Once upon a time, I got the bug to play Standard again, and it led to the development of my Scars-Innistrad-M12 Big Red deck. My success in the long run was just respectable (I usually finished in the prizes, at the very least), but the deck was highly exciting and fun to play, and just all-around super awesome in my opinion. I loved the deck so much, especially the centerpiece Koth of the Hammer, that I decided to turn it into a casual deck after the annual rotation.
This is really a control deck at heart, and most of the time it plays for the long game. What makes it different is that instead of the game ending after a gradual grind, it's often a massive explosion out of nowhere. In my experience with the competitive version of the deck, it wasn't uncommon to take an opponent from 15+ to 0 in a single turn with a nice plump
Shrine of Burning Rage
and a well-placed Galvanic Blast. On a board kept clear with some burn spells and his own ability, Inferno Titan can also easily hand out enough damage to just suddenly kill someone.
Koth of the Hammer is great for softening up an opponent for the eventual eruption, and either of his first two abilities can be used to help ramp into something ridiculous, whether it's a Titan, Wurmcoil Engine, The Death Star (Karn Liberated), or a game-ending Devil's Play. The -2 loyalty for a Devil's Play is especially heinous, whether from the hand or out of the graveyard. It's also not all that difficult to get the Emblem, and an opponent will be hard-pressed to come back from that once it happens.
I'm really glad I was able to build the casual version of this deck, and I look forward to playing it for a long time.
