Hey guys,
about a year ago I started a site about a format I call Ancient. Essentially, it only allows cards that were printed in the old frames. Recently, I decided that I want to start adding decks to the site to show people how much variety and open design space there is in the format. The way I see it, Legacy wasn't really its own format before 2004, and there's a lot of potential for deck design in there. It's also nostalgia for me, as the cards back then were more about being unique and creatures were more balanced and interesting.
TL;DR - looking for decks to write about on the site.
Old decks, re-vamped versions of current decks, and even just deck ideas you think would be neat that I can brew and write about. I've written a few already, and have several more in the works or to be written. They're not super in-depth, as I just want to talk a bit about the deck and show an example.
Thanks!
Last edited by Teluin; 01-08-2015 at 01:22 AM.
And if you want to visit the site, it's: http://ancientmtg.blogspot.ca/
Feel free to post ideas, cards and even decks of your own or send me a PM.
Thanks again.
Last edited by Teluin; 06-07-2015 at 06:01 PM.
Are the three Portals allowed?
I love the idea. I seriously dislike the new frame, because it's not a magical scroll anymore. Even back in pre-8thEd times the frame was getting a bit different over time (compare the beta cards with those of say APO), but it still had a fantasy look and once again, it reminded a scroll or a bookpage. Today's frame... Bah, ok, enough on this matter.
4 Birds of Paradise
3 Mother of Runes
3 Weathered Wayfarer
4 Werebear
4 Terravore
3 Mystic Enforcer
3 Exalted Angel
2 Masticore
4 Swords to Plowshares
1 Reprisal
3 Armageddon
2 Sylvan Library
1 Armadillo Cloak
1 Aura Shards
4 Savannah
3 Forest
3 Plains
4 Windswept Heath
2 Brushland
3 Secluded Steppe
3 Tranquil Thicket
This is what I got built for casual. You may add some Wastelands and Thermokarst (even Ice Storm) instead of some more crappy choices like Reprisal or Brushland, though I'd be careful with colored mana requirements. I don't need those cards for my long-dead-but-soon-to-be-revived Kitchen Table Society, and the three Geddons ar already far too much LD for casual setting. But hey, I'm trying to win with Werebears...
I cannot decide what should I build for ICE-5th-WTH Type II Reenactment.
This one is more elegant and reliable:
4 Fyndhorn Elves
4 Quirion Ranger
4 River Boa
3 Wall of Roots
3 Jolrael's Centaur
4 Maro
4 Serrated Biskelion
4 Swords to Plowshares
3 Armageddon
2 Sylvan Library
1 Disenchant
10 Forest
6 Plains
4 Brushland
4 Thawing Glaciers
This one is more flexible and funny:
4 Birds of Paradise
4 Quirion Ranger
2 Granger Guildmage
4 River Boa
3 Karoo Meerkat
3 Whirling Dervish
3 Jolrael's Centaur
1 Man-o'-war
3 Ophidian
3 Maro
2 Swords to Plowshares
1 Disenchant
4 Incinerate
1 Terror
1 Armageddon
3 Winter Orb
10 Forest
3 City of Brass
3 Undiscovered Paradise
2 Gemstone Mine
This makes my day. I would totally play this format (too poor to play proper Old School with black border and love the Urza's block anyways). But let me get this straight, this basically leaves us with Extended circa 2003 right?
Edit: Looking at the banlist, there's too much fun stuff that's banned which roamed free back in the old Extended. I'd say it could use a shake up.
Legacy: Rituals
Vintage: Drains
@ Bed Deck Palyer Yep, the Three Portals are allowed. Nice on the other Thresh deck. The first deck I wrote about was RUG Thresh - I do plan on writing about other variants later on but for now am trying to write about different archetypes to show the diversity of the format.
@ Higgs it's note quite 2002 Extended as that didn't allow certain cards from the sets pre-Tempest. As for the Banned List - it's a work in progress as I haven't gotten enough feedback/playing done yet. As it stands, I just took the Legacy list and removed Survival of the Fittest, which went from good to broken due to WotC's new breed of creatures. I'm sure there are other cards that can be removed, and any feedback/suggestions are welcome.
Definitely a very interesting format to explore, kudos! I don't think I would be able to give you valuable feedback on the banlist as I don't think I'm a good enough player to be able to evaluate these things wholistically. I just know the stuff that I'd love to play with :) Necro, pay 10 life, go!
Legacy: Rituals
Vintage: Drains
What creatures other than Bloodghast and Vengevine broke Survival? Has anything else been released since then?
Personally, I'd love to see some Ancient EDH. No Orolorobolorololo, Hexproof/Indestructible Voltron, or autopilot dudes like Nekuzar ruining my Christmas? I'll take twenty.
My EDH deck meets your requirements http://deckbox.org/sets/681136 It doesn't really have a win con but it's sure fun to play with this old stuff. Note every card that can be is English and from beta or original printing. However duals are FBB and currently the Imperial Seal is T-Chinese till I get an English one.
Wizards actually put a hit out on survival because they hate fun. They even waited for RoE sales to die down before doing it. Bloodghast/Survival alone probably wouldn't even make it in the current Legacy metagame. So an entire archetype got banned out of the format because of one degenerate mythic.
Greetings,
I'm interested in this project, as i stopped playing mtg regularly around 2003...
I still have a few unpowered decks for casual fun, built in this reverse Modern style.
Here are a couple of them, to start things off.
EVA GREEN
4x Nantuko Shade
4x Dauthi Slayer
4x Hypnotic Specter
4x Erhnam Djinn
4x Dark Ritual
4x Duress
3x Hymn to Tourach
3x Smother
4x Paralyze
2x Naturalize
3x Phyrexian Arena
9x Swamp
4x Tainted Wood
4x Llanowar Wastes
4x Wasteland
Apart from dual and fetch lands, what would you recommend for this deck?
I am always unsure on what are the optimal numbers for removal, discard, naturalize...
SLIGH
4x Jackal Pup
4x Mogg Fanatic
4x Goblin Patrol
3x Grim Lavamancer
4x Ball Lightning
4x Lightning Bolt
4x Seal of Fire
4x Incinerate
4x Flame Rift
3x Sulfuric Vortex
4x Fireblast
18x Mountain
Fetchlands would help thin the deck during play and fuel the lavamancers.
Seal of Fire could be upgraded to Chain Lightning...
What else can be optimized here?
Here's another one, inspired by the old counter hammer / phoenix decks...
COUNTER PHOENIX
2x Shard Phoenix
2x Squee, Goblin Nabob
1x Masticore
4x Counterspell
3x Mana Leak
3x Forbid
2x Dissipate
2x Dismiss
1x Suffocating Blast
4x Brainstorm
3x Prophetic Bolt
4x Incinerate
2x Hammer of Bogardan
3x Nevinyrral's Disk
10x Island
6x Mountain
4x Shivan Reef
4x Thawing Glaciers
Although Erhnam is nice, Spiritmonger is much more powerful. Also, play 4 Hymns.
@ Teluin
Concerning Goblin Patrol, I never had any major problem with the card, as the first 2 turns are usually spent casting 1 mana cost creatures.
Are there any alternatives...? I was never confortable with the turncoat Goblin Cadets.
@ Teluin and Bed Decks Palyer
For the black deck, 4x Hymn to Tourach are indeed better for disruption.
I chose Erhnam Djinn over Spiritmonger because they can be played faster, and the mana base is already a bit tight (17 lands, if we consider Wasteland as disruption).
I could try 3x Spiritmonger plus an extra Swamp.
Here is another one for your perusal, that I never got quite right.
GREEN LAND DESTRUCTION
4x Llanowar Elves
4x Fyndhorn Elves
4x Call of the Herd
3x Argothian Wurm
1x Masticore
4x Beast Attack
4x Thermokarst
4x Winter's Grasp
4x Creeping Mold
3x Tangle Wire
1x Icy Manipulator
2x Stunted Growth
2x Sylvan Library
16x Forest
1x Pendelhaven
3x Treetop Village
I started playing this with Stampeding Wildebeests and Wall of Blossoms, but it was a clumsy combo.
4x Argothian Wurm are too much, and they need to be played carefully.
4x Icy Manipulator and Stunted Growth are also overkill. Used to sit in the hand for a long time unused.
I never got to try Tangle Wire... Anyone here has experience with the card...?
We could also cut a few Creeping Mold for Ice Storm, to increase the odds of a second turn land destruction spell.
Thing is that Erhnam/Spiritmonger is your finisher and as such, it should be as brutal as possible. A "mere" 4/5 can be infi-blocked a bit easier (hello Wall of Roots!) and djinn's drawback is in fact a bit dangerous. But yeah, what good comes from a Spiritmonger that sits in your hand... Also, there's Grinning Demon, too.
On the topic of GB LD:
I'm a great fan of Wildebeests, so you need to play them! :)
Also, I guess you're right about Argo Wurm...
Because Armageddons are always fun...
ENFORCER-GEDDON
4x Birds of Paradise
4x Werebear
4x Jolrael's Centaur
2x Terravore
3x Mystic Enforcer
1x Lhurgoyf
1x Exalted Angel
1x Multani, Maro-Sorcerer
4x Swords to Plowshares
2x Disenchant
2x Eladamri's Call
2x Sylvan Library
3x Armageddon
2x Wrath of God
1x Cataclysm
7x Plains
9x Forest
4x Brushland
4x Elfhame Palace
Potential problems:
Doesn't have a "big" 4 cost creature, until you fire off your first geddon / wrath
Might need some sort of artifact mana rock to help keeeping the mana base intact...?
This is something I thought about when I was deciding what shoul I build for the necromancy party called "bring your old friends to your old kitchen table".
I like how it's a budget build. But I see few problems:
Note that Terravore is pretty unreliable and barring some opposing fetchlands or w/e, you cannot play it pre-Geddon. Cycling lands?
You got only two (only two!) shuffle effect for Sylvan Library. I'd try to squeeze in some (low budget) fetchlands. Even Grasslands or Krosan Verge might be good, just be careful with the numbers of cipt lands.
The other possibility is good old Land Tax, Tithe, Rampant Growth and friends, Weathered Wayfarer, of course.
I'm not sure if you pack enough removal, and namely any BoP.dec might be annoying. With Call already in deck, you might try something like Triskelion.
Good ideas Bed Decks Palyer
How could I forget about the Mirage fetchlands. They are perfect for this...
I feel that Krosan Verge is a bit on the slow side. Enters tapped and requires additional mana to fetch. The Mirage ones are imediately online on the second turn, just like the Elfhame Palaces, but help fuel the Terravores, Enforcers, and Library. :)
edit:
What if we made the following changes, to help defend against early rushes, and improve the Call package...?
-1 Werebear
-4 Jolrael's Centaur
+3 Wall Of Roots
+1 Eladamri's Call
+1 Masticore
Isn't Triskelion slow at 6 cmc..?
Last edited by onehitpoint; 11-01-2014 at 01:54 PM.
Good call on the 'geddon deck. Going to write about it. Should be posting a couple more on the site in the next couple of days.
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