The setup is pretty simple; take one pack from each set legal in standard. Use M13 and Innistrad block to build a 60 card deck. Then add one pack per league event until M14 is out. 4 events, 4 packs, the deck evolves as we play. The winner will get beers the losers will get to keep the Magic cards.
Here's what I opened:
| Eaten by Spiders Wandering Wolf Grounded Geist Trappers Strangleroot Geist Somberwald Dryad Hollowhenge Beast Grizzled Outcasts Spidery Grasp Ambush Viper Moonmist Bountiful Harvest |
Harvester of Souls Essence Harvest Harrowing Journey Sightless Ghoul Morkrut Banshee Unburial Rites Walking Corpse Victim of Night Liliana's Shade |
| Leap of Faith Farbog Explorer Cathedral Sanctifier Ray of Revelation Smite the Monstrous Voiceless Spirit Oblivion Ring Guardian Lions |
Afflicted Deserter Pyreheart Wolf Fling Russet Wolves Somberwald Vigilante Uncanny Speed Searing Spear |
| Favorable Winds Beguiler of Wills Nephalia Seakite Artful Dodge Runic Repetition Rooftop Storm Jace's Phantasm Encrust Faerie Invaders Merfolk of the Pearl Trident Index Vedalken Entrancer |
Bladed Bracers Angelic Armaments Heavy Mattock Ghoulcaller's Bell Ring of Xathrid Shimmering Grotto Evolving Wilds Rootbound Crag 2xPlains Mountain |
Really, everything was fine until I opened my pack of M13, which had 6! fucking blue cards, all of which suddenly made me consider the color. Prior to that moment, GWBr was looking pretty positive.
The unplayables are clearly: Ghoulcaller's Bell, Moonmist, Favorable Winds, Rooftop Storm and Runic Repetition. Sideboard cards include Ray of Revelation, Grounded and Leap of Faith. Bad but possible cards are Artful Dodge, Merfolk of the Pearl Trident, and Liliana's Shade.
So here's how it breaks down: Green gives the the most creatures and has some decent cards. White has both solid creatures and good removal, while keeping the color requirements low. Red has some removal and an "I win" card in Pyreheart Wolf.
Which leaves Blue and Black and that's where I'm torn. I can't use both, because the best cards in each color cost UU or BB, which would be a huge strain on this deck. Traditionally, I avoid Blue because the creatures are weak, the removal is nonexistent and the things Blue tends to do well: draw cards and counter spells, don't happen consistently in sealed games.
But Beguiler of Wills, man. Faerie Invaders is a pretty solid body for the cost. Encrust could handle a lot of problems and Index could help dig in critical situations. The problem is; it doesn't synergize with anything else and Merfolk of the Pearl Trident, Vedalken Entrancer and Jace's Phantasm are all horrible, yet I would have to play them to get to 60 cards.
Black presents as different problem. It probably has my best creature in Harvester of Souls and some support from Ring of Xathrid with synergy with white in Unburial Rites. Unfortunately, there is little removal or card draw; things I would hope to find in that color, and to hit 60 I would be compelled to play Liliana's Shade, which is awful under these circumstances. Morkut Banshee is situational and Sightless Ghoul can't block and doesn't blend well with the Ring initially.
My inclination is to go black and try to run 27 lands, using the sheer volume of land to overcome the potential color screw that may be showing up. Hopefully I'll get some test runs in before we start on Sunday.
So here's how it breaks down: Green gives the the most creatures and has some decent cards. White has both solid creatures and good removal, while keeping the color requirements low. Red has some removal and an "I win" card in Pyreheart Wolf.
Which leaves Blue and Black and that's where I'm torn. I can't use both, because the best cards in each color cost UU or BB, which would be a huge strain on this deck. Traditionally, I avoid Blue because the creatures are weak, the removal is nonexistent and the things Blue tends to do well: draw cards and counter spells, don't happen consistently in sealed games.
But Beguiler of Wills, man. Faerie Invaders is a pretty solid body for the cost. Encrust could handle a lot of problems and Index could help dig in critical situations. The problem is; it doesn't synergize with anything else and Merfolk of the Pearl Trident, Vedalken Entrancer and Jace's Phantasm are all horrible, yet I would have to play them to get to 60 cards.
Black presents as different problem. It probably has my best creature in Harvester of Souls and some support from Ring of Xathrid with synergy with white in Unburial Rites. Unfortunately, there is little removal or card draw; things I would hope to find in that color, and to hit 60 I would be compelled to play Liliana's Shade, which is awful under these circumstances. Morkut Banshee is situational and Sightless Ghoul can't block and doesn't blend well with the Ring initially.
My inclination is to go black and try to run 27 lands, using the sheer volume of land to overcome the potential color screw that may be showing up. Hopefully I'll get some test runs in before we start on Sunday.
No comments:
Post a Comment