Friday, November 13, 2015

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT! Phoenix Fire and Wizard Den Joining Forces


Hello Boise Magic Community,

As some of you have already heard Phoenix Fire Meridian and Wizard Den are combining forces officially. There are a myriad of reasons for this change, but most stem from one store with a larger inventory and two motivated owners can provide a better quality of products and events then either individually.

So what does that mean for you?

First, Wizard Den in Boise will be closing its doors Saturday Nov 21st. We will be moving all the inventory, store credit and Five Stars points to Phoenix Fire Meridian in the following weeks.

We will then be rebranding and relaunching Phoenixfiregames.com to reflect these changes by Friday Dec 4th.

We want you to know we are very excited for this new venture and what it will be able to bring to this wonderful community, and we hope you are too! In an effort to provide as seamless a transition as possible, we will be changing the weekly event schedule at Phoenix Fire to reflect the best of both stores.

Effective December 1st. at Phoenix Fire in Meridian
Monday: $10 Modern at 7pm
Tuesday: $10 Legacy at 7pm (No Proxies)
Wednesday: $12 Draft at 7pm
Thursday: $5 Competitive Standard/ GPT at 7pm
Friday: $5 Standard 4 round FNM at 7pm, Midnight $12 Draft
Saturday/ Sunday: Special events and other games.

Sunday, October 25, 2015

Winter is Coming

It's time for some new hours for the cold months. All of our events will stay the same except for the chaos drafts. They will now be upon request, simply message me on Facebook and I will open the doors on a Tuesday for you as long as we have enough interest in the event. Also if our close time falls before the end of an event we will of course stay open through the event and likely for a while afterward. With that info lets take a look at our winter schedule.

Effective November 1st
Monday: 5pm-11pm
Tuesday: CLOSED
Wednesday: 5pm-11pm
Thursday: 5pm-11pm
Friday: Noon-1am
Saturday: 1pm-9pm
Sunday: Noon-5:30pm

If you have any questions please let us know via Facebook or phone call.

Thursday, October 22, 2015

Making Mediocre Mythics Meaningful

I am sure many of you read the cardboard crack comics and saw their recent one about writing an article to try to boost the price of a junk mythic. If you've been reading my articles on Wizardden.com for awhile you know I was that guy who wrote an article on The Great Aurora. While I would still call it a junk mythic I assure you I legitimately play it and have grown to love it. Since the original article I wrote on the deck I have evolved the strategy thanks to local input from Ian Brune and fellow Aurora caster Rob VanNostrand as well as some Japanese pro players and their crazy deck lists. Many of you have been asking about my current list and today I will share it. I wanted to wait until I was happy with the list and sure of the direction I want to go.

Planeswalker (5)
1x Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
2x Ob Nixilis Reignited
2x Ugin, the Spirit Dragon

Creature (8)
4x Arashin Cleric
2x Nissa, Vastwood Seer
2x Ugin's Construct

Enchantment (5)
3x Demonic Pact
2x Retreat to Kazandu

Sorcery (13)
2x End Hostilities
3x Explosive Vegetation
4x Languish
1x Ruinous Path
3x The Great Aurora

Instant (3)
3x Abzan Charm

Land (26)
2x Blighted Woodland
2x Canopy Vista
1x Caves of Koilos
2x Fertile Thicket
4x Forest
2x Llanowar Wastes
3x Plains
4x Sandsteppe Citadel
2x Shambling Vent
4x Swamp

Sideboard
3x Dromoka's Command
1x End Hostilities
2x Felidar Sovereign
2x Gaea's Revenge
1x Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
2x Rakshasa Deathdealer
1x Ruinous Path
1x Tragic Arrogance
2x Utter End

The first thing you probably noticed is the inclusion of Demonic Pact. That came for those crazy guys over seas, however they were all in on that plan and had next to no back up plan. While it is amazing and represents an 'Aurora count' of plus five if you use all three modes and kill a creature with it, I wanted to keep the control aspects of the deck in favoring wrath over ramp spells making the deck slower but more reliable. I'm not going to recap all the basic ideas of the archetype, you can find those in the original article here. What you do need to know is this deck involves a lot of counting. It is played best when you know the number of cards in both players hands and libraries without having to ask as well as the 'Aurora count' for each player at any given moment. Your life total is also an extremely important resource as it represents the number of turns you can wait to make your big play. Your goal here is to get to seven cards over them before popping your first Aurora to ensure a favorable post Aurora board. Prior to the release of Battle for Zendikar I had already made the change to Abzan to better answer some parts of the format and include the Pacts, but the new set added a whole new dimension to the deck.
Take a moment and read the Ob Nixilis emblem above and then do the math on the resolution of a Great Aurora. Sure an emblem isn't a reliable  main game plan, but it happens faster than people expect thanks to all the wrath and removal impeding their ability to stop the demon's ultimate. Gideon and Nissa also add a level of interaction to my early plays that the prerotation version was missing. The surprise all star I want to highlight the most though is Retreat to Kazandu. This whole deck is based on me trying to relive the glory days of Sphinx's Revelation through The Great Aurora but with the loss of Radiant Fountain the life gain was gone, well too bad Wizards because I made my own Radiant Fountains with the green Retreat and now they're even better because I can search them out with ramp spells and tap them for colors.

So far I have only dropped a single match with this deck, but before I can brag about my X-1 record you should know I haven't played as many events as I usually do this month. Going forward I am looking at adding Gideon's Reproach and Ultimate Price somewhere in here to better deal with the new version of Atarka Red since Arashin Cleric doesn't stump them like it used to. Be sure to check out Wizardden.com's new $10 Win-a-Box FNMS and our competitive thursday night standards where I will be playing the Demonic Aurora almost every week.

Monday, October 19, 2015

Weekly Win-a-Box

That's right, Wizardden.com is now hosting a weekly Win-a-Box event. This will be our Friday Night Magic 7pm Standard event. Last week we did this as a welcome back to Magic the Gathering for our owner Nick Crabbs but when we asked if people wanted to see more events like that we received a resounding yes. So here it is, check out our new FNM structure:

$10 Entry
Standard Format
Regular Rule Enforcement
Rounds based on attendance (5 round maximum)
1st place prize: Box or $108 credit
Everyone gets at least one pack
Additional prizes based on attendance and awarded to those with a positive record
FNM promo to 1st, 2nd and three random players

If $5 standard is more your thing we do have competitive standard on Thursdays. These are usually four rounds with a cut to top four and everyone gets a promo. Come on down and train with the best, join the ranks of players who keep placing higher and higher at pptqs and other local competitive events.

Sunday, October 11, 2015

Big Weekend: Win-a-Box and Two PPTQs

 For those of you who don't know Wizardden.com's owner Nick Crabbs runs another business and this other business has devoured all of his free time to the point he hasn't played magic at all for most of this year. That's all about to change though, Nick is making time in his busy life to come back to our community at least for FNM. To celebrate this on the 16th we are hosting a Win-a-Box FNM, check out all the details below.
7:00pm
$10 Entry
Standard Format
Increased general prize support
Box of Battle for Zendikar to first place
FNM promos to 1st, 2nd, and three random players
3 boosters packs to anyone who beats Nick Crabbs
Swiss Rounds (no top cut)
Regular Rule Enforcement
Pizza provided by Nick

That is only the beginning though, Wizardden.com and Phoenix Fire Games have once again teamed up to bring you a double header PPTQ weekend. First up at Wizard Den on Saturday the 17th we have a $35 Sealed PPTQ. Remember that under the recent procedure update you get to keep the pool you open so no need to drop just because you see something super shiny in your packs. Phoenix Fire Games in Meridian will then be hosting a $25 Standard PPTQ on Sunday the 18th. As with all our team up weekends there is a discount special, it will only cost you $50 if you register for both events at the same time. This can be done at either store, but you must register for both events at once if you want the discount. The key points of each event are below.

Sealed PPTQ
10/17/15
Wizard Den
$35 entry
11am Registration
Noon Player Meeting
Competitive Rule Enforcement
Top 8 Draft
$200 First Place Travel Stipend

Standard PPTQ
10/18/15
Phoenix Fire Games in Meridian
$25 Entry
11am Registration
Noon Player Meeting
Competitive Rule Enforcement
Top 8 Cut
$200 First Place Travel Stipend

$50 Combined Entry can be purchased at either store.

Monday, October 5, 2015

PPTQ Recap and a Look at Week 1 Standard



Hey everyone, Josh here with wizardden.com. What a week it has been! The excitement of the prerelease is still in the air, week one of standard is in the books, and here in Boise we had our first BFZ limited PPTQ which I am happy to say I took down. I look forward to traveling back to the RPTQ and am hopeful that I'll be able to finally achieve my goal of reaching the Pro Tour.

Today I would like to briefly touch on some of the lessons I learned at the PPTQ as well as some of the cards and archetypes that can lead to great success in BFZ draft. I'd also like to talk a little about the first SCG Open that happened in Indianapolis over the weekend. It is my hope that this content will drive your BFZ experiences in both limited and constructed to be...

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We'll start with the PPTQ. I showed up at the first shop I ever played at, All About Games, at 9AM, the event started at 10 but after having moved out of the direct Boise area I really wanted to try to add a little extra time to be able to see my Boise friends and RogueT3ch teammates. I felt light and bubbly like I always do at a limited event until I got passed my pool. My great friend and someone I consider my limited mentor Tim Z ended up shipping his pool to me during deck swap and after glancing over the pool I started to re-evaluate my relationship with Tim. My rares consisted of 2x Beastcaller Savant, 2x Sanctum of Ugin, Zada, Hedron Grinder, and Defiant Bloodlord. My thoughts were as follows: "Tim is a wizard. He controls the packs and what is inside of them. Why would he do this to me unless he has my downfall in his sights??" I shrugged it off and gave him grief after building a R/G Landfall deck that splashed for Skyrider Elf. After both of us had a fair laugh at my expense I went outside to swear at the sun for my misfortune.

Round 1 I played a fellow who I had seen his name but never met, Gene Chandler I believe. we had a great match of magic with both of us playing a R/G Landfall deck. Not a lot of heavy hitting happened but the games all came down to the wire and I walked away feeling very lucky to have started my day 1-0.

1-0

Round 2 I found myself playing good friend and former teammate from the old Team Pro Soul days, Matt Englebart. Matt has played on the Pro Tour a few times and is always very precise in his games of magic. His deck didn't disappoint either, all six of his rares made his deck in some way or another and cards like Endless One as well as Serpentine Spike were giving me the shakes the whole match. Somehow (I'm still trying to work out all the details myself) my double Beastcaller Savant as my only rare in the deck pulled off the win in two games and I was feeling much better about my odds of at least getting to draft.

2-0

Round 3 another friend Charlie Hodges and I squared off. I took my first loss of the five round event to a deck that both Charlie and I agreed wasn't great but sure had some staying power. Game one I had him at two 2-3 times, however, incremental life-gain via Ondu Rising and Courier Griffin was enough to turn the tides and allow him to pull of game one. Game two was underwhelming but more or less the same, Charlie gained life and went very wide and I just couldn't keep up.

2-1

Round 4 I played against Shannon who's last name slips my mind. She was on a U/B control deck that I had no business winning against. Game one she decimated me with removal and efficient creatures and game two a string of 1/1's and lands led to a quick concession on my behalf.

2-2

With a fairly low turn out at PPTQ's in our area I knew 3-2 could still make top 8. I wasn't overly excited to see I was paired against Kyle Monson who has been playing for years and is a very talented player. He was very underwhelmed by his deck as well and our games went my way. I was quite nervous about getting the win and didn't note much about his deck as this round had to be all business for my tournament to continue. I felt lucky to have won here which boosted my confidence going in to the draft.

3-2 7th Seed for Top 8 draft.

With draft time coming up I realized I hadn't drafted this set, I hadn't even thought about drafting this set as the last article I had written was  prerelease primer for wizardden.com all about the Battle for Zendikar sealed format. I asked my only loss during prerelease weekend Alex Starr if he had drafted and what the format was like. I didn't get a lot of answers but I at least felt better talking about the format then going in completely blind.

Pack one I found myself with a very weak pack and took Sunken Hollow as a "well at least I get a rare if everything goes south from here." I then found myself drafting blue flier after blue flier and coupling it with some great fliers in black and getting some removal as well. The real highlight of my deck was the singleton Halimar Tidecaller and double Clutch of Currents. I was able to use these to tempo my opponents out and keep flying over until my opponent hit 0. All of my matches went as planned. I had to fight through Evan Nelson who went in as the two seed round one. He was on a U/R devoid deck that was able to take me to a game three where I was able to come out way ahead with my tempo spells, winning with two removal spells and another flier in hand.

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Round two was a grind and included what was probably the best game of magic I had played all day. Dan Brubaker is a guy I always enjoy playing as it is always all fun and smiles. Game one I was able to get ahead with my fliers early despite being on the draw and produced far too much board presence for Dan to keep up. Game two things didn't go so well, I found myself at two life while Dan was sitting on a cool 20. He exerted a lot of force and cards in the early game which allowed me to stabilize, I made a great triple block on a Vestige of Emrakul when he had Stasis snare in hand which allowed me two 1.5 for 1 myself and get back ahead on board. Several turns later the game had turned around and I had 2-0'd my way into the finals.

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I sit down across from Jim Greaves who laughs and says "Rematch from the Pre-Release finals." I guess it is I though after having squared off against Jim in the finals of the midnight prerelease. Our games were very close but the power of Halimar Tidecaller showed. I was able to get two lands in the air among my arsenal of fliers and was able to take down the match 2-0 and lock myself in for the first RPTQ of 2016.

I learned a lot about the draft format and a lot of my inclinations were correct. Fliers are huge in this set. A lot of the efficient creatures spend their time on the ground and it is very hard for those decks to handle an arsenal of fliers. This makes cards like Giant Mantis great as well as Eldrazi Skyspawner, Windrider Patrol, Malakir Familiar and pretty much any flier other than Kitesail Scout. I also learned that removal is great but don't over prioritize it. You'll get your Demon's Grasps late and should really only be prioritizing the good stuff (Complete Disregard, Touch of the Void, Grip of Desolation, Stasis Snare, Unnatural Aggression) 3-5 removal spells will make your deck sound and paired with a few fliers and a great ground game you'll find yourself in a great position.

I would like to briefly touch on standard now that we have the results of the first major tournament. Abzan is still in the heezy as they would say with more copies of Abzan aggro making day 2 of the event than any other deck. Does this mean that Abzan is still going to be the wrecking force it was last season? My answer would have to be no. The format is still in it's infancy and it is easy for players to revisit an old favorite when a set comes out. You know the cards are good and you can find functional reprints of the cards that are now devoid (get it, devoid) from the deck. This theory is backed by the fact that only one Abzan variant (control) made the top 8 and was promptly eliminated.
The decks that a lot of people will be gearing up for will be Michael Majors G/W megamorph as well as the explosive Atarka Red that Brian Demars championed at the event. I've listed the two decks below for reference.
Personally, I am a fan of Major's deck. I didn't get a lot of time to brew up a new standard but the one deck I put a lot of hope in was G/W Mastery of the Unseen. Cards like Dromoka's Command, Den Protector, Deathmist Raptor, Hidden Dragonslayer, and the new diamond in the rough Felidar Sovereign were all things that peaked my interest after having played the original for several weeks last season. I realized that a lot of the decks losses came from simply not having enough time to win once you reached 100 life. Felidar Sovereign would put a stop to that.

While it wasn't the exact list that Major's took to the finals I brewed a similar list at the end of spoiler season. I think that there are a few variations that can be made to give the deck game against the entire field. I've tinkered with my original list and made a hybrid of the deck I originally brewed and Major's powerhouse. I think that this is where the list will turn in order to have a lot more game and to get a lot more free wins.

G/W Megamorph

4x Deathmist Raptor
4x Den Protector
2x Felidar Sovereign
3x Hidden Dragonslayer
3x Nissa, Vastwood Seer
4x Warden of the First Tree
4x Whisperwood Elemental
4x Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
4x Dromoka's Command
3x Mastery of the Unseen
1x Blighted Steppe
4x Canopy Vista
2x Flooded Strand
8x Forest
4x Plains
4x Windswept Heath
2x Wooded Foothills

Sideboard

3x Arashin Cleric
3x Evolutionary Leap
3x Radiant Purge
3x Stasis Snare
3x Valorous Stance
I hope that this information on both limited and standard will give you a jump start on winning in your local area or on Magic Online when the set drops on Friday. I'd love to hear any critique to the Megamorph deck so feel free to drop me some comments on here or tappedout.net.

Thanks for the read and happy battles,

Josh Kreiter

Monday, September 28, 2015

In the Wake of the Battle

This weekend was absolutely awesome. We had the highest numbers yet and even though we had the maximum allotment of kits we only had two left after starting the last event. This was Wizardden.com's biggest prerelease weekend and we would like to thank you all for making this possible. Now that the dust is settling and I have cleaned up the shop there are some important things I have to share about this week and the rest of the month.

The Vancouver mulligan is now in effect. If you forget exactly how it works, check out my article on it here. The new ban list has also been announced. No new changes to standard or modern. Legacy and Vintage however has some noteworthy changes. Dig Through Time is now banned and Black Vise has been unbanned in Legacy. Chalice of the Void and Dig Through Time have both been restricted and Thirst for Knowledge is no longer restricted in Vintage.
We have another cool promo this month so we are bringing back the FNM Side Events. First up is Battle for Zendikar Draft at 7:15 on Friday the 2nd. The following side events will be announced on our Facebook page weekly.

The last important note is in regards to some rules changes. If you haven't heard already the competitive penalty for drawing extra cards has been brought down from a Game Loss to your opponent picking a card from your revealed hand and shuffling it away. The new addition to this is the removal of the sometimes confusing caveat of how your drew the card. It used to be that if you drew legally from an illegal play such as casting Divination with the wrong colors you would not be penalized for drawing extra cards but instead penalized for improper casting of a spell. This lead to messy convoluted fixes, but thankfully we do not have to worry about that any more. Drawing extra cards is drawing extra cards, plain and simple.

Friday, September 25, 2015

Battle for Zendikar Prerelease Primer



Ahhhhhh, prerelease. I have enjoyed these since I started playing and I finally feel like as I have grown with the game, the prereleases have grown with me. I finally feel like all of this has caught up to the strides I have made in limited as we are now getting a "real" sealed format for the release of Battle for Zendikar. Instead of choosing your preferred color you will now get a much fancier box built to hold your deck and a straight 6 packs of Battle for Zendikar, a foil promo which can be any rare in the set, and of course, that sweet, sweet spin-down die to keep track of life. Before we get too far in I want to speculate that this is an awesome idea since we will no longer have to be told you are playing some garbage color because you showed up on Sunday. Also, this creates a very smooth transition for beginning players into the realm of competitive magic. Instead of getting this preconceived notion of what you will get to play you have to fight through the struggle of analyzing your pool and building the best deck you can. This change is especially welcomed for us in Idaho due to a limited PTQ that is scheduled for very soon after the set releases.

Before we dive in I'd like to let everyone know that I have changed the way that I will be writing this article for this set. Since we no longer have the option to choose a color assessing each individual colors strengths will no longer be necessary. Instead, I'll be breaking down the strengths, weaknesses, and what I feel are key cards for each of the ten two color combinations. I've also added images for each of the cards I feel to be a key to their archetypes to prevent so much reading (large sets make it hard to read these I know). I'm really excited for this change and hope it will help guide you to a successful prerelease. 

UW: Awaken/skies deck: There are not a lot of fliers in this set, but this color combination has the highest concentration of them by a mile. Based off the multi-colored, uncommon cycle Awaken is the geared theme for this color combination. There are only 10 Awaken cards in the color combination which makes it very difficult to have depth. Overall not my first choice for what I will be building.

Strengths: A large number of evasive creatures, multiple spells that double as creatures giving the deck a little more reach than it would without the awaken mechanic.

Weaknesses: Can't hold its own against Eldrazi or any of the other massive creatures in the format making it a need that the deck have won or is in a winning position by turn 8-10. Eldrazi will be a huge problem for this deck.

Heart of the Archetype:


Halimar Tidecaller: A 2/3 for 3 mana isn't the worst thing in limited and if you add some text to the card and it becomes an all star. Halimar Tidecaller's value goes up immensely when awaken cards are thrown in the mix. Sheer Drop and this card make a filthy combination that any mage should be salivating over.


Windrider Patrol: This card fits the bill of the skies finisher. A 4/3 flier for 5 mana is very playable especially when there isn't a lightning strike effect to set us back. The Scry 2 clause makes this a powerful finisher by putting a fast clock on your opponent and making sure that you have the key cards you need to close out a game. 


Gideon's Reproach: While this is a bit restrictive it is a good removal spell still. the fact that it hits blocking creature is a plus and allows you to sell bluff attacks in the early game relatively easily. It may not be at first but as people start to get a feel for the removal in the set this card will become a poker players best friend.


Sheer Drop: This is a huge piece of this archetype. As I mentioned earlier, this combos so well with Halimar Tidecaller and even stands alone very easily. Definitely play as many of these as you have.


Stasis Snare: This doesn't need to be in UW to be good. You have the ability to remove any creature at instant speed which is great. Taking it one step further you can now process the exiled card with several of the Eldrazi, making enchantment removal essentially worthless against this card.


Clutch of Currents: This is also a huge piece of the deck, being able to turn lands into creatures is pretty big game, anyone who watched the Community Cup debut the limited format last weekend will agree. Being able to bounce a creature or even a potential land is much better than it has been recently. I would gladly play 2 maybe even 3 of these in almost any blue deck. 


Coastal Discovery: Initially I was not a fan of this card. I for some reason refused to see it as Mulldrifter even though that is pretty much what we have here. After talking to a few teammates from the den I have since changed my mind and am fully behind this card as a one of especially in the awaken deck.


Roil Spout: This is a great tempo spell even if it is at sorcery speed. If you get a 4/4 out of the deal that becomes about the best six mana you can get your hands on, a great spell to buy back via Halimar Tidecaller as well.

RW: The intended Ally deck. There are a total of 16 Allies in the color combo not including cards that produce ally tokens. It is designed to be the aggressive deck by getting a snowball effect of allies going alongside decent aggressive removal in both colors. This deck may not need Eldrazi if you have the right deck. I am a fan of this color combination and would be happy to find the RW allies deck in my pool this weekend.

Strengths: This deck has several interchangeable cards that won't change the clock on your opponent. The deck is fast and can get out of hand if you opponent does not have early removal which seems to not be plentiful in this set.

Weaknesses: This deck is weak to any form of sweeper which there are only 2 true sweepers, one at uncommon one at rare. There is a mythic which will allow you to exile multiple permanents but this deck will generally play too many creatures for your opponent to get them all.

Heart of the Archetype:


Retreat to Emeria: This card can go in a number of decks but is particularly powerful here. Making an ally every turn is huge for this deck. Imagine triggering 2-3 insane rally effects every turn just for playing your land, and you get a 1/1 to boot. This deck will want to make the ally more often than not but pumping your team will definitely come up on occasion.


Resolute Blademaster: A 2/2 for five mana is pretty much never where you want to be. That can apparently be a rule that can be broken... Like this guy. There are a lot of times where this card will just win you the game. If you end up in naya and have the creatures get trample this guy becomes insane. 


Kor Bladewhirl: Similar to Resolute Blademaster but a lot cheaper. This is a great 2 drop in any deck as it provides some substance in the late game. First strike is a very potent ability at any stage of the game. I like cards that are good in all stages of the game and this one definitely fits the bill. 


Kor Castigator: A close to vanilla (we'll call it a swirl) 3/1 isn't the most exciting thing out there but the fact that this is an aggressively costed ally leads me to believe that casting a gator will be pretty good in an ally-centric deck.


Kor Entanglers: Another great Ally with an awesome rally ability. This card has respectable base stats as a 3/4 but the magic starts when you are consistently triggering the Rally ability. This isn't quite as strong as the Elite Scaleguard that dominated Fate Reforged limited but it does make me reminisce.


Firemantle Mage: A 2/2 for three isn't overly exciting, giving your team menace is super exciting making this a moderately exciting card. This card can win you the game out of no where. If a game goes long and you have the right pieces you can even have a huge surprise victory by going Firemantle Mage into Resolute Blademaster.


BW: Life gain matters.dec. 17 cards that involve gaining life or getting a benefit after gaining life in these colors, there are also lands that will add to this number. This deck seems exceptional if you have all of the pieces including the payoff card: Felidar Sovereign. This feels to be a middle of the pack color combination that I'll play if it's the best of what I have.

Strengths: The deck can keep a very nice cushion on its life total. It aims to grind out wins by draining life and having a few fliers available in both colors. It will have the most game against the aggressive decks as it can mitigate loss in the early turns and win the game off the back of fairly powerful fliers.

Weaknesses: the deck doesn't have a lot of raw power available to it. Eldrazi can be an issue as can several other large beat-down creatures. This makes removal a vital part of this archetype. Consistent pressure will cause this deck to crumble as it is more of a control strategy, so be weary of letting their 3-6 mana plays survive for too long. There are not many interchangeable parts to this deck making it very important to have a large majority of the cards listed below.

Heart of the Archetype


Drana's Emissary: This card is awesome. I love cards that drain and doing it incidentally makes it all the sweeter. I like a cheap flier as you are able to apply quite a bit of early pressure and adding drain effect makes this a potent threat.


Stone Haven Medic: This is a rather unassuming card. A 1/3 for 2 mana that can occasionally gain you A life isn't great. That changes with archetype as there are cards that get some pretty real buffs for gaining any number of life. Having 3-5 of those cards alone is enough to want to play this guy. Considering it blocks the grip of 2/2's running around and we have a pretty strong defender on our hands.


Bloodbond Vampire: Speaking of cards that get a sweet buff for gaining life... This guy is the real deal. If you have 2 or more ways out to abuse his ability you are going to have a great time. There isn't a ton of unconditional removal, meaning this guy can grow into a menace very quickly. I foresee many games won off the back of this card and I am very afraid of playing against it.


Kalastria Nightwatch: While this effect may not be permanent, it is certainly a powerful one. Anyone who has scoured the internet for prerelease advice has probably come across a few people spouting off about the value of 4/4's and up. Well this guy does it and at a reasonable price. This card will be great on the ground or in the air and I would be happy to play 2 in any black deck with the potential to gain some life. 


Malakir Familiar: This is a card that will be good in any Black deck. I'm not entirely sure why the life gain clause is even on there but it does gain some love in this deck. If you can gain life twice in a turn you are getting a great rate on a 4/3 flier with deathtouch.


Nirkana Assassin: This card combines particularly well with Stone Haven Medic. You are able to build your own deathtoucher which isn't great in comparison to some of the 2/3 deathtouchers for 3 we have seen previously. The benefit is you can out-maneuver your opponent since they have to keep a close eye on the ways you can trigger this ability. It also trades very well with all of the 2/2's running around in this set.


Retreat to Hagra: I have seen 0 love for this card so far. To all you nay sayers I have one thing to say. "C'MON". Hear me out. This card comes down probably on turn 4 so you get a trigger right away. You can drain life, which puts you in a position where you can win on a stalled board and trigger some sweet abilities. You can also push through a ton of damage when you opponent isn't in a position to block. This gets better when they do have profitable blocks if they double block as you can get an actual 2 for 1 or even 2 for 0 just for playing a land. How much value do you need to get out of your 3 drop?


Zulaport Cutthroat: This is a pretty solid card considering the deck doesn't have a ton of giant creatures. You will often be trading early and this card allows you to be rewarded for that. I feel this will serve a critical role as it will provide you some advantage and set up the board to allow your Kalastria Nightwatch to take down the game for you. 


GW: This is another take on the ally deck, as could be expected out of white which has a huge push for the ally themed decks. This version isn't quite as aggressive and seems to want to set up as many creatures as possible on the battlefield then play one of the Green ally cards that pump your team and swing to the fences. This is a very strong deck but I feel it will be at its best if you are able to go 3 colors into Naya. Fixing is very important in this scenario, so be sure you have plenty of Natural Connections and Swell of Growths to enable this.

Strengths: This deck will produce a large number of blockers in the form of Eldrazi Spawn. It will also have a good mid-game in the form of the mid-cost allies. The deck will look to close out the game using one of the Green Ally cards that buff your team or any number of efficient green creatures.

Weaknesses: While this deck will look to go very wide it will have a difficult time overcoming fliers as well as creatures with trample. This makes the deck a little more reliant on removal than some of the other archetypes. You'll also want to look for the Giant Spider to shore up your match-up against fliers.

Heart of the Archetype:


Cliffside Lookout: This card is interchangeable and probably will be cut if you have the Retreat to Emeria in your pool. if not this is a great turn 6 play capable of winning the game on the spot depending how many Scions you have produced and kept around. If you get to the late game and can activate twice in the same turn you have huge odds of winning the game.


Inspired Charge: This feel like the only deck that would want this card. GW has a variety of ways to produce tokens and it is only in this situation you would want to play this card. I would go as far as saying that this probably ISN'T something you would want in this archetype but if you are short on playables and have a ton of dorks this may fill a critical role in your deck. 


Retreat to Emeria: Not much to add other than that this card is amazing. 


Brood Monitor: Anyone who remembers Modern Masters limited remembers the power of Kozilek's Predator. This guy is that but on steroids. for an additional 2 mana you get an extra scion. Remember these are better in that they are 1/1's instead of the 0/1 that have infested our memory. The 4 creatures you get off of this card can easily be pumped into letal death machines.


Eyeless Watcher: See Brood Monitor.


Giant Mantis: This deck can at times be weak to fliers making this a great addition to the GW deck. Being able to survive to find your pump spell is very important in this archetype.


Rot Shambler: What's better than sacrificing spawns for big game plays? Getting to grow another guy in the process. If you anticipate sacrificing Eldrazi Scions to get an Eldrazi into play, you'll have a lot more fun doing it with this guy in play.


Tajuru Beastmaster: In this format, a 5/5 for 6 mana is totally playable. Add the fact that this guy synergizes with all of all Eldrazi Scions and we have the real deal.


Tajuru Warcaller: If a 2/2 for 5 is rough than a 2/1 for 5 is even worse. We have to overlook that small portion of the card though and look at the big picture: small dudes + pump spells = good time.


UR: This is one of the Eldrazi matters decks. I think that this will probably be the best color combination for sealed by a large margin. There are a lot of powerful spells in this color combination and I will be looking at these two colors first to see if this deck is an option. Red has several large butts that make sure you get to your powerful late game in the face of fast ally decks and the removal can take out key pieces of any of the other color combinations.

Strengths: This deck has a lot of early cards with a high toughness. With the deck striving to get to the late game and fostering the perfect environment for Eldrazi, this deck packs the most tools for the best sealed deck as you have ways to easily pressure during the early game and survive the early game if you are not in a position to be the aggressor. As can be seen in the Heart of the Archetype section, this deck isn't lacking on extremely powerful cards. While all of the lists have other cards that could fill a vital role in the deck, this list of cards that could fill the core of the deck imagine how many other powerful spells are out there that put this deck over the top.

Weaknesses: This deck seems to have a great matchup against everything except for possibly the BW life drain deck. The incidental lifeloss feels like the only way outside of an unanswered flier to get damage in against UR. the weakness is very small in this archetype and I expect to see it everywhere at the top tables this weekend.

Heart of the Archetype:


Herald of Kozilek: UR is going to pride itself on it's big booties. This guy definitely fits the bill, a 2/4 for 3 would already be playable in this format. Add the fact that he can make your high impact spells cost less and we have an archetype all-star. The fact that it is Devoid makes it combine nicely with some of the powerful red cards. 


Benthic Infiltrator: Another big butt, a 1/4 for 3 may look unassuming but add the synergy with Eldrazi Processors and we're talking. He is unblockable as well so if you are looking to enable those cards, look no further than Benthic Infiltrator.


Cryptic Cruiser: Speaking of processors, this one is pretty solid. He is able to tap a creature so you can stay defensive or you can even start pressing the Aggro button as the game goes late. 


Mist Intruder: Another great enabler, I won't be looking to mill opponents but having this and Benthic Infiltrator makes it a pretty real possibility. 


Murk Strider: This is a pretty painless processor. One card in exile = one great effect. I really like the bounce spells in this set, especially when Awaken is a mechanic. 


Oracle of Dust: This card is the front-runner for best processor in my book. I really like a card that enables you to draw extra cards in limited. The fact that you can activate this multiple times at the end of your opponents turn will make this a nightmare to play against. As a 3/5 he'll be difficult to remove as well.


Ruination Guide: This will be a key to an aggressive version of this deck. Buffing your team +1/+0 is pretty awesome (assuming you can get a hold of all of the great devoid cards). This is also an aggressively costed body without the buff, get multiples and you are off to the races. 


Spell Shrivel: Having access to this in a format where Eldrazi will be played as soon as possible is sweet. Punishing an opponent for sacrificing 2 Eldrazi spawn will never feel so good. This has a ton of upside potential and I'll always be happy to play one if I am in Blue. 


Kozilek's Sentinel: The biggest butt for it's small cost, a 1/4 for 2 with upside is pretty awesome. I'll be happy to play as many of these as I can get my hands on.


Nettle Drone: I have a love hate relationship with this card. A 3/1 for 3 is not exciting, especially when Eldrazi Spawn will be everywhere. My love for this card comes from the ability to deal damage on a stalled board. This is a fine 1 of in any Devoid deck. 


Touch of the Void: A solid removal spell that include only due to the Devoid text. This card will combo with most of the cards in your deck and should be included in any red deck. 


Vile Aggregate: The real deal incarnate. This guy doesn't take much to get insane. He has trample as well as ingest so he will fuel most of your deck and if you get a few other Devoid creatures into play you are probably going to give your opponent a terrible headache. 


UB: As always, the control deck. The removal has been nerfed a bit in this set making it difficult to have too strong of a deck in these colors. The top end is designed to be Eldrazi as can be seen by the multi-colored mythic that is in these colors. There are a few good counter-spells to help get you to the late game and a 4 cost sweeper at uncommon that will help to get you to the late game in the face of ally decks. It is very important that you have key pieces to this archetype in order for it to work. Middle to bottom of the pack color combination that I’ll only look to play if I have a string of bombs or it’s the best of a bad situation.

Strengths: Can contain the more midrange strategies of the format and get to a very powerful late game in the form of Eldrazi. Blue produces several Eldrazi spawn and while the removal isn't top notch in the format there are several solid removal spells and creatures with deathtouch that will allow this deck to beat a lot of decks excluding the hyper aggressive decks or those that apply constant pressure.

Weaknesses: This deck can easily be run over by an aggressive strategy. If the deck gets too far behind in the first 8-10 turns there is a good chance that it will not turn the corner quick enough to prevent the last few points of damage from getting through. The removal is needed in this deck but weak and sometimes inefficient.

Heart of the Archetype:


Ulamog's Nullifier: A 2/3 flier with flash for 4 mana is already very playable. Add the fact that it can counter TARGET SPELL is awesome. No restriction other than being able to find 2 cards in your opponents exile zone. This is a really potent ability and will be difficult for opponents to play around. I'll jam as many of these into a UB deck as I can. 


Adverse Conditions: This is a great tempo spell, Frost Breath is a fine card, add a 1/1 to the deal and it sounds pretty sweet to me. This card feels better in a control shell due to its mana cost. Aggressive decks can't really afford to play a spell like this on 4 whereas a control deck is happy to pass with open mana.


Benthic Infiltrator: The big butt and ability to fuel powerful spells like Ulamog's nullifier makes this an auto include into any UB control deck. 


Spell Shrivel: Did I mention how sweet this card was and that I think you should play it in any Blue deck?


Oracle of Dust: A big butt that generates card advantage is right up a control decks alley. This is no exception and a card I expect will be heavily played in a variety of decks. 


Ulamog's Reclaimer: More card advantage on a decent body. Exactly what UB needs to survive. 


Bone Splinters: There are a few Eldrazi Scions which makes this a reasonable card. My only warning will be make sure you have some if playing this card. It can end up dead in your hand if you need to keep your only blocker. Nothing feels worse than dying with removal in hand. 


Complete Disregard: Instant speed removal is rare in this set and this is a great one to have. Being able to stop your opponents best ally from consistently trigger is awesome. 


Grip of Desolation: This is an awesome removal spell due to the Awaken mechanic. It is great with Eldrazi in the format. Taking your opponent off mana in a mana matters set is a very good thing to be doing. Add the fact you get a creature as well is awesome. 


Malakir Familiar: Our air defense, this card is very good at stopping any creature without trample. Removal is light in the set so looking for deathtouch on cards will be very rewarding for a UB mage. 


Retreat to Hagra: Seriously, how much value do you need from a 3 drop? This card will keep you alive for a very long time. This is definitely an 18 land format so being able to live for pretty much ever is awesome.


Rising Miasma: This is an awesome spell when this decks primary enemy is Allies. This will pretty much pick off any of them and is something that is almost mandatory to play a true UB control deck. I'll be looking for this if my black is deep and I'm already established in Blue. 


UG: These appear to be the base colors for a Converge deck. There isn't a ton of great fixing; however, it is available in small amounts. There isn't a large number of converge cards in the two colors but there is the highest concentration of them. This leads me to believe that UG should be the base colors with small doses of the other three filling the void. Green has a few cards at common uncommon that will allow you to tutor up different color lands and if you get 1-2 of the new lands you will be in fine shape to play this. I’m not sure if the power level is sufficient to be a dominant force and due to potential mana inconsistencies, I believe that it will be near the bottom of the pack.

Strengths: This deck has the best tools to enable splashing into multiple colors which means it will generally have a higher density of spells that are more powerful than your average deck.

Weaknesses: This deck can lose to itself due to its strengths. If this deck gets into a weird mana situation you can pretty much call the game.

Heart of the Archetype:


Skyrider Elf: This is the most rewarding card for branching out into more than 2 colors. Even if you don't a 2/2 flier for 2 mana is big game and shouldn't be taken lightly. If you can, enjoy winning with your giant beatstick that will almost always be coming down too early.


Lifespring Druid: This is important for splashing. You need to have more ways than just lands to produce mana, this is a great way to do just that. I'd like to note that this card isn't something you want in every green deck as its stats are a bit underwhelming.


Natural Connection: A pretty awesome Farseek, this is a great ramp spell that doubles as a combat trick if you have landfall creatures, this is a great way to make sure you are hitting your third or even fourth color. 


Cluch of Currents: This is just a valuable card that will make any blue deck. Not much changes here. 


Coralhelm Guide: This makes sure you can get in with your powerful creatures which you have a lot of seeing as you can be 3-4 colors if you are in this deck. 


Territorial Baloth: Since lands matter in this deck it should go without saying that a 4/4 that gets better from you playing lands will be a key piece. This deck really needs to have a creature like this to make sure you have something powerful in what should be your base color of green. 

  
RB: This appears to be the Devoid deck. Most of the cards will either give a boost to colorless cards or have Devoid themselves. There is also a small sacrifice/win by all means theme to the deck with cards like Zulaport Cutthroat as well as the various sac outlets in black. Overall, a fine color, but I would rather look at UB or UR as the option of choice for the Eldrazi-ish deck.

Strengths: This deck has the highest density of removal available to it. Not only that but red produces some very high toughness creatures which allows you to transition into the late game relatively easily. The deck wants Eldrazi and can survive long enough to cast them which is quite powerful.

Weaknesses: This deck leaves itself vulnerable in the mid game to fliers if they can’t be answered.

Heart of the Archetype:


Culling Drone: An aggressive deck needs 2/2's for 2 this fits the bill and can even combo with some of the red cards in the archetype and the ingest ability is a nice addition as well.


Dominator Drone: A 3/2 for 3 is considered aggressive in this format. Add the fact that this guy is going to get in for an additional 2 just for hitting the battlefield and this is a pretty strong card. Not to be played in every black deck but will definitely make the cut in RB.


Skitterskin: The fact that this can't block automatically makes me want to share with you that you should not play more than 1 of these. The fact the he regenerates and is a 4/3 for 4 tells me this guy is going to be very aggressive and welcomed to the RB archetype.


Grip of Desolation: This is actually the top end of your deck. You want a potential 2 for 1 removal spell to get the last few points of damage in and Grip of Desolation does just that.


Complete Disregard: This is another great way to get in a few early points of damage, your opponent will generally have a 2 or 3 drop so this will make sure you can stay ahead in the race in the early stages of the game.


Forerunner of Slaughter: Even if you are not the devoid deck, this guy is sweet. Having two toughness is a little rough as your opponent can generally trade with it but having a 3/2 for 2 tells your opponent you mean business. 


Stonefury: This goes along with Grip of Desolation as a card that goes at the top end of your curve in attempt to push the last few needed points of damage in.

RG: This is the lands matter/landfall deck. There are 18 cards with landfall on them and a lot of tricks that can get bonkers if you are in these colors. Green and Red have recently been known to have powerful effects or to be the 'good stuff' deck in limited and Battle for Zendikar doesn't appear to be any different. I am a fan of this deck as an Eldrazi deck as well as a lot of the combat tricks and other non-creature spells allow you to play extra lands in a turn. I am a huge fan of this color Combination and will look for this if UR is not an option.

Strengths: This deck is very powerful in most stages of the game. There are a plethora of powerful early drops with landfall which makes it very easy to pressure your opponent early. There are also some solid mid-game creatures making it very easy to close out the game as you are transitioning into the later stages of the game.

Weaknesses: Not many. The deck is a little weak to fliers but there is a Giant Mantis to help out with this. I expect to see this deck perform very well prerelease weekend.

Heart of the Archetype:


Snapping Gnarlid: A good 2/2 for two that can attack and occasionally block for more. This card will play a vital role in this deck and is one you should look out for this weekend. 


Grove Rumbler: A 3/3 with trample for 4 mana is underwhelming, the fact that it attacks for 4 is pretty nice and it can block at the same level as well which makes this an auto-include if you are looking at the GR deck for battle this weekend.


Territorial Baloth: Big nasty rears his ugly head yet again. This guy of course fits in the Landfall deck and again is just a great green creature that should be played in any green deck. 


Natural Connection: This card will be a combat trick more often then not. You can pump a lot of your team for 3 at instant speed as well as ramp into your powerful finisher, this card will be very welcomed to your GR landfall decks. 


Oran-Rief Invoker: What do we do with all this extra mana when we run out of things to do in the late game?? Pump this dude into a 7/7 trampler and eat face. That's what.


Swell of Growth: The mega combat trick. Cast this on a guy with landfall and you will be having a very good time in that you are getting a buff of either +3/+3 or +4/+4 a great card for sure. 


Makindi Sliderunner: I wasn't too big on this guy until I saw the community cup. This guy can get out of hand very quickly and is something you should be auto-including if you are looking to be a landfall deck.


Valakut Predator: Makindi Sliderunner 2.0 The +2/+2 clause from hitting your lands is insane. I really like this card and having multiples is something that I would greatly consider a call to this deck. 


Rolling Thunder: Another really good thing to be doing with all of your mana, this can win you the game on the spot and probably will 75% of the time it is cast. I think this is a bomb and something you should play in any red deck. 

BG: This appears to be the Eldrazi spawn/ use spawn to sac deck. I think it is funny to note that of the multi-colored cycle that the uncommon is actually better than the rare. I think that we don't see many spawn makers in black due to the power level of those cards in Green. This leads me to believe that GB will be a fairly powerful, middle to upper end of the pack as far as color combinations go, Wizards appears to have had to reduce cards of the archetype due to the raw power level of what is there now. I don't think I'll be looking to play these colors but I will definitely be looking for the right pieces for this deck if my red preferences are not available.

Strengths: Diverse ways to play the game from being able to produce scions to play a control/removal heavy role to just big creatures this deck can attack you from several angles.

Weaknesses: With everything split so hard this deck can find itself in a position where it cannot go over the top of other decks. Draws need to happen well in this archetype or you can find yourself well behind very quickly.

Heart of the Archetype:


Call of the Scions: This deck wants to sacrifice things. What better way to do that then getting two 1/1's that can sac to themselves? This is an unassuming card that I think will carry a lot of weight this weekend. 


Catacomb Sifter: The multi-color cards are all awesome and this one is no exclusion. Scrying whenever one of your creatures dies will help make sure you have all the pieces needed to win a game. This is really the engine of the deck in my opinion.


Void Attendent: This is an awesome processor which will enable you to have some pretty big turns. I would include this in any green deck that has a way to get cards your opponent owns into exile.


Brood Monitor: The mother of the brood, making 4 creatures is big game in this deck as well. Play her wherever and you'll be happy.


Grave Birthing: I'm partial to this card because I love cantrips. The opponent chooses the card and draw a card is its own clause so this can be a draw a card if needed. the 1/1 you will occasionally get is very welcomed, however. 


Eyeless Watcher: I'll say it again this is an awesome card.

I'll end by saying all of the lands with spells tacked on to them are playable but be careful not to overload on them as the colorless producing ones can't be played in excess of 2 in two color decks 1 in three color decks and I wouldn't even bother with them if you go 4+ colors. 

I'm excited for this set both in limited and constructed terms and hope you are too. I can't wait to see all of you at the Den for prerelease this weekend. 

Good Luck and Happy Battles, 
Josh