G/B Rock - With Eldrich Evolution?
Modern forum
Posted on Nov. 29, 2016, 5:21 a.m. by EpicFreddi
Hello, it's me again. That guy that always has a stupid idea and imidietly wants to turn it into another deck.
Well today I thought about Eldrich Evolution + Phyrexian Obliterator. Sac a 2 drop to get an Obliterator and wreck face. I thought about a graveyard-subtype, given that I'll fill the yard quite fast (maybe delirium with grim flayer?)
Maybe adding another color would be a good idea too. Maybe white for Path + Souls. I could turn tokens into grim flayers/goyfs if I wanted to.
Let me know what you think. I'll throw a list together later.
EpicFreddi says... #3
Emzed thank you very much for your indepth opinion!
I still like to go through with the deck and see where I end up. I'd put in white for Finks and Souls and see how the mana works.
Do you have a good creature to sacrifice to Evolution in your head though? Voice of Resurgence is a great card of course, but I don't want to be too heavy in white.
November 29, 2016 10:02 a.m.
EpicFreddi says... #4
November 29, 2016 11:47 a.m.
If you limit yourself to green and black, my ideas would be Elvish Visionary, Sylvan Ranger, Primal Druid, Viridian Emissary, Bloodghast, Geralf's Messenger, Kitchen Finks, Eternal Witness, Wood Elves, Weaponcraft Enthusiast.
November 29, 2016 11:56 a.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #6
As a long time BG Rock player I have to advise 2 things. 1st you'll rarely want to sacrifice your board state and 2nd Phyrexian Obliterator can often be the decks weakest link.
November 29, 2016 1:09 p.m.
EpicFreddi says... #7
I understand the first argument, even though this isn't your typical rock list, but how is obliterator the weakest link? I understand the mana is tight for BBBB while you cast green spells, but what's beyond that?
November 29, 2016 1:20 p.m. Edited.
APPLE01DOJ says... #8
It's outclassed more often than not. Tarmogoyf has a bigger body, Scavenging Ooze gets bigger, offers life gain and graveyard manipulation, Dark Confidant provides more utility in his draw power and flexibility and all these creatures are half the cost. Phyrexian Obliterator hits the board and that's it. You can attack with it and deal 5 damage, typically not game changing or you can leave it untapped to block with which it will indeed stall combat but not do anything else.
I love the card and I'm in no way saying it's bad because it can and will win games just in my experience running the card for 3 years now, it's flaws are clear to see.
Emzed says... #2
EE is a high risk, high reward card. While really powerful at getting you the creature you want, it gets devastated by countermagic and can also be weak against removal like Path to Exile. Therefore, if you are casting EE, it should be worth taking that risk by getting you a creature that is highly likely to win the game on its own. Most decks that currently run EE grab either combo creatures (Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker plus Restoration Angel) or disruptive creatures (Linvala, Keeper of Silence, Kataki, War's Wage, Eidolon of Rhetoric). Also, you need good sacrifice fodder (Kitchen Finks, Voice of Resurgence, Pia and Kiran Nalaar, mana elves) and it helps if you have mana creatures to enable casting EE before the opponent can Remand it.
So, coming back to your specific idea: Does Phyrexian Obliterator win the game on its own? It certainly can, under the right circumstances, but Modern is a format with many fast combo decks and Path to Exile, Dismember or Terminate are seen frequently. I can imagine various scenarios where getting Obliterator is not optimal. What you need is a toolbox of other creatures to get whenever Obliterator isn't good. Thrun, the Last Troll would be a tool to fight controlling decks full of removal. Obstinate Baloth or Thragtusk stabilize your life against burn, Skinrender gets rid of Blighted Agent or Eldrazi Displacer. If you are facing Ensnaring Bridge, having access to Reclamation Sage or Acidic Slime seems fantastic. Thought-Knot Seer, Fulminator Mage or Magus of the Moon might be required if you want to beat Tron.
As you can see, the color black isn't typically very rich in those game winning silver bullets. Decks with EE (or Chord of Calling and in the past Birthing Pod) often rely on white, since that color has some really great disruptive creatures, some of which i listed above. Phyrexian Obliterator and Eldritch Evolution both require you to commit heavily to their respective colors, so playing more than those two colors might not be easy. All in all, i don't think that would make a great deck, even if it could occasionally be really powerful.
November 29, 2016 8:41 a.m.