Back to the Scroll Rack argument. Wouldn't it be better to cut it for a Grim Tutor or Cruel Tutor or just another tutor spell? Instead of filtering your hand, you can just go get what you need. If your hand is sparse, which is where Scroll Rack is bad, then a tutor in place of it would get whatever you are looking for or Blue Sun's Zenith or Necropotence to refill your hand.

A deck with Damia at the helm will Seldom have a sparse hand. I play her as well and most players don't kill her for fear that I will be able to combo off if they waste removal on her.

@Blakkhand: Objectively speaking, Glen Elendra Archmage is iffy. It's expensive to cast, but the two-use counter is nice. The problem is usually finding the opportune time to cast it. I may end up cutting it.

@Smith_and_Tonic: Scroll Rack didn't prove very useful in my last few games, so I think I may end up cutting it for Diabolic Intent , which is cheaper to cast than Grim Tutor and more powerful than Cruel Tutor .

@coleman984: I playtest against Smith_and_Tonic relatively often. This deck ramps very hard in the first two or three turns, so my hand usually runs low just before Damia comes out. Damia herself is often a prime target for removal at that point.

@Epochalyptik True, then again your deck is more explosive than mine due to you having the optimal build. Speaking of which one of these days I will be uploading my version to tappedout, at which point I would love your opinion of the weakest cards in my version keeping in mind that they are in there due to budgetary constraints.

I'll definitely be running Swan Song once Theros comes out. It's too good to exclude.

Epochalyptik what's Swan Song?

U
Instant
Counter target enchantment, sorcery, or instant spell. Its controller puts a 2/2 blue Bird creature token with flying onto the battlefield.

is it supposed to be from Theros? or is it from a previous set?

oh ok I see it.

Hey Epoch, what do you think of the new Prophet of Kruphix for this deck?

3GU

Creature - Human Wizard
Untap all creatures and lands you control during each other player's untap step.You may cast creature cards as though they had flash.

2/3

Swan Song is amazing, I want to buy a playset, because it is amazing in leg / edh / vin / mdn sideboard

@Krayhaft: I don't think it's good enough. Although it's playable in some kinds of BUG decks, it's too expensive to really be beneficial to this particular list.

What are you going to cut for Swan Song ? Will it replace Dispel or will you use it as another Dispel and cut another card?

I need to play both because they're so strong, so I may end up cutting Scroll Rack .

Man. That flavor on the Swan Song . Beauty being bouncing Palinchron infinitely, violence being an opposing FoW.

Curse of the Swine in this deck? Is it even playable, granted it is sorcery but there is the leyline, and 1UU exile target creature is really good, though is it better or worse than Beast Within

I personally think Curse of the Swine is too slow for this deck. XUU at sorcery speed basically means it's a mana sink that leaves me with fewer resources for countermagic. I'd probably run Rapid Hybridization or Pongify first.

Dropped Scroll Rack for Swan Song .

Hello Epoch. I've just recently had the pleasure of stumbling across your deck, and while I don't fully understand the deck and how exactly I should be playing it, I like it. I always want the absolute best deck, and this seems to be doing that.

Onto my question and problem though. This deck is a bit expensive. While I have a handful of the cards, there's plenty that I don't What would you recommend as a budget version of this if I were to build it/fill it up? First thing would be the old dual lands. Second, unfortunately, would be Jace since I no longer have any. Thanks for your help!

@NoThanksImJewish: Try checking out the MTGS primer (link in the deck description) for a more detailed walkthrough of the card choices and strategy.

If you want to build a budget version, there are some obvious cuts (Imperial Seal , Jace, the Mind Sculptor , etc.). The land base will end up taking the biggest hit, though, because the ABUR duals and the fetches make up a significant portion of the deck's cost. The problem with modifying the land base is that you begin to lose consistency; I run the 3-3-9 (3 ABUR duals, 3 shocks, 9 fetches) because it is the strongest foundational lineup for any tricolor deck. If you take some of those cards away, you begin to trade consistency and power for monetary affordability.

You can always substitute the pain lands, check lands, and filter lands for some of the more expensive nonbasics, but you need to be careful to maintain some balance and reliability.

I have the Ravnica duels so that's not an issue; it is mostly the old ones and fetches, and then Jace (for starters). I'll go read the thread and either edit this post with continued ranting or make a new post.

Editing is limited to a few admins; most users can't edit their posts.

The shocks are a bit cheaper due to their recent reprint, and it's worth including them because the key ramp sorceries interact with basic land types and allow you to find shocks and ABUR duals.

Heya, I really like you deck and I have one similar to yours almost:)

What do you think about using Strionic Resonator ? You got quite a few cards you can copy with it:Rune-Scarred Demon Venser, Shaper Savant Burgeoning Eternal Witness Palinchron Mystic Remora Snapcaster Mage some are better then others ofcause:)

And what about Archaeomancer vs. Snapcaster Mage ? I know the big benefits with snapcaster since it has flash and lower mana cost, but you dont have to exile the card afterwards with Archaeomancer.

The thing about Resonator is that you either A) have enough mana to be doing what you're planning to already, or 2) you're getting what you need to not warrant doing it again. At least that's what I would think.

For Snappy, he can be played at instant speed. Yeah the card is exiled, but again you only need a few select counters at key points at which time you're winning/preventing yourself from getting screwed from behind on a Wednesday.

I have read the deck explanation, in its entirety, in one sitting. I do see why things are needed, but until I accidentally win the lottery I think I won't be making it. I'm very surprised to see Imperial Seal is ~$600! My issue is, even though I always want perfection, this deck would just be used in a casual setting. Still love it though, and I will continue to playtest it here.

@axxondk: Strionic Resonator is unnecessary and clunky. None of the triggered abilities really justify running a mana sink in a control shell.

Archaeomancer is much worse than Snapcaster Mage because it's slower and more expensive. I don't care that I have to exile the card after flashing it back with Snapcaster Mage ; the ability to flash something back for 1U extra (and to give that card flashback at instant speed) is far stronger than getting the card back into my hand for 2UU. Besides, Archaeomancer is already worse than Eternal Witness , which serves as my general-use recovery tool.

@NoThanksImJewish: Unfortunately, Imperial Seal is $600 because it was printed only in P3K and remains extremely rare.

If you want a casual deck, you can tone down the power level (and, indirectly, the cost) of this list until you have something that suits your needs. Damia is nice because she's a strong combo-control general and a superior goodstuff general; even if you drop the infinite combos to make BUG more casual-friendly, Damia can still back you up.