Out with the Old, in with the New: A Zendikar Block Primer

Why so Blue(White)?

For every force, there is an equal and opposite force. Vampires’ arch-enemy would be in the form of Blue/White Control. This deck, over the course of the past few months has been specifically engineered to deal with the influx of Vampires decks. What started out as a simple amalgam of things that were deemed necessary to deal with Swamps has turned into a driving force of the format. With the dumbing down of Blue in recent sets, players have been itching for a reason to pack a few Islands, and this seems like the perfect opportunity. The total cost for the deck is about 65 tix.

"Blue/White Control", ZEN Block Constructed Daily #770259 by Kuriboh_

Creatures (10) 2 Devout Lightcaster
 4 Emeria Angel
 4 Sphinx of Lost Truths Other Spells (23) 4 Cancel
 4 Day of Judgment
 4 Into the Roil
 4 Ior Ruin Expedition 4 Journey to Nowhere
 3 Rite of Replication Lands (27) 3 Arid Mesa 8 Island
 4 Kabira Crossroads
 3 Misty Rainforest
 5 Plains
 4 Sejiri Refuge Sideboard (15) 4 Archive Trap
 2 Devout Lightcaster
 4 Hedron Crab 4 Kor Sanctifiers 1 Spell Pierce

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Staying Power: As could be expected, Aggro is a huge part of the format, and Control needs tools to stabilize against it. Kabira Crossroads and Sejiri Refuge provide up to ten extra life to turn back the clock while simply making land drops, and Into the Roil can generate enough tempo to stabilize, as well as facilitating neat tricks with Sphinx of Lost Truths and Journey to Nowhere. In the early game, staying at or above 20 is no problem at all. Day of Judgment really helps punish an over-committed opponent, and can set the stage for huge plays in the late game; not to mention, it’s the only way the deck can kill an early Malakir Bloodwitch. Sphinx of Lost Truths and Ior Ruin Expedition make sure you have the cards you need when your opponents have dumped their hand.

Answers to Problem Cards: Bloodghast is a problem for any deck that focuses on removal to stabilize. Main deck Devout Lightcaster and Journey to Nowhere make sure that once the spirits leave play, they stay gone. Spell Pierce can crush an opponent’s dream of a Turn Five Mind Sludge, as well as wreck Valukut’s Turn Three Harrow. Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle is a huge problem card for a Control player, since it can deal tons of uncounterable damage in very few turns. Spreading Seas stops these triggers, as well as putting greedy decks off of their mana, and softening a Mind Sludge, should you not be lucky enough to have the counter. Finally, as always, four copies of the set’s hard counter, Cancel have been added to deal with literally anything about to be thrown at you.

Powerhouse Finishers: If you can’t beat an opponent by playing more creatures, you have to outclass their creatures and marginalize their removal. Sphinx of Lost Truths and Sphinx of Jwar Isle can safely and sometimes profitably block most creatures currently in the format. Conquerors Pledge and an unchecked Emeria Angel make Gatekeeper of Malakir almost completely useless and can end a game in a few all-in attacks. However, Rite of Replication[/caard] is likely the biggest bomb in the deck; there are no bad targets for this card, and if kicked on an opposing [card]Malakir Bloodwitch, the tokens generate a fifty-point life swing that is almost guaranteed to end the game on the spot.

Cons: Arming oneself with a battery of answers to many a strategy does come at a cost. In this case, the cost involves double and triple Blue mana, as well as double and triple White. The greediness of this deck can really end up hurting a player who gets stuck on four, or even five lands. Against Vampires, you always have to be ready for a Turn five Mind Sludge. While leaving an Island untapped may convince cautious players that you have a spell pierce, most will be willing to call any bluffs, leaving you empty-handed, against an amassed army. Valakut is this deck’s worst nightmare; unless the Control player can reliably counter Valakut’s mana ramping, and play a few Spreading Seas on their win condition, don’t expect Control to come out on top in this matchup.