Ralph Waldo Emerson was undoubtedly thinking of something besides magical cards when he attacked regularity by saying “Consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds”…. Yet his statement is quite apt in explaining my own opinions about everyone's favorite big deck formats: Prismatic and 5-Color.
In the last few months, a crisis has emerged in both formats, further stunting the growth of what are relatively fringe area. Both 5-Color and Prismatic feature a minimum two-hundred-and-fifty-card deck size, twenty cards of each color per deck, and a rather titanic Banned (and, in 5-Color's case, Restricted) List.
Of course, it is this high bar that makes deck construction such a chore – and an absolute delight. It has become quite apparent that I have no interest in any sixty-card formats, as I derive my enjoyment from variety – I'm Izzetesque, if you will. As such, I focus virtually all my Constructed efforts a number of 250-card decks, while dabbling in Limited formats, where forty-card decks generally offer more than enough card diversity.
As the March 1st DCI bannings, or lack thereof, have transpired somewhat recently, it seems proper to first address the general state of affairs in Prismatic. As frightening as it is, my last article (which dealt with the bannings of Upheaval and Rude Awakening), appeared almost six months ago. As I mentioned, Enduring Ideal was a major offender… But I neglected Decree of Silence, which made the lethal sequence (often ending, bizarrely enough, with Genju of the Realm) virtually inevitable. Thankfully, Ideal was justly banned in December, and it would seem that the format is at last free from a supposedly unbalanced win condition.
Incidentally, the somewhat surprising inaction regarding Enlightened Tutor (restricted in 5-Color) and Mystical Tutor (recently banned in 5-Color) might be justified with the fact that no single devastating card has emerged since. Contract From Below, Balance, and Armageddon have not been printed (yet) in Magic Online, and Pernicious Deed is, thankfully, only possessed by an endowed few.
Ironically, it is perhaps the previously-neglected Worldly Tutor and (to a far greater degree) Congregation at Dawn that provides the greatest current swing. Triple-Loxodon Hierarch has been pretty okay in Standard, from what I gather. I also approve of the emergence of my particular favorite 187er, Desolation Angel, as a win condition, although I am far more tickled when my gang of dorks turns blithely sideways for the win anyways after a devastating Armageddon… But we shall discuss that later.
Despite all these massive tempo changes, Congregation and its ilk are hardly automatic includes in any deck… At least not to the degree that Rude Awakening or Enduring Ideal were (but, then again, neither was Upheaval, in my opinion).
One vaguely interesting idea I would explore if I had the tickets and motivation would be the potential abuse of the arrival of Lion's Eye Diamond via Auriok Salvagers. The deck archetype has been explored in 5-Color, Legacy, Vintage as well. With the relative abundance of creature tutors, Trinket Mage and Artificer's Intuition (the later two conveniently fetching a lethal Spellbomb as well), the deck seems at least feasible.
Finally, I would be remiss if I did not mention Transmute, however succinctly. Upon witnessing the transmutation of Drift of Phantasms for Fierce Empath for Krosan Tusker, later cycled, I believe I have lost any shred of respect for the mechanic. Also, as previously noted, there is no obvious game winner at large, and the tempo loss makes the mechanic rather tame.
In summation, the dreaded Tutoring situation, where large decks become nothing more than a few power cards along with cards to fetch them, remains quite benign in Prismatic. Some credit has to go to the DCI for their efforts to rein in on blatant game-winners. The 5-Color Ruling Council, through whatever semblance of authority they still possess, might do well to consider the eradication of certain format-warping and restricted list-fattening pieces of cardboard (Contract From Below comes to mind) instead of simply dismissing all effectively costed Tutors.
But excess Tutoring remains about as appealing as a stagnant sixty-card environment to me, and there is certainly merit in the recent bannings.
And now, my hypocrisy becomes quite apparent; while I have clinically analyzed Tutor effects, multiple Loxodon Hierarchs, and game-winning combos, I'm harboring a deep, dark secret…
Segue!
If Magic: The Gathering is epitomized by a bear in the red zone, than this is by far the most magical deck type of them all. Hoisting the ragged, bloody banner carried by White Weenie, Zoo, Fish, Senor Stompy, Sligh, and Suicide Black, the Prismatic aggro deck does not so much emulate the strategies of its ancestors as it blends them. Without further ado: my deck.
It would be rather gracious for one to call the list merely “suboptimal.” . Nevertheless, I believe the composition of the deck is fundamentally sound. Let's divide up the elements:
Resources
Clearly, this is one of the most significant problems, since it arises directly from the lack of quality lands. My mana base is more or less 4x City of Brass, a lone Caves of Koilos (thanks, Dr. Tom!), various atrocious (but superbly illustrated!) Kamigawan depletion lands scrounged from last year's drafting, and many, many basics.
Quite honestly, I simply haven't been inclined to invest copious amounts of money on MODO – and although that may be changing, presently I'm stuck with a very budget mana base. However, as tempo-anemic as Cloudcrest Lake and friends may be, they come into play untapped. While being unable to use a land in the future is horrible, it is far worse for this deck to run comes-into-play-tapped lands.
Finally, the land count is eighty, which may seem equally offensive to mana-fiend Control freaks with their epic (but no longer Epic) fatties and sorceries, but it is often more than enough for a deck whose curve stops at four.
The second component which seems to induce the greatest eye-gouging is the inclusion of the Signets. Once again, I must hang my head in shame and defer to those with more expansive digital wallets, but do not undermine the importance of two-mana acceleration. While a powered control deck wants to accelerate into a substantial four mana effect on turn 3, this aggro deck thrives off of the turn 2 bear, followed by a turn 3 Signet, Quirion Sentinel, or Harrow into another bear (or an actual three-drop). As Magic is a game of resource management, one theory states that the player who spends the most mana each turn will win the game.
Simply put, an aggro deck will attempt to “curve out” by dropping an overwhelming number of threats in the shortest time period possible, and then use them to smash an opponent's face in. Whereas a control-minded player would be investing his resources by drawing cards and ramping up mana in expectation for a bigger effect later in the game, an aggro player attempts to triumph by investing in threats that impact the game as early as possible. The key to this game plan is efficiency – that is, efficiently spending each individual droplet of mana each turn in the first few turns of the game. Once again, this is why it is better to have a land remain tapped later than to come into play tapped, although I have since realized that the simplicity of plain ol' basics trumps the rather offensive tempo loss.
In a similar vein, Mirrodin Talismans do seem superior to Signets, especially if you're taking into account the substantial number of one-drops in the low-curve aggro deck. As I have said, there is enormous room to improve here… But it is an important realization that you can be efficient without emptying your trade binder.
To sum up, the deck's relatively low mana count complements the low curve of the deck, and is supplemented by a number of two-mana artifacts, eight one-mana elves, and miscellaneous items such as Quirion Sentinel, Harrow, and Sakura-Tribe Elder (yes, folks, he's still most certainly worth running in aggro). The key to the engine is efficiency: sacrificing pure card advantage, as found in control favorites like Kodama's Reach and Explosive Vegetation, for speed and immediacy. Ideally, the mana base will go to three or four quickly and, shuffler willing, business cards will be drawn in lieu of additional lands.
Threats
In many ways, a Prismatic game may resemble an archaic, pre-Sligh metagame. There is a “grace period” that seems to exist for the first four turns in the typical control-vs.-control matchup. The key to the aggro deck is to capitalize on these early, critical turns.
Once again, efficiency is the key. Ideally, a one-drop will have two power or a relevant ability, often mana acceleration. I recall reading a fantastic Standard Zoo article in which the merits and disparity between “Fires-style” (e.g. the use of elves and birds to accelerate into large, undercosted fatties) and “Zoo-style” (one mana for two power; two mana for three power) were discussed at length. However, while the two archetypes may remain divorced in sixty-card land, as is the case with many strategies, the inherent color diversity in Prismatic leads to the union of efficiency and acceleration.
The backbone of any beatdown deck is the Grizzly Bear – and the two-drop should have at least two (if not three) power. (Unfortunately, that's a rare breed in today's sets.) Failing that, it should have evasion, or a relevant ability. Many of my own hands are kept or shipped back on their ability to play a bear on turn 2. As you will see, consistently swinging for two is dependent on maintaining, at minimum, one threat on the table.
Turn 3 presents an interesting question: a mana producer may lead to a second or third bear, and a number of efficient three-drops are worth playing. Incidentally, Shambling Shell, for all its positive nuances, is probably not one of these critters. I have subsequently dropped him for the evasion of Ebon Drake. I find Anurid Brushhopper to be a bit hard on the mana, and running gold cards in a minimized color tends to produce this effect. Furthermore, this is not a deck that will have much of a hand to pitch, and the ‘hopper clearly shines in a more controlling deck. But he's quite welcome regardless, although a budget deck may find Centaur Safeguard more agreeable, with the three to four tickets spent elsewhere.
On the flip side, Burning-Tree Shaman is obviously quite savage, if expensive. Troll Ascetic is also a rather attractive option, and quite reasonably valued. Ebon Drake, Wormfang Drake, and Daggerclaw Imp are all playable, and I eagerly await the appearance of Serendib Efreet in all his promo glory. On the whole, the three-mana slot is generally limited because it's a lot easier to drop two bears in a turn than multiple three-drops – or just to play “hasted” three-drops in the form of enhancers, as later discussed.
Naturally, four-drops are extremely rare. Not only is the climb to four mana often nearly impossible at eighty lands, but the mere principle of exchanging your fattie for slim, two-mana removal is unattractive; naturally, you're looking for your opponent to overpay on removal for your weenies. While Etched Oracle is on the above list, I have come to the conclusion that my mana base is not equipped to use him effectively, especially when he costs a virtual five mana. Although I am slightly depressed when I do have domain (and, by extension, mana flood) early with no hopes at drawing supreme gas, I am relatively confident in this decision.
Unfortunately, Flametongue Kavu is often a dead card against a creature-light control deck, but his absolutely staggering numbers are enough to warrant inclusion, obviously. Having an answer to Meloku, if it should come to that, is pretty okay. I was also playing Moroii (and his old-school cousin, Benthic Djinn), but I feel his Dimir colors and overall awkwardness outweigh the robust frame, and have since cut him.
Finally, Phantom Centaur is an absolute terror against certain decks, even as a simple trade for three chump blockers. Alas, there are an agonizing number of ways he can be dealt with, and each Edict (be it Chainer's or Cruel) is particularly depressing. But he is quite resilient and rather okay on turn 3 off an accelerator. Clearly, he's one of the best choices for the limited four-drop slot.
The key to the deck is threat density. Although eighty-six may seem like an enormous amount, it is actually the smallest majority over eighty-four noncreature spells. Leaving Murphy's Law conveniently to one side, this setup should ensure a steady stream of threats. Fundamentally, a creature-heavy aggro deck strives to break the inherent inconsistency of the format by overloading the deck with creatures. In many ways, this design is as much of an effort towards consistency as Tutoring.
Like I said, I'm a hypocrite.
While turning guys sideways is the foundation of aggro, there is, as mentioned, a whole other third of the deck.
Complements
The most obvious support elements are the Equipment and Auras. Bonesplitter remains quite solid, but turn 3 is also an excellent time for a number of enhancements. Mask of Memory is an absolutely golden source of card advantage, and an unchecked Mask will more often than not produce enough card advantage to overwhelm any deck. Elephant Guide, Grafted Wargear and, upon coming to my senses, Moldervine Cloak are absolutely devastating in conjunction with the turn 2 bear, and even more so with a creature with evasion. Sword of Fire and Ice, Sword of Light and Shadow, and the infamous Umezawa's Jitte are also clear options, but the rather bloated investment each requires contradicts the deck's philosophy.
Reckless Charge is simply pure reach, often functioning as a Lava Spike with flashback, plus the power of whatever creature is affected. Haste is perhaps overlooked, especially when considering often minimized Red slots, but Reckless Charge is always worth running. Might of Oaks is also quite intriguing, as its appearance in Standard can attest to. Rare instances of card selection appear in Serum Visions and Night's Whisper; they are perfectly reasonable, cheap draw spells.
Answers
Finally, while the deck is aggressive, reactive spells do exist. The simplest form is dedicated removal, and Putrefy is the only removal spell that appears. The logic behind this that your copious number of attackers will simply blast through any blockers – and while this may be wishful thinking, the metagame often contains extremely creature-light decks.
The other gold three-mana answer is Temporal Spring. As the name suggests, it is often overwhelming tempo, a valuable answer against random fatties and, in a pinch, a jarring disruption to Control's mana development, especially considering Ravnican bouncelands. Similarly, Memory Lapse, Remand and, to a lesser degree, Mana Leak are all soft counters that often do not address a spell permanently. Instead, they're often just, well a Time Walk in that they buy you another combat phase. Fortunately, that's often all you need, and the one-turn respite before Control's power cards come online often determines victory or defeat.
Shelter is, in the absence of Unearth, one of my favorite tools in the format. The ability to negate removal, the built-in cantrip, and the ability to use it to evade blockers makes Shelter one of the most versatile, elegant pieces of tech available. Otherworldly Journey and, perhaps, Ghostway are options, but these cards are clearly a large drop-off and should only really be considered with the presence of more 187ers, which is another deck entirely.
In any case, by holding these instants, an almost Fish-esque set up occurs. A minimum threat threshold, often no more than a pair of bears, coupled with various ways to protect, enhance, and clear the way for them, is often very effective. I often find myself thinking, in a very un-aggro manner, “If he lets me untap, I'll be set!” Standstill would also be a rather excellent addition, although I would be wary of the cycled Decree of Justice.
Finally, there is burn. It's no revelation that the ability to go to the dome is what differentiates burn from traditional answers, and I often find myself wishing I ran more. You may have noticed that I have one Incinerate and three Volcanic Hammers, but that's simply because I haven't gotten many Mirage cards. Firebolt is absolutely incredible, and there is a reason that it is played over Lightning Bolt in 5-Color. Finally, Tribal Flames may be questionable with this mana base, but it has still served me well.
Impressions
I had been playing this deck exclusively in the Casual Decks room on MODO for some time. After much prodding and brainwashing - I mean indoctrination – I finally entered my first Premier Event about two weeks ago.
It's been a struggle to get the minimum twenty-four entries to start the tournament, and there are a number of possible explanations for this. The PE went on a hiatus, and has since been scheduled for Sundays at 4 p.m. EST. This is hardly an ideal time, and earlier in the weekend would probably lead to a far greater turnout.
There's also the admittedly hefty requirement of the deck itself. However, I'd like to dispel any misconceptions: you do not have to break the bank for a Prismatic deck. I have been playing MODO for less than a year, and while my deck has obvious holes, it is quite serviceable. I was, in fact, playing Prismatic a mere week after starting my online collection. Budget decks have plenty of game in the PE, and there is a massive variety and range of decks in the casual room. If nothing else, you should absolutely give this format a try if you haven't already; I'm confident that you'll find it highly enjoyable. For far more on the format, check out Doug Beyer's stuff at Magicthegathering.com.
And now, for those of you that have endured to this point, a (doubtfully) succinct tournament report. Just for the record, it's five rounds of Swiss, followed by a Top 8.
I began the afternoon with ample mulligans in Round One, winning the first game with evasion, and eventually losing to various antics involving Exalted Angel and Eternal Witness. In Round Two, I was paired against a four-hundred card opponent who, sadly, did little besides cast a Loxodon Hierarch in one game. In Round Three, I was forced to cannibalize an acquaintance by the name of slearch. He was also playing aggro, albeit with more expensive lands, but I had a faster Cloak. Highlights include playing Gaea's Skyfolk and Reckless Charge on turn 3 off of basics.
At 2-1, with vague aspirations of Top 8ery, I mused that it would be a huge shame if I lost in the next round.
In Round Four, I began Game One happily enough, with Wild Mongrel and then Grafted Wargear. An Edict caused me to frown, and I had little more than a Quirion Sentinel and Reckless Charge combination as far as threats went. He played a Mirari's Wake, but seemed low on gas himself. I eventually drew Duress and happily plucked Decree of Justice from his hand – and in an expression some of you may be familiar with, he drew it again. He cycled up a battalion of 2/2 Soldiers numbering in the teens as I looked sadly at my Remand.
In Game Two, I had a similarly quick clock with a bear and Elephant Guide. I shrugged off Loxodon Hierarch with a Putrefy, and a Firebolt eventually sealed it.
Game Three also featured Duress, this time taking Fact or Fiction. Once again, he drew another, revealing the frightening combination of Meloku, Mirari's Wake, and Oblivion Stone. He took the Wake and Stone and tapped out to play the latter.
Once again, I had Putrefy. I believe that he was sitting at around eight with a fistful of cards, and had just tapped out for Wake. My board was two bears that were more or else guaranteed to be annihilated by his next turn, and I was holding Tribal Flames with a measly two basic lands. With a deep breath, I F2'd past the end of his turn and topdecked…
Shambling Shell for the final point of damage.
Cue up the obligatory chat log:
8:01 Little_shaves: uberdrive is my hero
8:01 Little_shaves: from common-bot runner to PE TOP EIGHTER
As I've hopefully illustrated, a budget deck has got some game, even against decks filled with money rares, by simply following some basic principles. At this point, I was obviously overjoyed and quite proud of the little aggro deck that could. In a bizarre turn of events reminiscent of, say, playing that Skyfolk + Charge combo off of basics, my luck continued. My fifth round opponent and I were both through to the Top 8 if we drew, and I naturally intended to do so. Unfortunately, he ended up timing out, thereby dropping from the tournament and, at 4-1, I was the top seed. How quaint.
In the Quarterfinals (Round Six), I was paired against a guy that had gone 3-2 and gained a Top 8 berth courtesy of my previous opponent. I'm sorry to say that his deck was not the same caliber as the rest of the remaining field. After winning Game One convincingly enough, I opted to keep a reasonable hand of Swamp, Duress, Nezumi Graverobber, land, and three other spells. Although I found a second Duress, that was about it. I died, rather meekly, to a trio of Hondens and, of all things, an activated Bloodfire Colossus.
I went into Game Three with substantial apprehension, but the Spikey nature of my deck took over. My curve began with Wild Mongrel, at which point I stalled at two lands for a turn – but I equipped Bonesplitter, then played Elephant Guide and found a Temporal Spring for his Plague Boiler. Now, there's a testament to the importance of the turn 2 bear.
I'd like to commend my opponent for sticking it out after getting two losses, though. It wasn't just the fact that a guy dropped out, but the tenacity of my quarterfinals opponent that gave him the Top 8. Enjoy the six packs, guy.
The Semifinals began with another mana disaster, but they are to be expected now and then. I spent Game One more or less admiring John Avon's excellent work on Cloudcrest Lake and Lantern-Lit Graveyard, with an early Savannah Lions as my meek offense. My opponent had triple (!) Joiner Adept, Shadowmage Infiltrator, and I had a taste of my own aggro medicine.
In Game Two, I happily found myself with my other nonbasic land. A turn 1 City of Brass into Llanowar Elves led to the saucy second turn of Firebolting his Grim Lavamancer and dropping a Gaea's Skyfolk. Bonesplitter and Zodiac Monkey followed, and a Tribal Flames sealed the win on turn 5.
In Game Three, I was on the draw and I made a decisive play by more or less abandoning my philosophy. On turn 2, I elected to Incinerate his Joiner Adept instead of dropping a bear, and he was the one with the mana problems as a result, with a now stranded Finkeltrator. Turn 3 brought Quirion Sentinel and Wild Mongrel, and a Grafted Wargear ended the game quickly.
Astoundingly, I was through to the finals.
I faced Vandermonde, a vague acquaintance. Unfortunately, he had not only the gas of control, but the threat density of any creature-based deck. Essentially, his threats were larger, and his answers more abundant. Game One was a blur, and I did not see a Forest for the first five turns.
In Game Two, I was determined to go down with my best effort. I had a turn 2 Watchwolf, followed by a Signet into Transluminant, and then a Grafted Wargear. Unfortunately, he was able to match this more than sufficiently, with a first-turn Birds of Paradise accelerating the evil Finkeltrator. Orim's Thunder devastated my board, and a Bringer of the Blue Dawn had me on my heels.
As I stared down at my lone Anurid Brushhopper and his large and abundant threats, I must've had a fatigue-induced lapse, or simple bout of illiteracy.
10:36 Vandermonde plays Prophetic Bolt: targeting UberDrive.
10:36 UberDrive discards Swamp
10:36 UberDrive discards Forest
10:36 UberDrive plays activated ability from Anurid Brushhopper
I died the following turn.
Just so you're convinced that I haven't been blowing smoke this whole time, here are the final standings. Those of you “in the know” may recognize more than a few Cymbrogians (of blisterguy fame) or ‘Tingers in the Top 8 screenshot. It's a small world.
I hope I've shown how interesting, eclectic, and downright fun this format can be, even with haters such as myself trying to smash face. I urge anyone and everyone to make either a Prismatic deck online or a 5-Color deck in real life. You will not regret it.
Thanks for reading,
Roland Li
UberDrive on MODO
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