This deck is one of a continuing line of vorthos decks I've made around my favourite series of books, the Malazan Book of the Fallen, by Steven Erikson. Obviously, in this case, this is a dragon tribal, too. There are a couple of story points, and I'll definitely primarily be building in order to expand on that more than with any other goal in mind moving forward, although there is no reason it can't play well too.
This particular part of the story I can't share a lot about, as the events described happen within the last 2 books in the series and describe some of the more crucial plot points in the series. In brief, the dragons in these stories are closely linked to the global magic system - Dragon's blood allows the use of magic, and the type of magic bestowed is aspected to each pure dragon, or Eleint. In addition to this, a non dragon can the ability to 'veer' into dragon form by drinking of the blood of a dragon, making the drinker a shapeshifter, or Soletaken.
This deck describes the chain of events leading to the release of the Otataral Dragon, Korabas, and those following.
Essentially, the three elder gods Errastas, Sechul Lath and Kilmandaros, seeking to regain their former power and glory, decide to free from its eternal prison the Otataral Dragon, which negates sorcery, magic, existence and life itself. The theory is that, once freed, the other existing dragons cannot help but attack Korabas, else the world itself be annihilated, for even Korabas' presence will kill. The gods hope that the dragons will destroy each other to the extent that they will be able to step into the power vaccuum created, and allow power to their followers, paid for in blood and suffering.
Korabas is released, and is attacked with fury by the dragons, once a gateway from their hold of Starvald Demelain is available. They attack her and she must defend herself; the problem is that with so many dragons in one place, they become enraged, and will form 'storms', clusters of dragons, and attack each other. When this happens, the mother of Dragons, the source of all dragons, T'iam, is summoned and manifests in chaos and fury unleashed.
Entering into this, too is soletaken Tiste Andii Silchas Ruin, who seeks to keep Korabas alive - for if she should die, all magic will die and the dragons would devour all civilization. Joining him in this quest is his Tiste Edur friend Tulas Shorn, first master of the Hounds of the holds, and the last of Kharkanas' lords, Nimander Golit, along with Korlat, Desra, Skintick and Silanah.
As was clearly evident in the precon, the manabase needed a dust up, and this one still does; it's had somewhat of an upgrade - as much as I can afford at any rate! I feel like the Amonkhet bicycle lands and Battle for Zendikar checklands are pretty decent thematically; they're visually both planes that encompass a significant degree of destruction. I can't currently think of anything specific that requires upgrading for theme - All is Dust would be cool, but I also can't see how it would benefit me. All relevant characters are portrayed, save the Bonehunters - I think I'd prefer to make a separate deck for them, as Saskia the Unyielding is just so good as a portrayal of Adjunct Tavore.
Strategically, the plan here is pretty simple. Ramp into as many colours as possible or find one of the deck's cheat cards, get some decent draw going, profit. The deck is capable of some fairly stupendous plays - Mirrorweaveing or Rite of Replicationing a Scourge of Valkas can blow out the game, Lathliss does some crazy things, and we've got as much haste as we can shake a stick at too. It's very much a glass cannon in many ways, though. I have very little control in the build, so if it flops it'll flop badly; that's fine though, theme is definitely the prevalent metric by which we're judging success here.
As always any critique, feedback or suggestions are more than welcome.
Fervor fits better for flavour and has more or less the same effect. Overabundance helps me much more than my opponents; as soon as I can start ramping into dragons I'm right on track.
Grand Warlord Radha takes place over Ogre Battledriver. The mana is useful, and from a thematic perspective she's as close a resemblance as I can get to Kilmandaros, in that she's female, strong and aggressive in character. Visually I'll never get close, but this is close enough. The only other thing I want now thematically is a likeness of Sechul Lath, which is probably best done by a legendary Vedalken. Dovin Baan is close, but I want all of the azathanai to either be planeswalkers or non-planeswalkers, not a mix. That leaves me Nin, the Pain Artist and Padeem, Consul of Innovation, neither of which are functionally relevant to the deck. Work in progress.
Edit: also thinking of adding some WURBG spell cost support in the likes of Bring to Light and Painful Truths. Both are able to take advantage of that cost to good effect. I'll continue to think of whether it's worth it, and try to track them down. PT is probably more useful, but there's a decent range of spells I can cast from BtL that would be nice to cast for free.
A little more ramp definitely doesn't hurt here, obviously. This seemed the most fun deck to put Genesis Wave in from a birthday pack, and some draw upgrades are nice. I lose representation of Sechul Lath, but that's fine for now. Tossing up Nin, the Pain Artist more and more for this. The gender doesn't fit, but it's a decent end of turn mana sink to draw into stuff that could be useful.
I'm in the middle of reading Gardens of the Moon right now, actually just got to the part where they mentioned Starvald Demelain for the first time.
Thanks! It plays alright, it's mostly for fun more than competition but it's still a blast. Yeah, Lathliss, Dragon Queen will almost certainly come in. I'm keeping an eye out for the other Elder Dragons, too. So far none have really hit any notes I want to add, but you never know. There's still Ugin, Arcades Sabboth, Chromium Ruell...there might be some more fuel for Mother Dragon.
First time reading through? I hope you didn't read too much of this thread, because it's literally the final spoilers at the far end of the series, and it's epic enough that I really don't want to ruin it for you. I've read through the entirety like 6 times now. It's a journey, and a big one. I really do hope you enjoy it.
Yeah, I'm trying to hold myself off from building her own deck and just relegating her to my Jund Dragons build. She works with Panharmonicon and Helm of the Host, so I can't wait to see what becomes of those decks she heads up. Yeah, we've still got three Elders to see, though they're all without red, so I doubt any of them will have a tribal component.
Yep, first time. I'm a big fan of expansive world-building (ASOIAF and Stormlight Archive have been my favorite series) so I heard Malazan would be a good one to start. I dodged your spoiler section, so we're good there. I am very eager to find out where the story goes though from how impressive I've heard it is.
Yeah, I'm trying to hold myself off from building her own deck and just relegating her to my Jund Dragons build. She works with Panharmonicon and Helm of the Host, so I can't wait to see what becomes of those decks she heads up. Yeah, we've still got three Elders to see, though they're all without red, so I doubt any of them will have a tribal component.
Yep, first time. I'm a big fan of expansive world-building (ASOIAF and Stormlight Archive have been my favorite series) so I heard Malazan would be a good one to start. I dodged your spoiler section, so we're good there. I am very eager to find out where the story goes though from how impressive I've heard it is.
Agree, I think she's about the best dragon tokens have to offer at present, should be lots of fun.
As far as the books go, you're probably gonna feel a temptation to spoil it for yourself. Partially because Erikson gives you absolutely nothing as far as hints go, and throws you in the deep end in the middle of the action. It's awesome, but very confusing the first time through. Regardless, DON'T spoil it for yourself. Just roll with it and accept that you have no further information than most of the characters. It really is some of the best modern fantasy has to offer, and beats the crap out of ASOIAF. Nothing against GRRM, I enjoyed it ok, but Erikson and Esslemont planned out the entire scope of the series, and when you realise how deep that goes, you can't help but be impressed.
The good news is that the series really does reward re-reading, and it means you'll pick up a ton of information you missed the first time round.
I've built three other Malazan flavoured decks, all around the happenings in the first two books - Yidris, Lazav and Kresh. Might be best to avoid looking until you're past at least the end of the first book though it's all spoilered, but considering how much I loved these books I'd hate to ruin how epic they get.
I've taken out some of the 'cheat into play' stuff that's a little slower or more inefficient. T'iam does it herself, and it's antithetical for the addition of Unsealing, which is GREAT control. Added some more removal, and still looking to track down a copy of Lathliss, Dragon Queen. It'll be a crazy add, but for now I'm happy with these.
Mostly synergy upgrades. Haste is great, so is draw. There's also a lot of triggers to exploit, and Koko is a solid finisher. There's nothing leaving here that loses any particular flavour, so I'm happy enough.
So this is as much as I can upgrade the lands at present, but I sort of like the BFZ and Amonkhet lands thematically anyway. Mostly these come into fix colours, and the ramp spells added reflect this too. I still have a Skyshroud Claim and Crop Rotation I could throw at the deck, too. Claim is probably more on theme. Tasigur is perfect for Knuckles/Sechul Lath, who is generally described as pale, tall and androgynous with a bleak misdemeanour. The Fact or Fiction style ability reflects well his place in the former pantheon of the Holds as an Elder God of fate too.
I've been tossing up adding in both Nesting Dragon and Panharmonicon as strategic additions, too. I can't think of any specific themes these really fit well with, but mechanically both would be good adds, being as the deck is designed to swarm.
Slight upgrade of ramp package, in terms of getting land to battlefield untapped. Panharmonicon comes in, mostly for mechanic advantage. It suits well enough as the Crippled God's heart, encased on the Spire. I also realised I was running at least 1-2 lands more than I'd like to be, so Nesting Dragon comes in for curve, token generation, and another dragon in the storm.
Damia suits just as well as Radha for Kilmandaros, and fixes a big problem with the deck, hand rejuvenation. Much the same reason for Resurgent being here, although the mana boost is nice, too, and it reflects how nuts the warrens go when T'iam awakens. The Village is a haste enabler, and suits well enough for the Kolanse settlements.
I'm also picking up a Dragonlord Kolaghan for the deck as a haste enabler, too. Character wise it's probably bad ass enough to be Silchas Ruin, who is mentioned here but not portrayed.
Functional improvement with the Dragonlord, T&N is undoubtedly good here too. Discovery is better used elsewhere, and Promise has been middling. Thematically T&N fits somewhat, and Dragonlord is an easy obvious fit.
Wake is a bomb here, and fits thematically as the beacon of otataral calling Korabas to the glass desert so that the Bonehunters can defend her. I've added a little more flexible ramp here too, and upped the forest count purely to make hitting G more likely. If I don't hit it, I'm dead in the water, if I do I can colour fix for days.
Alright, hopefully you still check your MTGS account because I finished The Crippled God last night.
Ha! Literally just randomly logged on after someone from salvation jumped on a nexus thread of mine overnight.
Thoughts? It's a long ass journey, but TCG is pretty amazing in my opinion.
Nice coincidence! Yeah, it's long but absolutely worth it. I honestly haven't been that satisfied with a series since I read A Song of Ice and Fire almost a decade ago, which is saying something because I read a lot of books. I'm actually a little worried that Malazan's turning me into a book snob - I tried reading one of Mark Lawrence's (who had been one of my favorite authors for a while) newest entries this summer between TTH and DOD and it was just not doing it for me.
Have you read the rest of the Malazan universe? I worked ICE's books a bit into my first read through of MBOTF, specifically NOK, ROTCG, SW, and OST, and I've read one or Bauchelain and Korbal Broach books, but haven't hit Kharkanas or PTA yet. If so, do you think I should next read Blood & Bone, Dancer's Lament, or Forge of Darkness?
Alright, hopefully you still check your MTGS account because I finished The Crippled God last night.
Ha! Literally just randomly logged on after someone from salvation jumped on a nexus thread of mine overnight.
Thoughts? It's a long ass journey, but TCG is pretty amazing in my opinion.
Nice coincidence! Yeah, it's long but absolutely worth it. I honestly haven't been that satisfied with a series since I read A Song of Ice and Fire almost a decade ago, which is saying something because I read a lot of books. I'm actually a little worried that Malazan's turning me into a book snob - I tried reading one of Mark Lawrence's (who had been one of my favorite authors for a while) newest entries this summer between TTH and DOD and it was just not doing it for me.
Have you read the rest of the Malazan universe? I worked ICE's books a bit into my first read through of MBOTF, specifically NOK, ROTCG, SW, and OST, and I've read one or Bauchelain and Korbal Broach books, but haven't hit Kharkanas or PTA yet. If so, do you think I should next read Blood & Bone, Dancer's Lament, or Forge of Darkness?
Honestly, I hated Mark Lawrence. I read the Broken Empire and just hated every page of it. I thought it was cliched and overwrought, not subtle at all, and just not well written. I understand his writing has improved, but I won't try again. In terms of grimdark fiction though, if you haven't read Joe Abercrombie, you definitely should. He's an excellent writer. The First Law series is top notch.
I have read the rest of the Malazan universe, barring one book which I just ran out of steam with. Here's my thoughts for each, as they do vary in quality:
Bauchelain and Korbal Broach novellas - dark black satire, which I really enjoyed. Virtually non-related to the main story arc so you don't need to read in any sequence.
ICE - varies in quality, but I really enjoyed ROTCG, SW and NOK. OST was a weird one for me, and I've heard Assail isn't great, but I don't mind ICE's writing, so I do want to finish it. Blood and Bone is good, too, it relates to the Crimson Guard. I know there's folk out there that don't like that one, but I enjoyed it, again.
Kharkanas - these are Erikson's attempt at Homerian epics. They're a VERY different read in terms of writing tone, and they do a lot to give context to the mythos of the Tiste and the early ages. Bear in mind its an unfinished series, which is a massive shame as far as I'm concerned. Nonetheless I thought these were great. I'd definitely give them a go.
What you read next depends on who you want to hear more about - Ammanas/Dancer, go Dancer's Lament. Crimson Guard, go Blood and Bone. Tiste of all varieties, go Forge of Darkness.
This particular part of the story I can't share a lot about, as the events described happen within the last 2 books in the series and describe some of the more crucial plot points in the series. In brief, the dragons in these stories are closely linked to the global magic system - Dragon's blood allows the use of magic, and the type of magic bestowed is aspected to each pure dragon, or Eleint. In addition to this, a non dragon can the ability to 'veer' into dragon form by drinking of the blood of a dragon, making the drinker a shapeshifter, or Soletaken.
Essentially, the three elder gods Errastas, Sechul Lath and Kilmandaros, seeking to regain their former power and glory, decide to free from its eternal prison the Otataral Dragon, which negates sorcery, magic, existence and life itself. The theory is that, once freed, the other existing dragons cannot help but attack Korabas, else the world itself be annihilated, for even Korabas' presence will kill. The gods hope that the dragons will destroy each other to the extent that they will be able to step into the power vaccuum created, and allow power to their followers, paid for in blood and suffering.
Korabas is released, and is attacked with fury by the dragons, once a gateway from their hold of Starvald Demelain is available. They attack her and she must defend herself; the problem is that with so many dragons in one place, they become enraged, and will form 'storms', clusters of dragons, and attack each other. When this happens, the mother of Dragons, the source of all dragons, T'iam, is summoned and manifests in chaos and fury unleashed.
Entering into this, too is soletaken Tiste Andii Silchas Ruin, who seeks to keep Korabas alive - for if she should die, all magic will die and the dragons would devour all civilization. Joining him in this quest is his Tiste Edur friend Tulas Shorn, first master of the Hounds of the holds, and the last of Kharkanas' lords, Nimander Golit, along with Korlat, Desra, Skintick and Silanah.
The decklist is as follows:
9 the Ur-Dragon
Creatures
4 Boneyard Scourge
4 Jodah, Archmage Eternal
5 Dragonlord Kolaghan
5 Golos, Tireless Pilgrim
5 Nesting Dragon
5 Scourge of Valkas
5 Scalelord Reckoner
5 Kolaghan, the Storm's Fury
6 Keiga, the Tide Star
6 Kokusho, the Evening Star
6 Hellkite Tyrant
6 Hellkite Charger
6 Lathliss, Dragon Queen
6 Steel Hellkite
6 Savage Ventmaw
6 Ryusei, the Falling Star
6 Ramos, Dragon Engine
6 Yosei, the Morning Star
6 Silumgar, the Drifting Death
7 Bladewing the Risen
7 Damia, Sage of Stone
7 Dragonlord Atarka
7 Atarka, World Render
7 Skyline Despot
8 Utvara Hellkite
Artifacts
1 Sol Ring
2 Sword of the Animist
3 Fist of Suns
4 Panharmonicon
5 Belbe's Portal
2 Dragon Tempest
3 Fervor
3 Rhythm of the Wild
3 Temur Ascendancy
4 Frontier Siege
4 Sarkhan's Unsealing
5 Dream Halls
5 Mirari's Wake
7 Zendikar Resurgent
Instants
4 Mirrorweave
4 Utter End
5 Consume the Meek
5 Evacuation
Sorceries
0 Wheel of Fate
1 Earthquake
2 Farseek
2 Nature's Lore
2 Rampant Growth
3 Cultivate
3 Spoils of Victory
3 Kodama's Reach
3 Genesis Wave
5 Shamanic Revelation
5 Rite of Replication
5 Crux of Fate
6 Merciless Eviction
6 Recurring Insight
7 Tooth and Nail
8 Praetor's Counsel
9 Dragonstorm
6 Garruk, Caller of Beasts
Lands
1 Drownyard Temple
1 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
1 Crucible of the Spirit Dragon
1 Scattered Groves
1 Sheltered Thicket
1 Canyon Slough
1 Irrigated Farmland
1 Path of Ancestry
1 Canopy Vista
1 Cascading Cataracts
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Prairie Stream
1 Flamekin Village
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Command Tower
5 Mountain
4 Island
4 Plains
4 Swamp
5 Forest
9 the Ur-Dragon
The Forgotten Azath in Mael's realm
5 Dream Halls
1 Drownyard Temple
Errastas, Master of the Holds
4 Jodah, Archmage Eternal
Kilmandaros
7 Damia, Sage of Stone
Sechul Lath
5 Golos, Tireless Pilgrim
The search for Korabas
0 Wheel of Fate
3 Kodama's Reach
2 Farseek
Korabas Imprisoned
1 Crucible of the Spirit Dragon
Kilmandaros breaks the wards
3 Fist of Suns
4 Sarkhan's Unsealing
3 Spoils of Victory
Korabas, the eye of Abnegation
6 Ramos, Dragon Engine
The influence of Otataral
1 Earthquake
3 Harrow
4 Utter End
5 Consume the Meek
5 Evacuation
6 Merciless Eviction
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Evolving Wilds
Starvald Demelain opens
1 Haven of the Spirit Dragon
3 Rhythm of the Wild
7 Zendikar Resurgent
Kettle House
1 Sheltered Thicket
5 Belbe's Portal
9 Dragonstorm
2 Dragon Tempest
3 Fervor
6 Hellkite Charger
8 Utvara Hellkite
5 Scourge of Valkas
7 Skyline Despot
6 Steel Hellkite
5 Nesting Dragon
5 Scalelord Reckoner
6 Savage Ventmaw
7 Tooth and Nail
"It's raining f@#$%!n' Dragons'
4 Mirrorweave
5 Rite of Replication
3 Genesis Wave
Olar Ethil
6 Lathliss, Dragon Queen
Telorast Anthras
6 Kokusho, the Evening Star
Kerudas Karosias
4 Boneyard Scourge
Tulas Shorn
6 Garruk, Caller of Beasts
Tulas Shorn Veered
7 Bladewing the Risen
Silchas Ruin Veered
6 Yosei, the Morning Star
Kalse, Eloth, Ampelas! We have our storm!
5 Dragonlord Kolaghan
6 Ryusei, the Falling Star
6 Keiga, the Tide Star
Kolanse
1 Scattered Groves
1 Cascading Cataracts
1 Irrigated Farmland
1 Flamekin Village
6 Mountain
4 Island
4 Plains
4 Swamp
5 Forest
1 Command Tower
4 Panharmonicon
The Adjunct Tavore's Otataral Sword
2 Sword of the Animist
Korabas flees to the Bonehunters
1 Canyon Slough
1 Canopy Vista
1 Prairie Stream
5 Mirari's Wake
Korabas' Defense
3 Temur Ascendancy
4 Frontier Siege
5 Crux of Fate
Blind Gallan's Road
1 Path of Ancestry
5 Shamanic Revelation
6 Recurring Insight
Silanah
6 Hellkite Tyrant
Nimander
7 Dragonlord Atarka
Korlat
5 Kolaghan, the Storm's Fury
Desra
6 Silumgar, the Drifting Death
Skintick
7 Atarka, World Render
Heboric and Kaminsod imprison Korabas once again
1 Sol Ring
8 Praetor's Counsel
As was clearly evident in the precon, the manabase needed a dust up, and this one still does; it's had somewhat of an upgrade - as much as I can afford at any rate! I feel like the Amonkhet bicycle lands and Battle for Zendikar checklands are pretty decent thematically; they're visually both planes that encompass a significant degree of destruction. I can't currently think of anything specific that requires upgrading for theme - All is Dust would be cool, but I also can't see how it would benefit me. All relevant characters are portrayed, save the Bonehunters - I think I'd prefer to make a separate deck for them, as Saskia the Unyielding is just so good as a portrayal of Adjunct Tavore.
Strategically, the plan here is pretty simple. Ramp into as many colours as possible or find one of the deck's cheat cards, get some decent draw going, profit. The deck is capable of some fairly stupendous plays - Mirrorweaveing or Rite of Replicationing a Scourge of Valkas can blow out the game, Lathliss does some crazy things, and we've got as much haste as we can shake a stick at too. It's very much a glass cannon in many ways, though. I have very little control in the build, so if it flops it'll flop badly; that's fine though, theme is definitely the prevalent metric by which we're judging success here.
As always any critique, feedback or suggestions are more than welcome.
In:
Overabundance
Fervor
Out:
Chaos Warp
Fires of Yavimaya
Fervor fits better for flavour and has more or less the same effect. Overabundance helps me much more than my opponents; as soon as I can start ramping into dragons I'm right on track.
In:
Keiga, the Tide Star
Mirrorweave
Out:
Scion of the Ur-Dragon
O-Kagachi, Vengeful Kami
Karametra, God of Harvests comes out for Praetor's Counsel.
In:
Jodah, Archmage Eternal - This guy is the errant. One too many eyes, but the arrogance and aloofness fits. His effect plays well here too.
Out:
Birthing Pod - wasn't the right place for it.
Grand Warlord Radha takes place over Ogre Battledriver. The mana is useful, and from a thematic perspective she's as close a resemblance as I can get to Kilmandaros, in that she's female, strong and aggressive in character. Visually I'll never get close, but this is close enough. The only other thing I want now thematically is a likeness of Sechul Lath, which is probably best done by a legendary Vedalken. Dovin Baan is close, but I want all of the azathanai to either be planeswalkers or non-planeswalkers, not a mix. That leaves me Nin, the Pain Artist and Padeem, Consul of Innovation, neither of which are functionally relevant to the deck. Work in progress.
Edit: also thinking of adding some WURBG spell cost support in the likes of Bring to Light and Painful Truths. Both are able to take advantage of that cost to good effect. I'll continue to think of whether it's worth it, and try to track them down. PT is probably more useful, but there's a decent range of spells I can cast from BtL that would be nice to cast for free.
2 Nature's Lore
3 Search for Tomorrow
3 Genesis Wave
5 Shamanic Revelation
6 Recurring Insight
1 Dragonmaster Outcast
3 Mirror Entity
3 Urza's Incubator
7 Kilnmouth Dragon
7 Scour from Existence
A little more ramp definitely doesn't hurt here, obviously. This seemed the most fun deck to put Genesis Wave in from a birthday pack, and some draw upgrades are nice. I lose representation of Sechul Lath, but that's fine for now. Tossing up Nin, the Pain Artist more and more for this. The gender doesn't fit, but it's a decent end of turn mana sink to draw into stuff that could be useful.
I'm in the middle of reading Gardens of the Moon right now, actually just got to the part where they mentioned Starvald Demelain for the first time.
Thanks! It plays alright, it's mostly for fun more than competition but it's still a blast. Yeah, Lathliss, Dragon Queen will almost certainly come in. I'm keeping an eye out for the other Elder Dragons, too. So far none have really hit any notes I want to add, but you never know. There's still Ugin, Arcades Sabboth, Chromium Ruell...there might be some more fuel for Mother Dragon.
First time reading through? I hope you didn't read too much of this thread, because it's literally the final spoilers at the far end of the series, and it's epic enough that I really don't want to ruin it for you. I've read through the entirety like 6 times now. It's a journey, and a big one. I really do hope you enjoy it.
Yep, first time. I'm a big fan of expansive world-building (ASOIAF and Stormlight Archive have been my favorite series) so I heard Malazan would be a good one to start. I dodged your spoiler section, so we're good there. I am very eager to find out where the story goes though from how impressive I've heard it is.
Agree, I think she's about the best dragon tokens have to offer at present, should be lots of fun.
As far as the books go, you're probably gonna feel a temptation to spoil it for yourself. Partially because Erikson gives you absolutely nothing as far as hints go, and throws you in the deep end in the middle of the action. It's awesome, but very confusing the first time through. Regardless, DON'T spoil it for yourself. Just roll with it and accept that you have no further information than most of the characters. It really is some of the best modern fantasy has to offer, and beats the crap out of ASOIAF. Nothing against GRRM, I enjoyed it ok, but Erikson and Esslemont planned out the entire scope of the series, and when you realise how deep that goes, you can't help but be impressed.
The good news is that the series really does reward re-reading, and it means you'll pick up a ton of information you missed the first time round.
I've built three other Malazan flavoured decks, all around the happenings in the first two books - Yidris, Lazav and Kresh. Might be best to avoid looking until you're past at least the end of the first book though
In:
Utter End
Merciless Eviction
Sarkhan's Unsealing
Out:
Sarkhan's Triumph
See The Unwritten
Call to the Kindred
I've taken out some of the 'cheat into play' stuff that's a little slower or more inefficient. T'iam does it herself, and it's antithetical for the addition of Unsealing, which is GREAT control. Added some more removal, and still looking to track down a copy of Lathliss, Dragon Queen. It'll be a crazy add, but for now I'm happy with these.
In:
Lathliss, Dragon Queen
Out:
Tyrant's Familiar
Clearly superior add.
In:
Temur Ascendancy
Kindred Discovery
Kokusho, the Evening Star
Strionic Resonator
Out:
Commander's Sphere
Scourge of Nel Toth
Overabundance
Door of Destinies
Mostly synergy upgrades. Haste is great, so is draw. There's also a lot of triggers to exploit, and Koko is a solid finisher. There's nothing leaving here that loses any particular flavour, so I'm happy enough.
1 Drownyard Temple
1 Scattered Groves
1 Sheltered Thicket
1 Canyon Slough
1 Irrigated Farmland
1 Canopy Vista
1 Smoldering Marsh
1 Prairie Stream
1 Rhythm of the Wild
1 Spoils of Victory
1 Hour of Promise
1 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
1 Temple of the False God
1 Frontier Bivouac
1 Thornwood Falls
1 Wind-Scarred Crag
1 Rugged Highlands
1 Scoured Barrens
1 Nomad Outpost
1 Savage Lands
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Cultivate
1 Mirror Entity
So this is as much as I can upgrade the lands at present, but I sort of like the BFZ and Amonkhet lands thematically anyway. Mostly these come into fix colours, and the ramp spells added reflect this too. I still have a Skyshroud Claim and Crop Rotation I could throw at the deck, too. Claim is probably more on theme. Tasigur is perfect for Knuckles/Sechul Lath, who is generally described as pale, tall and androgynous with a bleak misdemeanour. The Fact or Fiction style ability reflects well his place in the former pantheon of the Holds as an Elder God of fate too.
I've been tossing up adding in both Nesting Dragon and Panharmonicon as strategic additions, too. I can't think of any specific themes these really fit well with, but mechanically both would be good adds, being as the deck is designed to swarm.
In:
Nesting Dragon
Panharmonicon
Harrow
Out:
Mountain
Swiftfoot Boots
Rampant Growth
Slight upgrade of ramp package, in terms of getting land to battlefield untapped. Panharmonicon comes in, mostly for mechanic advantage. It suits well enough as the Crippled God's heart, encased on the Spire. I also realised I was running at least 1-2 lands more than I'd like to be, so Nesting Dragon comes in for curve, token generation, and another dragon in the storm.
In:
Damia, Sage of Stone
Zendikar Resurgent
Flamekin Village
Out:
Grand Warlord Radha
Mirror of the Forebears
Mountain
Damia suits just as well as Radha for Kilmandaros, and fixes a big problem with the deck, hand rejuvenation. Much the same reason for Resurgent being here, although the mana boost is nice, too, and it reflects how nuts the warrens go when T'iam awakens. The Village is a haste enabler, and suits well enough for the Kolanse settlements.
I'm also picking up a Dragonlord Kolaghan for the deck as a haste enabler, too. Character wise it's probably bad ass enough to be Silchas Ruin, who is mentioned here but not portrayed.
In:
Dragonlord Kolaghan
Tooth and Nail
Out:
Hour of Promise
Kindred Discovery
Functional improvement with the Dragonlord, T&N is undoubtedly good here too. Discovery is better used elsewhere, and Promise has been middling. Thematically T&N fits somewhat, and Dragonlord is an easy obvious fit.
In:
2 Forest
Rampant Growth
Cultivate
Mirari's Wake
Out:
Encroaching Wastes
Blighted Woodland
Harrow
Search for Tomorrow
Elemental Bond
Wake is a bomb here, and fits thematically as the beacon of otataral calling Korabas to the glass desert so that the Bonehunters can defend her. I've added a little more flexible ramp here too, and upped the forest count purely to make hitting G more likely. If I don't hit it, I'm dead in the water, if I do I can colour fix for days.
Ha! Literally just randomly logged on after someone from salvation jumped on a nexus thread of mine overnight.
Thoughts? It's a long ass journey, but TCG is pretty amazing in my opinion.
Nice coincidence! Yeah, it's long but absolutely worth it. I honestly haven't been that satisfied with a series since I read A Song of Ice and Fire almost a decade ago, which is saying something because I read a lot of books. I'm actually a little worried that Malazan's turning me into a book snob - I tried reading one of Mark Lawrence's (who had been one of my favorite authors for a while) newest entries this summer between TTH and DOD and it was just not doing it for me.
Have you read the rest of the Malazan universe? I worked ICE's books a bit into my first read through of MBOTF, specifically NOK, ROTCG, SW, and OST, and I've read one or Bauchelain and Korbal Broach books, but haven't hit Kharkanas or PTA yet. If so, do you think I should next read Blood & Bone, Dancer's Lament, or Forge of Darkness?
Honestly, I hated Mark Lawrence. I read the Broken Empire and just hated every page of it. I thought it was cliched and overwrought, not subtle at all, and just not well written. I understand his writing has improved, but I won't try again. In terms of grimdark fiction though, if you haven't read Joe Abercrombie, you definitely should. He's an excellent writer. The First Law series is top notch.
I have read the rest of the Malazan universe, barring one book which I just ran out of steam with. Here's my thoughts for each, as they do vary in quality:
Bauchelain and Korbal Broach novellas - dark black satire, which I really enjoyed. Virtually non-related to the main story arc so you don't need to read in any sequence.
ICE - varies in quality, but I really enjoyed ROTCG, SW and NOK. OST was a weird one for me, and I've heard Assail isn't great, but I don't mind ICE's writing, so I do want to finish it. Blood and Bone is good, too, it relates to the Crimson Guard. I know there's folk out there that don't like that one, but I enjoyed it, again.
Kharkanas - these are Erikson's attempt at Homerian epics. They're a VERY different read in terms of writing tone, and they do a lot to give context to the mythos of the Tiste and the early ages. Bear in mind its an unfinished series, which is a massive shame as far as I'm concerned. Nonetheless I thought these were great. I'd definitely give them a go.
What you read next depends on who you want to hear more about - Ammanas/Dancer, go Dancer's Lament. Crimson Guard, go Blood and Bone. Tiste of all varieties, go Forge of Darkness.