[75%] Blink blink, nudge nudge

Commander / EDH Indigoindigo

SCORE: 54 | 177 COMMENTS | 17550 VIEWS | IN 34 FOLDERS


Prophet ban, mulligan change —Feb. 22, 2016

Prophet of Kruphix -> Murkfiend Liege
Solemn Simulacrum -> Slithermuse
Currently looking at tax/prison/lockdown-cards, might rework the list some.

Indigoindigo says... #1

Reworked my ramp some for less shuffling and more early game explosiveness. Also removed my tutors as per Jason Alts / Bennie Smiths recommendation. It was pretty much always fetching Prophet of Kruphix anyways, a bit boring. Just ask if you're wondering about the reasoning behind some of my changes and inclusions.

March 16, 2015 3:30 p.m.

obitus says... #2

I must say while I had fun with Ixidron, I finally put it away. The laugh was great in the beginning, then it just lost its value. Its a board stopper for sure, but not worth it in my opinion.

March 16, 2015 10:56 p.m.

I think Thragtusk would be a great add. However it's incredibly difficult for me to choose something worth cutting. Armada Wurm is the only thing that really comes to mind but the token it creates is better.

March 18, 2015 11:14 a.m.

MagicalHacker says... #4

From your sideboard, I'd DEFINITELY vouch for Diluvian Primordial, Progenitor Mimic, Green Sun's Zenith, and Swan Song.

From the deck, most of it looks really solid, but I would probably take out Fiend Hunter & Sower of Temptation (a temporary answer is no answer at all), Thassa, God of the Sea (scry and unblockability both seem a bit outside the synergy/main goal), and Mystic Remora (as nice as it is, having to pay mana just to keep your board state rather than further it or control an opponent's is extremely bleh).

Also, out of curiosity, please peruse my Roon deck, and let me know if you see any cards that interest you highly. It's been a while since I've updated it (Sylvan Primordial? Oops...), but there might be a gem or two: MagicalHacker - Roon of the Hidden Realm.

March 19, 2015 6:56 a.m.

Indigoindigo says... #5

I've decided to cut down on tutors and countermagic, but your other suggestions I've wanted to try out for some time. I really like the Sower as a good 75% card, it scales well to the power level of the table, but Fiend Hunter might not be good enough. How about these changes:

Conjurer's Closet -> Progenitor Mimic. Quite similar effect, but more shenanigan-potential. Fixes my curve a bit too.
Fiend Hunter -> Diluvian Primordial. I might find some good removal in the graveyard, and the Primordial is a good 75% spell as well.

March 19, 2015 10:29 a.m.

MagicalHacker says... #6

Sounds great! Also what does 75% mean? XD I assumed its a balance between broken and unplayable, but does it mean something else?

March 19, 2015 11:32 a.m.

lemmingllama says... #7

@MagicalHacker Basically it's a deck that is 75% of the way to an optimal deck, not ideal but it can still beat 100% decks if you draw well and can also play against casual players. There is a really good article here that talks about the concept

March 19, 2015 11:41 a.m.

Indigoindigo says... #8

This is also a nice summary. When I say it's a nice 75% spell I'm usually refering to the axiom "Scalable spells help tailor your cards to the power level of your opponents' decks".

March 19, 2015 1:53 p.m.

Deckologist says... #9

You should just name this "deckologist put this deck together one day to have fun at his local game shop and it got banned after 2 games" because well, it did haha. Love seeing the progress of this deck

March 19, 2015 1:58 p.m.

Indigoindigo says... #10

How on earth did that happen? So far this deck hasn't been oppressive or OP at all, even against budget goblin-builds and pretty-much-precon-Mayael. Sure, it probably wins more than it loses and has some ridiculous ramp/draw-more-than-everybody-combined-starts, but I also see some "I'm not able to do anything pre-T6"-games.

March 19, 2015 7:23 p.m.

obitus says... #11

I notice these types of decks have the power to just simply combo out at unexpected times. I am not surprised your deck got a lot of hate.

March 19, 2015 10:12 p.m.

Indigoindigo says... #12

My 2 cents on the recent rule changes:
I'm OK with this and doubt I will change anything in my decklist because of it. Bant Charm is still a good utility spell, Cyclonic Rift is still a good sweeper and Hinder just got a bit less oppressive - and they're still decent answers to troublesome commanders. I've seem some suggest running Faerie Trickery over Hinder, and although I have one in my binder I don't know if I'll make the switch. Any opinions?

March 24, 2015 4:59 a.m.

lemmingllama says... #13

If you are going for the tempo loss of Hinder, just use Memory Lapse instead. If you want the counter, then Counterspell or Dissolve would be best.

March 24, 2015 7:30 a.m.

Indigoindigo says... #14

I actually like being able to put the spell at the bottom of the library against reanimation strategies. Other than that I've liked the "friendly" counterspells Dream Fracture and Arcane Denial so far, it's less of a douche move. If I were going for a more competitive list I'd probably run Counterspell and Dissolve, but I'm loosely following Jason Alt's recommendations here. I also have a Kheru Spellsnatcher and a Draining Whelk but I think the mana-investment is too high.

What do you think about Plasm Capture?

March 24, 2015 1:03 p.m.

Indigoindigo says... #15

I've tried sorting the deck by card type. Let me know what you think :)

March 31, 2015 5:04 p.m.

obitus says... #16

On a small minor note, I personally separate Solemn Simulacrum and Coiling Oracle between draw and ramp.

I consider Coiling Oracle strictly draw, and sometimes you can ramp by drawing.

I consider Solemn Simulacrum strictly ramp, with the chance that he might die and draw you a card.

This is just personal preference, but otherwise I like it. It is a bit different from my own sorting, so this gives me ideas to play with.

March 31, 2015 5:41 p.m.

Indigoindigo says... #17

Yeah. I've sorted them as both since they sometimes serve both functions.

March 31, 2015 6:06 p.m.

ohmless says... #18

got to run the deck a few times. I like how it protects from board wipes.

April 1, 2015 12:59 p.m.

MirranTitan says... #19

Hello friend, solid list. It seems pretty tight. I noticed Progenitor Mimic in the side, and I think it's solid enough for main board, with your commander, you can regrab targets with it, it's a very powerful card. maybe Perplexing Chimera out for it?

some other thoughts

Restoration Angel

Cloudshift

Tooth and Nail

Genesis Wave

April 4, 2015 6:43 a.m.

Indigoindigo says... #20

Progenitor Mimic will probably find a home here, and I think Conjurer's Closet will go out. I'll play a few more games before I decide. Perplexing Chimera is a nice political card, so I think I'll keep it for now. Any other suggestions for what to take out for the Mimic? Restoration Angel is also a nice suggestion, I like reusable effects more than instants like Cloudshift (or Momentary Blink). I've seen some Roon-list run the angel, some not.

I've recently started to consider Stonecloaker. I'll check my spare cards and add it in my maybeboard if I have one. It will probably be useful in some matchups.

April 4, 2015 9:04 a.m.

MirranTitan says... #21

Hm perhaps Arbiter of Knollridge it is political, but it is known for slowing up games. Don't get me wrong, he's a fun card, but kind of a dead draw if you are at the highest life total, and you put everyone back on the throne. whereas the mimic is really good whenever you draw it, and it has nice synergy with your general.

I really like Stonecloaker, it's very efficient.

Also, compared to everything else, how do you feel about Trostani's Summoner? I used to play it in a similar bant deck, and it ended up getting the axe.

April 4, 2015 3:30 p.m.

Indigoindigo says... #22

Arbiter of Knollridge is in my maybeboard only, so I can't cut it for the Mimic.

Trostani's Summoner has been great for me so far. I've heard of several people cutting it and others having the same experience as me: With one or two blinks it's often game. It also has synergy with Reveillark, Skullclamp and Aura Shards.

April 5, 2015 7:16 a.m.

Traveler247 says... #23

Overall, this deck looks pretty sweet, though I definitely have some recommendations. Since you asked for my recommendations, I'm going to be a bit more thorough than I usually am, and offer thoughts on quite a few cards. First, some general thoughts on Roon. There are many ways to build this deck, but I've personally gone with control, and my suggestions will be based from that mindset. This is because any win-con in which I'm trying to build an army of tokens is a bit slow (it would take several turns to actually have enough to kill someone) and while you're building up, you're very vulnerable. I found that by playing control, my win-con was more of just having control of the board, and that gave my opponents less time to react. Furthermore, in order to do this, everything has to be efficient, and be relevant almost as soon as it's played. With that in mind, here are some suggestions. Cuts are first, then the suggestions are broken into infinite combo (encase you want to avoid those) and non-combo.

Cuts:
Conjurer's Closet - This card takes several turns to pay off, but a single turn in EDH is a long time. A lot happens in one round of turns, and it's very likely that this card will get destroyed. Furthermore, I found that, when blinking creatures, having it at instant speed was magnitudes more powerful, and I moved over to that.

Venser, the Sojourner - This card seems like one of the most auto-include cards of them all. Everyone loves Planeswalkers that are perfectly on flavor, but this is just a worse conjurer's closet, because Planeswalkers almost always get killed in EDH. And if it doesn't get killed, then you shouldn't have a problem winning, as your playgroup needs to step it up. See conjurer's closet for more points.

Mistmeadow Witch - This effect is great. It's just another Roon. However, now Roon can't be tucked, and this ability costs 4 mana. That's far too slow.

Brago, King Eternal - If this has been good for you, then feel free to keep it, but I've always got the problem that I don't overextend, so I typically only have 1-3 creatures in play at a time for this to hit, and then this creature actually has to connect, and it often dies. In general, while other engines seem like they generate value, this almost seems like a win-more card. It's only really good if you're ahead.

Trostani's Summoner - This is expensive and relatively weak. There are multiple more powerful cards.

Champion of Lambholt - I don't know if this has been good for you, but It's juts a beater, and I don't play beaters, so I put it on the chopping block.

Fiend Hunter - This is not as good as several other creatures as a form of removal. See Gilded Drake, Nevermaker, or Duplicant.

Burgeoning/Mana Vault - So it looks like you took the ramp package of Dominus - Dreamcrusher Edition and made it in your colors and more budget. Here's the problem: you aren't drawing cards the way that deck does. Damia is a drawing powerhouse. You don't need Burgeoning and Exploration. Yeah, they're both good cards, but those hands when you get both are gonna suck, and if you don't get either, your other ramp should be fine. In general, I would cut Burgeoning, but if you agree to cut one, then you probably have more experience with them are better fit to choose. Also, Mana Vault is kinda a one-shot card. With this deck being a value generating deck that doesn't typically do anything too explosive, Mana Vault doesn't seem as good.

Swiftfoot Boots/Lightning Greaves - I would only run one of these to decrease your chance of a dead draw, and because the haste isn't all that relevant for you. Also, if you want to protect your creatures, consider Privileged Position or Asceticism.

Sea Gate Oracle - You saw my analyses of this. I would add that this is just a bit weaker than other cards in the deck, and that as you add more powerful effects, this just won't be up to par before too long.


Combo Suggestions:
Palinchron - You probably know about this card.
Time Warp - With Archaeomancer or Eternal Witness, this card can easily net you infinite turns.
Phyrexian Altar - Goes infinite with any 2 of Karmic Guide, Reveillark, or Saffi Eriksdotter.

Non-Combo Suggestions:
Survival of the Fittest - Obviously ridiculous.Parallax Wave - Not obviously ridiculous. This card is amazing. It protects your creatures from removal, lets you have them re-enter, and keeps opponents from attacking you. This thing is just a fantastic toolbox of options for Roon decks.
Birthing Pod - This is just nuts. In general, I don't lose games in which this sticks for even just three turns, especially if I'm playing a combo build of my deck. Compared to Conjurer's closet, for example, this is cheaper up front and far more powerful.
Portcullis - This has been amazing for me. It stops a lot of decks cold, and just completely prevents them from functioning. If you have Roon out first, then you can hit an opponents creature and stick it under the Portcullis when it re-enters. Basically, you just slowly generate value, while most other players can't do anything.
Gilded Drake - This is just incredible. Overall, this should be in every Roon deck who's owner has a copy. I understand that it's expensive though.
Evacuation - Gets around indestructible, is instant speed, and lets you use all of your ETBs again. Personally, I really like this card, and have found it to be very effective.
Eladamri's Call - In a creature based deck, this is fantastic. I see you cut it, but I would recommend putting it back in. I like what you replaced this with, but maybe something else should go.
Ghostly Flicker - Instant speed blink is very strong, and this hits two creatures. Also, it makes a fantastic synergy with Archaeomancer or Eternal Witness, functioning as a 3 mana Deadeye Navigator ability encase that gets removed.
Momentary Blink - This has been fantastic in general. The single blink is really nice, though underpowered for costing you a card. Things like Cloudshift simply aren't worth it, but the flashback, I think, makes this card worthwhile.
More counterspells! - This is always good. Dissipate, Dismiss, Voidslime, Counterspell, and Cryptic Command are all strong.

April 10, 2015 7:26 a.m.

obitus says... #24

@Traveler247: Just to note, you can use Fiend Hunter to combo off with creatures greater than power 2. It requires a little set up, but does come in handy from time to time. Also, it matters which sac outlet you use in the combo.

I would think about Plasm Capture for a counter spell as well.

April 10, 2015 11:58 a.m.

Traveler247 says... #25

@obitus By creatures with power greater than 2, do you mean 2 or less? Because the only thing that's power dependent in Roon that I can think of is Reveillark, but then this is only really relevant if you're playing infinite combos. It is further worth noting if you're talking about combos that Fiend Hunter + Karmic Guide + A sac outlet goes infinite, though I just now realized it.

April 10, 2015 5:47 p.m.