So in the interest of reinventing myself and trying a deck that I've never really tried before, here is a RUG monsters list using some of the new cards from Khans.
If you like this list, please remember to +1 and comment! I'll be adapting and updating this list over the next few weeks as I get a better idea of how the new standard works.
I've never been much of a mid-range player before, so this will be new and hopefully exciting to play :D
Game plan for game 1 is just to ramp and beat my opponent with monsters. Sideboard is built around countering Aggro, Mirror and Control match ups.
Any comments, suggestions, thoughts or ideas are very welcome. Here's a run down of the current main-board!
RAMP AND FIXING
Playing big monsters quickly is the key to overpowering your opponent. To help get us there we have:
Elvish Mystic - Simple 1 drop that gives me more mana to play with. Ideal turn 1 play.
Sylvan Caryatid - 2 drop that is hard to remove, helps ramp up my mana and even color fixes for me as well. Sometimes pops up on blocking duty too.
Courser of Kruphix Added in for deck consistency. Although this technically doesn't ramp OR color fix, giving the option to play lands off the top of my library and gain a bit of life back is very nice to stabilize against aggro or dig further in to my library vs control decks.
BIG SCARY MONSTERS
The heart of what a monster deck is, is of course its monsters. These are the reason this deck was put together:
Savage Knuckleblade - One of the new kids on the block. 3-mana 4/4 is a solid body and with the addition of a few abilities makes this an instant 4-of card. Can play very nicely with
Temur Ascendancy
, more on that later though.
Polukranos, World Eater
- The beast from Theros - Again has the upside of a nice body (4-mana 5/5) as well as the ability to go monstrous and act as a sink for all my extra mana. Very scary to see on turn 3.
Ashcloud Phoenix
- A new addition to the monster team since Xenagos, the Reveler was cut. Having another flying threat to block / trade with the likes of
Mantis Rider
and Stormbreath Dragon is seeming more and more necessary. Forcing my opponent to have 2 kill spells or 1 exile spell to remove
Ashcloud Phoenix
is extremely good.
Stormbreath Dragon - Just a damn good creature. Flying makes getting damage through easy. Haste makes it a scary threat for those without instant-speed removal. Protection from white makes a whole bunch of cards completely useless against it. Ability to go monstrous is a massive upside.
Surrak Dragonclaw
- KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!! Again this card plays in to the theme of a big body for its mana cost. On top of that, not being able to be countered, protecting my other creature spells from being countered AND giving everything trample? AND HE HAS FLASH!? Seriously damn good card.
Sagu Mauler
- What I believe to be an up-coming big player in standard. Play it early as a morph creature or just ramp in to a very difficult to remove threat thanks to Hexproof. In-built trample helps push damage through.
Soul of Shandalar
- A 6/6 body with first strike for 6 mana is sweet. Being able to pressure my opponent's life total and smaller creatures by sinking all my extra mana in to the activated ability can win games on a stalled board. Even gives me value if it ends up in the graveyard.
SUPPORT CARDS
Finally to round off this deck is a few support cards.
Crater's Claws - Recently added in to the deck over
Temur Charm
. I feel the extra reach/removal that Crater's Claws brings fills role that this deck needs. Can be used early against aggro to kill
Mantis Rider
or Goblin Rabblemaster. Mid-game it can take care of a planeswalker or opposing monster. On a stalled board I can simply burn my opponent's face.
Temur Ascendancy
- Added in as a card draw engine as well as making all my threats instantly scary with haste. All of my monsters trigger the extra card draw, which helps keep the fuel going.
Chandra, Pyromaster - Moved in to the main board because it just works so well with the monsters. Being able to remove a blocker and pressure my opponents life total is great, but being able to exile a card for card advantage is sweet too. Works super well with Courser of Kruphix.
SIDEBOARD!
This is still a very rough list at the moment. I don't know how the meta will settle down, so I've tried to cover off a few weaknesses that I have with aggro, mirror decks and control.
Anger of the Gods - What to side it in against: Aggro
Reasoning: Simply hoses down aggro decks. Can also be used against mirror decks by combining with Curse of the Swine to completely clear my opponent's board.
Crater's Claws - What to side it in against: Planeswalkers
Reasoning: Keeping another one in the sideboard in case I come against a large number of Planeswalkers.
Curse of the Swine - What to side it in against: Other monster decks or Gods
Reasoning: This is the Mirror-breaker. Against any other deck that looks to overpower with monsters, turning those monsters in to cute little piggies means I win. Also deals with active gods if my opponent is playing to a devotion strategy. Also bacon. Delicious bacon......
Polymorphist's Jest - What to side it in against: Mirror or flyers
Reasoning: This is a nifty little combat trick which can completely turn a game around. Can be used offensively or defensively, before or after blockers are declared to clear your opponent's board. Can also be used in to target yourself in response to an opponent -3 Elspeth, Sun's Champion to save all your big dudes.
Reclamation Sage - What to side it in against: Artifacts / Enchantments
Reasoning: Having an answer to opposing "Ascendancy" or getting rid of Ensoul Artifact while adding a body to the board is extremely valuable. Blocks / Trades with Goblin Rabblemaster which is extremely relevant as well.
Negate - What to side it in against: Control or Planeswalker heavy decks
Reasoning: Counter-spells? In my monster deck? Sure, why not. Having access to blue and hence counter-magic can play havoc on control players. Can even be handy against other planeswalker-heavy decks.
Stubborn Denial - What to side it in against: Control or Planeswalker heavy decks
Reasoning: As with Negate, having access to another counterspell can make for huge swing in my favor.
Keranos, God of Storms
- What to side it in against: Control
Reasoning: Mainly chucking him in because I've always wanted to try him. Extra card draw or slowly grinding down my opponent with lightning bolts to the face both work with this deck nicely.
Burn Away
] - What to side it in against: Re-animator decks
Reasoning: Added this in as an insurance policy against the increasingly popular Whip of Erebos decks. If im not able to draw Reclamation Sage in time to remove the whip, then I can use
Burn Away
to remove a creature and remove my opponent's graveyard.
