Blue Skies

Hello everyone,

While I was reviewing the cards spoiled so far in preparation to the pre-release that’s just around the corner, I noticed there are quite a number of creatures that flies in Dominaria. I revisited a deck I brewed in the past and there are a lot of fliers now that can propel Favorable Winds as a great constructed card.

There are no anthem-like effects that’s as cheap as Favorable Winds and unlike Radiant Destiny, we don’t care playing whatever creature type as long as they fly. Flying-tribal can now be a thing thanks to Dominaria.

Tempest Djinn is a crazy ridiculous. Alone it’s a 3/4 flying creature for 3 mana in a mono blue shell. If you played Favorable Winds on turn 2, this comes down as a 4/5 and becomes a super strong, super fast clock in the air.

Zahid is another crazy potential 4-drop if you have an artifact you can tilt sideways. Again, alone this is a 5/6 that bows to no one in the air and with Favorable Winds on the battlefield, a 6/7 flier is no laughing matter.

Blue is not the best color in the Red Zone (pun intended) but it does a fine job putting threats in the air and we want to play early creature to maximize damage throughput once you play Favorable Winds on turn 2. Siren Stormtamer and Hope of Ghirapur are great options as a 1/1 flying 1-drop. Siren does a great job in countering Settle the Wreckage which this deck absolutely hates. Hope of Ghirapur also does a fine job depriving the opponent from ramping which is common nowadays with Ramp. With GPG on the rise, it’s also stops the opponent from casting Gate to the Afterlife on turn 5 where they usually cast it and crack it to fetch the GPG.

On the 2-drop slot we showcase an enabler, a disabler, and an aggressor. Aether Swooper looks unassuming but it is another way to put an artifact into the battlefield for Zahid’s alternative cost. Warkite Marauder was exceptional in the UR GPG decks by disabling Rekindling Phoenixes and Scarab Gods. Storm Fleet Aerialist for me is the best follow up if you did get to play a 1-drop and swing with it on turn 2. A 2/3 for 2 is well beyond the curve which is better than T2 Favorable Winds because by swapping the order of SFA and Favorable Winds, you get to swing in for 5 on T3 instead of 2.

On the 3-drop slot we have Aethersphere Harvester which is relevant in a meta filled with mono red aggro. The life gain can set the opponent back a turn or two which can be enough for us to stabilize. It’s also blocks most fliers played in standard today and survive to block another day. Another thing, Harvester can also help us cast Zahid next turn by tapping it.

For our noncreature spells, we will play Unsummon which is not really a removal spell but rather a time walk spell if the opponent plays a Hazoret on turn 4 and we unsummon it back, essentially the opponent has wasted his 4th turn doing nothing to the board.

Lastly we will play some card draw in Chart a Course. We will essentially draw 2 cards all the time because we will mostly be attacking through the entire game anyway.

On the sideboard, we have a bunch of counter magic depending on the match-up.

Against pure control decks, Negate and Spell Pierce are effective tempo plays that will stop a turn 4 Hieroglyphic or Glimmer, or a Turn 2 Azcanta on the draw. These are also great sweepers that your opponents will play on their 4-5th turn without mana to spare.

Dive Down comes in against decks that play a lot of cheap removal like Lightning Strike, Unlicensed Disintegration because we essentailly 2-for-1 then because they lost a removal spell and we get to keep our threat alive.

Crook is our insurance policy against Rekindling, Khenras, Scarab, Scrapheaps, Dread Wanderers, Azcanta and much more. It also helps us with Zahid post board when we need to take out Swooper to get in Crooks in the same curve.

Blink of an Eye is our only answer to artifacts or enchantment hates that went through our counter magic. I chose this over Expel from Orazca because it provides that incidental draw if we have the mana to spare.

The deck is a measly $34 dollars but we can see the power level this deck can bring. Turn sequence can be something like this:

1. Cast Siren Stormtamer as a 1/1
2. Attack with Siren, cast Storm Fleet Aerialist as a 2/3 (opponent @ 19)
3. Swing with Siren + SFA, cast Tempest Djinn (opponent @ 16)
4. Cast Favorable Winds, attack with Stormtamer (2/2), SFA (3/4), Djinn (5/4), cast Chart a Course to draw 2 cards (opponent @ 6)
5. Swing for lethal.

or:

1. Hope of Ghirapur
2. Attack Hope (19), cast Aether Swooper (+2 energy)
3. Attack Hope + Swooper (17), make a servo, cast Aethersphere Harvester
4. Tap Servo, cast Zahid, tap Hope to crew Harvester, swing with all (13)
5. Cast Favorable Winds, Servo to crew Harvester, swing with 6/5 Zahid, 4/5 Harvester, 2/3 Swooper, 2/2 Hope for lethal.

That’s it for tonight, need to pack for my flight back home!

See you guys soon!

Vanson