2023 Wrapup

 I'm going to keep things easy for the last part of the year-as a matter of fact, this can be the last post of 2023. I've got some time to build up posts for January, so I'm going to do that.  

For the Kynaios & Tiro deck, I decided to stick with Thaumatic Compass, instead of getting distracted by all the shiny possibilities I could take.

And that's it! Have a safe New Year everyone!

~Slaps Hood~ You Can Get So Much Value In Here

 

In the first outing, Kynaios & Tiro did some good stuff. 

First: it wasn't strictly a pillowfort deck. I was able to generate a ton of tokens, providing a steady stream of pressure. With just a few boosts, from Retreat to Kazandu and Dictate of Heliod, my small threats became sizable enough to have a meaningful impact on the game.

And in a match with Kardur, Doomscourge; Ravos, Soultender and Tana, the Bloodsower; and Hazezon Tamar, I felt I had things to do. I was able to recover from board wipes, and still keep myself in the game. Certainly, it helped that my Commander was difficult to remove but hey, that's a them problem, right?

One weird card that showed up which I really questioned was Realm Seekers. How did that card not get cut?

You can even see the card in play in the picture-it has 16 +1/+1 counters on it (represented by the white die), which would make you think: Hey, that's great!

But by the time I can play Realm Seekers, I've already got all the land I want. In a four color deck, having cheaper mana fixing is a much better idea. I'm actually thinking Thaumatic Compass might be a great idea.  

Thinking about it, some of the other transforming lands from Ixalan might be worth considering, since I can bounce them and replay the transformed side for value. I have some very interesting choices. 

BOGO

 Here's what I ended up adding to Kyniaos & Tiro

Ghost Town
Rampaging Baloths
Improbable Alliance
Moruaug, Fury of Aksum
Xyris, the Writhing Storm
Jolrael, Mwonvuli Reculse
Emeria Angel
 Retreat to Emeria
Irengrag Pyromancer
Mind's Dilation
Psychosis Crawler
Treva, the Renewer
Consecrated Sphinx
Spellbook
Asceticism
Mad Ratter
Triskaidekaphile
Aragorn, the Uniter
Rumor Gatherer
Faerie Vandal
Retreat to Kazandu
Flawless Maneuver
Arcane Signet
Amareth, the Lustrous

Whew, that's quite a list! Let me talk about what I was thinking in overall themes, as going card by card seems unnecessary. 

Effectively: I tried to break it down into: cards that would give me an advantage when I played a land, cards that gave me advantages when cards were drawn, and some protections from having to discard my hand. 

I also ran the deck through Deckstats to tweak the mana base a little. Removed a Mountain and Island for a Treva's Ruins and a Simic Growth Chamber. 

The card I'm most pleased about adding? Ghost Town. When was the last time you thought of Ghost Town!?

Free Shit: the List

Look at ALL this stuff:

Deep Gnome Terramancer
Demolition Field
Invader Parasite
Martyr's Bond
Mind's Dilation
Smuggler's Share
Consecrated Sphinx
Smothering Tide
Xyris, the Writhing Storm
Zurzoth, Chaos Rider
Wedding Ring

Thopter Mechanic

The Council of Four

Rumor Gatherer

Prince Imrahil

Minn, Wily Illusionist

Mantle of tides

Mad Ratter

Jori En

Irencrag Pyromancer

Improbable Alliance

Gavi, Nest warden

Faerie Vandal

Mangara the Diplomat

Admonition Angel

Emeria Angel

Roil Elemental

Scute Swarm

Tatyova, Benthic Druid

Tireless Provisioner

Trench Behemoth

Valakut Exploration

Retreat to Emeria

Rampaging Behemoths

Primeval Bounty

Phylath, World Sculptor

Nesting Dragon

Moraug, Fury of akoum

Maja Beretagard Protector

Kazadnu Nectarpot

Greensleeves Maro Sorcerer

Felidar Retreat

Courser of Kruphix

Aksum Kellkite

Aesi Tyrant of Gyre Strait

That is a ludicrous amount of possible cards to fit in Kynaios and Tiro. And this is before I check EDHrec for suggestions!

Of these Triskaidekaphile and Seedborn Muse are some of my favorites, but a chance to add in The Millennium Calendar might be irresistible. 

Still, there is clearly a lot to sort through here. 

Commander: Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis

Instant 1 Arcane Denial 1 Benefactor's Draught 1 Oblation 1 Beast Within 1 Entrapment Maneuver 1 Reins of Power 1 Sylvan Reclamation 1 Consign to Dust	Artifacts 1 Sol Ring 1 Empyrial Plate 1 Howling Mine 1 Commander's Sphere 1 Temple Bell 1 Assault Suit 1 Prismatic Geoscope 1 Venser's Journal
Enchantment  1 Evolutionary Escalation 1 Oath of Druids 1 Ghostly Prison 1 Propaganda 1 Rites of Flourishing 1 Sphere of Safety 1 Lurking Predators 1 Hoofprints of the Stag 1 Dictate of Heliod	Sorcery 1 Minds Aglow 1 Collective Voyage 1 Cultivate 1 Kodama's Reach 1 Tempt with Discovery 1 Wave of Reckoning 1 Migratory Route 1 Seeds of Renewal 1 Reverse the Sands 1 Treacherous Terrain 1 Blasphemous Act 1 Cleansing Meditation
Lands 1 Ash Barrens 1 Azorius Chancery 1 Command Tower 1 Evolving Wilds 1 Exotic Orchard 1 Forbidden Orchard 1 Frontier Bivouac 1 Gruul Turf 1 Homeward Path 1 Izzet Boilerworks 1 Jungle Shrine 1 Krosan Verge 1 Myriad Landscape 1 Mystic Monastery 1 Opal Palace 1 Rupture Spire 1 Seaside Citadel 1 Selesnya Sanctuary 1 Terramorphic Expanse 1 Transguild Promenade 5 Plains 5 Island 5 Mountain 5 Forest	Creatures 1 Veteran Explorer 1 Humble Defector 1 Hushwing Gryff 1 Orzhov Advokist 1 Chasm Skulker 1 Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer 1 Ludevic, Necro-Alchemist 1 Selvala, Explorer Returned 1 Edric, Spymaster of Trest 1 Akroan Horse 1 Selfless Squire 1 Windborn Muse 1 Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa 1 Horizon Chimera 1 Psychosis Crawler 1 Kazuul, Tyrant of the Cliffs 1 Kraum, Ludevic's Opus 1 Realm Seekers 1 Rubblehulk 1 Progenitor Mimic 1 Blazing Archon 1 Archetype of Imagination

Alright, here's the commander for those unfamiliar. 

I got to play this once-after having not done much with this deck-and thought one thing: This should just be the ultimate value engine deck. Draw more cards, play more lands get free stuff off of doing that. Let's go.

So that's what I'm going to do: Free Shit, the Deck.

The Retired: Cutthroat

 "What if I had a deck that just took care of all the problematic permanents?"

2 Rith, the Awakener
1 Cloudchaser Eagle
2 Aven Cloudchaser
2 Tephraderm
4 Flametongue Kavu
3 Elvish Visionary
1 Godsire
3 Uktabi Orangutan
3 Stonecloaker
3 Civic Wayfinder
2 Meglonoth

3 Reinforcements

3 Rith's Grove
1 Naya Panorama
8 Forest
6 Plains
6 Mountain

3 Lava Burst
4 Gift of the Gargantuan

Well, the answer is: you do all the things sorta and none of the things well. In this respect, this deck isn't living up to the song it's named after. 

This is a frequent theme in decks I build. I rarely want to focus on the one thing; I want to have outs to problems, instead of insisting that my opponents respond to me. I've been getting better about this, but I still have to fight against those tendencies. 

Cutthroat is a fine example of the old way of thinking and that's a good reason to retire this one. 

The Retired: Grotusque

Land destruction is always a messy business. 
 
2 Verduran Emissary

2 Dwarven Blastminer
3 Thresher Beast
4 Llanowar Elves
2 Avalanche Riders
2 Acidic Slime

2 Form of the Dragon

3 Lunge
2 Rhystic Lightning

8 Forest
4 Karplusan Forest
1 Forgotten Cave
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Slippery Karst
1 Smoldering Crater
8 Mountain

2 Aftershock
2 Creeping Mold
4 Stone Rain
2 Frenzied Tilling
2 Desert Twister
2 Pillage

I named this from the Transformer-what can I say, I have a soft spot for a flying, fire breathing tiger. And to past mes credit, the idea behind this deck is to use Form of the Dragon to finish the game off, after blowing up opposing lands so they just have to sit there. 

Couple problems here; first, I was a cheapskate and didn't want to purchase a third copy of Form, a card this deck 100% needs. 

Second: land destruction starts at mana value 3, and these days you mostly find those effects at 4. If there isn't a way to reset the game after blowing up opponent's lands-to deal with what they've put into play before I start to turn the corner-then I'm in trouble. And guess what: Rhystic Lightning is not the answer I need.

Third: it's clear I haven't looked at this deck since 2003 and Magic strategy and card development has shifted immensely since then. The concepts behind this deck are out of the colors it's in (Lands does a mana denial thing and it's G/W), and almost old enough to drink. 

So I'm going to let this drift away. I don't even think there's a deck that needs some of these cards -but if I decide to do a land destruction deck again, it's going to be significantly tighter than this.