Kykar, Wind’s Fury

[WizardMN]

The only thing potentially worth commenting more on is Reflection and, by association, Theoretical Duplication. These are fun cards but take the exact right scenario to be good that I am not sure my build is right for them.

I view Mystic Reflection as spot removal or a weird counterspell more than anything - particularly effective against commanders since they still ETB (without any triggers of their own) and it isn't an aura they can remove or anything. Their commander is just a spirit or some other worthless thing now.

I think this is probably one of the better uses for it but even then it is pretty much required you have it at the right time. At least with something like Song of the Dryads you can get it later and still do that.

Obviously the flexibility is what makes the difference and this was the only time I have gotten the card so I am not sure on how often that flexibility often ends up mattering.

Is there an "exact right scenario" for it? Yeah, and that is the exact moment my own Secure the Wastes is resolving. . . and voila - now I own 8 Monastery Mentors or what have you. But - and it's a very important but - the card is almost never dead because nasty opposing creatures ETB all the time in commander.

This is one of the main reasons why I figured it made more sense in your build than mine. I don't have any effects like this in my build. No Call the Coppercoats, no Secure the Wastes, no White Sun's Zenith. I have literally no way to make more than one token at a time.

As for Theoretical Duplication, there is no amenable "almost never dead" clause to it. It's either being awesome and copying a Blightsteel Colossus, or it sucks. I like the card, I just don't think it has enough versatility for us. I think it's a toy for Adrix and Nev, Twincasters or Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer.

I agree with this for sure. I figured it was close enough and it was sort of cool enough to be included but it just isn't useful enough in here to make sense with including it. I probably won't change either one for a while since my list online is already out of sync with paper (no Archaeomancer's Map, no Reinterpret, and no reprint of Idol of Oblivion Online yet so I have other cards in their places for now).

We've both noted that the way Kykar plays out tends to lend itself to a glut of lands in hand (though that Valakut Awakening was just a real bad beat). Archaeomancer's Map should be a good help moving forward, and Jeskai Ascendancy and Faithless Looting do help. That said, I wonder if it might be worth considering Tectonic Reformation, Seismic Assault, Channeled Force, Leave // Chance, or even the smaller red rummagers a la Cathartic Reunion and Thrill of Possibility. I know some of those can lead to big blowouts if someone wants to counter it, but if you already have a grip of five lands, are you really upset if they "get" you and cause you to discard what was already dead in hand?

Of course, with that being said, this is an interesting idea. I went through some of these things in Gisela and I do really like Thrill of Possibility being an Instant (I think this is important for my build). Not being an Instant is why I kept away from Thrilling Discovery for now. Channeled Force is interesting. It does draw 1 less than Valakut Awakening and costs 1 more mana but it also acts as removal. I wonder if there is anything more like Awakening that rummages but also replaces itself?

[MeowZeDung]

Heartwarming Redemption

There's also Chandra, Flamecaller which can become CA once you activate the 0 ability a second time. We've had the PW discussion several times, so it's probably not super appealing unless you have a powerful way to enhance her activations, like Purphoros, God of the Forge/Impact Tremors/Anointed Procession or Alhammarret's Archive/Rielle, the Everwise/The Locust God.

[WizardMN]

Heartwarming Redemption

There's also Chandra, Flamecaller which can become CA once you activate the 0 ability a second time. We've had the PW discussion several times, so it's probably not super appealing unless you have a powerful way to enhance her activations, like Purphoros, God of the Forge/Impact Tremors/Anointed Procession or Alhammarret's Archive/Rielle, the Everwise/The Locust God.

Yeah, I agree on Chandra based mostly on being 6 mana. Have you been using Redemption and has it seemed to be working out for you? It looks decent and is only 1 mana more than Awakening which I think is worth it for the life gain. At least, it is worth a try.

[pokken]

I don't think looting is that good in Kykar beyond the hyper efficient ones. You have access to so much card advantage and cantrips that do things I'd play those first. I rarely play the looting stuff if my deck runs blue because then you have a dependency on red mana to get your lands which is ugly -- it's why I usually don't mix cantrips and Cultivate effects either, as a side note, unless there's some particular reason (e.g. I do run Ponder and Brainstorm in Maelstrom Wanderer for obvious reasons.

I'd add things like Supreme Will and Remand before I'd play any of the looting spells other than Faithless in this deck I think (which is good because it provides two Kykar triggers when you desperately need them). There's just a metric ton of those things.

I might even try some of the Feather suite like Shelter but there sadly aren't that many of those things that cantrip -- although I do think the odds that's better than Emerge Unscathed are pretty high.

Another card I would consider running in this deck that you do not is Manifold Insights. That card has always been just ridiculous for me in decks like this where they almost can't give you a bad card. It doesn't need to be defended like Rhystic Study and just gets you 3 solid cards now (it also helps that you can collude with players who are behind with you:))

[MeowZeDung]

I have not been running Heartwarming Redemption, but I have given it a look before. It just seemed to fit the bill perfectly with what you were describing, instant speed and all.

Oooh, Manifold Insights is nifty! How did I not know about this card?

As far as the rummaging/looting being not that great in Kykar - I agree to a point. The problem is the deck absolutely churns through spells because of spirit mana, and at a certain point cantrips and, yes, even the hyper awesome megatastic CA spells like FoF, land us in positions where we have 3-5 lands and a situational spell in hand. Anything that can recycle lands into gas and still be on theme with the rest of the deck seems like a viable inclusion to me, hence why I brought up Tectonic Reformation for example. I will say though, Manifold Insights is blowing my mind a bit right now though. Like, I get we'd be getting the worst 3 spells in most situations, but in Kykar play patterns it's often about volume of spells and not just quality. Unlike any of the other CA spells though, you're guaranteed gas and not more lands. That's hot.

[WizardMN]

@pokken

I think since Kykar makes red mana for us, that dependency becomes a bit less relevant. I do agree that the blue based cards are where we want to be to start with but they diminish quite rapidly after a certain point. And, I like the rummaging/looting effects like Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge and Heartwarming Redemption because of the mass of cards we can get from it. As MeowZeDung said, this deck, for some reason, tends to flood with lands. And it has happened often enough that I don't really think it is just an anomaly when it happens. So, Supreme Will simply replacing itself doesn't seem all that good when the rest of our hand is just junk.

Same thing with straight cantrips though I can see the appeal of things like Shelter. If it was 1 mana, I could forgo the second trigger for a card but being 2 mana is actually quite a detriment. 1 mana protection spells tend to be at a premium so as to allow me the opportunity to get Kykar down and protect him. As mentioned, my list (definitely more so than Meow's list) is hugely dependent on Kykar staying on the field. It is just the nature of how I decided to build the deck so having to potentially wait to get Kykar down for when I have 6 mana to cast him and protect him with Shelter is not ideal. The only reason Unscathed is still in here is because it is 1 mana.

Manifold Insights on the other hand is a card you have suggested in other threads and I just never did much with it. But perhaps this is the time I should look into it. Not being an instant prevents me from using it as a reactive spell to stop someone but as you said it potentially gets me good cards in hand and I am guaranteed not to get lands off of it. While this could be a detriment in certain cases, the deck floods enough, and there are other draw/looting/rummaging effects that this likely won't matter. I think I will give it a try.

[WizardMN]

I have not been running Heartwarming Redemption, but I have given it a look before. It just seemed to fit the bill perfectly with what you were describing, instant speed and all.

Also, I want to be clear that I am on board with this being wrong mostly on mana cost. But there are likely enough scenarios where this is discard 2, draw 3 at worst that I think I am fine with trying it. And the ceiling is a bit higher (and the life gain, while not super important, is nice to have) that I would look at it over something like Rain of Revelation. Sure, I need to discard first and yes, for parity, I need to discard one more card, but being able to throw away 4 cards or something for 5 new ones sounds appealing. Perhaps it is wrong and perhaps thinks like Insights will cover most of what I want this to do, but I think it might be worth a try.

[MeowZeDung]

It is a small point, but if you are currently running or ever plan to run any sort of copy effect, suddenly your Thrill of Possibility/Channeled Forces etc. get real spicy. Then you can REALLY go off the deep end and add Gaze of Justice/Infernal Plunge/Magmatic Insight/Shared Discovery/Vivisection

[pokken]

I think since Kykar makes red mana for us, that dependency becomes a bit less relevant. I do agree that the blue based cards are where we want to be to start with but they diminish quite rapidly after a certain point. And, I like the rummaging/looting effects like Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge and Heartwarming Redemption because of the mass of cards we can get from it.

So the point at which you can get stalled because of lack of red mana is *before* Kykar. If you have a hand of say, Island, Tundra, Thrill of Possibility, that's a stall that you have to chuck because Thrill costs red mana instead of blue. To be fair, your manabase is pretty balanced, but given that the deck is 50% blue I think it's probably a bit questionably overbalanced.

Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge is a land, so I wouldn't really compare it to other looting effects. Heartwarming Redemption is just an iffy card It's 4 mana to staple a little bit of lifegain to a much worse Fact or Fiction, and I can think of a few dozen cards I'd play first (Cryptic Command for example).

re: Manifold Insights - I do think it's right on the border of efficient enough for a sorcery in this deck. That said I think the depth it digs and the ability to get other people to give you good stuff makes it a pretty solid card. The odds of you hitting something that fixes a board state in 10 cards is ridiculously high. And if they're all going to tank you because you're ahead it's still very difficult for someone to give you stuff you don't want because basically all your cards are good outside of a few artifacts.

[WizardMN]

That is a fair assessment. My thought was that these would be more useful for later in the game when we have flooded with lands. Perhaps it still isn't needed or good enough.

I just found out that Insights isn't Online which is just ridiculous and also suggests that my hope for Archaeomancer's Map eventually making it might be optimistic. Which is frustrating.

[WizardMN]

Here are my thoughts on the cards from Modern Horizons 2:

White Cards

Blacksmith's Skill - This doubles up on the two "protection" effects that really matter. I have started getting a little down on some of these but for 1 mana and to give Kykar both Hexproof and Indestructible, I think this ends up being worth a closer look.

Esper Sentinel - My build is currently creatureless, though that could change due to this set. And this card might be alright? I am not ecstatic about it but it could have some uses to get me through my deck. I don't think it is really needed as the blue based card draw is far better, but it is an option if I wanted it. I likely pass on it but it is sort of on the edge.

Blue Cards

Dress Down - So, the question ends up being whether an Instant timing Humility is useful. I think it can be. It doesn't affect our tokens and can help ensure we don't get run over by voltron decks (sort of; their power still remains) or something else swinging in for a bunch of damage thanks to Trample and/or Double Strike or something. Not affecting the P/T of creatures is a bit of a downside but it replaces itself and triggers Kykar so it isn't all bad. I am not entirely sure it is needed but it could be useful.

Suspend - This is more of a tempo play but I could see this being pretty good to clear out a threat. It isn't great but 1 mana removal to get rid of something for two turns is certainly better than Unsummon, even if they do get it back for "free".

Red Cards

Chef's Kiss - This is another way to protect Kykar but this one can help get rid of some other threat on the field. I think I am going to give it a try. This and Tibalt's Trickery fall into a similar space so it might be interesting to see how they end up functioning together.

Fast//Furious - This sort of pulls double duty in this deck. It filters a card so I can get rid of something that is just a dead card in hand (probably a land) and can act as a sweeper. 3 damage isn't a lot by any means, but it is a sweeper that wouldn't kill Kykar or my Spirits. There has been talk about other filtering type cards so I might try this to see what it can do. 3 mana is more than most but it is an Instant so I am fine with the added mana to cast it. At least for now.

Harmonic Prodigy - This doubling up on Kykar's triggers seems really good. It comes down before Kykar and doesn't mess with the curve so that is a plus and allowing every 2 mana spell it effectively pay for itself or allowing 1 mana spells to generate mana I think is worth it. And, I suppose if I actually want to attack at some point, giving me more tokens to to that is a plus.

I think this card might finally be the catalyst for going away from my "Noncreatures only" build. There have been a number of good creatures printed lately that would work with Kykar so I might end up doing a bit of an overhaul to get them included if I decide to go with this. I still likely shy away from any other token producers and focus more on creatures, like this one, that just make Kykar better but it is something I will be thinking of.

[MeowZeDung]

They're calling out to you!

Edit: No thoughts on Strike It Rich?

[WizardMN]

I think 3 of those 4 are ones that I was thinking of above (and, I suppose, one was the exact card being discussed ) but I never really gave much thought to Spark Double. How has your experience with it been?

I'll be honest: I missed Strike it Rich. I have a feeling I am already going to be trimming things I don't want to for the creatures so I am not sure on the room I would have for things like Strike it Rich, but my thought is that it ends up being a mana "storage" mechanism of sorts. It obviously triggers Kykar and works with Artist reasonably well also. It also ends up being a 1 mana (or 3 later on) way to create a token or whatever else I might have triggering. My main concern is that it doesn't really advance the game. That is, it clearly helps me cast other cards in my hand but at the expense of having 1 fewer card in hand to cast. If it was creating a Treasure token in addition to something small like dealing 1 damage to something it would be much easier to say to include it but "just" creating a treasure isn't the greatest.

I like the idea of it. And honestly I like the idea of just using it to get Kykar down earlier which means not using for the triggers it gives to Kykar. If you end up trying it I will have to keep an eye on your experience but I have a feeling I won't have the room for it at this time.

[MeowZeDung]

I haven't run spark double yet either, but it fits the trigger multiplication plan nicely. The risk is that in a low creature/pw list it's very commander reliant. That's actually why I run Sakashima the Impostor, but sparky and saka 2.0 are good kykar cards imo. The extra juice with them is that you can Heat Shimmer/Cackling Counterpart for all the birb wizards. Much spirits, many manas.

I have similar thoughts about strike, but I'm a bit higher on it because as you mentioned it fixes and ramps for kykar and flashes back later for a 1 net mana cost trigger that fixes if necessary. I think the other big selling point is its utility as mid/late game color fixing when combined with underworld breach. I'm not sure how often that will be good or necessary, but I've definitely lost games where turning a spirit into a treasure would have changed things entirely.

I'm glad you keyed in on Blacksmith's Skill too. I thought maybe I was overvaluing it.

I didn't give Fast // Furious a close enough look. That's certainly solid utility for the deck, but both halves are overcosted. I wonder if the flexibility is worth it though.

[pokken]

I think this card might finally be the catalyst for going away from my "Noncreatures only" build.

If you're considering going away from non-creatures significantly, I would heartily suggest considering the one-sided wipe and tempo strategy. You have a ton of removal already, but you could easily cut all the wipes and replace them with one-sided and one-sided-ish ones like-

• winds of abandon
• bonfire of the damned
• sudden demise
• insurrection
• mob rule

I'm sure there're some good red ones I'm not thinking of too,

All I know is I have been having an absolute blast trying not to wipe the board so much and play things that close the game instead and that kinda strategy could really work with Kykar. Especially since the spirits give you an easy way to pay for stuff like Insurrection while still keeping mana up to protect it.

[WizardMN]

Now that the holiday is over and the sets have been fully spoiled, here are my thoughts on the Adventures of the Forgetten Realms, and associated Commander, cards that are being released.

White Cards

Guardian of Faith - This seems like a reasonable way to protect my board without losing my tokens. I am still working on whether I want to include creatures in the list, and what my list might look like with that, but this could be a good "protection" spell.

You're Ambushed on the Road - This isn't too bad as it can help protect Kykar in a couple different situations, but it ultimately isn't good enough to include over other 1 mana "protection" spells.

Blue Cards

You See a Guard Approach - This is another that sort of makes sense but getting Hexproof is the main mode I would want to use and I think even that might not be good enough. I think the others I have so far are working just fine.

Red Cards

You Find Some Prisoners - This might be a good way to handle some of the card draw options I have been looking into lately. It gives the option to blow up an artifact but also lets me "draw" 3 cards from an opponent and either play a land if needed or get a decent spell from their deck to do something with. I am not totally sure it really fits but it seems like it could be alright.

[WizardMN]

With the release of cards like Veyran, Voice of Duality and Harmonic Prodigy, I have decided to ease up a little on my restriction for this deck about only including noncreatures. However, that restriction is only slightly eased up as I am trying to still only include creatures that still make Kykar better or work with Kykar in mind. Veyran and Prodigy fit the bill and Spark Double is a little bit of a grey area but still in the same vein. Notable, this means that anything that simply triggers the way Kykar does (Monastery Mentor, Young Pyromancer, Storm-Kiln Artist, etc.) aren't considerations for inclusions at this time.

Interestingly, I am still trying to keep my paper and MTGO lists the same. I had hoped to include Manifold Insights for example but it doesn't exist online. The same thing is true for Veyran. So, this update to include creatures basically just allows me to include 2 creatures. Which is a reasonable way to start off with this idea.

So, with that in mind, here are some of the changes I am thinking of from the past couple sets:

7/15/2021

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

CUTS

1 Azorius Signet

1 Boros Signet

1 Izzet Signet

1 Mystic Reflection

1 Talisman of Progress

1 Theoretical Duplication

ADDS

1 Blacksmith's Skill

1 Chef's Kiss

1 Fast//Furious

1 Harmonic Prodigy

1 Spark Double

1 Suspend

Approximate Total Cost:

My main cuts are just mana rocks. I am really just trying something out with that but I want to see what I can do without needing 2 mana rocks. I thoughts about Sol Ring too since I don't often need the 2 colorless mana, especially not without the 2 mana rocks. I also decided to scale back on the Mystic Reflection/Theoretical Duplication cards as well. I did consider cutting Mirrorweave as well but I didn't need that many cuts. I still have Ajani's Welcome and Jace, Mirror Mage that I want to cut but, again, I went a different direction for now.

As for the additions, I mentioned the two creatures above. The rest are just more to play into different things in the deck. Blacksmith's Skill is another protection spell, Chef's Kiss seems quite flexible in being able to do different things at different times. Fast // Furious isn't great in terms of efficiency but I am hoping the flexibility makes up for it. And Suspend is a tempo play that can help get rid of a threat with very little mana investment.

I am looking forward to the additions, and hope Veyran makes it online eventually, but I am cautiously optimistic that the cuts of the mana rocks won't totally screw me over.

[shermanido37]

I can't imagine cutting mana rocks that produce colored mana, before cutting Ajani's Welcome and Jace, Mirror Mage.
Having tons of mana is one of the best ways to gain advantage on the board, especially since you are in the perfect colors to take advantage of that kind of thing through Blue Sun's Zenith and company. Mana and card advantage is basically how MTG works.

I'm not seeing Suspend. What is the card supposed to be in the deck? And how big is the difference from Unsummon that it's worth it?
I love Chef's Kiss as a meme card, but don't see it actually doing much of anything useful. I mean cool, I get to redirect the opponent's Chaos Warp from my Kykar to the other opponent's land, but I could simply have played Misdirection or even Wild Ricochet to do that more efficiently.

I will, however, be eager to hear how Fast // Furious will work out, as it seems almost tight-knit onto Kykar. Looking at it makes me want to consider all the Earthquake variants like Fault Line, Magmaquake, Molten Disaster etc. My favorites are Subterranean Tremors and Starstorm.

[WizardMN]

The cutting of the rocks was more of a change in direction that I am curious to explore. I am cutting the rocks not because I need the space but because I am curious how the deck plays with that specific change. If I find I need them, I will add them back and cut other cards. I don't believe they are "worse" than Ajani's Welcome or Jace; just that they represent an experimental change in philosophy.

No clue on Suspend. It is a new card and I am interested to explore it. It certainly seems better than Unsummon at the very least. Cutting off access to a card for two turns (even if they get it back for "free" at the end of those two turns) seems better than just giving them the card back to recast. It also potentially plays better with Commanders depending on how many people are are willing to risk their commander getting stuck in exile so I expect that for commanders they just go to the command zone. A small section of targets to be sure, but still better than Unsummon.

The comparison to Wild Ricochet is apt (the comparison to Misdirection is less so). The one mana discount and the fact that I gain control of the original spell are the salient points and I think these differences (mostly the latter) are important enough differences to want to try this over Wild Ricochet. Notably, it works better on spells without targets. Cyclonic Rift, Torment of Hailfire, Exsanguinate, etc. are spells that work better with Chef's Kiss than they do with Wild Ricochet (though, it is possible the latter two examples will still have the original caster die from the copy anyway).

I am hoping that being able to "wipe" the board without killing my creatures and being able to pitch it for new cards when that isn't enough will be enough. I am not entirely sure it is really worth it as 3 damage to everything for 5 mana is honestly kind of bad. But I felt that it was worth trying out to see what it could do even if it doesn't totally pan out.

[shermanido37]

I'm considering Suspend myself in my Ephara deck, but that's because I have cards that limit opponents' ability to cast cards.
With Drannith Magistrate, Lavinia, Azorius Renegade, or Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir, Suspend becomes blue STP.
With cards like Eidolon of Rhetoric or Archon of Emeria they get the card back, but lose almost their entire turn for it, which is much worse.
I dislike that Containment Priest doesn't synergize with it, but it's still capable of punishing the card that got suspended, like in the case of Karmic Guide.

Notably, it works better on spells without targets. Cyclonic Rift, Torment of Hailfire, Exsanguinate, etc. are spells that work better with Chef's Kiss than they do with Wild Ricochet (though, it is possible the latter two examples will still have the original caster die from the copy anyway).

I am pretty sure you have it the other way around... Wild Ricochet can copy any instant or sorcery, whereas Chef's Kiss only gains control of instants or sorceries with single targets. Therefore, Kiss couldn't gain control of Torment of Hailfire, Exsanguinate, overloaded Cyclonic Rift, while Ricochet would definitely be able to copy them. I mean Kiss's phrasing is pretty clear as written...
A similar card to Ricochet is Insidious Will, except you get to choose between any number of single options, which is better as an all-rounder.

[WizardMN]

Ah, I certainly did read Chef's Kiss wrong.....hmm. It could have been better than Wild Ricochet but the fact that it is indeed limited to only targeted spells, and even then only ones with a single target, does limit the efficacy of the spell. That is an excellent point to make and is enough for me to second guess the spell's inclusion.

I do have to admit I like Insidious Will as well. My main concern over that and Ricochet is the mana cost and I had hoped that Kiss would allow for similar shenanigans at a slightly lower cost but I believe I was giving it more credit than it was due. Based on that, I do believe I may try to find another card for the slot eventually.

To be fair to the card though, I will likely run it and Trickery for now just to see what they can do. I still think gaining control of the spell can be helpful but it rarely does much more than Wild Ricochet in that case and the target is chosen at random which is not ideal. I don't really have any other cards at the moment I want to add so this basically just gives me 2 built in slots (Kiss and Trickery) that would be easy enough to slot out.

[WizardMN]

Here is my review/evaluation of cards from Midnight Hunt:

White Cards

Fateful Absence - Instant Timing removal of Walkers is good. I don't have a lot of stuff that gets rid of Planeswalkers as it is so I might try to find a spot for this in the deck somewhere. It isn't a shoo-in by any means but seems reasonable.

Vanquish the Horde - This is likely one of the best Wrath of God variants printed in a long time. It is going to be rare when this isn't cost for {WW} or even {1WW}. I think this goes in nearly every one of my white decks.

Blue Cards

Consider - This seems like a solid include. 1 mana cantrip that surveils so it is basically Opt. Since Kykar wants cheap spells, I think I swap out Deliberate for this.

Memory Deluge - This could be decent but, similar to Sygg, this deck likes a low curve and this might just be pushing it a bit too much. I do like the card and effect though so I might try to force it anyway.

Red Cards

Cathartic Pyre - This seems like a pretty good rummaging effect. I have been looking for other options for rummaging effects and one that offers removal seems solid. I think this finds its way into the deck somewhere.

Multicolor Cards

Arcane Infusion - I like the card and it basically gives me any card in the deck. It doesn't give me a land so that could be detrimental early on but I think being close to Impulse in this deck, with Flashback, means it makes sense to try it out.

Faithful Mending - A looting effect that gains life seems pretty good. One question is whether the life gain is worth the 1 mana increase on the initial cast over Faithless Looting. And it might not be. But, being an Instant over a Sorcery absolutely is worth it. I think I still want Looting but this seems like a pretty good card for the deck.

[WizardMN]

I am finally getting back to this deck to make a few more changes to it now that Midnight Hunt has been released. Here is what I am doing for this next round of changes:

10/2/2021

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

CUTS

1 Sol Ring

1 Mirrorweave

1 Tibalt's Trickery

1 Chef's Kiss

1 Archaeomancer's Map

1 Idol of Oblivion

1 Reinterpret

ADDS

1 Fateful Absence

1 Vanquish the Horde

1 Consider

1 Memory Deluge

1 Cathartic Pyre

1 Arcane Infusion

1 Faithful Mending

Approximate Total Cost:

This is another big round of changes. Chef's Kiss and Trickery were mentioned above and I don't think I want to do much with them at this time. Mirrorweave is sort of in the same boat. It is cool when it works, but I think there is more novelty than function.

Sol Ring is kind of in a weird spot now that I cut the signets and talismans. Since Kykar needs so much colored mana, I am going to try the list without it for now.

Absence and Vanquish just up the removal count. Vanquish should basically always be 2 mana and because of how mana abilities and locking in costs work, I can announce it and have my creatures count towards the reduction and then still sac the spirits without affecting the cost. I doubt it ever actually matters since I would still need Kykar for that and I am pretty sure I would be firing it off when there are at least 5 other creatures under my opponents' control anyway.

Pyre, Infusion, and Mending just go further in on the card selection effects. Deluge is likely the worst of the bunch here and probably doesn't survive too long. As I look at this list, and the idea of filling it out with some creature support for Kykar, I might add in more things that allow for some resiliency to the deck and start relying on the "protection" spells a bit less. I am not quite there yet, and I think I am going pretty heavy on the card draw/filtering effects, so I might end up revisiting those a bit later to tighten that section of the deck up first.

I wanted to add this as a separate comment on the cuts: Map, Idol, and Reinterpret are being cut for now since they are not online. This deck, more than any other, is missing so many cards online (these 3, Veyran, Voice of Duality, and Manifold Insights) that I might end up doing separate lists for Online and Paper. For now, since I am already making large changes, I will just keep them in sync at the expense of the paper list. Once I start playing in paper again, I will see what I want to do.

[WizardMN]

I have gotten behind in set updates again but this set did have a bit for quite a few of my decks. Here are my thoughts for this deck:

White Cards

Drogskol Reinforcements - This works with all of the Spirits we are creating but I don't think it is too often that our stuff is dying to noncombat damage so that ability is likely irrelevant. Which means the Melee is the big piece here which isn't nothing. It is trivial to attack all 3 opponents and, at its floor, it gives all Spirits at least one counter for attacking. This could get out of hand extremely quickly. And, in a pinch, Kykar can sac it for mana if needed.

Haunted Library - It is almost too tough to really control this but this ends up being "pay 1 to store 1 mana for later" at its worst (assuming Kykar is in play). I am not sure it triggers often enough though or if we have enough "extra" mana to make it worth it so it is probably a pass for now.

Nurturing Presence - This is interesting in that it buffs Kykar pretty well by doing what the deck normally wants to do, but it also gives a Spirit on ETB effectively making it "free". I don't think it is quite good enough since things like Jeskai Ascedency exist, but it is a cheap way to help Kykar get out of control.

Welcoming Vampire - This would further push me towards a change for the deck, but this card seems reasonable. Since the idea of the deck is to create tokens and it can do so at Instant Timing, this could end up being a Draw 4 every turn cycle. Not hugely impressive I will admit, but it easier to make work than Mentor of the Meek even if it is less effective. I am not sure how much card draw is really needed here and I don't think I do much with it, but it is an interesting card.

[pokken]

Welcoming Vampire - This would further push me towards a change for the deck, but this card seems reasonable. Since the idea of the deck is to create tokens and it can do so at Instant Timing, this could end up being a Draw 4 every turn cycle. Not hugely impressive I will admit, but it easier to make work than Mentor of the Meek even if it is less effective. I am not sure how much card draw is really needed here and I don't think I do much with it, but it is an interesting card.

This card feels pretty fun in this deck to me - basically a second less resilient copy of Ephara, God of the Polis. That said, I could see how there's a lot of tension - you can't really recur it or find it without digging, and you really don't want to be about having to protect anything except Kykar. So I think it's probably a miss, but I could see it being great in some builds of Kykar - the kind that wants to Kindred Discovery.