Just to briefly chime in on the most current build you have put forth.  This is actually a surprisingly consistent looking deck given your newness to the game (so good work there), but as a suggestion, since you're going the heroic route, why not slide in at least a pair of Phalanx Leaders over Soulmender?  They provide two devotion to white to help get Heliod into creature form, and they also can provide a pump for the entire team through the heroic triggers. 

Two other cards to pick up for this build are Precinct Captain (you want 4x of them) and Spear of Heliod (two will suffice).

Overall just try to soak things in and don't be afraid to ask questions when you're observing (although if it's a tournament, such as FNM, people will be reluctant to explain until after a game or match is over).  If there's one thing that can be said it's that the people who play this game don't just like it, they love it, and an excuse to explain their thinking in putting a deck together, making a certain play, or whatever, well, what more could they ask for?

377

(11 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So, comically enough, I threw together a budget Minotaur deck just the other day and finally got around to playtesting it last night - at which it proceeded to play surprisingly better than anticipated.  Obviously this doesn't mean you're about to go smashing the next GP, but it is a stronger strategy than most might expect.

Here's the build I put together:  http://deckbox.org/sets/526973

The biggest differences I see between your build and mine are as follows:

1) I went with a more dedicated R/B theme than you.  While I have the temples and could easily slide them in, I opted for more consistently untapped lands (yeah, the Blood Crypts too) as this deck will already be pretty slow.  Your earliest play is a two-drop Deathbellow Raider and as far as aggro decks are concerned, that's really not a good idea (as RDW or Gruul Aggro can frequently be sitting on 6-8 power on the field by turn 2 care of Burning-Tree Emissary).  BUT, going with more black affords you more options in terms of removal, as you can note with the Doom Blades and such in my SB.

2) I REALLY tried to avoid guys over 3 CMC, with Fanatic of Mogis and Kragma Warcaller being the only ones (and only counting for 5 total cards).  Again, you're a slow deck to begin with, the last thing you want to do is to further slow things down.  BUT, that being said, I cannot overstate the power of the Warcaller - it's like playing a friggin Battle Sliver and Blur Sliver at the same time - and those pumps add up QUICKLY.

3) Given the higher toughness of minotaurs (typically at least 3), they're a touch harder for your opponent to kill in combat (nevermind the pumps they'll get from all the lords).  As such, I went ahead and went the Dragon Mantle and Madcap Skills route.  Doing this can allow your already threatening minotaur swing in for rather considerable amounts of damage and will seriously threaten the abilities of any deck that doesn't have a large number of blockers to respond.  Yes, these cards allow you to be two-for-one'd from time to time, BUT, you're playing a budget minotaur deck, so card-advantage be damned!  That being said, Madcap Skills was easily the most powerful card in the deck in last night's playtesting - making minotaurs frequently have powers upward of 6 or 8 whenever Rageblood Shaman/Kragma Warcaller/Door of Destinies is in play.

4) Door of Destinies seems like a total EDH card, and it probably is, but for only like $1-2, it creates an additional means of pumping your otherwise vanilla guys.  Against a midrange deck that is durdling much of the time, T4 Door into T5 Warcaller means your T3 guy will be swinging boosted +3/+1 - normally enough to catch up to most of what they'd play.  If you go to later turns and get 2-3 counters on the door, pretty much any minotaur will be enough to kill them...

5) Lastly, I run 2x Blood Scrivener to provide some added card draw in the later rounds in the event your hand is gassed (I would imagine this to be more helpful in actual competitive play rather than friendly playtesting), but it is an option.  Sure, it dies to pretty much every removal spell out there, but at least forcing them to use one on this little guy just means one more of your Shamans will survive...

As for your specific build, I would suggest the following changes:

-2 Chandra's Outrage
-2 Homing Lightning
-2 Mugging
-2 Anger of the Gods

+2 Dreadbore (if it's removal you're after... why not?)
+1 Kragma Warcaller
+2 Gruul War Chant (you already have the green splash with Temple of Abandon, toss in a few Forests to complete the splash for it)
+3 Madcap Skills

This SHOULD give you a decent mix of removal and also make your guys more versatile threats on their own.  I certainly see the sense in all the removal you were running, but odds are, with 12 removal/burn spells, you'll have enough to deal with the stuff in the way.  Gruul War Chant will likely just win you the game a lot of the time if it comes down with a few pumped minotaurs.

Anywhom, this is the sort of fun brewing I like to see people doing!  Good luck!

378

(5 replies, posted in General Discussion)

Pending that's the only creature you're attacking with, you would have to sacrifice it as a result of Celestial Flare, leaving no lasting effect from Enlarge and freeing them to block however they like. 

However, as Celestial Flare targets a player, not a creature, and leaves it up to said targeted player to choose which attacking or blocking creature is sacked, odds are you're not just attacking with the Enlarged alone, meaning you could choose one of the other creatures to sacrifice and then they WOULD have to block the Enlarged creature.

Does that make sense?

Simply put, if they remove the creature you cast Enlarge on, then there's nothing there for them to be required to block and, as such, they can block normally (aka however they choose).

379

(2 replies, posted in General Discussion)

Counters remain after the turn ends whereas the spell effects typically do not.  So, for instance, if you cast Hunger of the Howlpack it places a +1/+1 counter on the creature, permanently pumping its power and toughness.  But if you were to cast Giant Growth, its power and toughness both are boosted by three (+3/+3) but at the end of the turn, that effect expires and the creature returns to normal.

Does that make sense?

380

(9 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

If you're looking to go Gruul, the only really viable strategy at the moment is to go the devotion route.

For a look at a deck that's using that strategy, see the following: http://deckbox.org/sets/474989

As you'll note; however, this deck is worth $300.  Perhaps a better strategy would be to move closer to the RDW strategy with a splash of green...

So that deck would look more like this:  http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/deck.asp?deck_id=1171083 but again, you're looking at $180 in cards.  http://magic.tcgplayer.com/db/deck.asp?deck_id=1172254 isn't as tested, but is definitely cheaper.

If I were you, I'd probably go with the following:

4 Rakdos Cackler
4 Experiment One
4 Burning-Tree Emissary
4 Firefist Striker
4 Gore-House Chainwalker
4 Ghor-Clan Rampager
2 Ember Swallower
2 Polis Crusher (you could easily swap this with Gruul War Chant likely to better effect)

3 Lightning Strike
3 Madcap Skills
2 Clan Defiance

3 Hammer of Purphoros (you could put Domri, Xenagos, Garruk COB, or Chandra Pyromaster here)

4 Stomping Ground
4 Temple of Abandon
1 Gruul Guildgate
4 Forest
9 Mountain

Again, you can make whatever changes you like, but this comes to 61 cards (so you're free to drop one of something) that will rather consistently put pressure on the opponent.  The lands are easily the most expensive part of the deck and you could likely make do without the Stomping Grounds but again, the Temples are pretty critical.  In terms of cost, at TCG mid you could pick up the whole deck WITH the shocks for about $90.  If you don't fret them, you're looking at $51 using the TCG mid-price.

The deck certainly won't be the best in the world and against tier 1 competition it will likely just lose... but against home brews and such, it probably won't do half bad.  But she's going to have to play pretty aggressively.

381

(9 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

The mana are all screwed up at the moment... it's only showing 22 lands...

I would suggest the following mana configuration:

4 Hallowed Fountain
4 Steam Vents
4 Sacred Foundry
4 Temple of Triumph
2 Azorius Guildgate
2 Izzet Guildgate
2 Island
1 Mountain
1 Plains

Or something to that effect

Hrm... it's certainly a fragile setup... given that neither is more than a 1/1 and you're relying on it resolving.  That being said, you're going to want to add mana fixing, card draw, and things of that nature.

All that being said, I don't know that I'd really go for it given the fact that you're not going to be able to set it off any earlier than T4 and NEED to draw perfect mana and those three cards.  I mean if you're just wanting to see what the hell happens, go for it... but I would think of some other applications of the three combo cards and build a deck looking for those avenues with the combo as a nice added little trick.  So with Triton Tactics I'm thinking some sort of heroic triggers?  I could see something like Staunch-Hearted Warrior or Centaur Battlemaster getting out of hand.  Triton Fortune Hunter would provide some rather amusing card draw.  Elvish Mystic and Opaline Unicorn could at least start the loop - although they don't really offer any added benefit other than normal ramping/fixing and giving both of them alarmingly high toughnesses...

Yeah... sounds pretty fragile and unreliable... sorry...

383

(9 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

It snuck past me, but drop Aqueous Form too - Aetherling can already be unblockable on its own.

For the lands, obviously you would benefit from the full slate of shocks and relevant temples - Temple of Triumph is a MUST.

Additionally, given the setup you're sitting on, I would still suggest running your Omenspeakers to at least have something to toss in the way until you drop a board wipe - might as well wait to two-three-or even four-for one them.

It would probably be a good idea to tell us the combo so that we can perhaps think of cards that help supplement/protect it.

I'm not an expert with combo decks but my understanding is that the remainder of the deck is meant to support the combo and to help ensure you draw all the necessary pieces.  So to that end, tutor effects, card draw/advantage, cantrips, stalling spells, things of that nature.

385

(9 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So first off, if you could describe your FNM that would be helpful.  Are you going to be staring down net-decked tier 1 decks each round or is it more or less home-brews?

Secondly, you're VERY divided among strategies.  Cards like Akroan Hoplite belong in aggro builds while Prognostic Sphinx is for a mid-range deck, while Aetherling is almost always a control deck card (although it can be put into mid-range in a pinch).  You really need to pick which plan you're wanting to go with and stick to it.

Based on how your deck looks, I could see the argument for making it American U/W/R Control, but otherwise see little reason to deviate from the U/W control builds that are out there - red really doesn't give you THAT much in this situation.  The biggest problem there is that the U/W control builds RELY on Supreme Verdict and, more so, Sphinx's Revelation (Jace, Architect of Thought and Elspeth, Sun's Champion typically make appearances too).  Given the dollar value on those folks, I don't know that you'd really be able to pull that deck together.

Rather, I would say to try to pick up some Chained to the Rocks, Anger of the Gods, and Assemble the Legion.  These three can come in, in addition to Magma Jet, Celestial Flare, and Dissolve.  Drop almost all of the creatures... you're going to want Aetherling and Assemble to be your primary win-cons.  Note that you're going to have to trade for these cards if you want the deck to get better...

So simply put:
-2 Akroan Hoplite
-1 Omenspeaker
-2 Banisher Priest
-4 Spellheart Chimera
-2 Prognostic Sphinx (you could talk me out of this one as Santa Sphinx has done some SERIOUS work for me)
-1 Planar Cleansing

+1 Supreme Verdict
+2 Anger of the Gods
+2 Dissolve - Syncopate could also work here
+1 Aetherling
+2 Assemble the Legion
+1 Azorius Charm
+1 Warleader's Helix
+2 Detention Sphere

The result of this is a more controlling deck that looks to really just stall the opponent until you drop one of your bombs that just single-handedly takes over the game.

I hope some of this helps... sorry that it's not just using your inventory

386

(8 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

PicoDiGanyo wrote:

Preface to posting, I am just starting to look into competative play,

Have you thought about the interplay of Fabled Hero and Unflinching Courage,
with nothing else, that gives you a 5/5 lifelink trample double strike

(yes he would be a target for removal, but one successful swing or block would give your Voracious Wurm +10)

Sadly this is the definition of a "win more" situation where, if you're already sitting on a 5/5 lifelink, trample, double-strike creature, getting a 12/12 Voracious Wurm isn't all that relevant, given that you're likely already winning the game.  It also requires a LOT of things to go correctly for this to work.

I think there's a junk deck in here somewhere, but it's just not there yet.  I'd wait until Born of the Gods because the pairings of Trostani, Selesnya's Voice, Obzedat, Ghost Council, Angelic Accord, and Whip of Erebos are quite powerful...

First off, I'm assuming that you're aiming for standard?

Second, what can you tell us about your local meta?  Are you staring down net-decked tier 1 decks every round or mostly home-brews and budget decks?

Third, as for improving the deck, you really need to decide whether you're going for more of an aggro strategy or whether you intend to play mid-range (probably not a good idea given your colors).  Typically the most successful Selesnya decks are focused on aggro strategies given that their two-drops are pretty much better than any other color pairing (3/3 for 2 or 2/1 for 2.... hrmmm...).  This is further emphasized by the fact that G/W don't have the best removal options at their disposal.

Here's a link to a G/W build that my GF ran to some success at Theros Gameday (and which I later piloted to 3rd at an FNM): http://deckbox.org/sets/428181 - but I would point out that even this is not an ideal build.  Look at the selesnya aggro builds on TCGplayer and you'll see what the pros are playing as the color pairing is still putting up good results.

Some cards you're going to need to pick up - Banisher Priest, Ajani, Caller of the Pride, Fleecemane Lion, Selesnya Charm, Loxodon Smiter, Spear of Heliod and things of that like.  You say your budget for more cards is zero, that's no problem as you're sitting on a TON of trade pieces that you could easily turn into these cards.

A few parting thoughts, you REALLY need to pick a strategy and stick to it.  Only include cards that will benefit that strategy or that will deal with specific threats to your strategy (although these are typically saved for the sideboard).  So cards that don't directly contribute to your plan need to be cut.  Further, if a card is worth including, ask yourself, is there a scenario you can imagine where you would NOT want to draw that card?  Is there a better alternative?  Or, is that just part of doing business that way?  If the answer to either of the first two questions is "yes" then odds are you need to change the card.

Anyway, I hope some of this helps...

388

(5 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

Okay, so if you're playing in a really competitive environment, I'm going to be 100% frank and honest with you about the builds.  Home-brews or not, if you're in a really competitive environment you need to know some of the basics of deckbuilding.

1) Pick a strategy and stick to it!  This means either going aggro, going midrange, or going control these days.  Do NOT hedge between two of them as it will almost always weaken your ability to do either - making the deck worse than it would be if you simply picked one.  So to this end, you REALLY need to choose, are you going for an aggro strategy or for more of a midrange strategy?  Then stick to that!

2) Consistency, consistency, consistency!  The most competitive decks typically run very few different cards but in high quantities (3-4x of most cards).  The reason for this is because they want to have the best odds of drawing the same sorts of plays every game - allowing them to follow similar lines of play in every game, reducing play mistakes while also maximizing the likelihood of executing the plan.

3) Some cards are just better than others.  I know how tempting it is to take a card that nobody else is using and try to figure out a way to "break the format" with it.  The same can be said for trying to come up with your own unique builds as opposed to looking to what the pros are doing and "net-decking."  As much as it pains me, as a brewer of weird decks myself, there is no reason to reinvent the wheel, so to speak.  Look at what the pros are playing, take their decklists and feel free to modify them to fit what you own and can get your hands on, BUT, simply ignoring what they're doing because "net-decking sucks" is just silly.  They're the best players in the world for a reason and they spend a LOT more time thinking about this stuff than probably 90% of the rest of us.  That being said, if they're not running a card, don't think they simply forgot it, there's probably a reason they're not running it.

4) Mana fixing is expensive, but it is that way for a reason.  If you're sitting on the playset of Stomping Grounds you've already done the hard part.  But Temple of Abandon is pretty huge when it comes to competitive play these days.  It may come in tapped, slowing you down a bit, but the scry ability can keep you from flooding out or drawing repetitive cards that you can't cast.  It's worth it to spend a few extra bucks or to trade to pick up the added mana fixing (although the full playsets of everything aren't required, it's more consistent if you have them all).

So, with those out of the way, to your builds:

1) "Slammed Gruul" - This deck is FAR too disorganized to really have much consistency.  Are you going aggro or mid-range?  If you're aggro, mana dorks are TERRIBLE.  If you're going mid-range, you need to really just follow the R/G Devotion builds and have 4x Burning-Tree Emissary (BTE), Voyaging Satyr, Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, Garruk, Caller of Beasts and all that jazz.  As it currently sits, very little of this makes much sense given the high number of 1-off cards.  For instance, Legion Loyalist is meant to achieve what exactly (mind you, I know what the card does...)?  Or 1x Bow of NyleaFog seems totally counter to an aggro strategy and would be better suited in mid-range.

2) "Test 1" - This is leaps and bounds better than "Slammed Gruul" but still has a long way to go.  This again is hedged between aggro and mid-range.  If you're going aggro (and hence most of the reason to run Ghor-Clan Rampager and Ogre Battledriver), I would suggest tossing in a LOT more one and two-drop creatures and realistically ending your curve at four.  Drop all the mana dorks and work with things like Experiment One, Firefist Striker, the full slate of BTEs, more Kalonian Tuskers, and Domri Rade.  Drop essentially ALL of your enchantments as the only ones that would matter for such a build are Hammer of Purphoros (it replaces late game land draws with 3/3 haste golems), Madcap Skills, and POSSIBLY Dragon Mantle.

3) "Test 2" - This is also better than "Slammed Gruul" and appears to be adopting the mid-range strategy a bit more.  But it still has a bunch of sub-optimal cards.  Among those I would cut are: Deadbridge Goliath, Ghor-Clan Rampager, Fog, Mending Touch, Alpha Authority, Bow of Nylea, and Purphoros's Emissary.  Others I would consider possibly cutting or maybe moving to the SB depending on how the build shapes up include: Kalonian Tusker, Savageborn Hydra, Scavenging Ooze, Giant Adephage.   Now you're probably thinking to yourself, "That's all of the deck! What in the world goes in there!?!"  Well, Polukranos is a more versatile threat than most of what you're sitting on.  So he should be in there as probably a 3x.  Arbor Colossus is a 6/6 for 5 that can easily become a 9/9 and take out an opposing flyer (which is quite relevant against Desecration Demon and things of the like).  BTE is a devotion generator.  Sylvan Caryatid is easily the best mana dork these days as it can block most aggro threats safely while still adding to the pool.  Also, Garruk, Caller of Beasts provides a HUGE amount of card advantage.  Personally I'm a fan of a few unorthodox things like Clan Defiance to give you an output for all your mana in the later turns.  But more importantly, you have to be sure that you stick to the plan and keep producing big threats (but not so big that a single removal spell screws you over - hence my hesitation about Giant Adephage).

So, there's clearly a lot of room for improvement (sorry) if you're in a super competitive situation.  My suggestion would be to either try to pick up some more of the core pieces for the R/G Devotion deck over time and perhaps scout out a few other FNM spots (if possible) to find a less competitive environment to start or try making incremental improvements to the existing builds, but keep in mind that you need to be okay with losing quite a bit.  Because if I can say one thing, it's that GP/Pro Tour competition would eat these lists quickly and easily given that they're almost all playing the same 8-10 tier 1 tested lists of 75 cards.  Further, to be competitive in those environments, you have to be willing to pony up a bit more cash... today's game is a far cry from when I started in 1993-94 when it really was just "What cards do you have? Yeah, build with those."

If you'd like, I have an R/G Devotion build I've been tinkering with for a while although I haven't playtested it nearly enough to know if it would perform well or not.  In either event, the build can be found here: http://deckbox.org/sets/474989.  I'm hardly a GP winning brewer, but I've taken down enough FNM events in my day to have at least some sense of what I'm doing.  Feel free to take what you like from it and remember, the most important input you can get is from playtesting - it trumps whatever we can tell you in these forums.  So build, playtest, build, playtest, build, playtest, playtest, playtest.

Good luck!

389

(1 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So there really is only one major Rakdos deck to be putting up good results these days.  Specifically, it's the Rakdos Aggro deck that was piloted to a victory at GP Santiago (just google it and you'll get the list).

That being said, I can see where in a friendly enough FNM some minotaur tribal deck MIGHT have a chance to at least do something (no guarantees).  If I were to piece one together, it would roughly look like the following:  http://deckbox.org/sets/526973

The first point you can note is that the entire deck is all of $56 to build, including the Blood Crypts.  If you were to cut them (something I wouldn't really recommend), you'll actually reduce the cost of the deck to about $22 to build.

The second key difference between my proposed build and yours is the emphasis on the minotaur tribal component.  Whereas you're sitting there with Goblins, Humans, Cyclopses, and whatnot, my build has only two creatures that aren't minotaurs.  This is important as you're trying to maximize the impact of your pumping effects through Rageblood Shaman, Kragma Warcaller, and Door of Destinies.

Third, and this is something you'll learn over time, for competitive decks, you really want to shy away from 1-off cards  unless they're completely optional and not required for your strategy but have enough power to win the game on their own.  Normally though, it's best to either up the count of those cards to improve consistency or drop them outright in favor of something that is more in line with your strategy.

Fourth, I would suggest scouting out your local FNM and possibly others at other stores before you dive right in.  I've found that there is an amazing amount of variation in how competitive FNMs can be.  Some places, they don't really care if you have proxies, encourage home brews, and people are there to have fun.  Other places, you run into a crowd full of kids who think they're the best thing since sliced bread and who think they're going to win the next GP, playing nothing but tier 1 decks and really not creating a fun environment for newer players such as yourself.

Anyway, I invite you to take a look at the build I proposed.  It's certainly cheap enough that you could build it and see how it performs without too much of a risk.  If you decide not to go that route, it's certainly fine too.  I hope some of what I've said helps.

390

(5 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So these are all decks for what? Casual play? FNM? Taking to a Grand Prix?

Are you simply looking for recommendations on which cards to cut?  Or are you open to complete overhauls?

What sort of budget are you looking at to improve the decks?

How competitive is the meta where you will be taking these to play?  Do you have to worry about a bunch of home brews or are you staring down Tier 1 net-decks all day long?

What are the basic win-cons and strategies behind each of the decks?

This is in the sticky about posting in the forum but I guess nobody reads that, so I'll say it again.  You have to give us some information regarding the decks and the questions I've posed above.  The more information you provide, the more likely it is that we can offer some helpful advice/input/critiques.

Scroll through your completed and/or cancelled trades and normally that's where you'll find it.

392

(8 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

If you wanted to go another route entirely, it is also possible to abuse Angelic Accord using Orzhov colors (B/W).  Between extort triggers, the lifelink provided by Whip of Erebos, and Obzedat, you'll be dumping angel tokens into play rather easily.  I don't know why it never struck me before and I'm actually going to piece together a build looking at the Whip - Obzedat - Accord combo to see whether it's viable or not.

For what it's worth, you'll certainly have access to better removal that way...

393

(8 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

This is all good feedback thus far, but how in the world has nobody mentioned the addition of Trostani, Selesnya's Voice?  Seriously, with Angelic Accord you're essentially sitting on - pay three, gain four, get an angel.  Toss in the Voracious Wurm and it'll never be less than a 3/3 coming into play. 

I'd also suggest running Advent of the Wurm in some number, if for no other reason, than to provide some added populate targets (also because a 5/5 trample for 4 is pretty good).

As for removal, Selesnya Charm, Last Breath, Celestial Flare, and even Time to Feed are probably better options than Pacifism or Arrest.

394

(1 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So at the moment Golgari isn't the best plan of attack given that it lacks the scry land in both colors for the fixing.  But that being said, I think there is a niche there to take advantage of the lack of graveyard hate these days.  Yet, your build might perform well in a casual setting (and certainly has the counts to be consistent); however, it is't using any of the ideal cards for the colors.  In particular, here's a list I've been refining for the past few weeks to try and make something competitive http://deckbox.org/sets/464290.

Things you'll note in my build are the improved quality of the four-drops.  Whereas you're sitting on Corpsejack Menace, Golgari Decoy, and Korozda Monitor, I have Desecration Demon, Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord, Polukranos, World Eater, and Reaper of the Wilds.  You can think of the four drop as being the most critical to the plan.

You also would benefit from some more focused removal.  Doom Blade is good, unless you run up against any black deck.  Abrupt Decay, Putrefy, and things of that sort are typically better options.

I would also suggest going to your local FNM to scout out to see how competitive the environment is.  If it's a super hardcore FNM with a lot of tier 1 decks, you'll want to totally overhaul this thing.  If it's a bit more open with a variety of homebrews, well, odds are you will have more fun and it will take less work to make the deck effective.

Anyway, take a gander at the build I proposed and feel free to incorporate whatever components of it you like.

395

(7 replies, posted in General Discussion)

Check ebay first and foremost.  Secondly, a few places will offer bulk foil common buys - I believe Troll and Toad had one going for a while - so be sure to check the established sites.

396

(1 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

First off, I think there is promise in a Jund build but I don't think it will make the leap to being anything close to tier 1 until we see the other Scry lands in Born of the Gods.

That being said, a few thoughts:

1) There's really no need for Hero's Downfall in here as Dreadbore works sufficiently 95% of the time.  Given that when an opponent plays a PW, they still hold priority and can activate it before you could kill it anyway, why not save the 1 mana and just do it Dreadbore style? (Mind you, I get that you can cast Downfall on an opponent's turn, saving your mana for your turn, but really, it's not THAT big of a deal at the moment).

2) I would actually drop a few of the guildates for just run of the mill lands.  I know they you're trying to maximize the likelihood you hit all your colors as quickly as possible, but the fact guildgates come into play tapped will often leave you a turn behind even when you're hitting your land drops.  The added ability of the Scry lands to let you sift through your top decks justifies the ETB tapped, but otherwise, they'll just slow you down more than you probably want.  So to that end, a full playset of the shocks, perhaps 1-2 guildgates (1 Rakdos, 1 Golgari) and 4 Temple of Abandon should give you access to enough fixing that run of the mill Swamp, Mountain and Forest should get the job done.

3) I can see where you're going to want some number of Abrupt Decays in here.  The number of non-creature permanents it can take out is significant and meaningful.  Think Detention Sphere and Underworld Connections - in addition to dropping an opponent's Boros Reckoner and whatnot.

4) Given the high number of shocks you're running, I don't know that I would run Thoughtseize in the main board and if I did, no more than two.  Odds are you're going to be siding them out a LOT against even moderately aggressive builds as they, combined with the shocks, end up doing half of the opponent's job for them.  To that end, if you're really wanting to look at the opponent's deck/hand, I cannot recommend enough that you use Slaughter Games.  Most people will say, wait, you should be contributing to the board with your four drops, and, while I agree most of the time, a single Slaughter Games will practically neuter both mono-blue and mono-black devotion decks, esper rich kid/superfiends/control, and a LOT of other strategies.  In the worst case scenario, you name a card that you THINK they might have and get to look at their hand and entire deck - that's the kind of information you just cannot overlook in any type of competitive play.  Additionally, Duress in the SB does a solid job against control and doesn't cost the life of Thoughtseize.  So, the tl;dr version, maybe 2x seize in the main, the rest in the SB along with Duress and give a look at Slaughter Games in the main (even 1-2x could be useful) -- I know this is not a popular or widely felt sentiment, but I would argue that it can be huge if played correctly.

5) Anger of the Gods should be in the SB.  I know it wipes out all your dorks, but if you're staring down Rakdos Aggro or something of that nature, you'll happily make the exchange if it can wipe the board of their threats.  It'll go in the SB, but can be quite the useful tool for ya.

6) I'm on the fence about Read the Bones vs. Underworld Connections and would suggest playtesting with both.  The ability to draw more than two cards with UC is great, but digging as many as four cards down with Read strikes me as optimal given your plan.

7) I would suggest upping your count of Whip of Erebos.  You're currently sitting at 10 shocks, 3 Read the Bones, 3 Thoughtseize, and Erebos - that's enough damage to almost kill yourself twice (pending only one activation of Erebos).  Personally, I would slide in at least one more whip as the lifelink really just makes the deck that much harder to deal with and, having run a home brew version of mono-black, you NEVER regret having one on the field.  Even being able to recur threats for a single hit can be huge given the size of most of your creatures.  Nevermind the life swing attached.

8) I can see where I would run some mix of Devour Flesh/Doom Blade/Ultimate Price over the full slate of 4x Putrefy.  I know it seems insignificant, but why pay one more for the same effect 90% of the time?

9) Golgari Charm NEEDS to be in your SB in some number - the enchantment hate alone makes it worthwhile, but the ability to totally clear out RDW's wealth of x/1 creatures en mass is huge.

10) For whatever reason, and perhaps I'm off here, but I could see where Xenagos will have more of an effect for you than Chandra, Pyromaster.  I get that she provides card advantage, but you already can dig with Read, so the mana ramping option could be more useful in a lot of circumstances - fire off that Rakdos's Return with a bit more oomph, etc.

Lastly, I'm a fan of Clan Defiance for it's multi-targeting options, Magma Jet for that added bit of scry to help with your draws, Illness in the Ranks in the SB for dealing with Elspeth/Assemble, and a second Vraska if you can swing it given that she will almost always result in a 2-for-1 or better for you.

Anywhom, I know my responses can be long-winded so hopefully you've gleaned something from all of this mess.

397

(2 replies, posted in Announcements)

skull_king wrote:

Um, I may sound like an idiot for asking, and I may look even more idiotic for posting this now, but what is a promo code?

When you purchased a copy of Duels of the Planeswalkers 2014 you were given a "promo code" that you could print out and go redeem at a LGS to get a pre-set pack of M14 cards including a special promo version of a card (Bonescythe Sliver for xbox, Scavenging Ooze for Steam/PC, and I think Ogre Battledriver for PS3).  The issue is that people would print out multiple copies and redeem them at several stores to get multiple copies.  As such, with Scooge sitting at like $15 people were "trading" their codes which could've already been used (and as such wouldn't be worth anything).

398

(21 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

elpablo wrote:

I don't think reckoner is a bad choice for the UWr control list.  He's good against aggro and can make it so you don't "have" to have a verdict to live against aggro.  he's probably better in an aggro heavy meta. I think in general you'd want to draw on turn 3, (divination, charm) or hold up for removal or counters.

Reckoner is a good investment as long as devotion is in standard.  He'll go back up when born of the gods comes out.  People always run a new aggro deck and reckoner is a premium card for those decks.  So it's not a bad investment either.

Steam augery is okay, just remember it's a lot worse than jace.  Jace does the same thing( better actually) than the augery and he gives you extra hit points.  Most opponents will target jace with spells, attacks or abilities before they target you.

And Jace can do it more than once...

399

(21 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

It strikes me that, while nowhere near as flashy, this most recent version will be a LOT more consistent and likely more successful.

Remember, it can seem like people are piling on, but when you put a deck idea out here on the forums, it's our job to offer criticisms... which can often seem like someone trying to argue (and, at the end of the day, it's up to you which of the suggestions you take or not).

Good luck!

400

(1 replies, posted in Decks and Deckbuilding)

So trying to fine-tune an EDH deck is admittedly harder than a normal standard deck because you're going to experience a pretty large amount of variation across the draws and how the deck will perform.

That being said, I think the biggest issue I see here comes from the lack of board wipes at your disposal.  Sure, you have Decree of Pain and Plague Wind, but those are LATE game wipes.  Earthquake, Magmaquake, Savage Twister, Mutilate, Damnation, Gaze of Granite, Mizzium Mortars, and even Inferno could help here.  At the end of the day, you're likely going to be sitting on a singular more dangerous threat than most of the opponents and, as such, you want to ensure that said threat is the only thing that stays on the field.

I'm also a fan of adding Fog-esque effects in most EDH decks as I find that 4-player games typically sit with a stalled board state until someone has the ability to alpha strike the entire table.  Being able to negate that attack often will allow you to simply win on the crack-back.

A few things about your specific build I'm thinking you might benefit from:

Triumph of Ferocity - if your guys are bigger on average, this essentially equates into card advantage every turn.  Why not?

Huntmaster of the Fells - why not?  You're in the colors, they're a LOT cheaper than when they were standard legal, and it can do some work for ya.

Whip of Erebos - lifelink for all your creatures?  This is huge in ANY format.

Giant Adephage/Utvara Hellkite - they're expensive, but they're huge and can easily win a game all on their own.

Any of the other walkers would be good, in particular, Xenagos has some promise in EDH given that he helps with ramping or at least can spit out some blockers in a pinch.

Lastly, take a gander at the pre-made Jund Commander 2013 decklist (Prossh if I'm correct) as Wizards was actually pretty good at putting some decent stuff in the commander decks this go 'round - many people I know haven't even really modified them beyond how they came.

I hope some of this is helpful... I guess a lot depends on how competitive your EDH players are (obviously those wonderful Spike players will seek to find broken combos and will ruin the game for everyone no matter what you do).