Inspired by the discovery of a new tri-faction card in FoA,
Cirso's Cleaver, which is a pretty reasonable card even without spellcraft, with it it's just a backbreaking value play, and I'm really enjoying playing it. I nearly killed someone with 1/1 frogs wearing these things the first day I tried this deck, and it was sweet.
The deck can play a reasonably fast midrange plan- BSH is your only 6-drop, though Predatory Carnosaur might be a good play here, It's on the list of cards to experiment with, and you can get on the board with some powerful 3, 4 and 5-drops, but you don't sacrifice any value or ability to remove your opponents' creatures for that early aggression, which is I think this deck's big leg up over any similar Elysian Lists, while its aggression is a leg up over anything similar in Feln, and both getting out faster and harder with False Prince and drawing through the deck easier give it legs up on Xenan decks.
I'm really enjoying this deck so far, it feels strong, like a good midrange deck. I can rush down control decks, I can get good card draw going, and I'm getting on the board fast enough to contest agro. We are still in the early days of the expansion where the decks are more fun shenanigans than actually good still, but I like where this deck is headed. Suggestions for improving it are of course welcome.
This is the 2.0 version, after a bit more testing-
Petition isn't as good a card as I hoped it was, and my ongoing love affair with
Feln Bloodcaster since I tried to make a Shadow Chalice deck back before Omens dropped has re-surfaced here, and I'm on the fence about if it's any good. I do like it against agro, often able to trade for a unit and a torch or a Mortar if you're lucky, which adds up to saving you a solid amount of life, and it does good things against control.... but I'm not convinced those are the things you want to be doing
in this deck against control. That said, I originally added it to have more early plays that will stick around to carry cleaver, and it does that job extremely well. Relinquary Raider might be better, not sure.
The other really big changes are that I moved entirely away from 4-power removal, simply because I need to remember that this isn't a control deck- the gameplan is to kill your opponent with big time bodies, and damnit that's what I intend to do. I want better removal than Elysian, but that doesn't mean the same removal package as Feln Control. This deck needs to be able to remove something and make another play, or at least cast its removal spells early, which is why we're running 8 removal spells that all cost 3 or less.
Dark Return
x2
1
Permafrost
x2
1
Seek Power
x4
2
Annihilate
x4
2
Disjunction
x2
2
Rindra's Choice
x2
3
Banish
x4
3
False Prince
x4
3
Feln Bloodcaster
x4
3
Hailstorm
x4
3
Wisdom of the Elders
x4
4
Sandstorm Titan
x4
5
Cirso's Cleaver
x3
5
Jotun Feast-Caller
x4
6
Black-Sky Harbinger
x3
Primal Sigil
x2
Shadow Sigil
x2
Time Sigil
x2
Crest of Cunning
x3
Crest of Mystery
x3
Crest of Wisdom
x4
Seat of Cunning
x3
Seat of Mystery
x3
Seat of Wisdom
x3
View Deck on Shiftstoned
I just built this sans Feast Caller (subbing between Cirso, Rindra, and Worldbearer), and I agree with your sentiments about being able to curb early aggression while being able to land some monster top-end stuff. The manabase seems a bit shakey, which is obvious considering the recentness of the set, and lack of testing.
I'll get some more games in over the next day or two and report back.
Please, bring back feedback once you've played more, would love to trade ideas on improving the deck.
4 Annihilate (Set1 #269)
2 Disjunction (Set3 #63)
2 Petition (Set4 #274)
2 Rindra's Choice (Set4 #261)
3 Banish (Set2 #207)
4 False Prince (Set1 #356)
3 Hailstorm (Set1003 #11)
4 Reliquary Raider (Set1 #110)
2 Feeding Time (Set1 #381)
4 Sandstorm Titan (Set1 #99)
3 Cirso's Cleaver (Set4 #270)
3 Black-Sky Harbinger (Set1 #385)
4 Primal Sigil (Set1 #187)
3 Shadow Sigil (Set1 #249)
3 Time Sigil (Set1 #63)
3 Crest of Cunning (Set3 #267)
2 Crest of Mystery (Set4 #266)
3 Crest of Wisdom (Set3 #261)
1 Seat of Cunning (Set0 #62)
3 Seat of Mystery (Set0 #61)
3 Seat of Wisdom (Set0 #63)
4 Cirso, the Great Glutton (Set1 #362)
3 Seek Power (Set1 #408)
3 Permafrost (Set1 #193)
4 Second Sight (Set1 #207)
So, after a day of testing I've found the deck to have a lot of game against most of the field. I've ironed out numbers for the removal suite that I feel are pretty solid. I also, recently cut In Cold Blood due to the double Shadow influence being too much for the deck to reach with the current way manabases are setup; Permafrost has been subbed in as a replacement for the "catch-all" removal card along with.
False Prince, while a very solid early beater, feels too influence hungry and just a little soft against the amount of Icaria Blue, and other hard control decks I'm facing on the ladder.
Reliquary Raider is a solid card advantage engine that is pretty great against early game aggression, and helps the deck gas back up in the late game. Unfortunately, due to her usually only getting one draw/block I feel like Temple Scribe or Strategize might be need to replace her.
I feel a split of ( ~5 minimum) Seek Power and Petition is required to ensure we have consistent access to undepleted power.
The biggest cut I made was the playset of Wisdom of the Elders due to the influence requirements. Instead I opted to run Second Sight for the instant speed cantrip.
Anyway, I'd love to hear your findings, and or any feedback.
PS: a similar deck idea was featured in an RNGEternal article
I ended up cutting Raider not for either of your suggestions, but for Feln Bloodcaster. Card is better than it gets credit for, and I really like it. Don't know if it's right for this deck, and probably should at least be cut down to 2 or 3 copies, but it does useful things against agro, it eventually does things against control, and it carries a Cleaver like a freaking champ.
I'd play Strategize before 2nd Sight myself, but that one's your call. I'm having some influence trouble, but not a huge amount, it's workable. I could probably cut Bloodcasters so I only need 1S if it were really bothering me. I'm avoiding Cirso because I didn't want any cards that cost double influence in more than 1 faction, but I also haven't tested the Pig Giant- how's she treating you? You think she's worth it? I'm still standing with Feastcaller myself.
Edit: as for the article- You'll notice a bunch of the cards on the list aren't crafted. That's an untested version, someone threw that together in a vaccume as a suggestions for people to play around with. Which is all well and good, and a fun suggestions- I'm having a blast with the deck, and hope more people see that article and go "Hey, this might be fun", but I wouldn't take too serious of suggestions from it simple because our actual experience playing the deck is worth something.
myself feel might be good with the newest set, so don't worry I don't blindly copy those lists ;)
I think your argument for Prince is solid, and after leaving Silver (haven't really been playing this month) I agree with your sentiments; I mean the worst that could happen is that it eats a Torch or Favor.
While I agree with your assessment of Feln Bloodcaster as a card, I disagree with it's inclusion. Bloodcaster is a greater body to block against aggro, but beyond that it's ultimate is irrelevant in this deck. By turn 7 we're hopefully Spellcrafting Cleaver, obliterating the board, and swinging for lethal, or playing out removal/Harbinger to stabilize. The ult is meant for control mirrors and feels like win-more in this deck. I'm sure we'll come to a conclusion on 2 or 3-drop soon (Dreamsnatcher and Ayan, the Abductor look enticing if only just for their keywords).
Cirso is excellent and wears Cleaver the best (who'da thunk it). Being able to get in seven to nine damage for *almost* free is great, and it takes 5 blockers* to kill him in combat. Definitely worth the craft. Influence isn't an issue if you add less Shadow tech, and run the deck as Elysian splash Shadow (think BGx decks from Magic).
Also, I feel like cutting Feeding Time entirely is wrong due to the limited options we have for recurring or multicolor units. A play like an activated Champion of Cunning getting Dark Returned is absolutely a lose us. Same thing for a Tavrod snowball, HotV spam, or, god forbid, a massive Icaria.
*five blockers when wearing Cirso's Cleaver
Though I'm going to disagree on Cirso as best Cleaver carrier simply because people auto-concede when you cast a spellcraft cleaver on a Jotun Feastcaller, kill 2 of their units and draw cards from the killer attack. And they aren't wrong to. Also just buff are better on Aegis creatures, and the buff in general makes attacking with Feastcaller a no-brainer.
Ayan may not be very good due to his double Shadow requirement which means we need double influence for each faction by turn three to play all of our three drops, so that suggestion is probably void.
I honestly don't consider the triple Primal for Feastcaller on 5 power any harder than double Primal on 3 for Wisdom of the Elders. I mean, comparing them like that, yeah, I definitely believe that Cirso's Influence isn't an issue. I'm also willing to take that risk considering it works a lot more than it bites me, and the reward is pretty strong.
I mean, I'm also coming to this deck from playing Feln, where you just don't play threats without Aegis other than BSH, so I feel kinda naked relying on big threats that die to a single removal spell, which is part of why I'm resistant on Cirso. That's at least part of the issue.