Turn your deck into a machine, the way Phyrexia always intended. Once it’s compleated, you’ll feel nothing but bliss as you commit atrocities to all your opponents.
One of the easiest examples: your Commander is 4 CMC. You want to play them when you have 4 mana. Don’t have a lot of 4 mana cards in your deck, bc you’d rather play your commander. Have 3 or 5 mana cards instead
Great video, but the more I play the more I build my deck in the total opposite of what you are describing, if you are building a battlecruiser with value piece you are gonna be the arch ennemy at some point in the game and there is some chance people are gonna use so much removal on you and you can't comeback from the game. I prefer to run more political cards or hatepiece like eye of singularity or leyline of singularity to shut off the people playing the same staples from gaining value. To me, to be the underdog is easier to came on top at the end if your deck can have 3 to 4 way of winning instead on just focusing playing the biggest cards or board state to have the biggest creatures. I also tend to avoid the big staples like smothering tithe or the combo sanguine bond and exquisite blood because the moment you play them people are just gonna recognize the threat immediatly, it's also the same exact staples in every decks and to play the same cards over and over is extremely boring to me and the people around me. For example I run a life swap decks with a ton of alternative plans with selenia dark angel as a commander, the deck is very junky but has 5 ways of winning without sanguine bond/exquisite.
I actually JUST built my newest deck with this sort of mindset. Figuring out what I wanted to do on each turn up to turn 5 Then determining what the ordee of things should look like, which tells you the mana curve of these options. Then used a hypergeometric calculator to figure the density of these effects needed And the deck just instantly preforms. Ive been able to make tiny adjustments here and there, but that was more so noticing i could drop 1 or 2 ramp spells, and changong out options for better / more synergistic options. Like swapping out arcane signet for ignoble hierarch or blood artist for mayhem devil.
I've done the same with my Ruby and Troyan pair decks, both have focused the deck to have their commander out a turn early and then instantly untap with a massive amount of Mana, after which they can just start going hectic.
@jerryleganker4630 I play Firkraag, a commander that works as a draw engine using goad mechanic. So I get It when there's time when the draw engine doesn't work. Especially if He's removed from the field. But there are other times that the goad works so well, everyone hit each other till I swoop the W. Without My commander even touching the field. It happens more than once, so I could assume at least I did something right. I just don't know what It is.
I think this is a really cool concept and I can definitely take away some good info, but I also feel like I look at my decks and it doesn't always apply very easily. I feel like it works well in some colors/strategies that have a lot of cheap cards and obviously the examples you give align very well, but I wonder what advice you'd give for strategies that aren't green go-wide/lifegain? What if my color identity doesn't have many cheap options that fit my strategy? Do I cut synergy cards that are more expensive and add cards that are not exactly in my strategy but fit the 1-4 schedule? Add in cheap tutors or Ponder/Opt/Brainstorm so I'm at least advancing my plan? Some secret fourth thing??
Definitely is just a formula for this kind of deck. It's not for deck that are super reliant on the commander being out and having payoffs from other cards cast. I believe in the video I say that it's not one size fits all, and when trying this out with more commander reliant strats it doesn't work as well. But it's a strat and plan the someone should keep in mind.
It is satisfying to see that this is why my toski deck is low power but terrifying: i play mana dork and deathtouch creatures, get toski out to convert those creatures into cards, then find my finishers.
I always like Henzie for this example. Turn 1 I want a Vampiric Rites, Evolutionary Leap, some ceap easy value for later. 2, mana - fixing or extra, I'll know my opening hand can handle it. 3, it's my boi. And 4, I should be ready to start throwing big Jund value around. 3 mana blitz nets a card plus whatever value I set up does the trick. If Henzie gets removed? Oh, I'm delayed a turn but then the bigger discount means I double blitz next time.
OK, that's a MARVELOUS tale, but in a game with 9 turns of significant action, you will only draw 7 + 9 = 16 plus any extra card draw (lets call that 6 cards, could be more, could be less), so you have 22 out of 99, plus your 2 commanders (usually one commander). Chances that your nice ideal plan comes off is thus 20% FOR EACH TURN, so basically the plot you describe is about a 1 in 1000 possibility. Obviously SOMETHING will happen every game, but your 15 1 drops only give you a 75% chance of ANY one drop. Repeat this for 2 drops, 3 drops, etc. We're already well below 50% that you will hit your curve AT ALL, and many combinations of those 3 cards won't be ideal.
It's actually more or less the same. Your goal is probably to play mana rocks early and set up a card draw engine to follow. Find what engines work best for the deck and what mana value(s) they trend towards. Let's say your commander costs 6 but you have no intention of playing it on 6 as it is meant to be a closer for much later. Then your goal is probably to mana rock early (let's say turn 2) followed by a turn-three 4-mana draw engine. from there you just play your control plan. just like everyone else you set up value/stax/hate pieces etc, you just commit less to the board. There are great videos about this by the trinket mage that may help further.
@ what i find really hard is deciding how many pieces of certain mana drop including. The result is always the same : clogging too many cards on the same curve
@Andrea-jg3sh well thats where weighing in how highly you value the scheduling vs being greedy with your slots. If you want to see a mana rock on turn 2 every single game regardless of how many mulligans it takes to get there, then I would be running upwards of 10 2-costed ramp spells. Alternatively if it is not imperative that you ramp on and you would be just as happy dropping lets say a value enchantment on 2 and you have plenty of reasonable 2 drops to play with then that 2 mana ramp might not be so important and running 6 or so might be more worth it. It is all about deciding which is more important, the best consistency you can muster for your early turns in an inherently anti consistency format? Or is that scheduling unnecessary?
@Andrea-jg3sh for example I have a deck that is all about x cost spells and I know that in that deck I want to do nothing on 1, ramp spell on 2, and then play a value piece if I have it followed by pumping out a big hydra or similar creature every single game. That is my plan and my goal every time, so that deck has 16 ramp spells that cost specifically 2 mana. That becomes much easier to accomplish because that deck is in green so it has more and better options, but the deck runs 0 other ramp as it's goal is to always ramp on 2 and then be playing other things. There will be times where because of the high quantity of them I have 2 or 3 ramp spells (each of which cost 2) and that is fine, I will just ramp on 2 and then on 3 play 2 additional ramp spells allowing me to be far more mana-accelerated than everyone else. It may slow down my creatures hitting the board by 1 turn, but they will be bigger because they are hydras and cost {x}{g} most of the time. I'm not saying that this is what will work for you, it's just an example of one of my decks that actually have a strong plan for the early turns.
Typically around 10-14 permanents or spells in each of these slots. In the next few days I'll have a video coming out explaining the process of Ikra Prava!
What if your setup is a defensive strategy, where turns 1-4 involve interaction to slow down your opponent while you build mana to bring out a haymaker? Or to lure opponents into your turn 4 board wipe to set them back? Your game plan then requires less automation and more assessment of how your opponent's board state is developing so that you can use that interaction. You may need more finesse and flexibility instead of casting something on each turn - preserve cards while your opponents lose theirs. There’s some good advice in here, but I pilot my decks, they don’t play themselves.
Overall this very is exactly how I now build decks. In my play group, I'm always the arch enemy because of my experience and knowledge in the game in comparison to everyone else. Which means I'm always the person to beat. My decks on average are at a power level of 8 to 10 and everyone else's decks range from the power level of 6 to 9. Keep in mind that I actively help push them to improve at magic and make it as fair of a fight as possible
I'm in the same situation pretty much. Me and a friend of mine play at around a 8-10 level and it's hard to find pods, but we look to help those around to raise the power levels around us!
My deck is a well oiled machine that transforms 60+ of my favorite cards into a turn 3 "Bruh why me? I don't even have anything out yet!"
..?
Less talk, more evidence. Show us your deck!
So you are the lonely guy with no one to play with
@@Kjos_jaxjust play more interaction
@@Knoxx96 Perhaps try respecting other people and their time. You'll have a lot more fun and so will everyone around you
I watched the Salubrious Snake $100 Pirate deck video where he goes over this concept just before this. I’ll listen to useful info twice in a row.
Snake?
*Snail
bro the moment you said machine operator i got the concept. that is part of my job so that hooked me RIGHT in
my prayers were answered and I stumbled upon this video. I want to build Prava/Ikra so damn long and now I have a list to work with 🙏🏼
Turn your deck into a machine, the way Phyrexia always intended. Once it’s compleated, you’ll feel nothing but bliss as you commit atrocities to all your opponents.
My deck isn't going to be a machine operator until Aetherdrift comes out.
Hahaha Vroom Vroom! I can't wait for the set tbh
One of the easiest examples: your Commander is 4 CMC. You want to play them when you have 4 mana. Don’t have a lot of 4 mana cards in your deck, bc you’d rather play your commander. Have 3 or 5 mana cards instead
Great video, but the more I play the more I build my deck in the total opposite of what you are describing, if you are building a battlecruiser with value piece you are gonna be the arch ennemy at some point in the game and there is some chance people are gonna use so much removal on you and you can't comeback from the game. I prefer to run more political cards or hatepiece like eye of singularity or leyline of singularity to shut off the people playing the same staples from gaining value. To me, to be the underdog is easier to came on top at the end if your deck can have 3 to 4 way of winning instead on just focusing playing the biggest cards or board state to have the biggest creatures.
I also tend to avoid the big staples like smothering tithe or the combo sanguine bond and exquisite blood because the moment you play them people are just gonna recognize the threat immediatly, it's also the same exact staples in every decks and to play the same cards over and over is extremely boring to me and the people around me.
For example I run a life swap decks with a ton of alternative plans with selenia dark angel as a commander, the deck is very junky but has 5 ways of winning without sanguine bond/exquisite.
I actually JUST built my newest deck with this sort of mindset. Figuring out what I wanted to do on each turn up to turn 5
Then determining what the ordee of things should look like, which tells you the mana curve of these options. Then used a hypergeometric calculator to figure the density of these effects needed And the deck just instantly preforms. Ive been able to make tiny adjustments here and there, but that was more so noticing i could drop 1 or 2 ramp spells, and changong out options for better / more synergistic options. Like swapping out arcane signet for ignoble hierarch or blood artist for mayhem devil.
I've done the same with my Ruby and Troyan pair decks, both have focused the deck to have their commander out a turn early and then instantly untap with a massive amount of Mana, after which they can just start going hectic.
My deck is a machine that sometimes won't even start, but some other times would suddenly go on overdrive.
There's no in-between.
Do u need more lands? More card draw?
@jerryleganker4630 I play Firkraag, a commander that works as a draw engine using goad mechanic. So I get It when there's time when the draw engine doesn't work. Especially if He's removed from the field.
But there are other times that the goad works so well, everyone hit each other till I swoop the W. Without My commander even touching the field. It happens more than once, so I could assume at least I did something right. I just don't know what It is.
@@ridwana4037 ah gotcha. I gotta try him, that sounds fun! I bet the inconsistency comes from him being being 5 mana lol
I think this is a really cool concept and I can definitely take away some good info, but I also feel like I look at my decks and it doesn't always apply very easily. I feel like it works well in some colors/strategies that have a lot of cheap cards and obviously the examples you give align very well, but I wonder what advice you'd give for strategies that aren't green go-wide/lifegain? What if my color identity doesn't have many cheap options that fit my strategy? Do I cut synergy cards that are more expensive and add cards that are not exactly in my strategy but fit the 1-4 schedule? Add in cheap tutors or Ponder/Opt/Brainstorm so I'm at least advancing my plan? Some secret fourth thing??
Definitely is just a formula for this kind of deck. It's not for deck that are super reliant on the commander being out and having payoffs from other cards cast. I believe in the video I say that it's not one size fits all, and when trying this out with more commander reliant strats it doesn't work as well. But it's a strat and plan the someone should keep in mind.
It is satisfying to see that this is why my toski deck is low power but terrifying: i play mana dork and deathtouch creatures, get toski out to convert those creatures into cards, then find my finishers.
This is hilarious given I'm literally a machine operator 😂
I always like Henzie for this example. Turn 1 I want a Vampiric Rites, Evolutionary Leap, some ceap easy value for later. 2, mana - fixing or extra, I'll know my opening hand can handle it. 3, it's my boi. And 4, I should be ready to start throwing big Jund value around. 3 mana blitz nets a card plus whatever value I set up does the trick.
If Henzie gets removed? Oh, I'm delayed a turn but then the bigger discount means I double blitz next time.
OK, that's a MARVELOUS tale, but in a game with 9 turns of significant action, you will only draw 7 + 9 = 16 plus any extra card draw (lets call that 6 cards, could be more, could be less), so you have 22 out of 99, plus your 2 commanders (usually one commander). Chances that your nice ideal plan comes off is thus 20% FOR EACH TURN, so basically the plot you describe is about a 1 in 1000 possibility. Obviously SOMETHING will happen every game, but your 15 1 drops only give you a 75% chance of ANY one drop. Repeat this for 2 drops, 3 drops, etc. We're already well below 50% that you will hit your curve AT ALL, and many combinations of those 3 cards won't be ideal.
Sure bro! The decks play really well IRL and perform exactly how I described, but your math certainly checks out!
My deck is a well oiled machine that turns card draw into land draw when i need interaction the most
As I was watching this I realize I already do this lol
Nice! It's a fairly straightforward concept that most people already follow, but definitely something people should always keep in mind!
I play this EXACT partner pairing and have these exact sequences in my deck
How do you go about building a schedule for a more controlling deck?
Ye, i'm a control player too and keep struggling with deck building
It's actually more or less the same. Your goal is probably to play mana rocks early and set up a card draw engine to follow. Find what engines work best for the deck and what mana value(s) they trend towards. Let's say your commander costs 6 but you have no intention of playing it on 6 as it is meant to be a closer for much later. Then your goal is probably to mana rock early (let's say turn 2) followed by a turn-three 4-mana draw engine. from there you just play your control plan. just like everyone else you set up value/stax/hate pieces etc, you just commit less to the board. There are great videos about this by the trinket mage that may help further.
@ what i find really hard is deciding how many pieces of certain mana drop including. The result is always the same : clogging too many cards on the same curve
@Andrea-jg3sh well thats where weighing in how highly you value the scheduling vs being greedy with your slots. If you want to see a mana rock on turn 2 every single game regardless of how many mulligans it takes to get there, then I would be running upwards of 10 2-costed ramp spells. Alternatively if it is not imperative that you ramp on and you would be just as happy dropping lets say a value enchantment on 2 and you have plenty of reasonable 2 drops to play with then that 2 mana ramp might not be so important and running 6 or so might be more worth it. It is all about deciding which is more important, the best consistency you can muster for your early turns in an inherently anti consistency format? Or is that scheduling unnecessary?
@Andrea-jg3sh for example I have a deck that is all about x cost spells and I know that in that deck I want to do nothing on 1, ramp spell on 2, and then play a value piece if I have it followed by pumping out a big hydra or similar creature every single game. That is my plan and my goal every time, so that deck has 16 ramp spells that cost specifically 2 mana. That becomes much easier to accomplish because that deck is in green so it has more and better options, but the deck runs 0 other ramp as it's goal is to always ramp on 2 and then be playing other things. There will be times where because of the high quantity of them I have 2 or 3 ramp spells (each of which cost 2) and that is fine, I will just ramp on 2 and then on 3 play 2 additional ramp spells allowing me to be far more mana-accelerated than everyone else. It may slow down my creatures hitting the board by 1 turn, but they will be bigger because they are hydras and cost {x}{g} most of the time. I'm not saying that this is what will work for you, it's just an example of one of my decks that actually have a strong plan for the early turns.
How do you calculate how many 1/2/3 drops including in order to have em in early turns?
Typically around 10-14 permanents or spells in each of these slots. In the next few days I'll have a video coming out explaining the process of Ikra Prava!
@@deckdriverMTG That's nice, thanks for the help for the comunity!
What if your setup is a defensive strategy, where turns 1-4 involve interaction to slow down your opponent while you build mana to bring out a haymaker? Or to lure opponents into your turn 4 board wipe to set them back? Your game plan then requires less automation and more assessment of how your opponent's board state is developing so that you can use that interaction. You may need more finesse and flexibility instead of casting something on each turn - preserve cards while your opponents lose theirs. There’s some good advice in here, but I pilot my decks, they don’t play themselves.
Let me save everyone time. It's clickbait. 2:55 and this guy is rambling on about basic stuff calling it scheduleing. Nothing new, nothing special.
Yeah curving out a deck is basic knowledge. Whether you play EDH or standard, its one of the first steps you learn in mtg deckbuilding.
It’s not clickbait when I stumble over this video and never saw something that explains that topic to me. Calm down pro player.
"guaranteed to play your commander"
erm, actually, as a Phlage the Untouchable player, I disagree
This playstyle would get you killed at my lgs. There's far too much interaction to plan things that far ahead. I do like the thought process, though!
Overall this very is exactly how I now build decks. In my play group, I'm always the arch enemy because of my experience and knowledge in the game in comparison to everyone else. Which means I'm always the person to beat. My decks on average are at a power level of 8 to 10 and everyone else's decks range from the power level of 6 to 9. Keep in mind that I actively help push them to improve at magic and make it as fair of a fight as possible
I'm in the same situation pretty much. Me and a friend of mine play at around a 8-10 level and it's hard to find pods, but we look to help those around to raise the power levels around us!
10 is not cedh in this case?
TH-camrs love creating terms for shit that's been a concept for YEARS. This video is about having a MANA CURVE and CURVING OUT
Yes, which is said in the video? :D Scheduling cards with the mana curve by adding plenty for each mana value.
@@deckdriverMTG I appreciate your positive response. I was grumpy at work, my bad dawg