Sideboard


Maybeboard


Behind Enchanted Trees

"List to the forest-voice murmuring low:

All that it saw when alone with its laughter,

All that it suffered in times that came after,

Mournful it tells, that the wind may know."

Bjornstjerne Bjornson, "In the forest"

There are 4 defining cards that embodies the gameplan of this deck

Doran, the Siege Tower: The basic idea of all Doran decks is the ability to turn very cheap defensive creatures like Nyx-Fleece Ram into big offensive threats, based on the idea that 3/3s for 1 and 5/5s for 2 etc is great value and hard to race for most decks. Doran also has a strong defensive quality since his ability applies to all creatures, effectively neutering strategies based on high power creatures or pumping up the power of creatures, like for example Kiln Fiend or Goblin Piledriver. A third advantage of Doran is that he and the other 16 zero power creatures in the deck can attack through Ensnaring Bridge, making this decks matchup against Lantern control and other bridge prison decks a lot better. Assault Formation acts like a backup copy of Doran that can be fetched with Zur and dodges more removal if needed, this redundancy is important since the deck is much weaker if it can't put this effect on the field.

Zur the Enchanter: Solving problems and gaining card advantage by tutoring up additional creatures and enchantments as he attacks. Also a "4/4" flying beatstick in this deck making the 4cmc much more reasonable.

Chord of Calling: Allowing us to get our creatures reactively or in opponents end step rather than tapping out, making the deck much more resilient and flexible when playing around removal, counterspells and board wipes.

Behind the Scenes: Adds a whole new synergy to the toughness strategy. Since all of our creatures have zero or very low power this card makes them unblockable by most things that could trade with them. This fundamentally changes the dynamic of going up against opposing creatures, since we can block their creatures but they often can't block ours it shifts the initiative in our favor and enables much easier lethal swings. While only a single copy, it can be fetched onto the battlefield with Zur, conveniently before blockers are declared.

This all comes together in the signature finishing move of this deck: Casting Chord of Calling on opponents end step putting Zur the Enchanter or Doran, the Siege Tower on the battlefield (assuming the other one is already in play), and then on our turn swing with everything tutoring up Behind the Scenes for an unblockable lethal blow out of nowhere.

Doran decks (and treefolk tribals) have a great leg up in this department because of Treefolk Harbinger, a fantastic 1-drop that functions as a 3/3 with Doran, fetches Doran himself if needed and last but not least fetches the best land in the deck Murmuring Bosk or any of the other forests. This improves consistency in the ability to play a turn 3 Doran because you can fix either Doran or mana. Much like with Serum Visions in other decks you also need to mulligan much fever hands since a harbinger + a green land is usually enough to be playable. Without this card I think the deck simply wouldn't be that good.

Green fetchlands play into this as well as they can fetch Murmuring Bosk untapped with a treefolk in hand, typical turn 1 is fetch>Murmuring Bosk revealing Harbinger>play harbinger putting Doran or missing land on top.

Another strong turn 1 play is Birds of Paradise, also synergising well with Doran making it a 1/1 and ramping/fixing, and making our somewhat demanding color pie much smoother to play.

Finally Chord of Calling for 1 can be employed as a consistency engine in a pinch, fetching harbinger to put a needed card on top or fetching a bird to ramp and fix. It is however much more powerful to use the chord for more impactful creatures and should only be used in this way when no other option exists.

An unanswered Zur the Enchanter also leads to consistency all by himself since he can fetch creatures and Assault Formation as a stand in for Doran, but given the preparation needed to cast him this is more of a late game type consistency/inevitability.

In order of converted mana cost:

Dryad Arbor: Forest doubling as a creature, can be put on the field with with fetch lands. Emergency blocker, sac fodder for edict effects, can be fetched with a Chord of Calling for 0 to get a 4th land, played from the top with Courser, fetched to the top with harbinger and so on.

Dragon's Eye Savants: A rarely played card, but he's actually the only modern legal 6+ toughness 2 drop option for this deck! All of the others (only 5 total) either have defender or needs decks built around them. It's great for this deck to have a way to survive a block/trade with Gurmag Angler, a 4/5 Tarmogoyf, Tasigur, the Golden Fang and other 5 toughness threats. The flip ability can come in handy if you have surplus mana, note that flipping morphs is a special action that can't be responded, so there is no window to bolt him, but usually this guy's job is just to be a "6/6" for 2.

Nyx-Fleece Ram: "5/5" for 2 mana that gains you life and can be tutored up with Zur, a given staple of Doran decks.

Spellskite: Already a fantastic card in many decks for protecting yourself and your permanents from all sorts of things, or to steal your opponents auras and buff spells etc. Here where it's also a "4/4" beatstick for 2 mana it's just amazing.

Selfless Spirit: Sligtly nonbo with Doran unfortunately, but the option to secure yourself against sweepers like Supreme Verdict and also protect more imprtant creatures against spot removal is very useful. Also works really well with Chord of Calling.

Courser of Kruphix: Great value and consistency engine, can be tutored with Zur, gets buffed by Doran but also able to deal some damage without him. All in all a great fit and I'd run 4 if it wasn't for the lack of 3 drop slots in the curve.

Sapling of Colfenor: Topping our curve as the only 5 drop, this badboy provides a hard to remove creature that can both hit hard and stabilize our life as well as restock the hand with creatures. Plus he can be tutored up with Treefolk Harbinger. Very useful in grindy games.

We have a total of 6 removal spells mainboard, all in sets of 2.

Fatal Pushand Path to Exile: Best 1 mana removal spells in modern, nuff said.

Detention Sphere: Removes just about everything and takes care of multiple copies of cards, tried and true modern staple and here it gains extra utility by being tutorable with Zur.

Zur the Enchanter makes single copies of enchantment SB cards much more useful, so here I have mainly opted for a list of silver bullets that he can fetch. Obviously there are many other possible enchanments to put in there or you could go with a more traditional sideboard.

Aegis of the Gods: Provides protection against burn and hand disruption etc, can be tutored with either Zur or Chord.

Eidolon of Rhetoric: Stops storm and slows down other decks that likes casting a lot of spells at once, we are usually fine casting a spell per turn and can double that up with Zur activations, also a "4/4" beatstick and can be tutored with both Zur and Chord.

Everlasting Torment: Stops life gain decks and fog effects.

Ghostly Prison: Takes the edge off a lot of aggro strategies.

Nevermore: Against decks that rely on a specific card to win, Ad Naseam decks and so on.

Rest in Peace: Graveyard hate

Slaughter the Strong: One sided sweeper against decks with big creatures, since we can easily go under 4 power with all our 0/X dudes.

Spreading Seas: The most obvious land hate option for a Zur deck

Stony Silence: Artifact hate.

Aura of Silence: Artifact/enchantment hate.

Virulent Plague: Tokens.

Wheel of Sun and Moon: 2nd graveyard hate that also counters mill decks.

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Revision 9 See all

(6 years ago)

+1 Choke side
+1 Dragon's Eye Savants main
-1 Everlasting Torment side
-1 Nevermore side
+1 Slaughter the Strong side
-1 Spellskite main
Date added 6 years
Last updated 4 years
Legality

This deck is Modern legal.

Rarity (main - side)

3 - 0 Mythic Rares

36 - 5 Rares

17 - 8 Uncommons

0 - 2 Commons

Cards 60
Avg. CMC 2.21
Tokens Morph 2/2 C
Folders Interesting Decks
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