Tezzeret Affinity

[Hanni]

I originally posted this in the Tezzeret SCD thread, but I'd like to start a thread for this specific direction.

Tezzeret Affinity

Lands (14)
4 Seat of the Synod
4 Vault of Whispers
4 Tree of Tales
2 Darksteel Citadel

Creatures (23)
3 Phyrexian Walker
4 Ornithopter
4 Memnite
4 Frogmite
4 Myr Enforcer
4 Master of Etherium

Spells (23)
3 Thoughtcast
4 Glimpse of Nature
4 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
4 Cranial Plating
4 Mox Opal
4 Springleaf Drum

That's the list I plan to start working from as soon as I can download a spoiler for my MWS.

I'll explain a little of my thought process with this:

The deck is basically a combo deck. I'll start with the engine:

3 Thoughtcast
4 Glimpse of Nature
4 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas

With Tezzeret, the deck now has the critical mass it needs to swarm the opponent. Glimpse of Nature with 11 0cc creatures + 8 Affinity creatures helps enable big draws, Thoughtcast provides an always solid draw 2, and Tezzeret is an overpowered Dark Confidant that both control decks and aggro decks will have a hard time dealing with.

Mana:

With 11 0cc guys, Mox Opal and Springleaf Drum come online consistently on turn 1, and the Affinity guys (Frogmite and Myr Enforcer) should be coming down very quickly as well.

The Kills:

Master of Etherium
Cranial Plating
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas

The deck still has the ability to just win via quick turn 1 hand empties involving Memnites, Frogmites, and Myr Enforcers.

With so much explosiveness, Master of Etherium comes down as a monster in size, and pumps all of the other guys on the board.

Cranial Plating turns any and every creature in this deck into a win condition. It's preferrable to get it on an Ornithopter, since other guys can be chump blocked into oblivion, but Cranial Plating still puts an assload of pressure on very quickly.

Tezzeret is savage. He's either coming down and sealing it up by turning Mox Opal's and Phyrexian Walker's into 5/5's, or he's digging 5 deep for another artifact and then winning on the next turn with his ultimate. He's a house against aggro decks and control decks alike, and is great against combo when you simply win next turn.

I'm still not sure if the mana is right cause I haven't gotten to test it yet. 14 lands, 4 Mox, 4 Drum I'm hoping is enough to reliably cast Tezzeret. The deck does have the ability to draw into extra mana sources with Thoughtcast and Glimpse, so I'm banking on 22 mana sources + draw being enough for right now.

Obviously, I need to test this. I think cutting Ravager and Disciple for a more explosive and less sadomasochistic way to win has more synergy overall, but I could be wrong. I'd likely run the new Phyrexian Revoker in the sideboard, along with whatever else that I have no idea what I'd need right now.

[Barook]

I don't think that Glimpse Affinity is the right shell for Tezzeret. You only run 19 "free" creatures for Glimpse and it's off-color.

I would probably replace Glimpse with Bob for greater consistency, add a fourth Thoughtcast, get rid of Enforcer to not kill yourself with Bob and throw in some other goodness instead. Phyrexian Walker probably wouldn't fit into that variant as well.

4 Tezzeret also seems excessive, considering the mana cost and only being able to have one on the field. Three are probably enough.

[eq.firemind]

I second the suggestion that going 3-color will cause problems.
The good way to speed up Teez is Ancient Tomb and if you throw a -land, you should think about adding Chalice of the Void, wich is even better since the deck already has a way to acquire 2 mana on turn 1.

My take on this:

Teez Affinity

4 Ancient Tomb
4 Vault of Whispers
4 Seat of the Synod
3 Darksteel Citadel
2 Glimmervoid
4 Mox Opal
2 Paradise Mantle

4 Ornithopter
4 Memnite
4 Dark Confidant
3 Phyrexian Revoker
3 Steel Overseer
4 Master of Etherium

4 Chalice of the Void
4 Cranial Plating
4 Thoughtcast
3 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas


1 Phyrexian Revoker
2 Engineered Explosives
2 Umezawa's Jitte
4 Tormod's Crypt
6 Something

Teez 2.0 is another draw engine (first ability), a way to deal lot of damage (both 2nd and 3rd ability) and reach+lifegain(3rd ability) all in one card. The only downside is cmc 4, but with Moxes and Tombs it seems to be manageable. And beating with Chalice or Paradise Mantle is so classy!

The average manacost is 1.2 and Teez's ultimate gains a nice chunk of life, so Dark Confidant seems safe even in long game.

Phyrexian Revoker and Chalice of the Void are made for each other. First one covers problematic cards (like Pridemage, Deed) and the second one shuts off their removal (StP, burn) and cantrips, so they can't get rid of Revoker so easy. Turn 1 Chalice at 1, turn 2 Revoker on Pridemage should be hillarious in game 1 against Zoo. Or turn 1 Revoker on LED, turn 2 Chalice at 1 vs Storm.
After sideboard, Revoker becomes even better 'cause you know what to name.

Engineered Explosives in sideboard are for matches where you side out Chalice or need removal against specific card. Deck's curve allows to safely blow EE on 1, 3 and 4, taking out Vial, Aggro Loam fatties, Shackles and sometimes even Jace or Elspeth.

[Hanni]

The list that Top 8'd the Kansas City SCG Open

I don't think that Glimpse Affinity is the right shell for Tezzeret. You only run 19 "free" creatures for Glimpse and it's off-color.

I would probably replace Glimpse with Bob for greater consistency, add a fourth Thoughtcast, get rid of Enforcer to not kill yourself with Bob and throw in some other goodness instead. Phyrexian Walker probably wouldn't fit into that variant as well.

4 Tezzeret also seems excessive, considering the mana cost and only being able to have one on the field. Three are probably enough.

The list I linked used Glimpse just fine, and he only ran 2 Ornithopters and 0 Phyrexian Walker's.

This deck doesn't intend to use Glimpse the same way Elves does. It's not meant to draw your entire deck. 19 "free creatures" is roughly 1/3 of the deck. Even drawing just 3 cards off of Glimpse makes it an Ancestral Recall.

I'm not really sure how Bob enables greater consistency. Even if we somehow were able to define him as more consistent, he's still very slow at generating card advantage in a deck that's entire design is meant to be explosive.

I may agree with you on the 4th Thoughtcast. I haven't gotten to playtest the deck yet, and so my numbers are merely rough draft. The count of Phrexian Walker may be capable of being lowered, the number of lands may need increased, I don't know yet. I'm simply presenting a shell, and the basis from which I plan to test from.

I second the suggestion that going 3-color will cause problems.

I'd rather playtest this first. The list I linked above ran the exact same manabase with 1 less Mox and 1 less Drum. Albeit he wasn't playing Tezzeret (2UB), but the rest of his deck obviously performed well enough. I'm going to wait until a downloadable spoiler becomes available for MWS before I delve too much further into whether or not the manabase will work, etc. You may be right, maybe it's not stable enough. Problem is, I can't figure that out right now.

[Koby]

I've been testing this shell for several months after trying out Deep Blue.

With the addition of Grim Monolith earlier this year, this is adequate push for an Accelerated Blue/X Affintiy deck. I remember the Saga/Masques format that used Grim Monolith to cast large control cards early, then untap later for with mana sinks. It would cast threats with 3UU quite easily turn 3. Adding Tezzeret with 2mana lands is obvious. Good thing there's a million 2mana artifacts that also help to cast spells. Like Dimir Signet, or Prismatic Crystal.

This is the shell I've been working with:

4 Steel Overseer
4 Etherium Sculptor
4 Master of Etherium
3 Esperzoa
3 Etched Champion

4 Thoughtcast
3 Transmute Artifact
3 Tinker-targets

4 Grim Monolith
3 Voltaic Key
3 Sensei's Divining Top

4 Mox Opal
3 Ancient Tomb
2 City of Traitors
4 Wasteland
4 Seat of the Synod
5 Island

Island can be replaced with Underground River* (Sundering Titan is a bot) to include Tezzeret. 2UB is really easy for this deck. With Mox Opal, that maybe enough.

[Hanni]

I went ahead and built this on MWS, using the original Tezzeret as a proxy for the new one. I haven't played against live competition yet, just goldfishing. For goldfishing purposes, I cut 1 Phyrexian Walker for the 4th Thoughtcast.

I know that the goldfishing has been a goldfish, and against disruption it would be much less explosive and broken, but the deck has a nasty goldfish. Between chaining Thoughtcast and Glimpse over and over, to dropping a Tezzeret and just winning, the deck is strong. Very strong.

I can't wait till they release the MBS spoiler for MWS so I can play this against live competition. Unless someone wants to let me playtest it against them, using old Tezz as a proxy for the new Tezz...

[Justin]

I'm curious as to how Glimpse has worked for you. I have just tested it a little. My impression is that this is a card that you want in your opening hand with a green mana source. If you have a Tree of Tales, a Glimpse and some "free" creatures, you can have a huge first turn. On the other hand, if you don't have the Tree of Tales (and have a Mox or Drum), you get a slower start. With Mox or Drum, you have to cast a free creature before playing Glimpse and this costs you a card. Glimpse is also pretty weak in topdeck mode. If you top deck it, you have to wait until you draw a creature. Then, you will most often only draw one card off it, and two if you are lucky (23 of 60 cards are creatures). I'm wondering if it might not be a good idea to throw in some "rainbow lands" (i.e. Glimmervoid) to improve the chances of getting an explosive start with Glimpse. The downside to this is that rainbow lands weaken your affinity cards (Frogmite and Myr Enforcer), Mox, as well as Tezz himself. However, it might be worth it. I've tested a bit with your mana base and it is frustrating to have a Glimpse in the opening hand but no green-producing land to get maximum use out of it.

Edit: After more testing, I can see that you will often play Glimpse on turn two, not turn one. With drum, you just drop it on turn one and pass and then go off with Glimpse next turn. With Mox, you wait until it has metalcraft from two lands on turn two. On further review, I think that rainbow lands lack of synergy with Moxen is the main reason to avoid them.

[menace13]

Funniest play in Legacy is going to be to Tezzanimate Cranial Plating then equiping it to itself !!11one1!!!eleven1!!

Edit:
212.2i An Equipment that's also a creature can't equip a creature. Equipment that loses the subtype "Equipment" can't equip a creature. An Equipment can't equip itself. An Equipment that equips an illegal or nonexistent permanent becomes unattached from that permanent but remains in play. (This is a state-based effect. See rule 420.)

[Koby]

This won't work, just like it didn't work with March of the Machines

[menace13]

This won't work, just like it didn't work with March of the Machines

There goes the only reason I wanted to play the deck

[The Big Ragu]

You guys are going a bit overboard with the number of Tezzys you're running. He's the icing on the cake, but not the actual cake itself. Anything more than 2 is probably going to weigh you down. For the time being, I'm fully content with just one in my deck.

P.S. I'm glad to know that I'm not the only person who doesn't run Ravagers in their deck. Thought I was going crazy there.

[Justin]

Four Tezz as too much was my initial thought as well. However, this isn't just a nice card. It is a card that wins you the game. By playing four, you maximize your chances of drawing one. If you have a Tezz on the board, it does not matter that you have more in your hand. Your opponent must answer your Tezz fast or lose the game. Plus, it's nice to have extra copies in case your first one gets countered or removed. I think I agree with Hanni in that four is the correct number. However, this can only be confirmed though testing.

[Meekrab]

Tezz is a lot like Cranial Plating, there's never a time you DONT want him.

[ac3eb]

The difference between Tezz and cranial plating though is their casting cost. Having two tezz in your opening hand can almost be like taking a mull to 5. Four mana is definitely on the high side of the curve. 3 seems about right, though even 2 might be the ideal number. I don't think 4 is where it should be, especially when some lists are trying to fit in 3-4 thoughtcast and 4 glimpse. That's significant card-drawing power, so finding one shouldn't be that tough?

[Justin]

The difference between Tezz and cranial plating though is their casting cost. Having two tezz in your opening hand can almost be like taking a mull to 5. Four mana is definitely on the high side of the curve. 3 seems about right, though even 2 might be the ideal number. I don't think 4 is where it should be, especially when some lists are trying to fit in 3-4 thoughtcast and 4 glimpse. That's significant card-drawing power, so finding one shouldn't be that tough?

Well, you make a good point that multiple Tezz in your starting hand is really bad and will probably force a mulligan. However, going by Hanni's list, there are very few cards in this deck that are bad in your opening hand. Other than Tezz, only Master of Ethereum and Myr Enforcer can sometimes be bad in your opener. If you have good mana, you can power out a turn two Master. With all the "free" spells, you can often get an Enforcer on the board by turn two or sooner. Tezz is the only card in the deck that you will almost never want to see in an opening hand. The odds of a starting hand with more than one are small. You might be correct in that 3 might be more appropriate than 4, but I think the debate should be between 3-4, not 2-3. As I said before, Tezz wins games and you want to make sure that you draw it.

[Hanni]

After more goldfishing (still haven't gotten to playtest against a real opponent because I'm using old Tezz as a proxy), I wasn't satisfied with the instability. As a player, I prefer consistency over unstable explosiveness. With Mox Opal being Legendary, and the decks high demand for blue mana, I think the deck needs more blue mana sources. I haven't had many issues hitting 4 mana for Tezz, but getting UB can sometimes be difficult.

Glimpse can sometimes just go nuts on turns 1-2, drawing 10+ cards. Othertimes, it's a horrible topdeck that does nothing for me.

Here's a new list that I've been goldfishing, and am still rather pleased with:

Tezzeret Affinity

// Lands
4 [MR] Seat of the Synod
4 [MR] Vault of Whispers
4 [DS] Darksteel Citadel
4 [ZEN] Island

// Creatures
4 [M10] Ornithopter
4 [SOM] Memnite
4 [MR] Frogmite
4 [HOP] Myr Enforcer
4 [M11] Steel Overseer
4 [HOP] Master of Etherium

// Spells
4 [MR] Thoughtcast
4 [ALA] Tezzeret the Seeker
4 [FD] Cranial Plating
4 [SOM] Mox Opal
4 [LRW] Springleaf Drum

It's not quite as explosive, but I've been pleased with its level of consistency. Obviously, Tezzeret the Seeker is supposed to be Tezz 2.0

As far as the number of Tezz goes, I'd recommend the full 4. The card is nuts, and you want to see it every game, as often as possible. Multiples aren't dead either, because you can drop one, make a 5/5, make another 5/5, and then cast another to make another 5/5 (that's 3 5/5's in two turns). I like making Opal's, Drum's, and especially Citadel's into 5/5's. Plus, they still get buffed from Master and Overseer.

[Koby]

I've noticed a few Classic list run Gaea's Cradle purely for a "Tolarian Academy" stand in. Would running 1-of Gaea's Cradle to accelerate some artifact out be useful here? Is it win more?

[Hanni]

Could be good, haven't tried it yet. Good suggestion.

[Hanni]

Anyone wanna add me to AOL IM and let me play a few games with this deck against them? I've tried 3 games now and I get Player Lost every time I try to explain that I'm using Tezzeret 1.0 as a proxy for Tezzeret 2.0...

My SN is: fiendishnature

[Grollub]

I like your latest list Hanni, you might want to consider that new UB neo-dual. The drawback should never really be a drawback in affinity's low land count, and having easier access to both colors with the sidebonus of being immune to Islandwalk looks nifty.