Ib Halfheart, Goblin Sac-tician [PRIMER]
Commander / EDH
SCORE: 704 | 404 COMMENTS | 62700 VIEWS | IN 266 FOLDERS
More playtesting, lots of changes, and 2300 views! —March 27, 2017
After a lot of playtesting, and feedback from the people I played against, I've made some really key changes. I had gone a little off the rails with some of the interactions, and that resulted in the deck playing like it was two different decks trying to cooperate. I was also spending so many turns trying to get out Stax effects and just lock the board, that I was keeping myself from playing too. Ib wasn't getting any chances to mess with people! So without further ado, here are the changes.
Creatures:
OUT
No Changes
IN
Goblin Marshal - I completely misunderstood this card for the longest time. Why in the hell would I ever use a card with an echo cost of 6? I never thought that not paying on purpose was a valid option. This card is a ton of ETB/LTB/token potency.
Hoarding Dragon - This was an suggestion from an earlier commentor, that ended up being a good solution after dropping Planar Bridge. This will be primarily to tutor for Crucible of Worlds, but could also be used for Coat of Arms, Panharmonicon, Paradox Engine, or other key cards depending on my boardstate, and the rest of the table.
Mogg War Marshal - Same case as Goblin Marshal, I just thought it sucked. Turns out it is strictly better than Dragon Fodder, and fantastic with all the ETB/LTB effects in the deck.
Purphoros, God of the Forge - Our little Purphy is back in! Realizing I needed to let this deck do its thing has significantly improved how it plays. Bringing Purph back in has done a lot for ETB effect consistency.
Solemn Simulacrum - Sad Robot has replaced Ghirapur Orrery, as it performs much better the way the deck is built.
Voracious Dragon - Rounding out the powerful dragons, I added in Voracious. I was originally put off by the thought of losing Goblins, but since I have a much easier time making them now it isn't a big deal. The huge flyer and the giant fireball are too good to pass up.
Artifacts:
OUT
Claws of Gix - Too limited of a use, and inherent cost.
Darksteel Forge - Too expensive and hard to tutor. I would rather rely on my other recursion.
Ghirapur Orrery - Replaced by Solumn Simulacrum, which I can recur, gives me more solid benefits, and no group hug.
Krark-Clan Ironworks - Too limited of a use. Was only being used to dodge wipes.
Mana Crypt - This may make its way back in, but I wanted to test with mana rocks, and without, and so far without is going a lot more smoothly. Some combination of Sol Ring/Mana Crypt/Mox Diamond will probably be a good balance eventually.
Mana Vault - Out with the rocks!
Mana Web - I was focusing too much on Stax, and not enough on token generation. A few of the Stax effects made the cut, but not this one.
Mox Diamond - See description for Mana Crypt.
Phyrexian Altar - Currently sideboarded, but this would be the only sac outlet I would bring back in, as a backup to Skirk Prospector.
Planar Bridge - Great effect, but too expensive in this deck. Was only really going to be used to tutor Darksteel Forge and Crucible of Worlds, but I found better alternatives.
Storm Cauldron - I love this card, but it simply hurt me too much when I used it. If I offloaded most of my ramp to mana rocks it would work great, but then I wouldn't be able to use Ib as effectively.
Tangle Wire - Fun, but not what this deck should be focusing on.
Vedalken Orrery - Hard cut because I love the effect, but I really needed to get back to square one with the primary focus of the deck first. Sideboarded for now.
IN
Altar of the Brood - Stupidly powerful. Not sure how I didn't know about this before, but added per feedback from a friend I played against. Played 4 games since I added it and it has milled no less than 15 cards per player each game. Multiple games ended due to burn damage that would have had 40+ cards being milled in a single turn just after that.
Slate of Ancestry - Really strong draw in this deck, and because I can choose when to use it, I have the opportunity to set up my hand to limit the loss to discard.
Trading Post - Great multi-use card. Made me more comfortable dropping Darksteel Forge, but also gets me a little more draw, and small lifegain if I ever need it. Untaps with Paradox Engine.
Enchantments:
OUT
Furnace Celebration - Unfortunately, just my weakest enchantment by a good margin. Fairly strong with Ashnod's Altar out, but when it isn't it might as well not be on the battlefield, since I can't guarantee sacs as much as I can guarantee permanents entering play.
IN
Goblin Warrens - Back in. I took it out because it was my weakest token generator at the time, but hadn't considered its benefit when I have a slow turn, or being able to sac early game attackers when they become blocked. Also goes infinite with Mana Echoes and Skirk Prospector.
Shared Animosity - Back in. Some of the feedback I got is that I was focusing too much on the strength of creatures when Ib was out, and only had Coat of Arms out to help when he wasn't. Animosity helps me at all times.
Lands:
OUT
Great Furnace - Replaced with a Snow-Covered Mountain. Was only in as sac fodder for Welder/Slobad/Daretti, or for Inventors' Fair. I would rather have another basic instead.
IN
Reliquary Tower - This is to make sure that the extra draw effects I've added don't make me discard a bunch at the end of my turn. Also turns into a Mountain with Blood Moon, so that I can use it for Goblins later in the game.
Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx - I need another "mana doubler", and instead of Caged Sun or Gauntlet of Power I decided to run Nykthos because of the CMC of the other two. I am still going to test all of these out.
Planeswalkers:
OUT
No Changes
IN
Koth of the Hammer - Another really strong card that I didn't know about. All of his abilities are great, and I can tailor it to whatever I need at the time. Even using his -2 as soon as he comes out can be worth his casting cost.
Sorceries:
No Changes
Instants:
No Changes
I've only played the deck in its newest form 4 times now, but the difference is night and day. It is much more consistent, I feel like I always a factor on the table, I'm not hellbent as often, and most importantly of all Ib plays a more pivotal and potent role in the games.
As always, I continue to be surprised at the amount of attention the deck is getting, and I hope I can continue to hone this deck into something really powerful that we all enjoy.
Long live Ib!
You keep saying you'll lose friends playing this deck. But I don't know about that one. I would probably not like to see yet another Krenko EDH deck, but Ib Halfheart would be all right.
Also, Furnace of Rath and Warstorm Surge look like they might be good for you.
March 14, 2017 1:35 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #3
ay.lobo: Thanks for commenting! Goblin King was recently in the deck, and I took him out because I was only using him as a win con, and I needed a more versatile card. I moved him to the sideboard though, because I still like his interaction with Blood Moon. He will end up back in the deck if I don't find another win con that I like more.
As for Outpost Siege, I really don't know how I feel about it. I like that I can choose what I need more at the time, and doubling up on a Boggart Shenanigans effect is really nice, but the exile part is rough in this deck, since I have so many vital cards where only one such effect exists. I do need more draw though.
March 14, 2017 1:38 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #4
KaraZorEl: With just the little bit I've played this deck in person so far, I was really surprised how many people hate Stax, even though I mention that I'm not using Winter Orb/Static Orb, Smokestack, etc.. which I feel are a lot more punishing. I'm not even running all the MLD that I could at the moment. Oh well.
As for your suggestions - I've had Dictate of the Twin Gods maybeboarded for a while, and Furnace of Rath is on my maybeboard overflow. The only reason I'm not running one of them currently is I don't have enough experience with the deck to know if I can limit the amount the double damage hurts me back. I would love to have another in addition to the Gratuitous Violence I currently run, but I think I need a lot more playtesting before I do that.
I had Warstorm Surge in many, many revisions ago, but took it out because of the cost. Now that I have drastically improved my curve and ramp package, this would be an easy addition back in to maximize the ETB damage. Especially with Coat of Arms and Panharmonicon in the deck.
March 14, 2017 1:47 p.m. Edited.
battle_jelly says... #5
Ah, I got you. Let me elaborate on Outpost Siege then... So you exile the top card at the beginning of your upkeep and then you draw a card. Basically having two cards drawn. Let's say the card you exiled was a land card. You could play that card. Or it was a creature card. You can play it and it will no longer be exiled.The only bad part of it is if you dont use it, it is exiled for good. For the most part, it is like an extra draw card.
March 14, 2017 5:54 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #6
ay.lobo: I've only been playing Magic for a little over 9 months, and I had no idea that the mechanic worked like that. I thought it got exiled whether you used it or not. Thank you for taking the time to explain it!
That is definitely going into my sideboard until I can find a spot for it.
March 15, 2017 12:28 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #7
I'm really curious to try Vedalken Orrery in the deck. It would combo really well with Paradox Engine, plus being able to respond with creatures and artifacts at instant speed would be fantastic.
Not sure what I would cut, however.
March 16, 2017 1:33 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #10
Bonfire of the Damned out for Insurrection. Insurrection just really fits the deck, and is very strong will all my sac outlets. A much better win con.
March 16, 2017 4:48 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #11
Vedalken Orrery in for Wayfarer's Bauble. Not a straight trade, just Wayfarer's was my weakest extra land mechanic.
Goblin King back in! With the addition of Vedalken Orrery I like the thought of running the King a lot more. If at any point he is hurting me (when Coat of Arms isn't out), I can always sac him.
Outpost Siege in. Need that extra draw.
Null Brooch in. I've been wanting a good counterspell for a long time, and couldn't bring myself to bring in the anti-blue counterspells, or things like Shunt. Brooch fits pretty well, even with the high cost. Can even protect against things that would remove itself.
Claws of Gix in for Shivan Harvest. Shivan didn't get used that much, and as a sac outlet with a high cost, it wasn't as streamlined as I wanted. Real land destruction cards will go in for FNM. For now just Strip Mine and bouncing is good.
Impact Tremors in for Purphoros, God of the Forge. I really can't decide which one I like more... Knowing me this will probably go back and forth a lot until I find a good way to run both.
Now Ib just needs to sac two cards out of the deck and we are good to go!
March 16, 2017 9:14 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #12
Having a hard time picking two cards to cut. Thoughts anyone?
March 17, 2017 12:29 a.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #13
Well, I couldn't settle on 2 cuts, because everything I have right now feels like it needs to be in the deck right now. Gonna try running 32 lands for a while and see how it plays. There is hardly a difference in the draw percentages, but that doesn't mean it will play the same.
March 17, 2017 4:14 p.m.
Red Elemental Blast and Pyroblast might be usefull to help you make sure your stuff doesn't get bounced or countered by those pesky blue players.
March 19, 2017 12:55 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #15
ay.lobo: I just wanted to tell you that I got an Outpost Siege the other day, and have played two games with it in the deck already. Both games I was able to bring it out, and it was nothing but a huge benefit to me. The extra card draw was definitely something this deck needed, and that was a great suggestion.
March 21, 2017 1:13 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #16
Infral: My current meta is not very blue heavy, but still has a good amount counterspells and things I would like to counter, so I am running Wild Ricochet, Boseiju, Who Shelters All, Cavern of Souls, and Null Brooch currently to work within my playgroup. When I am happy with the deck and venture into FNM with it, I will probably switch out Wild Ricochet for one of the anti-blue counterspells because I am much more likely to see heavy blue there.
March 21, 2017 1:18 p.m.
Liquidbeaver says... #17
After seeing what the deck can do just by adding draw through Outpost Siege, I want to add some more draw to keep myself from being so hellbent all the time. It may be time for Sensei's Divining Top to come in.
I'd also like to add just a little more token generation, probably through Beetleback Chief so I can get tokens, ETB triggers for Panharmonicon, and more bodies per mana spent compared to some of the other goblin generators.
March 21, 2017 1:24 p.m.
battle_jelly says... #18
Absolutely. Draw power is always a weakness in decks; I'm very familiar with that weakness, unfortunately. Glad I could help.
March 21, 2017 1:30 p.m.
Bluefire016 says... #19
I don't have any suggestions to make for this deck, but I have to say this is absolutely awesome. Primer is really good, and the Goblin Shenanigans are fantastic! Great deck my friend. +1
battle_jelly says... #1
Hey there. Random thoughts. Something that works great with your Blood Moon is Goblin King. With your buffed up goblins, this would be a quick game. What do you think about Outpost Siege for extra damage or draw power?
March 14, 2017 12:42 p.m.