The Robots From Mars

[kusumoto]

So I was thinking about how artifact lands are still artifacts under Blood Moon...


2 Magus of the Moon
4 Blood Moon
4 Ornithopter
4 Memnite
4 Signal Pest
4 Cranial Plating
4 Frogmite
4 Galvanic Blast
4 Shrapnel Blast
3 Simian Spirit Guide
2 Fireblast
3 Mox Opal

4 Ancient Tomb
4 Great Furnace
4 Vault of Whispers
4 Darksteel Citadel
2 City of Traitors


Sideboard

4 Red Elemental Blast
3 Shattering Spree
4 Thorn of Amethyst
4 Tormod's Crypt


Pretty obvious what it does. Play guys, hopefully a moon, turn guys sideways, and finish with burn.
What do you guys think?

[TheDarkshineKnight]

I definitely like the idea, no doubt about that. Methinks Kuldotha Rebirth, Atog, and Scrapmetal Fiend could be interesting in this deck. You're already going to be dumping artifacts into the yard thanks to Fireblast and Shrapnel Blast. It would be interesting to see how that would work out, anyways.

[GGoober]

I really like the idea!

I personall would just run lightning bolts over fireblast. Too many blasts = opening yourself to x-1 and never be able to recover. Looks promising. I would do a 3/3 split of Magus/blood moon simply because Magus lock is far weaker than Blood Moon lock. In fact, I would go to a 2/4 split if I were you. This is a cool idea to affinity. You have the sheer speed to drop early threats, follow up with a Moon and capitalize on that disruption to win fast.

[Media314r8]

Simian spirit guide seems better as glimmervoids. (realizing this cuts off the possibility of a T1 moon effect, but playing only 3 just makes it more often a dead draw in the mid-game rather than a devastatingly explosive opener.) Also, why aren't the fireblasts galvanic blasts? Blasts are also conditional 4 damage, but fireblasts can ONLY be cast when a moon is on the board. At worst blast is a shock, and kills things like bob, warchief/tankerer and kataki (corner case, but non-zero) dead in a timely manner.

[kusumoto]

Simian spirit guide seems better as glimmervoids. (realizing this cuts off the possibility of a T1 moon effect, but playing only 3 just makes it more often a dead draw.) Also, why aren't the fireblasts galvanic blasts? Blasts are also conditional 4 damage, but fireblasts can ONLY be cast when a moon is on the board. At worst blast is a shock, and kills things like bob, warchief/tankerer and kataki (corner case, but non-zero) dead in a timely manner.

Galvanic Blast is already in the list.

I think that three guides makes the dead draw happen less, but a turn one moon is SUCH a beating for so many decks that I just can't justify not having it. Plus Glimmervoid is going to be a mountain anyway and it doesn't speed me up, but does run the risk of not being playable. Guides beat too. I know that's silly, but it can be good with battlecry dude.

As far as splits on moons. I think 3/3 is probably better for sure. I'll update the OP for that. I like being able to swing with a magus wearing plating though.

[Koby]

I'm pretty sure the Seat of the Synod can be any artifact land, correct? In that case, why not run Vault of Whispers and give yourself the offchance option of using Cranial Plating's 2nd ability? To go along with that, you could easily run Disciple of the Vault too, as he's really sick way to burn out an opponent without the attack step (and goes along the plan of burn-out).

I like this list so far, I'm going to test it out.

I also 2nd the 4/2 Blood Moon/Magus split, to make sure the moon effect sticks around.

Final suggestions: go upto 4 Mox Opal. With Shrapnel Blast, you can easily mitigate the drawback of seeing 2 Opals. They are also your best mana source.

[dahcmai]

I think I would actually play a set (3) of Ancient Tombs just to get the explosive starts. Under a Moon they don't hit you for the damage anyway. They are still half useful for the rest of the artifacts anyway. It's worth a test though you don't have a lot to use it for other than the moons.

I love the idea though. Goblins might be a severe pain though.

[kusumoto]

I will change the OP with the updated moon split again and test that out.

I have no reason not to run vault instead of seat, so I will change that too. I think disciple isn't good enough without ravager though. I think adding that combo dilutes the battlecry aggro part of the deck too much.

On Fireblast, I really want to run at least 1 or 2 of these. It's almost like you get an extra turn with them. Tapping out, beating, burning, then blasting just gives so much reach in one turn. I do think 3 might be too much. If I cut it to two I would have one open slot. Thoughts about that? Maybe just another Opal?

@dahcmai: Do you mean reduce my Tomb count to 3? I already have four in the list.

[TheDarkshineKnight]

The more I think about it, the more I like this deck. It's got the Moon package of Dragon Stompy and at the same time it's still fast as hell ala Affinity.

The only problem is that there are so many cool things you could throw in here.

Phyrexian Revoker is the first thing that comes to mind since he would improve a bunch of match-ups. Goblins doesn't particularly like having Aether Vial and Port shut down.

Kuldotha Rebirth could be a lot of fun since you've got a bunch of 0 cost artifacts and Signal Pest can provide Battle Cry. And, damnit, I just want to see that card get some use in Legacy since it's so bloody cool.

Scrapmetal Fiend, once he's out, will have good synergy with Shrapnel Blast, Fireblast, and Mox Opal.

And, obviously, there's nothing wrong with good ol' Lightning Bolt.

EDIT: Also, I'm calling this Martian Machines from now on. The Robots From Mars is too much of a hassle and not nearly alliterative enough to say on a frequent basis. :P

[Koby]

Redbots works too heh.

Anyone got a chance to test this matchup against anything yet? Are we all working with a theorycraft list/idea?

[kusumoto]

Basically theorycraft right now. I might be able to do some testing this weekend, but it's only been goldfishing so far.

[GGoober]

I'll be following this thread closely. The main points I like about this deck is not autolosing to combo which most affinity decks tend to do. The Moon package is huge, without much sacrifices on the deck's own speed. Moon gives some resistance to decks playing Pernicious Deed :)

[Draener]

I've actually been testing out a similar list, but running etched champion instead of frogmite. Mini progenisis seems pretty good, with plating... real progenisis.

[(nameless one)]

What about that Scrapmetal Fiend card from New Phyrexia?:



something something Fiend (R)

Creature - Construct

Its power and toughness is equal to the number of artifacts in all graveyards.

*/*

Also, I was watching Futurama and it was that Robothouse episode (that all robots frat at Mars University). I think Robothouse is a catchy name for the deck.

[kusumoto]

What about that Scrapmetal Fiend card from New Phyrexia?:




Also, I was watching Futurama and it was that Robothouse episode (that all robots frat at Mars University). I think Robothouse is a catchy name for the deck.

Looks like Slag Fiend is artifacts in graveyards. I guess it's worth testing.

Testing this weekend is tough due to the holidays though.

[TheDarkshineKnight]

what about that scrapmetal fiend card from new phyrexia?:




Also, i was watching futurama and it was that robothouse episode (that all robots frat at mars university). I think robothouse is a catchy name for the deck.

Robot Houuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuse!!!

[kusumoto]

I could get on board for Robothouse.

It's got the nudge nudge wink wink effect but still basically makes sense.

[TheDarkshineKnight]

I think I'm going to try this list for fun just to see if Slag Fiend can be decent without totally changing the core of the deck:

Magus of the Moon x3
Memnite x4
Ornithopter x4
Signal Pest x4
Slag Fiend x4
Cranial Plating x4
Mox Opal x4
Shrapnel Blast x4
Galvanic Blast x4
Kuldotha Rebirth x4
Blood Moon x3

Ancient Tomb x4
Great Furnace x4
Vault of Whispers x4
Darksteel Citadel x4
Mountain x2

[(nameless one)]

Looks like Slag Fiend is artifacts in graveyards. I guess it's worth testing.

Testing this weekend is tough due to the holidays though.

I read it again and I will now edit my previous post.

[Richard Cheese]

I really like this list. How would you feel about Lodestone Golem in the Frogmite spot? I realize that Frogmite is free, but he's also a 2/2 without evasion and only Plating to make him a threat in this list.

[TheDarkshineKnight]

I really don't like Lodestone Golem in this list. Making Magus of the Moon cost more mana to play doesn't sound like a good plan to me.

[Koby]

Would Goblin Wardriver even be considered for this deck? I doubt that Signal Pest alone makes Ornithopter/Memnite all that attractive, and it's aggressively priced. Only problem is his mana cost compared with the Ancient Tomb don't mesh together well.

[TheDarkshineKnight]

Would Goblin Wardriver even be considered for this deck? I doubt that Signal Pest alone makes Ornithopter/Memnite all that attractive, and it's aggressively priced. Only problem is his mana cost compared with the Ancient Tomb don't mesh together well.

I think if we throw Goblin Wardriver in we would have to dump Cranial Plating and just go straight out Battle Cry aggro. Not sure if we want to go down that path.

[kusumoto]

Yeah that's definitely a no go.

The main idea is for signal pest to be a cheap artifact that makes thopter/memnite/magus/frogmite all slightly more relevant before the plating.

It's usually going to be the burn that finishes the job. The creatures are just getting them in burn range.

In goldfishing I am finding that I usually drop the moon on turn two anyway, so I will certainly be trying out other things in the spirit guide slots.

[GGoober]

Saw some updates to your list above. Just wanted to chime in on a few suggestions.

I think that despite the fact that you're still primarily playing Affinity, to really power out turn 1-2 blood moons, you might want to consider upping more Sol-lands i.e. run City of Traitors. The reason being is very simple: If you look at Legacy, think of a format of efficient spells, now look at blood moon, it's a 3cmc spell, now look at your manabase. You need every way to be able to power out Blood Moons ASAP because a turn 1 v.s. a turn 3 Blood Moon makes all the HUGE difference. For very similar reasons, when playing Legacy decks, especially stompy decks, you have to mull aggressively e.g. if my hand has Moon effects but I can't cast them and neither do I have other broken plays e.g. Ornithopter + Plating turn 3 wins, then you have to mull them. When you consider yourself playing a deck that's fundamentally built on 'weaker' cards, you need all the explosiveness and availability you have.

I would highly suggest playing 4 City of Traitors, otherwise a turn 3 Moon is just sitting in your hand asking to be a dead card once your opponents fetched basics. I personally don't think 2 Mountains is needed, so cutting that could be a good start. List is looking good. I would love to run Signal Pest in Steel Stompy, but I value Chalice a little more. I think your deck is aggressive enough that Signal Pest is better than Chalice. Personally I have some thoughts on cutting Chalice, going more aggro with Signal pest and the new 2{PW} 3/1 First Strike artifact creature in Steel Stompy, but I feel it's not worth it in Steel Stompy. In your list, if you opt for more Sol-lands, that can always be an option. Anyway, once you start putting in 4 more Cities, I can only imagine this list being a lot more resilient against combo than most affinity lists are i.e. you can play Chalice and Thorn of Amethyst from the SB against combo with 8 sol-lands.

[kusumoto]

I'll try it out with two Cities in place of the mountains and see what happens. Obviously this means keeping the spirit guides.

[dahcmai]

Heh the first time I read the list, I didn't see the Ancient Tombs. Guess it is a good idea then. lol

[Mr. Safety]

I see a lot of free/cheap dudes...and it makes me think about Cheerios (Glimpse/Kobolds/Beastmaster Ascension combo deck). I like the Moon effects, which are criminally underplayed in the format other than in Dragon Stompy.

I like Kuldotha Rebirth...it's solid card advantage. I would also consider a way to 'cheat' a little more. Take a lesson from the recent crop of Affinity decks and use Etched Champion. Champion + Plating is absurd, and usually can make for a pretty freakin' fast clock. I'd want to include the best conditional threat in the game ATM with Master of Etherium, too. Splashing blue isn't hard, and I think he's worth it.

[Koby]

I'm going to go buy the RDW Event Deck from MBS this week so I can put this deck together (pretty much missing the newer cards) and start testing it in my group's gauntlet as the Affinity spot. I suspect it will be too similar to Affinity to really make any significant differences, but it may have a better game against the varied 3/4c Control decks.

I'll report back in about 2 weeks with some results.

[Mon,Goblin Chief]

Honestly, am I the only one that thinks the clock of this deck actually looks atrocious? You have four Platings and four Signal Pest to make your creatures do anything and Pest isn't even that impressive (Ornithopter becomes a 1/2, Memnite a 2/1 and even Frog only hits for 3). To me it looks like the deck will have a ton of trouble actually winning if the opponent isn't just dead to Moon.
That isn't to say that I don't like the basic idea of dropping a fast Moon and killing them with Affinity-speed before they can fully recover, I just don't think there are enough actual threats in the deck to consistently do that, in particular against decks that are resilient to Moon. Having at least Ravager/Atog as an additional way to hit for a lot fast seems utterly necessary to me and Kuldotha Rebirth seems very good, too.

How about something like that:

4 Signal Pest
3 Ornithopter/Frogmite
4 Memnite
4 Kuldotha Rebirth (your Nacatl)
3 Atog/Ravager
4 Cranial Plating

4 Galvanic Blast
4 Shrapnel Blast

2 Magus
4 Blood Moon

3 Opal
3 Springleaf Drum/SSG

4 Ancient Tomb
4 Great Furnace
4 Vault of Whispers
4 Darksteel Citadel
2 City of Traitors

[kusumoto]

I think Ravager is a poor fit.

With Kuldotha Rebirth and Galvanic Blast there are already several cards that require you to sac an artifact.

Anyway, I will be trying out something like this at a local tournament this weekend


2 Magus of the Moon
4 Blood Moon

4 Ornithopter
3 Frogmite
4 Memnite
4 Signal Pest
3 Kuldotha Rebirth

4 Cranial Plating
4 Galvanic Blast
4 Shrapnel Blast

2 Simian Spirit Guide
4 Mox Opal

4 Ancient Tomb
4 Great Furnace
4 Vault of Whispers
4 Darksteel Citadel
2 City of Traitors


Sideboard

4 Red Elemental Blast
3 Shattering Spree
4 Thorn of Amethyst
4 Tormod's Crypt

[Koby]

OK So I got a chance to test out this deck against stuff.

I don't think the Moon plan gels well with the Weenie plan. At its heart, this deck wants to be explosive and dump out goblins/0drops and pump them up. Signal Pest, in conjunction with all the tokens is pretty good in that sense. However, the Moon plan requires a heavy mana commitment which is counter-productive with Kuldotha Rebirth.

The other issue is getting the red mana to cast the moons. This is the largest problem I see with the current incarnation of this deck.

[nedleeds]

You know you want a miser's Covetous Dragon in here ...

[oblivion4560]

I agree with getting a turn 1 Blood Moon. That shit is crucial in Legacy. 4 Blood/2 Magus is good because they can just float a W and Swords it later on.
Being a heavy affinity player I know that Ravager is worthless. It never does what you want it to do. Also, Cranial Plating is awkward if you draw 2+ of them with no dudes, and Goblin Wardriver costs way too much for a deck like this. I like the fact that this deck abuses the really cheap but very effective burn spells.
Also, Slag Fiend doesn't seem extremely synergistic with the rest of the deck. It may seem like a good idea because it's essentially your goyf, but it's reliant on cards being in your graveyard. Not only is it a good idea to run 3-4 relics in the board (at least for my meta which is dominated by the real goyf and KOTR), but by the time he's going to want to attack with him for a bunch, you've already taken your opponent down some from pested 0cc, and finish him off with sacrificing all of your lands to get Shrapnel Blast and Fireblast for 9 damage from two spells. I feel like it slows the deck down a little, and I'd rather just Kuldotha Rebirth for maximum pest effect.
Here's what my list would look like:

2 Magus of the Moon
4 Blood Moon

4 Ornithopter
3 Frogmite
4 Memnite
4 Signal Pest
3 Kuldotha Rebirth

2 Cranial Plating
4 Galvanic Blast
4 Shrapnel Blast
2 Fireblast

3 Simian Spirit Guide
3 Mox Opal

4 Ancient Tomb
4 Great Furnace
2 Vault of Whispers
4 Darksteel Citadel
4 City of Traitors