In it's current iteration, this plays a classic Draw-Go control game plan; using a combination of burn to keep the board clear and countermagic to stop what it can't burn down until it can stick a late/mid-game threat and protect it into the win.
The majority of the deck is efficient countermagic, burn and card draw. It's highly redundant (preserving synergy with
Pyromancer Ascension
), and very low to the ground (all are mana value 2 or less, to preserve synergy with Izzet Guilmage and more importantly
Isochron Scepter
).
Spellheart Chimera
might seem like an odd choice of finisher, but it was chosen because (a) flying and trample make it hard to stop, (b) it's very low-cost, meaning it can come down with countermagic backup as early as turn 5, and (c) unlike things like
Wee Dragonauts
it does not depend on playing a ton of spells in one turn.
Sideboard
-
Dragon's Claw
- For opposing burn decks.
-
Thermo-Alchemist
- Switch in for
Izzet Guildmage
to help give the deck reach in multiplayer games (this is currently geared for kitchen table Magic, so that's sometimes a thing).
-
Djinn Illuminatus
/
Furnace of Rath
- The "Threat Exchange Program". Basically, these are here just to switch in for
Mindmoil
and/or
Pyromancer Ascension
when I feel like mixing it up.
- (Everything Else) - Burn is better in some match-ups, and countermagic is better in others. The rest of the sideboard is just a surplus of each so that the balance of the deck can be shifted to whatever is more favorable. Ex: Bringing
Negate
in for
Pyroclasm
against a control deck that doesn't play an abundance of small aggressive creatures.
