MTG: Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 Deck Guide Guide Version: 1.08c By: Jake Zahn Email: Offkorn_69@yahoo.com -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Table of Contents -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INTRO LEGAL DISCLAIMER GENERAL INFORMATION DECKS Apex Predators /AP1\ List /AP2\ Overview /AP3\ Analysis Wielding Steel /WS1\ List /WS2\ Overview /WS3\ Analysis Realm of Illusion /RI1\ List /RI2\ Overview /RI3\ Analysis Strength of Stone /SS1\ List /SS2\ Overview /SS3\ Analysis Guardians of the Wood /GW1\ List /GW2\ Overview /GW3\ Analysis Ancient Depths /AD1\ List /AD2\ Overview /AD3\ Analysis Dragon's Roar /DR1\ List /DR2\ Overview /DR3\ Analysis Blood Hunger /BH1\ List /BH2\ Overview /BH3\ Analysis Machinations /M1\ List /M2\ Overview /M3\ Analysis Unquenchable Fire /UF1\ List /UF2\ Overview /UF3\ Analysis END WORD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- INTRO -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This guide's basic purpose is list the various available decks' starting cards, the cards that can be unlocked for each, a general overview of the deck, and suggestions as to which default cards should be swapped out for unlocked cards. The card analysis will be made from a generalist standpoint. If a card is very good in some situations and terrible in all others, it likely will not be recommended. Though a note will be added regarding any situations that may change that view. Said analysis will also only cover the unlockable cards and any cards I may suggest they should replace. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DISCLAIMER -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Everyone has different opinions. Card evaluation is, in most cases, completely subjective. As such, you may find yourself forcibly disagreeing with the suggestions and analysis contained herein. That's perfectly fine. I'll try to explain the reasoning behind certain views, but in the end this is not meant to be a set of instructions; just a viewpoint to consider. Also of note is that this guide has been written for the PS3 version of the game. The XBox version has a couple of differences in the cards that come as default vs. the cards that can be unlocked. These are minor differences however as the results are the same in the end. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- GENERAL INFORMATION -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- There are only a few general things to keep in mind when altering the decks' default card list: 1. Never use more than 60 cards. 2. Try to keep a good 'mana curve'. 3. Nearly every single deck, to one degree or another, relies on creature beatdown to win. The first is because the more cards you have in a deck, the less chance you have of drawing the card you need at any given time. This is one of the first lessons learned if you have ever happened to play competitively. The second relates to the mana cost of each of the cards in your deck. You generally want to have a few low-cost cards (0-2 mana), a good amount of medium cost cards (3-5 mana), and a few high-cost (6+ mana) cards. This helps to make sure you'll not get stuck early with a hand full of uncastable cards or hopelessly outclassed late-game by an opponent with bigger spells. The third should be kept in mind because once you know how your opponents are going to try to win, you can plan for that eventuality. Sadly, every deck in the game with the exception of Unquenchable Fire seeks to win by playing creatures and attacking for lethal damage. Some of them want to make a bunch of small creatures, some a handful of medium creatures, and some a couple of huge creatures... but the end result is always the same. Even the aforementioned UF tends to rely on its creatures to boost the direct damage spells into lethal range. This is important to keep in mind as it makes removal spells and otherwise ordinary evasive creatures worth far more than they would otherwise appear. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DECKS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------- Apex Predators - Mono Green -------------------------------------- --------------------- /AP1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Beast Hunt x2 Borderland Ranger x3 Centaur Courser x2 Craw Wurm x2 Cudgel Troll x2 Engulfing Slagwurm x1 Garruk's Companion x2 Garruk's Packleader x2 Giant Spider x2 Grazing Gladehart x3 Runeclaw Bear x2 Stomper Cub x2 Terra Stomper x1 Thrun, the Last Troll x1 Wall of Vines x2 Giant Growth x3 Overrun x2 Nature's Lore x2 /Unlockables\ Dungrove Elder x1 Leatherback Baloth x1 Hunted Wumpus x1 Multiani, Maro-Sorcerer x1 Wolfbriar Elemental x1 Elephant Guide x1 Gaea's Revenge x1 Hunters' Feast x3 Lead the Stampede x2 Rites of Flourishing x2 Serrated Arrows x2 --------------------- /AP2\ Deck Overview --------------------- This deck is the most 'pure' beatdown in that it doesn't use any tricks. It plays low-cost high-damage creatures and spells to boost them. It has little in the way of evasion and practically nothing for removal. What it does have is the capacity to win pretty much any ground-based challenge (relatively) quickly and decisively with sheer mass and the Trample ability. Nearly all of the default cards work toward its goal and so it works quite well as a starter deck. Weakest Cards: Craw Wurm, Giant Spider, & Wall of Vines. --------------------- /AP3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Dungrove Elder This is a fantastic card for a mono-green deck. Not only is it cheap and powerful, but it also evades most forms of removal. Suggestion: Replace a Craw Wurm or a Wall of Vines. Gaea's Revenge A very useful creature to have when facing blue decks, and its semi-evasion makes it useful against most other decks. Though it is a bit costly for its power compared to the other creatures. Suggestion: Replace a Craw Wurm. They are also costly for their power but have no tricks to make up for it. Leatherback Baloth Cheap and powerful creature. No frills whatsoever. Suggestion: Replace either a Wall of Vines, a Centaur Courser, or a Gladehart. Wolfbriar Elemental A one-creature army practically tailor-made to be used with Overrun. Suggestion: Replace either a Centaur Courser or a Gladehart. Elephant Guide A ridiculously useful enchantment. Not only does it boost an existing creature, but it also acts as removal avoidance. Suggestion: Replace a Centaur Courser. Same power and cost, potentially more versatile package. Hunters' Feast Pure one-shot lifegain is rarely desirable. In most situations all it does is delay the inevitable. With combo decks this can be important, not so with beatdown decks. Suggestion: Avoid using. Lead the Stampede This is pretty much a strictly better version of Beast Hunt. It digs deeper for less mana. The only times you would want BH instead is if you had access to graveyard manipulation... which you do not. Suggestion: Replace the two Beast Hunts. Serrated Arrows This is the ONLY removal this deck has access to and as a result looks fairly tempting to use. To use it however means lowering your creature count, which can be problematic. Suggestion: Replace the two Giant Spiders. They aren't fantastic as attackers and the Arrows are better at dealing with troublesome utility creatures. Rites of Flourishing Multani, Maro-Sorcerer Hunted Wumpus All of these are more or less meant to be used in 4-man games. Rites and Wumpus in Archenemy and Multani in either. They'll more often than not be more of a hindrance in 1v1 games. Suggestion: Rites can replace two of the Borderlands, Wumpus can replace one of the Trolls or the Baloth, and Multani can replace the Gaea's Revenge. -------------------------------------- Wielding Steel - Mono White -------------------------------------- --------------------- /WS1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Captain of the Watch x1 Elite Vanguard x4 Gideon's Avenger x1 Gideon's Lawkeeper x2 Glory Seeker x4 Kitesail Apprentice x2 Kor Duelist x2 Kor Hookmaster x3 Kor Outfitter x3 Serra Angel x2 Stoneforge Mystic x1 Arrest x3 Brave the Elements x1 Infiltration Lens x1 Kitesail x2 Pennon Blade x1 Strider Harness x1 Trusty Machete x2 /Unlockables\ Archangel of Strife x1 Baneslayer Angel x1 Puresteel Paladin x1 Sunspear Shikari x2 Angel's Feather x3 Argentum Armor x1 Congregate x2 Conqueror's Pledge x1 Harmless Assault x1 Revoke Existance x2 Sword of War and Peace x1 --------------------- /WS2\ Deck Overview --------------------- This deck is slightly different from the others in that its creatures rely on non-creature spells in order to be true threats. Very few of its creatures are threats in and of themselves and its equipment is obviously harmless without a creature to attach it to. Thankfully, it has a decent suite of removal at hand to help it survive against decks fielding stronger creatures long enough to pull everything together. On the flipside it has next to no defense against removal. Weakest Cards: Elite Vanguard, Glory Seeker, Infiltration Lens, & Strider Harness. --------------------- /WS3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Archangel of Strife Another card geared toward multiplayer. In a 1v1 its ability can be either an 'I Win' an 'I Lose' or a 'No Change'. Seven mana for something so unreliable is generally not worth it. In multiplayer, particularly Archenemy, it can be exceedingly powerful however. Suggestion: For Archenemy or possibly 4-way games replace a Vanguard/Seeker. Baneslayer Angel A cheap 5/5 flier with Lifelink and First Strike? You cannot go wrong with that. Choosing what to replace is a bit harder though. Suggestion: The obvious choice would be to replace a Serra. Same cost with more power and more abilities. Vigilance is nothing to dismiss however and so replacing a Vanguard/Seeker may end up better in the long run. Puresteel Paladin Strictly better than the Seekers. Effectively same cost and same power, and a synergistic ability on top of it all. Suggestion: Replace a Seeker. Sunspear Shikari A perfect fit for the deck. Cheap and unimpressive by default, but quite good when enhanced. Suggestion: Replace the Seekers. Same cost, same power, better abilities. Angel's Feather It's not a creature, doesn't interact with your creatures in any way, and does nothing but gain life. You're far better off without it except against the Unquenchable Fire deck or in the rare case of a multiplayer game where everyone is playing white. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines unless you know you're going to be playing against UF. Argentum Armor Solid equipment is always good but the mana cost can become an issue. That said, this deck has so few high-cost cards that squeezing it in won't hurt things. Suggestion: If you want to keep the same creature ratio it would probably be best to replace either the Lens, Harness, or even the Pennon Blade (which while not as expensive, is far more situational). If that's not an issue, then ditching a Vanguard would be the way to go. Congregate Pure one-shot lifegain is almost never worth it. In a four-person multiplayer game this barely becomes playable due to the potentially massive ammout of life that can be gained. Even then it's a highly questionable choice since you'll have to seriously sacrifice your damage-dealing capability. Suggestion: Avoid unless playing 4-person games against Unquenchable Fire decks. In such a case you may want to replace the Hookmasters. Conqueror's Pledge This can be a game changer when combined with Captain of the Watch or the Pennon Blade... but there's only one of each of those in the deck. Making such a combo exceedingly rare. Suggestion: Consider replacing the Lens or Harness. In addition to the above they can also be used as blocking fodder or to force a few final points of damage through. In most cases though you may be better off without it. Harmless Assault This is an interesting card that can mean the difference between life and death and/or an utter massacre of the opposing army. Unfortunately such outcomes are highly situational and its cost isn't exactly low. Suggestion: Too situational for the cost and anti-symmetrical with the rest of the deck. If you want to play around with it though (say for multiplayer shenanigans) consider replacing a Hookmaster. Revoke Existence This is situational removal. Very good against the Machinations deck and in mirror matches, mostly useless against the other decks. Suggestion: If you know you'll be playing in mirrors or against Machinations you can replace some Seekers/Vanguards with them. Otherwise they're best off avoided. Sword of War and Peace This is less useful than it first appears but can be deadly against slower decks. Since slower huge-creature decks are one of the main things you have to look out for, this should definitely be a considered addition. Suggestion: As before, either the Lens or Harness are decent swaps. It might also be a good idea to swap it for the Pennon Blade, which is more expensive and comparatively more situational. Replacing a Hookmaster could also be a workable choice. -------------------------------------- Realm of Illusion - Mono Blue -------------------------------------- --------------------- /RI1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Aether Figment x1 Air Elemental x2 Blind Phantasm x3 Krovikan Mist x4 Mahamoti Djinn x1 Phantasmal Bear x4 Phantom Beast x3 Phantom Warrior x2 Wall of Air x1 Cancel x2 Disorient x1 Divination x2 Evacuation x1 Fleeting Distraction x1 Jace's Ingenuity x2 Mind Control x1 Mind Spring x1 Repulse x3 Time Warp x1 /Unlockables\ Aether Adept x2 Lord of the Unreal x2 Phantasmal Dragon x1 Sower of Temptation x1 Concentrate x1 Counterspell x2 Drake Umbra x1 Kraken's Eye x3 Prosperity x1 Quicksilver Geyser x1 Summoner's Bane x1 --------------------- /RI2\ Deck Overview --------------------- A control deck that likes using many low-cost high-power creatures. That's a bit of an unusual combination. Which is not to say that it doesn't do its job very well. Between the early creatures, mid-game counterspells, and late-game card draw it can outlast most of the other decks. Its main weakness is a lack of permanent removal... although Repulse and the like are no slouches. Weakest Cards: Mahamoti Djinn, Wall of Air, Disorient, & Fleeting Distraction. --------------------- /RI3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Aether Adept A Repulse on legs. Sadly, as this isn't an illusion or an Instant and some of your creatures cannot be targeted by it (unless you want them to die), this just doesn't fit well. Suggestion: Keep it on the sidelines unless the Wall is still in your deck. If it is, consider replacing that. Lord of the Unreal Buffs nearly all of your creatures and eliminates one of their key weaknesses. This is a fantastic addition to the deck. Suggestion: Replace some combination of the Wall, the Djinn, or the Aether Figment. Phantasmal Dragon A cheap and powerful flier that also happens to be an illusion. Strictly better than Phantom Beast. Suggestion: Replace either a Phantom Beast, the Djinn, or an Air Elemental. Depending upon how often you expect to run into direct targeting decks. Sower of Temptation A Mind Control on legs... which actually makes it less versatile considering this game's lack of widespread enchantment destruction. Suggestion: Consider replacing a Phantom beast. It's the same cost and just as vulnerable to removal. Replacing a Phantom Warrior could also work, though unblockability is fairly powerful. Concentrate This would be a strictly better version of Jace's Ingenuity if it weren't a Sorcery. The Instant nature of Ingenuity has better synergy with the counter/bounce spells and is often well worth the slightly increased casting cost. Suggestion: Consider replacing a Divination or possibly even Mind Spring. Counterspell A strictly better version of Cancel. Suggestion: If you do not wish to change the deck's core focus, simply replace the two Cancels or alternatively a Cancel and the Disorient. Other choices include the Djinn or the Wall, potentially even the Ingenuities. Drake Umbra A powerful (and costly) enchantment that's not quite as useful as it could be since some of the deck's creatures tend to die if targeted. Suggestion: Replace either the Disorient (if it's still in the deck) or a Blind Phantasm. Another possibility is a Phantom Beast if you still have 3 of them. Kraken's Eye Another two-mana lifegaining artifact. Just as with Wielding Steel, the only time this becomes useful if if you're commonly facing Unquenchable Fire. Suggestion: Avoid using. It goes against the deck's gameplan and there are few cards with limited use to replace. Prosperity A multiplayer specific card. Generally only useful for Archenemy games, and even there it can backfire spectacularly. Suggestion: Avoid using unless playing Archenemy. Even then it's probably best off ignored. If you must use it consider replacing one of the other card-drawing spells, particularly either Ingenuity or Mind Spring. Quicksilver Geyser A more versatile, if costly, version of Repulse. While it's both more expensive and does not replace itself once cast, it can target nearly any permanent type instead of only creatures. Suggestion: This mainly depends on what deck you happen to be facing. Against Wielding Steel this can be useful to bounce their equipment and finished off their weakened creatures. Most other decks have little reliance upon non-creature spells though, making this less useful. Consider replacing either a Repulse or the Evacuation. Summoner's Bane A limited counterspell that synergizes with your Illusion theme. Since creatures are the primary form of victory in this game there's no reason not to include it as it both destroys a creature and creates a creature. Suggestion: Replace Fleeting Distraction. Drawing a card is nice, -1/0 far less so. -------------------------------------- Strength of Stone - Mono Red -------------------------------------- --------------------- /SS1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Bloodfire Collossus x1 Earth Elemental x4 Earth Servant x1 Flameborn Hellion x2 Goblin Mountaineer x3 Grim Lavamancer x1 Koth's Courier x2 Molten Ravager x2 Oxidda Scrapmelter x2 Rockslide Elemental x2 Spikeshot Elder x1 Vulshok Berserker x2 Vulshok Heartstoker x2 Act of Treason x2 Claws of Valakut x2 Fault Line x1 Spire Barrage x2 Spitting Earth x3 /Unlockables\ Conquering Manticore x1 Flowstone Overseer x1 Hero of Oxide Ridge x1 Lavaborn Muse x1 Magma Phoenix x1 Tephraderm x2 Assault Strobe x1 Cerebral Eruption x1 Darksteel Axe x2 Golden Urn x3 Volcanic Strength x2 --------------------- /SS2\ Deck Overview --------------------- This deck is a classic mix of red cards. Cards focused on attack over defense, a nice amount of damage-based removal, and even some temporary creature theft. It also, oddly enough, has a number of high-cost defense-orientated creatures along with some goblins apparently thrown in just for the hell of it. Weakest Cards: Goblin Mountaineer, Earth Elemental, & Earth Servant. --------------------- /SS3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Conquering Manticore A strong flier with a built-in Act of Treason. A fantastic addition no matter how you slice it. Suggestion: Replace either an Earth Elemental or the Earth Servant. Flowstone Overseer A sizable creature with a built-in removal ability that doesn't require tapping. Another fantastic addition. Suggestion: Replace either an Earth Elemental or the Earth Servant. Lavaborn Muse This card is tricky. It works best with discard, but this deck has no discard. Without that, an opponent can just start holding their extra lands to avoid its ability. Four mana for a 3/3 is also not all that great. Suggestion: Even with its issues, consider replacing a Koth's Courier or Oxidda Scrapmelter depending upon how often you run into Forests or Artifacts. Magma Phoenix This is something of a double-edged sword. Most of your creatures have three or less toughness, so its death ability can end up hurting you more than helping. The deck has a distinct lack of fliers however and its 'Return from the Dead' ability is golden. Suggestion: Replace the Bloodfire. This does the same thing it does on a smaller scale, but has flying, a workable casting cost, and it happens to be renewable. Hero of Oxid Ridge While his power/toughness is nothing to get excited over, Battle Cry and the ability to exclude chump blockers from the battlefield are both quite useful. It's also strictly better than the Vulshok Berserker. Suggestion: Replace a Goblin Mountaineer or Vulshok Berserker. Tephraderm Strictly better than the Earth Elemental. Suggestion: Replace the Earth Elementals. Assault Strobe The problem with this is that it's a Sorcery. Which makes it only truly useful if your opponent is completely defenseless... at which point you should be winning anyway. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines unless you still have some Mountaineers lurking around. Cerebral Eruption A crapshoot of a card. Can be anything from devastating to ineffectual. More often than not it will likely play out like an overcosted Pyroclasm, still... there's a decent chance that it will come off as an undercosted Flame Wave. Suggestion: If you want to play around with it consider replacing a Heartstoker. If you're feeling particularly adventurous, it may be better to replace Fault Line instead. Darksteel Axe Not a fantastic piece of equipment, but certainly not bad. It being immune to your Scrapmelters is definitely a plus and it can do amazing things with the Spikeshot Elder. Suggestion: Replace the Mountaineers. Golden Urn Another pure lifegain artifact, this one actually worse than the others since it's a one-shot deal. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines. You have to draw this in your first couple of turns for it to be even remotely useful and even then it completely lacks any synergy with the rest of the deck. Volcanic Strength Great against anyone with Mountains, not worth it against anyone without Mountains. Suggestion: If you commonly find yourself facing Red decks, consider replacing the Heartstoker and/or the Courier. -------------------------------------- Guardians of the Wood - Green/Black -------------------------------------- --------------------- /GW1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Elven Riders x1 Elvish Lyrist x1 Elvish Visionary x2 Heedless One x4 Imperious Perfect x1 Nissa's Chosen x4 Norwood Ranger x4 Sylvan Ranger x2 Viridian Emissary x4 Viridian Shaman x1 Wildheart Invoker x2 Elvish Promenade x2 Essence Drain x3 Eyeblight's Ending x2 Might of the Masses x1 /Unlockables\ Elvish Eulogist x3 Ezuri, Renegade Leader x1 Ezuri's Archers x2 Jagged-Scar Archers x1 Joraga Warcaller x1 Lys Alana Huntmaster x1 Nath of the Gilt-Leaf x1 Titania's Chosen x2 Epic Proportions x1 Maelstrom Pulse x2 Plummet x1 --------------------- /GW2\ Deck Overview --------------------- Don't let the Black splash fool you, this is an Elf deck through and through. It wants to play elves, elves, and more elves and then overwhelm an opponent with broken synergies. The Black is pretty much just there to add some spot removal. Though that's certainly not unwelcome. Weakest Cards: Elvish Lyrist, Norwood Ranger, Viridian Shaman, & Essence Drain. --------------------- /GW3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Elvish Eulogist The rare lifegain card that can actually be worthwhile to use. It's simple existence as an elf makes it useful by default, and the ability is just a bonus. Suggestion: Replace two Norwoods. If you find yourself never using the Lyrist, you may want to swap it out for the third. Ezuri, Renegade Leader A nasty, nasty card. Not only can this regenerate any creature in the deck, but it also has a built-in reusable Overrun. Suggestion: Replace the Viridian Shaman. Ezuri's Archers Strictly better than the Norwoods. Suggestion: Replace the Norwoods. Jagged-Scar Archers A slightly cheaper Heedless One that trades Trample for some targeted flier removal. Suggestion: Replace either a Nissa's or an Emissary. Joraga Warcaller An Imperious Perfect that gets quite a bit better if you draw it late game. Suggestion: Replace either a Nissa's or an Emissary. Lys Alana Huntmaster A token-factory with decent power/toughness. Similar to Elvish Promenade, this makes the tokens as you're casting them rather than all at once down the line. Suggestion: Consider replacing a Visionary or a Promenade. Nath of the Gilt-Leaf A situational token factory that features random discard. Random discard is very, very powerful and it would be worth it to use for that alone. The tokens push it up into 'must use' territory. Suggestion: Replace an Essence Drain. Titania's Chosen A nice card for an effectively mono-green deck. An unimpressive late-game draw though. Suggestion: Replace some combination of Nissa's and Emissaries. Try to keep their numbers equal. Epic Proportions A costly spell that's nevertheless utterly fantastic. A sizable Instant creature buff that persists afterward is nothing to ignore. Suggestion: Replace the Elven Riders. The Riders' main purpose is to evade enemy blockers while this allows you to 'evade' them by going straight through them. Maelstrom Pulse A very nice piece of removal. You can take out single powerful targets or waves of tokens as the situation demands. Suggestion: Replace the Essence Drains. Plummet While an extremely effective piece of removal against fliers, it's a bit too situational a card to use on a daily basis. Suggestion: If you know you'll be facing Dragon's Roar or Blood Hunger consider replacing the Lyrist or a Eulogist. -------------------------------------- Ancient Depths - Blue/Green -------------------------------------- --------------------- /AD1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Coiling Oracle x4 Elvish Piper x1 Giant Octopus x2 Isleback Spawn x1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth x1 Kraken Hatchling x2 Lorthos, the Tidemaker x1 Ondu Giant x2 Simic Sky Swallower x2 Tidal Kraken x1 Aether Mutation x3 Compulsive Research x1 Cultivate x3 Explore x4 Explosive Vegetation x2 Polymorph x1 Tidings x2 Treasure Hunt x1 Yavimaya's Embrace x1 /Unlockables\ Assault Zeppelid x2 Eldric, Spymaster of Trest x1 Inkwell Leviathan x1 Primeval Titan x1 Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre x1 Levitation x1 Living Destiny x3 Mind Control x1 New Frontiers x2 Rite of Replication x1 Skyshroud Claim x2 --------------------- /AD2\ Deck Overview --------------------- Unlike most of the decks this one does not want to play a creature turn after turn. Rather, it wants to get all of its land on the table by turn four or five and then cast a huge spell or two to win the game. It has a lot of land search, a decent amount of card draw, and a moderate focus on defensive maneuvers that help to keep it alive until it can play its win conditions. The main weakness of the deck is that many of those conditions are vulnerable to much lower-cost removal spells. There's nothing quite as bad as spending five turns excavating land to power out a Kraken only to have it immediately neutralized or co-opted by a two/three mana card. Weakest Cards: Giant Octopus & Explore. --------------------- /AD3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Assault Zeppelid In this particular deck (due to the abundance of mana fixing), the Zeppelid is a better version of Giant Octopus. Suggestion: Replace the Giant Octopi. Eldric, Spymaster of Trest This is basically a multiplayer-specific card. It will likely help out any allies you have far more than it will help you. It combos well with Aether Mutation however. Suggestion: Consider replacing a Cultivate or even an Octopus/Zeppelid, particularly if playing Archenemy or Two-Headed Giant games. Replacing the Polymorph would also be a workable idea. Inkwell Leviathan A costly though powerful creature with useful abilities. Shroud allows it to avoid almost all removal while Trample helps it avoid chump-blocking tokens. Two of the deck's main problems. Suggestion: Replace either the Isleback Spawn or the Tidal Kraken. Neither of them is bad and each do half of what this is good at, which makes this a tougher decision than most. However, the Spawn is a bit on the weak side for a win condition while the Kraken is painfully vulnerable to removal. Primeval Titan A very interesting inclusion that fits the deck's focus perfectly. Not only is it a sizable creature but its ability allows you to further thin your deck of excess lands. Suggestion: Replace the Tidal Kraken. This is the same size for less mana, has Trample which is comparable (though undeniably worse) to being unblockable, and an ability that continually increases your chances of drawing playable cards. Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre At first glance this may appear useful due to its built-in removal. Sadly, that's not quite enough as it's both exceedingly expensive and has no evasion to speak of. Being Indestructible goes quite a bit further toward justifying its use. Suggestion: Consider replacing Kozilek. While this costs more, isn't as strong, and doesn't draw you any cards, being Indestructible is a huge boon for a card that's supposed to win you the game. Levitation You want to be playing cards that will either win you the game on their own, help you find/play something that will win you the game, or keep you alive long enough to win the game. This doesn't fit any of those parameters. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines. Living Destiny This is the rare deck that may actually seriously consider using pure lifegain cards. That said, these will rarely be more useful than one of the other cards already in the deck. Suggestion: As with most pure lifegain; leave on the sidelines. While this deck has more use for delaying tactics than most, it doesn't have much in the way of useless or replaceable cards in or around the four mana slot. If Polymorph behaves too erratically for you, you may consider replacing that. Mind Control I'm somewhat shocked that this is in here since it's already been used in Realm of Illusion. I'm not also not sure how well of a thematic fit it is. That aside it's a decent card to consider using against the couple of decks that like using big threats. Suggestion: Replace an Aether Mutation if commonly facing decks that focus on a few big creatures instead of an army of small ones. New Frontiers A multiplayer-specific card best used in Archenemy games, although it can backfire even there. Suggestion: If you want to use it, replace Explore and/or Cultivate. Rite of Replication This has some extremely useful combo potential. Target an Oracle to draw tons of cards or target an Ondu to further thin the land from your deck while creating an impressive wall. It can even be used as removal to kill opposing legendary creatures. Suggestion: Replace either an Explore or a Cultivate. Skyshroud Claim This is a more limited version of Explosive Vegetation that also ends up being half the price for the same efficiency. Suggestion: Replace the Explosives. Particularly if you've also replaced the Tidal Kraken. -------------------------------------- Dragon's Roar - Red/Black -------------------------------------- --------------------- /DR1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Festering Goblin x2 Furnace Whelp x3 Furyborn Hellkite x1 Giant Scorpion x2 Goblin Piker x2 Grave Digger x2 Manic Vandal x1 Raging Goblin x3 Volcanic Dragon x4 Voracious Dragon x2 Assassinate x2 Burst Lightning x2 Crucible of Fire x1 Disfigure x3 Dragon Fodder x3 Ruby Medallion x2 /Unlockables\ Dragonmaster Outcast x1 Dragonspeaker Shaman x2 Flameblast Dragon x1 Goblin Wardriver x1 Hellkite Charger x1 Rorix Bladewing x1 Slavering Nulls x2 Dragon's Claw x3 Goblin Offensive x1 Pyroclasm x1 Rally the Forces x2 --------------------- /DR2\ Deck Overview --------------------- Similar to Ancient Depths, this deck wants to win by casting big creatures. Unlike AD this wants to soften the target up first with horde tactics. It also has far more subpar cards maindecked. Another difference is that while AD uses mana acceleration, DR instead uses mana reduction. This is not quite as good a tactic (you'll still be drawing lands when you don't want them and the cards that reduce the costs can be destroyed), but the only one that Red or Black has available to it. Finally, the deck also has a nice subset of removal available to help it out. Weakest Cards: Furyborn Hellkite, Giant Scorpion, Goblin Piker, Manic Vandal, & Raging Goblin. --------------------- /DR3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Dragonmaster Outcast This is a fairly fragile mid to late-game token factory. The tokens it creates are quite impressive though. Suggestion: Replace a Raging Goblin. It will be a rare thing to do more than three to four damage with one and this card's tokens can do far more. Dragonspeaker Shaman A fantastic piece of mana reduction for dragons. Since this is a dragon deck it ends up being an auto-include. Suggestion: Replace the Giant Scorpions. Purely defensive creatures don't synergize with the deck's purposes. You also want to reduce your reliance on having to draw a swamp. Flameblast Dragon An average-sized dragon with a built-in direct damage ability. You cannot go wrong with that, especially when it perfectly fits two of the deck's themes. Suggestion: Replace the Furyborn or a Gravedigger. The Furyborn is impressively large, but also costly and lacking any interesting abilities to help it power its damage through. The Gravediggers simply don't really fit. The majority of the time you're going to be digging up weak goblins or maybe a Furnace Whelp, and that's really not worth a four mana card. Goblin Wardriver A simple goblin that helps out the deck's early 'softening up' phase. Suggestion: Replace either the Manic Vandal or a Gravedigger. The Gravedigger should be removed for reasons listed earlier while the Vandal has the unfortunate tendency to destroy your Medallions against most decks. Hellkite Charger A strictly better version of the Volcanic Dragon. Not only is it bigger for the same price, it also has a secondary ability that can cause severe havoc. Suggestion: Replace a Volcanic Dragon. Rorix Bladewing A card that's almost strictly better than the Volcanic Dragon. If you've kept in the Gravediggers and Scorpions, the RRR casting cost can get in the way at times. If you've removed them, the casting cost becomes a non-issue. Suggestion: Replace a Volcanic Dragon. Slavering Nulls A strictly better version of the Goblin Piker and one of the very few sources of discard in the game. Suggestion: Replace the Goblin Pikers. Dragon's Claw The third of the two mana color-specific lifegaining artifacts. This is just as unimpressive to use as the others, especially in this type of deck. Suggestion: Leave them on the sidelines. Goblin Offensive This is fairly expensive and will generally only create three to four tokens. Since the horde of small creatures is meant for the early game, it's not as useful as it could be. Suggestion: If you want to play around with it, consider replacing a Scorpion or the Vandal. Maybe even the Pyroclasm if you've included it earlier. Pyroclasm An efficient piece of removal that has the unfortunate side effect of killing half of your deck. Of course, the Goblins are generally meant for early game attacks and as chump blockers to defend until your dragons appear. So sacrificing them to wipe the enemy's board before or just after you play a dragon can work out well. Suggestion: Replace a Disfigure. Rally the Forces A slightly costly card that makes your early horde far deadlier than it otherwise would be. Suggestion: If you want to use it, consider replacing the Scorpions or a Scorpion and the Vandal. -------------------------------------- Blood Hunger - Mono Black -------------------------------------- --------------------- /BH1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Barony Vampire x2 Bloodrage Vampire x3 Captivating Vampire x1 Child of Night x2 Duskhunter Bat x3 Gatekeeper of Malakir x2 Quag Vampires x2 Ruthless Cullblade x2 Sangromancer x1 Sengir Vampire x1 Tormented Soul x3 Vampire Aristocrat x2 Vampire Nighthawk x2 Vampire Nocturnus x1 Vampire Outcasts x2 Spread the Sickness x3 Urge to Feed x2 Vicious Hunger x2 /Unlockables\ Bloodghast x1 Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief x1 Mirri the Cursed x1 Skeletal Vampire x1 Stalking Bloodsucker x1 Blade of the Bloodchief x1 Corrupt x2 Demon's Horn x3 Feast of Blood x2 Repay in Kind x1 Vampire's Bite x2 --------------------- /BH2\ Deck Overview --------------------- Like most of the other decks, this one wants to play a bunch of low cost creatures and overrun the opponent with them before they can react. This has two things going for it that the others do not. The first is that its creatures are quite powerful or ability-laden for their cost. The second is the largest and most diverse selection of creature-based removal. Weakest Cards: Barony Vampire, Bloodrage Vampire, Sengir Vampire, & Vicious Hunger. --------------------- /BH3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Bloodghast A gift that just keeps on giving. Combos particularly well with Vampire Aristocrat. Suggestion: Replace a Bloodrage Vampire. Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief A sizable flier with a built-in removal ability that doubles as an offense booster. Suggestion: Replace the Sengir Vampire, or a Barony Vampire if the Sengir has already been replaced. Mirri the Cursed An upgraded Barony Vampire. Haste is useful, flying is very useful and first strike allows for some impressive combat ability when combined with its built-in counter-based growth. Suggestion: Replace the Sengir or a Barony Vampire. Skeletal Vampire While a little on the small side, its ability to both regenerate and create a wall of fliers is incredibly powerful. Suggestion: Replace the Sengir or a Barony Vampire. Stalking Bloodsucker While bigger than the Skeletal Vampire, its ability isn't anywhere near as impressive. By the time you get it out you won't have much available to feed to it. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines or consider using it in place of the Skeletal. Against the slower ground-based decks this may be able to force a win through where that card cannot. Blade of the Bloodchief A shockingly good piece of equipment. It's extremely low-cost and it synergizes well with all the removal present in the deck. It gets downright insane when used in multiplayer games. Suggestion: Replace a Tormented Soul. Same cost, and the soul is not a vampire. Corrupt A classic Black card that combines hurting the opponent while helping yourself. Can be used either as spot removal or as a finisher. Suggestion: Replace the Vicious Hungers. Yes this is triple the price, but it is also triple (or more) the effectiveness, can directly target the opponent, and this deck has an overabundance of two-cost cards. Demon's Horn The fourth of the color-specific lifegaining artifacts. This is, if it can be believed, even worse to use in this deck than the others. Black, and particularly a vampire themed deck, has tons of cards that gain life in addition to doing something more useful. So there is no place for a card that does nothing else. Suggestion: Leave them on the sidelines. Between your Nighthawks, Outcasts, Sangromancer, Feasts of Blood, and Corrupts you'll be rolling in lifegain. Feast of Blood While slightly situational, it's very cheap for what it does and you should never have a shortage of vampires. Suggestion: Replace some combination of Child of Nights, Bloodrage Vampires, or even Duskhunters. Repay in Kind A multiplayer-specific card, and not a particularly useful one considering all the lifegain this deck features. Although all that lifegain could be considered a counterbalance, allowing you to quickly recover from casting it... you should really never cast something that you have to recover from. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines. Vampire's Bite Another multipurpose lifegain card, though this is focused on damage output with the lifegain being secondary. Suggestion: Can be quite useful, but there's little in the way of expendable cards to replace. It may be best off left out of the deck, but you can consider swapping one in for a Bloodrage or maybe even replacing the Quag Vampires. -------------------------------------- Machinations - Blue/Black/White -------------------------------------- --------------------- /M1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Terramorphic Expanse x3 Alpha Myr x2 Darksteel Colossus x1 Etched Champion x1 Etherium Sculptor x4 Magister Sphinx x1 Razorfield Rhino x2 Razorfield Thresher x1 Snapsail Glider x4 Steel Overseer x2 Stone Golem x2 Tidehollow Strix x2 Dead Reckoning x1 Go for the Throat x2 Hunger of the Nim x1 Pilgrim's Eye x2 Seer's Sundial x1 Shape Anew x1 Sleep x1 Stoic Rebuttal x3 Undermine x1 Venser's Journal x1 /Unlockables\ Gust-Skimmer x2 Master of Etherium x1 Psychosis Crawler x1 Sanctum Gargoyle x1 Signal Pest x2 Wurmcoil Engine x1 Darksteel Plate x1 Dispense Justice x2 Golem's Heart x3 Mirrorworks x1 Soulquake x1 --------------------- /M2\ Deck Overview --------------------- This is primarily a mono-blue affinity deck that plays lip-service to the idea of being multicolored. It wants to play a ton of artifacts and overwhelm you with their broken synergies. It's similar to Guardians of the Wood in that respect, albeit a bit more hardy. Curiously, it has a card-draw subtheme but no cards that actually... draw extra cards. Weakest Cards: Alpha Myr, Shape Anew, Stone Golem, Hunger of the Nim, Venser's Journal, & Razorfield Thresher. --------------------- /M3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Gust-Skimmer Strictly better than the Alpha Myr. Suggestion: Replace the Alpha Myr. Master of Etherium An artifact lord that increases in power the more artifacts you have. No reason not to include it. Suggestion: Replace a Stone Golem or the Shape Anew. Stone Golem is unimpressive for its cost and Shape Anew is far too scattershot. Psychosis Crawler A mildly interesting pinger that combos slightly with Seer's Sundial. The lack of extensive card draw really hurts its usefulness though. It becomes slightly more useful in three/four-man Free-for-Alls. Suggestion: Replace Venser's Journal. While you can theoretically have a massively powerful creature by combining this with the Journal and Soulquake, that's a three-card combo to create a single creature lacking any form of evasion. Which is horribly inefficient. If that has already been replaced by the Mirrorworks, consider replacing a Razorfield Rhino instead. Sanctum Gargoyle A perfect fit for the deck. Not only is it itself an artifact as well as a flier, but it allows you to bring back useful cards that may have been destroyed. Suggestion: Replace a Stone Golem or the Shape Anew. Signal Pest This really needs a horde behind it to be truly good, and this deck is noticeably lacking a horde. Suggestion: Leave them on the sidelines. It cannot win the game on its own and there's not as much support for them as there could be. Wurmcoil Engine A very powerful card. Efficient cost-to-power ratio, some useful abilities, and built-in resistance to removal. Suggestion: Replace the Razorfield Thresher. Darksteel Plate Less than impressive. This is a purely preventive card, and a not a very good one at that. Sure your Master of Etherium would love to equip this, but that's an exceedingly rare combo to appear. Suggestion: Leave it on the sidelines. Dispense Justice A slightly situational piece of removal that is nonetheless quite powerful. What makes this tricky to use is its White mana requirement Suggestion: Replace the Hunger of the Nim and Dead Reckoning. Hunger can be quite powerful, but being a Sorcery is a large detraction. Dead Reckoning is also removal albeit even more situational and possessing a more severe mana cost. Golem's Heart Yet another 'color'-specific lifegaining artifact. This one is potentially worse than the others considering how few artifacts the other decks run. Suggestion: Leave them on the sidelines. Mirrorworks A very useful card to have in an artifact deck, especially an artifact deck with mana reducers. Suggestion: Replace either Venser's Journal, a Razorfield Rhino, or a Snapsail Glider. Soulquake More of a multiplayer card really and its mana cost leaves something to be desired. Suggestion: Consider playing in Archenemy games, but otherwise its likely best off on the sidelines. -------------------------------------- Unquenchable Fire - Mono Red -------------------------------------- --------------------- /UF1\ Deck Listing --------------------- /Default\ Cinder wall x2 Fiery Hellhound x4 Fire Elemental x2 Fire Servant x1 Flamekin Brawler x2 Flametongue Kavu x1 Goblin Arsonist x2 Kiln Fiend x3 Prodigal Pyromancer x1 Blaze x1 Chandra's Outrage x3 Ember Shot x2 Flame Slash x2 Lava Axe x3 Pyroclasm x1 Sizzle x2 Volcanic Hammer x4 /Unlockables\ Chandra's Phoenix x1 Flameblast Dragon x1 Inferno Titan x1 Banefire x1 Dragon's Claw x3 Flame Wave x1 Goblin War Paint x2 Incinerate x2 Punishing Fire x2 Relentless Assault x1 Wheel of Fortune x1 --------------------- /UF2\ Deck Overview --------------------- This is more or less your standard mono-Red burn deck. While it has a decent amount of creatures, it really wants to win by chucking a couple of direct damage spells at its opponent's face. The deck's main weakness is opposing lifegain cards. Since it relies upon its spells to do damage and has basically no card drawing ability it can run out of steam fast against an opponent with renewable lifegain (such as the otherwise horrible color-specific two-drop artifacts). Weakest Cards: Cinder Wall, Sizzle, Fire Elemental, & Ember Shot. --------------------- /UF3\ Card Analysis --------------------- Chandra's Phoenix In a deck that can easily run out of gas, a semi-renewable source of damage is a godsend. Suggestion: Replace a Cinder Wall. Flameblast Dragon Also present in Dragon's Roar, its built-in direct damage ability arguably makes it a better fit for this deck. Suggestion: Replace a Fire Elemental or an Ember Shot. If you want to skew your mana curve further toward late game, replacing a Brawler can also work. Inferno Titan Another card that's both creature and removal in one. Suggestion: Replace a Fire Elemental or an Ember Shot. If you want to skew your mana curve further toward late game, replacing a Brawler can also work. Banefire A strictly better version of Blaze. Suggestion: Replace a Cinder Wall or a Lava Axe. While strictly better than Blaze, Blaze is powerful enough that you don't want to go replacing it. Dragon's Claw As with Dragon's Roar, this card just does not synergize with the rest of the deck. It's only useful in the mirror match. Suggestion: Leave on the sidelines unless you commonly end up in mirror matches. Flame Wave A costly though utterly devastating spell. When cast, this will decimate most opponents. Suggestion: Replace an Ember Shot or possibly even a Sizzle. Goblin War Paint Not overly useful in this deck as creatures are less of a focus. Suggestion: Leave them on the sidelines. Though it may be a workable idea to replace the Flame Slashes or even the Goblin Arsonists depending on whether or not you commonly face the slower decks. Incinerate A strictly better Volcanic Hammer. Suggestion: If playing one on one or Archenemy replace the Sizzles, if playing multiplayer Free-for-All or Two-Headed Giant consider replacing the Ember Shots or Volcanic Hammers instead. Punishing Fire A slightly overcosted damage spell that makes up for it by being semi-renewable. This card is pretty much your only defense against lifegain and should be included if for no other reason than a lot of people are enamored with lifegain. Suggestion: You have several choices here depending upon what has already been replaced. Any of the following are workable choices (listed in order of preference): Cinder Wall, Ember Shot, Flamekin Brawler, Sizzle, or Volcanic Hammer. Relentless Assault Less useful than it could be, this is better in Archenemy or Two-Headed Giant games where it can boost your partner(s). Suggestion: In those games consider replacing a Lava Axe or the Pyroclasm, in Free-for-All it's better off on the sidelines. Wheel of Fortune Using this card is a gamble, but a gamble that's usually in your favor. Completely refilling your hand is amazingly powerful in a burn-centric deck as it's highly likely most of the cards you draw will be able to do damage immediately. It has a far greater chance to work against you in three or four-man Free-for-all though. Suggestion: Replace a Fiery Hellhound. Same cost and you likely won't want to be drawing Hellhounds (which are fairly average) when you refill your hand. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- END WORD -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So, that's that for the decks the game shipped with. I'll state again here that the suggestions above are just that; suggestions. There is very little in the way of 'right' and 'wrong' when it comes to MtG deckbuilding and I encourage you to experiment with different cards to find what works best for you.