When she has to choose between 3 unsavory men?
Garruk, Apex Predator is a mindless serial killer brute; Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker is a idol-crazed emo hitler; and Xenagos, the Reveler is so self-obsessed that he can't even see when he's falling. Seriously, Nissa, Worldwaker is just beside herself with a whole lot of "UGH".
SCRAPPED.
Rotated.
Currently under testing, so the deck listed above could be nothing like the description shown below.
There is no clear win condition for this deck. So many cards can be the winning card in a variety of situations. It is up to the deck pilot to be able to understand when and how each card should be used in which situations.
The simplest of things to start with are our mana accelerators. Elvish Mystic and Sylvan Caryatid are very simple to understand. Elvish Mystic is a vital turn one play to gain the upper hand over my opponent, while Sylvan Caryatid presents superior mana fixing while also being a really good blocker against aggro.
As for other creatures, Hornet Nest and Courser of Kruphix are both relatively easy to understand in their inclusion, but there is a lot to say about them. Hornet Nest is a superb blocker, allowing me to put a halt to any advance with its deathtouch creatures. Since these deathtouch creatures have flying, this also is my anti-flying card.
Courser of Kruphix allows for getting into the deck a few cards more than what you normally would. By having Courser of Kruphix on the field, you make sure to play the land from the top of your deck whenever you can before you play the ones in your hand. This playing from the top of the deck style actually counts as drawing an additional card, and card advantage is always always good. Having the first card of your deck revealed allows you to utilize fetches much more effectively, leaving them until the card you would draw next turn is something you would not want. This helps to maximum the amount of effective plays by removing a portion of the bad draws presented by the random nature of magic. As a bonus, the card is an effective deterrent against aggro decks thanks to it being a really good blocker and with its life gain. And when the situation provides it, you can use it to chip away to victory!
Now lets look at all of our instants and sorceries. Hero's Downfall is always really easy to understand, and it is really effective in a planeswalker and creature heavy meta. Lightning Strike is the current standard's version of Lightning Bolt. We all know how good Lightning Bolt is, but there is an additional benefit in being able to remove 3 creatures at once by striking my own Hornet Nest at instant speed. That is something I'll always enjoy doing.
Finally, Crater's Claws gives one side of this deck's name, and a purpose for all this mana. While being sorcery speed is a downfall to the card, the sheer power it presents makes up for it. Dealing 5+ damage directly to their face can mean an instant win, but I can also remove almost any creature and any planeswalker. It is the ultimate late-game versatility card! But what is really awesome about this is putting 10 damage into my own Hornet Nest means I can literally decimate my opponent with flyers the entire game, no matter their board state.
Read the Bones is an upgrade over Sign in Blood in both mana needed and dig power. A cost of makes Sign in Blood quite hard to effectively use in all situations in this standard, so Read the Bones is quite nice in that I can use it more effectively, and the converted mana cost isn't an issue with all the mana I have. The added bonus is being able to effectively abuse the top deck sight of Courser of Kruphix, allowing me to use Read the Bones at a more effective time if I need the next card right away, or if I really don't want the next card. It helps strengthen the consistency of this deck by eliminating the randomness that results in weak draws.
Finally, lets look at the planeswalkers. Xenagos, the Reveler has proved his worth for this deck. Whether it be mana acceleration into a Crater's Claws or Empty the Pits, or just constantly generating a stream of tokens, he has shown to provide a winning push for this deck. The mana acceleration also helps to get back the mana I spent casting him, allowing me to advance in the board state much faster than normal. The tokens, also helping the mana acceleration, are an excellent aggro deterent, chump blocker, and win condition. They also help protect Xenagos, the Reveler the moment he comes out to the field, meaning he's more than just a one turn wonder.
Garruk, Apex Predator allows for a much needed life gain boost when it destroys a creature. Thanks to the heavy toughness against a lot of decks, this life gain is really useful. He's like a Hero's Downfall on a stick that gains life and produces 3/3 deathtouch tokens. Not too mention is ult makes him a vicious beast.
Nissa, Worldwaker is really nice in that her first ability is permanent. a 4/4 trample that can tap for mana is always powerful, but if she stays then I can ramp later on, or get even MORE attackers. Finally, her ult is another method of instantly winning the game.
And lastly, Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker once again denounces his mardu origins for the dragon style of jund! Always an instant presence, he is either a 5 mana Crater's Claws or an indestructible Stormbreath Dragon. A control card on one hand, or a win condition on the other. As a bonus, his +1 allows Crater's Claws to be ferocious! That's an extra 2 damage right there, allowing me to use it for just the one mana if I do so desire. His ult, when paired with all my mana, is a really boon. 3 cards every single turn means control, wins, every time. Jund control, wins even harder. But regardless, the versatility of Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker allows me to abuse him however I like in any situation, as he can be used in any situation~
And now for a little explanation on the sideboard. This will get fleshed out after about 4 months once the meta fleshes out some more.
Back to Nature is excellent at removing theros' plethora of enchantments. KTK also brings in quite a few thanks to their Ascendancies. Having this is quite effective, and it doesn't hinder me much as all I have is Courser of Kruphix.
Bile Blight is against the token aggro decks, mainly Mardu ones.
Hornet Queen is being used as the prominent anti flying card, and is also really useful against a mass of tokens.
Thoughtseize is here if there ever becomes a card that really defines a deck archetype, meaning it is that one card that MUST be dealt with before the game gets going. So far, standard is really nicely done in that this doesn't seem to happen. /p>
Tormod's Crypt is used here to get rid of opposing delve mechanics and other "graveyard matters" cards.
Unravel the Aether is to be used against the indestructible gods. It can also be used against other forms of enchantments and artifacts, but it's main focus is against the gods, particularly Keranos, God of Storms and Purphoros, God of the Forge.
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