I had a pre-Ravnica fascination with Greater Good. I found myself scouring the 9^th Edition spoiler lists and adding black-bordered versions to my Star City Games wish list, purchasing what I thought were playable cards (you know.... Polymorph, Illusionary Pet, Pegasus Charger, Greater Good). I was not buying Magic cards when Urza's Saga first brought Greater Good to us, so I got my Greater Goods cheap. I had visions in my head of Iwamori of the Open Fist playing with Jugan, the Rising Star, and Elvish Piper. Oh, and of course, other fatties like Force of Nature. It was fun swinging with a 15/15 Iwamori with ten +1/+1 counters on it from two sacrificed Jugans in the graveyard. It never saw tournament play, but man was bashing face with those guys fun.

Fast forward to present day and Greater Good is a known force. I don't play the Gifts Ungiven version for a couple reasons. I believe that it is superior to play more copies of your key spells, than having to tutor for them. I believe it has the ability to be more consistent. I believe it is easier to play. Last, I have never been a fan of tapping Islands for mana - I'm just not a Blue player. Green, White - Yes! Black - Red, sure, why not... Blue... meh. What do I need Blue for? Drawing cards? I've got Greater Good.

Land: 23
4 Temple Garden
3 Overgrown Tomb
1 Miren, the Moaning Well
4 Swamp
3 Plains
8 Forest

Creatures: 17
4 Yosei, the Morning Star
4 Kokusho, the Evening Star
3 Kodama of the North Tree
2 Loxodon Hierarch
4 Sakura-Tribe Elder

Spells: 20
4 Greater Good
3 Wear Away
4 Goryo's Vengeance
4 Kodama's Reach
2 Footsteps of the Goryo
3 Putrefy

How does the deck win? It taps the opponent out by sacrificing Yosei, the Morning Star to Greater Good, doesn't allow them to untap, and uses the card drawing to do this again and again, sometimes attacking with a hasty dragon out of the graveyard with Goryo's Vengeance, or by simply having them lose life to sacrificing Kokusho, the Evening Star to Greater Good. Once you have the Yosei-lock in place, it is very hard for them to get out of it. I will say that I have never lost a game after I have sacrificed Yosei to Greater Good.

Most people I talk to will call this a combo deck in the same vein as Tooth and Nail was a combo deck. Some people will call it a re-animator deck. I agree with both statements, and if asked - would call it a Combo-Aggro deck. You can and will win games simply by attacking with fat legends, but more often, your win will involve Greater Good.

Sideboard: (to be tweaked at leisure)
My sideboard plans usually depend on some initial scouting. The 3 Kodama of the North Tree and the 2 Loxodon Hierarch are really variable sideboard slots, as that is where the most post-board action takes place. I find the Kodama of the North Tree, Arashi, and Loxodon Hierarch to be readily interchangeable. You can mix and match as you see fit. If you see aggro everywhere, maindeck all 4 Loxodons. If you see Blue/Black flying aggro, main deck the Arashi. I use the Kodamas because of Glare of Subdual. It is very popular where I play. He also nets the most cards from Greater Good.

4 Arashi, the Sky Asunder
2 Loxodon Hierarch
3 Wrath of God
3 Dosan, the Falling Leaf
3 Isao, Enlightened Bushi

Matchup Analysis:
Boros Aggro decks are evolving. They have to, because they aren't winning. Lately I've seen builds using Tallowisp and Galvanic Arc (with Glacial Ray) to Orcish Artillery. I've seen some straight up burn decks, and I've seen them try to use Sunforger on short mana. However, when you look at the amount of main deck spells that have added life gaining bonus, it gives these decks very, very tough times. Anyone ever play Loxodon Hierarch, Faith's Fetters, Umezawa's Jitte, Lightning Helix? Anyone ever kill a black dragon called Kokusho? Yes, I've seen it too, and it always happens when the Boros player only needs to hit for four more points to win. The amount of Loxodon Hierarchs going around alone makes Boros weenie almost unplayable. The deck is certainly not to be underestimated - a good draw by them and a below average draw by you can lose you a game, but more often they have to attack into a 5/5 flyer and waste a burn spell to either a) lose 5 life while you gain 5, or b) be tapped out for a turn, with no untap step. Either way, it's not pretty for them. Add in Wrath of God and some more removal from the sideboard as well as a full four of Loxodon Hierarch, and it is a very winnable match-up. I take out the North Trees, a Footsteps and a Putrefy.

Glare of Subdual decks were made popular by their appearance (and strong showing) at Worlds. Their ability to tap your creatures down is negated by your ability to do it better with Yosei. They also can't touch the North Tree. The sideboard game is much the same as vs. Boros Aggro - a few Hierarchs and Wraths, and you should be set. Leave in the Putrefy and Wear Away for their Moldervine Cloaked creatures and their tendency to run Pithing Needle (naming Greater Good). It's also important to eliminate any Ivory Mask they might board in. Yosei targets players and that means yourself if they have the Mask. Ivory Mask is a card you will see less and less as Mill and Heartbeat Combo decks slowly stop getting played. If they happen to play a Yosei of their own before you get yours, try to win without killing it. Kokusho does wonders by himself, and avoiding a tap out is important. If you need to legend rule out the Yosei, try to do so on their turn (Goryo's Vengeancing in one during their upkeep is nice). That way, when all is said and done, you untap first. It can sometimes be a good idea to wait for their upkeep to sacrifice your Yosei to Greater Good, effectively stealing two untap steps from them. I will sometimes do this if it feels right, and I don't have mana available to do any recursion during my turn.

Critical Mass and any deck running counters can become this deck's biggest problem. You can try the reanimation route by allowing them to counter the dragons and you bring them into play with a cheaper reanimation spell. They have the tech for this tactic though by Hindering or Remanding the dragon spells. My course of action game one is to wait them out. Leave the Sakura-Tribe Elders on the table until your opponent finds Jitte and put it on a creature. Block, and sacrifice before damage, they don't get counters, and you are up some mana. That hopefully took up four of their mana and you should be home-free for a key spell not to get hit. If you get the Greater Good in play early, you can try sacrificing a Sakura-Tribe Elder to Greater Good, discarding a Dragon, but keeping mana up for a Reanimation spell (that you had in hand). Make sure you know what you are doing with this trick, as it can be risky - especially if they Boomerang the Greater Good in response or something gross like that.

Out of the sideboard, Isao, and Arashi can give them a fit. Isao does an amazing job strictly as a beatdown creature vs. everything, including Meloku. You still have to keep Jitte inactive though, because that takes care of Isao fairly early. Dosan makes an appearance to help out the "don't counter my spells" idea, and can make a fine early game beat stick. Once you are able to get a Greater Good, don't be afraid to attack Isao into some dudes, engage the Bushido ability, and sac him for four cards. Don't forget that you can Goryo's Vengeance Dosan, Isao, and Arashi - he has haste, so go ahead and use his ability to kill some flyers. That can come in handy in a bind.

I'm not sure if people refer to Black/Blue Fish decks the same way I do. It's basically Dimir Aggro, with Dark Confidant, Hypnotic Specter, and counterspells. Again, I approach this the same way as the Critical Mass decks, leaving Sakura on the table to keep their Jushis and Dark Confidants at bay. This is probably the hardest matchup you have, and after sideboard it may become even harder. The real "headache" is Cranial Extraction, but they also bring in Pithing Needles. Happiness lies in the thought that they may have sided out counter magic to do this. I have seen this sideboard enough to modify my sideboarding. I vary my threats, taking out 1 Greater Good, 1 Yosei, and 1 Kokusho, as well as a couple North Trees and all the Hierarchs, and add in the Arashi, Dosan, Isao trifecta to keep Cranial Extraction from doing too much damage. Make sure to switch your game plan to pressure them. Don't sit back and let Cranial Extraction hit, especially not more than once, before you get your threats on the table. Bait out the counters with Kodama's Reaches, plus Putrefy, and try to win the games early. Watch their card count, and take your shots if you see them low on cards. Be careful if they are tapped out, as they do have Disrupting Shoal, but they can rarely use it to counter six mana dragons.

Last is the varied field of Red/White Control decks. This is a very winnable matchup. Like any other deck, it doesn't run well if it can't untap. Enduring Ideal skips it's crucial untap step, and life gain can be quickly recounted with Kokushos. Your ability to dig for Wear Away and splice it onto Goryo's Vengeance or Kodama's Reach gives their enchantment-reliant deck a lot of issues.

Since Champions of Kamigawa's release, you don't keep opening hands that don't include a) two lands and a Sakura-Tribe Elder or b) two lands and a Kodama's Reach. This deck is no different. The colors are fairly tight and you need to pay attention to them, especially when choosing the lands you are tutoring for out of your deck. Check to see your dual land colors in play, consider the cards in your hand, and then check again before deciding the land to get. Your ability to make Black mana in the mid to late game is crucial for reanimation success. You need to set yourself up to recur your threats. If you are land short, don't be afraid to use Footsteps of the Goryo to get a Sakura-Tribe Elder and fetch an important land. After sideboarding vs. aggro decks, the double White for Wrath of God becomes important, and make sure you allow yourself the chance to topdeck it and play it when you need to. People will choose to play Naturalize over Wear Away, but the ability to splice becomes very nice, and it will help you win games.

On the whole, combo decks seem to be disappearing from the Standard metagame, so the aggro decks are the easy matchup and the control decks with countermagic are the problem. I have been searching and testing sideboard tech for the countermagic games and Nightmare Void is my newest research. Putting pressure on them to empty their hand is always good, and the side-effect of dredging a couple dragons into the graveyard is a nice. I am worried that the Nightmare Void might still be sub-par in the face of Hinder and Remand though. Additionally, Aggro decks may show you Samurai of the Pale Curtain, which is this deck's downfall. It is one creature that has to be played around or you just can't win.

Remember, when in doubt, sac the Yosei.

Mark Hinsz
markhinsz@hotmail.com