Welcome to my modern deck. Believe it or not, this actually started out as the Bestial Strength intro deck back in M14! As my understanding of the format grew, the deck eventually ditched the black and shifted from just a whole load of beasts to devotion to green to where I am today, which I view as a sort of devotion/Collected Company list.
The idea is very simple; throw out as much symbols as possible (ideally with Collected Company or with mana from Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx) and then simply beat face with high power creatures, whip out an Aspect of Hydra for a game ending buff and/or use mana from the shrine to completely abuse Rhonas the Indomitable's +2/+0 and trample or slap down a Craterhoof Behemoth. Just glorified stompy really!
Also splashing white for Path to Exile and the land fetching powerhouse Knight of the Reliquary to help the strategy run smoother and to give far more options in the sideboard than mono-green allows.
All views and any suggestions for improvement are greatly appreciated! Now for those who are interested, here’s the run through:
Creatures
Noble Hierarch: Kicks off the curve and allows us to play one of the 3 drops on turn 2, as well as giving early access to for Path to Exile. The added exalted also helps aggression early game, making Strangleroot Geist even better turn 2. As off-putting as the price tag may be, she's definitely the optimal mana dork for this sort of deck in my opinion, but Birds of Paradise still does the job just fine if anyone didn't want to spend that money.
Strangleroot Geist: There's a lot going on with Geist that makes him a fantastic in this deck. His somewhat lackluster p/t for his cost are balanced by the built in haste - allowing for quicker damage - and undying, giving him a counter upon death. The undying also means the card gives you 2 devotion that's tough to get rid of. This along with the potential to buff Avatar of the Resolute makes the card a solid addition.
Avatar of the Resolute: Avatar has the potential to be a devastating beater in here, but he requires some work to make the most of him so we’re only running 3. Trample and 3 power for only gives great aggressive capability, with the fact that he can block fliers being a nice bonus. Where he really comes into his own is his synergy with Strangleroot Geist, Predator Ooze and particularly Nissa, Voice of Zendikar. All of these cards have the ability to beef him up substantially, and makes for a great hit with Collected Company should some of these components be in place.
Knight of the Reliquary: Due to the fetch lands and importance of Nykthos to our strategy, Knight of the Reliquary's ability allows us access to big mana from digging out a shrine, powerful mana sinking by digging out a Gavony Township and to a potentially huge p/t creature that can easily enable Rhonas the Indomitable.
Leatherback Baloth: Few creatures in green are as explosive for their cost as Leatherback Baloth, and the fact that this titanic p/t requires is an unbelievable blessing to us, making our payoff cards that much more powerful. Even by himself he's got fantastic aggressive potential and gets Rhonas the Indomitable up and doing his thing easily.
Predator Ooze: A personal favourite of mine. Functions similarly to Geist in that he grants devotion that is a b**** to get rid of. Also a versatile creature as he functions well both aggressively (Due to the +1/+1 counters) and defensively due to the indestructible.
Rhonas the Indomitable: The Amonkhet god of strength truly embodies his title. With a condition that is easily triggered by a number of creatures in the deck, we've got reliable access to a 5/5 deathtouch indestructible for a measly 3 mana. Another important function he serves is as an outlet for large amounts of mana generated by Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, bestowing awesome buffs left right and centre. The fact you can CoCo into him as well really is icing on the cake.
Craterhoof Behemoth: The big, shouty green creature to end them all. 8 mana is certainly achievable in this list with a Shrine to Nyx and its ability to simply end games is second to none. Also he's a frog lizard dinosaur thing and that's awesome.
Instants
Aspect of Hydra: Pay-off for devotion doesn't get better than this. Instant speed buffing on the insane numbers this card can reach can turn almost any unblocked creature here into a game ender. The fact this card is a common frankly amazes me!
Path to Exile: Brilliant removal, little else to say really. Definitely worth the white splash due to the comparatively underwhelming removal that mono-green allows.
Collected Company: The power of Collected Company should be pretty obvious by now. With a high number of potential targets, it’s power to create devotion is crazy, building board presence and acting as a recovery from board wipes. I will be honest in that it doesn't have the consistency in this list as it does with something like Elves or Slivers, but the potential gain form a successful one is too great to pass up.
Planeswalkers
Nissa, Voice of Zendikar: Nissa provides strong support for our strategy. Her +1 gives us a 0/1 plant, which allows her to protect herself and give us more aggressive capability with our other creatures, which may have had to block otherwise. Her -2 is what we're really after, grating a solid, permanent buff to everything that's already joined the party. Great for enabling Rhonas and the synergy that she boasts with Avatar of the Resolute really can only be described as monstrous. I have only been able use her ultimate once in an unbelievably grindy match against Abzan, and - for what it is worth - can confirm that it can turn games around.
Land
Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx: The mana that Nykthos can generate in a deck like this is silly and allows us to either cast multiple spells a turn, dump out a Craterhoof Behemoth early or throw everything at Rhonas's mana ability, buffing up the whole team. It is a legendary land so we can only have one out at a time, but I like running 3 purely so it can come out most games. We can also tap one for crazy mana, play another then tap that for the same. Throw all that into Rhonas and you'll be able to smack home pretty hard!
Gavony Township: Further utilisation of the white splash, Township is an awesomely powerful mana sink that emulates Nissa's -2, only it can be grabbed with Knight of the Reliquary. Very useful late game and again, great synergy with Avatar.
Windswept Heath/Wooded Foothills: Aids deck thinning and helps us grab a Canopy Vista. With these, getting ASAP is very easy and means we only need to run a couple of Vistas.
Canopy Vista: The only producing land, and thanks to Noble Hierarch and fetch lands, the only one we need. Without a Hierarch in hand, you can play or fetch into one of these tapped. With one in hand, you can just play a forest then play the hierarch. Either way, you've got your on turn one.
Forest: After intense research, I can confirm that these are necessary.
Sideboard
Justification for remaining sideboard cards currently in the works
Blossoming Defense: The breakout green card of Kaladesh. A very versatile card, allowing us to either buff up or protect a creature from removal at instant speed. Sideboarded in against any deck that runs a decent amount of powerful removal (eg. Path to Exile).
Obstinate Baloth: A nightmare against un-targeted discarding. Turns their spell into a free 4/4 creature that gains you 4 life when it hits the battlefield. Clearly, you wanna side him in against discarding although the life gain can be useful against burn also, particularly when he survives a Lightning Bolt.
Scavenging Ooze: Yep, more ooze! The answer to graveyard shenanigans. Like Reclamation Sage, Chord and Collected Company can throw him out and works great with Nykthos, the mana from which can exile whole graveyards easily, gaining a juicy amount of life and growing the ooze considerably. Also can be sideboarded in for the life gain if need be.
Thrun, the Last Troll: The damn-near un-killable last troll of Mirroden/New Phyrexia. Thrun is immensely powerful no matter what he's up against. Great against control and high removal, just remember to keep mana open to regenerate him. You never know when a Supreme Verdict is coming!
Thanks for reading!
