I keep forgetting that it is a once-per-month updated legal list, so when i checked a bunch of cards they were fine, then i forgot that its not legal until next month. For example, i expect this deck to be a lot better next month with the addition of Etched Champion to the card pool
Nice to see another writer talking about my favorite format (Heirloom of course). I've been looking at artificer's intuition but haven't found the right build with it. Myr servitor is pretty great especially if you can recur him as u can. I think Arcane sanctum is not legal, but u can use a vivid land and be ok i think. I wonder if a couple vedalken archmage wouldn't work out well in this deck. Look forward to seeing you at the next event!
Great article LE. It's nice to see a devoted Spike like yourself coming to commander without the intention of breaking the format like a lot of folks do.
On monocolored hate. Maybe it's just me but I'd much rather face a monoblue mage with one of my janky midrange theme decks than the really boring monogreen big mana decks I see every other day. I see Multani or Omnath across the table, they're my more likely first target than Sakashima.
first off, you're a nobody. Second off if you were close to good you would have modo access and lastly majority of Vintage players suck and that is why they do not play Legacy or Std.
While it may not be everyone's cup of tea or their favorite playstyle, I find midrange tends to be pretty non offensive to everyone at the table. Must of the decks I have built were midrange and I never really got any hatred unless I managed to cast a game-ender which really confused me.
Enjoyed the video's. I love seeing classic play on video. This is a nice substitute to no events to talk about in your Soap Opera. The deck is also pretty sweet and versatile. Looking forward to seeing more of these.
Nice read.
I dived into that pretty nice format after some interesting read on Pure. It's recent so I am far to be an expert but I really enjoyed. The only problem I have is to evaluate the accetable potence for the deck I built : the first deck I built was very casual but I had to deal with a recursive strip mine engine pretty harmful (crucible/exploration effect/strip). Then I built a much stronger deck but some opponents just flamed me to play too many tutors or too many broken interactions. So I'm still looking for the right equilibrium... and it's not easy in a multiplayer environment. This kind of article helps to get a better sight of people are playing. Will read the next one.
Oh, and to be the most hated at the table, playing blue is an option, but to resolve Humility is also extremly efficient and was enough to transmute a 1v1v1v1 into a 3v1 very quickly ;)
That is a tough row to hoe. The main thing is to identify what card interactions are considered to be broken. And what card interactions really are broken but don't seem unfair when you make them happen. I've been having some luck with an Intet variation (Thanks again for the games Leviathan) that has nothing really outstanding in it but it can get the job done. Basically it draws and draws and draws. But behind the draw are some control mechanisms that help keep me alive without wrecking my opponent's plans overtly. No big wraths etc.
The big thing in commander is that it is politic by its nature even if the chat mechanism doesn't work well. People will see you casting wrath of god and day of judgement and come to the conclusion that the only safe choice is to remove you before you play something they can't stop. Same thing goes with obvious combo.dec.
Also being that this is basically another Sideboardless format (sunday edh chaos notwithstanding as I think they do use the sideboard in that format) the rock/paper/scissors paradigm we are used to is quite skewed so finding out who you are playing and what they are likely to do is a major quest of the game. Having generic answers to problems (Krosan Grip for example) is sometimes better than having hosers but it doesn't hurt to know what you are likely to face and come prepared with a slightly altered main deck.
Thanks for the comments guys. I'm still trying to find the right power level for my decks. I build one deck and everybody hates me, then build another one and get crushed easily by others. There must be a nice balance between "casual" and "powerful", and I'm still trying to find it.
Tune in next week though, I know you'll love the Blue deck I'm going to show you because it's a lot of fun (it's fun according to me of course). It does some stupid things and even if you hate mono Blue (who doesn't?!), you'll find it at least interesting to read about.
Even if he’s a great player, I don’t think whiffy ever said that the aim of these articles is to become a reference of the “correct play”, but a try to increase interest in the format, and, well, it works well in my opinion and his work is much appreciated.
The critics on misplays are always welcome to help everybody to increase the play level but it requires to explain which are the misplays you are talking about, and what would have been the correct play instead.
If not, honestly, it’s a waste of time for everybody as the critic comment becomes totally useless. If you’re a good player, well done ! You saw major misplays, then don’t be lazy and share your knowledges. No offense, just my opinion.
I mean that both as a challenge to your trolling and as a real comment that we need more Classic players online, especially experienced ones. Also.. buy in now at $1000, or wait until real Vintage comes online and pay 3 or 4 times that amount?
Whiffy this new series is totally awesome - raising the profile on classic. The videos really capture the complexity of classic and the lines of play that happen outwith the battlefield (ie the deck, hand and graveyard and sideboard). I really like the shout-out to the legacy players that have heavily invested and for a small one time purchase in the region of 100 tix can jump into a stimulating environment. I also love that you picked up a deck that is new to the format and innovative. There was a comment that you made some mistakes in the game to me this is not important. Me looking for those "errors" and thinking what I would do differently will help me improve my game, I certaintly learnt lots from watching you play and I am glad you recorded the live game with your thought process rather than recording from the game replays. I think some errors in game play (however minor) are inevitable when you are playing a deck new to the format, new to your own play experience, you are multitasking with the recording, interacting with the audience and expressing your thought processes. As with any game of magic mistakes can be spotted especially with the benefit of hindsight and the benefit of an infinite clock. What is important is to recognise where the play could have been tighter and improve for the next match. I am also sure that the fact this was not an event would take an edge of ones game play. I know I play much tighter when there is money on the line rather than slinging 75 cards for the fun and love of mtgo. Finally to the vintage troll - I hope that Whiffy's article does say to vintage players look at this format it is rip for busting and making some profit and for playing a game we love and a handful of those godly vintage players stump up the price of a mox saphhire to put their money where there mouth is an become classic active. If paper vintage players join the scene and join the campaign for online power 9 then perhaps one day you too will have a 24/7 quality testing ground that will allow you to further excel in the paper world.
Please keep them coming George. Great way to showcase the awesomeness of classic and your sick foilz!
Solid, informative and enjoyable article. Would like to see more in the series, I love the MTGO relevant draft format articles - not like you are going to find gems like this from the paper world to guide you on the journey through a saga block draft. Well done sir.
Land Tax is awesome enough in this deck that it warrants inclusion, even with the possibility that it is a "dead" draw in the late game. There are plenty of times when going up against green decks or anything packing Primeval Titan that it will help even in the late game. I don't think that it's any worse a draw than Darksteel Ingot on turn 13. And if you drop it early game, making sure that you can make those early land drops is well worth it, especially since there isn't a ton of acceleration in the deck. And that's not even including the interaction with Scroll Rack that Plank pointed out.
A couple of other good card card advantage options for mono-White are the two old Swords, Fire and Ice, and Light and Shadow. They protect your creatures, and definitely help push you over the top. They are pretty much auto-includes in any mono-White deck I play that has creatures (meaning all of them). Kudos for trying the Strongbox, that's pretty awesome. I've used Seer's Sundial in the past, and it usually does all right.
Fun article! Glad that you like the format enough to write about it. Seems like a fun, powerful deck that can hold its own without going overboard. Can't wait to see what else you come up with. One request, can you organize the actual decklist a little? I know you outline all the cards in the deck before that, but it's just tough to absorb right now. Even alphabetical organization is fine. And Blue typically deserves the hate it gets.
I was in a game the other day when Land Tax popped up in the late game when I really could have used something else. I was white green so I already had more land than the other players. At least when I drew my green fetch spells I knew I was thinning my deck.
I'm surprised you didn't mention Myojin of Cleansing Fire. It's a wrath creature that I think would fit well in this deck.
Well, you do have to remember that Mirage was the first old set to be released online. It was not promoted the way classic sets and didn't have all the glorious release events attached to it either. I don't think Mirage limited was or has been played enough to meet the demand. Also, there aren't any other rares in the set that can help absorb the cost. LED is highly played, and will always be a 4 of when it is. Plus, it is really good in the deck it is played in. It seems like a perfect storm of factors that kick it sky high.
The amount of online IPA is infinitely lower than RL apoc, so vindicate will always be higher than the real one due to that. I remember a time when foil Reya Dawnbringer was the most valuable card online.
Brutal! Why did I put out Key off of Show and Tell? If that had been a land, I could have Bolted you one more time to win it. I will be more prepared next time.
I guess i would take offence if i thought i were the stone blade, as you apparently are. Fact is These were done to garner intrest in the format, not prove what or who is good. I would sincerly hope that vintage players don't make the same play mistakes as we lowly classic players, ya know since the format are similar on the surface but insanely different. Too bad you cant afford the 1500 to play all the classic decks. sounds like you would make a killing!
I think the updates have to do with new sets being released online actually, but ya etched champ seems pretty cool in the format.
I judge you score to change a bit the system and usability of your journal.
Nice
Petterson
Patuturi copii || california disability lawyer || funding for small business || Reconditioned Gearboxes || dallas plumbers
I keep forgetting that it is a once-per-month updated legal list, so when i checked a bunch of cards they were fine, then i forgot that its not legal until next month. For example, i expect this deck to be a lot better next month with the addition of Etched Champion to the card pool
Nice to see another writer talking about my favorite format (Heirloom of course). I've been looking at artificer's intuition but haven't found the right build with it. Myr servitor is pretty great especially if you can recur him as u can. I think Arcane sanctum is not legal, but u can use a vivid land and be ok i think. I wonder if a couple vedalken archmage wouldn't work out well in this deck. Look forward to seeing you at the next event!
My mistake... but I can't believe how the sphinx got out of this...
Great article LE. It's nice to see a devoted Spike like yourself coming to commander without the intention of breaking the format like a lot of folks do.
On monocolored hate. Maybe it's just me but I'd much rather face a monoblue mage with one of my janky midrange theme decks than the really boring monogreen big mana decks I see every other day. I see Multani or Omnath across the table, they're my more likely first target than Sakashima.
Awesome Thanks
@ Exoskeletal
first off, you're a nobody. Second off if you were close to good you would have modo access and lastly majority of Vintage players suck and that is why they do not play Legacy or Std.
While it may not be everyone's cup of tea or their favorite playstyle, I find midrange tends to be pretty non offensive to everyone at the table. Must of the decks I have built were midrange and I never really got any hatred unless I managed to cast a game-ender which really confused me.
Nice article as always! :-)
After Motu's last article I wonder if it could be possible to view an "Epic Battle Double Feature"...;-D
Hey Whiffy,
Enjoyed the video's. I love seeing classic play on video. This is a nice substitute to no events to talk about in your Soap Opera. The deck is also pretty sweet and versatile. Looking forward to seeing more of these.
Nice read.
I dived into that pretty nice format after some interesting read on Pure. It's recent so I am far to be an expert but I really enjoyed. The only problem I have is to evaluate the accetable potence for the deck I built : the first deck I built was very casual but I had to deal with a recursive strip mine engine pretty harmful (crucible/exploration effect/strip). Then I built a much stronger deck but some opponents just flamed me to play too many tutors or too many broken interactions. So I'm still looking for the right equilibrium... and it's not easy in a multiplayer environment. This kind of article helps to get a better sight of people are playing. Will read the next one.
Oh, and to be the most hated at the table, playing blue is an option, but to resolve Humility is also extremly efficient and was enough to transmute a 1v1v1v1 into a 3v1 very quickly ;)
That is a tough row to hoe. The main thing is to identify what card interactions are considered to be broken. And what card interactions really are broken but don't seem unfair when you make them happen. I've been having some luck with an Intet variation (Thanks again for the games Leviathan) that has nothing really outstanding in it but it can get the job done. Basically it draws and draws and draws. But behind the draw are some control mechanisms that help keep me alive without wrecking my opponent's plans overtly. No big wraths etc.
The big thing in commander is that it is politic by its nature even if the chat mechanism doesn't work well. People will see you casting wrath of god and day of judgement and come to the conclusion that the only safe choice is to remove you before you play something they can't stop. Same thing goes with obvious combo.dec.
Also being that this is basically another Sideboardless format (sunday edh chaos notwithstanding as I think they do use the sideboard in that format) the rock/paper/scissors paradigm we are used to is quite skewed so finding out who you are playing and what they are likely to do is a major quest of the game. Having generic answers to problems (Krosan Grip for example) is sometimes better than having hosers but it doesn't hurt to know what you are likely to face and come prepared with a slightly altered main deck.
Thanks for the comments guys. I'm still trying to find the right power level for my decks. I build one deck and everybody hates me, then build another one and get crushed easily by others. There must be a nice balance between "casual" and "powerful", and I'm still trying to find it.
Tune in next week though, I know you'll love the Blue deck I'm going to show you because it's a lot of fun (it's fun according to me of course). It does some stupid things and even if you hate mono Blue (who doesn't?!), you'll find it at least interesting to read about.
Thanks again for the comments.
LE
Great work whiffy, innovative & good contents.
Even if he’s a great player, I don’t think whiffy ever said that the aim of these articles is to become a reference of the “correct play”, but a try to increase interest in the format, and, well, it works well in my opinion and his work is much appreciated.
The critics on misplays are always welcome to help everybody to increase the play level but it requires to explain which are the misplays you are talking about, and what would have been the correct play instead.
If not, honestly, it’s a waste of time for everybody as the critic comment becomes totally useless. If you’re a good player, well done ! You saw major misplays, then don’t be lazy and share your knowledges. No offense, just my opinion.
Put your money where your mouth is... Bring it!
I mean that both as a challenge to your trolling and as a real comment that we need more Classic players online, especially experienced ones. Also.. buy in now at $1000, or wait until real Vintage comes online and pay 3 or 4 times that amount?
Whiffy this new series is totally awesome - raising the profile on classic. The videos really capture the complexity of classic and the lines of play that happen outwith the battlefield (ie the deck, hand and graveyard and sideboard). I really like the shout-out to the legacy players that have heavily invested and for a small one time purchase in the region of 100 tix can jump into a stimulating environment. I also love that you picked up a deck that is new to the format and innovative. There was a comment that you made some mistakes in the game to me this is not important. Me looking for those "errors" and thinking what I would do differently will help me improve my game, I certaintly learnt lots from watching you play and I am glad you recorded the live game with your thought process rather than recording from the game replays. I think some errors in game play (however minor) are inevitable when you are playing a deck new to the format, new to your own play experience, you are multitasking with the recording, interacting with the audience and expressing your thought processes. As with any game of magic mistakes can be spotted especially with the benefit of hindsight and the benefit of an infinite clock. What is important is to recognise where the play could have been tighter and improve for the next match. I am also sure that the fact this was not an event would take an edge of ones game play. I know I play much tighter when there is money on the line rather than slinging 75 cards for the fun and love of mtgo. Finally to the vintage troll - I hope that Whiffy's article does say to vintage players look at this format it is rip for busting and making some profit and for playing a game we love and a handful of those godly vintage players stump up the price of a mox saphhire to put their money where there mouth is an become classic active. If paper vintage players join the scene and join the campaign for online power 9 then perhaps one day you too will have a 24/7 quality testing ground that will allow you to further excel in the paper world.
Please keep them coming George. Great way to showcase the awesomeness of classic and your sick foilz!
Solid, informative and enjoyable article. Would like to see more in the series, I love the MTGO relevant draft format articles - not like you are going to find gems like this from the paper world to guide you on the journey through a saga block draft. Well done sir.
Land Tax is awesome enough in this deck that it warrants inclusion, even with the possibility that it is a "dead" draw in the late game. There are plenty of times when going up against green decks or anything packing Primeval Titan that it will help even in the late game. I don't think that it's any worse a draw than Darksteel Ingot on turn 13. And if you drop it early game, making sure that you can make those early land drops is well worth it, especially since there isn't a ton of acceleration in the deck. And that's not even including the interaction with Scroll Rack that Plank pointed out.
A couple of other good card card advantage options for mono-White are the two old Swords, Fire and Ice, and Light and Shadow. They protect your creatures, and definitely help push you over the top. They are pretty much auto-includes in any mono-White deck I play that has creatures (meaning all of them). Kudos for trying the Strongbox, that's pretty awesome. I've used Seer's Sundial in the past, and it usually does all right.
Fun article! Glad that you like the format enough to write about it. Seems like a fun, powerful deck that can hold its own without going overboard. Can't wait to see what else you come up with. One request, can you organize the actual decklist a little? I know you outline all the cards in the deck before that, but it's just tough to absorb right now. Even alphabetical organization is fine. And Blue typically deserves the hate it gets.
Great article.
I was in a game the other day when Land Tax popped up in the late game when I really could have used something else. I was white green so I already had more land than the other players. At least when I drew my green fetch spells I knew I was thinning my deck.
I'm surprised you didn't mention Myojin of Cleansing Fire. It's a wrath creature that I think would fit well in this deck.
That makes sense. I'm just bummed that I sold my LEDs only a few months ago for 50-60ish. =/
Well, you do have to remember that Mirage was the first old set to be released online. It was not promoted the way classic sets and didn't have all the glorious release events attached to it either. I don't think Mirage limited was or has been played enough to meet the demand. Also, there aren't any other rares in the set that can help absorb the cost. LED is highly played, and will always be a 4 of when it is. Plus, it is really good in the deck it is played in. It seems like a perfect storm of factors that kick it sky high.
The amount of online IPA is infinitely lower than RL apoc, so vindicate will always be higher than the real one due to that. I remember a time when foil Reya Dawnbringer was the most valuable card online.
That's my general opinion anyways.
Brutal! Why did I put out Key off of Show and Tell? If that had been a land, I could have Bolted you one more time to win it. I will be more prepared next time.
I guess i would take offence if i thought i were the stone blade, as you apparently are. Fact is These were done to garner intrest in the format, not prove what or who is good. I would sincerly hope that vintage players don't make the same play mistakes as we lowly classic players, ya know since the format are similar on the surface but insanely different. Too bad you cant afford the 1500 to play all the classic decks. sounds like you would make a killing!