U/W Heroics with a reduced fear of 2-for-1's. It's time to change the basic assumptions about what a U/W Heroic deck can be.
I really like U/W Heroics. I like getting counters on my white creatures fast, taking advantage of blue's evasion and smashing face. Fun stuff. The thing that makes for trouble is getting 2-for-1'd with aura removal, or worse yet, 3-for-1'd or even 4-for-1'd. Nothing is as deflating as losing that hero and all it's auras when you've got no protection in hand. Sure, the concept of running
Hubris
and pulling everything back into hand is cool, but honestly,
Hubris
isn't even sideboard worthy.
So, where to take U/W? I was playing a G/W Heroic deck on MTGO recently, and my opponent didn't use a single aura; all triggers came from instants. No enchantments to be bounced, and lots of counters added on HIS heroes during MY turn.
That sparked my interest in building this deck.
While not completely free of auras, the deck focuses on using instants to pile on the counters, and auras for card gain and the lethal, unblock-able strikes.
On to the cards!
The Auras
-
Ordeal of Thassa
: Card gain to maintain card advantage. You can usually play it and gain the cards the same turn, protecting it from opponent removal spells.
-
Aqueous Form
: The one static aura I can't live without. After boosting the creatures with all of the instants, we need evasion to strike for lethal. I like holding back on playing this as long as possible to reduce the chances of a 2-for-1 or early enchantment removal.
The Instants
The great thing about the instants is the ability to play them on your opponents turn, freeing up your mana for faster creature deployment and better responses during your turn. While playing these during your opponents turn will force you to lose out on the card's abilities, sometimes it's better to use it to have the mana open for other things and so as to not have it sitting in your hand, unused.
-
Ajani's Presence
: +2/+2 removal protection. I like being indestructible
- Gods Willing: Protection from the color of your choice, either for removal protection or pushing through damage.
-
Mortal's Ardor
: +2/+2 with Lifelink. Great in races, and can add enough toughness to survive many removal spells.
The Planeswalker
- Ajani Steadfast : All of his abilities are relevant. By the time he comes out, adding +1/+1, lifelink, vigilance and first strike to an already countered-up hero is awesome. Adding counters to everyone with his -2 boosts a wide field, especially if Phalanx Leader has been triggered a few times. Ajani's ultimate provides a solid defense to survive drawn-out battles.
Removal
The Creatures
-
Favored Hoplite
,
Hero of Iroas
,
Phalanx Leader
: Standard members of any good heroic deck. Although there is only one aura for
Hero of Iroas
to reduce the cost of, he is still a solid heroic 2/2 for 2 mana.
-
Fabled Hero
: I initially didn't have him in the deck, opting instead for Brimaz, King of Oreskos. Tappedout user Isntitizzet sold me on including him as a split between him and Brimaz. After some playtesting, I've found
Fabled Hero
works so well with instants, I've dropped Brimaz entirely. Purely heroic creatures FTW!
-
Dawnbringer Charioteers
: Late-game support, providing evasion and lifelink. Getting this creature into play can present a real problem for your opponent, especially after a few heroic triggers.
The Sideboard
- Stubborn Denial: Cheap counter spell that works especially well once a hero is rather heroic.
-
Ephemeral Shields
: Brought in against control decks in addition to
Ajani's Presence
.
- Triton Tactics: I love this card. Heroics make it a +1/+4 play. It's just awesome when an opponent falls into this trap. If your opponents creature's manage to survive, they don't untap during their controller's next untap step.
-
Deicide
: Enchantment creature (cough Courser of Kruphixcough), Ensoul Artifact and God hate.
This sideboard is geared toward my local creature and midrange-heavy meta, so consider what you need if you're going to give this deck this run. Popular inclusions are Banishing Light,
Reprisal
,
Gainsay
and Negate.
Rotation is on the horizon. A new Standard initially means an aggro-heavy Standard. This deck is ready to pick up the gauntlet and meet the challenge.
Please comment and let me know what you think. Feedback makes our decks better.
U/W Heroics with a reduced fear of 2-for-1's. Let's crush some heads.
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