So!
This is a Competitive Standard play Morph deck.
Yes. Competitive.
And FUN competitive. Seriously, this deck is a blast to play. Morph adds a new level of complexity to the mindgames you play with your opponent - which in my opinion is the best aspect in the game of Magic, the Gathering. Along with the intrinsic mystery of the morph mechanic, this deck has so many nuanced little synergies that take it to the next level. I'll explain each card and its role in the deck below:
Deathmist Raptor: The archstone creature of the deck. It is a recurring deathtouch nightmare. It synergizes with almost everything in the deck. Has an especially nice combo with Monastery Siege where the siege can dump the raptor for discard, setting yourself up for a free creature when you next unmorph a creature. End of turn unmorphs can also generate free hasty raptors. Yikes.
Den Protector: Arguably the best morph card in standard right now. She is very useful for retrieving spells you could really use in the mid-late game. Also will result in infinite recursion antics with just 2 of her available. She also has some nice evasion, which can really be utilized well with pump from Trail of Mystery for an unblockable 5 damage at least. She is now rightfully included as a full set in the deck.
Dragon's Eye Savants: Included for its aggro deterrent characteristics. A 0/6 body provides some buying time against fast decks while also allowing it to be useful in other situations due to its morph capability.
Elvish Mystic: Ramp.
Rattleclaw Mystic: Even better ramp. Perfect for a turn 3 morph, then turn 4 unmorph for 2 extra mana to hard cast Sagu Mauler 2 turns early. OR, if you're lucky and have both mystics and the sagu in hand: Turn one Elvish Mystic, turn two face-down Rattleclaw Mystic, turn three Sagu Mauler sweetness.
Sagu Mauler: One of the most difficult creatures to deal with in standard right now. Difficult to remove it, 6/6 body, and trample to plow through the blockers. It almost always spells disaster for your opponent. If played on turn three, victory is imminent.
Temur Charger: Not strictly the best option out there, but it's ability to surprise morph is a huge advantage and worthy of a 2 of in this deck. EDIT: as much as I adore this card, it has been removed to make room for the full set of Den Protectors.
Whisperwood Elemental: generates board advantage FAST if not taken care of. Good synergy with Trail of Mystery. Also has a very nice board wipe protection ability. Only a two of because it is quickly removed/countered in almost all settings and this deck focuses on recursion/hexproof wincons.
Disdainful Stroke: Good counter for those pesky Siege Rhinos and Thunderbreak Regents, and any other big spells, of course.
Epic Confrontation: a fight removal spell not to be underestimated. Better than Savage Punch as it guarantees the extra +2 toughness, which often keeps you from trading in a fight. EDIT: has been removed for a full set of Reality Shift. Good spell, but reality shit has instant speed exile capacity which is proving to be very important in the meta.
Monastery Siege: Provides the necessary card advantage for the deck. Synergizes excellently with Deathmist Raptor as mentioned above. Also has great synergy with Trail of Mystery as the trail can provide excess lands in hand to use for discard so you get to keep all the spells you want.
Polymorphist's Jest: A very fun spell. Use it wisely and it can perform like a pseudo In Garruk's Wake. It will take out hexproof and indestructible alike! Say goodbye Fleecemane Lion. Also very useful for taking down flyers after they commit to attacking.
Reality Shift: Excellent permanent removal. Gives your opponent a 2/2 creature but this is almost always not much of a problem. Can also in a rare occasion be used on your own creatures, which can be advantageous if you scry before doing so.
Trail of Mystery: This is the machine of this deck. It gets you lands in hand (allowing the deck to drop to 22 lands), thins out the deck and provides excellent pump for your creatures. Don't underestimate the pump either. It creates terrible uncertainty for your opponents when choosing blockers. A simple manifested land could very well be an imminent 8/8 Sagu Mauler in waiting.
Overall, the typical game-plan of the deck is to use the morph mechanic to keep your opponents guessing while you ramp into a Sagu Mauler or Whisperwood Elemental by using Rattleclaw Mystic or just keep a reanimation cycle of Deathmist Raptors going. And if something doesn't go your way and you lose a key piece in your machine, Den Protector is right there to pull you up by your bootstraps and keep you smiling.
While I think this deck is great it does have its weaknesses. The major issue of this deck is that is weak to aggressive decks. It takes a few turns to get the morph mechanic up and running at full speed and sometimes that leads to being outpaced by fast decks. AEtherspouts and Hornet Nest are my 2 main options in the sideboarded for these matchups. The deck is also weak to fast hitting flyers like Mantis Rider. A well-timed Polymorphist's Jest can work wonders for that but I've also sideboarded Windstorm to help. Disdainful Stroke works very well against midrange/dragon decks and against control Stratus Dancer comes in with Negate.
I really think this deck can be very successful in standard, but I am of course always looking for improvements! So if you have any comments or suggestions, they are Very Welcome!!
Thanks for reading!
