KTK Deck Ideas

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Happy Tuesday MTG peeps,

We are rather happy to now just receive our Khans of Tarkir pre-orders from MTG Mint Card - delivered safely 'n' soundly in under from over 12,500 clicks away to our door step in under four days.  We had carefully ordered a variety of the new Magic: the Gathering cards based on a variety of different reasons - but essentially what we thought would perform nicely in the new standard environment.  Now with this big pile of new cards, all efforts now go in to what decklists to brew up for standard constructed.  We don't really need to worry as a Pro Player has pretty much done all of that for us already - don't worry, we still have 'original' ideas and refer to the new strategies as a sort of sanity check.  

That Pro Player ? Tomoharu Saito.  This 30-year-old is a successful player with a long list of accolades and also happens to be the owner of Saito Card Shop (online retailer) and Hareruya MTG, Japan’s largest gaming store / tournament center, located in the suburb of Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo.  Tomoharu has been posting 'deck ideas' with the release of each new set and we've been loving it.  

Here's the full list of 15 different standard decks he posted to his twitter account and we're certain you'll like at the very least a few of them to try out and build upon.  We've just posted three pics and suggest you drop by Saito's twitter to get images of the rest of 'em. Click to embiggen.

Deck 1 ”All in Mardu”
Deck 2 ”Morph Festival”
Deck 3 ”Mardu Control”
Deck 4 ”Abzan Midrange”
Deck 5 ”Jeskai Burn”
Deck 6 ”Mono Black Beatdown”
Deck 7 ”Hardboild Sultai”
Deck 8 ”Temur Midrange”
Deck 9 ”Orzhov Warrior”
Deck 10 ”Naya Planeswalkers”
Deck  11 ”Mono Red Beatdown”
Deck 12 ”Mono Red Beatdown Part2"
Deck 13 ”Esper Control”
Deck 14 ”KTK All Stars”
Deck 15 ”The Darksteel Citadel”
 

'All in Mardu'

'Abzan Midrange'

'Jeskai Burn'

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Standard Orzhov

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Happy Tuesday MTG peeps,

We want to wish everyone a happy and safe New Year's eve and the very best for the new year.  Oddly on the very last day of 2013 all three of us here at MTG Realm finally have found our Magic: the Gathering groove for standard and have decided on a standard constructed deck.  RStomp is going with a Kibler Golgari variation, RTech is polishing up her Simic-Grow / Flash and yours truly CopySix is packing a take on Ryo Nakada's Orzhov Aggro (minus the Mutavaults as they are $30-$35 each and we don't have the money for those right now).  We have recent acquisitions in hand now from MTG Mint Card and are ready for our next Friday Night Magic event at OMG! Games here in Barrie, Ontario.

Anywhoos - let's have a looky-loo at Ryo's list again for reference -

Ryo Nakada, Orzhov Aggro, GP Shizuoka 2013 Winning Decklist
22 lands : 4  Godless Shrine, 4  Mutavault, 2  Orzhov Guildgate, 7  Plains, 1  Swamp, 4  Temple of Silence

29 creatures : 4  Banisher Priest, 4  Boros Elite, 4  Daring Skyjek, 3  Dryad Militant, 3  Imposing Sovereign, 4  Precinct Captain, 4  Soldier of the Pantheon, 3  Xathrid Necromancer

9 other spells : 4  Brave the Elements, 3  Orzhov Charm, 2  Spear of Heliod

15 sideboard cards : 3  Dark Betrayal, 3  Doom Blade, 1  Pithing Needle, 2  Profit // Loss, 3  Sin Collector, 2  Thoughtseize, 1  Xathrid Necromancer
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We've played Orzhov for a while now and our hear broke after Innistrad rotated out taking with many of our fav cards (Intangible Virtue, Lingering Souls, etc.).  That is all now behind us now that we've evaluated M14's Xathrid Necromancer against our local metagame.  The Necromancer demands an immediate answer from removal, and makes combat a nightmare for the opponent. It also foils any plans that revolve around Supreme Verdict. We particularly like the interaction with Cartel Aristocrat which offers a sacrifice outlet to dump a cheap one drop for protection while generating a 2/2 Zombie token.  Some considerations we are giving to the main board and side board -

Immortal Servitude to cycle back all those cheap critters we've just turfed in the 'yard to restart the shenanigans yet again.  The 'Willing' side of the fuse card 'Ready // Willing' which provides deathtouch and lifelink - why?  Because nobody expects this sort of thingy.

Some other ideas we are toying with include (but are not limited to) using Calvary Pegasus to give all our dudes (humans specifically) flying when they attack.  High Priest of Penance is a nice two drop which will blow up any non-land permanent (enchantment, Planeswalker, etc.) and gives us another Zombie token while the Necromancer is out.  Thoughtseize may also be useful against some match-ups as well.

For a finisher, we may consider Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Obzedat, Ghost Council or perhaps Bloodbaron of Vizkopa.  There are a lot of choices but one thing of concern is should our opponent have a Ratchet Bomb to blow up our fresh 'n' fetid Zombie token army.  Suggestions always welcome of course in the comment thingy below or eMail.

Happy New Year / Happy Brewing!
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