Introduction
This is the third installment of my trophy-winning decks on Magic Arena. Right now, I am jamming all of the Kaldheim drafts I can. Or at least until the gems run out. I did purchase the 22,000 gem package when Kaldheim was released, and have lost track of just how many drafts I have completed. I have, though, completed enough to obtain a full set of Kaldheim rares through drafting, and all but 16 mythic rares so far. Not infinite, but not bad for someone who loves drafting and playing constructed. It’s the most economical (and enjoyable) way to complete sets.
You can find me on Magic Arena under MagicLibrarian or Ludologists.
The Draft
I’ll be posting several trophy-winning decks shortly, and unfortunately, none of them have the draft included. I will try to make this standard in the future.
The Deck
The visual decklist:
And the textual decklist:
2x Elven Bow
2x Jaspera Sentinel
2x Masked Vandal
1x Path to the World Tree
1x Sculptor of Winter
1x Golden Pick
1x Crush the Weak
2x Svella, the Shaper
1x The Bears of Littjara
1x Augury Raven
1x Basalt Ravager
1x Dwarven Reinforcements
1x Sarulf’s Packmate
2x Berg Strider
3x Squash
1x Run Ashore
1x Island
5x Mountain
7x Forest
1x Snow-Covered Forest
1x Volatile Fjord
1x Gnottvold Slumbermound
1x Rimewood Falls
Sideboard:
Since this is Bo1, the sideboard doesn’t get to be used mid-games. However, I open the comments for suggestions on how I could have improved the deck. Just because it won a trophy (going 7-2) does not mean I built this optimally. Despite having powerful cards, I did not feel very confident with this deck and was surprised it made it to the end.
Deck Thoughts
The Mana
Unlike my previous two trophy winners, this one is more of a 2-color deck with splashing.
The Bombs
2x Svella, the Shaper performed just as you would expect. The rest of the deck functioned well accomplishing its goal: keep the game in control until one of the two Svellas could take over.
The Overperformers
Dwarven Recruitments performed better than I expected. Chump blocking, pick carrying, Basalt Ravager enabling
Last Cuts
I strongly considered including the counterspell but ultimately opted against it. Still not sure if that was the right call. Perhaps over Crush the Weak?
Other Thoughts
Green 2-drop shapeshifters + Squash have enabled many of my greedier builds. The 3x Squash + 2x Masked Vandal ensured I could make it into the mid-game several games during this run. Doubling up on the Vandal also helped me feel a bit less guilty about not getting “value” from the ETB (enters the battlefield) effect.
