OK, i now we're searching for a Steel Overseer replacement, but I have doubts that the curse is the solution. How many times we'll be able to use it to pump our dudes? It slows us down a lot, because we want it to play as early as possible, but this means delaying putting creatures out (which, on the other hand, means that the curse will be less useful since the opponent will now have blockers or other ways to deal with us). It's just too slow.
I think we need to concentrate on making the steel even faster and more aggressive. Things like Whipflare will be more useful if we want to splash (and I still think that's not necessary) - it wipes their board AND allows us to more reliably get the extra damage that we would otherwise try to maneuver to achieve with counters.
What about mono-white Tempered Steel? Spare from Evil gives us a finisher/evasion/defensive potential against non-humans, and I would be more inclined to get my counters more reliably with Mikaues. Maybe Spare from Evil/Ruthless Invasion (SB for humans) + more Warzones might be a better way. Yeah, risky, (but so is splashing - mana problems, anybody?) but with the benefit of a big bang - something that the steel has to do to maintain and improve its place.
I feel adding non-artifact creatures into the mix makes his mainboard Go for the Throat relevant.
Few hours ago I tested my budget TS deck against a budget artifact-hate W/U Control deck (not exactly what you have difficulties with, but still). Pre-sideboard, TS did mediocre. After I added 3x Shrines and 3x Grand Abolishers I won 4-2. Grand Abolishers just wreck the Blue player - no more Mana Leak, Unsummon, etc. Try it if you have the card.
I feel adding non-artifact creatures into the mix makes his mainboard Go for the Throat relevant.
Since the Abolishers are SB material only, I bet that he will replace his Go for the Throat after G1 for some hate - they are useless against TS. So, it's unlikely that your Abolishers will be decapitated and you can switch them out after G2 if he sees them and they cause him pain - fun, fun, he might as well return Go for the Throat and they again will have no target. And even if the Abolishers are slaughtered, he have to do it on his turn, which gives you more time for shenanigans.
What are you feelings about sideboarding some Grand Abolishers for the Mana leak/Doom Blades? I haven't tried them yet in TS, but they tend to considerably slow down control.
Add to that some Shrines and a full set of Glint Hawk Idols (they say hi to the Black Sun Zenith) and you might have very resilient deck here.
Or what about boarding 4 Surgical Extraction to get rid of multiple copies of Mana Leaks, Inquizition etc.?
3-4 Grand Abolisher
3 Shrine of Loyal Legions
4 Glint Hawk Idol
3 Surgical Extraction
I'm creating my first constructed deck (played only limited so far), so have patience with me. Tempered Steel fits my style of play - fast, aggressive, with evasive dudes. But there are problems:
1. I plan to play the deck for a while, so I can't use Steel Overseers or Ornithopters (it's not worth getting them now). This means I'll need to compensate with extra pump and speed.
2. I'm on a budget, so Mox Opal, Inkmoth Nexus and Spellskites will come at the rate of about 1-2 each per month (I know, but I'm a student). Fortunately, the store I'll be playing don't usually see top decks, so I do have decent chance.
Thus, I took an unusual route, which I'll explain in a bit. The build is not tested beyond mock hands and turns.
With 26 artifacts in the deck, Ardent Recruit drops as 3/3 for 1. He does not get pumped by the Tempered Steel, but this is offset by being extremely cost-efficient, especially when I don't draw the steel.
The Hovermyr is the card I have the most doubts about. I need evasion and with only 4 0-drops, Glint Hawk is not really an option. The Spined Thopteris an option, but are the 2 life and lack of vigilance worth the additional power? I'm not sure about it, especially when running a full set of Contested War Zones. A blocker might sometimes be needed.
The Ruthless Invasion is a good finisher in my opinion against non-artifact decks. It makes your dudes unblockable in case your opponent manages to stabilize by pouring out creatures or if he is playing fast aggro too. The card is expensive at 3 and 2 life, but you should only need it once. I had good impression from the severely underrated M12's Hideous Visage as it won me multiple games and broke many stalemates, and Ruthless Invasion is better. Plus, it had the benefit of surprise since nobody is expecting it (or even seen it), so you might play it when the conditions are right.
The sideboard is generic and will change since I don't know what I'll face. It has an additional response against cards with activated abilities, control decks (I'll need to get 2 more Grand Abolishers), Primeval Titans and other search shenanigans, mass gut shot for aggro matchups, some artifact/enchantment hate, and DoJ protection.
The deck is fast (though 2-3 Moxes will help in the future) with an average CMC of 1.45 and still have 3 sources of pump, though I will search for more. Can you give me any suggestions and comments, especially for the cards that are unusual in this archetype?
I think we need to concentrate on making the steel even faster and more aggressive. Things like Whipflare will be more useful if we want to splash (and I still think that's not necessary) - it wipes their board AND allows us to more reliably get the extra damage that we would otherwise try to maneuver to achieve with counters.
What about mono-white Tempered Steel? Spare from Evil gives us a finisher/evasion/defensive potential against non-humans, and I would be more inclined to get my counters more reliably with Mikaues. Maybe Spare from Evil/Ruthless Invasion (SB for humans) + more Warzones might be a better way. Yeah, risky, (but so is splashing - mana problems, anybody?) but with the benefit of a big bang - something that the steel has to do to maintain and improve its place.
What about:
2x Glint Hawk
4x Hex Parasite
4x Memnite
4x Porcelain Legionnaire
4x Signal Pest
4x Vault Skirge
Artifact (7):
4x Glint Hawk Idol
3x Mox Opal
4x Spare from Evil
4x Tempered Steel
4x Dispatch
Lands (19):
4x Inkmoth Nexus
3x Contested War Zone
12x Plains
4x Grand Abolisher
2x Marrow Shards
3x Ruthless Invasion
3x Shrine of Loyal Legions
3x Spellskite
Few hours ago I tested my budget TS deck against a budget artifact-hate W/U Control deck (not exactly what you have difficulties with, but still). Pre-sideboard, TS did mediocre. After I added 3x Shrines and 3x Grand Abolishers I won 4-2. Grand Abolishers just wreck the Blue player - no more Mana Leak, Unsummon, etc. Try it if you have the card.
Since the Abolishers are SB material only, I bet that he will replace his Go for the Throat after G1 for some hate - they are useless against TS. So, it's unlikely that your Abolishers will be decapitated and you can switch them out after G2 if he sees them and they cause him pain - fun, fun, he might as well return Go for the Throat and they again will have no target. And even if the Abolishers are slaughtered, he have to do it on his turn, which gives you more time for shenanigans.
Add to that some Shrines and a full set of Glint Hawk Idols (they say hi to the Black Sun Zenith) and you might have very resilient deck here.
Or what about boarding 4 Surgical Extraction to get rid of multiple copies of Mana Leaks, Inquizition etc.?
3-4 Grand Abolisher
3 Shrine of Loyal Legions
4 Glint Hawk Idol
3 Surgical Extraction
That should piss U/B.
1. I plan to play the deck for a while, so I can't use Steel Overseers or Ornithopters (it's not worth getting them now). This means I'll need to compensate with extra pump and speed.
2. I'm on a budget, so Mox Opal, Inkmoth Nexus and Spellskites will come at the rate of about 1-2 each per month (I know, but I'm a student). Fortunately, the store I'll be playing don't usually see top decks, so I do have decent chance.
Thus, I took an unusual route, which I'll explain in a bit. The build is not tested beyond mock hands and turns.
4x Ardent Recruit
4x Hex Parasite
2x Hovermyr
4x Memnite
4x Porcelain Legionnaire
4x Signal Pest
4x Vault Skirge
4x Glint Hawk Idol
Other Spells (10):
4x Dispatch
2x Ruthless Invasion
4x Tempered Steel
Land (20):
4x Contested War Zone
16x Plains
2x Phyrexian Revoker
1x Grand Abolisher
3x Leonin Arbiter
3x Marrow Shards
3x Revoke Existence
3x Shrine of Loyal Legions
Let me explain the three unusual choices:
With 26 artifacts in the deck, Ardent Recruit drops as 3/3 for 1. He does not get pumped by the Tempered Steel, but this is offset by being extremely cost-efficient, especially when I don't draw the steel.
The Hovermyr is the card I have the most doubts about. I need evasion and with only 4 0-drops, Glint Hawk is not really an option. The Spined Thopter is an option, but are the 2 life and lack of vigilance worth the additional power? I'm not sure about it, especially when running a full set of Contested War Zones. A blocker might sometimes be needed.
The Ruthless Invasion is a good finisher in my opinion against non-artifact decks. It makes your dudes unblockable in case your opponent manages to stabilize by pouring out creatures or if he is playing fast aggro too. The card is expensive at 3 and 2 life, but you should only need it once. I had good impression from the severely underrated M12's Hideous Visage as it won me multiple games and broke many stalemates, and Ruthless Invasion is better. Plus, it had the benefit of surprise since nobody is expecting it (or even seen it), so you might play it when the conditions are right.
The sideboard is generic and will change since I don't know what I'll face. It has an additional response against cards with activated abilities, control decks (I'll need to get 2 more Grand Abolishers), Primeval Titans and other search shenanigans, mass gut shot for aggro matchups, some artifact/enchantment hate, and DoJ protection.
The deck is fast (though 2-3 Moxes will help in the future) with an average CMC of 1.45 and still have 3 sources of pump, though I will search for more. Can you give me any suggestions and comments, especially for the cards that are unusual in this archetype?
Thanks!-