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By: Lord Erman, Nafiz Erman
Jan 11 2011 1:29am
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ROGUE PLAY
Decks I Like

by Nafiz Erman

Hello dear readers and welcome back to Rogue Play once again. We've been away from each other for some time and I hope you missed me; I sure did miss you all!

Oh and I do hope you had a great Christmas and an even better New Year party. Mine wasen't too loud or crowded, but it was a lot of fun. We invited some good friends to our place and played Monopoly (what a New Year party, huh?). My daughter, who is six years old, finally learned how to play it and we had huge fun playing Monopoly with friends and kids.

Anyway, back to Magic.

In this first Rogue Play of 2011 dear readers, I will show you a few Standard decks which you may not be aware of. I'm always "scanning" the net for new and nice deck ideas, and in this article I will show you those fine ones I found during my search, as well as the decks I built after testing them.

The Standard meta is already very interesting these days. We have lots of mana ramp decks around, we have crazy fast Aggro decks and we have some Control in the form of  Control and  Control. But is this all? Aren't there any other possibilities? Oh trust me dear readers, the format isn't that shallow. There are some really interesting decks built by some really good rogue deck builders and in this article I want to show them to you.

I may not be able to build rogue Standard decks from the scratch these days, but at least I can appreciate those who do.

Let's start with one of my favorite decks.

 

DECK #1
Do the Wave! 

When I first saw the list of this first deck I'm going to show you, I thought "Meh, another ramp deck". But upon closer examination I found out that it wasn't just a regular one. This one was also using all those known mana accelerators but not to cast an Emrakul, the Aeons Torn or any other Eldrazi giant .

This deck, unlike many other ramp decks these days, likes to abuse these two:

Dragonmaster Outcast Scute Mob

Interesting, no?

Of course it's hard to take those two 1/1's seriously when the meta is full with titans of all sorts. After all, those two are just a bunch 1/1's. That may be true under normal circumstances, but the builder of this deck is not stupid at all. He uses this one:

Asceticism

Now with Asceticism on table, there are only a few things the opponent can do to harm those 1/1's. And thanks to this Green enchantment, both Dragonmaster Outcast and Scute Mob can get out of control pretty quickly.

Oh you wonder how the rest of the deck looks like and want to see it?

Sure, here it is:

Do the Wave!
As found on the net
Creatures
4 Dragonmaster Outcast
4 Scute Mob
4 Primeval Titan
4 Oracle of Mul Daya
16 cards

Other Spells
4 Cultivate
4 Explore
4 Growth Spasm
3 Asceticism
2 Genesis Wave
2 Lightning Bolt
19 cards
 
Lands
4 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
13 Mountain
8 Forest
25 cards

Genesis Wave

 

The deck looks so simple at first but you cannot believe how efficient it is. As a matter of fact, it starts playing as a regular Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle deck and wins mostly with that land. I personally have no problem with this because Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle has (and will always have) a special place in my heart. Some time last year I took a  Valakut deck to a 4-Rounds Standard tournament and 4-0'ed with it. And that 4-0 still is my lone 4-0; <enter sad face here>.

So yes, Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle is special for me.

Anyway, the deck also has Genesis Wave and it is another nice trick. As a matter of fact I came across this deck on the net while I was searching for decks using Genesis Wave.

After I found this deck, I immediately took it for a test drive and saw one flaw: The mana base. Many times I found myself sitting with four red mana sources and four Green spells in hand or started the game with two Forests and two Dragonmaster Outcasts. This deck needs Forests in its starting hand and therefore I added one more Forest and removed one Growth Spasm. So currently I'm playing with nine Forests and twenty six lands in total.

By the way this is also a great deck for casual fun too. I know those Primeval Titans aren't very budget friendly and if you don't own them but still liked the deck and want to test it, you may try a couple of other options such as these:

1- Joraga Treespeaker: An excellent mana source.
2- Awakening Zone: This enchantment also provides some protection and it would be worth to try.
3- Harrow: The good old Harrow also works very well in a Valakut deck.
4- Khalni Heart Expedition: Normally this would be my first suggestion but you need some fetchlands in order to maximize the outcome. Cultivate and Explore are in the deck so maybe it would also work without any fetchlands.

And that dear readers, was the first of those Decks I Like. Valakut decks are the norm currently in Standard but if you want to try a different version, then I strongly suggest you this one.

 

DECK #2
Green / White Trap Ramp

As I said above, I came across that first deck I showed you when I was looking for some options that use Genesis Wave. And now the deck I'm going to present you is fully taking advantage of that spell.

We all know that we're living in an age of "Mana Ramping" in Standard. These decks generate some huge amount of mana in no time and then play some really big threats. The question here is "How big you want to go?". And of course "How much mana you need?".

Some players are really greedy and nothing but an Eldrazi giant can satisfy them. Kozilek, Butcher of Truth is surely nice but Emrakul, the Aeons Torn is much better and preferred. But some players are more humble and they can be happy with only a mere(!) Primeval Titan.

I'm personally in between. Emrakul, the Aeons Torn is too big for me but if I mana ramp, then I mana ramp into something better than Primeval Titan. But before I show you what I personally like to mana ramp into, I will show you what other people play.

 

This is a very nice deck that takes full advantage of Genesis Wave. When you cast it for = , you'll definately get a few nice beaters and maybe even one planeswalker too. But the best thing about this deck is that it also has some protection against faster decks. As a matter of fact, protection is what all those ramp decks lack. Those decks consist of two parts: 1) Mana ramp cards and 2) Big threats. And sadly there aren't that many empty slots left for protection.

But this deck is a bit different. With eight very efficient walls, it can protect itself (and thus the player who plays the deck) against early beaters such as Goblins or mono White. Sometimes a single Overgrown Battlement taps for three mana and that means a huge Genesis Wave. And then? Well, then it's pure massacre with Baneslayer Angels and Primeval Titans.

Okay, as I said this is in my opinion a very humble ramp deck. I won't get too greedy and wish me an Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, but I think an Iona, Shield of Emeria wouldn't be too bad either.

On a second thought, I think I will wish me an Eldrazi titan. Maybe not Emrakul, but definitely Kozilek, Butcher of Truth. Ten mana is nothing for a mana ramp deck and one copy of him wouldn't hurt.

Of course, if we're talking about big creatures such as Iona and Kozilek, we should totally forget about playing Genesis Wave. There is no way we can cast a  spell in a serious game of Standard and besides, there's no point in even trying that.

The one deck I have in mind looks very similar to the one above. As a matter of fact I built the deck while I was testing the above one. But mine has some bigger bombs.

Here's my list:

Erman's Trap Ramp
A Standard Constructed deck by Nafiz Erman
Creatures
4 Wall of Omens
4 Overgrown Battlement
4 Primeval Titan
3 Avenger of Zendikar
2 Iona, Shield of Emeria
1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
18 cards

Other Spells
4 Explore
4 Cultivate
4 Summoning Trap
2 Condemn
2 Elspeth Tirel
2 Gideon Jura
18 cards
 
Lands
4 Stirring Wildwood
4 Tectonic Edge
4 Sunpetal Grove
8 Forest
4 Plains
24 cards

Iona, Shield of Emeria

 

There are a few differences between the original list and mine, and the first one is that I don't play Genesis Wave (as mentioned above). The second difference is that I don't play Baneslayer Angel because sadly she isn't as good as she was one year ago. With the amount of 6/6 titans and mechanical wurms around, she sadly doesn't make the cut.

And besides, Iona is much hotter than that angel!

Check this out:

I hardcast an Iona, Shield of Emeria on turn five, and she ruins the day of a poor Kor army.

Incredible, isn't it?

The other change I made to the original list is those four Celestial Purges I added to the sideboard. After losing to those  Vampires, especially to that boring Kalastria Highborn, I decided to fight them with the Purge and so far it looks like a good decision.

Okay dear readers, I showed you two mana ramp Decks I Like. Now it's time for something different (which looks similar).

 

DECK #3
Morphing the Masses

Before M11 came, Polymorph decks were quite popular. Then M11 brought Mass Polymorph into our lives and it also saw a good amount of play. But I haven't heard much of this deck after the release of Scars of Mirrodin. This fact still surprises me because Mass Polymorph is another mana ramp deck but instead of Summoning Trap or Genesis Wave, it uses another cheater; it uses Mass Polymorph.

Recently when I was searching for some interesting deck ideas for Standard, I come across this -almost forgotten- card once again. But the one deck I saw wasn't one of those usual Mass Polymorph decks. Normally those decks play only a bunch of real creatures (most of the time three or four), and the rest is all about token generators. But as you will see in a moment, the one deck I found was completely different.

First the deck:

A Different Mass Polymorph
As can be found on the net
Creatures
4 Frost Titan
4 Nest Invader
4 Kozilek's Predator
4 Sea Gate Oracle
3 Clone
19 cards

Other Spells
4 Mana Leak
4 Mass Polymorph
3 Growth Spasm
2 Garruk Wildspeaker
1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
14 cards
 
Lands
4 Khalni Garden
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Dread Statuary
11 Island
7 Forest
27 cards

Frost Titan

 

This is the deck I saw. It has been played by a Japanese player early December and as you see, it is really an interesting version. What I liked the most about this version by the way, was neither those Eldrazi token generators nor the dreaded Frost Titan. What I found hilarious to be honest, was Clone. I mean come on, we're talking about Clone here!! Isn't it cool or what?!

Oh and I have no idea about that sideboard so please don't ask. Hornet Sting? Singleton Preordain and Explore? Well, I have no idea whatsoever about those cards. 

Anyway, after I saw the list, I immediately built an alternate version of it by myself. But this time I built it for casual fun only. Normally I could have (and maybe even should have) started with four Jace, the Mind Sculptors, but to be honest I'm tired of those decks. You know:

1. 24x Lands
2. 4x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
3.  32x junky cards to support Jace.

I'm talking about those decks. I mean, professional players even play Squadron Hawk with Jace and they end up 6-0 with it!

Squadron Hawk
Anything can be a tournament staple these days as long as it is being played together with Jace.

So I said no Jace this time. Not even the little(!) version of it. And of course without Jace, the deck all of a sudden became Casual Only. But as I said, that was my intention as well.

Anyway, the first thing I did with the original list was to replace Clone... with a better Clone!

Clone Quicksilver Gargantuan
Good. Better... much better even!

Normally when you cast your Mass Polymorph and hit a Clone, it enters the battlefield as a mere Lotus Cobra or a harmless Birds of Paradise or something like that. Quicksilver Gargantuan on the other hand, still becomes a Birds of Paradise at worst, but at least it becomes as 7/7 Birds of Paradise!

I kept the original list's Frost Titans because, as you know, that dude is incredible. This isn't a mana ramp deck that tries to get one Eldrazi giant out, and therefore Frost Titan works much better than Primeval Titan in this deck.

Oh and here's the list I came up with:

Casual Mass Polymorph
A Standard Constructed deck by Nafiz Erman
Creatures
4 Kozilek's Predator
4 Nest Invader
4 Frost Titan
4 Sea Gate Oracle
3 Quicksilver Gargantuan
19 cards

Other Spells
4 Mana Leak
4 Mass Polymorph
3 Growth Spasm
3 See Beyond
14 cards
 
Lands
4 Khalni Garden
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Dread Statuary
11 Island
7 Forest
27 cards

 
Mass Polymorph

 

One final addition I made was See Beyond. Without the help of Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Brainstorming and arranging the top of the deck became very hard. And that's the reason why I added See Beyond to the deck. A starting hand that has Quicksilver Gargantuan isn't what you really wish for, but See Beyond can fix that with ease.

As I said, this was a deck I build for Casual Room only. And there, this deck made me feel like I'm the king of Magic!

Mass Polymorph is on the stack. Let's see what it will give us...
... it gave us two Nest Invaders, one Sea Gate Oracle and what's that? A 7/7 Skinrender? How nice!
The biggest Mass Polymorph ever is coming!

I have lots of other amazing screenshots but I think you already get the idea by now.

Okay we had enough fun in the casual room by morphing 0/1 tokens into 6/6 titans. Let's get serious, shall we?

 

DECK #4
Big Red

Nowadays Red decks in Standard are in my opinion the best decks to fight those Valakut and Control decks. Both strategies require some time to set up their game plan, and RDW is the best weapon to kill them before they do so. And this next deck I'm going to talk about is... definitely NOT one of those Red decks!

As this article is about interesting decks, I see no reason to show you one of those faster-than-light-speed Red Aggro decks. You already know them. But what I'm going to show you is something interesting and not frequently seen; and yet it's Red.

How interesting can a Red deck be?

Well, what if I tell you that this one uses a full playset of this card?

Hoarding Dragon
Not something you face everyday.

To be honest, I never thought of using Hoarding Dragon in a "normal" deck. I mean, I was expecting some kind of a combo to use it with. Something like, I play Hoarding Dragon and exile a huge artifact monster and then some mysterious card comes down and allows me to play it from my exiled zone. Something along the lines of Mirror of Fate from M10 but more playable.

But I was wrong. We don't need such a combo to use Hoarding Dragon. And this lesson I learned after I found and tested this below deck:

 

Do you understand what I mean now?

So the idea here is to mana ramp fast into five or six mana using Everflowing Chalice and Pilgrim's Eye. Then the deck plays its big threats such as Koth of the Hammer and Wurmcoil Engine. Hoarding Dragon here is a tutor for the deck. Do you need a sweeper? Do you need a big body? Do you need a Crystal Ball to smooth your draws? It "kind of" gives you what you need.

I say "kind of", because Hoarding Dragon first must be killed. And that's the best part! If your opponent allows it to live, you'll end up with a 4/4 flyer. If he doesn't, if he thinks a 4/4 flyer is not something he can handle at that moment... well, then it's almost "gg".

Here's a quick demonstration:

Consuming Vapors is coming but targeting me will result in a 6/6 deathtouch and lifelink monster!

But Hoarding Dragon truly shines against Aggro. It can come down as early as turn four, and holds the ground (and the sky as well) "tightly". You kill it and you deal with the Wurmcoil Engine. You don't kill it and you give me that precious time I need to set up my game plan. Marvelous!

To attack or not to attack? Thankfully not a question I must answer.

Actually what I like the most about this deck is the fact that it can win in so many ways. Hoarding Dragon into Wurmcoil Engine is one way. Mr. Koth of the Hammer is another way. Inferno Titan and a 8/8 flying Kargan Dragonlord are other possibilities. But if none of them works, then the deck wins with the good old Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle.

Two turns until I activate my volcano. Until then Crystal Ball and Seer's Sundial will help me stay alive.

So as you see, this is a fantastic deck. Oh and one suggestion: You should really consider All is Dust for this deck if you own the card. The deck runs so many colorless permanents and unless you have Koth out, All is Dust won't harm you the way it will harm the opponent. As a matter of fact it would be such a great play to cast it after you attack with your Hoarding Dragon, don't you think? The deck can really use it and you may replace that lone Inferno Titan with one All is Dust and then add one or two more to the sideboard.

Okay dear readers, we had enough fun with this mono Red deck. Let's move onto the final deck of the article and continue to burn down things... in a different way.

 

DECK #5
Reduce. Reuse. Wreak Havoc.
In other words, fun with Furnace Celebration

Furnace Celebration is such a fantastic card; I even find it hilarious. So basically all you have to do is sacrifice things and pay . That will mean two uncounterable damage every time. So really, isn't it hilarious?

But the question is this: What to sacrifice? Oh that and this too: How to pay  every time?

Thankfully, Standard nowadays has solutions to both.

Awakening Zone   Nest Invader   Kozilek's Predator

So as you see we will use Furnace Celebration together with those 0/1 Eldrazi tokens.

And the best thing is that those tokens will not only "feed" the furnace, but they will also pay for it. 

Check the deck list to understand what I mean:

 

So simple and yet so much fun to play!

As you see this is a very straightforward deck that uses four-of everything. At first this may make you think that this is a nice casual deck but no dear readers; this deck has been played in one of StarCityGames' tournaments lately and the pilot managed to finish the event at twelfth spot with it. Not bad, huh?

Of course there are other possibilities you may want to consider for a Furnace Celebration deck. For example the sideboard might use a few Brindle Boars. Sacrifice and gain four life and deal two damage! Or if you want to add Black to the deck, then you may consider Vampire Hexmage, Viscera Seer or Quest for the Gravelord as well.

Oh and finally those four Molten-Tail Masticores... Well, there will be times when you will not be able to win by your Plan A. And in those times, Molten-Tail Masticore will be your savior. Exile Nest Invader from your graveyard and deal four to the dome. Sounds good, right?

 

WRAP UP

Okay dear readers, these were the Decks I Like and these were the decks I was playing lately in Standard. I personally like the Big Red deck a lot but others are also very powerful and fun to play. If you really are bored of doing the same things over and over again, then you may want to start sleeving up one of those decks and start having some "fresh fun".

 

NEXT WEEK ON ROGUE PLAY
A Plea To WotC

Just before the release of Alara Reborn in May 2009, WotC announced a Magic Online-Only format; Kaleidoscope. It was a format that allowed only multicolor cards and the first reactions to the format were very positive. A short time later the weekend challenge events have started and they were always full. For almost six months, people did play the format and had fun.

But then M10 came and brought no new cards to the format and that fact slowed down things. People waited until Zendikar's release only to be disappointed; there were no multicolor cards in the set. And thus the format died.

Next week I will write a letter to WotC. I will remind them how fun the format was. And I will offer solutions how to make it a glorious format once again. Maybe someone will listen read. Maybe my letter will work. Maybe we will have a new and more powerful Kaleidoscope in the future. Let's wait until next week.

Thanks for reading.

See you online
Nafiz Erman, aka Lord Erman

4 Comments

Quicksilver Garganutan by enderfall at Tue, 01/11/2011 - 12:30
enderfall's picture

Wow, never thought of using Quicksilver Garganutan to copy a Squadron Hawk. That's nuts!

...on second thought by enderfall at Tue, 01/11/2011 - 20:16
enderfall's picture

Actually, I thought the copying of the Hawk by the Gargantuan would let you search up other Gargantuans, but in fact that does not work. Oh well. Still a decent card for Mass Polymorph decks so log as you can assure it's at the top of the library. Unfortunately the best card for this is Jace, the Wallet Emptyer. Oh, well.

Yea by Lythand at Tue, 01/11/2011 - 14:38
Lythand's picture
5

Yea looking at weak creature and saying to yourself, "What if that were a 7/7 instead?" can certainly change the game.

Having piloted that GW Ramp by Raddman at Wed, 01/12/2011 - 14:11
Raddman's picture

Having piloted that GW Ramp deck in two daily events (3-1 in both), I can honestly say Genesis wave isn't necessary. I agree that baneslayer isn't needed either. I cut the banes and the waves in replace of 3 acidic slime which just wins games period and also for day of judgement to help in the early game.

GW is so much fun to play, even sleeved it up at a paper FNM and went 4-0 with it. I tried Iona, but never really felt it all that necessary, I'd almost rather run Terastodon in that spot if I was going to add another creature. To be honest the deck doesn't really need another creature. I also ran 24 lands instead of the 23 in your build.

This play is just unfair:
T1 - play land
T2- Land, Play overgrown battlement
T3- Miss land drop, play wall of omens, tap battlement and play another battlement
T4 - Hit land drop, tap for 3 mana, tap both battlements for 6 mana - 9 mana turn 4!!!!
While this won't happen often, during testing I have yet to lose a game with that start lol!