I ended up skipping the Regional Championship in Cincinnati due to work and family commitments, but did a lot of testing with Izzet Spellementals. Today I’m going to discuss my list for those looking to play Standard on Arena and the upcoming Regional Championship in Washington DC at the end of May.
WHAT IS IZZET SPELLEMENTALS?
There are many flavors of playable Izzet decks in Standard and each comes with their own strengths and weaknesses. Spellementals takes advantage of cheap instants and sorceries to cast Eddymurk Crab and Hearth Elemental ahead of schedule. The reward for casting these cheap elementals is a Sunderflock at a reduced rate.
I like the Spellementals matchup against Izzet Prowess and is close against Green Landfall decks because Sunderflock can reset the board quickly. It falls short compared to Prowess against decks without creatures; if Sunderflock is good in the matchup I’m happy.
Graveyard hate is detrimental to Spellementals compared to Prowess. Rest in Peace ensures no elemental comes down at a reduced rate and Keen-Eyed Curator should be killed on sight. The game doesn’t end if your graveyard is attacked, but the elementals take longer to cast.
Eddymurk Crab is the flagship elemental. A 5/5 with flash and powerful ability when entering the battlefield for as little as two mana is quite the payoff. Sunderflock costs two mana with a Crab on the battlefield. Beware Eddymurk’s ability can be a liability in the face of a removal spell if you plan on casting Sunderflock immediately afterward for the reduced rate as the opponent will have priority to kill it.
There are times where not tapping creatures is optimal. Gran-Gran triggers when she is tapped rather than attacking. Surrak, Elusive Hunter and Pawpatch Recruit can also make me think twice about targeting an opposing creature. It’s also possible to mess with Split Up by tapping untapped creatures on either side of the battlefield.
The Crab typically comes down on the fourth turn unless Prismari Charm surveils two spells and you cast a spell on the first turn. Just because you can cast the Crab at instant speed does not always mean you should; it enters untapped on your turn only.
I am willing to trim Eddymurk Crab during sideboard in anticipation of graveyard hate that slows down my primary game plan.
Hearth Elemental is the second elemental to enable Sunderflock. It’s only six mana so it can come down on the third turn if you add three spells to the graveyard during the first two turns. Hearth Elemental is also cheaper when adventures are in the graveyard meaning other copies of the ⅘ help cast it.
The adventure spell on Hearth Elemental, Stoke Genius, can be helpful in the late game, but isn’t often cast. It can appear free to cast when you’re empty-handed, but it does run the risk of having your ⅘ being countered by Spell Snare.
I don’t typically board out Hearth Elemental because it’s cheaper to cast in the face of graveyard hate.
Sunderflock is the reason to play Spellementals. Green landfall and other creature decks can get on the battlefield quickly and Sunderflock serves as a catch up mechanism.
All of the cost reduction attributes of Eddymurk Crab, Hearth Elemental, and Sunderflock help cast them if they’re airbended from Ang, Swift Savior out of Azorius Flash and Bant Airbending Combo.
I’ll board out all of the Sunderflocks if the matchup isn’t about containing opposing creatures and bring in other haymakers.
Opt and Sleight of Hand are the glue. Opt is better than Sleight of Hand because you can hold up counters during the opponent’s turn despite being a less powerful cantrip to resolve. It’s usually correct to cast Sleight of Hand on turn one on the play since you won’t have to hold up Spell Snare.
I have boarded out a Sleight of Hand on the draw when Spell Snare is important in the matchup, but will generally stay in the deck.
Burst Lightning is the removal spell of choice. I can fire off burn spells at the opponent if the matchup isn’t about small creatures to fuel cheaper elementals. The kicked four damage can kill Icetill Explorer and Mightform Harmonizer out of landfall making it scale well.
Abrade is the extra burn spell of choice because it can team up with Burst Lightning against big elementals, kill Monument to Endurance, and Keen-Eyed Curator. I have favored Abrade over Impractical Joke because it’s also live against control due to them ramping with Tablet of Discovery.
Small burn spells are the other cards that are an easy choice to board out which means I have four Burst Lightning, four Sunderflock, and Abrade coming out in many matchups. When designing the sideboard I need to account for a large amount of cards to come in against non-creature decks.
Spell Snare looks like a strange inclusion, but I’m much closer to playing three copies than one. It counters Keen-Eyed Curator, Badgermole Cub, and Rest in Peace against Selesnya Landfall.
Most of the deck plays at instant-speed meaning there are more turns for it to be cast.
Get Out counters key spells out of nearly every popular archetype: the haymakers in the mirror and most spells in Landfall. The floor on Get Out is also high because it can bounce your elementals to protect against removal or to get additional triggers. If you expect a lot of creature decks I can see a fourth copy in the sideboard where it critically counters Rest in Peace.
Prismari Charm is the most versatile enabler. Surveil 2 allows elementals to come down ahead of schedule depending on how many spells are milled. The damage mode doesn’t come up often, but it can be a blowout against Otter tokens or Lanowar Elves. The bounce mode can save your elementals or return an annoying permanent like Rest in Peace. I haven’t boarded out Prismari Charm before.
Traumatic Critique is another way to enable a turn three Hearth Elemental. It can be cast for x=0, but you must choose a target and can be fizzled; I just target the opponent. Critique scales well as it becomes a removal spell in the late game or can finish off the opponent. I don’t board out Critique often, but have shaved one on occasion as I may need to win in uglier ways post board.
I don’t like Flow State in Spellementals because it costs more mana than it puts spells into the graveyard.
Three Steps Ahead is a spicy option where all three modes are good. Drawing two and discarding a card enables the elementals and an additional counter helps in matchups where Sunderflock isn’t strong. Copying an elemental is a strong option at instant-speed, but it doesn’t grant a Sunderflock trigger because it only bounces when cast.
Winternight Stories is another discard outlet, but I prefer to discard or surveil instead of hard casting.
I prefer twenty lands with another in the sideboard once my graveyard comes under attack. There are plenty of ways to loot away excess lands so I won’t flood often.
Multiversal Passage is the fifth Steam Vents. There aren’t any splashes so I’ll always choose either blue or red. I’m more likely to choose blue because Eddymurk Crab into Sunderflock requires four pips. Since it’s a drawback to choose red over blue I play a Stormcarved Coast over the second copy.
The twelve dual lands, Spirebluff Canal, Riverpyre Verge, and Steam vents, ensure I have the single red mana requirement. The manabase is rounded out with six islands.
I favor Ashling, Rekindled and Emeritus of Ideation over Colorstorm Stallion, but both are defensible. Ashling can rummage and help cast big spells once your graveyard comes under attack; good post-board glue.
Emeritus of Ideation isn’t easily cast with just twenty lands, but is a combo with Ashling, Rekindled. Ancestral Recall is always powerful, but serves as the haymaker in matchups where Sunderflock isn’t strong. You can force your opponent to draw three cards against Dimir Excruciator and they will do the same. This is the new best blue haymaker out of many great options.
Ral, Crackling Wit is the third haymaker once Sunderflock has left the deck that Ashling can help cast.
Colorstorm Stallion is easier to cast, but there are fewer five drops after Burst Lightning moves to the sideboard. There are three Traumatic Critique, two Winternight Stories, and a Three Steps Ahead to trigger the copies. I don’t want to board in Stallions against Prowess or Landfall where Burst Lightning is live.
Thundering Falls enters tapped, but is an extra mana source in grindy post board games to help cast the top end threats or hold up mana for counters.
Annul and Spell Pierce come in from the sideboard alongside the two maindeck Spell Snare for the nimble counters. I want one Annul versus Selesnya decks that play Rest in Peace and Earthbender’s Ascension.
Disdainful Stroke is similar to Get Out, but has use against Jeskai Revelation hence the split.
Negate can be another Spell Pierce; I also want this counter to hit Jeskai Revelation.
Gigastorm Titan enables Sunderflock in a way that doesn’t use the graveyard. A fine card to replace the shaved Eddymurk Crab.
Broadside Barrage primarily kills Eddymurk Crab, but also hits Professor Delian Fel.
Ghost Vacuum helps in the mirror and can exile problematic creatures on both sides of the battlefield against opposing Superior Spider-Man. It’s not an instant or sorcery so I don’t want to draw too much of the effect. I prefer Soul-Guide Lantern against Lessons to blank Combustion Technique.
Sear is the primary removal spell against Landfall. I don’t want too many red burn spells in the sideboard because the deck is preboarded against creature decks. My main goal during sideboard against creature decks is to not fall prey to graveyard hate.
The Standard format is fun and there are plenty of decks to play. Izzet is the frontrunner, but the Standard card pool is deep. Spellementals is both powerful and relatively simple to play making it a good choice.
