Elves of the Swarm (Budget)

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Mindbending Changes —July 17, 2016

From the moment the new emerge Eldrazi were revealed I just had a sense, an idea that I would try to incorporate them into this deck. I thought they were powerful cards, but have overall very high mana costs to support Elves. After playtesting with them for a while this idea has become reality. I've updated this deck with new cards from Eldritch Moon (EMN), three to be exact, Distended Mindbender, Decimator of the Provinces and Foul Emissary. These cards have replaced Eldrazi Displacer, Duskwatch Recruiter  ^Flip and Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen in the previous Abzan version. I've also cut 1x Cryptolith Rite for an additional Swamp, giving me 23x lands because Eldrazi add a significant increase to the average converted mana cost.

I've decided to cut white and go with a pure Golgari manabase, back to using 4x Hissing Quagmire. It's a relief to go back to the basics with the manabase leaving behind the sometimes inconsistent Abzan 4 color, this includes colorless, manabase that needed Evolving Wilds to be able to support emerge. I might regret cutting white because of the overall power level of in Standard which is by far the best color currently and looks to be just as strong in EMN Standard. I'm going for consistency now and dropping the power level some. However, the power level of emerge might just equalize this, which in the end I'm hoping for.

The main reason that I've chosen to go back to Golgari is not just that using two colors is more consistent than three or four colors, but because of Distended Mindbender. Using only green and black gives me the better opportunity to cast this guy faster. By faster I mean turn four or five. Mindbender requires double black to emerge him. I can reduce his colorless emerge casting cost up to five, but no matter what he costs at least two black mana to emerge. This restriction made using him inconsistent as well as painful with the Abzan manabase, but much better using Golgari. Mainly because Golgari can use more basic Swamps than Abzan.

Mindbender is a very good support creature with Elves while also just as capable of being a powerful finisher. He's great with Elves because his discard ability can take both, even at the same time the spells that wreck them, Languish and Declaration in Stone. His discard is unconditional; I can also take Planeswalkers and problematic creatures. This unconditional discard also helps to shore up some difficulties the Golgari colors have which white was used in the previous version for.

The other new Eldrazi addition is Decimator of the Provinces. Decimator has to the best ability for Elves, he pumps them and gives them trample. The problem with Decimator is he costs too much mana. Sacrificing a three drop such as Foul Emissary still means I need six mana to emerge him. Without having a Cryptolith Rite or Leaf Gilder in play six mana is a lot. This is the main reason I'm using 2x Decimator where as I'm using 3x Distended Mindbender. Mindbender helps to clear the way by taking removal or some other spell from my opponent allowing Decimator to do massive amounts of damage with Elves, but also by himself. Because Decimator has haste he is a fine creature to emerge into play without having a lot of other creatures also in play. Of course it's best to cast Decimator when I have a battlefield full of Elves, but it isn't required which is nice.

Turn tour Mindbender into turn five Decimator is super powerful and will more than likely end the game doing 14 or more trample damage. This line of play starts with having a turn 2 Leaf Gilder; He's the catalyst to do these broken plays. Gilder into Collected Company or Gilder into Cryptolith Rite is what I'm looking for in the early game.

Foul Emissary is the creature that can find these emerge Eldrazi. He's the glue guy because he supports both Eldrazi and Elves. He is only three mana to play and curves perfectly into emerging Distended Mindbender turn four. Collected Company can't put these Eldrazi into play, but it can put Emissary into play which then allows me to search another four cards off the top of my library for one of these Eldrazi. Finding an Emissary from a Company essentially lets me look at ten cards from the top of my library, this is a lot, giving me a huge advantage in selection of creatures. Emissary can find one of any creature in the top four I look at, this is also great with Elves because if he isn't finding Eldrazi to emerge he can find Shaman of the Pack or Sylvan Advocate putting either one into my hand. Emissary has another special ability which works excellent with emerge. If I sacrifice him to help pay for an emerge cost I get to put a 3/2 Eldrazi into play. Both his abilities are great with emerge making him an all star in this deck.

Foul Emissary is replacing Duskwatch Recruiter  ^Flip because he has better synergy with emerge. This deck is loses the potential combo of Duskwatch with Elves and Cryptolith Rite main deck. This combo can be great putting a lot of creatures into my hand at instant speed, but it's slow. This is the really the reason I'm cutting Duskwatch in favor of Emissary because Emissary is faster. When he enters the battlefield he gives an immediate possibility of finding an emerge Eldrazi for only three mana. Duskwatch doesn't and requires additional turns or more mana to be used to find creatures. He can however find more than only one creature which makes him better in slower matchups. For this reason he may become a sideboard card. Since Emissary has a converted mana cost of three instead of two like Duskwatch this also helps with emerge.

New Standard Archetypes

Even though I'm not a fan of the EMN set except for emerge I still think this set will have a large impact on Standard spawning new archetypes and helping some existing mechanics finally become viable. UWg Spirits, GB Delirium and Mindbender and Deep-Fiend Emerge strategies are the most likely new and reinforced archetypes to hit Standard once EMN enters.

Spirits

The biggest new archetype that will hit Standard which this deck needs to prepare for are Spirits. I predict that they will be the new Humans like in SOI Standard. Blue and white is the most likely colors because of consistency, but I can also see green being added to the mix for Permeating Mass which is crazy good with Rattlechains and Collected Company which adds to the flash/instant power. The reason this archetype will make it in Standard are Spell Queller and Mausoleum Wanderer. Queller is busted because it can exile any spell on the stack costing 4 or less. Queller is just what a new archetype needs right now to combat both Collected Company as well as most creatures Company decks use, Gideon, Ally of Zendikar and Nissa, Voice of Zendikar in GW Tokens and all Humans in Humans decks. Wanderer gives Spirits an excellent way to prevent board wipes, making Languish cost five instead of four just because he's in play is very good. Wanderer also makes Company cost five instead of four. Other greatness going for Spirits is they are all 2 power fliers. Being able to fly over a very crowded current Standard field of ground pounders is excellent.

During my playtesting so far I've faced Spirits a lot. Having sideboard answers to fliers is going to be very important for this deck. Aerial Volley is testing the best so far because it can kill up to three Spirits for one mana or Spell Queller for one mana at instant speed. Volley is good because it only costs one mana to play even if it's countered by Queller or prevented some other way I only used one mana. The one mana cost is important because It allows me to play around Mausoleum Wanderer. Volley is also good vs Rattlechains in some situations because being flashed in can only save one Spirit not everyone that is being targeted by Volley. Volley is not good vs Selfless Spirit because he can be sacrificed to save Spirits essentially killing only him for one mana which is still not the worst.

The other sideboard card I'm liking vs Spirits is Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen. She has reach and four toughness making her a fine blocker who also pumps my Elf team especially Sylvan Advocate. The problem with Dwynen is she can be exiled by Spell Queller or bounced by Reflector Mage both these possible opponent plays are devastating in the matchup. Not sure if she is needed, but seeing how she is an Elf who pumps other Elves and can also block fliers are huge positives.

A few sideboard options I still need to test more vs Spirits are Ishkanah, Grafwidow and Netcaster Spider. Both these creatures have interesting positives going for using them. Ishkanah has a casting cost of five which gets around Spell Queller, but he is sort of lackluster without having Delirium active which this deck currently can't achieve. Netcaster is 2/3 with reach who Collected Company can put into play. I also like that he is pumped up to 4 power when blocking a flying creature.

Delirium

I think Ishkanah, Grafwidow will have a real impact on Standard finally making a Delirium archetype viable. He's especially good vs Spirits when Delirium is activated. Ishkanah is just plain great with Delirium giving so much value for five mana. I'm not exactly sure what to do vs him because I really need a way to exile him not just kill him. He will most likely just come back from the graveyard by Liliana, the Last Hope or Grapple with the Past. Distended Mindbender actually is not good at all vs Ishkanah because putting him in the graveyard from discard is actually helping Delirium. Slowing my opponent down from casting him looks like the best option because I can't really completely deal with the legendary Spider.

Emerge

I've been toting the idea that emerge is great and I'm sticking to my guns in my prediction. I think both Elder Deep-Fiend and Distended Mindbender can spawn new blue and/or black archetypes in Standard with the help of Matter Reshaper, Eldrazi Skyspawner, Catacomb Sifter or Foul Emissary. Mindbender can easily fit into two archetypes right now both Golgari Control and Golgari Rites. Deep-Fiend can fit into existing UR Eldrazi an is the creature that blue decks need to try to make a come back. Fiend has flash and a very controlling cast trigger, both are excellent abilities for a control deck. I think the higher emerge cost as well as needing triple green will hold back Decimator of the Provinces from making as much impact as Mindbreaker and Fiend.

This deck definitely needs to prepare for both these Eldrazi. Both can't be killed with Grasp of Darkness or Ultimate Price which is painful. Casting my own Mindbender is a good way to combat them, taking either of them before my opponent can cast them. Permeating Mass might be another answer because Eldrazi can't attack into him which is one way to negate their high power/toughness for low emerge cost. Mass is my sideboard plan vs Humans which has worked great so far.