I was playing Izzet Phoenix for a little, I first put it together because it felt like it played in a Legacy style. I want to move away from Faithless looting, and Temur Delver is another deck that seems to play in a legacy style, and I like the range of cards that the colors provide. I really like this deck due to the ability to utilizeDisrupting Shoal, but I was wondering what people thought about the balance of other counterspells in this build. Also, My sideboard is mostly the same as the izzet phoenix sideboard. Ral, Izzet Viceroy seems to serve a similar purpose in this deck, providing some strength in the late game. He also plays well with Disrupting Shoal and Hooting Mandrills, regarding the exile zone.
Choose One:
-Counter target spell unless opponent pays 2
-Return target creature to its owner's hand
-Scry 2 and then draw a card
That's the general vibe of the card, a blue answer where you choose between slightly less powerful options than what you'd usually get for the same CMC but you get the flexibility to choose. The finer details are all up for debate and balancing.
The idea is good, but this card is better than Izzet Charm with an easier to pay mana cost. I'd downgrade it to choose between Dispel, Envelop, Unsummon and Opt to imagine it being printed.
Yeah, that's rather powerful as is - especially since the 3rd mode is Preordain, a card banned in Modern. We wouldn't see a 2cmc Preordain with MORE upsides. We'd probably be looking at:
Contingency Plan Use Dat Noggin'! UU
Instant
Choose One:
- Counter target instant spell.
- Return target creature an opponent controls to its owner's hand.
- Scry 1, Draw a card.
EDIT: Did not realize Contingency Plan was already a card. Should have known.
What about a few Gut Shot to round out the mono red list? It was suggested in a linked list a few pages back as a card to help with explosive openings involving Swiftspear and Skewer the Critics. It’s weak in burn overall, but does seem to provide unexpected power. Outside of mono red there are better options.
With the addition of Pteramander in RNA I was thinking that there might be a shell in Modern for a Delver deck. I like the idea of Dimir Delver to keep the manabase affordable, and I'm trying to avoid Faithless Looting decks at the moment. There is a possibility that this is just a watered down version of Grixis Death's Shadow, but I'd like your input and advice:
Justiciar’s Portal – Pretty cool design. Wait until they attack, blink your guy, retrigger some ETB effect, kill one of their attackers thanks to first strike
Flames of the Raze-Boar – Pretty much a one-sided wrath against weenie decks for midrange. A bit expensive, but instant speed is nice.
Goblin Gathering – How long has it been since we’ve seen an Accumulated Knowledge-type of effect? The rate on this doesn’t seem to be the worst. I don’t remember – did Hordeling Outburst see play? If it did, this may have a chance as well.
Open the Gates – A Lay of the Land with upside, similar to Attune with Aether. Don’t know if the ability to tutor for a tapped dual is good enough for this to warrant inclusion in any Standard deck.
Applied Biomancy – Quite the powerful combat trick. Could lead to some Limited blowouts, maybe even applicable in Constructed?
Final Payment – Not quite a Doom Blade, but it offers a lot of different options for the additional payment. 5 life is a lot, but if you can consistently keep a saccable creature or enchantment around, this isn’t the worst.
Druid with stony strength can give you 7 mana turn 3!! (If you make each land drop)
Every time I try to think of a shell for this card I end up looking at Jund again. I feel like there could be a RB shell that functions like Jund but replaces Goyfs with more burn. But if we’re looking at a deck that tops out at 3cmc with K’s Command and this spirit, while still packing Fatal Pushes, and Thoughtseize or Inquisitions... this card feels like a finisher in the sam vein as Vendilion Clique. It’s a 3 power creature with a form of evasion, it comes down when you’re holding an electrickery, wipes the board, then cleans up over a few turns. Also, Flame Jab works nice with Collective Brutality...
Finally we get our Lizard Wizard. Sorta wish it didn't even have that distracting "Elf" type tagged onto it. I love how this is exactly Mystic Snake, but for one more G we get 1 more point of power. And it's uncommon. This is going to be amazing in limited methinks.
This could be hilarious in EDH in an Enchantress deck - (1)set up a impenetrable pillow fort, (2)cast this, (3)flip your enchantment fort over into an army of creatures.
For everyone who is saying "this makes X card a killspell for [valuetown]": Let's not forget that you still need to cast Pestilent Spirit!! That essentially tacks 3 mana onto your kill spells - this makes Gut Shot a kill spell for 3 mana and 2 life; Electrickery a board wipe for 5 mana; etc.. The nice thing is this is essentially a 3cmc target that says "Use your removal on me or lose your whole board state!" :-D
There's been some Boros/Rakdos debate within modern Burn. This card is pretty spicy, but Burn doesn't do well with 3cmc creatures very much. However, I'm beginning to wonder if there might be a spicy mid-range rakdos burn-shell shaping up - using this, Dark Confidant, and the standard rakdos burn spells.
Yeah, people are being silly about this Hydroid Krasis. Whoever compared it to Mulldrifter is spot on. Mully is 3 mana to draw 2 and maybe get a sac trigger, or 5cmc to draw 2 and get a 2/2 flyer. This is 6 mana to gain 2 life, draw 2 cards - right upon casting(!) - and if it's not countered you also get a 4/4 flyer with trample. THAT IS SO MUCH VALUE FOR 6 MANA!
I'll say it again - 6 mana for a 4/4 flyer with trample, and it draws you two cards.That's not even looking at it in the context of this set: you can cast it for 4, get a 2/2 flyer with trample, and draw a card upon casting. We know Simic will have some counter manipulation - this thing can only get bigger.
I was playing Izzet Phoenix for a little, I first put it together because it felt like it played in a Legacy style. I want to move away from Faithless looting, and Temur Delver is another deck that seems to play in a legacy style, and I like the range of cards that the colors provide. I really like this deck due to the ability to utilizeDisrupting Shoal, but I was wondering what people thought about the balance of other counterspells in this build. Also, My sideboard is mostly the same as the izzet phoenix sideboard. Ral, Izzet Viceroy seems to serve a similar purpose in this deck, providing some strength in the late game. He also plays well with Disrupting Shoal and Hooting Mandrills, regarding the exile zone.
4 Delver of Secrets
3 Hooting Mandrills
4 Tarmogoyf
4 snapcaster mage
2 nimble obstructionist
SPELLS
4 thought scour
4 lightning bolt
4 serum visions
2 tarfire
4 Disrupting Shoal
2 spell pierce
2 stubborn denial
2 Simic Charm
1 spellsnare
2 steam vents
1 Breeding Pool
2 island
1 mountain
1 Forest
3 Misty Rainforest
3 Wooded Foothills
4 scalding tarn
1 stomping ground
1 ral, izzet viceroy
2 cindervines
2 alpine moon
2 surgical extraction
2 anger of the gods
2 Ancient Grudge
3 Crackling Drake
1 engineered explosives
Yeah, that's rather powerful as is - especially since the 3rd mode is Preordain, a card banned in Modern. We wouldn't see a 2cmc Preordain with MORE upsides. We'd probably be looking at:
Contingency PlanUse Dat Noggin'! UUInstant
Choose One:
- Counter target instant spell.
- Return target creature an opponent controls to its owner's hand.
- Scry 1, Draw a card.
EDIT: Did not realize Contingency Plan was already a card. Should have known.
With the addition of Pteramander in RNA I was thinking that there might be a shell in Modern for a Delver deck. I like the idea of Dimir Delver to keep the manabase affordable, and I'm trying to avoid Faithless Looting decks at the moment. There is a possibility that this is just a watered down version of Grixis Death's Shadow, but I'd like your input and advice:
4 Delver of Secrets
4 Pteramander
4 Gurmag Angler
3 Snapcaster Mage
2 vendilion clique
SPELLS
3 Thoughtseize
3 Inquisition of Kozilek
4 Fatal Push
4 serum visions
3 opt
4 thought scour
2 Collective Brutality
2 negate
1 mana leak
4 scalding tarn
2 island
2 swamp
4 Darkslick Shores
4 polluted delta
4 watery grave
1 engineered explosives
2 dispel
2 ceremonious rejection
1 disdainful stroke
2 surgical extraction
1 liliana, the last hope
4 leyline of the void
2 ancestral vision
If I switched to Grixis I'd probably run Kolaghan's Command and Lightning Bolts. I based the number of counterspells on lists like UW Control.
Druid with stony strength can give you 7 mana turn 3!! (If you make each land drop)
It’s been done at rare quite recently- elvish clancaller.
Instant
Counter target spell unless its controller pays 2
... So much for UW Control not getting more support in this set...
Not exactly sure where the official spoiler is: https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/398142927760654336/530801896705884161/153flrgjzf821.png
edit: whoops! Glaring spelling error in the title! How embarrassing!
There's been some Boros/Rakdos debate within modern Burn. This card is pretty spicy, but Burn doesn't do well with 3cmc creatures very much. However, I'm beginning to wonder if there might be a spicy mid-range rakdos burn-shell shaping up - using this, Dark Confidant, and the standard rakdos burn spells.
I'll say it again - 6 mana for a 4/4 flyer with trample, and it draws you two cards.That's not even looking at it in the context of this set: you can cast it for 4, get a 2/2 flyer with trample, and draw a card upon casting. We know Simic will have some counter manipulation - this thing can only get bigger.