Best $20 deck on the Vault

by Jessie on 31 January 2014

Main Deck (60 cards)

Enchantments (4)


Land (22)

Sideboard (15 cards)

Sorceries (4)


Instants (3)

Artifacts (4)


Enchantments (4)

Submit a list of cards below to bulk import them all into your sideboard. Post one card per line using a format like "4x Birds of Paradise" or "1 Blaze", you can even enter just the card name by itself like "Wrath of God" for single cards.


Deck Description

I play this deck by bouncing my opponent's lands. Simple as that.

I have creatures and spells designed to bounce.

Cephalid Constable is the powerhouse. He makes people board swipe.

I have 4 copies of Cephalid Constable via Cryptoplasm. That basically means I have 8 Constables in the deck. Also Cryptoplasm can become any of your opponent's creatures. If there is any creature that is a huge threat to you, just have Cryptoplasm change from a Constable unto the creature that is a threat. Versatile.

When Cephalid Constable is out I pump him up with Wings of Velis Vel (Constable becomes 4/4 with flying) or Serra's Embrace (Constable becomes 3/3, with shroud, and flying). When Cephalid Constable hits for 4 damage you get to return 4 lands to your opponent's hands (or creatures, artifacts, etc).

Finally, I have 9 cards that bounce threats that my opponent has. This serves 4 purposes. 1st) It stales my opponent. 2) It removes any serious threats my opponent puts on the table. 3) When I have Cephalid Constable in play, the bounce cards can bounce their creatures to their hands allowing Cephalid Constable to be able to do combat damage. 4) Interestingly, I can bounce my own stuff back to my hand. Say they Doom Blade my Constable, I can Boomerang him back to my hand. Bounce is versatile.

Out with Propaganda. Just, most games, it became a wasted card. I added in Drift of Phantasms as a search engine. Another versatile card. For 3 mana I get either a Cephalid Constable in my hand, or a Capsize, or a Cryptoplasm. If I do not get out my Cephalid Constable on the 3rd or 4th turn...there is a fair chance I may lose the game. With 4 Index and 4 Drift of Phantasms, I have an excellent chance of finding my Constable. A 4th turn (mana drop every turn) High Tide into a Drift of Phantasms gets me a Cephalid Constable on the board. Or if i already have a Cephalid Constable on the board, a Drift of Phantasms gets me a Cryptoplasm, which I can make as a Constable copy.

High Tide. What an excellent card. Considering you probably bounced one of their lands on the 2nd/3rd turn with a Boomerang/Eye of Nowhere/Capsize...High Tide provides huge mana advantage. Look at this, let us say you have a land drop every turn. Turn 4 High Tide will give you 6 mana! For 6 mana you can play a Constable and a Cryptoplasm. Or a Drift of Phantasms and a Constable/Cryptoplasm. Or a Capsize/buyback. Or putting a Wings of Velis Vel and Serra's Embrace on a Constable, making the Constable a 4/4 creature with flying, shroud, and that returns 4 permanents to your opponent's hands if he goes through unblocked. .

Final thoughts:
8 Cephalid Constables in the deck
8 Draw spells that help me find Cephalid Constable
10 Spells that help protect and pump up Cephalid Constable to make him harder to kill and to increase number of permanents he returns to your opponent's hand.
9 Bounce spells that stall my opponent and help make sure Cephalid Constable can stay alive and attack.
3 Mana ramp cards that helps gives me the most advantage of disrupting my opponent's mana base.

How to Play

Cephalid Constable is the card here. When he attacks and deals combat damage, you get to bounce a permanent for each point of damage done.

Ultimately you pump him up with Clout of the Dominus and Zephid's Embrace. Both of those enchant creature cards give Cephalid Constable +1/+1 and +2/+2, and more importantly shroud.

A Cephalid Constable enchanted with Zephid's Embrace gives you a 3/3 creature, with flying, and shroud...that returns 3 of your opponent's permanents to his hand.

A Cephalid Constable with a Wings of Velis Vel, and it gives you a 4/4 creature with flying that returns 4 of your opponent's permanents to his hand.

Finally, a Cephalid Constable + Wings of Velis Vel + Serra's Embrace equals a 6/6 flying creature with shroud. If he hits your opponent has to return 6 permanents to his hand. That usually means game over for your opponent.

*********************************************************************************

To sum it up for any new players. This is how I want the deck to work out:

Turn 1. Land drop.
Turn 2. Boomerang/Eye of Nowhere. Return a land or any threat your opponent played on their Turn 2.
Turn 3. Cephalid Constable
Turn 4. Play High Tide. Then play Wings of the Velis Vel and Serra's Embrace on Cephalid Constable. Attack with a 6/6 flying creature with shroud. Return 6 of your opponent's permanents to their hand.

Result: Turn 4, Your opponent has no cards on the board. No lands, no creatures, no artifacts, no enchantments. Nothing.


Deck Tags

  • cephalid constable
  • Bounce
  • Control
  • Budget

Deck at a Glance

Social Stats

45
Likes

This deck has been viewed 4,827 times.

Mana Curve

Mana Symbol Occurrence

059000

Card Legality

  • Not Legal in Standard
  • Not Legal in Modern
  • Legal in Vintage
  • Legal in Legacy

Deck discussion for Best $20 deck on the Vault

Help make my deck better.
I will try to return the favor.

Should I take out High Tide since all of my spells are low?
Should I add In Ischron Scepter and attach Boomerang or Wings of Velis Vel to it? Ischron Scepter and High Tide are killer together.
Should I replace RIte of Replication with Cryptoplasm?

Any advice would be helpful!

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Posted 01 February 2014 at 00:06

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High tide is good, even your spells are low, blue deck really needs a lot of mana since it has to save some mana for instant spells.
Isochron scpeter also a good choice, maybe you can swap clout of dominus for it.
And lastly, i prefer cryptoplasm rather than RoR since it's more stable (less costy, and you can even copy your opponent's creature)

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 10:51

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The deck originally ran Cryptoplasm instead of Rite or Replication. I still may consider Crytoplasm, since you say you can copy an opponent's creature with it.

I also had Ischron Scepter in the original deck. I wanted to imprint High Tide on Scepter. It would double my mana every turn.

I may switch back, thanks paako.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 18:48

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Should I splash a second color?

Add Green for Predator's Strike, Giant Growth, Rancor, Vines of Vastwood, and Might of Oaks?

Or add Red for FIst of the Anvil, Reckless Charge, Balduvian Rage, Bloodlust, and Brute Force?

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Posted 01 February 2014 at 06:27

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I prefer mono blue for this deck, unless you can provide more U mana. Many of your cards need at least UU, so it will be harder for dual colored deck without dual colored land, or something that can produce any color mana.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 10:55

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Agreed paako.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 18:54

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I like this. My suggestion is to get rid of around half your bounce spells (you got 12, I think 6 is enough) and high tide, to favor search cards like Impulse, Telling Time, Preordain, Intuition, Brainstorm, all your usual stuff.
Counterspell for emergencies might be appropriate.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 14:51

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You hit the head on the nail. I keep telling myself I need a crap load of bounce spells (12) to be able to bounce creatures the opponent has. My idea was, how good is Constable if he can't get through unblocked.

But with all of my bounce spells and High Tide...i thought...my ass will run out of cards by turn 6 or so.

What about Impulse for Capsize? It helps me ensure I get Constable or a bounce card when I need it.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 18:50

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I reduced the Bounce spells from 12 to 9. I just afford to get rid of half of them. I need something that gets rid of my opponent's creatures so that Constable attacks unblocked. I did add in Impulse. That way I help make sure I get Constable out earlier in the game.

I liked your comments Razka. As always, thanks for the advice. I will test run it soon. I may be able to get rid of more bounce spells and add Brainstorm/Ponder. Will see.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 18:55

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You're very welcome :) Good edits there. I was thinking you weren't going to need tons of bounces, because if you think about that, you just need the constable to attack once or twice. After that, he'll basically snowball-bounce everything without further help.
On the other hand, if your opponent just Doom Bladed it... You'd have no real answer to that. Sure you got embrace, but those are only 3, and they cost quite a bit of mana.

Regardless, I still think this deck is quite a beast. Good job Jessie.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 19:16

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I have 6 cards that protect Constable. Did you see Clout of the Dominus? It gives Constable +1/+1 and Shroud for 1 blue mana. Think I need to run 4 Serra's Embrace and 4 Clout of the Dominus? It would increase my chances of being able to protect Constable.

I have not played this deck, it is only designed. But I think it would almost be best to wait to the 4th turn and Play Constable and Dominus on the same turn. Give Constable instant Shroud. Of course that makes it, unfortunately, where Constable is not going to be able to attack until the 5th turn. I almost prefer the risk of 3rd turn Constable and 4th turn Serra's Embrace/Dominus. That way you can attack on the 4th turn with Constable.

I can see where something like a pure burn deck or pure discard deck could destroy the deck...but I still like it. I just seen Cephalid Constable a few days ago, and thought, there is a freaking brilliant card!!!

Thanks for the like Razka. Will check out more of your decks, again, and see if I can help out.

Good luck.

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 20:47

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"Did you see Clout of the Dominus?"
Yeah, no, I actually didn't see that xD My mistake.

I'd be most happy to see your feedback on some of my decks, when you've got a little free time :)
Good night Sir

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Posted 02 February 2014 at 23:30

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I think the more bounce spells in the main the better. Being able to either bounce a troubling permanent from your opponent (dark depths, JTMS, various obnoxious eldrazi, etc.) or if the opponent is targeting your constable like you said, bounce it back to your hand and replay it the following turn. That is pure value. Delaying your opponents' tempo and denying them resources is the bread and butter for this deck to me. This might increase the budget, but cyclonic rift would be straight gas for this deck. You could even throw in a one-of devastation tide and try to miracle it. I don't know if this is just a funzies type deck or you plan on competing with it, but in legacy which is such a dynamic, explosive format, having early game interaction is a must. Throw a few portents or impulses in the side board if you feel like you need more draw power for certain matchups.

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Posted 09 October 2018 at 05:35

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It's not a budget friendly card, but what about Sower of Temptation (Control Magic for cheaper option)? Instead of bouncing their potential blocker, how about stealing it! You are most concerned about paving the path for Cephalid to attack right? That means, they shouldn't have any blockers... So do you really need the Propaganda? I mean, if they don't have any blockers, then you can bounce their lands when Cephalid does his damage. If they don't have lands to pay the Propaganda cost, then they don't have lands to cast (recast) their creatures.

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Posted 04 February 2014 at 21:27

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Also, how about Aqueous Form. for one blue mana, your Cephalid is Unblockable, and when he attacks you get to Scry 1...If you could get that on him before one of the shroud spells, that would be awesome.

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Posted 04 February 2014 at 22:18

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I like the advice on Sower Of Temptation. I did not know that card existed. It freaking rocks. Basically is a Control Magic but you also get a 2/2 flyer.

Propaganda really is more of a card that slows down my opponent if I can't find my Constable.

Thanks for the advice.

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Posted 05 February 2014 at 07:20

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Deck is currently 4-0.
I think it is one of the best I have built.
The key is getting out Constable by turn 3 or 4. Impulse helps with that.
Usually by 2 or 3 turns after I have Constable out, especially if I have him Enchanted (or have Constable copies via Cryptoplasm), he has cleared the opponent's board.
Also, very important, I have found, is to bounce their lands on turn 2 and 3 (but play Constable on turn 3 if you have one). Bouncing their lands early via Boomerang, Eye of Nowhere, and Capsize is a huge advantage when Constable starts to attack.
Thanks for everyone's input.
Card I am still iffy with, and was a wasted card in the 4 games I played, was Propaganda. What should I add in, to replace it? More draw power? More creature enchantments? 4 Counterspells? Mutagenic Growth? Gitixian Probe?
Again, thanks everyone!

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Posted 27 April 2014 at 06:02

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I added Drift of Phantasms as an instant search engine for Constable Cephalid!

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Posted 28 April 2014 at 07:00

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It rocks! It rocks! It rocks!
It is too good for me to suggest any card!
Too good deck, man. Too good.

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Posted 28 April 2014 at 09:06

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Thanks!!! I am really proud of it! A lot of time, thought, and effort went into it! Tried to work on everything.
Speed...for it to be fast and to have mana advantage over my opponent via bouncing their lands and me using mana ramp.
Versatile...for it to have a 2nd way to win...a Enchanted Cryptoplasm.
Consistent...where I wouldn't have too many wasted turns/draws/cards.
Dependable...where I could get out my Constable in most games by using search Engines and draw spells.
Disruptive...in which I could try to bounce combo cards and major threats.

It is 4-0, right now. The 2nd and 3rd games I played against a friend (an excellent player), I had an Enchanted Constable and Cryptoplasm both attack on turn 5 and 6. Every card he had in play was returned to his hand on turn 6. Total board swipe, and with me still having my lands and Constable/Cryptoplasm in play. He couldn't do anything. Total board lock down.

And 17 dollars!! Here is to you and your budget decks, NorthernWarlord!
Now if it will only become a Hot Deck. :D

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Posted 28 April 2014 at 09:51

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Well I'll be honest, this isn't what I was expecting when I read the word "Cephalid".

I like it. It's just an overall solid design. The one gripe I have with it is Clout of the Dominous. It really doesn't do much, and your other enchantment also grants shroud (and is WAY better). Might I suggest Distortion Strike? It will let you get through for easy bounces =]

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Posted 15 May 2014 at 00:54

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Done. I should add 3 Distortion Strike in replace of Clout.

What about Zephid's Embrace...should I run 4? That is my biggest fear, as soon as Constable Cephalid comes out, here comes removal spells. Give it shroud asap, because if I don't, here comes Lightning Bolt or Terror to destroy the Constable. Waste of 3 mana, waste of a turn. Razka pointed that out to me too.

But I see where Distortion Strike would be very nice. Unblockable, 2 cards being bounced.
Super dumb question...shows my ignorance. I could cast Distortion Strike on Constable THEN cast Zephid's Embrace on Constable. But what about Rebound on Distortion Strike? I couldn't use it, could I, if Zephid's Embrace is enchanting Constable?
In other words, if I cast Distortion Strike on a Constable and then put an Zephid's Embrace on him...next turn I would have to use the rebound on a Cryptoplasm?

Sorry...I do not know the rules as well as I should.

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Posted 15 May 2014 at 02:03

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Correct. The rebounded version will need to be given a new legal target or it will fizzle.

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Posted 15 May 2014 at 02:29

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dang... this is awesome. I love the bounce you get with constable. and throwing the wings of velis vel on it makes it just nasty ugly. :)
my only thought was that isochron scepter would be AMAZING in here. :) but it looks like you are trying to keep this budget so... yeah. :)

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Posted 24 May 2014 at 23:47

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Yep.
Turn 3 Constable.
Turn 4 Wings of Velis Vel. 4 lands returned to your opponent's hand on the 4th turn. That is brutal.

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Posted 25 May 2014 at 00:04

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the other thought that I had was dissipation field. That way if they DO manage to hit you, their creature gets unsummoned for free anyways. great incentive for them to not attack you.

but I think that it would mess with you mana curve a bit too much, so it would go very well I don't think.

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Posted 25 May 2014 at 00:14

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Har du fund Vulshok Battlegear eller Vulshok Morning? De kan definitivt fungera bra. Dessutom skulle jag ha trott det här däcket skulle köra en massa counterspells med alla permanenter som returneras. Har du tänkt på det?

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Posted 21 June 2014 at 22:42

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Don't need counterspells.

By turn 5 my opponent has no lands to play anything.
Turn 5, 6, 7, etc...each turn I attack and rebounce their entire field.
It is nasty. Total lock down for under 20 bucks.

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Posted 21 June 2014 at 22:50

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lolz that translation kinda failed. So I just thought this deck could benefit from them, and also have you considered elite arcanist? that could work well with the bounce spells.

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Posted 22 June 2014 at 09:16

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No, it worked. I read it. Or rather, I translated it to English using a translator. :)

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Posted 22 June 2014 at 15:28

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This deck realy don't need Elite Arcanist or more counterspells.
Here is an example of a game I played with my friend.

My Turn 1. Play Island.
Opponent's Turn 1. Play a Land

My Turn 2. Play Island. Play a Boomerang bouncing their only land.
Opponent's Turn 2. Play a Land. Play a 1/1 creature.

My Turn 3. Play Island. Play Cephalid Constable.
Opponent's Turn 3. Play a Land. Play a 2/2 creature. Attack for 1.

My Turn 4. Play Island. Play High Tide to get me 6 mana. Play Wings of Velis Vel on my Constable for 2 mana, and play a Crytoplasm for 3 mana.

Now, on Turn 4.
My opponent has 2 lands and 2 creatures.
I have a 6/4 flying unblockable Cephalid Constable.
I attack, and board swipe my opponent.

He is left with no lands or no creatures. He takes 6 damage.

Opponent's Turn 4. He replays a land and puts back out his 1/1 creature.

My Turn 5. Play Island. Pay 4 mana to put Zephid's Embrace on my Cryptoplasm (which is not a copy of Constable).
Now I have a 2/2 Constable and a 4/4 Constable (flying) in play.
If I attack my opponent, he only has 1 land and 1 creature in play.
They both get bounced and I do 4 more damage.

Game is locked down. Every turn he plays his 1 little land and 1 little 1 mana card, and I bounce them every time I attack.

Not to toot my own whistle...but it gets brutal.


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Posted 22 June 2014 at 15:45

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Um yeah, I suppose I can see how that works now.

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Posted 22 June 2014 at 20:18

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+1 dude. You have some wicked decks. Haven't seen your stuff since the 2-mana challenge, but this is an insane 2-budget control/bounce deck. Question though. Do you pay the buyback cost on capsize? I like capsize, except for the fact that it's a 3-mana boomerang. Oh yeah, 1 more question. Are you only bouncing lands? Because wouldn't disperse help with non-lands (only 2drop)?

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Posted 25 June 2014 at 07:25

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http://www.mtgvault.com/jessie/decks/lions-tigers-and-bears-oh-my/

http://www.mtgvault.com/jessie/decks/50th-deck-old-school-tim/

Both of those are hot decks of mine I have made since the 2 mana challenge deck.
I have been around :)

Thanks for the complement.

1)Capsize, you get to choose if you want to buy it back.
It is for back up. I usually play it on Turn 6 (buying it back).
So, no, you don't have to buyback. Totally up to you.

2)Yep, It bounces everything, my friend!

Like this:
Turn 1. Island
Turn 2. Island. Boomerang one of their lands.
Turn 3. Cephalid Constable
Turn 4. Zephid's Embrace.
Now Cephalid Constable is 3/3 flying, shroud. You attack and he does 3 damage. Now YOU GET TO PICK ANY THREE PERMANENTS your opponent has and bounce them. You can pick 1 creature/1 artifact/1 land. Or 3 creatures. Or 3 lands. Or 2 enchantments/1 creature. You bounce any three you want. Since your opponent only has 3 lands, you can bounce them all!!!!!!

I usually bounce their lands! No lands, then they can't play anything and you can slowly start bouncing creatures/artifacts/enchantments.

Another example, friend:
Turn 1. Island
Turn 2. Counterspell
Turn 3. Cephalid Constable
Turn 4. Play Wings of Velis Vel and Distortion Strike on Cephalid Constable.
Now: Cephalid Constable is a 5/4 unblockable flying creature. Yout attack and he does 5 damage. And you get to bounce 5 permanents to your opponent's hand.

5 permanents!!! That is his entire field!!! You just bounced their entire field!!!
Now, every turn your opponent will play 1 land and 1 creature. And you just turn around and bounce them next turn with Constable.
Do that until you win.

It is my favorite deck I have built.
All for 15 dollars.

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Posted 25 June 2014 at 14:59

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What a beautiful deck! Annihilation on a budget (the ability, I mean)

I hear this thing can beat your wife's deck ... so it must work as well as it looks.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 05:57

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http://www.mtgvault.com/magiccontroller/decks/meanest-multi-discard/

It beat that one, in person (my friend's best deck), 4 times in a row.
That is bragging rights, my friend! Because his deck is brutal.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 14:53

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This is right up there with that infect deck ...

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 14:57

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Never faced an infect deck, to be honest.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 14:59

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Good. They are OP as hell ... kind of like mill.

That's why infect has a ridiculously hard counter: Sylvok Outcast.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 15:11

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Infect is kind of like poison and wither combined into one ability. Probably the most powerful static ability ever made. Just plain overpowered.

However melira does shut it down pretty hard.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 17:44

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Poison and wither ... I never thought of it that way! Undying does okay against it, too, especially if you have Zameck Guildmages or other ways to lose those +1/+1 counters.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 17:47

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I have an infect deck. Just never played against one. And it is about time...i remember the early days of magic...they had like only 2 or 3 cards whom poisoned. So Infect being so brutal...that was a long time coming.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 18:43

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The scary thing is that infect and poison stack since one is a triggered ability, and the other is a static ability.

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 21:43

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Don't you dare combine those ...

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Posted 07 July 2014 at 22:09

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Yeah... They are pretty ugly together. Give a 1/1 with infect poisonous 1 and it will give you 2 poison counters why time it damages you. Or more depending on if you give it a higher level of poisonous. :)

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 03:22

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Doubling Season ... ugh. That's just mean.

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 05:04

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That would be ugly. Even more poison counters. :)

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 17:04

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Vorel of the Hull Clade, Proliferate, .... I think that this calls for an evil deck.

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 17:14

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Hello again (too bad I can't + you again). I proxy'd this deck and played it at my local comic book store. Here are some things I learned and I really hope it helps you cause your decks are awesome:

It's absolutely crucial to get Cephalid Constable as fast as possible. Otherwise, you're a sitting duck. That being said, I would suggest putting in 4 preordains to help you search. I would take out the high tides and capsizes while upping the boomerang, impulse, eye of nowhere, and distortion strike to 4 each. Finally, to get down to 60, taking out 2 cryptoplasms (I reasoned they are dead cards once you have a the constable cephalid beefed up).

You're obviously have much more experience at making decks. These are just some suggestions I hope are useful. See you around!

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 09:58

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Thanks!!

And it is an honor that you would do that!! To proxy the deck. That made my freaking week!!! Just curious, how did the deck do against your friends? I am undefeated with the deck...but my wife had me down to 4 life last time I played. Only way I won was having 3 Constables out.

Yep, if you don't get Constable out, SUPER EARLY, it is going to be rough. That is where Drift of Phantasms and Impulse comes in. Drift lets you, for 3 mana, put a Constable in your hand. Impulse lets you look at the top 4 cards in your library...that is very strong!!! Impulse, lots of times, actually gets you the Constable. In the very least, Impulse is going to get you a bounce card to help you live long enough to get Constable out.

Distortion strike...actually do not run that in this deck. I added it because surewhynot suggested it. Look at that guys decks!!! He is one of the best deck makers on this site!!! His decks put mine to shame.

But I run Clout of the Dominus instead of Distortion Strike. Main reason is, Dominus gives Cephalid SHROUD and +1/+1. Main issue i was running into, was people trying to bounce/doom blade my Cephalid. So, for 1 mana, I was casting Dominus on my Cephalid AT THE SAME TIME I CAST Cephalid.

High tide is iffy. But on the 4th turn, if you have a Constable out...High tide can get you both a Wings of Velis Vel and Zephid's Embrace on a Constable!! And if he goes through unblocked, it is 6 permanents being returned to your opponent's hand!!! That usually is the game.

Most people do suggest taking out Capsize. IT is worth considering.

Thank you so much for your support and suggestions!!!

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 19:48

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Hmm ... that's really when cards like Legion's Initiative can save your ass.

This deck can duke it out with infect, herioc, and mill... and its YOUR brainchild. Nice work!

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 20:00

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To answer your question, it won about 75% of the games (haven't made the changes yet - see my other comment for the planned changes). As you mentioned, if you don't get the constable out early, you will likely lose. That's what happened in the games I lost. I WAS able to get the constable with drift, but it was turn 4 by the time I cast him and he had too many blockers. And even when I had wings and zephid attached, two times he had fliers out, chump blocked, and there was no way to deal direct damage. And even if there were no fliers, by then he already had enough permanents out to not affect him as much if I bounced stuff back.

I agree, the constable is susceptible to removal like path to exile, doom blade, unmake, etc., so clout would be great, except if they have enough blockers, the damage won't go through, even if you can bounce 1 or 2 blockers. That's why I suggested upping the distortion strike to 4. Even without wings or zephid, with 1 distortion, you are guaranteed at least 2 turns of at least 2 permanents each bounced back.

Back to the removal issue. You COULD consider vapor snag to save your creatures or bounce theirs (I think losing 1 life is worth the 1-mana cost, as opposed to all the other 2-mana bounce spells). You could also consider mana leaks, but by that time, you're removing lots of your other cards.

In any circumstance, give me another week to proxy the changes to see how it works and I'll keep you posted on the results. Still though. It also requires strategic playing (for example, depending on situation, deciding what to bounce back - lands, artifacts, creatures, or enchantments).

Still, I will sideboard proxy clout and some other spells (like snap in case they have lots of creatures) and see how it does. I still really like this deck. The guys at the comic book store already call it "the big breast deck" (hint hint - bounce!)

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 21:44

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Your first comment made my week. This comment made my month! Somewhere else, in another part of the country/world, my deck is being played (successfully) at a comic book store/magic shop!!!

And 75 percent, isn't too shabby! Especially for a deck that isn't modern/standard and cost less than 20 bucks!!!!!

Yes, it does require strategic playing!! Gitaxian Probe almost needs to be in here, somewhere. That way you would better know what would be beneficial to bounce. I usually aim at lands and creatures. Way I figure it...the less lands they have, the less options they have at slowing my bounce down. By you even stating that it requires strategy tells me that you are a sound player. :)

Your suggestions sounds very solid. Please tell me how it goes.

"Big Breast Deck"
I should change the name to that, but not sure if Magic Vault would approve!!

Again, thanks for making my day!!!

I know you said you found weaknesses. I have found one too. I have found...stuff like Distortion Strike and Wings of Velis Vel...if you already have Clout (in my case) and Zephid's Embrace on your Constable, the Velis Vel and Distortion strike becomes a dead card!! That is where Cryptoplasm comes into play. You can clone one of their creatures and pump it up with Velis Vel.

P.S. Have you got your opponent down to, in a game, to where you are board swiping every turn? Haha. Bounce/control like decks are evil!

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Posted 09 July 2014 at 03:49

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Hehehe, glad to make your day.
However, I believe that if an opponent wants to remove your creatures, he/she WILL find a way. Aside from the Paths to Exile, doom blades, etc., in the games I lost, a few times the constable was sacrificed by his liliana of the veil (I know, his ONE planeswalker costs THREE times as much as your entire deck) as well as geth's verdict. No way to counter those abilities/spells without counterspells...unless I can boomerang the constable back to my hand to save it. But I didn't have any in hand at the time. But I believe the lesson is that sacrificing can be a way for them to get around the clout...and unfortunately it's 2 for 1 (I mean, in terms of card advantage).

However, if you still want to go the shroud/hexproof route, I would suggest lightning greaves (probably will no longer be a budget deck, but only 2-colorless and free equip...and haste). Or how about swiftfoot boots (2-colorless, 1 to equip, hexproof and haste) - definitely budget. At least this way if they make you sacrifice, it's only 1 for 1 since the equipment will just fall off.

Just something to consider. Like I said, I will sideboard-proxy clout in case I see them have removal spells and stuff. Probably no updates until later in the week since I'm going to a Modern tournament. But to answer your last question, yes, 2 of the guys scooped because by the time the deck got going, I was bouncing ALL of their stuff EVERY turn. They had no creatures, no lands, NOTHING. Then they were forced to discard, and (I guess) weren't drawing any 1-mana cards to save them. Hahaha. The looks on their faces!!!

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Posted 09 July 2014 at 06:08

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I would love to play this deck against the azors elecutor deck that I designed. That might be an interesting game. :)

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 20:10

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Hmm ... how bout a fight with a defensive deck?

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 20:12

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Hmm... A defensive deck against mine or Jessie's deck?

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 20:30

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Against Jessie's

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Posted 08 July 2014 at 22:15

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The Mono white protection (wife's) had me down to 4 life. IT is the way to go. Gave her creatures Flickering Ward. Then giving my Cephalid, Recumbent Bliss. so that it can't attack/block.

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Posted 09 July 2014 at 03:26

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Or Pacifism or Oblivion Ring.

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Posted 09 July 2014 at 04:59

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Hey there. An update on proxy-ing and deck testing this deck. Played all day today. It has ~66% win rate. The constable is very susceptible to removal - doom blades, paths to exile, swords to plowshares, lightning bolts, shocks, sacrifice, etc. I know you can always boomerang it back to your hand, but not only do you need a lot of mana (5? 3 to summon, 2 to boomerang). Of course, you can always use the 1-mana spells unsummon and vapor snag to return the constable, but there are still tons of spells that will kill/sacrifice/exile him. This reminds me of Laboratory Maniac (I have a deck with him) - once they see the threat, the opponent will do everything they can to remove him.

I made the changes I stated earlier (Snap and Repulse). Those worked slightly better, but I was not able to protect the constable as much as I wanted. In the end, I would suggest putting in mana leaks, counterspells, and especially intervenes to protect the constable from removal. Yes, it means taking a lot of stuff out, but think of it like this, as long as you can protect the constable, even if they have a gigantic creature out there, you can always bounce him back. Once you get the ball rolling (with zephid's embrace or distortion strike), they will have few, if any, answers. So it's crucial to protect the constable (and find him of course - I threw in preordains as well).

Still, a >50% win ratio was great. Two or three people conceded before even losing 20 life cause they knew they had no answers hahaha. You should feel proud of this deck man! Anyway, I will probably put in the counter magic spells and let you know how it goes.

I also took a look at your 2-mana deck and proxy-d it. It wasn't bad, but I feel it could be very strong if it wasn't stuck to just 2 mana. Throw in a few 3 and 4 mana cards (still having a very low mana curve) and the win ratio will go up even more. I know, you want to stick to JUST 2 mana...but...just some suggestions. =)

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Posted 13 July 2014 at 10:47

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Awesome. I do appreciate all of this!! It probably is the best happy/cozy feelings I have received since joining this site!!

I rarely get to play Magic, besides the occasional newbie games with my wife, so I can't really make my decks better. So, I will probably just take up your advice/add the cards that work best for you!

Again, thank you so much tleung!!!

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Posted 13 July 2014 at 16:56

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Hey there. I made a deck based off of yours here:
http://www.mtgvault.com/tleung84633/decks/lockdown-and-bounce/

I haven't play-tested it yet but I wanted to know what you think (basically splashed in green buff spells and some more protection spells).

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Posted 30 July 2014 at 22:46

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Sorry, somehow I missed this posting.
Yeah, I've seen the deck in question.
Nasty stuff!

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Posted 23 September 2014 at 07:10

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hey i was just looking around and im not sure how old this is but u could add black vise for fun if your opponents have alot of cards in hand just for more damage

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Posted 24 August 2014 at 09:21

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That would be funny. Probably get some mean nasty looks for it. :)

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Posted 24 August 2014 at 19:13

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Thanks Brawler.
This is my favorite deck out of 80 decks I have built.
It is one of the few that I actually own in person.

I will sideboard Black Vise :)
Thanks.

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Posted 24 August 2014 at 20:07

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np glad to help ^^ and im totally gonna buy and use the deck it looks awesome if u would'nt mind, being your idea and all

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Posted 25 August 2014 at 08:10

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It makes my day to hear you will proxy the deck :)

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Posted 25 August 2014 at 18:16

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Bouncing lands. For $15. This deck is evil, and I love it.

I haven't read all the comments, but I don't know what else I can say that hasn't already been said.

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Posted 11 October 2014 at 07:51

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This is my favorite deck.
All mine.
I only changed out 1 card, as suggested.

For 15 dollars, it has made people swipe up their cards!!
Also, for 15 dollars, it has cleared my opponent's permanents on Turn 4.
Creatures, lands, and everything by Turn 4 or Turn 5.

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Posted 11 October 2014 at 18:56

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I hate to ask this, but do you mind looking at a deck for me? It's an old one that I'm revisiting; I'm trying to speed it up and after looking at this I was hoping you would have some advice. Ideally, I'd love to be able to get it done by turn 4 or 5 like you seem to.

http://www.mtgvault.com/anubis-monori/decks/phage-the-unusual/

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Posted 12 October 2014 at 08:23

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Jessie, are you back?! Or why is this on top of Unloved?

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Posted 04 February 2016 at 14:57

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Bored. Ha. Need to come back.
Kids.
School.
Job.

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Posted 11 February 2016 at 12:12

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Ah, finally ... this place wasn't the same without you!
Meanwhile I got something going on here ... *please* check this out, I need you on board!
http://www.mtgvault.com/puschkin/decks/the-deckhelp-alliance/

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Posted 11 February 2016 at 12:29

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Glad to hear that you're still alive :) How's it been?

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Posted 11 February 2016 at 12:51

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(Still using a mobile device for this... Double posted...)

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Posted 11 February 2016 at 12:51

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I have been okay. Busy, but okay. Yep. Will check it out, Puschkin.

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Posted 11 February 2016 at 17:26

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Sigil of Sleep?

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Posted 25 August 2017 at 12:46

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Pretty budget deck, get like.

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Posted 25 August 2017 at 14:59

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I have a land-bounce deck I use in pauper format which uses Banishing Knack/Retraction Helix and Brass Man / Pili-Pala to run the wholesale bounce.

A card I sideboard is Fade Away, which helps against aggro decks by forcing them to sack all their creatures. It's easy to have 2 lands and 3 creatures out before you start turn 2, and you're gonna have to find a way to deal with that.

The main vulnerability in my deck, much like yours, is removal. Celaphid Constable is a cool card, but if your deck relies on a single card for victory, people are gonna find ways to make you sad.

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Posted 25 August 2017 at 15:19

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Frozen Aether?

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Posted 25 August 2017 at 16:25

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