Well this was going to happen sooner or later...
So soon after the B&R update came out I tried to find many decks to try out Jace and Bloodbraid Elf, but nothing seemed really interesting. So I thought: "Hey, why not through a deck together that uses both?". This deck originally was built off of an old Temur Moon build that came out a few years ago, add some modifications and voila, you got yourself a decent deck. I've been testing this deck out quite a bit this past week and I am already in love with it; by no means is it perfect but I was excited to share this idea.
This build was originally a much more controlling build, with Cryptic Commands, Spell Snares, etc. A lot of this revolves around "tech" to break Bloodbraid Elf even further:
1) Ancestral Vision: Do we all remember the old Hypergenesis combo? This is similar, although maybe not as game ending. Although being typically only be used in control decks, being able to cascade into powerful suspend cards is brilliant for pure card advantage, having a 3/2 with haste that draws you three cards for four mana is good in any deck. Given that some games might good quite slowly, or you end up facing a a control deck, playing it for it's suspend cost is still really useful.
2) The Temur Cards: This is possibly my favourite part of this deck. There is an option to stick fairly closely to the old Temur Moon build, but I've gone for something a little more spicy: Temur Ascendancy. Without the support, this card is kinda pants, so I've leaned into a more aggressive path, featuring Tarmogoyf, Savage Knuckleblade, and a single copy of Thundermaw Hellkite. These cards trigger the ascendancy so it gives you at least some value. I've cut down on Hellkites as they are pretty expensive and can't be cascaded into. Temur Ascendancy also allows you to attack with the creatures you've cascaded into, which is a small win.
3) Jace, the Mindsculptor: Generally a very good control/midrange card in general, and also a very grindy one as well. Repeatedly brainstorming can allow you to sift through cards, and allow you to cascade off of Bloodbraid Elf more effectively; for example putting that pesky Ancestral Vision sitting in your hand back on top of your deck, as well as Savage Knuckleblades.
This list is very flexible. The Ascendancy can be replaced with Blood Moon, and some of the creatures can be replaced by more controlling pieces, such as Spell Snare, Cryptic Command, Snapcaster Mage, Remand, and lots of other cantrips. Courser of Kruphix is one of my favourite cards, but it can be replaced by Tireless trackers, which can be better in some cases, as there are many mana dorks with can make use of the multiple clues that would be made.
The side-boards self explanatory. Good cards for the right matchup, very much like other midrange decks. Some copies of Abrade might work as well, maybe some copies of Tireless tracker, or more copies of cards like Kitchen Finks, Fulminator Mage or Relic of Progenitus.
Overall I would recommend this deck, it's very fun and can get some easy wins. It's very grindy and will remain a strong deck until they re-ban Jace. I'd like to know what you guys think, in case there's anything you would add or if you like the idea.
