Glorybringer and Rekindling Phoenix have formed the most powerful tandem of
red threats since Stormbreath Dragon and Thunderbreak Regent. They’re
difficult to answer effectively outside of a timely Vraska’s Contempt, they
apply a ton of pressure to the opponent, and they can play good defense if
necessary, either by blocking and rising from the own ashes or killing an
opposing creature while attacking.
We often see these two cards in more midrange decks as powerful threats,
but they’re similarly awesome at the top end of the curve in an aggro deck,
as they appear in today’s list. The ability to play offense and defense
means they are great in racing scenarios, and this deck is certainly built
to race with the best of them. Having a deck of all fliers means that
opponents aren’t going to be doing much blocking so you get to dictate the
pace of the game.
The deck may not appear that aggressive with a fairly low number of one-
and two-drops, but all that does is fill the opponent with false hope. All
the three-drops are great at turning the corner with multiple bodies or
lifelink, and Warkite Marauder upgrades all the removal spells into
Terminate, leading to some incredibly productive turns 3 and 4 before the
heavy hitters seal the deal.
The namesake card, Favorable Winds, is close to a two mana Glorious Anthem,
which is deceptively powerful, especially if your big threats are answered.
The leftover Thopter tokens from your three-drops suddenly become a
formidable army in the air that is difficult to answer without a sweeper.
The thing I like most about this deck is that even though it’s playing a
high density of flying creatures to take advantage of Favorable Winds, it’s
not playing any weak creatures to get its critical mass. Siren Stormtamer
is a solid early creature that can protect a key card later in the game,
and Warkite Marauder is well-costed and plays very well with red removal.
The rest of the threats are all proven Constructed staples.
That’s what synergy is about: recognizing when a format has enough cards to
support a certain build-around and taking advantage, rather than forcing a
card that simply doesn’t have the pieces to work. Standard aggro has
revolved around Hazoret the Fervent for almost a year now, but it’s time to
take to the air.
Creatures (22)
- 2 Pia Nalaar
- 4 Whirler Virtuoso
- 4 Glorybringer
- 4 Siren Stormtamer
- 4 Rekindling Phoenix
- 4 Warkite Marauder
Planeswalkers (2)
Lands (24)
Spells (12)
