Has anyone tried using winter orb instead of ports? I would love to hear the results :)
Why would you run Winter Orb when you could just as easily run Back to Basics? I suppose if you are splashing a color then Winter Orb might be better, but as mono-blue B2B is almost always the superior choice. Almost every deck that you really want Orb against is usually more crippled by B2B (MUC is the only exception I can think of). Running Orbs also severely limits your ability to have explosive turns.Originally Posted by mrb4b00
There is an infinite combo using drowner of secrets/stonybrook schoolmaster and Intruder Alarm that is pretty fast. Oh, and Back to basics is 100 times better that winter Orb
The return of a Legend(in his own words)
You could also consider using Rushing Rivers, it could help some of your aggro matches.
~Hunter~-Team Battletoads(not affiliated with combat amphibians)
Puresight Merrow and Counterbalance belong in the same deck together...
He's a bear with an ability that's mostly irrelevant unless I have CB out. Plus I have no reliable way to tap him apart from sending him into the red zone, which is often implausible if I'm staring down a Goyf.
Sure, he can do some cute things with CB, but I would always rather have a Top with CB than him. I think I'll pass.
You're right. I'm basically thinking of a different approach that uses
Paradise Mantle, and Mothdust Changeling.
Cursecatcher
Creature- Merfolk Wizard (U)
Sacrifice Cursecatcher: Counter target instant or sorcery spell unless its controller pays.
1/1
How is this card going to influence the deck?
He's going to replace Daze in my list I think.. he creates tempo and adds disruption. I have big expectations to him.
"I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize!"
I would think that you'd want him in the deck in addition to Daze, if at all. I think the more important question is whether he's better than Tidal Warrior.
At first glance he looks to be a valuable asset. However, the list (or at least mine) is very tight, and there really is no room. Tidal Warrior is a necessity that I would not cut. Daze is miles better than this card and I would never cut it for a more conditional more costly Merfolk. I could squeeze 2-3 of them in, but I'm not convinced it is better than what I currently play in those slots (2 Needle and a Reef Shaman [Tidal Warrior #5]).
why do so many of you run the tidal warrior??
I have never had a problem needing the island walk. If you have a Lord your guys are most likely 3/3's if you have a reejery as well they are 4/4 that is bigger than most everything but goyf. You most likey have more creatures in play than your opponent as well. If your rejerry is in play, you use his ability to tap their fatty and you swing through anyway.
Honestly, You guys should consider cutting it for a better merfolk.
The thing about Tidal Warrior is that he can be mana disruption against non-blue decks in addition to wastelands and ports and that makes him so good in the mana denial-lists.
This seems so terribly wrong.
Cursecatcher is basically the best 1 drop Merfolk ever printed. The fact that he compounds the "play around Daze or don't" dilemma just makes him even better. Would you play 8 Daze if you could? That's essentially what he is. This guy allows you to be winning on the board, basically you shouldn't ever be behind.
In comparison, Tidal Warrior is only good with a Lord (he's not even good as color-screwing your opponent, they're either already playing blue, in which case Cursecatcher is always better, will Bolt/StP him with the land you're trying to screw them on, or are playing combo and have artifact mana to make up for it).
The decks you're playing the beatdown against already pack blue (where Cursecatcher is better [or the don't really run creatures? Trainwreck? Cursecatcher is better]). The decks you're playing the control role against, would you rather have another potential counterspell, or a 1/1 with a mostly irrelevant ability (if you've gotten to the point where you can Island Walk in, you've essentially already won and should be able to grind the game out, if you're color screwing your opponent, they should have already lost).
First of all, saying "bigger than most everything but goyf" means that they are only bigger than about 50% of the creatures played in this format. If your guys are smaller than a Goyf, you won't be swinging with them any time soon, because chances are the opposing deck will have a Goyf. Islandwalk is very relevant and often needed to win. Also, the "tap a guy with reej" plan doesn't always work. With only 19 merfolk (in my list, anyways), and Reej being the most expensive one, there will often be times when you won't have any merfolk to play to activate his ability. Also, their ability to manascrew the opponent is often relevant. Finally, I run MD Seasinger, and I don't like playing 1UU for vanilla 0/1s. Tidal Warrior/Reef Shaman make sure this doesn't happen.
EDIT: @ Freakish: I run Seasinger. I feel that this card is powerful enough in the current environment to warrant MD inclusion, which is only made possible by Tidal Warrior, whose other uses I have outlined above. Also, don't underestimate his ability to manascrew. Even if the opponent is playing blue, keeping Thresh off of Goyf mana can be highly relevant. Still, the more I look at Dazefolk, the more I feel he does warrant inclusion. I just don't feel that he should replace Seasinger/Tidal Warrior. Maybe I'm wrong, though.
The first idea about tidal warrior was to color deny the opponent. It obviously was a poor tech since most legacy cards need only 1 colored mana and as a consequence, the opponent just had to play a land to get the colored mana and he could playt his spell.
The second idea was to enable the play of seasinger (MD or SB). But seasinger appeared to be too fragile to be a reliable way to deal with annoying creatures.
The thirs idea and the worst of the three is to give the evasion thanks to the lord. It's poor because half of the decks in legacy play blue (islands to be clear) and another half does not play creatures.
When I was still thinking that the deck needed a way to make my opponent control islands, I found out that Aquitect's Will was the best way because it cantripped and most of all it was definitive.
Now I definitely think that it's not needed but a lot of people did not understand it yet.
With Shadowmoore the deck got a very good new merfolk (if not 2).
The merfolk wizards are better and better.Cursecatcher %U
Creature - Merfolk Wizard
Sacrifice Cursecatcher : Counter target instant or sorcery spell unless its controller pays .
#34/301 1/1
Puresight Merrow* (W/U)(W/U)
Creature - Merfolk Wizard
(W/U), untap : Look at the top card of your library. You may remove that card from the game.
Illus. Carl Critchlow #146/301 2/2
Sygg, River Cutthroat (U/B)(U/B)
Legendary Creature - Merfolk Rogue
At end of turn, if an opponent lost 3 or more life this turn, you may draw a card. (Damage causes loss of life.)
Illus. Jeremy Enecio #176/301 1/3
I could play a deck like this one :
Mana : 25
4*port
4*wasteland
4*underground sea
6*fetches
3*island
4*vial
Disruption : 8 (FoW in SB only against combo, because the deck should win on the tempo aspect)
4*Daze
4*Stifle
Coffee Maker : 3
3*Umezawa's Jitte => may be cut for FoW (+1 random creature)
Creatures : 24
4*Dark Confidant (W)
4*Merrow Reejerey (M)
4*Lord of Atlantis (M)
4*Sage of Fables (W/M)
4*Cursecatcher (W/M)
4*Silvergil Adept (W/M)
4*Puresight Merrow (W/M) => probably the one to cut to reach the 24 creatures only requirement
SB :
4*FoW (or 4*Jitte)
4*EE (universal removal, may justify a tundra MD in order to get rid of really annoying 3CC spells)
4*Anti graveyard (tormod, planar void, leyline)
3*Mind Harness (awesome in that meta)
I don't understand why you wouldn't run Stonybrook Banneret in that list? He's awesome...
"I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize!"
Because it's almost a 1/1 vanilla for 2.
Because I have 8 lands that produce colorless mana.
Because among the creatures I play, 8 are not affected by stonybrook.
Most of all because there is no room for him (and not even for Sygg, River Cutthroat or Puresight Merrow which both look better in the deck).
@KillemallCFH:
I had misread Dazefolk. I thought they actually were a Daze/Force Spike on Legs, and missed the "instant or sorcery" part. This makes them substantially worse than I thought, however with your following list:
3 Polluted Delta
3 Flooded Strand
13 Island
4 Lord of Atlantis
4 Merrow Reejery
4 Silvergil Adept
4 Tidal Warrior
1 Reef Shaman
2 Seasinger
4 Force of Will
4 Daze
4 Brainstorm
3 Sensei's Divining Top
2 Counterbalance
3 Back to Basics
2 Open*
How about:
-2 Open
-1 Reef Shaman
+3 Dazefolk
?
Reef Shaman doesn't seem worthwhile without any power (as the saying goes, the Good Vintage Players don't mana burn off Mana Drain, the Best remember that Goblin Welder swings for 1), then if the Dazefolk turn out to be a beating and you never miss the Reef Shaman, you can make the last -1 Tidal Warrior, +1 Dazefolk.
I am suspicious of the Daze guy one because the decks that this one tends to lose to are creature heavy. Threshold and storm combo (where Cursecatcher shines) are its best matchups already. It stills merits substantial testing even to the point of radically changing the rest of the deck simply because I am damned sick of Tidal Warrior's anti-synergy with Daze.
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