OVERVIEW
Heliod's Control is an Azorius control deck utilizing Heliod's Pilgrim to essentially run an extra playset of all of our main answers while allowing us to choose which one we need at the time. Roughly similar to Caw Blade style decks of old, the swords have been replaced with auras (as I believe the current Pauper-legal artifacts are not enough to gain meaningful advantage), which also allows Heliod's Pilgrim to moonlight as our version of Stoneforge Mystic. Also, thanks to the fact that our enchantments exile / pacify resolved threats instead of destroying them, we get a leg up on decks that can use the graveyard to recur threats or delve cards.
Our main gameplan is broken up into three parts: Tear Down, Build Up, Close Out. During stage one, we want to focus on biding our time as our spells and enchantments stop the opponent's gameplan and exhaust them of threats. Stage two is where we drop our own, very hard to interact with threats and hit them with our aura buffs. Finally, in stage three we use card draw and card advantage to find answers for any interaction our opponent has as our threats swing in for the win. If you want to play a very fun, interactive game of Magic with an interesting take on control and tempo that still plays some heavy-duty threats, Heliod's Control might just be a really good brew for you to take to the table.
STAGE ONE: TEAR DOWN
In almost all cases, the first thing we want to be doing is using our answers to wear down our opponent. Our one-drop spells
Oppressive Rays
and
Mana Chains
don't outright remove threats, but the stax effects usually prove too costly for our opponent to pay so early in the game (and if they do pay the costs, most of the time they've just timewalked themselves, so that's good too).
Sunlance
isn't a white Lightning Bolt like some people like to say it is, but it is a great one-drop removal spell. However, the current meta does run a large number of white creatures, so we limit this to a one-of and have other, non-restrictive sideboard choices available.
Once we have two mana open, spells like Journey to Nowhere and Temporal Isolation become available, and we really start to grind out the game. We can also start setting up for our next phase by dropping Squadron Hawk and grabbing its brethren, or by getting up to three mana and calling in a Heliod's Pilgrim to find a relevant answer or buff. Lastly, we can always just hold two blue mana and go for a Counterspell if our opponent's play requires it.
STAGE TWO: BUILD UP
Once we've neutralized our opponent's start, it's time to fire up our threats. Ethereal Armor can end games quickly and gets progressively better with each enchanted answer we play.
Guardian of the Guildpact
is an absolute nightmare for our opponent to interact with or block, and once
Gift of Orzhova
gets added to the mix it pretty much dodges any relevant targeted removal or interaction in the format. It also ends up being an invincible blocker against most decks as "protection from monocolored" applies to combat damage as well.
Palace Sentinels
turns on a very good card-draw machine and finishes as a solid blocker with a 2/4 body. Apart from drawing two cards, Mulldrifter gives us another flying finisher to enchant with Ethereal Armor and close out the game over a few turns; and of course a board full of enchanted Squadron Hawk and a hand full of answers is brutal and as close to Caw Blade as Pauper is going to get.
STAGE THREE: CLOSE OUT
When the game gets to the point that we've exhausted our opponent AND built up threats backed by card advantage, all we have to do is play draw-go for a few turns before it's over. With so many answers in our deck it becomes difficult for our opponent to rely on topdecking over and over while we draw more and more cards and hold up more and more counters / removal. A couple of turns is usually enough to either deal lethal or get our opponent to scoop once we establish our board. If we stand our ground well enough to get to this point in the game, we've pretty much won.
CARD CHOICES
~MAINBOARD~
CREATURES
4Squadron Hawk: This is our recurring evasive threat. A single enchanted hawk is usually enough to win games and its ability to refill your hand with its friends is golden. It also has amazing synergy with Brainstorm as you can just put two extra hawks on top of your library after drawing the three new cards and immediately pull them back by playing it. You can also use its shuffle effect to pitch dead cards to Brainstorm and rearrange the library afterwards for fresh draws.
4Heliod's Pilgrim: This card is a sorcery-speed Mystical Teachings, a 1/2 blocker, and a Stoneforge Mystic all in one. It can find us answers, it can find us threats, and it can chump 1/1's all day and live. It also trades with all of the x/1's in the format. Absolutely a must-play playset.
3
Guardian of the Guildpact
: This guy is brutal. In many ways "protection from monocolored" is an improved hexproof in this deck. He blocks and survives, he's pretty much unblockable, and pairs extremely nice with
Gift of Orzhova
. A full set isn't needed as one out is honestly enough and two out can win games quick.
2
Palace Sentinels
: Monarch is great, especially when there's little chance your opponent is ever going to be able to even attempt to steal it from you. Our large x/4 creatures and the amount of chump blockers we can throw out, backed by all of our removal pretty much keeps the crown in our court for most of the game. Even if the opponent manages to sneak past and nab it, the amount of evasive creatures we have will just get it right back. We only run two of these as one activation of Monarch is all it takes to keep it running for the rest of the game.
2Mulldrifter: Most control decks run this staple for good reason. The draw two effect is nice, the fact it flys is nice, and the ability to just draw cards in a pinch is nice. There's no reason not to run two of these, however I stay off the playset as we have other, faster means of card draw and we don't really need to dig as much when we can just tutor out most of our answers anyway.
INSTANTS AND SORCERIES
4Counterspell: This is a control deck that runs blue, so this is a control deck that runs Counterspell.
4Brainstorm: If you really are a diehard Ponder or
Preordain
fan you can run those here instead, but between the Heliod's Pilgrim, the Squadron Hawk, and the Ash Barrens this is the perfect deck to capitalize on Brainstorm as a nice hand-fixer. We have so many ways to take advantage of this card it would just feel wrong not to run it as our draw / cantrip card.
1
Sunlance
: One-drop removal is always nice in a control deck, but there are a lot of white threats this can miss and we have so many other answers that it stays as a one-of. Think of it as our version of a card like
Ghastly Demise
.
ENCHANTMENTS
4Temporal Isolation: This is our main answer for creatures. Instant speed, cheap, tutor-able, and with the ability to target pretty much anything that is going to be attacking, it gets the job done and it does it well.
2Ethereal Armor: This aura is an ethe_real_ threat to our opponent and gets quite nasty late game. All of the sudden that 1/1 Squadron Hawk is a 7/7 flyer with first strike looking to end the game next turn. It can also come down early and turn a creature into a pretty formidable blocker. As it can also be tutored, two is plenty as one alone can win games.
2
Mana Chains
: Cumulative Upkeep is a real bother. This either wastes your opponent's early plays or timewalks them. Either way, it slows the game down in your favor.
2
Oppressive Rays
: You know what I don't want to play? A one or two-drop creature that costs three mana to attack or block with every turn or that comes with a previously free activated ability I now have to pay three for. You know what this gives our opponent for one mana? Exactly that.
2Journey to Nowhere: More two drop removal, save this for creatures that have really annoying activated abilities you don't want on the battlefield that aren't already hit with Faith's Fetters or
Oppressive Rays
or
Mana Chains
. Run this as a flex spot with Oblivion Ring and include the one you think will be more relevant to your meta.
1Faith's Fetters: Good later-game removal that helps re-up our life total and completely shuts down threats. This makes a decent tutor target for Heliod's Pilgrim when you've already established some board presence and you just want to keep grinding out the game.
1
Gift of Orzhova
:
Guardian of the Guildpact
's soulmate. Now you have a flying 3/4 lifelink creature that doesn't take damage from blocking almost anything and is pretty much hexproof and unblockable as well. Nice.This can also be grabbed with our boy HP and thrown on something enchanted by Ethereal Armor for MASSIVE lifegain. Also provides a nice laugh against Burn when you suddenly have a creature that can't be removed by any of the cards in their deck and is gaining back more life than they are capable of removing.
1Alexi's Cloak: Instant speed answer to removal that can be tutored for or equipped on a creature already enchanted with Ethereal Armor for a really nasty threat with Shroud. Feel free to board this out if you come up against a deck that is using only damage-based removal and you feel safe. I also had a laugh playing it on an opponent's final Glistener Elf as faux-removal once so it's got that going for it as well.
LANDS
6Island: Stoic producer of untapped blue mana, definitely OP, play before WoTC catches on and bans. Literally can be used to play every single blue spell in the deck.
5Plains: Second most broken card in the deck behind Island, can be used to play ANY white spell we have, comes in untapped. Some opponents may concede once you resolve this.
4Azorius Chancery: This is our in-color bounce land and we're not a super aggressive deck so we run a playset for color-fixing.
4Tranquil Cove: Typical in-color "comes in tapped, gain 1 life" land for Azorius decks in Pauper.
1Secluded Steppe: Sometimes later on in the game you might get mana-flooded, this can help prevent that.
1Ash Barrens: One last land that can grab either color needed, this one has the benefit of allowing that land to come in untapped or shuffling the library after a Brainstorm.
~SIDEBOARD~
2Annul: Good counter for Affinity and Bogles. For Affinity, try and save for
Myr Enforcer
if possible and not desperately needed elsewhere.
2
Guard Duty
: More one-drop tutor-ready "removal" for super aggro decks. Ran over
Sunlance
as it can hit white creatures.
2Angelic Renewal: Nice value engine against hyper control decks that find ways to remove your threats. As most of our crew have ETB effects, this often helps us along with blanking removal.
2Hindering Light: No Lightning Bolt for you, more cards for us. This can blank removal, enchantment-hate, and burn spells, all while replacing itself for one of each color. Really fun, good card.
1
Circle of Protection: Green
: Really nice against Stompy and Bogles. Solid against Elves as it blanks
Timberwatch Elf
from pumping anything.
1Circle of Protection: Red: Solid lockdown against Affinity, Burn, RDW, Kudoltha Boros, and Izzet decks.
1
Curfew
: Bogle? More like NOgle amirite?! hahaha
1Dispel: This is just all around cheap, good hate for instants and hate cards. Recommended to board in for most games.
1Relic of Progenitus: Really nice against decks like UB / MBC that have recurring graveyard spells as well as the Reanimator decks that pop up time to time.
1
Dust to Dust
: Two-for-one Affinity or that really strange Vehicle Tribal that dominates your local FNM.
1
Lone Missionary
: Flex spot, good against quick decks where you need a bit of extra life. Can be good partnered with Angelic Renewal as a chump blocker as well. If you're not worried about quick aggro, either run Oblivion Ring if you aren't mainboard or Spreading Seas if you face Tron decks often.
PLAY THIS DECK IF
-You like Control
-You like enchantment-based decks
-You want really interactive, longer games
-You want a customizable deck that has pieces that change based on your meta
-You like Toolbox decks
-You like Caw Blade
-You want to play a rogue deck that takes games by surprise
-You don't want to play an established deck with established strategies and hate
-You want to play Control with a bit more power and threat-intensity than normal
-You want to play Control that doesn't lose to decks that can recur cards from the graveyard
-Your meta has a lot of faster decks or creature heavy decks
-You like stopping other decks from going off
DO NOT PLAY THIS DECK IF
-You like Aggro
-You hate Control
-You want games to end around Turn 5 or 6 in most cases
-You want to only play tested Tier 1 brews that have been established
-You are trying to quickly grind leagues on MTGO multiple times a day
-Your meta has way more enchantment hate than normal for some reason
-Your meta is mostly people with Elves decks
-You don't want to play a deck that might make an opponent salty
CONCLUSION
Heliod's Control is a solid, interactive brew that's probably the most competitive a Caw Blade type strategy is going to get in Pauper. If you want a deck that has a toolbox feel with multiple answers but you don't want to give up threats and win as slowly as UB Teachings this is probably the deck for you. Feel free to give it a try as-is or customize it to your liking, and if you do, let me know! I love seeing or hearing about people playing my decks or just discussing Pauper in general. Feel free to ask any questions, I will do my best to answer them quickly. I'm also pretty active on MTGO if you want to catch a game.
Enjoy the deck!
OTHER BREWS
-Ritual Spellslinger, A Storm-Style Pauper Deck
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/primer-ritual-spellslinger/
