Okay so after pulling a foil Heliod at the pre-release and getting some help in the other thread on directions I have decided to post my Heliod list that I have been working on for the past couple of weeks. This deck is an attempt at making Heliod a decent choice for a semi-competitive meta with the emphasis on stax and tokens to balance it out. Currently I need help honing the focus of the deck as it is being pulled in different directions. I'm pretty flexible on card choice so feel free to mention anything that seems out of place.
Without further ado:
Finally here is my reasoning for each individual card choice.
Creature (20)
1x Ajani's Chosen - Token production, Good with high number of enchantments, amazing synergy with General and tokens.
1x Angelic Arbiter – Stop’s opponents who try and combo off into an aggro kill and good against the tooth and nail type shenanigans.
1x Avacyn, Angel of Hope – General goodstuff but providing indestructibility to the team is very good.
1x Aven Mindcensor – A way to keep those pesky tutors in check. In a pinch it can also be clamped and block a big threat in the sky.
1x Burnished Hart – Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Duplicant – Targeted removal for problem creatures.
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite – A good weenie wrath that doubles as a token buff for my team.
1x Grand Abolisher – Keeps the blue decks on our terms and off the stack
1x Knight of the White Orchid - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Kor Cartographer - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth – Provides card draw which the deck so desparately needs and helps against mill strategies which are very relevant in my meta.
1x Mentor of the Meek – I will find card draw in white no matter where it hides. This also has good albeit expensive synergy with the general.
1x Pilgrim's Eye - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Solemn Simulacrum - Ramp in mono white is essential. Not to mention it draws a card which is cool.
1x Stoneforge Mystic ¬¬– Tutors up protection for my general or one of the most powerful draw equipments in the deck
1x Sun Titan – There are plenty of targets in this deck for sun titan to rez and at the end of the day he is a great beater
1x Weathered Wayfarer - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x World Queller – Part of the small stax package and can be very good if I get the tokens online.
1x Wurmcoil Engine – Good sac fodder and provides lifegain/ as well as a solid beater.
1x Yosei, the Morning Star – Locking up a player for a turn is pretty good and hitting in the sky for 6 can be good too.
Artifact (12)
1x Caged Sun - Ramp in mono white is essential. Plus a buff to my team can be good.
1x Gauntlet of Power - Ramp in mono white is essential. Same as Caged Sun.
1x Journeyer's Kite - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Lightning Greaves – Protection for my general as well as any other creature for a very low cost
1x Mind's Eye – CA in mono white is good even if it’s a bit expensive
1x Sensei's Divining Top – While not exactly card advantage it does provide some digging which can be helpful.
1x Skullclamp – Probably one of the best card draw engines in the deck. Good synergy with the general as well as a lot of other creatures/tokens in the deck
1x Smokestack – Great way to keep opponents in check and the downsides can be balanced out with all of the token production.
1x Sol Ring - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Staff of Nin – Much like mind’s eye this is CA pure and simple with the added bonus of ping.
1x Static Orb – Still on the fence about this but with the general out vigilance can keep my creatures from being tapped so I can untap other things.
1x Trading Post – What’s not to love? Tokens, recur, card draw, and in a pinch life gain? Sign me up
Instant (6)
1x Dawn Charm – This card has saved me more than I care to admit and can surprise opponents who think white can’t counter spells.
1x Enlightened Tutor – One of the few solid tutors white has. The other tutors mostly target enchantments but this one can find artifacts which can be a big deal.
1x Oblation – Tucking of generals and other problem permanents but in a pinch can be a bad divination or rescue a permanent of mine.
1x Path to Exile – Standard removal, nothing to see here move along. . .
1x Return to Dust – Good removal card at instant speed, great at sorcery speed.
1x Swords to Plowshares – Same as path, copycat killer almost
Enchantment (15)
1x Aura of Silence – Enchantment/artifact hate is good and on top of that it can be tutored for which is good.
1x Blind Obedience – Stax and keeping those creatures from swinging while also gaining us 4 life if it survives
1x Cathars' Crusade – Another card I am on the fence about. This does however have great synergy with Heliod and there are quite a few token producers in the deck.
1x Ghostly Prison – Defense and steering opponents at each other with the added bonus of being an enchantment
1x Greater Auramancy – This came in to protect Heliod at first but ended up protecting other enchantments as well (who knew lol) Has been surprising to say the least.
1x Humility – Keeps other problem creatures in check while not hurting my tokens too much.
1x Kismet – Same as blind obedience but a little more expensive and doesn’t gain life.
1x Land Tax – Really good land fetch that can be tutored for.
1x Luminarch Ascension – A new addition that on paper seems really good with all of the stax and wrath protection. However I have heard that it puts a bullseye on your head when cast.
1x Martyr's Bond – Makes them pay for targeting my stuff and at the least gets one of their permanents.
1x Oblivion Ring – Tutorable removal for problem permanents
1x Rest in Peace – Graveyard hate at its finest. I’m still unsure if I should add more though.
1x Sigil of the Empty Throne – This was a suggestion at my lgs and it seems good with all of these other enchantments. Can also make a 4/4 when I cast my general I believe.
1x Sphere of Safety – Staple with Heliod and works well with the other stax elements.
1x Spirit Mirror – Solid token production every turn that can be destroyed on a whim while also good with the clamp. I’ve been going between this sacred mesa and mobilization for a while now.
Land (38)
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All – Protects my wrath’s and removal from counter spells. Kind of unsure about it though
1x Buried Ruin – Lot’s of artifacts to chose from and with all of the wrath’s it can be good late game.
1x Emeria, The Sky Ruin – Good white land is good
1x High Market – Protects my creatures from various tucks and stealing and should Heliod ever become a creature it protects him too.
1x Homeward Path – Insurrection is a thing in my meta and this definitely helps.
1x Kor Haven – Problem creature begone! Also works if they choose to untap creatures with the stax sphere out
1x Mistveil Plains – Re-use and recycle cards that have hit the bin.
1x Scrying Sheets – CA without having to use a non-land slot is good
1x Serra's Sanctum – Lot’s of enchantments in this deck and the general has great synergy with it
27x Snow-Covered Plains
1x Tectonic Edge – Land D in a pinch
1x Temple of the False God – Pseudo-ramp that isn’t that bad
Sorcery (6)
1x Akroma's Vengeance – Wrathing everything but pw’s and can cycle in a pinch
1x Austere Command – I love me some selective wrathability
1x Day of Judgment – Cheaper wrath for when I’m hurting on mana.
1x Hallowed Burial – Mass tuck that will most of the time leave my general lying around
1x Martial Coup – A wrath with tokens on the side
1x Rout – Instant speed wrath has been pretty solid in protecting me.
Planeswalker (2)
1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion – Tokens/wrath/ and an ult that is not too bad. She seems pretty good too me. Also +1 on flavor
1x Elspeth Tirel – Life gain/tokens/Wrath mostly their stuff? While not as good as her newest version still a very solid pw.
The deck has quite a bit of synergy but again I feel as if it could be more focused. I realize that mono w is probably the worst edh color but I believe this deck can still put up a very good fight. This is very much a work in progress and if there are any glaring weaknesses or missing cards do not hesitate to suggest them to me. In addition if you have cockatrice and want to help me test please feel free to PM me. Any and all suggestions would be helpful and I don't mind helping anyone with their decks as well.
Thank you for your time.
I don't know how important getting serra's sanctum into play is for your strategy, but i use Expedition Map to fetch it in my bruna deck and in my kemba stax deck.and you can recur it with sun titan and buried ruin in case you want to grab any other non-basics
also Ajani's Chosen doesnt require enchantments to be cast, only to come into play, so it activates on the use of heliod's ability.
aaand if you are looking for any more ghostly prison effects, there are Norn's Annex and Windborn Muse, though muse is a creature which makes it pretty susceptible to all sorts of stuff
juuust kidding, didnt see you have ajanis chosen on there
Yeah Ajani's Chosen has been pretty good but you're definitely spot on on the muse as it used to be in here but always got shot down. I didn't even think of Expedition Map and I'll need to find room for it, thanks for the suggestion!
Okay so after pulling a foil Heliod at the pre-release and getting some help in the other thread on directions I have decided to post my Heliod list that I have been working on for the past couple of weeks. This deck is an attempt at making Heliod a decent choice for a semi-competitive meta with the emphasis on stax and tokens to balance it out. Currently I need help honing the focus of the deck as it is being pulled in different directions. I'm pretty flexible on card choice so feel free to mention anything that seems out of place.
Without further ado:
1x Ajani's Chosen
1x Angelic Arbiter
1x Avacyn, Angel of Hope
1x Aven Mindcensor
1x Burnished Hart
1x Duplicant
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Grand Abolisher
1x Knight of the White Orchid
1x Kor Cartographer
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
1x Mentor of the Meek
1x Pilgrim's Eye
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Stoneforge Mystic
1x Sun Titan
1x Weathered Wayfarer
1x World Queller
1x Wurmcoil Engine
1x Yosei, the Morning Star
1x Caged Sun
1x Gauntlet of Power
1x Journeyer's Kite
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Mind's Eye
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x Skullclamp
1x Smokestack
1x Sol Ring
1x Staff of Nin
1x Static Orb
1x Trading Post
1x Dawn Charm
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Oblation
1x Path to Exile
1x Return to Dust
1x Swords to Plowshares
Enchantment 15
1x Aura of Silence
1x Blind Obedience
1x Cathars' Crusade
1x Ghostly Prison
1x Greater Auramancy
1x Humility
1x Kismet
1x Land Tax
1x Luminarch Ascension
1x Martyr's Bond
1x Oblivion Ring
1x Rest in Peace
1x Sigil of the Empty Throne
1x Sphere of Safety
1x Spirit Mirror
Sorcery 6
1x Akroma's Vengeance
1x Austere Command
1x Day of Judgment
1x Hallowed Burial
1x Martial Coup
1x Rout
1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
1x Elspeth Tirel
Land 38
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1x Buried Ruin
1x Emeria, The Sky Ruin
1x High Market
1x Homeward Path
1x Kor Haven
1x Mistveil Plains
1x Scrying Sheets
1x Serra's Sanctum
27x Snow-Covered Plains
1x Tectonic Edge
1x Temple of the False God
Here is the deck by function (Although some cards may have multiple uses I sorted them by what they have been used for primarily in testing.)
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
1x Mentor of the Meek
1x Stoneforge Mystic
1x Sun Titan
1x Mind's Eye
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x Skullclamp
1x Staff of Nin
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Buried Ruin
1x Scrying Sheets
Disruption/Protection
1x Angelic Arbiter
1x Aven Mindcensor
1x Grand Abolisher
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Dawn Charm
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1x High Market
1x Kor Haven
1x Greater Auramancy
RAMP
1x Burnished Hart
1x Knight of the White Orchid
1x Kor Cartographer
1x Pilgrim's Eye
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Weathered Wayfarer
1x Caged Sun
1x Gauntlet of Power
1x Journeyer's Kite
1x Sol Ring
1x Land Tax
1x Duplicant
1x Oblation
1x Path to Exile
1x Return to Dust
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Humility
1x Oblivion Ring
1x Martyr's Bond
1x Rest in Peace
1x Akroma's Vengeance
1x Austere Command
1x Day of Judgment
1x Hallowed Burial
1x Martial Coup
1x Rout
1x Tectonic Edge
STAX
1x World Queller
1x Yosei, the Morning Star
1x Smokestack
1x Static Orb
1x Aura of Silence
1x Blind Obedience
1x Ghostly Prison
1x Greater Auramancy
1x Kismet
1x Sphere of Safety
1x Ajani's Chosen
1x Avacyn, Angel of Hope (Protection)
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Wurmcoil Engine
1x Trading Post
1x Cathars' Crusade
1x Luminarch Ascension
1x Sigil of the Empty Throne
1x Spirit Mirror
1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
1x Elspeth Tirel
Other Lands
1x Emeria, The Sky Ruin
1x Homeward Path
1x Mistveil Plains
1x Serra's Sanctum
27x Snow-Covered Plains
1x Temple of the False God
Finally here is my reasoning for each individual card choice.
Creature (20)
1x Ajani's Chosen - Token production, Good with high number of enchantments, amazing synergy with General and tokens.
1x Angelic Arbiter – Stop’s opponents who try and combo off into an aggro kill and good against the tooth and nail type shenanigans.
1x Avacyn, Angel of Hope – General goodstuff but providing indestructibility to the team is very good.
1x Aven Mindcensor – A way to keep those pesky tutors in check. In a pinch it can also be clamped and block a big threat in the sky.
1x Burnished Hart – Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Duplicant – Targeted removal for problem creatures.
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite – A good weenie wrath that doubles as a token buff for my team.
1x Grand Abolisher – Keeps the blue decks on our terms and off the stack
1x Knight of the White Orchid - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Kor Cartographer - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth – Provides card draw which the deck so desparately needs and helps against mill strategies which are very relevant in my meta.
1x Mentor of the Meek – I will find card draw in white no matter where it hides. This also has good albeit expensive synergy with the general.
1x Pilgrim's Eye - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Solemn Simulacrum - Ramp in mono white is essential. Not to mention it draws a card which is cool.
1x Stoneforge Mystic ¬¬– Tutors up protection for my general or one of the most powerful draw equipments in the deck
1x Sun Titan – There are plenty of targets in this deck for sun titan to rez and at the end of the day he is a great beater
1x Weathered Wayfarer - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x World Queller – Part of the small stax package and can be very good if I get the tokens online.
1x Wurmcoil Engine – Good sac fodder and provides lifegain/ as well as a solid beater.
1x Yosei, the Morning Star – Locking up a player for a turn is pretty good and hitting in the sky for 6 can be good too.
Artifact (12)
1x Caged Sun - Ramp in mono white is essential. Plus a buff to my team can be good.
1x Gauntlet of Power - Ramp in mono white is essential. Same as Caged Sun.
1x Journeyer's Kite - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Lightning Greaves – Protection for my general as well as any other creature for a very low cost
1x Mind's Eye – CA in mono white is good even if it’s a bit expensive
1x Sensei's Divining Top – While not exactly card advantage it does provide some digging which can be helpful.
1x Skullclamp – Probably one of the best card draw engines in the deck. Good synergy with the general as well as a lot of other creatures/tokens in the deck
1x Smokestack – Great way to keep opponents in check and the downsides can be balanced out with all of the token production.
1x Sol Ring - Ramp in mono white is essential.
1x Staff of Nin – Much like mind’s eye this is CA pure and simple with the added bonus of ping.
1x Static Orb – Still on the fence about this but with the general out vigilance can keep my creatures from being tapped so I can untap other things.
1x Trading Post – What’s not to love? Tokens, recur, card draw, and in a pinch life gain? Sign me up
Instant (6)
1x Dawn Charm – This card has saved me more than I care to admit and can surprise opponents who think white can’t counter spells.
1x Enlightened Tutor – One of the few solid tutors white has. The other tutors mostly target enchantments but this one can find artifacts which can be a big deal.
1x Oblation – Tucking of generals and other problem permanents but in a pinch can be a bad divination or rescue a permanent of mine.
1x Path to Exile – Standard removal, nothing to see here move along. . .
1x Return to Dust – Good removal card at instant speed, great at sorcery speed.
1x Swords to Plowshares – Same as path, copycat killer almost
Enchantment (15)
1x Aura of Silence – Enchantment/artifact hate is good and on top of that it can be tutored for which is good.
1x Blind Obedience – Stax and keeping those creatures from swinging while also gaining us 4 life if it survives
1x Cathars' Crusade – Another card I am on the fence about. This does however have great synergy with Heliod and there are quite a few token producers in the deck.
1x Ghostly Prison – Defense and steering opponents at each other with the added bonus of being an enchantment
1x Greater Auramancy – This came in to protect Heliod at first but ended up protecting other enchantments as well (who knew lol) Has been surprising to say the least.
1x Humility – Keeps other problem creatures in check while not hurting my tokens too much.
1x Kismet – Same as blind obedience but a little more expensive and doesn’t gain life.
1x Land Tax – Really good land fetch that can be tutored for.
1x Luminarch Ascension – A new addition that on paper seems really good with all of the stax and wrath protection. However I have heard that it puts a bullseye on your head when cast.
1x Martyr's Bond – Makes them pay for targeting my stuff and at the least gets one of their permanents.
1x Oblivion Ring – Tutorable removal for problem permanents
1x Rest in Peace – Graveyard hate at its finest. I’m still unsure if I should add more though.
1x Sigil of the Empty Throne – This was a suggestion at my lgs and it seems good with all of these other enchantments. Can also make a 4/4 when I cast my general I believe.
1x Sphere of Safety – Staple with Heliod and works well with the other stax elements.
1x Spirit Mirror – Solid token production every turn that can be destroyed on a whim while also good with the clamp. I’ve been going between this sacred mesa and mobilization for a while now.
Land (38)
1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All – Protects my wrath’s and removal from counter spells. Kind of unsure about it though
1x Buried Ruin – Lot’s of artifacts to chose from and with all of the wrath’s it can be good late game.
1x Emeria, The Sky Ruin – Good white land is good
1x High Market – Protects my creatures from various tucks and stealing and should Heliod ever become a creature it protects him too.
1x Homeward Path – Insurrection is a thing in my meta and this definitely helps.
1x Kor Haven – Problem creature begone! Also works if they choose to untap creatures with the stax sphere out
1x Mistveil Plains – Re-use and recycle cards that have hit the bin.
1x Scrying Sheets – CA without having to use a non-land slot is good
1x Serra's Sanctum – Lot’s of enchantments in this deck and the general has great synergy with it
27x Snow-Covered Plains
1x Tectonic Edge – Land D in a pinch
1x Temple of the False God – Pseudo-ramp that isn’t that bad
Sorcery (6)
1x Akroma's Vengeance – Wrathing everything but pw’s and can cycle in a pinch
1x Austere Command – I love me some selective wrathability
1x Day of Judgment – Cheaper wrath for when I’m hurting on mana.
1x Hallowed Burial – Mass tuck that will most of the time leave my general lying around
1x Martial Coup – A wrath with tokens on the side
1x Rout – Instant speed wrath has been pretty solid in protecting me.
Planeswalker (2)
1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion – Tokens/wrath/ and an ult that is not too bad. She seems pretty good too me. Also +1 on flavor
1x Elspeth Tirel – Life gain/tokens/Wrath mostly their stuff? While not as good as her newest version still a very solid pw.
The deck has quite a bit of synergy but again I feel as if it could be more focused. I realize that mono w is probably the worst edh color but I believe this deck can still put up a very good fight. This is very much a work in progress and if there are any glaring weaknesses or missing cards do not hesitate to suggest them to me. In addition if you have cockatrice and want to help me test please feel free to PM me. Any and all suggestions would be helpful and I don't mind helping anyone with their decks as well.
Thank you for your time.
also Ajani's Chosen doesnt require enchantments to be cast, only to come into play, so it activates on the use of heliod's ability.
aaand if you are looking for any more ghostly prison effects, there are Norn's Annex and Windborn Muse, though muse is a creature which makes it pretty susceptible to all sorts of stuff
juuust kidding, didnt see you have ajanis chosen on there
Sig and Avatar by me!