2.29.24 - Big Changes
In: Case of the Locked Hothouse, Nervous Gardener, Semblance Anvil, Expose the Culprit, Guardian Project, Farseek, Offender at Large, Liberator, Uzra’s Battlethopter, Rootbound Crag, Clifftop Retreat, and Sunpetal Grove.
Out: Elven Chorus, Ire Shaman, Anzrag, the Quake-Mole, Samut, Voice of Dissent, Mentor of the Meek, Winds of Abandon, Root Elemental, Skittering Cicada, Fire-Lit Thicket, Rugged Prairie, and Wooded Bastion.
The check lands (Rootbound Crag, Clifftop Retreat, and Sunpetal Grove) work just as well as the filterlands ( Fire-Lit Thicket, Rugged Prairie, and Wooded Bastion) and they are less expensive.Here’s the thing about Elven Chorus and Cryptolith Rite; I never had creatures to tap for mana. Most of the time in testing, I’m playing pretty aggressively. Therefore, I really wanted the “play off the top” effect more than the mana product. However, I still wanted ramp. Thus, Case of the Locked Hothouse does both and pretty easy to achieve. Cost reduction is important for this deck so Semblance Anvil reducing all creature cost by is exactly what I want. Anzrag, the Quake-Mole might be back, but I needed to make room for other things. Same with Samut, Voice of Dissent, good but not needed. Instead, Expose the Culprit is a back-up Kaust and can reset disguise creatures. I want the ramp of Farseek over Winds of Abandon. Austere Command is enough of a sweeper for me. Liberator, Uzra’s Battlethopter is a sidegrade to Skittering Cicada simply because I have that card available to me now…and it has flying. Instead of repeatedly paying to draw a card, I can pay the for Guardian Project for more cards over time and with less restriction. I changed my mind for now about Nervous Gardener because it can fetch basic land types. This deck isn’t built for Ire Shaman’s exile draw. Why Offender at Large? Because it is a meme and I like it. Root Elemental is better but hasn’t really done anything special.
2.22.24
Dream Chisel isn’t necessary. Ugin, the Ineffable, Obscuring Aether, Jasmine Boreal of the Seven, and Panoptic Projektor is more than enough reduction. Look, I’m going hard on cards I haven’t really played with. Thus, Rageform and Lightform. I have enough lands and ramp so Elvish Mystic and the coveted Birds of Paradise. The removal of BoP might be a mistake, but here we are!
2.19.24
Break Through the Line is a haste outlet and unblockable if that creature has power 2 or less. Though it costs per use, the previously mentioned combination is great for slamming in with morph creatures then flipping them the same turn with Kaust. As well, the new surveil lands are really good and i think there is enough devotion for Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx.
2.9.2024
Yarus, Roar of the Old Gods is one of the best cards in this deck and it shows. All the shenanigans that I could do with Eldrazi Displacer can be done better with Yarus and just attacking, which is what I'm doing anyways. I rather have more protection for Yarus and Kaust so Swiftfoot Boots were put in. However, I still want to use instants and sorceries that have been manifested. This, Temur Sabertooth basically takes Eldrazi Displacer spot. Dream Chisel for more cost reduction. I'm noticing that there are lots of ways to put face-down creatures into play and Mastery of the Unseen is the weakest. Fortune Thief is a combo piece.
2.7.2024
Elven Chorus is a more expensive Cryptolith Rite that allows you to play creatures off the top. Scourge of the Throne is only here because Imperial Hellkite is a morph dragon. I tried to add other dragons to this build but it didn’t fit well. The extra attack trigger from Scourge is good but kinda slow. Because of that, Anzrag, the Quake-Mole is the replacement, being a better “surprise” card. Imperial Hellkite is a card that leads to a game ender. So, why not just add a game ender. Greenbelt Radical is a morph Overrun card and can end the game. Like Anzrag, Ojer Kaslem, Deepest Growth
is a busted card that has a good damage trigger and will surprise opponents once flipped. Welcoming Vampire seems like the weakest of the card draw outlets. Fortune Thief is just a fun morph creature to play with that can save you from lethal damage.
Immediate Pre-Con Upgrade
Lands
Branch of Vitu-Ghazi, Command Tower, Exotic Orchard
Boros Garrison, Branch of Vitu-Ghazi, Canopy Vista, Cinder Glade, Gruul Turf, Jungle Shrine, Kessig Wolf Run, Krosan Verge, Mosswort Bridge, Sacred Peaks, Scattered Groves, Selesnya Sanctuary, Sheltered Thicket, Shrine of the Forsaken Gods, Temple of Abandon, Temple of Plenty, Temple of Triumph, and Zoetic Cavern
Fortified Village, Furycalm Snarl, Game Trail, Mossfire Valley, Sungrass Prairie, and Temple of the False God
Artifacts
Arcane Signet, Panoptic Projektor, Scroll of Fate, and Sol Ring
Lifecrafter's Bestiary and Ransom Note
Creatures
Ainok Survivalist, Akroma, Angel of Fury, Ashcloud Phoenix, Beast Whisperer, Boltbender, Deathmist Raptor, Den Protector, Experiment Twelve, Hidden Dragonslayer, Hooded Hydra, Nantuko Vigilante, Ohran Frostfang, Printlifter Ooze, Root Elemental, Salt Road Ambushers, Saryth, the Viper's Fang, Toski, Bearer of Secrets, and Whisperwood Elemental
Broodhatch Nantuko, Duskana, the Rage Mother, Exalted Angel, Imperial Hellkite, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Seedborn Muse, Nervous Gardener, Krosan Cloudscraper, Krosan Colossus, Welcoming Vampire, Scourge of the Throne, and Yedora, Grave Gardener
Master of Pearls, Mirror Entity., Neheb, the Eternal, Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa, Tesak, Judith's Hellhound, Thelonite Hermit, and Temur War Shaman
Enchantments
Obscuring Aether, Trail of Mystery, True Identity, Ugin's Mastery, and Veiled Ascension
Wild Growth and Mastery of the Unseen
Instants/Sorceries
Nature's Lore, Three Visits, and Unexplained Absence
Austere Command, Dusk / Dawn, Fell the Mighty, Jeska's Will, Return of the Wildspeaker, andPath to Exile
Chaos Warp, Showstopping Surprise, and Decimate
Avaycn’s Pilgrim, Bolrac-Clan Basher, Crowd-Control Warden, Elvish Mystic, Expose the Culprit, Flourishing Bloom-Kin, Gisela, Blade of Goldnight, Basandra, Battle Seraph, Jasmine Boreal of the Seven, Mentor of the Meek, Swords to Plowshares, Farseek, Pyrotechnic Performer, Hystrodon, Rhythm of the Wild, Unyielding Gatekeeper, Yarus, Roar of the Old Gods, and Trostani, Three Whispers
Beast Within, Ugin, the Ineffable, Dream Chisel, Liberator, Urza's Batttlethopher , Aurelia, the Warleader, Birds of Paradise, Skittering Cicada, Illusionist Bracers, Samut, Voice of Dissent, Semblance Anvil, and Aurelia’s Vindicator
Guardian Project, Enlightened Tutor , Winds of Abandon, and Archdruid's Charm
Heroic Intervention, Worldly Tutor, Worldspine Wurm, Tyrranax Rex, and Cryptolith Rites
Gucci Cards for a morph deck?
Delney, Streetwise Lookout, Old Gnawbone, and Serra’s Emissary
Round One
37 lands to 35 lands
Boros Garrison to Arid Mesa,
Branch of Vitu-Ghazi,
Canopy Vista to Bountiful Promenade,
Cinder Glade to Rockfall Vale,
Command Tower,
Exotic Orchard,
4x Forest,
Fortified Village to Wooded Foothills,
Furycalm Snarl to Arid Mesa,
Game Trail to Stomping Ground,
Gruul Turf to Boseiju, Who Endures,
Jungle Shrine to Jetmir's Garden,
Kessig Wolf Run to Spectator Seating,
Krosan Verge to Windswept Heath,
Mossfire Valley to Reflecting Pool,
Mosswort Bridge to Swords to Plowshares,
3x Mountain,
4x Plains,
Sacred Peaks to Sacred Foundry,
Scattered Groves to Overgrown Farmland,
Selesnya Sanctuary to Sundown Pass,
Sheltered Thicket to Spire Garden,
Shrine of the Forsaken Gods to Beast Within,
Sungrass Prairie to Battlefield Forge,
Temple of Abandon to Karplusan Forest,
Temple of Plenty to Brushland,
Temple of Triumph to Wooded Bastion,
Temple of the False God to Rugged Prairie, and
Zoetic Cavern to Fire-Lit Thicket.
The lands in pre-cons are generally really slow. Don’t play the signet lands (Mossfire Valley and Sungrass Praire). They are incredibly bad. You’re better replacing those with basics off the bat. First, shock lands must be played for any deck with three or more colors. The battle lands are cheap so there isn't a reason to neglect them. Filterlands would be the next upgrade because they are reasonably priced. Fetchlands aren't necessary but really helps with speed and consistency.
Nah, I’m good must go!
Lifecrafter’s Bestiary to Mentor of the Meek - Mentor of the Meek does the same thing, isn't an artifact so it's easier to flip, and supports the 2/2 theme. Bestiary has been disappointing every time I've played it.
Ransom Note to Yarus, Roar of the Old Gods - Yarus was made for this deck, period. He has to be in here, between the haste, card draw, and recursion. Ransom Note is pointless. Even if there is something I'm missing, this card is one of the most cuttable cards in this precon.
Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa to Delney, Streetwise Lookout - Combatwise, doesn't Sidar and Delney essentially do the same thing? However, Delney is crazy for creatures with 2 power or less. Please correct me, but doesn't Delney cause Kaust to flip two creatures and draw a total of four cards of those flipped creatures deal damage? If so, that's crazy.
Master of the Pearls to Jasmine Boreal of the Seven - Again, these are two combat related cards and one of them is just better. Jasmine ramps to play creatures without abilities, like morph, and makes them pseudo-unblockable. It doesn't work with disguise, but that's fine.
Mirror Entity to Aurelia's Vindicator - I feel like Wizards just slams Mirror Entity into decks for no reason. I guess the ability to mass pump after blocks was the goal. But why? Instead, I'll put in one of the better disguise creatures from the main set.
Neheb, the Eternal to Unyielding Gatekeeper -Again, I understand the goal but why is Neheb here? Again, I'll replace this random card with a disguise creature that is removal and a flicker effect.
Tesak, Judith's Hellhound to Pyrotechnic Performer - Honestly, why is this card here? There aren't any dogs. This is not primarily a +1/+1 counter deck. Instead of a cool disguise creature, we have this random doggo card. Pyrotechnic Performer, on the other hand, will burn out the battlefield with all of the flipping. Just a better card for what I'm doing here.
Thelonite Hermit to Flourishing Bloom-Kin - Yes, this is 9 power over five bodies. So what? This isn't a token deck so those saplings aren't doing much. I rather have the ramp from Bloom-Kin, especially because it fetches a forest card.
Chaos Warp to Archdruid's Charm - I heavily dislike this card. Everytime I've played it, I've rolled into something more dangerous. Archdruid's Charm is one of the best cards in this set. This card is a land tutor, creature tutor, creature removal, enchantment removal, and artifact removal. Just dumb. Though the cost looks steep, I can assure you that with a good mana base, this card can be played past turn 3 reliably.
Showstopping Surprise to Winds of Abandon - I don’t like risky cards, for the most part. As with most Naya decks, I want my board to be full so sweeping isn't the best for me. Winds of Abandon is one-sided, mass Path to Exile.
Round 2
Decimate to Heroic Intervention - If you’ve ever played with Decimate, you know it’s bad. You need to have four targets for Decimate to go off. I rather have the solid protection of Heroic Intervention.
Yedora, Grave Gardener to Eldrazi Displacer. I have an understanding of why Sulati wants this guy. Sulati has a better suite of flip creatures that want to be reflipped. That's cool. However, Sulati doesn't have access to Yarus, Roar of the Old Gods. Yarus is just better for what this deck wants to do, which is smash face. As well, there are things, like non-morph creatures, artifacts, and enchantments, that I don't want locked as a Forest. Kaust can only flip attack creatures and I have no desire to add a card for that synergy. With all that being said, I think Eldrazi Displacer is a good fit here. If the goal is to get more use out of morph cards, instant speed flicker seems like a good option. Think about this, Displacer is another way to cheat in creatures, artifacts, lands, and enchantments. This trick doesn't work with instants or sorceries, but I'm fine with that. This kinda seems insane.
Temur War Shaman to Gisela, Blade of Goldnight. Temur War Shaman is to manifest once and provide a fight mechanic. Meh. This seems very lackluster, especially for the mana cost. I rather have the silliness of double damage from Gisela, Blade of Goldnight.
Krosan Cloudscrapper to Worldspine Wurm and Krosan Colossus to Aurelia, the Warleader. These two morph creatures are just big beaters. Honestly, I would enjoy flipping these over and really getting someone with 9 to 13 damage. But then what? Outside of the “Got’em” factor, these creatures are not good. As well, can’t I just do the same thing with other busted creatures, like Worldspine Wurm and Aurelia, the Warleader? Even though they don't morph, Kaust and the numerous manifest mechanics fills that gap.
Sakura-Tribe Elder to Birds of Paradise, Wild Growth to Elvish Mystic, and Nervous Gardner to Avacyn's Pilgrim. These are just better ramp options. As much as I would like to keep Nervous Gardner, she is a investment for a basic land to hand. Doesn’t Trail of Mystery just do this better and more often?
Round 3
Return of the Wildspeaker to Hystrodon - Hystrodon is a morph creature that draws a card with a good body. I would rather have this over Return of the Wildspeaker. It seems like the product makers were sure if they wanted to support creatures less than 3 power or creatures with more that 3 power and just put in cards for both sections. I’m focusing more on morph, manifest, and disguise so this card is kinda a bust.
Fell the Mighty to Vivien, Champion of the Wilds - This was going to be Liberator, Urza's Batttlethopher, but I didn’t want to lock myself out of the option of flashing in non-colorless creatures. Because this deck wants to be aggressive, I don’t need that many boardwipes. Instead, the ability to flash in creatures is just better for setting up the next turn or surprise blocks.
Dusk / Dawn to Worldly Tutor and Jeska’s Will to Enlightened Tutor- I understand with Dusk / Dawn is in the deck, but it just seems awkward everytime I look at this list. Jeska’s Will is a good card, but I want slots for tutors.
Exalted Angel to Bolrac-Clan Basher - Bolrac-Clan Basher is just the better morph beater with double strike and trample. Nuff’ said.
Seedborn Muse to Samut, Voice of Dissent - Seedborn Muse doesn’t work with Kaust like I want it to because Kaust only flips attacking creatures. Because of that, Samut, Voice of Dissent has the same spirit of usage as Seedborn Muse, but provides haste as well.
Duskana, the Rage Mother to Ugin, the Ineffeable - Both of the subcommanders for this deck don’t support Kaust that well. Duskana, the Rage Mother is a bear commander or something, but not useful for me here. Ugin, the Ineffeable, however, is a cost reducer, card draw, and removal. Clearly a better choice.
Broodhatch Nantuko to Skittering Cicada- What is Broodhatch Nantuko doing that Hooded Hydra isn’t? Is the dream that you block with Broodhatch Nantuko and get like five insects? I rather have an insect that gives my colorless spells flash and pumps itself with trample everytime you cast one of those colorless spells.
Arcane Signet to Cryptolith Rites - Cryptolith Rite is capable of producing plenty of mana. There will be times when I have manifested creatures that are instants, sorceries, and pointless creatures that I rather tap for mana instead of sending into the red zone. Besides that, Rite is just a card that is really good with decks that have lots of creatures.
Path to Exile to Hide in Plain Sight - Winds of Abandon completely overshadows Path to Exile. Hide in Plain Sight is Collected Company for one type of deck.