If this Jin-Gitaxias is real, and part of me is afraid that it might be, it will need to be accompanied with a Tibalt's Trickery ban in Standard. Even though Trickery's hit rate is less than 50%, a turn 2 Jin-Gitaxias is still soul crushing.
Verdant WellspringGG
Legendary Enchantment {M}
Whenever a land enters the battlefield tapped under your control, add one mana of any type that land could produce.
Sacrifice Verdant Wellspring: Untap all lands you control.
I've been playing a version of this online, and am amazed how real this deck is. The version I play online has Niv-Mizzet, Parun instead of Hydroid Krasis. Niv-Mizzet is pretty strong, though can be hard to cast sometimes.
@headminerve, I'm starting to think the same way about Incubation Druid. She only combos with High Alert for attacks, but she has some good upside for casting a big finisher.
I think that the real payoff of Arcades is the card advantage. Turning our walls into cantrips is, I think, important for this deck since we're slower. It's not that High Alert offers redundancy to Arcades, but Arcades is redundancy for High Alert.
I can see where you're going headminerve, your list is much more focused than mine. I can see actually dropping one Arcades thanks to High Alert. Alert even makes Tetsuko into a better threat. As far as meta, I don't see drakes going away completely, Wall of Vines and Grappling Sundew have reach. The best argument for Gleaming Barrier is the treasure token it produces. The real problem with the walls is that they're not awesome on their own. They're only good with Arcades, and better now with High Alert. I think this is where I am now. I'm gonna try and pick up/trade for the cards I need at the pre-release this weekend and start testing .
You know, the first time I looked at Tower Defense, I didn't catch the fact it hits all creatures. I definitely need to find a place for it in the main deck.
Cavalcade of Calamity is an interesting card for Arcades and it might be worth exploring a version with a red splash for that and cards like Electrostatic Field and Spear Spewer. I'll have to keep Tower Defense in mind, though I think that hexproof has more value than reach, atm.
Now that full spoilers are out, I think the is probably the best that Arcades decks are gonna get. There's a lot of new cards that fit in his colors, but the only one that really adds punch to the deck is High Alert. Otherwise some of the new defenders have value, but High Alert solves the problem of only having 4 Arcades in the deck. There are a few different ways to build around Arcades, but I went the Planeswalker route for support.
I'm planning on taking this to an FNM in the near future, but am interested in any thoughts, ideas or suggestions that anyone has.
Yeah, after playing with the deck at a small event at my LGS, I'm not sure about my sideboard. I went 3-1 which was good enough for third place. I beat Mono Red 2-0, GB Saprolings 2-1 and UW Control 2-1. My only loss was to an Arcades Defenders deck 0-2.
I'm starting to think about what this deck would look like after rotation. Ghalta is an easy inclusion, but a lot depends on what Ravnica brings.
The real problem the Mono-G version has is a lack of removal for flyers.
Saffronolive posted this budget stompy deck that pretty much blew my mind. Since then I've been playing it on Arena and MTGO and it looks like the real deal.
I've taken the shell of this deck and added Sarkhan's Unsealing to try and get the best of both worlds. It's still a stompy deck at heart, and it doesn't need to resolve an Unsealing to win
I'm still testing things out, but I'm torn between Academy Journeymage and Exclusion Mage. Exclusion Mage does the same thing as Journeymage, but with a smaller body. Journeymage is more expensive and just big enough to stick in front of a Steel Leaf Champion if needs be.
If anyone has ant thoughts, ideas, critisisms, etc.. feel free to bring it up here.
Seeking Spirit2U
Creature - Spirit [R]
Seeking Spirit can’t be blocked.
Play with the top card of your library revealed.
As long as the top card of your library is an instant card, Seeking Spirit gets +2/+0.
Undying (When this creature dies, if it had no +1/+1 counters on it, return it to the battlefield under its owner’s control with a +1/+1 counter on it. Knowledge is power, even in death.
0/2
This is a temporary list since I can't talk about any cards in Dominaria until the full list is spoiled, but there are a couple I am interested in, but I think it's a good enough starting point to get a feel for the deck until Dominaria is released. Any suggestion or comments are gratefully appreciated.
As a Standard player, I'd probably play this if my LGS wanted to mix things up on FNM, or Standard Showdown, but not until Kaladesh and Amonkhet rotate. It may seem counter intuitive to want to start with a smaller cardpool, but I really don't want to play across from an infinite number of Baral or Scarab God decks.
Legendary Enchantment {M}
Whenever a land enters the battlefield tapped under your control, add one mana of any type that land could produce.
Sacrifice Verdant Wellspring: Untap all lands you control.
4 Gatebreaker Ram
3 Gate Colossus
2 Archway Angel
2 Hydroid Krasis
Spell 25
4 Gates Ablaze
4 Growth Spiral
4 Guild Summit
3 Open the Gates
4 Syncopate
2 Circuitous Route
2 Deafening Clarion
2 Ixalan's Binding
4 Gruul Guildgate
4 Izzet Guildgate
4 Simic Guildgate
3 Azorius Guildgate
2 Boros Guildgate
2 Selesnya Guildgate
2 Plaza of Harmony
1 Forest
1 Island
1 Mountain
4 Rhythm of the Wild
3 Gruul Spellbreaker
2 Cindervines
2 Crushing Canopy
2 Carnage Tyrant
1 Banefire
1 Archway Angel
I think that the real payoff of Arcades is the card advantage. Turning our walls into cantrips is, I think, important for this deck since we're slower. It's not that High Alert offers redundancy to Arcades, but Arcades is redundancy for High Alert.
4 Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
3 Resolute Watchdog
4 Wall of Vines
4 Saruli Caretaker
4 Grappling Sundew
2 Wall of Mist
2 Karn, Scion of Urza
2 Dive Down
2 Tower Defense
4 High Alert
4 Breeding Pool
1 Forest
4 Hallowed Fountain
2 Glacial Fortress
3 Hinterland Harbor
1 Island
1 Plains
3 Sunpetal Grove
4 Temple Garden
I'm planning on taking this to an FNM in the near future, but am interested in any thoughts, ideas or suggestions that anyone has.
4 Resolute Watchdog
4 Wall of Vines
2 Saruli Caretaker
2 Portcullis Vine
4 Grappling Sundew
1 Suspicious Bookcase
2 Wall of Mist
1 Amaranthine Wall
2 Karn, Scion of Urza
2 Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
1 Vivien Reid
4 High Alert
2 Conclave Tribunal
4 Breeding Pool
1 Forest
4 Hallowed Fountain
2 Glacial Fortress
3 Hinterland Harbor
1 Island
1 Plains
3 Sunpetal Grove
4 Temple Garden
2 Conclave Tribunal
1 Slaughter the Strong
3 Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
2 Sinister Sabotage
2 Crushing Canopy
1 Settle The Wreckage
2 Ixalan's Binding
I'm starting to think about what this deck would look like after rotation. Ghalta is an easy inclusion, but a lot depends on what Ravnica brings.
The real problem the Mono-G version has is a lack of removal for flyers.
I've taken the shell of this deck and added Sarkhan's Unsealing to try and get the best of both worlds. It's still a stompy deck at heart, and it doesn't need to resolve an Unsealing to win
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Druid of the Cowl
2 Rhonas the Indomitable
4 Steel Leaf Champion
1 Bristling Hydra
4 Vine Mare
4 Gigantosaurus
2 Carnage Tyrant
2 Blanchwood Armor
4 Cartouche of Strength
4 Sarkhan's Unsealing
1 Vivien Reid
Lands:
4 Sheltered Thicket
4 Rootbound Crag
16 Forest
3 Key to the City
1 Carnage Tyrant
2 Lifecrafter's Bestiary
3 Thrashing Brontodon
3 Prey Upon
2 Prowling Serpopard
3 Fight with Fire
4 Champion of Wits
4 Merfolk Trickster
4 Naban, Dean of Iteration
4 Viashino Pyromancer
4 Academy Journeymage
2 Naru Meha, Master Wizard
4 Ghitu Journeymage
Land
4 Spirebluff Canal
2 Field of Ruin
1 Arch of Orazca
4 Sulfur Falls
8 Island
5 Mountain
3 Panharmonicon
Instant
3 Illusionist's Stratagem
4 Wizard's Lightning
4 Deep Freeze
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
4 Wizard's Retort
3 Syncopate
2 River's Rebuke
I'm still testing things out, but I'm torn between Academy Journeymage and Exclusion Mage. Exclusion Mage does the same thing as Journeymage, but with a smaller body. Journeymage is more expensive and just big enough to stick in front of a Steel Leaf Champion if needs be.
If anyone has ant thoughts, ideas, critisisms, etc.. feel free to bring it up here.
Creature - Spirit [R]
Seeking Spirit can’t be blocked.
Play with the top card of your library revealed.
As long as the top card of your library is an instant card, Seeking Spirit gets +2/+0.
Undying (When this creature dies, if it had no +1/+1 counters on it, return it to the battlefield under its owner’s control with a +1/+1 counter on it.
Knowledge is power, even in death.
0/2
This is a temporary list since I can't talk about any cards in Dominaria until the full list is spoiled, but there are a couple I am interested in, but I think it's a good enough starting point to get a feel for the deck until Dominaria is released. Any suggestion or comments are gratefully appreciated.
2 Baral, Chief of Compliance
Creatures:
3 Champion of Wits
3 Kefnet the Mindful
3 Nimble Obstructionist
6 Torrential Gearhulk
7 Nezahal, Primal Tide
Spells:
1 Opt
1 Spell Pierce
1 Unsummon
2 Censor
2 Chart a Course
2 Essence Scatter
2 Flood of Recollection
2 Negate
2 Perilous Voyage
2 Pull from Tomorrow
2 Winds of Rebuke
3 Cancel
3 Countervailing Winds
3 Disallow
3 Disappearing Act
3 Release to the Wind
3 Supreme Will
4 Failed Inspection
4 Glimmer of Genius
4 Hieroglyphic Illumination
4 Insidious Will
4 Pirate's Prize
4 Run Aground
5 Baral's Expertise
5 Spell Swindle
6 River's Rebuke
2 Treasure Map
2 Thaumatic Compass
4 Primal Amulet
6 The Immortal Sun
Enchantments:
2 Riddleform
2 Search for Azcanta
Lands:
1 Scavenger Grounds
1 Field of Ruin
1 Desert of The Mindful
1 Ipnu Rivulet
1 Sequestered Stash
18 Island