Wednesday, March 4, 2015

One of my premier decks, this was one of the first decks I put together back when I started playing EDH, and is one of the few that stays generally updated.  It's Rasputin Dreamweaver!

1 Akroma's Vengeance
1 Aven Mindcensor
1 Azorius Chancery
1 Azorius Signet
1 Bant Panorama
1 Boseiju, Who Shelters All
1 Capsize
1 Celestial Colonnade
1 Coalition Relic
1 Condemn
1 Conjurer's Closet
1 Crystal Ball
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Darksteel Ingot
1 Deadeye Navigator
1 Decree of Justice
1 Dissipate
1 Draining Whelk
1 Duplicant
1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Erratic Portal
1 Esper Panorama
1 Flickerform
1 Flood Plain
1 Flooded Strand
1 Galepowder Mage
1 Ghostly Flicker
1 Gideon Jura
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Hallowed Burial
10 Island
1 Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
1 Karmic Guide
1 Keiga, the Tide Star
1 Knight-Captain of Eos
1 Kor Haven
1 Land Tax
1 Luminarch Ascension
1 Mirrorweave
1 Mistmeadow Witch
1 Momentary Blink
1 Mulldrifter
1 Mystic Gate
1 Mystifying Maze
1 Oblation
1 Oblivion Ring
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Phyrexian Ingester
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
13 Plains
1 Rasputin Dreamweaver
1 Recurring Insight
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Restoration Angel
1 Riptide Shapeshifter
1 Rite of Replication
1 Rout
1 Scroll Rack
1 Sol Ring
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Soothsaying
1 Spell Burst
1 Stonecloaker
1 Storm Herd
1 Stormtide Leviathan
1 Strip Mine
1 Sun Titan
1 Tamiyo, the Moon Sage
1 Temple of Enlightenment
1 Tidespout Tyrant
1 Time Spiral
1 Time Stop
1 Time Stretch
1 Tranquil Cove
1 Tundra
1 Vanish into Memory
1 Venser, the Sojourner


Rasputin is tons of fun to play.  He concentrates on producing big effects (as if you're playing a guy that is a 6 drop and is about mana generation, the stuff you ramp to had better be worth it).  There is a flickering sub-theme mostly because you can generate even more ridiculous mana with Rasputin, and it branched further out from there.

This is a place to point out that this deck, while strong, is not entirely optimized.  If I weren't saving my single copies for their own commander decks, this deck would definitely be playing a legendary Eldrazi or two.  One of the sacrifices as I've done this project has had to be to give up on ideas of optimization.  It has made decks worse, of course, but it has also overall widened my perception of "playable".  A lot more cards are playable in Commander than most people would want to admit to.  Some day I may write more on that.

Friday, February 27, 2015

For one of my more competitive decks, to pull out when I want to out-@$$hole the @$$holes, here is Kaalia of the Vast, as completed several years ago:

1 Aegis Angel
1 Akoum Refuge
1 Akroma's Vengeance
1 Akroma, Angel of Fury
1 Ambition's Cost
1 Angelic Arbiter
1 Anger
1 Arid Mesa
1 Armageddon
1 Armillary Sphere
1 Austere Command
1 Avatar of Slaughter
1 Balefire Dragon
1 Bathe in Light
1 Bladewing the Risen
1 Bloodgift Demon
1 Bogardan Hellkite
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Boom // Bust
1 Boros Garrison
1 Boros Signet
1 Chancellor of the Annex
1 Command Tower
1 Congregate
1 Culling Sun
1 Darksteel Ingot
1 Diabolic Tutor
1 Dragon Mage
1 Dread Cacodemon
1 Everflowing Chalice
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Fault Line
1 Flameblast Dragon
1 Godless Shrine
1 Graven Cairns
1 Heart of Ramos
1 Hellkite Charger
1 Hellkite Igniter
1 Hoard-Smelter Dragon
1 Into the Core
1 Kaalia of the Vast
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Malfegor
1 Marsh Flats
1 Master Warcraft
1 Molten Slagheap
1 Mortify
1 Mother of Runes
7 Mountain
1 Nezumi Graverobber
1 Orim's Thunder
1 Oros, the Avenger
1 Orzhov Basilica
1 Orzhov Signet
1 Path to Exile
1 Phyrexian Arena
7 Plains
1 Rakdos Carnarium
1 Rakdos Signet
1 Rakdos the Defiler
1 Reiver Demon
1 Reya Dawnbringer
1 Rocky Tar Pit
1 Ruination
1 Rune-Scarred Demon
1 Rupture Spire
1 Scrubland
1 Shattered Angel
1 Skull of Ramos
1 Soul Snare
1 Stranglehold
1 Sulfurous Springs
8 Swamp
1 Tariel, Reckoner of Souls
1 Tectonic Break
1 Tooth of Ramos
1 Unburial Rites
1 Victimize
1 Victory's Herald
1 Vivid Meadow
1 Voice of All

Goal: Accelerate out Kaalia, then Armageddon effect to be able to drop huge dragons, demons, and angels into play with no one else having land.

The deck is fun to use once, but it exemplifies the kind of over-competitive EDH style that I find generally repulsive.  It shuts down any fun for anyone else, ends games fairly quickly, and generally just gets people mad at you.  I tend to only pull out this deck when playing people I don't know too well but who I do know (from observation or previous games) are all-in on combo-ing off or just being jerks to other players.

Wednesday, February 25, 2015

Decklist: Xira Arien

A deck designed to abuse most "points" lists that have specific, shifting needs:
1 Acid Web Spider
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Axebane Guardian
1 Bloodshot Cyclops
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Borderland Ranger
1 Bow of Nylea
1 Broodmate Dragon
1 Cuombajj Witches
1 Darigaaz's Caldera
1 Darigaaz's Charm
1 Dawntreader Elk
1 Devoted Druid
1 Diabolic Servitude
1 Diabolic Tutor
1 Enemy of the Guildpact
1 Expedition Map
1 Fellwar Stone
1 Flametongue Kavu
8 Forest
1 Game-Trail Changeling
1 Gatecreeper Vine
1 Geothermal Crevice
1 Golgari Charm
1 Golgari Guildgate
1 Gruul Charm
1 Gruul Guildgate
1 Gruul Turf
1 Hammer of Purphoros
1 Hissing Iguanar
1 Hit // Run
1 Honden of Life's Web
1 Honden of Night's Reach
1 Hull Breach
1 Igneous Pouncer
1 Insurrection
1 Jaya Ballard, Task Mage
1 Jund Charm
1 Kazandu Refuge
1 Khalni Gem
1 Khalni Heart Expedition
1 Kor Dirge
1 Korozda Guildmage
1 Koskun Keep
1 Lim-Dûl's Paladin
1 Mage Slayer
4 Mountain
1 Night Dealings
1 Obelisk of Jund
1 Pinecrest Ridge
1 Prismatic Lens
1 Quillspike
1 Rakdos Carnarium
1 Rakdos Charm
1 Rakdos Guildgate
1 Rampant Growth
1 Reclaim
1 Respite
1 Runes of the Deus
1 Savage Lands
1 Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper
1 Shimmering Grotto
1 Shivan Oasis
1 Skyshroud Cutter
1 Sprouting Thrinax
6 Swamp
1 Sword of the Chosen
1 Terminal Moraine
1 Terminate
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Torrent of Souls
1 Transguild Promenade
1 Tresserhorn Sinks
1 Undiscovered Paradise
1 Unstable Frontier
1 Urborg Volcano
1 Urza's Blueprints
1 Vithian Renegades
1 Vulshok Battlemaster
1 Weed Strangle
1 Wreak Havoc
1 Xira Arien
1 Yixlid Jailer
1 Zoetic Cavern
1 Zombie Infestation

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Completed:
Child of Alara (lands, ho!)
The Mimeoplasm (err... a Mimeoplasm deck?)
Horobi, Death's Wail (AWESOME sauce)
Vorosh, the Hunter (BUG poison)
Hanna, Ship's Navigator (arti/enchantment recursion)
Heidar, Rimewind Master ("snow is annoying")
Kyoki, Sanity's Eclipse (discard / spirits)
Sidar Jabari (Flanking / Knights)
Edric, Spymaster of Trest (mono-fast Edric deck)
Karador, Ghost Chieftan (Hermit druid / recursion)

All through Edric were completed by the morning of December 31st. Mini-goal met: 100 decks by the New Year! Woo!

Family in town the last few weeks have slowed things down. Masters degree classes starting this week will keep things slow. Ugh. Hopefully I'll get a jolt of energy to get back in gear. I'm sure the Dark Ascension previews will start my brain juices flowing for building. New sets always do.

For their generous donations, I'd like to thank Allison (whose stack of random Mirrodin stuff included a Mind's Eye and several choice uncommons) and Mark (whose huge bundle of commons and uncommons has given me lots of copies of some good second-tier cards [including personal favorite Coumbajj Witches]).

Longer updates when I have time for them. ;-]

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Hello! No, I have not given up. In fact, I have created a slew of decks since my last post. I just haven't found the time to post until recently. Let me start with the updates:

Completed:
Eight-and-a-Half-Tails (pro-white / turn everything white)
Sygg, River Cutthroat (Rogue tribal)
Sedris, the Traitor King (self-mill / Unearth-Sundial combo)
Kresh the Bloodbraided (sacrifice / kill theme)
Dralnu, Lich Lord (Grim Monolith / Power Artifact combo with flashback)
Adun Oakenshield (CITB creature recursion)
Skyfire Kirin (stealy Spirits / Arcane)
Kasimir the Lone Wolf (Exalted Voltron... because, you know... Lone Wolf)
Baru, Fist of Krosa (Mono-green Landfall)
Ayumi, the Last Visitor (Power 5+ / slight voltrony)
Gwendlyn Di Corci (Discards and Draw 7s with Megrim and Underworld Dream effects)
Starke of Rath (Mono-R threaten effects: steal and sacrifice!)
Glissa, the Traitor (B/G artifact recursion)

Started:
Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker
Heidar, Rimewind Master

There are a couple other piles of cards with interesting interactions that I am still looking for good generals to take advantage of, too. My completed decks now stand at 91, and I am hoping to hit at least one hundred by the new year.

Inventories of important cards are starting to run down. Some of my more recent decklists have certainly been lacking in certain cards that could make them better. The decision on whether or not to switch cards out from older decks to put them to better use in later ones is a tough one, and I have done it on a few occasions. This has had the effect of averaging the power level of my decks somewhat. I think at some point down the line I may have to do a comparison; it would be an interesting thing to look at.

Here's a decklist that I typed up for something else. It's Asmira, Holy Avenger, who was deck #55, back when I still had Eternal Witnesses and such to use.
Asmira, Holy Avenger

Land
27 Forest
10 Plains
Oran-Rief, the Vastwood
Selesnya Sanctuary

Creatures
Birds of Paradise
Spore Frog
Fauna Shaman
Sakura-Tribe Elder
Lotus Cobra
Melira, Sylvok Outcast
Viridian Emissary
Qasali Pridemage
Wood Elves
Spike Feeder
Yavimaya Elder
Eternal Witness
Kitchen Finks
Dauntless Escort
Lumberknot
Stonehorn Dignitary
Ravenous Baloth
Heartmender
Radiant's Dragoons
Juniper Order Ranger
Archon of Justice
Woodripper
Kithkin Spellduster
Aerie Ouphes
Acidic Slime
Mitotic Slime
Nacatl War-Pride
Duplicant
Wurmcoil Engine
Twilight Shepherd
Krosan Tusker
Woodfall Primus

Instants
Fracturing Gust
Momentous Fall
Beast Within
Fresh Meat
Krosan Grip
Swords to Plowshares


Sorceries
Green Sun's Zenith
Make a Wish
Genesis Wave

Enchantments
Night Soil
Greater Good
Ooze Garden
Gutter Grime
Sylvan Library
Fecundity
Cream of the Crop
Abundance

Artifacts
Marble Diamond
Birthing Pod
Whispersilk Cloak
Talisman of Unity
Cauldron of Souls
Culling Dais
Dreamstone Hedron
Mind Stone
Darksteel Ingot
Skullclamp

Planswalkers
Garruk Wildspeaker


That's all for now. Maybe another decklist (probably Starke) later on.

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Busy busy! Thanksgiving here in the USA, so just a quick updating post. I have a longer post on aggressive strategies that I'm working on, but it needs tweaking still. Here are my current additions:

Completed:
Joven (blowing up artifacts and turning things into artifacts)
Sharuum the Hegemon (fairly typical Sharuum deck, though no infi-combos)
Zur the Enchanter (fairly typical Zur deck, with a few more auras)
Ertai, the Corrupted (Esper tokens)
Chorus of the Conclave (1CC Proclamation of Rebirth)
Kodama of the South Tree (spirit beatdown)

Monday, November 14, 2011

Update!

Just a quick update today, bringing us to 72 completed decks:

Completed:
Phage the Untouchable (survive casting Phage)
Silvos, Rogue Elemental (Voltron / big green)
Zirilan of the Claw (dragon search and re-use)
Seton, Krosan Protector (tribal druids)
Malfegor (flashback / madness)
Crovax, Ascendant Hero (Light from Within / White beatdown)
Celestial Kirin (spirit destruction / CMC 4 deck (no spirits at 4 save the general, all non-spirit stuff at 4 so it survives))

Started:
Blind Seer (Vorthos mono-U Urza deck)
5-Color Allies (general to be determined)
Glissa the Traitor (cheap artifacts and creature kill)
Adun Oakenshield (just good Jund creatures plus good sac outlets)

Midterms are due tomorrow so I can't go into too much detail today. Suffice it to say that I have more time coming up, so I hope to post a decklist or two soon, as well as some deckbuilding thoughts. I have a bunch of notes on themes that I want to organize into a longer post. I'm also setting a little mini-goal: I want to have my first 100 decks done by the new year. I think it's totally do-able at this point, since that would 6.5 weeks, needing an average of just under 5 decks a week to reach, and two of those weeks are vacation weeks for me.

More musings and a few decklists later this week, I promise! Let me know if there's a general on my list you want me to go into detail on, because I can totally do requests!