I would NEVER replace Saruli Gatekeepers with Heroes' Reunion . The Keepers offer so much more than life gain... a 2/4 blocker is huge against aggro decks, which is one of the hardest matchups for me.

I have tried Prophet of Kruphix . All of my opponent's removal would target her once available. Players normally do not waste a Hero's Downfall on Saruli Gatekeepers or Gatecreeper Vine . I would also hesitate to drop a Supreme Verdict or Merciless Eviction with the Prophet out. I may sideboard her to bring in after game 1, as most players side out their removal when they can because it is useless in this deck.

I think I will use 2-3 shock lands (1 Breeding Pool , 1 Hallowed Fountain , and maybe 1 Temple Garden , for variety) instead of a few Gates (Rakdos Guildgate and Boros Guildgate , I'm looking at you). Obviously I will keep at least 1 of each gate.

I have been perfectly content with 24 lands and 2 Gatecreeper Vine . Urban Evolution really helps me dig when I need a land, and I often will mulligan a hand with less than 3 lands (or if it has no green).

Has anyone seen the new Kiora spoiler? I think she will find a good home in this deck, replacing both Jace, Architect of Thought and Jace, Memory Adept .

What's the card who's pictured at the top of the page?

The featured card is the latest reprint of Maze of Ith . I felt it had more appropriate artwork over Maze's End .

plus one for mazes end

But how awesome would it be if you ran all fog effects plus planswalkers, it would be pretty sick to be honest

The problem is that Fog is the only one that prevents damage to Planeswalkers. I have ran Jace, Memory Adept , Jace, Architect of Thought , and Ral Zarek in this deck before, but they never lasted long enough to do what I wanted out of them. I only added Kiora, the Crashing Wave because she can protect herself with her +1 OR I get an extra card and a land for a turn.

What's everyone's opinion on Kiora, the Crashing Wave ?

As to Kiora, have you seen that ultimate?

-1 Temple Garden -1 Breeding Pool (not guildgates, don't count towards Maze's End )

-1 Bow of Nylea (you don't need deathtouch)

-1 AEtherling (It's not good here)

Replace Swan Song with Dissolve , as that bird will kill you.

Move Crackling Perimeter from side to main

You need creature defenders. A 1/1 with hexproof (Gladecover Scout ) and you're done.

At the least, this deck will take 8 turns to win. I've seen decks in FNM that can win in two.

I like it, +1! You may want to run 4x Kiora, the Crashing Wave though. She is kind of the back bone of this deck, and she's an excellent 2nd wincon.

@MCY998: Temple Garden and Breeding Pool were included if I needed a turn 4 Supreme Verdict or if I need to cast a Fog spell on curve. They are very useful in this deck.

I don't use Bow of Nylea for deathtouch... I don't have any creatures mainboard. I use it for recurring life gain, Fog recycling, and the occasional sniping of Chandra's Phoenix .

I do agree on AEtherling . Crackling Perimeter and Kiora, the Crashing Wave should be enough for alternate win conditions.

How does one Gladecover Scout mean I'm "done"? I have 16 fog spells (Fog , Druid's Deliverance , Defend the Hearth , and Riot Control ) that prevent damage from all creatures, and 6 board wipes Supreme Verdict and Merciless Eviction ) that destroy all creatures. I find hexproof decks to be some of the easiest to deal with, tbh.

What deck can win on T2 in standard format? Aggro decks fold to Fog spells and board wipes. If I can make it to turn 4 I can stabilize and easily take over the game against an aggro deck. Slower decks like U/W control and MBD have a tough time dealing with Fog effects.

@Saljen: I had considered running 4x Kiora, the Crashing Wave but I did not want to go below 16 Fog effect to do so. She is easily removed and is not always useful. I think 2-3 is the sweet spot.

I think -3x Divination and + 2x Kiora, the Crashing Wave and +1x Urban Evolution would be good. They both draw better than divination and have the added bonus of extra lands.

This might sound horrible put Dirty could help for getting cards out of library? Better than Bow of Nylea . :/

Saljen: I originally had 4 Urban Evolution but felt it's high CMC got in the way. Against MBD and Orzhov Midrange I need draw on turns 3/4, not 5/6. I will definitely consider running 4x Kiora, the Crashing Wave , though. It is a very good card in this deck. I just need to get two more copies :P

archemonde: Bow of Nylea is used primarily for life gain. It is also MUCH better than Down / Dirty as it provides a recurring effect. I don't want to return Guildgates to my hand - I want them in my deck so I can fetch them with Maze's End .

Could you post some playtesting results? I think I might be switching to this list from my original.

I've been doing very well with the deck so far! I haven't been able to go 4-0 at FNM yet, but I go 3-1 often enough.

RDW and U/W control have been the easiest matchups. There are plenty of Fog s to keep aggro creatures at bay. If I can make it to turn 4 then I can stabilize and take the game. U/W control has nothing to interact with mainboard, and cannot stop Maze's End without bringing in a Pithing Needle . Always side in Crackling Perimeter against control decks.

R/W burn has been tough because of Skullcrack , which is why I have both Swan Song and Negate in the sideboard. I am considering Dispel over Swan Song , but then it wouldn't stop Thoughtseize or Duress .

Mono-Black control and B/W midrange have been the toughest matchups, imo. Thoughtseize , Duress , and Sin Collector hit this deck pretty hard. If we lose our draw then we lose the game!

+1 for the Featured Card alone and all.

I have a similar build like yours here A-MAZE-ing Gates except that I run Sphinx's Revelation which has helped me won a lot of times and I got 2 Crackling Perimeter and 3 Detention Sphere ratio. My sideboard packs with lots of counters too.

I played the deck at a local standard event last night, going 3-1. My only loss was game 1 against a Boros burn build... I just couldn't keep up! The Swan Song s in from the sideboard definitely helped but they weren't enough. I think I will add 3-4 Negate to the sideboard as well. Any thoughts on this?

What's your answer to Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver ? Or Demolish

Against Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver and Nightveil Specter I side in Crackling Perimeter as an alternate win condition. I have never seen someone use Demolish at an FNM event, but it is easy enough to play around with an alternate win condition.

The card I am most afraid of is Burning Earth .

No one's playing Burning Earth . Even if you run into it, your entire sideboard is anti-Burning Earth ; Crackling Perimeter 's activation doesn't trigger it, Swan Song counters it, Saruli Gatekeepers and Bow of Nylea minimize its effect (to a certain degree, though I wouldn't side them in against it specifically), and Negate counters it.

But then again, no one's playing Burning Earth .

Also, Kiora's +1 turns off Burning Earth from when you use her ability at the start of your main-phase to the beginning of your next turn.

Huh, I didn't think about using Kiora, the Crashing Wave to stop Burning Earth . I keep 2 copies in the sideboard of my R/W Burn deck so I guess I expect to see it on occasion.

After getting spanked by R/W Burn decks over and over, I have made the switch from Saruli Gatekeepers to Heroes' Reunion - something I never thought I would do. Faster life gain and counters keep burn decks in check while I stabilize. If i can make it to turn 5 then the game is usually mine.

What do you think about Into the Wilds ?

I tried Into the Wilds for a while but ultimately decided to remove it. The earliest we can play it is on turn 5, and that would meant we have no mana left for a Fog spell. It just slows down an already very slow deck!

Very, very cool deck! Exactly my kind of deck - hold and control and win

I might try it in a few months, once I tire of my new deck (You shall not pass!)

I got another question - which is the featured card you put for this deck? I loved that labirinth art, but I couldnt find it in none of the cards...