Pattern Recognition #226 - Slow Grow Week 0

Features Opinion Pattern Recognition

berryjon

3 February 2022

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Hello everyone! This is Pattern Recognition, TappedOut.Net's longest running article series as written by myself, berryjon. I am something of an Old Fogey who has been around the block quite a few times where Magic is concerned, as as such, I use this series to talk about the various aspects of this game, be it deck design, card construction, mechanics chat, in-universe characters and history. Or whatever happens to cross my mind this week. Please, feel free to dissent in the comments below the article, add suggestions or just plain correct me! I am a Smart Ass, so I can take it.

And so, after many long months, many trials and tribulations, my FLGS has once again been able to fire off the Slow Grow Tournament! For those of you not in the know, this is a six week tournament, three games each week. In the first week, you bring a Commander Precon deck to play. Now, as you can see if you're watching the attached video, I'm sleeving mine right now. If you're not, well, sad for you.

Anyways, each week, players rack up points based on their positions at each table, as well as for achievements, or lack there-of. Between each week, each player can change up to five cards in their deck. Five out, five in, for a total of 25 substitutions going into week 6. At the end of Week 6, the final points are totaled, and while there are winners each week, the overall winners get to take home a nice prize. What it is this time? I have no idea yet.

So anyways, while I promised I would take Teferi, Temporal Archmage out for a spin and stomp people with a high tier deck, I was gently reminded that winning via infinite combo or loop would result in a grand total of 1 point per game, even if I came in first, which would result in me losing. So that was out. And left me with my backup plan.

Wyleth, Soul of Steel

This Commander from Commander Legends heads up a Voltron styled deck that I'm going to break down, analyze and give some thoughts for immediate upgrades to. But before I talk cads, let's talk the deck itself.

Consisting of 11 Creatures, plus the Commander, 40 Lands, 20 Artifacts, 4 Sorceries, 6 Enchantments and 22 Instants, the Arm for Battle preconstructed deck was a Commander Legends product that embraced the theme of that set and its Voltron stylings.

For those not in the know, Voltron is a deck type that looks to focus on a single creature and improve its power to the point where it can reliably one-shot an opponent through damage. In Commander, this often means focusing on the Commander itself, and looking to deal 21 combat damage to a player to trigger that defeat.

To do so, you often need Equipment and Aura Enchantments, and a good strong focus on how you want to deliver the damage home. There are a few solid choices for Voltron styled Commanders, from Geist of Saint Traft to Elsha of the Infinite, to Valduk, Keeper of the Flame.

So it's not like there isn't a choice involved here. The problem is that Commander is a game format with a deep flaw to it, and that it is a Combo-Control format. Playing Aggro like this is already starting with one hand tied behind my back, so I'm going to have to get real good, real fast. Thankfully, my opponents will be running their own precons, so we'll be starting on somewhat approaching an even level. Not to say that all precons are built the same, but it's not like anyone is going to combo out on turn 4 in this format.

Anyway, onto the cards themselves.

First, the Commander himself. I'm really not sold on him, as while he's card draw, the problem is that its limited to just the Commander himself, and then to the number of Auras and Equipment attached to him. Which runs us into the deck's first problem. Namely, that there are a grand total of 19 in the deck. Now, this might seem like a good number, or something along those lines, these are not all that good. The cheapest one is Bonesplitter, and they get more expensive from there in terms of mana costs.

You see, one of the things holding Voltron back at the Commander level is the expense and all-in-ness of the cards in question. Everything on Wyleth, so he can swing and draw cards? I... Look, I know that my opinion might change with the first week's game, but I just don't like the curve of equipment on this deck. There's just something off about it, and I'm concerned about the time and mana it would take to rebuild should something bad happen.

What I'm trying to say is that I've already decided what a few of the cards I am going to put into this deck are, and they are going to address the Commander and the costs of the Equipment.

But before I get to that, I want to address the metaphorical elephant in the deck list. There are 22 Instants in this deck. What the heck? No, seriously, why?

Actually, there are two answers to this. One in the deck, and the other outside of it. The one in the deck is that built into the 22 Instants (and 4 Sorceries that don't count), you have a basic, barebones Sunforger package. You have all these options tied to a single Equipment in the deck, intended to be pulled out when you swing with your Commander.

Now, this would be a fun and neat thing, but there's no support for it. Literally, the only card in this deck that lets you look for an artifact is Relic Seeker, and that requires that you draw the Seeker, cast it, keep it around for a turn (or Expedite it), swing, have it actually connect with a player just to fetch the Sunforger, then cast the Sunforger, equip the Sunforger, and then pay to unequip and then go looking for a spell to cast for a total cost of !

No, no NO!

There is a place for these sorts of cards, and it's not at the tail end of a random chain of cards in the deck. No, these cards belong in a Feather, the Redeemed deck. And even then, with Feather, it's for cards that target your stuff. And most of the stuff here is stuff that goes either against your enemies, or mutli-target effects that wouldn't trigger Feather!

I want to make this clear, most of my cuts over the next few weeks will be here. There is a lit of chaff in the Instants and Sorceries, and I need to cut it out. Martial Coup and White Sun's Zenith would be great for an Odric, Lunarch Marshal deck if he could share all those Keywords with the newly formed army of tokens, but that's something this deck isn't geared to do. It's another side effect of trying to do too much when this deck can't do what it's trying to do. Make the Commander Big and Smash Face.

There are also 40 lands in this deck, and right now I'm loathe to trim any of them. Optimize at time goes on? Sure! I've got a Battlefield Forge and a Sacred Foundry ready to go, once I have time to fix things. I might even reduce that number to 35 down from 40 as the weeks progress, depending on how I adjust the mana curve to boot.

But I do have a checklist of things to go in. I'll need more removal, preferably in 's direct removal. I'll also need more equipment and aura fetchers, including Axgard Armory, Fighter Class, Forging the Tyrite Sword and Open the Armory. I'll need better equipment, from Shadowspear to Embercleave. I'll also need to look into more protection for my Commander, as this deck is pretty light on that as well.

Slow Grow is not a quick thing in multiple meanings, and what you're going to see here is my attempt this year. I will keep you up to date as things go along, naturally.

See you next week! Join me when I finally try to talk about Kamigawa, but knowing my luck, something else will come up before then.

Until then please consider donating to my Pattern Recognition Patreon. Yeah, I have a job, but more income is always better. I still have plans to do a audio Pattern Recognition at some point, or perhaps a Twitch stream. And you can bribe your way to the front of the line to have your questions, comments and observations answered!