Identity Crisis

[bruizar]

Here's my latest project. With the coming of RTR and Planechase, and 2 more multicolor sets on the horizon, I think it's finally time to play a true multicolor deck. This part of the cardpool is largely unexplored by me, because powerful effects often come in the wrong colors. With City of Brass, Deathrite Shaman and Pillar of the Paruns, colors should not stand in the way of resolving multicolored cards. More information will follow soon. The sideboard needs a lot of testing and thought, and I´m not sure if I have too much creatures right now.

Some problems with the deck -
*The Esper Stormblades are nice but it´s a tempo card in a midrange deck. I really want to run them, because they are cheap and evasive, block lingering souls (and survive), trade with delvers and clique and it is a target for Tezzeret and Transmute Artifact.

*Deathrite Shaman provides a lot of utility is my only turn one play, since turn 1 Brainstorms are generally not considered good. The problem is, I don´t run Wasteland which diminishes the value of Deathrite Shaman and I run Pillar of the Paruns. Pillar of the Paruns is a really good card in this deck that can cast a first turn Deathrite Shaman, but it doesn´t set up any of its activations (no land in graveyard, can´t use pillar for activated abilities). I´m not sure how much of a problem this is but will have to test it. Being able to fix mana and provide pressure against Snapcaster Mage and Life from the Loam is worth it for me. Deathrite Shaman also turns on Esper Stormblade.

*The sideboard is still a mess. There are so many options. I still have to test out to see which matchups are favorable and unfavorable so I can sideboard accordingly. I think that combo decks such as High Tide will be a difficult matchup, but its very fixable post board. I think that U/W Miracles will be very doable. Postboard I can get Gaddock Teegs against Terminus, Jace and Entreat, and I have Abrupt Decays against Counterbalance and a Needle against Sensei's divining Top. The nice thing about running all these colors is that I can run every single 'cannot be countered' spell from RTR.

*The Abyss versus Supreme verdict
Verdict always resolves and is a turn 4 play that can be cast off pillar of the paruns. But, you can still recover from a wrath effect (Flashback Lingering Souls for example). The Abyss can be countered and can't be cast off pillar of the paruns, but my entire creature base sans-Deathrite Shaman is invulnerable to it.


*I have 1 slot in the sideboard for an expensive transmute artifact target. This could be:
Contagion Engine (Destroying Lingering Souls and Empty the Warrens Tokens and to fight Maverick / Goblins / Death and Taxes)

Spine of Ish-Sah (Tutorable Vindicate that returns to your hand so you can cast it against once you reach 7 mana)

Wurmcoil Engine (Gets a lifelink and a death toucher for an artifact and a transmute. I think getting thopter sword is just better.)

Sundering Titan (Tutorable armageddon, but I don't want to shoot my own lands.)

Alright, here's the list:

IDENTITY CRISIS
//MAINDECK
//Spot Removal (3)
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Maelstrom Pulse

//Blue Good Stuff (11)
4 Brainstorm
4 Force of Will
3 Transmute Artifact

//Non-Artifact Creature (3)
3 Deathrite Shaman

//Artifacts (16)
4 Shardless Agent
4 Baleful Strix
3 Tidehollow Sculler
3 Esper Stormblade
2 Thopter Foundry

//Equipment (2)
1 Umezawa´s Jitte
1 Sword of the Meek

//Planeswalkers (5)
4 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
1 The Abyss

//Manabase (20)
3 Pillar of the Paruns
1 City of Brass
3 Underground Sea
2 Tropical Island
1 Bayou
1 Tundra
4 Polluted Delta
3 Misty Rainforest
1 Island
1 Swamp


//SIDEBOARD (15)
1 Guttural Response
3 Spell Pierce
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Maelstrom Pulse/Vindicate
1 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Wheel of Sun and Moon
2 Gaddock Teeg
1 Supreme Verdict / 1 The Abyss
1 Pithing Needle
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Zealous Persecution
1 Spine of Ish Sah / Contagion Engine / Wurmcoil Engine / Sundering Titan for Transmute Artifact

The deck still needs an appropriate name. if you like the concept and want to help out, feel free to add your comments to the thread!

[JanoschEausH]

I like your Deck Idea. But i have one question. Your landbase has only 19 Lands. What land is missing?

[bruizar]

Oh, counting is tech :-) Probably a fetch land. Other options are City of Brass or Academy Ruins. I don't like Academy Ruins because this deck is dying for colored sources, but it does enable pretty sweet recursion of Baleful Strixes and stuff. Also, Engineered Explosives in this deck can go pretty high. For now, I made it an extra polluted delta because Deathrite Shaman needs the gas.

[Megadeus]

I was really hoping you would have the card Identity Crisis in here... That card is boss. I do like the Idea of a multicolored deck with Pillar as the back bone of the mana base.

[Greenpoe]

With some adjustments, Steel Overseer could be good in this deck (or Master of Etherium if you want a beater that pitches to Force). Perhaps Reflecting Pool could fit into the manabase, it's great with Pillar/City of Brass.

[bruizar]

I was really hoping you would have the card Identity Crisis in here... That card is boss. I do like the Idea of a multicolored deck with Pillar as the back bone of the mana base.
I didn't even know that card existed! All the more reason for an alternative name.


With some adjustments, Steel Overseer could be good in this deck (or Master of Etherium if you want a beater that pitches to Force). Perhaps Reflecting Pool could fit into the manabase, it's great with Pillar/City of Brass.

There are 3 directions that the deck can take imo:

1) The current direction. I think the current direction is a nice balance between aggro and control.

2) Artifact-based - This would be more like a 5 color affinity build. The shell of the deck is basically all multicolor artifacts. It could run Glimmervoid, City of Brass, Reflecting Pool and Pillar of the Paruns. You would lose the efficiency of Mox Opal without artifact lands though, but you would gain a lot of utility cards that you would otherwise not be able to run.

3) Non-artifact - More multicolor-non artfact cards. It would weaken the artifact core that relies on thopter foundry and transmute artifact. Tezzeret would be less reliable. I am not going to explore this direction right now. There are some really coool cards that could go into a deck like this. Geist of Saint Traft, Knight of the Reliquary, Huntmaster of the Fells, Gaddock Teeg and Deathrite Shaman to name a few.

[bruizar]

Does anybody know whether or not Garruk Relentless can be cast off Pillar of the Paruns?

[.dk]

Does anybody know whether or not Garruk Relentless can be cast off Pillar of the Paruns?

I don't think so. Garruk Relentless is Green - Garruk, the Veil-Cursed is G/B. You'd be casting Garruk Relentless and not Veil-Cursed.

[bruizar]

Yeah I double checked it. I was unsure because I recalled color identity of the card being BG, but color identity is a rule for Commander and is different than it being a multicolor spell.

Is there any consensus on the optimal number of fetch lands to support Deathrite Shamans (3, without Wasteland).