Post by zaldinfox on Jul 21, 2013 19:40:53 GMT -5
Hello all,
I wanted to gather some thoughts on a deck I have been working with for the last number of weeks; it is a spin-off from Hexproof Aura decks (G/W/X) I have used. I was hoping to accomplish a few things in making this brew aside from it being focused on Auras:
1. 4/4 creatures
2. Lifelink
3. Flying
4. Monocolour land
5. Somewhat budget
The goal was to have enough synergy in numbers 1-4 that the aura play would be effective no matter what creatures received the buffs. Thus the core of my deck is the following:
Nip Gwylliongatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?printed=false&multiverseid=150986
Nightsky Mimicgatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=151099
Mourning Thrullgatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=96910
Edge of Divinitygatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=151155
Beckon Apparitiongatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=366461
Nip, Thrull, Nightsky, and the spirit from Beckon all share these characterisitics: They are either Lifelink or Flying; Nightsky is kind of like an on-demand Delver, except you get a 4/4 flyer. Each of these 4 creatures benefit from both sides of Edge of Divinity, which means it is effectively a +3/+3 for 1 mana. And all of these spells can be cast for a mono-colour (white or black).
The goal was then to fill out the deck with mono-colour auras. I chose white since many black auras have negative aspects (especially on the toughness side):
Ethereal Armor (+1/+1 for each aura)
Hyena Umbra (+1/+1; first strike; totem)
Conviction/Divine Favor(+1/+3 buyback (1) OR +1/+3 3 life)
Indomitable Will/Mageta's Boon (+1/+2 flash)
Cho Manno's Blessing(Protection from 1 Colour flash)
Cho Manno is especially helpful as a means of avoiding board removal since you can bait out an enemy spell before slapping it down; it also synergizes nicely with Ethereal. There are other auras in white that might be considered, but most overemphasize one aspect or another (too much toughness; too slow) or are too expensive for a tempo/aggro deck.
To fill out the deck, I grabbed inexpensive board removal and sideboarded the same:
Journey to Nowhere
Sunlance
Quiet Purity
Apostle's Blessing (for the 1 mana cost)
The synergy of flying/lifelink creatures over the 3/3 threshold with no more than 3 mana spent (total) creates a very fast aggro that is difficult to deal with. In most cases the opponent can't nuke it with 1 spell (giving you time to get some hexproof on board); 3 of the 4 creatures can't be blocked except by flying, which on turn 2-4 is rarely above a 1/1. And 2 of the creatures lifesteal, meaning that you buy yourself time in a fast-paced format to get the rest of the auras out.
PROBLEMS
The deck is by no means finished (hence why I am looking for help). It has a few weak spots that could be addressed:
1. Draw
The main issue is that this deck topdecks very quickly, and without any decent draw mechanics, you are sometimes at the mercy of your opening hand. It does marginally well at top-decking since the synergy is decent all around, but still a problem.
I thought of adding Evolving Wilds to clean the deck up a bit, but the early turns are fairly important for establishing the deck.
2. MBC
Control decks (particularly discard) tend to give more trouble than stompy, since the lifelink helps early trades with stompy; having to discard or topdeck is fairly tough on BW Auras.
Anyway, I'm enjoying the results so far, just thought I would throw this out there for your brewing pleasure. Thanks in advance for any help.
I wanted to gather some thoughts on a deck I have been working with for the last number of weeks; it is a spin-off from Hexproof Aura decks (G/W/X) I have used. I was hoping to accomplish a few things in making this brew aside from it being focused on Auras:
1. 4/4 creatures
2. Lifelink
3. Flying
4. Monocolour land
5. Somewhat budget
The goal was to have enough synergy in numbers 1-4 that the aura play would be effective no matter what creatures received the buffs. Thus the core of my deck is the following:
Nip Gwylliongatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?printed=false&multiverseid=150986
Nightsky Mimicgatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=151099
Mourning Thrullgatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=96910
Edge of Divinitygatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=151155
Beckon Apparitiongatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?multiverseid=366461
Nip, Thrull, Nightsky, and the spirit from Beckon all share these characterisitics: They are either Lifelink or Flying; Nightsky is kind of like an on-demand Delver, except you get a 4/4 flyer. Each of these 4 creatures benefit from both sides of Edge of Divinity, which means it is effectively a +3/+3 for 1 mana. And all of these spells can be cast for a mono-colour (white or black).
The goal was then to fill out the deck with mono-colour auras. I chose white since many black auras have negative aspects (especially on the toughness side):
Ethereal Armor (+1/+1 for each aura)
Hyena Umbra (+1/+1; first strike; totem)
Conviction/Divine Favor(+1/+3 buyback (1) OR +1/+3 3 life)
Indomitable Will/Mageta's Boon (+1/+2 flash)
Cho Manno's Blessing(Protection from 1 Colour flash)
Cho Manno is especially helpful as a means of avoiding board removal since you can bait out an enemy spell before slapping it down; it also synergizes nicely with Ethereal. There are other auras in white that might be considered, but most overemphasize one aspect or another (too much toughness; too slow) or are too expensive for a tempo/aggro deck.
To fill out the deck, I grabbed inexpensive board removal and sideboarded the same:
Journey to Nowhere
Sunlance
Quiet Purity
Apostle's Blessing (for the 1 mana cost)
The synergy of flying/lifelink creatures over the 3/3 threshold with no more than 3 mana spent (total) creates a very fast aggro that is difficult to deal with. In most cases the opponent can't nuke it with 1 spell (giving you time to get some hexproof on board); 3 of the 4 creatures can't be blocked except by flying, which on turn 2-4 is rarely above a 1/1. And 2 of the creatures lifesteal, meaning that you buy yourself time in a fast-paced format to get the rest of the auras out.
PROBLEMS
The deck is by no means finished (hence why I am looking for help). It has a few weak spots that could be addressed:
1. Draw
The main issue is that this deck topdecks very quickly, and without any decent draw mechanics, you are sometimes at the mercy of your opening hand. It does marginally well at top-decking since the synergy is decent all around, but still a problem.
I thought of adding Evolving Wilds to clean the deck up a bit, but the early turns are fairly important for establishing the deck.
2. MBC
Control decks (particularly discard) tend to give more trouble than stompy, since the lifelink helps early trades with stompy; having to discard or topdeck is fairly tough on BW Auras.
Anyway, I'm enjoying the results so far, just thought I would throw this out there for your brewing pleasure. Thanks in advance for any help.