Despite being March as I write this, we’ve had 2 snowy days
here. I thought it might be nice to write about a deck that celebrates keeping
people nice and warm. And what deck concentrates on heating the people around
it? Why a nice burn deck, obviously! But I didn’t want to just review the
traditional RDW and make a tweak or two, I wanted to break the mould a bit and
try something else. A deck that doesn’t just sizzle and burn out, but rather
one that gives a nice slow burn. Today, we are going to look at Sylvan Lavamancer.
As previously mentioned, Burn decks tend to share a common
weakness in that they can lose steam prior to zapping the opponent to 0. And
because red isn’t really known to generate card advantage, it means you have to
seek other means to do so. In comes today’s heart throb - you know him, you
love him – your pal, Grim Lavamancer. The brother Grim is a great example when
it comes to alternate means to card advantage. He can single-handedly take out
an opponent’s creatures and/or their hit points. Talk about sweet!
The other namesake in today’s deck would be Olle Råde, also
known as Sylvan Messenger. While it may seem as though his only role is to
protect Lavaman, that is not entirely true. He actually works quite well in
tandem with him as his protection also means providing the means to deal 2
damage to a creature or player. He doesn’t even need to tap do this, so he can
also swing in the occasional damage or two.
At a glance, the spells section might seem like your typical
Burn deck. While that may very well be the case, I do not think so, as it omits
some serious considerations and replaces them with less obvious/traditional
choices. One such example would be that the deck does not play Kindle, a pretty
sweet burn spell that only improves as the game gets played. However, as with
other choices in Sylvan Lavamancer, but they do not work well with our heroes, which
we want as our main game plan and game winner.
You don’t normally see Wasteland in a burn deck, but I
thought it was worth including due to Lavamancer. Wastelands not only add
ammunition to our lava slinging pal, but with him in play we are also choosing
a slight control aspect, rather than pure speed. Wasteland is a great card at
slowing down, and even ruining, an opponent’s game plan, so it only makes sense
to combine it with our red-cowled hero.
The other control aspect to our deck should be pretty
obvious: Blood Moon. I had actually considered Raze to help control the
opponent as they get burned, but decided on 4 Moon instead as it’s more
consistent and not a 2-1 that works against you in card advantage. It also does
not screw Sylvan Messenger, which should be a consideration as well. Remember,
lands are not just mana in this deck, they also help you attack the opponent
and protect your creatures.
The last thing I want to mention is that the deck also
contains 2 cards that replace your hand – 1 Winds of Change and 1 Browbeat. With
cards such as Price of Progress and Scent of Cinder in the deck, their value
can either be great or garbage, depending on the situation. With this in mind,
both cards allow you to change your grip, particularly Winds which works
wonders with Lavamancer.
You probably noticed that many cards in Sylvan Lavamancer look to work with either Sylvan Messenger and/or Grim Lavamancer, the 2 namesake cards in the deck. It should be noted however, that each card is also simply good on its own; and generally has good synergy with each other and the game plan in general. You may not think the combination and/or support cards to be worth their place however, so be sure to choose a version that is right to you. Happy Brewing!
You probably noticed that many cards in Sylvan Lavamancer look to work with either Sylvan Messenger and/or Grim Lavamancer, the 2 namesake cards in the deck. It should be noted however, that each card is also simply good on its own; and generally has good synergy with each other and the game plan in general. You may not think the combination and/or support cards to be worth their place however, so be sure to choose a version that is right to you. Happy Brewing!
Sylvan Lavamancer
Land
1 Pendelhaven
4 Taiga
5 Mountain
5 Fetch lands
2 Barbarian Ring
4 Wasteland
Total: 21
Creatures
4 Sylvan Safekeeper
4 Grim Lavamancer
4 Mogg Fanatic
Total: 12
Spells
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Chain Lightning
1 Incinerate
2 Scent of Cinder
2 Fireblast
1 Browbeat
2 Shock or Assault // Battery
2 Price of Progress
1 Winds of Change
4 Overmaster
4 Blood Moon
Total: 27
Sideboard
4 Tormod’s Crypt
2 Red Elemental Blast
2 Hydroblast
2 Naturalize
2 Hull Breach
2 Pyroclasm
1 Cursed Scroll
