Like many of my builds, this one showcases the power of a particular card. Here, that card is Colossus Hammer.
This deck is all about killing them ASAP with Colossus Hammer to "be sure they're really dead." It sounds gimmicky, and is probably a card or two short of being truly competitive, but it goldfishes an impressive number of turn 2 kills, a huge number of turn 3 kills, and at the latest kills by turn 4, outside of truly bad draws. It very rarely fizzles or needs to mulligan while goldfishing. Fewer than 5% of test games were lost due to luck alone.
With all of that said, it's fragile to disruption, but can be a fun way to take them out turn 2 or 3 before they figure out what you're doing.
Finally, a playtip. Remember you can use Sigarda's Aid or Magnetic Theft to equip Colossus Hammer at instant speed AFTER you've flown past their blockers. Also remember that, barring this trick, Hammer causes a creature to lose flying.
I like it. Seems to be missing something. I like a few more artifacts and Puresteel Paladin to allow for more equipping of the hammer, but if this works as is then I'm all in.
I like it. Seems to be missing something. I like a few more artifacts and Puresteel Paladin to allow for more equipping of the hammer, but if this works as is then I'm all in.
I feel the same way. I couldn't find any other artifacts that are better than just running more ways to find Hammer. I'm keeping my eyes open for when they print something else though.
I tried Puresteel. The problem with it is getting the metalcraft ability active. An extra card is nice, but you could also play Thraben Inspector for that. If you want another body that can cheat the equip cost, I much prefer Kazuul's Toll Collector, which is a fine option if you want another body or two and a few more ways to cheat Hammer.
Two other creature options are Giver of Runes and Judge's Familiar if you feel you need more protection. Also, you can run Inkmoth Nexus in a creature slot if you want something a bit slower and more durable that evades and gets a 1HKO with Hammer.
I just had another thought. Having all that weapon search is good, but maybe put in a living weapon or 2 to search in case you are missing a creature to equip hammer to. I'm thinking 1 Mortorpod, 1 Flayer Husk, and 1 Batterskull. 1 is cheap, 1 gives reach or removes small blockers, and the last is for the late game,
I just had another thought. Having all that weapon search is good, but maybe put in a living weapon or 2 to search in case you are missing a creature to equip hammer to. I'm thinking 1 Mortorpod, 1 Flayer Husk, and 1 Batterskull. 1 is cheap, 1 gives reach or removes small blockers, and the last is for the late game,
I've toyed with the idea of a Flayer Husk or Mortorpod myself. It's an interesting problem. You lose consistency in one area and gain it in another. So far having a creature on board has been the easiest condition to meet, but a single Flayer Husk could help fight through creature removal. I'll test it out.
Batterskull I've already tried. It's alright as a Plan B, but you're probably dead by then. I can't think of many matchups you can expect to win with just a Batterskull, and it's a dead draw when you're trying to kill them early. Every card counts, which is why you have Faerie Seer and the Canopy Lands despite already taking so much damage from your own mana, and also why you have Noble Hierarch (it does a few necessary things at once because space is tight).
If anyone decides to go with a Fetchland-based manabase, you can include a snow basic and a copy of On Thin Ice that you can fetch with Open the Armory to remove a blocker.
You don't need to go with on thin ice and snow lands though. While 2 mana is a lot more than 1 mana, you can play something like Temporal Isolation to remove a blocker. Has flash so it can stop tricks like ravager on an inkmoth or other such shanahans.
If someone does go on the fetchland plan then a copy or 2 of Dryad Arbor could raise your % a little here and there. I can see them swing out and you have to throw up blocks. Eot fetch then equip on your turn and crackback for 11.
Along with Thud, the 2 mana options should also be explored. Fling is an instant. While the black on gives you life back. Either could be more critical than the 1 mana discount.
Last point... the SB could lose a copy or 2 of the black leyline. You can be every bit as fast as Hoogak and other degenerate combos. Maybe put in some IoK, Collective Brutality, or something could help out with percentages of other matches? I like CB here as it can kill a blocker and duress them at the cost of a redundant combo piece.
Edit: I just found out about bridge getting banned. So Hogaak will lose a lot of its threat density, but the point still stands that on your best you can turn 2 someone. Which is just as fast as Gristlebrand reanimator and the like. So still can cut a copy or 2 of leyline as you still threaten to kill just as fast as the other graveyard decks.
You don't need to go with on thin ice and snow lands though. While 2 mana is a lot more than 1 mana, you can play something like Temporal Isolation to remove a blocker. Has flash so it can stop tricks like ravager on an inkmoth or other such shanahans.
The reason I recommend On Thin Ice is because space is super tight and with just one copy you have five virtual copies with Open the Armory. Even paying 1WW to exile a creature isn't bad. Chained to the Rocks can also work if you run enough Mountains and fetches. Either way, you'd need a completely different manabase.
If someone does go on the fetchland plan then a copy or 2 of Dryad Arbor could raise your % a little here and there. I can see them swing out and you have to throw up blocks. Eot fetch then equip on your turn and crackback for 11.
That's definitely another upside to running a mana base with fetches. So on the one hand, you can have 5 removal spells (1x On Thin Ice and 4x Open the Armory) and a ton of virtual copies of Dryad Arbor. On the other hand, you're might be giving up the Horizon Lands, which have really helped with the consistency, and you may have a little more trouble finding the right colors. I think it will take a lot of testing to get the correct balance.
Along with Thud, the 2 mana options should also be explored. Fling is an instant. While the black on gives you life back. Either could be more critical than the 1 mana discount.
They're all worth considering. What's the black one?
Last point... the SB could lose a copy or 2 of the black leyline. You can be every bit as fast as Hoogak and other degenerate combos. Maybe put in some IoK, Collective Brutality, or something could help out with percentages of other matches? I like CB here as it can kill a blocker and duress them at the cost of a redundant combo piece.
One of the key questions with a deck like this is how fast you want it to be. Right now, it's built for speed, because it struggles with most forms of interaction and I think you really want turn 2 and turn 3 kills more than anything else (It's what you're best at), but I could be wrong, and slowing down a turn to interact a bit might be worthwhile. Again, needs more testing.
Edit: I just found out about bridge getting banned. So Hogaak will lose a lot of its threat density, but the point still stands that on your best you can turn 2 someone. Which is just as fast as Gristlebrand reanimator and the like. So still can cut a copy or 2 of leyline as you still threaten to kill just as fast as the other graveyard decks.
I still think we should be trying to maintain our speed so free spells are excellent. Maybe Gut Shot to remove small blockers?
I can't figure out how to upload a decklist to the chat here so I have attached a screenshot of the decklist. It is a visual view, I have not done much testing however from the few times I have worked on it the Mox Opals have been huge and pulled the whole decks consistency together.
I can't figure out how to upload a decklist to the chat here so I have attached a screenshot of the decklist. It is a visual view, I have not done much testing however from the few times I have worked on it the Mox Opals have been huge and pulled the whole decks consistency together.
Regardless of how hard you try to get Metalcraft, 3 Kor Duelist instead of 4 looks wrong to me. From my goldfish testing, this has more Turn 2 wins but fewer Turn 3 wins than Infect, so you need all the OHKO 1-drops you can get.
Vault Skirge makes for a potential 22 point life swing on turn 2. Not quite as good as an 11/11 double striker, but close.
Plus, it counts towards metalcraft.
Vault Skirge makes for a potential 22 point life swing on turn 2. Not quite as good as an 11/11 double striker, but close.
Plus, it counts towards metalcraft.
It's pretty hard to consistently mulligan for one creature, one Hammer, and one cheat, let alone putting another Hammer (and quite possibly another cheat) on top of that, so I don't recommend Vault Skirge in this deck.
Vault Skirge makes for a potential 22 point life swing on turn 2. Not quite as good as an 11/11 double striker, but close.
Plus, it counts towards metalcraft.
It's pretty hard to consistently mulligan for one creature, one Hammer, and one cheat, let alone putting another Hammer (and quite possibly another cheat) on top of that, so I don't recommend Vault Skirge in this deck.
I don't mean that it should be what you have to see in your opening hand. Any one-drop with lifelink would work just as well IF you aren't shooting for metalcraft on turn 1-2.
Regardless, a 22 point life swing(you gain 11, opponent loses 11) on turn 3 or before is nothing to snub your nose at. There are onlt allowed 4 Kor Duelist in a list. More good one-drop creatures are a must.
Flying creatures don't hold the smashy smash too well. Any 1 drop lifelink works just the same. The artifact type is helpful if you are in a build that cares. Ie puresteel build. I'm still on the fence about which is better.
Since colussus hammer was spoiled I’ve been thinking about a potential build (as a long time Cheeri0s player I love artifact builds!). While I like the idea of magnetic theft I’ve gone down a slightly different route...
The reason for this build is that while the Turn 2 kill is the optimum sequence, I think the chances are quite slim. Therefore this build is trying to be a bit more redundant. I still feel like I need some mainboard interaction (likely path to exile/dismember), as otherwise would be prone to any other combo deck.
Have considered adding blue for etherium sculptor and serum visions, but as I haven’t even managed to test the deck I wanted everyone’s thoughts first
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I think mox Opal is a great shout, but don’t think I would want to replace Call. Reason being that if our winning piece (I.e Glistener/Kor) gets removed we have the option of quickly getting another. Even more important if we have a Hammer, Leonin or Sigarda’s available.
Might drop the Catharsis in favour of the Mox....
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The shield pulls weight when trying to hit metalcraft on turn 1, or when puresteel is on the battlefield. You'd want to drop something with less synergy than that.
I, personally, would:
Logic behind this swap:
-It's better to draw a creature that can win you the game, over having to pay an extra 2 mana to find it and Then cast it.
-Vault skirge is mjore than worth it at (1)(2 life) as a mana cost. Plus, it's an artifact to help produce metalcraft.
-Opal, needs metalcraft to function and counts towards it, for 0cmc, while producing a mana of any color once metalcraft is active. You could get hands that leet you drop a creaure, your hammer, and hold your card to equip, all on turn 1. Basically, an alternate turn 2 win.
4 Faerie Seer
4 Glistener Elf
4 Kor Duelist
4 Kor Outfitter
4 Noble Hierarch
LANDS: (20)
4 City of Brass
4 Gemstone Mine
4 Horizon Canopy
4 Mana Confluence
4 Sunbaked Canyon
4 Open the Armory
4 Steelshaper's Gift
INSTANTS: (4)
4 Magnetic Theft
ENCHANTMENTS: (4)
4 Sigarda's Aid
ARTIFACTS: (4)
4 Colossus Hammer
3 Noxious Revival
4 Apostle's Blessing
4 Leyline of Sanctity
4 Leyline of the Void
Like many of my builds, this one showcases the power of a particular card. Here, that card is Colossus Hammer.
This deck is all about killing them ASAP with Colossus Hammer to "be sure they're really dead." It sounds gimmicky, and is probably a card or two short of being truly competitive, but it goldfishes an impressive number of turn 2 kills, a huge number of turn 3 kills, and at the latest kills by turn 4, outside of truly bad draws. It very rarely fizzles or needs to mulligan while goldfishing. Fewer than 5% of test games were lost due to luck alone.
With all of that said, it's fragile to disruption, but can be a fun way to take them out turn 2 or 3 before they figure out what you're doing.
Finally, a playtip. Remember you can use Sigarda's Aid or Magnetic Theft to equip Colossus Hammer at instant speed AFTER you've flown past their blockers. Also remember that, barring this trick, Hammer causes a creature to lose flying.
I feel the same way. I couldn't find any other artifacts that are better than just running more ways to find Hammer. I'm keeping my eyes open for when they print something else though.
I tried Puresteel. The problem with it is getting the metalcraft ability active. An extra card is nice, but you could also play Thraben Inspector for that. If you want another body that can cheat the equip cost, I much prefer Kazuul's Toll Collector, which is a fine option if you want another body or two and a few more ways to cheat Hammer.
Two other creature options are Giver of Runes and Judge's Familiar if you feel you need more protection. Also, you can run Inkmoth Nexus in a creature slot if you want something a bit slower and more durable that evades and gets a 1HKO with Hammer.
But I like the idea still.
"Well, then we will at least fight in the shadow"
"There is no glory to be gained in the kingdom of the dead!"
Post by Narah about unbanning Mind Twist in legacy and that this would be evil:
If you want to play on MTGO add me I'm HeskatetAS, playing Modern and Legacy
Turn 1 Glistener Elf, Turn 2 Sigarda's Aid or Magnetic Theft and the hammer.
Competetive: Lantern Control, MonoR Phoenix, Dredge
Meta-Dependant: Modern Cheeri0s, Esper Spirits, Wilderness Teachings , Modern Elves, All-in Death's Shadow, Aristocrats, BW Death&Taxes
Fun own projects: Spireside Industries, UB Scrapyard, Thundercat Worship, Dirty Kitten, RB Rock, Eternal Toolbox
I love the idea of Thud! The only question is how to fit it in.
I've toyed with the idea of a Flayer Husk or Mortorpod myself. It's an interesting problem. You lose consistency in one area and gain it in another. So far having a creature on board has been the easiest condition to meet, but a single Flayer Husk could help fight through creature removal. I'll test it out.
Batterskull I've already tried. It's alright as a Plan B, but you're probably dead by then. I can't think of many matchups you can expect to win with just a Batterskull, and it's a dead draw when you're trying to kill them early. Every card counts, which is why you have Faerie Seer and the Canopy Lands despite already taking so much damage from your own mana, and also why you have Noble Hierarch (it does a few necessary things at once because space is tight).
If anyone decides to go with a Fetchland-based manabase, you can include a snow basic and a copy of On Thin Ice that you can fetch with Open the Armory to remove a blocker.
If someone does go on the fetchland plan then a copy or 2 of Dryad Arbor could raise your % a little here and there. I can see them swing out and you have to throw up blocks. Eot fetch then equip on your turn and crackback for 11.
Along with Thud, the 2 mana options should also be explored. Fling is an instant. While the black on gives you life back. Either could be more critical than the 1 mana discount.
Last point... the SB could lose a copy or 2 of the black leyline. You can be every bit as fast as Hoogak and other degenerate combos. Maybe put in some IoK, Collective Brutality, or something could help out with percentages of other matches? I like CB here as it can kill a blocker and duress them at the cost of a redundant combo piece.
Edit: I just found out about bridge getting banned. So Hogaak will lose a lot of its threat density, but the point still stands that on your best you can turn 2 someone. Which is just as fast as Gristlebrand reanimator and the like. So still can cut a copy or 2 of leyline as you still threaten to kill just as fast as the other graveyard decks.
"Well, then we will at least fight in the shadow"
"There is no glory to be gained in the kingdom of the dead!"
Post by Narah about unbanning Mind Twist in legacy and that this would be evil:
If you want to play on MTGO add me I'm HeskatetAS, playing Modern and Legacy
The reason I recommend On Thin Ice is because space is super tight and with just one copy you have five virtual copies with Open the Armory. Even paying 1WW to exile a creature isn't bad. Chained to the Rocks can also work if you run enough Mountains and fetches. Either way, you'd need a completely different manabase.
That's definitely another upside to running a mana base with fetches. So on the one hand, you can have 5 removal spells (1x On Thin Ice and 4x Open the Armory) and a ton of virtual copies of Dryad Arbor. On the other hand, you're might be giving up the Horizon Lands, which have really helped with the consistency, and you may have a little more trouble finding the right colors. I think it will take a lot of testing to get the correct balance.
They're all worth considering. What's the black one?
One of the key questions with a deck like this is how fast you want it to be. Right now, it's built for speed, because it struggles with most forms of interaction and I think you really want turn 2 and turn 3 kills more than anything else (It's what you're best at), but I could be wrong, and slowing down a turn to interact a bit might be worthwhile. Again, needs more testing.
I still think we should be trying to maintain our speed so free spells are excellent. Maybe Gut Shot to remove small blockers?
Regardless of how hard you try to get Metalcraft, 3 Kor Duelist instead of 4 looks wrong to me. From my goldfish testing, this has more Turn 2 wins but fewer Turn 3 wins than Infect, so you need all the OHKO 1-drops you can get.
Plus, it counts towards metalcraft.
It's pretty hard to consistently mulligan for one creature, one Hammer, and one cheat, let alone putting another Hammer (and quite possibly another cheat) on top of that, so I don't recommend Vault Skirge in this deck.
I don't mean that it should be what you have to see in your opening hand. Any one-drop with lifelink would work just as well IF you aren't shooting for metalcraft on turn 1-2.
Regardless, a 22 point life swing(you gain 11, opponent loses 11) on turn 3 or before is nothing to snub your nose at. There are onlt allowed 4 Kor Duelist in a list. More good one-drop creatures are a must.
4 Glistener Elf
4 Kor Duelist
1 Leonin Shikari
4 Puresteel Paladin
Spells:29
3 Cathar's Shield
1 Basilisk Collar
4 Colossus Hammer
4 Sigarda's Aid
4 Steelshaper's Gift
4 Eladamri's Call
3 Open the Armory
1 Surestrike Trident
4 Swiftfoot Boots
1 Vorrac Battlehorns
3 Flooded Strand
1 Forest
4 Horizon Canopy
2 Inkmoth Nexus
2 Plains
2 Temple Garden
4 Windswept Heath
The reason for this build is that while the Turn 2 kill is the optimum sequence, I think the chances are quite slim. Therefore this build is trying to be a bit more redundant. I still feel like I need some mainboard interaction (likely path to exile/dismember), as otherwise would be prone to any other combo deck.
Have considered adding blue for etherium sculptor and serum visions, but as I haven’t even managed to test the deck I wanted everyone’s thoughts first
Everyone loves an angry mob RWG
Why so Bloo? RU
Might drop the Catharsis in favour of the Mox....
Everyone loves an angry mob RWG
Why so Bloo? RU
I, personally, would:
-4 Call
-1 Open the Armory
-1 leonin Shikari
+3 Mox Opal
+3 Vault Skirge
Logic behind this swap:
-It's better to draw a creature that can win you the game, over having to pay an extra 2 mana to find it and Then cast it.
-Vault skirge is mjore than worth it at (1)(2 life) as a mana cost. Plus, it's an artifact to help produce metalcraft.
-Opal, needs metalcraft to function and counts towards it, for 0cmc, while producing a mana of any color once metalcraft is active. You could get hands that leet you drop a creaure, your hammer, and hold your card to equip, all on turn 1. Basically, an alternate turn 2 win.
4 Swiftblade Vindicator
4 Kor Duelist
3 Giver of Runes
4 Stoneforge Mystic
Spells:14
4 Magnetic Theft
4 Steelshaper's Gift
4 Path to Exile
1 Faith’s Shield
1 Apostle’s Blessing
Enchantments:4
4 Sigarda's Aid
4 Colossus Hammer
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Batterskull
1 Flayer Husk
Lands:20
4 Arid Mesa
4 Inspiring Vantage
3 Sunbaked Canyon
2 Sacred Foundry
2 Plains
1 Mountain
4 Inkmoth Nexus
4 Leyline of Sanctity
3 Rest in Peace
2 Stony Silence
2 Mirran Crusader
2 Wear//Tear
1 Apostle’s Blessing
1 Sword of Feast and Famine