Cheap S-Rank Maehv ramp/control

[neoncat]

deckbuilder

This deck started as @deathsadvocate’s Maehv Tempo, but without all the expensive entries that I didn’t have. Originally, it leaned heavily into early-game aggression, and it can still be quite aggressive given the right draw. However, while rising from rank 5 to 0, I found more success while tuning it towards control with fatties and removal.

The play style generally leads with an aggressive push to land fatties on the board, and then backing off with Maehv to minimize exposure while spamming BBS. Always lead with Cryptographer and Azure Horn Shaman, and replace if you don’t have them in hand during turns 1-3. Turn 3-4, drop a Shadowdancer or equip Furor Chakram and go to town. If your opponent manages to gain board control, Gnasher / Dark Transformation / Necrotic Sphere are there to turn the tide.

It’s worth noting that this is a very cheap deck to craft. The Spectral Revenant is extraneous, so Desolator and Necrotic Sphere constitute 3/5 of the deck’s cost.

individual card notes
Prophet of the White Palm - While this can prevent the damage from Maehv’s BBS, I used this more often to stall spell damage by Songhai, Abyssian, and Vanar for a turn. Keeping the board populated with your creatures is essential for this deck!
Furor Chakram - This is a closer! Don’t hold on to it if you haven’t already established board control. It’s useless without at least two creatures that can survive in play until your next turn.
Spectral Revenant - This is only here for the ridiculous game-ending combo potential with Furor Chakram. I’ve only landed that once, so I’d actually rather run Betrayal as cheaper control + closer, if I had it.

Meta-gaming
Successful control requires knowing which threats to remove immediately and which to soak for a turn or two. This deck also requires the delicate balance of consuming your general’s health as a resource, so it’s crucial to back her out before your health is too depleted. Most competitive decks have huge damage spikes (eg, Eggmar, Mantra), so you’ll have to learn how to avoid exposure.

Replays (all Diamond or S-Rank)
win vs Lillith
win vs Brome
win vs Reva
win vs Vaath
win vs Zirix
win vs Kara

[deathsadvocate]

Looks sollid, card advantage looks a touch light for its curve.

Chakram really is amazing, but I have always avoided artifacts with Maev. How has it worked for you?

I used to like crypto for her due to the early game push, but found the extra health loss a bit expensive so I stopped running it awhile ago. Do you think it’s worth it?

It’s not quite how I run things, but it is a very clean looking deck. I may have to try some your choices.

[Blackdmc]

This list looks good, but as DA said, I don’t see why would you run Chakram in a Maehv deck. Maybe drop 1 or 2?

[lambertsimnel]

Certainly works at the lower levels I can assure you

[neoncat]

The card advantage is definitely light compared to similar decks, but it feels just about right for this deck. I usually end matches with ~2 cards in hand, but I rarely feel like I don’t have the right answer in hand. Partly that’s due to meta-game knowledge about which cards to hold onto against which builds. Partly it’s due to the redundancy and flexibility of the deck, since most hands can deal with most situations. The mid-game does tend towards a series of turns with single large drops, but your opponent has also often exhausted removal on Hulks, so that’s ok.

I do find Chakram helpful in many situations, both for clearing the board and game-ending damage spikes. It rarely lasts more than a couple of turns, but that’s enough to either re-establish control or close the match. I could see dropping a Chakram for Betrayal, if I had it. Due to lack of card advantage, I wouldn’t want to swap it out for anything less than a 4-cost with game-turning potential.

Early Crypto makes every game easier. You want to land some early Hulks on the board in order to disrupt your opponent’s early game. For player 1, ideal opening is T1 Crypto into T2 BBS on Azure. For Player 2, it’s T1 Crypto into BBS on Prophet. Landing early Hulks also causes your opponent to exhaust removal before you play Desolator or Shadowdancer. (Vetruvian does tend to spam removal, but eventually they run out, and spamming removal prevents them from building up their position.)

Of course, the early loss of health means you have to pull Maehv back during the mid-game, but by then you should have control of the board. Knowing the damage spikes for each deck is again quite important.

[alexx55]

Everything works in silver, until you reach rank 12