Brainstorming Rashmi, Eternities Crafter

Just like you, I’m a giant fan of Magic. I get thoroughly excited when new cards and sets get released. I start dreaming up things to do with the cards right away, but I usually contain my (in print) excitement for the weeks after the full set is officially spoiled. Straight from Kaladesh, Rashmi, Eternities Crafter renders my glee uncontainable.

Rashmi has a fair amount of text in the box, but it comes down to this: when you cast your first spell of any turn, get a free spell if the converted mana cost of your top card is less than what you just cast or draw a card if it’s not. I’ve already heard people call it “cascade or draw,” and although that assessment isn’t quite true because those terms both have specific meanings in Magic and neither is happening here, it’s pretty much the case.

The good news is that the ability isn’t actually a draw, so it won’t trigger your opponent’s Nekusar, the Mindrazer. The downside is that it won’t trigger your Chasm Skulker, but hey, you’re getting extra cards, and by any name, that’s sweet. Coincidentally enough, since it’s not a draw, Leolvold, Emissary of Trest (whom we featured last week) won’t prevent you from getting the card, nor will it count towards your one card per turn limit.

If you’re casting the spell, Rashmi will pay the mana cost for you, but you’re still responsible for any additional costs, so you’ll still have to sacrifice a land for Crop Rotation or Harrow or exile three cards from your graveyard for Skaab Ruinator. The super-good news is that you don’t have to cast the spell if you don’t want to. If the card is a counterspell like Plasm Capture, you’re probably better off putting the card into your hand (unless, of course, you cast some other instant in response to an opponent’s spell in the hopes of being able to counter it off the top).

Since we’ve only seen a fraction of the official spoiler so far, I’m not going to speculate on specific builds of Rashmi or talk about cards which haven’t been officially spoiled (although I’ll say the whole energy thing looks like it’s going to be loads of fun). Instead, I’m going to talk about a few elements or sub-themes you might want to explore when considering building with her. Once you see all the cards from the set, I’m sure there will be something you can use to expand on anything we talk about. Of course, the card that begs to be played with Rashmi is Stronic Resonator, especially if you’re playing other cards which untap permanents (so you can do it again on someone else’s turn).

All Instants, All the Time

Sure, Prophet of Kruphix is banned, but cards like Vedalken Orrery; Leyline of Anticipation; Yeva, Nature’s Herald; and Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir still exist.

Alchemist’s Refuge is in Rashmi’s color identity. Seedborn Muse is available to you. You have plenty of opportunity to sculpt a deck in which you’re casting spells on everyone else’s turn as well as your own, leading to more spells and cards for you. Generally, I’m not a fan of having big piles of low-casting-cost instants like Brainstorm and Obsessive Search, but playing Rashmi seems like a great chance to include low-cost utility spells that you might not otherwise play, so that you can “cascade” into them. You might also think about playing some draw spells that have higher mana costs because they’re instants, such as Opportunity, so that you’re more likely to cast whatever is on the top of your library. Where you might normally think of a draw spell like Harmonize because it costs four, bumping up to the five-cost Jace’s Ingenuity or its better cousin, Mystic Confluence, not only keeps your mana open for potential responses but is more likely to get you an additional spell.

Exciting U/G creatures with flash include Mystic Snake (which you’re most likely playing in any Rashmi build), Horizon Chimera, and Void Grafter. Void Grafter seems like insane value because you get a creature, counter some targeted removal, and either cast another spell or put a card into your hand. That targeted removal is likely going after Rashmi, elevating Void Grafter to serious MVP status.

Druid Tribal

Yes, Elf tribal is possible, but that’s been done and overdone. There are 128 Druids in the colors, a good number of them also Elves; you could certainly make an Elf Druid deck. You have some great legendary Druid support, such as Baru, Fist of Krosa; Kamahl, Fist of Krosa (it seems to me there should be three more “fingers” in order to make the whole fist); Kaysa; and the Rashad Miller-approved Seton, Krosan Protector.

Verduran Enchantress is also a Druid, so “enchantments with flash” is another sub-theme to explore. Dictate of Karametra and Dictate of Kruphix top the list, but techy spells like Alexi’s Cloak and Eel Umbra also get the job done, both being able to save an important creature from targeted removal and the latter being able to help it survive a battlefield wipe. You can play Vernal Equinox, but you have to be careful, because that gives everyone the ability to play creatures and enchantments as though they have flash.

Library Manipulation

In order to get (or, in response, put) just the right spells on the top for when Rashmi triggers, you’ll want to consider crafting the top of your library. The aforementioned Brainstorm certainly works, as do any of its variants. It’s almost too obvious to point out that Jace, the Mind Sculptor is a good card. The other two classics are Sensei’s Divining Top, which in the worst-case scenario just recasts itself after you draw the top card and put the Top back, and Scroll Rack, which lets you put anything appropriate from your hand on top. While Courser of Kruphix, Oracle of Mul Daya, and Future Sight are great cards, you might want to put some thought into playing them with Rashmi, since they give your opponents the opportunity to see what’s coming.

The upside is that you can better judge when you want to cast those things in your hand or with Future Sight off the top. Of course, being able to see what’s on top of your library could also be a deterrent to other players casting spells, especially if that thing is a counterspell. You might even have a bluff or two in your arsenal, representing that top-of-the-library spell but not actually having an instant in your hand. If you’re manipulating the top of your library anyway, Evolutionary Leap might pay some dividends. Djinn of Wishes seems like solid tech, especially since you’re going to eventually cast Repulse at some point during the game. The hot combo, of course, is casting Repulse with the activation of Djinn of Wishes that removes the last counter.

Remember that there are also cards which put other cards on top of your library. It’s not too often that I suggest looking at cards from Fallen Empires, but Conch Horn seems like it goes with this idea. Obviously, Academy Ruins pays dividends if you’re playing artifacts (like Conch Horn!). Reclaim is an instant, which can both set up some top of the library action and save an important card from graveyard removal. Even with the cumulative upkeep that can get spendy, Survivor of the Unseen might do some work over a few turns. Telling Time is inexpensive enough to get cast with nearly every Rashmi trigger and then help set up the next one.

No Setup at All

Take Rashmi and put her at the helm of an existing deck. Whether it’s something like that Ezuri, Claw of Progress deck you built after the pre-cons came out; the Momir Vig, Simic Visionary deck you’ve had forever; or my Zegana and a Dice Bag build, swapping out commanders in decks (even those directly built around what that commander does) can be a thought-provoking exercise. It shows you how your deck works without the commander, potentially exposing any weaknesses or suggesting options you might not have previously considered. Plus, it can simply be fun.

With just the few cards spoiled last weekend from PAX West, we see that Kaladesh is taking Magic in a new direction. I’m anxiously anticipating lots of new toys to put into existing decks, and new commanders (like Rashmi) to build around.

Rotisserie Draft League Update

It’s been a while since I’ve discussed the Rotisserie Draft League, so I thought I’d catch you up. The summertime is game convention season around here, and with Michael and Shea working at Armada Games (being an owner and the General Manager, respectively), we’ve had to postpone playing a few times. We’ve still had plenty of action, to include our Eldritch Moon Supplemental Draft.

When a new set comes out, we have a five-round (ten-card) draft; it’s set up this way so everyone gets the first pick in a round and everyone gets to be the wheel once. Players can draft cards from the new set or any free agents currently on the market. As we do with the weekly waiver wire, we draft in inverse order of standings. At the time we drafted, Keith was in last place, with Michael, Shea, me, and finally Todd on top. Keith also got to choose in which seat he sat. In this case, he chose to sit in Seat 1. Here’s how it went:

I had two mini-plans going on. First was to draft the best cards I could (which can certainly go without saying). The real first part of the plan was to set up Angel’s Trumpet, adding to the Stoic Angel (which I drafted off the waiver wire in Week 6) plan. The whole idea is to slow down other peoples’ creature attacks without becoming a real prison deck. I joked about drafting Winter Orb (and then not playing it) just to scare people, but that’s one of those jokes that gets less funny each time you tell it.

Second, which I fully admitted to Todd after the draft was done, was to entice him to change his gameplan. Todd’s deck is aggressive and tight; it’s the reason he’s pretty far ahead in the League. He tends to establish the pace of the games, especially if he gets any ramp. I wanted to encourage him to try to play more of a control game. I’m the only dedicated control player, so my deck is still going to do that better than his. If I can slow his roll some, it might be what tips me up to the top of the League. It’s a gamble, but it’s worthwhile.

To wit, I dropped both Mulldrifter and Praetor’s Counsel, hoping that he would pick them up and play them. He did. Surprisingly, he released Equilibrium early, saying, “I hope you don’t make me regret that.” I fully intend to make him (and everyone else) regret it, although it still might take some doing. The other surprising one he dropped was Plasm Capture, which he confessed he wasn’t playing. I scooped it up with no regrets. He wondered if I would also pick up Ghostly Flicker after he dropped it, but there’s simply no room in my pool for it (although my thoughts on that might change if I pick up Rashmi on the Kaladesh supplemental draft).

Keith’s Tree of Perdition has already made a splash in games, both in him using it and other people wanting to Clone it. I’m interested in seeing which way his deck goes, since after he drafted Emrakul, the Promised End, he picked up Mindslaver in the same round.

We also did a Conspiracy: Take the Crown freeroll as an additional waiver wire pick.

Michael and I both got cards Todd was hoping to pick. I also considered Stunt Double, but as I’m moving a bit away from the all Clones all the time plan, I thought Selvala’s Stampede was both better for me to take and to keep away from Todd. As we play more games, I’ll have more updates. Hopefully in the near future I’ll even have a League play-by-play (although I might wait until after we also draft Kaladesh).

This Week’s Hidden Gem

In the spirit of Rashmi, this week’s Hidden Gem is an instant from Urza’s Saga, Turnabout.

Some combo decks like Turnabout to get their lands untapped and keep the engine going. I like it as a defensive option from both sides, either tapping someone’s team so that they can’t attack or untapping mine in order to create a blocking blowout. Casting Turnabout with Rashmi, especially as an emergency measure, gets you either a spell with converted mana cost three or less or the mana to cast something more expensive in order to save your bacon.

Last Week’s Comments

Leovold, Emissary of Trest, generated quite a bit of chatter, both in the comments section and in other places online. Adam MacKenzie observed, “I feel like Leovold is going to be the next Derevi, something that nobody wants to see a player roll out in a game.” Krzysztof Wójcikiewicz responded with pretty much what I was thinking: “The key difference is that Derevi is virtually immortal – you can kill her as many times as you want and she’ll still come back, so building a deck around her is much easier.”

At a certain point, like I found with Ezuri, Claw of Progress, Leovold will become onerous to recast. He’s going to get killed, and you’ll have to pick your spots to get him back onto the battlefield so that you’re not playing nine, eleven, or thirteen mana, as opposed to the four Derevi costs.

A few folks suggested other cards for the build. Carson Dooley sayid, “I think Seizan, Perverter of Truth is pretty good here, no?” Indeed it is. It’s a great suggestion, since they lose the life even if they don’t draw the two (or full two) cards.

Gleb Lisakov asked, “Where is Anvil of Bogardan?”

The short answer is that I only wanted to dedicate so many slots to daggering people with Leovold. I thought a little bit is enough, and Leovold simply preventing other players from drawing like mad is enough. That said, Anvil of Bogardan might be a viable addition since it lets me discard, which can either trigger The Gitrog Monster or set up a later reanimation target. It’s worth trying to work into the build.

This Week’s Deck Without Comment

Merieke Ri Berit

Sheldon Menery

0th Place at Test deck on 07-24-2014

Commander

Creatures (26)

• 1 Solemn Simulacrum
• 1 Keiga, the Tide Star
• 1 Jushi Apprentice
• 1 Weathered Wayfarer
• 1 Dimir Doppelganger
• 1 Wall of Reverence
• 1 Ethersworn Adjudicator
• 1 Enigma Sphinx
• 1 Archon of Redemption
• 1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
• 1 Sun Titan
• 1 Massacre Wurm
• 1 Suture Priest
• 1 Phyrexian Metamorph
• 1 Phyrexian Ingester
• 1 Drogskol Reaver
• 1 Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts
• 1 Burnished Hart
• 1 Silumgar, the Drifting Death
• 1 Wardscale Dragon
• 1 Ojutai, Soul of Winter
• 1 Dragonlord Silumgar
• 1 Sunscorch Regent
• 1 Pristine Skywise
• 1 Hidden Dragonslayer
• 1 Dragonlord Ojutai

Planeswalkers (2)

• 1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
• 1 Liliana of the Dark Realms

Lands (36)

• 1 Forbidden Orchard
• 4 Plains
• 5 Swamp
• 8 Island
• 1 Underground Sea
• 1 Scrubland
• 1 Minamo, School at Water's Edge
• 1 Temple of the False God
• 1 Maze of Ith
• 1 Tower of the Magistrate
• 1 Watery Grave
• 1 Godless Shrine
• 1 Hallowed Fountain
• 1 Arcane Sanctum
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Drowned Catacomb
• 1 Glacial Fortress
• 1 Bojuka Bog
• 1 Vault of the Archangel
• 1 Temple of Silence
• 1 Arcane Lighthouse
• 1 Command Beacon

Spells (35)

• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Time Stop
• 1 Aura of Silence
• 1 Darksteel Ingot
• 1 Future Sight
• 1 Decree of Pain
• 1 Staff of Domination
• 1 Crawlspace
• 1 Rhystic Study
• 1 Copy Enchantment
• 1 Orzhov Signet
• 1 Magewright's Stone
• 1 Phthisis
• 1 Sudden Spoiling
• 1 Chronomantic Escape
• 1 Thousand-Year Elixir
• 1 Obelisk of Esper
• 1 Armillary Sphere
• 1 Tainted Sigil
• 1 Mimic Vat
• 1 Blue Sun's Zenith
• 1 Mycosynth Wellspring
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Druidic Satchel
• 1 Supreme Verdict
• 1 Illusionist's Bracers
• 1 Riot Control
• 1 Utter End
• 1 Aether Gale
• 1 Dragonlord's Prerogative
• 1 Hallowed Moonlight
• 1 Grip of Desolation
• 1 Anguished Unmaking
• 1 Implement of Examination

Check out our comprehensive Deck List Database for lists of all my decks:

SIGNATURE DECKS

Purple Hippos and Maro Sorcerers; Kresh Into the Red Zone; Halloween with Karador; Dreaming of Intet; You Did This to Yourself;

THE CHROMATIC PROJECT

Mono-Color

Heliod, God of Enchantments; Thassa, God of Merfolk; Erebos and the Halls Of The Dead; Forge of Purphoros; Nylea of the Woodland Realm; Karn, Beatdown Golem

Guilds

Lavinia Blinks; Obzedat, Ghost Killer; Aurelia Goes to War; Trostani and Her Angels; Lazav, Shapeshifting Mastermind; Zegana and a Dice Bag; Rakdos Reimagined; Glissa, Glissa; Ruric Thar and His Beastly Fight Club

Shards and Wedges

Adun’s Toolbox; Animar’s Swarm; Karrthus, Who Rains Fire From The Sky; Demons of Kaalia; Merieke’s Esper Dragons; Nath of the Value Leaf; Rith’s Tokens; The Mill-Meoplasm; The Altar of Thraximundar; The Threat of Yasova; Zombies of Tresserhorn

Five-Color

Children of a Greater God

THE DO-OVER PROJECT

Animar Do-Over; Karador Do-Over; Karador Version 3; Karrthus Do-Over; Mimeoplasm Do-Over; Phelddagrif Do-Over; Rith Do-Over; Ruhan Do-Over

If you’d like to follow the adventures of my Monday Night RPG group (in a campaign that’s been alive since 1987 and is just finished a summer mini-series called Who Mourns for Adonis? which will set up the saga called The Lost Cities of Nevinor, ask for an invitation to the Facebook group “Sheldon Menery’s Monday Night Gamers.”