Deck Description
My idea for this deck is to have a mostly casual Landfall/Aristocrats/Loam deck built around etb/death effects to fetch lands and recur permanents for value. However, I'm having trouble building it, mostly with the whole "100 cards exactly" restriction...
It's mostly focused on self-sacrifice from cards like Qasali Pridemage to recur with Othelm, Sigardian Outcast and similar effects, but with a light number of other sacrifice outlets that help me chug along.
I'm struggling to find cuts while keeping the deck's themes balanced. I'll list the themes and rank their importance below
Core Synergies
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Self Sacrifice ie: Qasali Pridemage or Ranger-Captain of Eos
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Land Sacrifice/Tutor ie: Knight of the Reliquary or Springbloom Druid this overlaps with self Sacrifice with creatures like Sakura-Tribe Elder
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Recursion ie: Second Sunrise or Renegade Rallier
This theme also overlaps with self-sacrifice in Priest of Fell Rites and Saffi Eriksdotter
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Aristocat(ish) Support ie: Woe Strider or Phyrexian Tower an example of a card that sacrifices a creature and can also recur creatures is Ruthless Technomancer
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Landfall ie: Avenger of Zendikar or Ancient Greenwarden there is overlap with aristocrats support here in Bloodghast and Skyclave Shade as well as even Scute Swarm providing token fodder
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Finally is the Food/Clue package which is relatively small but overlaps with each of the other categories so I'll just list all those cards here:
Not only does it bolster our landfall, sacrifice outlets it provides sac fodder and lots of value. So while I think the package isn't integral to the deck, it already has its fingers in every part, and with Wernog, Rider's Chaplain as a commander, I'd be leaving a ton of value on the table if I didn't fit Academy Manufactor and friends into the 98.
The Numbers
I know that I want 37-38 lands total, so those shouldn't be too hard to cut, but I do think I need get to 35-38 creatures (Grist counts) and I'm having trouble deciding what to get rid of while still maintaining function and deck identity.
That would leave around 22-26 slots for anything noncreature, nonland.
Maybe(?)board
More Saffi combos
More Removal
More Mulch
Bigger Boys
Second Sunrise + Zuran Orb Combo
Even More Sunrises
More Altruists
More Tutors
Wernog Repeaters
Actual Aristocrats
Everything cut from the deck, viewable in the Changelog below, should be considered as in the Maybeboard as well
Suggestions for additions and/or cuts would be really appreciated, thanks!
Changelog
-Feasting Troll King
- This is the worst of the big fatties, the reanimation is super nice but not the focus of the deck, so I wanted to prioritize those over the king.
-Path of Discovery
- While the self mill is nice, and since there are ways of making tokens in this deck it's definitely possible to get a lot of value from this, there are already several 4 cost cards that are much more important to the core strategies of the deck.
-Squandered Resources +Reprocess
- While squandered is way cheaper and can sit around to be used whenever, reprocess can sac creatures and artifacts, which is a good way of using up foods/clues that I may never get around to cracking otherwise.
-Gyome, Master Chef
- I really hate cutting Gyome but the other 4 drops are more core to the deck's identity. This is maybe the first card I'd try to slot back into the deck.
-Castle Garenbrig -Castle Ardenvale
- I can only have so many colorless and monocolored utility lands and Castle Locthwain is the most attractive of the 3, though I do like Ardenvale a lot.
+Nissa of Shadowed Boughs
- Synergistic and very swag, gotta make room
-Stitcher's Supplier
- Self mill is really nice, and Supplier is good at it but there are a couple other ways of mulching which does the job and gets a land. I'm down to the cuts that really hurt and this is one, but it likely doesn't have a huge effect on the performance.
-Wood Elves
- This is a super weird cut, I know, but I'd rather have the creatures that sac themselves or sac lands to get more lands. Again, this hurts but I have a lot of redundant effects.
-Selfless Spirit
-Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest
- Who needs win conditions? But really I think I'm going to be looking to have my wins come from huge Scapeshift turns with Titania, Protector of Argoth, Field of the Dead or Avenger of Zendikar. Plus, Gavony Township is basically Mazirek... right? While he synergizes with the overall sacrifice themes, he doesn't help make sacrifices or land drops, and doesn't benefit from lands either, doesn't recur things etc. If I can grind long enough with recursion and card draw, I'll find a way to win without him hopefully.
-Cabal Coffers
-Traverse the Ulvenwald
- With self mill being a small part of the plan, I think it'll be pretty hard to get delirium. I could see myself needing more tutors though, I'm looking at you, Eladamri's Call
-Hostile Hostel
- A cool card but really just a bad High Market, and I don't know that I need more land based sac outlets than Phyrexian Tower, since so many of my creatures can sac themselves.
-Swamp
- I don't know if there are enough basics in the deck, but now there's one fewer.
-Agadeem's Awakening
- What use do I have for a land that's not a land? Obviously this is a good card but it's just a bad swamp when it's a land, which is what it will be used for mostly, and I already have enough bad swamps for one deck.
That makes 100 cards exactly! Some of the numbers may be off (I would ideally have more fetches), but every update to this Changelog from here on out will have an addition along with a subtraction!
-Thespian's Stage +Misty Rainforest
- I think having another fetch is better than copying something like a field of the dead.
-Cauldron Familiar +Cavalier of Night
- I'm not looking to combo really, so the cat is kind of underwhelming just as a little guy. I think with Othelm, Sigardian Outcast, Bloodghast, Skyclave Shade as well as the tokens from Ulvenwald Mysteries, Grist, the Hunger Tide, Scute Swarm, Avenger of Zendikar, Architect of Restoration
, Westvale Abbey
and Field of the Dead there will be enough fodder being tossed around that I won't be missing a little recursive dinker too badly.
