Creatures (15):
3x Morphling
3x Torchling
3x Clone
3x Vesuvan Shapeshifter
2x Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind
1x Akroma, Angel of Fury
Other Spells (21):
2x Sensei's Divining Top
3x Impulse
3x Ancestral Vision
3x Electrolyze
3x Swerve
3x Wild Ricochet
4x Quicksilver Dagger
Lands (24):
4x Izzet Boilerworks
4x Shivan Reef
10x Island
6x Mountain
OK, so that's the deck. For those of you playing at home that haven't yet figured out what it does, I'll do my best to give you a general breakdown of what is supposed to happen:
Basically you're going to want to bide your time in the early game -- play your lands and pass your turn. This deck does NOT like to draw attention to itself too quickly. Once you have the mana (and there are some attractive creatures on the board) go ahead and play Vesuvan Shapeshifter morphed. This is a relatively loud play from what I have gathered from my friends -- people don't like not know what you have played, so make sure you have the mana available to Swerve or Wild Ricochet if needed. Turn him face up at the most opportune moment and copy some big fatty to beef your defenses if you need to.
Now comes the reason I made the deck in the first place:
By this time you're going to have enough mana to kick the deck into second gear. Drop your Morphling or Torchling (leaving mana open to protect them, of course) and charge your lasers. Both of these creatures are extremely versitile and difficult to kill. The ability to give Morphling shroud or swerving a kill-spell away from Torchling comes in very handy. That plus being able to pump either their power or toughness means that, short of a board sweeper or a misplay, they'll be sticking around for a little while. And on top of all that, you can swing and untap next turn to block if you really need to.
So, what goes well with a creature that can untap itself? -- How about an Aura that lets you tap the creature to ping and draw a card? Sounds good to me.
Quicksilver Dagger is a fun way to play with both Morphling and Torchling. You can essentially ping every opponent until you refill your hand or until they die or until you run out of mana -- whatever floats your boat.
Now what would 'Mighty Morphling Power Rangers' be if they didn't have a bad ass Dragon Zord? Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind fills that need pretty well. He loves it when you draw cards and your opponents hate it when you draw cards -- I think it works. So now, you aren't just pinging for one with Quicksilver Dagger, but two; the second of which you can feel free to throw at either a creature or player, whatever the situation calls for. On top of that, Niv-Mizzet is a 4/4 flying body -- he can handle attacking and blocking on his own.Besides the essentials that have already been spoken of, I'm running a great deal of card draw at the moment, as well as some draw fixing and some pinch defensive spells. Electrolyze is a lot of fun, and im considering giving it, and other cards like it, a larger role in the deck. Akroma, Angel of Fury is a one-of because she can be. She is not pivotal to the deck, and to be frank I'm considering pulling her out for a forth Electrolyze. We'll see if se pulls her wieght or not.
So there it is -- 'Mighty Morphling Power Rangers'. I have a feeling it's going to be a lot of fun. I haven't had a real chance to play it in a multiplayer game, but that will change relatively soon. I think it is one of the more thought-provoking decks I've built, and it is a LARGE step away from anything having to do with Grave Pact, so I'm fairly certain all my friends will at least be happy about that part.
I really like this deck. I'd consider bumping Morphling and Torchling up to four-ofs at the expense of Clone... Clone is a fantastic card, but you already have a better Clone in Vesuvan Shapeshifter. The more Morphlings/Torchlings you get on the table, the more likely you are to win the game, so running four of each isn't a bad thing.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Morphling/Torchling, since you want either large amounts of red or large amounts of blue mana at a moment's notice, but very rarely want large amounts of both at once, I'd recommend Cascade Bluffs (the blue-red filter land) in your mana base. It'll let you filter to whichever color you need to mass to repeatedly untap the Shapeshifter you have in play at a given time.
Also, consider the following: Opposition. It lets you use Morphling to single-handedly tap down a buttload of creatures right before you start your turn.
As for Niv-Mizzet... there's a nifty little infinite combo you can rock using Curiosity. Enchant Niv-Mizzet, tap him to draw a card. He pings a player, Curiosity draws you a card, Niv-Mizzet pings a player, Curiosity draws you a card, Niv-Mizzet pings a player...
Also fun with Niv-Mizzet? Dismiss, Mind Spring, Rhystic Study, Mind's Eye.
Those are just some cool things you might toss in. But what is this deck really missing? You do a great job dealing with targeted spells and drawing into your power cards. What I don't see at all is permanent control. If someone drops an Ensnaring Bridge, let alone a Sphere or Law or Urza's Armor or something similar, you might find yourself in a bit of a bind.
I'd look into ways to deal with artifacts and enchantments... bounce spells will work decently for control-y permanents like that, and red gives you solid artifact destruction. For permanents that really hurt you, though (and here I'm thinking pretty exclusively of Underworld Dreams), you need a better answer.
Reality Acid is a slow answer that gets better if you're also running bounce. (Play Reality Acid, bounce Reality Acid, enchanted permanent dies, re-use Reality Acid on something else.) If you'd rather a grander gesture, Blatant Thievery is always fun - gain control of all the problem permanents you don't like on the board in one fell swoop.
Just some food for thought. On the whole this is a remarkably powerful and resilient deck, as I think you know. Kudos, and best of luck developing it.