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Palace Control

Throne Deck By
EJBLanky

+30

Cost Curve

Type

Faction

Information

It's time to come home (to Master's ranks).
[Update as of 9-4-2019]
Xo has been pushed up to 8 and FFFF now. Understandably. And the metagame is starting to adjust to this particular iteration of Ixtun Palace as well. So I came back to this list and made a few changes, firstly, I redid the market and put 1 Xo in there for continued market cheatyface plays with merchants. Often you want to generate your value by swapping Hurlers out so perhaps the count there goes up to 3 again, I haven't decided. I have added 3 Hammer and 3 Display now maindeck. Display of Honour is surprisingly good even in a deck unlikely to bring two weapons back to use once again, here it also serves as a nasty trick on Vargo to establish board position when your opponents really don't expect a control deck to be running a pump suite. It also grabs Deepforged Plate back if you get blown out, plus bonus goat content. This list is still very much in a great position. The Xo nerf actually kind of helps us, to make some decisions about the maindeck if nothing else!

Original Intro:
I got very tired of playing against FJS so when I saw Vargo Redclaw spoiled I absolutely knew I had to build around him, he gives that deck so many headaches!

So, little did I know that Direwolf would also release an absolutely savage midgame site as well, one that fits perfectly into our strategy: Korovyat Palace. We are going to be seeing that card everywhere, I promise you.

This deck is about pure value generation. We use the tried and tested 8 merchant package together with 1 market Xo of the Endless Hoard and 2 Jotun Hurler, alongside a range of other cards you can ship to the market if they do not fit your board position. We have numerous little two-card soft combos, the most obviously juicy is to make your opponent over-extend with a Vargo out, and then Harsh Rule them. That's often a game ending play, on curve.

People will note there are 4 Torch cards in this list, 4 Defiance, and 2 Vanquish. You can change the removal package to suit your style and your ladder meta. I find Defiance a good draw as the game goes on, and this deck really benefits from a clutch swing play by stunning a beefy dude on the block. I like Vanquishes for easily getting rid of Varas and establishing an uncontested Vargo early on. The market is pretty standard, note that you will quite often be going to get Rizahn because he is degenerate with aegis and endurance from our Site, but pressure plays with our Red Canyon Smuggler are also pretty common. You will be grabbing Xo back a lot too.

Match-ups: So far it wrecks FJS, which is the point. You need to play carefully against Reanimator, you only have one out against them unless you have a mitt full of Harsh Rules. Agro is pretty decent, they will have to spend a lot of resources getting rid of Vargo. The deck plays very similar to Jennev midrange anyways, and has a close match-up against it. The fight here is one for Board control, so getting a palace down with a unit out to absorb that +4/+4 and aegis is clutch.

Happy homecoming!

Details

Shiftstone Cost
Does not include campaign cost
39,500

Premium Cost
227,200

Influence Requirements
3 2 2

Power Sources
12 17 12 16

Power Calculator
Shiftstoned Icon View Deck on Shiftstoned

Deck Rarities
8 24 30 9

Card Types
16 5 30 4 25

Contains Cards From Campaigns
Dead Reckoning [Set1003]
Homecoming [Set1005]

Archetype
Control Midrange

Updated
April 9, 2019

Added
March 29, 2019

Views
15,078

Eternal Version
Homecoming

BBCode For Comments

Deck URL

Revisions (Since last major patch) April 9, 2019


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Comments

Jkjkgrl Eternal Version: 1.45.7
This deck is fucking cancer 20 minute game of spam board wipes. Made the new meta worse than crap. everyone is playing this garbage. Spam board wipes and card draw for 20 minutes. Now every time I see it I just turn my volume up go watch a movie and when I hear the timer do my turn. Then go back to the movie. They like drawn out bs. I'll draw this out for 2 hours.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45.7
Sorry not sorry that the deck is a good ladder choice.
Jkjkgrl Eternal Version: 1.45.7
Well the good news is that because of this cheese I put vargo in my deck and ppl auto resign, because of this deck, I don't even have harshrule in the damn deck. Just pledge nonsense.
LycaNinja Eternal Version: 1.45.6
This deck hates giving me power fr
LycaNinja Eternal Version: 1.45.6
Yeah, fuck this deck...
reyid Eternal Version: 1.45.3
why no Telut on market? have a decent sinergy with vargo, is better rizahn than Telut?
martyvburen Eternal Version: 1.45.2
This deck is so much fun in the current meta. I went back to your previous market, and replaced Howling Peak with Hailstorm. I found I needed something to deal with go-wide decks like Praxis tokens and Haunted Highway.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45.3
That sounds very sensible, and while I am not seeing a ton of go wide at the moment, I would do the exact same thing as you if I did!
Tossthegoats Eternal Version: 1.45
Nothing is more satisfying than your opponent using Harsh Rule and then conceding because Vargo lives.
Epsilon Eternal Version: 1.45
I thought I knew pure joy in Eternal, but I learned I didn't know the half of it until the first time I put +4/+4 and Aegis on Vargo Redclaw, then gave him Berserk, then Harsh Ruled a massive enemy board and double-swung for a virtual OTK. Palace and Vargo are just preposterous together. Excellent list! I think this will be particularly fun in Gauntlet where the AI overextends into sweepers like an eager teenager on a first date.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Thanks! Glad you are having fun with the list. The holy trinity of Vargo, Harsh Rule, and Palace is bringing me back to my Blue-White Control days in Mt:G, in a very good way.
Aesthetic Eternal Version: 1.45
I've also been trying to tune a list similar to yours so thanks for providing some different perspective of it. That said, I'm curious as to why you don't run Palace in the market as a 1-of with 8 merchants accessing it? I'm also concerned with only 2 runehammers - I haven't played much on ladder since Homecoming came out (bouncing in and out of top 100) - but I'm thinking that 3-4 is probably going to end up being the right number assuming these lists are popular. I also am wondering how come you're running 6 sweepers? I understand they're great with Vargo but is 4 Harsh rule and your removal suite not enough? Great list regardless, thanks.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
I don't run a market palace set up because that makes us use purely inferior merchants for one thing. 2 Runehammers vs 4, you can tweak if you want more of them, I find them either amazing or garbage and very rarely anything in-between, if this deck does become popular then they will be quite useful against Vargos in the mirror, but without running a display package and changing other core aspects of the deck they are still somewhat of an outlier. One option is to place that 5 cost Weapon Quickdraw gunslinger in the market and run 4 hammers, basically attempting to lock out everything under 4 toughness. But I don't think this is the deck for that particular strategy.
Aesthetic Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
Thanks for the reply! I was suggesting running 1 Palace in the market with your current 8 smuggler package similar to how FTP runs 8 smugglers and 1 Howling Peak in the market.

Also: do you find the end of the story useful as well?
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
I do find it useful yeah, it's good against aegis and Hooru generally. I think you could take the 3 Palace out if you want to but then we need to start asking a lot of other questions about the deck's design, partially because when you're fighting for the board there is nothing better than palaces back to back, letting one pop a Svetya and then playing another to give her aegis and +4, and locking the opponent out for a turn? Insane. Plus with peaks in the market you have access to much of the same functionality. It will work I am sure, just not sure it's the same.
Prometheus Eternal Version: 1.45
I feel like you've made the deck worse lol

But 3 Torch cannot be correct, it's a 4-of if you are in Fire.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Going to 4 won't be hard. Why do you think this version is worse?
RastaViking29 Eternal Version: 1.45
I played your list from the other day from D2 to Master. This list is worse. While the 2P is clunky, Wisdom is the perfect play before Vargo. You want him, a sweeper, and merchants.

Torch is my favorite card but Defiance overprforms here. It kills pumped Rakano units and stalls the opponent and encourages playing into sweepers.

Gavel basically beats FJS in my experience. They need to display their creatures to have any chance. It also beats reanimator.

Losing Lingering Influence seems okay for Torch. I use the scout to find what I need regularly.

Thanks for the list. I plan on playing it some more and doing some tuning.
NoMaD24 Eternal Version: 1.45
Well i would agree with the statement. My reason is that you have a few issues !!! in my opinion !!!
1. If you fire you play 4 Torches. Ask any Magic player if they would cut Bolt in a Deck that runs Fire, they will laught at you, same goes for Torch in Eternal.
2. While Honor of Claws is a new card and its fun to try it its nothing more then a gimmick , that takes up spots in the deck and the curve. You have 4 Strat. and 4 Wisdom from the Sites, so the Deck has enough draw as is. Also if you want to run extra draw: In a Midrange control Deck Wisdom is always better then Honor. Drawing 2 for 3 is almost always better. Honor is better in Combo Decks, because in a Combo Deck you want to see more cards to get your combo and you dont mind paying 1 more for that.
3. Also as i mentioned in another psot already i really cant stress enough how good Hammer is in this format and skipping on it feels just wrong to me.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
I've taken all this (and the above) onboard, and updated the list with 2 hammers, 4 torch total, and dropped Claws. I think we're getting somewhat closer to a tight list now.
UtopiaTree Eternal Version: 1.45
What if we discard Privilege of Rank to Honor of Claws to make it a draw 5?
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Ooooh that has potential for sure. Might need to redo the list with bulletshapers and honor the claws in order to really make use of the engine, but it sounds really good for ramping out those palaces and big plays.
HamAndSwiss Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
I tried doing exactly this and really struggled to get it to work. Theoretically you could cut some seeks for PoR, i think i cut some hurlers and some removal for the bulletshapers and 2 claws. These maybe werent the right cuts but that is besides my point.

The issue i found from here is that you need to really heavily tweak the power base and put in a hell of a lot more J sigils, which means you lose a lot of your 2 color power and i found myself getting influence screwed and only finding green power. Sure it worked sometimes but i didnt feel like it justified the changes, especially because we dont have THAT many things to ramp into, unlike the FJS bulletshaper lists that ran multiple Rhizan's and stuff.

Not saying its wrong, just didnt seem worth cutting the merchant package, and i dont really know what else you could trim to free up 10 slots.

Sidenote: i have never pulled banner from the market because this already has so much fixing with seek/cargo. In fact, i flood way more often than I screw. I feel like you could either replace that banner or cut some cargos/seeks.
ClubbingSealCub Eternal Version: 1.45
I hate that this deck is good. It's Defiance release all over again.
Jkjkgrl Eternal Version: 1.45.7
Me too I hate this deck just played 30 minutes of this garbage.
mindthief666 Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
well in a few days everybody will play Casualties of the Cause
Jkjkgrl Eternal Version: 1.45.7
How does this work against this disgusting deck?
mindthief666 Eternal Version: 1.45.7
not really a fire player tbh, so haven't tried. I fight justice with good old Feln control
VolteCaptp Eternal Version: 1.45
Thx for sharing, the deck is fun and pretty strong. Personally i prefer remove 2 Jotun Hurler and Rizahn, Greatbow Master to put 2 Jotun Feast-Caller (work great with Korovyat Palace and can draw) and Yushkov, the Usurper who is very great vs aggro.

Also i change Honor of Claws for the most classical and most cheaper Wisdom of the Elders
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
All fair changes, Yushkov in the market then? because 3R early can be hard! Maybe consider Torrential Downpour
NoMaD24 Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
I feel like any Justice deck should be running up to 3 Runehammers regardless of the type of deck. Its just so strong right now. It removes Vargo clean, kills Merchants, kills maiden. I think if you green you want 3 Hammers in the Deck
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
There's definitely space for it in here if you want it. You can swap 1 for 1 with Vanquishes, torches, anything really. I'd add a few Ixtun Goat removals to this deck if I went that route.
NoMaD24 Eternal Version: 1.45
I actually am playing both as 3-of's So 3 Display + 3 Runehammer
HamAndSwiss Eternal Version: 1.45
What did you cut for the 3 display 3 hammer?
NoMaD24 Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
Im just gonna post my version, it also runs 4 Torches so its very different.

Edit: https://eternalwarcry.com/decks/details/Svf6eGx66rc/ixtun-good-stuff
HamAndSwiss Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
Interesting, this is very close to mine. Thanks!
Shadowcran Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
Looks very, very good. Have you considered trading your 2 x Wisdom of the Elders for 2 x Honor of Claws? or replacing an item in the market for The Winter Crown?

Now, I'm not very good at knowing the weapons but wouldn't a Regent's Blade on Vargo make him immune to most, if not all, removal, can't be damaged by blocks or defending or even take stat damage?
EJBLanky Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
I hadn't considered Honor of Claws but it's 100% on brand with bears, so well worth testing! A Winter Crown is an interesting choice, you could cut the Peaks for it if you wanted to really. And yeah you could make Vargo invincible to all non-transformation effects with that weapon, it's just that the cost is prohibitive. I like watching people two-for-one themselves on Vargo and then play as if they won the round... they definitely didn't.
Ninjacan Eternal Version: 1.45
I'm playing basically this, but with 4 torch. I also added 2 display and 2 runehammer, really good cards, want to mess around with them. I cut a hurler, a wisdom(might be right to cut both) trimmed vanquishes and defiance as well as lingering influence (I think it's pretty bad in trifaction).

the deck has so much card advantage with both merchants being red, I find myself just swapping Xo back and forth every game, not to mention the new site has wisdom stapled on. I kinda feel like the market needs a power though. probably cut gavel since we're a harsh rule deck, idk. I love the plate because of Vargo, but it might be unnecessary. also maybe kaleb's choice over bore, more flexible, can stop a grasp. just some thoughts

thanks for the list :)
EJBLanky Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
You're welcome! Cutting Wisdom makes sense, it's definitely not essential, and you could trim gavel to add a vanquisher's blade to the market, and that might actually be even better vs reanimator, seeing as they have only a tiny number of ways pre-combo to deal with Vargo. I've since cut the Lingering Influences (and need to update this), as you're correct, they aren't great in tri-faction and there are other ways to scry, notably land :)

There's plenty to play with in this shell for sure, and I reckon someone much better than me at deck design will end up creating a more definitive version. I have tons of Vanquish in at the moment mainly to handle baby Vara and Heart of the Vaults, but they can certainly come down in favour of maindeck blades. The draw go playstyle changes a bit in that case, and you commit to the board a bit harder, but on a Vargo that is pretty damn safe all things considered.
anti_fun Eternal Version: 1.45
Vargo is so sick! Thanks for posting this, it feels like a really strong shell for the new Ixtun cards to fit into. I've played around with a bunch of substitutions and am pretty satisfied with -1 Defiance, -4 Vanquish, +2 Torch, +3 Vanquisher's Blade, plus Kaleb's Choice instead of Gavel in the market. I've only gotten the Vargo+Harsh Rule combo off a few times but It's so insane when it works. I hope Vargo Palace pushes Chains out of the meta forever.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Me too. Having my bear stare down their chains is pretty fun. Did you know that when Vargo has aegis on him, harsh rule doesn't even pop it? Feels absolutely degenerate when that happens.
anti_fun Eternal Version: 1.45
Yeah it's super gross. Just hit Master with this, by the way, so thanks again for posting it!
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Very welcome, I'm having tons of fun with the deck myself, most enjoyable climb in a long time and I am super thankful that Homecoming gave us such great cards to brew with.
Depraved Eternal Version: 1.45
This deck is pretty fun! Thanks for sharing.
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Thanks! Glad you like it and that it is working for you.
SavajCabbaj Edited Eternal Version: 1.45
Awesome. Awesome, awesome, awesome. Vargo Redclaw and Korovyat Palace are just what I’ve been missing for Ixtun. I’ve been running a similar list (ahem, for about an hour), and here’s a few of my thoughts so far.

I tried your suggestion of dropping Torch for a full 4x Defiance, and it’s been an improvement, most of the time. I do occasionally miss Torch’s ability to pop aegis eot before Harsh Rule, without having to wait for an attack. Also weakens Howling Peak Smuggler’s board presence. Going to try some combination of 3/1, 4/1, or 3/2. One of those seems more right to me.

I’ve never liked Vanquish in the maindeck. I dunno. They always seem to appear when it’s inconvenient, and I tend to just sit on them to feed Strategize or a merchant. I’ve moved one to the market, and have been trying out some combination of Linebreaker’s Shield and Vanquisher’s Blade. Worse removal, but I seem to cast either far more often than vanilla Vanquish. Linebreakers curves really nicely with Vargo, and helps out in a lot of situations where I wish I had a board wipe in hand. Often get to land a 3-for-1, force a better trade, or get through for 7. Also competently fits on a Smuggler or Jotun Hurler if you’ve got nothing better to do.

I’m currently missing Deepforge Plate and Howling Peak, but I’ve been temporarily running Nostrix, Lord of Vision in the side. There’s definitely better options, and I’ll probably switch back to something else in the side, but Nostrix has been fun with the Ixtun Smuggler package.

Other thing I wanted to try is Wanted Poster with the 5th wipe in the side. Seems good here, heavily favoring Vargo in trades. Anywho, cheers! Super excited for Ixtun now ^-^
EJBLanky Eternal Version: 1.45
Great comments and suggestions, thanks! I will try out a better split on torch/defiance because I suspect you're right, and 3/2 or even 3/3 might be better. Maybe shave 1 or more 1-drop land searches, since I'm pretty reliably hitting 6 every game at the moment.