Aw man I'm sorry that guy hasn't gotten back to you, ISB. I love that picture.
I would be glad to do it myself but I don't have Photoshop on my personal Macbook. But I'll get back to you and see if I can find some way to get access to someone who does have it.
Ya I know... he did such amazing work too so I really wanted to see what his finished product would be. I am not in a huge hurry or anything to try to get anything up as I still have a perfectly nice banner, but I loved the big single subject of Jenara he was doing with the extended art...
If you find someone who is overly interested in picking it up let me know. Otherwise I will probably give him a bit more time before really actively looking for someone to pick up on it.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Sure thing, in my mind they are good in different situations:
Scroll Rack I run this card in a few decks. This card is probably at its best when you have a commander for instance that manipulates your topdeck / library. For instance if you are using Mayael the Anima as a commander you can pay one mana to take a creature from your hand and put it on top of your deck. From here you can activate Mayael and tutor it into play. It works reall slick for if you just happen to draw a big fatty that you want to cheat in or if you have a creature tutor to hand. I have also used Scroll Rack in a deck like Lin Sivvi, Defiant Hero or Scion of the Ur-Dragon. In these type of decks you dont actually want to really draw your utility targets. Instead when you draw these guys you can scroll rack them back into your deck allowing you to draw other cards and maintaining your ability to tutor into them with your commander.
Sylvan Library on the other hand allows you to pick what you want to draw. When utilizing a lot of shuffle effects it stands out that picking the best card of the top 3 every turn then shuffling your deck becomes very powerful. In addition you can use it to draw multiple cards in a turn so if the cards on top are really solid you can pay life to draw more of them or if you get a land clump and need to clear it you can sacrifice life to move through it faster.
Both of them are good but in general I dont really run Scroll Rack unless I have a reason to do so. When you have toolbox decks that dont want to actually draw certain cards it works well. In addition using it with effects like Land Tax where you can essentially net like 4 cards a turn is huge. Both of them can be great in different situations but in my own mind Sylvan Library is just all around good a lot more often than Scroll Rack is. Worst case if you have a lot of shuffle effects you can still use Scroll Rack as a psudo Brainstorm still however all in all I don't like it as much as I like Library.
Library is a one and done thing, and you don't have to use mana to keep it up. It can also provide significant card advantage if you gain some life or are willing to pay into it. Scroll Rack is card selection, but not advantage, and costs mana to use. It's situationally better, like ISBPathfinder essentially said, but generically inferior.
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"A little nonsense now and then is cherished by the wisest men."
- Willy Wonka
The Quote function doesn't work for me on this forum. Sorry for any confusion created.
I'm also in the Sylvan Library > Scroll Rack unless you build around it camp. It's best in a deck like Uril where I can dump 20-28 life into it no problem but it's still a great card in less aggro focused decks. I will say that Scroll Rack can get cards from your hand back in your deck which can occasionally be very useful.
Sylvan Library has been amazing in my build. That being said, the life that I've taken from it has been quite substantial in the past. Maybe that's just me being greedy lol. But I feel like I need more life-gain in my build besides just Scavenging Ooze and High Market, mainly because my meta has a lot of aggro in it. Do you guys have any suggestions?
I added momentous fall as a means by which to gain life in my deck, and actually sacced Fact or Fiction for it. Fact or Fiction is almost certainly better on the card draw, but I really needed some sort of lifegain. Although the issue present is that I can't tutor for it, and it sacs a creature albeit for potentially more cards. I had thought about putting in basilisk collar, giving trinket mage another target and thereby being able to tutor for it through a number of means.
I personally don't rub library however, and truthfully am not often desperate enough for cards to need it. Although I imagine there's situations where it could be worth its weight in gold. I need to get around to adding it.
Sure thing, in my mind they are good in different situations:
Scroll Rack I run this card in a few decks. This card is probably at its best when you have a commander for instance that manipulates your topdeck / library. For instance if you are using Mayael the Anima as a commander you can pay one mana to take a creature from your hand and put it on top of your deck. From here you can activate Mayael and tutor it into play. It works reall slick for if you just happen to draw a big fatty that you want to cheat in or if you have a creature tutor to hand. I have also used Scroll Rack in a deck like Lin Sivvi, Defiant Hero or Scion of the Ur-Dragon. In these type of decks you dont actually want to really draw your utility targets. Instead when you draw these guys you can scroll rack them back into your deck allowing you to draw other cards and maintaining your ability to tutor into them with your commander.
Sylvan Library on the other hand allows you to pick what you want to draw. When utilizing a lot of shuffle effects it stands out that picking the best card of the top 3 every turn then shuffling your deck becomes very powerful. In addition you can use it to draw multiple cards in a turn so if the cards on top are really solid you can pay life to draw more of them or if you get a land clump and need to clear it you can sacrifice life to move through it faster.
Both of them are good but in general I dont really run Scroll Rack unless I have a reason to do so. When you have toolbox decks that dont want to actually draw certain cards it works well. In addition using it with effects like Land Tax where you can essentially net like 4 cards a turn is huge. Both of them can be great in different situations but in my own mind Sylvan Library is just all around good a lot more often than Scroll Rack is. Worst case if you have a lot of shuffle effects you can still use Scroll Rack as a psudo Brainstorm still however all in all I don't like it as much as I like Library.
Thanks for the breakdown. That helped :). Now I'm just kind of bummed that I didn't find a Library instead of a Rack :-/. Called the LGSs to see if they had any I could trade for, and none have any in stock. Bugger.
Shoop I may need a rack and I may have a spare library. I'll check my piles of junk when I get home, and PM you if I do. The catch is that it may not be in english.
Shoop I may need a rack and I may have a spare library. I'll check my piles of junk when I get home, and PM you if I do. The catch is that it may not be in english.
Cool beans. English would be preferred, but beggars can't be choosers :p.
Long time reader of this thread and first time poster.
First, I'd like to say that I think ISB has done an amazing job putting together a very solid BANT based deck, that really takes advantage of the the 3 colors and uses them to their fullest. I have taken the core of the this deck (the ETB portion) and implemented it into Rafiq, of the Many.
For starters, a few of the changes I have made is the inclusion of a few different equipment, as well as Finest Hour, Academy Rector, and Putrefax. An amazing out of nowhere victory can come from having Academy Rector in play and then dropping Birthing Pod, to pod the Rector, bringing in Putrefax and Finest Hour for a quick kill.
The reason I am posting is that I seem to be having a ton of problems with Animar combo. Animar's protection from white and Black, make him impossible to remove early with Bant Charm, Path to Exile, or Swords to Plowshares.
What suggestions would you guys make for this type of deck. Would you just up the counters at this point, add pongify, change Austere Command to Wrath as to cast it faster? Animar usually drops on turn 2 and it just becomes a mess after that.
I think I run about three more counters than ISB's list, as well as capsize. If you play against that frequently, you could up your turn 1 mana options to make it easier to spell crumple / hinder animar on turn 2 (assuming you go before him). Pongify sounds like a decent replacement over path / swords / oblation if you run against it terribly frequently, as it could at least buy you some time to again be able to spell crumple / hinder / continue to interrupt. Or as you mentioned add in some additional counters. Counterspell / Arcane Denial are probably the two you would want to go for off the top of my head, or maybe force of will if you have the coin.
I wouldn't swap out Austere Command unless it was absolutely necessary. If you use Knowledge Exploitation, that could certainly come out as it's a bit slower.
Also when facing against super fast generals, I'd go as far as doing a full partial, and then mulling down to 6 if necessary to ensure that I would have enough responses to deal with the animar early on.
I think I run about three more counters than ISB's list, as well as capsize. If you play against that frequently, you could up your turn 1 mana options to make it easier to spell crumple / hinder animar on turn 2 (assuming you go before him). Pongify sounds like a decent replacement over path / swords / oblation if you run against it terribly frequently, as it could at least buy you some time to again be able to spell crumple / hinder / continue to interrupt. Or as you mentioned add in some additional counters. Counterspell / Arcane Denial are probably the two you would want to go for off the top of my head, or maybe force of will if you have the coin.
I turned up 2x Capsize in my box-'o-memories, which got me thinking about whether or not one deserves a place here. Generally speaking, I find it really mana-intensive outside of like a mono-blue deck with Sphere of the Suns or some infinite mana combo going on to bounce everything opponents control. We'll see...
Long time reader of this thread and first time poster.
First, I'd like to say that I think ISB has done an amazing job putting together a very solid BANT based deck, that really takes advantage of the the 3 colors and uses them to their fullest. I have taken the core of the this deck (the ETB portion) and implemented it into Rafiq, of the Many.
For starters, a few of the changes I have made is the inclusion of a few different equipment, as well as Finest Hour, Academy Rector, and Putrefax. An amazing out of nowhere victory can come from having Academy Rector in play and then dropping Birthing Pod, to pod the Rector, bringing in Putrefax and Finest Hour for a quick kill.
The reason I am posting is that I seem to be having a ton of problems with Animar combo. Animar's protection from white and Black, make him impossible to remove early with Bant Charm, Path to Exile, or Swords to Plowshares.
What suggestions would you guys make for this type of deck. Would you just up the counters at this point, add pongify, change Austere Command to Wrath as to cast it faster? Animar usually drops on turn 2 and it just becomes a mess after that.
Appreciate the help, thanks guys.
Don't forget that clones work great to kill animar, maze effects also work to push his agro part off, tuck him when you can as I think only really bant charm is lost against him. Wrath the board when you can and use your spot removal on his combo pieces as well as his self bounce creatures such as Man-O'-War. If he cant easily build counters it makes it harder to combo off.
The combo oriented animar will be significantly harder to stop than the agro based lists. Tuck animar if you can and if you cant killing him with clones and such will slow him down significantly. Animar decks often rely heavily on their commander to cheapen their creatures so keeping them off of him if possible is the best strategy. The fast agro / combo decks are a harder play against however it really depends on what sort of game you have and he has.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Sower of Temptation has been sort of a boarderline card for a long time. It would be nice to have another theft mechanism but I would say it is far inferior overall to Gilded Drake. I have considered adding it to my list and I think it would be fairly good all in all but I always have trouble actually getting to include it.
More Clone effects: it isn't a terrible idea and I believe there are a few people running more than 2 clones in their list. My problem is that I try to keep this list to a toolbox approach and at some point I feel like adding more clones sort of dilutes that. I like clones but I like having a large toolbox as well. The clone count is sort of up to each individual though. Clones can be great and they can totally suck. It depends on the meta and who you are playing against.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Sower of Temptation has been sort of a boarderline card for a long time. It would be nice to have another theft mechanism but I would say it is far inferior overall to Gilded Drake. I have considered adding it to my list and I think it would be fairly good all in all but I always have trouble actually getting to include it.
More Clone effects: it isn't a terrible idea and I believe there are a few people running more than 2 clones in their list. My problem is that I try to keep this list to a toolbox approach and at some point I feel like adding more clones sort of dilutes that. I like clones but I like having a large toolbox as well. The clone count is sort of up to each individual though. Clones can be great and they can totally suck. It depends on the meta and who you are playing against.
Thanks for your thoughts.
I guess Sower was just a card I was unaware of until last night when it was used against me. It actually ended up in a really hilarious way when opponent 1 cast it, opponent 2 Phyrexian Metamorph'ed it, I Metamorphed it, then the original caster metamorphed it. We were all fighting over my Pelakka Wurm, of all things. Pretty sad...
My reason for thinking of adding more clone effects in is simply that it seems like pretty much every deck, if not actually every deck, in my playgroup is highly dependent on the general... to the degree that if the general is tucked or hated out rather consistently, the decks cease to function to a large degree. Clones seem to be some of the best commander removal, and have the added upside of being easily tutorable, recurable, etc. in this deck. Even so, I'm kind of getting to the point where it's hard to give up any other card in the list to add another, so we'll see...
One of the other reasons I keep the clone count somewhat down is that some decks totally suck to try to use clones against. Try playing against a combo deck (especially Sharuum) or a token based deck and those clones can be very suboptimal. Clones are only as good as the creatures they can copy. I remember playing a game with a mono blue list that ran tons of cloens against a group where nobody was running green... it was really depressing I have to say.
Clones are very conditional creatures which can have amazing games and they can also have very poor games. They thrive off of opposing agro based strategies and while they are good they only match the threat in play.
Clones are very conditional creatures which can have amazing games and they can also have very poor games. They thrive off of opposing agro based strategies and while they are good they only match the threat in play.
This is far too true. It sucks having to rely on your own creatures being in play in order to utilize a good clone. Metamorph and Image are pretty much the two best clones (IMO) for their casting cost and their versatility. That's not to say that there aren't other excellent clone creatures but sitting on cards that would be dead in your hand, or paying 4 mana to pop a commander that isn't at all threatening to you at the time is pretty bleh.
I turned up 2x Capsize in my box-'o-memories, which got me thinking about whether or not one deserves a place here. Generally speaking, I find it really mana-intensive outside of like a mono-blue deck with Sphere of the Suns or some infinite mana combo going on to bounce everything opponents control. We'll see...
I really enjoy it for things like Phyrexian Metamorph, Gilded Drake, planeswalkers, aggro generals, etc. Capsize has done some serious work for me, and I'd be hard pressed to cut it. Buyback is one of my favorite mechanics and towards the late game it can really change the tide of the match. Anyway, I'm getting a support call, and as such I must end my rant short.
One of the other reasons I keep the clone count somewhat down is that some decks totally suck to try to use clones against. Try playing against a combo deck (especially Sharuum) or a token based deck and those clones can be very suboptimal. Clones are only as good as the creatures they can copy. I remember playing a game with a mono blue list that ran tons of cloens against a group where nobody was running green... it was really depressing I have to say.
Clones are very conditional creatures which can have amazing games and they can also have very poor games. They thrive off of opposing agro based strategies and while they are good they only match the threat in play.
Good point, and something I should definitely keep in mind as my playgroup necessarily evolves as people enter and leave it.
As it currently stands, this is probably actually an argument for why I maybe should add more clone effects, as pretty much every deck is either a voltron or creature-dependent strategy. There's always a general worth destroying or a creature way worth copying.
With regards to Sower of Temptation and Clone, I'm actually running Jeremy Clarkson in the deck and have nothing but rave reviews. I can copy Titans for my attack swing and get their triggers, Consecrated Sphinx and draw a few cards (Shapesharer keeps its new form until your NEXT turn), or even use it to kill other Commanders and legendary creatures. While it's in play, it looks like an innocuous creature and is usually left alone. Even copying the Consecrated Sphinx (someone elses, my list doesn't include it), it has never failed to last the turn cycle.
In times of need, it can be Skullclamp'ed, Sun Titan'd back into play, or even copy a Reveillark and be bounced, nuked, etc.
But my favorite use with it is Crib Swap. Path to Exile is of course in my deck, but Swords to Plowshares has proven just too dangerous. Far too many close games have been lost to small differences in life totals, and it's never been worth adding to my opponents' to be rid of one creature. Enter Crib Swap! Nuke a pesky creature, give them a 1/1 Shapeshifter with Changeling. Most people forget about it, others will attack or chump block wastefully. But with good ol' Shapesharer in play, I make that harmless looking unblocked token into a Blightsteel Colossus or Scalpelexis. Abyssal Persecutor? Each of those plays has won the game for me.
And if not combat tricks, just use it to copy their general. Done and done!
Ladies and gentlemen, for your consideration,Shapesharer!
This is far too true. It sucks having to rely on your own creatures being in play in order to utilize a good clone. Metamorph and Image are pretty much the two best clones (IMO) for their casting cost and their versatility. That's not to say that there aren't other excellent clone creatures but sitting on cards that would be dead in your hand, or paying 4 mana to pop a commander that isn't at all threatening to you at the time is pretty bleh.
This is true. I think I'll probably try out a higher clone count (although I don't have a Vesuvan Shapeshifter atm) for a while, and see how I like it. If I have a good use for them pretty much every time I draw them, perhaps it'll be a long-term switch. If I find I'm sitting around wishing I had an actual creature in my hand, I'll switch back.
I really enjoy it for things like Phyrexian Metamorph, Gilded Drake, planeswalkers, aggro generals, etc. Capsize has done some serious work for me, and I'd be hard pressed to cut it. Buyback is one of my favorite mechanics and towards the late game it can really change the tide of the match. Anyway, I'm getting a support call, and as such I must end my rant short.
I love buyback, as well, and the possibilities in this list with a reuseable bounce spell are pretty enticing. It's just so mana-intensive that I don't know if I could bring myself to run it here!
I think I'm sold on this try using Jenara as my primary deck. I think it has the balance of fun and power that I'm looking for.
Anyway, I've been looking for cards to try out and I came across Aven Mindcensor. It seems really strong and can be recurred with Sun Titan but it might put too much of a target on us. I also like Mystic Snake and Voidmage Husher as counters that can be tutored up with Eladamri's Call or Chord of Calling.
I think I'm sold on this try using Jenara as my primary deck. I think it has the balance of fun and power that I'm looking for.
Anyway, I've been looking for cards to try out and I came across Aven Mindcensor. It seems really strong and can be recurred with Sun Titan but it might put too much of a target on us. I also like Mystic Snake and Voidmage Husher as counters that can be tutored up with Eladamri's Call or Chord of Calling.
Glad you're finding Jenara satisfying to play. I've ditched working on other decks in order to focus my efforts on this one for the time being, as I enjoy it for the same reasons you mentioned.
Regarding Aven Mindcensor, it could be an interesting piece of tech., and I've thought about it a couple times myself. It can be recurred via both Sun Titan and Reveillark; however, doing so seems not all that profitable as it really needs to be flashed in to be useful.
I currently run both Mystic Snake and Voidmage Husher in my list, and I have to say that out of the two, the Husher has accomplished more for me. It's very plausible to keep bouncing her back to your hand via her own ability in order to shut down an opponent's activated ability that they're counting on. She has helped me win a couple of games I would've otherwise lost, in all likelihood.
Mystic Snake, on the other hand, has been underwhelming to say the least. Although you can tutor for him, I've never found myself actually wanting to do so; and although he can be recurred via Reveillark, doing so really isn't profitable in any way. He's probably the next thing I'm cutting in my list.
Shapesharer it some sort of cool tech. I don't like that you cant get any ETB abilities however its ability to change in play is sort of cool. It reminds me of Vesuvan Shapeshifter a bit. I think the more changelings you play against the better Shapesharer will probably be. Interesting choice though.
Aven Mindcensor it is a decent choice. I guess the more combo players you run into the better this gets. Generally speaking you flash this in to screw with the first tutor attempt then everyone just sort of sits back until it gets answered. I dont really like how it doesn't really answer any specific problem though. It makes life harder but assuming someone is actually relying on tutoring a lot in all likelyhood it will be easily answered.
Mystic Snake I still don't run it because it is problematic to abuse it. When you rez it you want to rez to hand or it sort of sucks. Bant is good at rezing back into play so meh. It is good with things like Crystal Shard and Mimic Vat though if you want to utilize it as such. In general though I have found Venser, Shaper Savant and Glen Elendra Archmage to work out better due to being a bit more friendly to rez / tutor into play. The snake tutors into play essentially only off of Chord of Calling.
Just a few swaps to my own OP. I have been working a bit with Crystal Shard and Rafiq of the Many. I cant say yet if they will stay because somehow I never draw either of them... I guess I just need to do more playtesting. Unfortunately Jenara is overkill against most of my opponents in my meta so I dont find her coming out unless I have a decent opposition.
Brainstorm -> Crystal Shard Brianstorm has been sort of my rotating card for a while now. It has actually not been in the list for a while now so it needs to be cut. I havent really goten much testing in with the shard however it seems promising in here.
I also sort of considered bringing in Rafiq for the Time Warp but we will see if the removal of my ramp critter makes any noticable difference. To be honest I really rarely saw the dryad so as for tutoring into it I shouldnt notice any difference as I still have 2 extremely similar creatures in the list.
GAME RESULTS:
I got one more game in last night in a 3 player game at the end of the night. One of my opponents was a 5c Child of Alara (new list so not super tuned) combo oriented deck. I started out dropping Jenara into play. I pumped her and hit him for 5, 5, 8 the next 3 turns doing minimal other things in those turns. At that point he tutored up Capsize which he planned on playing defensively with. When he went to use it I was forced to use Path to Exile on Jenara to keep him from having a reusable answer to my commander. The third player who was Olivia Voldaren ended up overextending with some artifacts / enchantments and I smashed child (stolen with Gilded Drake) into an opposing Sun Titan to blow him up. From here I ended up playing 2x Sun Titans with my own titan + Phyrexian Metamorph and just running the child deck down. The game ended somewhat quickly with me pushing hard on child forcing him to defensively tutor.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Shapesharer it some sort of cool tech. I don't like that you cant get any ETB abilities however its ability to change in play is sort of cool. It reminds me of Vesuvan Shapeshifter a bit. I think the more changelings you play against the better Shapesharer will probably be. Interesting choice though.
It does sound like some cool tech, but I couldn't imagine how I'd slot it in. I don't think it's that blow to make it's way into the 99.
Aven Mindcensor it is a decent choice. I guess the more combo players you run into the better this gets. Generally speaking you flash this in to screw with the first tutor attempt then everyone just sort of sits back until it gets answered. I dont really like how it doesn't really answer any specific problem though. It makes life harder but assuming someone is actually relying on tutoring a lot in all likelyhood it will be easily answered.
Yah I run it over Snapcaster Mage with great success. My playgroup seems to think this is a good switch as well.
I feel it has more impact over all hitting Primevil Titan, Fetches, Tutors, TnN, Commanders that tutor etc etc.
Mystic Snake I still don't run it because it is problematic to abuse it. When you rez it you want to rez to hand or it sort of sucks. Bant is good at rezing back into play so meh. It is good with things like Crystal Shard and Mimic Vat though if you want to utilize it as such. In general though I have found Venser, Shaper Savant and Glen Elendra Archmage to work out better due to being a bit more friendly to rez / tutor into play. The snake tutors into play essentially only off of Chord of Calling.
So I've always had Crystal Shard over Brainstorm and with that switch I changed out Glen Elndra for Mystic Snake and I've loved the change. GE makes people uncomfortable and draws to much heat for stalling (because they will bait it or play around it) I found Mystic Snake to be far more reliable.
Let us know how this goes. I've been thinking about adding Rafiq in the 99 (especially since I have a foil :/)
Brainstorm -> Crystal Shard Brianstorm has been sort of my rotating card for a while now. It has actually not been in the list for a while now so it needs to be cut. I havent really goten much testing in with the shard however it seems promising in here.
You wont be disappointed ! The card is so abusive in this deck I love it !.
I also sort of considered bringing in Rafiq for the Time Warp but we will see if the removal of my ramp critter makes any noticable difference. To be honest I really rarely saw the dryad so as for tutoring into it I shouldnt notice any difference as I still have 2 extremely similar creatures in the list.
Interesting proposition.Time Warp has been mediocre for me. It's always felt like win more or ramp. I think you might want to save the Time Warp slot for anything good that might come out of the new set.
GAME RESULTS:
I got one more game in last night in a 3 player game at the end of the night. One of my opponents was a 5c Child of Alara (new list so not super tuned) combo oriented deck. I started out dropping Jenara into play. I pumped her and hit him for 5, 5, 8 the next 3 turns doing minimal other things in those turns. At that point he tutored up Capsize which he planned on playing defensively with. When he went to use it I was forced to use Path to Exile on Jenara to keep him from having a reusable answer to my commander. The third player who was Olivia Voldaren ended up overextending with some artifacts / enchantments and I smashed child (stolen with Gilded Drake) into an opposing Sun Titan to blow him up. From here I ended up playing 2x Sun Titans with my own titan + Phyrexian Metamorph and just running the child deck down. The game ended somewhat quickly with me pushing hard on child forcing him to defensively tutor.
Nice, the Child deck in my meta is 5c reanimator and it's really quick and deadly. All the best reanimate spells and all the best creatures in magic. It gets ugly, but if you cut their mana you're fine. Sigh, I really need to buy/trade for the dumb Drake again. He's so blow out against sooo many things and now you're running Crystal Shard.... repeatable control magics f***g own.
EDIT: Quick thought. With the addition of Rafiq, do you foresee adding anything that would have synergy with him ?
Ya I know... he did such amazing work too so I really wanted to see what his finished product would be. I am not in a huge hurry or anything to try to get anything up as I still have a perfectly nice banner, but I loved the big single subject of Jenara he was doing with the extended art...
If you find someone who is overly interested in picking it up let me know. Otherwise I will probably give him a bit more time before really actively looking for someone to pick up on it.
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
Library is a one and done thing, and you don't have to use mana to keep it up. It can also provide significant card advantage if you gain some life or are willing to pay into it. Scroll Rack is card selection, but not advantage, and costs mana to use. It's situationally better, like ISBPathfinder essentially said, but generically inferior.
- Willy Wonka
The Quote function doesn't work for me on this forum. Sorry for any confusion created.
UWU/W BlinkUW
BMono-Black ControlB
Commander:
GWUJenaraGWU
BGeth MBCB
RGXenagosRG
WUBSharuumWUB (retired)
Modern:
xAffinityx (starting)
Standard:
Ha! That's a good one.
I personally don't rub library however, and truthfully am not often desperate enough for cards to need it. Although I imagine there's situations where it could be worth its weight in gold. I need to get around to adding it.
Thanks for the breakdown. That helped :). Now I'm just kind of bummed that I didn't find a Library instead of a Rack :-/. Called the LGSs to see if they had any I could trade for, and none have any in stock. Bugger.
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Cool beans. English would be preferred, but beggars can't be choosers :p.
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Long time reader of this thread and first time poster.
First, I'd like to say that I think ISB has done an amazing job putting together a very solid BANT based deck, that really takes advantage of the the 3 colors and uses them to their fullest. I have taken the core of the this deck (the ETB portion) and implemented it into Rafiq, of the Many.
For starters, a few of the changes I have made is the inclusion of a few different equipment, as well as Finest Hour, Academy Rector, and Putrefax. An amazing out of nowhere victory can come from having Academy Rector in play and then dropping Birthing Pod, to pod the Rector, bringing in Putrefax and Finest Hour for a quick kill.
The reason I am posting is that I seem to be having a ton of problems with Animar combo. Animar's protection from white and Black, make him impossible to remove early with Bant Charm, Path to Exile, or Swords to Plowshares.
What suggestions would you guys make for this type of deck. Would you just up the counters at this point, add pongify, change Austere Command to Wrath as to cast it faster? Animar usually drops on turn 2 and it just becomes a mess after that.
Appreciate the help, thanks guys.
I wouldn't swap out Austere Command unless it was absolutely necessary. If you use Knowledge Exploitation, that could certainly come out as it's a bit slower.
Also when facing against super fast generals, I'd go as far as doing a full partial, and then mulling down to 6 if necessary to ensure that I would have enough responses to deal with the animar early on.
I turned up 2x Capsize in my box-'o-memories, which got me thinking about whether or not one deserves a place here. Generally speaking, I find it really mana-intensive outside of like a mono-blue deck with Sphere of the Suns or some infinite mana combo going on to bounce everything opponents control. We'll see...
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Don't forget that clones work great to kill animar, maze effects also work to push his agro part off, tuck him when you can as I think only really bant charm is lost against him. Wrath the board when you can and use your spot removal on his combo pieces as well as his self bounce creatures such as Man-O'-War. If he cant easily build counters it makes it harder to combo off.
The combo oriented animar will be significantly harder to stop than the agro based lists. Tuck animar if you can and if you cant killing him with clones and such will slow him down significantly. Animar decks often rely heavily on their commander to cheapen their creatures so keeping them off of him if possible is the best strategy. The fast agro / combo decks are a harder play against however it really depends on what sort of game you have and he has.
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[Modern] Allies
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Sower of Temptation has been sort of a boarderline card for a long time. It would be nice to have another theft mechanism but I would say it is far inferior overall to Gilded Drake. I have considered adding it to my list and I think it would be fairly good all in all but I always have trouble actually getting to include it.
More Clone effects: it isn't a terrible idea and I believe there are a few people running more than 2 clones in their list. My problem is that I try to keep this list to a toolbox approach and at some point I feel like adding more clones sort of dilutes that. I like clones but I like having a large toolbox as well. The clone count is sort of up to each individual though. Clones can be great and they can totally suck. It depends on the meta and who you are playing against.
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[Modern] Allies
Thanks for your thoughts.
I guess Sower was just a card I was unaware of until last night when it was used against me. It actually ended up in a really hilarious way when opponent 1 cast it, opponent 2 Phyrexian Metamorph'ed it, I Metamorphed it, then the original caster metamorphed it. We were all fighting over my Pelakka Wurm, of all things. Pretty sad...
My reason for thinking of adding more clone effects in is simply that it seems like pretty much every deck, if not actually every deck, in my playgroup is highly dependent on the general... to the degree that if the general is tucked or hated out rather consistently, the decks cease to function to a large degree. Clones seem to be some of the best commander removal, and have the added upside of being easily tutorable, recurable, etc. in this deck. Even so, I'm kind of getting to the point where it's hard to give up any other card in the list to add another, so we'll see...
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Clones are very conditional creatures which can have amazing games and they can also have very poor games. They thrive off of opposing agro based strategies and while they are good they only match the threat in play.
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[Modern] Allies
This is far too true. It sucks having to rely on your own creatures being in play in order to utilize a good clone. Metamorph and Image are pretty much the two best clones (IMO) for their casting cost and their versatility. That's not to say that there aren't other excellent clone creatures but sitting on cards that would be dead in your hand, or paying 4 mana to pop a commander that isn't at all threatening to you at the time is pretty bleh.
I really enjoy it for things like Phyrexian Metamorph, Gilded Drake, planeswalkers, aggro generals, etc. Capsize has done some serious work for me, and I'd be hard pressed to cut it. Buyback is one of my favorite mechanics and towards the late game it can really change the tide of the match. Anyway, I'm getting a support call, and as such I must end my rant short.
Good point, and something I should definitely keep in mind as my playgroup necessarily evolves as people enter and leave it.
As it currently stands, this is probably actually an argument for why I maybe should add more clone effects, as pretty much every deck is either a voltron or creature-dependent strategy. There's always a general worth destroying or a creature way worth copying.
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
In times of need, it can be Skullclamp'ed, Sun Titan'd back into play, or even copy a Reveillark and be bounced, nuked, etc.
But my favorite use with it is Crib Swap. Path to Exile is of course in my deck, but Swords to Plowshares has proven just too dangerous. Far too many close games have been lost to small differences in life totals, and it's never been worth adding to my opponents' to be rid of one creature. Enter Crib Swap! Nuke a pesky creature, give them a 1/1 Shapeshifter with Changeling. Most people forget about it, others will attack or chump block wastefully. But with good ol' Shapesharer in play, I make that harmless looking unblocked token into a Blightsteel Colossus or Scalpelexis. Abyssal Persecutor? Each of those plays has won the game for me.
And if not combat tricks, just use it to copy their general. Done and done!
Ladies and gentlemen, for your consideration, Shapesharer!
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This. It's one of the best interactions of the Shapesharer. Instantly 2for0 an opponents Chameleon Colossus with their General.
Insanely powerful.
Retired EDH - Tibor and Lumia | [PR]Nemata |Ramirez dePietro | [C]Edric | Riku | Jenara | Lazav | Heliod | Daxos | Roon | Kozilek
This is true. I think I'll probably try out a higher clone count (although I don't have a Vesuvan Shapeshifter atm) for a while, and see how I like it. If I have a good use for them pretty much every time I draw them, perhaps it'll be a long-term switch. If I find I'm sitting around wishing I had an actual creature in my hand, I'll switch back.
I love buyback, as well, and the possibilities in this list with a reuseable bounce spell are pretty enticing. It's just so mana-intensive that I don't know if I could bring myself to run it here!
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Anyway, I've been looking for cards to try out and I came across Aven Mindcensor. It seems really strong and can be recurred with Sun Titan but it might put too much of a target on us. I also like Mystic Snake and Voidmage Husher as counters that can be tutored up with Eladamri's Call or Chord of Calling.
http://cubetutor.com/viewcube/1959
Glad you're finding Jenara satisfying to play. I've ditched working on other decks in order to focus my efforts on this one for the time being, as I enjoy it for the same reasons you mentioned.
Regarding Aven Mindcensor, it could be an interesting piece of tech., and I've thought about it a couple times myself. It can be recurred via both Sun Titan and Reveillark; however, doing so seems not all that profitable as it really needs to be flashed in to be useful.
I currently run both Mystic Snake and Voidmage Husher in my list, and I have to say that out of the two, the Husher has accomplished more for me. It's very plausible to keep bouncing her back to your hand via her own ability in order to shut down an opponent's activated ability that they're counting on. She has helped me win a couple of games I would've otherwise lost, in all likelihood.
Mystic Snake, on the other hand, has been underwhelming to say the least. Although you can tutor for him, I've never found myself actually wanting to do so; and although he can be recurred via Reveillark, doing so really isn't profitable in any way. He's probably the next thing I'm cutting in my list.
R.I.P. Sundering Titan (6/20/12) and Braids, Cabal Minion (9/12/14)
Aven Mindcensor it is a decent choice. I guess the more combo players you run into the better this gets. Generally speaking you flash this in to screw with the first tutor attempt then everyone just sort of sits back until it gets answered. I dont really like how it doesn't really answer any specific problem though. It makes life harder but assuming someone is actually relying on tutoring a lot in all likelyhood it will be easily answered.
Mystic Snake I still don't run it because it is problematic to abuse it. When you rez it you want to rez to hand or it sort of sucks. Bant is good at rezing back into play so meh. It is good with things like Crystal Shard and Mimic Vat though if you want to utilize it as such. In general though I have found Venser, Shaper Savant and Glen Elendra Archmage to work out better due to being a bit more friendly to rez / tutor into play. The snake tutors into play essentially only off of Chord of Calling.
Just a few swaps to my own OP. I have been working a bit with Crystal Shard and Rafiq of the Many. I cant say yet if they will stay because somehow I never draw either of them... I guess I just need to do more playtesting. Unfortunately Jenara is overkill against most of my opponents in my meta so I dont find her coming out unless I have a decent opposition.
CHANGES:
Yavimaya Dryad -> Rafiq of the Many this gives me a bit of a power buff to hit harder. It opens up my Green Sun's Zenith package as well which is sort of nice.
Brainstorm -> Crystal Shard Brianstorm has been sort of my rotating card for a while now. It has actually not been in the list for a while now so it needs to be cut. I havent really goten much testing in with the shard however it seems promising in here.
I also sort of considered bringing in Rafiq for the Time Warp but we will see if the removal of my ramp critter makes any noticable difference. To be honest I really rarely saw the dryad so as for tutoring into it I shouldnt notice any difference as I still have 2 extremely similar creatures in the list.
GAME RESULTS:
I got one more game in last night in a 3 player game at the end of the night. One of my opponents was a 5c Child of Alara (new list so not super tuned) combo oriented deck. I started out dropping Jenara into play. I pumped her and hit him for 5, 5, 8 the next 3 turns doing minimal other things in those turns. At that point he tutored up Capsize which he planned on playing defensively with. When he went to use it I was forced to use Path to Exile on Jenara to keep him from having a reusable answer to my commander. The third player who was Olivia Voldaren ended up overextending with some artifacts / enchantments and I smashed child (stolen with Gilded Drake) into an opposing Sun Titan to blow him up. From here I ended up playing 2x Sun Titans with my own titan + Phyrexian Metamorph and just running the child deck down. The game ended somewhat quickly with me pushing hard on child forcing him to defensively tutor.
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[Modern] Allies
It does sound like some cool tech, but I couldn't imagine how I'd slot it in. I don't think it's that blow to make it's way into the 99.
Yah I run it over Snapcaster Mage with great success. My playgroup seems to think this is a good switch as well.
I feel it has more impact over all hitting Primevil Titan, Fetches, Tutors, TnN, Commanders that tutor etc etc.
So I've always had Crystal Shard over Brainstorm and with that switch I changed out Glen Elndra for Mystic Snake and I've loved the change. GE makes people uncomfortable and draws to much heat for stalling (because they will bait it or play around it) I found Mystic Snake to be far more reliable.
Let us know how this goes. I've been thinking about adding Rafiq in the 99 (especially since I have a foil :/)
You wont be disappointed ! The card is so abusive in this deck I love it !.
Interesting proposition.Time Warp has been mediocre for me. It's always felt like win more or ramp. I think you might want to save the Time Warp slot for anything good that might come out of the new set.
Nice, the Child deck in my meta is 5c reanimator and it's really quick and deadly. All the best reanimate spells and all the best creatures in magic. It gets ugly, but if you cut their mana you're fine. Sigh, I really need to buy/trade for the dumb Drake again. He's so blow out against sooo many things and now you're running Crystal Shard.... repeatable control magics f***g own.
EDIT: Quick thought. With the addition of Rafiq, do you foresee adding anything that would have synergy with him ?