Support NeoGAF

[sgjackson]

Yeah, the Gatecreeper is good. You probably overvalued Aetherling. Since you didn't make a base blue deck, you just have to consider Aethering as a value creature, and not necessarily warp your entire game plan for it.

I would have considered playing the Dangerous half of Armed // Dangerous, or at least made sure to bring it out of the side for grindy board-stall matchups. I'm also greedy, and probably would have played the Shambleshark. Probably to my detriment.

And yes - Trostani's Summoner is a bomb. It's almost impossible for any deck to beat that.

The comment about Aetherling hits on what I feel like is my biggest weakness as a drafter - knowing when to switch colors. I'm going to try drafting DGM more and posting them here so you guys can get onto me about how I draft, I feel like I need the help figuring out how to stay open and when to commit. I'd like to get better at this before M14, as core set draft has always been a lot easier for me.

 

[Seriously?]

Was this by the rules?

Person A had a card with Extort, they played something and used extort, they played another card and played the Extort from the previous card again. Is that by the rules? I thought regardless of how much mana and how many spells you cast you could only use the effects of Extort once.

Am I wrong? Probably since I hadnt played for 15 years, just wondering though.

 

[kirblar]

Was this by the rules?

Person A had a card with Extort, they played something and used extort, they played another card and played the Extort from the previous card again. Is that by the rules? I thought regardless of how much mana and how many spells you cast you could only use the effects of Extort once.

Am I wrong? Probably since I hadnt played for 15 years, just wondering though.

Extort triggers once per spell cast. It's absolutely how it works. And it stacks, so you can extort a spell multiple times up to the number of extort permanents you have in play.

 

[Seriously?]

Extort triggers once per spell cast. It's absolutely how it works. And it stacks, so you can extort a spell multiple times up to the number of extort permanents you have in play.

So since they only had 1 card with Extort they shouldve only been able to use it once that turn? In other words......I WAS ROBBED?!?!

 

[The Technomancer]

So since they only had 1 card with Extort they shouldve only been able to use it once that turn? In other words......I WAS ROBBED?!?!

No they can pay the extort cost every time they cast a spell.

 

[divisionbyzorro]

The comment about Aetherling hits on what I feel like is my biggest weakness as a drafter - knowing when to switch colors. I'm going to try drafting DGM more and posting them here so you guys can get onto me about how I draft, I feel like I need the help figuring out how to stay open and when to commit. I'd like to get better at this before M14, as core set draft has always been a lot easier for me.

Voidwielder and Krasis Incubation are totally fine splashes in a Golgari deck. Aethering isn't bad either, but not worth blue on it's own. I don't know what your options were when picking, but it's interesting that you have no gold cards from Gatecrash or Return to Ravnica. This means that you probably didn't pick up on the signals from the right (for the RTR pack) or sent mixed signals to the player on your left (for the GTC) pack, resulting in you having a deck full of decent-but-not-great creatures.

Signalling is weird in full block DGR draft. You have to listen to what's passed to you regarding the RTR guilds (UW, GB, UR, GW, RB) and pay very close attention to what you pass to your left regarding the GTC guilds (RW, UG, UB, BW, GR). It's often better to cut a Gatecrash guild entirely at the expense of letting some more powerful stuff go, to guarantee that the players to your left let the good GTC gold cards filter back to you.

At the same time, listen to what you get late in RTR. In the draft I posted above, the two Deputies came pretty late, as did the Protect // Serve. I was willing to move into Azorius, and it paid off mostly - that Supreme Verdict was a third pick in the RTR. The first two packs were actually miserable, but every one of the playable Azorius cards were passed to me for picks 3+.

 

[Seriously?]

No they can pay the extort cost every time they cast a spell.

Ah, k. Thanks.

Fuck extort.

 

[sgjackson]

Voidwielder and Krasis Incubation are totally fine splashes in a Golgari deck. Aethering isn't bad either, but not worth blue on it's own. I don't know what your options were when picking, but it's interesting that you have no gold cards from Gatecrash or Return to Ravnica. This means that you probably didn't pick up on the signals from the right (for the RTR pack) or sent mixed signals to the player on your left (for the GTC) pack, resulting in you having a deck full of decent-but-not-great creatures.

Signalling is weird in full block DGR draft. You have to listen to what's passed to you regarding the RTR guilds (UW, GB, UR, GW, RB) and pay very close attention to what you pass to your left regarding the GTC guilds (RW, UG, UB, BW, GR). It's often better to cut a Gatecrash guild entirely at the expense of letting some more powerful stuff go, to guarantee that the players to your left let the good GTC gold cards filter back to you.

At the same time, listen to what you get late in RTR. In the draft I posted above, the two Deputies came pretty late, as did the Protect // Serve. I was willing to move into Azorius, and it paid off mostly - that Supreme Verdict was a third pick in the RTR. The first two packs were actually miserable, but every one of the playable Azorius cards were passed to me for picks 3+.

Noted. I've been watching a bunch of people stream DGM to try to figure it out, but this is my first multicolor set and I've been having a hard time wrapping my mind around it - dropped about 50 points from my rating in the process.

I think it'll benefit me a lot to have people saying what they would pick when, so next time I draft I'm going to post a log and see what everyone says.

 

[Hero]

The "span count" isn't exactly reliable, though. But fetches are almost certainly coming soon-ish, thanks to MaRo.

Did Maro say something about fetchlands on his tumblr recently?

Psychic Strike is a card I really wish they hadn't printed.

Psychic Strike too good?

 

[divisionbyzorro]

Psychic Strike too good?

1UB is easier to hit than 1UU in a multicolor deck. I assume that's what he's referring to.

 

[Hero]

1UB is easier to hit than 1UU in a multicolor deck. I assume that's what he's referring to.

Ah, gotcha. Yeah, it is. Should've been UUB, maybe for a stronger mill effect?

 

[Sinatar]

Ah, gotcha. Yeah, it is. Should've been UUB, maybe for a stronger mill effect?

It's barely played as is, no need to make it worse.

 

[kirblar]

Did Maro say something about fetchlands on his tumblr recently?



Psychic Strike too good?

He's answered questions about them 3 times on his Tumblr in the past month.

Psychic Strike having 1UB instead of XUU is the problem. It was an intentional "test card", but I believe it was a mistake.

 

[Hero]

It's barely played as is, no need to make it worse.

Nerf it to the ground, baby.

He's answered questions about them 3 times on his Tumblr in the past month.

Psychic Strike having 1UB instead of XUU is the problem. It was an intentional "test card", but I believe it was a mistake.

Ah, gotcha. It would be crazy if Theros had all 10 fetchlands in the block.

And I wonder if Psychic Strike will see more play once INN and most notably Dissipate rotates.

 

[Sinatar]

And I wonder if Psychic Strike will see more play once INN and most notably Dissipate rotates.

Oh most certainly. If a deck has black mana, it'll play that over cancel all day long. Whether it sees more play then Counterflux or Render Silent remains to be seen however.

 

[kirblar]

W/ Modern a thing now, it's going to force them to change how they approach Standard land rotations. There are only so many viable variants on duals, and they'll need to essentially keep rotating through them.

 

[divisionbyzorro]

I actually think Modern could really use the enemy fastlands. I know my old UR Storm deck specifically would have been in love.

 

[Sinatar]

Yea enemy fastlands would be really nice.

 

[kirblar]

Yea enemy fastlands would be really nice.

Would Dual-type fastlands be "too good"? I'm going to be trying them in my cube.

 

[Sinatar]

Would Dual-type fastlands be "too good"? I'm going to be trying them in my cube.

I don't think they'd be too good. Going turn one fetch -> crack -> fastland is certainly strong, but the drawback is pretty high come the later turns.

 

[divisionbyzorro]

Would Dual-type fastlands be "too good"? I'm going to be trying them in my cube.

Yes. Yes they would. You would auto-run one-ofs in your greedy decks to fetch in early turns.

Man. Imagine UWR being able to fetch a dual land for 1 life on turn 1 to Lightning Bolt a threat. Way too good.

 

[Crocodile]

He's answered questions about them 3 times on his Tumblr in the past month.

Psychic Strike having 1UB instead of XUU is the problem. It was an intentional "test card", but I believe it was a mistake.

For a card to be a mistake (barring horrendous color-pie violations) doesn't it have to be, you know, good? Or like overpowered? If you want to cost the card UUB, you have to bump up the power level to that of Voidslime, Counterflux or Render Silent or else the card is just embarrassing. I'm also not sure why you're shitting on this card rather than the obscenely good mana we have in T2 (which will become worse come Theors anyway) if your concern is "ease of casting".

 

[bigkrev]

For a card to be a mistake (barring horrendous color-pie violations) doesn't it have to be, you know, good? Or like overpowered? If you want to cost the card UUB, you have to bump up the power level to that of Voidslime, Counterflux or Render Silent or else the card is just embarrassing. I'm also not sure why you're shitting on this card rather than the obscenely good mana we have in T2 (which will become worse come Theors anyway) if your concern is "ease of casting".

I think Hornet Sting is one of the biggest mistakes of the last 5 years. It's also unplayable.

 

[divisionbyzorro]

For a card to be a mistake (barring horrendous color-pie violations) doesn't it have to be, you know, good? Or like overpowered? If you want to cost the card UUB, you have to bump up the power level to that of Voidslime, Counterflux or Render Silent or else the card is just embarrassing. I'm also not sure why you're shitting on this card rather than the obscenely good mana we have in T2 (which will become worse come Theors anyway) if your concern is "ease of casting".

Kirblar is a big fan of game design theory - he's certainly made me think about the game in a unique way. Obviously I'm speaking for him here, but I assume he doesn't mean it's a mistake on the level of, say, Tarmogoyf. He means in terms of good game design, making an unconditional countermagic splashable carries with it some baggage that he's not comfortable with.

 

[narcosis219]

I think Hornet Sting is one of the biggest mistakes of the last 5 years. It's also unplayable.

It makes flavorful sense. Lesson? Sometimes flavor isn't the way to design cards

 

[kirblar]

I think Hornet Sting is one of the biggest mistakes of the last 5 years. It's also unplayable.

I have no problem with green getting terrible direct damage spells. It's been done before (so its not like you're opening a new door), and is both funny AND a genre trope. However, it shouldn't happen often.

The bigger problem with Psychic Strike goes to what was pointed out in a column earlier this year about limited casting costs. In a 2/3-color deck, 1XY is actually incredibly easy to cast, and barely a drawback. 1XX, however, is actually much more difficult to cast on-curve.

 

[Crocodile]

I think Hornet Sting is one of the biggest mistakes of the last 5 years. It's also unplayable.

That falls under "horrendous color-pie violations"

Kirblar is a big fan of game design theory - he's certainly made me think about the game in a unique way. Obviously I'm speaking for him here, but I assume he doesn't mean it's a mistake on the level of, say, Tarmogoyf. He means in terms of good game design, making an unconditional countermagic splashable carries with it some baggage that he's not comfortable with.

It still costs two different colors of mana. I don't consider cards "splashable" if you're already making concessions to your mana base by running additional colors of mana. If running five color is "easy", that's not the card's fault, that's the environment. Even in a two color deck there are plenty of times you don't hit your second color. I'm not opposed to a UUB Pyshic Strike but I know that card would have been very hard to cast for Dimir decks I've drafted and the power level would have to rise.

I have no problem with green getting terrible direct damage spells. It's been done before (so its not like you're opening a new door), and is both funny AND a genre trope. However, it shouldn't happen often.

The bigger problem with Psychic Strike goes to what was pointed out in a column earlier this year about limited casting costs. In a 2/3-color deck, 1XY is actually incredibly easy to cast, and barely a drawback. 1XX, however, is actually much more difficult to cast on-curve.

I personally subscribed to "show a color is weak in X by excluding it from the color" camp but I don't think there is a defacto right/wrong answer. On the other note, does Fall of the Gavel also bother you?

 

[kirblar]

One thing I'm surprised by is that R&D doesn't seem to "get" why people react so strongly negatively to "anti-instant/sorcery" cards.

You cast a creature- you're commanding a creature.

You cast a artifact- you've got a new toy!

You cast an enchantment- you're..casting an enchantment!

You cast an instant or sorcery? You're exerting your will.

Izzet's the most popular guild. Izzet's U/R, home of the "likes instant/sorcery" cards. I don't believe this is a coincidence. Countering spells, bolting things - people like doing this because it makes THEM feel powerful. It allows you to "really" feel like a gunslinger, instead of an enchantress, an artificer, or a summoner. And while I completely understand the need to promote on-board interactions, as they're more attractive to players, I do think that allowing this type of playstyle is important. MaRo points out these "creatureless" decks winning Pro Tours (but that really don't exist much in the real world), but it never really feels like he understands why people are getting upset, and so he points to "letter of the law" examples. He correctly points out that creatures weren't powerful enough back in the day- but we're now starting to see the opposite problem start occuring in not-so-subtle ways (Hi Geist, Hi Voice of Resurgence!)

And don't confuse instant/sorcery w/ noninteractivity. Fast, noninteractive combo decks are indeed a huge problem. But interactive spell aren't. I think there's a balance to be had, and we haven't quite yet had an environment that really hits that middle ground where you can go "36 critters" or "36 spells" and both options are valid.

I personally subscribed to "show a color is weak in X by excluding it from the color" camp but I don't think there is a defacto right/wrong answer. On the other note, does Fall of the Gavel also bother you?

At 5 mana, it's not really a big deal anymore. It's more that Psychic Strike's competitively costed. I also want to make Unyaro Beekeeper some day. (Master of the Wild Hunt....WITH BEES!)

 

[Zocano]

Dunno why I neglect to actually post what I play on here but I played 2 DGR drafts out on tuesday (I don't play MTGO and probably won't get into it all that much) at one of my LGSs.

First draft was UWR. Lost first game (it's single elimination) oh well. I picked stuff I probably shouldn't have and neglected to pick up more Nivix Cyclops (one was in a pack with Breeding Pool and I got greedy).

Deck:

1x Madcap Skills
1x Catch // Release
1x Act of Treason
1x Armed // Dangerous
1x Punish the Enemy
1x Hands of Binding
1x Warleader's Helix
1x Protect and Serve
1x Ethereal Armor
1x Rootborn Defenses

1x Rubblebelt Raiders
1x Hussar Patrol
1x Wind Drake
1x Doorkeeper
1x Bazaar Krovod
1x Smelt-Ward Gatekeepers
1x Nivix Guildmage
1x Nivix Cyclops
1x Cloudfin Raptor
1x Viashino Racketeer
1x Lyev Skynight
1x Nav Squad Commandos
1x Assault Griffin

1x Azorius Keyrune

2x Azorius Guldgate
1x Boros Guildgate
1x Simic Guildgate
1x Breeding Pool

It was a weak deck overall. There were more wind drakes and nivix cyclops' going around and I should have picked those up. The simic and breeding pool were in there to at least have some mana to activate Dangerous and make Rubblebelt Raiders easier to cast. I should probably not have Pack 2 Pick 1'd the raiders either. Too many restrictive for 3 colors. Catch // Release was my P11

The second draft went a lot better though. Lots of stuff for me. It ended up being a Junk deck but pretty damn decent, I feel. I won 2 rounds and split the final cause it was getting really late by that time.

Deck:

1x Alive // Well
1x Ethereal Armor
1x Ready // Willing
1x Lyev Decree
1x One-Thousand Lashes
1x Stab Wound
1x Devour Flesh

1x Concordia Pegasus
1x Trestle Troll
1x Loxodon Smiter
1x Gatecreeper Vine
1x Sunspire Gatekeepers
1x Ubul Sar Gatekeepers
1x Saruli Gatekeepers
1x Gutter Skulk
1x Shadow Alley Denizen
1x Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts
1x Trained Caracal
1x Selesnya Sentry
1x Crocanura
1x Wight of Precinct Six
1x Maze Behemoth

1x Orzhov Keyrune

1x Orzhov Guildgate
1x Selesnya Guildgate

Overall. I loved playing this deck. Teysa won me pretty much every game (my opponents just never got the removal out for her, I guess). Teysa is probably my favorite card from the whole set, I adore the art, and she's really strong in limited (or at least every time I have used her she pretty much won me every match). She was my pack 1 pick 1. I would have liked to pick one more guildgate but I ended up getting the Saruli gatekeeper trigger in my last game which helped me edge out a victory. I'd love to use Teysa in a deck (I have 3 of her in my collection) but she's a bit too costly and would just get easily removed anywhere other than limited, I feel. Also that Loxodon Smiter was like pick 3 from the RTR pack. Was a bit surprised to see him (there was a foil Azorius Charm in the pack, too!).

edit: Sorry that this is kind of a long post.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

They got rid of the legendary rule? I don't really like that at all...

And goddamn did I get rid of my mox opals at the wrong time...

 

[kirblar]

They got rid of the legendary rule? I don't really like that at all...

And goddamn did I get rid of my mox opals at the wrong time...

Yeah, I went scrambling through my stuff the night of the change only to realize I had sold them for like 13-16 bucks 2 years ago when I needed cash. Quickly found a set for 20 each and bought immediately.

I think the change is a net positive. However, I think they'll need to revisit the legends-not-working-as-removal thing. Certain mirrors (GoST) just became miserable. I believe the fix (should one be necessary) is to allow CAST legends to Timecop them on spell resolution as an option.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

Yeah, I went scrambling through my stuff the night of the change only to realize I had sold them for like 13-16 bucks 2 years ago when I needed cash. Quickly found a set for 20 each and bought immediately.

I think the change is a net positive. However, I think they'll need to revisit the legends-not-working-as-removal thing. Certain mirrors (GoST) just became miserable. I believe the fix (should one be necessary) is to allow CAST legends to Timecop them on spell resolution as an option.

Same, I needed money when I came back from Germany and sold all 3 of mine for $15 a piece... I think they dropped even further later on, they seemed to have no real value and now they do this. -_-

 

[kirblar]

Same, I needed money when I came back from Germany and sold all 3 of mine for $15 a piece... I think they dropped even further later on, they seemed to have no real value and now they do this. -_-

Yeah. I suspect we're going to see a big rise in Arcbound Ravager and friends next Modern season.

 

[FieryBalrog]

I don't think Izzet is the most popular guild apart from a poll conducted when RtR was launching, and being heavily promoted as "Jace + Niv-Mizzet on the box".

I suspect the answer varies from set to set and depends on who you ask, as well.

Spell-decks certainly aren't as popular as creature decks with new players. Maro has repeatedly driven home how central creatures are to the game, how appealing they are to players, and how they are by far the most important card type.

 

[WanderingWind]

One thing I'm surprised by is that R&D doesn't seem to "get" why people react so strongly negatively to "anti-instant/sorcery" cards.

You cast a creature- you're commanding a creature.

You cast a artifact- you've got a new toy!

You cast an enchantment- you're..casting an enchantment!

You cast an instant or sorcery? You're exerting your will.

Izzet's the most popular guild. Izzet's U/R, home of the "likes instant/sorcery" cards. I don't believe this is a coincidence. Countering spells, bolting things - people like doing this because it makes THEM feel powerful. It allows you to "really" feel like a gunslinger, instead of an enchantress, an artificer, or a summoner. And while I completely understand the need to promote on-board interactions, as they're more attractive to players, I do think that allowing this type of playstyle is important. MaRo points out these "creatureless" decks winning Pro Tours (but that really don't exist much in the real world), but it never really feels like he understands why people are getting upset, and so he points to "letter of the law" examples. He correctly points out that creatures weren't powerful enough back in the day- but we're now starting to see the opposite problem start occuring in not-so-subtle ways (Hi Geist, Hi Voice of Resurgence!)

And don't confuse instant/sorcery w/ noninteractivity. Fast, noninteractive combo decks are indeed a huge problem. But interactive spell aren't. I think there's a balance to be had, and we haven't quite yet had an environment that really hits that middle ground where you can go "36 critters" or "36 spells" and both options are valid.


At 5 mana, it's not really a big deal anymore. It's more that Psychic Strike's competitively costed. I also want to make Unyaro Beekeeper some day. (Master of the Wild Hunt....WITH BEES!)

I said pretty much the same thing a few posts ago, so obviously I agree. The balance of the game is way off and it's frustrating to have every point countered with the exception, rather than the rule. Yeah, Miracles won once. But not constantly, not like every bring out your creatures with spells stapled to it deck that you can find. Standard has a ton of decks romping around right now and it's the healthiest the format seems to have been for a while, due to the diversity, but they're all super creature heavy, light control and dependent on too many very expensive cards to function. The game needs more spells and less spells and creatures that do 5 things at once.

 

[JulianImp]

One thing I'm surprised by is that R&D doesn't seem to "get" why people react so strongly negatively to "anti-instant/sorcery" cards.

You cast a creature- you're commanding a creature.

You cast a artifact- you've got a new toy!

You cast an enchantment- you're..casting an enchantment!

You cast an instant or sorcery? You're exerting your will.

Izzet's the most popular guild. Izzet's U/R, home of the "likes instant/sorcery" cards. I don't believe this is a coincidence. Countering spells, bolting things - people like doing this because it makes THEM feel powerful. It allows you to "really" feel like a gunslinger, instead of an enchantress, an artificer, or a summoner. And while I completely understand the need to promote on-board interactions, as they're more attractive to players, I do think that allowing this type of playstyle is important. MaRo points out these "creatureless" decks winning Pro Tours (but that really don't exist much in the real world), but it never really feels like he understands why people are getting upset, and so he points to "letter of the law" examples. He correctly points out that creatures weren't powerful enough back in the day- but we're now starting to see the opposite problem start occuring in not-so-subtle ways (Hi Geist, Hi Voice of Resurgence!)

And don't confuse instant/sorcery w/ noninteractivity. Fast, noninteractive combo decks are indeed a huge problem. But interactive spell aren't. I think there's a balance to be had, and we haven't quite yet had an environment that really hits that middle ground where you can go "36 critters" or "36 spells" and both options are valid.

I agree. I always like the Izzet philosophy the most out of all the Ravnican guilds (with Simic being a close second), and have been trying to compe up with a moderately viable deck since RTR was released. Like some LGS stores and I said, building an Izzet deck would often lead to adding a third color, realizing UR doesn't add much by itself, and ending up cutting the guild completely in favor for other, more reliable color combinations.

It's hard to justify running Niv-Mizzet over Aetherling, and the guild's X spell is one of the worst ones out there. Red no longer has crowd control cards except for the puny Electrickery at 2 and then jumps straight to six mana for an overloaded Mizzium Mortars, and blue's counterspells are really weak right now (Spell Rupture on a spell-heavy deck? No, thanks). Izzet will also be losing Innistrad's useful flashback cards to rotation soon, so it's pretty unlikely you'll be able to reliably play instants and sorceries every turn to abuse some of your creatures' effects.

Other than Izzet Charm and Mizzium Mortars and possibly Counterflux, I don't see any viable Izzet creatures or spells you could use to make a deck. Stuff such as Turn/Burn could be fun, but still a lot worse than Far/Away almost guaranteed 2-for-1, other cards such as Guttersnipe or Nivix Cyclops are way too conditional to work reliably, and Niv is even more mana-intensive and a lot easier to remove than Aetherling. After that, I don't think the color combination has anything else to support it against creature rushes or even control-based approaches, sadly.

 

[WanderingWind]

I need y'alls help with my Izzet deck, actually. I know that there is a FNM competitive deck in there somewhere, but I'm not sure how to adjust it.

 

[Keru_Shiri]

A buddy of mine built a casual Standard-legal Izzet deck that performed surprisingly well against some of the creature-heavy lists out there.

I don't know if it's enough to be considered Tier 1 (or even Tier 2), but there might be some potential. If I can get the list from him, I'll post it here.

 

[Sinatar]

I'd go Grixis instead of straight Izzet.

 

[WanderingWind]

I'd go Grixis instead of straight Izzet.

I thought about that. Here is what I had. I turned 2 of the Dragonshifts into 2 more spears.

 

[f0rk]

If you are playing Delver you want all 4.
25 lands is too many for a Delver deck.
Aetherling doesn't really fit what you are trying to do with the rest of the deck.
Dragonshift isn't really doing much as a 4/4 isn't that big of an upgrade for your creatures (ie flipped Delvers, Cyclops is already a 4/4, Blistercoil would be a 2/2 at least from any other spell.
The Guildgates are too much of a tempo loss for the archetype

Really you are playing a combo deck so if you want to play Nivix Cyclops I'd focus on ways of making him huge. Probably go to 4 Blistercoil Weird's as well.

 

[Sinatar]

Going Grixis would let you swap those unsummons for far//away's and the hybridizations for some better removal.

Out of curiousity what is the gameplan with Hidden Strings?

 

[WanderingWind]

If you are playing Delver you want all 4.
25 lands is too many for a Delver deck.
Aetherling doesn't really fit what you are trying to do with the rest of the deck.
Dragonshift isn't really doing much as a 4/4 isn't that big of an upgrade for your creatures (ie flipped Delvers, Cyclops is already a 4/4, Blistercoil would be a 2/2 at least from any other spell.
The Guildgates are too much of a tempo loss for the archetype

Really you are playing a combo deck so if you want to play Nivix Cyclops I'd focus on ways of making him huge. Probably go to 4 Blistercoil Weird's as well.

I forgot that the Guildgates were there. Consider those placeholders, I hadn't gotten the other Vents by then.
Dragonshift makes the Cyclops a 7/4 flyer, not just a 4/4.
Good points about Delver and Weird and the lands. I'll try with 22 and see what happens.

Going Grixis would let you swap those unsummons for far//away's and the hybridizations for some better removal.

Out of curiousity what is the gameplan with Hidden Strings?

I'll play with Grixis. Forgot all about Far/Away.

Hidden Strings let's me activate the Clops while tapping down any potential blockers and then getting back 2 mana for burn. Unsummon does work by removing a blocker and making the 4/4. Probably better ways of doing that.

 

[Emitan]

Heh, my lifegain/defender deck got destroyed by my friend's burn deck. I'm not surprised. It's not really that focused on life gain so he could just burn away while my defenders were useless.

After that game we played using some duel decks he made and we both won a game. I feel like my decision making skills aren't very good but that will come with practice.

 

[kirblar]

I don't think Izzet is the most popular guild apart from a poll conducted when RtR was launching, and being heavily promoted as "Jace + Niv-Mizzet on the box".

I suspect the answer varies from set to set and depends on who you ask, as well.

Spell-decks certainly aren't as popular as creature decks with new players. Maro has repeatedly driven home how central creatures are to the game, how appealing they are to players, and how they are by far the most important card type.

Check out affiliation on PlaneswalkerPoints.com

 

[Sinatar]

Oh WW, just had another thought, Runechanter's Pike seems like a natural fit in your deck. Seems like you could set up a lethal hit pretty easily with one of those.

 

[y2dvd]

Friend sent me this:

Originally Posted by Jeph Foster
So after seeing some of the spoilers, I was beginning to doubt the value of Modern Masters. Being the numbers guy that I am, I decided to calculate the average worth per pack based on current card prices. Using cards spoiled as of now, the average worth of each rarity is:

Common: $0.70
Uncommon: $2.63
Rare: $9.79
Mythic: $29.99 (actual average, not rounded)

Using these numbers (not counting the guaranteed foil), the average worth of an opened pack of Modern Masters is $27.16.

Now this number will dip slightly when less exciting cards get spoiled, but this is still an incredible value.

To put this in perspective, that box that people are complaining about being $200+, is actually worth $651.84.

A draft on average is worth $81.48.
A sealed pool is worth $162.96.

If you were lucky enough to get a box at retail from your local store, be sure to thank them. They are rewarding you for being customers.

That doesn't include foil prices!

 

[joelseph]

That Cyclops in limited is a freaking house. I had two on the board and a slew of cheap instants in hand and felt nigh unbeatable. Overload downsizes all day.

 

[WanderingWind]

Oh WW, just had another thought, Runechanter's Pike seems like a natural fit in your deck. Seems like you could set up a lethal hit pretty easily with one of those.

Shit, forgot all about that. Good idea.

 

[Keru_Shiri]

Friend sent me this:

Originally Posted by Jeph Foster
So after seeing some of the spoilers, I was beginning to doubt the value of Modern Masters. Being the numbers guy that I am, I decided to calculate the average worth per pack based on current card prices. Using cards spoiled as of now, the average worth of each rarity is:

Common: $0.70
Uncommon: $2.63
Rare: $9.79
Mythic: $29.99 (actual average, not rounded)

Using these numbers (not counting the guaranteed foil), the average worth of an opened pack of Modern Masters is $27.16.

Now this number will dip slightly when less exciting cards get spoiled, but this is still an incredible value.

To put this in perspective, that box that people are complaining about being $200+, is actually worth $651.84.

A draft on average is worth $81.48.
A sealed pool is worth $162.96.

If you were lucky enough to get a box at retail from your local store, be sure to thank them. They are rewarding you for being customers.

That doesn't include foil prices!

Interesting breakdown. Even if the packs were half that (say, $13) that still be a pretty good deal. I'm hesitant to include foils in that calculation, unless you know someone who buys/trades for foils a lot, since from my experience, they can be more difficult to move.