My Beast Deck

T

Terentius

Guest
OUTDATED. CURRENT LIST IS HERE.

3 Krosan Warchief
1 Brontotherium
2 Ravenous Baloth
2 Shaleskin Bruiser
3 Ember Beast
2 Berserk Murlodont
2 Feral Throwback
2 Krosan Cloudscraper
4 Krosan Vorine

3 Gaea's Embrace
2 Rancor
1 Defense of the Heart
3 Fires of Yavimaya
1 Pandemonium
2 Naturalize
1 Lure of Prey
2 Quicksilver Amulet
2 Hull Breach

8 Mountain
11 Forest
3 Conested Cliffs
2 Gaea's Cradle

Total: 62

My focus is Krosan Vorine:

Krosan Vorine
Color: G
Cost: 3G
Power: 3
Toughness: 2

Text: Provoke #(When this attacks, you may have target creature defending player controls untap and block it if able.)#
Krosan Vorine can’t be blocked by more than one creature.


Now, if I slap a Gaea's Embrace on this guy, you can pretty much just subtract the toughness of your lowest creature from 6, because that's how much he'll be doing each turn.

Suggestions?
 
T

TheCasualOblivion

Guest
seems a little slow. Well, scratch that. Seems VERY slow. You have six creatures with a mana cost of 3, which are your cheapest creatures. 3 of them are usless by themselves. You're giving your opponent a lot of time to build up before your deck is ready. I have a lot of fast decks that if you waited that long to play a creature, I'd have you down to 5-8 life easy. You don't have any cards to slow your opponent down, and only 2 to speed your mana up. I always build my decks fast, and anything I play could rip you to shreds before your deck got going.

My suggestions:

1. Consider some lower casting cost creatures. Beasts are really slow, and you're giving up some of the most important turns in the game.

2. Some stall type cards to give you some time until your deck gets going. 2 examples of this for the Red and Green deck you have would be Moment's Peace, which you can use twice and will buy you some time early, and Pyroclasm, which deals 2 damage to all creatures in play. If your opponent puts out a bunch of small creatures in the early turns, kill them all with pyroclasm.

3. Walls--There are two old-school walls that would help your deck a lot. Wall of Roots is a common card from Mirage that is an 0/5 blocker and you can get 1 green mana out of it without tapping it. Helps your mana as well as blocking, and you need mana. Also there is Wall of Blossoms, uncommon from Stronghold, which is 0/4 when it comes into play draw a card. Both of these will give you some early defense.

4. Mana--Your deck could use more fast mana. You have the 2 talismans, but they're not nearly enough. You're playing green, so you can play Wild Growth, Llanowar Elves, Birds of Paradise, Rampant Growth, Sakura Tribe Elder for example. The Wall of Roots I mentioned above is another choice. All these are 1 and 2 casting cost spells that get you another mana. This will speed your deck up past the 1 land per turn limit, and your deck needs that.
 
T

Terentius

Guest
So you think I should toss out Quicksilver and the big creatures entirely for this Wall of Roots? I was thinking of tossing them out, but I didn't know what to replace with.

And I don't have any more Ravenous Baloth's; even if I did I probably wouldn't put more than 3 in, because their sac ability isn't cumulative, so I don't want to be drawing him when I already have one on the field (I only use him if my opponent pull something like a Wrath of God, anyway). In addition, he doesn't have either ability my deck focuses on: provoke and trample.
 
T

Terentius

Guest
This is now my deck:

3 Krosan Warchief
2 Ravenous Baloth
2 Shaleskin Bruiser
3 Ember Beast
2 Feral Throwback
4 Krosan Vorine
3 Vine Trellis

3 Gaea's Embrace
1 Rancor
1 Defense of the Heart
3 Fires of Yavimaya
2 Naturalize
3 Skyshroud Claim
2 Hull Breach
2 Invigorate

7 Mountain
15 Forest
3 Conested Cliffs
1 Gaea's Cradle

Total: 60
 
T

Terentius

Guest
4 Krosan Warchief
2 Ravenous Baloth
2 Shaleskin Bruiser
2 Ember Beast
2 Feral Throwback
4 Krosan Vorine
4 Vine Trellis

4 Gaea's Embrace
1 Defense of the Heart
2 Naturalize
3 Skyshroud Claim
2 Hull Breach
4 Invigorate

5 Mountain
10 Forest
4 Karplusan Forest
3 Conested Cliffs (this card is so awesome; it's the closest thing Beasts have to a "bomb" card besides maybe AEther Charge :cool: )
2 Gaea's Cradle
 
L

Limited

Guest
2 Ravenous Baloth - I know you don't have more, but if you did, you should be playing all of them! It's a 4/4 for only 4 mana and it has a killer ability. Beasts will be dying anyway; gaining 4 life in the proces will really matter.
2 Shaleskin Bruiser - Waaaay to expensive. For 7 mana, I would like a beast which benefits all beasts in play, not just itself.
2 Ember Beast - This one I really like, but perhaps there aren't enough cheap creatures to make this work. Your call..
2 Feral Throwback - If you're playing provoke, how about playing stuff like Jackalope Herd? The drawback isn't as bad as it seems..
4 Krosan Vorine - This is your thing.
4 Vine Trellis - Mana acceleration was what the deck needed. This will do nicely.
4 Gaea's Embrace - Not really necessary.. Beast are going to be big anyway, and regeneration is what the warchief is for.
1 Defense of the Heart - Seems a bit lost..
2 Naturalize - Must-have.. maybe four?
3 Skyshroud Claim - Maybe this should be Explosive Vegetations, so you can find the Mountains you need for the contested cliffs?
2 Hull Breach - Ah! Good choice. 2 Naturalizes is enough if you're packing these..
4 Invigorate- Fun multiplayer card, but I'm not sold. I usually go for something like Vitality Charm because it gives trample and can create a surprise 1/1 blocker..

5 Mountain
10 Forest
4 Karplusan Forest
3 Contested Cliffs - Love this card.
2 Gaea's Cradle

Some final notes:
Where did the Rancor go? You had, but you let it slip away man! Face it, your beasts need trample
Perhaps Wirewood Savage, for some carddrawing?
For multiplayer games, have you considered Copperhoof Vorrac?

Creatures (22)
4 Krosan Warchief
4 Wirewood Savage
4 Jackalope Herd
2 Ravenous Baloth
2 Feral Throwback
2 Krosan Vorine
4 Vine Trellis
spells (14)
4 Rancor
4 Vitality Charm
2 Naturalize
2 Hull Breach
2 Explosive Vegetations
Lands (24)
5 Mountain
10 Forest
4 Karplusan Forest
3 Contested Cliffs
2 Gaea's Cradle

Ogres are like Opinions.
They stink? They make you cry?
 
T

Terentius

Guest
Ravenous Baloth--well, you know :mad: . If I had em', Ember beast will probably be out.
Shaleskin Bruiser--what's wrong with this guy? I know he's expensive, but he'll probably be the last beast I play before I win :cool: , because he'll be at least a 10/4 when he attacks.
Ember Beast--not the most effective thing in the world, but works nice when using Contested early.
Feral Throwback-- = awesome. He's usually my game winner in multiplayer; got him out on turn 4 once. How would jackalope herd correlate with provoke?
Krosan Vorine--also = awesome.
Vine Trellis-- makes my deck not suck.
Gaea's Embrace--this card is specifically for Krosan Vorine. Hard to stop a 6/5 trample (can't this be that replacement Rancor you were looking for?) provoke that can only be blocked by 1 creature, which is the creature I choose, which is your weakest creature or whichever is the biggest threat. Even works for picking off stupid dragons I can't block.
Defense of the Heart--all I got. I'm sticking it in anyway, works nicely.
Naturalize--yada yada...
Skyshroud Claim--couldn't find any explosives, so gotta use this.
Hull Breach--only drawback is not being an instant.
Invigorate--this is for if I need to surprise block a fatty or use with Contested, or if I'm going to make a cheap win and use 2 or 3 at a time.

Wirewood Savage--don't want to waste time. Needs to go Vine Trellis, Warchief, Vorine, Gaea's Embrace BOOM.
Copperhoof Vorrac--eh... maybe. I'm thinking about doing this just for multiplayer games:

Side deck:
2 Krosan Colossus
2 Krosan Cloudscraper
2 Quicksilver Amulet
4 Lure of Prey
4 Rancor
Copperhoof Vorrac and some other fatties here, taking out Vorine, some Embraces and Invigorates, Ember and probably Shaleskin

Sound good?
 
L

Limited

Guest
Tsi said:
Shaleskin Bruiser--what's wrong with this guy? I know he's expensive, but he'll probably be the last beast I play before I win :cool: , because he'll be at least a 10/4 when he attacks.
I'd rather have the Vorrac, which in MP will be a lot bigger than a measily 10/4..

Feral Throwback-- = awesome. He's usually my game winner in mult; got him out on turn 4 oncei. How would jackalope herd correlate with provoke?
Sorry about that, i meant Amplify. When you play Feral T, the Jackalope Herd comes back to your hand, the FT comes into play and you may reveal the Herd..

Gaea's Embrace--this card is specifically for Krosan Vorine.
Like I said, that's your thing. Maybe I shouldn't knock until I try it/see it in action, but I can't say I'm really impressed. Playing a four mana enchantment just seems a bit risky.

Wirewood Savage--don't want to waste time.
Come on! It's a three drop, and if it doesn't get whacked it replaces itself next turn (by letting you draw a card). I've had this go insane with the J-Herd and an Amplify dude (Canopy Crawlers i think..)
 
T

Terentius

Guest
Well now that I've reread Vorrac and learned that he would get a boost from any of my opponents untapped permanents, I'll put him in if I can get my hands on him. I'll test him out to see his ability in single player, but he's definitely pwnage in multiplayer.

Still not sold on J Herd or Wirewood.

Running J herd just to pump up Feral T or for effect of Wirewood seems like more trouble than it's worth. What I'd really like to do is make him a quick beefy trample, but it appears to be impossible to get a Rancor on this guy.

Now that I've modified the deck from its original form, I almost never have problems with speed. I mean it couldn't hurt, but it's not worth dropping anything that's already in I don't think. And I would have to run at least 3 to make use of it, and I don't have that kind of room.
 
T

TheCasualOblivion

Guest
It depends on what kind of decks you'll be facing. Here is a goblin deck I threw together a little while back:

4 Mogg Fanatic
4 Goblin Lackey
4 Goblin Piledriver
4 Mogg Flunkies
4 Goblin Warchief
4 Gempalm Incinerator
4 Goblin Ringleader
3 Siege Gang Commander
3 Heedless One

4 Lightning Bolt
4 Goblin Grenade

4 Bloodstained Mire
14 Mountain


Here is a sample game:

Turn 1: Mountain, Tap, Goblin Lackey (You=20 Life)
Turn 2: Mountain, Attack with Lackey and play Ringleader(4 cards, 2 goblins) Tap 2 mountains for Goblin Piledriver (You=19 Life)
Turn 3: Mountain, Attack with Lackey, Ringleader and Piledriver for 8 and play Goblin Warchief, Tap 3 mountains for 2 Lightning Bolts and Sac Ringleader for Goblin Grenade targeting you. (You=0 Life)

or...

Turn 1: Mountain, Tap, Goblin Lackey (You=20 Life)
Turn 2: Mountain, Attack with Lackey and Play Siege-Gang Commander, Tap 2 mountains for Goblin Piledriver (You=19 Life)
Turn 3: Attack with Lackey(playing whatever), Commander, 3 1/1 Goblin Tokens, and an 11/2 Piledriver. Tap 2 mountains and sac a token for 2 more damage to you. (You=0 Life)

This sort of game has occured more than a few times with that deck. Its one of the reasons I stopped playing it.

If I were to go first these games, that would give you two turns of being alive. You have 4 Vine Trellis in your deck, so if you wouldn't have drawn in your opening 9 cards, you would have died without ever seeing a creature. This is the sort of speed that exists in this game. Your deck would die a horrible death against this one. There are other decks that are fast like this, and your deck really isn't much of a match for them.
 
J

jorael

Guest
only a few archetypical decks? In almost all our multiplayer games having no defense until turn 4+ means you'll be at 10 life or less. Most of the decks played have some early plays. Sometimes they are pure defense, but most defensive cards can also enter combat (e.g. sakura-tribe elder). That is a healthy multiplayer metagame if you ask me.

Your playgroup may detest speed magic, but using the early game or going for a turn 2 player-kill are 2 different things. Ah well, as Anthony Alonghi always mentions, different playgroups means different good strategies. If this build works in your group, that's great, just look out when playing with other playgroups or if new players join the fray :)
 
T

TheCasualOblivion

Guest
Most of my decks are fast to set up for the mid-game, not to win on turn 2-4. I can usually knock you down to 10 life or less within a couple of turns, have some good stuff on the board, and/or have a hand full of control I can cast right now ready to go. If your deck doesn't get going until it has 4 mana, I probably of board control and am not likely to be giving it up. Sure, you drop a big one on turn 4, but I attack with three or four 2/2 creatures and you're already at 10 life before that. You've got some problems.

I just gave the goblin deck as an extreme example. I stopped playing it because it wasn't any fun and people hated it. I only rebuild it when people piss me off.[/
 
T

Terentius

Guest
11 YEAR BUUUMP!!

I think this is the first deck I built on my own. I dust it off every once in a while, and honestly it still holds up pretty well, especially since it only uses older cards, mostly from Onslaught block. Current list:

Creatures: 23
4x Vine Trellis
4x Krosan Warchief
3x Ember Beast
4x Krosan Vorine
4x Ravenous Baloth
2x Tephraderm - I didn't know about this card until a couple of years ago, and it's the only modification to the deck I've made in a long time. I once combo'd this with Contested Cliffs and took out an Eldrazi lieutenant, then regenerated it.
2x Feral Throwback

Enchantments: 5
4x Gaea's Embrace
1x Defense of the Heart

Sorceries: 2
2x Hull Breach

Instants: 6
2x Naturalize
4x Invigorate - Strength

Lands: 24
10x Forest
5x Mountain
4x Karplusan Forest
2x Gaea's Cradle - Not really needed in the deck, but it's got nowhere else to be right now.
3x Contested Cliffs - Wins games


-----------------------------------------------------------
Total: 60 cards


As stated above, I rely on Krosan Vorine's built-in ability and Provoke, alongside Contested Cliffs and Invigorate to do most of the work. It can deal with speed and control significantly better than its early days, and it's one of my most consistent decks mana-wise.

One thing I might be looking for is an alternative to Gaea's Embrace, besides Rancor?
 

Oversoul

The Tentacled One
A blast from the past! You still have this deck? Creatures tend to be stronger than they were back then, and there are some pretty good beasts that weren't available eleven years ago...

One thing I might be looking for is an alternative to Gaea's Embrace, besides Rancor?
Well, I'd have to test the deck to get an idea of what it could or couldn't use. Rancor is, bar none, the best at what it does. But maybe you want something else? Something that costs more mana but has more potential utility? Uh, I can think of the following...

Primal Rage
Nylea, God of the Hunt
Nylea's Emissary
Gigantiform
Fists of Ironwood
Epic Proportions
Dragon Fangs
Mythic Proportions
Vow of Wildness
Horned Helm
Loxodon Warhammer
 
T

Terentius

Guest
Yup, I still have this relic sleeved up. I'm fully aware that better cards have been made, and I'm not really interested in trying to upgrade this one for the times. This is more of a "ha ha, I beat you with a deck I made in junior high" deck. It was able to go 1-1 with later iteration of my friend's first deck of Gruul + Garruk. He later changed that deck to monogreen ramp and cut out the Gruul, which would probably roll this deck in a ground war. But I made a newer green ramp/hydra deck as well, so that doesn't bother me. It is what it is.

Vow of Wildness seems like a solid replacement.
 

Oversoul

The Tentacled One
Yeah. I was thinking of pointing out some of the newer beasts, but this looks like it still holds up reasonably well for what it is, and you get a lot of mileage out of Krosan Vorine, something no one else would think to use anymore.
 
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