I really dont get it. I mean sure, 15 counters MD is pretty good, but still there are many aggro decks that I believe would roll over this build. Maybe Evacuation is missing in the SB against Ghazi-Glare and Weenie.
Plus I fail to see how a deck like this would not benefit from Circu, Dimir Lobotomist as each counter would effectively remove a card AND create an unusable card for your opponent, not to mention that it would benefit from being able to be played at EOT.
This should be called weird.dec lol. But thats really awesome that this deck is doing well with a 5-1 rating over at worlds day one. Keep it up!
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Commander
:symg::symb: Jarad, Golgari Lich lord
:symu::symw::symb: Sharuum the Hegemon
:symu::symw: Bruna, Light of Alabaster
:symu::symr: Niv Mizzet, the Firemind
:symg::symw: Sigarda, Host of Herons
The one thing thats weird about it is the fact that it looks very, very bad on paper, but apparently it got good results from the French over in their homeland. But on second look, when you compare it to the other lists in the format, this deck runs a good amount of counters, removal, and balances out a bit. The question is though, will we be able to replicate what the pros do? It doesnt always work out that way.
I have a deck kinda like above, and I can say that Mystical Teachings is probably the most important card of the deck. You can use it twice at instant speed, gets powerful silver bullets, and gets Teferi which when you play it, can get other guys because of Teferi's wording.
Once Dranlu hits play at EOT, your opponent will go through hell since you will be reusing counters, kill, bounce, and bomb cards.
Having played an almost identical list myself in casual games, I can say I never imagined the deck could be competitive. Its good matchups seem to be Solar X (Cremate is surprisingly useful), Vore (although if Wildfire resolves with Dralnu in play, you lose, period), and various other such control decks; the aggro games are really swingy. Although the deck has a fair enough match-up against Boros, Gruul, Zoo, and U/G seem to eat it for breakfast.
I don't know how it does against Tron or Glare. :\
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
Is this a Wafo-Tapa deck? It has all the makings of one of his monstrousities. I'll have to head over to WoTC and look... Anyway, the 1-ofs crack me up, especially with only 4 tutors (8 really, but silver bullets that cost you 6 to fetch do not equal game-winners). I can't believe the Darkblast is not MD, that's your pwn card against aggro, it HAS to be there. I second Exhaustion off the board too. I'd love to see -1 something (Cremate to the board, or out and Crypt to board) for Dblast. Otherwise it's a nice package. The 1-of Vampire worries me a bit, but I guess you have enough ways to protect him.
For me I just feel like the deck is missing something. I'll test it tomorrow night and see how it plays out, but that's my immediate reaction. If only you could effectively goldfish a deck like this... sigh...
Anyway, the 1-ofs crack me up, especially with only 4 tutors (8 really, but silver bullets that cost you 6 to fetch do not equal game-winners).
Yes, they are rather problematic. Cremate could easily be Moratorium Stone or Crypt in the board, Last Gasp isn't going to be swinging any games, and I can't figure out Seize the Soul, period. I assume it's used against Tron and Gruul, but perhaps a white splash for Mortify (possibly achieved through Calciform Pools) would be more effective mainboard. One-of Sudden Death is fine, though I don't know how many worthy targets it really has. I'm not sure about the Vampire; I played two Dralnu instead.
Rewind might be useful for beating drowse, and I think one of those bargains should be another Cancel for use against Tron.
I played Magewright's Stone, but most of the time it was severely win-more, although every so often it let me take control of the board, where otherwise Dralnu's effect would have been inadequate. Careful Consideration and Telling Time seemed useful but the tutors turned out to be more powerful in the long run.
I can't believe the Darkblast is not MD, that's your pwn card against aggro, it HAS to be there.
Yes, it should really trade with Cremate. It makes every Desert a Quicksand on steroids and it's got remarkable synergy with Dralnu.
I'm also having trouble seeing the point of Moonlight Bargain- I think there are very few opportunities when you would need more card draw out of the board, and even fewer when you would pay four life to get any advantage out of it. Additionally, with Dragonstorm being the only major deck that relies on sifting through its library, that Shadow could become Rewind or another Trickbind without losing anything in that matchup.
For me I just feel like the deck is missing something.
It certainly lacks the finishers other decks have.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
skelletal vampire is not a finisher? ... have you tested it against aggro...?
I didn't say it wasn't a finisher. However, the deck doesn't run, say, eight finishers; it relies on that one specifically. Given the deck's record, I assume it's a pretty awesome choice, but if you're used to playing around with a pile of bombs, this deck presents a new experience.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
I believe Bargain is to dump more cards into your graveyard for Dralnu, since 2 life a card can really add up against aggro decks.
However, Darkblast accomplishes the same task, costs cheaper, and eats Magus of the Scroll, Savannah Lions, Bob, and other x/1s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
I believe Bargain is to dump more cards into your graveyard for Dralnu, since 2 life a card can really add up against aggro decks.
However, Darkblast accomplishes the same task, costs cheaper, and eats Magus of the Scroll, Savannah Lions, Bob, and other x/1s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Well, I think Bargain is brought in against control decks, where that life isn't going to kill you immediately and the cards are priceless. But still... Eh. There are better cards to side for those matches, I think.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
I have a hard time calling this a Dralnu deck, considering it runs only one. It's essentially a monoblue control deck that splashes black for some removal and Meloku (I mean, Skeletal Vampire). There's nothing really all that special about it, except for maybe the instant-tutoring.
I have a hard time calling this a Dralnu deck, considering it runs only one. It's essentially a monoblue control deck that splashes black for some removal and Meloku (I mean, Skeletal Vampire). There's nothing really all that special about it, except for maybe the instant-tutoring.
Well, Dralnu is a cornerstone of the deck: it lets you run less multiples and more singles and it lets you run less draw and more cantrips. The reasons it can get away with only one are fourfold: (a) Dralnu can only be outright removed by a handful of cards (Mortify, Wrath, Last Gasp, etc.); (b) an active Dralnu, which is guaranteed by Teferi, is almost always impossible to remove without the help of Sudden Death; and (c) the deck has effectively eight tutors ready to grab him; and (d) the deck can win without him. Running more is unwise because you rarely want to play him out without Teferi in the mid-to-late game, and because drawing more than one almost always guarantees you get stuck with a dead card.
You don't need four of a card to have a deck based on interactions with that card. I'm pretty sure that Glare, for instance, would immediately reduce its Glare count to one if it had all these things going for it, and people would still call it Glare. And, like this deck, Glare can win without even drawing its signature card.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
I didn't say it wasn't a finisher. However, the deck doesn't run, say, eight finishers; it relies on that one specifically. Given the deck's record, I assume it's a pretty awesome choice, but if you're used to playing around with a pile of bombs, this deck presents a new experience.
In a way he does have a pile of bombs. Teferi in play will let him search for either a dranlu or a skeletal vampire with one of the (total of 8) mystical teachings.
As for removal spells against non-white seize the soul is retarded. played during combat when your opponent attacks.... you kill one creature, make a token, haunt it, block (prefferebly a one touphness thing ) then when the token dies kill another creature and make another blocker.... i mean, thats just devastating. and you can tutor it at instant speed. Cremate is a metagame solution over darkblast main. He obviously expected to see more control that aggro. And, since this deck works best at the very late game, it would not like to see a better end game engine working ... such as triskelavus + academy ruins.
In a way he does have a pile of bombs. Teferi in play will let him search for either a dranlu or a skeletal vampire with one of the (total of 8) mystical teachings.
Perhaps you could extrapolate that, but you cannot possibly compare it to, say, Solar X or even Tron. It's two different systems.
As for removal spells against non-white seize the soul is retarded. played during combat when your opponent attacks.... you kill one creature, make a token, haunt it, block (prefferebly a one touphness thing ) then when the token dies kill another creature and make another blocker.... i mean, thats just devastating. and you can tutor it at instant speed.
Well, yes, but this is a format full of Boros, G/U, Tron, and Dragonstorm - and only half of those really care about Seize the Soul. With those standards you could put Deathmark main because it's useful in half those games as well, plus the random Glare deck, and it also handily kills those Angels of Despair. (You can tutor it at instant speed, too!) Maindeck Mortify is possibly a little weaker, but gives the added benefit of being able to kill anything it can target, including troublesome enchantments, and it can be flashed with Dralnu if necessary.
Seize the Soul is, however, a spectacular sideboard card.
Cremate is a metagame solution over darkblast main. He obviously expected to see more control that aggro. And, since this deck works best at the very late game, it would not like to see a better end game engine working ... such as triskelavus + academy ruins.
I'm going to take a leap and say that Tron + Burst is also a better end game engine, and Cremate does nothing against that.
Really, what should really be on your mind against Tron is Muse Vessel, Demonfire, and Spell Burst, the latter which they can tutor for. With only one hard counter main board playing against a deck that really doesn't care about an extra three mana, you won't get rid of Spell Burst very easily, and Cremate is about as easy for them to counter as is possible.
Cremate is a powerful solution against Solar X, but with the aggro matchup looking sad and dejected in the corner, maindeck Darkblast seems to be a fix for a bigger problem.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
This deck is a metagame choice more than anything, and even so, I really like it. (Wafo-Tapa's decks always give me good first impressions, even if they look like 15 counters+4 finishers+other stuff.)
This is true.
I'd rather have a card that replaces itself and gets rid of a pesky threat (Cremate) over a card that might swing an aggro match in your favour, but stay a dead card against control. Heck, you might catch stray Moldervine Cloaks here and there, and it's not like cantripping cremate is really a waste. Essentially you're just paying B to cycle.
You could also catch Think Twice and Call of the Herd.
Anyway, Darkblast isn't a completely dead card against control; it's entirely possible to hit your own guy and then dredge it up every turn, which with Dralnu is more or less a free Ancestral Recall. Indeed, both cards have their merits in both matchups. It just so happens one is better in some situations than the other, and vice-versa. In a meta full of Boros, KBBK, and G/U, go with Darkblast. Otherwise stick to Cremate, I suppose.
Or run both and ditch Last Gasp. (Or not. Either way.)
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
What I don't understand is why the deck isn't a U/W build with a splash of B. This way you get your Wraths and Condemns and Fetters (if you want), you gain access to Mortify as well, and still have counter/bounce. A W/U/B deck could run a boatload of counter and removal with a dash of bounce, with Teferi and Dralnu as the only creature spells, and toss in 2 Sacred Mesa. Maindecking 10 counter, 6 draw, 10 removal and 4 bounce essentially gives you 20/12/20/8 on the spells, leaving 6 slots open for critters and Mesa. I'd run something like this:
I'm fully aware my deck is basically W/U control with a splash of black, but I strongly believe a resolved EOT Dralnu and your untap step is game over except for an opponent's Sudden Death.
Any thoughts on making it three color to give yourself a better game against aggro?
Any thoughts on making it three color to give yourself a better game against aggro?
Well, the Condemns help, but Dralnu and Teferi run into the same problem as GAAIV, in that flashing back Wrath means you just lost your star player(s), so playing more than three or two is discouraged.
I suggest staying close to the "lots of instants are awesome" theme with four Mystical Teachings, removing both Court Hussar and the Mesas for the extra two Teachings and possibly Spell Snare. The Mesa is really rather unnecessary; Skeletal Vampire can just as easily seal the game, and he's tutorable once you have Teferi.
Telling Time should be Think Twice. Unless you have a way of using Dralnu multiple times a turn, you're really going to want to use his ability to flash back counters and removal rather than draw. The built-in flashback of Mystical Teachings and Think Twice let you really get some crazy card advantage without opening yourself up to possible tragedies, like, say, a resolved Wildfire.
Three Mortifies is too many. You can get away with just one. The other spaces should be filled with a fourth Remand - who doesn't want Inspiration with tempo and tricks attached? - and some other useful one-of instant. Cremate and Darkblast come to mind; however, Condemn and Wrath really outclass 'blast, so Cremate is likely a better choice.
Unless you don't plan on seeing any Dragonstorm, you should really be playing storage lands - they're a very inconvenient problem for Gigadrowse. I would also consider the aforementioned GAAIV for the sideboard.
Speaking of which, you should be playing Trickbind in the sideboard, and Seize the Soul is really rather awesome there as well. I'm not quite sure what you feel comfortable removing there.
A UWb build is certainly possible, although Wrath of God is one of two main benefits, and often Seize the Soul is capable of same. Condemn is the other benefit, and that's clearly quite awesome.
Quote from koschei »
First of all, finding 2 white for Wrath is going to be problematic.
Yes, in your build it is; luckily, you won't likely want to cast it very much in the late game. Likewise, I don't think Sacred Mesa really works that well, because you won't often have the white mana to fuel huge bursts of Pegasus tokens.
Other than that you seem to have taken my advice quite well. (Before I even gave it to you! >_>)
Here's an attempt at a U/W/b list from me, as it seems everyone's getting in on the act:
Fourteen counters - I had to choose between a fifteenth counter and Condemn. Considering Condemn and Wrath are the big attractions to white, I figured I might as well take advantage of the situation.
Two Teferi main - Teferi doesn't have the life expectancy of Skeletal Vampire and Dralnu. There are times you might need a second.
Skeletal Vampire over Mesa - I outlined my concerns above.
The rest was slightly random, especially the humorous sideboard. I personally prefer the U/B list, as it lacks the mana problems.
"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
As did I. I guess the major choices are pretty clear.
What do you guys think about adding 2 Ghost Quarters to the original list? It'd greatly improve the URzatron matchup, and can get rid of random pests like Vitu-Ghazi or Urza's Factory.
I agree, it definitely has a place - it can also hurt karoos, which appear to be quite popular now-a-days. I would trade two Islands or an Island and a Desert from the original list.
The U/W/b builds can also make use of it in tandem with Flagstones when there's no better target.
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"I am so stupid that I cannot understand philosophy; the antithesis of this is that philosophy is so clever that it cannot comprehend my stupidity. These antitheses are mediated in a higher unity; in our common stupidity."
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
Hmm, I like many of the suggestions. I underappreciated Mystical Teachings and completely forgot about GAAIV, as well as Trickbind. I threw that deck together in the last 5-10 minutes of my lunch, just some things I thought of. I agree completely that Sacred Mesa is a no-go; if I would have had a bit more time to think about it I would have left it out.
I do disagree, however, on the double white for Wrath being problematic. My decklist has 14 sources for white mana, 14 for blue, and 8 for black, and I think all of that is fine.
I think a W/U/B build is stronger than U/B simply because of a larger card pool, and most of the comments here have been about the first decklist dying to aggro. Adding in Wrath and Condemn helps the aggro matchup, gives you access to Augustin for combo/Dragonstorm, and for CoP Reds, if needed. Without white in it, I simply don't see how it could beat aggro, except for the Vampire.
I think I'm going to build this and playtest it, and try a few things out.
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Palias Terminus, the Black Rose :4mana::symu::symb: Legendary Creature - Human Cleric
Tap three untapped permanents you control: Draw a card. Tap two untapped permanents you control: All other creatures get -1/-1 until end of turn.
"I am the Black Rose, the Prince of Murder. I will hide in the shadows no longer; my time has come."
That decklist looks awful, but I also thought the original Solar Flare builds looked pretty bad. Maybe this Standard enviornment is crazy enough that you can just throw a bunch of good cards together and do well.
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4 Watery Grave
4 Underground River
3 Dimir Aqueduct
2 Dreadship Reef
7 Island
4 Desert
Creatures
3 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Skeletal Vampire
1 Dralnu, Lich Lord
Spells
3 Spell Snare
4 Rune Snag
3 Mana Leak
1 Cancel
4 Remand
4 Think Twice
4 Mystical Teachings
1 Cremate
1 Last Gasp
1 Sudden Death
1 Seize the Soul
4 Repeal
4 Deathmark
1 Seize the Soul
2 Trickbind
2 Moonlight Bargain
1 Spell Snare
1 Cancel
2 Dreadship Reef
1 Darkblast
1 Shadow of Doubt
I really like the deck but one Thing I noticed that Walk the aeons will work great here.
Plus I fail to see how a deck like this would not benefit from Circu, Dimir Lobotomist as each counter would effectively remove a card AND create an unusable card for your opponent, not to mention that it would benefit from being able to be played at EOT.
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I'm trying to build a deck around Dralnu, but its UBR and have some LD spells to use more times...Plus Counters and some burn.
Moderm - Mono blue Tron and Eldrazi variants
Legacy - Building Eldrazi Stompy
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Commander
:symg::symb: Jarad, Golgari Lich lord
:symu::symw::symb: Sharuum the Hegemon
:symu::symw: Bruna, Light of Alabaster
:symu::symr: Niv Mizzet, the Firemind
:symg::symw: Sigarda, Host of Herons
Once Dranlu hits play at EOT, your opponent will go through hell since you will be reusing counters, kill, bounce, and bomb cards.
Extendo
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I don't know how it does against Tron or Glare. :\
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
For me I just feel like the deck is missing something. I'll test it tomorrow night and see how it plays out, but that's my immediate reaction. If only you could effectively goldfish a deck like this... sigh...
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Yes.
Yes, they are rather problematic. Cremate could easily be Moratorium Stone or Crypt in the board, Last Gasp isn't going to be swinging any games, and I can't figure out Seize the Soul, period. I assume it's used against Tron and Gruul, but perhaps a white splash for Mortify (possibly achieved through Calciform Pools) would be more effective mainboard. One-of Sudden Death is fine, though I don't know how many worthy targets it really has. I'm not sure about the Vampire; I played two Dralnu instead.
Rewind might be useful for beating drowse, and I think one of those bargains should be another Cancel for use against Tron.
I played Magewright's Stone, but most of the time it was severely win-more, although every so often it let me take control of the board, where otherwise Dralnu's effect would have been inadequate. Careful Consideration and Telling Time seemed useful but the tutors turned out to be more powerful in the long run.
Yes, it should really trade with Cremate. It makes every Desert a Quicksand on steroids and it's got remarkable synergy with Dralnu.
I'm also having trouble seeing the point of Moonlight Bargain- I think there are very few opportunities when you would need more card draw out of the board, and even fewer when you would pay four life to get any advantage out of it. Additionally, with Dragonstorm being the only major deck that relies on sifting through its library, that Shadow could become Rewind or another Trickbind without losing anything in that matchup.
It certainly lacks the finishers other decks have.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
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I didn't say it wasn't a finisher. However, the deck doesn't run, say, eight finishers; it relies on that one specifically. Given the deck's record, I assume it's a pretty awesome choice, but if you're used to playing around with a pile of bombs, this deck presents a new experience.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
However, Darkblast accomplishes the same task, costs cheaper, and eats Magus of the Scroll, Savannah Lions, Bob, and other x/1s for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Well, I think Bargain is brought in against control decks, where that life isn't going to kill you immediately and the cards are priceless. But still... Eh. There are better cards to side for those matches, I think.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
Well, Dralnu is a cornerstone of the deck: it lets you run less multiples and more singles and it lets you run less draw and more cantrips. The reasons it can get away with only one are fourfold: (a) Dralnu can only be outright removed by a handful of cards (Mortify, Wrath, Last Gasp, etc.); (b) an active Dralnu, which is guaranteed by Teferi, is almost always impossible to remove without the help of Sudden Death; and (c) the deck has effectively eight tutors ready to grab him; and (d) the deck can win without him. Running more is unwise because you rarely want to play him out without Teferi in the mid-to-late game, and because drawing more than one almost always guarantees you get stuck with a dead card.
You don't need four of a card to have a deck based on interactions with that card. I'm pretty sure that Glare, for instance, would immediately reduce its Glare count to one if it had all these things going for it, and people would still call it Glare. And, like this deck, Glare can win without even drawing its signature card.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
In a way he does have a pile of bombs. Teferi in play will let him search for either a dranlu or a skeletal vampire with one of the (total of 8) mystical teachings.
As for removal spells against non-white seize the soul is retarded. played during combat when your opponent attacks.... you kill one creature, make a token, haunt it, block (prefferebly a one touphness thing ) then when the token dies kill another creature and make another blocker.... i mean, thats just devastating. and you can tutor it at instant speed. Cremate is a metagame solution over darkblast main. He obviously expected to see more control that aggro. And, since this deck works best at the very late game, it would not like to see a better end game engine working ... such as triskelavus + academy ruins.
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Perhaps you could extrapolate that, but you cannot possibly compare it to, say, Solar X or even Tron. It's two different systems.
Well, yes, but this is a format full of Boros, G/U, Tron, and Dragonstorm - and only half of those really care about Seize the Soul. With those standards you could put Deathmark main because it's useful in half those games as well, plus the random Glare deck, and it also handily kills those Angels of Despair. (You can tutor it at instant speed, too!) Maindeck Mortify is possibly a little weaker, but gives the added benefit of being able to kill anything it can target, including troublesome enchantments, and it can be flashed with Dralnu if necessary.
Seize the Soul is, however, a spectacular sideboard card.
I'm going to take a leap and say that Tron + Burst is also a better end game engine, and Cremate does nothing against that.
Really, what should really be on your mind against Tron is Muse Vessel, Demonfire, and Spell Burst, the latter which they can tutor for. With only one hard counter main board playing against a deck that really doesn't care about an extra three mana, you won't get rid of Spell Burst very easily, and Cremate is about as easy for them to counter as is possible.
Cremate is a powerful solution against Solar X, but with the aggro matchup looking sad and dejected in the corner, maindeck Darkblast seems to be a fix for a bigger problem.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
Oh, well... Yeah, I didn't know that.
Kind of... hurts my argument... a bit. >_>
This is true.
You could also catch Think Twice and Call of the Herd.
Anyway, Darkblast isn't a completely dead card against control; it's entirely possible to hit your own guy and then dredge it up every turn, which with Dralnu is more or less a free Ancestral Recall. Indeed, both cards have their merits in both matchups. It just so happens one is better in some situations than the other, and vice-versa. In a meta full of Boros, KBBK, and G/U, go with Darkblast. Otherwise stick to Cremate, I suppose.
Or run both and ditch Last Gasp. (Or not. Either way.)
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
3x Wrath of God
4x Condemn
3x Mortify
3x Rune Snag
3x Cancel
3x Remand
1x Rewind
2x Mystical Teachings
4x Telling Time
2x Sacred Mesa
1x Teferi
1x Dralnu
1x Skeletal Vampire
3x Court Hussar
4x Godless Shrine
4x Watery Grave
6x Plains
6x Islands
3x Moratorium Stone
3x Willbender
3x Muddle the Mixture
3x Circle of Protection: Red
I'm fully aware my deck is basically W/U control with a splash of black, but I strongly believe a resolved EOT Dralnu and your untap step is game over except for an opponent's Sudden Death.
Any thoughts on making it three color to give yourself a better game against aggro?
Legendary Creature - Human Cleric
Tap three untapped permanents you control: Draw a card.
Tap two untapped permanents you control: All other creatures get -1/-1 until end of turn.
"I am the Black Rose, the Prince of Murder. I will hide in the shadows no longer; my time has come."
3/5
Well, the Condemns help, but Dralnu and Teferi run into the same problem as GAAIV, in that flashing back Wrath means you just lost your star player(s), so playing more than three or two is discouraged.
I suggest staying close to the "lots of instants are awesome" theme with four Mystical Teachings, removing both Court Hussar and the Mesas for the extra two Teachings and possibly Spell Snare. The Mesa is really rather unnecessary; Skeletal Vampire can just as easily seal the game, and he's tutorable once you have Teferi.
Telling Time should be Think Twice. Unless you have a way of using Dralnu multiple times a turn, you're really going to want to use his ability to flash back counters and removal rather than draw. The built-in flashback of Mystical Teachings and Think Twice let you really get some crazy card advantage without opening yourself up to possible tragedies, like, say, a resolved Wildfire.
Three Mortifies is too many. You can get away with just one. The other spaces should be filled with a fourth Remand - who doesn't want Inspiration with tempo and tricks attached? - and some other useful one-of instant. Cremate and Darkblast come to mind; however, Condemn and Wrath really outclass 'blast, so Cremate is likely a better choice.
Unless you don't plan on seeing any Dragonstorm, you should really be playing storage lands - they're a very inconvenient problem for Gigadrowse. I would also consider the aforementioned GAAIV for the sideboard.
Speaking of which, you should be playing Trickbind in the sideboard, and Seize the Soul is really rather awesome there as well. I'm not quite sure what you feel comfortable removing there.
A UWb build is certainly possible, although Wrath of God is one of two main benefits, and often Seize the Soul is capable of same. Condemn is the other benefit, and that's clearly quite awesome.
Yes, in your build it is; luckily, you won't likely want to cast it very much in the late game. Likewise, I don't think Sacred Mesa really works that well, because you won't often have the white mana to fuel huge bursts of Pegasus tokens.
Other than that you seem to have taken my advice quite well. (Before I even gave it to you! >_>)
Here's an attempt at a U/W/b list from me, as it seems everyone's getting in on the act:
2 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Skeletal Vampire
1 Dralnu, Lich Lord
Spells (32):
4 Mystical Teachings
4 Remand
4 Think Twice
4 Repeal
4 Rune Snag
3 Condemn
3 Spell Snare
2 Wrath of God
2 Cancel
1 Rewind
1 Cremate
4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Watery Grave
4 Island
3 Godless Shrine
3 Desert
2 Azorius Chancery
2 Calciform Pools
1 Dreadship Reef
1 Dimir Aqueduct
1 Flagstones of Trokair
2 Trickbind
1 Disenchant
1 Cancel
1 Condemn
1 Dreadship Reef
1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Sudden Death
1 Rewind
1 Last Gasp
1 Seize the Soul
1 Wrath of God
1 Spell Snare
1 Mortify
1 Cremate
Fourteen counters - I had to choose between a fifteenth counter and Condemn. Considering Condemn and Wrath are the big attractions to white, I figured I might as well take advantage of the situation.
Two Teferi main - Teferi doesn't have the life expectancy of Skeletal Vampire and Dralnu. There are times you might need a second.
Skeletal Vampire over Mesa - I outlined my concerns above.
The rest was slightly random, especially the humorous sideboard. I personally prefer the U/B list, as it lacks the mana problems.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
As did I. I guess the major choices are pretty clear.
I agree, it definitely has a place - it can also hurt karoos, which appear to be quite popular now-a-days. I would trade two Islands or an Island and a Desert from the original list.
The U/W/b builds can also make use of it in tandem with Flagstones when there's no better target.
~ Søren Aabye Kierkegaard
I do disagree, however, on the double white for Wrath being problematic. My decklist has 14 sources for white mana, 14 for blue, and 8 for black, and I think all of that is fine.
I think a W/U/B build is stronger than U/B simply because of a larger card pool, and most of the comments here have been about the first decklist dying to aggro. Adding in Wrath and Condemn helps the aggro matchup, gives you access to Augustin for combo/Dragonstorm, and for CoP Reds, if needed. Without white in it, I simply don't see how it could beat aggro, except for the Vampire.
I think I'm going to build this and playtest it, and try a few things out.
Legendary Creature - Human Cleric
Tap three untapped permanents you control: Draw a card.
Tap two untapped permanents you control: All other creatures get -1/-1 until end of turn.
"I am the Black Rose, the Prince of Murder. I will hide in the shadows no longer; my time has come."
3/5