How is this deck in the current meta? It seems to me like all the tron variants are a poor choice since they get disrupted by a lot of the same hate that titan bloom loses to, and that's the big scary deck to beat currently. But I could just be incredibly wrong about that, I've never played monoU or UW tron before.
Why aren't we maindecking xantid swarm? Worst case scenario you put it under a mox or block somethign, best case scenario it shuts your opponent's spells down and then turns on your culling the weak.
Silumgar's Scorn is so much more consistent than you think it is, even with only 9 dragons (10 if you count mutavault), but I wouldn't mind a 10th. Dragons are fun as *****. I miss shackles but I don't know what I'd cut for it. Thunderbreak Regent is SO real. 100% serious, that card is realer than reality TV.
This is by far the most fun Blue Moon variant I've ever played. I suggest you don't knock it till you try it. I also don't think this is really a blue moon deck but that's the closest thing I found so I'm posting it here.
Two Blood moon is weird but I don't think maindeck blood moon is good enough in the current meta to run 4, and spreading seas isn't impactful enough to be worth it IMO.
I tested cryptic command, I found I'd usually rather be deploying a threat than holding up countermagic.
Sideboard explanation:
Abzan - Bring in Icefall Regent, Roast, Stormbreath. Take out Spell snares and a bolt.
Twin - Bring in Rending Volley, Spellskites, and a single ancient grudge. Take out the Moons and two bolts.
Tron - Bring in both grudges, icefall regent, blood moon. Take out spell snare, vapor snag, and a bolt. (You leave in flame slash in case they bring in Spellskite.)
Affinity - Bring in two grudges, shatterstorm, anger of the gods, and blood moon. Take out vapor snag and all your 2-mana countermagic.
Naya Zoo - Bring in angers, take out blood moons. Blood moon seems good at first glance, but you really need your sulfur falls to make blue or else you'll lose to choke. You leave in your countermagic for the same reason, since you can't beat a resolved choke. A part of me wants to put a back to nature in the side for choke and for boggles but that seems loose.
Burn - Bring in all three Dragon's Claws. Take out blood moon and a spell snare.
Boggles - Bring in anger, take out vapor snag and a spell snare, and pray your opponent gets unlucky.
This deck's a blast. Seriously, don't knock it till you try it. I know it looks like hot garbage, but... well, it might actually be hot garbage but I've been winning so far and having fun doing it.
I think the major strength of this deck is how little it cares about lightning bolt. Like, yeah, Snapcaster dies to bolt, and so does clique, but those cards both give incredible value just for hitting the field, and you don't really care all too much when they die. All your real threats don't care even a little bit about bolt.
Even as the meta shifts to favor Abzan decks, bolt is still the most played card in the format, and I still think you want to be blanking that card if at all possible. Even though pyromancer blanks Liliana, I don't think you want to take the deck in that direction because you're sacrificing a major strength of the deck.
Furthermore, pyromancer isn't even that great against Abzan since rhino tramples and abrupt decay is a 4-of in every list. It's good against goyf decks, but that's about as far as it goes.
I think if you're so worried about Liliana that you're willing to cut geist, you should consider playing spell pierces main instead. It's a much more versatile card and it even helps your Burn matchup substantially.
Another option is Brimaz, but Brimaz has a distinctly poor matchup against abrupt decay so I would steer clear.
For the time being, my creature base is gonna look something like:
I think the opposite. Junk and other GBx decks are looking to be the new tier 1, and this deck has serious trouble against a million maindeck discard spells.
Solidarity has the funniest storm matchup in the history of magic. You can respond to their infernal tutor or ad nauseum by fetching brain freeze and abusing their storm count. The look on their face is just priceless!
Also let it be known that this is the only tide variant I can afford since candelabra's are so damn expensive, and it might be more powerful anyway.
I have every card in this deck except for Collonades and Cryptic Command. I'd buy collonades but does the deck absolutely need cryptic command or is there a feasible replacement?
Ok I have a very loose idea, and this might need a new thread but it's also a completely abstract idea so I might as well get some feedback here.
There are some vintage storm decks that run Young Pyromancer. The idea is that even if you fizzle to mental misstep or flusterstorm or what have you you're still left with an army of tokens.
So what if we applied the same idea to a high tide combo? Your win condition can be grapeshot. Then even if you don't quite get 19 storm you still have a lethal board position.
To help the engine we could run treasure cruise or DTT in addition to time spiral. Maybe we could mess with the snap tide shell mentioned like a page ago instead of the traditional spiral tide list, since that list is pretty tight.
You've probably seen this kind of deck before, but here's my take on it.
First of all, why is Force of Will a good card? Well on the surface it's because force is the only way for legacy/vintage players to beat degenerate combo decks. But force is also good against midrange decks and control decks even if you don't need the counterspell on turn 1. As it turns out, countering spells is pretty strong! But why do people run force then? Why not just sideboard force for the combo matchups and mainboard a counterspell that you can cast midgame (like the original Counterspell)? Well it's because Force lets you tap out to play threats (goyf, bob, whatever) and still be protected from stuff like terminus.
Now in standard we don't have force of will but we can still play by the philosophy of leaving yourself protected with counterspells without wasting turns leaving mana open for dissolve. This is accomplished by playing creatures with flash. Whereas a normal midrange deck will spend most of its time on its own turn playing threats, RUG flash prefers to cast all its threats on its opponent's end step. This way you can leave mana open for Dissolve or Temur Charm, so if they play something you have to counter you're not dead in the water, but if they don't play something worth countering you just drop a threat; a win/win situation. However, there aren't that many playable flash cards, so we buff this strategy out by playing Prophet of Kruphix. We also try to avoid playing sorceries for obvious reasons.
When it comes to creatures, our first priority is the best creatures with flash.
With Khans out, we now have access to one of the strongest flash creatures ever printed: Surrak Dragonclaw. 2GUR for a 6/6, can't be countered, and with two relevant global effects? Sign me up! I would not bother playing this deck without at LEAST 2 of this guy.
Boon Satyr is a very efficient body at 3 mana and it has flash to boot. Plus, lategame, you can flash him onto a creature to protect it, AND it turns on ferocious if you're playing cards with that keyword. Don't leave home without 4 of these guys.
Unfortunately there aren't a lot of other playable flash cards. Quickling could work I guess, but without a plethora of ETB effects she seems like a downside. You're welcome to test with Horizon Chimera but I think a 3/2 flier for 4 isn't worth playing even though it has flash. I can certainly see the merits to running it though. Pearl Lake Ancient just costs too much.
However, just cause a creature doesn't have flash doesn't mean it's not playable!
Prophet of Kruphix does not have flash herself but she's an integral card to the deck's strategy anyway. However I think 4 is too many because by her lonesome she's just a 2/3 and she's a very poor lategame topdeck. Three has been working for me.
Sylvan Caryatid ramps us into are bigger drops and is a generally resilient mana dork. These guys help a lot against aggro as well since they're great blockers. I only run 2 though because I also run Rattleclaw Mystic.
Rattleclaw Mystic, in a vacuum, is worse than caryatid. It doesn't have hexproof, it can't block little critters, and its morph ability is often really greedy. However, I run 4 of these and only 2 caryatids for only one reason: the morph is such a mind game. You have no idea how scared your opponent gets when you sees you morph a card if he knows you also run Sagu Mauler. It forces a lot of misplays, too. I am FULLY AWARE that this could be absolutely wrong but so far it's worked well for me. Feel free to play a 4-2 split of caryatid-mystic, or even cut mystic entirely and just run 4 mana dorks. I like them though.
Speaking of which, Sagu Mauler is insane. If you have no other 3-drops in hand you can just morph this guy and get a huge dude on turn 5, but he's also fine to drop turn 6, especially after a turn 5 surrak. This guy is just a big curve topper and boy does he get the job done. By the way, in magical christmasland you can play Rattleclaw Mystic face down on turn 3 and then drop this guy as early as turn 4! So incredibly strong.
I also run 4 of the all star of temur, my favorite creature from Khans, Savage Knuckleblade. I shouldn't have to explain how good this card is. It's so good.
Polukranos, World Eater is an efficient 4-drop that helps fill out our curve. If there's one thing about this deck that I'm really disappointed with its the lack of 4-drops, and I'd like to run 4 of these, but they're legendary so I just run 3.
On Courser of Kruphix: While this card is very strong, in a deck that plays mostly instants and flash cards the information he gives away is often detrimental to your game plan so I don't run any. On the other hand, courser is a super strong card. So it's up to you.
A midrange deck like this needs lots of removal. We have a lot of great options in red, but the all star removal spell is definitely Stoke the Flames. Courser of Kruphix is really big right now and stoke the flames is our best out against it. Lightning strike is an obvious inclusion as well. I'm running 4 strike and 2 stokes but I'm considering going to 3-3. I also run 3 Temur Charm, which often act as removal.
We also want lots of counter magic! Currently I'm running 2 stubborn denial, 2 dissolve, and 3 temur charm. Temur charm acts as a counterspell far more often than any of its other modes and it turns out that mana leak at 3 mana is still good. This card is definitely the best card in the deck. And don't forget the third mode! It's the best way to kill those pesky planeswalkers hiding behind small dudes! Also, stubborn denial is a very, very good card. It's excellent at countering removal and board wipes and what have you.
I really, really want to fit 1-2 Dig Through Time in here since this deck can gas itself really quickly and it's a great late game draw. However I don't know what to cut.
It's not infinite, but when I tested the deck I would intuition for 3 snap, then go snapcaster -> snap -> snapcaster -> snap etc. until I ran out of snaps. It works as long as you've resolved 2 high tides, which you can often achieve by flashing it back via snapcaster. It's a cool chain of events. You usually walk out with enough storm to brain freeze.
So if I'm reading this correctly, you combo off by casting Snap on Snapcaster and then casting Snapcaster on Snap until you build enough storm to win with one of your wincons? That's... really cool actually. I like that a whole lot.
Look, I love SI. I really do, it's a blast to play. But it's also one of the most punishing decks in the format, if not in the game. I think if you want to get into the format playing combo you should start with TES or ANT and get used to how easier combo decks play. Then you can play this once you have more practice with the format, and you'll still get wrecked constantly for a week but at least you have enough background knowledge in the format to know why you're getting wrecked.
Furthermore, if there is one kind of deck you absolutely CANNOT replace cards with budget options it is combo. I mean yes, there are lists that don't run LED but the interaction between LED and Infernal Tutor is so strong that I think not exploiting it is just sub par. Point in fact I think this deck has the strongest tutor/LED since you actually run 3 mana spells that can let you explode back into the game.
Tl;dr this deck is fun and can randomly win tourneys but it's not a good first deck.
It's a pile.
I tested it a lot on cockatrice with my playgroup.
2 Anticipate
3 Serum Visions
3 Silumgar's Scorn
3 Remand
2 Spell Snare
1 Vapor Snag
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Electrolyze
1 Flame Slash
Creatures (13)
4 Thunderbreak Regent
3 Thundermaw Hellkite
2 Stormbreath Dragon
4 Snapcaster Mage
2 Blood Moon
Lands (24)
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Flooded Strand
2 Misty Rainforest
1 Polluted Delta
3 Steam Vents
3 Sulfur Falls
1 Stomping Ground
1 Mountain
5 Island
1 Mutavault
1 Desolate Lighthouse
1 Icefall Regent
1 Rending Volley
1 Roast
3 Dragon's Claw
2 Spellskite
1 Stormbreath Dragon
1 Blood Moon
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Shatterstorm
Silumgar's Scorn is so much more consistent than you think it is, even with only 9 dragons (10 if you count mutavault), but I wouldn't mind a 10th. Dragons are fun as *****. I miss shackles but I don't know what I'd cut for it. Thunderbreak Regent is SO real. 100% serious, that card is realer than reality TV.
This is by far the most fun Blue Moon variant I've ever played. I suggest you don't knock it till you try it. I also don't think this is really a blue moon deck but that's the closest thing I found so I'm posting it here.
Two Blood moon is weird but I don't think maindeck blood moon is good enough in the current meta to run 4, and spreading seas isn't impactful enough to be worth it IMO.
I tested cryptic command, I found I'd usually rather be deploying a threat than holding up countermagic.
Sideboard explanation:
This deck's a blast. Seriously, don't knock it till you try it. I know it looks like hot garbage, but... well, it might actually be hot garbage but I've been winning so far and having fun doing it.
Even as the meta shifts to favor Abzan decks, bolt is still the most played card in the format, and I still think you want to be blanking that card if at all possible. Even though pyromancer blanks Liliana, I don't think you want to take the deck in that direction because you're sacrificing a major strength of the deck.
Furthermore, pyromancer isn't even that great against Abzan since rhino tramples and abrupt decay is a 4-of in every list. It's good against goyf decks, but that's about as far as it goes.
I think if you're so worried about Liliana that you're willing to cut geist, you should consider playing spell pierces main instead. It's a much more versatile card and it even helps your Burn matchup substantially.
Another option is Brimaz, but Brimaz has a distinctly poor matchup against abrupt decay so I would steer clear.
For the time being, my creature base is gonna look something like:
3 Restoration Angel
4 Snapcaster Mage
2 Vendilion Clique
1 Stormbreath Dragon
4 Celestial Colonnade
(Nothing. It does nothing.)
Also let it be known that this is the only tide variant I can afford since candelabra's are so damn expensive, and it might be more powerful anyway.
There are some vintage storm decks that run Young Pyromancer. The idea is that even if you fizzle to mental misstep or flusterstorm or what have you you're still left with an army of tokens.
So what if we applied the same idea to a high tide combo? Your win condition can be grapeshot. Then even if you don't quite get 19 storm you still have a lethal board position.
To help the engine we could run treasure cruise or DTT in addition to time spiral. Maybe we could mess with the snap tide shell mentioned like a page ago instead of the traditional spiral tide list, since that list is pretty tight.
First of all, why is Force of Will a good card? Well on the surface it's because force is the only way for legacy/vintage players to beat degenerate combo decks. But force is also good against midrange decks and control decks even if you don't need the counterspell on turn 1. As it turns out, countering spells is pretty strong! But why do people run force then? Why not just sideboard force for the combo matchups and mainboard a counterspell that you can cast midgame (like the original Counterspell)? Well it's because Force lets you tap out to play threats (goyf, bob, whatever) and still be protected from stuff like terminus.
Now in standard we don't have force of will but we can still play by the philosophy of leaving yourself protected with counterspells without wasting turns leaving mana open for dissolve. This is accomplished by playing creatures with flash. Whereas a normal midrange deck will spend most of its time on its own turn playing threats, RUG flash prefers to cast all its threats on its opponent's end step. This way you can leave mana open for Dissolve or Temur Charm, so if they play something you have to counter you're not dead in the water, but if they don't play something worth countering you just drop a threat; a win/win situation. However, there aren't that many playable flash cards, so we buff this strategy out by playing Prophet of Kruphix. We also try to avoid playing sorceries for obvious reasons.
When it comes to creatures, our first priority is the best creatures with flash.
With Khans out, we now have access to one of the strongest flash creatures ever printed: Surrak Dragonclaw. 2GUR for a 6/6, can't be countered, and with two relevant global effects? Sign me up! I would not bother playing this deck without at LEAST 2 of this guy.
Boon Satyr is a very efficient body at 3 mana and it has flash to boot. Plus, lategame, you can flash him onto a creature to protect it, AND it turns on ferocious if you're playing cards with that keyword. Don't leave home without 4 of these guys.
Unfortunately there aren't a lot of other playable flash cards. Quickling could work I guess, but without a plethora of ETB effects she seems like a downside. You're welcome to test with Horizon Chimera but I think a 3/2 flier for 4 isn't worth playing even though it has flash. I can certainly see the merits to running it though. Pearl Lake Ancient just costs too much.
However, just cause a creature doesn't have flash doesn't mean it's not playable!
Prophet of Kruphix does not have flash herself but she's an integral card to the deck's strategy anyway. However I think 4 is too many because by her lonesome she's just a 2/3 and she's a very poor lategame topdeck. Three has been working for me.
Sylvan Caryatid ramps us into are bigger drops and is a generally resilient mana dork. These guys help a lot against aggro as well since they're great blockers. I only run 2 though because I also run Rattleclaw Mystic.
Rattleclaw Mystic, in a vacuum, is worse than caryatid. It doesn't have hexproof, it can't block little critters, and its morph ability is often really greedy. However, I run 4 of these and only 2 caryatids for only one reason: the morph is such a mind game. You have no idea how scared your opponent gets when you sees you morph a card if he knows you also run Sagu Mauler. It forces a lot of misplays, too. I am FULLY AWARE that this could be absolutely wrong but so far it's worked well for me. Feel free to play a 4-2 split of caryatid-mystic, or even cut mystic entirely and just run 4 mana dorks. I like them though.
Speaking of which, Sagu Mauler is insane. If you have no other 3-drops in hand you can just morph this guy and get a huge dude on turn 5, but he's also fine to drop turn 6, especially after a turn 5 surrak. This guy is just a big curve topper and boy does he get the job done. By the way, in magical christmasland you can play Rattleclaw Mystic face down on turn 3 and then drop this guy as early as turn 4! So incredibly strong.
I also run 4 of the all star of temur, my favorite creature from Khans, Savage Knuckleblade. I shouldn't have to explain how good this card is. It's so good.
Polukranos, World Eater is an efficient 4-drop that helps fill out our curve. If there's one thing about this deck that I'm really disappointed with its the lack of 4-drops, and I'd like to run 4 of these, but they're legendary so I just run 3.
On Courser of Kruphix: While this card is very strong, in a deck that plays mostly instants and flash cards the information he gives away is often detrimental to your game plan so I don't run any. On the other hand, courser is a super strong card. So it's up to you.
A midrange deck like this needs lots of removal. We have a lot of great options in red, but the all star removal spell is definitely Stoke the Flames. Courser of Kruphix is really big right now and stoke the flames is our best out against it. Lightning strike is an obvious inclusion as well. I'm running 4 strike and 2 stokes but I'm considering going to 3-3. I also run 3 Temur Charm, which often act as removal.
We also want lots of counter magic! Currently I'm running 2 stubborn denial, 2 dissolve, and 3 temur charm. Temur charm acts as a counterspell far more often than any of its other modes and it turns out that mana leak at 3 mana is still good. This card is definitely the best card in the deck. And don't forget the third mode! It's the best way to kill those pesky planeswalkers hiding behind small dudes! Also, stubborn denial is a very, very good card. It's excellent at countering removal and board wipes and what have you.
I really, really want to fit 1-2 Dig Through Time in here since this deck can gas itself really quickly and it's a great late game draw. However I don't know what to cut.
Here's my current list:
4 Boon Satyr
3 Polukranos, World Eater
3 Prophet of Kruphix
4 Rattleclaw Mystic
2 Sagu Mauler
4 Savage Knuckleblade
3 Surrak Dragonclaw
2 Sylvan Caryatid
2 Dissolve
4 Lightning Strike
2 Stoke the Flames
2 Stubborn Denial
3 Temur Charm
Land:
2 Forest
4 Frontier Bivouac
2 Island
2 Mountain
4 Shivan Reef
4 Wooded Foothills
4 Yavamiya Coast
What would a sideboard look like?
Furthermore, if there is one kind of deck you absolutely CANNOT replace cards with budget options it is combo. I mean yes, there are lists that don't run LED but the interaction between LED and Infernal Tutor is so strong that I think not exploiting it is just sub par. Point in fact I think this deck has the strongest tutor/LED since you actually run 3 mana spells that can let you explode back into the game.
Tl;dr this deck is fun and can randomly win tourneys but it's not a good first deck.