I don’t like Saviors of Kamigawa that much. Zvi recently claimed that it appeared like the sort of set he’d build if you gave him 24 hours. That’s exactly what it feels like to me as well. The only things this set will “save” you from are excitement and interesting cards.
Sure, there are a few cards here and there that have some potential. Even the chase cards, however, are boring. A virtual reprint of an old card switching colors? How many virtual or literal reprints are there? There’s Ghitu War Cry, Trumpet Blast, Sudden Impact, Skyshroud Ranger, Fork, and much more.
One of the cards that I do really like, however, is Oboro Breezecaller. If you read either of my two previous Saviors articles, I mention that I think Breezecaller has serious potential. How can I ignore that potential when I start building my daily decks?
I simply have to acknowledge one of the few original cards in the set with the Breezecaller. I present to you my first attempt at a casual Breezecaller deck:
Brokencaller:
4 Oboro Breezecaller
4 Lifegift
1 Fastbond
2 Azusa, Lost but Seeking
1 Seed the Land
4 Heartbeat of Spring
4 Patron of the Moon
2 Oboro Envoy
2 Soratami Cloudskater
4 Soratami Mindsweeper
3 Soratami Mirror-Mage
2 Soratami Savant
1 Braingeyser
1 Stroke of Genius
10 Island
6 Forest
4 Yavimaya Coast
2 Oboro, Palace in the Clouds
1 Lotus Vale
1 Gaea’s Cradle
2 Scorched Ruins
Alright, let’s break down a fairly complex deck. The goal is to use one of two methods to be able to play any number of lands a turn. You can use either the Fastbond/Lifegift combo, which allows you to play infinite lands per turn. The other option is to use Patron of the Moon to play lands endlessly. There is a backup plan for every main card in the deck.
The best way to abuse the Breezecaller is to have a land that taps for multiple mana in play while controlling a Fastbond and Lifegift. Multiple mana can be made from several lands in the deck. One copy of Heartbeat of Spring will also set you up. You can then make infinite mana untapping the land that makes multiple mana and returning another land that is tapped for mana:
Fastbond Combo
- Tap Gaea’s Cradle for three Green. Tap an Island for a Blue.
- Use two Green to activate the Breezecaller, untapped the Cradle and returning the Island.
- Replay the Island
Net gain (in this case): Two mana, one Blue and one Green. Both lands are untapped.
Now, suppose we add a second Lifegift. In this case, we’d gain life for each iteration of the combo. You can have nigh infinite life. We could also have out our Seed the Land, which would give us nigh infinite creatures to beat with.
Since Fastbond is restricted in Type One, I figured that most playgroups would frown upon the use of multiples. If your playgroup doesn’t care, then by all means, add some more to the deck.
Suppose we can’t find the Fastbond. The backup plan in this case is the Patron of the Moon. For this scenario, we needs a land that taps for at least four mana. Gaea’s Cradle, Scorched Ruins, and a Lotus Vale with a Heartbeat of Spring will all work. You keep tapping the land for mana, then returning a land to play. Here’s how this iteration works:
Patron Combo:
- Tap Scorched Ruins for four mana
- Activate Breezecaller untapping the Ruins and returning a tapped Island.
- Activate Patron of the Moon, putting an Island into play tapped.
Net Gain: One colorless mana.
Okay, now suppose that your Breezecaller gets killed. Maybe someone Cranial Extracts it from you. How can you win now? Our backup plan is the land, Oboro, Palace in the Clouds.
For both combos, you’ll want Heartbeat of Spring in play, so your Palace can tap for multiple mana. If you have out Fastbond and Lifegift, your combo is simple. You can activate the Palace after tapping it for mana, then simply replay the land. This will *not* net you infinite mana, but it will still trigger any extra Lifegifts or Seed the Lands you may have in play. If you have a second Heartbeat of Spring instead, you can make near infinite mana.
This deck has several methods to victory. Once you are at a place where you can play infinite lands while making mana, then you can activate any moonfolk any number of times. Use excess mana to dump into the moonfolk abilities and then drop the lands back into play. The Mindweeper will allow you to mill every single deck other than your own. The Mirror-Mage will allow you to bounce every single creature, other than your own. The Savant can counter any spell.
Alternatively, you can use a Braingeyser or Stroke of Genius to kill someone by making them draw an outrageous number of cards, like, say, 1001.
How do you set up? You may have noticed that many of the creatures that I chose are good at defense. Oboro Envoy, the Mindweepers, even the Patron. These high defense creatures should help keep attackers off your back, especially when combined with the envoy’s ability.
One of the things that this deck is good at is making a bunch of mana without all of the combo pieces intact. Azusa, Lost but Seeking, Heartbeat of Spring, and more can help you get a bunch of mana. You can use that mana to dig with Cloudskaters. Another option is to use your Stroke or Braingeyser on yourself.
For example, suppose that you are having difficultly finding that Fastbond. You can use Azusa and a Heartbeat of Spring with a moonfolk to make a bunch of mana, then Stroke yourself for 12 or 15 cards.
In fact, you can easily win without the combo pieces. Azusa and some moonfolk can hold down an opponent until you Mindweeper him two or three times a turn for five or six turns in a row. Seed the Land, Azusa and some good moonfolk will allow you to make four snakes a turn which can quickly become enough to swarm your enemies.
This deck can win through several combos, and has a backup plan for every combo. In addition, it can play like a mana obsessed control deck and win even without all of the combo pieces in place.
There are so many combos crammed into this deck. I hope that you enjoy the deck!
Until Later,
Abe Sargent