Flash Tempo is MY FAVORITE DECK EVER! and now it's GOOD!
The sky is clear! Nobody else runs cheap fliers, so our little blue dudes just keep swinging. The rest of the deck protects them. Because we play flash and counters, whether they play aggro, control, combo, or ramp, however they respond, we have mana open to trump their play, and keep on swinging!
Confound your opponents by trumping every play.FNM score to date: 38-14-1 matches (81-42-1 games)Latest result: 2-0 vs Werewolves, 0-2 vs Bant Humans, 2-1 vs RW Goggles, 2-0 vs BW control, 2-0 vs Vile Aggro.
START FAST
Cheap fliers in a meta where nobody else has fliers. Damage starts early!
PULL AHEAD
Reflector Mage, Bounding Krasis, Collected Company keep you attacking in the air, while gumming up the ground.
PROTECT YOUR LEAD
Counterspells,
Void Grafter
, Silumgar Sorcerer will counter their power plays, and beat their removal. Anything these don't answer, our creatures take out. Flash means we can always answer their play in the way that gives them the most trouble.
WIN!
Games often end quickly, and in our favor. But if things do go long, Bygone Bishop gives us gas, and Eldrazi Displacer overwhelms the defense.
Beating the Metagame
The deck is built to have a strong game vs. every popular deck. It plays on an unexpected axis that nobody is ready for.
Green-White Tokens-They start slow, and use planeswalkers to catch up and pull ahead. Gideon is the real threat. Counter him or kill him, then just attack in the air. It's important to keep the damage coming in, because eventually they can overpower us on the ground. Avacyn is the other concern, so either counter or use Reflector/Displacer/Krasis to keep her out of the way. Sideboard, Displacement Wave can clear away all the tokens. No need to rush it, just get them before they are prepared to go offensive.
BG Aristocrats, 4C Company-Starts slow, then accelerates with Cryptolith Rite into a combo-kill with Zulaport/Nantuko and/or Westvale Abbey and/or Displacer to win. We just attack in the air and block the ground. Counter Zulaport Cutthroat or Cryptolith Rite or Eldrazi Displacer, and be prepared for Ormendahl with a Bounding Krasis followed by Reflector Mage or Displacer. Nothing else matters, so this should actually be easy. Displacement Wave and Dromoka's Command in the side should be quite effective.
Traditional Bant Company-Starts slow, then tries to win card advantage into the long game. They play the same pull-ahead tactics we do, but we neutralize them in the form of counter spells and
Void Grafter
. Then as long as we keep Avacyn away, our flyers should win the day.
Humans - Super-fast start, tries to overwhelm before you can catch up. They force us to change the game. Counter or trade off creatures as much as possible. The best method is to let them attack, then flash in a blocker. Counter Always Watching, exile Gryff's Boon. Side in Dromoka's Command, Displacement Wave; casting for X=2 will end them.
Grixis Control - They slow you down with early removal, don't play many sweepers so you should be okay. Then the draw cards, and catch up with bigger creatures. We lead with 3 toughness to dodge Fiery Impulse, and attack. Counter the most threatening creatures (Silumgar, Goblin). Protect your flyers, counter sweepers, and keep the damage going. It should be easy.
B/W Walker control-Slow you with spot removal, sweepers, catch up and pull ahead with planeswalkers.Spot removal and sweepers can be handled as above. Focus on flash creatures to take out their life total, and get them to use the minus on their walkers. Void Grafter is especially rude when Sorin or Ob try to kill something, and countering a rebounded Languish is also rude. Finally, Lumbering Falls is all but uncontrollable, and with Sylvan Advocates they outsize Languish and beat hard.
RG Goggles, RW Goggles-Slow you with spot removal, sweepers, then power up with Goggles, Chandra, Kozilek's Return, Atarka. Play like against Grixis, but watch for more non-creature threats. Run tougher creatures to avoid Kozilek's Return. Counter Goggles and Chandra especially. Eerie Interlude can be a nice rescue from an otherwise uncounterable kill effect.
Seasons Past Control-4 Languish, 4 tutors for languish, and 2 Seasons Past to refuel. And a bit of removal, lifegain and hand destruction.Our response: Void Grafter beats incidental removal, to get the damage train rolling. After a Languish, flash in another creature (or Collected Company). Or counter it to protect a critical mass. But especially, if you can snare 1 of 2 Seasons Pasts, they run out of fuel. Flash Bygone Bishop at a good hour to get card draw.
Eldrazi rampAccumulate lands, sweep with Kozilek's Return, trump with Worldbreaker rebounding Return or Chandra. Again, we start with our tougher creatures.If we can exile Kozilek's Return, that would be ideal. The thing is, they will tap out all their early turns, unless they plan to play Return so you can be ready. So you deal 2, then 4, then counter something (ramping to 6 is something you can be happy to delay), deal 6, then 6 more. Side in Eerie Interlude to beat Kozilek's Return echo and Chandra. A tapped Worldbreaker is not a concern. You didn't need land 5 anyway.
Red Eldrazi/Thopters-Hangarback Walker, burn, Vile Aggregate,Pia and Kiran Nalaar. This is not a popular deck, but I mention it because it's about the only deck that disrupts our strategy. Against most decks, the air is the winning angle. Here, the ground is often our power center. Disable Vile Aggregate and Hangarback, and swing in. Vile Aggregate and Pia are our problem cards, so save counterspells for them. If they get thopters, we can't do much in the skies, but sideboard our Displacement Wave works. Thunderclap Wyvern can make our guys into 3/2s. Eldrazi Displacer can also blink away tokens. Meanwhile, if Vile Aggregate is gone, we dominate the ground battle.
Tricky Creatures
Bounding Krasis - On defense, tap down a creature or untap your creature for surprise blocks. On offense, tap down a defender (end of their turn), and swing on your turn.
Reflector Mage - Remove a defender; keep it away. Attack.
Harbinger of the Tides - extra reflector mages. A 2/2 isn't great in the meta, but the extra bounce is useful.
Void Grafter
- Foil that removal, enemy reflector mages, Jace uptick. Block. Attack.
Silumgar Sorcerer - counter something, sac a little dude, keep a flyer. Now they don't get their troublemaker, and you attack.
Eldrazi Displacer - For 2C, repeat any of the above. Or tap down one of their creatures. Attack.
Bygone Bishop - Flashable off of Rattlechains, who can also hexproof the bishop. Then after you untap and can defend the Bishop, every creature you cast gets you clues.
Collected Company - get two great creatures. likely something leaves their battlefield too.
Thunderclap Wyvern
- We have 11 other flyers, and they are a critical component to beating many decks. This guy makes us faster. It helps us outsize thopters as well.
Sideboard Notes
Collected Company - in some matches you want more answers. In this case, side out a few creatures and Collected Company (no longer good because not enough creatures), and side in more answer cards. The deck can play a decent control role, and you can be more reliable when not counting on a random draw for your effectiveness.
Nissa, Voice of Zendikar - A little extra size, or a little wider.
Eerie Interlude - dodge that sweeper and/or flash back in for value!
Displacement Wave
- For UU, sweep away tokens, clues, flipped Abbey, etc. 1UU or 2UU vs. aggressive decks also works.
Turn to Frog
- if they have problem creatures (e.g. Gideon), this could help.Essence Flux - reflector somebody for U, or counter a creature for U. And dodge removal. And make Bygone a 3/4.Harbinger of the Tides - Instant Ormendahl answer for 4 mana.
Possibility exists to go 90% Flash so you're always ready to foil a critical spell they play.
Other cards to consider
Matter Reshaper - If they remove it, you get another - with instant effect. Or get a land to accelerate your game. Or an enchantment to remove one of their creatures. Beautiful blocker. Attack with your advantage.
Eldrazi Skyspawner
- A nice scion to help cast the above 2 cards, and a flyer.
Stratus Dancer - 2/1 flyer for 2, get those early beats in. Or morph a counterspell.
Archangel Avacyn
- could be really good. easy to hold up the mana once you reach 5, and they will never know if you're planning Coco, Avacyn, or a counterspell.
Icefall Regent
- enhance the tempo plan, but not good with Coco.
Topplegeist - flash if you have your other spirit out. More tap effects keep the swing-in going, and more value for Eerie Interlude. Delerium is possible if you run more Sorceries and evolving wilds.
