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Current Deck List
CREATURES:
SPELLS:
LAND:
Two cards for the lockdown!
OK, so I know that you're wondering what is up with the name. Well, this deck started off being a Prodigal Sorcerer deck. With the release of Ice Age I made this deck initially with two colors and included Norritts and Zuran Spellcasters. I eventually modified the deck to include Control Magic and it became a creature control deck...I simply couldn't resist keeping the name and tacking on the 'enlarged, extended' bit. This deck has seen also seen incarnations as a Tradewind Rider/Capsize deck, a Stasis Deck, and it's current incarnation which features both Stasis lockdown and creature control
The main combo is the Stasis/Frozen Aether combo which keeps opponents resources tapped. The Counterspells are used mainly to protect these cards and keep them in play. Properly done, you can send the stasis back to your hand with the Tradewind Riders or Temporal Adepts to give yourself an untap and play the Stasis again during your turn. The theory being that eventually your opponent will have nothing untapped.
The Serra Sphinxes are spendy critters, but they provide non-tapping big-critter type air support in case you need it. The Icy Manipulator is in there just cause it's cool and because it is nice to tap the occasional card.
Taking your opponent's creatures...again, and again, and again...
Tradewind Riders/Temporal Adepts/Man-o'-War and Guilded Drake give the deck the ability to take your opponent's creatures. Nothing says 'beatdown' like smacking your opponent with his own creatures. In the early days (when it was just a creature control deck) I used to use the term 'Say, that's a nice bike' whenever I took an opponents creature. The phrase comes from the movie Terminator 2 and is one I still like to use to this day when I pull off a creature control combo. It's fun to say and even more fun to do.
One of the biggest problems this deck has is that blue is an obnoxious color if it gains board control. The game is essentially over, but it can take forever for it to win. I've seen a fair number of players simply concede, rather than suffer turn after turn of helplessness. Some friends of mine have even refused to play against certain incarnations of this deck. It's not just me either, I've seen many people who would rather not play against other good blue control decks...myself included! It can be really frustrating to play against a lockdown deck like this one.
These two cards are not necessary, but they are fun and helpful with a Stasis on the board.
There are a few changes I would evantually like to see with this deck. I would like to eventually include another Frozen Aether (still don't have a third one) and a way of shuffling the deck (to make the Junktrollers more effective at recycling the counterspells. I have yet to figure out how that will work though. I may go ahead and put in another Feldon's Cane and replace the Junktrollers if I can't make it work. I do like to have a way of getting my graveyard back into play from time to time.
DECK STRATEGY TIPS: Save counterspells for protecting the Tradewind Riders, Temporal Adepts, and Stasis. Use the Diplomatic Immunity to keep one of the Tradewind Riders or Temporal Adepts safe as well. Make sure to return the Gilded Drake to your hand before your untap so you can cast it again. Always keep a couple of mana on hand to recast the stasis. It is important to keep that card in play at all times. Use the Serra Sphinxes whenever possible to hit your opponent for damage. If you can keep his flying defenses tapped the game should be over a lot quicker.
I haven't kept up on Magic the last few sets. I bought a bit of Timespiral block, but that is about it. I'm not really keeping up with the game so I don't know the new cards at all. If anyone has suggestions of good cards I might want to include in this deck from any of the sets after the Time Spiral block please feel free to email me with ideas.