Yeah, I'm just another person trying to make the draw2 archetype work. However, after putting in a couple matches in (and asking for input over the r/spikes subreddit) I think I reached a fairly competitive list. It will obviously need a moderate amount of tweaking still, as we need to balance removal, draw and counters to reach critical mass, but as the deck is, it seems to be working a fair bit.
Rather than talking about individual cards, let's talk about roles:
Draw Enablers: Here we have Opt, Thrill of Possibility, Crackling Drake, Loch Dragon, The Royal Scions and Niv-Mizzet, Parun. Their role is simple: enable our Draw2 payoffs. Some do this better than others, and some can do it on an opponent's turn (namely Thrill). All of these cards seem pretty standard additions to this archetype, except maybe Loch Dragon, who hasn't seen much play in other lists. IMO it is very powerful - it lets us trigger a draw every turn so long as we're attacking with it with no mana or card investment, which means we can leave mana up for our counterspells. It being a 3/2 flyer is pretty neato as well, as it puts our opponent on a clock.
Draw Payoffs: This is where you'll find Faerie Vandal, Irencrag Pyromancer and Niv-Mizzet, Parun (again). There is no Improbable Alliance here because the enchantment is 1) slow and 2) limited in payoff. It does nothing until you start drawing with it, and when it does something it's underwhelming. Faerie Vandal is one of our most valued creatures: it has flash, letting us hold mana for a counterspell without losing tempo, it grows and it flies. Irencrag Pyromancer turns a draw spell into a Lightning Bolt - don't need to say much more, though its 0/4 body can help us fend off some aggro strategies until we stabilize. Niv-Mizzet is just Niv. Draw, remove, ping, draw more, remove more, ping more...
Clocks/Threats: The most relevant is obviously Crackling Drake, but Brazen Borrower and Loch Dragon also fit here. Unsurprisingly so does Niv-Mizzet, Parun. The Royal Scions too, as they can give a sizeable buff to any creature and make them that much harder to block. Borrower is a pain for the enemy to deal with. its ability to bounce lets us get around enchantment removal or remove a significant threat, and it having flash, again, lets us leave mana open for a counterspell.
Protection: Mystical Dispute, Ionize and Brazen Borrower, mostly, though it can be argued removal is a form of protection, in which case, Shock. Mystical Dispute is mostly here to handle T2/3 Oko, Thief of Crowns, but on its own it's not too shabby - and can take U-based decks by surprise when you leave just an island open. Ionize is straightforward - counters and gives reach. Brazen, too, is simple: bounce something annoying, like that Questing Beast so you get a second shot at countering it. Also, Shock the Gilded Goose.
As for the Sideboard: Aether Gust to better handle Simic decks, delaying significantly their strategies, but it can also work on some cavalcade decks, by throwing that darned Chandra's Spitfire on top of their library. Flame Sweep wipes the floor with cavalcade decks, and also, when well timed, deals beautifully with Simic Flash's early game. Fry can cook relatively small Hydroid Krasises, and most of Jeskai Fires' walkers. Negate is simple and straightforward. and Tale's End is my ace in the sleeve - deals with all planeswalkers, Questing Beast, Embercleave... in short, most threats in the meta, and all of that for 1U.
The list will see some small tweaking still. I'm also documenting my winrate, and will share when I reach a relatively relevant number of matches (I'm at 27 as of this writing after documenting for 2 or 3 days). What I can say is that this list seems to have serious problems dealing with MonoB Rankle and Temur Elementals, but I've only faced those 3 times each (1 win 2 losses for both). Rankle steps on us, and Elementals ramps and gets out of control faster than we can contain it. This was, however, with a slightly outdated list, so we'll see how this will work going forward.
Creature (18) | |||
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$0.20€0.090.03 | |||
$0.25€0.170.03 | |||
$0.44€0.340.02 | |||
$0.20€0.100.03 | |||
$2.05€0.870.02 | |||
$6.598.16 | |||
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (17) | |||
4
Shock
|
$0.19€0.050.03 | ||
$0.20€0.100.03 | |||
4
Opt
|
$0.25€0.090.03 | ||
$0.49€0.450.13 | |||
4
Ionize
|
$0.50€0.460.02 | ||
Land (23) | |||
$0.50€0.210.02 | |||
$14.27€11.601.73 | |||
6
Mountain
|
$1.02€0.060.03 | ||
6
Island
|
$0.15€0.050.03 | ||
$6.45€4.270.36 | |||
Planeswalker (2) | |||
$0.95€0.730.02 |
$0.40€0.360.03 | |||
2
Negate
|
$0.25€0.090.03 | ||
$2.88€3.010.03 | |||
3
Fry
|
$0.25€0.150.03 | ||
$0.25€0.170.03 | |||
$0.31€0.120.03 | |||
$1.16€0.670.03 |
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