The deck itself is a deck I picked up during the Kaladesh block standard originally made by Travis Woo ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssQPTPn5k9I )and was modified as it went through standard. Why not see how well it can do now! The plan of the deck is to just slam planeswalkers down and grind the opponent out with value. It is able to do this effectively thanks to the vast effective removal available through all pioneer.
Back in its original standard it had great removal spells already:
Fatal Push
,
Anguished Unmaking
, and
Unlicensed Disintegration
. However, it was also able to really take advantage of
Oath of Chandra
and
Oath of Liliana
which acted as removal but also generate long term value.
Oath of Chandra
is a bolt that kills a creature on etb(enters the battlefield) while also slowly dealing damage to the opponent over time just by playing planeswalkers.
Oath of Liliana
is able to get around hexproof and protection most of the time as the deck is really good at keeping the board clear while making blockers to protect the walkers or being offensive.
Walking Ballista
is clumped in to removal (as it is our only creature) since it doubles as a blocker and removal by gunning down problematic creatures on the board while acting as it's own win condition. Let's go over the new removal!
We replace
Unlicensed Disintegration
with
Bedevil
over
Dreadbore
. There is an argument for
Dreadbore
since it is only two mana, however it is only sorcery speed and
Bedevil
gives us the upside of being instant while also hitting on artifacts.
Bedevil
may look intimating to play just because of its casting cost, but we are able to cast it quite often with no problems thanks to the help of
Renegade Map
. I threw in a copy of
The Elderspell
as a way to deal with opposing planeswalkers while also working as a way to get our planeswalkers to ultimate quicker. These are the only new removal spells we really care about since spells like
Utter End
,
Vraska's Contempt
,
Hero's Downfall
,
Cast Down
, etc. just feel too slow or don't hit enough.
Cast Down
could replace push maybe...
Our original planeswalkers are:
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
: A 5/5 that can put pressure, makes tokens to go wide, and can also anthem all our tokens and man lands
Chandra, Torch of Defiance
: Card draw, ramp, removal, and ultimate that will kill eventually.
Ob Nixilis Reignited
: Card draw, removal, and an eventual kill.
Sorin, Grim Nemesis
: Card draw, removal, and a possible kill the next turn if we get to attack.
The only new planeswalker that I choose to put in the main is
Sorin, Solemn Visitor
since he makes blockers and gains us life to counteract our own life loss from
Anguished Unmaking
,
Ob Nixilis Reignited
, and
Mana Confluence
. Sorin's ultimate just makes it harder for our opponent to keep creatures in play. There are a lot of new planeswalkers that can go in (like
Elspeth, Sun's Champion
) but the ones that are already in the main are just so good already since they draw cards and act as removal.
The mana base was interesting to update, if you saw earlier it had
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
and some fast lands that were there originally. I wanted to keep them in to get that turn one
Thoughtseize
(they were originally in the main), but I ended up taking them out. I replaced them with some shocks and check lands and added in some confluences over some basics. I didn't want to add in
Fabled Passage
since the deck was always consistent in getting whatever colors it needed thanks to
Renegade Map
.
The sideboard is debatable right now since we don't really have a meta maybe there should be
Shalai, Voice of Plenty
. For now: a play set of
Thoughtseize
for disruption against control as well as
Lyra Dawnbringer
for more pressure;
Elspeth, Sun's Champion
against decks that are beefy;
Rest in Peace
for the graveyard,
Lost Legacy
against combo; and
Settle the Wreckage
and
Anguished Unmaking
as protection and removal.
