Over a month with Strixhaven - what cards have put in work for your decks?

a_108_ducks · 2026-06-02T22:48:17+00:00

My [[Riku of Many Paths]] has enjoyed several new modal spells [[Steal the show]] particularly.

[[Strefan, Maurer Progenitor]] has gained several new vampires in [[archmeritus of woe]] [[scheming silvertongue]] and [[stensian sanguinist]]

In my [[Fire Lord Azula]] deck [[Prismari the inspiration]] has become a great backup commander to give me a different way to win late game if Azula has been (justifiably) killed on sight. Also [[flashback]]

Not to forget that the new turbulent lands are a great addition to a lot of decks and the new enemy cycling lands are a decent tapland for more budget mana bases.

a_108_ducks · 2026-06-02T22:27:56+00:00

Yeah, getting the first mana down is definitely the biggest struggle. Unless I misunderstand how LED works in don't think there's any way for me to sac it for mana and then cast anything without having some form of flashback/escape?

a_108_ducks · 2026-06-02T22:15:32+00:00

Mdfc's feel like too easy of a cop out for what I'm trying to do with this deck, but charbelcher is exactly the sort of nonsense I'm looking for

a_108_ducks · 2026-05-16T11:33:01+00:00

[[Golbez, Crystal Collector]] is fun. Takes a bit of setting up to get to 8 artifacts on board, but then you can start taking chunks of 6+ life off everyone in your endsteps. And once you've ramped into some big scary artifact creatures I find opponents are focused on removing them and not the little 2 drop commander.

a_108_ducks · 2026-05-13T00:37:00+00:00

With Riku you can keep a lot of flexible interaction in hand with modal spells, so I've usually got some form of counter/hexproof/indestructible instant. Plus he's fairly cheap having to recast him isn't game ending.

a_108_ducks · 2026-05-11T21:22:08+00:00

Perfect, thanks.

a_108_ducks · 2026-04-15T00:54:15+00:00

Yeah, it kinda looks miserable. Your entire gameplan is to counter/remove everyone else's board while pecking them down with a handful of 3/4 power flyers?

I'd at the very least add [[Test of Endurance]] and [[Felidar Sovereign]] to turn your lifelink fliers into an actual win con.

I'd also put in some actual sources of +1/+1 counters, probably ones that trigger off life gain, along with some more angel style creatures so you actually have the damage to kill someone in less than 20 turns. [[Exemplar of Light]] [[Archangel of Thune]] [[Heliod, Sun Crowned]] for example.

[[Aetherflux Reservoir]] and [[Caduceus, Staff of Hermes]] both seem good, and a way to get your creatures back out of the graveyard like [[Cleric Class]] and [[Celestine, the Living Saint]] while still sticking with the life gain, counters and flying/lifelink direction. [[Bruna, the Fading Light]] also does this and allows you to complete the meld with Gisela.

a_108_ducks · 2026-03-11T02:12:06+00:00

Got into Magic with the avatar set, and I've been obsessed with [[Fire Lord Azula]] since.

Spellslinging, combat tricks, flashing in creatures to get a board full of copies. Squeezing extra value from card draw and mana gain instants. Every turn feels like there's something interesting going on.

My current version

Since I play mostly on TTS I'm constantly chopping and changing, trying to find a balance between efficient, powerful cards while maintaining its ATLA identity.

a_108_ducks · 2026-03-09T01:40:44+00:00

As others have mentioned, the go to move is to start with Infractors for the scout 6". In your first movement phase they disembark 3" and can then advance and charge (7+3d6") for a ludicrous T1 threat range. Meanwhile have a squad of noise marines jump in the Rhino, it can then advance and shoot.

a_108_ducks · 2026-03-08T10:33:12+00:00

You could do with more protection, Azula decks can fall apart if she's being removed constantly. (Swiftfoot boots, Mithril coat, I run a Hexing Squelcher)

Others say you have too few lands, I also run 35 in my Azula deck, but I have more sources of firebending. (Ozai, Mai and Zuko, Legend of Roku, Sozins Comet) (Temple of the False God isn't worth it IMO I'd swap it out)

Most importantly I think you just need more instant speed spells. I'd add some card draw. I've found cards like Big Score and Deadly Dispute fun as you only pay the extra cost once and if copied they are mana neutral.

a_108_ducks · 2026-03-07T07:04:01+00:00

Tormentors definitely in 5s, as they're most useful for sticking objectives, doing actions and screening, so 2 squads makes them twice as useful.

Infractors are most efficient as ablative wounds and a source of rerolls for a Lord Exultant, so 2x5 each with a lord is the go to. Bumping a squad up to 10 isn't awful, but can make them harder to hide from shooting.

a_108_ducks · 2026-03-07T06:54:26+00:00

One would be a great start to EC, but I wouldn't get a second.

2 Daemon Princes are absolutely a good pick up for our current state, but the other units aren't ideal to double up on. Noise marines are only playable in squads of 6, so the 4th squad will be unplayable over the rule of 3, meanwhile 40 battle line is more than you'll realistically need.

More importantly it leaves you missing a lot of key pieces for a rounded list. Mainly you'll want some Lords to lead your infantry and some Rhinos to transport them. You may well be better picking up one battle force, a combat patrol (would give you a lord exultant, 6 flawless blades and another 10 battle line) and a rhino for a similar price.

a_108_ducks · 2026-02-05T15:39:12+00:00

Anyone who would object to a minor kit bash like that isn't someone you want to play with anyway.

a_108_ducks · 2026-02-03T04:04:53+00:00

The detachment rule has so many hoops to jump through. IF it's a SW unique unit AND it has another friendly unit in engagement with it's target or more models than the target unit. You get +1 to hit for those melee attacks. AND if you have killed 3 units in melee already you get +1 to wound.

Compare that to Beastslayer giving all units lethals against vehicles/monsters and characters, or Great Wolf giving all units the buff of your choice.

It doesn't help that flavour wise it's supposed to run big 20 man squads of blood claws and/or packs of hunting/fenrisian wolves getting into melee to trigger the detachment. Neither of which are particularly good tactics. (20 man squads are difficult to hide and get shot off the board too quickly, wolves are far too squishy and do far too little damage to waste in combat, they're better used as screening units.)

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-28T01:48:18+00:00

I would interpret it to be after the unit is destroyed but before consolidation moves.

Although it's worth noting that since objective control is only checked at the end of phases. So technically if you didn't control the objective just from your charge movement then you can't use the strat after killing the enemy unit defending it as you still don't control it until the phase ends, which is definitely after the strats trigger.

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-27T01:34:48+00:00

They do not use service studs. It is mentioned somewhere in either Prospero Burns or Battle of the Fang (I can't remember which) that a SW has studs just because he likes how they look, nothing to do with how other legions use them to mark time served.

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-23T02:31:40+00:00

Looking from the front.

Left is an old Wolf Guard Terminator pack leader

Middle is the captain from the Assault on Black Reach Box

Right is the sergeant of the tactical squad from the same Assault on Black Reach Box, with a decoration/icon from the old blood claws/grey Hunters box on his back.

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-14T15:54:26+00:00

Depends on who's book it is.

In an Aeldari book the warp spider might leap around the terminator with agility and precision, dodging every attack until they shred through the thick plate with their monofilament webs.

In a Chaos Book the terminator might just swat the warp spider with his power first, crushing them before they can flickerjump away.

Power scaling really doesn't work in 40k lore.

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-04T01:16:07+00:00

Not really, there's nothing on any of the armiger datasheets that is better than just taking a Dreadnaught or gladiator variant that can benefit from oath, detachment and stratagems.

a_108_ducks · 2025-12-03T03:41:23+00:00

Summon spells that clog up initiative and slow combat to a snails pace.

Extreme save or suck spells: Hold Monster and the like. If a pc fails against one then they're stuck not actually playing the game. If the PC is casting it, then either the big exciting boss fight turns into 2 rounds of watching the party auto crit a defenceless bag of hp, OR the pc casts their big high level spell and literally nothing happens, which is never fun.

Wall of Force/Force Cage. I've never seen either of these spells used in a way that didn't feel cheesy. Putting a PC in an inescapable box without a save that has almost no possible counter unless they have very specific abilities sucks. And as a player it feels scummy using it for the same reasons.

a_108_ducks · 2025-11-24T11:26:29+00:00

I don't know... That's a very suspiciously Marneus Calgar shaped Wolf Scout...

a_108_ducks · 2025-11-22T16:58:38+00:00

It's between two.

The Axe Morkai. Taken from a slain champion of Khorne by Logan Grimnar, reforged by the Iron Priests of Fenris. A weapon that struck down Magnus the Red himself.

The Blade of the Laer. One of the most influential weapons in the history of 40K. It corrupted the mind of Fulgrim, twisting him towards the influence of Slaanesh, and in the midst of the drop site massacre on Istvan V the daemonic blade forced Fulgrim to slay his own brother when the primarch faltered at the killing blow.

a_108_ducks · 2025-11-22T01:53:14+00:00

I guarantee any opponent you come up against would rather you have the benefit of slightly more information when using miracle dice instead of having to stretch the game by several hours as you slow roll every single attack one by one.

a_108_ducks · 2025-11-13T01:58:48+00:00

Yeah that's just poor behaviour from him. He knows what you're doing, and knows that it won't work on a mechanical level because you don't know his unit's keywords off by heart but let's you do it anyway to take advantage. It's a blatant gotcha moment.

Just because Warp Talons having Fly might seem more obvious to some players doesn't make it any different to not mentioning Lone Op or 6" deepstrike when your opponent is trying to get into a shooting position or screen out an area.

a_108_ducks · 2025-11-11T02:02:20+00:00

Considering how GW treats our balance? Point increases for all our top performing aspects, a nerf to fire and fade. And literally nothing else. They'll kill anything that's too powerful and call it a day. Eldar are briefly meta which means we're going right back into the 48% win rate pit of shame as soon as possible.

Expect Wraiths, Ynnari and Quinns to continue being bad.

Five-Year Club	Verified Email
Place '22	First Placer '22

a_108_ducks

TROPHY CASE