Always Watching

Enchantment

Non-token creatures you control get +1/+1 and have vigilance.

Discussion (51)

kamarupa on Agro blue/white flying deck

3 weeks ago

I've really enjoyed Dovin, Grand Arbiter in my Azorious weenie fliers deck. I've also found Always Watching to be very strong and worth the space and mana. Pride of the Clouds is really good, too, but almost too good because it's such an obvious target. Same thing with Sephara, Sky's Blade . Faerie Seer is worth considering, as is Segovian Angel and Squadron Hawk . The Hawks are very strong in my deck, acting as a sort of draw card. Immortal Servitude is also pretty great, often bringing 4 or more 1CMC creatures back from the graveyard for 4.

I think you should try to upgrade the mana-base a bit, or even add in 4x dual-color tap-lands. The mana chart shows that this is blue heavy, so at the least, probably 12 Islands and 8 Plains would help a bit.

Healer's Hawk is awesome. It's got such great value! Windstorm Drake , on the other hand, seems pretty clunky for 5.

I think it will be worth it to cut back you creature count to 24, thereby reducing the deck to 60 cards total, and opening up a few added spots for disruption spells like Negate or Reprobation . Of the creatures here, I think the best are Faerie Miscreant and Healer's Hawk, because both have such strong value for only 1CMC. Next I like with Empyrean Eagle or Thunderclap Wyvern combo-ed with Warden of Evos Isle, but probably not both. Spirit of the Spires, Sprite Noble, and Windstorm Drake seem like the weakest links, costing a lot of mana for less good payoffs. Cloudfin Raptor isn't very strong in my mind either, but at 1CMC, it's an ok choice. I think the aggro strategy will work best when it hits the fastest, so keeping the CMC down to 1-2 for most the creatures is going to get more wins. As it is right now, CMC-wise, it would probably work better with 2-4 more lands.

kamarupa on Oops! All Weenies

4 weeks ago

Mana is scarce in mono white. I suggest you drop some 3CMC spells in favor of 1-2CMC spells.

Brave the Elements is really good in mono-white.

I think a stronger theme would help. It would make it easier to choose a strategy to take advantage of. Like if all your creatures had first strike, or flying, or ETB triggers. It seems kind of all over the place.

Add "Budget" to the deck's hubs. (unless you're interested in dropping hundreds of dollars)

I think Always Watching seems like a decent fit here. Vigilance is nothing to scoff at.

I think you can find more useful spells than Mana Tithe and Unbreakable Formation. The former is too easy to dodge and the later is too high C

There are a lot of white weenie flying creatures out there. Healer's Hawk , for example, is pretty high value for 1CMC as it has two great abilities - evasion and lifegain. While lifegain in itself isn't a very winning ability, a little lifegain over time can be pretty useful.

Zerraphon on Holy of holies

1 month ago

So now I'm going to organize this post is from different types of cards and alternatives and/or strictly better cards that have the same Converted mana cost!

Let's start with enchantments! It seems like your all over the place, which is fine, but you have aura enchantments and land enchantments. which seems a little weird to me! Normally you want to either go a route for your deck, and this seems unorganized, so let us fix that! Serra Aviary is a bad card, cause it also gives opponents fliers +1/+1, we don't want this. So id suggest either going with some like Citadel Siege cause sure, it won't buff all creatures, and it'll give a boost to one creature you want per turn, or it can be used defensively which is always a plus! I'd also suggest going Dictate of Heliod cause it gives an extra +1/+1 for one extra mana, AND IT HAS FLASH! For cards that are better for the 4 cmc are Light from Within , Force of Virtue , Marshal's Anthem .

Also if you want anthem's like that there are some better than 4 cmc! such as Honor the Pure, Spear of Heliod , Glorious Anthem , Always Watching , Radiant Destiny

For ramp, I like the inclusion of Zendikar Resurgent but Mirari's Wake should be an auto-include 100%!

If you're looking for removal enchantments for commanders or problem creatures cards like Darksteel Mutation and Song of the Dryads , Imprisoned in the Moon are WAY better than Illusory Wrappings

For protection cards or cards that accumulate value, instead of Angelic Renewal and Angelic Accord , cards which can be good, but you don't have a whole lof of life gain or recursion to run these two! So I'd suggest cards like Sigil of the New Dawn , Kindred Boon , Privileged Position and Asceticism are 100% more effective in protecting your creatures or giving good value.

Speaking of value, enchantments you should look to include are: Sylvan Library fantastic enchantment. Rhystic Study and Land Tax are all good cards you should look at!

Now that we got enchantments out of the way! lets work on these instants! I love some of these instants, Absorb is a fun card that I'm 100% gonna get, same with Archmage's Charm ! Disdainful Stroke , Essence Scatter (and the like), Commencement of Festivities and Guardian Angel are all weaker versions of cards like Mana Drain and Counterspell which I'd upgrade with. I'd also suggest getting some artifact/enchantment removal such as Krosan Grip one of the best in this as it has split second, another card I highly recommend is Bant Charm one of the most versatile instant printed in these colors. some other instants i enjoy and have seen good results with are Teferi's Protection , Plasm Capture / Mana Drain , Render Silent , Arcane Denial , Dawn Charm and Heroic Intervention . Those are just some of my recommendations! I may have some more but You'd really need to let me know what direction you want to go!!

For sorceries, you're in gosh darn green! WHERE ARE THE RAMP SPELLS?!!??!!? Add Farseek , and since we have big fatty CMC angels, Recross the Paths puts in some work! Kodama's Reach and Explosive Vegetation are better than cards like Rampant Growth because 1) it gives card advantage (2 lands for 1 card) and 2) gives us more mana to work with during the late game! (this is when angel decks typically win). other ramp spells I use are Cultivate and Traverse the Outlands .

I've noticed this deck does not have a SINGLE BOARD WIPE, as big as our angels are for the CMC, we won't be able to cast them until later, board wipes are essential to have especially since you aren't running any pillow forts kind of cards, I HIGHLY recommend adding some, cards that I've always had in my white decks are Austere Command , Rout , Supreme Verdict , Cleansing Nova , Descend upon the Sinful , Planar Cleansing and Mass Calcify . Some other sources that are more focused with tribal is Harsh Mercy sure each player gets to pick a creature type, but that typically is one creature for them, and of course we'll pick angels, so we get the upper-hand in this!

We need some card draw, and this is important as I don't see any in this deck and that is a HUGE mistake. Think about adding cards like Rishkar's Expertise , Praetor's Counsel , Blue Sun's Zenith , Sphinx's Revelation , Finale of Revelation just to name a few that come to mind.

For Lands, these look just.....fine albeit slow, but not quite optimized. I totally understand how people on a budget don't run cards like Misty Rainforest and the like. But as a 3 color deck, I suggest adding in cards like Temple of Enlightenment and Temple of Plenty at least you'll get value from them coming in tapped. Other cards I'd suggest are Krosan Verge , Prairie Stream , Flooded Grove , Wooded Bastion , Seaside Citadel , Path of Ancestry , Forbidden Orchard (cause what is a 1/1 to our angels? PFFT) other lands that give some utility in a pinch are: Scattered Groves and Irrigated Farmland ! other good cards are Glacial Fortress (and it's kin), Hinterland Harbor and Temple Garden !

For Artifacts, I see the signets, I don't typically run the Sol Ring and X signets just cause I like my land ramp better and won't get destroyed with target removal or artifact/enchantment wipes. but as a 3 color deck, you 100% NEED Chromatic Lantern basically makes all your mana problems go away, just tap lands for whatever color you need! If you're trying to go for some voltronish cards, I'd suggest going like Darksteel Plate , which basically secures that you keep whatever creature you want alive for the rest of the game (unless they exile it with a spell somehow). Godsend is also a good card as people won't want to block because it exiles shit, which is GREAT, let me tell you how many times people didn't block because they wanted to keep their creature(s).
For tribal support cards, there is a very small pool to chose from, So you might want to grab a Vanquisher's Banner , Herald's Horn , Urza's Incubator , Door of Destinies , Coat of Arms , Stoneforge Masterwork and Cryptic Gateway are some cards to look at!

Ok, lets finally get this creature situation fixed! first of, YOU'RE AN ANGEL DECK WITHOUT ITS PRIME GURL!?! WHERE IS MY Avacyn, Angel of Hope ?!?!?!??!!?!?!? I'm disappointed!!!! But for real, add her.

Other cards considering should be Metallic Mimic (if you're going for a 1/1 counter theme.) Solemn Simulacrum should go in here, he's just too good not to have here! Rhonas the Indomitable is a great mana sink, and if you really need to give trample to your creatures, Nylea, God of the Hunt is also a good alternative. Resplendent Angel is a great 3 cmc angel, don't underestimate this gurl! Sephara, Sky's Blade is also a great (shittier) version of our gurl Avacyn, Angel of Hope but still a good effect none-the-less! Iridescent Angel , for a 7 mana angel, I was hesitant at running her in my jenara deck, but has proved to be SO GOSHDARN STRONG! Can literally take ANY damage from ANYTHING (don't mention the Eldrazi to this gurl) but it has soaked up a lot of damage over my games. Archangel of Tithes is a great 4 cmc angel that gives taxes for attacking and defending! great include! Angel of Invention a fabulous card, especially if you have something that gives +1/+1 counters, say a Bow of Nylea , is a great addition to our squad! Angel of Serenity is a good card here as well! great recursion for this deck! since we're in bant, Stoic Angel is also a good include! Akroma, Angel of Wrath can't go wrong with an 8/8 creature with so many keywords and protection(s)!

Also, there is ONE card that is SO GOSHDARN UNDERRATED AND NEVER PLAYED and has literally been the BIGGEST beater I've EVER seen is non-other than Selfless Squire . THIS GURL...Where are my words for this card. It's a fog effect but you get a MASSIVE creature that has to be answered or your opponent die! I've had people swing at me for 20+ damage, not worried because of Selfless Squire and she becomes a huge creature, give her trample and/or indestructible, good game! This gurl is so badass she can oftentimes beat an ELDRAZI TITAN 1v1 (in terms of power/toughness). Best and most fun card I'VE EVER PLAYED IN A CREATURE! 50/10 would recommend!

JoosetheMuice on Syr Gwyn

1 month ago

I'd cut 1 of the boardwipes and Sorin. I really don't like Always Watching either. other than you really need to cut from mostly artifacts I'd say. 30 is too much. I would focus on quality over quantity on the equipment, especially with Gwen's ability. I have some adds even though you need cuts. Hero of Bladehold Mirran Crusader and Knight of the White Orchid seem like the three biggest Knight's you are missing. Aryel, Knight of Windgrace and Olivia, Mobilized for War also seems better than a lot of the knights you have. I also run Night's Whisper and Read the Bones as a staple in black, especially without green

Metachemist on Sephara's Many Blades

1 month ago

Always Watching is a fantastic add for the Angels with out vigilance along with a nice little anthem for you. Land Tax while pricey is a good way to help filter out some Plains from your deck or just plain keep up with ramp, especially since you have several large CMC spells in here. Rogue's Passage can help you push through that last little bit of Commander Damage when needed. Silverblade Paladin while not an Angel or flying does give you Double Strike to work with off of Odric, Lunarch Marshal or you could go the enchantment route for that and snag True Conviction

mushra27 on Brimaz - Rise of an Empire

2 months ago

Thank you chadsansing for the suggestions! I always love having another point of view when I craft decks!

• Always Watching : it's true that the card would fit in the deck but I am afraid it might not be as efficient since we spawn a lot of tokens.

• Intangible Virtue : I have been thinking of this card for a while and people from my LGS also have been suggesting it as well. I think you are right, it would help my tokens get bigger earlier in the game, making them very threatening.

• High Ground : I was running Brave the Sands before in the deck with the same idea, that it adds value when Brimaz blocks. The thing is, opponents usually make sure that Brimaz can't block, mainly because they do not want to spawn even more tokens for you, making those enchantments dead cards.

• Spear of Heliod : I am already running it but since tappedout puts it in artifact as its first type, I did the same in the description. But definitely, it reinforces the idea that the card truly belongs in the deck!

• Comeuppance : I never saw the card before and I must say that I really like it. It's a surprise wrath and since I sometimes play in duel commander as well, I think I need to make room for it. It can also get someone's blast back to his face, I like it. Thanks!

• Settle the Wreckage : I love the card in standard and must say, it's a good card to have when another aggro deck is more aggressive than yours. I think I should run it, just in case.

• Teferi's Protection : that's the card I am dreaming of. But unfortunately, I would not be able to afford it, especially because I like to always create new decks rather than have only one to play with. It allows for greater flexibility when playing with a new group.

Thank you again for the new ideas that you added up, it truly helps!

chadsansing on Brimaz - Rise of an Empire

2 months ago

Love these kinds of decks. Maybe Always Watching , Intangible Virtue , High Ground , and/or Spear of Heliod in for some of the enchantments and artifacts that target 1 creature at a time?

Comeuppance , Settle the Wreckage , and Teferi's Protection might be good protection cards.

Enjoy the deck!

CTNightingale on $5 Egyptian Exertion

2 months ago

I made a similar exertion deck and I'd highly recommend Ring of Thune . It can give early game vigilance if you don't draw into an Always Watching right away and it can buff your creatures greatly for longer games! Also it is cheap.

Love your decks man, keep up the great work! Cheers :)