Plenty of revolutions have taken place in the history of man, but the best revolutions are the ones that come from inventions. The Industrial Revolution was an innovative period between the mid 18th and 19th century. This revolution was an invention or breakthrough one after another that plummeted Great Britain advancement to the stratosphere. Many of the things we still use today came from that era. Nothing would’ve happened if brilliant and adventurous minds didn’t dare to do or at least try something new. How does this relate to Magic? Well, quite a lot. People get tired and bored of certain formats because they don’t like the competitive decks that are being played. It’s too fast, it’s too linear, and it’s not “fun.” Fun is relative my friend, you need to figure out what cards or strategies you find fun in Standard and try them out. Let me tell you a story.

Last weekend I was going to go to Baltimore for the team Open, but they capped. Because of that and us not pre-registering, my friends and I couldn’t go. We decided to still hang out and hit up local PPTQs. Joseph Herrera wanted something to play in Standard, he told me to build him anything, “I’ll even play one of your Ali decks if you got one, I just want to play.”

Sidenote: Joe is a great player, he’s top 8’ed countless tournaments. When I asked him exactly how many Open’s he’s won, he sent me this picture.

So, three large and competitive tournaments. Come the next day I knew what I was going to hand Joe. I needed a deck tested. I didn’t give him B/G Delirium or Mardu Vehicles, instead, I gave him an “Ali Brew.” I handed him a Whir of Invention deck that seemed good in testing but I didn’t have enough time to put the reps in with. Fast forward to after round one and Joe has lost his first round.

“Keep playing.” I tell him.

Round two finishes and he’s lost again. “I’m going to drop, I should’ve just played Mardu Vehicles or B/G.” He says as he skulks and tries to hand me back my deck.

“Why? I’m still in the tournament, I’m your ride too. You might as well keep playing and this time instead of trying to win, just play and try to find out what the deck needs, find out why you’re losing.” I tell him.

Joe then proceeds to win match and he says, “This deck is pretty fun once you get the hang of it.”

He wins again, “Okay, now that I get the feel of it, I’m actually really enjoying it.”

And again. “You know what this deck needs? Glimmer of Genius, we need to cut these other crappy cards that aren’t doing much for me, but I really like the shell.”

Then again. “Okay, I’m playing this deck tomorrow at the cash PPTQ tournament.” He tells me as I walk over after the last round. He says that as he’s proxying up some cards.

I play some games against Joe and I’m getting slaughtered. The games I do win, I’m barely winning and that’s only because I know the contents of the deck. After that tournament is over we test until three in the morning and then go to bed. When I wake up I see him gold fishing on my kitchen table.

I laugh, “How long have you been up?”

“Since around seven am, I’m ready to play some Magic. Glimmer of Genius is great in this deck!” he responds.

We grab some Coffee at Starbucks and get a bite to eat before going to the tournament. Joe’s testing and the deck in general has inspired me to play a Whir of Invention of my own. We both feel prepared and we are ready to battle.

Fast Forward to the end of the tournament, and we’ve both made it.

Sadly, neither of us could close, but we learned even more about our decks and where to go from there. The day after the tournament, Joe is texting me about the deck, changes he would make, and how he is in love with Standard now.

Moral of the story?

"Dont act like you are walking around with a T-shirt that says 'I give Up!' on the front and on the back saying 'I never started trying!'"

This is my philosophy in life and it also applies to Magic:

If you’re bored, tired, or feel like you’re walking through Hell, keep going. We face challenges every day. Face it, deal with it, and move on. Every problem has a solution; and, sometimes, it even has multiple solutions. Then you have a plethora of ways to come to that solution or solutions. People aren’t going to do everything for you. Nobody owes you anything. Do what you want to do. Instead of complaining, be that change. Take that first progressive movement to what you envision. Your end goal is a beautiful and glorious one million piece solved puzzle. It’s your puzzle. Sure, people might help along the way but at the end of the day, you’re going to have to solve pieces, sections, and sometimes the whole damn thing by yourself.

TL;DR: Standard is boring and unfun? It doesn’t have any decks that you like? Well you don’t have the power to ban or make new cards so what can you do? Try new decks, innovate and have fun. Make your deck as competitive as it can be, take a deck you like and put your own twist to it, that makes it more enjoyable. I promise you’ll try harder and win more if you’re enjoying it.

Now that all that is out of the way, let me show you what deck Joe is on and where he’s with it now.

Marvelous Inventions ? Aether Revolt Standard | Joseph Herrera

• Creatures (5)
• 1 World Breaker
• 4 Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger

• Instants (10)
• 3 Glimmer of Genius
• 3 Whir of Invention
• 4 Metallic Rebuke

• Artifacts (22)
• 1 Implement of Combustion
• 1 Inspiring Statuary
• 4 Aetherworks Marvel
• 4 Glassblower's Puzzleknot
• 4 Implement of Improvement
• 4 Renegade Map
• 4 Woodweaver's Puzzleknot

• Lands (23)
• 2 Plains
• 5 Island
• 1 Inventors' Fair
• 3 Botanical Sanctum
• 4 Aether Hub
• 4 Port Town
• 4 Spire of Industry

• Sideboard (14)
• 3 Fumigate
• 4 Aether Meltdown
• 2 Dispel
• 2 From Beyond
• 1 World Breaker
• 2 Radiant Flames

Buy This Deck

This is the current deck. While I feel Joe has made a lot of progress with it, I still think it can be improved in some way. The deck is very fun and can do a lot of powerful things. It is playing Aetherworks Marvel and Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger after all.

Things to Keep in Mind while Playing the Deck

• 1-drop artifacts are important to fuel Improvise. You don’t need to crack them all as soon as possible. In fact, it’s usually better to hold off on cracking them until you absolutely need to. You really want that Metallic Rebuke to only cost one or two mana as early as turn two. The more artifacts you have in play the faster you can Whir of Invention for an Aetherworks Marvel. Depending on how many artifacts you have laying around after you Whir of Invention for a Marvel, you’ll generate a nice extra lump of energy when you sacrifice said artifacts.
• Implement of Combustion is great at disrupting the Saheeli Combo because when your opponent is comboing off, they’ll have to leave there Saheeli at one loyalty multiple times. Just ping it off.
• It’s usually better to activate Marvel on your opponent’s turn to disrupt Saheeli Combo or to just get an instant speed Ulamog to not only Exile two permanents but also block a creature. The exception being if your opponent is playing Disallow but even then, try to play around Nahiri exiling your tapped artifact.
• Don’t be afraid to crack Glassblower's Puzzleknot on your upkeep to ensure you hit land drops if you don’t have any more.
• Remember all those artifacts you didn’t sacrifice? Well now you have a couple of Ulamogs stuck in your hand. No worries, Whir of Invention for Inspiring Statuary to give your Ulamogs Improvise.
• You’re bound to miss a trigger here or there when first picking up the deck with Aetherworks Marvel, Inventors' Fair, and even the life gain or damage off your implements since you’ll be so focused on drawing a new card because you feel like you’re not doing anything. Don’t worry, just learn from it and keep going. You’ll also eventually learn that the deck doesn’t do anything until it just wins. So, expect to be on the backpedal starting from as early turn one.
• The deck has a great control and B/G matchup. It is about even with four color Saheeli depending on the build. The deck is struggles the most with is Mardu Vehicles. If you can solve that problem, then you’re good to go. Also, if you happen to find the perfect answer for that matchup, please let me know!

I said earlier that watching Joe play this deck made me want to play my own Whir of Invention and even Aetherworks Marvel. I wondered, “Why can’t I play a control deck that also plays Aetherworks Marvel? I don’t need to hit something as great as Ulamog with it, I just want to generate value off it as I feel the thrill of ‘spinning the wheel.’”

The answer?

I can.

Jeskai Inventions ? Aether Revolt Standard | Ali Aintrazi

• Creatures (4)
• 4 Torrential Gearhulk

• Planeswalkers (2)
• 2 Nahiri, the Harbinger

• Instants (21)
• 1 Blessed Alliance
• 1 Decommission
• 1 Whir of Invention
• 3 Disallow
• 3 Negate
• 4 Anticipate
• 4 Glimmer of genius
• 4 Harnessed Lightning

• Sorceries (3)
• 1 Declaration in Stone
• 2 Fumigate

• Artifacts (4)
• 1 Aetherworks Marvel
• 3 Dynavolt Tower

• Lands (27)
• 2 Plains
• 7 Island
• 1 Wandering Fumarole
• 2 Needle Spires
• 3 Port Town
• 4 Aether Hub
• 4 Inspiring Vantage
• 4 Spirebluff Canal

• Sideboard (15)
• 1 Linvala, the Preserver
• 1 Dragonmaster Outcast
• 2 Radiant Flames
• 1 Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
• 2 Incendiary Flow
• 1 Overwhelming Denial
• 1 Blessed Alliance
• 1 Negate
• 1 Confirm Suspicions
• 2 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
• 1 Fumigate
• 1 Dispel

Buy This Deck

I played this deck and lost in the semifinals to get 3rd place. I just punted both games by being greedy one game and the second I just literally forgot to tap Dynavolt Tower to kill a creature one turn and ended up dying for exact damage. What I’m basically trying to say here is that I played this deck and while some cards may look unorthodox I’m telling you that they work and you should try them out.

This deck is basically just a Jeskai Control deck that gains a lot of its advantage off Glimmer of Genius, Dynavolt Tower, and Aetherworks Marvel. Let me break down some of the unorthodox cards in hopes that it will quell your suspicions.

• Blessed Alliance: The deck doesn’t have a combo finish. Sometimes a little extra life can go a long way to stabilizing. Also, fantastic against R/G energy. Looking at you Bristling Hydra.
• Decommission: This is Aether Revolt Standard. Every deck has an artifact or enchantment in it. This card is a great catch all, you may never trigger Revolt but that doesn’t matter. 3 mana Disenchant has been amazing.
• Declaration in Stone: Wanted an answer to Scrapheap Scrounger. Playing this one over Stasis Snare because it’s cheaper to cast, can hit multiple Scroungers, and its good against things like Verdurous Gearhulk and Tireless Tracker.
• Whir of Invention: Please, before cutting this just test it out. Whir of Invention is great here. Early on it can get a Dynavolt Tower at instant speed so you don’t have to tap out. Late it gets Aetherworks Marvel. If you already have Marvel or you just need some instant value it can also just get Torrential Gearhulk.
• Aetherworks Marvel: This card is fantastic with Dynavolt Tower and being able to tutor it up at instant speed with Whir of Invention makes it insane. I could win games I had no business winning because of the amount of value this card generates over time and just so quickly. I won a game where my B/G opponent had a turn four Lifecrafter's Bestiary where he ended up drawing 20+ cards and I still won the game and he had eight cards left in his library. This card is great. Also, you get to see how lucky you are. SPIN THE WHEEL BABY!

That’s all I have for you today. Hope you enjoy one of these two decks and if you just take one thing away from this article then take this, you’re awesome and you deserve it.

As always, thanks for reading!

Enjoy the Revolution,

Ali Aintrazi

@Alieldrazi on Twitter