OLD LIST, current one in third post
Here's an Esper control deck I'm tinkering on, partly just for kicks, partly in case Survival gets the axe next month.
It's a fairly traditional board control build with a focus on card draw, sweepers and counterspells with some finishers mixed in.
//Meat
Vampire Hexmage
Tidehollow Sculler
Trinket Mage
Aven Riftwatcher
Aven Mindcensor
Kitchen Finks
Shadowmage Infiltrator
Vendilion Clique
Solemn Simulacrum
Glen Elendra Archmage
Venser, Shaper Savant
Mulldrifter
Shriekmaw
Baneslayer Angel
Draining Whelk
//Other permanents
Land Tax
Sensei's Divining Top
Executioner's Capsule
Relic of Progenitus
Azorius Signet
Dimir Signet
Orzhov Signet
Sword of the Meek
Thopter Foundry
Crucible of Worlds
Propaganda
Ghostly Prison
Oblivion Ring
Jace Beleren
Elspeth, Knight-Errant
//Spells
Swords to Plowshares
Path to Exile
Ancestral Vision
Brainstorm
Argivian Find
Duress
Muddle the Mixture
Counterspell
Negate
Remand
Demonic Tutor
Diabolic Edict
Merchant Scroll
Intuition
Thirst for Knowledge
Compulsive Research
Mortify
Vindicate
Relearn
Esper Charm
Mystical Teachings
Gifts Ungiven
Fact or Fiction
Wrath of God
Damnation
Day of Judgment
Cryptic Command
Force of Will
Bribery
Tidings
Mind Twist
Martial Coup
//Lands
5x Island
3x Plains
2x Swamp
Reflecting Pool
Arcane Sanctum
Vesuva
Jwar Isle Refuge
Sejiri Refuge
Marsh Flats
Polluted Delta
Flooded Strand
Windswept Heath
Verdant Catacombs
Terramorphic Expanse
Hallowed Fountain
Watery Grave
Godless Shrine
Tropical Island
Celestial Colonnade
Creeping Tar Pit
Faerie Conclave
Mishra's Factory
Ancient Den
Seat of the Synod
Vault of Whispers
Wasteland
Tectonic Edge
Tolaria West
Volrath's Stronghold
Academy Ruins
Dark Depths
I'm slightly hesitant on Draining Whelk because it has no protection (perhaps Sphinx of Jwar Isle instead?), and am wondering if I should include Loam as the deck's sole green card just for the ease of constructing mean Gifts piles. As for the Tropical Island, it's there to enable cracking green fetches for blue. Not sure if it's the best of ideas, but it should work. Any and all suggestions welcome.
Nope Trop isnt a good idea.
You dont even play every U-Fetch.
And no Tundra, Scrub, Usea.
I would cut the cipt "Duals" for basics and more fetch.
The new UW manland is crap imo.
You need 5 mana to attack every turn.
I would play Talisman over Signets.
After a looong break from control highlander (Pattern-Rector <3), I built a new Esper control list from scraps. The one I built earlier this year felt horrible, and clunky, but this one feels much nicer. Any glaring flaws in the current list?
//Esper Control 2.0
//Creatures:
Tidehollow Sculler
Wall of Omens
Stoneforge Mystic
ShriekmawJourney to Nowhere
Knight of the White Orchid
Vampire Nighthawk
Mirror Entity
Kitchen Finks
Mulldrifter
Wall of Denial
Hypnotic Specter
Vendilion Clique
Aven Mindcensor
Sanctum Gargoyle
Sower of Temptation
Glen Elendra Archmage
Venser, Shaper Savant
Baneslayer Angel
Reveillark
Body Double
Karmic Guide
Wurmcoil Engine
//Other permanents:
Sensei's Divining Top
Bitterblossom
Sword of the Meek
Thopter Foundry
Talisman of Progress
Talisman of Dominance
Azorius Signet
Orzhov Signet
Courier's Capsule
Jace Beleren
Oblivion Ring
Sword of Light and Shadow
Sword of Fire and Ice
Elspeth, Knight-Errant
Faith's Fetters
Tezzeret the Seeker
//Spells:
Ancestral Vision
Spell Pierce
Path to Exile
Swords to Plowshares
Duress
Demonic Tutor
Counterspell
Muddle the Mixture
Mana Leak
Remand
Memory Lapse
Doom Blade
Castigate
Merchant Scroll
Esper Charm
Thirst for Knowledge
Mortify
Vindicate
Stupor
Infest
Wrath of God
Damnation
Gifts Ungiven
Fact or Fiction
Treachery
Force of Will
//Land:
37x land
(No fetches, many manlands. Academy Ruins and Maze of Ith included, no Tectonic Edge, no Wasteland or Stronghold available)
//TODO:
1.
- Shriekmaw, Hypnotic Specter
+ Trinket Mage, Executioner's Capsule (Shriekmaw is almost never hardcast and my reanimation is limited)
2.
Would getting Engineered Explosives make a big difference in overall effectiveness? What about Nevinyrral's Disk? I have it, but am hesitant to include it because it would kill my mana, too. With the increasing amount of artifacts in the deck, Fabricate? What about Crucible?