Bant Puzzles

[cryogen]

I'm working on a new bant deck and would like to make it something that doesn't just regurgitate the same "create infinite loop, do something" wincons over and over, so I'm looking for wincons that are intricate puzzles to assemble. Think Doomsday. You know, the ones where you have different lines of play each time.

(Yes, I realize the irony of asking for something that isn't linear and then using a linear combo as an example.)

[Sinis]

This is one of the reasons I fervently wish that Gifts Ungiven was legal. It's a puzzle to be solved, and has a very high skill ceiling. I, for one, find these sorts of things enjoyable.

What about having versatile combo pieces; like, they don't do much on their own, but are devastating with another card? Kind of like Solemnity, and how it's good with Decree of Silence, Dark Depths, Phyrexian Unlife or Undying/Persist creatures, but it is also just kind of hate against +1/+1 counters, infect, etc.

But, you could have other cards that combo with Phyrexian Unlife/Decree of Silence, not just Solemnity etc.

[cryogen]

This is one of the reasons I fervently wish that Gifts Ungiven was legal. It's a puzzle to be solved, and has a very high skill ceiling. I, for one, find these sorts of things enjoyable.

What about having versatile combo pieces; like, they don't do much on their own, but are devastating with another card? Kind of like Solemnity, and how it's good with Decree of Silence, Dark Depths, Phyrexian Unlife or Undying/Persist creatures, but it is also just kind of hate against +1/+1 counters, infect, etc.

But, you could have other cards that combo with Phyrexian Unlife/Decree of Silence, not just Solemnity etc.

That's sort of where I'm leaning right now, and trying to find a balance between cards that individually fit the deck and then can work in conjunction for something greater.

[Sinis]

That's sort of where I'm leaning right now, and trying to find a balance between cards that individually fit the deck and then can work in conjunction for something greater.

Finding interlocking pieces can be sort of hard.

I feel like there's a balance between something being specific-but-good (like Solemnity) or something that might be too generic-but-good (like Starfield of Nyx; it combos with 'enchantments', boys!). Or maybe that's not 'too good' and exactly what you're looking for?

[cryogen]

Well I'm trying to do Arcades with Chulane as the secret general (and overall theme of the deck being draw cards and landfall). It would probably make more sense to run Chulane, but he looks to be more generic goodstuff, and will probably be running rampart as it is, so Arcades will provide a wincon in itself (turning defenders sideways).

What I like about my Karador deck is that even though there is one obvious combo (Karmic/Llark), there are multiple other synergies that can lead to a win without necessarily being infinite combos, so that's what I'd like to recreate. I can use Cloudstone Curio, Alluren, and Intruder Alarm to generate infinite mana, untaps, and ETB triggers, but I'd like to be able to get these setups without actually going that route. Or maybe I do.

[hyalopterouslemur]

In Bant? Can't help but think Bant enchantments is your line of thinking, but with a control shell.

[pokken]

It all starts with Intuition. I love my intuition puzzlebox in Ephara (and it could be way larger).

Made up of a bunch of different ways to enable different karmic guide/lark combos from one piece + intuition, but can also be used to set up displacer combos and tidespout combos.

[bobthefunny]

If you stack enough value engines together, eventually it becomes a combo in a different way each time.

[darrenhabib]

You can setup to do puzzle solving Birthing Pod toolbox build. Often it depends on the strengths of your opponents decks. Are they creature decks or spell slinger or control? Based on these I would sequence out (multiple times in a turn to get desired results), for instance getting Academy Rector into play to then get Dovescape to counter non-creature spells (for spellsling or control). Or if they were go wide with creature strategies then I'd look to sequence all the way into Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite for example.

So I feel any puzzle solving deck starts with having at least single cards that can deal with situations. Then you have to be able to search for these to string answers together.

Uncage the Menagerie is a superb card for this type of puzzle solving. It makes you rethink/confirm converted mana costs in your deck, and allows you to work out solutions during the game as long as you've spread out some toolbox creatures among these.

[vandertroll]

I have been trying to do something interesting/similar in bant for ages. Some value enchantments along with landfall stuff but I always end with 200 card piles. Birthing pod with intruder alarm could be a start