irishwrath

You betcha. Good luck to you and your friend.

Update - FNM - 11/15/2014. Went undefeated with this deck tonight!

Check out the link I posted.

Sweet. Here are my suggestion then. Pick and chose as you see fit. I'm not going to try and build your deck, because you have your own Meta in your area. Some things may not work for you.

For Control/Chasm Skulking:
1. Dictate of Kruphix x 2. He lets everyone draw an additional card, but it will pump up Chasm Skulker. Play test it and see how you like it.
2. Voyage's End - low cost control card that returns creature to owner's hand and lets you scry.
3. Bident of Thassa x 1-2. Do combat damage to play, draw a card. If they only have one creature on the board, you can make them attack with it (tapping it), allowing you to swing in unblocked to draw a card.
4. Military Intelligence - If you have 2 Mantis' swinging every turn you get to draw a card and pump Chasm Skulker even more. May'be 2 of these.
5. Nullify for control.
7. Bump up to 4x Defiant Strike. Such a cheap card to casts for the card draw. Chasm Skulker will love you for it.

Here's what I'd play test.
http://www.mtgvault.com/irishwrath/decks/jeskai-for-scorperite/

Okay cool. Here we go. Prepare yourself.

There are too many one of's. Not enough consistency. If you want this deck to work the same way every time you really need to focus on what you want the deck to do.

1. Deflecting Palm is a sideboard card at best.
2. Efreet Weaponmaster is just too expensive for me to consider. Sure, it could give something like a cheap drop, such as Mantis Rider, +3/+0, but it's not an instant. It's only an instant if you morph it, but do you really want a 2/2 on the board that's within so much range of everything like Lightning Strike, Magma Jet, Magma Spray, etc? You'd be better off using something like Titan's Strength to get the same effect for one mana. I'm not saying to use Titan's Strength, but I'm just explaining that there's other options.
3. Highspire Mantis. It's just an expensive Mantis Rider without Haste and Vigilance. yes it does get Trample, but is it worth it?
4. Chasm Skulker + card draw are amazing, but you need to run 4 of him to even see him. With that note you'd need to definitely run a lot of card draw items, like Divination, etc. Jace doesn't help you there. Jace is currently awesome if you delve.
5. Selfless Cathar. He's cheap and effective, but I don't see the synergy in your deck. That's typically a card that I'd run if I was running a heavy creature and/or token deck. You're just not going to get to use his full potential as it stands.
6. Enchantments need to be worth the mana. Anything deck that I run with white in it automatically gets 3x Erase in the sideboard. It only costs me 1 mana and it removes things like Quiet Contemplation at instant speed. Icy Blast is way better than Quiet Contemplation. I'd just run more Icy Blast. With that being said, Icy Blast is super effective with 4/4 creatures. You're currently running 2, but you could pump up Narset, all the Mantis, etc with Selfless Cathar if you really wanted to. This would allow you to use Icy Blast's full potential.
7. Hypnotic Siren is sweet, if you can mana ramp. That card in mid game gets crazy, but you need to ramp up quick and only use it as a bestow. You have the potential to do that in this deck.

So here's the main question. Do you want a control deck, mid-range deck, or aggro deck. This list has the potential to be a control or mid-range deck.

Last question. Is there a budget you want to stick around?

I love Jeskai Decks, but I have a couple of questions. Are these the cards that you have available? If so, cool, roll with it. If not, I'm not seeing a consistent game plan here. What synergy are you going for? What's your end game?

Narset really shines when you have burn in your deck.

After playing at a Tournament today I've made a few changes. Added another Stormbreath, switched up the sideboard a little, etc.

Thanks for the input Maniacal. You make some sweet decks. I've actually thought about making your Modern Burn deck.

Suggestions: 2x Crater Claws, 1x Xenagos, 1x Nissa, and 2x Kiora. Drop Surrak for them. He's just a big mana drop and you're already running Polukranos (drop to 2) and the dragon (3 isn't too bad, but I'd drop to 2 as well and supplement pro flying with sideboard).

Switch out some, if not all, of the temples for some pain lands. It'll speed up the deck like crazy. Also, may'be drop a sylvan and/or an Elvish for Rattleclaw Mystic. Helps a ton with the speed. You only really need two.

Use 3x Courser of Kruphix to recoup from the pain lands.

I had 2 additional Wingmate Roc's, 3 Brimaz, More Elspeth, etc. After about 5 different major changes I discovered that this setup works best for everything. Fleecemane is a pain to deal with, especially against control.

Majestic. Just wanted to show you what I ran tonight. This is the kind of Abzan deck that took me to top4 tonight. http://www.mtgvault.com/irishwrath/decks/abzan-lick-my-rhino/

So I've rearranged the board quite a bit. Tossed Brimaz, King of Oreskos for Fleecemane Lion . Added an extra Courser of Kruphix . Switched the Lands around and put 1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion back in.

Small showing at my LCS, but I went 2-1. Got 3rd and my loss was a 1-2 against a Mono Green Aggro Ramp nonsense.

I beat a G/B aggro deck 2-0 and a retardly difficult Sultai Control Deck 2-0.

First game against the Control Deck I topped deck 2x Fleecemane Lion and he just couldn't deal with it. Second game He Villainous Wealth me for 6. All he got out of it was 4 lands, 1 Utter End and 1 Sylvan Caryatid . It went to like Turn 12, but I finished him off 2-0.

One of my friends at my local shop was playing this right when Khans came out. Finally got to play it yesterday. He played my Abzan deck and after the first game it was over for him. I'd pull a Thoughtseize turn 1-2, Abzan Charm/Hero's Downfall the Midnight Guard, etc etc. However, if you don't have the sideboard or removal cards to deal with it then you're screwed. His God's Willing just wasn't there enough for him to counter me, but I'll tell you one thing. I had at least two swan song's on my board every game. That was high-larious.

His infinite combo deck almost annihilated this chick that plays a Mono Green Ramp every week. He just couldn't get the combo by the time she'd be swinging in and she'd always get Polukranos out to kill off his guards, thopter's, etc.

It's a cool combo.

Firstly, much better. Much much better. You have great control with Hero's, Crackling Doom, Bile Blight, and they're all instant speed. Gives you time to setup your swing.

The only thing I don't like is Black decks that don't run Thoughtseize. Mardu Charm would allow you to search a hand or drop more tokens (but for a higher price than thoughtseize). If you didn't want to go the Mardu Charm route I'd drop 1x Bile Blight, 1x Sorin, all the Hordlings for 4 Thoughtseize. Even 3 would be fine, but I've found that 4 allows you to mull may'be once and have it.

Otherwise, if you don't want to run Thoughtseize, Drop 1 Sorin, 1 Bile Blight and add in 2 Sarkhan's and see how that works. Plus Sarkhan will help you out if you pull him before you see a Hero's Downfall for creature damage/removal.

Sarkhan also helps you deal with Jeskai Combo i.e. Mantis, etc. Hero's, crackling, Bile Blight, all work for you. That's a great combo of control/removal for midrange.

Run your deck how it is, and then think about if you'd benefit from the change's I suggested. Sideboard looks good. Throw in some Crater Claws and a couple more Utter End.

Mana base looks good. I'd drop 1x Battlefield Forge, 1x Caves of Koilos for extra Temple's. Or knock out 2x Nomad Outpost for more temple's.

You're going to love him. Either Rabblemaster or Bloodsoaked will now supply Butcher how he's supposed to be supplied.

I can tell you right now that that deck doesn't have enough control to stabilize the board before it swings in with the tokens. I used to have a sweet Boros Mid-Range Token deck and that deck just doesn't have enough control IMO. I'd drop the Hordeling Outburst for Utter End's. Drop 1 Sorin, Add in 2 Stormbreath Dragon's, 2 Mardu Charms. I'd take out Launch the Fleet and Mainboard at least 2 Bile Blights. I don't even like Dictate of Heliod in there. I see why he has it. It's supposed to give you +3/+3 death touch tokens when you swing with Ankle Shanker, but there's not enough control to set it up. I'd be swinging in long before this deck is prepped to swing in the way it stands.

I like the idea that's going on here, but Jeskai Combo would demolish that token deck. I mean DEMOLISH it. It's just too slow the way it is. I think you'd have a small chance with the changes I suggested. Plus, Bile Blight still kill's a good chunk of those tokens. Let's be realistic. You're going to have to be swinging in A LOT with Brimaz to even consider having Cat's swing in. You'd really just be swinging in with Goblin Tokens.

The only saving grace would be to Sack a Mardu Ascendancy if you got Bile Blighted. There's just way too many things that have to be on the board and setup for that deck to be effective against other competitive decks. Casual, sure why not. Competitive. No way.

Again, IMO.

If it's any consolation, Jeski Combo got destroyed by Mardu Aggro at my local FNM location. The match was between two players that are well versed in MTG. Mardu player has been playing since the game started and the Jeski Combo player used to be a Judge. Both very good players with very good decks. It was awesome. I went 1-2 against the Jeskai Combo with my Abzan/Junk deck. He just had an awesome sideboard.

Mardu went 5-0.

Mind you. He's Mardu Aggro is completely different from what you're running, but I want to see how your version does.

I was thinking last night that Anafenza would make an awesome Commander. Beat me too it :)

Take this sucker to FNM and report! :)

Hi Majestic. I saw your comment asking for help on another deck. I'm going to give you my input and you can do as you please :)

I see that a lot of my suggestions are going to be repeats, and that's for good reason. A lot of us have play tested several Mardu decks already and have been learning from it.

1. Fetch lands if you can afford them. At least 2 of the new Mire's. I don't like how you're running 12 pain lands (including Mana Confluence). I'd run at least 2 of each Temple - Silence/Triumph/Malice, or two Silence and two Malice. Then 2 Urborg's should be enough. You have to remember that if your opponent is running Swamps, you don't want to give them the ability to use your swamp(urborg) if they are also running pain lands. I know that the pain lands are awesome for instant mana but you're not running any lifegain, with the exception of Soldier of the Pantheon. It's going to hurt you overall. In my Mardu I'm running 2x Bloodstained Mire, 2x Mana Confluence, 4x Mountain, 4x Plains, 4x Swamp 2x each temple and 2x Urborg. It rolls out pretty nicely.

Enough has been said about Goblin Rabblemaster. He's OP.

I'd Sideboard the Soldier of the Pantheon. Great card, but I'm not seeing the overall effect in this deck. Sideboard it and bring it into the main if you're running against non-mono decks for the lifegain. In the mean time, I'd main in at least 2x Stormbreath Dragon, if not 4.

You might benefit more from Indulgent Tormentor, than you would from Master of the Feast. Especially since you're not playing any scry lands. Either your opponent takes 3 dmg, sacks a creature, or you draw an additional card.

As awesome as Iroas is (I ran him for 3 months in my Boros Deck), check out Purphoros. With all your 1/2 drops he's amazing. Add in your Rabblemaster and Purphoros is doing a minimum 2 dmg per turn.

You're running great Instant spells. Check out Mardu Ascendancy. Boss card right there for Mardu decks. I run 2 in mine and it pays off more so than not.

My two cents. You have a good build going, but the synergy is just not quite there.

Here's a link to my Mardu deck.

http://www.mtgvault.com/irishwrath/decks/mardu-flying-aggro/