I prefer Crystal Ball to Darksteel Pendant because it digs deeper and scrys 2. I have a feeling that Doomsday will be cut eventually, especially if it is successful. I don't really have an interest in boring infinite combos like that which tutor up an instawin. The first time and with a card like that will be fine, but it's nothing I think I'll continue to do.
Glad to hear that, one card insta-win combos don't much entertain me either.
Nice list Cryogen, I just decided to build Grenzo myself. Have you had a chance to start playing with the Doomsday combo yet? Just wondering how much luck you're having with it. Seems like if you're interrupted, it's pretty much game over, but I could be wrong.
Not yet. Last Tuesday was the first time I played it. I'll try it again with the Doomsday combo and see what happens. It is absolutely an all-in combo but that is what I want to try out. Another set of cards I want to find room for is Crystal Ball and Darksteel Pendant. I may remove Gary for Ball, since I don't anticipate getting a high devotion.
I really like both ball and pendant here. Ball is probably superior, but I have an attachment to Darksteel Pendant that would probably nudge me in that direction.
I'm very interested to see how Doomsday works for you, I'm also testing it just to see how often it might backfire and if the positives outweigh the negatives.
Nice list Cryogen, I just decided to build Grenzo myself. Have you had a chance to start playing with the Doomsday combo yet? Just wondering how much luck you're having with it. Seems like if you're interrupted, it's pretty much game over, but I could be wrong.
That is really a wide-open question - and I'll do my best to attempt to address it.
First off - if many of your opponents are prepared enough (actively metagaming specifically against your deck), no deck can flourish. I recommend switching it up and playing another deck if you suspect such shenanigans.
Secondly - you need to define what prepared means to you. Do they wait for people to cast a game winning haymaker and counter/remove it or do they maybe demand that you back the game up once you begin to combo off because they "didn't know" that's what that card did ? Do they learn how your deck wins and actively single you out to thwart your plans ?
Thirdly - can you consider adopting a lower profile by playing good-but-not-game-changing artifacts ? Maybe swap out a Portcullis for a Trading Post to seem less threatening ?
I invite others to chime in - but how resilient the deck is depends ultimately on 1) your opponents, 2) your decklist 3) your skill and knowledge as a pilot.
I apologize for not narrowing my question further. By "prepared" I meant that so many decks come "stock" with artifact removal and have the ability to counter what the deck can do. However, as this is multiplayer, I do understand that they can't be saving all of those options just for the Karn deck.
I definitely agree that the pilot can begin with a less-threatening opening to take some of the eyes off of Karn.
@Runnin: this is kind of my worry, I remember in the past whenever I would see a certain deck at the table, I would know "okay, this is going to go poorly" because of things like Hellkite Tyrant, Ruination, etc.
I guess I'm wondering if that's something we just have to accept with the Brown Army, if there are ways to combat this, or if adding colors (say Bosh, Slobad, Arcum, etc.) will get us out of those situations? I'm obviously trying to make the decision on which route to go for my artifacts, and I would really like that answer to be Karn, but I do have those concerns.
I haven't looked at playing Karn for a while, but I've been recently reconsidering the build. How resilient can Karn be considering how prepared most players are for the plethora of game-changing artifacts in EDH?
I'd be interested in this format, it feels like the opposite of EDH, instead of big splashy spells, it's all small stuff. Doran as general with a lot of cheap removal and solid utility creatures?
Nice Cryogen! I was wondering how well the holiday boxes would work for cube, thanks for the pic!
Anyways, for sleeves, I only trust Dragon Shields & KMC Hyper Mats. I like the look, feel and durability of both, but hate that Hyper Mats only come in 80ct. I usually use a Dragon Shield plastic deckbox to store full decks, as they hold 100 double sleeved cards.
Atarka, World Render definitely deserves a spot here, finally having a second Dragon Tyrant has to be a good thing right? I would also think that FTF offers a few worthy dragons for Scion's ranks.
Hmm, seems like good results. Did you enjoying piloting the deck? Were there any changes you would make after these two games?
Also, any love for Beetleback Chief here?
Glad to hear that, one card insta-win combos don't much entertain me either.
And yes, Crystal Ball is the superior choice.
I really like both ball and pendant here. Ball is probably superior, but I have an attachment to Darksteel Pendant that would probably nudge me in that direction.
I'm very interested to see how Doomsday works for you, I'm also testing it just to see how often it might backfire and if the positives outweigh the negatives.
Keep up the good work!
LOL!
Yes, there's no way she's geriatric, unless you're carbon dating her from her first printing.
I apologize for not narrowing my question further. By "prepared" I meant that so many decks come "stock" with artifact removal and have the ability to counter what the deck can do. However, as this is multiplayer, I do understand that they can't be saving all of those options just for the Karn deck.
I definitely agree that the pilot can begin with a less-threatening opening to take some of the eyes off of Karn.
@Runnin: this is kind of my worry, I remember in the past whenever I would see a certain deck at the table, I would know "okay, this is going to go poorly" because of things like Hellkite Tyrant, Ruination, etc.
I guess I'm wondering if that's something we just have to accept with the Brown Army, if there are ways to combat this, or if adding colors (say Bosh, Slobad, Arcum, etc.) will get us out of those situations? I'm obviously trying to make the decision on which route to go for my artifacts, and I would really like that answer to be Karn, but I do have those concerns.
Thanks for your answers guys!
Anyways, for sleeves, I only trust Dragon Shields & KMC Hyper Mats. I like the look, feel and durability of both, but hate that Hyper Mats only come in 80ct. I usually use a Dragon Shield plastic deckbox to store full decks, as they hold 100 double sleeved cards.