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BMoor's Magic The Gathering Deck Garage
Simic Geomancer
October 29, 2007

Today's deck is actually very close to me in a way.  It's very similar to the Standard deck I was bringing to FNM all this past summer.  The card choices are a bit different (I didn't use Spectral Force), but the strategy of cheap evasive dudes + Auras + counterspell backup remains the same.
 
And like Derek here, my deck took a hit when Ravnica rotated out.  I just decided to abandon the deck, play in some Lorwyn Sealed, and use the spoils plus the Llanowar Elves and Giant Growths from the old deck to build an Elf deck.  But surely the archetype as it existed can be salvaged?
Hi BMoor,

After having read quite a few articles at Deck Garage, I was wondering if you could take a look at my Simic Geomancer deck. Actually, that's just a fancy name for a variant of UG Scryb Force. It doesn't rely entirely on Spectral Force for the win, since it also has the alternative of pumping small guys (namely Silhana Ledgewalker) to fatties and then swinging them. At the same time, I use counterspells to slow down and disrupt the opponent. Here's the deck list:

Creatures (19)

Silhana Ledgewalker x 4
Scryb Ranger x 3
Spectral Force x 3
Wall of Roots x 3
Plaxmanta x 3
Ohran Viper x 3

Auras (6)

Moldervine Cloak x 3
Auramancer's Guise x 3

Instants (13)

Rune Snag x 4
Delay x 3
Remand x 3
Psionic Blast x 3

Lands (22)

Yavimaya Coast x 4
Pendelhaven x 1
Forest x 8
Island x 9

Sideboard

Troll Ascetic x 3
Pongify x 3
Krosan Grip x 3
Boomerang x 3
Voidslime x 3

Because the deck's not entirely reliant on the Force, I traded off the quick mana acceleration that most Scryb Force decks have by having the Ledgewalkers take the place of Llanowar Elves, so I'm not really expecting a turn 3 Force. The only mana acceleration left lies with Wall of Roots, which is amazing for backup mana to cast counterspells.

For card draw, I'm relying on Ohran Viper and Remand. Psionic Blast is there to finish off the opponent if my creatures are short by a few points of damage. In terms of pumps, I use Moldervine Cloak due to its decent dredge ability, and Auramancer's Guise since it stacks quite well with the Cloak, and also acts as an alternative to leave Spectral Force untapped. Lastly, Plaxmanta is in there for mass creature protection, but I'm wondering if its a good idea to replace Plaxmanta with Looter il-Kor for better card draw.

One of the biggest concerns I have with this deck right now is what to do with it once Ravnica rotates out. So far, I've made the following considerations for replacements:

- 4 Silhana Ledgewalker, +4 Llanowar Elves
- 3 Moldervine Cloak, +3 Keen Sense
- 3 Plaxmanta, +3 Looter il-Kor
- 3 Remand, +3 Cancel
- 3 Voildslime, +3 Trickbind (For Sideboard)

This variant has much better card draw and mana acceleration. After doing a bit of play-testing, it still seems to work out, but the deck is now much more reliant on Spectral Force. I have the following ideas but I'm not sure if they're feasible:

- Switch the Vipers with the Trolls from the sideboard
- Splashing a bit of White into the deck and have Griffin Guide take the place of Moldervine Cloak

I was also wondering if you could recommend any cards from the Kamigawa and Morrodin blocks for the deck if I wanted to take it to extended. Please help. Any input you provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a lot!
Derek

Well, Derek, I'll do whatever I can, seeing as how I've been puzzling over this one myself for a bit.  Thankfully, you've already speculated a bit on what might work for you.  Unfortunately, your specualtions aren't all that sound.  Let's handle them one at a time.
 
Silhana Ledgewalker -> Llanowar Elves?
 
Well, the Elves would definitely be good here, but I'm not sure if it's the Ledgewalkers they should replace.  The 'walkers were your small, quick beater that could put on a Cloak and bash for 4 or more a turn without fear of blocks or kill spells.  Really there's nothing left in Standard beyond Troll Ascetic that can replace it.  The Troll should definitely come into the maindeck (unless the double green is too much for you that early).  But as for another quick beater?
 
I thought about it, and it occurred to me that you might want to use an Elf with deathtouch.  Deathtouch doesn't really make a creature harder to block, but it makes an opponent much less likely to block with a creature they value.  Your big choices here are Thornweald Archer and Wren's Run Vanquisher, and even though the Vanquisher is bigger, I'd recommend the Archer.  You don't want to bend your deck around too much to include more Elves, and I doubt you want to pay five mana for a 3/3 with deathtouch.
 
Your other option is Looter il-Kor, a creature you suggested as a replacement for Plaxmanta.  More on this later, but turn two Looter into turn three Cloak was a play I often enjoyed making.
 
Moldervine Cloak -> Keen Sense?
 
Drawing cards is important, but Keen Sense just isn''t powerful enough for you here.  You want to be able to buff your creatures, not win the control race on the back of a Theiving Magpie.  You won't win that race, my friend.  You need a buff spell.
 
Sadly, Moldervine Cloak was the last decent one.  There's always Blachwood Armor, yes, but in a two-color deck?  Of course, it's better than your other options.  Petrified Plating?  As much as I'd love to see it work, I know it doesn't.  Epic Proportions?  Too expensive to play on anything but Spellwild Ouphe.  Your choices are basically down to either Blanchwood Armor, Unstable Mutation, or... I guess Epic Proportions?  Go with the Mutation.
 
Plaxmanta -> Looter il-Kor?
 
I agree that Looter is an excellent addition here.  But does it do the same thing as Plaxmanta?  Plaxmanta is at its heart two things: a creature with flash, and a counterspell.  If it's the counterspell you want, then Cancel is probably the right choice, or possibly Dismal Failure or Discombobulate.  If it's a flash creature you want, then I recommend Briarhorn.  It's a bit more expensive, but you can pay the Evoke and just use it to mess up combat math, or wait and get a surprise 6/6 blocker.  Gilt-Leaf Ambush also makes a decent way to put a dude in the path of an incoming attacker, with the added bonus of Scry 1 and a chance to kill anything you block with it.  If it's protecting your creatures you're all about, however, then try Robe of Mirrors.  It works great with Auramancer's Guise, but Scryb Ranger can't untap a creature with shroud.
 
Remand -> Cancel?
 
Yeah, this one you're probably right about.  There still isn't really any decent countermagic in Standard for two mana.  There's Familiar's Ruse, but you may not want to bounce a creature you've already Aura'd up if you've only got one.  There's Faerie Trickery, which is really only different from Cancel if your opponent's playing graveyard recursion or Faeries.  And there's Spellstutter Sprite, who only works if you've got multiple Faeries out.
 
Actually, you've already got Faeries in the deck.  Sure, Spellstutter would rarely be able to counter something that cost more than 2 (she counts herself, remember), but even so you'd be getting a 1/1 flyer at instant speed.  Maybe this is your replacement for Plaxmanta?
 
Voidslime -> Trickbind?
 
I have to ask what it is you want to counter.  But if it's for the sideboard, it's probably "just in case".  Fair enough.  Trickbind is the pick here.
 
Although I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't bring up another Voidslime analog: Mystic Snake.  For one more mana, you get to exchange ability hate for a 2/2 body.  In your deck, you want a good supply of creatures.  But you probably also want the option to stifle abilities too, so feel free to stick with the Trick.
 
After that, it looks like any changes you could make to this deck have been covered.  a shame all my clients don't write their own reviews... ;-)
 
Good luck!
 
~BMoor


 

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