I love playing casually. I love playing competitively. But the biggest mistake I see in my "Spike" friends is that they just can't play casually. In fact, some of them have downright refused to. Why? I think that Casual players have a lot to offer to the Magic Community. Who knows? Maybe the next Turboland will be stumbled upon by Mr. Casual.
But then again, the pros love Limited Magic. But why do they love Limited? Because it's challenging! Limited card pools stretch your imagination and deckbuilding skills... and so does Peasant Magic. (And the fact that the Ferrett has attached twenty dollars to it makes it all the sweeter.)
Peasant Magic is a format of Magic, and it's played like regular Magic; what's different are the rules of deck construction. This format differs from other formats, much like Extended differs from Standard. Decks are still sixty cards, but there's one real limitation: You can only play with commons. You can, however, use five uncommons. And you count cards at their cheapest commonality, so Dragon Engines aren't rare. They are commons...
Then there is something called The Peasant Council - or, as I like to call them, The People With Too Much Time On Their Hands. They make decisions that is much like Banned and Restricted Lists. I tend to ignore them. Why? Unless their name is D and ends with CI, I don't really care what they have to say. I mean, I agree with some of their decisions but I don't know who these people are. I mean questions can easily rise about their legitimacy. Who are they? Who decides their place in the counsel? At least the DCI is pretty official and everyone agrees upon. So as a warning, I didn't take their rulings into account - but you may need to at tournaments, or at places where people abide by their rules. Rule of thumb? Check as soon as possible. (That said, this is a Peasant-legal deck - T.F.)
So where should I begin?
Neo High Tide!
Lands (23)
23 Island
Creatures (4)
4 Cloud of Faeries
Other (33)
4 High Tide
4 Prosperity (Uncommon)
2 Fireball
4 Chromatic Sphere
4 Brainstorm
1 Turnabout (Uncommon)
4 Twiddle
4 Dream's Grip
4 Snap
2 Echoing Truth
Sideboard (15)
4 Counterspell
4 Force Spike
4 Blue Elemental Blast
1 Echoing Truth
2 Boomerang
Now some of the card choices I made could be seen as controversial, so I will get to that later. One thing I wanted to go over was how to play it, since it's a difficult deck to play if you don't know the strategy. Despite the effort it requires to learn, it's well worth it - as this is one of the most fun decks you can play in Peasant.
1. Tap Island A to play High Tide.
2. Tap Island B to play Cloud of Faeries.
3. When Faeries comes into play, it untaps the two Islands I had tapped.
4. I tap Island A for two mana and I play Twiddle, untapping my first Island and floating a U.
5. I repeat the process again with a second Twiddle. (UU in pool)
6. I tap two of my Islands to play Snap, bringing back Cloud of Faeries and replaying it. This generates me more mana. (UUUUUU in pool)
7. I now have a sole Prosperity in hand, which I gladly play. I tend to keep three mana open so that I can play any untap spells I may draw into.
8. Prosperity for twelve.
9. Okay so now I am basically in position to win. I use one of my three mana to play High Tide. So now all my lands tap for UUU.
10. I use the last of what I stored in my mana pool to play Cloud of Faeries. This untaps Island A and B.
11. I tap them again for UUUUUU and I play another Cloud of Faeries. I untap my first two Islands again. This time I have four blue mana floating.
12. I spend UUU on two Dream's Grips and a Twiddle. This untaps the rest of my lands. I still have one mana left.
13. I tap Island A to play Echoing Truth. I still have UU floating. I bring all Cloud of Faeries back to my hand.
14. I tap Island B to have UUUUU and spend two to play Cloud. I float UUU.
15. I tap Island A and B again for six mana. I replay my second Cloud. Now I have seven mana floating.
16.The third Cloud comes back into play to make it a sweet eleven mana.
17. I tap the Sphere with one of the eleven to make one R so I float UUUUUUUUUUR.
18. I tap the rest of my lands for UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUR.
19. Fireball for twenty.
20. Allow your opponent to enter the Scoop Phase.
That's how you play Neo Tide in twenty easy steps!
Card choices- Echoing Truth is Broken with Cloud of Faeries and I chose Fireball as my kill mechanism, because I like the idea of water making fire. I know it's pretty ridiculous, but it sure is awesome.
In terms of the sideboard, I really like the Blast. Burn very common in Peasant, so BEB is pretty key with that in mind.
Pros:
This deck plays a lot like Tolarian Academy from back in the day, and Mind's Desire now in Extended. It requires good patience and timing. This is a true combo deck, so intense practice with this deck is not just recommended, its pretty much required.
Cons:
It's difficult to play. The biggest Con is that you may be asked to leave the store, since the combo takes about twenty minutes to type out and at least ten minutes of real time... And it may take longer if you are an inexperienced with this deck.
Taking a page from Nate Heiss:
If you want to take it out of Peasant and just make it plain Casual, I really recommend Time Spiral. I play it in my version at home because it is just ridiculously good.
In my continuing effort to bring past winners to Peasant, I present you:
Forbidian!
Lands (22)
14 Island
4 Seat of the Synod
4 Darksteel Citadel
Creatures (14)
3 Somber Hoverguard
4 Ophidian
3 Myr Enforcer
4 Spiketail Hatchling
Other (24)
4 Forbid (Uncommon)
4 Counterspell
1 Force of Will (Uncommon)
4 Accumulated Knowledge
4 Force Spike
4 Brainstorm
3 Echoing Truth
Sideboard (15)
3 Inspiration
4 Frogmite
1 Myr Enforcer
4 Blue Elemental Blast
1 Echoing Truth
2 Boomerang
If you aren't aware of the deck...
July 28th 2003:
"This story takes place in the spring of 1998 at the Junior Super Series in Orlando, Florida. Wizards flew down all the Pro Tour winners from the 1997-98 season (Randy Buehler, Matt Place, Dave Price, and Jon Finkel) as special guests. Also at the event was the prerelease for Exodus. Each night the pro players were taken out by a different Wizards employee. The final night was my turn. Our discussion turned to Exodus. The pros were unhappy with the set, stating that the only tournament-worthy card was Carnophage (although Matt Place did see potential in Oath of Druids). I had played with the set much more than they had, so I was trying my damndest to defend a number of cards. One such card was Forbid.
"Now Jon Finkel, one of the best Magic players of all time and quite arguably the best player in the world at that moment, was at that point known for playing control decks. So I stressed to him how good Forbid was. Jon disagreed. He thought the buyback cost was too much. It created card disadvantage. But I was certain. In a bold voice I said, 'Jon, you're wrong. Within thirty days, you're going to be playing this card.'
"Three weeks later at U.S. Nationals, Jon came up to me and said, 'Okay, you were right.' Jon went on to earn on a place on the U.S. National team with a deck now known as 'Forbidian.'" - Mark Rosewater
The deck has a simple concept: Play Ophidian and win. Seriously that's all it has to do.
Okay, so maybe it's a little more difficult than that. You want to counter their threats early - especially anything with a power three or greater and anything with a toughness of two or higher. You generally want to clear the way for you to attack with Ophidian every turn. By doing so, you lock them out of the game with Forbid. Simple enough?
Unlike the deck I presented before, this is a pure Control deck. Its job is to just shut down their spells and slowly take it from there. The biggest obstacle to building this deck was the lack of rares. I usually like to play with Morphling as its kill card, but that's obviously unavailable here. So I played with Spiketail Hatchling as a way of playing with Counterspells and kill at the same time. I also decided to play with artifact lands to support Somber Hoverguard and Myr Enforcer. This was done because I needed something big and they both fit the bill. Their reduced costs make them good-sized beaters for their cost - and the cheaper they came, the better. Mono-blue decks eat up mana and well, this works its way around it. Maybe I can slip in an Arcbound Ravager and a Disciple of the Vault without anyone looking.
Sideboard Choices:
I really like the Blast once again. I think this deck has good matchups all around in the Peasant field. It may lack some game against Aggro, but it stomps combo and is definitely an amazing control deck. Beating Rock and Paper is pretty good. (Except in a format that's mostly Rock - The Ferrett)
Adding money to the deck:
I like Morphling. And Sapphire Medallions. And Intuition.
Tog!
Lands (23)
15 Island
8 Swamp
Creatures (7)
4 Nightscape Familiar
3 Psychatog (Uncommon)
Other (30)
2 Merchant Scroll (Uncommon)
4 Duress
4 Dark Banishing
2 Opt
4 Gush
3 Deep Analysis
4 Diabolic Edict
3 Counterspell
4 Daze
Sideboard (15)
4 Carrion Wall
4 Echoing Decay
4 Nausea
1 Counterspell
2 Echoing Truth
Psychatog can single-handedly win games. Let's go to an Extended tournament I recently played:
I was playing Psychatog, while my opponent was playing Teen Titans. He plays Reanimate naming Platinum Angel. His use of City of Brass and Reanimate dropped his life total to eleven. But I just went, "Before the end of your turn, Echoing Truth, Corpse Dance my Tog, Gush for the win."
Now what are the chances we can all pull off wins like that consistently? Pretty good if your last name is Nassif, Budde, or Finkel. But for the rest of us we will probably play Psychatog the good ol' conservative route: Slowly take control of the game and win. You generally want to hit with the Psychatog a once or twice before you win the game, as every point of damage really counts. As a reminder, you may want to Gush before your Attack Step. This allows you to bring two to your hand and play an Island before attacking. (You may be able to Gush again this way.)
Pros:
This deck was amazing in Standard, ridiculous in Type One, and is part of the gauntlet in Extended... So it's not surprising that this deck is doing well in Peasant Magic. Its main advantage is its consistency and good overall game. Against aggressive decks, siding in Carrion Wall can just own.
Con:
Can be difficult to play. It's not as difficult to play as High Tide, but it can still be a pain to learn.
Adding money to the deck:
The Intuition/Accumulated Knowledge engine is also nice. Wonder is, too. As is Cunning Wish. Too bad they aren't available in the format.
So what are these aggressive decks that I speak of? Here's one for you...
STOMP!
Lands (14)
14 Forest
Creatures (37)
4 Rogue Elephant
4 River Boa
4 Mtenda Lion
4 Elvish Spirit Guide (Uncommon)
4 Jungle Lion
4 Ghazban Ogre
4 Llanowar Elves
4 Werebear
1 Nimble Mongoose (Uncommon)
4 Blastoderm
Other (19)
4 Rancor
4 Land Grant
4 Giant Growth
4 Wild Might
3 Fog
Sideboard (15)
4 Naturalize
4 Moment's Peace
1 Fog
4 Hurricane
2 Wild Mongrel
The deck plays like a straight aggressive deck: Cheap creatures follow each other as they assault the opponent, turn after turn. Naturalize adds utility to this deck and Hurricane is good against Control and Combo builds, as it is usually the last punch needed to destroy your opponent.
Goblins and Red Decks are very popular in Peasant, so I recommend Moment's Peace and Fog to stall their attacks. It's pretty much a Time Walk against some decks. Wild Mongrel is a good card to sideboard in against black. One thing you want to remember is that it's a good idea to Fog when you have ten or more life. Why? Goblin Bomb and Fireblast can just come out of nowhere.
Adding money to the deck:
There are some uncommons I would play, like Bounty of the Hunt and Vine Dryad.
Mono Black Control
Lands (24)
21 Swamp
3 Cabal Coffers (Uncommon)
Creatures (10)
2 Hypnotic Specter (Uncommon)
4 Ravenous Rats
4 Skittering Skirge
Other (26)
4 Funeral Charm
4 Consume Spirit
4 Duress
4 Mind Rot
4 Terror
4 Diabolic Edict
2 Corrupt
Sideboard (15)
4 Carnophage
4 Festering Goblin
4 Dark Banishing
3 Shepherd of Rot
Again, the deck is simple enough to play. The problem comes in choosing uncommons. What is the best combination between Hippies and Coffers? I chose Coffers because they punch out better Consume Spirits, which is its main form of kill. I felt that it was slow, though, in such an aggressive format - which is why I included Skittering Skirge. Funeral Charm is a good discard spell (what a stretch), but also creature kill.
Against Control-style decks, you want to board in all your creatures. This is done in hopes of just smashing face before they can get a counter wall up. Skittering Skirge maindeck usually wins by itself, but combined with Carnophage, it can really tear into an opponent. Shepherd of Rot makes the damage race pretty interesting, especially against Control. Also, Festering Goblin is a must-have against other aggro decks.
Pros:
Relatively cheap to build and straightforward play.
Cons:
It can be a little slow.
Adding money to the deck:
There is a host of cards you can play with here, but Phyrexian Arena and Nezumi Shortfang top the list.
My sixth deck takes black through another direction.
Secondary Black!
Lands (21)
21 Swamp
Creatures (21)
4 Dauthi Horror
4 Carnophage
4 Skittering Skirge
3 Hypnotic Specter (Uncommon)
2 Hidden Horror (Uncommon)
4 Dauthi Slayer
Other (18)
4 Diabolic Edict
4 Hymn to Tourach
4 Dark Ritual
4 Consume Spirit
2 Drain Life
Sideboard (15)
4 Duress
4 Mind Rot
4 Terror
3 Spinning Darkness
Another straightforward deck. It uses Consume Spirit and Drain Life to kill creatures while swinging with your bigger creatures.
Sideboard in Duress against control and combo, since ripping away High Tide is always fun. Spinning Darkness is a must-have against red decks as the life gain is crucial.
Pros:
Very simple to play.
Cons:
Isn't particularly powerful without some rares.
Adding money to the deck:
Hatred, Necropotence, Sarcomancy, Perish, Cursed Scroll. Damned commons limit!
The final deck would be...
GOBLINS!!!
Lands (22)
22 Mountain
Creatures (25)
4 Goblin Warchief (Uncommon)
4 Goblin Matron
1 Goblin Ringleader (Uncommon)
4 Mogg Fanatic
4 Mogg Raider
4 Mogg Conscripts
4 Mogg Flunkies
Other (13)
4 Fireblast
4 Goblin Grenade
4 Lightning Bolt
1 Death Spark
Sideboard (15)
3 Death Spark
4 Fire Whip
4 Incinerate
4 Lava Dart
How to Play:
You should win against control and combo, only because they should not have enough answers to your threats. It's aggressive and fast. It can overwhelm your opponent. Goblin Grenade and Fireblast are ridiculous when combined, adding up to nine damage... Hence, I believe that this deck is the best deck in the format. Since this is clearly one of the better decks, the sideboard is built to hose it. Lava Darts, Fire Whips and Death Sparks are all good ways to hose your opponent.
Pros:
Ridiculously fast and good. At GenCon not too long ago, the winner was an Anti-Red Deck - which shows you the dominance of this deck in the format.
Cons:
It gets hosed a lot by white, but turn 3 wins are pretty ridiculous.
Adding money to the deck:
Have you ever thought about playing with Goblin Piledrivers?
Well, that pretty much sums up what I have to say about Peasant Magic. I hope I turned a couple of people towards the format, as I really do believe that it's one of the most fast-paced and balanced formats. Okay, so it's not as balanced as Extended was this season - but come on! I just presented six playable - and, most importantly, affordable - decks.
-Gary
garysemailpleasenospam@yahoo.com
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