So I think the deck is pretty well finished now and I can treat it as a non-WIP. So, here's a breakdown of the deck thus far. I play it as a hybrid control/aggressive deck hitting early with Nivmagus Elementals and controlling my opponents board state with spot removal. I am a bit weak against hexproof, but with most of my games, I've had a pretty good track record of outracing Geists (although if they drop him t3 I may have a long game ahead of me so any suggestions you have for that is greatly appreciated. So, without further adieu, here's my card by card breakdown of my take on U/R Cyclops Agro.
The Creatures
Nivix Cyclops - The main powerhouse of the deck. If he drops and resolves, I can pump him to incredible levels just with casting my 1 and 2 cmc spells. I initially had him slotted as a full set, but he does end up clogging up my opening hands when I run him as a 4 of. A 3 of should give me plenty of opportunities to drop him when I want while avoiding hitting a bad early hand.
Nivmagus Elemental - WHY is this guy not seeing more constructed play in aggressive builds? This guy grows to very big levels against most of the popular decks I've been playing against (which granted in my meta is Naya and Jund), and also helps me establish early board presence and is a 1 drop with some serious upside. T2 I can swing three unblockable with him if I get to my 2 blue mana (not hard) and cast/flashback an Artful dodge. Not quite as good as Delver since he has no evasion, but I think he has more upside of helping me stabilize early. Edit - Moved to a 3 of since he has a bad habit of costing me resources if he gets removed.
Delver of Secrets
- What can I say about this guy that hasn't been said or noticed before? I almost want to run a full set, but I'm not quite sure where to cut, or if I even need to. Again, 1 drops with upside are amazingly useful and help keep my mana needs low which this deck needs since it aims to win or at least establish good tempo by T4 or T5.
Invisible Stalker - Since I run 3 Pikes in this deck, the Stalker is an excellent choice for me to get through the damage I need early game with an equipped pike. The built in Hexproof is very useful as well.
Guttersnipe - I initially had him slotted as a full set as well, but, like the Cyclops, he was mucking up my early draws. He's still a very good card in my build, but I don't necessarily need him out to win. Very good as an alternate win con though if I can resolve him and drop a bunch of spells the turn he comes out or the turn after.
Summary - Only running 14 creatures mainboard may seem like a bit of a strange choice for an aggressive build that I want to run, but all I really need is one creature to start things off for me. This is NOT a deck that needs much of a creature base since I can typically answer a lot of threats that drop with my removal suite, and I can always board in more if I'm having a hard time with it.
Artifacts
Runechanter's Pike - This is the only artifact that I saw fit to run in my deck, but it does so much work for me that I actually bumped it up from a 2 of to a 3 of since I switched in my Invisible Stalkers. A Stalker or a Delver with one of these equipped mid game is a force to be reckoned with and if not immediately answered leads to a very bad time for my opponents.
Summary - It's a sharp stick that makes your creatures bigger. Nothing else to see here.
Instants/Sorceries
Artful Dodge - Probably one of my favorite cards in the entire deck. A 3 of instead of a set means I draw it a lot, but it doesn't end up showing up too often or taking up creature spots in my hand. The Flashback on it is really what makes it shine though, and I'm not looking forward to replacing it with Teleportal when Innistrad finally rotates out. That will not be a happy day for me (unless the new Fall set really brings out a lot of stuff for me to drop into the deck that is).
Think Twice
- Card draw is good. Being able to draw cards off the same card twice (even with the added cost of the flashback)? Even that much better. Not to mention that it can add late game gas to resolved Elementals if I have spare mana, can really turn this into a versatile card.
Essence Scatter - I initially ran a full set of Dissipates (2 maindeck, 2 sideboard) as my control card of choice. Then, when I tested, I decided that answering creatures was significantly more important (especially on the draw against people running w/u since I can get to the 2 mana needed to answer their 3 drop). I still run a bit of situational answers to Instants and Sorceries in the board, but in the creature heavy meta that I'm in, this works as almost a standard legal Counterspell (the card itself, not the card type).
Unsummon - I had initially thought of this card as being too narrow, and had been running Cyclonic Rift in it's slot. Then I tested, and the difference between a 1cmc card and a 2cmc card became immediately apparent. Added utility in bouncing my own creatures and this was a sure thing in the deck. being able to cast 2 spells instead of one in a turn may not always be a preferable thing in most decks, but it adds significant value to mine.
Searing Spear - First a 4 of, then a 3 of, now a 2 of. It's the Lightning Bolt of standard right now (which is sad to me since I would LOVE to have a 1cmc burn spell that hits for three). I don't think it needs any more explanation shrug.
Faithless Looting - Good sift and additional Flashback card draw. This lets me dump lands I don't need in favor of digging through my deck for answers. Edit - Cut this card in favor of Hidden Strings. The option of ciphering it onto an Invisible Stalker and ALWAYS keeping counterspell mana up is too enticing to not at least attempt to run this card. I've only tested a few games with it, but good lord is it powerful when it drops.
Bonfire of the Damned - So, so powerful. I initially ran only one in the deck, but there were always times I wished I would top deck it and ended up top decking my other one of Sorcery I had in the deck prior to my revamps Epic Experiment. So, I made the call that while Epic Experiment is a very good card, I couldn't justify it with only 2 Guttersnipes to activate off of it, and since some of my cards are situational, I couldn't always cast them which seems like a waste of a perfectly good spell/trigger on a creature. So 2 Bonfire of the Damned it is. Yay!
Turn / Burn - Such a versatile card. Set up poor blocking scenarios for my opponent, or finish off an annoying Thragtusk/Thundermaw/Whatever other shenanigans your opponent may be playing against you. Also it adds a little bit of extra reach if you're starting to stall out late game.
Armed / Dangerous - Hey! Here's why I have 2 green sources in my deck! I usually just cast the Armed half of the card because swinging for lethal on T4 is fun (especially with a pike equipped and a couple of cards in the graveyard that pump it. Ostensibly turns a T4 Cyclops into a 7/4 Double striker. The Dangerous half is a bit more situational, but if it's mid game and I have a couple of creatures out, this can set up my alpha strike. I've always liked Lure, and this is just added value to a card that's real value is adding Double Strike to any creature on the field.
Summary - I Initially ran 24 of these bad boys overall in my deck, but that led to very uncomfortable opening hands. Cutting to 21 still leaves me a very good statistical chance of flipping a T2 Delver or pumping an Elemental T2 as well. 3 damage on T2 can NOT be overestimated in establishing tempo and putting your opponent on the defensive.
Lands
Island - Hey! It's an Island! This is a basic land and it helps me cast spells. How handy!
Mountain - See above.
Steam Vents - Shock lands are so versatile that I need to run a full set of them in my colors. I'm a unique little snowflake with this strategy. Just like everyone else.
Sulfur Falls - I initially considered a full set of the taplands in the deck too, but it sometimes set up less than optimal opening hands. Pro-tip: 2 of these and no other lands in your opening hand are NOT good and throw you way off tempo. 3 of it is though since it's a dual land.
Stomping Ground/Breeding Pool - My green sources of mana for my Dangerous. I had originally slotted in two copies of Breeding Pool, but sometimes you just need Red mana, so I decided that one each of the allied Shocks would give me a little more versatility if needed (although it can bite me in the ass at times as well).
Desolate Lighthouse - Holy crap it's expensive card draw. It is good as a mana sink for me late game though (if I last that long) and let's me go for a desperation grab of a Bonfire on my opponents turn (although the 4 (ostensibly) cost of it's ability is a huge pain at times. I don't want it in my opening hand, and I don't want it every game. I do like the option of it though and I'd rather have something and not need it then need something and not have it. Also it generates colorless mana. Neat!
Rogue's Passage - Damn, another expensive utility land. This one I'd rather see most games than the Loothouse since it gives my pumped Elementals unblockable if I'm missing an Artful dodge, and if I get to 5 mana (including this) and can't quite get the damage I need through, this can just eke out wins for me.
Summary - I originally only ran 20 lands in this deck to try and get as many instants/sorceries as possible into the list. Increasing my count to 22 really helps me get my land drops more often than not (although the colorless mana on the Loothouse and Artful Dodge on a stick sucks if I get them right away).
Sideboard
Izzet Charm - Oh the options this baby gives me. Playing control? Counter their spells and beat them at their own game. Playing agro? Burn out their early creatures and slow them down. Need cards? It's an instant speed Faithless Looting. And all of these options at only 2cmc. It's very good.
Negate - I only run one of these in the board to round out my control suite to three counters for both types of decks I might see. It's a good hard counter, but if I'm playing control with this deck it's going to be a long game. Edit - I upped this to a two of so I could push my deck into a more modular build with the sideboard. Being able to side in 7 counterspells makes it incredibly adept at dealing with a significant amount of decks.
Essence Scatter - When I need to move to three answers to creatures, this is where I go.
Izzet Staticaster - Excellent anti-token hate, and it also acts as a surprise blocker if needed. The fact that she's not a defender also means I can throw a pike on her and turn her into a threat.
Pillar of Flame
- Goodbye Undying. Goodbye mana dorks. The Sorcery speed hurts it, but it's good early removal, and running 3 out of the board lets me answer ramp when I need to since offing their Arbor Elves is very important in those kind of decks.
Ash Zealot - Answers Snappy and adds an additional aggressive option if I need to race against other cheaply costed aggressive decks. I have won games with her, and I can only see it continuing. I'll probably drop her once Innistrad rotates out because the anti-graveyard tech will (probably) be less than useful when I'm not staring down a graveyard full of Instant removal and a Snapcaster in my opponents hand, but I'll reserve judgement until I see what they have planned for the next block.
Talrand, Sky Summoner - This seems a bit out of place, but he really helps me add a lot of value against a control matchup. If he resolves, they seem to have a hard time dealing with a horde of 2/2 flyers, especially since they come into play regardless of whether they counter the spell or not.
Edit -
Rolling Temblor
- Threw this in to deal with larger tokens and more importantly GoST. The flashback option is just icing on the already versatile cake.
Summary - I can answer a pretty good amount of decks with my board, but I'm always looking for more options and opinions.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully you enjoyed my deck and feel free to pull a few hands and possibly even playtest it! 2 color isn't getting enough love right now in my opinion (the deck is technically three color, but 2 cards an off color is barely splashed especially since I can cast the more important side without a green source),and after running zombie pod in the last standard (Scars/Innistrad), this feels like a nice change and a decent rogue deck that can catch people sleeping. So give me your opinions and thoughts on this! Please!
