This post is for all you Timmys out there. I recently got an email from a friend asking for help with a Polymorph deck. I went to the drawing board and asked myself, “How I would build a virtually creatureless deck in standard?” This is what I came up with. Enjoy!
Creatures
2 Progenitus
Spells
4 Thopter Foundry
4 Angel Song
3 Path To Exile
2 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
3 Negate
4 Polymorph
4 Mistvein Borderpost
4 Fieldmist Borderpost
4 Ponder
3 Day of Judgment
2 Liliana Vess
1 Sorin Markov
Lands
4 Terramorphic
4 Arcane Sanctum
6 Plains
2 Islands
2 Swamp
2 Gargoyle Castle
Sideboard
2 Iona, Shield of Emeria
4 Dragon's Claw
1 Path to Exile
4 Spell Pierce
3 Silence
1 Sorin Markov
The first question was, “What Creature do I want to Polymorph?” Here are nominees and my thoughts on their relevance.
Progenitus
The main reason that I chose Progenitus is that he can’t be blocked. He is almost certainly ends the game in two swings. The only thing that it dies to is Day of Judgment and the hope is that Negate will keep that from happening.
Darksteel Colossus
DSC is high on the list because he absolutely destroys Jund. They can’t remove him and he essentially ends the game in two swings. He doesn’t die to Day of Judgment and it’s not legendary, so you can run three copies and Polymorph multiple times. It’s not impossible to cast him late game and he shuffles back into your library if you get the chance to discard him (Blightning). The big problem is that Path to Exile, Journey to Nowhere and Oblivion Ring are all prevalent forms of removal. Since this deck relies heavily on Polymorphing your target should be as resilient as possible. I did not use DSC but he is an excellent sideboard option against Mono Red, Jund.
Iona, Shield of Emeria
Iona shuts down mono color decks but is not great against decks that have multiple colors because it’s still possible for them to still pull off a miracle. I put her in the sideboard against mono color decks and Turbofog. If you name “white“ against Turbofog you essentially shut down their fog and their removal.
Empyrial Archangel
This is another beastly angel that has a unique effect on the game. It’s very attractive because it has shroud and absorbs damage. The problem is that it takes at least 4 turns to end the game and it can be chump blocked. I have excluded Archangel from my list, but I still maintain it as an option in the back or my head. It may be the answer to really fast decks like Boros. It also got me to think of the deck in a slightly different way.
I was tempted to build the deck Bant colors with Garruk Wildspeaker – in that frame you could feasibly play a “quick” Archangel or Polymorph a Garruk Token. You can also “Overrun” with Garruk usings tokens from Thopter Foundry, Garruk and Elespeth. In this build I would add Ajani Goldmane over Sorin Markov. The fundamental problem with this build is finding Polymorph. I am not sure that the deck is good enough without it.
Thopter Foundry
This is the key to the deck. You can sacrifice the foundry to itself to make a token, which can give you a turn four polymorph. Using the Foundry with the Borderpost is an excellent way to stall (making a blocker and gaining a life) it can also be a win condition when back by Elspeth. After sideboard you have more scrap metal in the form of Dragon’s Claw.
Home Team
The deck is mostly removal and stall effects so I needed a way to win without Polymorph -lets hope it doesn’t come to that. The planeswalkers do most of the heavy lifting in this respect. The idea was to use planeswalkers that further my “Polymorph cause” as well as affect the game to benefit me.
Liliana Vess – Tutors Polymorph or pitches Progenitus/ Darksteel Colossus (whichever you chose to use).
Elspeth, Knight-Errant - Makes a token for Polymorph or can be a win condition/ stall tactic.
Sorin Markov- Kills things and keeps you alive. He can also put them to ten life which means one Progenitus swing will get the job done.
Conclusion
I think the rest of the deck speaks for itself. There are many ways to build it. If you want something feasible and fun for states, then this is your deck! Thanks for reading.
JM Tweet this!
