This Esperzoa looks very tempting, but I see no possibilities for this in FS.
Threads of Disloyalty: Take control of target Tarmogoyf. Smother: Destroy target Tarmogoyf. Spellsnare: Counter target Tarmogoyf. Spell Pierce: Counter target non-Tarmogoyf spell.
Misdirection maindeck and Tormod's crypt main, why? If you take them out you can run Sower of Temptation. (stealing tombstalker, goyf, dreadnought, pit dragon....)Originally Posted by EternalDragon09
No mulldrifters, but you are running cloud of faeries which can accelerate into hardcast drifters easily. That hurts a bit if you have a tomb in play, but it is still stronger than TFK!
Replace one seat for island, especially with only three T-mages.
Even better, with 3 T-mages, replace the other Seat of Synod too, for one Shoreline Ranger.
Threads of Disloyalty: Take control of target Tarmogoyf. Smother: Destroy target Tarmogoyf. Spellsnare: Counter target Tarmogoyf. Spell Pierce: Counter target non-Tarmogoyf spell.
That's how I by and large play too, assuming that the hand I kept isn't an all-in hand and that the opponent is playing removal (although against Standstill-decks, I always try to play a turn 1 creature for obvious reasons).
Anyways, I could see adding one more mana source. Two? I don't think I've seen the need for that. Whether the correct number is 22 or 24 is something I can't say; 22 has served me really well, but it seems like just about everyone else is having more mulligans than me. Upping the landcount slightly cuts the mulligan rate, but adds to the poor topdecks.
As for your list, has the MD Tormod's Crypt served you well? Very rarely feel like I'd need it G1 and my personal experience is that I'd hate drawing it when I don't need it more than I'd like having access to it when playing against Ichorid or Aggro Loam, especially since neither is that horrible a match to begin with (in fact, I'd like to play against Aggro Loam every round if possible).
Also, the sideboard choices seem odd. With Glen Elendra Archmage, combo hasn't been much of a problem in my experience and Trinisphere is a quite weak against anything else unless you can also deny opponent's mana sources (so I guess you need B2B to go with it), and is a horrible topdeck so siding it in weakens the midgame further. With the changing of the format, In The Eye of Chaos may warrant new testing, but when I first tried it, it just wasn't worth the mana and the card invested in it for the effect it provided.
Agreed that piling in versus a Standstill deck isn't a bad idea, although if I have a choice between Chalice at 1 and a critter, I'll still probably go CotV1 (unless it is a true Landstill build since they don't have Dreadnought). If I have to choose between slightly poorer topdecks or more mulliganning, I'll take my chances with the topdecks. From my perspective, getting that extra land draw more than makes up for consistently doing what I want and need Turn 1/2. Plus, Wasteland isn't as scary, B2B with 10 islands isn't as scary, and I enjoy not having to pamper my City of Traitors like Leona Helms' poodle. I have been able to continue land drops if I need to with only a slight setback.
It may be a function of the meta in which I play, but Crypt has been very good for me. I'm also experimenting with having Academy Ruins + useful artifacts to allow for more control as the game progresses. But even as a one shot, Crypt is good against many popular & successful archetypes. It won't kill Thresh or Team America (or Ichorid etc etc) but it will set them back...and this deck should be able to take advantage of that, no? If Relic didn't have a 1 CC I would run that, but that is horrible dis-synergy. I have considered more Crypts in the board, but haven't been able to justify them. perhaps I will try -4 Trinisphere, +2 Crypt, +1 Needle, +1 In the Eye of Chaos. Go ahead and count the number of instants in Team America, Dreadstill, Threshold, TES and convince me the effect isn't warranted, especially as it pitches to Force of Will and Chrome Mox. Trinisphere is part of my fear (and loathing) of combo. I hate playing against it, I hate the archetype, I hate not being able to do anything in a game of Magic. My thinking was to create an overload of spells that would guarantee a Turn 1/2 ability to do something brutish and nasty to combo...and probably follow it up with something else just as anti-social. It might be overkill, but if I overkill something, then I don't have to kill it again.... Trinisphere also has that effect versus Burn/Sligh/Goyf-Sligh. Pros - it can't be REB'ed, cons - the not pitching/imprinting & getting shanked by Shattering Spree. I need to do more testing before I'm comfortable making assertive statements, but I would prefer to make combo (and certain select archetypes) overwhelmingly solid rather than somewhat positive, even at the cost of an optimized sideboard. A slightly favorable matchup can still be legitimately lost, and you can't afford many coin flip matches at a GP.
In regards to the new artifact flier, it certainly seems like it has potential. Probably not as a four-of regularly but it will allow for a budget version of the deck, which doesn't seem like a bad thing from my perspective. In fact, I plan on testing them in my 2x Pestermite slot as I find Pertermite to be the least desirable creature in the deck - but I didn't have a viable 3cc replacement and can't justify upping those slots to 4cc. I often have extra Chrome Mox when I play that would love to see play with these guys. An extra Chalice (not so likely, but it happens), my Crypt...or the Sigil that I play as well as my lone Seat of the Synod. Admittedly the Seat option has poor synergy with City of Traitors, but if the 4/3 flier is going to finish them (especially if equipped...) then I will make it work. The Equipoise-a-zoa thingy is also a critter I don't mind as much blocking with or saccing to an effect. Sometimes the effect will be beneficial, allowing you to recharge (or turbocharge) a Sigil, or pull back a Chalice, drop a Needle for example, and then replay Chalice, or play CotV zero then next turn replay it as CotV1 (versus Belcher type decks). I can also pull it back with not only SOLAS but Academy Ruins as well. In short, I see more potential than downside, although if I have to drop a T1 critter, it admittedly isn't as good as Sea Drake in traditional FS (but $156 cheaper a playset...).
TL,DR: if you think Saito is ok, check your moral compass. It may be broken. - Spikey Mikey, amen brother
WE know what the price of progress is (often 8-10 life). - Cait Sith
A casual stasis deck? You must not really like your friends. Do you play it before or after you pull the wings off of flys and microwave the neighbor's cat? - EwokSlayer
Artifacts can't be imprinted on Chrome Mox as part of the text of Chrome Mox.Esperzoa hasin its casting cost, so it is blue and imprintable, isnt it?
Btw, as already mentioned - it would be funny with Tangle Wires... Trigger on the stack, return Wire, tap nothing, replay Wire (tap 3 mana), go, you tap 4 pieces...
Esperzoa isn't going in this deck. There's no way it's even close to the other six.
Esperzoa will go in the Blue Affinity/FS hybrids that pop up from time to time, though. It's still not the right direction to take the deck. Once the newness and danger of cool things wears off? Esperzoa'll be right back in your trade binder.
Nope, as Esperzoa is an artifactEsperzoa has
Btw, as already mentioned - it would be funny with Tangle Wires... Trigger on the stack, return Wire, tap nothing, replay Wire (tap 3 mana), go, you tap 4 pieces...
Edit: too slow
Nope, it's not imprintable because it's an artifact. Chrome mox says nonartifact, nonland. Mox doesn't care about casting cost so much, which has recently only become relevant with this newest block (and I guess ghostfire).
Esperozoa is simply not good enough. There's better cards for this deck, and really the drawback is huge. You can't afford replaying your artifacts all the time. You want to keep playing new cards. Perhaps if the stats were higher it'd be worth looking into, but I can't see any good way for faerie stompy to abuse this card, even in a budget version.
EDIT: Me too =(
i thinkthis card needs testing. Chalice, Mox and Seat gives u 12 potential 0 cost artifacts for another very good beater
Man. I just totally owned all three of you. Never face me in a western-style shootout.
The Tangle Wire synergy is admittedly ridiculous. The downside of it though, aside from running the overrated Esperzoa (I don't call Tangle Wire overrated: if anything it's the reverse.) Sometimes your mana to cast it would be coming from Ancient Tomb. Which sucks when you're trying to cast anything repeatedly.
I will say this about Esperzoa: If nothing else, you can use the Chrome Mox you can't imprint him on to feed to him every turn. That said? That still sucks.
EDIT:
@Humphrey: Even if we had 20 artifacts, what makes you think this guy's better than any of our other six beaters?
Let's list all the reasons he's not.
1. He can't imprint on a Chrome Mox. Being able to select which threat you need the most is highly crucial in this deck. All the other six can.
2. He can't replace Trinket Mage, because Trinket Mage's ability is a large part of the deck's strength.
3. He can't replace Sea Drake, because Sea Drake's better.
4. He can't replace Pestermite, because Pestermite is Jesus with wings.
5. He can't replace Mulldrifter, because Mulldrifter's draw ability is irreplacable.
6. He can't replace Sower of Temptation, because, dear god, have you played with that card?
7. That leaves Serendib Efreet, who is arguably the worst of our six. A
8. Oh. And he's also competing with Glen Elendra Archmage, who might be the best creature that can't crack maindeck lists since Meddling Mage.
But you need to have all of them in play at all times. Once I get a CotV @ 1 out, I'll very rarely ever want to get it off the table. Same goes for Chrome Mox. True, you could play a naked Chrome Mox, just for Esperzoa food, but that seems rather conditional and weak. Running basic lands > not running basic lands. 1 Seat of the Synod as a Trinket Mage target, sure. 4 of them? No thanks. Especially not with B2B in our own sideboard.
Someone tell me more about why Sword of Light and Shadow is good. It looks slow and clumsy, and doesn't pitch to Chrome Mox (or Force). I'd be awfully tempted to cut it for more copies of Sower (and/or Pestermite, depending on which ones you don't already have a full set of).
Also, Trinisphere looks really strong against Dreadstill, Goyf Sligh, and Storm, even with the Force of Will nombo. Am I wrong?
SummenSaugen: well, I use Chaos Orb, Animate Artifact, and Dance of Many to make the table we're playing on my chaos orb token
SummenSaugen: then I flip it over and crush my opponent
SoLS offers an out versus control that countered/Disked/Wrathed your army away. It also gains life, which may or may not be important sometimes (mutiple Ancient Tomb + FoW lifeloss sucks sometimes). It also combos nicely with Mulldrifter, and it mitigates regularly played discard strategies.
And it allows protection from Tombstalker, which is becoming more relevant all the time.
Yeah, really I think the lifegain is the biggest attraction to it, for me at least. THe lifegain becomes really relevant with how much the deck has to hurt itself, and suddenly when you start gaining 3 life a turn your opponent's creatures don't seem like such a big threat. Pro white/black is also the most relevant against creature removal, since that's what the majority of it does. In addition, even if you can only get back one threat, that part of the ability is really good as well.
Are you wondering about running equipment in general? That I wouldn't be able to say so much, but the equipment really adds to any threat that gets on the board and is worth running over another threat.
I'm not sure about the trinisphere issue. At best it's sideboard material because trinisphere + force = not good. I'm not sure what the matchups against those decks are to begin with (not good?)
Im not a friend of sower, since its casting cost made it unplayable to me or it diied to fast to be useful. also i never tried pestermite and in my opinion more dmg is better than some tricks.
Before Mulldrifter, SOLAS was respectable, but the organic card draw on SoFI was probably better. Post-Mulldrifter, however, and especialy since the addition of Sower and Glen Elendra the advantage you gain is ridiculous. The lifegain is quite nice even if the opponent is not actively smacking us, we do that heavily to ourselves, this helps mitigate that problem. Then there is the issue of Tombstalker, Snuff Out, STP etc. Your opponent can still get your critter, if they have the effect in hand & ready to play, but you determine when they use the effect or they lose the ability to do so. Making your opponent play the game as you dictate, when you dictate, is winning strategy in every game ever invented. And SOLAS on any different creature then effectively negates a Snuff Out or a trade in combat or Wrath/Disk as previously mentioned or heavy discard hitting you pre-Chalice. Sower without SOLAS is much more situational, while it does eat a spell/resource getting shanked, it dies to almost everything and can't attack or block much of the time for fear of losing it's initial benefit. Sower with SOLAS keeps coming back and messing up life for your opponent (as does Glen Elendra for a soft-lock of sorts and Mulldrifter for ridiculous card draw).
In my experience Trinisphere is very strong against those decks, especially as part of suite of disruption pieces. It does hate to see Shattering Spree, though, and it doesn't pitch to FoW, meaning that I should truly test ITEOC #4 over Trinisphere #4 (including in tournaments...just as soon as I acquire ITEOC #4...). I'm unconcerned about the FoW nonbo for several reasons. First, dropping a Trinisphere obviates the immediate need for a FoW as it stops most of what we would be using FoW for in the first place (or delaying it significantly). Secondly, if we have the mana to play Trinisphere, then as soon as we drop a threat (assuming we haven't already done so) then we have the mana to use FoW and pay, getting the best of both worlds.
TL,DR: if you think Saito is ok, check your moral compass. It may be broken. - Spikey Mikey, amen brother
WE know what the price of progress is (often 8-10 life). - Cait Sith
A casual stasis deck? You must not really like your friends. Do you play it before or after you pull the wings off of flys and microwave the neighbor's cat? - EwokSlayer
In a vacuum, Sword of Light and Shadow isn't any good. In this deck? It totally is. Seriously. I was stunned when I started playing it to realize how well it fit.
Lifegain is crucial in a deck with four Tombs, four Forces, and four guys that ping you for one a turn, especially in a deck that dictates the pace of damage races. Your guys almost all fly, so you control when it becomes a battle of trading all-in swings versus leaving blockers back.
Protection from White and Black equates to protection from most removal. Swords to Plowshares, Shriekmaw, etc. The +2/+2 is nice, as it makes your mid-sized threats actually capable of hanging.
The creature recursion ability is fantastic, though. You can do this on evoked Mulldrifters, but it'll also grab you a Sower back when you need one. And what's highly underrated and overlooked is doing this on Pestermites. Getting back a Pestermite allows you to fend off a ridiculous onslaught by dropping it out and tapping an attacker, then having it around to chump a second attacker, then get it back next turn and repeat. Combine that with the lifegain ability and very little outdoes SOLS in the damage race department.
I think the other reason that the Swords outshine Jitte and outshine pretty much everything ever in this deck is that so many of your threats have evasion. SOFI and SOLS are weak in decks without evasion, as you're required to get a hit off to get the perfect setup. Jitte, however, still gets its counters when your guy blocks or gets blocked. Since blocking and getting blocked don't actually happen all that much in FS compared to all other creature decks? The Swords shine even more by comparison.
For those of you that understand "funny" english:
http://translate.google.com/translat...px&sl=cs&tl=en
Okay, so these are some good arguments for Sword of Light and Shadow in a vacuum (in addition, for some reason I was previously under the impression that it only gained two life to mirror the other Sword, so finding out that it's actually three also helps). So the next question is how the various equipment compare and how much of them to run total. I take it that SoLS is better than Jitte, going by the post above, and worse than SoFI, by the fact that most lists run more of the latter than the former. I also assume that one of the reasons old lists ran so much equipment is because there weren't enough good threats, yet you still had to run 60 cards. These days, though, there's no shortage of them. Up to what point are more Swords better than more threats? I mean, Dragon Stompy generally runs 0-2 equipment. Granted, their creatures are more threatening on their own than ours, but still. I think my main gripe with the equipment is that they're both slow / clumsy and artifacts, meaning often enough they're the card you'd most like to pitch to Chrome Mox and you can't. This is annoying. And it gets worse the more equipment you run, because odds are you'll want to get rid of Sword #2 a lot worse than if you only draw a single copy. Regardless, if you start from a base of four Swords of Fire and Ice, a Sigil, and four of each Sea Drake, Serendib Efreet, Trinket Mage, Pestermite, Sower of Temptation, and Mulldrifter, what would you cut to fit in Swords of Light and Shadow? I had assumed it was some combination of Pestermite and Sower, but going by Taco's previous post, if the worst creature in the deck is actually Serendib Efreet, would you cut some of those instead?
SummenSaugen: well, I use Chaos Orb, Animate Artifact, and Dance of Many to make the table we're playing on my chaos orb token
SummenSaugen: then I flip it over and crush my opponent
Has any thought been given to using Powder Keg in the board to blow up Factories, Dreadnoughts, Mongeese, Confidants and Goyfs all day long?
That can be quite handy especially since it doesn't effect any of you own creatures, and it can kill multiple creatures at once against hoarde decks.
It's the best board option that F. Stompy has against Affinity, Elves, Eva Green and even Goblins to some degree.
And it can played turn one off an ancient tomb if you don't have a Chrome Mox handy, (or turn one off an island + mox if you don't have an ancient tomb handy).
If you don't think it works, please explain why.
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