Magic the Gathering Arena

[Multi-headed Cow]

I came up with this orzhov deck to try to combat fotd but it seems to just be getting crushed by everything :/

Play golgari and mainboard 4 assassin's trophy since every single deck in existence is degenerate and running a million ways to ramp, so the downside is negligible and it's the final solution to the field and planeswalker problem.

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

I need to give drafting another go. I am so unlucky with boosters :/ I spend all my time doing Standard Event and I only win about 3 on average so I spend most of the gold I win and all I get from it are a few uncommons. I make a bit of extra gold which I've been spending on boosters and the return on that sucks.

If I were starting on a new account I would just spend all of my gold on rare drafting then use whatever gems I get to do even more ranked draft. If you rare draft the set 30 times you should end up with damn close to a full playset of the rares as long as you wait until after you've done all your drafts to open packs.

30 sounds like a lot but once you start rolling with the gold to gem conversion then re-entering with gems you should be able to draft 2-4 times a week which means you should hit that sometime in december before the next set comes out. Then just save whatever gold for drafts for the next set.

I wouldn't worry about cards from previous sets because they'll rotate out in a year and you're better off just putting all gold into new sets and maybe spend wildcards on crap from older sets as needed.

I came up with this orzhov deck to try to combat fotd but it seems to just be getting crushed by everything :/

Play golgari and mainboard 4 assassin's trophy since every single deck in existence is degenerate and running a million ways to ramp, so the downside is negligible and it's the final solution to the field and planeswalker problem.

yeah I really wanted to get 2x ethereal absolution on the board as a big "fuck you" to fotd but that card's just bad against almost every other deck and even against field they usually have about 20 lands in play before I can even cast it. Golgari is fun tho

 

[anvi]

Is rare drafting the one that costs 5000 gold? Also how come you should wait until after the draft to open stuff?

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

Is rare drafting the one that costs 5000 gold? Also how come you should wait until after the draft to open stuff?

yeah do the 5000 gold draft and just take every rare card that you can get. rares from packs are duplicate protected so if you wait to open packs you won't need to worry about getting a 5th copy of a rare. rares in draft aren't duplicate protected

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

Gave up on orzhov but FINALLY brewed up a deck that actually works on ranked. and it's fun! fairy angels!

Of course it can stomp fotd, but also it's beaten just about every other netdeck

Spoiler

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

playing against blue mill all the time isnt how i like spending my time. i guess ill just spend rest of my gold on packs directly

Huh. Even though I drafted blue mill every time, I was only matched against it like 2-3 times.. And I did somewhere around 12 drafts.

I wonder if they're matching based on deck color or something

 

[lukaszek]

deterministic system > RNG

 

[new fucking guy]

RB cat oven is the most fun I've had grinding standard events. Main board 1 mana act of treason? Hell yeah.

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

RB cat oven is the most fun I've had grinding standard events. Main board 1 mana act of treason? Hell yeah.

I do like the idea of act of treason a creature, swinging to face, then cooking it lol

feels pretty evil

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

izzet land destruction lol

 

[Stormcrowfleet]

Not a bad idea. I run Jund Land Destruction for now, because I like those 2/1 (destroy target creature to fetch a land, destroy planeswalker/creature/land/etc. all in one, etc.) and the ramp. I should try it with your set-up, looks fun also.

 

[spectre]

I need to buy a lottery ticket or something. Drafted Outlaw's Merriment today, managed to get ~10 triggers out of it in the course of three games. The results were 8x 2/1 Clerics in a row, followed by 2x 1/2s Rogue. For a moment I thought it crapped out.

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

I feel like a 5 year old but I just can't get over how fucking cool drakuseth looks

Spoiler

especially when face-raping fotd

 

[Multi-headed Cow]

Drakuseth's peak big-creature performance. Agent of treachery is good and powerful, but he isn't nearly as fun to play as the big fuck-you dragon.

 

[anvi]

These fucking field of the dead decks are cancer. The worst are the ones that are full of counterspells. They counter 95% of what I play, and then a bunch of 2/2s appear every turn for the rest of the game. Fucking retarded WOTC.

 

[Scruffy]

yeah so eldrain draft is absolute garbage, i refuse to force the mill deck, whoever developed this set is clearly an idiot

 

[Dawkinsfan69]

I had fun, but I forced mill nearly every time and had something like 70-80% win rate so that prolly has something to do with it :/

I can't imagine having fun in this format with any other archetype though, because it's so difficult to get in for damage due to the crazy amount of removal plus the high toughness creatures that seem so common. Doesn't help that most of the aggressive creatures have one fucking toughness so good luck attacking with those. So outside of mill the games seem to be a whole lot of board stall until one player just draws better for a few turns.

That's also what makes mill so damn good btw, because the 0/4 creature straight up blocks like 80% of the format and the few things it can't block, blue has so much removal to handle that it doesn't even matter.

 

[Scruffy]

pro tip from someone who has been playing this game since 96-97
non-interactive is bad
not being able to play your cards is bad
suffocating control is bad
sitting at a table and watch someone else play while you do nothing is bad

 

[J1M]

Not bad enough that you play a different game.

 

[anvi]

How do I find good bo1 decks? Like there are some very strong decks which have beat me which seemed so strong that I made a note of all the cards. But they are not tournament winners. Is there a list of those somewhere? Also a lot of the tournament winning decks seem not that great and probably rely on the clever sideboard to win which is no use to me in the modes I play.

 

[Jason Liang]

So I went ahead and spent my wild cards for Historic/ Brawl.

Anyway, here are my checklists ~
- They are divided between Essential, Recommended and Suggested.
- 4X is for competitive Historic, 1-4X is for both Historic and Brawl, and 1X is mostly for Brawl.
- A little tight on the rare list since they are the most tight. Just get the stuff you think you'll end up playing is my advice.
- * means a card that is reprinted in M20 (so not essential to get). Note that cards from M19 should probably have a lower priority since they have a higher chance of getting reprinted sometime down the line
- Cards should be in order by collection if you filter for rarity and the 4 rotating sets (IXN, RIX, DOM and M19)

Essential Checklist
Mythic

4 Scapeshift
4 Crucible of Worlds
1-4 Carnage Tyrant
1-4 Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
1-4 Mox Amber
1-4 Azor's Gateway
1-4 Karn, Scion of Urza
1 Vivien Reed
1 Vraska, Relic Seeker
1 Thie Immortal Sun

Rare

4 every checkland dual land
1-4 Cleansing Nova
1-4 Settle the Wreckage
1-4 Search of Azcanta
1-4 Vraska's Contempt
1-4 Treasure Map

Uncommon

4 Seal Away
4 Chart a Course
4 Wizard's Retort
4 Cast Down
4 Kitesail Freebooter
4 Lightning Strike
4 Wizard's Lightning
4 Merfolk Branchwalker
4 Vine Mare
4 Unclaimed Territory
4 Zhalfirin Void
4 Fountain of Renewal
1-4 Flood of Recollection
1-4 Ixalan's Binding
1-4 Memorial to Genius
1-4 Memorial to Folly
1-4 Memorial to War
1-4 Memorial to Unity
1-4 Field of Ruin
1 Adeliz, the Cinder Wind
1 Shanna, Sisay's Legacy
1 Tatyova, Bethnic Druid
1 Reliquary Tower

Common

4 Dive Down
4 Opt*
4 Spell Pierce
4 Blink of an Eye
4 Essence Scatter*
4 Negate*
4 Divest
4 Duress*
4 Shock*
4 Smelt
4 Adventurous Impulse
4 Commune with Dinosaurs
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Grow from the Ashes
1-4 Demystify
1-4 Syncopate
1-4 Broken Bond

 

[Jason Liang]

Highly Recommended Checklist

Mythic

1-4 Omniscience
1-4 Rekindling Phoenix
1 Ajani, Adversary of Tyrants
1 Tezzeret, Artifice Master
1 Sarkhan Fireblood
1 Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
1 Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
1 Chromium, the Mutable
1 Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
1 Palladia Mors, the Ruiner

Rare

1-4 Benalish Marshal
1-4 Metamorphic Alteration
1-4 The Mirari Conjecture
1-4 Ruin Raider
1-4 Blood Sun
1-4 Goblin Chainwhirler
1-4 Steel Leaf Champion
1-4 Skalla Wolf
1-4 Hostage Taker
1 Shalai, Voice of Many
1 Zetalpa, Primal Dawn
1 Sal, Master Thoperist
1 Karn's Temporal Sundering
1 Nezahal, Primal Tide
1 Squee, the Immortal
1 Blackblade Reforged
1 Chaos Wand
1 Sigiled Sword of Valeron
1 Helm of the Host
1 Thran Gateway
1 Traxos, Scourge of Kroog
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Arch of Orzaka

Uncommon

4 Militia Bugler
4 Curious Obsession
4 Siren Stormtamer
4 Favorable Winds
4 Merfolk Trickster
4 Diregraf Ghoul
4 Stitcher's Supplier
4 Ravenous Chupacabra
4 Eldest Reborn
4 Flames of Keld
4 Wildgrowth Walker
4 Enigma Drake
4 Heroic Reinforcements
4 Opetec Huntmaster
4 Sorcerer's Wand
1-4 Dauntless Bodyguard
1-4 Skymarcher Aspirant
1-4 Adanto Vanguard
1-4 Shield Mare
1-4 Golden Demise
1-4 Raider's Wake
1-4 Settle the Score
1-4 Final Parting
1-4 Thud
1-4 Doublecast
1 Danitha Capashen, Paragon
1 Baird, Steward of Argive
1 Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
1 Whisper, Blood Liturgist
1 Yargle, Glutton of Urborg
1 Urgoros, the Empty One
1 Valuk, Keeper of the Flame
1 Ralph Capashen, Ship's Mage
1 Avrad the Cursed
1 Rona, Disciple of Gix
1 Slimefoot, Stowaway
1 Garna, the Bloodflame
1 Hallar, the Firefletcher
1 Tiana, Shape's Caretaker

Common

4 Sailor of Means
4 Secrets of the Golden City
4 Unwind
4 Costly Plunder
4 Dusk Legion Zealot
4 Moment of Craving
4 Rat Colony
4 Crash Through
4 Fanatical Firebrand
4 Ghitu Lavamancer
4 Skirk Prospector
4 Warlord's Fury
4 Run Amok
4 Viashino Pyromancer
4 Elvish Rejudenator
4 Saproling Migration
4 Root Snare

 

[Jason Liang]

Suggestions Checklist

Mythic

1-4 History of Benalia
1-4 Nexus of Fate
1-4 Phyrexian Scriptures
1-4 Star of Extinction
1 Lyra Dawnbringer
1 Liliana, Untouched by Death
1 Liliana, the Necromancer
1 Demonlord Belzenok
1 Jaya Ballard
1 Multani, Yavimaya's Avatar
1 Vivien of the Arkbow
1 Azur, the Lawbringer
1 Angrath, the Flamechained
1 Huatli, Warrior Poet
1 Admiral Becktt Brass
1 Vaevcitus Asmadi, the Dire
1 Darigaaz Reincarnated
1 Ghishath's Sun's Avatar
1 Zacma, Primal Calamity
1 Arcades, the Strategist
1 Muldrotha, the Gravetide
1 Weatherlight

Rare

1-4 Legion's Landing
1-4 Remorseful Cleric
1-4 Tocatli Honor Guard
1-4 Slaughter the Strong
1-4 Supreme Phantom
1-4 Induced Amensia
1-4 Ehtrancing Melody
1-4 Arguel's Blood Fast
1-4 Infernal Reckoning
1-4 Dire Fleet Poisoner
1-4 Lich's Mastery
1-4 Sarkhan's Unsealing
1-4 Siege Gang Commander
1-4 Jadelight Ranger
1-4 Dowsing Dagger
1-4 Primal Amulet
1 Urza's Ruinous Blast
1 Isareth, the Awakener
1 Mastermind's Acquisition
1 Liliana's Contract
1 Revel in Riches
1 Thaumaturgic Compass
1 Dragon's Hoard
1 Transmogrifying Wand

Uncommon

4 Forerunner of the Legion
4 Forerunner of the Coalition
4 Pitiless Plunderer
4 Daring Buccaneer
4 Champion of Flame
4 Wily Goblin
4 Fiery Cannonade
4 Forerunner of the Empire
4 Pirate' Pillage
4 Enter the Unknown
4 Kumena's Speaker
4 Dryad Greenseeker
4 Elfhame Druid
4 Sporecrown Thallid
4 Gift of Paradise
4 Ranging Raptors
4 Thrashing Brontodon
4 Forerunner of the Heralds
4 Legion Lieutenant
4 Merfolk Mistbinder
1-4 Ajani's Welcome
1-4 Memorial to Glory
1-4 Famished Paladin
1-4 Knight of Grace
1-4 Expel from Orzaca
1-4 River Sneak
1-4 Sage of Lat Nam
1-4 Silvergill Adept
1-4 Surge Mare
1-4 Curator's Ward
1-4 Lookout's Dispersal
1-4 Mirror Image
1-4 Psychic Corrosion
1-4 Deadeye Quartermaster
1-4 Knight of Malice
1-4 Oathsworn Vampire
1-4 Seeker's Squire
1-4 Vraska's Conquistador
1-4 Arterial Flow
1-4 Grim Captain's Call
1-4 Heartless Pillage
1-4 Ruthless Knave
1-4 Reckless Rage
1-4 Rigging Runner
1-4 Lightning Mare
1-4 Fight with Fire
1-4 Goblin Warchief
1-4 Guttersnipe
1-4 Inferno Hellion
1-4 Fungal Plots
2-4 Gaea's Blessing
1-4 Song of Freyalise
1-4 Savage Stomp
1-4 Swift Warden
1-4 Spore Swarm
1-4 Satyr Enchanter
1 Baffling End
1 On Serra's Wings
1 Switcheroo
1 In Bola's Clutches
1 S Voda, the Rising Deep
1 Walk the Plank
1 Murder
1 Plague Mare
1 Trove of Temptation
1 Natural Spiral
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Recollect
1 Grunn, the Lonely King
1 Thorn Elemental
1 of every Uncommon Artifact

Common

4 Artificer's Assistant
4 Mistcloak Herald
4 Omenspeaker
4 Siren's Ruse
4 Wall of Mist
4 Depths of Desire
4 Pirate's Prize
4 Navigator's Compass
4 Powerstone Shard
1-4 Snubhorn Sentry
1-4 Tragic Poet
1-4 Revitalize
1-4 Thallid Omnivore
1-4 Buccaneer's Bravado
1 of every Common Artifact

 

[Scruffy]

Not bad enough that you play a different game.

actually, i have, for extended periods
this might be the beginning of one of those, depending on the bans