I hate to say this as I started the thread to be a B(r) Lich deck, but I do think after quite a bit of testing that B(u) is superior. It gives you the better manland and the better support spells IMO. I like the board control and counter that Blue offers over the minimal red I was using in the OP. I plan to post a new decklist tonight when I get home from work, but I have done quite a bit of tinkering and I think the Lich is a really fun card to play with. This deck may not be tier one, but this game is about fun and it is a fun deck. Thanks to everyone for all the posts and ideas. I have been testing a lot of your concepts.
One note: in B(r) or B(u), prophetic prism is useless IMO. If you are going to go B(w) with stoneforge mystic and such, it is a necessity.
This list has been a lot of fun to play. The four color setup really hasn't created any mana issues as the KotR and the Trace of Abundance have fixed the mana well. The knights are all individually powerful in their own right and the Sun Titan is a great recovery after a board wipe.
I think everyone knows that Knights are not a tier 1 deck right now, but I would encourage you to give this list a shot. It is fun to play and has a lot of card quality.
It seems like Green would be better than Blue in this deck. Overgrown Battlements could be ridiculous. You could ramp into eldrazi or a huge Banefire/Comet Storm. Just a thought. Doesn't seem like the Blue is doing much for you.
Even if he was only 3WW for a 6/6 that is immune to damage and sweeper effects he would be pretty good. On top of that, he has the Assassinate and Lure abilities. He is epic. Play with him, especially in concert with other walkers, and you will see the light.
Eldrazi Monument and Frost Titan seem out of place here.
Replace Llanowar Elves with Heirarchs or BoP depending on what you own. Heirarch is obviously great but not everyone can afford it. BoP is much better with Overwhelming Stampede than the Llanowars.
I think I would take Consuming Vapors from this pack. Repeated removal and it can be splashed. Also, there is a chance Doom Blade would get back around for pick 2, giving a nice Black removal base.
After reading this thread, I just wanted to add my Kudos to the OP for a great, original thought. Considering the sheer number of cards and mechanics in MtG, it takes a great idea to come up with something that is both new and feasible.
I would also consider Molten Rain if I knew that the cube was land destruction-heavy and I had a chance to go with resource denial as a strategy. This is just because resource denial happens to be my favorite strategy.
with only two islands in the whole deck, you are never going to be able to cast the Aether Adepts. Relying on an active Fauna Shaman to get rid of them is not a good idea. You need to be able to cast them from your hand.
You also need removal. It would be very difficult to win a FNM with no removal. Oblivion Ring works pretty well with the Sun Titan and Path to Exile should probably be in here somewhere in case you face Vengevines.
I can't see how Serra Ascendant will ever get online as your lifegain is probably never going to get you to 30 life.
22 land is not enough to reliably cast your Sun Titans (BoP probably won't live long enough to cast him) , and the deck isn't going to run very smoothly without them.
With this mana base, you can't build Aggro, at least not aggro that is better than RDW. Combo is pretty weak in Standard, so that leaves 5 color Control. Which means:
Jace 2.0
Ajani V
Gideon
Day of Judgment/Martial Coup
(Sound familiar yet)
Or going the Counterspell route with a bunch of blue. In this case, using Green as your primary color doesn't make much sense as you are going to need to have untapped blue mana beyond the 2 islands in the deck.
I just feel that without the Vivid lands and Reflecting Pool, the Manabase is too much of a liability. You are better off building within a shard and having a strong mana base as opposed to going five-color for minimal gains. Just my .02
I would take out Everflowing Chalice as colorless mana is not all that useful to you. Maybe replace it with Obelisk of Jund for your off-colors. I think casting Cruel Ultimatum is probably a stretch, but ideas like Paragon of the Amesha from the last poster are the route to go.
I don't believe you have enough land to be playing with so many high casting-cost cards. I would think 26 would be more appropriate. Sun Titan is kind of meh here, as his recursion targets are underwhelming. My .02
One note: in B(r) or B(u), prophetic prism is useless IMO. If you are going to go B(w) with stoneforge mystic and such, it is a necessity.
This list has been a lot of fun to play. The four color setup really hasn't created any mana issues as the KotR and the Trace of Abundance have fixed the mana well. The knights are all individually powerful in their own right and the Sun Titan is a great recovery after a board wipe.
I think everyone knows that Knights are not a tier 1 deck right now, but I would encourage you to give this list a shot. It is fun to play and has a lot of card quality.
I would like to introduce you to Vampire Hexmage.
-3 Explore
-3 Harrow
+2 Vines of Vastwood
+4 Cultivate
-3 Borderland Ranger
+3 Arbor Elf/BoP
-3 Dread Statuary
-1 Forest
+4 Oran-Reif, the Vastwood
Reasoning:
with 7-8 one drop manadorks, you have a great opportunity to start dropping 3 drops on turn two (Omnath or Cultivate)
Dread Statuary for Oran-Reif in Monogreen seems obvious.
Explore is not an optimal choice with 23 lands. You are better off with guaranteed accelerants.
Goblin Grenadier
RR
Creature - Goblin
Haste
If a spell or ability targets ~, you may sacrifice ~. If you do, ~ deals 5 damage to target player
3/1
You know the old rule: If a guy throws a grenade at you and you shoot him while the grenade is in the air, you are still about to get blown up.
Replace Llanowar Elves with Heirarchs or BoP depending on what you own. Heirarch is obviously great but not everyone can afford it. BoP is much better with Overwhelming Stampede than the Llanowars.
Bitterblossom, then Sword of Body and Mind.
I would also consider Molten Rain if I knew that the cube was land destruction-heavy and I had a chance to go with resource denial as a strategy. This is just because resource denial happens to be my favorite strategy.
You also need removal. It would be very difficult to win a FNM with no removal. Oblivion Ring works pretty well with the Sun Titan and Path to Exile should probably be in here somewhere in case you face Vengevines.
I can't see how Serra Ascendant will ever get online as your lifegain is probably never going to get you to 30 life.
22 land is not enough to reliably cast your Sun Titans (BoP probably won't live long enough to cast him) , and the deck isn't going to run very smoothly without them.
Jace 2.0
Ajani V
Gideon
Day of Judgment/Martial Coup
(Sound familiar yet)
Or going the Counterspell route with a bunch of blue. In this case, using Green as your primary color doesn't make much sense as you are going to need to have untapped blue mana beyond the 2 islands in the deck.
I just feel that without the Vivid lands and Reflecting Pool, the Manabase is too much of a liability. You are better off building within a shard and having a strong mana base as opposed to going five-color for minimal gains. Just my .02