Oh Captain, My Captain!!!

Tis’ the Season!

Welcome one and all!  This is Captain Red Zone coming to you with the next part of my new deck series for Tri-Colors for your viewing delight. By the time you’re reading this, chances are you will be in the middle of the holiday season. Some of you will just be finishing Hanukah while others may have just finished buying a Jace, the Mind Sculptor for that special someone for Christmas. But however you celebrity, this time of the year has become the season mostly known for gifts, giving, and peace among you and your fellow Planeswalkers. So in the spirit of this festive time of the year I’m going to bring you my Bant deck. This week we will be sharing the love with everyone’s favorite flying animal…

What??? It can fly! You just have to give first. So let’s get to giving!

A Time For Giving!

When people see Phelddagrif the reaction is usually very mixed. Some people see it a say “HEY! You’re about to help me win easier!”, while others almost go on auto pilot and decided that you’re the one first to kill. The good thing about this is you can, usually, get to stay in the game by helping the other players instead of the guy who’s attacking you. So let’s start with the creatures that will help you help them.

Questing Phelddagrif, Hunted Phantasm, Hunted Lammasu, Hunted Troll, Hunted Wumpus, Tempting Wurm, Braids, Conjurer Adept, Jötun Grunt, Magus of the Vineyard, Sheltering Ancient, Arbiter of Knollridge, Mother of Runes, Heartwood Storyteller, Kami of the Crescent Moon, Walking Archive, Mistmeadow Witch, and Galepowder Mage: I wish Questing Phelddagrif was a Legend just because I think it has amazing art, but I guest a lost Phelddagrif is so common that when one gets to where it’s going it becomes a legend. The parts of the Hunted cycle here are great for helping other players out. Sometimes they get a little behind in the game and these creatures, combined with Tempting Wurm and the blue Braids, are great for helping the guy with two lands on turn 6 stay in the game. Galepowder Mage and Mistmeadow Witch work great with come into play creatures like these and can be used on other players creatures so blink their (insert “enter the battlefield effect” creature) so they can get an extra use out of it. Walking Archive, Kami of the Crescent Moon, and Heartwood Storyteller helps move the game along by making sure everyone get to draw the extra cards they need. Mother of Runes can keep our creatures safe from spot removal while Jötun Grunt helps the guy with all those pesky creatures in his graveyard by giving him a second chance to draw them. Arbiter of Knollridge and Magus of the Vineyard bring the present of Mana and Life points to the game.

Court Hussar, Eternal Witness, Sun Titan, Primeval Titan, Weathered Wayfarer, and Sakura-Tribe Elder:  While these are going to be spending most of their time giving to us, we’re just going to use what we receive to give to others. I like to think of these like a Donation Drive. First, people give to us, then we use what we get to give to others. Also I kinda like the idea of Primeval Titan working in a soup kitchen….

Trade Secrets, Skyscribing, Blue Sun's Zenith, Words of Wisdom, Forced Fruition, Fecundity, Font of Mythos, Temple Bell, Teferi's Puzzle Box, Howling Mine, Jace Beleren, Standstill, and Minds Aglow: So if this deck had a “win condition” It would be on the backs of these cards. You Do what you can to give people what they want… by drawing cards… until they don’t want any more… then you help them by giving them some more. Trade Secrets with that special someone near a log fire. Then we will use Skyscribing or Blue Sun's Zenith to give to someone in need. Forced Fruition and Fecundity will spend most of their time helping someone else but at least you can finish your holiday off right by giving. Font of Mythos, Temple Bell, and Howling Mine draws everyone cards before you even get the chance to see one, which is very giving while  Words of Wisdom and Jace Beleren helps everyone when you choose to in this deck. Teferi's Puzzle Box is here to help people mix their hands up in hopes of helping them find the cards they really need, like lands, instead of cards they don’t, like a Titan or a Sphinx. In this deck you always break your own Standstill and Minds Aglow is a great way to do that!

New Frontiers, Rites of Flourishing, Heartbeat of Spring, Upwelling, Kodama's Reach, and Collective Voyage: In this game, mana is a lot like money. So I like to think of these as Gift Cards. You’re not sure what to give so you give them some mana and let them use it for what they want. But that doesn’t mean we can’t pick up a little something for ourselves while we’re out. I think after all that giving we did its ok to give ourselves a little bump right.

Ghostly Prison, Propaganda, Krosan Grip, Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Beast Within, Pongify, Bant Charm, Spin into Myth, Faith's Fetters, Prison Term, Oblivion Ring, Remand, Arcane Denial, Hinder, Day of Judgment, Planar Cleansing, and Worldpurge: Where I come from, you have to be care when you’re seen giving this much. There are some people out there that will beat you up and take all your gifts. So if you’re out late, walking the streets like some weird mix between Santa Claus and Batman, you need to protect your neck.

Yeah... something like that...

This package is here to help insure that your group is going to take your gifts even if they think you should be dead.  But I like to think of this as a club where you set up your party for your play group so they can get their gifts. Ghostly Prison and Propaganda is your personal club bouncers, making sure only the coolest creatures get in while telling the low level creature without money to go to the back of the line. Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Beast Within, Pongify, Bant Charm, Spin into Myth, Faith's Fetters, Prison Term, and Oblivion Ring are the drinks at the bar waiting for the creatures that paid the cost to meet the boss. Day of Judgment, Planar Cleansing, and Worldpurge are here so should the club down when too many people get in. Sometimes you see someone trying to sneak into the party and that’s when you call over Remand, Arcane Denial, and Hinder to throw them out. Krosan Grip is here to deal with all the empty bottles.

Playing removal in a deck like this seems kind of counterproductive. So if we’re really going to be giving we need…

Knowledge Pool: See, now we can feel good about our removal package because at least we can just make it available for someone else to use. When you’re giving your opponent the chance to spread the love with the cards in this deck, everyone’s a winner.

Reliquary Tower, Forbidden Orchard, Prahv, Spires of Order, and Novijen, Heart of Progress: With all this card draw, we need to keep a Reliquary Tower jut to keep up with it. Forbidden Orchard will provide us mana and a 1/1 for any other player in need. Prahv is our way to stop the violence even if it’s headed at someone else while Novijen can pump any creature any one plays if we’re really in the mood to grow.

 Vivid Creek, Vivid Grove, Vivid Meadow, Seaside Citadel, Azorius Chancery, Simic Growth Chamber, Graypelt Refuge, and Selesnya Sanctuary: And here are a few lands to help make sure that we have the mana we need to cast what we want. Usually When I build a personal deck these I try to use a mana base like this one. I find it provides a good balance of colors without breaking the wallet.

A Time For Sharing!

With 9 Islands, 9 Forest, and 8 Plains our gift for the season is ready to be delivered. As always, my mana base here is just a suggested starting point. At the bottom, you can check out the deck list. Next week I will be taking a little time off to work on side projects and maybe try to relax a bit. But don’t worry, I’ll be back and during my time out you may get a taste of what’s in the works between Cassidy Silver, Christian Renoe, and myself  for when I return. When I get back we’re going straight into the violent side of Magic with Black/Red/Green in our next Tri-Color Deck! Feel free to leave any comments you have and you can always hit me up at CaptainRedZone@gmail.com. As always thanks for the read and I will see you soon with another article!

Hope you had fun and please leave any comments or suggestions.  Until next time,

This is your Captain speaking… We’re heading into the Red Zone!!!

1 Phelddagrif

1 Questing Phelddagrif

1 Hunted Phantasm

1 Hunted Lammasu

1 Hunted Troll

1 Hunted Wumpus

1 Tempting Wurm

1 Braids, Conjurer Adept

1 Jötun Grunt

1 Magus of the Vineyard

1 Sheltering Ancient

1 Arbiter of Knollridge

1 Mother of Runes

1 Heartwood Storyteller

1 Kami of the Crescent Moon

1 Walking Archive

1 Mistmeadow Witch

1 Galepowder Mage

1 Court Hussar

1 Eternal Witness

1 Sun Titan

1 Primeval Titan

1 Weathered Wayfarer

1 Sakura-Tribe Elder

1 Trade Secrets

1 Skyscribing

1 Blue Sun's Zenith

1 Words of Wisdom

1 Forced Fruition

1 Fecundity

1 Font of Mythos

1 Temple Bell

1 Teferi's Puzzle Box

1 Howling Mine

1 Jace Beleren

1 Standstill

1 New Frontiers

1 Rites of Flourishing

1 Heartbeat of Spring

1 Upwelling

1 Kodama's Reach

1 Minds Aglow

1 Collective Voyage

1 Krosan Grip

1 Path to Exile

1 Swords to Plowshares

1 Beast Within

1 Pongify

1 Bant Charm

1 Spin into Myth

1 Faith's Fetters

1 Prison Term

1 Oblivion Ring

1 Ghostly Prison

1 Propaganda

1 Remand

1 Arcane Denial

1 Hinder

1 Day of Judgment

1 Planar Cleansing

1 Worldpurge

1 Knowledge Pool

8 Plains

9 Island

9 Forest

1 Reliquary Tower

1 Forbidden Orchard

1 Prahv, Spires of Order

1 Novijen, Heart of Progress

1 Vivid Creek

1 Vivid Grove

1 Vivid Meadow

1 Seaside Citadel

1 Azorius Chancery

1 Simic Growth Chamber

1 Graypelt Refuge

1 Selesnya Sanctuary