This version of
Hokori
plays as a light Stax midrange deck with a large grindy synergy/combo element.
The goal is to use
Hokori
as a psychological threat and drop him at strategic times rather than whenever possible. When he's in the Command Zone, people think twice about tapping out.
Well of Knowledge
becomes very one-sided, Magus of the Tabernacle becomes a Wrath, and Mana Web makes every decision very stressful. You can play politics well if you convince your opponents that you'll leave their mana alone as long as they leave you alone.
Early Game Development
The deck does the typical pillow forting early on, using Archangel of Tithes, Ghostly Prison,
Peacekeeper
, Windborn Muse,
Story Circle
, Kor Haven, and Wrath effects like Wrath of God, Rout,
Catastrophe
, and Austere Command. You have many expendable early blockers in the form of value cards like Solemn Simulacrum, Wall of Omens, and Stoneforge Mystic.
Midgame Grind
Once the midgame comes, the game gets more grindy, relying on recursion synergies to create strong board states. The sacrifice outlets (Blasting Station, High Market, Trading Post, World Queller) synergize really well with reanimation engines (Emeria, The Sky Ruin,
Reveillark
, Karmic Guide, Sun Titan) to create huge value with many targets, as does Erratic Portal and
Mimic Vat
. Some of the best combos are:
Erratic Portal
+
Mangara of Corondor
/ Sun Titan + Managara of Corondor + Sac Outlet / Emeria, the Sky Ruin + Managara of Corondor + Sac Outlet / Mangara of Corondor
+
Mimic Vat
= Exile a permanent every turn.
Sun Titan
+
Unstable Obelisk
= Destroy a permanent every turn.
Duplicant
+
Erratic Portal
/ Duplicant
+
Emeria, The Sky Ruin
+ Sac Outlet / Duplicant + Mimic Vat
= Exile a creature every turn.
Peacekeeper
+
Sun Titan
+ Sac Outlet / Erratic Portal
+
Peacekeeper
= Only you can attack.
Emeria, The Sky Ruin
+
Yosei, the Morning Star
+ Sac Outlet / Mimic Vat
+
Yosei, the Morning Star
+ Sac Outlet = Choose a player to not untap anything each turn.
Keeping Card Advantage
White is pretty bad when it comes to card advantage, but I think I put together a good package. Mind's Eye and Mikokoro, Center of the Sea are the most straightforward card engines, and both are tutorable with either Enlightened Tutor or
Expedition Map
, respectively. However, the best games include setting up Land Tax + Scroll Rack
, which is excellent when the game is grindy and I can pay one mana a turn for 3-4 new cards.
Well of Knowledge
is excellent in this deck, because other people tend to avoid using it in fear that I'll follow up with Hokori, and it instantly becomes fully one-sided when Hokori comes into play. Skullclamp is a little less traditional for a midrange deck like this, but there are enough small utility creatures that I can make reasonably good use of it early, and it synergizes well with a lot of the sac engine grind mentioned above. I can put together some good engines in the form of:
Kjeldoran Outpost
+
Skullclamp
Erratic Portal
+
Wall of Omens
Mimic Vat
+
Wall of Omens
Sun Titan
+
Wall of Omens
+ Sacrifice Outlet
Mimic Vat
+
Solemn Simulacrum
+ Sacrifice Outlet
Sun Titan
+
Trading Post
+ Cheap Artifact
Playing Under Hokori
With Hokori in play, Ghostly Prison, Windborn Muse, Archangel of Tithes and Magus of the Tabernacle essentially shutdown and attacks on you by creatures. Mana Web completely shuts down any substantial play by opponents, and Tangle Wire and Yosei, the Morning Star tie up remaining resources.
When Hokori drops, the deck likes to be able to play as freely as possible. Erratic Portal and Sword of Feast and Famine can make the lock one-sided on their own, and the artifact mana + Lotus Vale/
Scorched Ruins
/Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx allow for a lot of activity under Hokori. Also, the instant speed sacrifice outlets (Blasting Station, High Market, Trading Post) allow you additional control over ending Hokori's effect.
Hokori can be protected with a nice suite of cheap spells, included
lightening greaves
, Swiftfoot Boots, Mother of Runes,
Tower of the Magistrate
, and Eiganjo Castle.
Ending the Game
Besides the great synergy, Blasting Station allows for infinite combos with Blasting Station + Karmic Guide + Reveillark
and Angelic Renewal
+
Blasting Station
+
Sun Titan
. These aren't the central win conditions, but they come up more often than you'd expect. Ideally, you end the game with one of the bigger guys, such as Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite, Eternal Dragon, Steel Hellkite, Yosei, the Morning Star, or Sun Titan, or via lots of Angels using Luminarch Ascension. Sometimes you just get board advantage under Hokori, and drop
Catastrophe
for lands and sweep.
