The Senate
This deck has undergone a number of changes and this is how it stands at the moment; strong, consistent, proud and following all the laws regarding the current standard format (abiding by the law is of course of upmost importance for any planeswalker).
Land of the Azorius
The land in a two colour deck is, more often than not, strait forward. This deck runs 25 land, some U/W control run upwards of 28 or even 29 but none really below 25. The reason Ive gone for 25 is that I run a good amount of cheap draw power and although the deck shouldnt get into trouble, if it does it can find its way out very well.
It runs the staple 4x Hallowed Fountain 4x Glacial Fortress
It also runs 7x Islands and 7x Plains. It runs no
Azorius Guildgate
. The reason being that the mana is consistent enough and that having them never felt necessary and the fact it came in tapped was nothing but a penalty.
Being only two colours does also mean that I can run a couple special land at almost no penalty or cost of consistency.
It runs 1x Cavern of Souls 2x Ghost Quarter
The single Cavern which names Angel allows a safer casting of Angel of Serenity. The Quarters clear the field of opponent land which otherwise can cause a problem, lands such as Vault of the Archangel,
Stensia Bloodhall
, Cavern of Souls and the like.
Power of the Law
Blue/White has a strong array of spells at its disposal; its all about balance and proper use. Here is how the deck plays.
Control
Control is what this deck centres around, giving the opponent few options and answering the questions that they present.
Azorius Charm is one of my favourite cards in the deck. It deals with early threats in a very nice way, it gets threats off the board and gives the opponent a dead draw.
Vs +
By no means are Gravecrawler and Delver of Secrets
the biggest threats the charm deals with but are a couple of my favourites. Gravecrawler cant take advantage of the card advantage it brings by being cast in from the graveyard and Delver of Secrets
has to flip once more.
The deck runs 2x Detention Sphere and 1x Oblivion Ring. They deal with any early threat that is thrown your way. The Sphere deals with tokens and a mass of creatures whereas the O-ring is there to deal with your opponents single threats (planeswalkers or legendary creatures etc) and to deal with opponents Spheres which are holding your Tamiyo, the Moon Sage and Angel of Serenitys captive.
Dissipate
has edged out Syncopate and made its way into the main deck. I found Syncopate underwhelming and I was almost always paying more than three for it.
Dissipate
is also stronger against control decks which hold a lot of mana open.
The 4 main deck Terminus and single Supreme Verdict make short work of mid-range decks, and with good draws can pull you a mile ahead of aggro and beat down. Terminus is my favourite wrath, It rids you of threats you dont want in the graveyard (such as Gravecrawler and reanimation targets).
Nothing really needs to be said about Tamiyo, the Moon Sage, she single-handedly shapes the battlefield.
Another card which needs no introduction is Snapcaster Mage, versatility alone makes him a beast but as a 2/1 with flash he can trade with almost any zombie or cackler that is thrown at him.
The Draw
The Draw in this deck consists of four main pieces.
+ + +
Each of them have their own talent,
Think Twice
has flashback, which gives you many more chances of hitting your miracles during your opponents turn.
Jace, Architect of Thought
has versatility and large card draw, its also got its uses against aggro and control. Sphinx's Revelation is just a very strong card which can put you too far ahead of your opponent for them to catch up.
Then there is
Though Scour
, which I love.
+
With both Snapcaster Mage to re hit the sorcery and instants and Angel of Serenity to return your creatures you get real value out of Thought Scour. Its also only one mana and can help you to hit your miracles on your opponents turn.
Win Condition
This decks runs two main win conditions, Entreat the Angels and Angel of Serenity. Each in their own right hit extremely hard and can win single-handed if the opponent doesnt have a very quick answer.
The Sideboard
Here is a very quick rundown.
The Sideboard runs additional
Dissipate
, Tamiyo, the Moon Sage, Supreme Verdict and Detention Sphere in match ups where they work most effective.
The Jace, Memory Adept if there for milling out the control decks.
Knight of Glory
mainly for against B/X aggro, Zombies etc.
Against most control decks I bring in both my
Knight of Glory
s and Geist of Saint Trafts, this turns my deck much more aggressive and gives a more tempo feel with a big end game.
This is also how I play against the extremely fast RDWs. I bring in my fast cards and then use my Azorius Charm to give my team lifelink to keep me ahead.
End of the Road
Any ideas or views on the deck please leave a comment. As the deck progresses I will update with how it matches up against other decks and how the deck will change through time.
Long live Isperia, the Supreme Judge and true ruler over Ravnica, the City of Guilds.
- Frederick.