Mono White Rebels (Pauper)

Mono white rebels is one of the three possible versions of the the rebels archetype. The other two are rebel tron and a possible WB rebels (although this is based on theory and the existence of a single decent black rebel). Each version ends up being a a strange looking control deck that has its own set of pros and cons. The main draw to this version of the rebel deck is that the mana is extremely clean. There will be more details on that later. For now, let's go through the deck.

Main board:

Thraben Inspector-a white pauper staple. Inspector is one mana 1/2 that gives and extra card for an extra two mana. This is a great card in white because it can do a decent job soaking up a couple points of damage in the early game that replaces itself as the game goes on. If drawn in the late game, it can replace itself immediately, allowing a deck that runs a lot of mana to smooth out some potentially rough draws in the late game. These used to be a playset of squadron hawks. While hawks can provide a flying clock to close out a game, at it's best the first hawk you play will draw out three 1/1 flyers, and that only gets worse if you end up with multiples in your hand before you play one. Inspector will always get draw you a card.

Ication Javelineer- Another good one drop. Various delver decks are always lurking around somewhere in the pauper format, and javelineer is very good against a delver decks. It kills an unflipped delver while leave behind an admittedly underwhelming body, but it can also shoot down spell stutter sprites and fairie miscreants. Then against aggro decks like stompy and goblins, the javelineer can trade with an X/2 by blocking, activating, then going to damage. If the majority of the format was these decks, playing a full four copies might be good, but since it's fairly bad in any matchup where it's not amazing, it's only a three of.

Ramonsian Sergeant- a bad one drop. To explain this card, it becomes important to look at the history of the archetype. Rebels was never a mainstream deck, so there was not a lot of real work into it. The majority of the lists you can find were made before thraben inspector, so the curve looked like four sergeants, four javelineers, and ten two mana rebel tutors with a squadron hawks. The deck wants a turn one play but simply didn't have the options at the time. The only rebels sergeant can find are the two mana tutors, but it was a card that let the deck run eight one drops. Thraben inspector being printed allowed the deck to shift the curve away from the hawks. This version could run the four javelineers and four inspectors with no sergeants and twelve two mana tutors, but two copies are still run to give the deck a virtual fourteen tutor effects because those effects are what make the deck playable.

Journey to nowhere- removal. Journey is the best removal in white, but only two copies are needed in the main board thanks to bound in silence.

Defiant Falcon, Amrou Scout, and Ramonsian Lieutenant- The engine. These cards are essentially all the same with the exception that lieutenant survives an electrickery (actually very important). What they do is allow the deck to find any rebel in the deck and put it onto the battle field for four mana. This is normally an aven riftwatcher to use as a blocker/attacker or a bound in silence to use as removal, but their are a few other targets that can be found if needed. The real power of this is it's essentially drawing an extra card every turn while still playing cards. This let's the deck build up a lot of card advantage that it can use to outlast an opponent over a long game, and the games go long often.

Aven riftwatcher- riftwatcher is a flying 2/3 that lives for three turns and give you four life. It's not the best creature in the format, but it can be tutored for and can do a decent job clogging up a board and closing out a game. It's the best rebel in the format that's not that embarrassing card to cast fairly.

Bound in Silence-tribal removal. The deck only has six pieces of quality removal, but it with the tutor effects, it runs a virtual 18 pieces of spot removal. As long as the deck doesn't end up facing down six creatures that need to be removed from combat in game one, it will generally win the board and chip away for lethal. A fun interaction is a tutored bound in silence can be placed on a hexproof creature because it never names a target.

Thermal Glider- protection from red an flying. This creature is a one of because it's not that powerful of a creature in most situations. At it's worst, it's a two attack flyer that helps the deck close out a game. But at it's best, it is a perfect blocker. Protection from red allows it to block burning tree emissary and goblins profitable, making it a trump in game one of those matchups.

Zealot Il-Vec-utility. If you really need something to fight through a board stall, shadow does it well, albeit only one life at a time. The real value of the zealot is the ability to ping out X/1 creatures, allowing the deck to keep delver of the board in the late game.

Prismatic Strand- win combat. This is a real got em card. If and when it comes time for a deck to alpha strike through a stalled board, strands lets rebels win through that attack. Most decks in the format are one color or only have creatures of one color (relevant creatures any way). Strands can also be used to protect against red based removal and protecting the monarchy.

Palace Sentinels-Control matchup trump. While rebels can gain a lot of advantage with it's creatures, it needs it's creatures to survive. When facing down a dedicated UB control deck, you can't expect many of your creatures to survive, but you can also expect very few creatures. If sentinels resolve and you become the monarch, it is very likely you'll keep monarch for the rest of the game, allowing you to draw two card for each of their one. Eventually, the shear number of cards you have can overwhelm those control decks, allowing you to steal games in an unfavorable matchup. It is still a one of though given that for most game against other decks, rebels is trying to tutor thinks out, not play from the hand. The monarchy can overflow the deck from there, which isn't that beneficial.

Lands-This deck wants 4 lands on turn four almost every game, meaning depending on your definition of consistency, 25 lands may be more appropriate. However, that's a lot and flooding can get real nasty from there. 24 allows 4 lands to be hit consistently while trying to prevent flood. Also trying to prevent flood is a full four copies of secluded steppe and haunted fengraf. Secluded steppe turns an extra land into a new card in the late game at the cost of entering tapped when needed, but with twenty untapped sources, this isn't a real problem. If it does need to be played, however, it is generally best to play on turn 3. This game goes something like turn one one drop, turn two tutor, turn three tap land and another tutor for back up, then turn four going off. This is obviously the dream situation, but the general idea is hold the three drop to allow tutoring on turn four. The fengrafs are turned in creatures in the late game at the cost of being off white, which isn't that much of a problem. The deck will almost never need more than three colored sources to be effective in a turn anyways.

Side board:

Doomed traveler- Eats sacrifice effects like a champ and can be used as early pressure against most control decks where every point you can chip in counts.

Circle of protection red- hoses down burn and blitz.

Sunlance- extra removal against stompy and goblins and delver and all the other aggressive looking small creature decks.

Journey to nowhere- extra removal against all of the decks with big nasty creatures. Basically, if it runs gurmag, I like to have a full 4 copies.

Lumithread field- insulates from nausea effects and electrickeries.

Relic of progenitus- the best piece of graveyard hate in mono white.

Disenchant-artifact enchantment removal. Bogles is a fine matchup because of the bound in silence interaction and affinity isn't that miserable a matchup if you have a pile of spot removal, although atog fling will always be scary in those games. Disenchant exists as a piece versatile white removal.

Kor Sanctifiers- Disenchant on a stick. Refer above.

Nightwind Glider- another piece against gurmag angler. Can't be hit by a doom blade, brick off angler, kills rats. Great against black decks.

That's the deck. If you have any questions, feel free to put them in the discussion section.