Random Deck Challenge. I'm challenging myself to select 4 cards at random from a card search engine (it will select any random mtg card) and try to make a viable deck using them. I have to include at least a 2x copy of any of the 4 cardsand the format will be determined by the legality of the cards in total. I also will not be working with EDH or non tournament formats. (Standard/Modern/Legacy/Vintage/Pauper/Etc).
On to the deck. The random cards in order of generation are:-Viridian Emissary-Sprout-Necromantic Thirst-Delaying shield
So at first things were actually coming together: all of the cards were at common level (Pauper) and there was even some synergy with the idea of making cheap costed creatures to enchant with necromantic thirst. Viridian emissary even has some value in its recurring from the graveyard to reuse.
Then...delaying shield; it can no longer be pauper, it has added a third color and it has little synergy with the other cards.
A neat interaction I would consider in general would be to give your opponent control of the shield at the end of your turn so that they had to take the damage they tried dealing to you. I scrapped that idea, however, as 1. I'm not sure it works that way, 2. requires a 4th color, 3. would only work maybe one time as they'd never be foolish enough to attack into it.
My plan then is to try and create some kind of slow rampy deck that takes advantage of the land grabbing of the emissary. The early survival plan to get to our win cons will be the low cost creatures for blocking/delaying shield to try and soak up some damage. I'm adding Umbilicus (drawing inspiration from here: http://www.spekkionu.com/2005/08/delaying-shield/). Umbilicus allows us to bounce delaying shield to our hand on our upkeep avoiding needing to take any of the damage. Following the ambitions of that same deck I'll also include some ETB effects to take advantage of umbilicus if the delaying shield lock isn't in place.
