So at my last FMN I sided in Sylvan Advocate every game, but that was against everyone's best pre-rotation aggro decks. I'm still counting on the format slowing down a bit.

I don't typically play Den Protector turn 2. Ideally you want to play Oath of Nissa on one followed by Evolutionary Leap on two. If the opponent puts out early aggro creatures sometimes all I can do is defend myself with chump blockers. It's not ideal, but I find I can usually stabilize the battlefield and make my come back.

My main board may actually make a better sideboard plan, it's kinda a personal style bias to want a more interesting main board. So it may not be the best choice for competitive play.

Was reading your description to figure out how to Sideboard and thought you might not realise that if Arashin Sovereign is Exiled you can't put it back into your graveyard as it doesn't actually "die".

Sorry I meant library, not graveyard.

That's were Evolutionary Leap comes in. With 4 in the mainboard I expect to draw it most games. I use it to 'save' all my creatures from exile or any other effects.

The only thing that gets around it that I know of is Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet

Yeah the static effect of Kalitas is pretty fierce.

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/08-04-16-Ann-nissa-gideon-and-lots-of-deathmist-raptors/#c2613411 This my deck idea

all the BEST cards!!!!!!

im going to ask for all these cards for my birthday edck

Thanks newb_mage If you want to share a deck idea on the site use the "Embed Code" button on the left navigation section of your decks page. I'll share yours that way for you...

My deck:

Nissa, Gideon, and lots of Deathmist Raptors copy

Standard* newb_mage

1 COMMENT | 4 VIEWS

Anyways, I took a quick look over your deck already and well, it's kinda shit. You have 62 cards, and it looks like you just sided in all the highest cost cards, but you cut two forest's?? and there is a random Heroes' Bane??? This needs to remain a standard legal deck. Maybe take another look at it? thanks though

If anyone else is interested in copying this deck and modifying it to their liking, feel free to post a link in the comments, thanks!

Nice deck design. It seems to have an answer for almost everything. Might want to consider another anti enchantment card for the side as white and black decks will likely bring them from their side to counter you(Silkwrap, Virulent Plague). I know you have 3 commands main, but using the anti-enchantment spells can sometimes give you back a card, or more importantly allow your tokens to exist. Since your deck has lots of token generation I would imagine that the plague would be a big threat to your deck and you need to draw something to handle it.

razelfark I agree, but I'm not willing to give up anything to make room. I also don't generally like the idea of sideboarding hate cards against opponents hate cards. My strategy against Virulent Plague is to just side out Nissa, Voice of Zendikar and Secure the Wastes. Gideon, Ally of Zendikar can be played around Virulent Plague, this way the opponents big sideboard card is dead.

Sounds like a plan. I see how you could do that also. I just know a lot of players too stubborn to side in that fashion.

Also just noticed you decided not to run Oath of Gideon. Thoughts?

Oath of Gideon only seemed good if I played it turn three into Gideon, Ally of Zendikar. Every other point in a game I'd rather have something else. It doesn't really add much to Nissa, Voice of Zendikar either.

The card didn't seem like a bad option for your deck, but I understand your reasoning. Thanks for input.

This deck can't keep up with the new bant company deck that everyone is playing. Playtested against it multiple times and this deck just can't beat the tempo swing that deck throws at you. Sideboard needs to adjust for that deck asap

Thanks davecalhoun3, I went looking for that deck and found that a Bant Company deck was played by the 1st place winner at SCG Baltimore. That deck is scary, I don't think there's anyway I could give myself much of an advantage against it without drastically changing this deck. I don't like the idea of just sideboarding a bunch of Hallowed Moonlight's, is there anything better people have come up with?

With my deck as-is, my strategy would be to sideboard for maximum creature and token count, adding all the flyers because that's the only way to get through their wall of creatures. If I'm able to stabalize, Gideon emblems could pump my side big enough to hold them back while making my 1/1 flyers big enough to win. It's going to be very tough for me though.

Anyone have any ideas about how to combat Bant Company?

You could always use a board wiper with your deck. You have so few creatures in the main board and all of them can be recurred. So going with Planar Outburst for the side deck might work. Would not recommend Tragic Arrogance because this will likely hurt you more then help. The assumption for suggesting the board wipe is that you will survive long enough by using token fodder, then when they fill the board and you can reset the board state. This means you have potential advantage when you reset the board because your planeswalkers can survive and repopulate the board.

Best I got I am afraid. The nice thing about putting the Outburst into the side is that you will have an answer for other decks that go wide and have a reset button for the board.

I know this will sound weird but have you considered Evolving Wilds for the deck? The reason why I am suggesting this land that can be a bit slow to use is because it can help your sidedeck card Topplegeist. As it stands you have a chance to make him active with all types of cards but land. Since you also run so few creatures and the nature of your creatures they might not stay in your grave to count for the delirium effect. Since you also don't have anything really to be concerned about playing for your first 2 turns, the land entering tapped should not hurt too much.

Hope these suggestions were useful.

I've been thinking about the coming GP, and realized my Crush of Tentacles deck I've been casually working on for a while is actually very well positioned against the expected meta. It also happens to be an ultra budget deck that would destroy this deck pretty easy. check it out:

Wave of Tentacles. no-kill aggro flyers $30

Standard* PlagueRats

SCORE: 5 | 80 VIEWS

I've been thinking about how great Ulvenwald Hydra is in this deck, I'm going to try swapping it for the 4th Declaration in Stone from the side to the main board

Ulvenwald Hydra is the best! It will be at least a 7/7 with reach after its ETB ability of fetching Westvale Abbey  ^Flip resolves, in a deck full of suicidal Deathmist Raptors, Den Protectors, and tokens. The biggest defensive creature Ulvenwald Hydra and the biggest offensive creature Westvale Abbey  ^Flip for the price of one card. Evolutionary Leap has increasingly great odds of drawing the one Ulvenwald Hydra out of the eight other creature cards the longer the game goes.

Well, I didn't win the GP, but the deck was good. I finished with 11 points. I felt well matched against everything I faced, a lot of good pro decks played by good players. Ulvenwald Hydra was great, I was always happy to draw that. Westvale Abbey  ^Flip is risky though, I think I lost every game I flipped it!

The only changes I'm making after today are going up one forest down one plains, and swapping the second Arashin Sovereign for the 4th Avatar of the Resolute. Avatar is really good now, with one counter it trades with Archangel Avacyn  ^Flip and I was playing it as a 6/5 or bigger most games. I liked Arashin Sovereign, but one is enough.

In 9 matches the only card I never sided in was World Breaker and I don't think it would have ever really helped.

"Avatar is really good now.." That comment is so silly. When was that card bad ever? Even without +1/+1 counters its is a strong value card for its mana.

Shame to hear your deck didn't end out doing better, but at least it didn't do horrible. Wish you the best with your future games.

I actually constructed this deck because I loved your previous iteration of it. Had some questions.

The deck is meant to be played a bit controlly yes? I've found in many of my matchups I have trouble against flying. How do you deal with that?

I have to admit, I was definitely playing this wrong to begin with. Your explanation makes a lot more sense. My assumption is that on the Den Protector flip you return Deathmist Raptor face up most times? If you've got one Deathmist Raptor in play already, it might make sense to return the other face down to evade Declaration in Stone.

The deck does play a bit like a control deck in the sense that your playing reactively. I think of it as an anti-control deck.

Against game one aggro flyers (if that's a thing somewhere?) You will probably lose. From the side board you can go up to 8 2-drop removal spells and add the 4x Avatar of the Resolute. Along with some of your own threats you should stand a chance of holding off a lot of flyers. I'd likely side in all the aggro creatures to keep the pressure on.

This deck is never a true aggro deck, it's aggro enough to beat decks vulnerable to that but it's more a mid range deck that's just big enough to stop most aggro.

The deck is well positioned against the flyers people seem to be commonly playing today. This deck has enough answers to Archangel Avacyn  ^Flip in the main deck, 6 removal spells plus the Ulvenwald Hydra eats Angels, and fetches Westvale Abbey  ^Flip which also eats Angels.

I've actually never played a face down Deathmist Raptor. There are times like you say where it would be the best play, but ideally you'd spend that mana just sac'ing both Raptors to Evolutionary Leap in response to Declaration in Stone.

As a side note: I'm thinking I'll go back to 4 main deck Evo Leaps and only one Hydra, but that Hydra seemed to overpreform every time I cast it.

Ahhh, I didn't see your recent addition of Ulvenwald Hydra. Yeah, I like that!

I know the trick you have working with Evolutionary Leap and the small number of creature cards, but have you considered Archangel Avacyn  ^Flip? Her hype is deserved.

Also, Dragonlord Dromoka out of the sideboard has been amazing for me! It dodges a lot of the common played removal and outclasses all other flyers being played. Stasis Snare, Declaration in Stone, and Anguished Unmaking are the only "kill spells" being played that hits short of a board wipe and those are often spent on earlier played creatures. some decks simply cannot beat it.

I can't bring myself to play a card that kills almost everything in my own deck even if it saved everything the turn before. Archangel Avacyn  ^Flip is also which would compromise the mana base. Gideon is easier to cast with 4 Oath of Nissa. If I already owned a set of Avacyn's I would probably find a way to justify it though or maybe just play the GW tokens list that's winning all the recent tournaments.

Dragonlord Dromoka would be my first choice of big threat after Arashin Sovereign and Ulvenwald Hydra which suit the decks strategy better and can defend against everything. Dromaka doesn't survive Westvale Abbey  ^Flip or Dragonlord Atarka, but ya it beats everything else.

While it is true that the card can kill your own things, I have found this to be a rare case as you control when she enters. Also, Gideon emblems and Nissa counters can quickly get your creatures out of range anyways. If you use her wisely, her upside far outways the few times it may bite you. I am not talking about taking out Gideon but running it alongside. Double white is a real deal but it is normally a late game play.

Point is, if you get the chance, at least try it out once. Even playing a singleton copy changes things up when your playing Den Protector.

Forgot about those two flyers! Oops!