Broods and Brews

Current Standard

OutspokenFerret

20 March 2015

1975 views

Last Article I listed some good cards and what sets a precedent for DTK, and name 2 archetypes that I wanted to choose from. Unfortunately, I cannot play anything that doesn't include Blue or Control. Like... I just can't. Even if I play the best possible deck, unless its hyper aggro, I just cannot win. So... I am playing either Tempo or Control. Not because it is the best, but because I know how to play those, and I don't feel dirty playing them.

This article is a discussion of a few of my options for Standard. So, what you've all skipped to by now, Standard:

Idea 1: Jeskai Midrange

Using the power of last Standard's list as precedent, we are going to look at what DTK brought us and what we have, throw a list together:

Elusive Spellfist - I wanted to talk about this lil' guy first. A 1/3 for two is okay in the meta, can usually stop aggro 1-drops, but after that it tends to go downhill quickly. However, the real advantage in this card is that it makes itself unblockable and gains power whenever you cast a non-creature spell. This makes it a nice tool for getting damage in when you sling spells during your turn. I want to test with him, but I don't like the idea of casting spells during my own turn.

Ojutai Exemplars - I don't know about this card... It costs 4, so meh, but doez abilities doe. Tapping a creature is nice, escaping spot removal is bomb, gaining lifelink and first strike is hilarious and useful, being able to attack through most of the format when paired with a burn spell... BUT... you have to have stuff... BUT... if you don't have stuff, and your 4/4 isn't swinging for damage in a Tempo/ Control deck, then you're probably already behind. I'll be testing with it for a while but... I just don't.

Myth Realized - Card is the shit. Whenever I test with this card, it goes deep every time. When you can protect it when it needs to be protected, it will scale hard af. But if you draw multiples and no gas, then its worthless. I think you really shouldn't run 4. As a 2-3 of it puts really good pressure when it works and you don't top deck it that often. It dies to Ultimate Price, Hero's Downfall, and Enchantment removal, but it does ramp hard and can attack after a sweep.

Twin Bolt - Hits most of the things that Lightning Strike does in Standard and can also hit multiple tokens. I think that it is better in some match-ups but a split between the two is probably the right choice. Personally, I want to test with more Twin Bolts first and see how it goes.

Narset Transcendent - Narset goes in. In Tempo, she is a tanky card draw and recasting engine, and people have her pegged wrong. She is not just a control card. She is an extremely effective Tempo card if you are running 20+ non-creature spells. Domri Rade had a similar worry, where his +1 wouldn't proc enough, but he turned out fine. Narset can rebound a Cruise/ Dig, and usually forces them to waste multiple turns killing her. Ignoring her is not an option as she provides the fixing necessary to take a game over pretty quickly.

Anticipate - So good... so flipping good! This card makes the deck so consistent. The fact that it can grab a land is the shit, and it being an instant makes it so we can hold up removal or dig for removal. I cannot express how many games this card has won me in testing. If you are playing blue in standard, I suggest playing this card.

Rough List:

Mainboard: 60

3 Elusive Spellfist

3 Mantis Rider

2 Monastery Mentor

2 Ojutai Exemplars

3 Chained to the Rocks

1 Myth Realized

3 Secure the Wastes

4 Anticipate

4 Lightning Strike

1 Jeskai Ascendancy

3 Jeskai Charm

2 Narset Transcendent

1 Aetherspouts

3 Dig Through Time

1 Treasure Cruise

4 Flooded Strand

2 Island

4 Mountain

2 Plains

4 Temple of Enlightenment

3 Temple of Epiphany

3 Temple of Triumph

2 Wooded Foothills

Sideboard: 15

1 Secure the Wastes

2 Raise the Alarm

2 Twin Bolt

2 Valorous Stance

3 Goblin Rabblemaster

3 Jeskai Ascendancy

1 Jeskai Charm

1 Monastery Mentor

I decided on a transformative sideboard so that after game 1, I can counter-board into a really strong token deck that they probably haven't prepped for or a quick Burn deck that is also scurry.

I'm sure there is more that I am forgetting, but lets move on to the next archetype.

Idea 2: BW Rock (Rock is Control, shhh)

Ultimate Price - I like efficient removal. That is exactly what this card is. It kills a lot of creatures in the format and is pretty cheap. There isn't much else to say.

Secure the Wastes - I like this card... like a lot. I want to cast this card for 3 billion and watch my opponent scoop is one of the best feelings. The fact that it doubles as a blocker generator and bad Lingering Souls is icing on the cake. Being an instant means that it is good at most stages of the game against most decks which makes it that much better. If I'm running White and spells, I want to try to run this card. This goes for Jeskai Midrange as well but I wanted to mention it down here.

Sidisi, Undead Vizier - Can provide card advantage, check, can block Rhino and live, check, kill it when it does, check, is versatile, check. What more can a person ask for in a card? It is a powerful card. It adds consistency and versatility at the same time because if I'm staring down Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Ugin, the Spirit Dragon, any other walker/ multi-colored threat, with an Ultimate Price in hand, I can pitch a token and grab a Hero's Downfall. If I'm grinding out towards a win and need one card to do it, Sidisi is like drawing that card. This is almost an auto-include if you're playing Black.

Vulturous Aven - I opted for an upgraded body and a man over scrying 2. I did so because I like efficient creatures, and this blocks Rabblemaster, survives Drown in Sorrow, and draws me cards.

Strategy: You want to be using early token generation and your other creatures/ early removal to deal with the early game, building a token mass in the mid-game/ dealing with their mid-game, and cast Secure the Wastes for a billion in the late-game. That's it, pretty simple. I want to do more testing before saying anything but so far its brutal.

Rough List:

Mainboard: 60

4 Monastery Mentor

2 Vulturous Aven

3 Sidisi, Undead Vizier

1 Tasigur, the Golden Fang

4 Secure the Wastes

2 Bile Blight

4 Raise the Alarm

2 Ultimate Price

4 Hero's Downfall

4 Sorin, Solemn Visitor

1 End Hostilities

2 Elspeth, Sun's Champion

3 Bloodstained Mire

1 Mountain

6 Plains

4 Scoured Barrens

4 Swamp

2 Temple of Malice

4 Temple of Silence

2 Temple of Triumph

1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Sideboard: 15

2 Despise

2 Duress

1 Damnable Pact

2 Defeat

1 Radiant Purge

2 Self-Inflicted Wound

1 Drown in Sorrow

2 Kolaghan's Command

1 Virulent Plague

1 Liliana Vess

The sideboard is taking a very toolboxy approach, with answers to most decks that are easy to grab with Sidisi. I like it so far, but again, it needs more testing.

These are just a couple decks I'm interested in (The BW control one especially). I've considered adding Blue, but I would have to test that before I said anything. Anticipate is really strong, as is Narset Transcendent in a control list, so we'll have to see.

Take some time to playtest vs. these lists please and post results. If you post your deck on here for me to look at especially as it helps me in building and a bit in how your deck operates. I want to try to avoid posting either of these list until later, I have posted decks in the article body before, but it seems like a sort of grey area where someone could abuse articles to give their deck hype, so in order to avoid that from ever occurring I'm going to avoid posting actual T/O deck links in my articles. I realize this makes even considering playtesting against this a bit tedious, but if you can, that's awesome. I'll most likely post a list later in the week.

I look forward to hearing your responses!