I thought about this as well. Good combo for Joraga Warcaller too

I know! I couldn't believe I hadn't thought of it (as I've used that card in the past in other decks...). Such a great idea. This may be a great card for both of our decks I feel. I'm definitely testing it out!

I was fiddling around with a deck like yours splashing blue earlier...the only real differences were that Elvish Visionary became Coiling Oracle and Elvish Promenade became 3x Master Biomancer (and I added two additional lands for 1-less Immaculate Magistrate )

....The Master Biomancer + Joraga Warcaller work extremely well together...they pump eachother to crazy hieghts and lead to a army of beefy elves :) haha. I'm loading Cockatrice now, btw....so once I've got it up and linked I'll write you.

Sweet! I like the sounds of it already! Competitive simic...say whaaaat???? lol

Haha! I could have swore that was an oxymoron :)

Umbral Mantle ... I didn't even know that existed. lol. So your telling me that a couple of Forest , an Arbor Elf , 2 Wild Growth and Umbral Mantle is an inifinity/infinity that can attack on turn 3? Got it.

Yep! Hell, with just the 2 Wild Growth you got a 200/200 elf :)

That, and in my deck it goes one step further....there are situations where you tap everyone down in order to get your "Waves" off...you end up with an Ezuri and a ton of mana; but no one untapped to attack (outside of maybe one Ezuri)...with Umbral Mantle I can actually untap a few attackers (the ones without summoning sickness)as again it equips for 0....then I can pump them all and attack....it seems really good.

Could be a situation of "win more"; but right now it's in :) You never know until you test!

CurdBrosBrewingCo I may only be up for about 30-45 more minutes if you still want to run a match or two

Oh man, playtesting my deck now is so much more fun now. It's way more consistent at going infinite, and that's only after throwing just a couple in. Thanks so much for that idea! :)

I wish I could say it was mine! It was a brewer named Queima....he actually wrote on Vito's deck and I kinda stole the idea :) I figure if I cite him I'm legally in the clear :) Ha.

I've only tested it a few games, but Umbral Mantle is UNREAL when it works.....it allows me (a) to unload my entire hand, (b) untap creatures for attackers after a wave, and (c) make a huge single creature if need be.

I'm not positive if the loss of card draw and win-con (from Gilt-Leaf Archdruid is worth the addition....but as always; you can only know if you test. Gilt-Leaf Archdruid was especially helpful in control/disruption matches (any games that went longer); so I am going to test heavily against those today (to see the effect this change has).

As of right now, however, this makes the deck that much stronger of a combo deck. I'll keep everyone updated! It's a really small change; but one that seems useful!

I've found I may actually have too much sideboard hate against control...I have:

2x Defense Grid 1x Choke 3x Spellskite 3x Fecundity 1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All

10 cards are sided in...this may be a little overboard. I'm testing against control now; so I will let you know how this goes; but given this is the deck's worst match-up; a good amount of the board will be dedicated to it...I'm just afraid I may have too much at this point.

Umbral Mantle has been really impressive...it staying for now. It just adds several more lines to winning that I didn't even see before play testing.

I just had a game where after a wave for only 5; I ended up with an "Infinite Archdruid"...with a Lightning Greaves attached as well. Because I had another Lightning Greaves and Umbral Mantle in my hand; I was able to cast and attach both to a Llanowar Elves ....I then pumped them to 100/100 and attacked...They had a Restoration Angel in play; so one creature alone was not enough...having both; however led to the win....this is something I NEVER would have seen without testing (and getting extremely lucky). While this alone is of course not reason enough to keep the card....thus far it is testing extremely well.

Of course, I'd still love to hear everyone's thoughts on the subject...but I'm excited that it is testing well. Thanks in advance for any comments, suggestions, and +1's!

I am not liking the deck as much, it is sad to see it grow apart from its original idea and concept. Primarily the removing of Arbor Elf for the poser elf: Llanowar Elves .

The new equipment is cool, but the changes to incorporate it makes me cringe. But keep testing it, I see the potential. I also see it's limitations due to its situational purpose. As you said, "win-more." You can already win Turn 3 and 4 pretty often. Does it ever let you win Turn 2? Does it let you win Turn 3 more often? If not, cut it. Just my opinion

At least I get to see my favorite build in action one more time tonight in the TapDown Duel. Farewell, my favorite deck, may your grandchildren follow your footsteps, your oh-so-heavy combo footsteps.

P.S. And yes that was me that suggested the Arbor Elf you see at the top of the page. Leave it there as a reminder every time you check on your deck. Then when it hits you that you should have never betrayed and cheated on him, you can click that BIG, BEAUTIFUL green button and apologize to him.

He is wondering the woods, looking for a new and, more importantly, caring home that will accept him and all the potential he holds. Poor Arbor Elf *sad face*

Dreno33....

I was waiting for your comments! Ha! By the way....how bout that art? Thank you for your help with that! Such a good teacher :)

Putting in Arbor Elf would then require the reduction of Horizon Canopy and Cavern of Souls ....as we know, control is the worst match-up; and running four Cavern of Souls is huge. I prefer Arbor Elf to Llanowar Elves in nearly every other situation; but here (with the Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx , Horizon Canopy , and Cavern of Souls you can get in a situation where you are Forest -lite and Arbor Elf is not as useful at that point.

Also, with Arbor Elf you would also want to add in Utopia Sprawl ....this can be done easily with the removal of Elvish Mystic but again you run into the same issues (you NEED basic Forest and thus you would have to remove the Horizon Canopy and 2 of the Cavern of Souls ....at that point, you also greatly reduce the power of Heritage Druid and Elvish Archdruid . Elves like other elves :)

I do completely understand what you're saying...but I really haven't found any major benefits of Gilt-Leaf Archdruid over Umbral Mantle ....Umbral Mantle steals more games out of nowhere and does allow for more turn-3 wins.

Gilt-Leaf Archdruid is a good "long-game" option against control/disruption; but you side so much in against such decks (including Fecundity ) that you don't really need him. Don't get me wrong...I love Gilt-Leaf Archdruid ....he does some crazy stuff! He's just a little too cute for this build I think.

This build just seems far "smoother"....it doesn't hit nearly as many "hitches" both before or after a Genesis Wave ....you lose a little "explosiveness" on nut draws; but this (in my opinion...which we all know is an odd opinion :) is a superior build by a far enough margin to keep it.

I'm sorry I've upset you....I hope we can still be friends :) BTW....What build am I to be playing tonight? Please provide me the list if you can. I don't want to play the wrong list (as I consider this build my "Elf Devotion deck"; but also want to play by whatever rules there are). I made certain not to add anything directly effecting our match (i.e. kept Beast Within and Ghostly Prison out of the sideboard); but if there is a past version of this deck I need to be playing; let me know. I have them written down; so I can go back and put it into Cockatrice. Even if I consider it a "poorer" list; I want to make sure I am playing the build you want. Thanks so much in advance for your help! Tonight should be fun!

Accepted all three suggestions :)

Just for anyone that wants to keep up the conversation (or understand what we are talking about); the only real differences I can think of between the two builds are :

1. Utopia Sprawl 's and Arbor Elf have now become Elvish Mystic and Llanowar Elves

This was a literally one-for-one trade. Arbor Elf and Utopia Sprawl have the potential to generate more mana together than the two mana-dorks; however the addition of the two dorks allows for the following:

• Mana-base is much smoother.

You can now run four Cavern of Souls with no issue and you also can run Horizon Canopy 's for added cycling if need be. Also, you never into the issue where your "mana-dork" can't create mana. The prior build ran 7 Forest and one Breeding Pool and if one of those wasn't on board; both of your Utopia Sprawl and Arbor Elf 's become useless. This is a huge problem early game and causes for more mulligans.

• Heritage Druid and Elvish Archdruid become more powerful.
  

Both require elves for their abilities to work to their fullest potential. Utopia Sprawl is not an elf :)

1. Umbral Mantle x2 and Craterhoof Behemoth put in place of Gilt-Leaf Archdruid .

These are quite different; and:

• Craterhoof Behemoth obviously doesn't take much explanation. Awesome in all Elf/Devotion/ and/or Genesis Wave deck :)

• Umbral Mantle simply steals games and ensures that you win games with a large wave. It creates infinite mana and seals up most Genesis Wave 's. It also helps quite a bit against control.
  

The downside to losing Gilt-Leaf Archdruid is in super grindy match-ups. He draws multiple cards (each time you play a druid after he is in) and provides for an instant-speed "steal your lands" semi-win-con (it wins most of the time; but not all of the time). The downside to Gilt-Leaf is that he dies to Lightning Bolt at 5-mana; and that he costs 5-mana without an immediate benefit.

We initially had Gilt-Leaf Archdruid in to deal with tougher control match-ups; however given the board options; I actually found that I was boarding him out for more "crushing" options...

Anywho; that is where we are at. That is where the discussion is coming from. The deck has somewhat "circled back" close to it's initial build (as the initial one had Elvish Mystic and Craterhoof Behemoth in it); however the loss of Arbor Elf and Utopia Sprawl is the biggest change made yet.

I'd love to hear any one else's opinion and or thoughts! The tapped out community is always extremely insightful; and we love to hear what you have to say....that being said, Dreno33 is about as smart as they come; so I understand if there is nothing left to add!

Thanks to everyone, and of course (as always); thanks goes to Dreno33 for his help!

And yes...I know the current changes make tonight's match-up a little less powerful (as the Arbor Elf + Utopia Sprawl thing creates a ton of mana in "solitaire" games where we both rev up for a combo :)...having said this, I really try to build decks with the entire Modern Meta in mind rather than one match up; and this build is superior against Jund, Zoo, and even Twin...and the four Cavern of Souls is a huge help against control.

Tonight will be a blast! The deck I'm playing is amazing! It actually is a really tough match up for my deck (probably about 60/40) as it is a very consistent combo deck (where mine is built a little less consistent in an attempt to be a little more playable against some of the other decks in the meta) . It is something I would prepare for as it grows within the meta (which it very well may...as it's awesome). Thanks to everyone for your concern! And the comments have been so great!

Btw...for anyone wondering...the deck is Elf Beatdown by Vito1014...Vote it up! It is getting very close to 100 and is literally the most consistent Elf deck I have every seen!

Don't get me wrong...this deck can still win! It's currently 66%+ in testing in the Modern meta....I just want people to know I'm thinking about it as well as its overall competitiveness :) I'm done now. Regardless, the match tonight will be fun fun fun!

Lol thanks CurdBrosBrewingCo for the advertising!

haha! Of course! We green mages gotta stick together. I wouldn't say it if it wasn't a good deck.

Agreed!

Sideboard needs streamlined...working on it now.

btw, the other judge and i were discussing that you should run Path to Exile (his favorite white control card ever) in your SB during the duel when he saw the horizon canopy (which he was excited/surprised to see). I love the path, too. very good card. however, i feel you do well against creature based decks and would usually win by the time huge threats are played in control. maybe play test it against a few modern decks and see how it works.

CurdBrosBrewingCo: I have to admit I was a little sad to see you take out Arbor Elf as well, if only because in my build, getting him and an Argothian Enchantress out on the board feels almost like a win condition in and of itself.

I actually took out both Umbral Mantle and Gilt-Leaf Archdruid from my own build as well. In a real game, I just hated getting Umbral Mantle in my hand, and usually it didn't help me to win. However, I think that a large part of that is because of the fact that i push the card draw as much as I could, and consequentially sacrificed on the ramp in doing so. Probably having lots of big mana dorks makes Umbral Mantle way more terrifying, so I can see why it would function better in your deck than it does in mine.

As far as the Gilt-Leaf Archdruid is concerned, ultimately I think I found him to be too high of a casting cost to be worth it. By the time I got him out, I usually had zero druids left in my hand, so most of the time he just felt like dead weight. I found that Abundance was more efficient long term anyways, at least for my build.

Also, I saw you added Ghostly Prison to your sideboard, which I think is a great addition (provided the color fix isn't an issue), as I found Elephant Grass to be incredibly efficient, enough so that I put it in my main board.

Dreno33...I LOVE the idea of Path to Exile ....I'm fixing the sideboard up today (I really didn't want to put any hate in the SB before the match as it would look like "tech" against Vito's deck)...I can almost assure you that Path will be in it though!

I wish I could say that Horizon Canopy was my idea; but it wasn't :) This also came from the tapped out community!