1. Scott, you’re crazy! ;) I like the Meddling Mage plan, but for a different deck. The mana denial of this build doesn’t interact well with fetches (arbiter). I think a UW build utilizing Hussar would probably be a human/wizard build with a tool box of answers and cards like trinket mage. I’ve also played hussar in mono blue wizards to some success, but I suspect the deck is too slow right now. That was several years ago.

    As far as budget goes, I don’t think the deck is playable without wasteland. Mana denial is probably the source of the majority of the wins. Even if it doesn’t directly win the game, it buys some time while you build card advantage. That said, the rest of the deck costs less than 100 tix, so someone interested in Classic/Vintage couldn’t go wrong with wasteland as a first staple to pick up, and build the rest of the deck on the cheap.

  2. Yeah, it’s definitely a different deck without Wasteland. As you mention, Wasteland is a pillar of Legacy/Vintage/Classic, so someone buying in would do well to start there since the rest of this deck is fairly cheap.

    Regarding Mage, it’s probably a card that requires major changes to the deck. The mana denial plan would probably have to be scrapped for a permission suite, but that would give you access to Force of Will (which is a pretty good card I hear). I have also tried a “Wizards” deck, and it wasn’t anything special. Perhaps we’ll get some new cards in the future to that make it better, but right now it’s not quite there.