DESCRIPTION
ive been testing this deck on mtgo in the tournament practice lobby. it has great match-ups against a lot of the tier-1s like u r delver, u w delver, mage blade, rdw, reforge red, tezzeret, venser, and pods. and it really shines in control mirrors. but, it has a couple kinks that seem tough to break, though. it stuggles against a lot of walkers and undying creatures. humans are tough to beat with this, though, its not an unwinnable match-up. ive tested a lot of cards that are interchangible in the deck, but, not currently listed. ill do my best to explain what they are so i can give you an idea of what my knowledge and experience base for this deck is.
phyrexian rager:
a great card to have for u * matchups. especially u w. they dont want to counter a rager nor do they wish to o-ring it. and vapor snag is just out of the question early on when it hits. and it is out of gutshot range. good for filtering and hitting your land drops or a much needed top deck when you need them. a great chump blocker for many things, as well. the cons are obvious. if you cant chump or swing with it, its a dead card. oh, well. at least youre drawing.
consume spirit exsanuinate:
sometimes, on occasion, youd have the mana to increasing ambition into a lethal consume spirit when you otherwise would not be able to cast sorins vengeance. but, ive found that those occasions are very rare. but, yes, these both have their merits in the deck. exsanguinate is a workaround for witchbane orb sideboard trick and consume spirit could do for creature spot removal in a pinch. after testing them, thats really where they lie. the only way they can be a finisher without something like caged sun is if your (very few) creatures are somehow consistantly getting, though. and in this standard.. well.. i wont say its impossible. just very rare.
caged sun:
when first i started building this deck it was around this as a mana base. the plan was id increasing ambition for this, play it, then flash back the ambition for either the lethal or the tools id otherwise need to win. but, theres very obvious downsides to this. it can happen quickly with your artifact ramp, but, youre giving your opponent two turns of time to respond to you once it happens. when it works its great. when it doesnt, well, you just tapped six and said done.. leaving your opponent staring at your caged sun in play. weak to a lot of removal in standard right now. even some that are maindecks. oblivion ring, acidic slime, and so on. ive given up on the card to be quite honest. but, if you think theres a way to make it work here then please let me know in the comments.
despise: i dont know about this one. it has a lot of magical christmas land scenarios when i look at it. grabbing snapcasters, messengers, geists and so on all feel great when you play this deck. granted, i didnt test this one a whole lot. mainly because i feel distress is just better for the slot.
curse of deaths hold:
dedicating sideboard slots for this one is tough. its five mana control for a deck that struggles the most against the faster aggro decks like naya and humans. the whole point is to just survive that initial rush of creatures and then either sweep them with zenith and sever or just drop your vengeances to start the two turn clock. not to mention signals your opponents that they need to board in witchbane orb. and that not only kills this, but it stops it from happening. not only that, but, it completely stops your win condition. now, this is a great card. its a key piece of many control decks. just not this one, i think.
barter in blood:
ill be brief about this one.. lingering souls and undying creatures make this card very, very weak. its unplayable in this standard. there are very few occasions that you will see when this would be the removal of choice.
tezzerets gambit:
i really like this card for this deck. for 3 cmc and 2 life drawing 2 is awesome. and as a very minor bonus you can add a counter to your spheres and sorin. which is always good times.
gitaxian probe:
another one ill try to be brief about. seeing your opponents hand for zero mana is a powerful thing to do when you have a memoricide in your hand. this play can and will destroy the world of your opponent. no matter how tier 1 his deck may be. but, a lot of times youll just be peeking and drawing one. which isnt that bad. but, for some reason, it all feels redundant when you can just play distress.
leaden myr:
this deck would not work without ramp. at all. ive tested this one because it seemed very appealing for what i was trying to do. a two drop black mana source enables so many things to happen. but, we lose it to our own zenith. leaden myr.. how i wish you were charcoal diamond. at least he can chump a sworded mage. no matter what sword hes got.
well.. thats about all i can think of that ive tested. please comment and tell me what you think would work in this deck!