Spiffmeister

Yeah, i had o-rings in there, i like those.

Join the ranks is cool because it's instant speed, and triggers the allies twice.

You may be right about ajani and urd. Could take them out for flickerwisps and another kabira evangel...

Thanks!

To be honest, this all seems rather obvious to me, and I suppose it is to most experienced players. But I bet this is useful for beginners, or even more experienced players who want a more analytical look on deck-building (because that's what this article is about).

I'd like to see more info on the psychological part, though. Bluffing, overbluffing, intimidating,... Winning because your opponent is too scared to act because of that one card you keep holding onto... which ends up being a basic land. Building decks your meta never expects to keep them on edge, pushing your opponents into a strategy yoù want them to use, keeping you in control. Knowing how your opponent will react to a certain card or tactic, and using that reaction against him/her. That stuff's not only brilliant, it also wins you games!

Basically, reading Sun Tzu is a very useful thought. Noobs: do that! :-)

That's just great :-) I'm not a fan of turn 1 or infinite combo's, because they're just gimmicks, but this one's fun ^^

I play a lot of multiplayer as well, and I try to build my decks to survive there as much as possible. Some are even multiplayer only, like my extort/constellation deck; although it does OK in duels as well.

Either way, I've got a multiplayer only mono black discard deck that works gréat! It's loads of fun to play and véry aggravating to your opponent :-) Added bonuses: no creatures ànd it's 10 times as cheap as this deck! :-)
Might not be what you're looking for, but check it out maybe?

http://www.mtgvault.com/spiffmeister/decks/v-multiplayer-discard-fun/

You should add more fetch lands! They seem crucial to this deck!

Cool mill-deck, needs more combo's though!

I've got a mill-deck that's mostly oriented on multiplayer games, but obviously does great in duels as well. It has many lands abusing Hedron Crab's ability, and lots of stuff abusing cards getting or being milled.

Check it out!

http://www.mtgvault.com/spiffmeister/decks/m-multiplayer-millman-2/

Might wanna check this out:

http://www.mtgvault.com/spiffmeister/decks/lets-not-make-friends-today/

It's a mighty similar deck that' I've perfected over almost a year. It's véry hard to beat, and usually your opponent scoops around turn 4 or whatever. It's also véry cheap, not counting the fetch lands.

Psychic Venom, Rhystic Study, Soul Barrier, Power Sink, Early Frost, Capsize... are all possible improvements. Even a Mana Leak is pretty sweet here, although I much prefer Power Sink.

Allies are awesome, but this could be made much cheaper and more efficient. The artifacts are fun, but reduce the chance of having allies to play; and with only 21 allies and no card draw, you're gonna run out of fuel quick!

I've got a similar deck, that's much cheaper, and a chunkload more versatile and consistent. It's only very rarely been beaten. Check it out!

http://www.mtgvault.com/spiffmeister/decks/m-allies-of-ajani-2/

I like Kheru Lich Lord, it's a brilliant card! I think the combo is a bit hard to pull off though. There's only 8 walls to sac, ànd you need Gift of Immortality to pull it off, both are very susceptible to removal... Also, it only works once each turn.

I've got a golgari deck revolving around saccing creatures with toughness 4 or more that's way cheaper than this, and is far more versatile. It's also much more fun to play :-) Check it out for ideas!

http://www.mtgvault.com/spiffmeister/decks/s-golgarilicious/

Same here! The cool thing about decks like this, is that your opponents won't know what to expect. That might seem silly, but it's an advantage, for you. It's very Sun Tzu. Seriously! :-)

+1 for the name ;-) Their creatures are like ants being commanded by Cordyceps Universalis to crawl where you want them to, where they die and make you stronger. Brilliant!

Anytime :-)

Perhaps switch Goblin War-Paint with Ordeal of Purphoros? The haste it gives is useless in this deck, and the ordeal can trigger quite quickly with all these counters you've got.

Did you actually manage to get the budget from 1500 to over 8000 dollars for a deck that's not even legal in any format and can still lose to 5-dollar decks? This is ridiculous.

Yes, don't trust anyone :p

I'd be envious if it wàs your own deck :-) I just don't deal with budgets like that. It's a fun mental plaything if you don't have the cash, I suppose (and a very cool plaything if you hàve the cash), but I prefer to try to get the most out of the cheap cards as possible. But to each his own :-)

Oy, this is not my cup of tea, I don't deal with multi-hundred dollar decks, let alone multi-thousand dollar decks :p

However: switch Aphetto Alchemist with Kiora's Follower. It untaps any permanent, so it also untaps lands. Alos, it's cheap :p

Hah, I see some room for improvement, but this is a really fun idea :-) Well-chosen name! In politics, there's also lots of backstabbing :p (cfr reins of power).

Yup, that's it indeed! I love showing people who the bigger threat is, while I'm hoarding several dozens of life and a board domination :p

Groovy :-) Got quite some good points there, many of them I learned the hard way :p I'm now in the position where, whichever deck I play, I always hear "Ah man, not thàt deck! We're all dead... Scoop!!!" when I play my first card. And then they all target me :p So I'm trying to turn that around, but it's not easy.

Would not have made that mistake if this page was made earlier :p