Changeslog 8/23/21
Angel of Condemnation =>
Archangel of Tithes The tap ability was often not fast enough without haste to be useful. Paying 3 mana was also really not what we need here. The archangel, despite her color weight, is a very helpful and flexible effect the for deck. She makes us immune to token hordes and forces our opponents to leave mana open for blocks. Honestly, been very happy with this one.
Zirilan of the Claw ==>
Hellkite Tyrant - so the thing thing with Zirilan is that he exiles the creature at end of turn. This is actually a deal breaker as i rely heavily on reanimation for etbs and value. Tryant manages to be a win condition all on his own,
especially with Smothering Tithe existing. Besides that, the fact that you get to KEEP the stolen permanents even after he leaves the battlefield baffles me.
Bogardan Hellkite ==>
Obsidian Charmaw - so Bogardan hellkite has been in the deck a long time. I've always loved the artwork and the feeling of dealing that 5 damage. Abused, it can add up to a lot of damage over time, however Terror of the Peaks far outclasses him in that regard. I've since decided to drop him for a more efficient creature. The nobasic land hate is actually quite desirable as otherwise, i didn't have too many cards that could deal with the bogey lands of the format.
Abhorrent Overlord ==>
Archfiend of Depravity - this feels like a very solid swap. sure it's not an etb but at such an efficient cost this can absolutely wreck my opponent's card advantage and clear the board of potential threats and utility creatures. Overload just felt too cumbersome for what it was doing. Also, is a "nonbo" with
Heartless Summoning
Chromatic Lantern ==>
Gilded Lotus I find i actually really need the big mana in this deck and the extra colors are very helpful. As far as lantern goes, i think i just need to get more dual lands.
Buried Alive ==>
Thran Dynamo - having so many high cost creatures I think the artifact ramp just makes sense. Buried Alive is actually a pretty narrow tutor that doesn't immediately gain me card advantage. Too often I find it forecasts a reanimation spell the cards just get exiled anyway.
Idyllic Tutor ==>
Grim Tutor For the same cmc we get access to more cards. I think this is a good optimization to make. I will be getting a
Vampiric Tutor as budget allows.
Bedevil ==>
Vindicate - I think the flexibility of Vindicate here is needed. I like bedevil for flavor, but moving on.
Spectator Seating,
Vault of Champions, Luxury Suite - getting a few more duals in here is going to help a lot.
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CONSIDERATIONS
A/D/D
I am considering trying to make room for
Bruna, the Fading Light and
Gisela, the Broken Blade mostly for fun. I think the chances of getting these both together is going to be low, but the flavor intrigues me and I like doing unique things in my decks.
Ob Nixilis, Unshackled this guy. I think his 6cmc cost is justified given how hard he can hit. that ability straight up hoses some decks.
Yosei, the Morning Star would round the cycle of these dragons. the other 2 have been great. Yosei is a pretty nasty rattlesnake but i tend to steer away from creatures that can't give me immediate advantage
Sunscorch Regent - i think this guy actually has some potential. i could use a bit more lifegain. lifegain on a dragon is pretty unqiue. i like his cmc.
Removal
I feel like a could be a little light on removal. I'm very partial to instant speed, flexible removal.
Fire Covenant I see the potential of this to deal with problematic utility creatures efficiently. I have some lifegain in the deck but could add more.
Heliod's Intervention This card actually seems fantastic. Instant speed with a high ceiling without hitting my own stuff
Magmaquake being truely one sided seems good. added bonus of killing walkers. instant speed is great.
Swords to Plowshares,
Chaos Warp - dealing with just one thing seems bad for this deck without a lot of card advantage, however these have been proven to be reliable in my other decks.
on the chopping block
Kaalia of the Vast as much as i like having her in the deck, being a 2/2 is a bad place to be.
Gift of Immortality,
Panharmonicon yes it works great with a my commander, but i'm moving a lot of etb creatures out for creatures that can give me a bit more VALUE on their own.
Victimize - the fact that they come into play tapped really is a downside. i think we are more of an aggro deck than i care to admit.
Ill-Gotten Gains - this can be very situational. I love it in certain circumstances, but when it really matters it tends to get countered or even backfire if theres something great in an opponent's yard.
Insidious Dreams - think this is a fantastic card, but i'm not too sure it totally fits here. the main reason for that is the cmc. early game is when i need to be tutoring for key cards and being 4 cmc squarly put this into mid/late game. it is also inherently card disadvantage which is risky.
Vampiric Tutor would probably be the more competetive choice.
Diabolic Intent - there have been a few times where i don't like this. a lot of times i really don't want to sac anything as my board presence is actually just fine.
I love me some angels and demons and such.
