Under the Radar

First a little bit about me. My name is Daniel Suydam I've been playing Magic for 11 years at various levels of competition. In 2008 I decided to dedicate myself to playing competitive Magic. Since then I won Regional's and placed 55th at Nationals in 2009. Since then I haven't finished worse than X-2 at any PTQ and X-3 at 2 GPs. I consider myself a solid player when I have the time to prepare properly for events. I tend to always bring an original deck or at least something with a level of creativity in it. My posts are usually going to be on constructed brews or tournament reports but they may branch out to draft/constructed videos in the future. Okay that's enough about me on to the article.

Top 15 Sleepers for post INN Standard:(NOTE These are sleepers not cards that obviously get better such as Visions of Beyond, Vengeful Pharaoh, Koth of the Hammer, Mirran Crusader, Garruk,Primal Hunter ect...)

#15

This little guy has a lot going for him. Being blue, cantriping, and playability in Birthing Pod variants are all very good reasons he could see play but maybe not, only time will tell.

#14

I'm thinking some kind of R/G metalcraft poison and if kuldotha red is a deck they could both make use of this but thats only speculative.

#13

I think now is the time for this card to shine. It just screams Puresteel Paladin or Grand Architect. Only time will tell but if I were a betting man (and I am) I'd put my money on the boots putting on a stomping in the near future.

#12

Value value and look more value! Birthing Pod decks are on the rise this guy will see play in them. I mean c'mon he gets guys back or he Duress+lands your opponent!!!

#11

Bant Birthing Pod is already seeing a lot of play. I feel like most people would just rather play Acidic Slime but this guy does have a relevant body. You can sit on him similarly to how you do with Seals.

#10

Lots of good removal and good creatures = good Vats. I think it was a bit slow for this Standard format and Squadron Hawks weren't exactly ideal targets.

#9

I think mono color decks are going to be on the rise. I like this guy Hexproof and potential large body give the Elder all the makings of an all star if MGA is a player in the new Standard.

#8

Let me go out on a limb here and say this guy is going to be insane! I see some type of WW/WG human deck coming. This guy has it all 3 power for 2 mana, battle cry, and a human! So many things make him good we just have to see what INN has in store for humans.

#7

This one is spicy I mean its an extra lord for anything but specifically humans and werewolves I think thats why this guy was printed(A plant of sorts like Steel Overseer). I could see several different decks being able to make the best out of lords 5-8 in the new Standard specifically elves which I will be writing about it my next post.

#6

This one is a bit out there but just hear me out. Have you ever had an opponent at 24 life and Overrun in your hand with 23 pts of dmg after you cast it? Ever been stuck on 4 lands with Overrun in hand and your opponent is dead if you only had a fifth land? Yes I know it only gives +1/+1 trample and infect but the fact that you can kill your opponent with only 10 damage! Seems reasonable with all the cheap powerful creatures we have this could certainly play a role in an aggressive green strategy.

#5

As I said earlier I think Hexproof will be a major player with everyone packing Dismembers and the like. Not to mention he doesn't get killed by anything except Day of Judgement only if you Don't have the mana to regenerate him. He sees some play now and I can see this guy getting a lot more attention in the near future. Possibly wielding some swords or infecting someone who knows?

#4

So this card has always caught my eye. I think blue is in a position to abuse this card. At the worst its a 3 mana Rampant Growth. I'm thinking Mono Blue Illusions/Mono Blue Architect Aggro this could go a long way as far as card advantage goes.

#3

So you are putting cards in your graveyard eh? I like big guys for 4 mana! Oh what's that you say I can equip this to my creatures oh my... I think this card only gets better with INN and I hear a certain 1/1 unblockable hexproof blue creature...yeah it's happening.

#2

I've always had a soft spot for this guy. I think he has a lot of potential in the upcoming post INN Standard. Both effectively using your graveyard and filling it up, a 4/4 body for 4 mana and not to mention regeneration; I see this guy as a major player in the post INN Standard. The fact that it only dies to Dismember is a big bonus as well.

#1

What doesn't this guy do? Blue is getting better and he has a very good abilities that work well with equipment, Wurmcoil Engine, and blue creatures. I see so many different applications for this guy. The sky is the limit for Grand Architect. I for one can't wait to tap some islands and/or blue creatures!

Deck Archetypes with some possible builds :

Poison

Some kind of poison deck should be a player in the post INN Standard. Whether it's Mono black or maybe a R/G Metalcraft concoction which I mentioned earlier.

Mono Blue Illusions/Mono Blue Aggro

One or both of these will be a player in the post INN Standard.

B/G Elves/Rock

Now this is a lot of speculation but I think it could be a very real archetype.

I'll be providing decklists on all these in my upcoming posts.

So there you have it my first post. Please leave me comments, suggestions or ideas for what you would like to see in future posts.

Thanks for reading,

Daniel

OrbstinityMaster on MTGO

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