I always love the idea of stealing creatures and using them. My suggestions would be to increase Act of Treason by 1. I like willbreaker but to have 3 for a 5 drop is tough.i would decrease by 1 and perhaps through in Dragonlord Silumgar . Enthralling Victor isnt bad either . perhaps 2 Willbreaker and 2 Enthralling Victor

I dig the idea.

Those are some pretty good suggestions. Dragonlord Silumgar is a little pricy, but I completely forgot about it. I'm sure I've got one somewhere I can throw in. I really like Enthralling Victor, so I'll be sure to grab some of those, too. At the moment, the deck runs slower than I'd like. Still definitely got some work to do. What do you think about Pyromancer's Goggles?

If you want to steal things you should run Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver

I had Ashiok in the original board, but just like Silumgar, its cost is a little too high.

With the goggles since it is too a 5 drop just to get on the field you may need to slow down the game on the front end more. Obviously you dont want to have 3-4 in the deck at that mana cost. It can be great with Act of Treason, but i think it is better suited for burn

Alright. I'm might keep it as a one-of for now. Since it doubles my Dragon Fodder, Titan's Strength, and Collateral Damage and can produce a red the turn it comes out, I'll test it a little more.

Just inquiring - are you sure that Throwing Knife combo works? The wording on the card is that it only targets "if you do" sacrifice it. Sounds like the choice to sac has to occur before the target is selected and damage is dealt. It's brilliant if it works! I may make my own version of this (since I do have Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver).

Throwing Knife's ability doesnt target until after you sac it though, so if you do that combo you can take one of their guys but you have to sac the knife before you can target with it.

I think you're making illegal plays here... you can't target the creature and then choose not to sacrifice throwing knife. Throwing Knife specifically says "Whenever equipped creature attacks, you may sacrifice throwing knife." That's all the trigger does. Then it says, "if you do, throwing knife deals 2 damage to target creature or player". You can't target a creature unless you sacrifice throwing knife. Of course, you can still steal a creature that won't die to the throwing knife, but they're going to take the damage and you're going to lose the throwing knife either way.

Anyway, I like the idea... maybe if you have a ton of creature-buffing enchantments or instants, you can just buff their creatures to steal them. That might be easier to accomplish.

My understanding was that you would declare targets for the knife before it actually deals damage (IE when the ability triggers). I read it as the sacrificing the knife dealt the damage after attacking. Either way I'll leave it in there.

For a similar situation, see the rulings on Lightning Rift.

oh i bet you're right actually. i think it does target once it goes on the stack. thats one of those parts of the rules that don't quite make sense.

i think thats kind of a slow way of going about things though. i think it would be a lot better to go with things like Arc Lightning, Twin Bolt or Pyrotechnics (if you wanna go 5 CMC), because, with that dude out, you can take as many of their creatures as those spells let you target! deal 1 damage to each guy you wanna steal and prepare for your opponent to cry like a b****.

YES! Those are all really good suggestions! I'll find room.

Throwing Knife is here in case it makes to the late game. If it fires more than once, you can be looking at some serious card advantage. But, you're right. It is a little slow.

how about Icy Blast? particularly good with Battlefield Thaumaturge...

you will also want something for hexproof creatures. Perhaps Mob Rule?

Hammerhand would let you take a guy and attack with him that turn.

papahiggs: I've been trying to find a way around that. Mob Rule is awesome. Didn't even know it existed. I'll find room for it and Battlefield Thaumaturge + Icy Blast .

shinobigarth: How did I let that slip through? I'll try to find a spot.

Maybe some Spark Jolt for a free steal and scry?

Also, if you're willing to spend more, a playset of Shivan Reef will take you up to around $24.

What about Descent of the Dragons? with Battlefield Thaumaturge you could potentially cast it for 2R which would end games quickly

By 2R you mean ?

Magicrafter: Spark Jolt definitely fits the theme. The problem is that it (and a lot of other cards in the mainboard) only function properly if Willbreaker is on the field. If it isn't, they're essentially dead draws. Still a good suggestion.

Also, I'm building a non-budget version of this deck using some of the better (and more expensive) cards available, like Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver, Dragonlord Silumgar, and the painlands. Thanks though.

Mlasko: I like it, but it's dependent on Battlefield Thaumaturge. It can certainly close out games though.

I'd also use Triton Tactics with the Willbender. It's a defensive card when you are setting up and a double-steal when you get the bender ou.

Or maybe Coordinated Assault?