The Wheel 5.2

[magic geek]

Wheel 4.1

1x Ancestral Recall
1x Brainstorm
1x Ponder
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Personal Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Time Walk
1x Timetwister
1x Tinker
1x Inky Leviathan
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Misdirection
4x Force of Will
3x Spell Pierce
1x Muddle the Mixture
1x Mana Drain
1x Chain of Vapor
1x Tezzeret
1x Hurkyls Recall
2x Preordain
1x Mind Twist
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Balance
1x Crucible Of Worlds
1x Time Vault
1x Voltaic Key
 
 --  26 Sauces
1x Black Lotus
1x Mox Sapphire
1x Mox Jet
1x Mana Vault
1x Sol Ring
1x Library of Alexandria
4x Wasteland
1x Strip Mine
2x Mishra's Factory
1x Tolarian Academy
1x Tolaria West
1x Seat of the Synod
3x Polluted Delta
4x Underground Sea
2x Tundra
1x Island


Sideboard
1x Spell Pierce
1 x Hurkyls Recall
3 x Energy Flux
1 x Control Magic
3x Planar Void
1x Dystopia
1x Abyss
1x Lose Hope
1x Thada Adel, Acquisitor
1x Serenity
1x Daze

The Wheel has been doing reasonably well.
It goes toe to toe with any type One Deck out there.

It just beats anything that aint outrageous.
All good Type One decks, need the ability to do outrageous things

Losing because your opponent killed you the turn before is standard.
Losing because your opponent killed you four turns after you had a turn because he won a mana crypt coin toss, that is type 1.


Dont really know if it beats an aggro creature deck any more.
Balance is such a ridiculous recovery card.

Brown decks are really harsh, but I am learning to deal with them.
Sphinx of the Steel wind does not cut it. Maze of Ith, Icy Manipulator, terror, swords & Duplicant are all good examples of why.
How to kill enormous, semi-visible robots.... I only play solutions that cover Inky now, they all seem to deal with Sphinx incidentally, and Chain of Vapour.
Not sure about chain. Then I take it out and lose because I can't bounce the Sphinx.

Time Twister is often subbed out, but, it really does win unwinable games. Dredge players HATE it.

Personal Tutor is looking ordinary.

[Delha]

It goes toe to toe with any type One Deck out there.
It just beats anything that aint outrageous.

Well, this is Vintage after all. It's all about outrageous here. Just sayin.

[Cyberpunker]

Preordain>Sleight of Hand I think.
Also you may want to try out Sphinx of the Steel Wind. Good luck

[Wagner]

You should definitively include at least 1 Ivory Tower and 1 Stroke of Genius, they were once restricted for a reason!

[magic geek]

Got my opening Ancestral recall Misdirected,. . .Ah.
Next Game the Mind Twist got Misdirected too. Oppps.

Force your Force of my Force of your Ancestral.. . .


Went 2 wins, 1 loss, 1 draw.

Loss was to infinite turns twice.
Draw was against Good Dredge.

Small, but quality field.

[magic geek]

I have spent some time reading up on Tez Decks.

My they are close, but not quite the same.

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=39365.0

that seems a pretty good summary.

1 Time Vault
1 Voltaic Key
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Sphinx of the Steel Wind

4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
2 Duress
1 Thoughtseize
1 Rebuild
1 Fire/Ice

3 Dark Confidant
1 Sensei’s Divining Top

1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Brainstorm
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Tinker
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Yawgmoth’s Will

8 Solomoxcrypt
6 Blue Fetches
3 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island
2 Island
1 Snow-covered Island
1 Tolarian Academy

= 55 cards

with maybe an additional. . 5. . .


1 Thoughtseize
1 Repeal
1 Ponder
1 Sensei’s Divining Top (2nd)
1 Annul

Very similiar. Well, I think so. I intentionally did not research before.
I think the biggest difference between us is the walloping I get to pack into the landbase.
Stripmine and a full 4 wasteland is a big selection of interference that just aint there in standard Tez.

The Bob and Top show is strong.
I am playing cantrips instead, and being blunter.
Mystical Tutor is much better for me. Standard Tez wants red for fire and ice, I am casting balance.
Balance Works.

I am playing Inky Leviathan, Not Sphinx.
I have faced Inky Leviathan, and Sphinx.
Inky is so much harder to stop.
Think Swords to ploughshares, control magic, maze of Ith, duplicant, nekrataal, terror, unsummon, echoing truth. . .
But the real reason Inky wins is that he is so easy to cast.
Seriously.

[magic geek]

Played it today.
Win, Win, . . .  drop.
Had stuff to do.

Played with +1 Bob, +1 Top, -1 Personal Tutor, -1 Chain of Vapour (moved to SB to replace Daze.) Works a complete charm.

Misdirected a fireblast, for the win.
Tinkered for inky, turn 2.
Yawgmothed for Key+Vault
Turn 2 Crucible lock, turn 3 concession.


Did not see or need Bob or Top.
Sideboarded them both against Mud.





4 Wastelands and a stripmine are better than 3 off colour mox and a couple of Fetchlands. The wheel needs less Blue since the Mana drains are missing.
Spell Pierce is better than Mana Drain.


Having cards you can't cast just dont matter when you are doing stupidly broken stuff, seemingly at will. Figuring out which broken card you want to play is SO greedy.

Trying for individual card advantage seems keen against Mind Twist, or Balance.
Balance is better than Fire/Ice.

Mishra Factory is a real wildcard.
It single-handedly dragged me back into the game by being placed on turn one, activated his turn 3, block, pump itself to become a 3/3 and Mutual with a Lodestone Golem. 
Being Tinker fuel is nice too.
Sometimes they are great at keeping me alive.

[magic geek]

The Wheel 5.0 just missed winning a Red Mox.
Lost the 3rd game of the final.
This deck works. And it is Brain meltingly hard.
It has RIDICULOUS plays, constantly.


The Wheel 5.0


1x Ancestral Recall
1x Brainstorm
1x Ponder
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Time Walk
1x Tinker
1x Inky Leviathan
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Control Magic
1x Misdirection
4x Force of Will
3x Spell Pierce
1x Tezzeret
2x Preordain
1x Dark confidant
1x Mind Twist
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Balance
2x Seal of cleansing
1x Crucible Of Worlds
1x Sensei's Divinig Top
1x Time Vault
1x Voltaic Key
 
1x Black Lotus
1x Mox Sapphire
1x Mox Jet
1x Mana Vault
1x Sol Ring
1x Library of Alexandria
4x Wasteland
1x Strip Mine
1x Mishra's Factory
1x Tolarian Academy
1x Seat of the Synod
3x Polluted Delta
3x Flooded Strand
4x Underground Sea
2x Tundra
1x Island

Sideboard
1x Spell Pierce
2x Hurkyls Recall
3x Energy Flux
2x Planar Void
1x Abyss
1x Lose Hope
1x Serenity
1x Muddle the Mixture
1x Mana Drain
1xTimetwister
1x Teferi's Response



Three wins and a loss (last turn of 3rd game extra time) then an I.D.
Win, Win, Loss in final 8

These were quality players & decks.
Some proxies allowed, but not that many played.

I am not sure a better, more practiced player would not have won the two round I lost.
This deck is beyond strong, and beyond hard.

Hundreds of decisions for the day.
I had quivering legs and a leaky brain after 7 rounds.

Balance is an incredible recovery card. It pulls back unwinable games.
The Seals of Cleansing are SO intrusive to a lot of decks.
4+1 wastelands (with Crucible lock) are also intimidating.

Teferi's Response worked on his wasteland

Currently I think I want a Scrubland, and a couple more ways to fight dredge.
Planar void worked.
Control Magic worked. Killed him with his own Blightsteel Collossus.
Got the top ever so slightly wrong in the last game, so missed trying for it again.
Mishras Factory was wonderful.


Mulliganed once for the day.
This is lucky, but also a part of the way it was designed.
There is very little double colour spells left, lots of cantrips, fetch, search and efficency.
And I made a WHOLE LOTTA MISTAKES, but the deck carried me. It is THAT strong.

This is the hardest format, and a hard deck.
This deck is beyond strong, and beyond hard.

Hundreds of decisions for the day.
I had quivering legs and a leaky brain after 7 rounds.

Balance is an incredible recovery card. It pulls back unwinable games.
The Seals of Cleansing are SO intrusive to a lot of decks.
4+1 wastelands (with Crucible lock) are also intimidating.

Teferi's Response worked on his wasteland

Currently I think I want a Scrubland, and a couple more ways to fight dredge.
Planar void worked.
Control Magic worked. Killed him with his own Blightsteel Collossus.
Got the top ever so slightly wrong in the last game, so missed trying for it again.
The Factory was wonderful.


Mulliganed once for the day.
This is lucky, but also a part of the way it was designed.
There is very little double colour spells left, lots of cantrips, fetch, search and efficency.
And I made a WHOLE LOTTA MISTAKES, but the deck carried me. It is THAT strong.

This is the hardest format, and a hard deck.

[madmanmike25]

You had me at "beyond strong, and beyond hard".

Btw, no Imperial Seal?

[Ten-Ten]

You had me at "beyond strong, and beyond hard".

Btw, no Imperial Seal?

my thoughts as well.

also, why the singleton BoB?

[magic geek]

Bob and Imperial seal are both strong, and quite reasonable suggestions.
But I think they are not quite right.

The reason I am only playing the one Bob is because it triggers Oath of Druids.
And, because losing to your own effects sucks after you are taking infinite turns.
I do not have many ways of getting rid of him.

The FIRST of any card in this style of Type 1 is the best.
Bob is certainly effective in a mirror style match.
Depending on Bob working can get frustrating when the opponent keeps pointing at him too. And Bob's effect is really not that fast.
More of Bob is certainly a reasonable call, but currently One seems the right number.


I am wary of Imperial Seal  because it is Sourcery speed, and the 2 life damage.
Staying alive is important, I won a couple of games on 1 life.
Imperial Seal is obviously worse than Vampiric Tutor, and Demonic Tutor, and the fact it is not Blue really counts against it.
Cards that help cast FoW are critical.
And, I just don't seem to need more slow tutors. There is SO much gratuitous sillyness that casting a Preordain is just faster, more effective, and gets the card NOW!

When I need to cast Balance, I need to cast it NOW!
Not the turn after the Blightsteel Collossus hits me.

Dont get me wrong Imperial Seal is certainly strong, so is more Bobs.


I do not believe this is a 'creative' deck in the slightest.
It uses no particular combo.
It is not creative in ANY of the cards it plays.
It is just brutal, and quite good at dodging many of the effective plays that work against everybody else.

It attacks Manabases in a way that very few other Type 1 decks do.
It has multiple locks and win conditions.
It has incredible resilence, and recovery.
It has a VERY solid manabase, and very quick interference.
It very rarely needs to Mulligan.

[magic geek]

A good way of thinking about the Wheel is...Where are the weak cards?

Control Magic & the 2xSeal of Cleansing are the ones that leap to my mind.
Seal of Cleansing and Control Magic certainly do get boarded out, but Oath of druids REALLY does not like either of them.

Think about the cards you need to beat. Collosus & Time Vault dont like them.
Same with Tarmogoyf, & moxen & Sol Ring, especially after they get wastelanded.

 & Dystopia just didn't work.


Sideboard



Did work...
2x Planar Void
1x Lose Hope
1x Teferi's Response


got counterspelled...
1x Abyss


Got boarded. but not seen..
1xTimetwister
1x Muddle the Mixture
1x Mana Drain


not subbed in....
1x Serenity
2x Hurkyls Recall
3x Energy Flux

So, i figure reducing the anti artifact stuff makes sense.

-1x Serenity
-1x Energy Flux

Still not certain about playing Seal instead of Hurkyl's in base, but seal gets enchantments too, and actually destroys it.
but... Hurkyls is a blue card.


+1 planar void / Leyline of the Void
+1 Bob



Sideboard
1x Spell Pierce
2x Hurkyls Recall
2x Energy Flux
2x Planar Void
1x Abyss
1x Lose Hope
1x Muddle the Mixture
1x Mana Drain
1xTimetwister
1x Teferi's Response

+1 planar void / Leyline of the Void
+1 Bob

[ReubenG]

Interesting deck, I have played a similar deck in the past, and lost against it last tournament when I decided to take a gush list for a spin and forgot how badly Mind Twist can wreck people.

I am intriqued that you have gone more white rather than red/green for your artifact hate.  I have thought about doing that but not done so yet in my deck because of the value of ancient grudge. 

With your deck going more white main for the seal of cleansings, have you tested Elightened tutor?  Seem like it would get you articaft hate, cruicible, and time vault in a pinch.

Other inclusion I would look at would be Jace the Mind Scultor (possibly over Fact or Fiction), he becomes so strong after you have disrupted their manabase and can fateseal them stunting their draws for mana, and as a bonus bounces Blightsteel.

[magic geek]

With your deck going more white main for the seal of cleansings, have you tested Elightened tutor?  Seem like it would get you articaft hate, cruicible, and time vault in a pinch.

Jace the Mind Scultor (possibly over Fact or Fiction)

Enlightened & Jace are both entirely reasonable suiggestions too. But not what I want.
Both are too slow, by a tiny fraction. They don't do what I want fast enough.

The white is there for Balance. Balance is OBSCENE.
The seals are good because they can't be counterspelled once on table.
And they are not just artifact hate, sometimes they do kill enchantments too.
(sylvan library, Oath, fastbond, threads of disloyalty, ... and weird stuff)

Part of the strength of this deck is that it only really uses Blue, with a touch of Black, and now 3 white cards.
It really enjoys being able to cast it's spells.

[ReubenG]

With your deck going more white main for the seal of cleansings, have you tested Elightened tutor?  Seem like it would get you articaft hate, cruicible, and time vault in a pinch.

Jace the Mind Scultor (possibly over Fact or Fiction)

Enlightened & Jace are both entirely reasonable suiggestionsa too. But not what I want.
Both are too slow, by a tiny fraction. They don't do what I want fast enough.

The white is there for Balance. Balance is OBSCENE.
The seals are good because they can't be counterspelled once on table.
And they are not just artifact hate, sometimes they do kill enchantments too.
(sylvan library, Oath, fastbond, threads of disloyalty, ... and weird stuff)

Paret of the strength of this deck is that it only really uses Blue, with a touch of Black, and now 3 white cards.
It really enjoys being able to cast it's spells.

I like balance in a deck like this as well, and the heavier use of white over red and green is something I am going to have to test inm y version of The Deck.   I  just think E-tutor EOT for Seal of Cleansing against a shop deck will be a good. And even beter post board for Eflux and Serenity. 

Jace is just a great fit with Cruible/wasteland locks, post mind twist and pre balance plays.

[LotusHead]

The deck looks kind alike keeper builds of 2004.  Also, love the maindeck Timetwister and the SB Timetwister.

[magic geek]

I spoze it kinda does look like Keeper 2004.
There are certainly a Whole Lotta different cards . . .

1x Ponder
1x Inky Leviathan
1x Control Magic
3x Spell Pierce
1x Tezzeret
2x Preordain
1x Dark confidant
2x Seal of cleansing
1x Sensei's Divinig Top
1x Mishra's Factory
1x Seat of the Synod

.. what is wrong with being compared to one of the most dominant decks ever built?
'...I had quivering legs and a leaky brain after 7 rounds.'

TimeTwister is in the Board against Dredge & Slower decks when I am on the Play.

[magic geek]

Pulled second in a tiny 10 proxy .

lost to the winner. Mud is Brutal.

What idiot designed Mishra's  workshop?
Porcelain legionaire is IN.

I won the 4th game we played, on 1 life. Mud/Stax is tough.

Balance is awesome.
And the new scrubland sucked because it does not tap for Blue.

Played 4 Planar Void. None were sb'ed
Lose hope was good.
Mishras Factory was excellent.

[yespuhyren]

The same people who lets you use Recall, Walk, Tinker, and Yawgmoth's Will  

That being said, interesting list.  I like the keeper-esque style list, there's a comfort feeling to seeing those in there.

[magic geek]

Stax / mud is a complete beating.

But, Porcelain Legionare REALLY helps. So does Energy Flux.

Crucible, FactorFiction & spell Pierce dont seem to work very well.
Mind twist was ok.

The lone scrubland should be a Tundra/Underground Sea, I think.

One of the Seal of cleansings should be a Hurkyls Recall, I think.
One of the Spell Pierces should probably sub out too, maybe for a Mishra's factory

[magic geek]

I won a blue mox yesterday.

I got a turn 0 concession.
This deck is not "creative"..  This deck is competitive.  


The Wheel 5.2

1x Ancestral Recall
1x Brainstorm
1x Ponder
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Time Walk
1x Tinker
1x Inky Leviathan
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Control Magic
1x Hurkyls Recall
1x Misdirection
4x Force of Will
2x Spell Pierce
1x Tezzeret
3x Preordain
2x Dark confidant
1x Mind Twist
1x Yawgmoth's Will
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Balance
1x Crucible Of Worlds
1x Sensei's Divinig Top
1x Time Vault
1x Voltaic Key

 
1x Black Lotus
1x Mox Sapphire
1x Mox Jet
1x Mana Vault
1x Sol Ring
1x Library of Alexandria
4x Wasteland
1x Strip Mine
1x Mishra's Factory
1x Tolarian Academy
1x Seat of the Synod
3x Polluted Delta
3x Flooded Strand
4x Underground Sea
2x Tundra
1x Island

Sideboard
2x Spell Pierce
1x Hurkyls Recall
1x Energy Flux
3x Planar Void
1x Lose Hope
1x Mana Drain
1x Timetwister
1x Teferi's Response
1x Seal of Cleansing
3x Porcelain Legionnaire


I think I have one SB card wrong.... Hmmmmm.

I played it poorly. I still won a Blue Mox. (24 people, sanctioned)
Good Games Dandenong Vic Australia 24/10/11

[RenatoAmado]

Magic Geek,

I really like your deck. It makes me play blue again. I have some questions:

What do you think that Snapcaster Mage deserves inclusion in The Wheel? In your report you said that Porcelain Legionnaire helps against MUD? Lose Hope can be Darkblast and Teferi's Response can be Stifle?

[magic geek]

Does Snapcaster Mage deserves inclusion in The Wheel?

I am not sure, but i do not think so.
He just seems a bit fair.
Certainly, anything that lets you recast Ancestral recall should be considered, but... he just seems a bit fair.

In your report you said that Porcelain Legionnaire helps against MUD?

Yes. ... Lots.
He is an artifact, and a creature, the two things they don't like.
He fights their entire team, with first strike.

Lose Hope can be Darkblast?

Yes.
But Lose Hope's bonus happens right now.
Darkblast might be useful at some later point.
Assuming one or the other is going to be cast, Lose Hope is ALWAYS going to have it's bonus text happen. DarkBlast MIGHT. Scry 2 is HUGE when the opponent never gets another turn because of it.

Teferi's Response can be Stifle?

Sure.
But they don't do the same things.
You wasteland/stripmine my land.
Stifle is style.
Teferi's Response wins the game by drawing two cards as well.
Sure, Stifle works on lots of other stuff. Stifle can be fine in many other ways.
Teferi's Response is a COMPLETE BEATING, sometimes.


Teferi's Response  1U
Instant
Counter target spell or ability an opponent controls that targets a land you control. If a permanent's ability is countered this way, destroy that permanent.
Draw two cards.


Cast Stifle on a Sundering Titan, and keep your land.
OR...Cast teferi's Response and keep a land, AND KILL the Sundering titan, ... and draw two cards

See how they are similar, but not the same?

Sure, Stifle works on fetch-land and all sorts of odd other stuff. I am specifically targetting Wasteland & Stripmine.

[madmanmike25]

Teferi's Response is a COMPLETE BEATING, sometimes.

They have done studies on Teferi's Response and found that 60% of the time, it works every time.

Btw, the wording on Titan is "choose" and the wording on TR is "targets".  Not sure if thats a problem, but who still plays with Sundering Titan?

[Daenyth]

Teferi's Response is a COMPLETE BEATING, sometimes.

They have done studies on Teferi's Response and found that 60% of the time, it works every time.

Btw, the wording on Titan is "choose" and the wording on TR is "targets".  Not sure if thats a problem, but who still plays with Sundering Titan?

Yeah, you can't target Titan's ability with Response. Not that it matters much since it sees no play

[nineisnoone]

Lose Hope can be Darkblast?

Yes.
But Lose Hope's bonus happens right now.
Darkblast might be useful at some later point.
Assuming one or the other is going to be cast, Lose Hope is ALWAYS going to have it's bonus text happen. DarkBlast MIGHT. Scry 2 is HUGE when the opponent never gets another turn because of it.

I have been considering playing Lose Hope (and just messing around with Scry stuff in general), but I've always just been a huge fan of Darkblast and it keeps taking that slot. Maybe I'll have to try out more.

Porecelain is interesting...

[magic geek]

In the third round, game 1, turn 2...
he had Kuldotha Taskmaster out from his Workshop & Ancient tomb.
I waited until the end of his 3rd turn to Cast Hurkyl's recall.
(In fact, I asked him.. "What is the worst possible spell I could cast now?"he said Hurkyl's..     )

I did not want to do it in my turn before the taskmaster got active, because he would just recast everything.

He tapped and sacced 3 artifacts and brought in a Sundering Titan, wiping out my Underground Sea & Tundra, then picking it up.
Sundering Titan seemed the best possible artifact to go get at that point...


Sundering Titan not working on Teferi's response is disappointing.
I was looking forward to that.
Even So, .... Teferi's response is about beating Stripmine & Wasteland. That is why it is in there.
Going 3 for 1 while they go down a land is a Complete Beating.

If it doesn't just win the game, it can be chucked as F-o-W fuel.

Mishra's Factory has been so HUGE, I feel I need to include another...

[Nydaeli]

Grats on the Mox.  I've got two card suggestions: Gifts Ungiven and City of Brass.

Gifts fits the deck perfectly: ridiculously skill-intensive and headache-inducing, and swings games like crazy.  Test it in the Fact spot.
City of Brass is like a Scrubland that taps for blue, and it'll feed your addiction to colorless lands.

[magic geek]

Grats on the Mox.  I've got two card suggestions: Gifts Ungiven and City of Brass.

Gifts fits the deck perfectly: ridiculously skill-intensive and headache-inducing, and swings games like crazy.  Test it in the Fact spot.
City of Brass is like a Scrubland that taps for blue, and it'll feed your addiction to colorless lands.

Cheers

Nah, City of brass is not needed.
Sure it taps for Blue & Black, but i dont really need other colours. Not any more anyway. ONE white card base just don't need it. There is only 6 black cards too, all single black.
Having such a lite colour commitment has been lovely.


Gifts is a much harder call. I have tried playing it in the wheel. Bought one specially. Tried it out and it does fit the deck style, of trying to hurt me mentally, but, well, it just doesn't seem to work right.
Mostly I just can't figure out what I should get.

Say I have a voltaic key in hand...What do I get?
Tinker + vault + yawgies + Tezz?

So they should give me tinker & Tezz.
The Tezz dont work to get infinite turns, and the tinker can get a Inky, but that is gunna be a bit slow....

Say I have an empty hand... What do I get?
I cant just get the combo..

voltaic key + vault + yawgies + ??Tezz??  = bad times
they give Key + Tezz and it is very ordinary...


The wheel is actually so Blunt that gifts doesn't seem to fit. I just don't seem to have worked out gifts. Only having the one way to get stuff out of the graveyard really does make it tricky. Snapcaster would be stronger with it...

I spoze I could just get ridiculous cards, if they are still in the library.
Ancestral + Walk + DT + Tinker   .... maybe?

Dunno...If two of those are already gone it gets even more confusing.


Fact or Fiction does have some significant advantages. Merchant scroll for FoF does happen.
Fact or fiction is SO much cleaner, and it does seem to work.


Gifts Ungiven may well be the right call though.
just not sure.

[magic geek]

And I have the cards in front of me...
The sideboard has...

2x Porcelain Legionnaire  (not 3x)
1xChain of Vapor