The Ultimate Introduction to Deckbuilding in Magic 6 Steps

You’re not fast enough, or your deck is just a bad match for the tables you’re playing. You’ve picked out your commander, but you still need to refine the 99. One of the most fun time in Hearthstone history was when the Patron Warrior was the most dominant deck in the meta. This combo deck came out of nowhere mtg decks when a few cards were introduced that synergized exceedingly well with some of the Warrior class’s most under-utilized Basic and Classic cards.

Any abilities that trigger when a spell is cast or put onto the stack trigger at this time. If the spell’s controller had priority before casting it, he or she gets priority. The best way to determine this is to play the deck in casual play against as many different decks as you can. Once you find out a weakness, write it down, be it land, creature or spell. Once you have a list, group common things into a single category, such as Weenies, Burn, Permission, Land Destruction, Discard, Enchantments, Artifacts, and Green, whatever.

Understanding MTG Deck Builds

For instance, a user named dontblamemarce shared their long-standing deck with minor adjustments, expressing concern over its lack of evolution. “I’m struggling a bit now because it doesn’t have any evolutions,” they shared while seeking recommendations for which cards to evolve. This sentiment resonates with many players who feel that a lack of card upgrades can hinder their progression.

Deck Building Tips from Pro Players

Magic the Gathering MTG Land Station: Optimize Mana Base

It’s up to your strategy, your commander, and what you want out of the deck. Every commander desires something from their 99, and these desires are often what give you your deck’s themes. Of course, you can also always refer to existing decks and then adjusting them, such as our Lich King Deck guide. For this sample decklist we’re switching it up and going to a Pioneer Azorius () control deck MTGO user Harry13 took to second place in a recent Pioneer Challenge event.

You might ask, “if you want this card in your deck, why not just run four copies? ” In many cases you’re right, but let’s run through a basic example of why this probably won’t work. In older formats you have access to as many of these lands as you want, along with the fetch lands that dominate Modern and Legacy, but maybe you have your budget to consider.

It isn’t overly reliable, but when there is no other source, it should help. You use your engine to get your kill mechanic (how you win). For frogs, they’re most often used to sacrifice for Monarchs, while Flamvells are used to spam synchro monsters. When building a deck, you should try and identify the most important cards that allow you to win.

Block ConstructedAny block can be used for a block constructed format. Zendikar block constructed would include Magic cards only from Zendikar, Worldwake, and Rise of the Eldrazi. What lessons have you learned when building Commander decks?

For examples of these, look up Dredge (note the variety of land counts within one archetype, based on cardpool differences!), Belcher, and Legacy Lands. Your mission statement should include what your deck is overall and what it aims to do during a game. If you’re ever unsure about a deck-building choice, this is the enshrined phrase you can look back to for guidance. Write it down and put it in the deck box if you want to. If a card doesn’t fit the mission statement, then you need to question why you want to include it. Hybrid Decks & Cluster DecksMagic decks don’t have to fall into just one of the three above categories they can be hybrids.

There’s a lot to think about when constructing a mana base. Most Standard Magic decks have many spells that cost two, three, and four mana, and fewer spells that cost one or less and five or more. The graph would look something like a bell curve, which is where the term “mana curve” comes from.

You also need to answer artifacts, planeswalkers, enchantments, and occasionally even lands like Cabal Coffers. This is a great spot to look for cards that fill multiple roles like Feed the Swarm, which deals with creatures and enchantments. You can also file spells that protect your creatures in this slot because it interacts with your opponent’s interaction, like Tamiyo’s Safekeeping. In my last article I touched on disruptive aggro decks, so today we’re going to build a black and colorless disruptive aggro deck featuring many new Eldrazi from Oath of the Gatewatch. “Disruptive aggro” is a term we use to describe a deck that is trying to be as aggressive as possible while also disrupting the opponent with removal, discards, and counterspells. A deck built around its commander uses its themes as a guideline for a powerful deck.

Let’s say you really like Bard Class (maybe you even play a bard in your local D&D game), so you want to build a deck around it. You’ve decided to build an aggro deck and stick to just red and green. Using these databases to search for all red and green legends available for the format you’re building in will go a long way towards helping you figure out how to build your deck.

The range of experiences and viewpoints shared in the comments displays the diverse cast of tactics, frustrations, and triumphs within the game. Whether it’s through overwhelming your opponent with creatures, outlasting with control spells, or pulling off a combo, defining your win condition will guide your card choices. I usually make a list and keep it in my card box so I can simply pull it out (I usually show a judge so they dont have a fit) and quickly sideboard. Never pull out cards that are integral to your deck concept, like Pestilence in a Pestilence deck or a Stone Rain in a Land Destruction deck.

Master Aurelia in MTG: Strategies and Tips

If you cut lands in favor of ramp, your deck suffers because ramp only works if you hit your land drops. I generally don’t run less than 37 lands and don’t mind going as high as 40, with 38 being my standard. A high land count allows you to hit all your land drops.