I personally think that EVERY deck in the format wants to have 4-6 two-drops just for curve purposes.
100% agree (of course T1 ancestor T2 outlast counts), and of course what NFLed said about forcing as well.
My favorite way to beat Abzan decks is to have 6 players drafting it (or W/x) and all taking each other's cards.
There are basically 3 ways to go, in order of land priorization.
1) 4-5 color bombs
2) Full 3-color
3) 2-color consistency (usually pick a light splash by end of P2 or P3)
I don't think any clan natively has a big advantage. White is generally good and Black is slightly worse bad but this is corrected by folks overdrafting white and underdrafting black. Also people hate temur. I also don't think allied color pairs are that bad, I mean open is open.
Take up arms is good in a tokens strategy or BW warriors but not really aggro (it's 3 power for 5 mana with some instant juju).
You don't have to go tokens either (although it's very strong as long as you get 1-2 Trumpets/Rushes)
There are good Ux tempo decks with force away and cripping chill and bunches of pikers.
BW Warriors is pretty good and pretty aggro. Pikers, Chiefs, Rush of Battle, Raider's Spoils.
You do want 5-7 2 drops. You will lose to End Hostilities, que sera.
They are all really close. In a vacuum, ponyback is the worst but it also has the best synergy with either BW warriors or RW tokens (or both), and is most resistant to removal (although snowhorn dodges bring low)
1.7 Abomination of Gudul isn't a good blocker, but cant' be stopped by any of the mono-colours and has a great triggered ability.
This doesn't seem fair. It blocks the pants off all the common fliers and most of the rare/uncommons as well.
This is not a great deck (the creatures are bad) but I managed to squeak out a 2-1 2nd place @ LGS. #humblebrag
Bitter Rev was the last card I cut, and I think it's probably better than Sultai Ascendency, which never did much for me at all.
I just don't see how you can squeeze in Scheming here, and this IS the Scheming deck. In fact, cranial archive is actually pretty essential so you don't mill yourself out (came close once). You can't cut a land. You can't cut a creature (already a little light for Sidisi) You can't cut TREASURE CRUISE.
You could cut Ascendency... but as stated above, Bitter Revelation is probably just better.
Well I was very wrong. Obviously. It targets a permanent. Ensoul+Thing is not "a" permanent, and Thing (again, obviously) has to be non-land. Sorry, RTFC!
I think you can do either with impersonator. You could copy an ensouled ornithoptor and get a 5/5 flier, or citadel and get a 5/5 indestructable, OR you can copy the aura and ensoul whatever you want (but this is easier to deal with since it would die to erase or whatever)
As for your sideboard, I think you want mostly counterspells (maybe 8-9?), and just take out the worst cards for a given matchup. What you are missing is some form of card advantage, like bident or military intelligence. Also I think hypnotic siren is better than shorethief.
Ghostfire blade isn't confusing... I am just not sold on 4 of them in a list with 13 non-colorless creatures.
Another pet card 3 drop you could consider is crystalline nautilus. In constructed there are only a handful of cards that would target it and not kill it, it's a good mana sink if you flood. I wouldn't run very many though.
I am torn because I like disciple to fetch you ensoul but I hate Master of the Feast. Maybe Herald of Torment is better? I would also more 2 CMC one-ofs in the main like singing bell strike to fetch. The double-black cards seem really hard to cast... you cannot cast them off of 2x Delta with only one swamp to fetch either.
Both the UW heroic and that GW counters deck are going to be tough matchups for mono-U I think. You can still win with a T2 5/5 flier though. If they board in a bunch of erase and suspension field it's going to be ugly. Aetherspouts is probably the best, but you can't run more than 1 or 2, and you still have to live to turn 5 and have them walk into it.
Probably UR doom engine / shrapnel blast is the best. I wonder if Jace, the living Guildpact is good here.
Full on mono-U (TWoo build) is actually probably OK because they don't interact either and you just draw a zillion cards.
Has anyone played (any version) of this deck against the Jeskai Heroic Combo deck (with a compentant pilot)? It seems very hard. The wide aggro is hard to deal with and retraction helix is great against us. Plus our clock isn't even that fast (unless you have 2 5/5s).
MI I think is ok if you are on the weenie plan. But you want a build like Woos with ca. 8 evasive 1 drops.
Keranos and Sphinx to me imply jumping to ca. 24 lands which has not been explored much in the last 40 pages. Most of the builds are running 20. Maybe you could try 22-23 lands and hope the drums make up the difference? But those seem like controlly-finishers and are you likely to have a bunch of dudes you can tap for mana?
I could see Sphinx+Treasure Cruise or dig in a controlly build but it's hard to play control with a hand full of ornithopters and drums.
I have seen on another board a R-heavy build with Howl and Generator servant and Shrapnel Blast. It seems awfully disruptable to me, and howl+instant isn't cheap.
I would be hesitant about running 5 drops and especially RR2 with 20 lands, even with the drums. If you go up to 22, maybe. What match ups do you want those for?
I like icy blast but I am unsure specifically what it's for. I meant if it's good it should be good against almost every deck as reach/psuedo time walk (not pure control). When is it better or worse than Aetherspouts? What are you taking out? Revokers vs non-walker decks? Daring Thiefs vs. weenies? My other concern with both these is that they need a fair amount of mana.
Blue has a bunch of instants/sorceries that are expensive and useful, but in a 20 land deck I am a little worried about them. curse of the swine and polymorphist's jest are two others. (Jest is pretty cheap you have to have the correct board to take advantage).
But not even 50% sure about tactics/curse in the SB. I started with the japanese devotion list and decided scheming+treasure cruise was just a terrible divination. Tried to squeeze a little devotion/instant speed with janky font. Some synergy with disdainful stroke.
I kind of feel like this desk might be best if you just flat out cut ensoul/ornithoptor game 2 or 3 - but then I put a bunch of enchantments to be hit anyway, so I dunno.
I also hate hate hate drawing that 2nd springleaf drum! Maybe I will make it a purse or crypt or something.
100% agree (of course T1 ancestor T2 outlast counts), and of course what NFLed said about forcing as well.
My favorite way to beat Abzan decks is to have 6 players drafting it (or W/x) and all taking each other's cards.
There are basically 3 ways to go, in order of land priorization.
1) 4-5 color bombs
2) Full 3-color
3) 2-color consistency (usually pick a light splash by end of P2 or P3)
I don't think any clan natively has a big advantage. White is generally good and Black is slightly worse bad but this is corrected by folks overdrafting white and underdrafting black. Also people hate temur. I also don't think allied color pairs are that bad, I mean open is open.
You don't have to go tokens either (although it's very strong as long as you get 1-2 Trumpets/Rushes)
There are good Ux tempo decks with force away and cripping chill and bunches of pikers.
BW Warriors is pretty good and pretty aggro. Pikers, Chiefs, Rush of Battle, Raider's Spoils.
You do want 5-7 2 drops. You will lose to End Hostilities, que sera.
This doesn't seem fair. It blocks the pants off all the common fliers and most of the rare/uncommons as well.
1 Disowned Ancestor
1 Jeskai Elder
1 Jeskai Windscout
1 Kin-Tree Invocation
1 Mystic of the Hidden Way
1 Sagu Archer
1 Glacial Stalker
1 Abomination of Gudul
1 Thousand Winds
1 Sidisi, Brood Tyrant
1 Rakshaha Vizier
1 Rotting Mastadon
1 Sultai Scavenger
//Removals
2 Debilitating Injury
1 Sultai Charm
1 Rite of the Serpent
1 Dead Drop
1 Sultai Ascendancy
1 Cranial Archive
// Whole point of Deck
2 Treasure Cruise
// lands
1 Sandsteppe Citadel
1 Dismal Backwater
1 Jungle Hollow
1 Thornwood Falls
5 Swamp
6 Island
3 Forest
1 Unyielding Krumar
1 Scaldkin
1 Rotting Mastadon
1 Kheru Dreadmaw
1 Briber’s Purse
1 Singing Bell Strike
2 Taigam’s Scheming
1 Cancel
1 Bitter Revelation
This is not a great deck (the creatures are bad) but I managed to squeak out a 2-1 2nd place @ LGS. #humblebrag
Bitter Rev was the last card I cut, and I think it's probably better than Sultai Ascendency, which never did much for me at all.
I just don't see how you can squeeze in Scheming here, and this IS the Scheming deck. In fact, cranial archive is actually pretty essential so you don't mill yourself out (came close once). You can't cut a land. You can't cut a creature (already a little light for Sidisi) You can't cut TREASURE CRUISE.
You could cut Ascendency... but as stated above, Bitter Revelation is probably just better.
As for your sideboard, I think you want mostly counterspells (maybe 8-9?), and just take out the worst cards for a given matchup. What you are missing is some form of card advantage, like bident or military intelligence. Also I think hypnotic siren is better than shorethief.
Another pet card 3 drop you could consider is crystalline nautilus. In constructed there are only a handful of cards that would target it and not kill it, it's a good mana sink if you flood. I wouldn't run very many though.
Also not 100% on pain seer or ghostfire blade Also confused by the chief engineer. All your rocks cost 1-2, do you need to convoke them?
Probably UR doom engine / shrapnel blast is the best. I wonder if Jace, the living Guildpact is good here.
Full on mono-U (TWoo build) is actually probably OK because they don't interact either and you just draw a zillion cards.
I suppose we could board in 3-4 Negate?
Keranos and Sphinx to me imply jumping to ca. 24 lands which has not been explored much in the last 40 pages. Most of the builds are running 20. Maybe you could try 22-23 lands and hope the drums make up the difference? But those seem like controlly-finishers and are you likely to have a bunch of dudes you can tap for mana?
I could see Sphinx+Treasure Cruise or dig in a controlly build but it's hard to play control with a hand full of ornithopters and drums.
I have seen on another board a R-heavy build with Howl and Generator servant and Shrapnel Blast. It seems awfully disruptable to me, and howl+instant isn't cheap.
Blue has a bunch of instants/sorceries that are expensive and useful, but in a 20 land deck I am a little worried about them. curse of the swine and polymorphist's jest are two others. (Jest is pretty cheap you have to have the correct board to take advantage).
I have been testing this:
4 Darksteel Citadel
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
15 Island
4 Ornithopter
3 Hypnotic Siren
2 Phyrexian Revoker
2 Omenspeaker
3 Illusory Angel
4 Master of Waves
4 Ensoul Artifact
4 Springleaf Drum
4 Stubborn Denial
1 Thassa, God of the Sea
2 Ghostfire Blade
4 Font of Fortunes
3 Singing Bell Strike
4 Disdainful Stroke
3 Negate
2 Triton Tactics
2 Bident of Thassa
2 Curse of the Swine
2 Phyrexian Revoker
But not even 50% sure about tactics/curse in the SB. I started with the japanese devotion list and decided scheming+treasure cruise was just a terrible divination. Tried to squeeze a little devotion/instant speed with janky font. Some synergy with disdainful stroke.
I kind of feel like this desk might be best if you just flat out cut ensoul/ornithoptor game 2 or 3 - but then I put a bunch of enchantments to be hit anyway, so I dunno.
I also hate hate hate drawing that 2nd springleaf drum! Maybe I will make it a purse or crypt or something.