As you know from the previous post my Simic deck won last weekends Standard Showdown.

I also had that mini rant about basically the local meta being a bit stale with the same decks being played each week. The week before the pirate deck I came up with ended up mid table. I still have the mono blue mill to try in anger. Although it has been fun to play in the casual play.

But with all this in mind and partaking in the side of the game I really like, deck building. I’ve decided to rebuild the Simic deck with a different focus. My initial version of the Simic deck had a ramp element, and that is the side I decided to focus on and be a bit more aggressive.

But before I go any further it’s probably best I give my boiler plate get out of jail disclaimer for my decks.

“I’m not claiming these are the best decks in the world, they certainly are not top competitive decks. They are hopefully fun, affordable (subjective I know) decks. I don’t try and keep to a target price point. I try and use as many cards in my collection as possible to keep my costs down. I’m certainly not a master deck builder claiming this deck will win tournaments, if it is fun to play and does it thing then I’ll be happy.“

Right with that out of the way back to the conversation about this “new” deck.

It’s going to feel odd playing with so many creatures now, and so few spells.

But with the theme being ramp and aggro, the Llanowar Elves had to be back into the folder, along with the Steel Leaf Champions. We all know the dream starting hand of 2 forests, a Llanowar and Steel Leaf in this type of deck.

With 8 creatures that can tap for mana, 2 cards in the sideboard that have the Convoke mechanic (creatures I control can tap to add mana to cast the card) and Growth Spiral I think I have the ramp side covered. Oh and Song of Freyalise will help with the ramp.

I went with Evolving Wilds over Open the Gates as my mana fixing because Evolving Wilds puts the basic land I fetch on the battle field tapped. While Open the Gates doesn’t, it goes to hand and costs a forest to cast. Plus I’m not playing Guild Gates in this deck. They are too slow. This deck needs to come out sprinting, not walking. Lands that come in tapped are therefore out.

This deck also has a plan to handle the aerial threat of flyers with the classic two for one Crushing Canopy. Whether I like it or not enchantments are apart of the meta. So this card allows me to handle both. There is also Sagittars’ Volley in the sideboard to handle those 1/1 weenie fliers.

I’m also playing some fog cards which hopefully will nullify an attack and leave it open for me to swing in with lethal. Or ride out the storm if sleep has been played.

Naturally with Carnage Tyrant and Nullhide Ferox I have creatures in place that combat control decks. There is also Thrashing Brontodon included as part of the anti-enchantments plan.

Impervious Greatwurm, the buy-a-box promo. Probably unplayable, definitely not competitive. But it’s a fun card, that with the ramp and it’s convoke could be cast easily. With that on the battlefield even Ghalta looks punny.

So that’s enough of justifying my decisions for this deck. Let’s look at the mana curve.

Would like it under 3 For the AMC but I’ll live with it. Fitting Siren Stormtamer into the deck somehow would bring it down. But that’s a card to try after some testing.

Here is the initial deck list. What would you take out or add?

Creatures:27

4 Llanowar Elves
3 Hydroid Krasis
4 Incubation Druid
4 Steel Leaf Champion
3 Thrashing Brontodon
3 Nullhide Ferox
2 Zegana, Utopian Speaker
2 Carnage Tyrant
2 Ghalta, Primal Hunger

Spells:11

3 Growth Spiral
3 Root Snare
2 Song of Freyalise
2 Crushing Canopy
1 Vivien Reid

Lands:22

2 Breeding Pool
2 Evolving Wilds
10 Forest
2 Hinterland Harbor
5 Island
1 Woodland Stream

Sideboard:15

4 Frilled Mystic
1 Carnage Tyrant
1 Impervious Greatwurm
1 Root Snare
2 Crushing Canopy
4 Pause for Reflection
2 Sagittars’ Volley