{"ops":[{"insert":"Deck Philosophy"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"This deck largely originated as a Dragon tribal deck with a Burn subtheme as would be suitable for a Dragons deck. The card that motivated the initial design was "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Warstorm Surge"}},{"insert":" causing damage when big creatures enter the battlefield. Similar cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Purphoros, God of the Forge"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dracogenesis"}},{"insert":" support that gameplan of hopefully getting overwhelming quickly. Even without these sorts of effects, the idea of big beefy fliers would hopefully be a suitable threat opponents would have to deal with. The decision to use Niv-Mizzet was pretty obvious and I opted for "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Niv-Mizzet, Visionary"}},{"insert":" due to his ability to draw additional cards from non-combat damage. This decision lead me down the design path of traditional burn spells that will draw me cards equal to damage done if my commander is out.\n"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"I love this deck very much. It is a bit slow to get going due to the mana involved but it feels like it gets out of control incredibly fast at a certain point. I've attempted to keep the mana curve low, but given the number of {X} cards and mana that needs to be reserved for counterspells, it gets eaten up quickly despite the ramp suite available. \n\nGameplay"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Early game with this deck is to ideally ramp a little to get "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Niv-Mizzet, Visionary"}},{"insert":" onto the board or establish a little bit of a board state with suitable enchantments or creatures. There are a lot of cards competing at the 5 and 6 slot when you'd want to be casting the commander, so it may be necessary in the early turns to to hold open a counter or burn spell to deal with early threats.\n\nOnce Niv gets on board try drawing as many cards as possible using his last ability and keeping him alive as long as possible to help dig into a hand that can support the end game. During this part of the game, it's probably a good idea to pass with a bunch of mana available to play reactively.\n\nThere are a few ways this deck should look to end the game. \nDrawing a massive hand of 40+ cards and casting several copies of "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Master the Way"}},{"insert":". "},{"attributes":{"list":"true"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Utilizing the feedback loop between different versions of Niv in the deck that will either kill your opponents or mill yourself out. "},{"attributes":{"list":"true"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Casting and copying big {X} damage spells using the profits from "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mana Geyser"}},{"insert":"."},{"attributes":{"list":"true"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Least likely would be battlecruiser mode of just getting a bunch of dragons out using "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dracogenesis"}},{"insert":" or more slowly with "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Dragonmaster Outcast"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Rite of the Dragoncaller"}},{"insert":", or just hard-casting from hand."},{"attributes":{"list":"true"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"\nBracket"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"The deck does have near infinite two-card combos between "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Niv-Mizzet, Visionary"}},{"insert":" and two of his other versions by drawing cards to deal damage which causes card draw. This deck does have ramp that could allow this combo to start going off by turn six, however I am unlikely to have enough cards in my library to trigger the damage on players to secure the win until later when player life totals have been whittled down a degree or I have a Laboratory Maniac ability on the board. For these reasons, and the inclusion of one Game Changer I consider this deck to be suitably Bracket 3 instead of 4.\n\nA Few Notable Cards:"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Price of Progress"}},{"insert":" punish Non-Basic Lands so the mana base has been kept pretty simple in order to support those cards and also provide more opportunity for the inclusion of full art Basic Lands. There are other cards that support this gameplan that could be included in the future like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sunspine Lynx"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Lavaleaper"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Burning Earth"}},{"insert":" some of which are in another deck at the moment."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Transcendent Dragon"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Redirect"}},{"insert":" are there in addition to a few more conventional counterspells to provide some level of control in a deck running blue, however these two are particularly limiting in regards to CMC and effectiveness respectively. However I am opting to keep them despite their flaws for their themes and potential for fun interactions."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Bonfire of the Damned"}},{"insert":" is the only miracle card in the deck, and given the number of cards that could be drawn on the turn it is very unlikely that it would ever be cast as a Miracle. It may be worth replacing this with a different card simply to avoid thinking about the mechanic entirely."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Master the Way"}},{"insert":" has been my most successful means of winning with this deck while having a massive hand."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Almost all of the Enchantments in this deck will be targets for your opponents enchantment removal spells and since most of them cost 5 or more mana, losing one would be a substantial setback."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Reliquary Tower"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Finale of Revelation"}},{"insert":" are backup should Niv-Mizzet be removed."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"This deck previously included"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Jace, Wielder of Mysteries"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Laboratory Maniac"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Finale of Revelation"}},{"insert":" due to the insane card draw "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"potential"},{"insert":" offered by Niv-Mizzet's ability which could get out of hand quickly, however they have proven unnecessary every time I've gone off with the combo."},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"}]}