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Thread: Competitive Mill

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    Competitive Mill

    A few weeks back, there was some discussion about making mill competitive (or at least playable) in Legacy. As it so happens, Mind Funeral came into our possession, and joy was had. I've had a casual mill deck for years, which really only included Glimpse the Unthinkable and Panoptic Mirror, but with Alara Reborn we, the mill enthusiasts have been given Nemesis of Reason and Mind Funeral. I've started piecing some things together, and posted a list I had in another thread. The deck has gone away from the 70-card beast posted else ware, and has turned into the beast presented shortly.

    As you may/may not be aware of, there are two ways to win in Magic: run the opponents out of cards, or put their life total to 0. The latter can be done via creatures, spells, storm combo, etc. This thread will focus on the former via non-storm combo. Is my list the one and only? No. Would I love to hear suggestions and possible decklists? Absolutely, but I must stress that this is for non-storm combo. After a long read, I present Mill, Version 3 as of May 30 2009:

    Competitive Mill
    4 Underground Sea
    4 Polluted Delta
    1 Flooded Strand
    2 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
    2 Watery Grave
    1 Maze of Ith
    2 Shelldock Isle
    5 Island
    3 Swamp

    3 Nemesis of Reason
    3 Fog Bank
    3 Gilded Drake

    4 Damnation
    4 Force of Will
    4 Mind Funeral
    4 Glimpse the Unthinkable
    4 Smother
    4 Brainstorm
    2 Traumatize
    2 Haunting Echoes
    2 Panoptic Mirror/Wipe Away

    Possible Sideboard
    3 Arcane Laboratory
    3 Chill
    3 Veldaken Shackles
    3 Pithing Needle
    3 Extirpate


    I'll also try to enlighten you with my reasons for card choices:

    Underground Sea: The deck needs blue and black, thus, auto-include
    Polluted Delta: Fetches either black or blue lands that I require
    Flooded Strand: The deck cried for another fetch, this one does so nicely.
    Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth: Helps with colour fixing, makes Maze, Shelldock, fetches, etc. tap for black.
    Watery Grave: Just can't get enough dual lands that are on-colour.
    Maze of Ith: when drawn, can allow a nice stall if the opponent is using a single, large threat, helps in the defense, which is what you're playing.
    Shelldock Isle: Digs for four cards. This was Lim-Dul's Vault, but that wasn't working out. The last twenty cards are usually the hardest, and having a nice trick under this when the game comes to a close is always handy; taps for blue.
    Island/Swamp: Basics to round out the lands/protect against Moon/Wasteland.
    Nemesis of Reason: The MVP of creatures in this deck. Is a fantastic blocker, and usually comes down after a Damnation. Mills ten cards before blocking, so even one attack can put Shelldock online/puts more cards into the yard. He does cost 5, but in this deck, he is reusable mill.
    Fog Bank: Trample does go over him, can be bolted, smothered, etc. but, he does nicely jump non-trampling fatties that flood legacy (mongoose, goyf, stalker, etc. Can really help the creature slowing process.
    Gilded Drake: Usually played after a Fog Bank, it nicely steals something that you could use/block with. Was Sower, but this is much faster to come out. All in all, a nice card, and pitches to FoW.
    Damnation: The deck doesn't play many creatures, and creatures are the main kill condition of legacy, I would think. This nicely buys you extra turns to mill/sweeps the board, and is a lovely surprise under Shelldock/Panoptic Mirror (who needs mill when you Wrath every turn?)
    Force of Will: Protects a crucial backbreaker, or stops something that you can't deal with from coming into play.
    Mind Funeral: My mainboard tech against two land belcher (har-har). In actuality, this card usually ends up milling for 10+ cards, and my personal record is 36 off of a Thresh deck (he wasn't laughing). This is the main mill spell of choice to be put under an Isle, as it will usually clear most of the final cards in their library.
    Glimpse the unthinkable: The most efficient mill spell.
    Smother: Did I mention this deck hates creatures? Kills Nacatl, Figure, Goyf, Confidant, etc.
    Traumatize: Seems a little casual, but can be a great card if it lands. If not, it pitches. Usually when this comes down, it mills for 20, which may not seem great, but 20 is 20.
    Haunting Echoes: Accelerates the mill process. Is really good when there are 15+ in the yard, which is easily done. It's a nice finisher when it gets right to the end of the library.
    The extra slot: Panoptic Mirror/Wipe Away: I know Panoptic Mirror seems like a really casual dollar rare, but in this deck, it can be interesting. Any spell put on here (minus FoW) can really help you out. Favourite imprints include Damnation, Mind Funeral, and Traumatize. It is slow to get out, but you're slowing the game anyway. Wipe Away was my other choice, as more bounce is always good. Virtually uncounterable (what cb player leaves 3cc on top?) and returns another that is giving me the gears.

    63 Cards? What?
    Yes, the deck is 63 cards. I am a believer in the 63-card deck. I've always played decks of 63, as 3 extra doesn't greatly hurt your chances mathematically topdecking the win (the percentage is small), and allows me to run a 3-of that can really help me out. Does 60 cards improve my chances of lucksacking a win? Yes, numbers don't lie. Is it nice to have that extra tech in there for a tiny drawback? To me, it is. Perhaps to you it isn't. I could cut this deck down 60, but as of yet, it sits at 63.

    I really want to know what you guys think. I would say give it a try on workstation. Is it the new Threshold? No. Is it super cool to win via milling an opponent? Oh dear sweet baby Jesus it is. I will try to update this with coll pictures and banners, if someone is willing to make this thread look beautiful!

    Thanks, and comments are appreciated!

    -Matt
    Last edited by sdematt; 06-03-2009 at 09:41 AM.

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