So yeah, Fabled Hero didn't work out. Breaks my heart, but he is just bad. I cut him for a pair of Precinct Captains and one Scion. I tried out Hundred-Handed One as well, and he works; he might even end up taking Scion's place. Also, Shrine to Nyx is a house with all this white devotion. Still unsure if I am going to be able to stop a Mono-Red swarm hand, need to test further.
Perhaps I should pull some of those 3-drop copies for a 1 or 2 mana creature? Soldier of the Pantheon and Imposing Sovereign have both seemed desirable. Soldier's ability to laugh at Cackler among others seems good.
Alright boys, help me tear this deck apart. I have been shadowing this thread since it was in new card discussion. I'm not great with specific numbers on how many lands to run, copies of each card, etc; but the general idea here is a much more white-based midrange designed to abuse vigilance to block Gx decks and swing over blockers with Ajani / Madcap.
The only real pet card in here is Fabled Hero, I really want to give him a try. Without flat out telling me the red versions are better (which I fully understand they most likely are,) can anyone help me tune this?
I have tested against mono red only thus far. Works well though! They have a very tough time with Paladin, especially with a Madcap Skills on him. I'm not a great deckbuilder though, would love it if some of you guys would clean this up a bit.
I've been trying to put together a funzies deck for each guild, and these guys were a stretch to keep in the family. If you want to win any games at all, run Vampire Nighthawk and Rancor, put plenty of scavenge +1/+1 counters on Nighthawk and ride him to victory. The lol troll and nighthawk are your only hopes most of the time unless your enemy is down to let you beat him to death with vanilla cards like the Goliath or scorpion from the guild proper.
This card is too outclassed by Midnight Haunting and Snapcaster Mage to see play in type 2. Both examples are less mana intensive and do this card's supposed job better.
I like Bladehold better then Oxid Ridge because he works better on his own. In a deck that isn't running a whole ton of creatures, I want them to be able to finish games on their own rather then require putting a ton of guys behind. Oxid Ridge is good for a 4-swing, but unless I'm running a package of lots of guys like Stormkirk, I don't think he's worth running when you have less then 12 creatures. Honestly aggro might be the wrong description for this deck, either that or I'm just not dedicating enough to aggro.
This brings me to mana leak's inclusion; all these aggro decks are getting titan/wurmcoiled out of the game. How do you not get titan'd out of the game? Mana leak is one option. If you're putting down creatures that swing for 4, 6, or 7 on their own, your opponent is more likely to slap down the titan to make it stop. This gives you an out for just being out-titaned. Also in many situations you have your one guy that is housing them, say for example a t3 Mirran Crusader that's sworded up or better yet Destiny'd. Mana leak keeps him from dying and wins you the game.
As a matter o' fact, this deck is much less aggro and more ride one creature to victory and build the deck around making it happen.
Behold, here is the deck I brewed just before states and have been piloting since to much success. The idea came from testing Bant against the expected States meta (RDW, solar flare, Wolf Run, UW,) and when green just wasn't cutting it but the creatures still rocked, red seemed like the right idea. Turns out having access to Brimstone Volley and Incinerate were great choices against RDW and Wolf Run, along with other inclusions. Here's the list:
Summary: The goal is to play stronger creatures then your opponent and land beats, then either beat them to death or use red spells for added reach. Geist, Mirran Crusader and Hero of Bladehold are all insane with Angelic Destiny or sword, and rock-solid on their own. The first two you should be able to hit on turn three every game, and they both dodge relevant removal. Brimstone Volley is excellent for finishing off opponents.
Certain Cards
Mortarpod: This card is a strong turn 2 against Solar Flare for it's ability to protect your turn 3 creatures from edicts. Also decent against RDW and Wolf run since you can ping red's small creatures and kill Inkmoth Nexus. This card took over Timely Reinforcement's spot in the main, as it covers more matchups then just red.
Chandra, the Firebrand: Good against red, also allows you to copy your removal and kill people. I've killed Titans and multiple creatures with her, but the best thing you can do is try to 10 damage someone with a Brimstone Volley. Creates good 2 for 1's.
Urabrask the Hidden: Finishes the game, literally. Their chumps come in tapped, he gets in for 4 all the time, and you get to use your Crusaders, Geists and Heros with haste. Hero of Bladehold with haste.
Frost Titan: I ran Wurmcoil in his place for a long time, but never came out ahead on the Wurmcoil battle since prolonging games turns out bad for this deck. Tap down theirs and kill them with Frosty.
Sideboard
RDW Matchup: Bring in Misstep, Geistflame, Timely, Wurmcoil, Ratchet Bomb. Take out Frost Titan, Urabrask, all your Mirran Crusaders, Mana Leak.
Solar Flare: Bring in Surgical Extraction, Negate, Oblivion Ring. Pull some Mana Leak, Incinerate, Chandra.
Kessig Wolf Run: Geistflame wreaks them and it's hilarious. Bring in Surgicals if you want. I wish I could run 4 geistflame against that deck.
Tokens: Ratchet Bomb.
U/W: Actually a very interesting matchup, but keep all your red spells, it really gives you a edge in the mirror. Try and stick your threats, don't let your creatures die and win the war of attrition.
Cards under consideration
Concecrated Sphinx: The deck needs more draw somewhat frequently, and this guy might be the answer.
Gideon Jura: Let's us swing to win, but somewhat difficult to cast.
Inferno Titan: Just worse then Wurmcoil or Frost in this situation?
Let me know! The deck has a great game plan against most of the top decks out there today. It took 33rd out of 124 in Montana States, and has been romping FNM's since.
Here is an interesting one. Myr Welder + Soliton + Khalni Gem = Infinite mana. You can add Myr Turbine for infinite Myr tokens, then add Kuldotha Forgemaster to pull out as many artifacts from your library as you want on turn 4. Ive done it.
Doesn't Soliton's ability read "untap Soliton," making Myr Welder unable to untap itself?
Have you all ever seen Exclusion Ritual get bounced with Venser? It basically just exiles all their stuff and pumps Venser up to ridiculous loyalty levels. I got double emblemed this way recently
1x Scion of Vitu-Ghazi
2x Aurelia, the Warleader
2x Precinct Captain
3x Fiendslayer Paladin
3x Heliod, God of the Sun
4x Boros Reckoner
Instant (9)
1x Aurelia's Fury
2x Boros Charm
2x Brave the Elements
4x Lightning Strike
2x Mizzium Mortars
Land (24)
5x Mountain
2x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
9x Plains
4x Sacred Foundry
4x Temple of Triumph
Enchantment (9)
2x Assemble the Legion
4x Chained to the Rocks
2x Madcap Skills
1x Spear of Heliod
2x Ajani, Caller of the Pride
3x Anger of the Gods
2x Boros Charm
2x Pithing Needle
1x Purphoros, God of the Forge
2x Skullcrack
2x Smite
3x Wear / Tear
So yeah, Fabled Hero didn't work out. Breaks my heart, but he is just bad. I cut him for a pair of Precinct Captains and one Scion. I tried out Hundred-Handed One as well, and he works; he might even end up taking Scion's place. Also, Shrine to Nyx is a house with all this white devotion. Still unsure if I am going to be able to stop a Mono-Red swarm hand, need to test further.
One more week until Montana states!
The only real pet card in here is Fabled Hero, I really want to give him a try. Without flat out telling me the red versions are better (which I fully understand they most likely are,) can anyone help me tune this?
2x Aurelia, the Warleader
4x Boros Reckoner
3x Fabled Hero
3x Fiendslayer Paladin
3x Heliod, God of the Sun
Instant (9)
1x Aurelia's Fury
2x Boros Charm
2x Brave the Elements
4x Lightning Strike
Sorcery (2)
2x Mizzium Mortars
6x Mountain
1x Mutavault
9x Plains
4x Sacred Foundry
4x Temple of Triumph
Enchantment (9)
2x Assemble the Legion
4x Chained to the Rocks
2x Madcap Skills
1x Spear of Heliod
Planeswalker (2)
2x Ajani, Caller of the Pride
3x Anger of the Gods
2x Boros Charm
2x Pithing Needle
1x Purphoros, God of the Forge
2x Skullcrack
2x Smite
3x Wear / Tear
I have tested against mono red only thus far. Works well though! They have a very tough time with Paladin, especially with a Madcap Skills on him. I'm not a great deckbuilder though, would love it if some of you guys would clean this up a bit.
I like Bladehold better then Oxid Ridge because he works better on his own. In a deck that isn't running a whole ton of creatures, I want them to be able to finish games on their own rather then require putting a ton of guys behind. Oxid Ridge is good for a 4-swing, but unless I'm running a package of lots of guys like Stormkirk, I don't think he's worth running when you have less then 12 creatures. Honestly aggro might be the wrong description for this deck, either that or I'm just not dedicating enough to aggro.
This brings me to mana leak's inclusion; all these aggro decks are getting titan/wurmcoiled out of the game. How do you not get titan'd out of the game? Mana leak is one option. If you're putting down creatures that swing for 4, 6, or 7 on their own, your opponent is more likely to slap down the titan to make it stop. This gives you an out for just being out-titaned. Also in many situations you have your one guy that is housing them, say for example a t3 Mirran Crusader that's sworded up or better yet Destiny'd. Mana leak keeps him from dying and wins you the game.
As a matter o' fact, this deck is much less aggro and more ride one creature to victory and build the deck around making it happen.
3x Clifftop Retreat
4x Glacial Fortress
3x Island
3x Mountain
5x Plains
4x Seachrome Coast
2x Sulfur Falls
Enchantment (5)
2x Angelic Destiny
3x Oblivion Ring
Artifact (4)
3x Mortarpod
1x Sword of War and Peace
1x Frost Titan
3x Geist of Saint Traft
2x Hero of Bladehold
4x Mirran Crusader
1x Urabrask the Hidden
Instant (15)
4x Brimstone Volley
3x Incinerate
4x Mana Leak
4x Think Twice
Planeswalker (2)
2x Chandra, the Firebrand
2x Negate
1x Oblivion Ring
1x Wurmcoil Engine
2x Ratchet Bomb
2x Surgical Extraction
2x Mental Misstep
3x Timely Reinforcements
2x Geistflame
Here is the deck on TappedOut, for a better look at mana curve, etc.: http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/thomas-jefferson-control/
Summary: The goal is to play stronger creatures then your opponent and land beats, then either beat them to death or use red spells for added reach. Geist, Mirran Crusader and Hero of Bladehold are all insane with Angelic Destiny or sword, and rock-solid on their own. The first two you should be able to hit on turn three every game, and they both dodge relevant removal. Brimstone Volley is excellent for finishing off opponents.
Certain Cards
Mortarpod: This card is a strong turn 2 against Solar Flare for it's ability to protect your turn 3 creatures from edicts. Also decent against RDW and Wolf run since you can ping red's small creatures and kill Inkmoth Nexus. This card took over Timely Reinforcement's spot in the main, as it covers more matchups then just red.
Chandra, the Firebrand: Good against red, also allows you to copy your removal and kill people. I've killed Titans and multiple creatures with her, but the best thing you can do is try to 10 damage someone with a Brimstone Volley. Creates good 2 for 1's.
Urabrask the Hidden: Finishes the game, literally. Their chumps come in tapped, he gets in for 4 all the time, and you get to use your Crusaders, Geists and Heros with haste. Hero of Bladehold with haste.
Frost Titan: I ran Wurmcoil in his place for a long time, but never came out ahead on the Wurmcoil battle since prolonging games turns out bad for this deck. Tap down theirs and kill them with Frosty.
Sideboard
RDW Matchup: Bring in Misstep, Geistflame, Timely, Wurmcoil, Ratchet Bomb. Take out Frost Titan, Urabrask, all your Mirran Crusaders, Mana Leak.
Solar Flare: Bring in Surgical Extraction, Negate, Oblivion Ring. Pull some Mana Leak, Incinerate, Chandra.
Kessig Wolf Run: Geistflame wreaks them and it's hilarious. Bring in Surgicals if you want. I wish I could run 4 geistflame against that deck.
Tokens: Ratchet Bomb.
U/W: Actually a very interesting matchup, but keep all your red spells, it really gives you a edge in the mirror. Try and stick your threats, don't let your creatures die and win the war of attrition.
Cards under consideration
Concecrated Sphinx: The deck needs more draw somewhat frequently, and this guy might be the answer.
Gideon Jura: Let's us swing to win, but somewhat difficult to cast.
Inferno Titan: Just worse then Wurmcoil or Frost in this situation?
Sun Titan: Brings back a lot of our things.
Let me know! The deck has a great game plan against most of the top decks out there today. It took 33rd out of 124 in Montana States, and has been romping FNM's since.
Geist of Saint Traft. Hits like a truck, doesn't get 2 for 1'd when you go to sword up/ enchant (unless they geth's you!) Awesome flavor.
Hero of Bladehold. Two of these on the board swinging is 20 damage. 7, 11, 15 by itself.
Angelic Destiny. Works wonders on Geist, Mirran Crusader, Hero of Bladehold, etc.
Brimstone Volley. 5 damage to face for 3 mana.
Chandra, the Firebrand. Copy Brimstone Volley for 10 dome!
Hate:
Lilliana of the veil.
Unburial Rites.
Beast Within.
Shrine of Burning Rage.
Slagstorm.
Doesn't Soliton's ability read "untap Soliton," making Myr Welder unable to untap itself?
242 cards based on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past!