Highspire Mantis

Creature — Insect

Flying, trample

Legality

Format	Legality
1v1 Commander	Legal
Archenemy	Legal
Arena	Legal
Block Constructed	Legal
Canadian Highlander	Legal
Casual	Legal
Commander / EDH	Legal
Commander: Rule 0	Legal
Custom	Legal
Duel Commander	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Highlander	Legal
Historic	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Leviathan	Legal
Limited	Legal
Modern	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Planechase	Legal
Quest Magic	Legal
Vanguard	Legal
Vintage	Legal

Discussion (4)

JellyJaren on aurelia

5 years ago

i had to make a new account under the name of the very creature i was recommended bc apparently i dont know how to link a card and apparently you can't delete comments, pretty unepic. Anyways I'd HAVE to recommend Garrison Sergeant, as well as the other strongest boros card Razia, Boros Archangel other EXCELLENT inclusions are: Razor Boomerang some classics should make a return in this deck, Highspire Mantis Firemane Angel Mardu Scout and Depala, Pilot Exemplar is an ESSENTIAL

Tyrant-Thanatos on What is the spell color …

5 years ago

No, hybrid cost cards are always both of their colors, at all times. Spitemare is a red and white creature card while in your hand/library/graveyard/exile; Spitemare is a red and white creature spell while on the stack; Spitemare is a red and white creature while on the battlefield; Spitemare's combat damage and damage from its ability are always a red and white source.

The only difference between something like Spitemare and something like Highspire Mantis in color/mana cost is that you can just pay 2RR, 2WW, or 2RW to cast Spitemare. Otherwise, it is in every way a red and white card.

laegrim on

7 years ago

Looks like fun! If you end up taking this apart, I might build my own version.

There are some areas where I think you could change things up: some are overall optimization changes, some are meta dependent (as our meta has evolved into a particularly wipe and removal heavy grindfest), and some are admittedly changes towards deck choices I like, but that aren't necessarily more powerful. I'll try to mark each as which (opt, meta, personal).

------------opt & meta

First off, I think you'll be disappointed in how the non-token weenies and many of the anthems, creature and non creature, perform. Even if you want to be attacking with an aggro strategy, from a theory standpoint, in multiplayer, creatures that can do nothing but attack will often not have much of an impact. Especially in our meta, they will often not last the round to make an attack in the first place. To this end, I'd leave in only the best attackers, and add in haste enablers to help ensure you actually get to attack.

Out: Angelic Field Marshal (5/5 ain't nothin, vigilance is nice but too easy to turn off), Balefire Liege (on the cusp of saying leave this in, pretty good), Basandra, Battle Seraph (hinders your own combat tricks), Boros Swiftblade, Firemane Angel, Hangarback Walker (takes too long to warm up, otherwise this would be awesome), Hearthfire Hobgoblin, Hellkite Charger (Too mana intensive), Highspire Mantis, Iroas's Champion, Nobilis of War (same as balefire liege), Scourge of Geier Reach (too unpredictable), Soul of Theros (Too mana intesive), Spark Trooper (not enough ways to abuse it), War Elemental (awesome card, wish our meta would allow it, but it's too slow and often hard to trigger. Needs to stick around for a round or two to work, even with brion), Spear of Heliod (half the time you get to activiate it, your already dead), Always Watching , Berserkers' Onslaught (True conviction is much better, slot could go to a way to find it), Brave the Sands (Blocking? What's blocking?), Gleam of Battle (Could be better than I think, but seems to slow).

Ideas for what to put in: Crovax, Ascendant Hero (wipe their weenies? yes please!), Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite (you know how bad this gets), Monastery Mentor, Hero of Bladehold, Godo, Bandit Warlord, Anger, Urabrask the Hidden, Scourge of the Throne, Malignus, Knollspine Dragon.

-------------opt & meta & personal (I like responses and tricks, so this advice leans that way a bit more heavily than maybe it otherwise would)

Sunforger definitely needs more targets (remember only instants w/ CMC <= 4) and instants are generally preferable to sorceries anways, all things being equal. You'll definitely want some board wipe and more control as well.

Out: Act of Treason (better versions), Traitorous Blood, Launch the Fleet (cool, but really mana intensive).

Ideas for sunforger targets: Chaos Warp, Deflecting Palm, Fling (always good to have duplicate effects), Grab the Reins, Mages' Contest, Orim's Chant, Tithe (to find Mistveil Plains!), Wild Ricochet, Reiterate, Return to Dust, Mana Tithe, Debt of Loyalty!!, Swords to Plowshares, Orim's Thunder, Path to Exile, Enlightened Tutor, Pull from Eternity, Oblation, Master Warcraft, Punishing Fire, Ghostway, Price of Progress, Dawn Charm, Angel's Grace, Prismatic Strands.

Other good stuff: Brawl (lots of fun), Word of Seizing (Split Second!!), Blasphemous Act (can be one sided for your big stuff), Chandra's Ignition (Don't have to choose the avatar...), Mob Rule (less mana than insurrection, and basically the same), Vandalblast

---------opt & meta

Because in red and white your card advantage is heavily linked to the equipment you have, it might be worth it (espcially in a go-long meta) to have a stronger equipment theme. This will also help make up for some weenies you might take out as the theme encourages some cheaper early game creatures that provide value and find ways to make themselves bigger.

Out: Captain's Claws (The only reason I list this is that you may be running out of room for other things), Godsend (powerful, but too narrow a use case).

Ideas for strengthening equipment theme: Brass Squire, Stone Haven Outfitter, Puresteel Paladin, Kazuul's Toll Collector, Stoneforge Mystic (if you have one... pricy), Stonehewer Giant, Godo, Bandit Warlord, Deathrender (sac w/ brion for a free creature?), Bonehoard (comes in on a stick!), Grafted Exoskeleton (if you want to be really mean), Illusionist's Bracers, Lightning Greaves, Masterwork of Ingenuity, Nim Deathmantle (probably better than gift of immortality), Surestrike Trident (more brion redundancy), Thornbite Staff (Untapping Brion whenever he's activated is amazing), Umbral Mantle (more untap brion shenanigans), Whispersilk Cloak, Nahiri, the Lithomancer

--------personal

Some extra staples or favorite cards I'd recommend: Sandstone Oracle (more card draw!), Mentor of the Meek (More card Draw), Solemn Simulacrum (ramp!), Treasonous Ogre (You'll have plenty of life), Stalking Vengeance, Weathered Wayfarer, Goblin Bombardment (use your tokens to go that extra bit of distance), Rogue's Passage, Gisela, Blade of Goldnight (Best card in the colors... often lose to it)

Other random things I see: Felhide Spiritbinder, Twinflame, and Flameshadow Conjuring seem like they'd be better if you had a critical mass of etb effects. Might consider Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker and/or Zealous Conscripts. Good together or either one in your deck.

Bovine073 on Fate Reforged Draft Cube (KTK/KTK/FRF)

7 years ago

Do you have the 20 enemy-colored cards from KTK/FRF? In each set of 4 there is 1 common, 2 uncommons, 1 rare (common is from FRF, rest from KTK).

R/W: Highspire Mantis, Ride Down, Deflecting Palm, War Flare

G/B: Death Frenzy, Kin-Tree Invocation, Rakshasa Deathdealer, Grim Contest

U/G: Icefeather Aven, Secret Plans, Sagu Mauler, Ethereal Ambush

R/U: Winterflame, Master the Way, Mindswipe, Cunning Strike

W/B: Chief of the Edge, Chief of the Scale, Utter End, Harsh Sustenance.

There is also the cycle of the 6-costed KTK Commons with a morph for 5 mana. Ponyback Brigade, Abomination of Gudul, 1 for every other clan.

Hope I could help show you some more cycles.