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Thread: [SCD] Thran Turbine

  1. #21
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    SpatulaOfTheAges's Avatar
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    I think this deck desperately wants a companion.
    Early one morning while making the round,
    I took a shot of cocaine and I shot my woman down;
    I went right home and I went to bed,
    I stuck that lovin' .44 beneath my head.

  2. #22
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Unfortunately companion is sorcery speed, so Turbine's upkeep mana cannot pay for it.

    Quote Originally Posted by Fox View Post
    I wouldn't even touch Turbine unless I was willing to absorb the variance of 4x Geier Reach Sanitarium, and yes, that's legendary. At least you can go turn 1 Geier, cast Turbine -> Turn 2 begin fixing hand with Geier off Turbine mana. I still don't think this is good enough for competitive play, but it's probably as close as you can get to mitigating such variance.
    Why bother with Geier Reach when there are more competitive-viable cards that allow similar opening sequences:

    Urza's Saga -> Retrofitter Foundry
    You would miss out on the 1st Construct (unless you have some other way to generate mana), but otherwise Saga casts Turbine, then Turbine pays for 1 Construct and pays for Retrofitter activations every turn, freeing up the rest of your mana and hand to play normal Magic. The advantage here is that Saga + Retrofitter is already Legacy viable, you don't have to jump through extra hoops to justify those cards.

    Other abilities you could activate with colorless mana on upkeep:
    Sai, Master Thopterist
    Urza, Lord High Artificer
    Walking Ballista

    Too bad there is no reason to ever play the above cards together with an artifact.

    Perhaps the bigger issue is this deck is already tight enough and doesn't have room for Sol Rings when it could use that space on "2U: Mind Twist + draw 7" or "2: Counter every Brainstorm and Dark Ritual"

  3. #23

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Funny, a buddy of mine and I were recently trying to exploit Thran Turbine. We even both bought play sets. I was literally going through set spoilers looking for cards that could utilize the Turbine. I can't find the whole list.

    I was trying to incorporate the card into my Tools n' Titans deck. I thought it would be awesome with Urza's Saga and Retrofitter Foundry. The nice synergy Turbine has with Saga is that Saga can tutor it. Also, Turbine can activate it for free once. Also, it's only a one drop so it can activate Mox Opal early and it taps to Tangle Wire. Obviously it's nice with Retrofitter.

    Sadly I was unable, at the time, to find cards that could abuse it enough to make it worth it. Here is some of that partial list of cards I was looking at. Trying to post some that haven't been posted yet. I had another decklist saved somewhere with a huge list of cards. If I find it I'll post it.

    Mirage Mirror
    Mazemind Tome
    Druidic Satchel
    Golden Guardian
    Masticore
    Lesser Masticore
    Molten-Tail Masticore
    Buried Ruin
    Inventor's Fair
    Dwarven Miner
    Dwarven Blastminer
    Seismic Mage
    "WaaaauuugghhhaaaauuugghhhaauuugghhhaaauuugghhhW" -Chewbacca

  4. #24

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    By the way, I was doing some pretty fun stuff with Turbine and Mazemind Tome while I was playing Tools n' Titans online. It makes a pretty cool draw engine. Once I got to 3 or so counters I'd sac it to Goblin Welder then weld it back in to draw more cards. Sometimes I needed the 4 life. It was surprisingly effective and fun.
    "WaaaauuugghhhaaaauuugghhhaauuugghhhaaauuugghhhW" -Chewbacca

  5. #25
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Quote Originally Posted by Laser Brains View Post
    By the way, I was doing some pretty fun stuff with Turbine and Mazemind Tome while I was playing Tools n' Titans online. It makes a pretty cool draw engine. Once I got to 3 or so counters I'd sac it to Goblin Welder then weld it back in to draw more cards. Sometimes I needed the 4 life. It was surprisingly effective and fun.
    If you're up for some Welder/Daretti shenanigangs, then Angel of the Ruins/Ruin Grinder might be up your ally. Cycle in upkeep with Turbine mana, then recycle it with Welder/Daretti to bring in the big guys. If you want to expand on the cycle theme, throw in some Timeless Dragon as well.



    I'm thinking of a Stompy shell with Mox Diamond (which is fantastic with that many land cyclers) and a much more heavier artifact reanimation theme than the deck shown above in the video.

  6. #26

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Quote Originally Posted by Barook View Post
    If you're up for some Welder/Daretti shenanigangs, then Angel of the Ruins/Ruin Grinder might be up your ally. Cycle in upkeep with Turbine mana, then recycle it with Welder/Daretti to bring in the big guys. If you want to expand on the cycle theme, throw in some Timeless Dragon as well.



    I'm thinking of a Stompy shell with Mox Diamond (which is fantastic with that many land cyclers) and a much more heavier artifact reanimation theme than the deck shown above in the video.
    Ruin Grinder is nuts! Thank you! Yeah, I was thinking the same thing as far as a artifact disruption theme. I’ve been working on a deck like this for some time. Done a lot of testing. Here’s the link. I’d love to see what you think. Might have to test Ruin Grinder.
    "WaaaauuugghhhaaaauuugghhhaauuugghhhaaauuugghhhW" -Chewbacca

  7. #27

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Thesipians Stage also has synergy with the card. Could play them alongside Expedition Map and a Dark Depths in the lands/Urza’s Saga builds.

  8. #28

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    One interesting card I hadn’t considered with Thran Turbine is Mirage Mirror. By copying a sol land it basically stores the mana from turbine, and it can do the same trick as thespian stage with depths or saga

  9. #29

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    After further reflection, the third and fourth best ways to use turbine are field of ruin and cycling lands. They can be used immediately on your first upkeep, less conditional than thespian stage, and have a low opportunity cost.

    How about loam pox? Similar to lands but can more easily afford the density of basics to make field work. Discard can handle fast combo/prismatic ending without conflicting with all the 1 drops. Loam pox wants cycling lands anyways to support loam without having to run exploration.


    4 Thoughtseize
    2 Raven’s Crime
    4 Smallpox
    3 Life from the Loam
    3 Witherbloom Command
    1 Nether Spirit

    4 Mox Diamond
    4 Thran Turbine
    3 Retrofitter Foundry
    1 Nihil Spellbomb
    1 Shadowspear

    4 Urza’s Saga
    4 Field of Ruin
    4 Wasteland
    3 Forest
    3 Swamp
    1 Bayou
    4 Verdant
    2 Prismatic Vista
    3 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
    2 Polluted Mire

  10. #30

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Elvish reclaimer too

  11. #31

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    The new channel lands and turtle could make it worth revisiting the landstill idea.


    boseiju, who endures
    Otawara, Soaring City
    Eijango, Seat of the Empire
    Colossal Skyturtle


    Colossal skyturtle being able to regrow anything on t1 for G and pitch to force seems the most important pickup.

  12. #32

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    They printed a better blue Thran turbine. I think we could revisit this idea since we now have critical mass and it can be used for sorcery speed abilities. It also counts fetch lands and cycling cards for its second ability.

    The Enigma Jewel {U}
    Legendary Artifact
    The Enigma Jewel enters the battlefield tapped.
    {T}: Add {C}{C}. Spend this mana only to activate abilities.
    Craft with four or more nonlands with activated abilities {8}{U} ({8}{U}, Exile this artifact, Exile the four or more from among other permanents you control and/or cards in your graveyard: Return this card transformed under its owner's control. Craft only as a sorcery.)
    ----
    Locus of Enlightenment
    Color Indicator: Blue
    Legendary Artifact
    Locus of Enlightenment has each activated ability of the exiled cards used to craft it. You may activate each of those abilities only once each turn.
    Whenever you activate an ability that isn't a mana ability, copy it. You may choose new targets for the copy.
    They are also several more cards with good activated abilities since.


    Lorien Revealed
    Skybinder Staff
    Moonsnare Prototype
    Mirrorshell Crab
    The Balrog of Moria
    Touch the Spirit Realm
    Behold the multiverse
    Curse of the Cabal

  13. #33

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    The mana can’t be used for triggered abilities, but I don’t think we mentioned any of those except for rystic study or the decree cycle.

  14. #34

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Do 8 sol rings make absolute jank legacy playable? We have a pretty consistent plan of vomit out 1 mana permanents into sphere/standstill into ability value. You don’t go as big as 8cast but sphere is probably better than chalice and you avoid draw hate somewhat.


    27 artifacts
    4 The Enigma Jewel
    4 Thran Turbine
    3 Immovable Rod
    3 Moonsnare Prototype
    4 Mox Opal
    3 Retrofitter
    1 Ornithopter
    1 Tormod Crypt
    3 Sphere of Resistance

    16 other
    4 Standstill
    4 Force of Will
    2 Metallic Rebuke
    4 Timeless Dragon
    2 Lorien Revealed

    18 lands
    4 Urza’s Saga
    4 Seat of the synod
    4 Tundra
    1 Field of Ruin
    1 Otawara
    1 Plains
    1 Island
    2 Flooded Strand

  15. #35
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    The Sol Rings certainly make it easier to spam Retrofitter and Currency Converter activations more aggressively and come down under Standstill.

    Sphere doesn't make sense here. It plays badly with Standstill (which slows down the game long enough for opponent to play around Sphere) and gets clunky with a bunch of cheap artifacts. Sol Rings can't pay for Sphere tax.

    I think you can also balance it by trying to play a reasonable control deck instead of just spamming so much jank.

    The problem with Thran Turbine is how to avoid making it a dead card, especially in multiples, especially in a control deck that plans to draw many cards. Especially when Standstill doesn't need Sol Ring to win with Saga & Retrofitter & Timeless Dragon. The Enigma Jewel at least has some built-in protection against redundancy: it can flip, it can pitch to FoW, it can activate outside the upkeep. Turbine can't do those things. You can't even sacrifice extra Turbines to Enigma (not an activated ability). Tapping it for Metalcraft is weak. So perhaps you want to be on just 1 Turbine + 3-4 Enigma Jewel.


    //Activated Abilities for exactly 2: 10
    3 Urza's Saga
    2 Currency Converter
    1 Retrofitter Foundry
    1 Expedition Map
    3 Timeless Dragon

    //Other Activated Abilities with 2: 6
    2 Otawara, Soaring City
    1 Immovable Rod
    3 Shark Typhoon

    //Sol Rings: 4
    1 Thran Turbine
    3 The Enigma Jewel

    //Reasonable control: 23
    4 Force of Will
    4 Standstill
    4 Swords to Plowshares
    3 Prismatic Ending
    2 Teferi, Time Raveler
    2 Force of Negation
    2 Supreme Verdict
    2 Lorien Revealed

    //Other Lands: 17
    4 Flooded Strand
    4 Prismatic Vista
    2 Tundra
    3 Island
    2 Plains
    1 Karakas
    1 Plateau


    Abilities to spend 2 on: 21
    Permanents with activated abilities for Enigma: 16 nonlands
    Cycling cards: 10
    T1 Artifacts under Standstill: 9 + 3 Saga

    Blue cards for FoW: 22
    Plains for Timeless: 5

    Thran Turbine and Retrofitter Foundry are tutorable with Saga so you should be able to get them when you need them. 1 copy means you don't flood on them when you don't need them.

    Sol Ring is basically taking the Brainstorm slot in an otherwise stock UWx Landstill list. Brainstorm is a bigger liability against Bowmasters, and you already have other draw engines, cycling, and card selection, so maybe it would work. Could go to 3rd Currency Converter too! Sol Ring is your turn 1 mana-advancing play instead of Ponder/Braimstorm. It should make it easier to get greedy with Saga. Could maybe go to 4 Saga too.

    If you stay artifact-heavy, Urza Lord Artificer sure looks good. It turns extra artifacts into Mox Sapphire and gives a mana sink for Sol Ring mana!
    Last edited by FTW; 10-27-2023 at 06:30 PM.

  16. #36
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Quote Originally Posted by Fox View Post
    There is a lot of variance you need to draw past if you're running do-nothings like Turbine. Even though cycling is consistency-positive, this is pretty reliant on A [Turbine] then B [cycling]. Imagine the problem: you don't have piece A, so you cycle your last piece B in hand -> you draw piece A off the cycle -> dead.

    You need to do a ton of work to avoid the above sequence. I wouldn't even touch Turbine unless I was willing to absorb the variance of 4x Geier Reach Sanitarium, and yes, that's legendary. At least you can go turn 1 Geier, cast Turbine -> Turn 2 begin fixing hand with Geier off Turbine mana. I still don't think this is good enough for competitive play, but it's probably as close as you can get to mitigating such variance.
    Did you post this before Currency Converter was printed?

    Because that fills the Geier Reach role perfectly and is a much stronger card. Turbine/Enigma Jewel is an excuse to get greedier with Saga and Currency Converter, and then you get many things to do with 2 and built-in variance smoothing against flooding.

    Enigma Jewel also lowers the variance compared to Turbine: more use-cases, pitches to Force, ultimate mode.

    You could add maybe Search for Azcanta - card selection that dodges Bowmasters, fills the yard for Jewel, uses the 2 colorless, and filters redundant draws.

    Honestly just going turn 1 Sol Ring turn 2 Standstill into a deck full of cycling (Timeless Dragon, Shark Typhoon, Lorien Revealed) and activated abilities (Saga->Currency Converter) seems quite good. Especially when you can pitch dead Sol Rings to Force or Currency Converter.
    Last edited by FTW; 10-30-2023 at 05:57 AM.

  17. #37
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    I tested this. It was pretty decent.


    //Lands: 22
    4 Flooded Strand
    3 Prismatic Vista
    2 Tundra
    3 Island
    2 Plains
    1 Plateau
    1 Karakas
    2 Otawara, Soaring City
    3 Urza's Saga
    1 Hall of Heliod's Generosity

    //Spells: 16
    4 Force of Will
    4 Swords to Plowshares
    3 Prismatic Ending
    1 Sevinne's Reclamation
    1 Force of Negation
    2 Supreme Verdict
    1 Lorien Revealed

    //Enchantments: 8
    4 Standstill
    4 Shark Typhoon

    //Artifacts: 8
    3 The Enigma Jewel
    3 Currency Converter
    1 Expedition Map
    1 Immovable Rod

    //Creatures: 3
    3 Timeless Dragon

    //Planeswalkers: 3
    2 Teferi, Time Raveler
    1 Comet, Stellar Pup

    //Sideboard: 15
    2 Red Elemental Blast
    1 Pyroblast
    1 Blue Elemental Blast
    1 Hydroblast
    1 Flusterstorm
    2 Surgical Extraction
    2 Enlightened Tutor
    1 Alpine Moon
    1 Ethersworn Canonist
    1 Serenity
    1 Powder Keg
    1 Dress Down


    Apparently Sol Ring is a good Magic card. Who knew.

    Immovable Rod was very good with a Sol Ring effect in play (or late game with 7-8 lands) and bad otherwise, so I wouldn't go over 1 copy.

    I tried 1 Thran Turbine but it was pretty bad so I cut it for Sevinne's (i.e. 4th Sol Ring/Converter). Then I turned Retrofitter into a 3rd Currency Converter, because Enigma Jewel is legendary and Converter is better if you can only accelerate +2 mana. Retrofitter looks better when you can play multiple Thran Turbines or combine Turbine with Jewel, allowing multiple activations per turn, but less good just making a 1/1 Servo here and there.

  18. #38

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Sol ring into standstill is probably the right call. I was thinking of sphere as just additional copies of standstill.

    Did you find that only 3 sol rings are enough? I was worried about 3 enablers is too few for 18 payoffs. You don’t really have a way to discard lands; is the occasional 2/2 from converter good enough? Or was it more the looting that you benefited from?

  19. #39
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    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    Quote Originally Posted by Reeplcheep View Post
    Did you find that only 3 sol rings are enough? I was worried about 3 enablers is too few for 18 payoffs. You don’t really have a way to discard lands; is the occasional 2/2 from converter good enough? Or was it more the looting that you benefited from?
    Good question. Space was tight so I just ran 3. Maybe the 4th copy is good. Some games I never saw one. Other games I never wanted the 2nd copy unless the first is removed. Didn't test enough games to tell.

    Converter combos with the 4 Shark Typhoon + 3 Timeless Dragon + 1 Lorien + 2 Otawara = 10 cards that can immediately go under it and turn into 2/2 or Treasure. Heliod recycles Shark Typhoon, so that can be a lot of 2/2s.

    Aside from that, it's the looting. It does a lot of card selection, and can generate more 2/2s. It can also help color fix for the red splash or make PEnding X=4. In one game it helped me turn extra fetches (after 0 fetchables left) into Treasures to make a Shark bigger than Murktide.

    Maybe it could be 2 Converter + 1 Retrofitter. I just find Converter is strong in Standstill. I usually couldn't afford to spare more than 2 mana per turn on activations, and I find Retrofitter only gets really strong if you either have Thopters or you can dump lots of mana to get multiple activations per turn. The 1/1 Servo seems underwhelming vs Bowmasters.

  20. #40

    Re: [SCD] Thran Turbine

    • Moonbind Prototpe has a higher floor than immovable rod, maybe that could be an improvement.
    • With more converters could we run 2 Thran turbines?
    • I think we want 4 timeless dragon, since it is the only engine that immediately pays off with no additional investment.
    • Do we want Doomskar over supreme verdict?
    • I think I agree that converter works better in this deck.

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