Please help me pick a deck for Origins Game Day
Standard Deck Help forum
Posted on July 11, 2015, 9:12 p.m. by mellisan
I'm currently trying to decide between two very different brews for Origins Game Day. I've been playing Standard at FNM but this will be my first game day event and I'm hoping to do well. :-)
My two deck ideas are:
Jeskai Creatureless Burn
Bant Evolutionary Leap
My meta is primarily Abzan aggro and Abzan control with some Mardu Dragons and BW Warriors. RG was around for a bit but was driven out by the Abzan decks. Several people have talked about playing Goblins at Game Day, so preparing for that is probably a good idea as well. Oh, and there's one 4 Color Whip player.
The Jeskai Burn deck is trying to blank all the single target removal those decks run, and use Pyromancer's Goggles to magnify the burn (copying Steam Augury or Volcanic Vision is fun!), while the Bant deck uses Evolutionary Leap to turn their removal into a replacement creature and dig for the best creature for the situation, and prevents them from exiling your Deathmist Raptors with Abzan Charm, which really kills the engine. I think the Bant deck is running more of the good stuff in Standard right now and is more resilient, and I really like the Yasova Dragonclaw combo with Leap. That green creature shell is something people are going to be prepared to fight though, and the Jeskai deck has a lot more tools for shutting down the graveyard. Despite its mana cost, Burn Away is a great answer to a lot of common threats and prevents any recursion tricks.
I'd greatly appreciate any advice on which shell looks to have more potential and which way I should be heading with it. I'm hoping to settle on a deck this week so I can start actively playtesting and getting used to the deck in the few weeks between release and game day.
Thank you very much!
PS I also considered Temur (Temur Midrange) since that sort of splits the difference and is more resilient to languish with the big guys, but that seems very weak to goblins, since the double red on anger is hard to hit in that shell and your single big creatures can be overwhelmed by the swarm.
My concern would be that Stoke doesn't kill Siege Rhino or Tasigur, and I see a lot of those at my LGS.
I did consider Soulfire Grand Master and Monastery Mentor. They're both very powerful. However playing those gives my opponent targets for their removal, which would otherwise be dead draws. I'm not running a counterspell heavy deck, so it's hard for the deck to play a small number of creatures and force them to stick. That's more of a Draw-Go control tactic. Ojutai seems stronger in that strategy simply because he's much harder to remove. They all die to Languish sadly. I think I would need to retool into the more typical Jeskai Ascendancy aggro deck to make those worthwhile.
I do agree Jeskai Charm would be a strong choice and I'll see where I can fit it in.
What would you cut to add the Coursers into the Bant deck? Courser is good but it's a bit slow, and doesn't block much Abzan throws at you. It also lets you get hit more easily by Dromoka's Command. I think it's worth having in, but I'm not sure I want to draw multiples.
July 11, 2015 10:12 p.m.
Shadowmind24 says... #4
because burn away is so expensive I really don't think your accomplishing to much because even if it does kill rhino and tasigur, your already going to take a hit or two off of them so what about roast? no it doesn't hit players but it kills rhino WAY quicker
also I might cut the yasova from the leap deck and play another courser because although it does die, it allows you to rip though your deck a lot quicker and just generates raw card advantage
July 11, 2015 10:22 p.m.
Being an instant helps against mardu dragons and lets you hit Kholaghan. Plus the graveyard removal is relevant. But maybe 4 is too many and roast would give me more early game against goblins.
I would be sad to cut Yasova but maybe she is under powered even with the combo with leap.
July 11, 2015 10:46 p.m.
Shadowmind24 says... #6
because you have 20 red sources in your deck, what about fated conflagration?
July 12, 2015 9:26 a.m.
I'd have to test to see, but it's a good suggestion. Thank you very much for the card selection feedback. Still need to pick between the decks though. Any further thoughts about which one to use?
July 12, 2015 10:13 a.m.
Don't marry an idea right now. Wait to see how they use the new cards. Abzan has been quite strengthened with Origins so I would recommend going that route. If you don't have the staples for the deck many are in the upcoming clash pack. I highly recommend you get 1-4 of those as there is double the value in cards compared to the MSRP. My "secret" tech is the Priest of the Blood Rite in a renown abzan shell.
The other deck I am considering is a Red Deck Wins with added Goblin Piledriver, Subterranean Scout, and Avaricious Dragon (for card draw in mid game).
Both will be tested for a couple FNMs each at least prior to the gameday events.
Good luck to you!
July 12, 2015 9:56 p.m.
I was not really planning on playing Abzan, though I suppose I could and just hope I'm a better player than everyone else in the mirror. Do you have any thoughts about the decks I designed and which one might be better? I was hoping to play one of those.
Thank you!
July 12, 2015 10:34 p.m.
The problem with creatureless burn is that you will be using your burn spells to control the board instead of going face. Playing creatures allows you to play defense while burning the opponents away with the spells. Jeskai has access to the best offensive/defensive creature in standard, Mantis Rider, USE IT. It's like a Lightning Strike on defense that eats a removal, and if your opponents are spending their mana to kill your mantis rider that's one less creature on their side that you need to deal with with your burn spells. If Mantis Rider sticks and connects twice open up a bottle of champagne cause you've just dealt 6 damage for 3 mana and you still have a creature on defense! Soulfire Grand Master is also a good creature that lets you use the burn spells to go face cause he makes ''life point racing'' a lot better by lifelinking, sometimes creating Siege Rhino gaps with Lightning Strike or even greater gaps with Exquisite Firecraft. Goblin Rabblemaster and Thunderbreak Regent are also worth considering since they most likely do something even if your opponent removes them (leaving a token or dealing 3 damage).
July 13, 2015 4:47 p.m.
The major point is that if you ain't playing creatures your opponent's ain't playing their removal so they will put more pressure by casting all the creatures they can. Trying to blank removal is a card advantage strategy that U/B control decks benefit way more than your Jeskai deck, U/b playing the best removal in the format does not fear Siege Rhino nor planeswalkers and does not have to gamble between going face or removing creatures.
July 13, 2015 4:52 p.m.
OK so a more jeskai aggro style build might be better just cause creatures are more efficient damage dealers than burn spells. That's fair.
So you think that would be stronger than the Bant and Temur decks as well? I worry Languish makes the smaller midrange decks unplayable. I guess with haste creatures you'll hit at least once.
Shadowmind24 says... #2
I looked at all of the decks and I like the bant leap and jeskia burn most, if you were to play burn a would recommend cutting burn away and playing 2 more stoke the flames. also mindswipe doesn't seem to great either. conside playing a few creatures too... soulfire grand master would be amazing in this deck and would by you way more time against any grindy matchups. in a close to creaturesless build monastery mentor could also play very well. jeskai charm is also really great and late game, if you have soulfire grand master out use can use its ability to lock them out of new draws by topdecking their creature every turn. also consider playing flooded stand in your mana base because it will thin your deck for late game and will get you closer to casting dig though time. I do also like the bant shell although I would play more coursers of kruphix. I wish you the best of luck. JM
July 11, 2015 9:53 p.m.