Legend of the Evarlolz and the Greater Goyf

[FTW]

I wonder if there is something to be made with adding Greater Good to recoup card disadvantage (and bin "cool things") in a Varolz deck.

Basically you play a typical Eva Green (black disruption, DRS, Bob, Goyf) shell with the Varolz splash (Varolz + Death's Shadow/Dreadnought to go fatty voltron in the lategame). But to compensate for the card disadvantage inherent in casting Death's Shadow/Dreadnought just to bin them, you add Greater Good to draw you a ton of cards (and also bin more fatties on the discard). Even just popping an already-dying Goyf nets you a few cards.


//20 creatures
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Dark Confidant
3 Death's Shadow
2 Phyrexian Dreadnought
3 Varolz, the Scar-Striped

//Draw engine:
2 Greater Good

//Spells: 19
4 Thoughtseize
4 Hymn to Tourach
4 Abrupt Decay
4 Liliana of the Veil
2 Snuff Out
1 Dismember

//Lands: 19
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Misty Rainforest
2 Polluted Delta
4 Bayou
2 Swamp
2 Forest
1 Volrath's Stronghold


For one, Dreadnought is a 1-mana draw 12 discard 3, followed by a 1-mana :+12/+12

Going Voltron lets you just outrace TNN

[trollking21]

If you can race TNN they can always just block with him

[bizdoin]

toxic deluge sb

[FTW]

What about a BUG build? Scavenging on TNN is pretty back-breaking, beats all the TNN hate too (artifact kill and -1/-1). Stifle+Nought tramples over TNN.


//20 creatures:
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Phyrexian Dreadnought
2 Death's Shadow
3 True-Name Nemesis
3 Varolz, the Scar-Striped

//20 spells:
4 Brainstorm
4 Stifle
4 Thoughtseize
3 Abrupt Decay
3 Force of Will
2 Greater Good

//20 lands:
4 Wasteland
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Polluted Delta
2 Bayou
3 Underground Sea
3 Tropical Island

[Megadeus]

I think BUG has some merit

[CaptainTwiddle]

I've been mulling over a Varolz/Stifle-nought list for awhile, and I think FTW's list above seems pretty solid. I'm just not sure if Greater Good is really worthwhile. Don't get me wrong, I live the interaction between GG and Dreadnought (I use it in my Commander deck all the time), but Greater Good has a somewhat expensive mana cost and it's really at its best when you're discarding things for more value. If I were set on running Greater Good, I'd probably try to squeeze in at least one copy of Wonder. Along those lines, you could also try to work in Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and Filth (Urborg also has the benefit of making your Wastelands relevant mana sources). There's also the option of playing to Death's Shadow as a legitimate threat by including things like Gitaxian Probe, Dismember, and singleton Shock Lands to fetch with the intent of lowering your life total. I'm not really sure that's the best angle, as Dreadnought just seems superior though.

One specific issue with FTW's list is that it seems a little light on blue cards to facilitate Force of Will. If the Greater Goods were Ponders, Gitaxian Probe, or a Trickbind and something else blue (maybe Jace, the Mind Sculptor), then I think the 3 FoWs would be fine.

I also think a single Dryad Arbor might be a good choice, as it allows you to have something you can search up on an empty board and then follow up by playing Varolz and scavenging for an unexpected 13-14 damage.

[FTW]

Fair enough. Greater Good was a "challenge accepted" to another thread, but that card is probably just too fringe and expensive for competitive Legacy play.

For now:
-2 Greater Good
-1 land
+1 Dryad Arbor
+2 Ponder

Will have to mess around with that to see what needs to be tweaked.

Death's Shadow is nice if you already had to run stuff like Thoughtseize, Probe, Snuff Out, Dismember, many fetches. But I don't think there's a reason to run unnecessary lifeloss to force it. I'd rather run more card quality control to better control when I have it and when I don't. Ponder seems good. Deck wants to cast spells in certain combinations.

[zulander]

I think you play Birds of Paradise over DRS in this deck. Flying in with a 13/14 is pretty sweet :)

If you want DRS over him then find a room for GSZ and Silhana Ledgewalker.


Here's what I'd put together:

Mana: 20
whatever

Creatures: 24
4 Birds of Paradise
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Dark Confidant
3 Varolz
1 Silhana Ledgwalker
3 Death's Shadow
2 Phyrexian Dreads
3 Green Sun's Zenith

Disruption/Filter: 13
4 Thoughtseize
4 Abrupt Decay
2 Lilana
3 Grisly Salvage

There's 3 extra slots, you can play more disruption via hymn or dismember etc..

[kiblast]

Fauna Shaman discards Wonder and things you want to Scavenge (multiple Noughts) or any other creature (like Confidants when you just need fatties) for a Dreadnought (in case you have Stifle and you feel safe for the all in Nought plan, or you have Greater Good out and you feel like you need +8CA lol) or Varolz when you already have Noughts in your grave. In mtg christmasland an unmolested Fauna Shaman first discards Nought for Wonder, then Wonder for Varolz, then cast Varolz swing for 14 flying… doable when you run discard+pierce :)