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  • posted a message on [Multi] Zacama, Primal Calamity: Loam.dec
    Quote from Buffsam89 »
    I’m pretty much dead set on building a Zacama Naya lands deck, and this was the inspiration I needed, as well as a good starting point.

    A few questions/suggestions. How do you plan on eliminating opponents, quickly, after dropping the Z-Bomb? It’s obviously a removal target, without haste or great protection.

    Suggestion one: Did you consider the dragon auras? While the latter two offer redundant abilities, the P/T boost put Big-Z into one shot territory with Double-Strike from the likes of Sunhome Fortress. Also, Dragon Breath provides fire breathing, an excellent Mana-sink. You’ll already be dredging away cards with LftL, might as well get some mileage.

    Suggestion two: How about extra combats? The former has perfect synergy with LftL, and the latter does as well with it being able to be flashbacked.

    Minor suggestions: Rogues Passage seems silly with the behemoth, but chump blocks could be an issue if you are in the late-game and need to finish off a player that is just outside of Commander Damage or above the life threshold.


    All good suggestions. I had wanted to find some room for a Retrace spell or 2 at one point, and had definitely considered Waves of Aggression then. Maybe now that my commander can sneak out some commander-damage-wins more easily, I'll try to find some room again. I also have a nostalgic soft spot for Dragon Breath, since I played the old "Angry Hermit" deck in one of the Extended formats of old, but I'm not sure about its effectiveness here beyond just matching with Zacama.

    Overall, the deck has always played as a slow control deck with minimal contributions from the commander. This was one of the big reasons to switch away from Rith, so as to get some new utility out of the commander slot. I had always looked to get slow value and grind out games with the deck. Obvious sneak wins with Inkmoth Nexus/Kessig Wolf Run. Maybe it will get to play more aggressively with Zacama, now.
    Posted in: Multiplayer Commander Decklists
  • posted a message on Commander Decklist Database
    Thanks again for all of your work, scoeri. I just wanted to let you know that my Rith, the Awakener list has switched over to using Zacama, Primal Calamity in the commander slot.
    Posted in: Commander (EDH)
  • posted a message on [Multi] Zacama, Primal Calamity: Loam.dec
    Made a switch to Zacama, Primal Calamity as the current commander of this list. I often felt that Rith did not do enough for me in this position. I frequently felt that in situations where I considered casting it, Rith didn't actually affect the board in any meaningful way to advance my board position. While more expensive (cmc-wise), Zacama gives all of the immediate benefits of Rith (a big defensive body able to block fliers), while adding several additional benefits (a bigger body than Rith, access to all of your lands after casting, and all the activated abilities on the card). Plus, its a dinosaur. That's way better than a dragon.
    Posted in: Multiplayer Commander Decklists
  • posted a message on [Multi] Zacama, Primal Calamity: Loam.dec
    An update a long time in the making:

    - Blasted Landscape, Riftstone Portal
    + Scattered Groves, Sheltered Thicket

    - Earthcraft, Viashino Heretic, Yavimaya Elder
    + Tireless Tracker, Ramunap Excavator, World Breaker

    The land update was pretty straightforward. I definitely want more cycling lands, and I definitely want fewer lands in the manabase producing only colorless mana. While I'm sorry to see the Riftstone Portal go out of the list, I have noticed a trend away from having lands in the graveyard, which should only increase with the new inclusion of Ramunap Excavator.

    I feel that this deck has never been able to adequately utilize Earthcraft. In the right deck, it is a very strong card. In this deck it has never been able to show its power. I'm sorry to lose the green ancestral recall, but I feel like there are not enough basic lands in the deck to reliably generate card advantage. Tireless Tracker should be able to better generate the card advantage I am looking for, while also possibly serving as a later game attacker.
    Posted in: Multiplayer Commander Decklists
  • posted a message on Basandra - Sunforger Crazyness
    Long overdue update:

    - Ghostly Prison, Norn's Annex, Windborn Muse
    + Void Winnower, Angelic Arbiter, Open the Armory

    The "attack tax" cards were never as effective as I really wanted them to be. I chose to instead disrupt the board through a different avenue. While I think these are better fits for the deck overall, this does raise the overall CMC for the deck.
    Posted in: Multiplayer Commander Decklists
  • posted a message on Xira Arien Lands.dec
    I would run more Exploration effects like Sakura-Tribe Scout. There's another creature that does the same thing, but at sorcery speed for 1 mana (G). Can't remember the name now.


    Skyshroud Ranger. I think Explore should be good enough for consideration as well, even if it's just a 1-shot.
    Posted in: Multiplayer Commander Decklists
  • posted a message on Commander 2015 Decklists (342/342) (Full Decklists in First Post)
    ...


    Why do people continue to assume that? If they print up to demand, and the demand is high, then the more likely effect is that enemy fetches would fall to 8-12 $ a piece, which doesn't sound too unreasonable to me.


    That would only be true if the demand for the non-fetchland portion of the decks was equally as high. If dealers/speculators are buying the decks for ~$35 and only getting a return of $10 on the fetchland, then that means they can also sell the other 99 cards for <$25. If demand for the other 99 cards is very low due to flooding the market with several print runs, then the price of the fetchland would creep back up as it made up a greater and greater percentage of the value of that $35 packaging.

    Anyway, more on-topic: I expect that any "fetchland" we see is going to be of the Terramorphic Expanse/Evolving Wilds type, or new cards in line with Rocky Tar Pit.
    Posted in: The Rumor Mill
  • posted a message on Multani, Maro-sorcerer as a Commander
    One of the big concerns with Multani, is that he gets worse as an offensive threat the closer you are to winning. In a 4-player game, he's probably going to be close to a 15/15 or 20/20. In the late stages when you're down to 1-on-1, he's quite likely to be only a 5/5 for 6. Because of this, I don't feel that you can really play Multani as your primary offensive threat. He will always need some offensive support to finish off the game.

    Having made that caveat, I feel like you want to have a mix of cards which will slow the game down for your opponents (such as Hall of Gemstone, City of Solitude, and Mana Web) and ones that will keep the cards flowing to your opponents' hands (like the ones @Wildfire393 mentioned above - Temple Bell, Howling Mine, etc).
    Posted in: Commander (EDH)
  • posted a message on [450][Type4] Tev's Cube
    Quote from Kirblinx »
    Quote from HetisjeboiM »
    Rolleyes yay origins.


    Was that a subtle bump? :p

    Well anyway, while you have my attention these were the cards I noticed from origins:

    Gideon's Phalanx: 8 Power at instant speed is nothing to sneeze at, especially when they could be indestructible.
    Hixus, Prison Warden: Flash is always good, the ability is alright but the body is a little too mediocre to make it.
    Kytheon's Irregulars: The aggressive Crowd Favorites. Seems pretty good.
    Kothophed, Soul Hoarder: I cut Harvester of Souls, so I don't know why I like this guy, it does the same thing. I guess being a 6/6 flyer helps. Card draw is king though, could be alright.
    Evolutionary Leap: Probably a bit durdley, but seems like it could have some applications.
    Nissa's Revelation: That is a lot of life and cards.
    The Great Aurora: Another funny way of saying boardwipe. The shuffle is a bit annoying though.
    Possessed Skaab: Eternal Witness 2.0 possibly?
    Mage-Ring Responder: It if was an 8/8 maybe. Feels like it would just get outclassed in combat a bit too much.

    Not that much for Type 4 in origins really. There isn't any new staple, only a a couple of upgrades on older cards that got cut a while ago to give them another chance to shine. I'll be throwing in Gideon's Phalanx just because I opened one at prerelease, the rest don't excite me enough to warrant me searching them out to add to my stack.


    I've put down my thoughts about Origins in a couple of places. There are a couple of cards that look nice, but are way overpowered in the format, and a few that compare pretty well with other cards that I think do see play in the format. Some cards I think you've missed in your evaluations:
    • I think that Hallowed Moonlight is better in this format than Containment Priest, and would be a pretty decent inclusion if you're running a few cards like Tooth and Nail in your stack.
    • I like Tragic Arrogance quite a bit as a better version of Cataclysm (note that you choose the permanents for everyone, rather than them choosing for themselves).
    • Displacement Wave is intriguing for basically the same reason as Flowstone Slide. You can scale the effect to your advantage, or just use it as a massive sweeper effect.
    • Chandra's Ignition is like a Blasphemous Act mixed with a side of Fling. I haven't made a final decision on it, since you're basically required to have the biggest creature on the board to get the biggest payoff, but I'm definitely considering it.
    Posted in: Cube Lists
  • posted a message on The official Type 4 Primer!!! New poll 5/13/15!~
    My thoughts on the most recent set (Magic: Origins) in the context of Type4:
    Quote from LimDul945 »

    Gideon's Phalanx - The basic effect is rather lackluster on its own, but the added effect if you have Spell Mastery makes it an intriguing card. Mass indestructibility at instant speed can definitely lead to some blowouts when facing an opposing Wrath effect. However, I think the fact that you need to meet certain conditions in order to make this card playable in Type4 means that it is not in fact a playable card.

    Hallowed Moonlight - I like this printing better than Containment Priest in the context of Type4. A cantrip is better than being left with a 2/2 body. I think if you're playing more cards like Tooth and Nail, then this card has the potential to shine. In my list, I think it would be primarily used to combat Metathran Aerostat. I don't think there's enough use in my own stack, but it could really shine in some others.

    Hixus, Prison Warden - I like that it has the potential to exile multiple creatures. I dislike that you need to be damaged by those creatures, and that those creatures return from exile once Hixus has been dealt with. The 4/4 body isn't enough to make up for that.

    Kytheon's Irregulars - A decent defensive ability, but the body isn't very good, even after becoming Renown. Its outclassed by other similar creatures, such as Crowd Favorites.

    Relic Seeker - If the search trigger put the equipment onto the battlefield (instead of into your hand), I think it may be worth it. As printed, it's definitely not worth it.

    Starfield of Nyx - In your stack runs a lot of high-impact enchantments, I could see this being a reasonable addition. Its a recursion engine, which can continually get things directly onto the battlefield (thereby avoiding the 1-spell-per-turn hurdle). I really dislike the Opalessence side of the card however, since these "creatures" are going to be hit by additional sweepers, and are now the target of a greater breadth of removal spells.

    Tragic Arrogance - Compares favorably with Cataclysm, but now you're the one making the choices rather than your opponents. I think that there are few enough lands in my own stack that I'll be making the switch.

    Alhammarret, High Arbiter - A decent card, which suffers from the singleton nature of the format. I don't think temporarily stopping your opponents from casting a single card from their hands is disruptive enough on its own.

    Disciple of the Ring - The counterspell effect is useless for us, but the other effects are really intriguing. Unfortunately, she needs to eat a card from your grave for every activation. Close, but no cigar here.

    Displacement Wave - A scalable Upheaval effect. If you're looking for a board-sweeper , this is certainly a reasonable option for you.

    Mizzium Meddler - An effect I like to refer to as "chaotic". Really similar in execution to the Much Drubb or Willbender I'm running in my list. I don't think I need another of these effects.

    Psychic Rebuttal - It is a bit more narrow than something like Scatter Arc or Negate, but has the potential for greater payoff. I could see this leading to some blowouts. I don't think it's good enough without its Spell Mastery activated, however.

    Sphinx's Tutelage - Boundless card-draw. Completely unreasonable and overpowered for the format.

    Talent of the Telepath - Without Spell Mastery active, there's not really a reason to want to play this over another spell from your own deck.

    Kothophed, Soul Hoarder - Pretty big body, evasion, and potential to draw quite a few cards. A pretty reasonable inclusion, but I think you would need some way of guaranteeing drawing some cards off of him, which you can't really do. I don't think it compares favorably with other similar effects, such as Bringer of the Blue Dawn.

    Shadows of the Past - Boundless infinite life-loss once you meet a pretty easy requirement. Completely unreasonable and overpowered for the format.

    Chandra's Ignition - Similar to Inferno or Blasphemous Act. If you have the largest creature at the table, it's a pseudo-Wrath effect. The fact that this does direct damage to each opponent is fantastic, though. I used to really like playing with Fling, which is a pretty similar direct-damage effect, but with a much greater risk for you than the 'Ignition. I think I may need to switch this in for one of my other damage-based sweepers.

    Flameshadow Conjuring - If you're running some sac outlets which you'd like to push harder, this could be an all-star. It's pretty good on its own, essentially granting haste to all of your creatures with an additional level of protection on top.

    Ravaging Blaze - Has the potential to 1-shot an opponent. Too powerful, while also being too variable, and I don't want to deal with it.

    Elemental Bond - A reasonable draw engine. With the one-spell-per-turn rule, I think its a bit underpowered for this format, though.

    Evolutionary Leap - Great sac outlet. If you're looking to increase the prevalence of sac' outlets in your own stack, I'd strongly recommend giving this one a hard look.

    The Great Aurora - A pretty hard reset, which favors a player who has drafted more lands than anyone else. I don't think there are enough lands in my stack to really make much of a difference, so it's just a reset. I'd compare it most closely in my build with Sway the Stars, but I prefer having the life total reset included with everything else.

    Managorger Hydra - If you're running a "big, dumb beater" like Taureen Mauler or Lord of Extinction or Vulturous Zombie, then give this a look.

    Nissa's Revelation - Compares well with Soul's Majesty or Hunter's Prowess. If you're running one of those cards, give this a look. I personally would rather have Momentous Fall as a similar effect at instant speed.

    Outland Colossus - A big, dumb beater. I think it would be an interesting option if the static ability was instead, "can't be blocked by only one creature."

    Hangarback Walker - Really, really good in this format. It doesn't have any evasion, so you could chump-block all day. But I think the token trigger on death is just too strong for me. I could see this being a great inclusion in some higher-powered stacks than mine, but I'm not comfortable running this.

    Mage-Ring Responder - A big attacker, with psuedo-vigilance for this format, and built-in removal. I like this guy a lot.


    Let me know what you think!
    Posted in: Homebrew and Variant Formats
  • posted a message on [360][Type4] LimDul945's Type4 Cube
    I'll try to keep my thoughts up-to-date with new printings, now that my cube is in a pretty good place. Below are my thoughts and evaluations for Magic: Origins.

    Gideon's Phalanx - The basic effect is rather lackluster on its own, but the added effect if you have Spell Mastery makes it an intriguing card. Mass indestructibility at instant speed can definitely lead to some blowouts when facing an opposing Wrath effect. However, I think the fact that you need to meet certain conditions in order to make this card playable in Type4 means that it is not in fact a playable card.

    Hallowed Moonlight - I like this printing better than Containment Priest in the context of Type4. A cantrip is better than being left with a 2/2 body. I think if you're playing more cards like Tooth and Nail, then this card has the potential to shine. In my list, I think it would be primarily used to combat Metathran Aerostat. I don't think there's enough use in my own stack, but it could really shine in some others.

    Hixus, Prison Warden - I like that it has the potential to exile multiple creatures. I dislike that you need to be damaged by those creatures, and that those creatures return from exile once Hixus has been dealt with. The 4/4 body isn't enough to make up for that.

    Kytheon's Irregulars - A decent defensive ability, but the body isn't very good, even after becoming Renown. Its outclassed by other similar creatures, such as Crowd Favorites.

    Relic Seeker - If the search trigger put the equipment onto the battlefield (instead of into your hand), I think it may be worth it. As printed, it's definitely not worth it.

    Starfield of Nyx - In your stack runs a lot of high-impact enchantments, I could see this being a reasonable addition. Its a recursion engine, which can continually get things directly onto the battlefield (thereby avoiding the 1-spell-per-turn hurdle). I really dislike the Opalessence side of the card however, since these "creatures" are going to be hit by additional sweepers, and are now the target of a greater breadth of removal spells.

    Tragic Arrogance - Compares favorably with Cataclysm, but now you're the one making the choices rather than your opponents. I think that there are few enough lands in my own stack that I'll be making the switch.

    Alhammarret, High Arbiter - A decent card, which suffers from the singleton nature of the format. I don't think temporarily stopping your opponents from casting a single card from their hands is disruptive enough on its own.

    Disciple of the Ring - The counterspell effect is useless for us, but the other effects are really intriguing. Unfortunately, she needs to eat a card from your grave for every activation. Close, but no cigar here.

    Displacement Wave - A scalable Upheaval effect. If you're looking for a board-sweeper , this is certainly a reasonable option for you.

    Mizzium Meddler - An effect I like to refer to as "chaotic". Really similar in execution to the Much Drubb or Willbender I'm running in my list. I don't think I need another of these effects.

    Psychic Rebuttal - It is a bit more narrow than something like Scatter Arc or Negate, but has the potential for greater payoff. I could see this leading to some blowouts. I don't think it's good enough without its Spell Mastery activated, however.

    Sphinx's Tutelage - Boundless card-draw. Completely unreasonable and overpowered for the format.

    Talent of the Telepath - Without Spell Mastery active, there's not really a reason to want to play this over another spell from your own deck.

    Kothophed, Soul Hoarder - Pretty big body, evasion, and potential to draw quite a few cards. A pretty reasonable inclusion, but I think you would need some way of guaranteeing drawing some cards off of him, which you can't really do. I don't think it compares favorably with other similar effects, such as Bringer of the Blue Dawn.

    Shadows of the Past - Boundless infinite life-loss once you meet a pretty easy requirement. Completely unreasonable and overpowered for the format.

    Chandra's Ignition - Similar to Inferno or Blasphemous Act. If you have the largest creature at the table, it's a pseudo-Wrath effect. The fact that this does direct damage to each opponent is fantastic, though. I used to really like playing with Fling, which is a pretty similar direct-damage effect, but with a much greater risk for you than the 'Ignition. I think I may need to switch this in for one of my other damage-based sweepers.

    Flameshadow Conjuring - If you're running some sac outlets which you'd like to push harder, this could be an all-star. It's pretty good on its own, essentially granting haste to all of your creatures with an additional level of protection on top.

    Ravaging Blaze - Has the potential to 1-shot an opponent. Too powerful, while also being too variable, and I don't want to deal with it.

    Elemental Bond - A reasonable draw engine. With the one-spell-per-turn rule, I think its a bit underpowered for this format, though.

    Evolutionary Leap - Great sac outlet. If you're looking to increase the prevalence of sac' outlets in your own stack, I'd strongly recommend giving this one a hard look.

    The Great Aurora - A pretty hard reset, which favors a player who has drafted more lands than anyone else. I don't think there are enough lands in my stack to really make much of a difference, so it's just a reset. I'd compare it most closely in my build with Sway the Stars, but I prefer having the life total reset included with everything else.

    Managorger Hydra - If you're running a "big, dumb beater" like Taureen Mauler or Lord of Extinction or Vulturous Zombie, then give this a look.

    Nissa's Revelation - Compares well with Soul's Majesty or Hunter's Prowess. If you're running one of those cards, give this a look. I personally would rather have Momentous Fall as a similar effect at instant speed.

    Outland Colossus - A big, dumb beater. I think it would be an interesting option if the static ability was instead, "can't be blocked by only one creature."

    Hangarback Walker - Really, really good in this format. It doesn't have any evasion, so you could chump-block all day. But I think the token trigger on death is just too strong for me. I could see this being a great inclusion in some higher-powered stacks than mine, but I'm not comfortable running this.

    Mage-Ring Responder - A big attacker, with psuedo-vigilance for this format, and built-in removal. I like this guy a lot.


    So that puts me at:
    Posted in: Cube Lists
  • posted a message on [360][Type4] LimDul945's Type4 Cube
    I finally think my list is close enough to finalized that I'm happy sharing it here again. You can find my most recent cube posting, as well as a link to a fully up-to-date visual cube on CubeTutor.

    Please let me know what you think!
    Posted in: Cube Lists
  • posted a message on Sen Triplets Experience
    I used to run an artifact-centric Sen Triplets build, which I liked quite a bit. However, I think that its a relatively difficult commander to build around. If you're trying to take advantage of the ability to play other people's cards, you're going to need to run a lot more artifact ramp than you typically would, which dilutes the effectiveness of your own control package. In my opinion, cards like Celestial Dawn and Mycosynth Lattice are cute but ineffective, and you're better off taking advantage of the part of Sen Trips ability which prevents an opponent from playing spells or activating abilities.
    Posted in: Commander (EDH)
  • posted a message on The official Type 4 Primer!!! New poll 5/13/15!~
    I personally have never played with any custom cards in Type4, but I remember talk about them in THIS STARCITY ARTICLE from 2005. The writer talks about them towards the bottom of the article. For your convenience, I'll just copy+paste them below:

    Decree of the Creator - 3UBR
    Sorcery - Arcane Plains
    Target player may play up to three additional spells until the end of turn.
    Cycling: 1UBR
    When you cycle Decree of the Creator, you may play an additional spell until the end of turn.

    Tolarian Scrubbery
    Legendary Land
    You may play up to two spells each turn.
    Whenever you have no cards in hand sacrifice Tolarian Scrubbery

    Real Good Looking Tutor - B
    Instant
    As an additional cost to play Real Good Looking Tutor (RGLT), compliment target opponent.
    Playing Real Good Looking Tutor does not count towards your spell limit for the turn.
    Search your library for a card, reveal it, and then put it into your hand. Then shuffle your library.

    Protoplasmic Conversion - 8UB
    Sorcery
    Permanently exchange places with target player.
    (Switch hands, graveyards and libraries with target player, then exchange control and ownership of all permanents you and the target opponent control.)

    I think these are about the right level of strong and silly that I wouldn't mind playing with them in a casual format like this one.
    Posted in: Homebrew and Variant Formats
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