Topic: FNM Deck

Hey everyone, I've been playing with Green White humans for quite a while but after winning a tournament and getting 2 foil deathrite shamans I was able to get a playset of huntmasters so I decided that Naya could be cool, the main issue I'm having at the moment is Experiment One, so far I LOVE the idea of having 4 more Pseudo Champions of the Parish, my goal is to get them to 3/3 consistently if I can get one T1, in my opinion Frontline Medic and Fiend Hunter are going to be my all stars in this regard, as there are not very many humans that have 3 power or 3 toughness, right now I've got 2 Wojek Halberdiers in the deck as they seem decent enough, being able to trade with a Thragtusk while blocking seems decent but I just don't think they're really right for the deck, what does everyone else think? Odric, Master Tactician, Zealous Conscripts, and Angelic Overseer are all possible contenders as well, the last card I'm considering is Crusader of Odric, I don't like it nearly as much as any of the 4-5 drops I mentioned but I'm just not a fan of the Halberdiers, they don't really help with anything post board-wipe so that's not an advantage and it seems like best case scenerio they're pretty average whereas the Crusader could be exactly what this deck needs, another creature that can dodge things like searing spear and Pillar of Flame

So finally I'm curious about A) What do you think of Experiment one? B) What's the best creature to get the 3rd evolve, C) what do you think about the deck in general?, and D) What are the best sideboard cards for this deck I've got alot of stuff I really like the idea of but I don't know how many I should include of each.

Here's my current list: http://deckbox.org/sets/276804

Re: FNM Deck

One thing to keep in mind with regard to hitting that 3rd evolve trigger is that any pumps the humans would get via Mayor of Avabruck would actually count (as it's a state based effect much like how you could play tokens with Intangible Virtue despite the opponent having Curse of Death's Hold on the field).  So that definitely makes things easier.

That aside, Burning-Tree Emissary is often times a nice piece to play as it realistically is free to play (or can even help with some mana fixing if you're in a pinch for a red or green mana.  More importantly, if you have a Mayor out, it could provide a second and possibly third evolve trigger for Experiment One for free.

Beyond that, I can understand your hesitation toward the Halberdiers, but they're the highest power creature you can cast for the two CMC, so I'd suggest running them and just seeing how things play.  A 3/2 first strike when attacking isn't exactly a bad thing. wink

For the other finishers, I really wouldn't aim for anything higher than four just because of the fact your land count is sitting at 20.  Odric could be useful, but I could see where you could get more use out of something like Kessig Malcontents as it could help push some added damage though.  But realistically, I don't think you would need it.  The same can be said for the Conscripts and Overseers. 

The two things I think you might be missing are some removal and Boros Charm.  I could definitely see where you would benefit from a Searing Spear here or there to take out the opponent's meddlesome creatures and Boros Charm seems redundant with Frontline Medic, but realistically, it's there to save you against a Supreme Verdict.  That way, if you have 3-4 creatures on the field you can make it through their verdict, that's pretty much game.  A quick instance of double-strike or an instant 4 damage can also help seal the deal in a pinch.

In either case, I think you're onto something.

Re: FNM Deck

I absolutely agree about Boros Charm making the deck better, the main reason that I don't have it in the list is because I want to make Domri as efficient as possible, I currently have about a 55% chance of drawing a card so I should be getting a creature from my draw step or Domri every turn. one thing that I've actually considered is cutting Rancor, I've found that I like a T2 Thalia against almost every deck and that Rancor usually only matters if I can keep a silverblade paladin alive since if I keep a champion of the parish alive I win with or without rancor, but either way I can't see myself using less that 3 between my main deck and sideboard.

As a side note normally the Mayor actually doesn't make it more likely for experiment one to evolve, simply because he's getting the same power and toughness bonus as the creature entering the battlefield, however if I let my Mayors flip then the wolves that they spit out will cause him to evolve which is something I hadn't really considered that could actually make him bigger than a Champion of the Parish would be if I get stuck on 2 mana.

I've tested extensively with the Burning-Tree Shaman, and I'm still not sure, late game it's still just a 2/2 for 2 and early game it's only good if I have either more of them, or Mayor of Avbruck in hand, otherwise most of the free mana goes to waste. That being said it can lead to explosive starts if I've got a champion and more than one of them in my opener, it's pretty much over before it starts unless there's a T2-3 Terminus.

Also I know that 20 Lands is a bad decision, I should have a minimum of 22, even if i curve out at 4, I just find that I've got good luck and it's more fun for me to play the risky deck smile

Finally, thoughts on sideboard? I like having Nevermore quite a bit, but as a double white when I'm playing 3 colors and have 5 colorless lands it seems a bit risky and there are really only 4 things I care about enough to keep it in, Terminus, Bonfire, Mizzium Motars, and Supreme Verdict (Mutilate might also become an issue in the coming weeks but as of now no issues) and I feel like for the most part Boros Charm can fill in the spot of all of those things.

Re: FNM Deck

You're spot on about Mayor and Experiment One getting the same pumps.  Good catch on that one, I didn't even think about it.

I would say it's okay to drop the Rancors as it really seems like a win-more card for you here.  If you're really looking for something that the opponent wouldn't expect and that can be used in late game situations where you're stalled out, Assemble the Legion could prove useful.  It's resistant to board wipes as it'll just spit out more tokens and they would get pumps from the Mayors.  I'd only run 1-2 of them, but it could be a curve ball in those situations where you don't have the game in hand just yet.

I think the shaman is going to be a hit-or-miss card that a lot of people are going to try to force into decks.  That might be the case here, but he does provide an alternative to the Halberders.  But if you have any aspirations for playing aggressively, he definitely could prove useful.

I wouldn't worry too much about your lands, although I think the Gavony Township is expendable if you're having trouble with your colors.  To that end, I don't think hitting double of any color would be difficult, so I wouldn't be afraid to run Ash Zealot/Elite Inquisitor or anything of that like.

For the board, I would toss in a few Nevermores for your wipes/Tusks/Thundermaw.  I'd toss in 1-2 Rest in Peace for insurance.  I'd also go with a few Naturalizes/Ancient Grudges  and/or Paraselenes as Bant hexproof auras has gained some steam.  To that end, perhaps a few Glaring Spotlights would be more effective.  You'll definitely want some sort of additional burn in here too, whether it be Pillars, Spears, or Volleys (or maybe even Flames of the Firebrand).  The only other thing I could think of would be some anti-flying creatures/spells, whether that be Plummet or Silklash Spider.  Oh yeah, and Blind Obedience, definitely Blind Obedience.

Aside from that, I really don't see any reason why this wouldn't at least be competitive.

Re: FNM Deck

This is certainly quite a bit to think about, I've never even thought about testing Assemble the Legion, it seems more like a sideboard option to me because seeing it in my opening hand seems like it would be terrible, but I can certainly see where it could be awesome, I'll have to test it out against control decks, I might not run it just because they're not human tokens but that's more because I don't want to sacrifice the Human theme for a better deck.

Hopefully I'll have some info about some cards soon, FNM this week won't tell me much since gatecrash won't be standard but hopefully people will have Gatecrash cards I can trade for smile