Topic: A bit of a puzzle

So given that my gf REALLY wants an Angel deck that is at least moderately competitive and the fact that the W/G Descendants' Path idea didn't work so well, I've tried to figure out a new idea here.

Enter Call to the Kindred (CttK) you're looking at one more cost and the need to enchant a creature, BUT, now I get to dig through the top five cards (not just one), put an angel onto the battlefield for free (it doesn't even count as being cast - take that counter magic!), and then put the remaining four cards on the bottom of the library in any order.  Admittedly the enchant creature part of it worried me, until I remembered the oft-forgotten angel of AVR, Bruna, Light of Alabaster who could easily hit the field and soak up any CttKs that might've been sacked.

So with those as the new centerpiece, here's a new build I'm trying to figure out:

http://deckbox.org/sets/249158

Again, the idea is to drop cheap angels and then cheat the others out.  But I'm struggling with a few problems. 

First, I'm thinking Seraph of Dawn is making more sense than Angel of Jubilation at the moment because of the lower need for white mana symbols - especially given that it's the second cheapest angel in the deck.  Thoughts on this move?  I don't really need the pump/anthem effects of the Jubiliations because angels are typically big enough on their own.

Second, thoughts on Serra Avenger?  It's only two to play, but can't be played in the first few turns of the game.  It gives me another cheap angel, which is good, but doesn't really speed up my curve because of the turn restriction.  That and the fact I currently don't have any of them is a bit of a problem.

Third, I cannot get the mana base to work in a manner that I don't end up getting stuck with Sigarda or Gisela stuck in my hand without the colors to hard cast them.  I currently have Amass the Components to be able to recycle those angels into the deck and Chromatic Lantern as a last resort; but I don't think that's enough.  Sigarda and Gisela could be dropped, but they really contribute to the real power of the deck - hexproof for Sigarda means I can put as many CttKs on her as I like with relatively no threat they'll disappear and Gisela plain out wins games.  So I'm inclined to keep them in, but it just doesn't work as it's currently constructed.  Any thoughts?

Fourth, given that CttK is subject to removal, I could run with Elgaud Shieldmate to provide some hexproof for the enchanted angel(s).  But now I'm adding more to a build that's currently sitting at 64 cards already.  Mizzium Skin performs this function currently and is way cheaper, but also only a spot fix.

Lastly, I'm somewhat tempted to go with a three color build that has some green for Axebane Guardian or Somberwald Sage as a means to help if CttK goes nowhere, but then again, the Sages are awfully easy to pick off and the Axebanes require more defenders to really help much.  Perhaps I should focus more on W/G/U defenders and have the angels as the final goal?

So I'm asking you guys (all what, four or five of us) for some input.  I really want to make this work, but I'm currently at a loss on how.  I think CttK is a MAJOR upgrade over Descendants' Path, but given that there aren't exactly any one-drop angels out there... yeah

Re: A bit of a puzzle

I've been toying with a similar deck.  In order to get those other colors of mana, you should  run as many dual lands as you can.  Personally, I'd ditch the Guildgate--they are great on T1, but having them come in tapped is a real pain.  Cavern of Souls is expensive, but if you name Angel, you can tap for one of any color mana when you are playing an Angel, with the added benefit of being counter-proof.

If you are focusing around white-blue, work to get every dual that has either blue or white, even if you only have one or two copies among them all right now: (Glacial Fortress and/or Hallowed Fountain), blue-red (Sulfur Falls and/or Steam Vents), white-red (Clifftop Retreat), white-green (Sunpetal Grove and/or Temple Garden), and blue-green (Hinterland Harbor).  You might not have all of them, but substitute in those that you can as you acquire them.

Other alternatives for splashing color would be Shimmering Grotto and Transguild Promenade.

Profile - Wishlist - Tradelist

Black and Blue--not just for bruises anymore.

Re: A bit of a puzzle

My opinion is that you need to drop red and focus more on WuG.  Gisela is great, she definitely can win games, but you can already do that with an army of fliers.  You need to focus on making those those fliers more reliable.

That being said, here are some of my (very unorganized) thoughts.....

Take out the Judge's Familiars all together and replace them with Avacyn's Pilgrims.  They will provide some much needed ramp.
If you want to splurge for shock lands, then you could use Arbor Elf instead.

Drop Emancipation Angel.  You really don't have any ETB effects to abuse it, and it doesn't have Flash to help save anything else.

Add 2x Herald of War.  Also add 2x Defy Death.  Those together are a very interesting interaction that could really help you get things moving by getting more angels out quicker.  And Defy Death will also help out your big angels that get destroyed in one way or another.

Drop Jace, he doesn't do enough for this deck as a one-of.  If at all possible, replace it with another Ajani, because putting +1/+1 counters can really help out the Herald of War and giving your big fliers double strike is nothing to scoff at, especially if you add in a few Rancors.

Sadly, I think this deck would be a lot better with a lot more dual lands, but I think you might be able to make due by bringing in a few Farseeks and keeping your mana base shifted more towards green and use Avacyn's Pilgrim and Farseek do the work of getting you other colors.  I do think that Somberwald Sage could be a good addition as well in this instance, but I don't think you have enough creatures at the moment to justify it.

Especially if you're going to shift a bit more towards green, then I definitely agree that you should drop Angel of Jubilation.  It can be a great card, but the white is too intensive.

With white and green as your main colors I think that Selesnya Charm is a good addition as well.

I really don't like Thought Scour because it doesn't add much to your strategy.  I guess now you could technically use it to mill yourself to get angels in the graveyard for use with Defy Death.

Profile - Tradelist - Wishlist

Re: A bit of a puzzle

I totally understand on the dual lands, I just didn't know if anyone had thoughts beyond those.

Null - it's actually funny you have suggested taking it more green with the ramping and whatnot, given that I just had it in that form and it performed terribly.  People would be quick to pick off the rampers and then you're sitting there waiting to hard cast a big angel while they beat on you.  To some degree, that's why I decided to take it to W/U with the prospect of CttK helping cheat the bigger angels out. 

The idea behind Emancipation Angel is simply that it's the cheapest angel that I could find in the format that you can play on turn three (Serra Avenger is the other option, but you have to wait until turn four for it - at which point you might as well play Seraph of Dawn).

I'm thinking, would it perhaps make more sense to fit in some Invisible Stalkers and Call to Serves?  Then I can make hexproof "angels" to attach CttK to, which then helps me cheat the bigger ones out.  The catch is that's requiring a LOT of cards in the middle to get that working.  I could, in theory, add Angelic Armaments too as another way to give them the angel creature subtype.  In that scenario I would likely drop a fair number of the other cards and really focus on the BIG angels as I'm going to be cheating most of them out anyway.

Perhaps another thought - if I'm going to splash red at all (to meet Gisela's casting cost), I could just as easily slide in some draw/discard effects to let me cycle the bigger angels out of my hand and then have the good ole Elixir of Immortality ready to cycle them back in.  To that end, that's why I have Jace in there, as he can not only slow the game down until I'm dropping the angels, but he can also help control some card draw in a manner that I can choose not to get stuck with one of my off colored angels in my hand.

Hrm... a lot to think about...