Now that Aether Revolt is out, let's talk about possible new additions.
Disallow seems an auto-include. It's just so versatile, a catch-all for any situation. Baral, Chief of Compliance seems like he could be a solid addition to an instant/sorcery-focused build. In such a deck, he's just as good if not better than Sapphire Medallion. Baral's Expertise falls into the same pool of cards like Spelltwine where you get multiple casts and therefore multiple Arjun triggers for the price of one card.
Obviously, Paradox Engine could be insane in a mana rock-filled deck. Especially great if you have an active Niv-Mizzet, the Fire-mind or similar effect. It all comes down to whether you want to be THAT GUY. Come on, it's Paradox Engine, it's only a few months before this gets banned, right?
I agree, Crush is really the only card that interested me. It remains to be seen if it's worth it because it's not an instant. Oh well, hopefully goodies coming in SOI. Perhaps Pore over the Pages?
Pore Over the Pages
3UU
Sorcery
Draw three cards, untap up to two lands, then discard a card.
I haven't noticed any discussion about Deep Analysis and Think Twice but I am a big fan of both of these, Deep especially. Both maintain card parity, Deep actually gives advantage, and both can be flashed back for a free 'moil.
So let's talk Oath and what cards are worth considering for Arjun:
Overwhelming Denial - A uncounterable counterspell and it can be cast cheap if you have already cast one spell, not a difficult task. I could see this if you need more counters. Chandra, Flamecaller - This PW has a lot of potential. Specifically, her ability to wipe the board or one-sided Wheel+1 you. That <0> ability is pretty spicy. Goblin Dark-Dwellers - Like Talent of the Telepath, Spelltwine, and Snapcaster Mage, this guy nets you multiple Arjun triggers off casting just one card. May be a little unweildy depending on the number of cheap instants and sorceries you have that are worth flashing back. Jori En, Ruin Diver - A fine way to net extra cards but perhaps too slow. I'm not sure when this guy is better than a simple Compulsive Research and the like.
So nothing that immediately screams "Put me in Arjun!" the way Archive or Psychosis Crawler do, but some interesting food for thought.
Questionable mulligans aside (why did you keep a 1-land hand in Commander?) that first game seems pretty solid and demonstrates a lot of the fun flexibility of the deck. But I would not want to play on MODO, that's true. IRL, it's less arduous. That's crazy how much you would've decked yourself, I find I can rarely keep an Archive/Reflection out long enough to threaten decking myself. People have a lot of respect for those cards here.
Against Ezuri and swarms in general, I really do like Curse of Swine and the instant sweepers (Star Storm, Fault Line, Magmaquake). Ezuri is incredibly powerful already so it takes a lot of resources to keep him in check.
I highly recommend as many solid mana rocks as you can muster, including Gilded Lotus and Hedron Archive. I would definitely be interested in Crush of Tentacles coming out in OGW.
I took out Labratory Maniac when I realized I never won with him. If I have a situation drawing me a ton of cards with Arjun and Archive/Reflection, I can find a win long before I am able to draw out my deck.
I don't run Teferi as he draws so much hate. But then again, that could be a form of protection for Arjun. They are both wizards to name with Cavern of Souls and be protected with Riptide Laboratory. Also, Teferi could pick up the Diviner's Wand and go nuts too.
I like Propaganda over Crawlspace. At least in my meta, Propaganda prevents a bunch of attacks. Crawlspace only protects against strikes with armies, which Propaganda does too. But Prop can also stop single attackers if they wanna tap out for something better/ they can just attack one of your opponents.
Fair, you do open yourself up to 2-for-1 from land destruction effects but I find usually a more powerful land, like a Cabal Coffers or an Academy Ruins or Nykthos is out that draws the hate first. But you're right, it's a risk.
I run Darksteel Plate for Arjun, as well as the new Command Beacon for when he gets really expensive. I also have Winding Canyons so that I can flash him in from time to time to avoid kill, and have a few decent bounce spells to rescue him (his mindmoil will happen first, then he gets returned to your new hand.)
Sakashima is a solid enough idea. Already a solid critter, being able to copy opposing Solemn Simulacrum or Oracle of Mul Daya or whatever really. Will Test tonight.
They have stated in the past that they do not like for cards to care about other cards' names. This is why the Urza lands were given the subtype "Urza's" and "Tower" "Powerplant" and "Mine" so that their rules text looks for cards with that type, not that name. Currently only Legendary permanents and cards which actively seek cards out of opponent's hidden zones (such as Slaughter Games) actually care about names.
However, for there to be cards that care about Wastes, they would have to have a basic land type. Because Wastes lack this, there really can't be "Wastes matter" cards. Still, cards like Rampant Growth and Natural Connection can still get Wastes.
The real strange thing to me is Wastes lack of a basic land type. I presume it is for unseen power-level reasons.
I've been playing Arjun since his release and love him, here are some of my notes as related to your list:
I have found redundancy to be key to Arjun. Just as you play Archive AND Thought Reflection, Orrery AND Leyline, I highly recommend Psychosis Crawler AND Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind. Niv-Mizzet should not be underestimated as a monster control card, taking out problem creatures left and right. Also, I run Mindmoil so my deck can still do it's thing even if the board has become adverse to creatures (like if there is a Lethal Vapors or Attrition out.
Boardwipes which are instant and don't kill Arjun are really solid. I'm referring to Fault Line and Magmaquake (in addition to the Cyclonic Rift and Starstorm you are already running.) I have considered Earthquake and Molten Disaster, but being sorceries limits them a bit in my mind.
I love Torpor Orb for this deck. Some decks roll over and die to Torpor Orb and my decklist only runs Snapcaster Mage as a card that would be affected. My league plays with point incentives that discourage infinite combos, so I tend not to play Deadeye Navigator / Peregrine Drake / Palinchron effects, so Orb doesn't hurt me there. Similarly, I play Grafdigger's Cage as another silver bullet against reanimator decks.
Also, Seize the Day has won me so many games, targeting my big Psychosis Crawler, Chasm Skulker, or Diviner's Wanded Arjun.
Finally, I play all three available bouncelands, Izzet Boilerworks, Dormant Volcano, and Coral Atoll. They allow me to make land drops while still maintaining a big full hand for Arjun. Plus they work wonders with cards like Time Spiral, Treachery, or Rewind.
In today's "Making Magic" column, MaRo confirmed that much like M14 having Blightcaster, Ajani's Chosen, and Oath of the Ancient Wood to support the upcoming Theros block themes, M15 contains cards seeded to support Khans of Tarkir's themes.
Looking through the set, the following patterns emerge (not looking at the "Special Designer" cards as they were likely made after the decisions for seeds were placed.): Convoke & Tokens in general - Due to Convoke being the returning mechanic, each color got some more token making cards than normal since token creatures really help Convoke out, and certain cards like Military Intelligence reward mass attacking (kind of the opposite of Exalted.) Perhaps Tarkir has a strong "army size matters" or "mass combat" theme? Walls - There are a lot of Creature - Walls in this set, and a few cards, such as Siege Dragon, Invisibility and Juggernaut, that reference walls. "If life was lost last turn" effects - First Response and Feast of the Fallen both track whether life was lost by a particular player in the previous turn and encourage or discourage combat. Dwarves are back! - Miner's Bane mentions dwarves and is pictured in a mountainous terrain that could match the promotional art for Khans. As a Dwarf lover, I have to hope. New kind of Artifact block - With cards like Chief Engineer, Aeronaut Tinkerer, Kurkesh, Onnake Ancient, Scrapyard Mongrel, and Shrapnel Blast there are quite a high number of "artifacts matter" cards for your typical core set.
Isn't it pretty obvious that it is a Magic multiplayer product for "Secret Partners" or "Cowboys"? The variants where people are given secret alignments or partners, the Magic equivalent of "Mafia" or "Werewolves"
So looking over the M14 list, the following cards jump out at me (take into account I play a non-randomness-focused version of Norin.)
Burning Earth - Wondering if this with Price of Progress are reasonable adds to try to put pressure on multi-color decks?
Chandra, Pyromaster - our prayers have been answered, finally a decidedly strong mono-red PW. Her <0> is fantastic, especially with all the library manipulation we play (been seriously thinking of pushing Scroll Rack into the deck, this would make it even stronger). Her ultimate is pretty irrelevant since I see her as just a card-draw machine.
Ring of Three Wishes - Currently I run Planar Portal and i see this card as a strict upgrade. It's just cheaper and I cannot remember the last time I used Portal more than three times. And if you need to use it more, you should with for Welder or Trading Post or Buried Ruin/Crucible.
Disallow seems an auto-include. It's just so versatile, a catch-all for any situation.
Baral, Chief of Compliance seems like he could be a solid addition to an instant/sorcery-focused build. In such a deck, he's just as good if not better than Sapphire Medallion.
Baral's Expertise falls into the same pool of cards like Spelltwine where you get multiple casts and therefore multiple Arjun triggers for the price of one card.
Obviously, Paradox Engine could be insane in a mana rock-filled deck. Especially great if you have an active Niv-Mizzet, the Fire-mind or similar effect. It all comes down to whether you want to be THAT GUY. Come on, it's Paradox Engine, it's only a few months before this gets banned, right?
Pore Over the Pages
3UU
Sorcery
Draw three cards, untap up to two lands, then discard a card.
Overwhelming Denial - A uncounterable counterspell and it can be cast cheap if you have already cast one spell, not a difficult task. I could see this if you need more counters.
Chandra, Flamecaller - This PW has a lot of potential. Specifically, her ability to wipe the board or one-sided Wheel+1 you. That <0> ability is pretty spicy.
Goblin Dark-Dwellers - Like Talent of the Telepath, Spelltwine, and Snapcaster Mage, this guy nets you multiple Arjun triggers off casting just one card. May be a little unweildy depending on the number of cheap instants and sorceries you have that are worth flashing back.
Jori En, Ruin Diver - A fine way to net extra cards but perhaps too slow. I'm not sure when this guy is better than a simple Compulsive Research and the like.
So nothing that immediately screams "Put me in Arjun!" the way Archive or Psychosis Crawler do, but some interesting food for thought.
Against Ezuri and swarms in general, I really do like Curse of Swine and the instant sweepers (Star Storm, Fault Line, Magmaquake). Ezuri is incredibly powerful already so it takes a lot of resources to keep him in check.
I highly recommend as many solid mana rocks as you can muster, including Gilded Lotus and Hedron Archive. I would definitely be interested in Crush of Tentacles coming out in OGW.
I don't run Teferi as he draws so much hate. But then again, that could be a form of protection for Arjun. They are both wizards to name with Cavern of Souls and be protected with Riptide Laboratory. Also, Teferi could pick up the Diviner's Wand and go nuts too.
I like Propaganda over Crawlspace. At least in my meta, Propaganda prevents a bunch of attacks. Crawlspace only protects against strikes with armies, which Propaganda does too. But Prop can also stop single attackers if they wanna tap out for something better/ they can just attack one of your opponents.
I run Darksteel Plate for Arjun, as well as the new Command Beacon for when he gets really expensive. I also have Winding Canyons so that I can flash him in from time to time to avoid kill, and have a few decent bounce spells to rescue him (his mindmoil will happen first, then he gets returned to your new hand.)
The real strange thing to me is Wastes lack of a basic land type. I presume it is for unseen power-level reasons.
I have found redundancy to be key to Arjun. Just as you play Archive AND Thought Reflection, Orrery AND Leyline, I highly recommend Psychosis Crawler AND Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind. Niv-Mizzet should not be underestimated as a monster control card, taking out problem creatures left and right. Also, I run Mindmoil so my deck can still do it's thing even if the board has become adverse to creatures (like if there is a Lethal Vapors or Attrition out.
Boardwipes which are instant and don't kill Arjun are really solid. I'm referring to Fault Line and Magmaquake (in addition to the Cyclonic Rift and Starstorm you are already running.) I have considered Earthquake and Molten Disaster, but being sorceries limits them a bit in my mind.
I love Torpor Orb for this deck. Some decks roll over and die to Torpor Orb and my decklist only runs Snapcaster Mage as a card that would be affected. My league plays with point incentives that discourage infinite combos, so I tend not to play Deadeye Navigator / Peregrine Drake / Palinchron effects, so Orb doesn't hurt me there. Similarly, I play Grafdigger's Cage as another silver bullet against reanimator decks.
One counterspell I feel never gets enough love is Swan Song, a hard counter for just U is phenomenal. Furthermore, my build runs Force of Will, Cryptic Command, and Mystic Confluence for more counter/utility.
In general, I am playing less creatures than you and a few more artifacts, notably Gilded Lotus, Memory Jar, Teferi's Puzzle Box and Grim Monolith. This led me to not run Teferi (who draws a kill spell almost immediately). I am considering playing Shimmer Myr, as my list currently has 19 artifacts. I am also playing Time Spiral and Day's Undoing.
Also, Seize the Day has won me so many games, targeting my big Psychosis Crawler, Chasm Skulker, or Diviner's Wanded Arjun.
Finally, I play all three available bouncelands, Izzet Boilerworks, Dormant Volcano, and Coral Atoll. They allow me to make land drops while still maintaining a big full hand for Arjun. Plus they work wonders with cards like Time Spiral, Treachery, or Rewind.
Looking through the set, the following patterns emerge (not looking at the "Special Designer" cards as they were likely made after the decisions for seeds were placed.):
Convoke & Tokens in general - Due to Convoke being the returning mechanic, each color got some more token making cards than normal since token creatures really help Convoke out, and certain cards like Military Intelligence reward mass attacking (kind of the opposite of Exalted.) Perhaps Tarkir has a strong "army size matters" or "mass combat" theme?
Walls - There are a lot of Creature - Walls in this set, and a few cards, such as Siege Dragon, Invisibility and Juggernaut, that reference walls.
"If life was lost last turn" effects - First Response and Feast of the Fallen both track whether life was lost by a particular player in the previous turn and encourage or discourage combat.
Dwarves are back! - Miner's Bane mentions dwarves and is pictured in a mountainous terrain that could match the promotional art for Khans. As a Dwarf lover, I have to hope.
New kind of Artifact block - With cards like Chief Engineer, Aeronaut Tinkerer, Kurkesh, Onnake Ancient, Scrapyard Mongrel, and Shrapnel Blast there are quite a high number of "artifacts matter" cards for your typical core set.
Burning Earth - Wondering if this with Price of Progress are reasonable adds to try to put pressure on multi-color decks?
Chandra, Pyromaster - our prayers have been answered, finally a decidedly strong mono-red PW. Her <0> is fantastic, especially with all the library manipulation we play (been seriously thinking of pushing Scroll Rack into the deck, this would make it even stronger). Her ultimate is pretty irrelevant since I see her as just a card-draw machine.
Ring of Three Wishes - Currently I run Planar Portal and i see this card as a strict upgrade. It's just cheaper and I cannot remember the last time I used Portal more than three times. And if you need to use it more, you should with for Welder or Trading Post or Buried Ruin/Crucible.
Sitronic Resonator - This deck is filled with triggered effects that sitronic resonator would love to copy. All of the ETBs, Staff of Nin, Confusion in the Ranks, Vicious Shadows, etc.
Reflecting on this I wonder: has anyone tested Rings of Brighthearth in their decks yet?
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=494577
Thanks!