Some changes that I have found: Gush was all to often sitting in my hand. I love love love it when it works, but getting stuck with a random fastbond or gush was enough for me to warrent cutting one for a more toolboxy scroll. I then cut the Tinker (Just couldn't get there) and Fastbond (leaning away from heavy gush dependancy) for some Dureses (I couldn't seem to power through some of the raw cards (Will/Gifts/Fastbond/Recall/FoW) and this helps) I also cut the EE for another Duress but am semi unhappy about that. I plan on testing the differences.

After all of that and some heavy testing against GAT I also cut the Sundering Titan in the side. In my testing, GAT is usually the Dryad version, which basically loses to a Tyrant anyway. It is VERY difficult for them to counter the bounce and keeps their mana base in check or their life total low if they have a Fastbond.

Then I switched the Echoing Truth for the Wipe Away in the side. As much as a mana matters, it really came down to the fact that if you are using Wipe Away either the game depends on it and it cannot be countered (scroll for wipe away on DSC) or you are bouncing a dryad/goyf for some life total. There is alot of GAT in my meta with some Slaver so my meta warrents it.

Overall, I REALLY like the list. I cannot comment on how much better triskelavus is because that the card I started with (It seemed logical to me at least). Posted for easy reasons.

• 4 Forbidden Orchard
  5 Fetches (3 Delta 2 Strand)
  3 Trops
  2 Underground
  2 Islands (1 Snowy)
  6 Mox + Lotus
  
  4 Oath of Druids
  2 Tidespout Tyrant
  1 Triskelavus
  1 Krosan Reclaimation
  1 Flash of Insight
  
  4 Brainstorm
  3 Gush
  2 Ponder
  1 Ancestrall Recall
  
  4 Force of Will
  2 Misdirrection
  3 Duress
  
  1 Yawgmoth's Will
  1 Demonic Tutor
  3 Merchant Scroll
  1 Vampiric Tutor
  1 Mystical Tutor
  1 Time walk
  1 Research // Development
  1 ????
  
  //SB
  4 Oxidize // Energy Flux (undecided. Flux is better for Aggro, but Oxidize is better for the slowrollStax....)
  2 Extirpate
  1 Pithing Needle
  1 Platinum Angel
  1 Blazing Archon
  1 Snowy Island
  1 Echoing Truth
  1 Hurk. Recall
  2 T. Crypt
  1 ??? Temp. Sold on a fourth Duress, but uncertain.

The list does not include a card. I think it should be a Oath-esque card. I am leaning towards Tinker. However EE seems good because it will let me solely rely on Oath. Tinker is in there at the moment and is doing Okay.. I suppose.


@hvndr3d y34r h3x: I feel your numbers are inflated in your favor. Against Stax (I have tested both Aggro and Smokestax) It is favorable to you but not a push over. Way to often they get the dice roll and lead with mana killers. Your lands point to the fact that double sphere or sphere + LD would keep you from hitting 2. Once a Oath does hit, the game might as well be done though.
Here are my matchup #'s (Tested the matchups but not exact #'s)
Stax
   -Smoke: 85-15: As explained above. They cannot deal with a resolved oath. Often their spheres hurt them quite a bit aswell so do not fear letting them resolve with mana heavy hands. On mulliganing, I look for an Oath and lands. Forces help, and tutors are very good too. Do not keep a very slow hand because they can lock the game out in about 4-5 turns.
   -Aggro (5/3): 75-25: You will have a smaller clock, but they are supplying themselves with creatures for oath and less mana wreckage. A resolved Tyrant should be able to get there simply by blocking a bouncing the larger creatures. Here you should remember Oath goes both ways.
GAT
   -Dryad - 90-10: Their win condition revolves around getting a large creature with counters. Wipe away solves plenty of those problems. Very early on (opening hand) decide to go for speed and force out their counters or to slow roll them. Slow rolling is more safe but it is not insanely difficult recover from a 5 mana instant fight. A tyrant seals the deal and a Trisk buys you at least 3 turns. Don't expect to lose, but still try to keep a counter open because Yawg's will or Time walk can seal it. Basically, be hezident but keep it up.
   -Goyf - 60-40: This is hypo. Haven't tested it. But it would seem that large creatures are better than HUGE creatures. I would expect to go balls to the wall here and keep your life total in check.
Slaver
   60-40: This is a waaay  underplayed deck (for good reason IMO) but my playtester likes so here we go: they have 4 Forces and 4 Drains for counterspells. Therefor, without UU up you should be in decent shape. Only one counter is needed for back up if they cannot drain and even without one, cast the Oath. essencially all their blue cards are bombs and the never want the to go away. It will be a fair trade. Just keep them off Tinker or huge creatures and you will be fine.

Thats all the matchups I have tested but thats just my thoughts.

EDIT: Wipe away does not cost 2 mana. This is good when up against various Chalices at 2.

Here is my more recent ones. The CommunityWebshots things are really easy so I tried it.

http://community.webshots.com/album/561942093srIeKa

Check it out.

Don't worry about it. Happy Holidays to everyone aswell.

My problem with Fastbond is that there are many "Must Counter" cards in vintage. I think that it is not good enough. In my testing, I have never been able to chain gushes and scrolls with the fastbond. It has always been a card that is more of an exploration due to the 16 lands that are run.
@ "Must counter" Status: I think that this is an overrated concept. I would rather run more answers than bait. As much as the useful card and must counter card is great, a situationally great card but mostly ok must counter card may not have a place in this deck. In cutting it I did not find myself missing it, but I can see how forcing their counterspells is useful.

I can see where your coming about with the one mana less and token goodness but one of my main worries has been Chalice. It is not uncommon to see a turn 2 Chalice at 2. Without a counter this could be VERY bad for you as your only out is EE, R/D'ed Wipe Away or hardcasted Tyrant. Another game one fear is the ∞/∞ dryad or ∞/∞+1 Tog. The Wipe away could also provide an uncouterable solutotion.
I think that the Echoing Truth is more like a Engineered Explosives in the fact that it is a global answer. I think that this deck needs more targeted answers to couple with the global answers. The Merchants scrolls and tutors allow you to put different cards for different roles and not require overlapping. I fear that Echoing Truth overlaps on EE's ablities and the Wipe Away is a answer for different cards that the EE or Echoing Truth cannot reliable handle. I will test both and just the Truth for a while though.
Agreed. The ∞ turn is LOTS better on paper, worse in cardboard.
You can usually combo out after oathing twice. My point is that when you are trying to stall for the 2nd oath or facing lots of guys, being able to create creatures that go the GY (Ichorid MU) ping for 1 (Gobbos/Fish) and block (Goyfs) seems good on paper. I also like the idea of him not having to fight his way through creatures.
Most of the games I have gotten an oath to stick was either really early in the game where the game was pretty much locked up or really late where I had nothing but an oath and some lands. In the first situation and the second it could be said the Triskelavus is better. I do see what your saying about the hardcast-ablility and agree with you there. I think that testing would prove which side weighs out more.
My problem with that thinking is that the Ichorid/Flash player will reactively sideboard in the enchantment hate and most likely not the artifact hate. While you are slowing him/her down considerably with a crypt or well placed extripate you don't make their answers blanks because they will be able to slow you down considerably by killing your Oath. I think that I will rely on my good old Leylines because I feel their more global answers, even if they are hated against.


I will be testing the deck (hopefully) alot tom. and plan on reporting about those. I should be testing against Goyf/Bob lists, Stax, Aggro Stax, GAT, and maybe Flash/Ichorid.

One more thing, how was tinker? I have really not been liking it because I feel Trisk. is not the gamebreaker that he used to be and there are just too many creatures to reliably go all the way with him unless its really late game, in which I might still want another card. Thoughts?

_{*Sorry for the long thoughts. I was just typing what I was thinking.}

1.) In all of your games you didn't mention your fastbond. Did you like it? I have found it to be a dead card.
2.) Echoing truth. Did you ever wish it was wipe away? Was the "every other permenant" part useful?
3.) Trisk. Did you like him? I never really liked him and was thinking of cutting him and adding a research // development to the SB so you can go infinite turns. In testing, it was a bad flip.
4.) If you want to keep him, would Triskelevous be better?
5.) How did you feel without the Leyline of the Voids in the SB?
6.) Tinker. This seemed like a very underpowered card. Why is it run and do you still want it?

Hey, I have been testing a similar list and had some questions, considering you have some tourny experience.
1.) In all of your games you didn't mention your fastbond. Did you like it? I have found it to be a dead card.
2.) Echoing truth. Did you ever wish it was wipe away? Was the "every other permenant" part useful?
3.) Trisk. Did you like him? I never really liked him and was thinking of cutting him and adding a research // development to the SB so you can go infinite turns. In testing, it was a bad flip.
4.) If you want to keep him, would Triskelevous be better?
5.) How did you feel without the Leyline of the Voids in the SB?

Thanks in advance for helping, I really appreciate it.

Yes. And I use them too. They work great. After a while they lose their shinyness so I would recommend buying 50, use them in a draft. If you like them as much as I do, then buy a couple hundred and use them about the same. Then the wear should be about the same. I swear by them tho. The 100 packs seem to be less faulty than the 50s are.

Oh yes you could easily do this. It would only take like 10 mins, and I have done it before.

Noob question, where!?

But considering it is not relievant, here is what I would want.

1: $30
2: Vintage as big as Day 1
3: N/A
4: N/A
5: 16/17th

Can't say I lent anything out to anyone in Chicago.

I did steal alot of my ideas from Vroman. Got to give gredit, including the idea of the blacked out dredgers.

Don't know how good they are, and I know I dislike them. But hey.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/10529306@N08/

Sorry for having myself in there, its only my iMac Camera that works. Don't blind yourself.

He eats the Pillar with Gargadon

Read the card.

Not possible.

But still, good job non the less.