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Even Dragons Eat their Veggies!(3-0-1 FNM)

Standard Aggro Combo Dragons FNM Ramp RGW (Naya) Tokens

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Creature (24)

Planeswalker (4)

Land (23)

Instant (3)

Sorcery (6)

Sideboard

Creature (7)

Planeswalker (2)

Instant (5)

Sorcery (1)

Maybeboard

Creature (3)

Planeswalker (1)

Instant (4)

Sorcery (1)

DISCLAIMER: THIS IS NOT A DEVOTION DECK, NOR IS IT INTENDED TO BE.

Dragonlord Atarka 1 photo cardart_1kxYAPextX_DLAtarka_zpsb7nccgkm.jpg

Who thought Atarka was really a vegetarian? Certainly not me. I wonder if she enjoys carrots. All jokes aside, I wish to explain my ramp into big things deck, and my quest to make Explosive Vegetation good in standard. Now, this deck may not be strictly better than R/G Devotion or G/W Devotion, it is still a very explosive and fun to play build. Without further ado, strategy and card choices.

Why Play this Deck? :

First off, this deck is a conscious metagame decision.

PROS: This build punishes Aggro decks, and its constant ability to flood the board state while dealing with larger creatures makes it a viable threat to the Midrange player. It can apply enough pressure early with enough threats to keep the control player on the back foot.

CONS: While the deck is very good against Aggro and Midrange decks, the control match up can be iffy. If the mana dorks are consistently killed before turn 4, the deck may slow down enough to be out paced. That being said, the addition on Collected Company helps prevent the loss of mana acceleration, even in the face of a board wipe

Also, ramping into no threats can be a nuisance. However, being able to cycle the deck, scry, and fetch lands/creatures help to thin the deck fast enough to dig out threats such as Hornet Queen.

Basic Strategy overview:

Simply put, you want to accelerate your mana into being able to play cards like Elspeth, Sun's Champion and Dragonlord Atarka on turns 4 and 5 respectively. The faster you play your bombs, the easier it is to win. Very often, if this does not happen, you lose. Typically, victory is achieved through cycling options, ramping into those options, then overwhelming the opponent.

Card Choices:

I. Mana Acceleration:

Elvish Mystic: This is the back bone of most green based ramp decks. It is a T1 mana dork that doubles as an attacker against control, and a blocker against aggro. Sure, the Mystic usually finds himself on the bad end of a Bile Blight or burn spell, but the cards versatility makes him a great 4 of. In addition, if he is not answered, you can run away with games.

Rattleclaw Mystic: Honestly, I wanted another mana dork that could produce red mana if necessary. The 2/1 body is not bad in a pinch, and it hits harder than Elvish Mystic if it needs to attack. Finally, it doubles as allowing explosive plays, in example, morphing it and being able to play 2 Explosive Vegetation in one turn can be back breaking for an opponent.

Sylvan Caryatid: It has a big body for blocking, taps for any color of mana, and is very hard for the opponent to interact with. Why not 4?

Voyaging Satyr : This guy is here specifically for interacting with Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. There were 4 in the original list, but the forth was cut because drawing 4 was usually so bad, I lost the game.

Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx: For devotion based shenanigans. While this is not a devotion deck, the heavy amount of green helps produce tons of mana.

Explosive Vegetation: The back bone of the deck. It pulls any of the basics and has amazing synergy with Courser of Kruphix, but more on that later.

II Bombs/Threats:

Dragonlord Atarka: This is the major power swing of the deck. Even if she lands and is immediately killed(has to be), she warps the board state enough to make major swings in the game.

Elspeth, Sun's Champion: In the original iteration of the deck, Elspeth was a 4 of. Now, her final copy lies in the side board. Elspeth can stick consistently on turn four, and begin pumping tokens. This is a must answer for an opponent, and if the opposing player cannot, she out races. The tokens and ability to board wipe consistently early is back breaking. She comes down so early, it is not unheard of for her to finish the game alone three turns later.

Hornet Queen: This card has great synergy with Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx. In addition to that, this card is essentially five removal spells, five blockers, and five attackers that can consistently be played on turn five. Originally the deck ran three in the main board; however, without necessary removal, the deck was sometimes outpaced, and the added weakness to Bile Blight was less than ideal.

Crater's Claws : A miraculous one of (with a second in the SB). This card has so much versatility, that I would not be surprised if it had more of a presence in later builds. Originally, there were no copies of it in the MB or SB. In the early drafts of testing Crater's Claws , I ran two in the main. This was later changed to one in the side and one main, for the inclusion of End Hostilities. This decision was strictly metagame dependent. Why is Crater's Claws good? At worst it is spot removal. But it shines against control decks the most. There have been times when I have baited a counter spell, only the then kill the control player with a claws for 15. I like creating a controlling environment without actually playing control.

Fleecemane Lion: Turn 5 is a monstrous lion. He also counts as a nice pull off Collected Company. If someone is foolish enough to tap out, a nearly impossible to remove lion sticks next turn. There have been games where I have pulled 2 Fleecemane Lion off Collected Company and made them Monstrous immediately, then blocked an incoming threat, only to kill the opponent on the back swing. Never underestimate a 4/4 Hexproof Indestructible that can be "flashed in". Collected Company gives this baddie a kind of Pseudo-haste, and I love it.

III Other Non-Land:

End Hostilities: With a deck that floods the board consistently with small creatures, this seems like a puzzling choice. However, its synergy with Fleecemane Lion and the possibility of casting is on T-3 with cards like Collected Company or Explosive Vegetation in hand makes the board wipe effect negligible on your side. It can end games for the aggro player outright, though.

Courser of Kruphix: I decided not to include him in the Ramp portion of my little primer. Why? Because this deck could not function in the way it does without Courser. Most people you play against will not realize this and you will win because of it. A. Information: Playing a land off the top is not simply the only reason Courser is good. It lets you know when to cast Collected Company and not cast it into a creatureless void. There have been times that I will play a land, notice a Courser of Kruphix on top, cast the company, and suddenly I have an army. B. Filtering: Playing Lands off the top, and helping dig for threats is paramount. The ability for the Courser to "draw" cards is of utmost importance. C. Explosive Vegetation: This is self explanatory. In many cased, this single interaction puts you out of reach very quickly.

Ajani, Mentor of Heroes: Mostly, he helps you filter for answers. And while the game usually ends before he can ultimate, the 100 life gain very often results in a scoop. In a pinch, he can help your little guys dodge Anger of the Gods, Bile Blight, and Drown in Sorrow or push the last bit of damage through.

Collected Company: An accelerant if there ever was one. At any facet of the game, this is good for you. The worst case, yes, is to whiff a bunch of lands or threats, but re ordering future draws is fine too. Other than that, dropping mana dorks or Fleecemane Lions is its main focus. I would say knowing what to do with Collected Company is easy to guess. But when to cast it will take some trial and error.

IV Lands:

Temple of Plenty and Temple of Abandon : This deck could probably run well on an entirely basic mana base, but the temples are here for scrying. It does kind of suck to pull Elvish Mystic and have only a Temple as a green source, but the addition of the scry is important in finding threats in the late game and mana acceleration early.

Windswept Heath and Wooded Foothills: These are here for deck thinning and mana fixing. The single foothills can find the single mountain if the Explosive Vegetation did not find it first. Sadly, sometimes they cannot find anymore basics, but the shuffle is very important.

Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx: All of the mana forever. With Crater's Claws and Voyaging Satyr , the game is over. But worst case, you can manipulate Nykthos into dropping multiple threats.

Haven of the Spirit Dragon: A single copy brings back Dragonlord Atarka. Dragonlord Dromoka, and Ugin, the Spirit Dragon. If red is not readily available, the card can help pump out Atarka.

Forest, Plains, Mountain: 6-3-1. I have done some testing, and I have found this split to be optimal for the deck to run effectively. If I had to make a change at all, I would drop 1 of the 4 Windswept Heath and add a seventh Forest. However, that is still subject to test.

V The Sideboard:

The side is still a work in progress.

Nyx-Fleece Ram : Big time middle finger to most agrro decks, especially mono red.

Hornet Nest: Do I hate red? Sometimes, yes. This is testament to it. It is also very good off of Collected Company. Pulling this and then blocking something big like Fanatic of Xenagos , Siege Rhino, or a powered up Goblin Rabblemaster is great!

Elspeth, Sun's Champion: See Elspeth section above. The fourth in the side is for respect to Bile Blight. If the do not have it, token away!

Reclamation Sage: This can come off Collected Company, but it is mainly here to deal with Whip of Erebos, Outpost Siege , and Mastery of the Unseen. These cards are prevalent in my meta. In a pinch, it kills Virulent Plague as well. The sage also gets passed the Ensoul Artifact strategy that has seen resurgence in my meta in recent weeks. I may increase the count if need be.

Erase: To deal with powerful enchantments at instant speed. Erase may also become Destructive Revelry in the near future. The additional mana to cast is never a problem. And the burn with the ability to target something other than enchantments may prove to be better overall.

Back to Nature : Hoses Constellation, which see some play in my meta.

Dragonlord Dromoka: She comes in against heavy aggro builds for quick life gain, and against control as another threat that needs to be answered.

Crater's Claws : More removal or game ending threat vs control decks.

Ugin, the Spirit Dragon: If I play the long game, Ugin is where I want to be. And ultimate off Ugin is straight value and something the burn deck or control cannot deal with. However, I think he shines in midrange match ups, acting as a cure all for powerful planeswalkers or value based creatures like Siege Rhino.

Atarka's Command : This card is very versatile. It helps me ramp and has synergy with Crater's Claws . But most of all, it helps me dodge Bile Blight, Anger of the Gods, and Drown in Sorrow. The command has many usages, from pushing last points of damage, to helping block fliers.

Wellp! That is it for my Explosive Vegetation ramp deck. If you have the cards, try it at FNM. If you do not win, you will still have loads of fun with! Happy Magicking.

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Revision 1 See all

(11 years ago)

+1 Crater's Claws maybe
+1 Destructive Revelry maybe
+1 Dromoka's Command maybe
+1 Reclamation Sage maybe
+1 Shaman of Forgotten Ways maybe