Good stuff deck (GSD).

[DragoFireheart]

Basically, we have a deck where we meet the following criteria:

- The card is not overly dependent on others. (ex: Counterbalance and Sensei's Divining Top.

- The card is useful in multiple matchups. (ex: Lightning Bolt. Against Merfolk it acts as additional removal. Against combo decks, it helps us race them).

- The card is powerful in itself.

By selecting only cards that meet these criteria and focusing on a deck that has no bad matchups, we get a deck that is, well, good stuff.

I'll start with a base to get the thought process going:


3 Grim Lavamancer
4 Tarmogoyf
3 Vendilion Clique
4 Brainstorm
4 Force of Will
1 Ice (Fire/Ice)
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Path to Exile
2 Ponder
3 Spell Pierce
3 Spell Snare
2 Flooded Strand
1 Forest
1 Island
3 Misty Rainforest
1 Mountain
1 Plains
3 Scalding Tarn
3 Tropical Island
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
4 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Sideboard
2 Counterspell
3 Firespout
4 Pyroblast
4 Red Elemental Blast
1 Spell Pierce
1 Spell Snare


Notes:

- I chose Path over swords as it conflicts with Lightning Bolt.

- Grim doesn't conflict enough with Tarmogoyf. The net gain is we have a pinger that is good for keeping merfolk/goblins in check.

- The overload of Red based sideboard cards is to help fights Merfolk, Show and Tell decks, and anticipating a rise in High Tide decks.

- I chose four JTMS for three reasons. One, he's amazing at card advantage and tempo, allowing us some late game power. Two, he's good at killing other Jaces so extras help in that manner. Three, we have excess to pitch to force if needed.

- I decided to overload on the 1cmc counter spells to slow down my opponents first couple turns.

- I purposely avoided non-blue creatures that had multiple color costs (Rhox Warmonk) because this deck is running four colors and is vulnerable to Wasteland. By not using cards that have multiple color costs, it helps trivialize land destruction decks. This deck as it stands now only needs 2 islands and 1 of each non-island to cast any spell.

Any suggestions on how to improve this are more than welcome. There is a great deal of room to make changes to this deck so the more heads thinking on how to make it better, the better it will get.

[Richard Cheese]

Looks a lot like Canadian Thresh to me.

[DragoFireheart]

Looks a lot like Canadian Thresh to me.

Yes, it does look very much like Canadian Thresh. However, that's more of me presenting a shell thats similar to it. Note that Wasteland and Stifle are missing since we are running white for exile-based removal. Perhaps there is a better list that could be made, though I'm not sure how to proceed.

[Esper3k]

No Black? There are so many good stuff cards you lose by not playing it...

[GGoober]

Uhm, this is clearly next-level Thresh except with a much more vulnerable manabase. Eric English (think that's his name) would be displeased to see this 'new' deck.

[DragoFireheart]

No Black? There are so many good stuff cards you lose by not playing it...

-Alright, do you have any suggestions?


Uhm, this is clearly next-level Thresh except with a much more vulnerable manabase. Eric English (think that's his name) would be displeased to see this 'new' deck.

- Did you even read my opening post? I wasn't claiming my deck to be original or new. I'm merely attempting to get a discussion on the concept of creating a deck were every card is good in of itself and the deck has no bad matchups.

[GGoober]

If you ever succeed in creating a deck where every card is good in itself and has no bad matchups, you win Legacy, and maybe life.

Anyway, the closest thing I can think about to a good-stuff.deck is Team America or BUG aggro-control or BUG Thresh. Now, that's a card where EVERYTHING is good, and you have mostly positive matchups across everything with Merfolks giving you a slightly hard time. However, these decks just lose easily to 8 StP/PtE.deck since you only run 8-12 threats.

[DragoFireheart]

If you ever succeed in creating a deck where every card is good in itself and has no bad matchups, you win Legacy, and maybe life.

Anyway, the closest thing I can think about to a good-stuff.deck is Team America or BUG aggro-control or BUG Thresh. Now, that's a card where EVERYTHING is good, and you have mostly positive matchups across everything with Merfolks giving you a slightly hard time. However, these decks just lose easily to 8 StP/PtE.deck since you only run 8-12 threats.

- Alright, that's what I like to hear! What could be done to fix that low threat count to avoid losing to STP/PTE mass castings?

[GGoober]

Mental Misstep :(

Jokes aside, I would play Daze over Pierce in your build, cut down the Jace to 2-3 since you are not a pure control deck (and even pure control decks don't play 4 Jaces these days).

[Richard Cheese]

- Alright, that's what I like to hear! What could be done to fix that low threat count to avoid losing to STP/PTE mass castings?

Hexproof/protection guys?

You should try to make Wildfire Emissary good again!

[DragoFireheart]

Mental Misstep :(

Jokes aside, I would play Daze over Pierce in your build, cut down the Jace to 2-3 since you are not a pure control deck (and even pure control decks don't play 4 Jaces these days).

- I never liked using Daze in a deck that lacks Wasteland/Stifle. Why would you want to use Daze in this sort of deck?


Hexproof/protection guys?

You should try to make Wildfire Emissary good again!

-I could try, but Blood Knight is much better.

[Richard Cheese]

- I never liked using Daze in a deck that lacks Wasteland/Stifle. Why would you want to use Daze in this sort of deck?



-I could try, but Blood Knight is much better.

I don't know about much better. The whole reason Emissary was good to begin with was that Bolt and Swords were (and still are) the two most heavily played removal spells, and he dodges both. He's also more splash-able, better on defense, and has the pump option to become a real threat in the late game. He's obviously outclassed by Goyf these days, but so is Knight.