The Casual Gamer

There is always one card during spoilers that just sparks my creative juices. That's a good and a bad thing. Especially when you discover that card just before you go to bed at night. Needless to say Eidolon of the Great Revel is now responsible for one sleepless night. 

This week has been a big spoiler week for Journey Into Nyx. The already revealed three gods and a green/white Ajani have made jaws drop around the shop. As I was relaxing in bed I decided to check the spoiler sites again just incase a new god had been revealed. The Eidolon happened to be the new reveal for the evening. 

At first most bashed this card because it has a bad synergy with red burn. I mean who is play 4+ mana burn? Nobody wants to drop a three point lightning strike only to get two back in the face from your very own private dancer. Yet to me this was the card I had been looking for to fit in with a deck mechanic that has been a favorite of mine since I started playing MTG: Land Destruction.

The thing about land destruction is that it is pricey. There really isn't a land destruction spell that costs less than 4. That kind of price tag just doesn't fit in most 1-2-3 burn decks. It also plays to what Lex Luthor from Superman the movie said about the importance of land. He was going to blow up half of California and kill Lois Lane because of land. Land is the most important card in Magic the Gathering.

People always ask when coming to the store what cards I am looking to buy or trade for. The easiest answer is land. Scry lands, Shock Lands, Fetch Lands, Dual Lands, and all the crazy lands in between. No matter how much this game changes it all comes back to one card that holds it all together, land.

So after sitting up, rocking a baby back to sleep, and sitting up some more I came up with what I call Junk Jund. This is the foundation I am using for my deck design to start the build for Eidolon. This deck is playable in standard and costs less than ten dollars to build. You should have most in your junk boxes at home.

Junk Jund

Creatures: 15

4 Elvish Mystic
4 Satyr Hedonist
4 Voyaging Satyr
3 Ember Swallower

Spells: 22

4 Lay of the Land
3 Bramblecrush
4 Demolish
3 Gild
4 Destroy the Evidence
4 Frenzied Tilling

Lands: 23

10 Forest
8 Mountain
5 Swamp

Yup, pretty basic. Yet this is how I like to deck build for future sets. I like to see how glue cards work. This deck will have it's teeth with Eidolon and a few more cards, but the true basis of the deck is here and that is fast land destruction.

For the Eidolon to truly work you want to keep your opponent below three mana production. For most that will be land. The first step is getting your land destruction out by turn three. Then begin ticking down your opponent's land count.

My MVP of this deck is Destroy the Evidence. In land destruction this card is pure money. It's five mana and it takes two lands out of your opponent's deck plus mills a few cards on the way. It also takes away your opponent's next land draw with the second land dump. That little ignored fact is huge in land destruction.

Ember Swallower is an interesting card. A 4/5 for four is nice. Make him a monster and he wipes three lands. That hurts you, but if you put your opponent at 0 lands on turn 5 with a 7/8 to deal with that is a game changer. Plus with mana rampers like Mystic, Voyager, and Hedonist dropping three of your own lands shouldn't hurt as much. 

I enjoy Gild for removal because exile works well to take care of gods. Bramblecrush is good for land removal and planeswalker removal. Demolish is the staple for land removal. You should be able to play it on turn 3 to begin land control. 

By no means will this deck go win a PTQ, but it is a good start to what I hope will end up being a strong tournament deck. Even better is the current price tag. It allows me to feel better about plugging in about 40-50 dollars in money cards down the line. 

Keep checking the blog for updates on play testing. There is going to be a ton of spoilers coming over the next few days. Fingers crossed for a big land destruction spell. Follow us on Facebook as we talk about the spoilers daily. 

Finally circle April 26th, 2014 on your smartphone as Nerdageddon hosts our first prerelease. Entry will be $25 and first place will get a booster box of Journey Into Nyx. Other prizes will be determined by the amount of players. Sign up begins at noon and deck construction starts at 1:00 PM. We'll have door prizes through out the day.

Now I'm off to throw this junk together. Enjoy spoiler week!