As for what 4+ CMC cards to play, I'm a fan of deranged hermit in my build- if you have an earthcraft out but still need a squirrel nest, you get 5 bodies for 5 CMC so it's basically free, and with skullclamp you can draw 6 cards and leave up 2 chump blockers or something like that.
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With aether vials now- (thanks to viking for catching my oversight), i have another 1 drop, but when it is still on 1 counter, it is nice to have 5 targets so I will leave 1 trickster in for now.
Pardon me if I don't take your word for it. IMO, your deck doesn't look very good- you are playing merfolk of the pearl trident main deck, and those are almost strictly worse than cosi's trickster (don't have wizard type, but that is rarely relevant). Maritime guard is also terrible, especially in comparison with lord of atlantis on the 2. Also, how often do you really get to 8 mana for lorthos, even if you sneak him out with quest, his ability is still 8 and you have no ramp and only 20 lands. I drew a few sample hands and it did not seem to play very well. I think you are right in identifying cosi's trickster as one of the worse aspects of this deck, but it's the second best 1 drop merfolk, and i wanted something to do first turn, and in modern with all the fetchlands, it can actually be a 2/2 or 3/3 for 1 a decent portion of the time.
Wow, totally forgot about aether vial, thanks for that.
Insurrection and heat shimmer seem extremely weak in here- you should never be at 8 mana, and you don't really want to be copying creatures much. Take a look at grim lavamancer for some reach, skullcrack to deal with martyr of sands decks, and maybe some shard volleys for more 3 damage for 1.
Imagecrafter + bladwing's thrall combo does not actually work- can't imagecraft until after the creature hits the battlefield, so by the time it is a dragon, you will already have missed the thrall ability's trigger.
He runs 4 of each, just some are sideboard- go read living wish, that will explain why.
Honestly, I think that given that this is legacy, it should probably be playing force of will, despite the price tag. It will really help push the combo through. I'd probably play either a couple of those or a couple more pact of negations. If you go the force route, maybe more progenitus because its blue as well as red. I would almost certainly play a full playset of probes- free card draw is great for consistency, and the peek is extremely relevant with a combo deck like this where it is vital to know if your opponent has any disruption so you know if you should go off now or wait a turn. I see the idea behind snapback to clear a blocker, but given that you have so much evasion, I don't think it is really needed, and regardless I'd rather go with a cheaper spell to get the inkmoth through like artful dodge or something of the sort. I see the idea with peer through depths, but I think with brainstorm + ponder + probe you have enough dig without it, and you really want your t2 play to be a blighted agent, and if you don't have one of those, peer won't help you get it anyway. It's only useful t3 to grab you a shoal, act, or some disruption to protect yourself, which could be useful. I'd just play extra counters instead though, because you have tolaria west and muddle the mixture transmuting on 3 which can grab you the same combo pieces and/or disruption as a peer, perhaps with a pact on the way. That said, I don't know how the peers play, haven't done testing on this deck, so maybe you are right with 2 of them. As for sideboard, I like swiftfoot boots, maybe tormod's crypt rather than relic, or perhaps faerie macabre. Also, as a note on my above snapback comment, just realized its free, so I can see keeping 1 in, although I still don't think its needed. t1 birds could block a nexus though so its nice to have, and a singleton vs a 0 is actually relevant with this much dig. Sorry for huge text block, but hope this helps a little.
Consider a separate wincon than venser's ultimate and some angels- they could have many answers to that. I would drop the images- you can't flicker them because they die once you target them, so while the card itself is good, it doesn't really mesh with your theme. The only thing you have in the deck worth flickering is stonehorn, so essentially this is turbo fog as is. I would definitely add some fiend hunters to lock down creatures until you can stonehorn every turn, and consider putting in inquisitor exarchs for a repeatable source of loss of life when you are bouncing it in and out. Also, snapcasters if you have the cash so you can flashback your cloudshifts and mana leaks. Maybe blade splicer to make lots of golems if you want to use the red zone as your wincon and for some early defense against aggro. Pierce strider is costlier than exarch but 3 instead of 2 per blink- I wouldn't go for it but its an option. Geist honored monk or precursor golem as 5 drop finishers that are nice to blink (but do not cloudshift a precursor golem). My reccomendations: -2 dungeon geists -1 stonehorn dignitary -1 phyrexian metamorph -4 phantasmal image -2 deadeye navigator -2 ghost quarter -2 island -1 plains +2 seachrome coast +3 moorland haunt +3 snapcaster mage +2 fiend hunter +3 blade splicer +1 precursor golem +2 ghostly flicker
While mana leak is an excellent card, it really is not all that well positioned in the current standard meta with all the caverns of souls around. You could consider silent departure to deal with problem creatures for a turn instead, as it synergizes well with tibalt, putting an extra card in their hand and having flashback. Also, maybe a burning vengeance or 2.
Also, you may wish to up the land count a couple- 20 is a bit low with this high a curve, even with the accelerators and the mulches, if you want to be consistent. Maybe drop a couple elves for lands- it may make the deck a little less powerful in some situations, but it may make it more consistent. I don't really know how it plays as is, so use your own discretion.
Have you considered thought scour- maybe instead of the apprentice- I see how it can be useful as a creature for your graveyard, especially one you want there, but 2 self mill with 26 creatures is a decent shot at getting in a creature or something you can flashback (6 of those). Also its one cheaper and instant speed, as well as being a potential splinterfright combat trick in a pinch if you are desperate.
I recommend removing 3 diabolic tutor in favor of 3 mana leak.
Lashwrithe seems like a good idea- I will test that.
Yeah- wasn't sure on the land count, but I kept seeming to come up short on mana in testing without nexii. What would you suggest as a replacement?
I disagree- your mana curve is waaaaay too high in that deck.
Any ideas?
Hmmm, interesting idea- do you really think the mana base can handle some colorless producing lands though?
You could also have jade mage- I originally had it in my deck, but when I took out the llanowars I didn't have enough mana consistently, but in your deck with an essence out it's 3 for a 6/6 and repeatable.
hmmm, I might play more of those planeswalkers, they are great for token generation. As I said in my deck's comment, I don't love essence of the wild, but I can see what you are using it for. You could try hero of bladehold also- if you land one and then an essence the next turn, you are swinging with a 3/4, 2 7/6s, and whatever else you have on the board already.
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