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Keeper mini-primer
Keeper is one of the most difficult decks to play in t1, it's also one
of the most expensive money wise. The deck lacks the explosiveness of
long.dec, the flair of dragon.dec, the drawing engine that is hulk
smash, the disruptiveness of mask, the aggro deck that is sligh, but it
does make up for being one of the best decks which can come back after a
situation wherein all seems lost.
It takes a lot of skill and patience to play keeper, the original theory
of the deck is to survive long enough until you drop the “bomb” or
win condition in layman’s term. The deck runs on "silver
bullets" which enable you to fetch whatever you need at the given
situation. You can't afford to make mistakes though - this deck is very
unforgiving. You need to know your deck inside and out when playing
keeper, also adding to this difficulty is the need for knowing your
opponents deck inside and out too!
A lot of inexperienced keeper players make the assumption that keeper is
"unbeatable", thus playing recklessly and proceed to lose 10
games in a row. Experience is key here – arguably, no other deck out
there needs more playtesting than keeper. The sheer number of decisions
to be made during a turn would baffle an experienced t1 player who's
never played keeper, let alone a novice, starting to play the deck.
Don't let these statements discourage you from the deck though, keeper
remains, and will always be imho, one of the best decks out there,
especially with the advent of Mirrodin which gave quite a few more toys
to play with.
The following list IMMEDIATELY below are part of the “KEEPER
ARCHIVE”. They are NOT the current decklists for keeper, they are the
older versions of the deck. They are there because they can give people
starting out a “skeleton” of how the deck works, and the theory of
keeper, along with it’s evolution and why it morphed into the way it
is now.
Take note that an “R” instead of a number before the card denotes
that the card is restricted at the time that the deck was being used.
//NAME: The Deck (1995) Brian Weissman
// Mana (28)
4 Island
4 Tundra
3 City of Brass
3 Plains
2 Strip Mine
2 Volcanic Island
1 Plateau
1 Underground Sea
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (11)
4 Mana Drain
2 Counterspell
R Ancestral Recall
R Time Walk
R Timetwister
R Braingeyser
R Recall
// Black (2)
R Mind Twist
R Demonic Tutor
// White (12)
4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Disenchant
2 Moat
2 Serra Angel
// Red (2)
2 Red Elemental Blast
// Green (1)
R Regrowth
// Artifact (4)
2 Disrupting Scepter
1 Jayemdae Tome
R Ivory Tower
Synopsis:
The original version of keeper, “the deck”, strip mine wasn’t
restricted back then. Alliances would only be released one year later.
The original “keeper”. The theory behind this deck is card
advantage. It plays like a control deck, gaining card advantage through
the protected Jayemdae Tome, or through Ancestral Recall and Braingeyser
or Mindtwist. One locks the game with Disrupting Scepters, sooner,
you’ll get rid of all the cards in your opponent’s hand. This is
where you drop Serra Angel and proceed to win in the next five turns.
Crude, but very effective back then.
//NAME: Keeper (1997) Mike Long
// Mana (27)
4 Strip Mine
4 Volcanic Island
3 Tundra
3 City of Brass
3 Underground Sea
2 Fellwar Stone
1 Barbed Sextant
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (12)
4 Mana Drain
2 Merchant Scroll
2 Hydroblast
R Ancestral Recall
R Time Walk
R Amnesia
R Recall
// Black (4)
2 The Abyss
1 Coercion
R Demonic Tutor
// White (5)
2 Swords to Plowshares
2 Disenchant
1 Circle of Protection: Red
// Red (6)
2 Fireball
2 Pyroblast
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Incinerate
// Artifact (5)
2 Lodestone Bauble
2 Millstone
R Mirror Universe
// Gold (1)
1 Elemental Augury
Synopsis:
This was where “keeper” got it’s name. The original theory behind
this version, was that you’d “keep” your opponent from getting
anything useful every turn by using Elemental Augury to your
opponent’s library, then getting rid of his useful cards by using
Millstone on it.
//NAME: The Deck (1998) Brian Weissman, pre sixth ed.
// Mana (28)
4 Island
4 Tundra
4 City of Brass
4 Volcanic Island
3 Wasteland
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (17)
4 Mana Drain
3 Mystical Tutor
2 Counterspell
2 Force of Will
1 Amnesia
R Ancestral Recall
R Time Walk
R Timetwister
R Braingeyser
R Recall
// Black (2)
1 The Abyss
R Demonic Tutor
// White (5)
2 Swords to Plowshares
2 Disenchant
R Balance
// Red (4)
2 Gorilla Shaman
1 Pyroblast
1 Fireball
// Green (1)
R Regrowth
// Artifact (3)
1 Jayemdae Tome
R Zuran Orb
R Mirror Universe
Synopsis:
Mind twist was banned, and Strip mine was restricted in this time. Force
of Will was also introduced because the decks got a lot faster. The win
condition on this build is to survive long enough to drop Mirror
Universe, then mana burn to reach zero life and use Mirror Universe to
exchange life totals for the win on the next upkeep. Alternatively you
can cast twenty point fireball and win that way. This was before 6th ed
rules, so you’ll only lose if you reach zero life at the end of each
phase.
//NAME: The Franchise (1999), Darren di Battista, pre sixth ed.
// Mana (28)
4 Tundra
4 City of Brass
3 Underground Sea
2 Tropical Island
2 Island
2 Wasteland
R Tolarian Academy
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (14)
4 Mana Drain
2 Force of Will
2 Counterspell
1 Amnesia
R Mystical Tutor
R Ancestral Recall
R Timetwister
R Braingeyser
R Stroke of Genius
// Black (3)
1 The Abyss
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
// White (6)
2 Swords to Plowshares
2 Disenchant
1 Moat
R Balance
// Red (1)
1 Kaervek’s Torch
// Green (4)
2 Gaea’s Blessing
1 Sylvan Library
R Regrowth
// Artifact (4)
1 Mirror Universe
1 Jayemdae Tome
1 Jester’s Cap
1 Zuran Orb
Synopsis:
It was at this time, that green was heavily used in keeper, the
recursion provided by twin Gaea’s Blessing would be used to recur used
bullets- enough to overrun the opponent with threats or with answers.
Recurring the restricted cards was often too much against the opposing
player. After a “soft lock” is achieved, the deck usually wins by
recurring Jester’s Cap or recurring it’s Kaervek’s Torch for the
win.
//NAME: The Deck (2000) Brian Weissman
// Mana (27)
4 Tundra
4 City of Brass
4 Volcanic Island
4 Wasteland
2 Underground Sea
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (19)
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
2 Counterspell
1 Morphling
1 Amnesia
R Ancestral Recall
R Mystical Tutor
R Time Walk
R Timetwister
R Braingeyser
R Recall
R Stroke of Genius
// Black (3)
1 The Abyss
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
// White (6)
3 Swords to Plowshares
2 Disenchant
R Balance
// Red (3)
2 Gorilla Shaman
1 Fireball
// Green (1)
R Regrowth
// Artifact (1)
1 Jayemdae Tome
Synopsis:
This was one of the first peek of the “modern” keeper, Morphling was
used instead of the traditional “clunky” X burn spells, Mirror
Universe was cut because 6th ed rules had killed that win condition.
Elemental Augury + Millstone was deemed as an “I win more” condition
and didn’t help the player when it was losing.
//NAME: The Deck (2001) Brian Weissman
// Mana (28)
4 Tundra
4 City of Brass
4 Volcanic Island
4 Wasteland
3 Underground Sea
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (20)
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
4 Fact or Fiction
1 Counterspell
1 Morphling
R Ancestral Recall
R Braingeyser
R Mystical Tutor
R Time Walk
R Timetwister
R Stroke of Genius
// Black (5)
1 The Abyss
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
R Mind Twist
R Yawgmoth’s Will
// White (4)
2 Swords to Plowshares
1 Disenchant
R Balance
// Red (2)
2 Gorilla Shaman
// Green (1)
R Regrowth
// Artifact (2)
1 Jayemdae Tome
1 Zuran Orb
Synopsis:
This was the era of unrestricted Fact or Fictions. BBS or (blue bull…
you know that…) was the rampant because of one lone card- Fact or
Fiction. It didn’t take a long time before keeper abused it too.
EOTFOFYL. End Of Turn, Fact Or Fiction, You Lose, became a popular term.
The raw drawing power of Fact or Fiction was just too powerful. It
didn’t take long before it was restricted.
//NAME: 5CC (2001) Oscar Tan, (short for five color control- or keeper)
// Mana (28)
4 City of Brass
4 Volcanic Island
4 Underground Sea
3 Wasteland
3 Tundra
1 Undiscovered Paradise
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (19)
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
2 Morphling
1 Counterspell
1 Misdirection
1 Merchant Scroll
R Ancestral Recall
R Braingeyser
R Fact or Fiction
R Mystical Tutor
R Time Walk
R Stroke of Genius
// Black (6)
1 Diabolic Edict
1 The Abyss
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
R Mind Twist
R Yawgmoth’s Will
// White (3)
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Dismantling Blow
R Balance
// Red (2)
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Fire/Ice
// Green (2)
1 Sylvan Library
R Regrowth
// Artifact (1)
1 Zuran Orb
Synopsis:
This is what many considers to be, the modern Keeper decklist. After
Fact or Fiction was restricted, Keeper started looking for other ways to
draw cards and snuck back Braingeyser and Stroke of Genius. Keeper was
the rage then, and the top decks that time were Keeper, Mask and TnT.
Diabolic Edicts were maindecked to deal with the opposing Morphling. The
addition of Dismantling Blow gave the deck another “bullet” to take
out opposing artifacts/enchantments. Dismantling Blow is used over the
traditional Disenchant because it fits exactly with keeper’s idea to
keep “dead cards” to a minimum since you can “cycle” them by
blowing your own moxen. Also Dismantling Blow is “card advantage”
– your opponent loses one card, you lose the blow, but gain two extra
cards in the process.
The next few decks are all Keeper decks from this era, these decks
resemble the Keeper decks most of us are familiar with and I’m sure
you’ve come across one version or the other while browsing the net.
Some consider them “rogue keeper builds because they work particularly
well on a decent meta.””
//NAME: Combo Keeper (2002)
// Mana (28)
4 Polluted Delta
3 Underground Sea
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
3 Wasteland
1 City Of Brass
R Tolarian Academy
R Grim Monolith
R Stripmine
R Library Of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (22)
4 Impulse
4 Mana Drain
4 Force Of Will
1 Morphling
1 Power Artifact
1 Future Sight
1 Misdirection
R Ancestral Recall
R Time Walk
R Mystical Tutor
R Fact Or Fiction
R Stroke Of Genius
R Brain Geyser
// Black (4)
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
R Mind Twist
R Yawgmoth's Will
// White (4)
2 Swords To Plowshares
1 Dismanteling Blow
R Balance
// Red (1)
1 Fireball
// Artifact (1)
1 Zuran Orb
// Sideboard
R Timetwister
R Wheel of Fortune
R Enlightened Tutor
Synopsis:
Combo keeper is Keeper with a twist. It runs the grim monolith/power
artifact combo, providing infinite mana and winning via any of the
numerous X spells available. If this doesn’t go, winning via
traditional Morphling is still a viable option. On a good draw, it’s
possible to win on an early part of the game if you get two components,
just tutor for the third and go off. Some people say that this is a
“bad version” of keeper. It’s a bad combo deck and a bad control
deck rolled into one. Interestingly though, this was the prelude to
another popular t1 deck “The Shining” which I shall not tackle here.
//NAME: Trinity Keeper (2002)
// Mana: (28)
4 Flooded Strand
4 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
3 Tundra
3 Wasteland
R Grim Monolith
R Tolarian Academy
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (21)
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Brainstorm
2 Morphling
1 Misdirection
1 Power Artfiact
R Ancestral Recall
R Stroke of Genius
R Braingeyser
R Fact or Fiction
R Mystical Tutor
R Time Walk
// Black (6)
1 Chainer's Edict
1 The Abyss
R Vampiric Tutor
R Demonic Tutor
R Mind Twist
R Yawgmoth’s Will
// Green (2)
1 Sylvan Library
R Regrowth
// White (3)
1 Dismantling Blow
1 Swords To Plowshares
R Balance
// Sideboard
4 Oath of Druids
2 Krosan Reclamation
2 Call Of The Herd
1 Ensnaring Bridge
Synopsis:
This deck runs green instead of red’s traditional removal. Trinity
Keeper is a very peculiar version because it runs a
“transformational” sideboard. After sideboarding, you can run the
Oath-transfomation, so it was essentialy "three decks at
once", control (MD), Combo (KrOathan) and AggroControl (CoTH).
(hence trinity)
The Oathes were used to dump your entire maindeck after boarding out
your creatures. Afterwards you flashback Krosan Reclamation for
Yawgmoths Will, cast Will, replay 7 SoLoMox, Academy and Grim Monolith
plus Power Artifact from your Graveyard. You then kill using the
Braingeyser, or the Stroke of Genius which is in your graveyard (thanks
to Mon, for this)
//NAME: Keeper, Dark (2002)
// Mana (27)
4 Polluted Delta
4 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island
3 Wasteland
3 Island
1 Swamp
1 Strip Mine
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Sol Ring
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Black Lotus
// Blue (21)
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
3 Brainstorm
2 Morphling
2 Cunning Wish
R Ancestral Recall
R Time Walk
R Braingeyser
R Fact or Fiction
R Stroke of Genius
R Mystical Tutor
// Black (11)
4 Duress
2 Chainer's Edict
R Mind Twist
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
R Yawgmoth's Will
R The Abyss
// Red (1)
1 Gorilla Shaman
// Sideboard
SB: 1 Skeletal Scrying
SB: 1 Coffin Purge
SB: 1 Diabolic Edict
SB: 1 Fire/Ice
Synopsis:
Dark Keeper evolved primarily to beat other control decks. Two
maindecked edicts which can flashback ensure that you’ll be able to
get rid of opposing Morphlings. Four maindecked Duress(es) also ensure
that you’ll have no problem against the opposing countermagic. This
version is easily distinguished from other versions by a noticeably
heavy black component.
//NAME: Keeper, Wish (2002)
// Mana (27)
4 Flooded Strand
4 Underground Sea
3 Wasteland
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
2 Island
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (24)
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Cunning Wish
3 Brainstorm
2 Morphling
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Misdirection
R Stroke of Genius
R Braingeyser
R Ancestral Recall
R Fact or Fiction
R Time Walk
R Mystical Tutor
// Black (5)
R Yawgmoth's Will
R Mind Twist
R Demonic Tutor
R Vampiric Tutor
1 The Abyss
// Red (2)
1-Gorilla Shaman
1-Fire/Ice
// White (2)
1 Swords to Plowshares
R-Balance
Synopsis:
Cunning Wish was a defining point in blue based control. Sooner, all
blue based control decks would be running the wish as another tool
enabling them to fetch their bullets. Traditional cards which were
included in the deck were removed and relegated to the sideboard to
reduce even more the number of dead cards in the deck.
The advent of the onslaught “fetch lands” finally removed the klunky
Undiscovered Paradise from Keeper’s mana base.
Some common targets of Cunning Wish were:
White
Swords to Plowshares, Disenchant, Allay
Red
Red Elemental Blast, Fire/Ice, Rack and Ruin, Shattering Pulse
Blue
Misdirection, Gush, Teferi’s Response, Mana Short, Blue Elemental
Blast
Black
Skeletal Scrying, Coffin Purge, Diabolic Edict
//NAME: Keeper (2003) Pre Mirrodin.
// Mana (27)
4 Underground Sea
4 Polluted Delta
4 Wasteland
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Strip Mine
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
// Blue (18)
4 Force of Will
3 Mana Drain
3 Brainstorm
2 Cunning Wish
1 Future Sight
1 MerchantScroll
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Mystical Tutor
// Black (10)
3 Duress
2 Skeletal Scrying
1 The Abyss
1 Mind Twist
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
// White (3)
1 Balance
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Decree of Justice
// Red (2)
1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Goblin Trenches
// Sideboard
SB: 2 Coffin Purge
SB: 1 Shattering Pulse
SB: 1 Skeletal Scrying
SB: 1 Swords to Plowshares
SB: 1 Fire/Ice
SB: 1 Stifle
Synopsis:
Goblin Trenches and Decree of Justice replaced the once staple Morphling
because trenches helped against the popular deck that time - stax (can
be put into play faster and can get two permanents for one) and decree
(cycled) helped against a lot of control. 6 to 10 1/1 tokens was also a
faster win condition than Morphling if one is lucky to get that number
of tokens into play.
I’m sure, you’re now curious as to what the current incarnation was.
The advent of the faster long.dec, better draw engine hulksmash, more
aggressive goblin sligh, the prison deck that is stax kept Keeper in the
dark for quite some time. It just couldn’t compete with the better
decks out there.
Keeper Post Mirrodin
The release of Mirrodin gave some new toys to Keeper to enable it to
Namely: Chalice of the Void, Isochron Scepter
Endless arguments go back and forth. Some people believe that chalice is
the way to go, some people believe the scepter is the best, some people
use both, and some people just don’t use any of them at all.
When all is said and done, it all boils down to preference and your
metagame. Like what I said earlier, Keeper is a very flexible deck. You
can tune it to whatever you know you’ll be playing a lot against
against.
Are you absolutely sure you’ll be playing tons of aggro? Go Isochron
Scepter with Fire/Ice. Playing against combo? Go Chalice of the Void.
Playing against control? Isochron Scepter with
Orim’s Chant ends the game quick if you can sqeeze it in. Playing
against prison? How about going traditional and use Stifle instead?
I’ve gathered some different versions here, try and see which one
works best for your metagame.
//NAME: Keeper, Zherbus, TMD, 12/2003 (no tricks)
// Mana (26)
4 Flooded Strand
4 Wasteland
3 Volcanic Island
3 Tundra
3 Underground Sea
1 Island
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Jet
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (21)
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
4 Brainstorm
3 Cunning Wish
2 Stifle
R Time Walk
R Ancestral Recall
R Fact or Fiction
R Mystical Tutor
// Black (5)
2 Skeletal Scrying
R Demonic Tutor
R Yawgmoth's Will
R Mind Twist
// White (5)
2 Decree of Justice
2 Swords to Plowshares
R Balance
// Red (3)
2 Gorilla Shaman
1 Fire/Ice
// Sideboard (15)
SB: 3 Red Elemental Blast
SB: 2 Tormod's Crypt
SB: 1 Swords to Plowshares
SB: 1 Disenchant
SB: 2 Rack and Ruin
SB: 1 COP: Red
SB: 1 Vampiric Tutor
SB: 3 Damping Matrix
SB: 1 Blue Elemental Blast
//NAME: Keeper, Carl Winter, TMD, Waterbury (5th place), 11/2003 12/2003
(chalice + scepter)
// Mana (27)
4 Undergound Sea
4 Volcanic Island
4 Wasteland
4 Misrha’s Factory
2 Flooded Strand
2 Polluted Delta
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Sol Ring
R Mox Jet
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (20)
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Brainstorm
3 Stifle
2 Cunning Wish
1 Misdirection
R Ancestral Recall
R Timewalk
R Fact or Fiction
// Black (4)
2 Plaguebearer
R Demonic Tutor
R Yawgmoth’s Will
// Red (4)
2 Fire/Ice
2 Gorilla Shaman
// Artifact (5)
3 Chalice of the Void
2 Isochron Scepter
// Sideboard (15)
SB: 3 Deep Analysis
SB: 3 Red Elemental Blast
SB: 3 Rack and Ruin
SB: 2 Smother
SB: 1 Blue Elemental Blast
SB: 1 Fire/Ice
SB: 1 Read the Runes
SB: 1 Vampiric Tutor
//NAME: Keeper, Maxim Barkman, Morphling.de, Minden (1st place); Kim
Kluck, Morphlin.de, Minden (3rd place), Carsten Kötter, Morphling.de,
Minden (4th place), 11/2003 (scepter)
// Mana (27)
3 Undergound Sea
3 Tundra
3 Volcanic Island
3 Wasteland
3 Flooded Strand
2 Polluted Delta
R Strip Mine
R Library of Alexandria
R Tolarian Academy
R Sol Ring
R Mox Emerald
R Mox Pearl
R Mox Jet
R Mox Ruby
R Mox Sapphire
R Black Lotus
// Blue (18)
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
4 Brainstorm
2 Cunning Wish
R Mystical Tutor
R Ancestral Recall
R Timewalk
R Fact or Fiction
// Black (4)
1 Skeletal Scrying
R Vampiric Tutor
R Demonic Tutor
R Yawgmoth’s Will
// White (4)
2 Decree of Justice
2 Swords to Plowshares
// Red (5)
3 Fire/Ice
2 Gorilla Shaman
// Artifact (3)
3 Isochron Scepter
// Sideboard (15)
SB: 3 Chalice of the Void
SB: 2 Red Elemental Blast
SB: 2 Disenchant
SB: 2 Stifle
SB: 1 Skeletal Scrying
SB: 1 Rack and Ruin
SB: 1 Swords to Plowshares
SB: 1 Coffin Purge
SB: R Vampiric Tutor
SB: R Balance
Synopsis:
The addition of Chalice of the Void has been great for control decks
like Keeper to beat combo decks like Long.dec. However, with the recent
January restrictions, and the temporary hiatus of Long.dec, Chalice of
the Void isn’t used in the maindeck as it once was.
Another point of discussion might be the Goblin Trenches vs Decree of
Justice debate issue. This is again, another metagame issue. You’ll
obviously want what works best for your environment.
The recent addition of Stifle maindeck, might be surprising to many who
are not familiar with the deck. With the tons of use of Stifle nowadays,
it’s usually normal to use two or even three of these flexible
pseudo-counterspells maindeck.
Here’s a short Q&A on what Stifle can or can’t do:
You CAN counter (something to remember)
1.) kicker, amplify, storm
2.) cycling – either the draw 1 card, or the ability
3.) ability of Isochron Scepter, or better yet, Isochron Scepter’s
ability when it comes into play.
4.) the mana gained from Mana Drain
5.) madness, removing the card completely from the game.
6.) fetchland’s, worldgorger dragon’s, smokestack’s triggered
abilities
7.) an activated ability has a colon (between its cost and its effect.
Triggered abilities include the words "when,"
"whenever," or "at."
I’ll try to answer some commonly asked questions on this next part. As
opposed to the usual one by one explanation of the cards to keep this as
short as possible.
Q&A
I’m trying to build it but I have a fixed budget, how do I go about
it?
I’d suggest buying the cards in this order: dual lands – fetch lands
– Force of Will – card drawing spells – The Abyss – tutors -
Swords to Plowshares – Balance – Win condition - .
I have money for only one power card/cards, what should I get first?
I would buy the power cards in this order – Ancestral Recall, Mox
Sapphire, Black Lotus, Library of Alexandria, Other Moxen, Time Walk
I have all the cards from legends down, but can’t get cards from
limited, what should I do?
That’s still playable. Don’t attempt to replace Time Walk with Time
Warp and Ancestral Recall with other inferior draw spells like
Inspiration, replacing Moxen with Mox Diamond, Lotus Petal and the other
stuff won’t work either. Your best bet would be to run at least 24
lands, and use the last two slots to add more bullets- in the form of
Swords to Plowshares, or whatever your metagame dictates, or you could
add more library manipulation cards like upping up the Brainstorm and
Impulse slots to four. You can also max out your tutors and card drawers
by going Mystical Tutor, Vampiric Tutor, Demonic Tutor, or even Lim
Dul’s Vault. Fire/Ice or even Dismantling Blow is still a solid option
if your metagame warrants it.
I have cards from revised down but can’t get legend rares and cards
from limited what should I do?
This is a little trickier, but can still be done. Without the mana burst
from Mana Drain, you won’t be able to run all the X spells as
effectively. Braingeyser should definitely go, and so does Stroke of
Genius. Skeletal Scrying can still stay if you can get fetchlands, but
it wouldn’t be that effective. You could replace Mana Drains with
Counterspell, but that’s not really an effective substitute for the
mana it provides- think of Counterspell as a filler for the control
parts of the deck. Library of Alexandria is irreplaceable and you’ll
probably have to fill it with a tutor or a control spell as well. You
might be able to use Moat instead of The Abyss (but no legends right?).
I guess some people would suggest going Teferi’s Moat since it can at
least be pitched to Force of Will, but it costs one more mana, and
without Mana Drain to boost it, you might not survive long enough to
cast it.
I don’t’/can’t get a set of Force of Will, what should I do?
Go get them, there’s just no substitute for it.
I keep on losing, what should I do?
Practice! When I first started playing the deck, I kept on losing too.
Wrong tutoring, wrong timing, casting the wrong spells all contribute to
losing. It’s either that or you’re adapting your deck to a wrong
environment. Like what I said earlier, it’s quite easy to adapt keeper
to the decks you’re playing against.
What do I tutor for?
That question can only be answered by yourself and only through
experience, nobody will be able to answer that for you.
Can I replace X card with Y card?
Again only you can answer that because only you know what you’re
playing against. Can 4 Misdirection take the place of 4 Force of Will?
Probably- if you’re playing against burn in 9 out of 10 games,
Misdirection would be a better choice than Force of Will. |
