 7-7. I am removing one Forest to test with Path of Ancestry. I believe this card has potential merit, despite its drawback. While not for every deck, I believe it can certainly find a home here, so I will be testing with it.
Date: 07/03/17
Removed: Skyshroud Claim, Crucible of Worlds, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Wood Sage (out of sideboard)
Added: Hour of Promise, Ramunap Excavator, Mystic Remora, River Hoopoe (into sideboard)
Notes: These are my HOUR OF DEVASTATION changes! I have made a few changes, and will continue to make changes as need be. First off, I have added Hour of Promise in lieu of Skyshroud Claim. Both cards serve similar purposes for similar mana costs: To ramp me up. While Skyshroud does cost 1 less and brings the lands in untapped, it is limited to fetching only Forests. Hour of Promise allows me to get any two lands I wish. This has proved to be very powerful in testing. My most common targets are Gaea's Cradle and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Often I am also persuaded to get cards like Deserted Temple, or Alchemist's Refuge or Winding Canyons. Whatever the case, after casting this card, victory is close at hand. The lands I am able to get are so powerful, that it becomes very easy to win within a turn - or if I have a Cloud of Faeries available to untap the lands, I can win right there and then in most situations. While paying 4G is a lot, I believe it is justified in this case for this deck.
I have removed Crucible of Worlds for a strict upgrade to Ramunap Excavator. In this deck, creatures matter. They are tutorable, they add devotion, they tap for mana with Earthcraft, and they add to Gaea's Cradle. There was no debate - this is a very good improvement in the overall consistency of the deck.
Finally, today I have to say goodbye to one of my favorite planeswalkers (of which I have an absolutely amazing alter, which makes this all the more difficult to do). JTMS is finally coming out of the deck for now, after having been in here since nearly the beginning. In competitive matchups, Jace is just a little too slow to be effective. Almost universally, Jace acts as a 4 mana Brainstorm, and a diversion for one turn. This ends up hardly being worth the slot. I have opted to test with Mystic Remora instead. While I have been previously skeptical of the card (largely due to the upkeep cost), I believe this card is able to provide a large amount of advantage with relatively little input. 4 is a very heavy tax, and with the high quantity of noncreature spells in EDH, this card will certainly work wonders in the long run.
I am currently considering other cards for the main deck. Autumn's Veil, Uncage the Menagerie, and Prowling Serpopard from the sideboard. I will keep this post updated if I end up making any permanent cuts one way or another.
Finally, as for sideboard notes, Wood Sage has come out for River Hoopoe. Wood Sage was always an abysmal card, and I kept it in the sideboard just to have access to a UG creature in case I needed to trigger Momir Vig like that for some reason. River Hoopoe allows me to trigger Momir Vig for the same mana cost (just GU) while providing a much more useful ability: It is an infinite mana sink. Granted, it's much worse than either Thrasios, Triton Hero or Duskwatch Recruiter, but there is a reason why it isn't in the mainboard.
Date: 06/09/17
Removed: Oracle of Mul Daya, Strip Mine
Added: Carpet of Flowers, Deserted Temple
Notes: Oracle of Mul Daya has consistently been an okay card for me. It has only ever served as a tutor target when I have nothing else to be doing at the time, or want to use it as sacrifice fodder through Birthing Pod. At CMC 4, plus the cost of revealing information to my opponents, I do not believe that I get enough utility out of it to warrant its current spot in the deck.
Carpet of Flowers was a card recommended to me by several cEDH players. I have been doubtful about its utility in the past, but I will give it a try. I am not glad about replacing a creature with a noncreature spell, even if it represents a decrease in curve (from CMC 4 to CMC 1). If I am not happy with the card, or feel that I need to go back up on creature count, I will be replacing it.
I am testing Deserted Temple as another high-value land that can enable great acceleration with Cradle/Nykthos on the field. I cut Strip Mine temporarily while I look for another suitable land to replace it with. I am not sold on unbalancing my basic split (which is currently 7/7) nor am I in favor of adding another colorless source for a colored one. Strip Mine is undoubtedly a fantastic card, but I am not sure about its necessary utility unless I'm playing against a Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale or something similarly obnoxious. If I feel I am dealing with too many other value lands (such as an opponent's Gaea's Cradle/Serra's Sanctum/Cabal Coffers) then I'll put it back in, but for now I think I can do without.
Date: 04/19/17 - Amonkhet changes
Removed: Azusa, Lost but Seeking, Nissa, Vital Force, Cryptic Command
Added: Vizier of the Menagerie, Nissa, Steward of Elements, Prowling Serpopard (to SB), Commit / Memory (testing)
Notes: I'm going to talk about the Nissas first, since I have a lot to say about the Vizier. Nissa, Vital Force has always been a fantastic card for me. She protects herself (and you) by making a 5/5, she's a Nature's Spiral when you need it, and she ults just the turn after coming down. You can't lose the game after getting "Landfall: Draw a card" as an emblem unless you're actively trying to do so. Five mana was always difficult to stomach for all of that though. She is definitely designed for a slower deck, though definitely useful. I'm quite sorry to see her go, and will try to find room for her again if the new Nissa proves unworthy, or if there's another card I can cut.
Nissa, Steward of Elements is an interesting card. Most people would say that her flexibility affords her to be good both early and late in the game. I believe that varies a little. With the extra topdeck manipulation I've put into the deck lately (Ponder and Brainstorm, which now adds onto Sensei's Divining Top, Sylvan Library, Scroll Rack, and incidentally Oracle of Mul Daya/Vizier, and of course Momir Vig), I will be able to make better use of her. The most valuable loyalty you can have her at is probably 3, or 5 as a catch-all. 3 hits the majority of cards in the deck (lands, and creatures at CMC <4). A turn 3 Nissa should usually +2 to set up the draws for the next turn, and allow you to flip into lands you need to ramp up faster. For now, I will continue to test her, but she seems to be quite useful.
Notes on Vizier of the Menagerie. This card is almost certainly one of the best cards printed for Momir Vig probably since Prophet of Kruphix (RIP). I was upbeat on Rashmi when she came out, and she ultimately proved to be subpar, but this card is the real deal. Vizier allows you to use green creatures effectively as UG creatures when Vig is on the field. To give an example, normally after casting Vig, I would like to get and cast Prophet when she was still legal. In order to set up the Prophet effect now, I have to get Seedborn Muse and then Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. Seedborn only puts Teferi on top of my library, and when I untap, I don't have access to him, and end up wasting a whole turn cycle with Seedborn just sitting there, because I can't flash things in. Vizier gets around that problem for me.
One of the most deadly combos in the deck is Vizier and Aluren. If I have a Gaea's Cradle or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx on the field (or Crop Rotation/Tolaria West in hand to get them) and I've just successfully resolved Vizier and Aluren with Vig on the field, I will win this turn. Otherwise, I can just flood the board immediately with just about any creature I want, or all of my creatures if I want.
Vizier's last ability can also prove incidentally useful. Often, early on in the game I've had access to 3 blue sources, but a Mystic Snake and a counterspell up. Wanting to be able to use both counters, Vizier lets me cast Mystic Snake without having to worry about the UU cost. More importantly, I can make infinite mana with Palinchron/Phantasmal Image without having to worry about hitting 4x U or more. While this ability isn't always relevant, being able to cast a Palinchron you just tutored for with just a Cradle activation has its uses. This card has earned a permanent spot in the deck, unless they (somehow) manage to print something objectively better.
Azusa, Lost but Seeking was cut because she was always an iffy card. Very good in the early game, or when I was lucky enough to have her + Crucible of Worlds + fetchland, she would be an otherwise dead draw late game, 9/10 times just being read as "2G: Activiate Momir Vig's green trigger." When you get her early, and you draw the nearly perfect 7, she can enable a lot of blazingly fast kills. But I'm not sure that is worth keeping her around for.
Prowling Seropopard has earned a spot in the sideboard. I don't always want uncounterable creature spells (if I'm playing against non-blue decks) but if I do, I can go get it with Living Wish. It will probably go into the deck if the players don't want me playing with a sideboard (and I have to take Living Wish out).
And finally, I am testing Commit // Memory over Cryptic Command. The goal of using counterspells in this deck is to protect my combo, or to ensure others can't combo of so that I can. To that end, as long as I can get rid of their threat for a little bit, I can take the time to set up to win the game. Cryptic gives me an opportunity to counter + cantrip most of the time. This spell does essentially the same thing (minus the cantrip) but also allows me to bounce nonland permanents and tuck them. Cryptic doesn't let me do that. I also save on colors, as this requires only 3U to cast, whereas Cryptic costs 1UUU.
Notice that I have yet to mention the Aftermath part of this card. It's important to evaluate the first half of the card alone, and compare it to Cryptic. If the card ONLY had "Commit" on it, then I wouldn't play it over Cryptic. However, it also offers the incidental chance to get a Timetwister effect if you need it. So I will be testing this card to see where it takes me. I may be very unimpressed, but I may also be very impressed.
Date: 04/16/17
Removed: Traverse the Ulvenwald, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter, Command Beacon (to SB)
Added: Ponder, Venser, Shaper Savant (from the SB), Brainstorm
Notes: Traverse has always been a so-so card for me. Sometimes it's really great, I hit Delirium very easily, and I can go get my Cradle/Nykthos/Palinchron/you name it without much effort. Most of the time though, it's a very slow card, and basically just a Lay of the Land (fetch a basic). My GY doesn't get too full, and when it does get full enough, it's usually Land + Creature + Instant, and remains stuck at that point until I get an artifact or enchantment killed, or a non-flip Walker dead, or cast one of my very few sorceries. Basically, not enough opportunities present themselves to hit Delirium in this deck, and so Traverse is only situationally good. When it's good, it's REALLY good, but when it's not good, it's pretty bad. So I've decided to cut it for a card that increases my consistency.
I've always been skeptical of 1-mana cantrips in EDH, but I've been skeptical of many things in the past that have turned out to be fantastic (Birthing Pod for example). I used to have Brainstorm in the deck, and I am considering putting it back in soon. For now, a Ponder will get the job done for me. Should increase my consistency enough and turn on some mono G creature tutors when Vig is on the field. Topdeck manipulation is a great asset in this deck, and anything I can do to better aid that goal is a plus in my book.
Also I realized I can't realistically keep part of my win condition in the sideboard (Venser), and so I've cut Rashmi, a cute but sadly under-performing card. I like it a lot, but it always became a question of "Can I do something better instead of tutoring for/drawing this card?" The answer was almost always yes.
Finally, I'm testing going to 33 lands and adding a Brainstorm. This may increase, or this may significantly decrease my consistency. Only time will tell. Moved Command Beacon to the Board because it's only situationally useful, and more often than not I'd prefer a colored source.
NOTE: I HAVE PLENTY OF NEW CARDS TO TEST FROM AMONKHET, SO EXPECT MORE UPDATES SOON!
Date: 03/25/17
Removed: Arcane Denial
Added: Familiar's Ruse
Notes: Arcane Denial is one of the most notorious and hotly-debated counterspells in cEDH. At 1U, a hard counter is difficult to argue with, but the fact that it gives your opponent two cards at times may be very troublesome. Its own replacement is delayed by a turn, which may at times be disadvantageous to you.
As a creature-based deck, I highly value being able to cast my creatures again and again. As such, I've decided to test Familiar's Ruse instead of Arcane Denial, since bouncing a creature back to my hand can often be very useful. Obviously the counter is harder to cast at UU, and is conditioned upon having a creature you can actually bounce, which may end up making things worse for me. I will test thoroughly, and if I'm dissatisfied, I will slot Arcane Denial back in.
Date: 02/28/17
Moved to Sideboard: Venser, Shaper Savant
Added: Living Wish
Notes: I have decided to run Living Wish in the deck. This is a meta call, and some groups won't allow me to play with a 10-card sideboard. However, in those that do, I believe it may be beneficial to have access to a slew of other cards that are useful in the deck that I don't necessarily need in the deck itself. Quick rundown through the current sideboard:
Venser, Shaper Savant: Wins me the game by bouncing everyone's permanents. Probably the least important piece of the infinite mana sink, so I can afford to move him elsewhere (since the same effect can be achieved through Cyclonic Rift). Tajuru Preserver: Something to get whenever I'm playing against a Thrax deck or other decks that like Grave Pact and such. There are a number of decks in my meta that like those. Living Death is a very popular card too. Consecrated Sphinx: One of those cards to get when I may simply need to turn my Living Wish into something, anything useful. Deadeye Navigator: Redundancy. If someone exiles my Temur Sabertooth, I can go and get this guy. Riftsweeper: Gets my important things out of exile. If I already have infinite mana and need to recycle my Living Wish, it also gets the Wish back, letting me use it multiple times. Homeward Path: Gilded Drake and Treachery make a number of appearances in metas I have played in, as well as other means of stealing people's creatures. I would sometimes like my stuff back. Vesuva: When I need that extra mana and have drawn Living Wish early, lets me copy value lands such as Nykthos or Cradle. EDIT: Realized that the legend rule would prevent this. It's not great. Walking Ballista: This one is in consideration, but it's an infinite mana outlet to win the game with on the spot. Probably used as a backup wincon in case I don't have time/access to Shaman of Forgotten Ways for any reason.
Date: 02/13/17
Removed: Clever Impersonator, Voidslime
Added: Training Grounds, High Tide
Notes: I always love reducing the curve of my deck, especially when I get to do so by playing excellent cards. Streamlines the deck and makes it faster. And the two cards I've added make that doubly true! High Tide allows me to go infinite with just 3 islands and another land when I've got Palinchron + Image. I do need another blue source to cast the High Tide in the first place, so that usually means having a Mox or a Fifth land, but that's still turns earlier than hitting 7 lands hard. It also helps me accelerate when I want to do multiple things in a turn.
Training Grounds came as a spark of ingenuity to me. I was watching a Youtube video where a Tasigur player was able to recur his Palinchron + Image combo for just 1UUU. It then occurred to me that all of my wincons in the deck rely on activated abilities of creatures. Pro: It means I can play Training Grounds very beneficially! Cons: Watch out for Linvala, Keeper of Silence and Suppression Field. Also goes great with my Duskwatch Recruiter (activates for just G!) and Thrasios, Triton Hero (Activates for just 2!). As always, additions are subject to testing, but I'm pretty confident I'll be happy with these.
As for cuts, those were even tougher than last time. I agonized for a while over what I should cut, as I am currently pretty satisfied with just about every card in the deck. I ultimately came to realize that Clever Impersonator is only a target for tutor if and when I'm trying to copy an Ugin or Karn to get back from wayyy behind. I've never needed him otherwise. This brings my saga of running multiple clone effects from 4 way back when (Progenitor Mimic, Clever Impersonator, Phyrexian Metamorph, Phantasmal Image) to just one, the Image itself, which will never be cut from the deck unless they somehow print a strictly better one.
I am extremely disappointed to see Voidslime go. Mostly because I have the sweet, sweet full art one. But it was either that or Cryptic Command (another full-art!) and Cryptic is quite a bit better than Voidslime. I may switch it back in later on, but for now it looks like I'll have one less full-art.
Date: 02/09/17
Removed: Consecrated Sphinx
Added: Swan Song
Notes: This was one of the most difficult cuts I've had to make in a long time. There were a few cards on the chopping block up for consideration. Voidslime and Cryptic Command in terms of counters, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter and Con Sphinx for non-counters, among others. I am truly not sure about this cut, and I may revisit it in favor of another card. Swan Song I think is a great addition to the deck, and I am glad to have decided to play it. The only question here was with regard to what card it was to replace.
I settled on Con Sphinx because it is ultimately a win-more card. Once I have established a board position, the additional card advantage is almost never necessary for me to win. I can draw more than enough cards with Azami, Lady of Scrolls and all my wizards. Plus, with Seedborn Muse, I draw on everyone's turns. Con Sphinx only ever served 4 primary purposes in the deck:
To serve as removal fodder (let them counter my Sphinx instead of my wincon).
To serve as a means to refill my hand from behind.
To Pod into Palinchron
To pitch to FoW (as far as ranking important blue cards to exile, Con Sphinx is often the least important blue card in any given hand of mine).
Points 3 and 4 are very narrow cases. Point 1 only applies if I have enough resources to cast a Sphinx and still be able to follow up with my win plan. The biggest point of contention was point 2. However, as I have been advised in the past, if I'm really looking for a 6-drop to help me from behind, I should look to Time Spiral instead. That even refills my hand immediately, as opposed to having survive an entire turn cycle, and untaps my lands, unlike a Sphinx (even though I can tutor for Sphinx but not the Spiral). Tradeoffs in both directions.
I'm not saying this was the correct cut, I'm just trying to outline my line of thinking. I may revisit this in the future. If I decide I do need something to help me get back from behind, I may go for the Time Spiral instead of the Sphinx again. Feedback and opinions are always appreciated.
Date: 02/05/2017
Removed: Edric, Spymaster of Trest
Added: Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
Notes: I have been considering JVP for the longest time. It is an early loot effect, and a wizard to boot. I feel that his usefulness in the deck is worth testing out. I have previously been skeptical of some additions, and later found them to be much-needed staples (Phantasmal Image anyone?). To that end, he is going to be tested with for the time being.
The cuts in the deck were between Edric, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter, and Consecrated Sphinx. I'm not 100% sure I made the right decision in cutting Edric, as all three cards have their downsides. I may even cut a noncreature spell instead. Everything merits testing. Edric I have never really needed on the field, he's always just "been there" to no apparent use. I never go to tutor for him, and providing card advantage to opponents is iffy at best. He existed in the deck to try and deter people from attacking me. Everyone already knows that I'm the first to kill when playing against this deck.
Other notes: Considering cutting Voidslime for Swan Song. Need to re-acquire Meekstone for the deck SB, I feel it may be very good in certain matchups (was put down to 8 life today, held there for several turns before I was able to combo off and win!) Ensuring my ability to protect myself from attacks is vital.
Date: 01/29/17
Removed: Rishkar, Peema Renegade, Lightning Greaves
Added: Aluren, Cloud of Faeries
Notes: I've decided to add an Aluren package to the deck. Normally you pair it with something like Cloudstone Curio to immediately make infinite mana with the Cloud of Faeries + any other creature with CMC <4, but Curio is a bit too bulky to run in the deck. Likewise, having to rely on two noncreatures to get going (Aluren and Curio) significantly reduces the odds of me being able to play the combo consistently, since I have no way of tutoring for these cards. Rather than rely on a Curio, I prefer to rely on one of my two critical lands: Cradle and Nykthos. Given the right setup, I can go infinite with these lands even without Aluren. With Cradle tapping for 4, all I need is Temur Sabertooth, the Cloud of Faeries, and a single Island, and I can make infinite mana of both colors. With Nykthos, I can make infinite as long as I have 6 green or blue devotion. With Aluren, costs become reduced even further, allowing me to go infinite with just Aluren + Cloud + Sabertooth + Nykthos.
This is all going to be tested with, but even alone, I think that the Cloud of Faeries and the Aluren are two very powerful combo pieces that definitely warrant trying out.
I cut Rishkar because I haven't been satisfied with him. He either comes down too early or too late, rarely on time. Lightning Greaves only ever existed to A. Provide protection to key creatures (Momir Vig, Seedborn Muse, Azami) or B. To allow me to cast and activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways immediately. (A) is covered by Kira, Great Glass-Spinner and Sylvan Safekeeper. (B) is covered by the fact that, if I'm in the position to win with Shaman, I have already bounced everyone's fields of permanents at instant speed by recurring Venser, Shaper Savant. If I can do that at instant speed already, I can just let another turn cycle go by before activating Shaman, rendering the Greaves unnecessary.
EDIT 2/2/17: After some testing, I just figured out that with the new additions, I can achieve a turn-2 kill in the deck. It requires a nearly perfect hand, with some flexibility, but this wasn't previously possible in the deck. So far, I am very much liking the changes I've made to the deck.
Date: 01/23/17
Removed: Riftsweeper
Added: Rishkar, Peema Renegade
Notes: I have a bunch of value creatures that don't do anything themselves once they're sitting on the field. Coiling Oracle, Shardless Agent, and Reclamation Sage are just a few examples. I am trying to put them to use with Rishkar, and see if I can turn a turn 3 play into +2 mana. Currently testing.
Date: 01/08/17
Removed: Krosan Grip
Added: Riftsweeper
Notes: For the time being, have put Riftsweeper in to ensure that my Palinchron can never be permanently dealt with. May change in the future.
Date: 12/13/2016
Added: Cavern of Souls
Removed: Ancient Tomb
Notes: I deal with enough counter magic in my group that I'd like to be able to cast my commander (an elf-wizard) or my other wizards, shamans, elves, snakes, illusions, you name it, unmolested. While this isn't a tribal deck, a lot of the important pieces share creature types, so it's really something of a "name a type you need at that particular moment" thing. Plus, it's another valuable land that may eat my opponent's Strip Mine before I play the very important lands (Cradle/Nykthos/Alchemist's Refuge/Winding Canyons).
I dislike disrupting the balance of Forests and Islands I currently have in the deck, so I went with cutting Ancient Tomb. Not sold on the idea though, if I find that my game plan really calls for the +2 colorless on turn 2, then I'll take a Forest out instead. For now though, I'll take it as it is. But hey, this is a deck that I've considered cutting Command Tower in, if they print a good enough dual to replace it with (such as enemy colored Battle lands), so really anything is possible.
A small note on my methodology when it comes to lands: One of the reasons this deck is reliably faster than most others I play with is because I have a strict requirement that all my lands can come in untapped. The only exception I run is Tolaria West, because being able to tutor for important lands or Pact of Negation is too sweet not to run (also I don't count Hinterland Harbor, that's practically a guarantee to come in untapped with 14 basics and 2 duals in the deck). I don't really have this as a hard rule for most of my other decks, but when it comes to Vig, if my lands aren't able to be tapped the turn I play them, then I'm not accelerating my game plan quickly enough.
Date: 11/01/16
Removed: Meekstone
Added: Thrasios, Triton Hero
Notes: One of the recurring issues in the deck without Prophet is that sequencing the order in which I play my primary wincon setup cards can be difficult. After playing Momir Vig, between Seedborn, Teferi, and Azami, which do I want to play first? Teferi gives me some protection, but doesn't really do anything by himself. Azami and Vig each let me draw one card between this turn and next, but is that enough value? And Seedborn sets up for me to draw my next card with a Vig green trigger, but on its own, it really doesn't do much.
Enter Thrasios, Triton Hero. Like Duskwatch Recruiter, Thrasios lets me sink unused mana in a productive way. Except this guy can also ramp me and help me get ahead on future turns. His activation cost is steep, but he's really there to be a cheap Vig activation, an infinite mana sink, or something to curve into Seedborn With.
I cut Meekstone because it didn't quite seem to do all that much in recent games. That isn't to say it isn't a useful card; it has stopped me and my opponents dead in our tracks when others play the card. But I tend to combo out quickly enough that a few creatures attacking me doesn't make a large difference. It's a plenty good card, and if I feel I'm being pressured again, I'll put it back in, but for now I don't think I need it.
Date: 10/03/16
Removed: Brainstorm
Added: Sensei's Divining Top
Notes: Took Brainstorm out in favor of Top, keeping in Scroll Rack. The Rack is definitely high performance, and I highly recommend it.
Date: 09/20/16
Removed: Sensei's Divining Top
Added: Scroll Rack
Notes: After reading through a r/cEDH thread on the two cards, I'm convinced that Scroll Rack deserves testing over Top. I had originally avoided using the Rack due to some of its limitations: can only use it once per turn, costs 3 to cast and activate as opposed to 2, and much easier to remove. But realizing that this is a deck that shuffles itself constantly (I almost spend more time shuffling than I do playing haha) Scroll Rack seems like a very solid card to play with. I wasn't sure whether to cut Top or Brainstorm, but went with Top for now. My cuts may change after testing.
Date: 09/14/16
Removed: Deadeye Navigator
Added: Temur Sabertooth
Notes: I've been looking to find a reason to cut DEN for a while now. As a card, it is a powerful combo enabler that allows you to go infinite with Palinchron, or really, any ETB creature. Overall though, at 6 Mana he's a rather bulky card that does nothing much on his own, and is an awkward draw before I'm ready to combo off. I'm testing with replacing him with Temur Sabertooth, as it is cheaper, is a green creature (triggers Vig in a more useful manner) and still does all of the same things that DEN does, albeit in a slightly more roundabout manner. Again, this is just testing, and if it becomes too cumbersome, I'll be sure to slot DEN back in.
Date: 09/02/16
Removed: Yisan, the Wanderer Bard, Vendilion Clique, Magus of the Future
Added: Rashmi, Eternities Crafter; Nissa, Vital Force; Duskwatch Recruiter
Notes: Kaladesh spoilers! This post will continue to be updated as different cards are released and evaulated.
Rashmi is absolutely amazing and an all-star. Nissa's ability is also very strong and deserves testing. Currently testing with both cuts, things may change in the future.
Duskwatch Recruiter has been a card that I've been angling to test ever since it came out! Pulled out Yisan for the moment being, but cutting cards at any time at this level is always difficult; all the cards in the deck are so good that it's tough to say what does and doesn't truly belong.
Date: 09/01/16
Removed: Yavimaya Coast
Added: Winding Canyons
Notes: One of the reasons this deck was so powerful during the time of Prophet of Kruphix is because of its unique ability to chain creatures together on others' turns. With Prophet and Vig on the field together, my go-to plan was usually to next fetch Azami, providing 3 cards for every player's turn and the ability to continue chaining creatures together (UG into UG without having to worry about running out of creatures.) Without Prophet, the job of untapping falls to Seedborn Muse. Having a second Alchemist's Refuge effect in the deck (or close to it, restricted to creatures only) on a land is very useful and greatly increases the chances of me encountering the effect in any given game.
Am currently testing with removing Yavimaya Coast; may come to remove Ancient Tomb instead in due course. Not many lands in this deck are easily substitutable, so being very selective about what you take out and put in is crucial.
Date: 07/31/16
Removed: Monastery Siege
Added: Eldritch Evolution
Notes: Despite it being a great card, one of the initial reasons I removed Rhystic Study from the deck a while ago was because it was too slow. Monastery Siege now goes for the same reasons. I rarely ever wanted to use the second ability, since people most often prefer to just wrath or cast Toxic Deluge, to which that particular ability is useless. So about 9/10 times it was a 2U enchantment that let me loot every turn. While this isn't so bad, it's not what this deck wants to do. This deck needs to be fast with the kill, because if you wait around too long, others will take you out or take the win. Monastery Siege doesn't help you do that, but Eldritch Evolution is an amazing tutor card, and will definitely serve to speed up the game significantly.
Date: 05/11/16
Removed: Kiora, Master of the Depths
Added: Timetwister
Notes: After much twisting, turning, and deliberation, I've decided to pick up my first ever piece of Power, exclusively for this deck. It will be a great joy to cast this in the deck, and I look forward to abusing its power quite often in my games of EDH. Kiora, while she was a great bit of card advantage, didn't do enough to justify her presence in the deck, particularly at such a high mana cost.
Date: 05/05/16
Removed: Riftsweeper, Prime Speaker Zegana
Added: Reclamation Sage, Vendilion Clique
Notes: Sage is too useful not to run. Riftsweeper highly situational, though my playgroup does play a lot of Planechase EDH, so I may keep it in just to deal with nonsense when we get on The Talon Gates (the plane that lets you suspend things from your hand for free).
Prime Speaker, a powerful card, was ultimately too slow and bulky. At 6 mana, I need more of an effect than drawing 3 cards (most of my creatures are power 2 or less). Replaced with Clique for testing, good for dealing with control matchups and other decks that might have answers, and sometimes good to get new cards for myself too.
Date: 04/28/16
Removed: Forgotten Creation, Reclamation Sage
Added: Skyshroud Claim, Nature's Claim
Notes: Creation not as useful as initially indicated. Yisan still being tested. Cut Sage down for Nature's Claim, the CMC 1 is far more useful. May cut something else to put Reclamation Sage back in, still testing.
Date: 04/13/16
Removed: Phyrexian Metamorph
Added: Yisan, the Wanderer Bard
Notes: Yisan shows a lot of promise, and while I originally discounted him, I think I'd find myself in situations where I cast him and then drop a Seedborn and go to town. I cut the Metamorph because honestly, I didn't really know what to cut, so I went for a redundant clone effect. This is all testing so far.
Forgotten Creation seems to be testing well, Traverse the Ulvenwald needs some work to get going, but is almost always live by the time I can cast a Snapcaster to flash it back.
Date: 04/03/16
Removed: Sylvan Scrying, Skyshroud Claim, Thada Adel, Acquisitor
Added: Sylvan Safekeeper, Traverse the Ulvenwald, Forgotten Creation
Notes: Testing with Forgotten Creation. Reloading your hand seems pretty solid when you need to dig deeper for better cards. Traverse basically has Sylvan Scrying beat in every way, and Delirium is not difficult to turn on. Sylvan Safekeeper is a wizard, is green, and is only CMC 1, and protects my guys. Something I'm testing with, but it's all I could ask for in a creature really.
Skyshroud Claim was a little too bulky, particularly as a sorcery. I really love the card, but we'll see how I do without the occasional ramp spell (down to just one now, Harrow, which is more for color fixing anyway.)
Date: 03/20/16
Removed: Loaming Shaman (to SB)
Added: Riftsweeper
Notes: These two are basically interchangable cards. Sometimes you need things from exile, sometimes you need things from the graveyard. Depends on what you're playing against. May move both to the sideboard.
Date: 03/12/16
Removed: Primal Growth, Remand, Mystic Confluence
Added: Chrome Mox, Mox Diamond, Meekstone
Notes: Now that my primary untapping engine is Seedborn Muse, I can now afford to run the super fast Mox ramp in the deck, because she untaps artifacts too. As such, I've made the decision to speed my deck up considerably by running these two Moxen. Primal Growth removed, but Skyshroud Claim may come out instead. The extra ramp is not as necessary now that I have these faster starters.
Mystic Confluence, while a very powerful card, was too bulky. Holding up a counter at 5 mana when most of my deck needs to be doing more important things (Casting Vig, Seedborn, Teferi, etc etc) is not what I want to be doing. Cryptic Command is already pushing it, but it's far too good to cut. Mystic Confluence has been cut.
Remand replaced with Meekstone for testing. 23/30 creatures (not count 3 clones and Gilded Drake) are < 3 power. This puts my deck at a structural advantage over others. Not pulling the trigger on the foil yet, as that's over $50.
Date: 02/21/16
Removed: Temur Sabertooth, Mental Misstep
Added: Thada Adel, Acquisitor, Remand
Notes: Both removed cards severely underperforming. More times than not they simply didn't do anything for me, or were dead draws. Thada Adel always presents a reliable threat, even against non-blue decks. Remand is being tested with for the tempo advantage.
Date: 02/03/16
Removed: Island
Added: Ancient Tomb
Notes: And that's not just because I got an EXP Ancient Tomb, which I totally did. I figure the usefulness of a 2 mana land early on is rather relevant, even if it is colorless. Definitely will be testing with it.
I also realized that Prophet of Kruphix changed my deckbuilding fundamentally. As in, I ran very little artifact ramp (only Sol Ring and Mana Crypt, the obvious inclusions) because they did not untap with Prophet, and thus my mana would be locked down between turns. However, Seedborn takes care of this issue by untapping all of my permanents. While I don't see myself running more artifacts in the future (I'd rather run more mana dorks) it was an interesting observation to come across.
Date: 02/01/16
Removed: Null Rod, Thada Adel, Acquisitor
Added: Monastery Siege, Temur Sabertooth
Notes: Am currently testing the waters of keeping the two removed cards in the sideboard instead of main. Also testing effectiveness of the Siege and Sabertooth in keeping up my card advantage and protecting my creatures/reusing their Vig triggers.
Date: 01/23/16
Removed: Wistful Selkie
Added: Sylvan Scrying
Notes: With Prophet now gone, it's more imperative to have the mana required to operate at peak efficiency, and this means getting my Cradle/Nykthos with increased reliability. Selkie was replaced because, despite adding a significant amount of devotion of both colors, it is nonetheless a bit of a bulky card for a cantrip at 3 mana.
Date: 01/18/16
Today my favorite card, and the card that got me into the EDH format, was banned. Prophet of Kruphix has now been relegated to the sideboard, to be used in competitive games where all players are willing to play with her. She will be sorely missed. Replaced with Seedborn Muse. The combo is now slower (must assemble Momir Vig, Seedborn, and Teferi now) and must be shored up in other meaningful ways. Stay tuned for a potential deck re-evaluation.
Other notes:
Removed: Maze of Ith
Added: Island
Notes: Needed greater access to blue fixing. With 60% of the deck now being blue, and the most important blue cards being UUU, having the extra blue producing land helps ensure that I am able to hit my target of going from UG, to GG, to UUU, to UUUUU all within 2-3 turns of each other.
Date: 12/14/15
Removed: Riftsweeper
Added: Null Rod
Notes: After playing a game where one of my most common opponents went Mana Crypt -> Sol Ring -> Mana Vault -> Gilded Lotus, I was convinced that playing a card like Null Rod was absolutely necessary. Riftsweeper's performance has been less than satisfactory, and while it may be useful every once in a while, the vast majority of times it was just a bear that activated Momir Vig, which doesn't really do much for me. This change is definitely a meta call, but Null Rod seems to be a solid way of preventing artifact ramp and slowing other decks down significantly.
Date: 12/06/15
Removed: Argothian Elder
Added: Primal Growth
Notes: Argothian Elder was never a card I was happy to see in the opening hand. Paying four mana for what was most of the time a +two-mana dork was totally off curve, and not worth it most of the time. He did have some nice synergies with some cards (Nykthos/Cradle, infinite instant speed mana with Maze of Ith + another land) and fit right into the curve of Poding into Prophet of Kruphix, but overall he just felt like a sore thumb in the deck, not quite fitting in.
Primal Growth I am testing because of its ever so valuable clause of lands coming into play untapped. This effectively makes it a 2 mana card, and sometimes even 1. I also recently realized how it is absolutely necessary for me to have a minimum of FOUR blue land sources in order to go infinite with Deadeye Navigator + Palinchron , and FIVE if I want to do it with Palinchron alone (which is easier to pull off). Having more ability to fetch out two Islands, in addition to Harrow (already in the deck) and having them come in untapped (early turn counter magic shields up) makes it a very convincing card to test. In all my sample hands I've gotten lucky with draws (Turn 1/2 Caustic Caterpillar into this is sweet) but so far I've been decently impressed.
Also, I'm pleased to say that this change has dropped my deck's average CMC to just 3.00! I'm very glad with this, because the lower the CMC, the faster the deck.
Date: 11/25/15
Removed: Primordial Sage
Added: Azami, Lady of Scrolls
Notes: While this does increase the amount of triple blue I need in the deck (already heavy from Cryptic Command, Teferi, Magus of the Future), I've been testing with Azami and she seems like a more reliable card drawing creature than Primordial Sage, at cheaper CMC too. I wouldn't feel bad about tutoring for her with Prophet on the field and no other creatures in hand, as she will be drawing me 1-3 cards per turn guaranteed when she resolves (Momir + Prophet + Azami = 3 wizards). Primordial Sage requires 6 mana and another creature to be effective, whereas Azami gets right to work. This may incentivize me to keep certain wizards that otherwise might be underperforming (Magus of the Future/Teferi, or Wistful Selkie) but that remains to be seen. My biggest concern is reliably hitting UUU by turn 5, and UUUUU by the time I'm ready to win the game (Palinchron going infinite in both G and U requires a minimum of five lands tapping for blue). This may require more mana tweaking in the future.
Date: 11/12/15
Removed: Trygon Predator, Blighted Woodland, Kodama's Reach, Kruphix, God of Horizons
Added: Mystic Confluence, Command Beacon, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Mental Misstep
Notes: Trygon Predator was extremely unreliable as artifact removal. He was never necessary when he was down, and otherwise always late to the party (had to wait a turn cycle to get rid of the problem permanent, and would often be gotten rid of by then.)
Blighted Woodland underperformed as a ramp spell, my turn after casting Prophet could be often used much more profitably, and if I didn't have Prophet out, spending a turn on Explosive Vegetation was almost never the correct play. Beacon is a much more solid staple.
Sakura-Tribe Elder does the same thing I want Kodama's Reach for (ramp, not putting lands in my hand) at a cheaper CMC. Late game, it's more advantageous as a draw, as it triggers Vig. Chump blockers are always useful too.
Am testing Mental Misstep and Mystic Confluence. Both seem like very solid counters (free and modular respectively) that I couldn't pass up on.
Kruphix, God of Horizons was rarely ever more than just a Momir Vig triggerer. He rarely contributed any meaningful presence on the board, since my hand is rarely more than a few cards unless I'm about to win, at which point it doesn't matter, and floating mana through turns is unnecessary in the majority of cases with Prophet out.
Date: 11/10/15
Removed: Acidic Slime
Added: Caustic Caterpillar
Notes: 5 mana was too much to pay for artifact and enchantment removal, and the land destruction was incidental at best. Deathtouch is actually entirely irrelevant. Having the cheapest Vig activator in my deck (CMC 1) and spending a total of 3 mana to blow an artifact/enchantment is just fine for me.
Date: 10/31/15
Removed: Karametra's Acolyte
Added: Birthing Pod
Notes: Acolyte seems to underperform compared to Argothian Elder, and two mana dorks at CMC 4 is too much. Am testing Birthing Pod, seems promising in the deck despite early skepticism.
Date: 10/30/15
Removed: Seedborn Muse
Added: Argothian Elder
Notes: Seedborn Muse was underperforming. Never a card I was happy to see, because without any other requisite bonuses (like the ability to flash things in) the untapping effect was pretty dead. With less mana rocks than ever before, Seedborn has been more and more just a 2/4. The Elder on the other hand offers the potential to go infinite with Maze of Ith, and besides is a high value mana dork.
Date: 10/21/15
Removed: Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
Added: Loaming Shaman
Notes: Kozilek was originally put in the deck due to GY recursion, synergizing well with Survival of the Fittest. At 10 CMC and no Vig activation, he is more often than not simply used for "Draw 4 cards" for 10 mana, not the best tradeoff. Loaming Shaman brings down the CMC of the deck and triggers Vig if you have nothing to recur, and is less of a dead draw than Kozilek tends to be.
Date: 10/18/15
Removed: Coalition Relic, Green Sun's Zenith
Added: Wistful Selkie, Chord of Calling
Notes: Testing with Chord instead of Green Sun's. Selkie replaces Relic because while Relic may get me a turn ahead, it quickly falls behind and becomes a dead card once Prophet is out. Selkie adds a lot of devotion to U and G, and further draws me a card.
Cards on my Radar/Flex Cards
This post will be reserved for recent musings and thoughts about the deck. Different cards I'm considering, thoughts on recent bans/unbans, etc.
On my Radar/Testing with: Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath: It remains to be seen if this card becomes a mainstay of the deck. The value and potential backup may not be worth the 3 mana it costs to cast. Elvish Spirit Guide: For when my combo needs to be just that much faster! This one-off boost in mana is in my thoughts as I contemplate how I can make my deck faster and more efficient.
Flex cards: Cards that do not currently have a place in the maindeck, but that I keep spare for different metas. They can come in and out depending on what I'm faced with! Mental Misstep - Used mostly for CEDH games, lots of blue metas. Carpet of Flowers - Used in metas with lots of blue. Autumn's Veil - Same as Carpet of Flowers. Veil of Summer - Same as the other Veil.
I've added a section regarding how you can still win the game if different pieces of the wincon get exiled/stolen/exiled without recovery (facedown). Check it out!
The other day I discovered a turn 2 kill is possible with this deck. While it requires a very specific set of cards, it would effectively force a turn 2 concession from your opponents, as they would be left unable to play the game.
Any other creature with CMC <4 (to be able to cast it for free via Aluren).
This requires 8 necessary cards to win. Between Turns 1 and 2, you will have the ability to draw +2 cards. Assuming a perfect hand of 7, that means you will have one additional draw spare.
Here is how you play through the win.
Turn 1:
Play Mana Crypt.
Play your land that taps for GU, or fetches your Trop/Pool.
Cast Somberwald Sage.
Pass the turn.
Turn 2:
Tap Somberwald Sage for GGG, and use it plus the Mana Crypt to cast Temur Sabertooth, leaving 1 floating.
Play your Cradle. (Or play your land that taps for G, cast Crop Rotation, sacrifice the land you played, and get Cradle in untapped.)
Tap Cradle for GG, and your other land for another color. You should have 2GG floating.
Cast Aluren.
Cast the other creature with CMC <4 for free via Aluren.
Cast Cloud of Faeries.
Untap your 2 lands. Your Cradle produces GGGG and your other land should be able to tap for U.
Make infinite mana with Temur Sabertooth and Cloud of Faeries by bouncing it repeatedly. The process will cost 1G in total, netting you GGGGU.
Cast Momir Vig from the command zone.
Bounce any green creature back to your hand with Temur Sabertooth, and cast it again to trigger Momir Vig.
You have infinite mana. Win game in traditional manner.
It requires a lot of luck and no interaction, but the theoretical turn 2 kill is possible.
I'd like to start by giving some context to this question before answering it. Living Wish is a card that I choose to play very conservatively because it's often treated as a one-time use card. So in answering this question, I would first have to ask, "What card did I tutor for with Living Wish?" Generally speaking, when I need a general purpose card and not something specific, a safe play is to usually get Riftsweeper just in case of situations like these.
So when is this Sadistic Sacrament being cast? Is it turn 2/3, and they're declawing me before I've had a chance to do anything? Then I probably haven't burned Living Wish yet. Is it later in the game? Then I've probably already fetched one of these guys and they aren't a valid target anymore. So in all likelihood, the chances of me being in the position of having all 3 cards still in the deck, having burned Living Wish, and being Sadistic Sacrament'd, are very low.
However, I will additionally try to answer assuming the playgroup has disallowed me from playing with the sideboard, and I have had to replace Living Wish with another card, and the Sacrament is cast quite early. Assuming this is a group that knows my deck, and I am familiar with their use of the card, my go-to would be to pick Riftsweeper to replace Living Wish to get back the exiled cards. Then the first thing I'd get back is Temur Sabertooth to keep reusing Riftsweeper's ability.
Assuming it's a new group, and both they and I are unfamiliar with what to expect from each other, I may expect Sadistic Sacrament to whiff and pick incorrect cards, or for me to play Riftsweeper out of the board anyway to protect against more common threats (Path to Exile and Swords to Plowshares).
These aren't ideal situations, but I would counter that they may not be the most likely either, though I'm sure you could continue down the rabbit hole until you find a point where I simply cannot win any longer. In the past, I have been hit by a particularly unfortunate Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger attack, which left me with no wincondition other than Shaman of Forgotten Ways and hoping I could draw Cyclonic Rift. Ultimately, these things happen on rare occasions, and there is only so much redundancy that you can play without starting to maindeck less than optimal cards in 9/10 situations.
How useful have you found Commit // Memory? It seems very costly.
Commit // Memory is actually something I have yet to draw in a game (haven't played too many since AKH came out). I outline my thinking in the changelog and card description, but I will summarize that I am currently viewing it as a replacement for Cryptic Command, that does more or less the same things Cryptic aims to do. It is less blue concentrated, and it has an alternate backup Timetwister effect when necessary. It is indeed very expensive as far as counterspells go, and so if I find that I am holding onto it without being able to cast it, I will forego it for something else (either a return to Cryptic, or for another spell). For the moment being, all I can say is that I'm still testing with it.
Thank you for the questions, I really appreciate them! I had to pause and think for a few moments on how to answer your "What if X" question. If you have any more, please feel free to ask!
Really loving your take on Momir Vig. I've been wanting to build him for a long time. And, thanks to acquiring FtV: Lore I really have no excuse not to. I love how detailed you are with all your explanations. I'm not one to shy away from infinite combos, either. I have lots of success bouncing creatures with Temur Sabertooth to get infinite mana. It's just an amazing and overlooked card!
My YouTube Channel: The Commander Tavern - a channel I just started where I'll post deck techs and gameplays. Please support by checking it out. Maybe you'll like its content and subscribe! Thanks!
Thanks for your interest! Yeah, Momir Vig is arguably the best commander in these colors for playing just your favorite high powered blue and green creatures. There is just so much that you can do with the deck, the possibilities are endless!
I have lots of success bouncing creatures with Temur Sabertooth to get infinite mana. It's just an amazing and overlooked card!
It absolutely is! Temur Sabertooth has been an all-star. There are quite a number of good cards printed in FRF that are applicable in so many different formats. It's much less of a dead card than Deadeye Navigator, so it's easier to run.
So what's another deck, right?
Haha! Geez, that is a ton of decks! I only have 6 EDH decks myself, down from an all-time max of 8. If you get time to build Vig, I highly recommend it! It's a ton of fun to play. And if you ever have any questions, feel free to ask! I'm always glad to help answer them.
What an awesome writeup this is! I am currently testing your build out to get a feel for it, and I am loving it so far. My group is not nearly as powered as yours seems to be, though, so I will be working on taking it down a notch in speed and power level.
I was looking at the spoilers for Hour of Devastation and your thoughts on some of the spoiled cards, and I noticed that you have not mentoined Nimble Obstructionist yet, and I was wondering if a Stifle effect on a creature was worth considering?
Thanks in advance!
Hey, thank you! I'm really glad you like the deck. I've tried to be as thorough as possible in my writeup, so if you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask! I think that you will have a lot of fun playing with this deck, even powered down.
I actually had not given much thought to Nimble Obstructionist before. Evaluating it now brings a few thoughts to mind, some pros and cons.
Pros:
It's a creature, so it can be tutored for with Vig.
It's only 2U to activate or cast.
It's a flier, with flash.
It's a Wizard.
It replaces itself when you counter something.
Uncounterable Stifle (can't be countered by normal counterspells).
Cons:
Only counters abilities, not spells.
3 mana for an effect that normally costs U or 1U (Stifle or Trickbind).
Can only activate it by cycling, not casting the card.
Ultimately, you have to choose between having a creature on the field that does nothing on its own, and having a Stifle in hand. Sometimes it's important to have a creature (For Earthcraft, Gaea's Cradle, or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx), and sometimes it's important to have a Stifle effect. In one perspective, you could argue "Well that gives you a lot of flexibility!" In another I'd argue it's very limiting.
Compare for instance to Mystic Snake. Taking aside for the moment the fact that it is UG (and thus a complete Momir Vig triggerer) you get the effect plus the creature at the same time. There have been many opportunities where I have used Chord of Calling to instantly pull Mystic Snake out of the deck and use its ability. You won't be able to do that with Nimble Obstructionist.
That said, it's still a very versatile card. My final verdict would be probably be that I don't personally think I would play it (because I dislike Stifle effects in the first place, I find them to be largely unnecessary) but if your playgroup plays a lot of abilities that are important, then I would consider it. So while it's not right for me, it may be right for you. I hope this helps!
Hi GC,
Would you be interested in providing feedback on my alterations? If you have the time, you might have some great suggestions for the deck with respect to where it ends up.
Absolutely! Please feel free to show me a decklist, and I'll gladly take a look at it. Give me an idea of what is or isn't acceptable in your group, and I'll try to tailor my suggestions to those limitations.
Speaking of suggestions, I see that you are playing Training Grounds, and that you are interested in the new Hour of Promise to fetch your high value lands, so I was wondering if you ever considered Realm Seekers? Its ability becomes very cheap, granted it does not put the lands directly into play. What do you think?
Thanks in advance!
Realm Seekers is sadly a prohibitively expensive card. I have cut all cards in my deck that are greater than CMC 5, except for my wincon, Palinchron. Even with Training Grounds out, I would end up paying a total of 4GGG to get a land simply into my hand. If I so desperately need an effect to tutor for specific lands, I would sooner play either Sylvan Scrying, Expedition Map, or Ulvenwald Hydra. Each of those cards is overall better than Realm Seekers.
So I have a few things I want to discuss in general about your deckbuilding, and then I will focus in on specific card choices.
I don't quite understand why your group wants to abide by these seemingly arbitrary restrictions on old vs. new borders (but still allow ABUR duals!) but I'm not here to judge house rules. The changes you've made in the deck by and large seem fair, however you have allowed a critical flaw to develop in the deck: There is no wincondition.
With the removal of infinite mana pieces, your deck does not currently have any reliable means of actually winning. There is no way to close the game out. Sure, recurring Woodfall Primus is a fine move, but you don't have the means in the deck to recur it repeatedly. Nor do you have the means to win in another reliable way.
I would personally recommend replacing Palinchron and Phantasmal Image with Deadeye Navigator and Peregrine Drake. This allows you to keep up an infinite mana combo package in modern borders (Peregrine Drake has been printed twice in modern border). If your group doesn't allow infinite combos at all, that may lead to larger issues.
I also notice that you are going very heavy on using Training Grounds. It's a fine card, but you should remember that it is not a creature spell. You can't tutor for enchantments whatsoever in green and blue - trust me, I've tried - without resorting to subpar cards like Long-Term Plans. If you run a critical mass of cards that abuse it, I guarantee you will be faced with situations where you can tutor for the creatures... but you don't have the Training Grounds. Suddenly, your cards are not very good by themselves.
That's why I advised against Realm Seekers. 9/10 times you will be paying 6 mana to cast it, and 3 mana to get a land into your hand, for a total of 9 mana. I would much rather play an Ulvenwald Hydra to get the land directly onto the field, and still get a giant beater.
It is a common mistake for newer players to look at a card and base your decisions around having that one card available. "Yes if I have this one card, I'll be able to do all of these other sweet things with it!" One of the most important lessons I've learned since starting to play Magic is: Always assume the worst-case scenario when evaluating cards. By doing this, you'll soon begin to weed out subpar cards because they can't stand up to the level of power you need by themselves.
As for specific card decisions, allow me to make a few comments:
Mana Drain has been printed in a modern-legal border as a Judge foil, which should be available for approximately the same price as the Legends printing. If you're excluding this card solely based on its border, I'd consider re-evaluating it. On a general note about Counterspells, you should go for mana-efficient ones, as well as ones that can be cast without too much drawback. Replace Deprive with Arcane Denial. Replace Mystic Confluence with Voidslime or Disallow.
Right now your only means of recurring Woodfall Primus is with a single land (High Market) and you just cut Crop Rotation, leaving you with no reliable means of getting that specific land out of your deck. I would actually caution against playing with a Persist subtheme without radically changing the entire deck up. I do not believe the addition of Melira and only one sac outlet (that works only once per turn) is going to be a very good combination.
For your purposes, I would sooner play Oracle of Mul Daya than Azusa, Lost but Seeking.
Finally, Cavern of Souls just got reprinted, and has not gone down in price much. If you want to pick it up at a semi-reasonable price, I would personally recommend doing so now, because I heartily guarantee it'll hit $60 again in no time.
Anyway those are my thoughts on your changes! Overall most changes you made for your group I can understand, but overall I would caution against some changes you made. Remember: Always think of the worst-case scenario in evaluating a card!
So the idea would be to generate infinite mana, play Venser, Shaper Savant, and swap Deadeye Navigator over to Venser to bounce all permanents?
Yes, precisely. You can also bond Deadeye Navigator and Coiling Oracle to play all of the lands in your deck, and put all the nonlands into your hand.
Can you explain why you like Oracle of Mul Daya over Azusa, Lost but Seeking in a list like this?
Generally speaking, Oracle of Mul Daya allows you to clear the top of your library, while Azusa only allows you to ramp more quickly. I believe if you want to play those kinds of effects (that let you play more lands per turn) your best bet would be to play Oracle for the extra potential advantage. Plus, in a more casual meta, it's not as important that you keep your draws secret.
If I were to keep the slot for High Market as a utility land in my list, do you have a suggestion to what utility land it should be instead?
I still think Cavern of Souls is the best bet for you. Otherwise, you could always go back to Tolaria West to get Nykthos. I'm sure there are other options as well that I can't quite think of right now, so it can be a very useful flex spot for you.
I would run both, yes. Temur Sabertooth only makes infinite mana with Peregrine Drake if you have enough mana to pay for the cost of playing and bouncing the drake, and still come out net positive. In other words, when the Drake untaps five lands, you should be making 8+ mana with those lands. The easiest way to do that is using Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx in this modified deck. So I would go back to running Tolaria West and Crop Rotation as means of getting Nykthos out easily.
Got it, thanks! I am currently selling a bit of my collection so that I can afford some more of the expensive cards like Cavern of Souls. But tell me, without Palinchron, would you still play Training Grounds at all?
Of course I would! I currently play it primarily for synergy with Duskwatch Recruiter and Thrasios, Triton Hero. Being able to untap with Seedborn Muse and activate either of their abilities for only G or 2 is astoundingly powerful.
I have in the past, yes. I shun typical removal spells in this deck because including them would lean the deck over to a more control-oriented game plan. This deck, as it is currently constructed, is to act as a combo deck first, control deck second. I don't have time to be removing permanents in such a manner - if I am concerned about something, Counterspell goes a long way to dealing with it. Most if the time, I'm just fine with focusing on my combo and trying to set up the win. I would only advise playing more removal if your meta has a lot of problem permanents that DIRECTLY impact this deck; namely, cards like Linvala, Keeper of Silence and other cards I mention in the "Weaknesses" section.
What's the best answer to a Tabernacle? one of my soon to be roommates as a mono red stax deck with a tabernacle and it seems to really hurt this in playtesting.
What's the best answer to a Tabernacle? one of my soon to be roommates as a mono red stax deck with a tabernacle and it seems to really hurt this in playtesting.
In a mono-R deck, the only reliable option for tutoring for The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale is via either Expedition Map or Gamble. So I wouldn't worry about running additional land tutors than the ones currently in the deck.
That said, there are some flex spots in the deck's mana base. Depending on how big of an issue it is, I would highly recommend playing a Strip Mine, and potentially a Wasteland as well. I currently have Strip Mine in the sideboard; it would be very easy to slot that back into the main instead of another colorless land (or a basic perhaps) and have access to that. Those would be my recommendations!
On another note, this deck has officially been recognized as a primer! I am very happy as a result of this occasion, and I would like to thank everyone who has come to look at this deck, and welcome all who will still come! Please don't hesitate to ask any questions about the deck; I am happy to discuss it at great length, and help you build your own Momir Vig decks!
Congratulations with the primer status! I continue to enjoy reading your writeup, and continue to work on my own version of your excellent list.
Thank you very much! I'm glad that my primer has been of help to you.
Anyways, I was wondering what you thought of a card like Dreamscape Artist? Since you are playing Harrow, that is basically what the activated ability of this creature results in (except when Training Grounds is out, in which case it gets much better), and I was thinking of trying it out.
Dreamscape Artist has several real costs to him that make the card unplayable by comparison to Harrow. One, the ability can't be used immediately. I have to pay a total of 3UU just to use it once. Two, it requires you to discard a card as an additional cost; this makes the expense prohibitively expensive. Even with Training Grounds, the card disadvantage is not worth it. It is much more important to keep cards in your hand than ramping out like that. I would not recommend running him.
My biggest concern, though, is that the ability requires the creature to tap, which makes it a lot slower. Have you come across good cards to mitigate this drawback? The only one that I can think of is something like Thousand-Year Elixir, which could possibly be fetched by also playing Trophy Mage.
I choose not to play too many artifacts in the deck that I must rely on to make the deck effective. Some Momir Vig lists play cards like Paradox Engine or Cloudstone Curio to make their decks combo out faster. I think that relying on such cards is inherently bad, and makes the deck overall weaker. Because you cannot fetch artifacts reliably, it is not worth relying on them too heavily to advance your game plan. Even with Trophy Mage, the tradeoff cost is not worth running the cards, because you have to jump through hoops just to get your creatures to tap a turn early.
Usually there are a number of cards that appeal to me because they synergize with different parts of the deck. I look at them and say "Oh boy, if I have this plus X out, I can totally do awesome things!" Here you talk about how Thousand-Year Elixir may be useful, because of its synergy with various parts of the deck.
A general rule of thumb I like to operate on is that, whenever considering a new card that synergizes with different parts of your deck, it should synergize with at least 10% of the deck (10 other cards), unless it ties in directly with your win condition or the tradeoff is cheap enough to justify. So for example, I currently run Captain Sisay in my Karador reanimator list. I justify her inclusion because she has 12 available targets in the deck; if it had been less, I would have cut her.
On the flipside, I run Training Grounds in this deck despite the fact that it does not synergize with at least 10 cards in the deck. It synergizes with my win conditions (Palinchron and Temur Sabertooth), as well as cards I expect to see just about every game (Thrasios and Duskwatch), and its overall cost is extremely low (only U). Thus, I can justify in running it.
Here, Thousand-Year Elixir synergizes with six cards that you currently run. It also costs 3 to play it. In order to fetch it, it requires you to run special cards (Trophy Mage) that would not otherwise have a place in the deck. It also does not relate to your wincon gameplan at all (Deadeye and Peregrine Drake). Thus, I would recommend against running it based on these reasons.
I would like to take this opportunity to invite people to open up discussion on any cards that I currently have in my "Cards on my Radar" section. So far, I am looking at both Uncage the Menagerie, as well as Autumn's Veil, as potential cards to slot into the deck. I am still on the fence as to what kinds of cuts would be made (or should be made, if any) for these cards. So if you would like to contribute to the discussion, please do not hesitate! I love receiving feedback and engaging in these kinds of conversations with people.
Hello everyone. here is my Commander 2017 update for this primer. It will be reposted on the first page of this thread.
There have been a number of interesting cards that C17 has brought for us, and some have definitely caught my attention for this deck. There were three new cards that caught my attention, and I will be talking about them here.
The first is Portal Mage. This card is cheap to cast and has a beneficial typing. Its sole purpose is to protect you from a particularly powerful attack, and in fact redirect it to someone else. The bonus of having flash is also incidentally useful for triggering Momir Vig at instant speed.
I would recommend this card only if faced with a voltron-heavy meta. Most of the time, due to the high starting life nature of commander, a single creature attacking you is not important enough to justify a slot for this effect. If I really needed this ability or something like it, I would play Pestermite and just tap their creature down (or use it to untap a land or creature of my own in other situations). So while I think that Portal Mage can be incidentally useful depending on the meta, it is not a card I would recommend playing.
The next card on my radar is Galecaster Colossus. This is a very powerful effect, and with untap effects like Seedborn Muse, you can quickly abuse it to clear the board. The Colossus himself basically comes with a tap ability the turn he comes down to bounce a nonland permanent. However, despite the relative high power, the casting cost is very extreme. While I would consider using it for the potential synergies in the deck at 3UU or 4UU, at its current casting cost it is too much to justify a slot in the deck. The only other card that shares a CMC of 7 is Palinchron, and that can just win the game on the spot by itself, let alone being the critical win-con piece of the deck. Nothing else in the deck is above CMC 5. Additionally, I do not currently feel that there are enough wizards in the deck to justify the Colossus. Overall, while a very powerful card, it does not quite fit the deck.
Finally, one of the most impactful cards released in this year's Commander product, we have the common land Path of Ancestry. For starters, I will say that forcing it to enter tapped is a massive drawback, which jeopardizes the speed of any competitive EDH deck.
However, this land also has many upsides, particularly with a commander that has more than one creature type. You are not limited to spending the mana only on creatures sharing a type, but instead you receive a bonus for whenever you do cast a creature with the relevant creature types. A free Scry 1 enough times over can be very helpful for getting the right draws, and tucking away the less than ideal ones.
Overall, I believe that this land is worth testing with. It certainly is not for all EDH decks, let alone competitive ones, but I think that it can be very useful. Whether the land will replace a basic or a nonbasic remains to be seen.
With the official spoiling of the Ixalan rares that were leaked, we received confirmation that Tishana, Voice of Thunder is in fact 5GU. Needless to say, I am quite disappointed, as I would have considered playing her even at CMC 6. While her effect is very strong, she is not costed competitively, and as such she will not be seeing play in this deck. I am holding out hope that the UG Merfolk will bring us some sweet commons and uncommons that this deck may be able to use.
Ixalan has brought us many new and interesting cards to play with. Apart from the Dino deck I will definitely be building however, there are not that many cards from the set that interest me for Momir Vig. But let's get through some of the cards I have been keeping an eye on:
The obvious: Growing Rites of Itlimoc This is a fantastic card. There's no question that this card is going straight into this deck. Turning it on is extraordinarily easy, as having 4 creatures on the field at any given time is done just about every single game. And if you have a Duskwatch Recruiter or Thrasios on the field at the time, you can put this mana to good use almost immediately. I will be looking for cards to cut.
Search for Azcanta: This is a fairly interesting card, and it helps any decks that like to fill their yards with goodies. I think however, that this card does not quite fit into this deck, because its flip ability is not useful. As a deck that relies primarily on creatures and lands, committing four lands (2U plus this one) to a noncreature, nonland Impulse is less than optimal. So this card will not be played in this deck most likely.
Siren Stormtamer: The typing on this card is very good, because it is indeed a Wizard. However, its utility is very limited, being only a one-time activation of protection. I prefer cards like Sylvan Safekeeper and Kira, Great Glass-Spinner, as they can be used more than once to protect my creatures.
Spell Swindle: While a cute card five mama for a counterspell that isn't Force of Will is just too much. Plus, there are no artifact themes in this deck.
Perilous Voyage: This card is a pretty neat tempo play, but I believe that it only truly shines in cases where you are playing against more competitive decks that run lower-cost permanents, so that you hit the Scry 2 more often. Otherwise, it becomes a less than ideal card. Additionally, I believe that Chain of Vapor is a more flexible card, because you can at least bounce your own permanents with it. I will not be playing it in this deck.
Opt: I'm not playing Preordain, and that card is better than Opt. I will not be playing Opt.
Introduction:
Momir Vig, as a card, commander, and deck, is predicated on synthesis: A fusion of two very different elements. It brings together the best of blue and the best of green into an unstoppable monstrosity… Just like Vig created Experiment Kraj. As you enter into this deck primer, be prepared to experience just that – a synthesis of knowledge and strength.
This is a competitive EDH deck primer. If you are looking to play a more casual game with Momir Vig, please ask, I would be happy to give some input on how you can do this.
Short history and bio:
Much of the change that this deck has gone through was as a result of meta calls at the time. After a time though, changes were less dependent on what I needed to play against specific decks, and focused more on making the deck better at what it tries to do. Faster ways of making infinite mana, while keeping the deck reliable and consistent. This deck, and commander, specialize in creature tutoring. I have tried to make it consistent and hard to beat at that, and so there are multiple failsafes in place before you can truly throw your hands up and say "there's no way I can win."
One small note about the deck: THIS IS NOT ELF/HACKBALL MOMIR VIG. Different Vig builds exist that rely heavily on cheap mana dorks to trigger Vig’s green ability, and run a package of elf dorks. This deck plays only a few mana dorks. Personally, I believe that this gives you a lot more resiliency, even if it makes you a little slower. Toxic Deluge is not your friend, and if you’re risking your mana base in a wrath, then that just sets you back even more.
The Play of the deck:
This deck is designed as a competitive creature-based combo deck that has the added bonus of not relying on graveyard shenanigans. Very basically, you use Momir Vig’s ability to tutor up whatever your heart desires, and assemble a win by making infinite mana, or drawing your entire deck.
Why do I want to play this deck?
This deck is for you if:
Momir Vig is a tutor on demand. He freely tutors things into your hand or on top of your library any time you do what your deck already likes to do – just casting creatures. For a competitive deck in these colors, he is probably your best choice, but you may be able to find some similar replacements:
Prime Speaker Vannifar - This is probably the only card I have ever considered replacing Momir Vig with. Like Vig, Vannifar operates on a specific combo, and can win a single turn after coming down. However, Vannifar has important issues that cannot be solved easily. One of Vig's strengths is that there is no over-reliance on the commander, whereas you NEED Vannifar to win the game. If you are interested in playing UG combo decks, Vannifar would be my second recommendation behind Vig.
Prime Speaker Zegana – This deck requires a slightly different build, with more in-deck tutors and bigger creatures, but works on generally the same principle. You have a draw engine in the command zone, which you should be able to easily abuse to draw a bunch of cards, more or less netting the same effect as Vig, which is card advantage. She is a good choice for a more casual build, or a deck that wants to play bigger creatures that do more things.
Ezuri, Claw of Progress – While the two decks play very differently, both rely heavily on small high-value creatures. If you’re picking this deck up to play small creatures efficiently and do crazy things with them, Ezuri might not be bad alternative pick for you.
Rashmi, Eternities Crafter/Thrasios, Triton Hero – Rashmi employs the same kind of value strategy that Vig likes to play: getting things off the top of your library for free. She is a little less efficient than Zegana or Vig, but you can tailor the deck to be more of a control-combo deck, rather than combo-control (meaning that you can play a dedicated UG control deck with a combo finish, rather than a deck that seeks to combo, with control elements). Thrasios also offers you a more traditional card advantage route, ignoring for a moment the storm deck potentials he has.
Kruphix, God of Horizons/Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix - Both of these commanders serve to help you generate loads of mana, and allow you to then put that mana to to good use by casting a giant Genesis Wave or sinking it into Helix Pinnacle. While Vig used to run both of these cards, it has since moved away to becoming more creature-focused.
Individual Card Analysis:
The deck has a nearly 3-way split for each portion of the deck: 1/3 creatures, 1/3 lands, 1/3 noncreature, nonlands. I will first address cards by type and CMC, and then sort them into a second decklist by function.
Creatures:
The Commander
Momir Vig triggers when you cast either green or blue creatures. Green creatures will allow you to effectively cast a Sylvan Tutor, placing the creature you tutor for on top of the library. Blue creatures will allow you to reveal the top card of your library, and put it into your hand if it’s a creature (NOT draw, a key distinction!). Green-Blue creatures will let you do both, in whatever order you choose.
More often than not you will want to stack Blue then Green triggers, wanting the Green to resolve BEFORE the Blue trigger (resolves in reverse order). But sometimes there is a card on top that you want in your hand, and you can take that and then resolve the green trigger.
Birds of Paradise: Probably the best mana dork out there, this has been a mainstay longer than the other two dorks here. Being able to tap for any color is critically important, and being a flying blocker doesn't hurt either.
Llanowar Elves/Fyndhorn Elves: Llanowar Elves and its counterpart are the most limited mana dorks in scope given that they tap only for G, but this also makes them highly consistent, as opposed to Arbor Elf.
Elvish Reclaimer: Crop Rotation on a body! The +2/+2 is pretty irrelevant, but being able to tutor for a Cradle tutor is very important. It does take three turns to get the Cradle online without other untapping mechanisms though (T1 play Reclaimer, T2 bring Cradle in tapped, T3 untap Cradle), so be warned this can potentially be a slower card, but is great as a T1/T2 play.
Sylvan Safekeeper: Creatures in this deck are high-value targets. Removing them is always a priority for opponents, especially those that know the power of this deck. Safekeeper keeps them, well, safe. Its activation does come at a steep cost, but it usually is around to protect the combo when the deck is about to go off.
Caustic Caterpillar: This little guy is fantastic at blowing up troublesome permanents. With no ETB, he gets around Torpor Orb (which shuts us down anyway) and is extremely easy to get out and play. At CMC 1, he also triggers Vig very early on.
Hermit Druid: A key piece of the combo with Thassa's Oracle to win the game immediately. Only exists in the deck as long as Thassa's Oracle does.
Thassa's Oracle: This is an incredibly powerful card that wins the game on the spot, and doubles as a card selection tool in a pinch. Wins with either Hermit Druid or infinite mana combos.
Thrasios, Triton Hero: Along with Duskwatch Recruiter, Thrasios serves as the infinite mana sink to draw the entire deck. At UG he also triggers Vig easily, and his ability becomes extraordinarily powerful when Training Grounds is out. He’s also great to have when you curve into Seedborn Muse, but don’t have a way to flash creatures in, allowing you to scry every turn for added value. Also a Wizard for Azami, Lady of Scrolls.
Kiora's Follower: This is a fantastic “mana dork” that untaps any permanent you might need. My favorite targets are Gaea's Cradle, Nykthos, and Prime Speaker Vannifar. A cheap Vig activation, Kiora’s Follower is a great addition to the deck.
Biomancer's Familiar: A creature version of Training Grounds, this card is very useful in enabling many of my combos to go off faster, or to produce additional value. Use with Temur Sabertooth, Thrasios, or Duskwatch Recruiter.
Painter's Servant: One of the, if not the most important card in the deck, this card lets you trigger two of Vig's abilities for the price of one. Make all your green creatures part blue, or vice versa. The color you pick is heavily context dependent: If you have a hand of blue creatures, naturally you'll want to pick green.
Destiny Spinner: It's important to make sure that your creatures resolve. Spinner is a one-sided effect that only cost 2 mana, and has an upside of protecting your high value enchantments as well.
Gilded Drake: One of my favorite things to do is to steal people’s creatures at instant speed, which this deck is fully capable of doing. Tutor for a Mind Control effect is very strong in a format based on generals. I’ve stolen Sen Triplets, Nekusar, the Mindrazer, Zur the Enchanter, you name it. I’ve even had to steal my Momir Vig back on occasion. I take great pleasure in bouncing it back to my hand afterward with a Cyclonic Rift for added value.
Lotus Cobra: Arguably the best turn-2 play this deck can make, Lotus Cobra accelerates the deck to incredible levels, especially given the full suite of fetchlands. It has a very high value, and has allowed me to do many broken things very quickly.
Priest of Titania: A very powerful mana dork that turns to more than 1 mana very quickly, especially if another opponent is playing elves.
Coiling Oracle: A cheap Vig activation, it is often paired with Shardless Agent for a potential 4-for-1 combo (explained in deck synergies below). It’s also an infinite mana outlet with Temur Sabertooth flickers.
Phantasmal Image: A relic of the Palinchron/Image infinite mana combo, this card remains in the deck as an additional way to ramp up temporarily by copying Cloud of Faeries to ensure victory. While it was much better when Palinchron was still in the deck, it still serves a useful role.
Collector Ouphe: Representing one of the flex spots in the deck, Ouphe is a must-have in an artifact-heavy meta.
Genesis Hydra: While technically a 2 drop, Hydra is never actually cast for 2, and is usually cast for X=5. Because it triggers on cast, it allows you to stack with the Momir Vig green trigger. The common play is to cast the Hydra for X=5, stack the triggers to resolve the Vig search trigger first, finding Seedborn Muse or Azami, Lady of Scrolls if you already have Seedborn. Then you resolve the Hydra trigger, revealing the top X cards of your library, and putting a nonland permanent from among them with CMC X or less onto the field, and shuffling the rest away (shuffle, not bottom of library!). This enables you to put high-value creatures directly onto the field instead of having them be countered (Unless the opponent has a Stifle, but that is rarely the case in my experience). Getting around counterspells is fantastic.
Eternal Witness: A must-have piece of recursion in the deck in case things go wrong. While a few other cards play similar roles, none do it as well as she does.
Reclamation Sage: Just like the Caterpillar, it is a tutorable effect to deal with artifacts and enchantments. It costs more mana, but requires no activation cost. Paired with the Caterpillar to get around different hate cards (Caterpillar hits Torpor Orb, Sage hits Cursed Totem, both of which are combo disablers against this deck).
Shaman of Forgotten Ways: A critical wincon piece, the way you actually kill people. Plus a very useful mana dork. Being able to tap for GG, GU, or UU comes in very handy.
Shardless Agent: A very high-value creature, often paired with Coiling Oracle (interaction explained in detail below). Often with Vig out you will want to stack the 3 cast triggers as Green, Cascade, Blue, enabling to you cascade into any CMC 1 or CMC 2 creature you choose.
Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath: This is a flex card along the lines of Coiling Oracle. It is included as a backup to Oracle to draw the deck, as well as a niche situational card where casting it from the yard is necessary when there are no other creatures to cast in hand for Vig triggers. May come out in a future update.
Somberwald Sage: One of the two mana bigger dorks in the deck, Somberwald Sage accelerates you very quickly. She is never a disappointment to see, because she will often supply the UUU you need for the likes of Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir.
Spellseeker: Being able to tutor for a noncreature spell in this deck is no easy feat. Being able to tutor for a noncreature spell with a creature is amazing. This card can get Crop Rotation, almost every counter in the deck, Nature's Claim, and many other valuable effects. Crop Rotation is the most common tutor target, but I have also had the pleasure of getting Cyclonic Rift and Pact of Negation. After establishing infinite mana, she will be needed to get Rift and Finale of Devastation to win.
Trophy Mage: This card was initially discounted as being too narrow to play in the deck. However, the cards it is able to tutor for are powerful enough that it warrants having a tutor. Trophy Mage gets Cloudstone Curio, a highly abusable card that helps win the game much faster than normally. As a backup, Trophy Mage also tutors for Shardless Agent, arguably the most powerful UG creature in the deck! Plus it helps ensure a UG Vig trigger.
Nylea, Keen-Eyed: One of the infinite mana outlets along with Thrasios, Triton Hero. Nylea is a high-value card that replaced Duskwatch Recruiter, containing both sides of Duskwatch in one go. Nylea is useful every which way. She gets very powerful when Biomancer's Familiar is on the field, activating for only G. Most importantly however, is her cost reduction for your creatures. The combo speeds up significantly when she is on the field.
Prime Speaker Vannifar: Birthing Pod on a stick! This card does it all and more. Also triggers Vig for U and G. Tutor up answers or combo pieces at will.
Vizier of the Menagerie: Vizier is Momir Vig’s best friend (after Prophet, RIP). It allows you to turn all Green Vig triggers into effective UG triggers. It also provides incidental card advantage, plus it is on curve! Also does very good, and very gross, things with Aluren. Its last ability is incidentally useful to no longer need a certain number of blue lands to make infinite GU Cloud of Faeries..
Beast Whisperer: Whisperer actually has a very old predecessor in this deck! Before I replaced it with Azami, Lady of Scrolls, I ran Primordial Sage for a very short time to generate card advantage. Now Beast Whisperer has come to send both these cards packing! At four mana, This card is a house. Triggering on cast is also critically important, as it allows us to tutor for something with Vig when casting a G creature, and then putting the tutor target directly into the hand. This card is on par for power level with Vizier of the Menagerie, and has earned a permanent spot in the deck.
Prophet of Kruphix: You shall be missed. Rest in peace. May you return to us someday.Noncreature, nonland cards
Utopia Sprawl: While initially skeptical of cards like these, I have come to greatly appreciate Utopia Sprawl in its utility. Despite being restricted to enchanting Forests only, it offers a number of useful upsides. Not only does it fix your colors, but it enables comboing off that much faster. It also adds to devotion with Nykthos, which is a valuable asset.
Wild Growth: I am running this for the same reasons as Utopia Sprawl. It helps me combo off faster. One important note is that Wild Growth, while it only adds G, it can enchant any land! Sprawl is restricted to Forests.
Sylvan Library: A fantastic enchantment and early play, the Library offers card selection and card advantage all in one neat package. If your choice is between this and another 2 drop on turn 1 or 2, play this. In very narrow situations it may be more appropriate to play Lotus Cobra to power into multiple plays next turn if you have a fetch in hand, but 9/10 times the Library is the correct play.
Survival of the Fittest: The most efficient creature tutor in Magic. This card will win you the game, no sweat, if left unchecked.
Growing Rites of Itlimoc: This is a very powerful card that doubles as a second Gaea's Cradle. When ti comes down it allows you to dig four deep for a creature. Its flip condition is incredibly easy to achieve in this deck, and so it makes for a potent threat whether early or late game.
Aluren: A card I was initially skeptical about given its proclivity to help others as well, it has no compare in its ability to be abused. Particularly disgusting with Vizier of the Menagerie. Momir Vig and Aluren allow you to chain through most of your deck’s creatures in one turn. This card overwhelms and overpowers.
Mana Crypt/Sol Ring: Their power needs no comment.
Sensei's Divining Top: This deck manipulates the top of the deck a lot. It shuffles even more than that, usually multiple times a turn. Top allows you the best opportunities to take advantage of that. Don’t be afraid to crack Top to draw a card you need and shuffle it away; it’s often the correct play.
Cloudstone Curio: I initially had deep reservations against this card, because I disdain including non-creature spells as a part of my wincon in this deck (because I can tutor for creatures, but not non-creatures without adding additional dead cards)! However, after further testing and re-evaluating the card, coupled with the inclusion of Aluren in the deck, I have come to realize that it's a very powerful utility card. It also enables very fast wins out of nowhere, with or without Aluren. Cloud of Faeries with a 1 drop creature goes infinite with Cradle that taps for 3 and another land.
Neoform: A reuseable Birthing Pod effect (it doesn't exile like Eldritch Evolution below). Very useful to get creature cards directly onto the battlefield.
Eldritch Evolution: A one-time use, it’s meant to power unexpectedly into wins or high value creatures. Good for turning one-time use cards (such as Reclamation Sage) into Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir to protect your combo. Putting the creature directly onto the field is very strong.
Timetwister: A fantastic way to refill your hand when behind, or to shuffle your used up resources back into your library (where they can be easily tutored for again). It’s also not incorrect to sometimes play it out on turn 2 or 3 if you feel your hand is about to run out of resources, to deny opponents the opportunity to play the hands they decided to keep. Time Spiral is a decent substitution, one I keep on hand as a backup.
Noxious Revival: This card serves two primary functions: One, it allows us to recover lost pieces of the combo at instant speed. Did someone Strip Mine your Cradle right before you were going to combo? Bring it back. Being able to do so at instant speed, for zero mana, is incredibly powerful.
Worldly Tutor: See Sylvan Tutor.
Flusterstorm: This was another counterspell I had initially been very skeptical of. I was not sure I would ever get enough storm count for it to be relevant. Plus, given that it is limited to instants and sorceries also had me disapprove of the card. However, recent testing has turned my doubts around. Counter magic in this deck is primarily designed to protect our combo from interference, and when someone is interfering on our turn, it's usually with instants. I have also come to discover that reaching storm 3-4 is pretty easy to do in a given turn, and anything more than that is fairly common as well. This turns into an extremely powerful counter for just U.
Swan Song: Part of my Counter suite, it protects you in your win-con stage effectively, just like Pact of Negation and Force of Will. If someone tries to cast Path to Exile your Cloud of Faeries, you respond by turning their 1 mana removal into a bird.
Crop Rotation: Objectively the most important instant in the deck. Instant speed, gets Gaea's Cradle or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx.
Mana Drain: Objectively better than Counterspell!
Muddle the Mixture: Protects the combo, but most of the time serves as a useful Transmute. What do you get? Hermit Druid, Thassa's Oracle, and Cloud of Faeries are all CMC 2.
Cyclonic Rift: If you’re playing blue, you’re playing this card. No questions asked. Also helps combo off to win with a Shaman of Forgotten Ways activation.
Memory's Journey: This card has multiple purposes as a combo enabler, combo killer, and recursion. Not only will this allow me to combo off faster with Hermit Druid, I can also disable combos from other people who rely on cards in their graveyards. Finally, I can save creatures or other cards I care about at instant speed from my own yard by shuffling them back into my library.
Chord of Calling: The best instant speed, straight-to-the-battlefield tutor you can play. Gets any color creature too, unlike Green Sun’s Zenith.
Force of Negation: One of the free counters in the deck, generally used as a means of protecting yourself from wipes/sorcery speed removal, or other wincons.
Force of Will: Speaks for itself. Best counterspell in the game.
Tamiyo, Collector of Tales: Tamiyo performs multiple roles in one card, making her one of the best planeswalkers printed for this deck. First and foremost, Tamiyo protects the player from problematic sources like edicts and wheels from your opponents, effectively doing what Tajuru Preserver does but better. Her +1 is effectively a repeatable Wood Sage. While the effect is not spectacular in EDH, she allows you to recur anything you put in the graveyard with her -3 ability, effectively Eternal Witness. As such, Tamiyo serves as combo protection, card selection (you can tutor for something with a green creature off Vig and then put the card in your hand in the same turn), and recursion. At four mana she is fairly steep, but her price has paid off time and again.
Lands:
7 Island/7 Forest: The bread and butter of the deck. Playing a critical mass of basics is both good and necessary. It protects you from Blood Moon/Ruination effects, and are easy to tutor for with the full fetchland suite. The fixing isn’t necessary to run more nonbasics, and I would even consider cutting Command Tower if they print a half-decent UG land sometime soon. I would go down to 12 basics if they printed more enemy-paired lands with basic subtypes.EDIT: With the swap to the Hermit Druid combo, basic lands have been removed from the deck. While it remains to be seen if this combo persists, it is important to note that the deck does become much weaker to Blood Moon effects, as well as nonbasic land destruction. The land base also becomes more unstable as a result.
Breeding Pool/Tropical Island: Best fixing in the deck. Fetchable, taps for both colors.
Misty Rainforest/Scalding Tarn/Polluted Delta/Flooded Strand/Wooded Foothills/Windswept Heath/Verdant Catacombs: Full fetchland suite. It’s important to run all seven of them, as it affords you the greatest levels of consistency and ability to get out the colors that you need, when you need them.
Command Tower/Flooded Grove/: Additional color fixing.
Waterlogged Grove: Paying 1 life for mana is a small price to pay to be able to crack for an instant-speed draw. Warning: Do NOT attempt to go infinite with this land.
Lotus Field: This card is a backup to Cradle/Nykthos wins. With Cloud of Faeries, Cloudstone Curio, a CMC 1 creature, and any other land, you can make infinite mana.
Cavern of Souls: There are a lot of tribes in this deck, and a great number of cards in the tribes. Wizard, Shaman, Elf, Human, Druid, the list goes on. Most of the time the correct play is Wizard, as it makes Vig and Thassa's Oracle uncounterable.
Deserted Temple: This allows me to accelerate my game plan further, by allowing me to untap Gaea's Cradle or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx for more mana.
Tolaria West: Uncoutnerable tutor for Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, Gaea's Cradle, and Pact of Negation! Also Alchemist’s Refuge/Winding Canyons when you’ve got a Seedborn and no Teferi.
Gaea's Cradle/Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx: Objectively the best lands in the deck. Both are crucial for piloting the deck. If you are trying to run a budget Vig, splurge and get a Cradle. It’s WORTH IT!
Below are lands included with the Hermit Druid combo. When not playing this combo, replace these with basic Islands and Forests.
Hinterland Harbor, Botanical Sanctum, Minamo, School at Water's Edge, Yavimaya Coast, Mana Confluence, City of Brass, Forbidden Orchard, Reflecting Pool, Ancient Tomb, Winding Canyons, Dryad Arbor
Cards that didn't make the cut:
This section is about cards that didn't quite get there for me, or that I'm not currently playing for one reason or another. This list will be expanded as necessary. Many of these cards are meta choices that can come in and out of the deck depending on what your meta requires.
Grim Monolith: Same reasons as above.
Nature's Lore/Three Visits: While lands are important to the game plan, creature ramp has made the deck much faster than it used to be. Thus I tend to prefer running mana dorks over land ramp spells.
Palinchron: This used to be the mainstay combo piece of the deck, however at 7 mana it has become unjustifiably mana intensive. Cloud of Faeries performs the same task far more efficiently. The most controversial change I have made since the deck's inception. Since adding Cloud of Faeries, Palinchron moved from being the primary to the backup wincon in the deck. CoF is much faster and more reliable than Palinchron, and supporting an otherwise dead 7 drop in the deck takes a lot of resources to go off. With CoF, I can go off on two lands, whereas Palinchron would always need more lands. I have kept a copy in reserve in case I ever feel that Cloud of Faeries is being removed too easily.
Peregrine Drake/Deadeye Navigator: This combo is a little too slow to reliably cast. Trying to get up to 6 mana to get DEN out is not fast enough.
Ramunap Excavator: I would play this card only if you suffer from a lot of MLD in your meta.
Riftsweeper: For when Cloud of Faeries or Temur Sabertooth get exiled. Best used in control-heavy metas.
Tajuru Preserver: To stop Living Death and Thraximundar from being pains. This is a tutorable backup to Tamiyo.
River Hoopoe, Duskwatch Recruiter, Spectral Sailor: All three cards act as viable replacements for Thrasios and Nylea as infinite mana sinks, less so the Duskwatch Recruiter (does not allow for Thassa's Oracle wins, can't draw the whole deck).
Command Beacon: When your commander has been countered 4 times and now costs 13 mana to cast. Yes, it has happened to me. Best slotted in for control-heavy metas, but otherwise makes the mana base too unstable with a colorless land.
Synergies, Combos, and Tips:
Here is the section on explaining the basic interactions in the deck. Remember, you must have a way to USE infinite mana once you have generated it!
Making infinite mana:
Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries
This combo is generally used at earlier stages in the game. It requires Gaea's Cradle that taps for GGGG, and 2 Islands or U producing lands. To cast and bounce Cloud of Faeries costs 2GU for the process. Any time you can tap 2 lands to produce 5+ mana you will make infinite mana. Once you have made infinite G with Cradle and 1 Island, repeat the process by untapping 2 Islands instead of 1 with Faeries, generating infinite U at a conversion rate of GGG = U. Also works with Nykthos (as long as you can produce enough G or U to keep it going and adding mana to your pool).
NOTE: The colors of mana do not matter if you control Vizier of the Menagerie.
Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries + Aluren
Allows you to make infinite mana with Cradle only tapping for GG, which is literally just the Sabertooth and Faeries on the field. Aluren lets you cast the Faeries for free, reducing the cost of the cycle to just 1G. The second land you untap with CoF generates the infinite mana.
Temur Sabertooth + Cloud of Faeries + Aluren + Biomancer's Familiar
Allows you to combo infinitely with any 2 lands. Faeries is free, Temur Sabertooth only costs G to activate. You spend G to untap 2 lands, making infinite mana. Can also make infinite without Aluren (just Biomancer's Familiar) if 2 lands untap for at least 4 mana (Since cycle will cost 1GU to repeat).
Cloud of Faeries + Aluren + Cloudstone Curio
You need only Faeries and another creature with CMC 3 or less to go infinite. You just keep recasting one and bouncing the other for free.
Cloud of Faeries + Cloudstone Curio
In order for these to go infinite with Curio, all you need is a second creature that costs less than the mana you make. So if you have Cloud of Faeries, Cradle, and Curio on the field, and a second creature to let cradle tap for GG, all you need is a CMC 1 creature (mana dork or otherwise), you can go infinite right there! Cradle taps for 3 mana, a blue land taps for U, and you make UGGG while spending UGG, generating a net G each cycle.
Spending infinite mana:
Temur Sabertooth + Coiling Oracle
Play every land in your deck, put every nonland in your hand.
Thrasios, Triton Hero
Play every land in your deck, put every nonland in your hand.
Nylea, Keen-Eyed
Put every creature in your hand.
Once you have your deck in your hand, proceed with the following steps:
The Other Combo
With the printing of Thassa's Oracle, winning the game has never been easier. Oracle helps us win in one of two simple ways:
1. After drawing your entire deck, simply cast Thassa's Oracle on an empty library. Once the ETB trigger resolves, even if the Oracle is removed and you otherwise have 0 devotion (highly unlikely), you will win the game on the spot.
2. Casting the Oracle when you control a Hermit Druid that does not have summoning sickness. Once the Oracle resolves and the ETB trigger is on the stack, activate Druid to mill your entire library. This will allow for the Oracle's ability to resolve right after you mill your library, winning you the game.
NOTE: Do NOT attempt to activate Hermit Druid BEFORE the Oracle has resolved and the ETB trigger is on the stack. If the Oracle gets countered, you will lose the game next draw step for having no cards in library. The only thing that would save you then is a Timetwister cast before you untap next turn.
The risky win: Speed at the cost of security
There is one other means of winning with the Hermit Oracle combo. This is by far the fastest, as well as riskiest way to win. Do NOT attempt this mode if you suspect or see any kind of graveyard hate.
With this method, you do not need to have Thassa's Oracle in your hand to win the game. After casting Hermit Druid, pass the turn and proceed with the following actions on your next turn:
Mana required: UUGG
*NOTE: Sometimes it is important to play it safe when choosing what to return. If you suspect people can interfere with the top card of your library, or may have targeted exile effects to get rid of Thassa's Oracle, you must decide if you wish to save yourself by getting back other cards - which reduces your chances of winning that turn if you do not have any form of topdeck manipulation available. Getting back Oracle alone guarantees a 100% chance of drawing it. Oracle + 1 card gives you a 50% chance, and Oracle + 2 cards gives you a 33% chance to win that turn. Determining the willingness to take the risk is ultimately up to the pilot.
Q: What cards should I get back with Memory's Journey apart from Thassa's Oracle?
A: This depends on the situation. Destiny Spinner and Cavern of Souls protect Thassa's Oracle from being countered. Timetwister refills your deck in the event of a combo failure. Tamiyo, Collector of Tales, Noxious Revival, and Eternal Witness further protect you from losing immediately (Noxous Revival gives you an extra draw step as well by putting a card on top of your library instead of into your hand).
Synergistic interactions:
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary + Shardless Agent + Coiling Oracle.
One of the best sequences nets you a possible 4-for-1, and populating the board aplenty (which helps massively when you have Gaea's Cradle down). Cast Shardless Agent, and stack the Momir Vig triggers and Cascade triggers like so:
Having these 3 cards enables you to cast any green creature, and tutoring for a cheap creature (CMC 3 or less) and put it on top of your library. Vizier lets you cast the top card, and Aluren lets you do it for free. Vig allows you to replace the card you just cast with another card put on top. It creates an endless cycle that allows you to power out most of the creatures in your deck.
How do I win if...
...Cloud of Faeries gets exiled?
Cloud of Faeries is the lynchpin of the deck. It is what singlehandedly enables you to generate infinite mana. Without it, you can make a lot of mana, but it's very difficult to go infinite. Palinchron may come back into the deck to compensate if CoF is getting removed a lot. In case of emergency, the alternate wincon is to overload Cyclonic Rift and then activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways' Biorhythm effect. It's not pretty, but it gets the job done.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
...Temur Sabertooth gets exiled?
A: You will have to rely on Cloudstone Curio to carry the day. You can still make infinite mana with Cloud of Faeries and another creature and proceed with your combo as planned. Curio offers redundancy for Sabertooth.
...Thrasios, Triton Hero gets exiled/stolen/exiled without recovery (facedown)?
A: You still have Nylea, Keen-Eyed and Coiling Oracle to spend infinite mana on.
...My good lands like Gaea's Cradle and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx get removed?
A: If they're destroyed, there are a number of different ways to get them back from the graveyard. If they're exiled, you can still make infinite mana with other options like Growing Rites of Itlimoc as a backup, though it's harder to find, as you can't tutor for it. Lotus Field, or lands enchanted with Utopia Sprawl/Wild Growth can all serve as infinite mana enablers in a pinch.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
...Shaman of Forgotten Ways gets exiled?
A: Play all your creatures, then cast Finale of Devastation for X=infinite. Swing at all your opponents for super lethal.
NOTE: In this case, you can also rely on your other combo, "Hermit Oracle" (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) to win.
...Hermit Druid gets exiled?
A: Proceed with the infinite mana plan.
...Thassa's Oracle gets exiled?
A: You can still win in the traditional manner without winning "on the spot" with an Oracle ETB. Go infinite, cast Finale for a billion, and activate Shaman or swing with your board for lethal.
...Thassa's Oracle gets exiled after I have activated Hermit Druid, in response to me using Memory's Journey to put it back in my deck?
A: This kind of situation is the diciest. In most cases, you will simply end up losing regrettably. Mass graveyard removal is essentially game over. Faerie Macabre spells doom as well. To play around Faerie Macabre, your goal should be to use Memory's Journey to get back Eternal Witness, Noxious Revival, and Thassa's Oracle. Ideally, with the Macabre they will likely select Thassa's Oracle and Eternal Witness to exile, leaving you Noxious Revival (or potentially E-Wit if they want to keep your deck empty). You do this so that you may use the one card that has not been exiled to retrieve Timetwister, to refill your library if your Hermit Oracle combo is disrupted.
...Multiple pieces of the wincon gets exiled/removed?
A: This is the toughest problem, and it very much decreases your chances of winning. But you can STILL win! In one very improbable game, after having all my infinite mana outlets removed, I had a bunch of creatures out with a Nykthos. After some shenanigans (like casting Eternal Witness to get a land from the yard) I was able to generate exactly 18 mana, overload a Cyclonic Rift for 7, and then activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways for the other 11, winning me the game all in one turn. Unless you get hit with a particularly unfortunate Ulamog attack and he exiles almost every wincon piece, this deck has a ton of recovery options and backups to still win the game.
Important Tips:
Earthcraft + infinite mana engineWith Earthcraft, you are able to tap the creature you just cast for mana as well, reducing the land requirements (and color requirements as well, if you can untap a basic Island). Cloud of Faeries lets you effectively untap three lands this way, making infinite much easier.
Hermit Oracle NOTE: This section does not apply with the Hermit Oracle combo in the deck: There are no basics, so you cannot run Earthcraft.
Building your landbase:
This is a tip that should generally apply to all decks, but is especially important for this, and other competitive decks. Right now, the only land that I run that enters the battlefield tapped is Tolaria West. In constructing the land base for this deck, I would recommend running as few lands that ETB tapped as possible. The less your lands ETB tapped, the faster your deck is. Half the battle is being able to cast a 2 drop on turn 2, instead of having to wait until turn 3 to cast a 2 drop. Fixing is important, but you shouldn't sacrifice speed for it, especially not in only a 2-color deck. On a budget, running a few cards like Temple of Mystery is okay, but I would try to avoid playing too many, especially bad ones like Thornwood Falls or Lumbering Falls.
Hermit Oracle combo EDIT: The above text applies in the case of running no basic lands, though somewhat less so. There will inevitably be more lands that enter tapped or do less, such as Dryad Arbor or Hinterland Harbor with only 2 Islands or 3 Forests in the deck to let it ETB untapped. While regrettable, the efficiency and speed of the Hermit Oracle combo is such that these sacrifices are worthwhile.
How to play the deck:
Momir Vig operates on slightly slower timetable from T1 CEDH combo decks. Where those decks can win as soon as T2-3 Vig will usually go off on turns 4-5, and sometimes turn 3. A turn 2 win is possible, but it requires nearly perfect draws. Some may complain that this is too slow to go toe-to-toe with the top competitive decks, and they may be correct in that assessment. However, in my personal experience, the deck pilots much more consistently when you can reliably win later on, and set up a lot of value to get you there, rather than try to explode as quickly as possible and pray they don’t have a Toxic Deluge.
In typical CEDH pods in my experience, decks faceoff in a "Mexican standoff" where everyone tries to be the second person to combo. Combo too soon and your opponents will meet you with counters and removal. Combo too late and you'll let someone else win. My personal experience tells me that a T4 win (most common in this deck) is the perfect balance between keeping up answers/counters for your opponents, and comboing off after others have spent their resources and getting shut down.
Draw your opening hand:
In your opening hand you usually want to have anywhere between 2 and 3 lands. 4 often too much, especially if you have mana dorks in hand. Anything less or more will make you too unreliable. Too few lands and you get screwed and you’re out of the game. Too many and you’re flooded. If you have artifact or creature based ramp, or card selection, you can afford to keep fewer lands. For instance, keeping 2 lands and a Sylvan Library is somewhat risky, but can potentially lead to high payoffs.
An opening hand should have lots of early action. You should be playing lots of ramp and tutors, as well as powering out your small creatures. If you're casting Momir Vig on turn 5, you're already going too slow. Make sure your hand allows you to have some card advantage in the early turns.
Start of the game:
Your first two turns should be focused on ramping and establishing a board presence. The deck offers a multitude of options and paths to take, and so it’s important to learn how to respond to different cards through playtesting.
Turns 1-2: Build up the board
The first two turns are usually the safest turns. People are still building their boards themselves, so this is when you should take the opportunity to play your most valuable cards as quickly as possible. It's important to balance casting creatures and holding them up for Vig triggers. This changes from game to game, and from hand to hand, but sometimes you need to hold creatures back so they can provide more advantage later. If you topdeck a turn 2 Llanowar Elves, casting them may provide +1 mana on turn 3, but if you know you can cast Momir Vig on turn 3, you may want to hold the Elves to cast them and trigger Vig for cheap.
Remember that Momir Vig is a toolbox commander: You should tutor for things that you need when you need them. A default “value play” would be casting Shardless Agent into Coiling Oracle. It generates a potential 4-for-1 card advantage, plus establishes greater board presence (interaction explained in Synergies and Combos section). Another good play would be to get Sylvan Safekeeper or Kira out to protect your creatures.
Turn 3: Protecting what you’ve got and setting up to win
By the time Turn 3 rolls around, assuming you haven’t been interacted with too strongly, the deck should be poised to set up for a win in the next two turns. Once a sufficient board presence has been established, you should be tutoring to put that board to good use. Tutor for cards that you think will assist you in the given context. If the board is cleared and people are tapped out, tutor for your wincons and try to setup a win next turn. If you’re running low on resources, Seedborn Muse + Thrasios, Triton Hero or Duskwatch Recruiter is a fine play, to activate on each player’s turn. If people are holding up mana and counterspells, bring in some protection like Teferi, Kira, or Sylvan Safekeeper.
Turns 4-5: Winning the game.
For all intents and purposes, these should be the last turns of your deck in most cases. Sometimes turns take longer because you did not draw as expected. Sometimes they can go faster and you can be looking at an infinite combo on turn 3. Turn 4 is usually the average turn to win. Cast Spellseeker, go get Crop Rotation, find Gaea's Cradle, and go to town.
Strengths:
Consistency: Momir Vig has a lot of built-in consistency in the deck. There go many games where casting Vig is unnecessary; the cards you draw will get you across the finish line by themselves. And if one door closes, another one opens. If Temur Sabertooth is exiled, you still have Cloudstone Curio. And in the direst of circumstances, you can EOT (end of turn) Overload a Cyclonic Rift, and follow up with a Biorhythm effect from Shaman of Forgotten Ways. There are many paths to victory with this deck.
Resilience: The deck has the ability to bounce back and win out of nowhere. In one awful six-player game, I was once down in the dumps. I was hitting no good cards to cast. One player landed a turn 2 Luminarch Ascension and started hitting me with angels because he was afraid of my deck. In a matter of turns I was put to 8 life without so much as casting a spell. I literally only had lands on the field. As another player, playing Chainer, Dementia Master started to get out of control, people eventually started to ignore me and try to deal with the Chainer player, who was controlling the playing field by preventing the other 2 reanimation decks from using their graveyards. Finally, someone committed all their resources to casting a Grave Titan, followed by Diabolic Intent, into Damnation, to deal with the Chainer issue. With all potential threats tapped out and problem cards removed, I drew, and with just enough lands, played Palinchron into Phantasmal Image for an instant victory. Time and again the deck has been able to power out a win after being completely destroyed otherwise.
Combo-control: As a combo deck with control elements, you are able to master your own fate, while still denying others the opportunity to do what they want. Unlike direct combo, which has very little interactions with others, Vig offers you the ability to play an intermediary game, one that doesn’t explode and fizzle in flashfire, or take too long like a big-mana deck.
Weaknesses:
Toxic Deluge and Wraths: A common play against this deck is to go “Turn 2 Demonic Tutor for Turn 3 Toxic Deluge”. The deck runs many cheap counters for a reason! Protect your board at all costs! This goes for all kinds of wraths. Clearing your board of creatures is not the end of the world, but it’s definitely a setback we would rather not have.
Spot removal: Path to Exile and Swords to Plowshares are very good cards. Riftsweeper often comes in and out of the board depending on how prevalent the cards are. Abrupt Decay also gets around Kira, Great Glass-Spinner, remember that!
Control: This deck plays lots of counterspells, very little removal. The purpose of this is to play ways to protect your combo, rather than play control. If you’re in the situation where you can afford to play control after establishing a large board presence, great, you’re about to win! Otherwise, if you’re playing control with a lack of resources, you’re fighting against the tide; you’re going to lose. If you’re getting into counter wars, you’re not doing well. Decks with more answers than you have protection are going to be an issue, especially if those answers are uncounterable or plenty of spot removal.
Dedicated hate cards: The three big ones are Linvala, Keeper of Silence, Cursed Totem, and Torpor Orb, or their counterparts, such as Hushwing Gryff. Aven Mindcensor and Stranglehold turn off most of the deck too. Humility is also a headache and a half. If you can’t activate your creature’s abilities to make infinite mana, you can’t win. Period. At this point my recommendation is to rely on the card filtering to hope you draw the Cyclonic Rift or removal you need to clear the problem cards. Prevent these from resolving AT ALL COSTS. Surprisingly, I would also watch out for Phenax, God of Deception. While it's definitely not a competitive commander, keep in mind that they can mill at instant speed. If you have G and U Momir Vig triggers, they can let the G resolve (search for a creature and put it on top) and then while the blue one is on the stack, tap a creature to mill your tutor into the graveyard.
Slower deck: This deck is definitely not as fast as it used to be. Prophet of Kruphix ban significantly hurt this deck, moreso than other decks who used her. What the deck lacks in speed it makes up in resiliency, but sometimes people are just going to be faster than you, and there’s nothing you can do about it. It comes with the territory of playing a Tier 2 competitive commander.
Budget Options:
After reading this primer, your reaction may be "Oh wow, this is an awesome deck! I really want to build this! ...But I don't have the money to buy all those awesome expensive cards." This deck contains a large quantity of expensive cards. Below I have listed every card that is near $20 or more at time of writing, and talk about its importance/necessity in the deck, and talk about potential replacements! Please keep in mind that with every budget version you go with, you are decreasing the consistency and speed of the deck.
Gaea's Cradle: This is the most important card to splurge on, bar none. It makes the deck very fast, and is very easily abusable. The only card that could replace it is Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, and that card is already in the deck. This should be the first big-ticket item you buy when you get the chance. If you absolutely cannot afford it, I would first ask my playgroup to let me proxy it. Past that, there really aren't any viable replacements.
Tropical Island: I would rate this card at pretty high importance. Being able to grab a blue source with a Wooded Foothills, or a Skyshroud Claim, is crucial. If Wizards had decided to print more enemy-colored lands with basic subtypes, then I would recommend playing one of those instead. As it stands, a Tropical Island should be "up there" with cards worthy of splurging on. But then again, so are all ABUR duals. If you can't afford one, I would recommend playing a basic Island, Yavimaya Coast, or Botanical Sanctum.
Gilded Drake: This card is not very important for the main purpose of the deck. If you can't afford it, you can run a UG creature in its place to trigger Momir Vig, but I would still try to run something to steal high-value cards from opponents. You never know when you need to steal a Turn 2 Hermit Druid from someone.
Painter's Servant: This is a fairly important card to run. I would try to acquire it when possible, though it's not absolutely essential to play the deck. There are not many replacements for this card.
Thrasios, Triton Hero: While not an essential card, it is the best way to generate card advantage and to draw your deck. I would try to get this card when possible. River Hoopoe is an acceptable, albeit much slower replacement if need be.
Mana Crypt/Mox Diamond: In a competitive environment, it is important to be as fast as possible. Fast mana rocks such as these allow you to do just that. Not running them severely impairs your ability to keep up the pace with faster decks. If you have to pick one, go with the Mana Crypt. If you can't afford either, I would recommend playing Nature's Lore or Birds of Paradise instead. Voyaging Satyr works as well, but remember that your wincon in the deck is to untap lands, so you need lots of them on the field!
Mana Drain: Another fantastic card, but one that is not super important to have. You can cut this for Arcane Denial, Disallow, Dissipate, or any other counter you feel you can reasonably run instead.
Force of Will/Pact of Negation/Force of Negation/Flusterstorm/Mana Drain: These counterspells are very important tools to keep your combo safe when you are trying to win the game. If you can only get one, get the Force of Will. If you can't get any, I would recommend running low CMC counterspells instead like Delay, Arcane Denial, and Counterspell.
Survival of the Fittest: This is probably the best tutor for creatures in the game. While it is not a core component of the deck, it is a very powerful card, and if you can get it, I would try to. In dire situations, you can replace it with Fauna Shaman, but the creature version is a lot more fragile, and much slower.
Earthcraft: This is a very important card to have. In this deck, when you swarm the field with creatures, you want to be able to put them to good use in generating high levels of mana. This card allows you to do that. I would not cut this card unless you absolutely had to. Citanul Hierophants or Cryptolith Rite are worse versions of this card if you really can't afford it.
Aluren: While this deck does not need Aluren, having the card can make it bonkers. If you can get it, I would recommend picking a copy up. But it is of a lower priority. Of the three aforementioned reserved list enchantments (Aluren/Earthcraft/Survival) I would personally say that their order of importance should be 1. Earthcraft 2. Survival 3. Aluren.
Sylvan Library: A very useful piece of card advantage, I would prioritize this card fairly early. Mirri's Guile, while still expensive, may be an acceptable replacement.
Timetwister: It is the most expensive card in the deck, bar none. You are not at fault whatsoever if you can't afford to splurge on a piece of Power. If you still want the effect, I would try running Time Spiral or Echo of Eons.
One caution with this card is that it does in fact cost double the amount of mana needed for Timetwister. In tight situations, you may need to cast Twister with less mana open, and Time Spiral doesn't allow you to do that.
Echo of Eons is one of the dicier cards because of its high upfront cost, without the benefit of untapping lands. However, one crucial aspect of this card is its Flashback ability. If you attempt to win with a Hermit Oracle combo (along with Memory's Journey to put cards back into your library), in a worst case scenario, your combo is disrupted before you can draw the Thassa's Oracle to win. In this case, being able to Flashback Echo of Eons can save you the game. This is one data point to consider when examining cards other than Timetwister to fill this role.
Fetchlands of all kinds: Fetchlands make this deck sing. This deck shuffles itself a lot, and as such can support a lot of very good card selection tools that make use of shuffling decks. I would prioritize fetchlands pretty highly. If you can't get them all, then at least get the KTK fetches, because they are cheaper. For the rest, I would run basics, even split of Forests and Islands (so if you're missing a Verdant Catacombs, run a Forest. If a Scalding Tarn, run an Island).
NOTE: This advice on running basics does NOT apply if you are running the Hermit Oracle combo, as you can ONLY run nonbasics. With this in mind, I would play any and all nonbasic lands you can that either provide mana fixing, or come in untapped. The faster your mana, the faster your deck operates, the better off you are.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Please don’t hesitate to ask! Thank you for looking at my primer!
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
If you want to see another source to discover the deck, please check out my Tappedout page!
Removed: Gemstone Caverns, Mental Misstep
Added: Minamo, School at Water's Edge, Memory's Journey
Notes: So this change is pretty much my fault for not reading cards properly. I have been under the impression for years now that Minamo only untapped creatures. Boy was I wrong! I am slotting it in as an untapped blue source, as well as a second Deserted Temple - and sometimes I can untap Prime Speaker Vannifar too! Gemstone Caverns removed because while the early ramp is useful, it is too volatile, and colored sources are incredibly important in this deck. Drawing this card later than the opening hand makes it nearly useless.
Memory's Journey is an important add that enables my combo to be achieved without requiring me to have Thassa's Oracle in my hand at the time. When I activate Hermit Druid to dump my library into the yard, I can Flashback this card to put Oracle back on top of my library during my upkeep, and draw it for the turn, assuring me a win with an empty library.
Removed: Dryad of the Ilysian Grove, High Tide, Shared Summons, Earthcraft, Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir, Prismatic Vista, 5 Forests, 6 Islands
Added: Thassa's Oracle, Hermit Druid, Mental Misstep, Worldly Tutor, Sylvan Tutor, Destiny Spinner, Gemstone Caverns, Dryad Arbor, Botanical Sanctum, Yavimaya Coast, Winding Canyonys, Hinterland Harbor, Ancient Tomb, Mana Confluence, City of Brass, Forbidden Orchard, Reflecting Pool
Notes: Titanic changes to the deck today, bordering on a complete deck overhaul. The addition of the Hermit Oracle package (Hermit Druid + Thassa's Oracle) renders my deck unable to run basic lands, and removes a powerful card in the form of Earthcraft from the list. More lands ETB and are unable to tap for mana that turn (i.e. Dryad Arbor). Fetches have become less useful overall, with only 3 targets in the deck. Arbor Elf and Utopia Sprawl have become less reliable ramp methods.
Overall the changes have brought a measure of speed at the expense of stability. These changes are *not* permanent, either because I may prefer to revert to a more solid gameplan, or I expect Oracle to be hit with a possible ban.
Dryad of the Ilysian Grove is a little too cute for how fast this deck is trying to be. High Tide out with it for Mental Misstep, and lack of Islands.
Earthcraft out for lack of basics, will slot back in if the deck reverts to old form.
Date: 01/24/20
Removed: Maraleaf Pixie, Duskwatch Recruiter, Frilled Mystic, Mental Misstep, Force of Vigor
Added: Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath, Nylea, Keen-Eyed, Dryad of the Ilysian Grove, High Tide, Oko, Thief of Crowns
Notes: Major changes with Theros Beyond Death. Nylea strict upgrade to Duskwatch Recruiter. Dryad of the Ilysian Grove and High Tide pair very well together, both added. Uro promises to be better card advantage/ramp mix than Maraleaf alone. Frilled Mystic too cumbersome to cast with regularity, despite being a creature counter. Force of Vigor replaced with Oko for removing troublesome artifacts and creatures, currently testing.
Removed: Unage the Menagerie, Sakura-Tribe Elder, High Tide
Added: Shared Summons, Maraleaf Pixie, Mental Misstep
Notes: Shared Summons at instant speed is far more effective to grab both pieces of the wincon than Uncage at sorcery speed, which is also restricted to CMC. Maraleaf Pixie serves as a UG creature that also ramps. Misstep replaced High Tide as a test of the card's effectiveness in non-blue metas.
Date: 07/09/19
Removed: Seedborn Muse
Added: Painter's Servant
Notes: The Servant is set free! This is a powerful combo enabler in Momir Vig that is sure to make the deck run much faster. I have temporarily taken out Seeborn Muse, though I may revisit this decision in the future. Seeborn and Azami are two extremely powerful cards that I have taken out and put back in repeatedly, so this may yet change. However, Seeborn was cut because this deck no longer relies on doing things on other people's turns as much as it did back in the Prophet of Kruphix days of old.
Date: 06/25/19
Removed: Azami, Lady of Scrolls, Bramble Sovereign, Venser, Shaper Savant, Nature's Claim, Alchemist's Refuge, Hinterland Harbor, Winding Canyons, Runic Armasaur, Palinchron, Brainstorm, Living Wish, 1 Forest, 1 Island
Added: Force of Vigor, Force of Negation, Waterlogged Grove, Neoform, Elvish Reclaimer, Finale of Devastation, Collector Ouphe, Tamiyo, Collector of Tales, Lotus Field, Prismatic Vista, Priest of Titania, Fyndhorn Elves
Notes: Massive changes over the last several sets! These cards are discussed in more detail in other places, but at the very basic level these cards allow me to protect my combo better (the Forces + Tamiyo), combo off faster (Finale of Devastation), and play fewer lands with the new London mulligan rules!
Date: 02/26/19
Removed: Training Grounds, Birthing Pod, Counterspell
Added: Biomancer's Familiar, Prime Speaker Vannifar, Frilled Mystic
Notes: First update of 2019, and lots of strict upgrades here! Biomancer's Familiar and Prime Speaker Vannifar are both better versions of their noncreature variants, Training Grounds and Birthing Pod, mostly because they are both creatures, and help Momir Vig's game plan all the more. Plus, they are both UG, which makes it even better.
Counterspell and Frilled Mystic is a tough choice at best. Naturally, Counterspell is better because it costs half the CMC of Frilled Mystic, and Mystic is just a harder to cast Mystic Snake. That said, I felt it was necessary to try the Mystic as yet another UG creature, and another counterspell that you can tutor for. Additionally, I am not entirely pleased with Counterspell itself, because while it is the gold standard for counters, it simply does not do enough on its own. I consider this to be one of the few flex spots in the deck, and may switch the two cards again.
Removed: Pir's Whim, Azami, Lady of Scrolls, Chrome Mox, Snapcaster Mage, Harrow, Ponder
Added: Noxious Revival, Beast Whisperer, Flusterstorm, Trophy Mage, Wild Growth, Runic Armasaur
Notes: As last time, these changes are the result of several months of testing and changes. As there are many cards, I will try to keep each description brief.
Pir's Whim proved to be too slow at four mana. Bringing the land in tapped is a real drawback. I have been tempted to try Tempt with Discovery, as it brings the lands in untapped, but that is very risky, and no maindeck Ramunap Excavator increases that risk tremendously.
Chrome Mox was routinely difficult to cast and to take advantage from. I would almost always prefer the card I'd imprint over the Mox. It remains in the list of flex cards, though has been replaced with Noxious Revival for more recursion. Revival offers a very fast and cheap way to bring back lost cards. It also interferes with reanimation-based game plans, and can even stop a Laboratory Maniac from winning.
Beast Whisperer beats out Azami on mana cost and color concentration, and offers a potentially much more powerful way of drawing cards. I'd consider playing both if I felt I really needed the draw.
Flusterstorm is an incredibly powerful counter I should have been running a long time ago. Snapcaster Mage was cut because the lack of Azami and made him less useful, and it is very rare for me to be flashing cards back. He largely became useless.
Harrow was cut for Wild Growth to enable faster combos. Harrow also opened the deck up to getting seriously set back. Countering a ramp spell is one thing. Countering a ramp spell that had us sac a land is really strong.
Trophy Mage was put in to tutor for Cloudstone Curio and Shardless Agent. Curio is an incredibly powerful card that enables very fast combos. It is worth having a dedicated tutor for, especially one that is a creature. Mage had previous synergies with Azami, though that is no longer relevant.
Ponder is a perfectly fine card, but has been temporarily cut for Runic Armasaur for testing purposes. Armasaur is a green creature card, and more creatures is always better in this deck.
Date: 5/27/18
Removed: Jace, Vryn's Prodigy, Ramunap Excavator, Nissa, Vastwood Seer, Glen Elendra Archmage, Carpet of Flowers, Hour of Promise, Autumn's Veil, Familiar's Ruse
Added: Pir's Whim, Spellseeker, Bramble Sovereign, Utopia Sprawl, Llanowar Elves, Arbor Elf, Birds of Paradise, Cloudstone Curio
Notes: These changes are actually the cumulation of several months of changes! I am currently TESTING with Pir's Whim, Llanowar Elves, and Arbor Elf. Birds of Paradise has been useful enough to earn itself a permanent spot in the deck, and I have expanded to two other dorks to test their usefulness. Pir's Whim is a costly card for the effects, but it may end up to prove quite useful nonetheless.
Familiar's Ruse was too limited of a card to be of much use. Hour of Promise was too expensive for the deck. Anything that is CMC 5 must be highly compelling to keep. Glen Elendra Archmage was effectively CMC 5 to make use of its ability, and it did not provide enough payoff to maintain a spot in the deck.
JVP likewise, while useful early on, often found himself flipping into a nearly useless planeswalker. I prefer to keep the loot function over the Walker function. Nissa, Vastwood Seer was often too slow and limited in her utility to be very useful.
While I personally would like to keep Carpet of Flowers and Autumn's Veil, both cards were not useful in my meta. Until there is a resurgence of blue decks, these cards are not quite as useful. Ramunap Excavator earned a cut for testing with mana dorks, but I am quite fond of the Excavator despite.
Bramble Sovereign offers an additional out for making infinite mana to Temur Sabertooth. Spellseeker is an instant/sorcery tutor on a creature, which makes it very versatile. Utopia Sprawl is an excellent bit of ramp and fixing that helps me go infinite more quickly.
Removed: Nissa, Steward of Elements
Added: Growing Rites of Itlimoc
Notes: Growing Rites of Itlimoc is an extraordinarily powerful card to have out when it flips. It is a second Gaea's Cradle, effectively a third or fourth one really (when counting lands such as Deserted Temple and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Hitting four creatures in this deck is relatively easy, and can be done on-curve with casting Growing Rites on turn 3.
The card to cut was a very difficult choice. As a rule of thumb, I do not cut creatures for noncreature spells. I had done that multiple times in the past, and as a result the deck has ended up containing more noncreatures than creatures. While this is not currently an issue, it's not an imbalance I wish to exacerbate further. If I am going to add a noncreature spell, a noncreature spell has to go. To that end, I cut Nissa, Steward of Elements. Like the Nissa, Vital Force she replaced, she was a very good card, but just not quite what I was looking for in this deck. Being a planeswalker leaves her inevitably very vulnerable to attacking, and this is a deck that rarely, if ever blocks at the cost of losing my creatures. As such she often became a 1GU: Scry 2 card, which often is not playable enough. Additionally, Nissa and Growing Rites do somewhat of the same thing: They try to get creatures and mana (through lands/ramp) from my deck and give them to me, either into the hand or onto the field, as card advantage. Ultimately, she was the safest cut to make. Though if the deck was less competitive, I would recommend playing both her and Nissa, Vital Force, as they are superb cards.
Date: 08/29/17
Removed: Commit / Memory, Scroll Rack, Forest
Added: Autumn's Veil, Uncage the Menagerie (testing), Path of Ancestry (testing)
Notes: Commit to Memory was a card that I have not yet had the pleasure of testing with all that much in this deck. However, I am taking it out because after having played with it in other decks, I can tell how unwieldly it can be. Holding up four mana for a counter is never ideal. This is the same reason why I am not placing Cryptic Command back in the deck (the card it had replaced). I am instead putting in Autumn's Veil. It has the dual effect of both protecting my creatures, and keeping my spells uncounterable for a turn. When I'm trying to combo off, this can be absolutely essential. It can even effectively be used as a counterspell itself (countering other counters and targeted removal, which are really the two most important kinds of spells used against this deck). At just G it's a very powerful effect.
Scroll Rack is coming out of the deck honestly for lack of a better card to remove. There are a number of potential candidates to take out as well, but Scroll Rack on its own can be somewhat clunky. This isn't a permanent replacement, and I may later decide to cut something else. Uncage the Menagerie promises to be a very powerful tutor spell, getting me 2 creatures for 2GG, and 3 for 3GG. I believe that's something worth testing with, and look forward to playing with it here.
Finally, I am breaking basic land parity after years of keeping them at 7-7. I am removing one Forest to test with Path of Ancestry. I believe this card has potential merit, despite its drawback. While not for every deck, I believe it can certainly find a home here, so I will be testing with it.
Date: 07/03/17
Removed: Skyshroud Claim, Crucible of Worlds, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Wood Sage (out of sideboard)
Added: Hour of Promise, Ramunap Excavator, Mystic Remora, River Hoopoe (into sideboard)
Notes: These are my HOUR OF DEVASTATION changes! I have made a few changes, and will continue to make changes as need be. First off, I have added Hour of Promise in lieu of Skyshroud Claim. Both cards serve similar purposes for similar mana costs: To ramp me up. While Skyshroud does cost 1 less and brings the lands in untapped, it is limited to fetching only Forests. Hour of Promise allows me to get any two lands I wish. This has proved to be very powerful in testing. My most common targets are Gaea's Cradle and Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. Often I am also persuaded to get cards like Deserted Temple, or Alchemist's Refuge or Winding Canyons. Whatever the case, after casting this card, victory is close at hand. The lands I am able to get are so powerful, that it becomes very easy to win within a turn - or if I have a Cloud of Faeries available to untap the lands, I can win right there and then in most situations. While paying 4G is a lot, I believe it is justified in this case for this deck.
I have removed Crucible of Worlds for a strict upgrade to Ramunap Excavator. In this deck, creatures matter. They are tutorable, they add devotion, they tap for mana with Earthcraft, and they add to Gaea's Cradle. There was no debate - this is a very good improvement in the overall consistency of the deck.
Finally, today I have to say goodbye to one of my favorite planeswalkers (of which I have an absolutely amazing alter, which makes this all the more difficult to do). JTMS is finally coming out of the deck for now, after having been in here since nearly the beginning. In competitive matchups, Jace is just a little too slow to be effective. Almost universally, Jace acts as a 4 mana Brainstorm, and a diversion for one turn. This ends up hardly being worth the slot. I have opted to test with Mystic Remora instead. While I have been previously skeptical of the card (largely due to the upkeep cost), I believe this card is able to provide a large amount of advantage with relatively little input. 4 is a very heavy tax, and with the high quantity of noncreature spells in EDH, this card will certainly work wonders in the long run.
I am currently considering other cards for the main deck. Autumn's Veil, Uncage the Menagerie, and Prowling Serpopard from the sideboard. I will keep this post updated if I end up making any permanent cuts one way or another.
Finally, as for sideboard notes, Wood Sage has come out for River Hoopoe. Wood Sage was always an abysmal card, and I kept it in the sideboard just to have access to a UG creature in case I needed to trigger Momir Vig like that for some reason. River Hoopoe allows me to trigger Momir Vig for the same mana cost (just GU) while providing a much more useful ability: It is an infinite mana sink. Granted, it's much worse than either Thrasios, Triton Hero or Duskwatch Recruiter, but there is a reason why it isn't in the mainboard.
Date: 06/09/17
Removed: Oracle of Mul Daya, Strip Mine
Added: Carpet of Flowers, Deserted Temple
Notes: Oracle of Mul Daya has consistently been an okay card for me. It has only ever served as a tutor target when I have nothing else to be doing at the time, or want to use it as sacrifice fodder through Birthing Pod. At CMC 4, plus the cost of revealing information to my opponents, I do not believe that I get enough utility out of it to warrant its current spot in the deck.
Carpet of Flowers was a card recommended to me by several cEDH players. I have been doubtful about its utility in the past, but I will give it a try. I am not glad about replacing a creature with a noncreature spell, even if it represents a decrease in curve (from CMC 4 to CMC 1). If I am not happy with the card, or feel that I need to go back up on creature count, I will be replacing it.
I am testing Deserted Temple as another high-value land that can enable great acceleration with Cradle/Nykthos on the field. I cut Strip Mine temporarily while I look for another suitable land to replace it with. I am not sold on unbalancing my basic split (which is currently 7/7) nor am I in favor of adding another colorless source for a colored one. Strip Mine is undoubtedly a fantastic card, but I am not sure about its necessary utility unless I'm playing against a Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale or something similarly obnoxious. If I feel I am dealing with too many other value lands (such as an opponent's Gaea's Cradle/Serra's Sanctum/Cabal Coffers) then I'll put it back in, but for now I think I can do without.
Date: 04/19/17 - Amonkhet changes
Removed: Azusa, Lost but Seeking, Nissa, Vital Force, Cryptic Command
Added: Vizier of the Menagerie, Nissa, Steward of Elements, Prowling Serpopard (to SB), Commit / Memory (testing)
Notes: I'm going to talk about the Nissas first, since I have a lot to say about the Vizier. Nissa, Vital Force has always been a fantastic card for me. She protects herself (and you) by making a 5/5, she's a Nature's Spiral when you need it, and she ults just the turn after coming down. You can't lose the game after getting "Landfall: Draw a card" as an emblem unless you're actively trying to do so. Five mana was always difficult to stomach for all of that though. She is definitely designed for a slower deck, though definitely useful. I'm quite sorry to see her go, and will try to find room for her again if the new Nissa proves unworthy, or if there's another card I can cut.
Nissa, Steward of Elements is an interesting card. Most people would say that her flexibility affords her to be good both early and late in the game. I believe that varies a little. With the extra topdeck manipulation I've put into the deck lately (Ponder and Brainstorm, which now adds onto Sensei's Divining Top, Sylvan Library, Scroll Rack, and incidentally Oracle of Mul Daya/Vizier, and of course Momir Vig), I will be able to make better use of her. The most valuable loyalty you can have her at is probably 3, or 5 as a catch-all. 3 hits the majority of cards in the deck (lands, and creatures at CMC <4). A turn 3 Nissa should usually +2 to set up the draws for the next turn, and allow you to flip into lands you need to ramp up faster. For now, I will continue to test her, but she seems to be quite useful.
Notes on Vizier of the Menagerie. This card is almost certainly one of the best cards printed for Momir Vig probably since Prophet of Kruphix (RIP). I was upbeat on Rashmi when she came out, and she ultimately proved to be subpar, but this card is the real deal. Vizier allows you to use green creatures effectively as UG creatures when Vig is on the field. To give an example, normally after casting Vig, I would like to get and cast Prophet when she was still legal. In order to set up the Prophet effect now, I have to get Seedborn Muse and then Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir. Seedborn only puts Teferi on top of my library, and when I untap, I don't have access to him, and end up wasting a whole turn cycle with Seedborn just sitting there, because I can't flash things in. Vizier gets around that problem for me.
One of the most deadly combos in the deck is Vizier and Aluren. If I have a Gaea's Cradle or Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx on the field (or Crop Rotation/Tolaria West in hand to get them) and I've just successfully resolved Vizier and Aluren with Vig on the field, I will win this turn. Otherwise, I can just flood the board immediately with just about any creature I want, or all of my creatures if I want.
Vizier's last ability can also prove incidentally useful. Often, early on in the game I've had access to 3 blue sources, but a Mystic Snake and a counterspell up. Wanting to be able to use both counters, Vizier lets me cast Mystic Snake without having to worry about the UU cost. More importantly, I can make infinite mana with Palinchron/Phantasmal Image without having to worry about hitting 4x U or more. While this ability isn't always relevant, being able to cast a Palinchron you just tutored for with just a Cradle activation has its uses. This card has earned a permanent spot in the deck, unless they (somehow) manage to print something objectively better.
Azusa, Lost but Seeking was cut because she was always an iffy card. Very good in the early game, or when I was lucky enough to have her + Crucible of Worlds + fetchland, she would be an otherwise dead draw late game, 9/10 times just being read as "2G: Activiate Momir Vig's green trigger." When you get her early, and you draw the nearly perfect 7, she can enable a lot of blazingly fast kills. But I'm not sure that is worth keeping her around for.
Prowling Seropopard has earned a spot in the sideboard. I don't always want uncounterable creature spells (if I'm playing against non-blue decks) but if I do, I can go get it with Living Wish. It will probably go into the deck if the players don't want me playing with a sideboard (and I have to take Living Wish out).
And finally, I am testing Commit // Memory over Cryptic Command. The goal of using counterspells in this deck is to protect my combo, or to ensure others can't combo of so that I can. To that end, as long as I can get rid of their threat for a little bit, I can take the time to set up to win the game. Cryptic gives me an opportunity to counter + cantrip most of the time. This spell does essentially the same thing (minus the cantrip) but also allows me to bounce nonland permanents and tuck them. Cryptic doesn't let me do that. I also save on colors, as this requires only 3U to cast, whereas Cryptic costs 1UUU.
Notice that I have yet to mention the Aftermath part of this card. It's important to evaluate the first half of the card alone, and compare it to Cryptic. If the card ONLY had "Commit" on it, then I wouldn't play it over Cryptic. However, it also offers the incidental chance to get a Timetwister effect if you need it. So I will be testing this card to see where it takes me. I may be very unimpressed, but I may also be very impressed.
Date: 04/16/17
Removed: Traverse the Ulvenwald, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter, Command Beacon (to SB)
Added: Ponder, Venser, Shaper Savant (from the SB), Brainstorm
Notes: Traverse has always been a so-so card for me. Sometimes it's really great, I hit Delirium very easily, and I can go get my Cradle/Nykthos/Palinchron/you name it without much effort. Most of the time though, it's a very slow card, and basically just a Lay of the Land (fetch a basic). My GY doesn't get too full, and when it does get full enough, it's usually Land + Creature + Instant, and remains stuck at that point until I get an artifact or enchantment killed, or a non-flip Walker dead, or cast one of my very few sorceries. Basically, not enough opportunities present themselves to hit Delirium in this deck, and so Traverse is only situationally good. When it's good, it's REALLY good, but when it's not good, it's pretty bad. So I've decided to cut it for a card that increases my consistency.
I've always been skeptical of 1-mana cantrips in EDH, but I've been skeptical of many things in the past that have turned out to be fantastic (Birthing Pod for example). I used to have Brainstorm in the deck, and I am considering putting it back in soon. For now, a Ponder will get the job done for me. Should increase my consistency enough and turn on some mono G creature tutors when Vig is on the field. Topdeck manipulation is a great asset in this deck, and anything I can do to better aid that goal is a plus in my book.
Also I realized I can't realistically keep part of my win condition in the sideboard (Venser), and so I've cut Rashmi, a cute but sadly under-performing card. I like it a lot, but it always became a question of "Can I do something better instead of tutoring for/drawing this card?" The answer was almost always yes.
Finally, I'm testing going to 33 lands and adding a Brainstorm. This may increase, or this may significantly decrease my consistency. Only time will tell. Moved Command Beacon to the Board because it's only situationally useful, and more often than not I'd prefer a colored source.
NOTE: I HAVE PLENTY OF NEW CARDS TO TEST FROM AMONKHET, SO EXPECT MORE UPDATES SOON!
Date: 03/25/17
Removed: Arcane Denial
Added: Familiar's Ruse
Notes: Arcane Denial is one of the most notorious and hotly-debated counterspells in cEDH. At 1U, a hard counter is difficult to argue with, but the fact that it gives your opponent two cards at times may be very troublesome. Its own replacement is delayed by a turn, which may at times be disadvantageous to you.
As a creature-based deck, I highly value being able to cast my creatures again and again. As such, I've decided to test Familiar's Ruse instead of Arcane Denial, since bouncing a creature back to my hand can often be very useful. Obviously the counter is harder to cast at UU, and is conditioned upon having a creature you can actually bounce, which may end up making things worse for me. I will test thoroughly, and if I'm dissatisfied, I will slot Arcane Denial back in.
Date: 02/28/17
Moved to Sideboard: Venser, Shaper Savant
Added: Living Wish
Notes: I have decided to run Living Wish in the deck. This is a meta call, and some groups won't allow me to play with a 10-card sideboard. However, in those that do, I believe it may be beneficial to have access to a slew of other cards that are useful in the deck that I don't necessarily need in the deck itself. Quick rundown through the current sideboard:
Venser, Shaper Savant: Wins me the game by bouncing everyone's permanents. Probably the least important piece of the infinite mana sink, so I can afford to move him elsewhere (since the same effect can be achieved through Cyclonic Rift).
Tajuru Preserver: Something to get whenever I'm playing against a Thrax deck or other decks that like Grave Pact and such. There are a number of decks in my meta that like those. Living Death is a very popular card too.
Consecrated Sphinx: One of those cards to get when I may simply need to turn my Living Wish into something, anything useful.
Deadeye Navigator: Redundancy. If someone exiles my Temur Sabertooth, I can go and get this guy.
Riftsweeper: Gets my important things out of exile. If I already have infinite mana and need to recycle my Living Wish, it also gets the Wish back, letting me use it multiple times.
Homeward Path: Gilded Drake and Treachery make a number of appearances in metas I have played in, as well as other means of stealing people's creatures. I would sometimes like my stuff back.
Vesuva: When I need that extra mana and have drawn Living Wish early, lets me copy value lands such as Nykthos or Cradle. EDIT: Realized that the legend rule would prevent this. It's not great.
Walking Ballista: This one is in consideration, but it's an infinite mana outlet to win the game with on the spot. Probably used as a backup wincon in case I don't have time/access to Shaman of Forgotten Ways for any reason.
Date: 02/13/17
Removed: Clever Impersonator, Voidslime
Added: Training Grounds, High Tide
Notes: I always love reducing the curve of my deck, especially when I get to do so by playing excellent cards. Streamlines the deck and makes it faster. And the two cards I've added make that doubly true! High Tide allows me to go infinite with just 3 islands and another land when I've got Palinchron + Image. I do need another blue source to cast the High Tide in the first place, so that usually means having a Mox or a Fifth land, but that's still turns earlier than hitting 7 lands hard. It also helps me accelerate when I want to do multiple things in a turn.
Training Grounds came as a spark of ingenuity to me. I was watching a Youtube video where a Tasigur player was able to recur his Palinchron + Image combo for just 1UUU. It then occurred to me that all of my wincons in the deck rely on activated abilities of creatures. Pro: It means I can play Training Grounds very beneficially! Cons: Watch out for Linvala, Keeper of Silence and Suppression Field. Also goes great with my Duskwatch Recruiter (activates for just G!) and Thrasios, Triton Hero (Activates for just 2!). As always, additions are subject to testing, but I'm pretty confident I'll be happy with these.
As for cuts, those were even tougher than last time. I agonized for a while over what I should cut, as I am currently pretty satisfied with just about every card in the deck. I ultimately came to realize that Clever Impersonator is only a target for tutor if and when I'm trying to copy an Ugin or Karn to get back from wayyy behind. I've never needed him otherwise. This brings my saga of running multiple clone effects from 4 way back when (Progenitor Mimic, Clever Impersonator, Phyrexian Metamorph, Phantasmal Image) to just one, the Image itself, which will never be cut from the deck unless they somehow print a strictly better one.
I am extremely disappointed to see Voidslime go. Mostly because I have the sweet, sweet full art one. But it was either that or Cryptic Command (another full-art!) and Cryptic is quite a bit better than Voidslime. I may switch it back in later on, but for now it looks like I'll have one less full-art.
Date: 02/09/17
Removed: Consecrated Sphinx
Added: Swan Song
Notes: This was one of the most difficult cuts I've had to make in a long time. There were a few cards on the chopping block up for consideration. Voidslime and Cryptic Command in terms of counters, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter and Con Sphinx for non-counters, among others. I am truly not sure about this cut, and I may revisit it in favor of another card. Swan Song I think is a great addition to the deck, and I am glad to have decided to play it. The only question here was with regard to what card it was to replace.
I settled on Con Sphinx because it is ultimately a win-more card. Once I have established a board position, the additional card advantage is almost never necessary for me to win. I can draw more than enough cards with Azami, Lady of Scrolls and all my wizards. Plus, with Seedborn Muse, I draw on everyone's turns. Con Sphinx only ever served 4 primary purposes in the deck:
I'm not saying this was the correct cut, I'm just trying to outline my line of thinking. I may revisit this in the future. If I decide I do need something to help me get back from behind, I may go for the Time Spiral instead of the Sphinx again. Feedback and opinions are always appreciated.
Date: 02/05/2017
Removed: Edric, Spymaster of Trest
Added: Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
Notes: I have been considering JVP for the longest time. It is an early loot effect, and a wizard to boot. I feel that his usefulness in the deck is worth testing out. I have previously been skeptical of some additions, and later found them to be much-needed staples (Phantasmal Image anyone?). To that end, he is going to be tested with for the time being.
The cuts in the deck were between Edric, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter, and Consecrated Sphinx. I'm not 100% sure I made the right decision in cutting Edric, as all three cards have their downsides. I may even cut a noncreature spell instead. Everything merits testing. Edric I have never really needed on the field, he's always just "been there" to no apparent use. I never go to tutor for him, and providing card advantage to opponents is iffy at best. He existed in the deck to try and deter people from attacking me. Everyone already knows that I'm the first to kill when playing against this deck.
Other notes: Considering cutting Voidslime for Swan Song. Need to re-acquire Meekstone for the deck SB, I feel it may be very good in certain matchups (was put down to 8 life today, held there for several turns before I was able to combo off and win!) Ensuring my ability to protect myself from attacks is vital.
Date: 01/29/17
Removed: Rishkar, Peema Renegade, Lightning Greaves
Added: Aluren, Cloud of Faeries
Notes: I've decided to add an Aluren package to the deck. Normally you pair it with something like Cloudstone Curio to immediately make infinite mana with the Cloud of Faeries + any other creature with CMC <4, but Curio is a bit too bulky to run in the deck. Likewise, having to rely on two noncreatures to get going (Aluren and Curio) significantly reduces the odds of me being able to play the combo consistently, since I have no way of tutoring for these cards. Rather than rely on a Curio, I prefer to rely on one of my two critical lands: Cradle and Nykthos. Given the right setup, I can go infinite with these lands even without Aluren. With Cradle tapping for 4, all I need is Temur Sabertooth, the Cloud of Faeries, and a single Island, and I can make infinite mana of both colors. With Nykthos, I can make infinite as long as I have 6 green or blue devotion. With Aluren, costs become reduced even further, allowing me to go infinite with just Aluren + Cloud + Sabertooth + Nykthos.
This is all going to be tested with, but even alone, I think that the Cloud of Faeries and the Aluren are two very powerful combo pieces that definitely warrant trying out.
I cut Rishkar because I haven't been satisfied with him. He either comes down too early or too late, rarely on time. Lightning Greaves only ever existed to A. Provide protection to key creatures (Momir Vig, Seedborn Muse, Azami) or B. To allow me to cast and activate Shaman of Forgotten Ways immediately. (A) is covered by Kira, Great Glass-Spinner and Sylvan Safekeeper. (B) is covered by the fact that, if I'm in the position to win with Shaman, I have already bounced everyone's fields of permanents at instant speed by recurring Venser, Shaper Savant. If I can do that at instant speed already, I can just let another turn cycle go by before activating Shaman, rendering the Greaves unnecessary.
EDIT 2/2/17: After some testing, I just figured out that with the new additions, I can achieve a turn-2 kill in the deck. It requires a nearly perfect hand, with some flexibility, but this wasn't previously possible in the deck. So far, I am very much liking the changes I've made to the deck.
Date: 01/23/17
Removed: Riftsweeper
Added: Rishkar, Peema Renegade
Notes: I have a bunch of value creatures that don't do anything themselves once they're sitting on the field. Coiling Oracle, Shardless Agent, and Reclamation Sage are just a few examples. I am trying to put them to use with Rishkar, and see if I can turn a turn 3 play into +2 mana. Currently testing.
Date: 01/08/17
Removed: Krosan Grip
Added: Riftsweeper
Notes: For the time being, have put Riftsweeper in to ensure that my Palinchron can never be permanently dealt with. May change in the future.
Added: Cavern of Souls
Removed: Ancient Tomb
Notes: I deal with enough counter magic in my group that I'd like to be able to cast my commander (an elf-wizard) or my other wizards, shamans, elves, snakes, illusions, you name it, unmolested. While this isn't a tribal deck, a lot of the important pieces share creature types, so it's really something of a "name a type you need at that particular moment" thing. Plus, it's another valuable land that may eat my opponent's Strip Mine before I play the very important lands (Cradle/Nykthos/Alchemist's Refuge/Winding Canyons).
I dislike disrupting the balance of Forests and Islands I currently have in the deck, so I went with cutting Ancient Tomb. Not sold on the idea though, if I find that my game plan really calls for the +2 colorless on turn 2, then I'll take a Forest out instead. For now though, I'll take it as it is. But hey, this is a deck that I've considered cutting Command Tower in, if they print a good enough dual to replace it with (such as enemy colored Battle lands), so really anything is possible.
A small note on my methodology when it comes to lands: One of the reasons this deck is reliably faster than most others I play with is because I have a strict requirement that all my lands can come in untapped. The only exception I run is Tolaria West, because being able to tutor for important lands or Pact of Negation is too sweet not to run (also I don't count Hinterland Harbor, that's practically a guarantee to come in untapped with 14 basics and 2 duals in the deck). I don't really have this as a hard rule for most of my other decks, but when it comes to Vig, if my lands aren't able to be tapped the turn I play them, then I'm not accelerating my game plan quickly enough.
Date: 11/01/16
Removed: Meekstone
Added: Thrasios, Triton Hero
Notes: One of the recurring issues in the deck without Prophet is that sequencing the order in which I play my primary wincon setup cards can be difficult. After playing Momir Vig, between Seedborn, Teferi, and Azami, which do I want to play first? Teferi gives me some protection, but doesn't really do anything by himself. Azami and Vig each let me draw one card between this turn and next, but is that enough value? And Seedborn sets up for me to draw my next card with a Vig green trigger, but on its own, it really doesn't do much.
Enter Thrasios, Triton Hero. Like Duskwatch Recruiter, Thrasios lets me sink unused mana in a productive way. Except this guy can also ramp me and help me get ahead on future turns. His activation cost is steep, but he's really there to be a cheap Vig activation, an infinite mana sink, or something to curve into Seedborn With.
I cut Meekstone because it didn't quite seem to do all that much in recent games. That isn't to say it isn't a useful card; it has stopped me and my opponents dead in our tracks when others play the card. But I tend to combo out quickly enough that a few creatures attacking me doesn't make a large difference. It's a plenty good card, and if I feel I'm being pressured again, I'll put it back in, but for now I don't think I need it.
Date: 10/03/16
Removed: Brainstorm
Added: Sensei's Divining Top
Notes: Took Brainstorm out in favor of Top, keeping in Scroll Rack. The Rack is definitely high performance, and I highly recommend it.
Date: 09/20/16
Removed: Sensei's Divining Top
Added: Scroll Rack
Notes: After reading through a r/cEDH thread on the two cards, I'm convinced that Scroll Rack deserves testing over Top. I had originally avoided using the Rack due to some of its limitations: can only use it once per turn, costs 3 to cast and activate as opposed to 2, and much easier to remove. But realizing that this is a deck that shuffles itself constantly (I almost spend more time shuffling than I do playing haha) Scroll Rack seems like a very solid card to play with. I wasn't sure whether to cut Top or Brainstorm, but went with Top for now. My cuts may change after testing.
Date: 09/14/16
Removed: Deadeye Navigator
Added: Temur Sabertooth
Notes: I've been looking to find a reason to cut DEN for a while now. As a card, it is a powerful combo enabler that allows you to go infinite with Palinchron, or really, any ETB creature. Overall though, at 6 Mana he's a rather bulky card that does nothing much on his own, and is an awkward draw before I'm ready to combo off. I'm testing with replacing him with Temur Sabertooth, as it is cheaper, is a green creature (triggers Vig in a more useful manner) and still does all of the same things that DEN does, albeit in a slightly more roundabout manner. Again, this is just testing, and if it becomes too cumbersome, I'll be sure to slot DEN back in.
Date: 09/02/16
Removed: Yisan, the Wanderer Bard, Vendilion Clique, Magus of the Future
Added: Rashmi, Eternities Crafter; Nissa, Vital Force; Duskwatch Recruiter
Notes: Kaladesh spoilers! This post will continue to be updated as different cards are released and evaulated.
Rashmi is absolutely amazing and an all-star. Nissa's ability is also very strong and deserves testing. Currently testing with both cuts, things may change in the future.
Duskwatch Recruiter has been a card that I've been angling to test ever since it came out! Pulled out Yisan for the moment being, but cutting cards at any time at this level is always difficult; all the cards in the deck are so good that it's tough to say what does and doesn't truly belong.
Date: 09/01/16
Removed: Yavimaya Coast
Added: Winding Canyons
Notes: One of the reasons this deck was so powerful during the time of Prophet of Kruphix is because of its unique ability to chain creatures together on others' turns. With Prophet and Vig on the field together, my go-to plan was usually to next fetch Azami, providing 3 cards for every player's turn and the ability to continue chaining creatures together (UG into UG without having to worry about running out of creatures.) Without Prophet, the job of untapping falls to Seedborn Muse. Having a second Alchemist's Refuge effect in the deck (or close to it, restricted to creatures only) on a land is very useful and greatly increases the chances of me encountering the effect in any given game.
Am currently testing with removing Yavimaya Coast; may come to remove Ancient Tomb instead in due course. Not many lands in this deck are easily substitutable, so being very selective about what you take out and put in is crucial.
Date: 07/31/16
Removed: Monastery Siege
Added: Eldritch Evolution
Notes: Despite it being a great card, one of the initial reasons I removed Rhystic Study from the deck a while ago was because it was too slow. Monastery Siege now goes for the same reasons. I rarely ever wanted to use the second ability, since people most often prefer to just wrath or cast Toxic Deluge, to which that particular ability is useless. So about 9/10 times it was a 2U enchantment that let me loot every turn. While this isn't so bad, it's not what this deck wants to do. This deck needs to be fast with the kill, because if you wait around too long, others will take you out or take the win. Monastery Siege doesn't help you do that, but Eldritch Evolution is an amazing tutor card, and will definitely serve to speed up the game significantly.
Date: 05/11/16
Removed: Kiora, Master of the Depths
Added: Timetwister
Notes: After much twisting, turning, and deliberation, I've decided to pick up my first ever piece of Power, exclusively for this deck. It will be a great joy to cast this in the deck, and I look forward to abusing its power quite often in my games of EDH. Kiora, while she was a great bit of card advantage, didn't do enough to justify her presence in the deck, particularly at such a high mana cost.
Date: 05/05/16
Removed: Riftsweeper, Prime Speaker Zegana
Added: Reclamation Sage, Vendilion Clique
Notes: Sage is too useful not to run. Riftsweeper highly situational, though my playgroup does play a lot of Planechase EDH, so I may keep it in just to deal with nonsense when we get on The Talon Gates (the plane that lets you suspend things from your hand for free).
Prime Speaker, a powerful card, was ultimately too slow and bulky. At 6 mana, I need more of an effect than drawing 3 cards (most of my creatures are power 2 or less). Replaced with Clique for testing, good for dealing with control matchups and other decks that might have answers, and sometimes good to get new cards for myself too.
Date: 04/28/16
Removed: Forgotten Creation, Reclamation Sage
Added: Skyshroud Claim, Nature's Claim
Notes: Creation not as useful as initially indicated. Yisan still being tested. Cut Sage down for Nature's Claim, the CMC 1 is far more useful. May cut something else to put Reclamation Sage back in, still testing.
Date: 04/13/16
Removed: Phyrexian Metamorph
Added: Yisan, the Wanderer Bard
Notes: Yisan shows a lot of promise, and while I originally discounted him, I think I'd find myself in situations where I cast him and then drop a Seedborn and go to town. I cut the Metamorph because honestly, I didn't really know what to cut, so I went for a redundant clone effect. This is all testing so far.
Forgotten Creation seems to be testing well, Traverse the Ulvenwald needs some work to get going, but is almost always live by the time I can cast a Snapcaster to flash it back.
Date: 04/03/16
Removed: Sylvan Scrying, Skyshroud Claim, Thada Adel, Acquisitor
Added: Sylvan Safekeeper, Traverse the Ulvenwald, Forgotten Creation
Notes: Testing with Forgotten Creation. Reloading your hand seems pretty solid when you need to dig deeper for better cards. Traverse basically has Sylvan Scrying beat in every way, and Delirium is not difficult to turn on. Sylvan Safekeeper is a wizard, is green, and is only CMC 1, and protects my guys. Something I'm testing with, but it's all I could ask for in a creature really.
Skyshroud Claim was a little too bulky, particularly as a sorcery. I really love the card, but we'll see how I do without the occasional ramp spell (down to just one now, Harrow, which is more for color fixing anyway.)
Date: 03/20/16
Removed: Loaming Shaman (to SB)
Added: Riftsweeper
Notes: These two are basically interchangable cards. Sometimes you need things from exile, sometimes you need things from the graveyard. Depends on what you're playing against. May move both to the sideboard.
Date: 03/12/16
Removed: Primal Growth, Remand, Mystic Confluence
Added: Chrome Mox, Mox Diamond, Meekstone
Notes: Now that my primary untapping engine is Seedborn Muse, I can now afford to run the super fast Mox ramp in the deck, because she untaps artifacts too. As such, I've made the decision to speed my deck up considerably by running these two Moxen. Primal Growth removed, but Skyshroud Claim may come out instead. The extra ramp is not as necessary now that I have these faster starters.
Mystic Confluence, while a very powerful card, was too bulky. Holding up a counter at 5 mana when most of my deck needs to be doing more important things (Casting Vig, Seedborn, Teferi, etc etc) is not what I want to be doing. Cryptic Command is already pushing it, but it's far too good to cut. Mystic Confluence has been cut.
Remand replaced with Meekstone for testing. 23/30 creatures (not count 3 clones and Gilded Drake) are < 3 power. This puts my deck at a structural advantage over others. Not pulling the trigger on the foil yet, as that's over $50.
Date: 02/21/16
Removed: Temur Sabertooth, Mental Misstep
Added: Thada Adel, Acquisitor, Remand
Notes: Both removed cards severely underperforming. More times than not they simply didn't do anything for me, or were dead draws. Thada Adel always presents a reliable threat, even against non-blue decks. Remand is being tested with for the tempo advantage.
Date: 02/03/16
Removed: Island
Added: Ancient Tomb
Notes: And that's not just because I got an EXP Ancient Tomb, which I totally did. I figure the usefulness of a 2 mana land early on is rather relevant, even if it is colorless. Definitely will be testing with it.
I also realized that Prophet of Kruphix changed my deckbuilding fundamentally. As in, I ran very little artifact ramp (only Sol Ring and Mana Crypt, the obvious inclusions) because they did not untap with Prophet, and thus my mana would be locked down between turns. However, Seedborn takes care of this issue by untapping all of my permanents. While I don't see myself running more artifacts in the future (I'd rather run more mana dorks) it was an interesting observation to come across.
Date: 02/01/16
Removed: Null Rod, Thada Adel, Acquisitor
Added: Monastery Siege, Temur Sabertooth
Notes: Am currently testing the waters of keeping the two removed cards in the sideboard instead of main. Also testing effectiveness of the Siege and Sabertooth in keeping up my card advantage and protecting my creatures/reusing their Vig triggers.
Date: 01/23/16
Removed: Wistful Selkie
Added: Sylvan Scrying
Notes: With Prophet now gone, it's more imperative to have the mana required to operate at peak efficiency, and this means getting my Cradle/Nykthos with increased reliability. Selkie was replaced because, despite adding a significant amount of devotion of both colors, it is nonetheless a bit of a bulky card for a cantrip at 3 mana.
Date: 01/18/16
Today my favorite card, and the card that got me into the EDH format, was banned. Prophet of Kruphix has now been relegated to the sideboard, to be used in competitive games where all players are willing to play with her. She will be sorely missed. Replaced with Seedborn Muse. The combo is now slower (must assemble Momir Vig, Seedborn, and Teferi now) and must be shored up in other meaningful ways. Stay tuned for a potential deck re-evaluation.
Other notes:
Removed: Maze of Ith
Added: Island
Notes: Needed greater access to blue fixing. With 60% of the deck now being blue, and the most important blue cards being UUU, having the extra blue producing land helps ensure that I am able to hit my target of going from UG, to GG, to UUU, to UUUUU all within 2-3 turns of each other.
Removed: Riftsweeper
Added: Null Rod
Notes: After playing a game where one of my most common opponents went Mana Crypt -> Sol Ring -> Mana Vault -> Gilded Lotus, I was convinced that playing a card like Null Rod was absolutely necessary. Riftsweeper's performance has been less than satisfactory, and while it may be useful every once in a while, the vast majority of times it was just a bear that activated Momir Vig, which doesn't really do much for me. This change is definitely a meta call, but Null Rod seems to be a solid way of preventing artifact ramp and slowing other decks down significantly.
Date: 12/06/15
Removed: Argothian Elder
Added: Primal Growth
Notes: Argothian Elder was never a card I was happy to see in the opening hand. Paying four mana for what was most of the time a +two-mana dork was totally off curve, and not worth it most of the time. He did have some nice synergies with some cards (Nykthos/Cradle, infinite instant speed mana with Maze of Ith + another land) and fit right into the curve of Poding into Prophet of Kruphix, but overall he just felt like a sore thumb in the deck, not quite fitting in.
Primal Growth I am testing because of its ever so valuable clause of lands coming into play untapped. This effectively makes it a 2 mana card, and sometimes even 1. I also recently realized how it is absolutely necessary for me to have a minimum of FOUR blue land sources in order to go infinite with Deadeye Navigator + Palinchron , and FIVE if I want to do it with Palinchron alone (which is easier to pull off). Having more ability to fetch out two Islands, in addition to Harrow (already in the deck) and having them come in untapped (early turn counter magic shields up) makes it a very convincing card to test. In all my sample hands I've gotten lucky with draws (Turn 1/2 Caustic Caterpillar into this is sweet) but so far I've been decently impressed.
Also, I'm pleased to say that this change has dropped my deck's average CMC to just 3.00! I'm very glad with this, because the lower the CMC, the faster the deck.
Date: 11/25/15
Removed: Primordial Sage
Added: Azami, Lady of Scrolls
Notes: While this does increase the amount of triple blue I need in the deck (already heavy from Cryptic Command, Teferi, Magus of the Future), I've been testing with Azami and she seems like a more reliable card drawing creature than Primordial Sage, at cheaper CMC too. I wouldn't feel bad about tutoring for her with Prophet on the field and no other creatures in hand, as she will be drawing me 1-3 cards per turn guaranteed when she resolves (Momir + Prophet + Azami = 3 wizards). Primordial Sage requires 6 mana and another creature to be effective, whereas Azami gets right to work. This may incentivize me to keep certain wizards that otherwise might be underperforming (Magus of the Future/Teferi, or Wistful Selkie) but that remains to be seen. My biggest concern is reliably hitting UUU by turn 5, and UUUUU by the time I'm ready to win the game (Palinchron going infinite in both G and U requires a minimum of five lands tapping for blue). This may require more mana tweaking in the future.
Date: 11/12/15
Removed: Trygon Predator, Blighted Woodland, Kodama's Reach, Kruphix, God of Horizons
Added: Mystic Confluence, Command Beacon, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Mental Misstep
Notes: Trygon Predator was extremely unreliable as artifact removal. He was never necessary when he was down, and otherwise always late to the party (had to wait a turn cycle to get rid of the problem permanent, and would often be gotten rid of by then.)
Blighted Woodland underperformed as a ramp spell, my turn after casting Prophet could be often used much more profitably, and if I didn't have Prophet out, spending a turn on Explosive Vegetation was almost never the correct play. Beacon is a much more solid staple.
Sakura-Tribe Elder does the same thing I want Kodama's Reach for (ramp, not putting lands in my hand) at a cheaper CMC. Late game, it's more advantageous as a draw, as it triggers Vig. Chump blockers are always useful too.
Am testing Mental Misstep and Mystic Confluence. Both seem like very solid counters (free and modular respectively) that I couldn't pass up on.
Kruphix, God of Horizons was rarely ever more than just a Momir Vig triggerer. He rarely contributed any meaningful presence on the board, since my hand is rarely more than a few cards unless I'm about to win, at which point it doesn't matter, and floating mana through turns is unnecessary in the majority of cases with Prophet out.
Date: 11/10/15
Removed: Acidic Slime
Added: Caustic Caterpillar
Notes: 5 mana was too much to pay for artifact and enchantment removal, and the land destruction was incidental at best. Deathtouch is actually entirely irrelevant. Having the cheapest Vig activator in my deck (CMC 1) and spending a total of 3 mana to blow an artifact/enchantment is just fine for me.
Date: 10/31/15
Removed: Karametra's Acolyte
Added: Birthing Pod
Notes: Acolyte seems to underperform compared to Argothian Elder, and two mana dorks at CMC 4 is too much. Am testing Birthing Pod, seems promising in the deck despite early skepticism.
Date: 10/30/15
Removed: Seedborn Muse
Added: Argothian Elder
Notes: Seedborn Muse was underperforming. Never a card I was happy to see, because without any other requisite bonuses (like the ability to flash things in) the untapping effect was pretty dead. With less mana rocks than ever before, Seedborn has been more and more just a 2/4. The Elder on the other hand offers the potential to go infinite with Maze of Ith, and besides is a high value mana dork.
Date: 10/21/15
Removed: Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
Added: Loaming Shaman
Notes: Kozilek was originally put in the deck due to GY recursion, synergizing well with Survival of the Fittest. At 10 CMC and no Vig activation, he is more often than not simply used for "Draw 4 cards" for 10 mana, not the best tradeoff. Loaming Shaman brings down the CMC of the deck and triggers Vig if you have nothing to recur, and is less of a dead draw than Kozilek tends to be.
Date: 10/18/15
Removed: Coalition Relic, Green Sun's Zenith
Added: Wistful Selkie, Chord of Calling
Notes: Testing with Chord instead of Green Sun's. Selkie replaces Relic because while Relic may get me a turn ahead, it quickly falls behind and becomes a dead card once Prophet is out. Selkie adds a lot of devotion to U and G, and further draws me a card.
Date: 09/25/15
Removed: Future Sight
Added: Magus of the Future
Notes: In this deck, creatures > noncreatures
Date: 09/24/15
Removed: Leyline of Anticipation, Evolving Wilds
Added: Kodama's Reach, Scalding Tarn
Date: 09/22/15
Removed: Simic Signet, Primal Command, Asceticism, Rhystic Study, Peregrine Drake, Kodama's Reach, Wasteland, Simic Growth Chamber, Reliquary Tower
Added: Lotus Cobra, Pact of Negation, Genesis Hydra, Primordial Sage, Karametra's Acolyte, Muddle the Mixture, Tolaria West, Verdant Catacombs, Blighted Woodland
Date: 09/21/15
Removed: Cloudstone Curio
Added: Arcane Denial
Date: 09/14/15
Removed: Tooth and Nail
Added: Kiora, Master of the Depths
Date: 08/24/15
Removed: Tectonic Edge and Helix Pinnacle
Added: Wasteland, Cloudstone Curio
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
This post will be reserved for recent musings and thoughts about the deck. Different cards I'm considering, thoughts on recent bans/unbans, etc.
On my Radar/Testing with:
Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath: It remains to be seen if this card becomes a mainstay of the deck. The value and potential backup may not be worth the 3 mana it costs to cast.
Elvish Spirit Guide: For when my combo needs to be just that much faster! This one-off boost in mana is in my thoughts as I contemplate how I can make my deck faster and more efficient.
Flex cards: Cards that do not currently have a place in the maindeck, but that I keep spare for different metas. They can come in and out depending on what I'm faced with!
Mental Misstep - Used mostly for CEDH games, lots of blue metas.
Carpet of Flowers - Used in metas with lots of blue.
Autumn's Veil - Same as Carpet of Flowers.
Veil of Summer - Same as the other Veil.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
There are MUST HAVE and "can have" cards.
Must have: Mana Crypt, Aluren, Somberwald Sage, Cloud of Faeries, Temur Sabertooth
Can have one of each of the following:
Here is how you play through the win.
Turn 1:
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
How useful have you found Commit // Memory? It seems very costly.
I'd like to start by giving some context to this question before answering it. Living Wish is a card that I choose to play very conservatively because it's often treated as a one-time use card. So in answering this question, I would first have to ask, "What card did I tutor for with Living Wish?" Generally speaking, when I need a general purpose card and not something specific, a safe play is to usually get Riftsweeper just in case of situations like these.
So when is this Sadistic Sacrament being cast? Is it turn 2/3, and they're declawing me before I've had a chance to do anything? Then I probably haven't burned Living Wish yet. Is it later in the game? Then I've probably already fetched one of these guys and they aren't a valid target anymore. So in all likelihood, the chances of me being in the position of having all 3 cards still in the deck, having burned Living Wish, and being Sadistic Sacrament'd, are very low.
However, I will additionally try to answer assuming the playgroup has disallowed me from playing with the sideboard, and I have had to replace Living Wish with another card, and the Sacrament is cast quite early. Assuming this is a group that knows my deck, and I am familiar with their use of the card, my go-to would be to pick Riftsweeper to replace Living Wish to get back the exiled cards. Then the first thing I'd get back is Temur Sabertooth to keep reusing Riftsweeper's ability.
Assuming it's a new group, and both they and I are unfamiliar with what to expect from each other, I may expect Sadistic Sacrament to whiff and pick incorrect cards, or for me to play Riftsweeper out of the board anyway to protect against more common threats (Path to Exile and Swords to Plowshares).
These aren't ideal situations, but I would counter that they may not be the most likely either, though I'm sure you could continue down the rabbit hole until you find a point where I simply cannot win any longer. In the past, I have been hit by a particularly unfortunate Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger attack, which left me with no wincondition other than Shaman of Forgotten Ways and hoping I could draw Cyclonic Rift. Ultimately, these things happen on rare occasions, and there is only so much redundancy that you can play without starting to maindeck less than optimal cards in 9/10 situations.
Commit // Memory is actually something I have yet to draw in a game (haven't played too many since AKH came out). I outline my thinking in the changelog and card description, but I will summarize that I am currently viewing it as a replacement for Cryptic Command, that does more or less the same things Cryptic aims to do. It is less blue concentrated, and it has an alternate backup Timetwister effect when necessary. It is indeed very expensive as far as counterspells go, and so if I find that I am holding onto it without being able to cast it, I will forego it for something else (either a return to Cryptic, or for another spell). For the moment being, all I can say is that I'm still testing with it.
Thank you for the questions, I really appreciate them! I had to pause and think for a few moments on how to answer your "What if X" question. If you have any more, please feel free to ask!
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
I will definitely be keeping my eye on this list in order to get ideas for when I finally get around to building Momir Vig. I just have so many decks already plus so many more I want to build around! It's so overwhelming! And I have way more decks than the ones in my sig. For instance, I also have Nekusar, the Mindrazer, Brago, King Eternal, Edric, Spymaster of Trest, Phenax, God of Deception, Daretti, Scrap Savant, and Rhys the Redeemed. Besides the other decks I'm currently building (included in my sig) I'm also building Atraxa, Praetors' Voice, Child of Alara, and Sram, Senior Edificer. So what's another deck, right?
BGU [Primer] Sidisi, Brood Tyrant BGU | BG [Primer] Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest BG | G [Primer] Polukranos, World Eater G
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It absolutely is! Temur Sabertooth has been an all-star. There are quite a number of good cards printed in FRF that are applicable in so many different formats. It's much less of a dead card than Deadeye Navigator, so it's easier to run.
Haha! Geez, that is a ton of decks! I only have 6 EDH decks myself, down from an all-time max of 8. If you get time to build Vig, I highly recommend it! It's a ton of fun to play. And if you ever have any questions, feel free to ask! I'm always glad to help answer them.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Hey, thank you! I'm really glad you like the deck. I've tried to be as thorough as possible in my writeup, so if you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to ask! I think that you will have a lot of fun playing with this deck, even powered down.
I actually had not given much thought to Nimble Obstructionist before. Evaluating it now brings a few thoughts to mind, some pros and cons.
Pros:
Compare for instance to Mystic Snake. Taking aside for the moment the fact that it is UG (and thus a complete Momir Vig triggerer) you get the effect plus the creature at the same time. There have been many opportunities where I have used Chord of Calling to instantly pull Mystic Snake out of the deck and use its ability. You won't be able to do that with Nimble Obstructionist.
That said, it's still a very versatile card. My final verdict would be probably be that I don't personally think I would play it (because I dislike Stifle effects in the first place, I find them to be largely unnecessary) but if your playgroup plays a lot of abilities that are important, then I would consider it. So while it's not right for me, it may be right for you. I hope this helps!
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Absolutely! Please feel free to show me a decklist, and I'll gladly take a look at it. Give me an idea of what is or isn't acceptable in your group, and I'll try to tailor my suggestions to those limitations.
Realm Seekers is sadly a prohibitively expensive card. I have cut all cards in my deck that are greater than CMC 5, except for my wincon, Palinchron. Even with Training Grounds out, I would end up paying a total of 4GGG to get a land simply into my hand. If I so desperately need an effect to tutor for specific lands, I would sooner play either Sylvan Scrying, Expedition Map, or Ulvenwald Hydra. Each of those cards is overall better than Realm Seekers.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
I don't quite understand why your group wants to abide by these seemingly arbitrary restrictions on old vs. new borders (but still allow ABUR duals!) but I'm not here to judge house rules. The changes you've made in the deck by and large seem fair, however you have allowed a critical flaw to develop in the deck: There is no wincondition.
With the removal of infinite mana pieces, your deck does not currently have any reliable means of actually winning. There is no way to close the game out. Sure, recurring Woodfall Primus is a fine move, but you don't have the means in the deck to recur it repeatedly. Nor do you have the means to win in another reliable way.
I would personally recommend replacing Palinchron and Phantasmal Image with Deadeye Navigator and Peregrine Drake. This allows you to keep up an infinite mana combo package in modern borders (Peregrine Drake has been printed twice in modern border). If your group doesn't allow infinite combos at all, that may lead to larger issues.
I also notice that you are going very heavy on using Training Grounds. It's a fine card, but you should remember that it is not a creature spell. You can't tutor for enchantments whatsoever in green and blue - trust me, I've tried - without resorting to subpar cards like Long-Term Plans. If you run a critical mass of cards that abuse it, I guarantee you will be faced with situations where you can tutor for the creatures... but you don't have the Training Grounds. Suddenly, your cards are not very good by themselves.
That's why I advised against Realm Seekers. 9/10 times you will be paying 6 mana to cast it, and 3 mana to get a land into your hand, for a total of 9 mana. I would much rather play an Ulvenwald Hydra to get the land directly onto the field, and still get a giant beater.
It is a common mistake for newer players to look at a card and base your decisions around having that one card available. "Yes if I have this one card, I'll be able to do all of these other sweet things with it!" One of the most important lessons I've learned since starting to play Magic is: Always assume the worst-case scenario when evaluating cards. By doing this, you'll soon begin to weed out subpar cards because they can't stand up to the level of power you need by themselves.
As for specific card decisions, allow me to make a few comments:
Mana Drain has been printed in a modern-legal border as a Judge foil, which should be available for approximately the same price as the Legends printing. If you're excluding this card solely based on its border, I'd consider re-evaluating it. On a general note about Counterspells, you should go for mana-efficient ones, as well as ones that can be cast without too much drawback. Replace Deprive with Arcane Denial. Replace Mystic Confluence with Voidslime or Disallow.
Right now your only means of recurring Woodfall Primus is with a single land (High Market) and you just cut Crop Rotation, leaving you with no reliable means of getting that specific land out of your deck. I would actually caution against playing with a Persist subtheme without radically changing the entire deck up. I do not believe the addition of Melira and only one sac outlet (that works only once per turn) is going to be a very good combination.
I would sooner play Hour of Promise or Cultivate over Skyshroud Claim. I would sooner play mana dorks like Birds of Paradise, Bloom Tender, or noncreature ones such as Nature's Lore over the more CMC intensive options.
For your purposes, I would sooner play Oracle of Mul Daya than Azusa, Lost but Seeking.
Finally, Cavern of Souls just got reprinted, and has not gone down in price much. If you want to pick it up at a semi-reasonable price, I would personally recommend doing so now, because I heartily guarantee it'll hit $60 again in no time.
Anyway those are my thoughts on your changes! Overall most changes you made for your group I can understand, but overall I would caution against some changes you made. Remember: Always think of the worst-case scenario in evaluating a card!
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Yes, precisely. You can also bond Deadeye Navigator and Coiling Oracle to play all of the lands in your deck, and put all the nonlands into your hand.
Generally speaking, Oracle of Mul Daya allows you to clear the top of your library, while Azusa only allows you to ramp more quickly. I believe if you want to play those kinds of effects (that let you play more lands per turn) your best bet would be to play Oracle for the extra potential advantage. Plus, in a more casual meta, it's not as important that you keep your draws secret.
I still think Cavern of Souls is the best bet for you. Otherwise, you could always go back to Tolaria West to get Nykthos. I'm sure there are other options as well that I can't quite think of right now, so it can be a very useful flex spot for you.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
I have in the past, yes. I shun typical removal spells in this deck because including them would lean the deck over to a more control-oriented game plan. This deck, as it is currently constructed, is to act as a combo deck first, control deck second. I don't have time to be removing permanents in such a manner - if I am concerned about something, Counterspell goes a long way to dealing with it. Most if the time, I'm just fine with focusing on my combo and trying to set up the win. I would only advise playing more removal if your meta has a lot of problem permanents that DIRECTLY impact this deck; namely, cards like Linvala, Keeper of Silence and other cards I mention in the "Weaknesses" section.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
That said, there are some flex spots in the deck's mana base. Depending on how big of an issue it is, I would highly recommend playing a Strip Mine, and potentially a Wasteland as well. I currently have Strip Mine in the sideboard; it would be very easy to slot that back into the main instead of another colorless land (or a basic perhaps) and have access to that. Those would be my recommendations!
On another note, this deck has officially been recognized as a primer! I am very happy as a result of this occasion, and I would like to thank everyone who has come to look at this deck, and welcome all who will still come! Please don't hesitate to ask any questions about the deck; I am happy to discuss it at great length, and help you build your own Momir Vig decks!
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Dreamscape Artist has several real costs to him that make the card unplayable by comparison to Harrow. One, the ability can't be used immediately. I have to pay a total of 3UU just to use it once. Two, it requires you to discard a card as an additional cost; this makes the expense prohibitively expensive. Even with Training Grounds, the card disadvantage is not worth it. It is much more important to keep cards in your hand than ramping out like that. I would not recommend running him.
I choose not to play too many artifacts in the deck that I must rely on to make the deck effective. Some Momir Vig lists play cards like Paradox Engine or Cloudstone Curio to make their decks combo out faster. I think that relying on such cards is inherently bad, and makes the deck overall weaker. Because you cannot fetch artifacts reliably, it is not worth relying on them too heavily to advance your game plan. Even with Trophy Mage, the tradeoff cost is not worth running the cards, because you have to jump through hoops just to get your creatures to tap a turn early.
Usually there are a number of cards that appeal to me because they synergize with different parts of the deck. I look at them and say "Oh boy, if I have this plus X out, I can totally do awesome things!" Here you talk about how Thousand-Year Elixir may be useful, because of its synergy with various parts of the deck.
A general rule of thumb I like to operate on is that, whenever considering a new card that synergizes with different parts of your deck, it should synergize with at least 10% of the deck (10 other cards), unless it ties in directly with your win condition or the tradeoff is cheap enough to justify. So for example, I currently run Captain Sisay in my Karador reanimator list. I justify her inclusion because she has 12 available targets in the deck; if it had been less, I would have cut her.
On the flipside, I run Training Grounds in this deck despite the fact that it does not synergize with at least 10 cards in the deck. It synergizes with my win conditions (Palinchron and Temur Sabertooth), as well as cards I expect to see just about every game (Thrasios and Duskwatch), and its overall cost is extremely low (only U). Thus, I can justify in running it.
Here, Thousand-Year Elixir synergizes with six cards that you currently run. It also costs 3 to play it. In order to fetch it, it requires you to run special cards (Trophy Mage) that would not otherwise have a place in the deck. It also does not relate to your wincon gameplan at all (Deadeye and Peregrine Drake). Thus, I would recommend against running it based on these reasons.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
There have been a number of interesting cards that C17 has brought for us, and some have definitely caught my attention for this deck. There were three new cards that caught my attention, and I will be talking about them here.
The first is Portal Mage. This card is cheap to cast and has a beneficial typing. Its sole purpose is to protect you from a particularly powerful attack, and in fact redirect it to someone else. The bonus of having flash is also incidentally useful for triggering Momir Vig at instant speed.
I would recommend this card only if faced with a voltron-heavy meta. Most of the time, due to the high starting life nature of commander, a single creature attacking you is not important enough to justify a slot for this effect. If I really needed this ability or something like it, I would play Pestermite and just tap their creature down (or use it to untap a land or creature of my own in other situations). So while I think that Portal Mage can be incidentally useful depending on the meta, it is not a card I would recommend playing.
The next card on my radar is Galecaster Colossus. This is a very powerful effect, and with untap effects like Seedborn Muse, you can quickly abuse it to clear the board. The Colossus himself basically comes with a tap ability the turn he comes down to bounce a nonland permanent. However, despite the relative high power, the casting cost is very extreme. While I would consider using it for the potential synergies in the deck at 3UU or 4UU, at its current casting cost it is too much to justify a slot in the deck. The only other card that shares a CMC of 7 is Palinchron, and that can just win the game on the spot by itself, let alone being the critical win-con piece of the deck. Nothing else in the deck is above CMC 5. Additionally, I do not currently feel that there are enough wizards in the deck to justify the Colossus. Overall, while a very powerful card, it does not quite fit the deck.
Finally, one of the most impactful cards released in this year's Commander product, we have the common land Path of Ancestry. For starters, I will say that forcing it to enter tapped is a massive drawback, which jeopardizes the speed of any competitive EDH deck.
However, this land also has many upsides, particularly with a commander that has more than one creature type. You are not limited to spending the mana only on creatures sharing a type, but instead you receive a bonus for whenever you do cast a creature with the relevant creature types. A free Scry 1 enough times over can be very helpful for getting the right draws, and tucking away the less than ideal ones.
Overall, I believe that this land is worth testing with. It certainly is not for all EDH decks, let alone competitive ones, but I think that it can be very useful. Whether the land will replace a basic or a nonbasic remains to be seen.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG
The obvious: Growing Rites of Itlimoc This is a fantastic card. There's no question that this card is going straight into this deck. Turning it on is extraordinarily easy, as having 4 creatures on the field at any given time is done just about every single game. And if you have a Duskwatch Recruiter or Thrasios on the field at the time, you can put this mana to good use almost immediately. I will be looking for cards to cut.
Search for Azcanta: This is a fairly interesting card, and it helps any decks that like to fill their yards with goodies. I think however, that this card does not quite fit into this deck, because its flip ability is not useful. As a deck that relies primarily on creatures and lands, committing four lands (2U plus this one) to a noncreature, nonland Impulse is less than optimal. So this card will not be played in this deck most likely.
Siren Stormtamer: The typing on this card is very good, because it is indeed a Wizard. However, its utility is very limited, being only a one-time activation of protection. I prefer cards like Sylvan Safekeeper and Kira, Great Glass-Spinner, as they can be used more than once to protect my creatures.
Spell Swindle: While a cute card five mama for a counterspell that isn't Force of Will is just too much. Plus, there are no artifact themes in this deck.
Perilous Voyage: This card is a pretty neat tempo play, but I believe that it only truly shines in cases where you are playing against more competitive decks that run lower-cost permanents, so that you hit the Scry 2 more often. Otherwise, it becomes a less than ideal card. Additionally, I believe that Chain of Vapor is a more flexible card, because you can at least bounce your own permanents with it. I will not be playing it in this deck.
Opt: I'm not playing Preordain, and that card is better than Opt. I will not be playing Opt.
Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Primer UG