Deck Tech: Chad's Child of Alara (EDH/Commander)

Hello everyone! Chad here, known by most as CaptainTempest and/or CaptainToaster, and welcome to the second edition of Deck Tech!

Today I'll be going over the Commander deck that I'm notorious for, Child of Alara. Though it isn't one of my oldest Commander decks, it has certainly proved itself worthy to be among the ranks of my top favorites. The other members of the Talk Box like to joke that I'm obsessed with boardwipes and casting spells at instant speed. Well, they're not really joking. It's true. At least with this deck, it's true. I was inspired to build it after discovering a list from rtsands45 on MTGSalvation.

Scary little fella, isn't he?

Child of Alara commands the helm of a ramp deck that plays a grindy control game, using the titular card as a consistent way to reset the board when things get too cluttered, or when I don't have as stable of a board state compared to other players. Since he's also a sturdy 6/6 with trample, it's not uncommon for me to swing into the red zone with him to rack up damage, though to this date, he hasn't killed someone by dealing 21. Child specifically has to be sent to the graveyard in order for its built-in boardwipe ability to work, which means that it wouldn't be sent back to the command zone for recasting, so I require ways to recur it. In addition, nonland permanents do not stick around with Child constantly clearing the field, so most permanents that are in the deck are either a.) indestructible, b.) benefit from dying, or c.) don't need to be on the field that long to be effective. I back this up with a lot of spells that draw cards and spells that 'X-for-1' in some way to provide card advantage. The biggest con to playing this deck is that if Child gets tucked or shuffled into my library somehow, the deck loses a majority of its staying power and is usually neutralized for the remainder of the game.

Here's the full list.

Now that you've gotten a basic picture, let's dive in and see some details about the 99.

LANDS:

Lands are the most important part of this deck. They're the only permanent Child of Alara doesn't destroy when it boardwipes, and as such provides great opportunities for utility lands to shine. Since I'm running all five colors, getting access to all five of them is vital. As such, I run a lot of nonbasic lands that can tap for multiple colors of mana. This is rather budgeted compared to most five-color decklists I've seen. I don't have the luxury to acquire sets of original duals and fetches, but I haven't had any issues with this current setup.

1-10: Hallowed Fountain, Watery Grave, Blood Crypt, Stomping Ground, Temple Garden, Godless Shrine, Steam Vents, Overgrown Tomb, Sacred Foundry, Breeding Pool

Since their reprinting in Return to Ravnica block, the ten shocklands became much easier to acquire. Thus, I was easily able to trade for a set of them to include in this deck. The fact that they have basic land types is vital, as they become searchable with my ramp spells.

11-16: Seaside Citadel, Arcane Sanctum, Crumbling Necropolis, Savage Lands, Jungle Shrine, Murmuring Bosk

Similarly to the shocklands, the tri-lands also seemed like an auto-include. People tend to forget the "sixth tri-land" Murmuring Bosk. Even if we're not running Treefolk, it still gets the job done. And its a Forest, so its searchable with some of my ramp spells.

17-21: Command Tower, Exotic Orchard, Reflecting Pool, Rupture Spire, Transguild Promenade

These lands are included since they can tap for mana of any color.

22-23: High Market, Miren, the Moaning Well

These allow us to sacrifice Child at the drop of a hat. They won't be destroyed from the ensuing boardwipe, and they also can be used to sac creatures that would otherwise be stolen or targeted.

24: Volrath's Stronghold

The best reusable way to reclaim Child from the graveyard, and generally one of the top lands in EDH. Sacrifice Child to either High Market or Miren, place it back on top of your library before your draw step through the Stronghold, then draw him, cast, and repeat as necessary.

25-26: Kor Haven, Prahv, Spires of Order

For those pesky Voltron generals and otherwise troublesome creatures, Kor Haven and Prahv do an excellent job of nullifying them.

27-30: Alchemist's Refuge, Bojuka Bog, Krosan Verge, Reliquary Tower

These four round off the remainder of my utility lands. Alchemist's Refuge is a superior Winding Canyons that allows me to cast anything I want at instant speed, Bojuka Bog is an EDH staple that can deal with problematic graveyard recursion, Krosan Verge is the only real "fetch" that I run in this deck, and Reliquary Tower is another useful EDH staple.

31-40: 2x Plains, 3x Island, 1x Swamp, 1x Mountain, 3x Forest

The last ten slots in my land count are basics, included in the increments that I need based on the majority colors of my spells.

SPELLS:

41-54: Coiling Oracle, Cultivate, Darksteel Ingot, Explosive Vegetation, Kodama's Reach, Mana Reflection, Mirari's Wake, Oracle of Mul Daya, Reap and Sow, Recross the Paths, Skyshroud Claim, Solemn Simulacrum, Urban Evolution, Wood Elves

The ramp package. Pretty standard in terms of spells, allowing me to get my basics out quickly and drop multiple lands a turn. Darksteel Ingot persists through Child's destruction. Oracle of Mul Daya allow me to "dig" through my library when paired with top-card manipulation like Darksteel Pendant and Jace, the Mind Sculptor. Skyshroud Claim and Wood Elves get some mileage, as they can hit shocklands. Mana Reflection and Mirari's Wake, despite being permanents and thus weak to Child, can fuel some backbreaking plays if left unchecked.

55-63: Aeon Chronicler, Conflux, Deep Analysis, Fact or Fiction, Mulldrifter, Sphinx of Uthuun, Steam Augury, Time Spiral, Wheel of Fortune

Drawing cards is another key piece of this deck. Aeon Chronicler is a great consistent engine while he's suspended. Conflux allows me to tutor up pretty much anything and everything I need. Everything else is just standard issue.

64-80: Annihilate, Bind, Decree of Justice, Decree of Pain, Dismantling Blow, Dismiss, Exclude, Into the Roil, Nihil Spellbomb, Overwhelming Intellect, Resounding Silence, Resounding Wave, Second Thoughts, Slice in Twain, Squelch, Teferi's Response, Twisted Justice

Cantrips! This is what I was really impressed by in rtsands45's build, and what inspired me to make my own. These cards can cycle and draw cards in addition to being awesome spells. Decree of Justice can win games just by cycling for X at the end of someone's turn, especially if I happen to have Mirari's Wake out. Resounding Silence and Resounding Wave can be used under effects that limit casting spells (I'm looking at you Teferi) via cycling, and can also be near uncounterable when cycled. Bind, Dismiss, Exclude, Overwhelming Intellect, and Squelch are all great counterspells, albeit situational ones. Teferi's Response in particular is really specific, but I guarantee you'll see some form of land destruction in a game from cards like Terastodon or Sylvan Primordial. I might consider including Scatter Arc if I can find room for it. Twisted Justice can also be used to sacrifice Child in the event that one of the sac lands is not available.

81-99: Akroma's Vengeance, Bound // Determined, Colossus of Akros, Constant Mists, Creepy Doll, Cyclonic Rift, Darksteel Colossus, Darksteel Pendant, Eternal Witness, Fracturing Gust, Gift of Immortality, Invulnerability, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Progenitus, Reiterate, Stuffy Doll, Time Stop, Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre, Wurmcoil Engine

Rounding off the rest of my spells are finishers, utility spells, and backup boardwipes. Darksteel Pendant is my budget replacement for Sensei's Divining Top, though I prefer the Pendant thanks to it being indestructible. Cyclonic Rift and Fracturing Gust are boardwipes that provide some advantageous virtual card advantage, and Akroma's Vengeance is a classic. Constant Mists and Invulnerability can protect me in combat situations similarly to Kor Haven and Prahv. Gift of Immortality is dirty in combination with Child, and Bound can be both a sacrifice outlet for Child as well as a way to return him to my hand. Big goofy creatures like Colossus of Akros, Darksteel Colossus, Progenitus, Ulamog, and Wurmcoil Engine stick around after Child clears the field. Creepy Doll and Stuffy Doll are the only creatures that I'm iffy about, but I haven't come across anything in my collection that can replace them as of yet. If I can get my hands on a Blightsteel Colossus, I guarantee that will replace one of them.

And that's the deck! It can a force to be reckoned with once it gets going, though it does have its downsides if it gets focused early or loses access to Child. I've certainly caused my share of headaches with this deck, and I imagine I'll only continue to do so as time goes on. Thanks for reading my first deck tech! I'm open to suggestions if there's a card you think could synergize well with my particular build. Let me know your thoughts in the comments section below!

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Chad Dominique
CaptainTempest of the Talk Box Podcast
Twitter: @cmdominique
Steam: CaptainTempest

Talk Box Comic: Winter Fun

Happy Holidays!

Deck Tech: Adam's Selesnya Aggro (Standard)

 Hey guys! Welcome to the first edition of Deck Tech. This time we'll be looking at my Selesnya Aggro standard deck. Here is the list:

This is a pretty straight forward aggro deck I put together. The goal of the deck is to get enough creatures out to over run my opponent with damage. Using cards such as Phytoburst, Unflinching Courage and the two Ordeal cars allow me to pump up my creatures for more damage, as well as the Slaighterhorn for Bloodrush. Being a Selesnya deck, I have tokens, which Trostani, Call of the Conclave and Vitu-Ghazi Guildmage help me create. This is the second version of the deck, the first version doing pretty ok in a causal setting. I haven't played it at an FNM yet, so I'm not to sure how this works. I might take a few cards out for my UG deck, but we'll see. The great thing about being aggro, is the relative low mana cost of the cards, hopefully allowing me to get the upper hand.

Any comments, suggestions or praise for the deck? Let me know below. 

Will Over Fear: How The Green Lantern Saved My Life

For those people who know me well, the Green Lantern is my all time favorite superhero. Sure, I get part of my nickname from Captain America, but Cap will never shine the light (pun intended) that Hal Jordan and company have shone in my general direction.
I remember my first encounter with my budding love for the comic. I was at Six Flags with some friends, looking at the capes they had, trying to pick one out for my girlfriend. After deciding to get a little something for myself, my eyes wandered over to some hats on a table. Being a lover of hats, I decided to get one. I reached for a Flash or Batman one (can't recall) when a green snap-back with a black brim caught my eye. The words "Green Lantern" where written across the front in white lettering. Instinct told me to pick it up and purchase it. As fate would have it, I had also started to watch the Green Lantern animated series online, so the fit seemed natural.
Fast forward a month or two. I was at the mall with my girlfriend and her roommate. After aimlessly wandering around Lids for a while, we moved on to Newberry Comics, a favorite store of mine. While there are a billion things in that store I could have purchased, something drew me over to the graphic novels. My eyes scanned the shelves, looking to buy something to start a comic collection. And there it was. Geoff John's 2009 masterpiece of a mini series collected in one book. Blackest Night. I was itching to read it since hearing about it on the internet. I quickly snatched it up and headed to the counter with my purchase. As fate would have it, Green Lantern: Emerald Knights was on sale at FYE, and such began my obsession with the man called Hal Jordan.
There are four main Green Lanterns I could have been drawn to: John Stewart, Kyle Radner, Guy Garner and Hal Jordan. But something about Hal Jordan, The Man Without Fear, drew me to reading his stories. Tales of love and lost, betrayal and defeat, sacrifice and victory flew by my eyes as I read Blackest Night. Something about this man, this fictional character, connected with me on an emotional level. But what was it. Then it clicked. The Man Without Fear. The man who showed tremendous will power, enough to be the first Green Lantern from Earth. The man who lost everything multiple times, only to rise back to his feet and stare evil in the face. The man who looked death in the face multiple times and said "Come and get me". The man, despite all this, still fears for the ones he loves and has moments of self-doubt. The Man Without Fear who was still afraid.
"How could this be?" I thought. "How can the so called Man Without Fear be afraid?" I knew that all superheroes had a flaw, but fear is the natural opposite of will, the core power of the Green Lantern Corps. Then I made the realization that started to change my life. Hal Jordan could overcome fear because of his will power. He took on the emotion that should have been his weakness and turned it into his greatest strength. "If a fictional character could do that," I thought to myself, "why can't I?"
To the people I trust and care about, they know that I struggle with anxiety and some minor depression. It has hindered me in the past, caused me to lose all control and fail miserably at school and some aspects of life. When I made the realization that Hal Jordan and I weren't so different, I had already been kicked out of school the second time, this time for good. I was really down and out, disappointed with myself, looking for someone to blame. I didn't want to continue feeling like a failure. So I made myself a promise. A promise that would help whenever I was feel depressed or anxious, whenever my mind went full throttle and would send me into panic attack. It stated "If Hal Jordan can do what he did, you can accomplish whatever you want." Sure, I still have my major set backs. I haven't accomplished everything I wanted to by now. But I started. With my anxiety acting up at the stupidest things, its a miracle I got done what few things I did. I'm proud of myself for it.
It may be weird that I'm comparing my life to a fictional character, but it works. Whenever I'm down for the count, I put on some music or pick up a book, yet my mind wanders to the Green Lantern. Like him, I am afraid. Afraid of failing again. Afraid of letting my friends and family down. Afraid of letting myself slip into a dark place. My eyes wander over to my book shelf as I write this, knowing that in the many pages that are stored there is a man. A man who can overcome fear and loss. A man who I am glad to say is a hero to me and many other people. I can't say when I will, but one day I will become just like him. A man without fear. A man who can turn his greatest weakness into his greatest strength.
I am Adam Bento. The Green Lantern known as Hal Jordan saved my life. I was pulled out of the darkest period of my life and into the light. I do not know when I will fully come out of it. But when I do, I can say that a fictional man in one of the most influential comic books of the past ten years saved me with one important lesson:

Will Over Fear

Talk Box Comic: Betrayal The Finale

The gang finally beat the scenario...to disappointing results.

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Talk Box Comic: Betrayal Part 3

Part 3 of our Betrayal Series! Pat has a personal disappointment