The 2 damage from Ionize is fluff. Jeskai decks excel in the long game, they just have to survive until they get there. Absorb helps with that significantly.
Boon of Power will be pretty damn powerful in limited, a potential 3-for-1 combat trick or game-ender for a reasonable cost of six mana. Might Power its way into Standard. Probably a future bulk rare after rotation, though, as those effects are a little too narrow for Modern.
Also, I really love the name. It's like a Boon made up of one of the original Boons (Giant Growth) with "Power" a subtle dig at how weak it was compared to the blue boon (Ancestral Recall), which is of course a member of the Power Nine. That, and it's three boons, or Boon squared, which would be a boon with a power. Hats off to whoever in Wizards sent that one in.
I'm not sure that KotR helps, though. The deck currently only has four fetch lands, which means you need to keep him on the board, sans protection, without attacking and sac your own lands in response. Plus, Gideon, Lead, and History are vital in the war of attrition - all three are able to generate more than one creature, which is absolutely necessary without having any other way of gaining card advantage.
The problem with Knights is a distinct lack of card advantage. The only card in this deck that presents the possibility of a 2-for-1 is History of Benalia, which requires two turns to do it. Ultimately, it relies almost entirely on getting Knight Exemplar out - otherwise it's just a subpar collection of mid-range creatures that are almost all outclassed by your average 4/5 Tarmogoyf.
So to make this deck competitive, that's where the improvement needs to happen - you have to keep get your threats out early, ramp them in power as the game goes along without trading threats 1-for-1, and find a way to swing for the win before the other team can establish their board position. Without card draw, that's a really tall order these days.
So here's what I would start with (note: it's not cheap!):
Why has Summoner's Pact fallen out of favor? I never see it being used in any decklists, but it feels like it offers a significant cost reduction over Chord of Calling. For example, let's say you want to tutor up Ezuri, Renegade Leader. With Chord, you're paying 6 mana to put it on the battlefield or tapping down your potential attackers. With Pact, you're paying 0 mana to put it into your hand and then 3 mana to put it on the field, which means you have three more mana that can be used to pump Ezuri's ability.
Of course, Pact can't pull non-green creatures such as Vizier of Remedies or Burrenton Forge-Tender, which means it might be a sub-optimal choice in those decks. But if you don't have any non-green creatures, then the only advantage I can see Chord having is that it offers flash. But how often do you really need to flash in a creature on defense anyway? Is that ability worth the three mana trade-off?
Am I missing anything else? The differences that I can see (correct me if I'm wrong):
Cons:
Can't pull non-green creatures (Vizier of Remedies, etc.)
Can't flash in creatures without flash
My thinking is that if you're running a card base where your win cons are all green, then I think Summoner's Pact makes more sense, but I never see anyone running them. If you have white win cons, then going at least halfsies on Chord may be the better choice.
Played B/G Elves at a Modern tourney last Wednesday, went 3-1 into top-4 where I lost to Spirits in round 1 (because I'm an idiot, as you'll see). My deck was far from complete/optimized; the land base was trash and the sideboard was thrown together at the last minute. Nonetheless, I was happy with it, and it was good to see all the other players at the store freaking out about seeing it because it's so explosive.
I lost to Bogles 2-0 round 1. He got Daybreak Coronet out both games and I never drew an answer, so even though I was swinging for 30+, his lifegain/vigilance (along with unblockable) was too much to overcome. I'll be adding Devour Flesh to the sideboard next time.
Round 2 I fought against a token deck that I made quick relatively work of (2-0). They simply don't have enough oomph to outduel the elves. It was at this point, though, that I started to find my mana base to be an issue, slowing me down.
Round 3 I played Gifts Ungiven combo. He won game 1, at which point I sided in the four Thoughtseizes. Game 2 he got land screwed and I overran him pretty quickly. Game three I opened with Thoughtseize and trashed his Gifts Ungiven. The look on his face was priceless - he did not expect Thoughtseize from an elf deck.
Round 4 2-1 against another token deck - this one was closer than round 2. I sided in the two Essence Wardens, and he ended up tossing his Fatal Pushes at them early (unnecessarily, IMHO). But those EW's protected my Ezuris so they more than did their job. All three games were close, and I got lucky that he didn't make it to four mana in game 3.
Round 1 of top 4 I had a god draw game 1 and overran him with Craterhoof Behemoth. Game 2 I found out how vulnerable the deck is to flying spirits as he pushed past me with some fat in the air before I could get established. So, figuring I had to race him, I left Thoughtseizes, Duress, Shaman of the Pack, Beast Within, Abrupt Decay, and Reclamation Sage all in the sideboard, only to watch him drop a Worship. Live and learn, I guess.
A few notes I came away with:
1) The Thoughtseizes were outstanding, totally a reason to run black. Additionally, black will offer Devour Flesh or Cruel Edict, which is vital against Bogles.
2) The mana base, as stated, was trash and needs fixing. I'm ordering Gilt-Leaf Palace, Unclaimed Territory, and Overgrown Tomb. Bloodbraid Elf hit hard, but just wasn't synergistic enough and spread the mana base too thin, so I'm cutting red.
3) I liked what Lead the Stampede did so much that I'm going to just bite the bullet and purchase Collected Company.
4) I suspect the meta will be a little more prepared for Elves next week, so I'll probably see more sweepers. Thoughtseize will help, and I think I want to up the lord ratio to help protect against things like Zealous Persecution.
Note: once I get Collected Company, Gilt-Leaf Palace, and Unclaimed Territory, those will all go in. I'll probably leave one or two forests in there in case of Path to Exile
The reason for the red splash? Rally the Peasants, which has a red flashback cost, and Electrickery out of the sideboard (in the linked version). RtP alone is totally worth it.
I haven't put in and personally tested a sideboard yet, but this deck has been performing really well, and is highly resilient to bad draws. The best part? It set me back about 2 tickets on MTGO.
Rancor, Cultivate, Regrowth, Utopia Sprawl, Nettle Sentinel, Iwamori of the Open Fist (at uncommon), Swords to Plowshares, Counterspell, Street Wraith, Browbeat, Blightning, Boros Charm, Nihil Spellbomb, and Swiftfoot Boots are the notable ones I saw. Not bad for final day cards.
Edit: Horseshoe Crab and Quicksilver Dagger is one of my all-time favorite combos (the first combo deck I ever built, actually). That'll be a powerhouse limited combo.
You've made two errors in your EV calculation. First, you don't add the average value of the mythics and the average value of the rares together because you don't get a rare and a mythic, you get one or the other.
I took the average sell value of the mythics ($30.42) and multiplied it by 1/8, then added that to 7/8 of the average rare value (7.76). Those came out to $3.80 and $6.79, respectively. The only way I got that wrong is if my estimate of the ratio of mythics to rares is off.
Second, you have attributed way too much value to the commons and uncommons. Mtggoldfish doesn't factor these into EV for a good reason... you can't reliably sell commons or uncs as singles.
This would be true for most sets, but I'd argue it doesn't hold true for M25; there are a lot of uncommons/commons that will be sellable, as 15/41 spoiled so far are currently selling for more than a dollar.
Jeez, the outrage over this set so far is unbelievable. Out of the 120 or so cards currently spoiled, 18 of them are currently pre-selling for $10 or more: Mythics
Jace, the Mind Sculptor
Imperial Recruiter
Chalice of the Void
Ensnaring Bridge
Vendilion Clique
Phyrexian Obliterator
Animar, Soul of Elements
Rare
Rishadan Port
Fetid Heath
Twilight Mire
Azusa, Lost but Seeking
Blood Moon
Pact of Negation
Rugged Prarie
Summoner's Pact
Cascade Bluffs
Flooded Growth
Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
Based on the presale price (which, I understand, will eventually drop), the mythics and rares will return pack value all by themselves - $6.8 weighted average for the rares and $3.8 weighted average for the mythics (assuming 1/8 mythic slots). Even if you exclude Jace from that calculation, you'd still be looking at $9.40 and that's without the current $4.52 per-pack value from uncommons and $8.50 per-pack value from commons (a number which is probably more egregious since the set is likely to tank many of those values and the lesser value commons haven't been spoiled yet). Yes, you read all that right - for as "awful" as this set is, the average booster pack will currently return $24 in pre-sale value (and to note: those offer prices are mostly below the current card average for the previous versions).
Look, I get it - it sucks to open cards you don't want. But that's Magic. You've been playing this game for how many years and yet you continue to ***** about this card value? No, they didn't pack this set with a hundred of history's most expensive cards. But they're not idiots - they aren't going to put $70 worth of product into a $10 booster pack. They threw in a couple-dozen high value reprints along with some solid uncommons and commons that needed another printing. But all any of you can do is focus on how you aren't getting the exact cards you want, without taking a look at the bigger picture. It's ridiculous and a little pathetic.
A quick question (partly to subscribe to this thread): Has anyone tried to use Aether Vial? I only ask because I feel like a) Instant speed creatures would help circumvent some of the problems we have, and b) it would help play out our threats faster.
Edit: Never mind. I played it tonight and it sucked.
Also, I really love the name. It's like a Boon made up of one of the original Boons (Giant Growth) with "Power" a subtle dig at how weak it was compared to the blue boon (Ancestral Recall), which is of course a member of the Power Nine. That, and it's three boons, or Boon squared, which would be a boon with a power. Hats off to whoever in Wizards sent that one in.
You can still cycle your cards, Suspend them, vial them in, use activated abilities of cards in hand (lol Forecast), discard them, etc.
I'm not sure that KotR helps, though. The deck currently only has four fetch lands, which means you need to keep him on the board, sans protection, without attacking and sac your own lands in response. Plus, Gideon, Lead, and History are vital in the war of attrition - all three are able to generate more than one creature, which is absolutely necessary without having any other way of gaining card advantage.
What about a more equipmenty shell?
4 Dauntless Bodyguard
4 Puresteel Paladin
3 Danitha Capashen, Paragon
4 Knight Exemplar
Spells
4 Path to Exile
4 Steelshaper's Gift
4 Sigarda's Aid
1 Batterskull
1 Sword of Fire and Ice
1 Sword of Light and Shadow
1 Sword of War and Peace
1 Godsend
1 Pariah's Shield
1 Scythe of the Wretched
4 Paradise Mantle
4 Blinkmoth Nexus
18 Plains
So to make this deck competitive, that's where the improvement needs to happen - you have to keep get your threats out early, ramp them in power as the game goes along without trading threats 1-for-1, and find a way to swing for the win before the other team can establish their board position. Without card draw, that's a really tall order these days.
So here's what I would start with (note: it's not cheap!):
4 Student of Warfare
4 Dauntless Bodyguard
4 Knight of the White Orchid
4 Mirran Crusader
4 Knight Exemplar
4 History of Benalia
4 Path to Exile
4 Collected Company
2 Lead the Stampede
Planeswalkers
2 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
4 Temple Garden
4 Windswept Heath
4 Razorverge Thicket
2 Stirring Wildwood
2 Plains
Of course, Pact can't pull non-green creatures such as Vizier of Remedies or Burrenton Forge-Tender, which means it might be a sub-optimal choice in those decks. But if you don't have any non-green creatures, then the only advantage I can see Chord having is that it offers flash. But how often do you really need to flash in a creature on defense anyway? Is that ability worth the three mana trade-off?
Am I missing anything else? The differences that I can see (correct me if I'm wrong):
Pros:
Generally costs three mana less than Chord of Calling
Cons:
Can't pull non-green creatures (Vizier of Remedies, etc.)
Can't flash in creatures without flash
My thinking is that if you're running a card base where your win cons are all green, then I think Summoner's Pact makes more sense, but I never see anyone running them. If you have white win cons, then going at least halfsies on Chord may be the better choice.
4 Elvish Mystic
4 Nettle Sentinel
4 Heritage Druid
4 Dwynen's Elite
4 Elvish Archdruid
2 Ezuri, Renegade Leader
3 Shaman of the Pack
3 Bloodbraid Elf
1 Craterhoof Behemoth
4 Lead the Stampede
4 Stomping Ground
1 Swamp
4 Bloodstained Mire
4 Wooded Foothills
5 Forest
1 Pendlehaven
1 Treetop Village
4 Thoughseize
1 Duress
1 Cloudstone Curio
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Shaman of the Pack
1 Bloodbraid ELf
2 Essence Warden
1 Beast Within
1 Chord of Calling
2 Abrupt Decay
I lost to Bogles 2-0 round 1. He got Daybreak Coronet out both games and I never drew an answer, so even though I was swinging for 30+, his lifegain/vigilance (along with unblockable) was too much to overcome. I'll be adding Devour Flesh to the sideboard next time.
Round 2 I fought against a token deck that I made quick relatively work of (2-0). They simply don't have enough oomph to outduel the elves. It was at this point, though, that I started to find my mana base to be an issue, slowing me down.
Round 3 I played Gifts Ungiven combo. He won game 1, at which point I sided in the four Thoughtseizes. Game 2 he got land screwed and I overran him pretty quickly. Game three I opened with Thoughtseize and trashed his Gifts Ungiven. The look on his face was priceless - he did not expect Thoughtseize from an elf deck.
Round 4 2-1 against another token deck - this one was closer than round 2. I sided in the two Essence Wardens, and he ended up tossing his Fatal Pushes at them early (unnecessarily, IMHO). But those EW's protected my Ezuris so they more than did their job. All three games were close, and I got lucky that he didn't make it to four mana in game 3.
Round 1 of top 4 I had a god draw game 1 and overran him with Craterhoof Behemoth. Game 2 I found out how vulnerable the deck is to flying spirits as he pushed past me with some fat in the air before I could get established. So, figuring I had to race him, I left Thoughtseizes, Duress, Shaman of the Pack, Beast Within, Abrupt Decay, and Reclamation Sage all in the sideboard, only to watch him drop a Worship. Live and learn, I guess.
A few notes I came away with:
1) The Thoughtseizes were outstanding, totally a reason to run black. Additionally, black will offer Devour Flesh or Cruel Edict, which is vital against Bogles.
2) The mana base, as stated, was trash and needs fixing. I'm ordering Gilt-Leaf Palace, Unclaimed Territory, and Overgrown Tomb. Bloodbraid Elf hit hard, but just wasn't synergistic enough and spread the mana base too thin, so I'm cutting red.
3) I liked what Lead the Stampede did so much that I'm going to just bite the bullet and purchase Collected Company.
4) I suspect the meta will be a little more prepared for Elves next week, so I'll probably see more sweepers. Thoughtseize will help, and I think I want to up the lord ratio to help protect against things like Zealous Persecution.
So here's the state of my deck at the moment:
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Heritage Druid
4 Nettle Sentinel
1 Joraga Warcaller
4 Dwynen's Elite
4 Shaman of the Pack
4 Elvish Archdruid
2 Ezuri, Renegade Leader
1 Imperious Perfect
1 Craterhoof Behemoth
3 Chord of Calling
4 Woodland Cemetery
4 Overgrown Tomb
3 Bloodstained Mire
1 Wooded Foothills
8 Forest
4 Thoughtseize
4 Devour Flesh
3 Abrupt Decay
2 Reclamation Sage
2 Imperious Perfect
Note: once I get Collected Company, Gilt-Leaf Palace, and Unclaimed Territory, those will all go in. I'll probably leave one or two forests in there in case of Path to Exile
Thoughts?
2 Benevolent Bodyguard
1 Icatian Javelineers
2 Loyal Pegasus
4 Soul Warden
4 Thraben Inspector
4 Squadron Hawk
1 Veteran Armorer
4 Gather the Townsfolk
4 Raise the Alarm
4 Rally the Peasants
4 Battle Screech
Artifacts
2 Bonesplitter
2 Journey to Nowhere
Lands
4 Boros Garrison
1 Secluded Steppe
2 Wind-Scarred Crag
15 Plains
The reason for the red splash? Rally the Peasants, which has a red flashback cost, and Electrickery out of the sideboard (in the linked version). RtP alone is totally worth it.
I haven't put in and personally tested a sideboard yet, but this deck has been performing really well, and is highly resilient to bad draws. The best part? It set me back about 2 tickets on MTGO.
Edit: Horseshoe Crab and Quicksilver Dagger is one of my all-time favorite combos (the first combo deck I ever built, actually). That'll be a powerhouse limited combo.
Thank you for this! I love Google page translator's attempt to identify the English names of the cards.
I took the average sell value of the mythics ($30.42) and multiplied it by 1/8, then added that to 7/8 of the average rare value (7.76). Those came out to $3.80 and $6.79, respectively. The only way I got that wrong is if my estimate of the ratio of mythics to rares is off.
This would be true for most sets, but I'd argue it doesn't hold true for M25; there are a lot of uncommons/commons that will be sellable, as 15/41 spoiled so far are currently selling for more than a dollar.
Mythics
Jace, the Mind Sculptor
Imperial Recruiter
Chalice of the Void
Ensnaring Bridge
Vendilion Clique
Phyrexian Obliterator
Animar, Soul of Elements
Rare
Rishadan Port
Fetid Heath
Twilight Mire
Azusa, Lost but Seeking
Blood Moon
Pact of Negation
Rugged Prarie
Summoner's Pact
Cascade Bluffs
Flooded Growth
Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
Based on the presale price (which, I understand, will eventually drop), the mythics and rares will return pack value all by themselves - $6.8 weighted average for the rares and $3.8 weighted average for the mythics (assuming 1/8 mythic slots). Even if you exclude Jace from that calculation, you'd still be looking at $9.40 and that's without the current $4.52 per-pack value from uncommons and $8.50 per-pack value from commons (a number which is probably more egregious since the set is likely to tank many of those values and the lesser value commons haven't been spoiled yet). Yes, you read all that right - for as "awful" as this set is, the average booster pack will currently return $24 in pre-sale value (and to note: those offer prices are mostly below the current card average for the previous versions).
Look, I get it - it sucks to open cards you don't want. But that's Magic. You've been playing this game for how many years and yet you continue to ***** about this card value? No, they didn't pack this set with a hundred of history's most expensive cards. But they're not idiots - they aren't going to put $70 worth of product into a $10 booster pack. They threw in a couple-dozen high value reprints along with some solid uncommons and commons that needed another printing. But all any of you can do is focus on how you aren't getting the exact cards you want, without taking a look at the bigger picture. It's ridiculous and a little pathetic.
Edit: Never mind. I played it tonight and it sucked.