Hehe, for sure. I didn't know you could hide comments? I thought you could only get rid of them via updates or clearing them.

Constructive you say? This deck is bullshit!

..Nah, can't even pretend to be mean. This list is going into the "Other Folk's Cool Decks" folder for sure. Would you consider City of Brass instead of Gemstone? I figure land isn't really an issue for you, so it might be a none issue and the life loss might be worse than saccing the mine come to think of it.

Honestly, I'm a blue player. This is the farthest deck from my "comfort zone" that I've really put a lot of effort into. I tried having "control" elements in it in the form of removal, but found it was better overall to just fully commit to the combo. That's also probably why my control match percentage is so damn good (I'm contemplating removing my only card in the sideboard for it, other than Leyline of Sanctity which is my most important sideboard card) because I think like a control player and know what will get through counterspells and what will not, so I can basically out-think them and catch them off-guard. I also have a lot of anti-control elements in here already that serve other purposes too, so I don't feel a need to commit my board to control matches, since it's really unneeded.

I don't sac Gemstone Mine I return it to hand via a bounce land and reset the counters on it. It is a nice little trick, for sure.

Trust me when I say this, you need to think outside the box when piloting this deck sometimes. It just has so many available plays, and that's why I like it, options. I feel that's the most important thing when it comes to a good deck, a deck that gives you a lot of options.

However, Tendo Ice Bridge is "better" than Gemstone Mine because I'd run out of enough bounce lands to return multiples to hand reliably enough and end up having to sacrifice some, so I can't get too greedy with the whole bounce trick.

It's neat piloting decks you're not used to. I never really played RDW, but I love some brews that have a bit more going on than just burn to the face--little combos etc... Always like having something to do, so I'm not a big fan of seeing a hand with two lightning bolts and no plan B when the game goes downhill.

Favourite way to play is probably some sort of tempo. I very much like playing as efficiently as possible. With some decks, having a nice balance between your cirtters, spells, and their interactions is a good way to be quick and efficient, while others require you to give it all and take big risks. Like both, but calculated/not calculated risks are super fun too!

Haha, that's neat. I just read your last comment and it reminds me of what I said about a plan B--specifically what you said about having options. I was too busy typing the last to read it until now.

One of my favourite cards for options would have to be Magma Jet . Love Remand too. I had a lot of fun in the old standard using R/B Vamps. Not that out there in terms of decks, but man were there ever tons of interactions and unique little strategies you could play.

@emask

I believe the remove comment option is only available to upgraded users, and only on their decks. I can remove anyone's comments on any of my decks, and I believe I only had the option after I upgraded my account. You cannot remove your comments on other people's decks, although I really wish I could sometimes, since I'd like to add something to my post instead of posting 2-3 times more sometimes.

There is a little red "remove" button just to the left of the post number. I never noticed it before I upgraded my account, so I am guessing it is an upgraded feature since you are unaware of it.

...And Bloodchief Ascension . Had much fun with that card in the past. Anyways, sorry for going so off topic! Three comments in a row! That's bad!

Ok then, I don't feel too bad for spamming your deck then!

Yeah, wasn't sure what the benefits were to upgrading, but I'm happy with the free service so far.

No worries, I'll lump this discussion into the hidden update thing in a few days time probably. I generally don't delete other people's comments (haven't deleted one yet) unless it's really inappropriate or something. I don't mind deleting mine though, as I basically repost it with corrected typos, or more/less information.

I might just lump this in the update thing right now actually, and just re-post what I am currently seeking help with haha, so people don't have to read through so much (but they have the option to if they really want to).

I just thought about adding in some options to my sideboard for the transmute on Tolaria West so I could actually search for them in various ways. Engineered Explosives was a no-brainer replacement for a Ratchet Bomb , but I'm a little stuck on if Pact of Negation is worth it or not (would be replacing my Cavern of Souls slot).

The only times I see it being useful is if I were to counter some removal on my titan, but they usually use it before it gets to the attack trigger, so that seems like a pointless reason. I'd be far better off getting a Summoner's Pact anyway if that's the sole reason I wanted it, since the upkeep is way easier to pay for with my manabase.

Does anyone have any arguments for the card? It seemed like it had potential at first glance, but I can't think of any reason to include it, since I can't really see what matches I'd want to side it in for.

My other idea was Living End for when they just keep removing all my creatures until I ate through all the big ones (doesn't happen too often), but that 3 turn wait sort of sucks, I feel I'd die anyway if I was stuck in such a bad situation.

Actually, on closer inspection, Engineered Explosives might be worthy of the main deck, as a catch all answer (for anything under 5 CMC) that I can fairly easily tutor up. It would replace one of my Courser of Kruphix if I decide to go that route, just for reference if someone feels like offering an opinion.

If I do go down that path, I don't need to re-add the Ratchet Bomb it replaced in the sideboard, and I was thinking about replacing Cavern of Souls anyway (I'm surprisingly strong against control), so does anyone have any interesting ideas for what I can add to the side board if I do go through with the swap? My best idea so far is to side out Forest s for other utility lands, but I would rather have more useful cards in the sideboard probably, haha.

I'm pretty excited about this idea, as I already have really good matches with basically every deck build and 2 free sideboard slots is immense.

Any and all opinions/ideas are appreciated, as always.

Methinks you might have answered your own question! :p

Living End does sound like a cool idea indeed. On a random note, would you ever consider Bloodghast or something of the like? Maybe the recurring would spread your opponent's hate out a bit allowing you to stick your threats a bit better. There are cards like Nether Traitor , Knight of the Holy Nimbus , and Epochrasite , but I figured Bloodghast might do better with all the land drops.

Anyways, random idea. Sorry if it's far off! I do like your Living End idea though.

My land base doesn't support double black fast enough for a 2 power body that can't block I don't think. He'd come out when I'm already behind in life if he was my only creature, and at that point the inability to block becomes relevant.

It is a card I haven't even considered though, so that's good (he's a personal favorite in stax decks).

As far as answering my own question goes, I'm not totally sure. I'm sure there's some decks where they win the same turn they resolve something, where a Pact of Negation would be a useful fetch with Primeval Titan . The only thing is, I'm not really aware of all that many decks like that that go off turn 3 or later, which is around when I'll be able to transmute for a pact.

If anyone can come up with examples of such decks, that's basically what I'm looking for.

Twin, Pod, Ad Nauseam

Okay, it seems worth testing then, mostly for the Splinter Twin / Ad Nauseam matches because it's pretty devastating there. In pod, I think they will play Birthing Pod before I can transmute for Pact of Negation in a bunch of cases.

Another deck type came up when I was testing haha, decks that cheat Emrakul, the Aeons Torn into play using either Through the Breach or Polymorph

It actually would have totally beaten them the one game, so I am definitely going to make the switch.

Would Slaughter Pact have any use in the side board? Is there any specific decks that it would be particularly useful against?

I have one "free" slot if I move Engineered Explosives to the sideboard, and that's the only thing I can really think of to fill out the spot.

I'm open to other suggestions too. I could always re-add the second Cavern of Souls too I guess.

A Tormod's Crypt might be useful to transmute to in a pinch.

Any graveyard based decks I mulligan until I hit Leyline of the Void since it totally shuts out the deck and doesn't matter if I'm down to 3 cards or whatever (unless I see a really powerful turn 2-3 win hand in the process). Otherwise that would have been a great idea. Hmm...

I think I'll just leave Engineered Explosives in the sideboard for now. I'll just keep in mind that I can always move it to the mainboard if I ever need to make room, that's all.

Thanks for the suggestions/ideas though.

Description is all up-to-date now.

I can't believe how solid this deck has become, and I genuinely hope someone copies its list and does well in some tournaments so it can become one of "the" builds that always top 8. Sadly, I just don't have the time to do it myself, but I really do hope to see it as a top build someday (I'd get a good laugh if Primeval Titan got banned because it was TOO good).

The only other thought I've been having is that Spellskite might be able to find a home in here. It does great things against a variety of decks, and can also stop removal on my Amulet of Vigor .

I'm just not sure what I can cut for it (if anything) as it is more of a passive creature instead of being proactive like the rest of the deck. It has great synergy, but I don't know if it is enough to warrant replacing anything in either the side or main.

Thanks again to everyone who's helped shape this deck into what it's become, I appreciate all the help.

Merp... Tunnel Ignus ...

The ONLY decks that would even consider running that are RDW with possibly a white splash, which Leyline of Sanctity destroys pretty bad. It would definitely hurt if someone was running a play-set of him, but it wouldn't be the end of the world.

I can always choose not to find lands with Primeval Titan if the burn would end up killing me, and Empyrial Archangel would be another way to get around its effects (shroud means they can't Lightning Bolt it for the kill). It would just be a card I'd have to be weary of when they played, not a "oh crap I lost" type of card. Thankfully, it would be a card that would see play instead of Blood Moon and Magus of the Moon instead of alongside them, since that would probably be a losing match if I didn't kill them fast enough.

Pretty budget deck for modern...