Creature (14)
Land (21)
Instant (16)
Enchantment (9)
Sideboard
Creature (7)
Artifact (4)
Maybeboard
Enchantment (1)
Artifact (1)
This was the most fun I’ve had in deckbuilding in recent memory. This one began as a collection of You Can’t cards and as I was collating them I realized ’Oh wow…this would actually make a phenomenal deck.’
For a deck themed around You Can’t, it goes without saying that we certainly can’t cast much of anything without the proper mana at our disposal.
Lots and lots of , and just an itty bitty bit of is enough to power this build. Remember, cards like Leonin Arbiter and Angel of Jubilation affect us as well so Flooded Strand
is a bad idea.
Aside from basic Plains, dual sources like Hallowed Fountain, Hengegate Pathway and Seachrome Coast supply both colors without much issue.
Imagine if you will a fictitious dialogue between you and the unfortunate soul sitting across the table from you. It may go something like this:
Opponent: “Alright, my turn. Ah, good cards, good cards. Let me see, now. I would like to sacrifice my Fetchland to search my library for—“
You: “No.”
Opponent: “Then I’ll cast this haste enabled creature so I can attack you during my battle phase—“
You: “No.”
Opponent: “Well then I guess I’ll just bolster my defenses by casting an additional creature this turn—“
You: “No.”
Opponent: “Ok, then I’ll just wait to disrupt you during your turn by casting—“
You: “No.”
Opponent: “Screw this, I’ll just attack you directly—“
You: “No.”
In simplest terms our intention is to shut down nearly every possible avenue of gameplay, deny every counter, limit every advance, and lock down every stratagem and gambit. By the end of the game we want the opponent pushed so far beyond the brink of sanity they’ll be pulling out their hair until they’re as bald as John Locke while screaming
•Enact prohibition, implement heavy taxation, impose tariffs on imported goods and set up that all important slush fund to grind the game to a standstill and force the opponent to reevaluate their finances while you remain comfortably above the poverty line.
•Systematically shut down your opponent’s options, imposing a moratorium on various actions like searching libraries, casting multiple spells per turn, or limiting when and how they may cast those spells.
•Should your opponent protest your executive decisions, silence them—or in extreme cases, deportation may be necessary.
•Pivot to complete dictatorship, raining down death from above, all from the safety of your ivory tower.
A different type of deck deserves a different kind of sideboard. We don’t pack answers to specific cards here, we run interference against entire playstyles and archetypes.
That Reanimator deck got you down? Try Grafdigger's Cage or Weathered Runestone.
Artifacts giving you grief? Render them inert with Imi Statue.
Counters proving problematic? Find inner peace and Solemnity.
Afraid of sneaky spells or activated abilities appearing out of nowhere? Poke them with your Pithing Needle or take them to People’s Court with Drannith Magistrate.
Between more options reinforcing similar cards in the maindeck and new answers forbidding action from other angles of attack, you’re sure to find a reply to most scenarios. Too bad for your opponent, that answer is always No, No…
Astute observers will recognize that what’s here is plainly a Stax/Prison hybrid build. While I’m open to suggestions for improvement, I will not be accepting any card(s) without some variation of the clause ‘You can’t’, ‘Players can’t’ or ‘Opponents can’t’ contained within the rules text. This was always intended to be eminently playable, but strictly adherent to the theme.
I realize a couple selections are already off theme (Authority of the Consuls) or are teetering on the edge (Shalai, Voice of Plenty—same Hexproof as Aegis of the Gods, yet no italicized text defining that attribute with the words You can’t) but I would prefer not to veer any further off course.
Yes, there are oodles of obvious suggestions that would greatly improve the effectiveness of this deck, but unless they explicitly state ‘Nope’ then they will be summarily rejected. Call it ‘Deckbuilder’s Prerogative’ :D
Special thanks to legendofa for informing me that, contrary to my original belief, I absolutely can run Orim's Chant in Modern :3
”Their idols are silver and gold, The work of human hands. A mouth they have, but they cannot speak; Eyes, but they cannot see; Ears they have, but they cannot hear; A nose, but they cannot smell; Hands they have, but they cannot feel; Feet, but they cannot walk…The people who make them will become just like them, As will all those who trust in them.”
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Casual
99% Competitive
| Top Ranked |
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| Date added | 4 months |
| Last updated | 1 day |
| Legality | This deck is Modern legal. |
| Rarity (main - side) | 2 - 2 Mythic Rares 39 - 9 Rares 6 - 4 Uncommons |
| Cards | 60 |
| Avg. CMC | 2.13 |
| Tokens | Warrior 1/1 R |
| Folders | Decks to try, Other's Cool Fun Stuff, Copies, Other Decks |
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