Your Deck in a Competitive Format

I have absolutely no intention of making this deck capable in a competitive setting. I'm aware of the weaknesses of this deck, and those weaknesses keep it from being a tiered strategy. There's just too much efficient removal to fight through and there are a handful of decks that are better at dealing 20. This will always be a Pet Deck for casual games. That's all I want it to be and I'm not interested in trying to force cards or strategies in an attempt to fix its shortcomings.

Problems facing your Deck

I don't believe AEther Vial is a card for Knights. There's too much variance in the CMC among its creatures and White has a terrible selection of spells. Vial also slows the deck, is bad after Turn 1, and extras are dead draws. I want to have Knights attacking as soon as possible, not waiting for a Vial to have enough counters.

Brave the Elements isn't that important to me. I'm more interested in removal than using a protection spell. I could add it to the sideboard, but it not something I want in the main deck.

Aggro decks always have an issue with the late game. This deck wants to dominate early and win before the game drags on too long. Late game options rot in the hand waiting or are never used. Mana screw can happen too, which makes it worse for those options. I'm not going to force a late game in a deck that isn't built to support one.

If Silverblade Paladin and his soulbond buddy get taken out from a removal spell and a block, then it happens. The next Knight will have one less blocker and kill spell to worry about.

I have no interest in adding other colours. I like keeping this deck mono-coloured and I'm in the process of completely foiling it out. Foil dual lands are expensive. Collected Company isn't worth it. There are better decks that use CoCo to a greater effect. I'd also have to add more creatures for CoCo not to whiff too often. If I wanted to use CoCo, I'd build a proper deck for it. I don't see the purpose of Knight of the Reliquary in an Weenie aggro deck. It's a utility midrange creature, why would I use it?

The Importance of Board Impact and your 4-drops

The main reasons why I believe Gideon, Ally of Zendikar is the best out of those three Planeswakers is his flexibility and synergy. He's is always able to be of some use no matter the situation and he greatly supports a Weenie aggro strategy.

Gideon AoZ and his Knight tokens add to my army. If Gideon AoZ gets chumped or killed, then that's one less blocker or removal spell aimed at one of my Knights. If my board is empty, Gideon AoZ can still function and use his Knights to rebuild. Building loyalty is only a means to keep him away from death. He isn't designed to build loyalty for value.

His immediately usable ultimate is his greatest feature, not an act of desperation. If the board isn't ideal for Gideon AoZ to stay on or I'm anticipating Planeswalker removal, I can simply use his ultimate for the anthem and boost my available Knights. Also, most Planeswalkers are terrible in multiples. Extras are, more often than not, dead in the hand. If I have multiples of Gideon AoZ, I can easily pop the first one for an anthem and then that anthem boosts the second one. Multiples of Gideon AoZ are never dead cards, which makes it easy to run a full set.

Elspeth, Knight-Errant only functions properly with a creature to target and that target can can be picked off from removal. Otherwise, she's stuck being a 1/1 token factory. Her ultimate doesn't matter. If there's a creature to boost, the opponent is dead before she can pop. If her tokens are on chump duty, her emblem won't help if rebuilding wasn't achieved within those four turns. Elspeth also constantly needs a blocker to keep her from getting attacked and with the plethora of Planeswalker removal options available nowadays, she's less likely to stick around long enough.

Gideon Jura is win-more. If I'm ahead, his +2 gets blockers out of the way for an attack. If I'm behind, his +2 gets himself killed before I can use him effectively. He also has no way of properly protecting himself because of his design and he is more vulnerable to removal than Gideon AoZ.

I have little interest in regular anthems. They have the issue of being bad draws when your field is bare. I used a full set of Honor of the Pure before. Never really liked it. Light from Within can't pump tokens or Mutavault and getting my Knights out of Bolt-range on Turn 4 isn't efficient. With Gideon AoZ, I have the option of an anthem if I want it.

Other Card Rationales

I'm not adding anything above 4 mana to the deck. This is a Weenie aggro deck. 5+ CMC cards are too slow for what I want and have their own issues.

Aside from Batterskull (which acts more like a creature), Equipment are hit-or-miss in Modern. They're slow and creep into win-more territory. 5 mana to cast and equip a Mirran Sword is too much for my liking. It acts the same as a 5-drop and playing an Equipment earlier instead of a creature affects my tempo.

I like Accorder Paladin. It's 3 power and battle cry come in handy for a bit of extra damage. He's squishy, but that's the trade-off. He is the weakest link and I'm saving his spot in the deck for a new 2-drop Knight to come around. The available 2-drop options don't interest me.

I don't find all 4 Silverblade Paladins too much. I use a full set for consistency with no issues.

Modern is not a Blue format. I play Blue in a more competitive deck. There's isn't any counterspell attrition happening. And with the more casual focus of this deck, I won't be fighting too many counterspells. With that, I don't need Cavern of Souls. I used it before. Multiples of it are useless and I hate how it messes up early game Student of Warfares by not producing coloured mana for abilities.

Card Draw

One important factor that you did not address with your deck is card draw. Sure, in essence you have 28 creatures, but once your initial wave of creatures is unable to press your opponent I don't see how you will be able to stay in the game. You don't use Sword of Fire and Ice, Infiltration Lens, Horizon Canopy or anything related. But you're going for aggro, so I get it.

In the absence of card draw, you have nothing with which to vary your attack. It's a straightforward formula and pretty much an all-in approach. In my experience, the way to get around draw power is to capitalize on sheer card value. This may involve bolt-proof creatures, spells that trade favourably against your opponent, and strong support cards. This is tied together with a great build synergy, which you already have. Without having something to vary your approach once your opponent learns how to stall you, however, it's going to be an uphill battle. Your deck is very consistent, but consistency isn't always enough to push the game over the edge.

Modern as a Format

According to your last comment, modern is not a blue format, and there is little to no counterspell attrition. You're right, for the moment, in that modern is not as dominated by blue as it used to be. The UR aggro decks used to be a dime a dozen, with Dig Through Time and Treasure Cruise constantly raining on your parade. The ban on Twin has shut down another whole category of combo. But I would not rule out blue as a threat, because it still does exist. UR/RUG aggro is still a thing, although less prominent. UTron, UWx midrange, UW control, Storm, and Blue Moon are all still a thing. I continue to see Remand, Mana Leak, Spell Snare, Snapcaster Mage, and Cryptic Command all the time. But then again, you said you already play blue in a more competitive deck, so maybe you know more about the commonality of encountering blue staples in modern than I do. Despite this, however, you cannot deny that if you encountered a blue control deck, whether played casually or competitively, your list is going to go down hard.

I think your list will face similar problems of linearity versus other aggro decks. The first strike is excellent, but will you really be able to compete when half of their deck is damage spells/kill spells? Accorder Paladin is contingent on other knights for help by lacking first strike and having only 1 toughness. Silverblade Paladin is ridiculously powerful but also very vulnerable. Exemplar and Orchid have to hope that they aren't dealing with anything above 2 toughness. You're also burning life hard with Dismember and no Knight of Meadowgrain to recoup the loss or challenge an aggro list. On the flipside, you do have Student of Warfare and Hero of Bladehold to save the day. I would be curious to see how your deck handled against burn, zoo, affinity, bogle, infect, and the like.

Card Rationale

The main point of this comment, however, is that I would like to dispel a few things you have said about the following cards. I am hoping that after sharing my experiences and understanding you will have a more informed opinion about each of them:

• AEther Vial
• Brave the Elements
• Light from Within
• Elspeth, Knight-Errant

AEther Vial: I will agree with you that vial may not be ideal for your particular list, but I completely disagree with you saying that it is "not a card for knights." Your reasons were that white has a terrible selection of spells, there is too much CMC variance among your creatures, and then the general lack of synergy between it and an aggro list like your own. In my own view, I consider knights to function best as a mid-range deck instead of an aggro deck. Even with your list, you are only beginning to kill your opponents on Turn 5, and that's with a perfect play that has let you lay into them. You simply just don't have the hyper aggro to surefire overwhelm your opponent like a dedicated list of well-costed goblins, robots, or random animals of the forest. To this end, Vial is only coming down 1 turn later, but the combat tricks it can effect are enormous. To list a few:

• Vialing in a creature on your opponent's turn to block and kill an attacker
• Vialing in Knight of the White Orchid on your opponent's turn for an extra land (if you were short for your turn) / or vialing it in after you Pathed a creature
• Vialing in Exemplar to protect a knight from a killspell
• Vialing in Silverblade for surprise double strike
• Vialing in Accorder Paladin to block a bigger creature against a deck that otherwise would have pinged him with tokens/damage
• Vialing in to get around counterspells

Most importantly, as you claim to be running a full aggro deck, Vial helps you rapidly deploy your creatures at a rate you can't match with regular mana. Sure, you miss a T1 play of Student of Warfare (assuming you had one in your hand. He is, after all, your only 1-drop). But from that point on you will be powering up your side of the field at an accelerated rate, and if you didn't play anything T1 anyways then it's just pure gravy.

I'm only spending this much time expressing the incredible utility offered by Vial because I used to share the same view about it as you do. It's useless in multiples, it's a dead draw late game, it slows your tempo, etc. After using it in hundreds of games with my own knights deck, I can say that my opinion about that card has completely shifted. It's no less relevant in a deck sporting numerous 2cmc and 3cmc creatures as it is in a deck like Hatebears, Death and Taxes, Merfolk, etc. I don't understand why you find this to note be the case, even when your deck shares a virtually identical CMC distribution of creatures.

Brave the Elements: I think you may have been missing what I was trying to get at with this card, so I will endeavor to enlighten you. BtE is more than just a protection spell; it has applications for aggressive decks in a host of different opportunities. For example:

• Your shielded creatures can run past your opponent's creature line and swing for lethal
• Your shielded creatures can gang up against a bigger creature to bring it down (i.e. Siege Rhino, Tarmagoyf)
• Your shielded creatures can spread out to chump bigger/boosted creatures that would otherwise overwhelm them (i.e. zoo, goblins, affinity) [and bonus, you may be able to counterattack your opponent afterwards for lethal]
• It can shield an Exemplar, Silverblade, Bladehold, or even Gideon from death/exile when you desperately need it to stay alive

As you can see, these are just a few applications for this card in an aggro deck. It is a high-impact card that doesn't cost a lot of mana (as an equipment or enchantment might), it doesn't compromise the essence of your aggro strategy, and it has the versatility of being used for offensive or defensive purposes. I think it would be a great addition to your sideboard.

Light from Within: You do realize that this card effectively grants +2/+2 to all of your creatures? It's incredibly powerful and as an enchantment is very difficult for your opponent to dislodge. Once it comes down, so long as it isn't countered, your opponent is going to have a very rough time contending with a horde of 4/4 or 5/5 first strikers. Tokens don't need it anymore than Gideon himself would need an anthem: I would expect in your deck that the tokens are there for the extra utility/chip damage anyways. And Mutavault is just as unaffected as it would be by Honor of the Pure.

Additionally, curving out with this card at T4 puts you in a strong position for all of your future creatures. It also allows you to kill on T4 (something which your deck currently cannot do). For example:

1. Plains, end turn
2. Plains, Accorder Paladin / Knight of the White Orchid / some other two drop, end turn
3. Plains, Silverblade Paladin, soulbond to 2-drop, swing for 6 (or 4). Opponent at 14-16 life.
4. Plains, Light from Within, swing with 2-drop and silverblade for 8 + 8. Opponent at -2 or 0 life.

You claim that the focus of this deck is to kill your opponent as quickly as possible, yet you have disregarded this card that gives you immense board position. Why is that? Even if you played Bladehold or Giden on T4, you have to wait until T5 to use them.

The significance is that the surprise associated with this card is something your opponent can't plan for over the course of their next turn, while your 4-drop has summoning sickness. The surprise here is similar to the unexpectedness associated with playing against Vial, where your opponent may panic, miscalculate, or play more reservedly than usual.

To me, it seems the problem for you is this card doesn't easily fit into your deck: it would be competing for space with Bladehold and Gideon. It's up to you whether you want to reduce your count of those and try a card that enters with a bang (and surprise) on Turn 4.

Elspeth, Knight-Errant: I wont spend much time on this one, seeing as how i've written so much already. What I would like to emphasize is that her +1 ability giving +3/+3 and flying is an extremely powerful move that not only may be a killing blow against an opponent (ESPECIALLY on a double-striking creature, which is hitting face directly for 10-12 dmgs), but ALSO makes her a little stronger to resist an attack from your opponent next turn. The importance here is the evasion offered by flying (which can break creature gridlocks), not the paltry 1/1 tokens or the elusive ultimate she will likely never reach.

Another note - for an aggro deck, Gideon wont be able to swing until Turn 5. To this end, it's no different than to drop a Sword of Fire and Ice onto a creature and slam your opponent for near the same damage + card draw. Sure, youre less a body, but now its unlikely the creature holding the sword is ever going to die and your opponent is on a fast clock. You also have a way to ping creatures and draw cards, at a point in the game where you were likely running out of gas.

Still, I think you make a valid point about how he is useful in multiples. He can enter the field, suicide as a permanent anthem, and then be played against next turn. As I haven't had a chance to use him yet I will defer to your experience and that he is more relevant here than Elspeth.

Conclusion

You have made it clear that you are trying to run a high-powered, straight-arrow aggro knights list. I've tried to demonstrate to you that some of your choices (particularly your 4 drops) may not be as fast and game-winningly reliable as you may anticipate them to be. I actually feel Gideon is more of a midrange card than Elspeth, with his superior tokens, accessible ultimate and strong forward attacks. I also feel that your deck will be looking to secure victory somewhere in the Turns 5-8 range; to this end, I don't see how some of my suggestions, such as Light from Within, are inefficient on Turn 4.

Again, take from my comments what you will. You have made some very good points and defended them well. Im just always happy to exchange strategic approaches with another knights player.

Forcing card draw into the deck feels too clunky and each option has its own problems:

• Sword of Fire and Ice only works when I'm relatively ahead and I can't draw cards off of it if they can block.
• Infiltration Lens won't work on aware opponents and an Equipment that doesn't boost P/T isn't that great for an aggro deck.
• Horizon Canopy isn't worth it at its current price. ~$90 each for lands that can pop for a card is too steep for me.

Modern as a Format

If someone wants to be "that guy" with a hard control deck, then I won't play with them. This is a casual deck after all. I can choose not to fight against anything overly unfavourable.

This deck isn't meant to fight against Modern's tiered strategies. The go-to aggro decks of the format can outpace and slaughter it. I keep this deck away from competitive environments for a reason.

Card Rationale

Cheating Knights on the field with AEther Vial is not the deck I want to be playing. To me, it's slow and clumsy. With this deck, if I'm not dropping Knights as soon as possible, I feel like I'm not going to accomplish anything.

I know of Brave the Elements' uses, I just want to focus more on removal.

Not every game is going to go out as planned. If removal is high and my board is taken out, an anthem in hand with no creatures to boost isn't the kind of situation I want to be in. If an opponent does nothing to interact with my Knights in the first few turns, then I'm in a good position, even without Light from Within threatening massive damage.

I used Elspeth, Knight-Errant before and I know how crazy pumping a double striker is. Gideon, Ally of Zendikar just feels better for the deck and I'm much happier with him in it instead. Elspeth was only a 2-of. She didn't appear that often, using any more than two would of caused extras to show up at inopportune times, and the creature she's targeting could be struck with removal.

Gideon drops on Turn 4, leaving all of my mana available on Turn 5 instead of tapping out. Like with Elspeth, the creature being equipped can also be hit with removal once I tap out for the equip. And Equipment are useless without something to hold them. I prefer Gideon providing additional bodies to put on the pressure.