It's been a while since I've made a good, old fashioned, Mono-Red Control deck. The last one I build was Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, and that was a really fun/well built deck that had one problem; while being able to control the game well enough it had a hard time sealing the deal. I'm hoping Starke of Rath will be able to get me there in style. I've been wanting to build a Starke deck for a long time now, and now that I've been playing around with cutting my deck count down from 10 to the ones I want to play most I feel it's time for Starke to finally get his shot.
I've packed as much haste/untap effects as I have at my disposal in the deck. The idea is to use Starke himself to keep people off my back, and to punish those who don't see the big picture. Multiple activations of Starke's ability at once is the main goal here, either starting with one of my own permanents so I keep him or ending with a sac outlet so I don't lose him.
The deck is a work in progress, like so many we see in the forums, and as such I'm always looking for input. It's come a long way, and while the basic idea is still the same the deck is a far cry from what it originally looked like. This thing is just a blast to play, and is slowly becoming my favorite pick when it's time to get together with my friends and lay down my general.
Replaced Extraplanar Lens with Gauntlet of Might, a planned change that required me getting the damn card lol. My glorious lack of Snow-Covered Mountains made the lens sub par.
First of all, you seriously need some ramp. Mono-R is hard enough as it is, you don't want to be left in the dust as the game goes on.
Some suggestions:
1. Sol Ring - Seriously this is the first card you should add before anything else; They're in every commander deck!
2. Mana Crypt - If you have the budget this is nearly as good as Sol Ring
3. Mana Vault / Grim Monolith - Less important for a control deck, but still provides huge acceleration. Recommended if you're going heavy artifact themed.
4. Mind Stone - Early ramp, plus replaces itself later
5. Coalition Relic - Provides 1/2 colored mana for 3, very good.
6. Darksteel Ingot - If board wipes are prevalent
7. Gilded Lotus
8. Worn Powerstone
9. Dreamstone Hedron
If you find you find that your meta is too fast, consider more 2CC artifact such as Fire Diamond or Coldsteel Heart. Plus it allows you to cast your general T3.
I assume indestructable permanents still work with Starke, so that might fit in well with your combo, at least for lower cost ones and say, Stuffy Doll or Manor Gargoyle.
Also Darksteel Citadel and the land that gives you spirit when it dies, Reito or something. Need to look soon, kinda tired at present.
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
I have Scroll Rack, and I might need to take a look at this deck with that in mind. I'm trading for a Dark Blood Moon next game day, and might get a Magus of the Moon. Godo, Bandit Warlord is full of win lol, I need to fit him in.
Love the idea of Darksteel Citadel for this deck, Stuffy Doll is currently tied up in another deck and I don't own Manor Gargoyle...though I'm not 100% sold on the two just yet. I need to play this deck a bit more so I can see if I really need the indestructible creatures, so far I've used tokens or a sac outlet to keep Starke on my side.
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Weiss Schwarz Sets
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Gonna take a look at the deck with some of these cards in mind, need to see what I can pull to make room. I'd like to play it a few more times, just to see how I'm sitting.
Have to assume you were tired when you posted this, so I'm going to interpret lol. Scourge of Kher Ridges(Scourge of Kheer Keep), while being a nice wrath, is exspensive and would set me back pretty far in a color where I cant play with the yard too much...but I probably could use another wrath...Bogardan Hellkite has flash and is better to copy with Kiki-Jiki.
After all this I'm pulling Mogg War marshal, Shunt, Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer, Shivan Harvest, Tuktuk Scrapper, and maybe Thornbite Staff. I've pulled what I own that's been suggested and will be taking a long look at this deck. After reading what was suggested and my own response, I realized that Kiki-Jiki was being made a bigger part of this deck than was originally intended. Next update may be larger than indicated in this post as I have 6 cards currently on the chopping block, and 18 looking for a spot.
Shivan Harvest and Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer were never too useful in the deck, they either didn't have enough targets or required saccing at inopportune times.
Duplicant and Sundering Titan are just good removal, and are recurrable/tutorable through most of the decks abilities.
Inferno Titan works with Basilisk Collar, fire breaths, and a 6/6 body for 6...beast. Scroll Rack gives another way to draw/manipulate the top of this deck. Sculpting Steel gives me another copy of whatever artifact I want.
Alright, finally got around to getting the cards I've been looking for, most of them anyway. I wound up pulling Fervor and Shattering Spree since the deck didn't need a one use semi mass artifact removal spell with so many better options, and new haste options. Scroll Rack came out also, for lack of a better option...I might rethink that, I was doing this on the fly and Scroll Rack was the only thing that just didn't seem to fit.
Urabrask the Hidden is haste and hose all in one nice little package, and Swiftfoot Boots give that haste I love to see with added protection for whatever I'm suiting up. Umbral Mantle has needed to be in this deck for some time now...so here it is, now I can break multiple creatures in this deck lol.
I've been wanting to build around this gentleman for awhile now, too. I am personally not a fan of the kind of stack-shenanigans you've built around here, but it's certainly a nice way to minimize the drawback.
I am kind of amazed at [...] the fact that somebody on this thread called Mind's Eye, Mirari's Wake, Decree of Pain, Desertion, AND Scroll Rack, all before they were officially spoiled. I will edit this post VERY shortly with the username of this user who deserves at least all of the cookies. Probably more cookies than that.
Also, if I ever find room for them I would love to buy/add Erratic Portal and Tawnos's Coffin. My goal for the deck was to make Starke as big a threat as I could.
I think you might consider Expedition Map for this deck. Homeward Path is such a power house with your commander as is Valakut for mono red decks.
I would probably consider a Crucible of Worlds + fetchland package as well. Considering how powerful both Homeward and Valakut are in here you really need to maximize their time in play. The fetchlands just sort of solidify Crucible in the deck for some card advantage.
Cool deck
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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.
Expedition Map is actually getting worked into the deck later today for the exact reasons you listed lol. Crucible of Worlds is on an ever growning list of cards I want but might not be able to afford at the moment. Crucible isn't too high up on the list as the deck really doesn't need it, it just wants it lol, and would need a couple of fetches to really be worth it. One day it will be in.
Thanks for the ideas, and the deck is a blast to play, you know its about to be fun when the Starke deck is the tables target.
Edit Expedition Map is replacing Journeyer's Kite because its an obvious upgrade that this deck can use well...that and red needs tutoring.
First of all you are playing red... Dont ever assume you are going to assemble Forge + Lattice + Nev's Disk as it just wont happen. You would be hard pressed to get that together outside of an Arcum deck. I seriously wouldnt bother putting the pieces together for it as it is just too unlikely with the lack of tutors in red.
In my experience with Planar Portal, if you cast it and cannot use it on the spot don't expect to ever untap with it. If you manage to then your opponents suck and you already won the game. Generally speaking it is one of those boogy man cards that are hard to play because nobody ever wants to let you chain things together. I probably wouldn't bother running it personally.
Nev's Disk is strictly worse than O Stone in most every way. Other than the cute little combo that never works I wouldnt make that swap. I will take a peek at the rest of your list but personally I wouldn't bother with the Lattice or the Forge.
EDIT: I would rather have Siege-Gang Commander and Kumano, Master Yamabushi in a list over Scourge of Kher Ridges mainly just due to how mana hungry the dragon is. I would rather the other two just because they are more reasonable to cast and use or just get into play sooner. The dragon is one of those things where usually you have to just cast him and sit on him a whole turn before doing anything and I dont like that much personally.
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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.
I feel you on the Scourge of Kher Ridges, he looks neat and all, but I probably wont ever get much use out of him and will just throw Siege-Gang Commander back in. I get some use out of Planar Portal, but maybe you're right in that it probably isn't worth playing. I figure that the Lattice is useful enough on it's own, and the Forge is too, you really think neither is worth running? I like Lattice more in the deck personally, it's more useful than Thran Forge and I could ditch it in a pinch.
The big problem with the Latice is that it is stupidly expensive then what happens if someone follows it up with an Austere Command or Akroma's Vengeance to blow everything up on you? It is sort of a problem card in my mind and it is really expensive without doinng anything of its own.
Personally if you want to turn things into artifacts you might consider Liquimetal Coating as it could even turn enchantments, lands, and planeswalkers into artifacts for removal purposes.
The Darksteel Forge might be worth running on its own if you have enough problems keeping your artifacts alive. I however wouldnt really bother trying to set up any sort of combos with it though.
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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.
I could see that being a problem lol, I needed things to get rid of anyway. I never really intended on getting both out at once, would be cool if I did though. Guess I need to reconsider the Forge and I'll take a hard look at Planar Portal and see how I feel about it when I'm done.
Liquimetal Coating is already in the deck, just wish there were more ways to turn things into artifacts. With all this in mind I suppose the list of cards I'd like to get in the deck is down to Stranglehold, Reiterate, Scarecrone, and Mind Stone...most of which will fit now.
I've packed as much haste/untap effects as I have at my disposal in the deck. The idea is to use Starke himself to keep people off my back, and to punish those who don't see the big picture. Multiple activations of Starke's ability at once is the main goal here, either starting with one of my own permanents so I keep him or ending with a sac outlet so I don't lose him.
1 Starke of Rath
Creatures 19
1 Anger
1 Godo, Bandit Warlord
1 Goblin Matron
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Goblin Recruiter
1 Goblin Sharpshooter
1 Goblin Tinkerer
1 Goblin Welder
1 Hateflayer
1 Hoard-Smelter Dragon
1 Hoarding Dragon
1 Inferno Titan
1 Kamahl, Pit Fighter
1 Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker
1 Kumano, Master Yamabushi
1 Lightning Crafter
1 Spikeshot Goblin
1 Urabrask the Hidden
1 Viashino Heretic
Artifact Creatures 8
1 Duplicant
1 Junk Diver
1 Kuldotha Forgemaster
1 Myr Retriever
1 Scarecrone
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Sundering Titan
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Reiterate
1 Shattering Pulse
1 Wild Ricochet
Sorceries 3
1 Gamble
1 Insurrection
1 Wheel of Fortune
Enchantments 1
1 Goblin Bombardment
Artifacts 20
1 Ashnod's Altar
1 Basalt Monolith
1 Darksteel Ingot
1 Expedition Map
1 Gauntlet of Might
1 Gauntlet of Power
1 Liquimetal Coating
1 Magewright's Stone
1 Memory Jar
1 Mimic Vat
1 Mind's Eye
1 Mind Stone
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Puppet Strings
1 Rings of Brightearth
1 Sculpting Steel
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Thousand-Year Elixir
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Basilisk Collar
1 Darksteel Plate
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Nim Deathmantle
1 Skullclamp
1 Swiftfoot Boots
1 Thornbite Staff
1 Umbral Mantle
Lands 37
1 Darksteel Citadel
1 Dust Bowl
1 Hall of the Bandit Lord
1 Homeward Path
1 Keldon Necropolis
1 Kher Keep
26 Mountains
1 Phyrexia's Core
1 Terrain Generator
1 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
1 Vesuva
1 Winding Canyons
Average CMC 3.42
The deck is a work in progress, like so many we see in the forums, and as such I'm always looking for input. It's come a long way, and while the basic idea is still the same the deck is a far cry from what it originally looked like. This thing is just a blast to play, and is slowly becoming my favorite pick when it's time to get together with my friends and lay down my general.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
I ment to pick up Umbral Mantle, Braid of Fire, Mycosynth Lattice, Myr Landshaper, and Tawno's Coffin earlier today...but I forgot all of them lol, I remembered just about everything for my Patron of Nezumi deck...so go Patron of Nezumi.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
First of all, you seriously need some ramp. Mono-R is hard enough as it is, you don't want to be left in the dust as the game goes on.
Some suggestions:
1. Sol Ring - Seriously this is the first card you should add before anything else; They're in every commander deck!
2. Mana Crypt - If you have the budget this is nearly as good as Sol Ring
3. Mana Vault / Grim Monolith - Less important for a control deck, but still provides huge acceleration. Recommended if you're going heavy artifact themed.
4. Mind Stone - Early ramp, plus replaces itself later
5. Coalition Relic - Provides 1/2 colored mana for 3, very good.
6. Darksteel Ingot - If board wipes are prevalent
7. Gilded Lotus
8. Worn Powerstone
9. Dreamstone Hedron
If you find you find that your meta is too fast, consider more 2CC artifact such as Fire Diamond or Coldsteel Heart. Plus it allows you to cast your general T3.
Next, card draw/tutors. Red kind of sucks at it but let's see what we got.
Squee, Goblin Nabob - Slow but provides CA, discard/sacrifice/skullclamp fodder.
Scroll Rack - Actually really awesome, especially with shuffle effects
Godo, Bandit Warlord - Skullclamp is that good...
Goblin Matron / Goblin Recruiter / Moggcatcher - Can fetch a large chuck of your utility creatures.
Imperial Recruiter - If you can afford it...
Disruption is always good in mono-R, and I don't feel guilty about it either:
Wake of Destruction - Die Asuza!
Blood Moon - Die Reaper King!
Stranglehold - Die Arcum!
Ruination - Die Karn!
I'll get back to you when I think of some other things...
Also Darksteel Citadel and the land that gives you spirit when it dies, Reito or something. Need to look soon, kinda tired at present.
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
Goblin Matron and Goblin Recruiter are already in the deck, and I can't afford Imperial Recruiter...or I'd have him lol.
As for acceleration I currently have Ashnod's Altar, Basalt Monolith, Gauntlet of Might, Gauntlet of Power, Journeyer's Kite, and Thran Dynamo in the deck. The Gauntlets are great for speeding things up, and pumping of course. Ashnod's Altar, Basalt Monolith, and Thran Dynamo can each combo in different ways. My biggest deal with building up on my acceleration package is where to pull for space...Also, I could throw Ancient Tomb in lol.
Love the idea of Darksteel Citadel for this deck, Stuffy Doll is currently tied up in another deck and I don't own Manor Gargoyle...though I'm not 100% sold on the two just yet. I need to play this deck a bit more so I can see if I really need the indestructible creatures, so far I've used tokens or a sac outlet to keep Starke on my side.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Main Decks
Diaochan, Iroas, God of Victory, Kaalia, Marton, Ulasht, Volrath,
Kaervek, Prossh, Titania
Amusing or Themed
Progenitus
Pauper Guildmages
Azorius Boros Dimir Golgari Gruul Izzet Korozda
Orzhov Rakdos Rix Maadi Selesyna Simic Skarrg Zameck
I also play Weiss Schwarz, Chaos, Vanguard and Wixoss.
Accel World, Angel Beats, Familiar of Zero, Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet, Guilty Crown, Kill La Kill, Robotics;Notes, Sword Art Online.
Chaos Partners
Arpeggio of Blue Steel: Iona, Kirishima, Kongou.
Dangan Ronpa: Asahina, Togami.
Freezing: Vibration: Chiffon, Satelizer.
Vanguard Clans Favoured
Angel Feather, Dark Irregulars, Genesis, Neonecter, Pale Moon, Shadow Paladins, Tachikaze.
Wixoss - Just trial decks for now!
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Have to assume you were tired when you posted this, so I'm going to interpret lol. Scourge of Kher Ridges(Scourge of Kheer Keep), while being a nice wrath, is exspensive and would set me back pretty far in a color where I cant play with the yard too much...but I probably could use another wrath...Bogardan Hellkite has flash and is better to copy with Kiki-Jiki.
Thran Forge(Titan Forge) works really well with this decks destruction focus, red kills 2 things really well and the forge makes it 3 for me. Thran Forge also plays well with Voltaic Construct to make many of my tap ability creatures pretty intense. It enables fun plays with Kamahl, Pit Fighter, Spikeshot Goblin (when pumped), Goblin Tinkerer, Starke of Rath...While Thran Forge + Voltaic Construct + a good deal of my creatures is a 3 card combo, 3 card combo with a ton of 3rd pieces.
Thornbite Staff is nice with Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Kamahl, Pit Fighter, Viashino Heretic, Goblin Welder, and a few others...I might need to keep my eye on it for usefulness I suppose though, would be fun with Goblin Welder and Sundering Titan lol.
I actually thought I had Sundering Titan in the deck...and Tuktuk Scrapper is remenant of my Kiki-Jiki deck, Shivan Harvest probably is too...and Mogg War Marshal lol.
After all this I'm pulling Mogg War marshal, Shunt, Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer, Shivan Harvest, Tuktuk Scrapper, and maybe Thornbite Staff. I've pulled what I own that's been suggested and will be taking a long look at this deck. After reading what was suggested and my own response, I realized that Kiki-Jiki was being made a bigger part of this deck than was originally intended. Next update may be larger than indicated in this post as I have 6 cards currently on the chopping block, and 18 looking for a spot.
Update
Pulled:
Added:
Shivan Harvest and Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer were never too useful in the deck, they either didn't have enough targets or required saccing at inopportune times.
Karn, Silver Golem and Voltaic Construct were pulled just because they require too much to become useful, of the two I'll only miss Voltaic Construct.
Bogardan Hellkite and Living Inferno were just pricey for the deck, and fall in with Mogg War Marshal and Tuktuk Scrapper in that they were all part of a Kiki-Jiki package the deck was sporting...this isn't a Kiki-Jiki, he's not the star.
Shunt was just a toned down version of Wild Ricochet.
Darksteel Citadel and Darksteel Plate are durable, make something else durable, and are each prime targets for Starke to stack on top of.
Sol Ring and Worn Powerstone were my picks for increased artifact acceleration, putting the count up to 9 acceleration artifacts.
Hoarding Dragon and Godo, Bandit Warlord give me good bodies, abilities, and more tutoring...7 tutors in this red deck.
Duplicant and Sundering Titan are just good removal, and are recurrable/tutorable through most of the decks abilities.
Inferno Titan works with Basilisk Collar, fire breaths, and a 6/6 body for 6...beast. Scroll Rack gives another way to draw/manipulate the top of this deck. Sculpting Steel gives me another copy of whatever artifact I want.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Urabrask the Hidden is haste and hose all in one nice little package, and Swiftfoot Boots give that haste I love to see with added protection for whatever I'm suiting up. Umbral Mantle has needed to be in this deck for some time now...so here it is, now I can break multiple creatures in this deck lol.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
And yes, Rings of Brightearth is freaking ballin in this deck ;-p. It's one of the reason's for the addition of Darksteel Ingot and Darksteel Citadel.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Commanders:
Basandra, Battle Seraph | Diaochan, Artful Beauty | Mayael the Anima | Nath of the Gilt Leaf | Oona, Queen of the Fae | Raksha Golden Cub | Rayne, Academy Chancellor | Roon of the Hidden Realm
Also, if I ever find room for them I would love to buy/add Erratic Portal and Tawnos's Coffin. My goal for the deck was to make Starke as big a threat as I could.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
I would probably consider a Crucible of Worlds + fetchland package as well. Considering how powerful both Homeward and Valakut are in here you really need to maximize their time in play. The fetchlands just sort of solidify Crucible in the deck for some card advantage.
Cool deck
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[Modern] Allies
Thanks for the ideas, and the deck is a blast to play, you know its about to be fun when the Starke deck is the tables target.
Edit
Expedition Map is replacing Journeyer's Kite because its an obvious upgrade that this deck can use well...that and red needs tutoring.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
I'm trying to figure out what to pull for Nevinyral's Disk, and possibly Erratic Portal, Blood Moon, Magus of the Moon, Reiterate, and Erratic Portal.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Just to straighten this all out:
Thran Forge is out for Mycosynth Lattice.
Dwarven Miner is out for Darksteel Forge.
Siege-Gang Commander is out for Kumano, Master Yamabushi (who was originally out for Scourge of Kher Ridges).
Cards I'm thinking about/wanting to fit in the deck:
The main deck will be updated to reflect all changes.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
In my experience with Planar Portal, if you cast it and cannot use it on the spot don't expect to ever untap with it. If you manage to then your opponents suck and you already won the game. Generally speaking it is one of those boogy man cards that are hard to play because nobody ever wants to let you chain things together. I probably wouldn't bother running it personally.
Nev's Disk is strictly worse than O Stone in most every way. Other than the cute little combo that never works I wouldnt make that swap. I will take a peek at the rest of your list but personally I wouldn't bother with the Lattice or the Forge.
EDIT: I would rather have Siege-Gang Commander and Kumano, Master Yamabushi in a list over Scourge of Kher Ridges mainly just due to how mana hungry the dragon is. I would rather the other two just because they are more reasonable to cast and use or just get into play sooner. The dragon is one of those things where usually you have to just cast him and sit on him a whole turn before doing anything and I dont like that much personally.
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[Modern] Allies
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11
Personally if you want to turn things into artifacts you might consider Liquimetal Coating as it could even turn enchantments, lands, and planeswalkers into artifacts for removal purposes.
The Darksteel Forge might be worth running on its own if you have enough problems keeping your artifacts alive. I however wouldnt really bother trying to set up any sort of combos with it though.
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[Modern] Allies
Liquimetal Coating is already in the deck, just wish there were more ways to turn things into artifacts. With all this in mind I suppose the list of cards I'd like to get in the deck is down to Stranglehold, Reiterate, Scarecrone, and Mind Stone...most of which will fit now.
Edit:
Pulling Planar Portal, Mycosynth Lattice, and Darksteel Forge for Mind Stone, Reiterate, and Scarecrone (until I get my hands on another Stranglehold, unless I wind up liking it). This is slowly becoming my favorite deck, thanks for all the help I've gotten so far.
UWGrand Arbiter Augustin IV-Last edit 12/02/11
RStarke of Rath - Last edit 11/30/11
GAzusa, Lost but Seeking - Last Edit 11/29/11
BPatron of the Nezumi - Last edit 11/29/11