The April 2012 Legacy Primer – Part 1

For the next week, we’ll be covering the vast format that is Legacy. We’ll be covering 10 decks a day to help you get familiar with the variety that Legacy has to offer, significant finishes, a small “How the Decks Work” section, some variations, and finally, some sideboard cards that help combat that particular strategy. If we missed anything, feel free to comment and let us know!


Legacy is a giant format. Spanning almost 20 years, the number of decks that have waned in and out of popularity cannot possibly be counted. Cards printed 10 years ago may just have as much relevance today as they did back then, and old cards or archetypes may become strong again because of newer cards that have been printed (Think of the many two card combos used in Legacy today – they mostly consist of an old card and a newer card, like Painter’s Servant/Grindstone, Natural Order/Progenitus, Show and Tell/Emrakul).

What is this article series for? Well, for many reasons. For the newer Legacy player that may be jumping in for the first time at SCG: Phoenix, this is for you. If you are looking for the right Legacy deck that suits your style, this is for you. If you are still undecided for what deck you want to play for SCG: Phoenix, this is for you. If you have a ton of random cards and want to find the closest deck that you can build, this is for you.

As a note, we’ll be covering 40 decks of Legacy that we think are relevant enough in today’s metagame. We’ll be covering these decks in alphabetical order, and finally, on Friday, we’ll be covering the ten decks we think will be making a splash at SCG: Phoenix!

Also, we have also listed a small indicator showing how likely you will be facing these decks. This is just a best guess, based on our observations — don’t take it as fact, as we haven’t done any sort of empirical studies or anything. In addition, people coming from out of state may skew these numbers, but it should at least give you an idea of what to expect.

So, without further ado, here are the first ten decks!

12-Post

AKA: Turbo Eldrazi

Sample Decklist

Creatures (10)
Emrakul, the Aeons Torn
Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
Primeval Titan
Trinket Mage

Spells (28)
Crop Rotation
All Is Dust
Sylvan Scrying
Exploration
Pithing Needle
Candelabra of Tawnos
Oblivion Stone
Sensei’s Divining Top
Expedition Map

Lands (24)
Bojuka Bog
Eye of Ugin
Forest
The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
Cloudpost
Glimmerpost
Misty Rainforest
Tropical Island
Vesuva
Sideboard (15)
Trinisphere
Propaganda
Flusterstorm
Stifle
Magosi, the Waterveil

Significant Finishes in 2012

Alberto Alonso, 5th of 40: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7727&iddeck=56234

How the Deck Works

The deck works by ramping up quickly with the use of Exploration, Candelabra of Tawnos, and various land searching cards to get multiple Cloudposts, Glimmerposts, and Vesuvas into play and using the massive amounts of mana to unleash Eldrazi.

Sideboard cards to Consider: Blood Moon, Wasteland + Surgical Extraction/Extirpate

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Very Low

Ad Nauseam Tendrils (ANT)

Sample Decklist

Spells (43)
Ad Nauseam
Chain of Vapor
Brainstorm
Cabal Ritual
Dark Ritual
Grim Tutor
Ill-Gotten Gains
Tendrils of Agony
Thoughtseize
Duress
Infernal Tutor
Ponder
Preordain
Lion’s Eye Diamond
Lotus Petal

Lands (17)
Misty Rainforest
Scalding Tarn
Swamp
Underground Sea
Verdant Catacombs
Island
Polluted Delta
Sideboard (15)
Dark Confidant
Energy Flux
Ad Nauseam
Chain of Vapor
Echoing Truth
Slaughter Pact
Sadistic Sacrament
Thoughtseize

Significant Finishes in 2012

Richard Johnson, 6th of 40: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7707&iddeck=56063

How the Deck Works

ANT abuses the storm mechanic released in Scourge by casting fast mana in the form of spells (Dark Ritual) or artifacts (Lion’s Eye Diamond), then casting an Ad Nauseam or Ill-Gotten Gains to reach the magical number of 9 (the original Tendrils of Agony is the 10th copy).

Deck Variants: Past in Flames adds a new engine to the deck. Another deck variant, The Epic Storm, will be covered later as the variant is quite different.

Sideboard cards to Consider: Ethersworn Canonist, Mindbreak Trap, Spell Pierce

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Moderate

Affinity

AKA: Robots

Sample Decklist

Creatures (21)
Stoneforge Mystic
Etched Champion
Frogmite
Memnite
Signal Pest
Vault Skirge

Spells (23)
Dispatch
Thoughtcast
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
Cranial Plating
Mox Opal
Springleaf Drum

Lands (16)
Ancient Den
Inkmoth Nexus
Seat of the Synod
Vault of Whispers
Sideboard (15)
Grafdigger’s Cage
Ethersworn Canonist
Spell Pierce
Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
Thoughtseize

Significant Finishes in 2012

Christopher Sutton, 15th of 153: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7707&iddeck=56072
Victor Monterde, 5th of 37: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7716&iddeck=56146
Anthony Wilson, 2nd of 118: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7634&iddeck=55418
Daniel Matanza, 3rd of 35: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7583&iddeck=55099

How this Deck Works

Another Standard holdout (though it has gained many tools since we first visited Mirrodin), Affinity’s blazing fast speed makes it possibly the fastest aggro deck in existence. Mox Opal, Springleaf Drum, and artifact lands make it easy to cast two or three creatures on turn one (and having 8 zero cost creatures makes it easy too). Cranial Plating makes your 0/2 creatures into huge threats, and in some decks, Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas comes by to do your bidding.

Deck Variants: Since many of the cards are colorless, there are many ways to make affinity. Blue is by far the most common one, because a one mana Divination is pretty good. Black is often used in conjunction with blue. Historically the combination used Disciple of the Vault and Arcbound Ravager to win the game, but now the color combination yields Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas. White is the next popular color combination. Dispatch and Stoneforge Mystic make their arguments here, as a drawback-less Swords to Plowshares and Cranial Platings 5-X is also good as well. Red and green are the least common, but red offers Galvanic Blast and Shrapnel Blast. Meanwhile, green has the ultra powerful Glimpse of Nature, as well as Berserk.

Sideboard cards to Consider: Null Rod, Ancient Grudge, Stony Silence, Krosan Grip, Pithing Needle, Maze of Ith, Energy Flux, Kataki, War’s Wage

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: High

Bant

Sample Decklist

Creatures (17)
Dryad Arbor
Qasali Pridemage
Scavenging Ooze
Stoneforge Mystic
Vendilion Clique
Knight of the Reliquary
Noble Hierarch

Spells (21)
Spell Snare
Brainstorm
Force of Will
Swords to Plowshares
Green Sun’s Zenith
Sylvan Library
Jace, the Mind Sculptor
Batterskull
Sword of Fire and Ice

Lands (22)
Forest
Island
Karakas
Maze of Ith
Plains
Savannah
Tundra
Tropical Island
Wasteland
Misty Rainforest
Windswept Heath
Sideboard (15)
Threads of Disloyalty
Life from the Loam
Bojuka Bog
Meddling Mage
Umezawa’s Jitte
Sylvan Library
Path to Exile
Spell Pierce
Qasali Pridemage
Spell Snare

Significant Finishes of 2012

Alex Hon, 7th of 153: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7707&iddeck=56064
Andrew Morrow, 2nd of 297: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7662&iddeck=55656

How the Deck Works

A typical aggro-control deck – it seeks to gain an aggro advantage through cards like Knight of the Reliquary and Stoneforge Mystic, but can adapt a control route with Jace, the Mind Sculptor.

Deck Variants: Some lists have Nautral Order and Progenitus.

Sideboard Cards to Consider: Submerge, Bojuka Bog, Choke, Gaddock Teeg (stop Green Sun’s Zenith, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, and Natural Order)

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: High

Belcher

Sample Decklist

Creatures (12)
Elvish Spirit Guide
Simian Spirit Guide
Tinder Wall

Spells (47)
Desperate Ritual
Manamorphose
Seething Song
Empty the Warrens
Burning Wish
Gitaxian Probe
Land Grant
Rite of Flame
Chrome Mox
Goblin Charbelcher
Lion’s Eye Diamond
Lotus Petal

Lands (1)
Taiga
Sideboard (15)
Xantid Swarm
Pyroblast
Diminishing Returns
Empty the Warrens
Grapeshot
Infernal Tutor
Past in Flames
Reverent Silence
Shattering Spree
Tendrils of Agony

Significant Finishes of 2012

Garrett Young, 11th of 94: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7757&iddeck=56450
Joshua Miller, 14th of 153: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7707&iddeck=56071

How the Deck Works

The deck uses fast mana to ramp up quickly to cast Goblin Charbelcher, and by having only one land (and it’s a Mountain), it usually kills in one shot. The alternate win condition is Empty the Warrens, which can also be Wished for.

Sideboard Cards to Consider: Ethersworn Canonist, Mindbreak Trap, Spell Pierce, Engineered Explosives (for Goblin tokens)

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Low

Berserk Stompy

AKA: Infect Stompy

Sample Decklist

Creatures (18)
Elvish Spirit Guide
Glistener Elf
Ichorclaw Myr
Phyrexian Crusader
Plague Stinger

Spells (26)
Berserk
Invigorate
Mutagenic Growth
Vines of Vastwood
Inquisition of Kozilek
Rancor
Lotus Petal

Lands (16)
Forest
Pendelhaven
Swamp
Bayou
Inkmoth Nexus
Verdant Catacombs

Significant Finishes in 2012

Ruben Diaz, 6th of 35: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7583&iddeck=55102

How the Deck Works

Turn 1, cast a creature. Turn 2, kill you. That’s the ideal game for Berserk Stompy. Using cheap pump spells like Invigorate, Rancor, and Berserk, it can pump out kills as early as turn 2. With the release of the Scars of Mirrodin block, this deck was given new life (or death, however you want to think about it) with the Infect mechanic. Infect makes kills much much faster but at the cost of more expensive creatures.

Deck Variants: Some decks splash blue instead of black for counterspells, Brainstorm, and Blighted Agent.

Sideboard cards to consider: Ethersworn Canonist, Umezawa’s Jitte, Leeches (just kidding)

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Low

BUG Control

AKA: Landstill, Team America, BUGstill, Jacestill

Sample Decklist

Spells (36)
Diabolic Edict
Disfigure
Dismember
Go for the Throat
Smother
Counterspell
Spell Snare
Brainstorm
Force of Will
Innocent Blood
Life from the Loam
Thoughtseize
Ancestral Vision
Pernicious Deed
Liliana of the Veil
Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Lands (24)
Bayou
Creeping Tar Pit
Forest
Island
Swamp
Mishra’s Factory
Misty Rainforest
Verdant Catacombs
Tropical Island
Underground Sea
Wasteland
Polluted Delta
Sideboard (15)
Krosan Grip
Darkblast
Damnation
Pernicious Deed
Phantasmal Image
Leyline of the Void
Nihil Spellbomb
Vendilion Clique
Chill

Significant Finishes in 2012

Jack Colwell, 8th of 49: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7672&iddeck=55754

How the Deck Works

A control deck at its purest, BUG Control seeks to set up early with cheap counterspells such as Spell Snare and removal in order to go into the late game, where it shines. Pernicious Deed wipes the floor in aggro matchups and the counterspell suite stops combo decks. The deck may generate card advantage via Ancestral Visions or Standstill. The main condition is Jace, the Mind Sculptor, but it can win with Factory beats too.

Deck Variants: Some decks may splash white for Swords to Plowshares or Elspeth, but the mana is really rough, especially if you throw Liliana into the mix.

Sideboard cards to consider: Choke, Back to Basics, Price of Progress

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Moderate

Burn

Sample Decklist

Creatures (13)
Figure of Destiny
Hellspark Elemental
Keldon Marauders
Goblin Guide

Spells (28)
Fireblast
Lightning Bolt
Price of Progress
Chain Lightning
Flame Rift
Lava Spike
Rift Bolt

Lands (19)
Barbarian Ring
17 Mountain
Sideboard (15)
Faerie Macabre
Pyrostatic Pillar
Pyroblast
Red Elemental Blast
Smash to Smithereens

Significant Finishes in 2012

Austin Yost, 1st of 234: http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7572&iddeck=55009
James Allen, 1st of 118: http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7634&iddeck=55417
Cary Duncan, 11th of 297: http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7662&iddeck=55665
Oscar Palomino, 2nd of 89: http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7723&iddeck=56199

How the Deck Works

The classic red deck. Throw burn spells at your opponent as fast as possible and kill them before you can stabilize. Price of Progress is probably the strongest card in the deck, able to deal anywhere from 4 to 16 damage to a player for a mere 2 mana.

Deck Variants: Some decks have fetchlands and Grim Lavamancer, or they may splash a color such as green for Krosan Grip. With Stifle’s popularity, however, the fetchland variation is not as common as the ultra cheap 17 Mountain/2 Barbarian Ring manabase.

Sideboard Cards to Consider: Chill, Warmth, Circle of Protection: Red, Aegis of Honor, Leyline of Sanctity, Counterbalance

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Very High

Cephalid Breakfast

Sample Decklist

Creatures (15)
Giant Solifuge
Lord of Extinction
The Mimeoplasm
Nomads en-Kor
Grand Abolisher
Narcomoeba
Cephalid Illusionist

Spells (28)
Daze
Brainstorm
Force of Will
Lim-Dûl’s Vault
Dread Return
Ponder
Cabal Therapy
Preordain
Aether Vial
Shuko

Lands (17)
Island
Marsh Flats
Plains
Scrubland
Swamp
Tundra
Flooded Strand
Underground Sea
Polluted Delta
Sideboard (15)
Swords to Plowshares
Peacekeeper
Leyline of Sanctity
Spell Pierce
Flusterstorm
Stern Proctor
Chain of Vapor
Echoing Truth

Significant Finishes in 2012

Ilya Shcherbakov, 8th of 113: http://www.thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7741&iddeck=56333

How the Deck Works

While the win condition has changed over the years, the core of the deck has not. This deck aims to abuse Cephalid Illusionist’s ability with Nomads en-kor, Shuko, or any other free targeting effect (read Nomads en-Kor’s Oracle text, not its card text). Once the deck assembles that combo, it sends its entire library into the graveyard. That interaction will put the Narcomebas into play. From there, it can use the Cabal Therapies to tear about the opponent’s hand, then it flashes back Dread Return, returning the Mimeoplasm to play, exiling the Lord of Extinction and Giant Solifuge. The Mimeoplasm copies the Solifuge and gains the +1/+1 counters of the Lord of Extinction, and finally swings in for the kill.

Sideboard Cards to Consider: Grand Abolisher does prevent the activation of many graveyard hate cards, so static abilities like Leyline of the Void, Yixlid Jailer, and Grafdigger’s Cage are probably more effective than traditional graveyard hate.

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Low

Combo Elves

AKA: Elf Combo, ElfBall

Sample Decklist

Creatures (33)
Dryad Arbor
Qasali Pridemage
Regal Force
Llanowar Elves
Mirror Entity
Priest of Titania
Quirion Ranger
Birchlore Rangers
Fyndhorn Elves
Elvish Visionary
Heritage Druid
Nettle Sentinel
Wirewood Symbiote

Spells (11)
Crop Rotation
Chord of Calling
Glimpse of Nature
Green Sun’s Zenith

Lands (16)
Pendelhaven
Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills
Gaea’s Cradle
Savannah
Verdant Catacombs
Misty Rainforest
Forest
Sideboard (15)
Mortarpod
Faerie Macabre
Viridian Shaman
Absolute Law
Choke
Fecundity
Umezawa’s Jitte
Gaddock Teeg

Significant Finishes in 2012

Christoffer Andersen, 5th of 297: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7662&iddeck=55659
Bernardo Fonesca, 4th of 94: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7757&iddeck=56443
Donovan Howard, 18th of 118: http://thecouncil.es/tcdecks/deck.php?id=7634&iddeck=55434

How the Deck Works

The Heritage Druid/Nettle Sentinel combo provides a fast mana engine. Combine it with Glimpse of Nature, and you can basically draw your entire deck as early as turn 2.From there, there are three different win conditons: Emrakul, Mirror Entity, or Vengevines. Some sideboards transform into Natural Order, so be careful of that.

Deck Variants: Other than just normal Aggro Elves, the only variations on Combo Elves are the win condition.

Sideboard Cards to Consider: Perish, Engineered Plague, Ethersworn Canonist

Likelihood you’ll see this deck: Moderate


That concludes it for today. Check us out tomorrow for another ten decks from Legacy!

Jason and Jeff