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This deck started with a last-minute brew before Worlds. Gerry and I both liked the concept, and with the playtesting part of the deck done at Worlds (heh), we were ready to take it to the next level for the Invitational. For weeks and weeks I grinded this deck on MODO; the evolution of the deck can be found on some crawler websites, like mtgstats (The decklists from 11/26 and forward).
The newest version, which I used to create these videos, is here:
| 5-Color Control Featured by Michael Jacob on 2011-12-18 (Standard) | ||
Artifacts 3 Pristine Talisman 1 Ratchet Bomb Creatures 2 Phantasmal Image 3 Sun Titan Enchantments 3 Oblivion Ring 1 Pacifism Instants 1 Blue Sun's Zenith 4 Desperate Ravings 1 Dissipate 4 Forbidden Alchemy 3 Gut Shot 4 Mana Leak |
Legendary Creatures 1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite Sorceries 1 Day of Judgment 2 Ponder 1 Unburial Rites Basic Lands 4 Island 1 Mountain 2 Plains 1 Swamp Lands 1 Blackcleave Cliffs 1 Ghost Quarter 4 Glacial Fortress 4 Seachrome Coast 3 Shimmering Grotto 4 Sulfur Falls | 2 Nihil Spellbomb 1 Ratchet Bomb 1 Phantasmal Image 2 Ancient Grudge 1 Blue Sun's Zenith 3 Celestial Purge 1 Dissipate 1 Venser, the Sojourner 1 Day of Judgment 2 Timely Reinforcements |
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| Download this deck in Apprentice format! |
Download this deck in Magic Online Text format! | |
This deck takes a ton of practice, so picking it up randomly will not net you good results. Learn the ins and outs of matchups, play with a plan in mind, and proper Ravings will all lead you to victory.
WARNING: Rounds 1 and 4 are very long.
Round 1 against Solar Flare
Round 2 against Mono Red
Round 3 against Humans
Round 4 against 5 Color-Control (mirror)
BONUS: I know everyone has illusions on their radar, so I grinded a ton of queues until I found one to record. Note: Game 1 is not shown due to Modo errors, but I died turn 4 in unspectacular fashion.
Round 5 against Illusions
In conclusion, Gerry and I have created a monster, one I believe to be the best deck (at least for the rest of the year). Five-color truly does have no bad matchups (except for decks that do not exist, like Drownyard control). The disadvantage is, like most decks of this nature, it also has few blowout matchups. You need to grind, and grind hard, for every win. A mistapped mana or ill-timed Ravings will destroy you, and that may limit the desire of inexperienced people to pick up the deck.
All is not lost, as I am well aware of my deck's weaknesses. Any deck with Doom Blades or Nephalia Drownyards is a horrid matchup, and Illusions is just barely above 50% in my book.
GP Orlando will be the same format, and while I will not be running this 75 there, I will likely be running something similar.
No one can fight the tide forever.
DarkestMage
