[EDH] Cromat 5c control

[Volt]

Lands
Island
Snow-Covered Island
Plains
Forest
Swamp

Bloodstained Mire
Flooded Strand
Polluted Delta
Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills

Barren Moore
Lonely Sandbar
Secluded Steppe
Tranquil Thicket

Bayou
Savannah
Scrubland
Tropical Island
Tundra
Underground Sea
Volcanic Island

Breeding Pool
Hallowed Fountain
Watery Grave

Adarkar Wastes
Underground River
Yavimaya Coast

Azorius Chancery
Dimir Aqueduct
Simic Growth Chamber

City of Brass
Exotic Orchard
Mirrodin's Core
Reflecting Pool

Kor Haven
Nantuko Monastery <--- The only manland worth running, imo
Strip Mine
Terramorphic Expanse
Tolaria West
Volrath's Stronghold

Artifact Mana
Darksteel Ingot
Dimir Signet
Fellwar Stone
Sol Ring
Talisman of Dominance
Talisman of Progress

Critters
Cromat
Draining Whelk
Eternal Witness
Etched Oracle
Faerie Macabre
Magister Sphinx
Morphling
Shriekmaw
Tombstalker

Countermagic
Counterspell
Countersquall
Cryptic Command
Desertion
Dismiss
Dissipate
Faerie Trickery
Hinder
Mana Leak
Muddle the MIxture
Negate
Pact of Negation
Rewind
Voidslime

Tutors & Draw
Brainstorm
Demonic Tutor
Eladamri's Call
Gifts Ungiven
Impulse
Intuition
Ponder
Mystical Tutor
Opportunity
Sensei's Divining Top
Sylvan Library
Tainted Pact
Vampiric Tutor

Charms
Bant Charm
Esper Charm

Spot Removal
Condemn
Dismantling Blow
Mortify
Path to Exile
Putrefy
Sword to Plowshares
Treachery
Vindicate

Sweepers
Damnation
Hallowed Burial
Rout
Wrath of God

Other Good Stuff
Decree of Justice
Life from the Loam
Regrowth

That's the deck as it currently stands. If I owned a Mana Drain, it would be in there for sure.

I'm not sure about Cromat as my general. I think I might prefer Horde of Notions, despite all the tricks you can do with Cromat. Horde has haste. I was running Child of Alara as my general for a long time, but I eventually realized that I almost never needed the additional control element provided by Child. I usually just wanted a good beater that I could bring in once I had control of the board. (And yes, before anyone asks, you may allow your general to go the graveyard when it dies. The RFG thing is optional.)

The following cards are on the chopping block, pending suitable replacements:
Adarkar Waste
Underground River
Yavimaya Coast
Kor Haven
Impulse
Voidslime

Here's my "Maybe" pile:
Rupture Spire
Vivid Creek
Wasteland
Mirage fetch lands
Akroma's Vengeance
Austere Command
Pernicious Deed
Spelljack
Decree of Pain
Innocent Blood
Forbid
Force of Will
Venser, Shaper Savant
Swerve
Ancestral Vision
Bribery
Control Magic
Sower of Temptation
Tarmogoyf
Gigapede
Mind Twist <--- Much better in 1v1
Banefire
Rude Awakening <--- Much better in regular Highlander
Cruel Ultimatum
Garruk Wildspeaker
Liliana Vess
Krosan Grip
Mystical Teachings
Mulldrifter
Night's Whisper

Any other suggestions? I'm sure I'm missing a few cool ideas.

[Zach Tartell]

Tranquil Thicket
Secluded Steppe
Adarkar Wastes
Underground River
Yavimaya Coast
Exotic Orchard
Kor Haven
Nantuko Monastery
Tolaria West
Fellwar Stone
Faerie Macabre
Dismiss
Mana Leak
Muddle the MIxture
Brainstorm
Eladamri's Call
Impulse
Ponder
Esper Charm
Hallowed Burial
Rout

I'd cut the above. Reasoning:

Cyclers that aren't blue or black aren't very good (but under your advice and Don's I've added the Lonely Sandbar and Barren Moor and they're tits)(also, Urborg needs to be in here probably)
I don't like the pain lands. Double up on your duals (if you haven't already - I unfortunately deleted the remainder of your list)
I don't like Orchard and Felwar Stone, 'cause they don't definitely give you blue mana. I'd run an Izzet Signet or something before I'd run that. (And Rupture Spire for the land - that card is the best)
Kor Haven seems kinda cool. I'd try it in my own list if I had more room for lands (isn't it weird how tight 100 card decks get?). Academy Ruins sounds way better (if you were to add Engineered Explosives or Oblivion Stone, both of which play well with Gifts and Intuition).
I don't like Monastary, 'cause it doesn't tap for colored mana. A wrath-proof 4/4 is pretty solid.
Macabre seems like it'd be better as Jund Charm (although it's free and more easily re-currable). While we're at it, cut Esper Charm for Jund Charm. It's good.
Dismiss is... alright. I don't like it costing 4 mana, but drawing a card is good. I don't have a good replacement that is also a counterspell on hand.
Call is narrow.
Cards that only put one card in your hand (Ponder, Brainstorm, Impulse) aren't worth it. Go big or go home.
Mana leak and Muddle the Mixture are narrow (although I'll stipulate that Muddle is kinda good at finding Slyvan Library).
Burial seems awkward, too. I'd run Austeer Command over it (as it is better at killing more things for only one mana more).


I am too tired to continue talking about why this maybe pile is good, and I will thusly explain tomorrow.


Here's my "Maybe" pile:
Rupture Spire
Vivid Creek
Akroma's Vengeance
Austere Command
Pernicious Deed
Spelljack
Forbid
Force of Will
Venser, Shaper Savant
Bribery
Banefire
Cruel Ultimatum
Krosan Grip
Mystical Teachings
Mulldrifter

[Volt]

Cyclers that aren't blue or black aren't very good (but under your advice and Don's I've added the Lonely Sandbar and Barren Moor and they're tits)(also, Urborg needs to be in here probably)
I don't like the pain lands. Double up on your duals (if you haven't already - I unfortunately deleted the remainder of your list)
I don't like Orchard and Felwar Stone, 'cause they don't definitely give you blue mana. I'd run an Izzet Signet or something before I'd run that. (And Rupture Spire for the land - that card is the best)
Kor Haven seems kinda cool. I'd try it in my own list if I had more room for lands (isn't it weird how tight 100 card decks get?). Academy Ruins sounds way better (if you were to add Engineered Explosives or Oblivion Stone, both of which play well with Gifts and Intuition).
I don't like Monastary, 'cause it doesn't tap for colored mana. A wrath-proof 4/4 is pretty solid.
Macabre seems like it'd be better as Jund Charm (although it's free and more easily re-currable). While we're at it, cut Esper Charm for Jund Charm. It's good.
Dismiss is... alright. I don't like it costing 4 mana, but drawing a card is good. I don't have a good replacement that is also a counterspell on hand.
Call is narrow.
Cards that only put one card in your hand (Ponder, Brainstorm, Impulse) aren't worth it. Go big or go home.
Mana leak and Muddle the Mixture are narrow (although I'll stipulate that Muddle is kinda good at finding Slyvan Library).
Burial seems awkward, too. I'd run Austeer Command over it (as it is better at killing more things for only one mana more).



You're right about the painlands, which is why I had them in my cut list. I'm going to try swapping them (and a couple other lands) out for a complete set of Mirage fetch lands.

I'll grant you that there are very few 4+cc counterspells worth running. I've cast Dismiss many times, though, and have been quite satisfied with it.

Ponder and Brainstorm earn their keep. Not every card in the deck should be an expensive bomb. Impulse is getting the axe, though.

Exotic Orchard and Fellwar Stone are downright terrific, even if occasionally they aren't able to produce blue. Every 5c deck should definitely run them. Overall, my manabase is very heavily geared towards producing blue, so that's rarely a problem.

Eladamri's Call is a new addition for me, so I'm not sure yet that it 100% deserves a slot. I like the idea of it because I can fetch a counterspell (Draining Whelk), creature removal (Shriekmaw), graveyard removal (Faerie Macabre), graveyard recursion (Eternal Witness), or a nice finisher.

Hallowed Burial is godly. Making people put creatures (especially generals and indestructible creatures) on the bottom of their library is quite often the best thing you can do. I think I will swap out Rout for Austere Command, though.

I understand the concern with Mana Leak, but it honestly has been golden for me every time I've drawn it. Not once has it sat dead in my hand for turns at a time.


EDIT:

Other cool cards to consider:
Time Stop
Commandeer
Dominate
Martial Coup
Arcane Sanctum
Seaside Citadel
Crumbling Necropolis