Deckstats Competition - Make an Artefact Deck!

[Mnemosyne]

Here it is folks, what you've been waiting for the results! (Apologies for the wait - Winners will get their Karma soon.)

Third Place

Monte Tribal - Rakdos Standard Eggs (3rd Place)

I want to say congratulations! There were so many decks to chose from, which made this especially tough to judge.

This deck, is both unique and creative. You actually used Pia's Revolution!
Whilst I am prejudice against B/R decks in Standard right now, you have vindicated the colours for this artefact inspired deck.
Having that recursion with Pia, Scrap Trawler and 0 cost thopters, allowing you to replay those implements, is a great idea.
I also like the addition of Sly Requisitioner, using improvise and its servo generation using your combo.
However, you cannot sacrifice them if you don't have the correct mana and at present, you only have 19 lands, despite having Hub and Spires.
Which is why I think you are using Syndicate Trafficker as your sacrifice outlet to then draw a card off them?
It is a great idea, but you need a lot of pieces in place for that to work effectively, whilst holding off threats early game.
You'll have to forgive me but are you intending to use that 1 of Fling on your potentially massive Syndicate Trafficker?
I like your sideboard. Phyrexian Scriptures is so undervalued. I think you could move that Herald of Anguish into your mainboard, if you wanted.

Second Place

Jaster555 - Arcades Artefacts (2nd Place)

I've chosen this as the deck you've submitted, since it was the first.
When I started this competition I saw your deck by chance, and asked you to submit it.
Which you did, and I am glad you did, because I love the idea. It's like Assault Formation, without, well... Assault Formation.
Just loads of artefact walls to assign damage using toughness. Which is hilarious, as you've added Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
Your Bant deck has the right amount and types of land for your deck base to theoretically function nicely.
I like that you mainboarded Padeem Consul of Innovation, as it protects your walls.
Not from wraths, however, which is why you might consider making a sideboard (whilst it was not a condition it would have improved your result)
Add cards like: Negate / Spell Pierce / Commencement of the Festivities or Heroic Intervention
I like that you've added dive down and Aegis of The Heavens as it adds additional toughness, at instant speed, great synergy!
However, you might want to decrease the number of these to 3 max, too many and not enough creatures will cost you late game.
The mana curve is great 2/3 max with Arcades and Padeem topping the curve at 4 (I haven't added the Immortal Sun as it is a single addition)
I know why you have added it, and I think whilst it is good, in standard with the presence of Abrade and Forsake the Worldly, (Despite Padeem) it won't be that useful.
Instead, perhaps Sorcerer's Spyglass? low on the curve and stops Planeswalkers and cards like The Scarab God and Nicol Bolas, The Ravager.

First Place

Delver Mage - Sram's Army (1st Place)

Whilst using vehicles isn't new and the idea of using Peacewalker Colossus has been around, I have not yet seen a deck that implements it in this way.
So congratulations Delver Mage, this is worthy of being named first place!
I like that you have made eight changes to it, it shows that you have been finely tuning this, like a well-oiled machine! (Pun intended)
You have an assemblage of well-chosen artefact vehicles, that work well with your strategy. They don't just sit there doing nothing.
A turn 1 consulate dreadnought whilst does nothing turn 1, it is just a good 1 drop to implement your strategy.
It is also a low-cost artefact to utilise with Toolcraft Exemplar. You then drop a caravan, to add mana, or Aethersphere Harvester for lifelink - Crew Exemplar
This depends on being fast, which is good since you don't need to rely on Peacewalker, you can use Start Your Engines as a finisher.
Since you are running so few creatures, you might be able to get away with a few wraths, or even Settle the Wreckage in your main. Worth considering?


CardAgain Sweater - Tricky Treasure

I want to thank you in advance for supporting me in pushing the community that bit further to post their decks, I am grateful.

A solid deck. Marionette Master is a great strategy.
While I cannot put this in the top three you would most definitely would have been 4th.
I like that you aren't depending on it as your win condition, but the deck still supports it towards the end of the game. (Yahenni)
I see why you have, instead, opted for treasure, instead of the traditional servo - Hidden Stockpile Strategy.
- Goblin Chainwhirler is a threat to creature tokens, especially with the variety of wraths in Standard.
The cards you've selected have great synergy - Dire Fleet Hoarder, Gleaming Barrier.
There are some choices I am not too sure about, which I think makes this deck too vulnerable early game.
(Dusk Legion Zealot, Invigorated Rampage and Supernatural Samina) -
Dusk Legion is great for the early card draw, but have you instead considered Costly Plunder? -
Sacrifice artefact/creatures to produce treasures, and will trigger Marionette Master.
I know that you have added red mana for Cut // Ribbons - Abrade, etc in your sideboard, you have treasure tokens for that.
In this instance, perhaps adding Brass's Bounty, as a 1/2 of, - sacrifice to Marionette Master for the win.
I also think that mono-black would have been better choice, as a personal opinion. You, therefore, could put in more colourless sources, like:
Zafirin Void, which would have been useful, or Inventor's Fair (life gain - search) / Spire of Industry  (mana fixing - if necessary)

Jk31214 - Azorius Artefacts

I haven't seen you enter one of my competitions before. I like the base idea, and you use a lot of low priced $$ cards.
The most expensive being Karn and Tezzeret, and you only use 2 copies of each.
The idea uses non-creature artefacts, augmenting them with Skilled Animator.
I think your deck needs to rely on one strategy. Having Fumigate in a creature heavy deck is counterproductive.
It would work well if you focused on using low-cost artefacts (Short Sword) using wraths Fumigate,
Until you could put the third saga counter on The Antiquities War, which you would swing in with lots of 5/5 artefacts.
You could even put a few Skilled Animators and Tezzeret's Touches if you don't want to just rely on that strategy.

Firegriff - Rise of The Servos

I love the servo's and Mechanized Production strategy, especially in combination with Hidden Stockpile.
If wraths and Goblin Chainwhirler weren't an issue, this deck would be formidable. However, even though it doesn't tick the competitive box,
it does tick the creativity and unique boxes.
Cog Puzzleknot and Servo Schematic are great replacement engines - Especially with Hidden Stockpile.
I am surprised to see that Anointed Procession is missing? Did you consider it too slow?
Your sideboard makes me giddy, especially since you have included Costly Plunder and Phyrexian Scriptures.
I think you could have included Costly Plunder into the mainboard, as a draw engine, as hidden stockpile would have replaced a servo.
It probably would have been an idea to add some treasure sources, since you are running an Esper deck, or perhaps Prophetic Prism (mana fixing)


Burn your Face - Value Town

This is definitely value! It works well and top marks for being competitive. It has threats left and right. (Again, whilst a sideboard wasn't stated, it would have helped)
I would say that you didn't need to mainboard Aether Meltdown as you don't really need it - you need more energy sources.
Instead of putting Metallic Rebuke to 4 copies would be better, perhaps add two max Reverse Engineer, even though you have Tezzeret and Karn.
I love that someone has added Chief of the Foundry! It makes your thopters a serious threat instead of being just a nuisance.
Being Mono-Blue, I don't know why you haven't added at least a single copy of Padeem, Consul of Innovation.
With the mainboarded artefact removal in standard, any artefact deck needs at least one copy! (It also helps with Mox Amber, as he is legendary)

Robort - Thopter Exchange and Change

Haha, you come up with some unique stuff Rob. I like this deck for its creativity. I can't see this winning games.
But, if those thopters live long enough you will be ruining a lot of peoples' day. Taking control of Nicol Bolas with Switcheroo for a thopter is hilarious.
I honestly think the idea is there, but there are too few low-cost thopter generators for this deck to be feasible.
Combining it with servos, or perhaps splashing black for Tezzeret's Touch to augment it further. It just needs a little more support.


Well done everyone, and good luck in the future! You all did great, so don't be disheartened if you didn't place in the top 3! It was a tough decision. 

[Firegriff]

Thanks for the feedback.  When I originally conceived the deck, Costly Plunder hadn't been around, nor had treasures.  Prophetic Prism would definitely be a good card to add in, but most of the spells are colorless, letting the deck have fairly easy spells available early on.

 Any changes I made (aside from outdated lands, which were swapped for same mana resources) I put into the sideboard.  Many of them were selected for the ability to eat Servo Schematic.  But ultimately, like Saproling tokens (without Slimefoot), Vampire tokens, and Merfolk tokens, Goblin Chainwhirler would decimate the deck and set it back.  Herald of Anguish (sideboarded in) would make them pay for it by eating dying servos, but the damage would be done.  On the other hand, it can also come back quickly in token production.

[DelverMage]

Wow!  I appreciate that. 

I thought I had a chance to place, but I did not expect first.  There are some good decks in the competition. 

Sram's Army came from a a deck I built in May to explore the core possibilities of alternative vehicle activations.  When I picked it back up for this competition I immediately started to update it with the latest cards but it did not get better, so I tuned it up to be low to the ground as most of my decks are, and stripped it down to focus on a  few vehicles.  The synergistic core with some support and removal  works quite consistently.  I would take this deck to an FNM.  Too bad most of it rotates soon.

[MonteTribal]

Thank you for @Mnemosyne! I know judging takes a lot of time, and I had fun with the competition!

> Which is why I think you are using Syndicate Trafficker as your sacrifice outlet to then draw a card off them?

Yes, but Ravenous Intruders is the better sacrifice outlet, being free and a larger buff. Fling is there because it turns the sacrifice train into a combo when you draw it.

[burn your face]

Thanks for doing the competition!!!!

[Mnemosyne]

Thank you for the kind comments. I've notified Nils to award you karma, if you have not received it already! I'll be starting another topic/poll to ascertain what formats I will be hosting in the future! Stay tuned!

Mnemosyne~!