deep analysis does not suit GAT in my opinion. GAT needs versatile draw cards and not cards that can only be played via another card. What if during my game I don't have a TFK in hand (or tog on the board), and I don't have the mana (or time) to cast DA? These kind of situations are all too frequent, and DA is a useless card way too often.

I don't like TFK either. Most of the time it will only draw you one net card, for three mana. This does not help tempo or card advantage.

@ kill doug (By the way: you didn't include a single period, to end a sentence in your post, and what you wrote wasn't very legible).

 Serum Visions is a perfectly good card in GAT. I understand that one can replace it with slight of hand, but the deck needs the card drawing from one of the two cards.

 Daze and Fastbond are worth consideration in this deck. Daze is a very powerful counter. It is free, unexpected and works well with an early dryad. Fastbond can boost your tempo, and make lands drawn by serum visions not a waste. It also has great synergy with daze and gush. (Fastbond isn't played in fish )

 Pernicious deed is not a wise choice for this deck. This is not Hulk. You don't want to kill your own first turn dryad, or your moxes. This deck wins fast (thus the Fastbond).

What could be more needed?

Type 1 needs its legends, its historians, those people who remember playing serra angel in "the Deck". I do hope that rakso is not retiring, but I understand that there are more important things in life than type 1.

@ eddavatar
 2 togs can be used in this deck and the 60th card can very well be a second tog. It should not be a berserk, unless one happens to be running a merchant scroll (and less cunning wishes, but who would do that?). The berserk can be easily retrieved from the sideboard, when needed. 3-4 misdirections is not such a bad idea (as JDawg13 said: most decks these days run FoW). I have seen several fully powered Gat builds, and they have usually done pretty well. Extra moxes can help in resolving a 1st turn dryad, but they also make the manabase a bit unstable.

@ Ultima
 This deck can't run too many wasteland cards. They slow you down, have no synergy with daze, and off-set the manabase. 1 Stripmine will have to do.

The number of misdirections or duresses the deck should have is an interesting issue. I prefer misdirections since they do keep your dryad alive and are key against control matches (that usually run somewhere between 13-15 misdirection targets).
Any ideas on the deck's potential playstyles

EDIT: Sorry, bad info. Merchant scroll only gets blue instants. I somehow forget this even in tournaments.

skecreatoR, I agree with you completely that resolving an early dryad is key. (unforetunately it doesn't always happen).

I do have one question about your side. How can you fit Red Elemental Blast without a splash of red? Speaking about splashing red: I don't think it fits this deck, for the same reason that wastelands don't make the cut. The color splash makes the manabase vulnerable, and doesn't speed up the deck. One could potentially include a single volcanic island for sideboard effects. (The idea needs playtesting, but I don't think it would work very well)

I find GAT mediocre in the current meta. Matches vs. workshop decks are especially difficult for me. An opponents first turn trinisphere or goblin welder can often mean a game loss. In the late game my dryad can't do very much against a darksteel colossus or sundering titan if one resolves. How do you face workshop decks, with your deck?

I haven't tried including daze in my deck. Usually I use stifle, but I see how daze can help in early countering. It also works with fastbond.

What is in your sideboard? My fear of workshop decks has caused me to devout about half of my board to fighting them. My usual board is:

2 Hurkyl's Recall
1-2 Rebuild
2 B E B
1 fact or fiction
1 xantid swarm
1 beserk
1 oxidize
1 naturalize
1 coffin purge
( and three other cards, depending on the meta)

Another issue I'm faced with is what kind of playing style to adopt if dryad doesn't come into my hand turn 1-3? Usually by then my hand is no longer full of draw spells and I'm forced to play a strictly control deck. Sometimes this works, but if I'm facing a control deck myself, this is when I usually loose. I think I might be too aggressive in the early game. I often play GAT as a combo deck. What is your optimal playing style?

Could you please post more than a decklist? Maybe, you could tell us your meta-game or some explanation as to your card choices (why the morphling, if you already run 2 exalted and a decree?).

I agree about the spiketails. They are far more useful than manta riders for combat, can be used as a counterspell and make daze slightly more useful in the late game (although you do loose card advantage when using the two together).

I face a very similar meta here in southern Illinois (except for the absence of zoo and the presence of old oath decks). My solution to aggro is throwing in 2 razorfins, into gay red fish. With the lavamancers they can take out any weenies. I'm also experimenting with a u/w fish deck that uses swords and meddling mages.

Well, I've been playing Gay U/R fish for a couple of months now, at local tournaments. The deck has done well but it could be better vs aggro and dragon. My meta includes some power players with keeper and combo decks, but also features an abundance of old outdated decks (oath being the worst of these for fish). To make the stronger against aggro and dragon (and oath too, I guess) I’ve decided to playtest a u/w version. The loss of red is hard on the deck, but I don’t feel fish can support three colors, and the gain has been enormous in playtesting. Here is the deck I’m working on in preperation for the tournament (I don’t own mox pearl or timewalk , so they are not included):

        1 Stripmine
        3 Wasteland
        1 Polluted Delta
        4 Flooded Strand
        4 Tundra
        3 Island
        4 Faerie Conclave
        4 Mishra's Factory
        1 Mox Sapphire
        4 Curiosity
        2 Daze
        1 Misdirection
        2 Stifle
        4 Swords to Plowshares
        1 Voidmage Prodigy
        4 Spiketail Hatchling
        4 Meddling Mage
        4 Cloud of Faeries
        4 Force of Will
        4 Standstill
        1 Ancestral Recall

The Swords really helps the dragon and aggro matchups while meddling mage is a great card if it comes at the right time in the game (it can also be sacked to voidmage if needed). Any advise on playtesting the deck and on what to try in the sideboard?

I have recently decided to run trix over tendrils at a local tournament in central IL. I feel that tendrils is a deck that can be disrupted with greater ease than trix. While a chalice for 1, that resolves, will hurt rector it can completely distroy your game plan in tendrils (a chalice for 1 is also a reason why I might not want to run chain of vapor over rushing river in trix). The same can be said about discarding and several other forms of control.
BUT usually I would pick tendrils over trix. With draw 7's and a great draw engine tendrils is hard to beat.

I would also take 3 illusions since then extra life can be used for bargain or necro.

I was a huge Rector Trix and I guess I still am in many ways, but sentiments aside: Rector Trix has big problems competing in the current environment.

Dragon hate can easily target rector decks, and Dragon decks have faster combos and draw engines (the draw engine speed is disputable). Other decks that play Spheres (Trinisphere or Sphere of Resistance) also pose a problem for Rector. So if you like combo why not play Dragon... You face the same obstacles and its easier to win with it.




Rector is far from obsolete as many tournament results show. It’s just not the perfect meta-game choice, currently.  

This deck looks similar to a mono-green LD (with tangle wires, kegs and chalices) that I'm currently playing. The problem with your deck is that it lacks consistancy. Thermokarst and Wintersgrasp will be difficult for you to play since they require two green mana. If you like artifacts just play a standard artifact prison deck.



This seems like a good solution. You could add duress, also. A black artifact deck might be fairly good.

Recently some of us (who still care about DCI events   ) went to the prerelease of Darksteel. As T1 players we were probably checking the new releases to find one or two T1 playable cards. While Mirrodin might have provided a little needed brokeness (Chalice, maybe Chrome Mox), Darksteel introduces a broken mechanic I hope will not appear in any other edition.
  The Indestructible mechanic
When I saw the first indestructible cards I thought "No big deal, just some creatures and stuff for kids to be happy". Then I saw this card:

Darksteel Forge
artifact rare cost 9
Artifacts you control are indestructible.

This card will certainly help some Mud players and might put tinker like decks back in the game. It seems very broken to me. Other interesting cards are:

Leeches Tomb
artifact rare cost 4
You don't lose the game for having 0 or less life. Whenever you lose life, sacrifice a permanent for each one life you lost.

Blinkmoth Nexus
land rare
(basicly a 1/1 mishra's factory with flying)

Panoptic Mirror
artifact rare cost 5
Imprint- X tap: You may remove an instant or sorcery card with converted mana cost X in your hand from the game.
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may copy an imprinted instant or sorcery card and play the copy without paying its mana cost
(note this is an expensive card and might not see any use because of it)

Kraken's Eye, Last Word and Darksteel Collusses migth also have limited uses.

Will any of these cards make it to T1? Does anyone else think the indestructible mechanic is... well... "stupid"? Are there any other Darksteel cards worthy of T1 consideration?

@ shade13  I like your deck but it is really similar to most other Sui black builds I have seen. Its very standard (maybe the chalice makes it a little newer) and there isn't anything obviously wrong with it. Maybe if you tell us the meta-game in your area you could get more help.

If you plan to play against combo or aggro you could try adding 4 spheres of resistance and changing the deck into a chalice black. If you plan to stick with Sui your build looks pretty good.

@j  

What  Mind twist is one of the best disruption spells in the game. It is sometimes sub-optimal against control but a first (or second turn) mindtwist off a dark ritual can often win you the game against aggro. I would never replace mind twist or necropotence for flesh reavers (all too often they don't shine).

If you are going to play white and you expect alot of combo + aggro why not try something different. Play 3 Isochron scepters , orim's chant, brainstorm (instead of curiosity), and maybe 2 or 3 mana leaks/counterspells instead of the dazes. With those cards you could try to fit in a chalice of the void vs. combo and cheap aggro.

If you want to go more traditional then put in a balance and a wasteland. The balance is key vs. aggro and the wasteland is needed if you expect any serious combo of artifact prison decks. A third Stp could also be used.

+1 Wasteland
+1 Balance

-1 Stifle (the storm combo is no longer a big threat)
-1 Feary Conclave

I think you meant the Read Elemental Blasts to be Hydroblasts or Blue Elemental Blasts   .

@ Leakycow
Unfortunately wastelands have the side effect of slowing down the charbelcher, but they are needed in most meta games.

Instead of wastelands you could try blood moon. It is one of the best hosers in magic and you could include the additional mountain to run it.

Try a moat if you don't like the humilities. It will cost you around $40, but in an aggro meta it is often worth it. The exalted angel is nice for a sligh meta-game, but one is not a good number to take. It is also a very slow card so if you face good decks it can be a waste of hand space. If you decide to take moats you wouldn't need the additional (slow ) creatures.

About the rules Lunk is right. Sorry for the mistake.

@ MoreFling:
Your deck is stronger against a Welder Mud matchup but I feel it looses alot against the keeper and dragon matches. No chalices, no powder kegs (okay aeolipile can serve as a half keg) and no ankhs (my only chance against dragon in the first game).
I did playtest the Winterdeck with creeping mold but the result was that mold was too slow to cast. Naturalize might be a more simple and efficiant idea.

I do like the mask SB . Currently the sideboard I came up with looks like this:

3 Root Maze
2 DefenseGrid
3 Null Rod
3 Masticore
2 Gaea's Blessing
2 Naturalize

ANY ideas? Crumble could work?

   


Chalice of the Void for three does hurt the deck BUT:
The powder keg is fast enough against that chalice (since xx counts as 0 for converted mana cost). Another way to stop my opponents chalice (and his moxes) is my own chalice for 0.

That said, I think 4 chalice and 4 keg is not exactly overkill. I will try playing with less kegs, but in the past I've found the deck can use the removal. Chalice also has more uses than just stopping the moxen.

Winter.dec with blue? It might work but I fear it would disrupt the consistancy. This deck really depends on a solid and consistant mana base.

Root maze is great option I have considered (it was in my SB because of the Long matches anyway). Tormod's crypt is also playable. I will be playtesting a new sideboard right away.

I think the deck might even be great for a dragon meta, with a good SB. The ankhs do help, but I find it is often too little, too late. The dragon player will duress or force them, almost always.

For a good amount of time I have been working on a green land destruction deck with a few friends, who play magic in Europe. They have played the deck in some local German tournaments but until Turnhout I have not seen a version that did really well. I have revised my Winter (my name for the deck) deck a little, and I believe its an great meta-game choice deck. It deals well with keeper, Sui, fish and even Mud. Its only problem is dragon. Here is the list

Winter.dec

        3 Winter's Grasp
        4 Thermokarst
        4 Terravore
        4 Llanowar Elves
        4 Ice Storm
        4 Fyndhorn Elves
        4 Tangle Wire
        1 Sol Ring
        4 Powder Keg
        4 Chalice of the Void
        3 Ankh of Mishra
        4 Wasteland
        1 Strip Mine
        2 Pendelhaven
        2 Dust Bowl
        12 Forest

 The basis of this deck is land destruction. With 8 Llanowar elf-like cards and 18 land destruction effects the deck can start destroying 1-2 lands on turn 2. If you are playing a powered opponent 4 chalices can make the game harder for him.
 This is a meta-game deck but I would appreciate any ideas on how to make the deck better against Dragon (or any other decks for that matter). Possibly some sideboard tech?

In an unpowered (or half powered) version of Rector you could try adding a fastbond. It is a good way of getting mana if you can't bargain for power.

And yes the mana base does need a re-work. Rebel428's looks great for you.