The first weekend of Innistrad is in the books! Last time, we looked through a number of possible strategies for Standard; however, more than half of the set wasn’t spoiled by the time my article was submitted. Today, we have the entire set at our disposal, as well as the SCG Indianapolis Open to look at, with the Top 32 deck lists being posted.
A number of questions are now being raised:
How long will Mono Red be on top?
Will the other aggressive decks be able to keep up?
Will control strategies have the tools to compete?
Can a combo deck exist in this format?
What is going to be the next ‘Caw-Blade?’
Unfortunately, I don’t have the answers to all of these questions. The very last question, however, is probably the most powerful one of them all. When I say the next ‘Caw-Blade,’ I mostly mean which strategy has not yet been explored and could possibly define/dominate the metagame.
After seeing the Top 32 decklists this weekend, I was actually surprised that a deck I’ve been testing was not among them. Of course, I wondered if people were playing the deck and did not perform well, or if the deck has just not yet gained enough exposure. I’ve decided that the latter is more likely to be true; thus, I give you ‘Angelic Bant.’
Creatures (24)
- 4 Birds of Paradise
- 4 Mirran Crusader
- 2 Blade Splicer
- 4 Invisible Stalker
- 3 Avacyn's Pilgrim
- 3 Geist of Saint Traft
- 4 Mayor of Avabruck
Lands (23)
Spells (13)
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A similar strategy, minus the green, did perform well this weekend; however, I don’t really consider them to be the same. Angelic Bant is an aggressive-midrange strategy that has a number of pretty much ‘free wins.’ Sometimes you just live the dream with:
Turn 1 – Birds of Paradise
Turn 2 – Geist of Saint Traft
Turn 3 – Angelic Destiny on Geist of Saint Traft – Attack for 10 flying.
Turn 4 – Attack for 10 more.
You can do the same thing with Mirran Crusader, but the hexproof obviously blanks their non-black removal spells. Sword of War and Peace is equally as powerful, especially when playing it on turn two off of one of your mana accelerants, then attacking on turn 3 with it equipped. Sword of War and Peace gives us an edge against the white and red aggressive strategies that have shown to be relevant in the first weekend. Most of our creatures already have built-in resistance to the spot removal control decks have, and therefore we want a sword that will win the game the quickest.
Breaking down the deck, the seven one-drop mana accelerants try to ensure us of almost always having a turn one play. The Pilgrim is better than Llanowar Elves in the deck because of the synergy with Mayor of Avabruck, as well as making it easier to play a turn-two white creature. Once we have green mana, we usually don’t need any more. With the loss of fetchlands, only having nine green sources that come into play untapped on turn one is a little tough, but certainly isn’t terrible.
Our two-drop creatures may seem to be the most questionable. A lot of the community has dismissed Invisible Stalker, as he “doesn’t do enough.” In a deck where we can dodge spot removal when putting a Sword of War and Peace or Angelic Destiny on him, he becomes an extremely fast clock. He also is a Human, which interacts well with the front side of our other two-drop, Mayor of Avabruck.
Like a majority of the deck, the Mayor can win the game on his own if left unanswered. He’s one of our better late-game topdecks against control strategies and pumps almost all of the creatures in the deck. The consistent curve of the deck is one of the reasons to play Angelic Bant, and these guys are needed if you don’t have a Bird or Pilgrim for turn one.
Originally, I had a 3-3-3 split of our three-drops; however, Mirran Crusader went up to the full four and Blade Splicer became a two-of. Having nine three-drop creatures (plus three swords) means we will almost always have something to accelerate into on turn two after a Birds or Pilgrim. This is essential, as speeding the deck up is one of the biggest reasons to play Angelic Bant over just G/W or U/W, for instance. If not for the legendary clause on Geist of Saint Traft, he’d be the full four as well. Mirran Crusader and Geist of Saint Traft are the powerhouses of this deck, as they attack for an absurd amount of damage on turn 3 and can sometimes flat out kill your opponent by turn four or five.
The biggest weaknesses for this deck against control decks are Day of Judgment, Gideon Jura, and Titans. If you can Mana Leak a Day of Judgment, you’re a very big favorite to win. The same goes for the other two threats; however Oblivion Ring can also solve these issues the following turn. O-Ring can also deal with opposing blockers, along with the Dismembers. The above split of these spells has worked out the best for me, and I probably wouldn’t change them.
Sword of War and Peace and Angelic Destiny are what really gives this deck some punch. With seven hexproof creatures and four pro-black double strikers, the deck tries to take advantage of a format full of Dismember and other spot removal. Angelic Destiny on Geist of Saint Traft is an idea a number of people have tested, as he becomes ten flying power on each attack, therefore only requiring two attack phases to dispatch your opponent. Sword of Feast and Famine is not as impressive in this deck, as you would rather gain life against the aggressive decks and just flat out kill your control opponents faster.
The sideboard has gone through a number of different variations, and I figured just discussing a number of the options was better than just posting a 15-card sideboard.
Three Timely Reinforcements seems to be an auto-include at this point, if not the full four. The Mono Red decks are actually a fairly good matchup, with Sword of War and Peace maindeck and a number of ways to connect with it early. Mana Leak seems like the weakest card against them, especially on the draw.
I’ve stuck with three Surgical Extractions since the first version of this deck. Solar Flare is a real deck, and disrupting their strategy while you’re tapped out is awesome. Also, it’s a good way to fight against Snapcaster Mage.
Torpor Orb is still really good and also is a good answer to Snapcaster. Birthing Pod decks didn’t do as well as expected in Indy, but I don’t think that’s going to stop people from playing it.
Both Naturalize and Creeping Corrosion seem like good two-ofs for the board, as Tempered Steel is still a very strong deck. Hitting pesky swords, Oblivion Rings, and other artifacts and enchantments out of the sideboard is always great.
Other cards to consider for the sideboard are Celestial Purge, Mental Misstep, Negate, more Oblivion Rings or Dismembers, Marrow Shards, and a number of other possibilities. Sideboards are always dependent on the metagame, and this is the deck I am 99% going to be playing at States, where I am expecting a lot of Mono Red, U/x Control, Birthing Pod, and Solar Flare. I obviously recommend this deck to anyone looking for something a little bit different this weekend at Nashville, States, or even your local FNM.
As always, feel free to begin some discussion below, and I’ll try to answer any questions you may have. Good luck everyone!