Varina, Lich Queen - Esper Zombie Midrange

[pokken]

@pokken with the amount of things probably leaving your GY in a game you might want to try Tormod. Can flood the board fast.

I am definitely thinking about it a lot after (I think it was you?) someone explained all the interactions. Turning Field of the Dead + Crucible of Worlds into "make 4 zombies every turn" feels nasty.

It has a really strong interaction with Haakon, Stromgald Scourge too, turning the combo into infinite zombies and infinite mana instead of just infinite deaths.

[plaganegra]

@pokken with the amount of things probably leaving your GY in a game you might want to try Tormod. Can flood the board fast.

I am definitely thinking about it a lot after (I think it was you?) someone explained all the interactions. Turning Field of the Dead + Crucible of Worlds into "make 4 zombies every turn" feels nasty.

It has a really strong interaction with Haakon, Stromgald Scourge too, turning the combo into infinite zombies and infinite mana instead of just infinite deaths.

Hah yes that would be me. I think I am one of the very few running Tormod the Desecrator in my deck.

here is the most comprehensive list of interactions with him I can think of right now (for my deck):

• Varina, Lich Queen's token ability - exile two cards, make two zombies (1 from tormod, one from varina).
• Master of Death makes a free zombie on your upkeep
• Gravecrawler combo with phyrexian altar makes infinite zombies. By himself, gravecrawler makes 1 zombie.
• Haakon, Stromgald Scourge makes a zombie, and everything you cast with him also makes a zombie.
• Foulmire Knight // Profane Insight combo makes infinite zombies with haakon and phyrexian altar
• silversmote ghoul comes back for free and makes a zombie. Has a built in sac outlet for value.
• Prized amalgam makes a free zombie, can be abused each turn cycle with other GY recursion zombies for added value.
• Putrid Goblin - persist trigger
• Mikeaus the Unhallowed - tons of triggers
• Relentless Dead triggers with both abilities
• snapcaster mage flashback triggers it
• repository skaab return a spell triggers it
• sevinne's reclamation can do it twice
• living death, patriarch's bidding, zombie apocalypse - only get you one (batch discount lol)
• unholy grotto triggers with each activation
• Apprentice Necromancer - almost forgot this one

In your deck any of those plus:
crucible of worlds - free zombie each land drop.
you can probably find more too

[Reya]

From that point of view, Tormod seems to be better than Wilhelt in Varina. Plus, I realy don't like at all decayed tokens and Headless Rider is cheaper and better at producing tokens than Wilhelt.

[plaganegra]

From that point of view, Tormod seems to be better than Wilhelt in Varina. Plus, I realy don't like at all decayed tokens and Headless Rider is cheaper and better at producing tokens than Wilhelt.

This is possible, it depends on what you are running though. I am running several zombies that work with Tormod that many people stay away from like silversmote ghoul and prized amalgam, and I run a lot of support for that strategy in the form of GY tutors and an efficient curve that lets me bin a lot of zombies off of Varina. I also run all of the fetches and aggressively make tokens with Varina.

Tormod will outperform Wilhelt in my deck I think, but in many other lists Wilhelt will be far more consistent and also draws cards.

I run both, but still havent gotten to play with Wilhelt.

[toctheyounger]

I've had a tiny but of play with him, but the games he's cropped up I've been stuck behind and had not much to do anyway. The basement of a draw is nice but I can't really say much more about it yet. I'm still a little way away from upgrading and that'll mean pulling the curve down some which will make a big difference to gameplay I think.

[Reya]

I play many things that work well with Tormod:

- Silversmote Ghoul
- Putrid Goblin
- Master of Death
- Relentless Dead
- Gravecrawler
- Apprentice Necromancer

- Crucible of Worlds
- Sevinn's Reclamation

And thanks to Pokken I'm now trying Haakon :D

[pokken]

And thanks to Pokken I'm now trying Haakon :D
Post Reply Previous topicNext topic

I can't take credit for the idea honestly, but I am really liking it so far. Discarding him to Varina, Lich Queen just feels so great. It was @Arebennian who suggested it I think in my thread.

[Reya]

Well, Tormod, as Wilhelt, is quite expensive but it does some interesting free stuff and not making decayed zombies is good. Plus, correct me if I'm wrong, it creates a token if you reanimate it (On Xmage, Tormod created a token after it get reanimated with Twilight'call).

[pokken]

Hmm, I would not expect Tormod, the Desecrator to see himself leaving the yard like that.

[toctheyounger]

Id imagine that came from it seeing other creatures leaving the graveyard with it moreso than itself leaving the graveyard. Even then that ability shouldn't be active if Tormod isn't in play so I'd imagine that's a bug of some kind.

[pokken]

Cracked my last set of Timeless Wisdom to get the Fierce Guardianship for this deck. Picking up those and the Deflecting Swat and Dockside Extortionist decks was a good choice but it sure is annoying. I wish they'd put those cards all in promo packs at least so we can get foils, and maybe make them a bit more accessible.

Got some tough cuts ahead of me to get some countermagic into this deck. Really wish I could get the blue count for Force of Will but don't think I can make it happen.

In the end I went:
OUT

• Diregraf Captain
• Noxious Ghoul
• Grimgrin, Corpse-Born

Man those were some hard cuts. The deck is getting so tight now. Captain is the worst drain effect and I have yet to cast it - the targeted opponent thing feels limiting except in the context of a combo, but it's a really strong card in the deck. Ghoul has just not really been relevant except when I'm already winning - and it's expensive. I may come back to it, but I just can't think of anything else that I could cut except Twilight's Call which I'm really hesitant to do.

I also added Ertai's Meddling instead of Swan Song since I realize I want to be able to deal with anything for a while. That slot could easily be Remand but I like that Ertai's Meddling beats Cavern of Souls and other uncounterable effects (Allosaurus Shepherd is the one I see the most).


Just for a little context of how dang difficult this deck is to build... Here's my wad of stuff I would like to play

[toctheyounger]

Cracked my last set of Timeless Wisdom to get the Fierce Guardianship for this deck. Picking up those and the Deflecting Swat and Dockside Extortionist decks was a good choice but it sure is annoying. I wish they'd put those cards all in promo packs at least so we can get foils, and maybe make them a bit more accessible.

Got some tough cuts ahead of me to get some countermagic into this deck. Really wish I could get the blue count for Force of Will but don't think I can make it happen.

In the end I went:
OUT

• Diregraf Captain
• Noxious Ghoul
• Grimgrin, Corpse-Born

Man those were some hard cuts. The deck is getting so tight now. Captain is the worst drain effect and I have yet to cast it - the targeted opponent thing feels limiting except in the context of a combo, but it's a really strong card in the deck. Ghoul has just not really been relevant except when I'm already winning - and it's expensive. I may come back to it, but I just can't think of anything else that I could cut except Twilight's Call which I'm really hesitant to do.

I also added Ertai's Meddling instead of Swan Song since I realize I want to be able to deal with anything for a while. That slot could easily be Remand but I like that Ertai's Meddling beats Cavern of Souls and other uncounterable effects (Allosaurus Shepherd is the one I see the most).


Just for a little context of how dang difficult this deck is to build... Here's my wad of stuff I would like to play

You got a double up of Wight of Precinct Six in there. Fixed that for ya 😉

[plaganegra]

Lol @pokken you need a box just for zombies man.

If you dig into the coffers its easy to find a lot of playable zombies. When you have to start cutting the good stuff to make the deck run better you know you are doing either something awesome or terrible.

Glad I am not the only one experiencing noxious ghoul as a win more card most of the time! When the deck is doing what it needs to to operate it always felt unnecessary to me.

So if you are cutting diregraf captain and vengeful dead you need to rename your deck lol.

Im all for slaughtering the sacred cows. Now that you mention it dirgraf has never performed for me outside of a combo win.

How many aristocrat effects does the deck need I wonder?

Scourge of Nel Toth is an interesting idea with all the cheap zombies and tokens floating around…

[pokken]

Lol @pokken you need a box just for zombies man.

If you dig into the coffers its easy to find a lot of playable zombies. When you have to start cutting the good stuff to make the deck run better you know you are doing either something awesome or terrible.

Glad I am not the only one experiencing noxious ghoul as a win more card most of the time! When the deck is doing what it needs to to operate it always felt unnecessary to me.

So if you are cutting diregraf captain and vengeful dead you need to rename your deck lol.

Im all for slaughtering the sacred cows. Now that you mention it dirgraf has never performed for me outside of a combo win.

How many aristocrat effects does the deck need I wonder?

I kept the best ones - wayward, corpse knight and plague belcher. I would likely add bastion before I added captain back since lifegain is nice and it survives better. Not being a zombie sucks but it's just better.

Honestly my deck is warping to be a bit more combo because of how my meta is but the combination of all that draw, a few tutors and having three solid aristos seems to be fine.

like most things it depends on cmc. I would happily replace all the 2 cmc zombies with wayward servant. Undead augur too I think. Colossus and master would be replaced by more plague belchers but haakon and standard bearer too important now.

Basically I would play as many copies of wayward servant or corpse knight as they let me but after 2 cmc it gets tough.

[plaganegra]

@pokken

How are you using standard bearer in games? It has always been too difficult to time for me. Are you planning to use it mostly for the combo to draw into another piece? That seems fine to me

[pokken]

@pokken

How are you using standard bearer in games? It has always been too difficult to time for me. Are you planning to use it mostly for the combo to draw into another piece? That seems fine to me

It's a pretty fine card on its own when my goal is to attack with everything sac my board and reanimate it. But the main use is either an infinite draw outlet off gravecrawler loops or foulmire loops.

It has a secondary line with haakon plus ashnods altar where you can draw a not infinite but very large amount of cards from nothing.

At bbbbb you get 1,2,3,4,5 for a total of 15 cards and every subsequent cast adds 6,7,etc. around 13 black you draw your deck.

If you sac a few dudes first it steamrolls faster too

[pzbw7z]

Wonder is the best evasion in Varina IMO. Its hard to interact with and easy to get online! I would put it in every deck. Inwas thinking more in addition to.

Having all of four (4) Islands in my deck makes me a little leery of Wonder.

In fairness, Geralf, Visionary Stitcher isn't a zombie either, but he's closer to on-point flavor-wise. I'm starting with Geralf since he's cheaper than Hordewing Skaab mana-wise.

I could add Fetid Pools and/or Ice Tunnel but I don't care for either. I sold my set of Underground Sea in the last millennium and there's nearly zero chance I'm buying another one.

There are some fetches in my list and I could add more, so perhaps my concern is unwarranted.

[plaganegra]

Wonder is the best evasion in Varina IMO. Its hard to interact with and easy to get online! I would put it in every deck. Inwas thinking more in addition to.

Having all of four (4) Islands in my deck makes me a little leery of Wonder.

In fairness, Geralf, Visionary Stitcher isn't a zombie either, but he's closer to on-point flavor-wise. I'm starting with Geralf since he's cheaper than Hordewing Skaab mana-wise.

I could add Fetid Pools and/or Ice Tunnel but I don't care for either. I sold my set of Underground Sea in the last millennium and there's nearly zero chance I'm buying another one.

There are some fetches in my list and I could add more, so perhaps my concern is unwarranted.

That is reasonable.

I dont think you need any OG duals for Wonder to be consistent. I would use as many fetches as you own in this deck as well as each of the shock lands, and at least 2 of each basic, more swamps. There are a lot of land cards that count as an "island" now that you could use. if you dont have one right off the bat, I am sure through varina triggers you will cycle your way to something that gets you an island card. There are also the very cheap fetches which get basics that work for this too.

Fetches help you fix your mana, help you activate wonder, and fill your GY with fodder for Varina tokens. Also there is an interaction with weathered wayfarer to make it more consistent you have fewer lands than an opponent (sac and activate in response).

Fetches are def on the expensive side, but worth owning one of each for all your decks. I proxy beyond the one copy I own and nobody has ever had a problem with that. Most people do in my area.

[pzbw7z]

Having all of four (4) Islands in my deck makes me a little leery of Wonder.

I could add Fetid Pools and/or Ice Tunnel but I don't care for either. I sold my set of Underground Sea in the last millennium and there's nearly zero chance I'm buying another one.

There are some fetches in my list and I could add more, so perhaps my concern is unwarranted.

That is reasonable.

I dont think you need any OG duals for Wonder to be consistent.

Good to know.

I would use as many fetches as you own in this deck

I've got all of the B fetches except Polluted Delta (of course!) and Marsh Flats and Bloodstained Mire are already in the list. I may tear down my pitiful attempt at Prosper, Tome-Bound and use the Verdant Catacombs from there. Flooded Strand isn't the worst idea in the world I suppose, but I don't like the idea of playing anything that won't fetch B (FS gets both Shocks). I guess the U fetches get one shock and the W fetches get the other. . . So. . . Maybe. I have only one double-U card (it's probably going to get cut) and two double-W cards (one of which might get cut), so I'm loathe to cut Swamps for fetches that won't get Swamps. I do have a few dubious UB and BW lands I could cut instead. I shall ponder it.

as well as each of the shock lands,

Check! Well, except Hallowed Fountain. I'm reticent to play lands that don't make B except for some of the utility lands.

and at least 2 of each basic, more swamps.

Check!

There are a lot of land cards that count as an "island" now that you could use.

Not that many that count as an Island and a Swamp.

if you dont have one right off the bat, I am sure through varina triggers you will cycle your way to something that gets you an island card. There are also the very cheap fetches which get basics that work for this too.

Yeah. . . I'm not sure my ego will tolerate playing Evolving Wilds. I've got Prismatic Vista and Fabled Passage on board. There's also an Expedition Map. Wayfarer's Bauble might not be awful in a three-color deck, but then again, it might be.

Fetches help you fix your mana, help you activate wonder, and fill your GY with fodder for Varina tokens. Also there is an interaction with weathered wayfarer to make it more consistent you have fewer lands than an opponent (sac and activate in response).

I've got a Weathered Wayfarer in my GW Dragonlord Dromoka deck. I'm going to hold off using it just due to Zombie-prejudice.

Fetches are def on the expensive side, but worth owning one of each for all your decks. I proxy beyond the one copy I own and nobody has ever had a problem with that. Most people do in my area.

Proxing is an idea.

Thanks for the thoughtful response!

[pokken]

I like wayfarer as an honorary zombie for finding field of the dead

[plaganegra]

@pzbw7z

You don't need more than probably two island-swamps in your deck (that's all I run) - you just need many ways to find them! That is where the fetches come in. I only run one island-plains in my deck. Sometimes I want it when I draw two black sources and a fetch in my opener. It also makes your fetch lands more useful to have access to every color combination (at least one copy) in the deck. I would run one copy of hallowed fountain if you are going up in the fetchland count. If not, I would not run hallowed fountain.

This is my land breakdown and ramp package - it has been working better than any varina manabase I have used up until this point. My average nonland cmc is 2.66

Decklist

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

Colorless Lands (4):

1 Ancient Tomb

1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

1 Phyrexian Tower

1 Unholy Grotto

Fetch-Lands (9):

1 Arid Mesa

1 Bloodstained Mire

1 Flooded Strand

1 Marsh Flats

1 Misty Rainforest

1 Polluted Delta

1 Scalding Tarn

1 Verdant Catacombs

1 Prismatic Vista

Basic Lands (6):

2 Island

2 Plains

4 Swamp

Dual Lands (5):

1 Godless Shrine

1 Watery Grave

1 Scrubland

1 Tundra

1 Underground Sea

Other lands that tap for black (10):

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Command Tower

1 Crypt of Agadeem

1 Dimir Aqueduct

1 Orzhov Basilica

1 Morphic Pool

1 Vault of Champions

1 Sunken Ruins

1 Underground River

1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Ramp:

1 Chrome Mox

1 Mana Crypt

1 Mox Diamond

1 Land Tax

1 Sol Ring

1 Weathered Wayfarer

1 Arcane Signet

1 Nightscape Familiar

Approximate Total Cost:

For a total of 35 lands.

This is probably about as "optimized" a Varina manabase can get, but for budget reasons you could get mostly the same effect with a few swaps. I am not sure it is the best for everyone's deck but it has been working well for me.

Mana crypt and mox diamond can become either more lands or mana rocks.
OG Duals can become the CIPT duals like Fetid Pools or more basics (you need to make sure you have enough targets for the fetches. I am sure someone somewhere did the math on the ratios. But if you are not running 4-6 duals, I would not run any of the white fetches and only run blue and black fetches + prismatic vista and fabled passage.

If you are running CIPT duals I would be sure to remove any other unnecessary CIPT lands from your deck (including bounce lands), except crypt of agadeem - if you run that one. I only run 3 CIPT lands in my deck, and I have considered swapping out the basilica for another swamp. There are only 5 lands in my deck that do not tap for B.

Anyway, I think fetches will solve any problems you have with islands and wonder - accepting that sometimes variance will prevent you from getting it online. Each fetch you add is like adding a virtual island if you need it. I always get it online eventually...

[Falkenbach]

@pzbw7z

You don't need more than probably two island-swamps in your deck (that's all I run) - you just need many ways to find them! That is where the fetches come in. I only run one island-plains in my deck. Sometimes I want it when I draw two black sources and a fetch in my opener. It also makes your fetch lands more useful to have access to every color combination (at least one copy) in the deck. I would run one copy of hallowed fountain if you are going up in the fetchland count. If not, I would not run hallowed fountain.

This is my land breakdown and ramp package - it has been working better than any varina manabase I have used up until this point. My average nonland cmc is 2.66

Decklist

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

Colorless Lands (4):

1 Ancient Tomb

1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

1 Phyrexian Tower

1 Unholy Grotto

Fetch-Lands (9):

1 Arid Mesa

1 Bloodstained Mire

1 Flooded Strand

1 Marsh Flats

1 Misty Rainforest

1 Polluted Delta

1 Scalding Tarn

1 Verdant Catacombs

1 Prismatic Vista

Basic Lands (6):

2 Island

2 Plains

4 Swamp

Dual Lands (5):

1 Godless Shrine

1 Watery Grave

1 Scrubland

1 Tundra

1 Underground Sea

Other lands that tap for black (10):

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Command Tower

1 Crypt of Agadeem

1 Dimir Aqueduct

1 Orzhov Basilica

1 Morphic Pool

1 Vault of Champions

1 Sunken Ruins

1 Underground River

1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Ramp:

1 Chrome Mox

1 Mana Crypt

1 Mox Diamond

1 Land Tax

1 Sol Ring

1 Weathered Wayfarer

1 Arcane Signet

1 Nightscape Familiar

Approximate Total Cost:

For a total of 35 lands.

This is probably about as "optimized" a Varina manabase can get, but for budget reasons you could get mostly the same effect with a few swaps. I am not sure it is the best for everyone's deck but it has been working well for me.

Mana crypt and mox diamond can become either more lands or mana rocks.
OG Duals can become the CIPT duals like Fetid Pools or more basics (you need to make sure you have enough targets for the fetches. I am sure someone somewhere did the math on the ratios. But if you are not running 4-6 duals, I would not run any of the white fetches and only run blue and black fetches + prismatic vista and fabled passage.

If you are running CIPT duals I would be sure to remove any other unnecessary CIPT lands from your deck (including bounce lands), except crypt of agadeem - if you run that one. I only run 3 CIPT lands in my deck, and I have considered swapping out the basilica for another swamp. There are only 5 lands in my deck that do not tap for B.

Anyway, I think fetches will solve any problems you have with islands and wonder - accepting that sometimes variance will prevent you from getting it online. Each fetch you add is like adding a virtual island if you need it. I always get it online eventually...

I would try to swap out the orzhov basilica and the dimir aquaduct.
Maybe for Shipwreck Marsh and Shattered Sanctum ?

For me its now also important to have white mana on turn 1. So I can play wayfarer and land tax for sure. Thats why i also run Mana Confluence and Hallowed Fountain.

[pokken]

This is my land breakdown and ramp package - it has been working better than any varina manabase I have used up until this point. My average nonland cmc is 2.66

I'm a bit iffy on playing any of the bounce lands tbh. They provide some utility in functionally adding an extra land slot, which is nice (drawing one is basically hitting two land drops, albeit slowly).

I'm somewhat iffy on Ancient Tomb too--it has utility primarily if you're hitting critical mass of signets. Otherwise it's pressuring your life total for acceleration you often won't be able to use because of constraints on colors. It's good for sure to be able to accelerate but not making colors and especially not making black can be a problem. I think it's probably worse than Mana Confluence or City of Brass a significant portion of the time. I personally skip all of those for a stupid reason (to avoid book-keeping, and my tombs are all in decks:P) but without the tomb->signet interaction it's quite a lot worse.

In my manabase, there're some downsides to Sunken Hollow and Fabled Passage in comparison, but those add some flexibility. I'm not willing to cut the fetchable count much lower but I could see adding a Morphic Pool and Vault of Champions to mine (cutting two swamps probably, sadly). The problem with that is that I run out of basics pretty fast that way.

I'm all onboard with your mana rock package. I don't quite have enough blue to support Nightscape Apprentice but it might be worth it just being a decent zombie who accelerates Varina and regenerates. I played that in a blue heavy deck once and it was great. Arcane Signet is hit or miss to me, I don't play it but I see no real reason it wouldnt' be reasonable - it's a lot of fixing and not a lot of tempo.

[pzbw7z]

@pzbw7z

You don't need more than probably two island-swamps in your deck (that's all I run) - you just need many ways to find them! That is where the fetches come in. I only run one island-plains in my deck. Sometimes I want it when I draw two black sources and a fetch in my opener. It also makes your fetch lands more useful to have access to every color combination (at least one copy) in the deck. I would run one copy of hallowed fountain if you are going up in the fetchland count. If not, I would not run hallowed fountain.

This is my land breakdown and ramp package

Show

Hide

- it has been working better than any varina manabase I have used up until this point. My average nonland cmc is 2.66

Decklist

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

Colorless Lands (4):

1 Ancient Tomb

1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

1 Phyrexian Tower

1 Unholy Grotto

Fetch-Lands (9):

1 Arid Mesa

1 Bloodstained Mire

1 Flooded Strand

1 Marsh Flats

1 Misty Rainforest

1 Polluted Delta

1 Scalding Tarn

1 Verdant Catacombs

1 Prismatic Vista

Basic Lands (6):

2 Island

2 Plains

4 Swamp

Dual Lands (5):

1 Godless Shrine

1 Watery Grave

1 Scrubland

1 Tundra

1 Underground Sea

Other lands that tap for black (10):

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Command Tower

1 Crypt of Agadeem

1 Dimir Aqueduct

1 Orzhov Basilica

1 Morphic Pool

1 Vault of Champions

1 Sunken Ruins

1 Underground River

1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Ramp:

1 Chrome Mox

1 Mana Crypt

1 Mox Diamond

1 Land Tax

1 Sol Ring

1 Weathered Wayfarer

1 Arcane Signet

1 Nightscape Familiar

Approximate Total Cost:

For a total of 35 lands.

This is probably about as "optimized" a Varina manabase can get, but for budget reasons you could get mostly the same effect with a few swaps. I am not sure it is the best for everyone's deck but it has been working well for me.

Mana crypt and mox diamond can become either more lands or mana rocks.
OG Duals can become the CIPT duals like Fetid Pools or more basics (you need to make sure you have enough targets for the fetches. I am sure someone somewhere did the math on the ratios. But if you are not running 4-6 duals, I would not run any of the white fetches and only run blue and black fetches + prismatic vista and fabled passage.

If you are running CIPT duals I would be sure to remove any other unnecessary CIPT lands from your deck (including bounce lands), except crypt of agadeem - if you run that one. I only run 3 CIPT lands in my deck, and I have considered swapping out the basilica for another swamp. There are only 5 lands in my deck that do not tap for B.

Anyway, I think fetches will solve any problems you have with islands and wonder - accepting that sometimes variance will prevent you from getting it online. Each fetch you add is like adding a virtual island if you need it. I always get it online eventually...

Wow, many thanks for the detailed reply!

This is what I've got now - 36 total lands, 2.375 2.47 average CMC - including two tweaks I made after your last post:

Decklist

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

Black Only

1 Bojuka Bog

1 Castle Locthwain

1 Phyrexian Tower

4 Swamp

1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Black and Blue

Fetchable

1 Sunken Hollow

1 Watery Grave

Non-fetchable

1 Choked Estuary

1 Clearwater Pathway

1 Underground River

1 Tainted Isle

Black and White

Fetchable

1 Godless Shrine

Non-fetchable

1 Caves of Koilos

1 Fetid Heath

1 Grimclimb Pathway

1 Isolated Chapel

1 Shineshadow Snarl

1 Tainted Field

Blue Only

2 Island

White Only

2 Plains

Black, Blue and White

1 Command Tower

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Reflecting Pool

1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

Fetches

1 Bloodstained Mire

1 Fabled Passage

1 Flooded Strand

1 Marsh Flats

1 Prismatic Vista

1 Verdant Catacombs

Colorless

1 Tectonic Edge

Rocks and Ramp

Artifacts

1 Expedition Map

1 Sol Ring

1 Arcane Signet

1 Sword of the Animist

1 Talisman of Dominance

1 Talisman of Hierarchy

Enchantments

1 Land Tax

Approximate Total Cost:

There may be a stinker or two, Castle Locthwain might be one, but I'm sure play will sort it out.

I do want to add an Unholy Grotto, but I haven't found one yet. If I feel I need it badly once I start playing, I'll just point a browser at it and pull the trigger.

I actually have more W than U in casting costs at this point, but that may change so I've chosen to balance the two. This deck does not feel like a real three-color deck to me, rather like a B deck with two splashes. This has influenced my choices somewhat. Flooded Strand gets seven cards, so it seems to be a good include, the other W or U fetches will get three or four but I'm not sure that's good enough to cut something else.

There's no WB equivalent to Sunken Hollow and I'm not sure it's worth running a CIBT Plains/Swamp to level it up. I will just see how it goes. I'm not happy about Caves of Koilos or Underground River and I very nearly despise Isolated Chapel, so I may make changes to one or more of those.

[pzbw7z]

I'm a bit iffy on playing any of the bounce lands tbh. They provide some utility in functionally adding an extra land slot, which is nice (drawing one is basically hitting two land drops, albeit slowly).

I'm somewhat iffy on Ancient Tomb too--it has utility primarily if you're hitting critical mass of signets. Otherwise it's pressuring your life total for acceleration you often won't be able to use because of constraints on colors. It's good for sure to be able to accelerate but not making colors and especially not making black can be a problem. I think it's probably worse than Mana Confluence or City of Brass a significant portion of the time. I personally skip all of those for a stupid reason (to avoid book-keeping, and my tombs are all in decks:P) but without the tomb->signet interaction it's quite a lot worse.

I've been debating whether to throw my Ancient Tomb into the mix as well. I just don't know about it. It would make up a little of the three thousand-dollar difference between my manabase and plaganegra's.