I did not create this deck. There are many who play it and it has been around since before I started playing this game. I'll put where I learned how to play this at the bottom. I like this game and this deck so I created the guide to engage with other people who like the game and also create decks and guides.
- What is this deck?(generally):
- so... 23 1 mana cards? why?
- core combo cards: lost in the depths (lid), warp engineer (we), clone, portal wrangler(pw - not Pyramid Warden: PW)
multiple variations:
2xForm of Unity (I can't seem to figure this one out yet)
1 x Frumentari Researcher
1 x Nemean Lion
How does it work?:
- 1st step -> find lost in the depths and play on a 1 mana creature
- 2nd step -> play 2 we into 1 pw
- 3rd step -> play clone on 0 mana pw and frumentari researcher or flex to flood the board and deal dmg
I like combo decks like this because:
- It has one main strategy which requires a few turns of preparation, but has a huge value prop.
- see How does it work?
- The main strategy is simple, but there are many ways you can prepare it and use it
1st step -> if you don't find lid early, there are many forsee and draw combos to look through the deck. Value matters a lot here(generally better than): forsee 2(includes gp) -> draw -> forsee 1 -> no draw or forsee
2nd step -> when going second, conserving bags to play we a turn early, can allow for t4 bag into clone and frumentari / pw board flood. Some control games come down to knowing which type of removal your opponent is likely to have: Nature - The Hunt. Magic - Crystal Rain or Shaped Blast. War - relic + carnage. Deception - rapture dance and sleep.
3rd step -> most flexible
- Sometimes I use the board and sanctum to preserve another copy of the combo: (in hand(clone, researcher, 0 mana pw, 4 mana pw), on board(full board of 1 research, 5 pw (varying health), 6 mana; sacrifice low health pw, use sanctum. Then, when opponent board wipes, I play just play the clone -> frumentari -> full board pw)
- You have to play around having no deck. This means, using as much mana as possible to avoid taking damage. Sanctum, god power, random pw pickups help use mana but have to manage board space.
- I like delayed gratification
- sometimes it takes 3 or 4 turns to actually play the combo even if you had a t1 or t2 lost in the depths. If you play it right, you can still win the game
- you can play 3 or 4 cards on turn 1 sometimes. With other decks, t1 is 1 or maybe 2 cards and they rarely interact
- A fun t1 that I've hit multiple times: (in hand: heka's, aa, dd. aa -> heka's(0). heka's forsee reveals lost in the depths. bag of tricks - dd. dd -> lost in depths(0). lid ->t1 step 2. end turn)
What to keep with lost in the depths?(in general order):
- assistant alchemist
- warp engineer
- portal wrangler
- any draw cards
- vs aggro, don't keep creature. otherwise, you NEED a 1 mana creature for lid
What to keep/play without lost in the depths
- forsee 2(includes gp)
- draw
- forsee 1
- shadow scryer(start of your next turn forsee 1)
- no draw or forsee
- exceptions: sometimes vs nature with bad mulligan I will keep more creatures for board pressure.
Play with Frumentari Researcher
- when opponent has creatures on their board that a threats. Paying attention to value trades, using the we for the combo to trade with researcher for 3 dmg vs 2x researcher hits.
- when opponent is control and board is empty, it's an extra 10 dmg to face.
Play without Frumentari Researcher
- have the combo early but wasn't able to forsee for researcher with clone. board is still 6x3/4 creatures. sanctum play next turn likely
- am rushed to play the combo, and occasionaly get a good pickup for a 6th minion (3 or 4 mana) from opponent
- the second round of the combo is often without researcher for me. applies more board pressure.
Forsee - keep or don't keep cards
- I think its a mistake to forsee anything but lid if you don't have it. some very fringe cases are seen, but it is rare. Look for lid
- with 2 x clone and 2 x pw, it's important to keep track of which ones you've seen, because you may end up seeing both back to back, which is bad. Usually best to dump one and pray for the other if there's time. sometimes its a gamble
Credits to PewQ on ladder (I stalked u) and teamstreamteam for providing a helpful youtube video tutorial:
Thanks for checking it out! This is my first post and I'm hoping to make more so please let me know what you all think