I am trying to build a budget GushPsychatog deck. I do not have access to Power 9, nor does anyone in my playgroup. Traditional archetypes are not present and I am not looking for a metagame deck. I am trying to build a deck based on cards' power level in a vaccuum. I do not have access to playsets of Dual Lands, Force of Will, etc. But, I am willing to spend some money on the deck, in order to improve it.
Will you be playing this in a competitive, powered meta or a casual Vintage one?
The focus will be on winning, not having fun. Like me, the people I play against may have a few chase rares, but will be restricted by budget constraints.
If you can afford them Force of Will and Dual lands would obviously help the deck. Some of the changes do depend on your metagame so keep that in mind. I would cut the 4 Engineered Explosives and 4 Ghastly Demise, they don't fit the game plan of GAT. For you creature base I would try splashing green for something like 4 Quiron Dryad and 2 Psychatog. Next 4 Merchant Scroll is necessary to find and abuse Gush with [card]Fastbond/card], which you should also add. It might be best to keep Opt over Ponder here because you rely on Counterspell as your only hard counter. Lastly I would cut the 4 Cephalid Coliseum for more basics/fetches/duals. I didn't cover all the card choices fully but I would be happy to provide a more thorough explanation to back up any of the suggestions.
If you can afford them Force of Will and Dual lands would obviously help the deck. Some of the changes do depend on your metagame so keep that in mind. I would cut the 4 Engineered Explosives and 4 Ghastly Demise, they don't fit the game plan of GAT. For you creature base I would try splashing green for something like 4 Quiron Dryad and 2 Psychatog. Next 4 Merchant Scroll is necessary to find and abuse Gush with [card]Fastbond/card], which you should also add. It might be best to keep Opt over Ponder here because you rely on Counterspell as your only hard counter. Lastly I would cut the 4 Cephalid Coliseum for more basics/fetches/duals. I didn't cover all the card choices fully but I would be happy to provide a more thorough explanation to back up any of the suggestions.
I've seen Menendian's version and would really like to play something like it, but I just don't have the money. Honestly, I was hoping to find something that wouldn't cost too much, but would still play competitively. Unfortunately, Force of Will, splashing the deck Green, etc. are out of my budget. Is Merchant Scroll still effective without Quirion Dryad?
Well, in that case, you might want to go Blue/Green instead of Blue/Black. Gush loses a lot of oomph without Fastbond, and putting in Quirion Dryads and possibly some Nimble Mongoose would be better off than the Togs you have if you want to keep it low-budget. Yavimaya Coasts would be fine replacements, I guess. The black cards could become a combination of CB+Top, Merchant Scrolls, Regrowth, bounce (Echoing Truth, Rushing River, Wipe Away, etc.)... Just some thoughts.
However, if you're really set on Blue/Black, I guess there's not much else to say.
Well, in that case, you might want to go Blue/Green instead of Blue/Black. Gush loses a lot of oomph without Fastbond, and putting in Quirion Dryads and possibly some Nimble Mongoose would be better off than the Togs you have if you want to keep it low-budget. Yavimaya Coasts would be fine replacements, I guess. The black cards could become a combination of CB+Top, Merchant Scrolls, Regrowth, bounce (Echoing Truth, Rushing River, Wipe Away, etc.)... Just some thoughts.
However, if you're really set on Blue/Black, I guess there's not much else to say.
I'm open to a splash of a single colour, either Black or Green. I just can't afford both.
4 Brainstorm
4 Gush
4 Duress
4 Daze
4 Spell Snare
4 Ghastly Demise
4 Engineered Explosives
3 Counterspell
3 Opt
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Underground Sea
10 Island
2 Swamp
4 Cephalid Coliseum
Street Wraith?
Opt/Ponder, etc?
Misdirection?
Echoing Truth?
Merchant Scroll?
Any suggestions for the helping the manabase without forking over half of my next paycheck?
Any suggestions, comments, etc. appreciated.
Will you be playing this in a competitive, powered meta or a casual Vintage one?
I would like to suggest fitting in 3 Counterbalance and 3 Sensei's Divining Top, probably with -4 Spell Snare and -2 Engineered Explosives.
The focus will be on winning, not having fun. Like me, the people I play against may have a few chase rares, but will be restricted by budget constraints.
That's a great idea, thanks! I'll try it out.
I've seen Menendian's version and would really like to play something like it, but I just don't have the money. Honestly, I was hoping to find something that wouldn't cost too much, but would still play competitively. Unfortunately, Force of Will, splashing the deck Green, etc. are out of my budget. Is Merchant Scroll still effective without Quirion Dryad?
However, if you're really set on Blue/Black, I guess there's not much else to say.
I'm open to a splash of a single colour, either Black or Green. I just can't afford both.
I'd try to whip up a starting list if you go the UG route.
I found Frantic Search to be quite good in it.
Ditto 1x Intuition + 4x Accumulated Knowledge If you draw it, it's absolutely insane.
My secret tech was Wonder
FWIW...;) Fun deck...have fun with it.
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