[EDH] Draw Go Intet

[Malchar]

Decklist:
intet, the dreamer

creatures/equipment
lightning greaves
oracle of mul daya
bogardan hellkite
trygon predator
teferi, mage of zhalfir
mystic snake
eternal witness
magus of the future

card draw
fact or fiction
inspiration
ancestral vision
guided passage
opportunity
stroke of genius
jace's ingenuity

card selection
scroll rack
regrowth
mystical tutor
long-term plans
brainstorm
sensei's divining top

counters
desertion
misdirection
force of will
pact of negation
dismiss
mindbreak trap
cryptic command
suffocating blast
double negative
hinder
dissipate
cancel
voidslime
faerie trickery
forbid
memory lapse
negate
muddle the mixture
counterspell
remand

removal
prophetic bolt
maze of ith
treachery
spin into myth
hull breach
slice in twain
capsize
decimate
shattering spree
starstorm
inferno

mana acceleration
crucible of worlds
skyshroud claim
nature's lore
simic signet
izzet signet
gruul signet
talisman of impulse
coalition relic
sol ring
darksteel ingot
gilded lotus

special land
minamo, school at water's edge
boseiju, who shelters all
winding canyons
strip mine
wasteland
tolaria west
ancient tomb
reliquary tower

land
reflecting pool
city of brass
island
snow-covered island
forest
mountain
tropical island
volcanic island
taiga
stomping ground
breeding pool
steam vents

karplusan forest
yavimaya coast
shivan reef
cascade bluffs
fire-lit thicket
flooded grove
mossfire valley

fetch
wooded foothills
verdant catacombs
scalding tarn
bloodstained mire
flooded strand
arid mesa
windswept heath
polluted delta
misty rainforest

Notes:
There are already a few Intet threads floating around. One of them links to a SCG article, and I've read the article, but that deck isn't really the style I'm trying to go for. The other one is apparently designed for use with one of the new generals of the same colors. Either way, I've looked that over as well, and it's not my style.

The point of this deck is to play a draw-go control style. Props to ivanpei whose zur decklist provided much of the inspiration for this deck namely the counterspell package and manabase. Not sure if 1x snow-covered island is relevant, but I think having it be a true highlander deck is a novel concept.

In general, I try to keep mana open, which means most stuff will have to be instant speed. In fact, the two most expensive cards that I have to tap out for are Intet and Magus of the Future, but they can be played at instant speed using Teferi or Winding Canyons.

I am trying to avoid the really expensive cards like mana crypt and mana drain. However, the deck is meant to be as competitive as possible. Also, the deck is designed to be played in multiplayer with 3 to 5 total players.

Here are some cards that are probably good enough to go in, but I'm not sure what to take out:
Command Tower - I haven't looked at the new stuff too closely yet, but this is going in once I get it, probably in place of mossfire valley or reflecting pool.
Spell Crumple - Also from the new set. Better than cancel, so I'll be replacing something for this.
Stranglehold - Also from the new set. Denying tutors would be huge, so it's probably worth it. Just not sure what to replace. Maybe I'll just save it for the sideboard.
Glen Elendra Archmage - This seems good, just not sure if it's actually better than anything that's already in the deck.
Soothsaying - Better than sensei's divining top in EDH? I can shuffle at will, dig super deep if needed, and it has decent synergy with the general (although I'd prefer not to tap out on my turn).
Counterbalance - Randomly counters stuff for free. Already have some library manipulation.
Rhystic Study - Definitely going in, just not sure what to take out.
Worldly Tutor - Synergy with the general, although if the general is actually connecting then I'm probably doing fine anyway. Not sure if my creatures are strong enough to warrant the card disadvantage inherent in this card.

Here are some notable cards which are not currently in the deck with an explanation. I haven't necessarily made up my mind yet whether or not I want to use these:
Rewind - I think all my counters are better than this, and it's kind of a liability to risk 4 mana for a counterspell. If you think I need to add another counter, I would probably pick this one.
Draining Whelk - Really expensive for a counter. It's merely a huge body after it's in play, which isn't that amazing in edh.
Seedborn Muse - Seems great to be able to untap each turn, so I have mana to counter stuff. However, it kind of defeats the purpose of having so many instants. I'd like to include this but not sure if I can abuse it enough to make it worthwhile.
Constant Mists - Seems ok with all my card draw, but not sure if it's up to par for multiplayer games.
Redirect/Twincast - Just not strong enough compared to hard counters.
Overwhelming Intellect - Really expensive to cast and it only hits creatures. I'd rather just use a normal counter and play a draw spell instead of putting all my eggs in one basket.
Mana Reflection - Seems great since you need a ton of mana to play counters in multiplayer, but I hate the idea of having to tap out one turn to cast it.
Future Sight - The magus seems better since I have teferi and I'd rather not have a duplicate effect.
Birds of Paradise - A target for random small burn spells, and it messes up my guided passage.
Daze and other soft counters - Not really worth it since they're bad late game. I don't feel like I need them early game. I'd rather just play mana acceleration and deal with whatever threats have landed at a later time.
Sylvan Library - Not that versatile since it's just a ponder instead of a brainstorm. Soothsaying or sensei top seems better
Oblivion Stone - Starstorm/Inferno seem sufficient. My meta doesn't have a ton of insane enchantment/artifact decks, so I can use spot removal to answer the few dangerous permanents.
Kodama's Reach - not enough basics? Already have two land acceleration spells.
Winged Coatl - Only hits creatures that are attacking me, and if I tutor for it, it won't surprise anyone. Seems like there's better removal.
Genesis - Really strong, but my creatures don't kill themselves on their own, so I can't really abuse it. Still considering this though.
Bribery - Don't really want to tap out 5 on my main phase. Also, if someone scoops in multiplayer then they take their cards, so my bomb could randomly disappear.
Acidic Slime - Again, just too costly to tap out 5 at sorcery speed.

I'm also wondering whether or not I have the correct ratio of mana accel, removal, counters, draw, creatures, etc. Let me know what you think and thanks for any advice.

[Tog]

Malchar – What your win condition with the deck? Having an outrageous yet competitive win condition is a lot more fun than denying everyone else’s theirs. I used to run a multiplayer Draw-Go Wydwen, the Biting Gale EDH deck but saying no to my opponents and winning via general damage got old pretty fast. Intet is in pretty cool colors and a potential win condition is a Landfall (Roil Elemental, Avenger of Zendikar) + EBT triggers + Warp World type deck. Just a thought.

However, if you are set on playing a draw-go type deck, I will share the experience that I had with mine. First off, I think your curve is way too high. I’ve looked at your curve briefly but I hate nothing more than opening with a grip of 3 land and 4 five+ cc spells. I played with cards like Ponder, Serum Vision, and Preordain in my blue decks to help smooth out the early game and cycle cheaply late game. These cards also have nice synergy with your general.

On the topic of counterspells, I kept cutting counterspells in mine until I had about 8 left in my deck. You can’t counter every spell in EDH (especially when there are a lot of players) and when you have an underdeveloped board, you become the default dude to attack. In that sense, cards like Keiga, the Tide Star worked overtime and did the work of many more counterspells. Another all star in my Wydwen deck was Darksteel Sentinel which you could flash in to play. Last thing about counters is that it really sucks to keep up mana and not utilize it at the end of turn. This happened frequently with narrow counterspells like Overwhelming Intellect (a fine exclusion). In that light, I would suggest cutting Misdirection, Negate, and Muddle the Mixture. Rewind is a really good counterspell especially with a mana hungry deck like this one. In my Wydwen deck, it was pretty sweet to go Rewind + Wydwen or Rewind + Card Draw.

I think my overall message is to add more rattlesnakes or at least random dorks that get in the way (like replacing some of the mana acceleration with Farhaven Elf/Wood Elves/Sakura Tribe Elder).

Oblivion Stone was MVP in my Wydwen deck and a deck like this one would benefit from its inclusion. You can’t control everything with counterspells no matter how hard you try and Oblivion Stone was a nice catch all at a minimal main phase mana investment. At 11 mana, it was possible to recur it with Academy Ruins each turn. If you do add the O Stone though, I suggest cutting your artifact mana for cards like Rampant Growth, Nature’s Lore, Farseek, Cultivate, and Kodama’s Reach. They’re board wipe resistant.

Since adding new cards without having something to cut is a pain, here’s a list of cards I don’t like in your deck currently:
Inspiration -> Careful Consideration/Think Twice/Thirst for Knowledge
Long-Term Plans – Not a fan since it won’t have an impact on the board for a number of turns
Shattering Spree – In a three color deck, I imagine getting a lot of red sources together might be difficult

Hope this helps!
- Tog

[psu42]

Counterspells are NOT the best idea in group play. There is no way you can counter everything everyone plays and if you plan on countering, someone is developing and just going to kill you for sitting there plotting.

Counterspells --> good in 1v1 EDH, if you consider that a format. Group play is the way to go.

I play a competitive version of Sharuum, the Hegemon in my EDH group. We do 4 man pods, so it is group play. I run like 5 counterspells in the deck and solely to tutor for them on a turn I either plan on combo-winning, or when I need something to resolve.

[Malchar]

Here are some changes that I had already made:
-Inspiration
+Rhystic Study // Replaced my worst draw spell

-Brainstorm // I don't like cantrips that much
+Gaea's Blessing // I wanted some grave hate + mill protection

-Ancient Tomb
+Exotic Orchard // Colored mana is generally at a premium

-Shattering Spree // As Tog said, it's hard to cast
+Energy Flux

-Crucible of Worlds
+Life from the Loam // I think loam is just better since it's safer

-Bogardan Hellkite // Friend accidentally kept it after a Bribery. I'll be able to get it back though.

I kind of want to replace most of my artifact mana with land acceleration or creatures since they're more useful. Gilded Lotus can probably stay since it's good, but the signets should be changed. They aren't even that great for this deck because 90% of the time all that matters is how much blue mana I can get. Also, I like using Energy Flux, so getting rid of my artifacts would be ideal.

I also like the idea of using a few indestructible blockers. It would actually be great for my meta.

[hi-val]

Oh my, you'll laugh at me for this one, but [card]Ice Cauldron[/card].

Go ahead, look it up :)

The practical application for the card is that if you are interested in keeping mana open for things like counters, you can use it to "save up" the mana and the card at EOT and then cast it during your turn. For example, you're holding up Cryptic Command but you'd really like to get that Gilded Lotus out to move things along. At the last opponent's EOT, you can put the Lotus on the Cauldron with say, four counters, then on your turn, cast it for one mana more.

[Malchar]

It's actually not bad. For some reason I always thought that you could only save one mana at a time with it. The original reason that I wanted to get rid of my artifact mana was so that the deck would play with energy flux better. Perhaps I should just get rid of the flux and use shattering pulse instead.

Also, I think I'm going to try to find a place for constant mists.