Multicolor control

[Guevara59]

This is my first ever post so cut me a little slack if its a bit rough.  Ive been messing around with a b/u/g/w control deck for a while and i need some help to finish up some rough spots.  At first i played a mono blue duck but i decided to add splashes of colors which led me to the following build.

Land
3x City of Brass
1x Dust Bowl
2x Quicksand
2x Flooded Strand
2x Polluted delta
4x Underground Sea
2x Wasteland
1x Bayou
1x Savannah
2x Island
Artifacts
1x Black Lotus
1x Mox Sapphire
1x Sol Ring
1x Sensei's Divining Top
1x DSC
2x Crucible of Worlds
1x Mindslaver
2x Powder Keg
1x Feldon's Cane
2x Chalice of the Void
1x Razormane Masticore
Blue
2x Mana Leak
2x Cunning Wish
3x Brainstorm
4x Mana Drain
1x Tinker
1x Ancestral Recall
4x FoW
White
1x Balance
Green
2x Sylvan Library
1x Regrowth
Black
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Mind Twist
1x Demonic tutor
Gold
3x Dimir Cutpurse
SB
1x Mystical tutor
1x Capsize
1x Echoing Truth
1x Stifle
1x Annul
2x Chill
1x Mana Leak
2x Hydroblast/Beb
1x Renewed Faith
1x StP
1x MisD
1x Hurkyl's Recall
1x Skeletal Scrying


I am most concerned with my mana base because it seems to be 1) mana screwed all the time and 2) get killed by wastelands because it is 95% nonbasic. 

My metagame has lots of aggro based decks, this explains why i chose Razormane, quicksands (the recurring quicksands with CoW kicks ass), and powder kegs.

Tinker works very well, but, i dont know if i have enough good targets.  DSC, Razormane, and Mindslaver are pretty much it.  It seem kinda of a waste to tinker a CoW and small casting cost artifacts like that.

I really like Dimir cutpurse.  It acts as not only a great card advantage card, but, it rapes the opponents hand. 

Overall i just need some basic adjustments.  I hope you found the post enjoyable and please comment and give suggestions!

[FlyingMan]

It doesn't seem like Sylvan Library is "abusable" enough to make the inclusion of green worthwhile.  Depending on how  clutch you find Balance, it may also stress the manabase more than it's inclusion warrants.  Cutting at least green would allow the manabase to be much more resistant to Wastes, and would lessen the chance of mana screw by a good amount.

Tinker works very well, but, i dont know if i have enough good targets.  DSC, Razormane, and Mindslaver are pretty much it.  It seem kinda of a waste to tinker a CoW and small casting cost artifacts like that.

Tinker for DSC = 2 turn clock.  Tinker is worth it just for that.  Definetly up the Brainstorm count to 4 to allow more ways to get DSC back into the deck in case you draw it.  Also, look into squeezing more fetches to fix your mana and to mazimize the utility of Brainstorms.

Also, why no Strip Mine?

What do you normally set the Chalice of the Voids at?

Overall, I don't see it strictly better than Gifts in any way, but an interesting direction to take.

EDIT:  Is 16 blue cards enough to reliably support FoWs?

[TopSecret]

     I play 4-5 color decks a lot, so it's nice to see someone else trying it out.
     I also think it's interesting that you added Green over Red,
     which is something I have yet to do, mainly because I only own a Taiga.

If you are in a very aggro heavy metagame, I would suggest adding Call of the Herd maindeck.
A 3/3 creature is often hard for aggro to handle (I'm thinking Fish), and the second one can seal the deal.

1 Hide//Seek might be worth adding to the side over Renewed Faith. It will often gain you a fair share of life,
it can take out win conditions, and sometimes take out artifacts or enchantments if the need arises.

You could add a Strip Mine over the Dust Bowl,
and consider adding 1-2 Factories in place of 1-2 Quicksands. Factories can become 3/3's to block against Aggro.

Engineered Explosives may be better than Kegs, because you have access to so many colors.

You could take Feldon's Cane out of the maindeck. I don't know what its use is,
but there might be better cards to include. If you really need you're graveyard back in your library,
you could always add in a Loaming Shaman, or perhaps a living wish target in the side,
like Gaea's Blessing, Krosan Reclamation, or Mnemonic Nexis.
You can always Brainstorm Blessing on top of your library if you're getting milled.

If you are getting mana screwed a lot, you could add some more lands, or more Fetchlands.
Having more fetchlands is probably better than using all four Undergrounds.

The number of Brainstorms you are using seems questionable.
I'd say go down to two, but that's just my personal preference.
Most people say to play four, so you could try that, too.
Brainstorm is pretty sweet with more Fetchlands.

I think that you should try testing Yawgmoth's Will, and maybe some Duresses, too.

Good luck with the deck!

[OfficeShredder]

The main problem is you have a bad dual land selection.  If you want white mana, you can't get it with your polluted deltas.  Making everything U/x will help the mana base a ton; also, you won't have to worry about being screwed out of blue, which is the primary concern.

Also, white and green are pretty superfluous here (as has been said before).  Green should go, and you might want to try out a decree of justice.  Cycling it is absolute tech because it's uncounterable and EOT, so you don't have to worry about your opponent playing anything devastating.  It's a nice option to have

[Guevara59]

I took your advice and decided to take out green all together.  Althgough herds and gea's blessing are helpful, taking out green has proven through testing that it stops the mana screw.  More fetchlands have also helped.  I added some more white cards like StP's and a Decree in replace of the green.

To answer flyingman's question, i usually put CoV at 1 or 0.  0 generally rips apart most power based decks and it hurts them more than me.  Although 1 tends to shut down some of my draw, it just kills quick aggro decks. 

I decided to take out the kegs and replace them with some engineered explosives.  This works exceptionally well in my deck to the vast amounts of color.   

Thanks much for the suggestions.  It has helped my deck a lot.

[Metman]

Just a few suggestions...

Replace the Cutpurse with Dark Confident, its just as efficient a card drawer and it doest cost 3 to cast.  I wouldn't add Mishra's Factory, your mana base is weak enough as it is.  Not finding colored mana when you need it sucks.  If you are going to run Crucible, which I think is a good idea, run more fetchlands and a full compliment of Waste/Strip.  I also like green in a 4 color deck.  You get Crop Rotation, Fastbond, and some great beaters, including important one drops.  Nimble Mongoose and the hidden enchantments are good in aggro environments.  White is also a super strong color in an aggro meta.  Jotun Grunt and Swords to Plowshares are golden.  Although you man need to choose between the Grunt and Geese.  Running both and they may conflict with each other.  Also where is Meddling Mage?  I would cut the fat from this deck and get efficiant.

Here's where I would start with a 4-5 color control/aggro deck.
Meddling Mage
Dark Confident
Jotun Grunt/Nimble Mongoose (I think this depends on the color direction you take it)
Hidden Gibbons

Brainstorm
Force of Will
Echoing Truth (to take care of EtW and big artifact creatures)
Swords to Plowshares
Engineered Explosives
Stifle
Crop Rotation
Demonic Tutor (none of the top deck tutors, too inefficiant, you need to come out of the gates flying)
Crucible of Worlds

Artifact accelerants
Lots of Fetches
Waste/Strip

The biggest thing to make a 4-5, or for that matter a 3 color, deck successful is to choose a color you want to use for 50-60% of the spells, another color to be 25% and the rest just splash as needed.  My suggestion would be to go a land denial route with blue being your focus and white being the secondary color.  Black would get Confident and maybe a tutor, green would take a beater and Crop Rotation and maybe Fastbond.

[OfficeShredder]

If you're  going to run green, and you need anti-aggro tech, you can also use zuran orb and one copy of future sight.  Future sight, orb and fastbond lets you play an obnoxiously large portion of your deck.  Basically, you'd be playing The Shining from 2003 or whenever.

That all the cards are good on their own is a major plus

[silvernail]

3x City of Brass
1x Dust Bowl
2x Quicksand
2x Flooded Strand
2x Polluted delta
4x Underground Sea
2x Wasteland
1x Bayou
1x Savannah
2x Island

3x City of Brass
1x Strip Mine
2x Mishra's Factory
2x Flooded Strand
2x Polluted delta
3x Underground Sea
1x Wasteland
3x Tundra
3x Island

I'd adjust the mana base to that - cuts green for extra white ( I'm suggesting additonal white cards), and factories > quicksands. Dust Bowl is really better as Strip Mine because you have Crucible. I cut a wasteland for a third basic island, which might be helpful for you. You might consider upping your land count by 2-4, perhaps a plains a swamp and 2 more fetchlands.

If you know your opponent has wastelands wait to use your fetches til the last possible chance, and get basic lands if you can.

With those green cards out I would add some combination of : Yawgmoth's Will , Moat, Teferi's Moat ,Solitary Confinement, Porphyry Nodes , Enlightend Tutor , The Abyss , Decree of Justice, Vindicate, Hide/ Seek, Eternal Dragon.

Most of those help stall against creature decks or troublesome permanents, but Enlightend Tutor and Yawg Will help you find and reuse your better tools to solidify your board position.

Decree of Justice and Eternal Dragon can be strong win conditions.You might consider them over the Cutpurses. I'd only run Dragon if you want Confinement locks though.

You could use some extra draw card spells. I'd consider Gush ( helps vs wasteland even), Fact or Fiction, and Thirst for Knowledge, or perhaps Repeals allowing you to 'boomerang' a threat and draw.

In the SB, I'd consider Sacred Ground  vs opposing wastelands (if they really still hurt you), and you can also run 1-2 more wastelands yourself.

[Guevara59]

I heeded all of your advice and came up with the following decklist.


Land
2x City of Brass
1x Strip mine
1x Wasteland
4x Flooded Strand
2x Factories
3x Tundra
3x Underground Sea
2x Island
1x Volcanic
Gold
2x Vindicate
Black
3x Dark Confidant
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Mind Twist
1x Vamp
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x The Abyss
White
1x Balance
2x StP
1x Decree
1x Enlightened Tutor
Blue
1x Ancestral Recall
3x Brainstorm
1x Tinker
4x Mana Drain
4x FoW
2x Cunning Wish
Artifacts
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Vault
1x Divining Top
2x Chalices
1x Slaver
2x Engineered Explosives
2x CoW
1x DSC
1x Black Lotus
1x Sapphire

SB
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Capsize
1x Echoing Truth
1x Chill
1x Mana Leak
2x BeB
2x Fire//Ice
1x Hide//Seek
1x Shattering Pulse
1x StP
1x MisD
1x Skeletal Scrying

You may be wondering why the hell i put a volcanic island in but its strictly for the SB.  I would like to know your response to that and if you agree it would be nice to see some red suggestions.  The deck works pretty well and can now handle fast aggro decks with the help of Abyss, StPs, and the factories.  I took out mana leaks for vindicates and i want to know if its a good idea.  The vindicates are extremely flexible and work in almost any occasion.

Thank you for your help.

Guevara59

[silvernail]

Well it looks nice and all, but out of context any deck metagame based is basically naked. What kinds of decks do you see played around you, and be more specific than 'aggro' Like what kinds of aggro, what cards do they run, what kinds of combos or other control? If people have power what are they playing? Do more people have power or less ?

Those kinds of questions will help mold the deck from this point on.

[Guevara59]

In m y meta game there is quite a few mox and lotus powered r/g madness.  There is an unpowered Chalice Black, a completely powered 5cc stax, an unpowered green stompy, a goblin/sligh deck with mox and a lotus, and a cool combo deck that i have never heard of that runs complete power nine.

[Nydaeli]

The deck looks very unfocused.  You're trying to cram in way too many cards/strategies, and as a result are not doing justice to many of them.

I strongly question why you don't run 4 copies of the following:
Brainstorm
Chalice of the Void
Dark Confidant
Swords to Plowshares (given that you are encountering a lot of aggro)

I do like Vindicate.  You may not need both Vindicate and EE, though.

Also, Slaver isn't very good without Welders.

[silvernail]

Disregard nydaeli's post, he doesnt know what he is talking about for the most part. He has obviously never heard of The Deck or Keeper, which was THE ruling deck of vintage for many, many years.

Its midnight and I have class in the morning so I'll come back tomorrow some time and find a Keeper list, and make suggestions about your deck and your metagame then.

[Nydaeli]

Disregard nydaeli's post, he doesnt know what he is talking about for the most part. He has obviously never heard of The Deck or Keeper, which was THE ruling deck of vintage for many, many years.

Easy on the pseudo-flames.

Keeper hasn't been viable for a fairly long time now.  Modern decks are much faster and much more focused, and it's a lot riskier to try to reactively tutor up answers.  Silver-bullet strategies are certainly effective if used correctly.  But many cards are much more effective when drawn consistently, such as most of what I listed before.  This deck is very versatile and adaptable, but it needs to develop its core strategies a little bit further.

As a side note, I think Time Walk was overlooked.

[Guevara59]

I think that i should make clear that when i made this deck, keeper was what i had based this deck on.  I was trying to make a fun control deck like keeper that was viable in the current meta game.  I think that both silvernail and Nydaeli are right on the issue.  Although the deck is supposed to have an answer to almost anything, my deck is a little unfocused for the current meta game.  I probably should run more stp's and other cards to make it a little more focused against my creature based meta game.  Thank you again for your inputs and i am looking forward to that Keeper deck list



Guevara59

[silvernail]

Here is a list for keeper, prior to it's dying out. It might not be the best one, or the most recent however.

Paragon Keeper, By Steve O'Connell (June, 2003)
// Counter Magic
2 Duress
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
// Kill
1 Masticore
1 Morphling
// Broken Utility/Card Draw
1 "Time Walk
1 Future Sight
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Skeletal Scrying
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Zuran Orb
// Tutor/Search
3 Brainstorm
3 Cunning Wish
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
// Bullet
3 Swords to Plowshares
1 Balance
1 Mind Twist
// SoLoMoxen
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
// Land
1 Strip Mine
2 City of Brass
3 Wasteland
1 Island
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
4 Flooded Strand
3 Underground Sea

Sideboard:
4 Red Elemental Blast
1 Blue Elemental Blast
1 Circle of Protection: Red
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Ebony Charm
1 Aura Fracture
1 Skeletal Scrying
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Gush
1 Disenchant
1 Shattering Pulse
1 Swords to Plowshares

Nydaeli's wasn't completely wrong, the deck does try to have answers to everything, perhaps by cramming too many things into the deck.

Vindicate and EE are defintely not mutually exclusive however. EE is mass removal or spot removal, but vindicate is just spot removal. Both cards offer a particular versitility that allows you to deal with a variety of things without devoting multiple slots to overly specific answers.
 
I don't think Dark Confidant is a good idea in an aggro based metagame, because your life total is going to take hits that could cause you to lose to your own draw engine.

I'd consider replacing Divining Top with a Scroll Rack so you can potentially see more cards.

Also I'd want to cut the Chalices for perhaps a Fastbond and a Zuran Orb, to allow you to gain infinite life and infinite mana.

As for the Bob's I'd try running a future sight and 2 thirst for knowledges or 2 impulses instead.

If you do run Zuran Orb + Fastbond, I'd add a Stroke of Genius to the sideboard for a wishable outlet for infinite mana that wins you the game.

Depending on how often you seem to use Mindslaver, I'd consider cutting it for a red damage spell that can hit multiple targets, such as Earthquake or Firestorm or Pyroclasm.

Another card you might consider against aggro  is Vedalken Shackles. It can steal dudes to chump block with, or to win with even.

If stax is in your metagame, you might want to run cards like Rebuild and / or Hurkly's Recall in additon to Rack and Ruin ( which is probably much better than Shattering Pulse). Other enchantment based options are Serenity, Aura of Silence or Energy Flux.

[Guevara59]

I'll test out the fastbond + orb combo and see how it works and since i really dont use mindslaver all that much ill probably add a earthquake or something.  Slaver was pretty in just for the fun of it.

A question though, what does BoB stand for???

[silvernail]

Dark Confidant is the invintational card designed by Bob Maher, hence why it is called Bob.

[Guevara59]

I know its been a while since ive posted on this thread but ive messed with my deck and i want to see what you think of it!

Land//19
3x Gemstone Mine (Cities kill me in my metagame, CoW helps me w/ the mines downside)
4x Polluted Delta
2x Island
1x Strip
2x Wasteland
1x Volcanic Island
1x Bayou
3x Tundra
2x Underground Sea

Blue//18
1x Future Sight (great w/ the bond+orb+CoW combo, and even without the combo)
1x Tinker
3x Mana Leak (to much colorless for Counterspell/Drains...Maybe a bad idea??)
4x Brainstorm
1x Ancestral Recall
3x Cunning Wish (added another due to the amount of targets in my SB)
4x FoW
1x Time Walk

White//6
1x Balance
1x Enlightened Tutor
3x StP
1x Porphyry Nodes (less mana then Abyss, and i dont want to buy an abyss...)

Green//1
Fastbond (combo)

Red//1
1x Earthquake (combo kill/annoying creature annihilator)

Black//4
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Mind Twist
1x Demonic Tutor

Gold//2
2x Vindicate

Artifacts//11
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Vault (mana boost)
1x Orb (combo)
2x Engineered Explosives (much faster than kegs)
1x DSC (kill)
2x CoW
1x Jester's Cap ( kinda a fun card, put in b/c a tendrils deck and a belcher deck entered the metagame, this card rapes!!)

SB
1x MisDi
1x StP
1x Stifle
1x Echoing Truth
1x Hide//Seek
1x Fire//Ice
1x Krosan Reclamation (kills reanimater/stax and helps me too!)
1x Skeletal Scrying
1x Extirpate (kills combo)
1x Dark Blast (kill most creatures in the format, plus dredge helps)
2x Hurkyl's Recall (dominates stax)
1x Energy Flux (see above)
1x Constant Mists (+CoW=aggro massacre)
1x Orim's Chant (Time Walk...white style)

Although ive said this earlier, my metagame consists of madness, stax, belcher, tendrils, dragon (dragon, belcher, and tendrils are new additions) a weird combo deck ( http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=32114.0 ), and a aggro based black chalice.

Advice please on the new additions!! Would be greatly Appreciated!

[Metman]

I originally fell in love with Keeper and since it has been dated now for a while I moved on to Slaver.  This hasn't changed my love for Keeper but I think there are a few cards that are essential to Keeper.  The first is Mana Drain.  The deck traditionally plays huge bombs late in the game to just end it.  Mana Drain serves to protect yourself early as well as power the deck to the finish with the mana it can provide.  Countering a Gifts Ungiven with Mana Drain can lead to some goodness.  I have always like the 4-5 color versions of the deck despite the weaker mana bases.  CoW is essential especially if you plan on running Gemstone Mine.  Crop Rotation may be a card to consider too.  Mystical Tutor is just too good in control decks; it should definately be in there.  I would cut a Cunning Wish for it.  I had always liked the mana denial aspect of Keeper but you have abandoned that by not running Gorilla Shaman or the full set of Wastelands.  I would leave the Strip Mine but cut the others.  With numerous tutors to find Strip and Crucible the opportunity should be there if you want to pursue the soft lock.  I have always found Vindicate to be too clunky considering the speed and casting cost.  Fire/Ice, Disenchant, BOUNCE!!!, Engineered Explosives, Powder Keg, or Merchant Scrolls may be better suited.

[silvernail]

I'd consider adding Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir to the deck because he prevents madness from being able to use madness triggers, while also being a possible threat in many games.

He might also be able to prevent other kinds of combo but I'm not sure which ones .

Also you could consider adding an Academy Ruins to recur various Artifacts.

I'm pretty sure you know that earthquake can kill an opponent if you get the zuran orb + fastbond + COW combo going, but you might consider adding a Stroke of Genius to the SB so you can wish for a win if you don't have EQ due to using it already.

If you can run mana drains instead of mana leaks - then do so since they will power out your high CC cards.

[Guevara59]

First of all id like to thank you for the inputs.  Secondly, i'd cut a waste for a shaman or something but wastelands do produce mana and taking them out would really hurt my base.  I also really like the mage but what to cut??  Maybe the Vindicates??  I really like the idea of the ruins to fetch back the explosives or the Jester's Cap.  Ive tried Stroke before but, besides during the combo, its to much cost to wish for.  in order to draw 1 card...7 mana!!  I thought about main decking one but that could cost  a valuable slot.  Anyway, is it worth boarding just for the combo!?  Thank you again.

Toodles,
Guevara59

[sa-x]

I would suggest adding fact or fiction to your list.  I would probably cut future sight, because unless you're in a winning position, you're not going to want to tap 5 mana during your main phase.

[Schlaubi]

I haven't been playing Magic for about 5 years now and when I started playing again I was really surprised finding the Keeper archetype dead. I want to build not an too competitive but modern Keeper build and as I find the Fastbond compo quite interesting I might just as well post my decklist in this thread:

7 SoLoMox
1 Lotus Petal

1 Demonic Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
2 Cunning Wish
1 Merchant Scroll

4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain

4 Brainstorm
1 Fact or Fiction
2 Gifts Ungiven

1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Tinker
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Balance
1 Mind Twist
1 Regrowth

1 Fire // Ice
1 Echoing Truth

1 Darksteel Colossus

2 Crucible of Worlds
1 Fastbond
1 Zuran Orb

3 Polluted Delta
2 Flooded Strand
1 Library of Alexandria
2 Underground Sea
2 Tundra
2 Island
1 Snow Covered Island
1 Tolarian Academy
3 Gemstone Mine
1 Strip Mine

SB: 1 Extirpate
SB: 1 Constant Mist
SB: 1 Stroke of Genius
SB: 1 Hurkyl's Recall
SB: 1 Darkblast
SB: 1 Stifle
SB: 1 Coffin Purge
SB: 2 Pithing Needle
SB: 1 Vampiric Tutor
SB: 1 Energy Flux
SB: 1 Misdirection
SB: 1 Swords to Plowshares
SB: 1 Rack and Ruin
SB: 1 Red Elemental Blast

The sideboard is still highly experimental and should function mainly as a wishboard. Perhaps it should be streamlined a bit as REB up to 2-3 so I can board them in game 2. I'm still not sure about the primary win condition as the fastbond combo seems rather slow so more draw should be good (Timetwister?, Skeletal Scrying?).
I hope you have some advice,
Felix

[Guevara59]

In my deck I use the Fastbond combo as a backup win.  All the cards that go into that combo in my deck are helpful in their own way as well as being combined into a win. 

Fastbond-Great for getting as much mana as possible ( I don't run all the power b/c i only own Sapphire/Lotus/and Ancestral Recall)
CoW-Good lockdown and anti wastes/strips
Zuran Orb-Perfect for when Im getting slowly killed by lameass beatdowns
Fastbond+CoW=Pay 5 life w/ a stripmine, they lost five lands
Fastbond+CoW+Zorb-I win

For my win condition w/ the Fastbond combo i use a multi purpose card like Earthquake.  Although stroke of genius can easily win by decking the opponent, I don't find much use for it outside of that.  In order to wish for it I have to spend about 7+ mana to get at least one card.  On the other hand, w/ earthquake, i can not only win, but can eliminate Welders and act as a cheap Wrath of God. 

Also, besides the Colossus and Fastbond kills i run the classic Morphling.  So many times have i lost the game because they Swords my Colossus with more swords than i have counters.  Morphling is a great late game back up plan and is virtually invincible.

Also i recommend running wastelands or a Dust Bowl.  Although i haven't posted it, I play a Dust bowl.  It just rapes w/ CoW. 

I also think you should test Mystical Tutor, it fetches almost everything in your deck.

I noticed you aren't maindeckin a Vampiric tutor, how come?  I find its really helpful getting your silver bullets out.  Also, how is Gifts Ungiven working out for you? And Fact or fiction?  I'm thinking about Maindecking the FoF...let me know how it works!!

Hope i was helpful!!

Toodles,
Guevara59

[Schlaubi]

I always loved FoF. It's just pure card advatage/Tutor and also helps to get the Library running. Card advantage is what a great deal of Keeper is about so you should definitely include it. This also gives me an headache as I haven't got enaugh draw in my deck. I should at least run 1 additional Skeletal Scrying but what to cut?

I am not an exprienced gifts player but I figure it must be a bomb in finding combo pieced. Say you have crucible out you can use gifts to get Fastbond/Zuran Orb/ Regrowth/ Yawgmoths Will and you are ready to go off.
With Fastbond/Stip Mine and Zuran Orb/Balance I have two Armageddon effects in the deck which should be enaugh as a too heavy mana denial would take up too many slots and is too slow/ineffective. Dust Bowl doesn't seem as an ideal choice to me as you have to tap it each time you use it which makes it unabusable with Fastbond/Crucible.

Mystical Tutor is already in the deck, you might have overlooked it. I didn't include Vampiric Tutor as 1.: I don't have that many silver bullets in the deck to tutor for (just bombs like Balance, Mind Twist...) and 2: It gives you card disadvantage with basically giving your opponent a Time Walk. Mystical Tutor is in because it can be dumped to FoW or Misdirection from the sideboard.

I thought about including Morphling but what to cut?

[zeus-online]

http://www.starcitygames.com/php/news/article/9205.html

http://www.starcitygames.com/php/news/article/9115.html

Those are to my knowledge the last two articles about "Keeper". I'd say that adding 4 duress to my old keeper deck was the best thing i ever did, you really need something faster then mana drains to disrupt your opponent.

Other then that i'd go easy with the scryings but still run a couple, and merchant scroll has been golden as its both disruption and potentially a card-drawer (By finding A. Recall or FoF).

Sundering titan might just be better then DSC in this deck, although DSC is obviosly better against aggro.
I'd cut 5C lands alltogether and run a mix of duals and fetch with atleast 3 islands to protect against wastelands. I honestly find CoW/Strip mine to be a bit too slow right now unless you're really lucky and get it turn 1 or two which is not likely.

I always loved the mana denial aspect, but i think its too slow right now - Other then Tinker/Titan and gorilla shaman which are both amazing, but i'd like to add that i think red should be cut, eventhough both fire/ice and gorilla shaman are really good.