Tails of a Ferret: Let's Go Build Tempo (#4)
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OutspokenFerret
4 August 2014
1882 views
4 August 2014
1882 views
Hi, welcome back after our last... Okay so maybe I cheated with a filler article, but at least we got the voting done. I'm really glad everyone enjoyed the last article, all the support was really great, I'm glad I was inspiring, and I finally found out what Tumblr is for. So as promised, this article won't hit your feels, unless you were madly in love with the Chord Deck, in which case, I apologize, and if you want to follow that decks progress, I believe a few people have created their own versions (links in the second article comments) so feel free to give those a look, and offer up some friendly suggestions :D. Anyways, we are here to discuss Tempo. So... I have a few ideas, some of which are awesome, while others are slightly less awesome, so for now, we'll go with my favorite, and continue on to the others depending on the results of this deck. Here we go:
U/G Tempo
Alright, so the first thing that probably comes to mind when I say this is some devotion deck running Prophet of Kruphix and friends, but, I'm not that basic. The card that got me thinking, and generally the deck is centered, at least in part, around, is Chasm Skulker.
Chasm Skulker is much better than originally thought. I originally was under the impression that drawing multiple cards would net you only one card, similar to Ajani's Pridemate, but it WILL get a counter for each card you draw with any given spell. This makes it 10x better than I had originally thought. Although drawing a bunch of cards is good, it is not easy to draw multiple cards, while keeping up with the tempo of the game. So that got me to thinking of cards that keep me going, and drew me cards, and I'll get to those in a minute. First though, let me explain why I think Skulker is really strong. Let's look at worst case scenario, it is a 1 for 1 that forces them to tap before your next main phase to kill it. Or they let it get a counter in, and kill it after, and its a 1 for 0 because you still get a squid, that has a form of evasion. After that however, it starts to escalate into real value. Leaving it for 3 to 4 turns will soon make it a big problem, and keep in mind, this is simply on its own. This card, although not to the same extent, is resemblant of Pack Rat in the sense that once you get a turn to untap with it, it starts getting a lot more powerful, and a lot harder to deal with. Noteably however, this card has no mana costs to get bigger, and it doesn't require you to pitch a card. Up front and on it's own, this card is decent, and unignorable, but with support, it can be a force to be reckoned with. Time to take a look at the card's various synergies.
When looking at the support for this card, it crossed my mind the power it lost when the tokens could be blocked. This got me thinking of cards that could keep their evasion, even when not playing against blue. There isn't much in Standard that can do this, but one of the cards that can, also happens to synergize a little with the base card, and that card is Nylea's Presence. Yea, yea, yea... I know it's not Spreading Seas and I know it may also help them... But the reward is well worth it... I think. I mean, the only time you wouldn't want this is when they are starved of one color, and in that case, you can just hold it because you should be ahead at that point anyways. Presence really puts the pressure on ypur opponent in that if they kill your Chasm Skulker, they are just trading a fattie threat, to a bunch of small unblockable threats. Overall the card, albeit giving your opponent a free Mana Confluence, forces the opponent into an uncomfortable position that not even Elspeth can protect them from (Unless they Nissa their land and then -4 her). Definitely a synergy I am looking to use and abuse. The second card with some synergy with Chasm Skulker, and the deck in general is Savage Summoning. Summoning allows us to flash in our horrific squid without the fear of impending counterspells, and it enters with a counter, meaning you will be getting something out of it. This card also helps aleviate the trouble with Summoning in that kill spells don't end in a 2 for 1. In this case, having it killed before your 5th turn drawstep will usually result in the opponent having a little 1/1 to deal with, as well as possibly being caught with their pants around their ankles on turn 5. The main downside to this card is that it is not in itself able to be a threat, or cycle itslef as Nylea's Presence does, when you have no creatures in hand, and we want to keep dead draws to a minimum, especially in a tempo deck. I would really only want it as a 2 of at the most. So continuing on with possible support we could use is Military Intelligence, a card that allows us to keep up with the opponent threatwise, while slowing them down, not to mention its synergy with Skulker. This card has similar downsides to Savage Summoning, except it doesn't need the card in hand, but on the battlefield. This means that, save wraths and early turns, we usually will start getting activations out of the card the moment we play it. Another key difference is that not only can it cycle itself in most situations, but it also can generate card advantage over games where you are trying to out tempo your opponent, which is extremely useful. Overall, I believe this card is best slotted as a 2-3 of, but I can understand the argument for 4. I have one final support card to discuss before I move on to the key threats. That card is Dictate of Kruphix... I hate this card in a tempo deck, but damn does it get out of control fast when you are pumping 2-3 card draws per turn, and having that pump your Skulker. Not to mention that this card provides 2 Devotion, and can be flashed in on a turn you may also be holding up the counterspell. So, dedpite this giving your opponent a window back into the game, I just haven't found a better card to replace it, so please, help me get rid of it :P.
The key threats are a bit simpler to identify. The first, and possibly the most obvious being Thassa, God of the Sea and boy is she a powerhouse. Among allowing you to safely push and draw off of Military Intelligence, possibly become a 5/5 Indistructible truck, and helping you fix your draws, she also gets your evergrowing Chasm Skulker through for possibly catastrophic amounts of damage. Thassa is a beast in this deck, as one would expect of a God. Another obvious threat available is Master of Waves
, a card that can take the game away singlehandedly, and backs up a slew of other threats quite nicely. This card will just win if left unchecked, and alongside numerous sources for devotion, a force to be reckoned with. The last key threat I have to discuss is the one that the rules clarification got mw excited over. This card has silly amounts of synergy with Skulker... drum roll... Prime Speaker Zegana. This card more than doubles the size of your Skulker everytime! Not only that, but it in itself becomes a decently sized beater that refilled you hand. Overall it seems like a nice fit as a 1 or 2 of.
Finally, we have the removal. I won't spend time rambling on my preference of Void Snare over Cyclonic Rift but I will discuss why I'm running counterspells, and brainstorm some good removal spells based on common threats in the format. So first let's look at some big players in today's standard: Pack Rat, Desecration Demon, Stormbreath Dragon, Polukranos, World Eater, Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Advent of the Wurm, Thassa, God of the Sea, Mistcutter Hydra
Popular Answers/ Versatile Answers (Each X represents a card from the above list, Y's are partial answers):
Rapid Hybridization - YXXX_X__
Void Snare - YYYYYYY_
Syncopate - XXXXXXX_
Jace, the Living Guildpact - YYYYYYY_
Aetherspouts - YYYYYXYY
Im sure there are more I've missed so feel free to bring then up in the comments :D.
As you can see, counterspells hit almost every threat, can protect your stuff, and can stop their attempts at stabilizing. I use Syncopate as my counterspell of choice but I would love to hear what you guys prefer.
So, tell me what ideas you have for the deck, and tell me what you think of the deck as a whole. I will try to stream a few games with rough lists as I did before.. We will see. Hope everyone has a happy Pro Tour Weekend, looking forward to pushing this deck to its fullest potential with your help!
In all honesty, Void Snare might be OK, but doesn't pull the same kind of weight as Cyclonic Rift . It might cost less mana, but is just plain worse than the rift.
Also, Jace, the Living Guildpact is worse on so many levels than Jace, Architect of Thought . The -3 might be good, but pretty much everything else is worse.
I don't want to sound mean or annoying, but those choices just seem to stand out to me in a negative way. I still love the idea, though. I was kinda' voting for the chord deck, but this works, too. : )
August 4, 2014 9:53 p.m.
Oh, and I also wanted to ask about your counterspell package...
If you're running Syncopate , you might as well use Dissipate instead. You probably will end up spending 2+ mana for the "X" cost, so ensuring the counter is probably better. Just a thought... : )
August 4, 2014 9:56 p.m.
I just went on gatherer and found some other good standard cards (I used the guidelines: "G/U, Form worst to best, and standard):
Scavenging Ooze , Courser of Kruphix , Swan Song , Thassa, God of the Sea , Chord of Calling , Bow of Nylea , Heroes' Bane , Simic Charm , Tidebinder Mage , etc...
Hope that helped! : )
(Sorry for so many seperate posts. :P It's just that I keep thinking of new things as I go. Again, sorry...)
August 4, 2014 10:07 p.m.
Me thinking: Why couldn't I have just waited for this to cross my mind in my last post!!! :P
OK, Sorry again, but this just came to me:
Maybe you could splash black, for better removal, more controlling aspects Ahem, Deathrite Shaman ..., and (I know this ain't great, but I've always wanted to see a semi-competitive after Innistrad rotation deck use this card) Duskmantle Seer (aka:"Omnibob"). The problem with him is that you need a relatively low curve, with him being at the top of it. His mouth also resembles the gatecrash symbol. : )
In addition, Sylvan Caryatid is good ramp.
Also, Take is cool with Chasm Skulker . It lets you restore your entire hand, while keeping your chasm skulker the same size (unless you have Corpsejack Menace in play. He-He-He...)
August 4, 2014 10:20 p.m.
OutspokenFerret says... #6
There is a lot to respond to but for now I will only discuss two things from your comments Scorprix
The first is Jace, the Living Guildpact :This card is highly... highly underated. The -3 is insanely powerful. If on turn 4 or whenever Jace hits the board, they cannot play a bomb that doesn't have haste, and profit from it. You play Jace, and +1 then pass, they resolve a Desecration Demon or Polukranos, World Eater and pass. You untap on Turn 5, -3 Jace and bounce their demon/ hydra, and then cast a threat or two. They now have little to no pressure on board, and even if they try to play him again, you now have another activation from it to bounce it again. This forces them into a very tough position. That is just one of many examples, and is exactly the type of thing you want to be doing in Tempo.
I want to have the option to pay 2 mana. Early game it is 2 mana, and late game I should have enough mana up to cast it for larger numbers and have very little need for it late game other than Prime Speaker, I will playtest it, and probably Board it in vs. Control but we will see.
Glad to see your enthusiastic and hope to hear more ideas :D
August 4, 2014 11:05 p.m.
Not sure how you are wanting to keep your mana curve. But Stormtide Leviathan is a monster that that is both control of the opponent and boosts your Skulker by giving his minions an island to get past.
August 4, 2014 11:20 p.m.
fightman69 says... #8
Prognostic Sphinx would work well being its own win condition if you don't get you squid and the scry 3 lets you dig really quickly for answers/ get you squid and jace. i dont know how that would work but i think that you see value in the cards that get hate and this is a card with so much to offer.
but thats my opion
August 5, 2014 3:03 a.m.
gheridarigaaz says... #9
Would much rather use the rift in place of snare as it answers at instant speed and has late-game viability Simic Charm wouldn't be bad in this slot either.... Against control/midrange you get some nifty answers in Reclamation Sage and though it's costly to cast, i much prefer Sylvan Primordial , and while she's in standard i don't think a Prime Speaker Zegana or two would go amiss. As for other creatures that can be of significant use to the deck... if it's based around card draw you might want to give Horizon Chimera considerable thought as it slows down the faster decks, Hunter's Prowess has been invaluable to me while opponent's believe they can tap out, and i'm not saying it's the best use of resources, but Dakra Mystic out with Courser of Kruphix on either side of the table is sure to wreak havoc thanks to all that broadcasted information. Would rather the mystic over the dictate tbh, you get some control over when you draw and it doubles as a body for blocking early problems
August 5, 2014 9:38 a.m.
I get it now. I still feel the Architect is better overall, but in this case Guildpact is more efficient. How about some of the other stuff I recommended?
Still though, how do you feel about adding black?
If I was you, I'd go for: 4 Deathrite Shaman , 4 Duskmantle Seer , 4 Sylvan Caryatid , 10-12 removal spells, 3 Jace, 2 Simic Charm , 0-3Chasm Skulker , 3-4 counterspells, some bounce spells, 2 Scavenging Ooze , 3 Dictate of Kruphix , etc... (Just an Idea, and you'd have to change my list A LOT).
I'm no expert on tempo, but overall I feel this seems (more) viable... :P
August 5, 2014 11:30 a.m.
OutspokenFerret says... #11
Scorprix -
The problem with Duskmantle Seer is that it gives your opponent extra cards, while not even giving a counter to Skulker when it gets you a card. The goal of Tempo is to Aggress and Oppress, to make it as tedious as possible to advance their board state, while keeping the pressure on them. Seer allows them to power through their deck for more of their stuff, that you are already trying to keep them off. That being said, adding black may still end up an option but I am still looking at all it has to offer, though Thoughtseize is really tempting. I also am going to try out Dakra Mystic as the card seems pretty cool as you can control what they get, so I am going to test it out. For the bulk list you gave, I am currently working with Scooze and Tidebinder as well as Thassa.
Prognostic Sphinx is currently in the board, but with the lack of success I've been having with Prime Speaker Zegana it may find itself a slot in the main.
I am trying Void right now but we will see as I am really unimpressed with it. As for Hunter's Prowess , unfortunately it is too inconsistent with a bit too large of a mana sink, although it seems pretty beast if it goes off. I think Reclamation Sage is better suited for the board, but if the format does become heavy reliant on Artifacts/ Enchantments then that may change.
I will be posting a list within the next day or so :D
August 5, 2014 1:41 p.m.
Chasm Skulker
is awesome. But where's the rest of the aggro cards? All the cards you mentioned are the controlling side of tempo. Why are you considering AEtherspouts
in tempo/aggro?
Dictate of Kruphix
also seems silly when Military Intelligence
or Bident of Thassa
are one-sided. I would love to those with Prophet of Kruphix
and Cloudfin Raptor
to quickly dump your hand and then refill it.
August 5, 2014 1:57 p.m.
Well, Simic Charm , Deathrite Shaman , Devour Flesh , Desecration Demon , Abrupt Decay , Putrefy and Far / Away seem to fit your definition of "Tempo".
I also did some reading on the Seer. He's quite good in the SB against control and midrange, but fails against aggro. Maybe he could be good as a SB option...
Also these might be good: Hero's Downfall , Kiora, the Crashing Wave , Mutavault , Dissolve and Drown in Sorrow .
: )
August 5, 2014 8:23 p.m.
I've actually built a deck similar to what your idea is
Crashing Waves 2.0 (Feedback Wanted) Playtest
Standard*
SCORE: 16 | 40 COMMENTS | 4061 VIEWS, and let me just say Zameck Guildmage is awesome with Chasm Skulker .
August 5, 2014 8:59 p.m.
Spider-plant says... #15
I agree with the idea of Bident of Thassa over Dictate of Kruphix , firstly because it's one-sided, and also because it has another use in that you can kill smaller creatures or forcibly make way for your attackers.
However, I do like Syncopate because if you're playing against control, you can give your opponent a choice. You can play it for just enough to tap them out and allow the spell, which gives you free reign to play anything without fear of counters on your turn; the opponent gets to choose whether they would rather keep the mana available for your turn or if they would rather power their spell through
Kiora, the Crashing Wave could also be pretty beastly if you can get her to stick. She gives you card drawing, pumping your skulker, and accelerating your land drops. You can also use her +1 to hold back anything threatening that your opponent might slip though the cracks of your defense.
August 5, 2014 9:50 p.m.
Most important thing about Jace, the Living Guildpact is that his ultimate is relevant in a tempo deck. One sided Timetwister's seem to be the perfect finishing move for such a deck.
And I do also think you should be running Cyclonic Rift for as long as it is standard legal - it is just way too powerful to not use, there's no comparison to Void Snare
August 6, 2014 10:33 p.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #17
I replaced Delver of Secrets Flip with Chasm Skulker in my cantrip and it's awesome when it gets going. Only has to stall long enough until I get Stormtide Leviathan on the field.
August 7, 2014 9:19 p.m.
Despite not being Standard legal, I've had lots of fun with Chasm Skulker and Teferi's Puzzle Box in my EDH deck.
August 8, 2014 1:20 a.m.
OutspokenFerret says... #19
Tails Of A Ferret: Kraken's Abyss Playtest
Standard
SCORE: 1 | 0 COMMENTS | 3 VIEWSHere is the decklist as of now! May be taking it to FNM if I can pick up the last few cards :D
August 8, 2014 10:33 a.m.
LMCDaSniper says... #21
I don't know if anyone commented on this yet but you can enchant Nylea's Presence on your own land you know.
August 15, 2014 12:40 p.m.
LMCDaSniper
The point is to enchant their land, so that it is an island, and the squid tokens' islandwalk will be online.
August 15, 2014 1:43 p.m.
OutspokenFerret says... #23
Hey guys, a small update, I am currently working on finding cards to combat the dominance of Aggro in the format and just wanted to let everyone know that the next article is coming soon, although it is mostly just an update on this along with other stuff. Just letting you know I am still here and am just swamped. If you want to keep up to date with changes to the deck please check out the deck and give some input.
Tails Of A Ferret: Kraken's Abyss Playtest
Standard
SCORE: 6 | 8 COMMENTS | 377 VIEWSAugust 16, 2014 9:21 a.m.
OutspokenFerret says... #24
Next article should be very soon, sorry I've been really busy.
tooTimid says... #1
Any chance you can post a list?
August 4, 2014 9:37 p.m.