How would you play this starting hand?

[DelverMage]

Forest
Canopy Vista
Servant of the Scale
Windswept Heath
Hardened Scales
Warden of the First Tree
Avatar of the Resolute

If these cards were your starting hand, which order would you plan to play them?
Please explain.

I may have follow on questions about additional what ifs on this particular draw, and subsequent pulls.......

[G. Moto]

      Me personally this would seem like the best move;
1. Windswept heath (to get an extra forest out before turn two)
2. Untap the FOREST I just fetched and play the forest from the starting hand I have. In that same turn I'd play Hardened scales and THEN play servant of the Scale.
3. Next play canopy vista and play warden of the first tree. After that I would level him up till he also had his +1/+1 counters and finish with playing avatar of the resolute. (I say this with the anticipation that I would have drawn into a SWAMP at least once or twice already).

     In this manner my creatures would receive the most +1/+1 counters as they are being played and my avatar will be as big as possible. And if I wanted to spice things up I would play hunt the weak on my servant of the scale and and make it fight an enemy creature. That way if it dies it would of had 4x the +1/+1 counters on it (because of the enchantment hardened scales) and If it dies then avatar of the resolute would receive 5x +1/+1 counters and would go from being a (3/2) creature to being a (10/9) creature with trample. That's how I'd play this hand.

[DelverMage]

So if you didn't  want a turn 1 play,  could you then start with the Canopy Vista and follow up with the Forest?

I thought about that after seeing your play.  This would allow you to still have the option to grab a Plains with the Windswept Heath and thus give you access for both double green or double white spells.  (Both of which are in the deck)

[G. Moto]

     That would be a viable option. The reason why I was deciding to hold off on it was because If I HAD to fetch a particular land type then I would want to do that as early as possible. Then When I DO play canopy Vistas it'll enter the field untapped and ready to use since I'll already have two basic lands on my side of the field.

[DelverMage]

Not knocking your choices.  Your play gave me yet another opening strategy that I only used by happenstance as opposed to planning it out  like that.  Good call.

[DelverMage]

How would you differ it if this was your first 7.
Forest
Canopy Vista
Servant of the Scale
Windswept Heath
Hardened Scales
Ainok bond-kin
Avatar of the Resolute

[G. Moto]

     The enchantment would still and always be the first thing that I play so It'd be;
1) the FOREST and Hardened Scale,
2) Then next turn tap windswept heath and use it to grab a plains and play Ainok bond-kin.
3) Canopy vista then play servant of the scale and lastly Avatar of the resolute. The  objective for me with both the hands you gave me would be to make the most number of +1/+1 counters. Even if I had to wait until turn four to play avatar of the resolute I would because I want to make it as big as possible (also I want to make sure Ainok bond-kin gets at least 1x +1/+1 counter on him).

[xMaki]

1/ Windswept Heath pay 1 life gain forest, play warden
          <---- enter hardened scale here instead if possible
2/ enter forest play servant of the scale
3/ enter canopy play hardened scales then avatar of the resolute.

[robort]

Forest, hardned scale, windswept heath for white, servant of scale for 2 counters, canopy vista, ainok bond- kin, swing away with servant. if he dies then 3 counters go to ainok, if not he is still alive. drop next land and tap ainok for 2 more counters, then play avatar of the resolute. Either way I have 2-3 creatures and 1-2 will be massive. 3 creatures we have servant 2/2 , ainok 4/3 , and avatar a 6/5.
or 2 creatures ainok 7/6 and avatar a 5/4. Now we are using outlast , after all this . Drop the 3 drop green, captain something, I forget his name but anything with a counter gets trample.

[xMaki]

I would concede

[G. Moto]

     @robort, Have you made these additions to your deck you're working on?

[DelverMage]

That is also a nice play, Robort.  That is the start I like to see happen with my deck. 

Unfortunatly, many of the decks out there would be exiling or removing the fatness early on, and unless top decking ensues, this hand has run its course and they have just stalled you.

That doesn't  always happen, in which case this kind of start just wins.

[G. Moto]

     Well you can't have a perfect starting hand every game (unless you're Zane Truesdale from Yu-Gi-Oh GX), but adding the right cards to your deck can help pull off that particular combo faster or create even newer strategies. For example, If you were to add retreat to kazandu and undergrowth champion to the mix with hardened scales, every time you hit a land drop your creature would be getting 4x the +1/+1 counters. If the land played is evolving wilds then that's 8x the +1/+1 counters on a 3 mana cost creature. It's really all just a matter of using varying cards that can work together in order to bring out new styles of play. 

[DelverMage]

The previous Abzan version of this deck has exactly that.

I have recently modified it to take the black out, and I also took out the Undergrowth champions to put in Dromoka instead.

That deck would be http://deckstats.net/decks/35805/318205-hydra-scales/en

[G. Moto]

     It appears to be a strong deck. I recommend adding cards that give your creatures protection like winds of qal sisma. Also since you are playing green you can add some of the green ferocious cards to this deck and really get some serious impact as far as battle tactics and damage goes.