Let's see if assault formation can be a thing in modern.
Basing this off Travis Woo's deck, from DTK. Here's his original build.
2018 Update:
- After a bunch of playtesting, It's pretty clear that only having 4 cards that enable my beaters just isn't going to cut it. I've switched from selesnya to Abzan to accomodate Doran, the Siege Tower as well as a few others.
So Assault Formation is the backbone, but the bread and butter of this deck is the Overgrown Battlements. They enable crazy ramp, turn 3 0/13's if I get the chance, as well as paying for Assault Formation's attacker cost for every creature I have out. The defenders are cheap enough that I can hold off most threats early enough to get assault formation online.
Doran, the Siege Tower, Tree of Redemption and Tree of Perdition are the beaters. Even without assault formation on the board, they are formidable. I've included Increasing Savagery to beef up anyone who needs it, but it also adds the benefit of an infinite life engine with Tree of Redemption. Put counters on tree, exchange life total, add however many counters are on him, and next turn, repeat. Its how this card is meant to be played. On the flip side, Tree of Perdition can swap his power up to 20, and my opponents life to 13 the turn after he's out using his ability if I havn't landed any damage yet. I've added a single Treefolk Harbinger to tutor land or Doran if I must.
Sylvan Caryatid is important for ramping, as well as having essential hexproof. He combos nicely with Worship to make me unkillable, and fits the defender theme. I can tap him for a mana, follow with Overgrown Battlement's ability, get two G from one caryatid. I like Wall of Tanglecord and Wall of Omens for their low CMC and utility, every deck needs draw mechanics, and the colorless/reach aspect appeals to me.
As far as spells go, I'm playing defensive until it's time to go offense. To that end, Asceticism gives me exactly what I'm looking for, and while its the highest CMC card in the deck, I have the ramp to make it worth it. Once it's out, it becomes a bigger target than formation for enchantment removal. I've included Heroic Intervention as a budget instant version. Path to Exile and Fatal Push are interchangable in the deck depending on what I'm facing, Brave the Sands makes my opponents job tougher, and Slaughter the Strong enables me to choose every creature I have out (provided I keep Doran in check), while I doubt my opponent will be that lucky. Tainted Strike is a quick and unfair win condition, especially in a deck like this. It's too flavorful to not include, and I dream of the day I get to use it on a tree defender to win a match.
Sideboard/Maybeboard notes:
Leyline of the Void and Surgical Extraction are situational, Spellskite is a great way of keeping enchantments or creatures from being taken out. I'm hoping to have Asceticism online before having to sideboard in Spellskites but just in case. Worship has a nice effect with Sylvan Caryatid if I'm getting burned by spells, or they get evasion on me before I can play Tower Defense or if my Tanglecords are out of commission. Nature's Claim is for arty/enchant removal, and the rest are boardwipes in case I feel like starting over.
I'm open for suggestions and would love help on getting this deck to a competitive level. Cick playtest and give it a drive to see how it works, I'd love comments and advice! thanks again!
