We will likely pick up some unleash creatures in the next pack, and being able to turn them off so they can block, whilst also using their +1/+1 counter to pump something else could be useful. We should also be pretty keen on scavenge creatures, so there should be more scope for getting some value out of it.
A) I don't understand paying to play magic, and then not playing. Even if your deck is jank, you learn more by playing than not playing.
B) Your manabase seems fine. You're not really RGu, but fully RGU, which is a stretch given your fixing. You played 6 red sources, 7 green sources, 6 blue sources. I'd definitely include the Gruul Cluestone just to even things out a bit futher, you could even drop a Forest for an Island to make it an even 7-7-7 sources.
We're almost assuredly Golgari. Our curve in Golgari isn't terrible. But if we go all the way up to BRrw then we're actually getting up to 6 or 7 three drops (including cluestones, snare squad would make the 7th)
With the gameplan not being agro, ad with some ramp in the form of Cluestones and the Watcher, I think we actually need something to ramp into.
So Ruination Wurm > Ruffian > Rebirth > Knight Watch.
I don't think we have enough white fixing to be interested in a Knight Watch, even with Selenya coming up next.
Its nice to be able to block their stab-wound guy with a regen chump that won't kill them. Its also a good early drop to keep back on defense and be a target for Furious Resistance if we end up playing those too. They think we're keeping mana open for regen, when actually we're hoping they let us use our situational removal.
Spire Tracer
It's a green creature. Okay with auras, Bloodrush or equipment. Of which we have none. I think its the pick with the most upside, and I'm an optimist that would rather go the card with the higher ceiling and the lower floor, than the safer Gargoyle.
Furious Resistance?
Red is seeming more and more likely and given our high curve we're likely to be trying/forced to block early.
Forced Adaptation?
Plays nice with the Gorgon. Would make future Spire Tracer's better.
Millenial Gargoyle?
All the arguments against last pack still apply, but it has even less competition here.
With green firming up as our second colour I think we take the Ivy Lane Denizen here.
It plays nicely with the Gorgon and I'd still rather be taking something with synergy than the Gargoyle, the likely vanilla 4/4 for 5 Thunderfist, the Skullcrack or the Perimeter.
Welcome to the new players. If you're anything like me you'll learn a lot about MtG rules whilst playing this game. Don't stress about corrections, I still screw up things regularly
Definitely should have been Llanowar Mentor over Skirk Ridge Exhumer. I know the elves wouldn't produce mana, but being able to get a defender down for 1, and being able to reshuffle sneak attack back in if countered a turn earlier would have been better. Even then I think a lack of answers/interaction to opposing strategies proved my downfall.
Here's my first pass. Every time I look at I lose points, so I'm stopping for the moment
07 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn / Sneak Attack / Skirk Ridge Exhumer
vs
6-0 vs 01 Geth's Verdict / Lightning Helix / Wheel of Sun and Moon
Nothing to stop Sneak Attack + Emrakul from doing its thing.
0-6 vs 02 Karakas / Leyline of Singularity / Student of Warfare
Karakas handles all my threats
6-0 vs 03 Demonfire / Ghostly Prison / The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
Faster than Demonfire.
0-6 vs 04 Counterspell / Mayor of Avabruck / Terminate
Combination of counterspell for Sneak Attack, Terminate to prevent Exhumer from getting out of control (or reshuffling Sneak Attack back in time) and the clock of the Mayor is all too much.
0-6 vs 05 Angel's Grace / Pact of the Titan / Pact of the Titan
Sometimes just beating face with a 3 turn clock is more than fast enough.
0-6 vs 06 Anurid Scavenger / Counterspell / Faerie Macabre
Faerie Macabre shuts down my recursion and the Scavenger is prot-black, so whilst Exhumer + Festering Goblin can trade with a 3/3 it can't trade with a prot-black 3/3
6-0 vs 08 Chain of Vapor / Elixir of Immortality / Pox
Pox isn't quick enough even if you chain of vapor on Sneak Attack.
0-6 vs 09 Angel's Grace / Pact of the Titan / Pact of the Titan
see 05
6-0 vs 10 Augur of Skulls / Crack the Earth / Serene Remembrance
I get at least one swing with Emrakul. I'm fairly sure that I either get a 2nd attack with Emrakul, or can make a festering goblin with the Exhumer before Crack the Earth makes me sac the Exhumer.
0-6 vs 11 Chancellor of the Annex / Counterspell / Stromkirk Noble
Exhumer is too slow/expensive to draw out the conterspell before Noble can win.
0-6 vs 12 Hunted Horror / Karakas / Leyline of Singularity
Karakas handles my threats
0-6 vs 13 Berserk / Inkmoth Nexus / Might of Old Krosa
turn 3 flying win is too quick for me.
3-3 vs 14 Artificial Evolution / Goblin Lackey / Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Get a blocker down for the Lackey on the play, which allows Sneak Attack + Emrakul to do its thing.
6-0 vs 15 Liliana of the Veil / Stronghold Gambit / Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Gambit results in Exhumer in play for me. Liliana's +1 doesn't effect me. So Sneak Attack + Emrakul does its thing.
0-6 vs 16 Phyrexian Dreadnought / Robe of Mirrors / Stifle
The Stifled-nought gets me on turn 4.
3-3 vs 17 Apostle's Blessing / Goblin Lackey / Krenko, Mob Boss
On the Draw goblins overwhelm me even though I get to attack with Emrakul once.
On the Play Emrakul gets an extra swing, which kills enough goblins that I get to swing with him again.
I think I'd prefer to see Dark Depths given the axe. Hexmage potentially breaks more things (and will need more watching), but I think it provides more utility for countering storage lands, Darksteel Reactors and various other counter based things. I don't recall ever seeing Dark Depths played prior to Hexmage's printing. Is there anything other than Dark Depths that Hexmage is broken with currently?
I agree with Flash being broken. Too many good ETB creatures get printed these days, allowing you to do too powerful stuff too soon.
Today's favourite card is Enduring Renewal was one of the first build-around-me cards I actually went out and got 4 of so I could build a combo deck. Loved the flavour and possibilities of the card.
We will likely pick up some unleash creatures in the next pack, and being able to turn them off so they can block, whilst also using their +1/+1 counter to pump something else could be useful. We should also be pretty keen on scavenge creatures, so there should be more scope for getting some value out of it.
B) Your manabase seems fine. You're not really RGu, but fully RGU, which is a stretch given your fixing. You played 6 red sources, 7 green sources, 6 blue sources. I'd definitely include the Gruul Cluestone just to even things out a bit futher, you could even drop a Forest for an Island to make it an even 7-7-7 sources.
We're almost assuredly Golgari. Our curve in Golgari isn't terrible. But if we go all the way up to BRrw then we're actually getting up to 6 or 7 three drops (including cluestones, snare squad would make the 7th)
With the gameplan not being agro, ad with some ramp in the form of Cluestones and the Watcher, I think we actually need something to ramp into.
So Ruination Wurm > Ruffian > Rebirth > Knight Watch.
I don't think we have enough white fixing to be interested in a Knight Watch, even with Selenya coming up next.
Its nice to be able to block their stab-wound guy with a regen chump that won't kill them. Its also a good early drop to keep back on defense and be a target for Furious Resistance if we end up playing those too. They think we're keeping mana open for regen, when actually we're hoping they let us use our situational removal.
*cough*
Death's Approach
It's a green creature. Okay with auras, Bloodrush or equipment. Of which we have none. I think its the pick with the most upside, and I'm an optimist that would rather go the card with the higher ceiling and the lower floor, than the safer Gargoyle.
Furious Resistance?
Red is seeming more and more likely and given our high curve we're likely to be trying/forced to block early.
Forced Adaptation?
Plays nice with the Gorgon. Would make future Spire Tracer's better.
Millenial Gargoyle?
All the arguments against last pack still apply, but it has even less competition here.
We could always take the Mountain out of protest
It plays nicely with the Gorgon and I'd still rather be taking something with synergy than the Gargoyle, the likely vanilla 4/4 for 5 Thunderfist, the Skullcrack or the Perimeter.
I ended up with Izzet/Dimir... Not what I would have chosen.
Opened up Aetherling, Niv-Mizzet, Undercity Plague. Used plenty of my Dimir guildpack (Undercity Plague, Call of the Nightwing, Keymaster Rogue)
Had plenty of decent stuff off-colour, but ended up playing UBR. Went 2-2, the games were mostly entertaining and interactive.
Generally I have no complaints at all... Oh here's one, why is Goblin Test Pilot a card?
Definitely should have been Llanowar Mentor over Skirk Ridge Exhumer. I know the elves wouldn't produce mana, but being able to get a defender down for 1, and being able to reshuffle sneak attack back in if countered a turn earlier would have been better. Even then I think a lack of answers/interaction to opposing strategies proved my downfall.
Here's my first pass. Every time I look at I lose points, so I'm stopping for the moment
X | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 | PT | TPs
7 | 6 0 6 0 0 0 X 6 0 6 0 0 0 3 6 0 3 | 34 |
07 Emrakul, the Aeons Torn / Sneak Attack / Skirk Ridge Exhumer
vs
6-0 vs 01 Geth's Verdict / Lightning Helix / Wheel of Sun and Moon
Nothing to stop Sneak Attack + Emrakul from doing its thing.
0-6 vs 02 Karakas / Leyline of Singularity / Student of Warfare
Karakas handles all my threats
6-0 vs 03 Demonfire / Ghostly Prison / The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
Faster than Demonfire.
0-6 vs 04 Counterspell / Mayor of Avabruck / Terminate
Combination of counterspell for Sneak Attack, Terminate to prevent Exhumer from getting out of control (or reshuffling Sneak Attack back in time) and the clock of the Mayor is all too much.
0-6 vs 05 Angel's Grace / Pact of the Titan / Pact of the Titan
Sometimes just beating face with a 3 turn clock is more than fast enough.
0-6 vs 06 Anurid Scavenger / Counterspell / Faerie Macabre
Faerie Macabre shuts down my recursion and the Scavenger is prot-black, so whilst Exhumer + Festering Goblin can trade with a 3/3 it can't trade with a prot-black 3/3
6-0 vs 08 Chain of Vapor / Elixir of Immortality / Pox
Pox isn't quick enough even if you chain of vapor on Sneak Attack.
0-6 vs 09 Angel's Grace / Pact of the Titan / Pact of the Titan
see 05
6-0 vs 10 Augur of Skulls / Crack the Earth / Serene Remembrance
I get at least one swing with Emrakul. I'm fairly sure that I either get a 2nd attack with Emrakul, or can make a festering goblin with the Exhumer before Crack the Earth makes me sac the Exhumer.
0-6 vs 11 Chancellor of the Annex / Counterspell / Stromkirk Noble
Exhumer is too slow/expensive to draw out the conterspell before Noble can win.
0-6 vs 12 Hunted Horror / Karakas / Leyline of Singularity
Karakas handles my threats
0-6 vs 13 Berserk / Inkmoth Nexus / Might of Old Krosa
turn 3 flying win is too quick for me.
3-3 vs 14 Artificial Evolution / Goblin Lackey / Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Get a blocker down for the Lackey on the play, which allows Sneak Attack + Emrakul to do its thing.
6-0 vs 15 Liliana of the Veil / Stronghold Gambit / Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
Gambit results in Exhumer in play for me. Liliana's +1 doesn't effect me. So Sneak Attack + Emrakul does its thing.
0-6 vs 16 Phyrexian Dreadnought / Robe of Mirrors / Stifle
The Stifled-nought gets me on turn 4.
3-3 vs 17 Apostle's Blessing / Goblin Lackey / Krenko, Mob Boss
On the Draw goblins overwhelm me even though I get to attack with Emrakul once.
On the Play Emrakul gets an extra swing, which kills enough goblins that I get to swing with him again.
I agree with Flash being broken. Too many good ETB creatures get printed these days, allowing you to do too powerful stuff too soon.