[Deck]Workshop Slaver; suggestions, comments wanted

[AngryPheldagrif]

Workshop Slaver:

Mana:
4 [card]Mishras Workshop[/card]
4 [card]Volcanic Island[/card]
4 [card]Shivan Reef[/card]
2 [card]Ancient Tomb[/card]
1 [card]Mox Emerald[/card]
1 [card]Mox Ruby[/card]
1 [card]Mox Jet[/card]
1 [card]Mox Sapphire[/card]
1 [card]Mox Pearl[/card]
1 [card]Black Lotus[/card]
1 [card]Sol Ring[/card]
1 [card]Mana Vault[/card]
1 [card]Mana Crypt[/card]
3 [card]Gilded Lotus[/card]
26 total
Control:
4 [card]Force of Will[/card]
4 [card]Chalice of the Void[/card]
8 total
Draw:
4 [card]Brainstorm[/card]
4 [card]Thirst for Knowledge[/card]
1 [card]Ancestral Recall[/card]
1 [card]Timetwister[/card]
1 [card]Wheel of Fortune[/card]
1 [card]Memory Jar[/card]
1 [card]Minds Eye[/card]
total 13
Combo:
4 [card]Goblin Welder[/card]
3 [card]Mindslaver[/card]
total 7
The rest:
1 [card]Memnarch[/card]
1 [card]Platinum Angel[/card]
1 [card]Triskelion[/card]
1 [card]Pentavus[/card]
1 [card]Tinker[/card]
1 [card]Time Walk[/card]
total 6

60 total

Sideboard:
4 [card]Red Elemental Blast[/card]
4 [card]Rack and Ruin[/card]
4 [card]Trinisphere[/card]
2 [card]Blood Moon[/card]
1 [card]Darksteel Colossus[/card]
total 15


Since this is a fairly mainstream deck, I'll only explain some of the odder choices.

[card]Ancient Tomb[/card]: Because of the tendency to move slower than other artifact-based decks, I find this card vastly superior to City of Traitors. Taking pain from both these and the Shivan Reefs is rarely a major worry.

[card]Shivan Reef[/card]: As a fairly mana-intensive deck, I prefer these over Fetchlands. I also like to run a higher solid mana count in part because of the high volume of Stifles and Wastelands in my area.

[card]Chalice of the Void[/card]: These are partly broken, partly a metagame choice. My metagame includes a high volume of decks for which an early Chalice for 2 is crippling, which is perfect as my deck runs only a single 2 mana spell (Time Walk) in the entire deck.

[card]Minds Eye[/card]: This is probably not going to be in the final version, mostly in here to see how it works.

The creatures: Originally the deck used Memnarch, Pentavus, and Triskelion. I added Platinum Angel because many decks around here have few solutions to it and it gets around both Damping Matrix and Null Rod, both of which crusify my deck. Pentavus is a fairly obvious choice for it's synergy with Welder, and as a beatstick that gets around artifact hate and Maze of Ith. Triskelion is in for the same reasons. Memnarch is often the alternative win method, as I often find myself Tinkering for him instead of Mindslaver and his synergy with the Gilded Lotuses is amazing.

[card]Darksteel Colossus[/card]: Another temporary card, it is mainly in as a solution to a lot of stuff. A questionable card, he's mainly in there to break out of stalled games against control and to Tinker for for a quick win.



I'd appreciate questions, comments, critisisms, and suggestions. The sideboard is the most questionable piece at the moment. For reference, the metagame is fully powered, with a wide assortment with Landstill, Slaver, other artifact, Keeper, Hulk, Fish, 2 land Belcher, Dragon, Madness, and some misc. decks. Thanks in advance,

-Dan, the AngryPheldagrif

[Bulls on Parade]

You're running 0 Gorilla Shaman maindeck, and 0 Sideboard. At first, I thought maybe you deserved benefit of the doubt, but then I got to the metagame description. Not only would I make sure I fit in one Shaman (especially since you cut Karn.. if the mainstream builds are still even using it that is?), but I'd seriously consider finding room for 2. At the very least, one MD and one SB is probably a good call- or at least moreso than 0 total.

[johnstown713]

I like the shivan reefs and the ancient tombs since they have been good to me in this deck.  I can't say I like your choice of colossus because it can't be welded.  The rest of it seems pretty standard and although minds eye is different it is pretty sweet.

Johnstown713

[BreathWeapon]

Why did you cut Tolarian Academy? There is no way Ancient Tomb is ever going to be a better choice than the Academy in this deck. Mind's Eye probably isn't as good as Fact or Fiction or even Windfall. Time Walk is a really dubious card in this deck, everybody I know has cut it for an additional FAT slot.

The SB could really use some focus. I would utilize atleast 3xBlood Moon, some Gorilla Shamans and additional FAT. Rack and Ruin at 4x just isn't that vital and REB is unwieldly.

[AngryPheldagrif]

Why did you cut Tolarian Academy? There is no way Ancient Tomb is ever going to be a better choice than the Academy in this deck. Mind's Eye probably isn't as good as Fact or Fiction or even Windfall. Time Walk is a really dubious card in this deck, everybody I know has cut it for an additional FAT slot.

The SB could really use some focus. I would utilize atleast 3xBlood Moon, some Gorilla Shamans and additional FAT. Rack and Ruin at 4x just isn't that vital and REB is unwieldly.

Actually, ironically, the original version had both Tolarian Academy and Fact or Fiction. Despite the high quantity of artifacts, Academy almost never gave me more than 1 or 2 mana and more often then not ended up as a dead card in a deck that already runs a low land count. The Tombs cause pain, but the consistent   without the drawback of Workshop is often vital.

As for Fact or Fiction, I almost never get the mana for it outside of Gilded Lotus, which is highly unacceptable. As for Mind's Eye, which I put in over FoF, it is somewhat of a metagame card. My metagame has a ton of draw, and Mind's Eye becomes a must-counter card that I can drop quickly and can pull Welder tricks with. Over the course of a game, especially when I'm stalled out against Damping Matrix or Null Rod, it can be a gamebreaker. At the bare minimum it doubles my drawing. At most, it provides simply sick card advantage against such cards as Bazaar of Baghdad, Brainstorm, Thirst for Knowledge, and Accumulated Knowledge.

As for Time Walk, this is indeed one of my weakest slots. If I can find another good blue card I'll cut it in a second, but for now I don't want to weaken Force of Will any more than I have too, since I've already cut Fact or Fiction.

The sideboard is still being tested.

-Dan

[mask]

As for Fact or Fiction, I almost never get the mana for it outside of Gilded Lotus, which is highly unacceptable. As for Mind's Eye, which I put in over FoF, it is somewhat of a metagame card. My metagame has a ton of draw, and Mind's Eye becomes a must-counter card that I can drop quickly and can pull Welder tricks with. Over the course of a game, especially when I'm stalled out against Damping Matrix or Null Rod, it can be a gamebreaker. At the bare minimum it doubles my drawing. At most, it provides simply sick card advantage against such cards as Bazaar of Baghdad, Brainstorm, Thirst for Knowledge, and Accumulated Knowledge.

As for Time Walk, this is indeed one of my weakest slots. If I can find another good blue card I'll cut it in a second, but for now I don't want to weaken Force of Will any more than I have too, since I've already cut Fact or Fiction.

The sideboard is still being tested.

-Dan

If you are stalled out in those situtation how does mind's eye break it open for you? you still cannot activate artifacts, and with damping, you cannot weld. Try a blue draw seven in that slot then, if you want to protect your blue colour count. most of those cards you did mention granted your maindeck or sideboard should hose, expect brainstorm and thirst for knowledge. Blood moon for bazaar, chalice set for two for ak. Well of Knowledge you also might want to consider, it has some real fancy welding tricks.

I suggest - time walk for stifle or misdirection, espically with that metagames you are facing. Mis- d ancestrall recall always bring a smile, and stifleing opposing welders, wastelands and an early fetch land is a time walk. A medicore choice would be Terfie's Response, depending on what you are expecting. Fire and ice i do not advise, it just does not pull it weight.

A good fat creature is Sundering Titan. you can pull welding tricks here and against many powered decks bring thier resources to a halt, not only that a 7/10 beater is a 3 turn clock.

[Toad]

Tolarian Academy is a no brainer in the deck.
Fact or Fiction is far better than Mind's Eye because It's a card drawer that couples with a dumping engine, at instant speed.

Platinum Angel is too weak to be good in the maindeck. Sundering Titan sucks as It does not fit at all into your game plan. If you want to run him, just play another deck where It's good. 3 maindeck creatures is often enough. 1 Memnarch and 1 Pentavus are the fairly obvious choices. The third one is mostly a metagame call, Pentavus #2, Triskelion or Duplicant being the better calls.

Your sideboard is missing the fundamentals of the deck. You need a solution to Null Rod Aggro decks like Food Chain Goblins or Oshawa Stompy. Darksteel Colossus is bad (uuuh, 11 manas that does not allow Welder tricks). 4 REBs + 2 Blood Moons are good in order to fight control but you don't have that many cards to bring out so devoting 6 SB cards for them is useless. 4 Rack and Ruin is also not really needed as you simply roll over all the other Workshop decks. Hence, 3 is fine, too. That would clear up some space for the "Men Plan", which you need in order to fight Null Rod Aggro. My current creature base in the sideboard is 2 Platinum Angels and 2 Triskelions or 2 Duplicants, depending on which kind of Aggro I'm expecting (sometimes a 1/1 split).

[AngryPheldagrif]

Tolarian Academy is a no brainer in the deck.
Fact or Fiction is far better than Mind's Eye because It's a card drawer that couples with a dumping engine, at instant speed.

Platinum Angel is too weak to be good in the maindeck. Sundering Titan sucks as It does not fit at all into your game plan. If you want to run him, just play another deck where It's good. 3 maindeck creatures is often enough. 1 Memnarch and 1 Pentavus are the fairly obvious choices. The third one is mostly a metagame call, Pentavus #2, Triskelion or Duplicant being the better calls.

Your sideboard is missing the fundamentals of the deck. You need a solution to Null Rod Aggro decks like Food Chain Goblins or Oshawa Stompy. Darksteel Colossus is bad (uuuh, 11 manas that does not allow Welder tricks). 4 REBs + 2 Blood Moons are good in order to fight control but you don't have that many cards to bring out so devoting 6 SB cards for them is useless. 4 Rack and Ruin is also not really needed as you simply roll over all the other Workshop decks. Hence, 3 is fine, too. That would clear up some space for the "Men Plan", which you need in order to fight Null Rod Aggro. My current creature base in the sideboard is 2 Platinum Angels and 2 Triskelions or 2 Duplicants, depending on which kind of Aggro I'm expecting (sometimes a 1/1 split).

To be brief, Null Rod Aggro decks like FCG and Oshawa simply do not exist in my metagame. The closest thing to aggro around here is Ravager, which I mangle in playtesting. I see an occasional Null Rod and some Damping Matrices. The Platinum Angel is vital for stopping some of the combo decks that can race me, even through my FoWs. As for the FoF thing, I am 99% sure that Mind's Eye works through Null Rod and Damping Matrix. It is a 'whenever' ability, making it triggered instead of activated. I know my creature count is somewhat high, but that is what's working for me right now. For the record, Mind's Eye and the Angel have saved me so many more times in playtesting than FoF ever did. The Academy is somewhat questionable, but it just was a dead card for me. If I start getting crapped out I'll revisit the decision, but not for now. I'll post again later after I do some more testing.