Tormod's Crypt

Artifact

, Sacrifice Tormod's Crypt: Exile all cards from target player's graveyard.

Discussion (51)

Azeworai on Atemsis, Gochta!

18 hours ago

Ah, quirky commanders are always an oddity, but delectation to brew. Now, Mono-Blue isn't exactly my forté, but I believe I may be of aid.

So, I am an adherent to running fewer lands; Thirty-six in Mono-Blue should be a crime. In their lieu, I would recommend many cantrips. If it goes three cards deep, say Preordain, then I consider it a half of a land. Four or more cards, I deem a full land. At least, this is with my experience in gameplay. As such, Impulse is absolutely lovely. Two-mana, instant-speed, what more could a player desire?

Forbidden Alchemy, Chart a Course, Strategic Planning, and Frantic Search are of note.

Baral, Chief of Compliance could be absolutely lovely: For one person, at least.

Spellseeker has never disappointed me. She finds Cyclonic Rift, Preordain, Counterspell, and Finale of Revelation, for ones in the decklist.

Every deck needs graveyard hate! Tormod's Crypt and Relic of Progenitus are both things that Trinket Mage can tutor for, but there are far more options out there. If you are to add Tolaria West could search for Scavenger Grounds.

Quicksilver Fountain is fantastically mean, though effective. It combos painfully well with Oboro, Palace in the Clouds. Target the land with the fountain, bounce it in response, whereupon the trigger fizzles and you are not to be afflicted by infinite islands.

Anent what I would cut:

Flow of Ideas seems slow, sorcery-speed, and expensive to cast. Big draw spells shouldn't be dependent on board-state unless you're playing green and have no choice. Try Stroke of Genius or Pull from Tomorrow.

This deck looks to have some busy early turns, seeing the abundance of 1-3 mana spells. Myriad Landscape enters tapped and still requires mana to ramp. I'd prefer just another Island. Though, a land worth considering is Riptide Laboratory just has quite a bit of utility.

Something I merely wish to put out there; I dislike Temple of the False God very much. That's all for that point.

One direction you could take this deck is group-hug. It draws you cards, keeps others from heeding your schemes, and allows for kills out of the blue. (get it?)

I suppose that's all from me. May fortune be with you!

CheapnFast on Revenge Of The Smith

1 day ago

Your main problem when it comes to sideboarding is going to be facing the two degenerate combo decks in the format. One involves a storm style combo with Underworld Breach and the other is a two-card combo deck with Inverter of Truth and Thassa's Oracle. Luckily because you're playing an artifact-centric deck you have some options. Graveyard hate can slow down both decks, and you're in white so you could play Rest in Peace, but that is going to be super expensive. Tormod's Crypt is a 0 mana artifact and an instant-speed answer. For the Underworld Breach deck specifically, Damping Sphere is a good sideboard choice. The Inverter of Truth deck though is tough to deal with. Your best bet is stuff that shuts down ETB effects, and in white you have access to Hushwing Gryff. You also might want to play something that deals with Bogels. Shadowspear is a great equipment that you could even consider as a mainboard opion. Sorcerous Spyglass is a good answer to planeswalkers and an artifact so that could also be good.

dingusdingo on Opinion: Banning Tutors in EDH

4 days ago

Magic is a game with elements outside your control. Your deck is bigger than your starting hand size. This randomness helps balance skill between deck building as well as piloting, and has been noted in a few places. Simply put, even a deck that is only winning 25% of games against a 75% winrate deck still is getting wins when the great deck gets bad hands, or bad draws, and the weaker deck can have their own great starting hands or lucky top decks.

Tutors are seen as one of the ways to reduce variance, and increase skill. If I have 1 card that says "I win when I cast this" and I have 1 Vampiric Tutor, my deck now has 2 cards that lead to winning. If I add Demonic Tutor to the mix, now I have 3 cards that are leading to winning.

Drawing extra cards has a similar effect, but that effect is much more pronounced in a 60 card format with 4x of any specific card. By running cards like Brainstorm or Ponder you gain access to more cards, and get to make meaningful choices about the cards available to you. To put it another way, you're reducing variance in available resources from your total possible resources. Tutors do the same thing. Tutors reduce variance in the game overall, by dramatically increasing the card quality of available cards for a small premium on whichever card you wish to play. A Llanowar Elves that was fetched by a Demonic Tutor cost you to cast, and there were two different points in getting the Elf from the library onto the battlefield where a player could have interacted with you. Big shout out to TypicalTimmy for also understanding this and putting it in a concise way. All tutors do is improve your card quality or give you access to cards. The thing you should be looking at are the combos themselves, and culling the ones that are too hard or too cumbersome to interact with.

Tutors also give information to opponents, especially in EDH where information can be used by more opponents than a 1 on 1 game. Consider the following: Outside of Vampiric Tutor Imperial Seal Demonic Tutor Grim Tutor and Diabolic Intent (and a handful of others), all the other tutors are conditional. Being conditional, the opponents have to know you satisfied the condition for searching. What do these have on common? The word reveal. If someone uses a Worldly Tutor to fetch Protean Hulk, all of their opponents have just received very important information about the options available to the pilot. Any player worth their salt will use this information to hold up counterspells or prioritize playing pieces that shut off Hulk combos, like Cursed Totem

Tutors serve as the missing piece. Sometimes it can be correct to tutor up your combo as fast as you possibly can and cast it. Other times, I expend tutors on finding more mana (I literally used Imperial Seal to find Command Tower three hours ago at my LGS). Sometimes I'll use that tutor to get Dark Confidant early, to help me control other players and stay ahead in cards. Other times I search up protection like Pact of Negation. As it turns out, double tutoring is a BIG TELL for opponents, and anyone who has played this game for a couple years is going to make the intentional choice to hold up mana to stop you. Simply jamming and racing doesn't work in every game, or every deck, even decks designed to do exactly that.

Tutors cost the same mana as Counterspell and all the other 0 or 1 or 2 mana variants that counter spells. You're getting more points during the process of the combo to use that counterspell. Many combos can be stopped by easy includes like Tormod's Crypt or Disenchant or whatever. Many players choose not to slot cards that interact with other players, and this is why tutors are seen to be a problem. If you basically let players Goldfish for 5 turns in a row, they can assemble a win. I don't think players really understand how meaningless inflicting damage to players is when you have to do 120 to win. That is 6x what you do in every other format, and cards are balanced around 20 life, not 120. When you get 30 damage to them by turn 5, they've drawn and tutored cards willy nilly without you busting them apart by killing their creatures, or removing enchantments/artifacts, or forcing them to discard cards or turning off their combos. They can just, combo off.

I firmly believe that tutors are very healthy for the format. If I know my opponent is capable of assembling and executing a combo, it forces me to consider how I'm going to react or respond to them. Opponents who tutor cards are broadcasting their ability to win, and this causes interesting dynamics around the table about expending or saving mana. It causes more dynamic interaction besides simply attacking and blocking. I don't know about you, but games of Magic are more fun when players interact with each other and threaten to win and stop other players from winning.

Nodrog666 on Numot Stax

5 days ago

Hey man! Good first draft! I like some of the ideas in here. I have some constructive criticism for you, so, as brutally honest as I will be with my suggestions, keep in mind I’m just offering my best advice on how to improve this list. I tested this deck a bit and here’s some thoughts I have:

More Tutor / Draw: You’re running very little card advantage, which I noticed when I was testing this deck. There isn’t enough dig or deck manipulation going on here. Basically every time I found myself durdling. Here are some suggestions:

• Sensei's Divining Top
• Scroll Rack
• Crystal Ball
• Courier's Capsule
• Wheel of Fortune
• Windfall
• Stroke of Genius
• Mystic Remora
• Mulldrifter
• Ponder
• Jace Beleren
• Long-Term Plans
• Fabricate
• Land Tax
• Academy Rector
• Idyllic Tutor
• Madblind Mountain
• Fetch Lands. Literally any fetches.

More spot removal: Your deck doesn’t have a lot of ways of dealing out targeted removal. Mass Land D and other sweeper spells are great and all, but you also need ways of handling individual problems as they arrive. Here are some suggestions I have:

• Path to Exile / Swords to Plowshares
• Seal of Cleansing / Dispeller's Capsule
• Return to Dust
• Crush Contraband
• Capsize
• Boomerang
• Shattering Pulse
• Shattering Spree
• Oblation
• Chaos Warp
• Lightning Bolt
• Pongify

More Persistent harassment: You’re running MLD, Tax, but you aren’t running a whole lot of effects to consistently torment the opponent. Smokestack, Pendrell Mists, Kataki, War's Wage, Manabarbs keep pressure on your opponents. Even just running more stuff to slow things down (Winter Orb, Tangle Wire, Kismet, Rule of Law, Stranglehold etc.) would be useful here.

Consider less creatures, more enchantments: Hatebears are cool, but consider the fact that they are easier to kill than their enchantment counterparts. Magus of the Moon dies much easier than Blood Moon and you want these effects to have a good return on investment. This one is more food for thought than actual criticism.

Suggestions for cuts: Hall of Heliod's Generosity (?): It’s a great card, but right now you aren’t running enough Enchantments to justify it. Most of the time it’s going to just tap for colorless. If you run more Enchantments, it’s a keeper! (I think I’m going to try and find a slot for my own deck)

Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain: This is pretty vestigial. It’s not really pulling much weight. Cut it.

Karn, Silver Golem: See above.

Remorseful Cleric: This is too squishy. Run Tormod's Crypt instead. Just as easy to recur (moreso, in fact, cause Academy Ruins sees it) and it lowers your curve.

Tomik, Distinguished Advokist: I get what you’re going with here, but you’re blowing up your lands anyway, making them untargetable is kind of moot. There’s a bunch of hatebears I’d rather run in this slot.

Burning of Xinye / Wildfire: These are weak, you can do way better for MLD in your colors. Add Sunder (Cheaper at Instant speed!).

Saltblast: This card is kind of bad. Costs waaay too much for targeted removal. Also, is completely dead against decks that run white. I’d honestly remove this and replace it with Wrath of God instead.

Karn, the Great Creator: Not doing enough. I see the combo with Mycosynth Lattice, but Hellkite Tyrant is a much better combo.

Elspeth, Sun's Nemesis: This card isn't great. If you want Elspeth, put in Elspeth, Knight-Errant or Elspeth, Sun's Champion instead. Both make tokens as a +1 ability.

Empowered Autogenerator: Too slow, too expensive. It’s not as good as it looks. Ideally, rocks should slot into the 0-3 CC range. If you desperately wanted something in the 4 slot, why not just run Thran Dynamo instead? It’s more consistent.

Firemind Vessel – See above.

Magk_Autumn on EDH Kumena mid range

6 days ago

What about Emry, Lurker of the Loch for Merfolk tribal synergy + graveyard recursion for Illusionist's Bracers / Isochron Scepter / Tormod's Crypt? Also, if you want a backup mill package, Drowner of Secrets might do well alongside Ambassador Laquatus.

Fe_Gui on RBW Reanimator Twist

1 week ago

I see what you are going for, but can I ask why not use Buried Alive or Entomb? A turn 1 Entomb + Griselbrand + Exhume will finish the game really fast... Also, by "tutoring", you can use less creatures in your deck, and open slots for cards like Duress, Collective Brutality, Sign in Blood, Lotus Petal... Disruption is always good, extra draw will fuel your Zombie Infestation and Lotus/Rituals let you chain cards off a Griselbrand activation by giving extra mana.

Against grave hate, I recommend Pithing Needle, Phyrexian Revoker... cards that shut down Tormod's Crypt, Deathrite Shaman and similar. Against counters, Boseiju, Who Shelters All is really good, also Pyroblast.

For the creature-package, I have a few suggestions... Anger gives everyone haste, Sheoldred, Whispering One is a Reya on steroids, and Sire Of Insanity.

Hope this helps!

MrKillStar on Colorless combos and beat downs

2 weeks ago

Cards I would consider throwing in:

Minion Reflector - In a colorless deck with so many mana rocks, paying 2 extra mana to get some big fatties you're running would be great, in my opinion. Maybe even Thran Temporal Gateway to cheat, lets say, Blightsteel Colossus, make a copy of it by Minion Reflector for 2 mana with haste a possibly insantly take someone out? Pretty good if you ask me.

Mimic Vat - One of my most favorite artifacts. Being able to imprint anyone's creature and play it every turn just for 3 mana? Heck yea! In combination with Mirror Gallery, you could do some sick plays. Imprint Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger to Mimic Vat, pay 3 and tap it to create a token, when you activate Mimic Vat, it triggers Rings of Brighthearth, pay 2 to create another copy of Ulamog. If you use Strionic Resonator, it gets triggered on triggering Rings of Brighthearth. Or just forget about Mirror Gallery and Ulamog and use It That Betrays instead.

Field of Ruin - Another non-basic land removal and fetches a basic land for everyone. It might be worth running, since you can easily replay it by Crucible of Worlds. Maybe take out Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, unless you combine it with Mana Web.

Soul-Guide Lantern / Tormod's Crypt - cheap and effective graveyard hate.

tron lands: Urza's Tower, Urza's Power Plant, Urza's Mine - not the greatest lands to use in EDH, but unless you've an effective way to fetch Wastes from your deck, tron lands might be worth running.

Oblivion Sower - Very decent Eldrazi to use. Gets you ANY land an opponent's own in exile. Attack few times with Ulamog, cast Oblivion Sower and you're good. It also helps you to get rid off opponent's top deck card if they somehow manipulated it (Vampiric Tutor, Insidious Dreams, etc.). You can even double it's cast effect with Strionic Resonator!

Emergence Zone - Sneaky land that gives your cards flash. Nice way to dump your mana at the opponent's end of turn and finish them on your turn.

Mycosynth Lattice - This is just a dumb combination with Darksteel Forge. But gives your opponents acces to all colors, so watch out for that.

Titan's Presence - Fairly easy creature removal.

Warping Wail - Cheap and flexible instant spell. Does any opponent have x/1 mana dork? Exile it and send them a message. Need some dumb blocker? Warping Wail got you! Is an opponent trying to board wipe you? Nope, they don't!

Cavern of Souls - Choose Eldrazi and watch your blue opponents screan,

Dark Depths - We love big, dumb creatures that win us the game, don't we? Dump in extra mana and slowly wake up Marit Lage! This also works well with Thespian's Stage. T1 Stage into Sol Ring, T2 Dark Depths, tap Sol Ring for 2 mana, use Stage, copy Dark Depths, sac Dark Depths due to legendary rule, after that sac Stage (now copy of Dark Depths but with 0 Ice counters) and get a 20/20 legendary creature token with flying and indestructible.

Void Winnower - This bad boy..or..whatever it is, might be a very nice addition aswell. Your opponents can't even, ba-dum-tss.

Argy on Soaring Lifegain

2 weeks ago

You might want to look at Tormod's Crypt