Did you know that a large group of phoenixes is called an odyssey? Well, I sure didn't! This is some need-to-know information, though, if we're going to be piloting today's deck with any regularity! Another brain child that came about after a student's request for a deck, this Mono-Red Phoenix list is full of interesting interactions and fiery fun! Fawkes the Phoenix is back, and this time he's got friends!

Mono Red Phoenixes| Casual | James Heslip

• Creatures (17)
• 2 Tuktuk the Explorer
• 3 Gadrak, the Crown-Scourge
• 4 Flamewake Phoenix
• 4 Kuldotha Phoenix
• 4 Myr Servitor

• Sorceries (4)
• 4 Faithless Looting

• Enchantments (4)
• 4 Makeshift Munitions

• Artifacts (12)
• 2 Desecrated Tomb
• 2 The Underworld Cookbook
• 4 Embalmer's Tools
• 4 Witch's Oven

• Lands (23)
• 4 Darksteel Citadel
• 4 Great Furnace
• 15 Mountain

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Cost: $22 at the time of publication

The Core

Kuldotha Phoenix costs much more mana to both cast or reanimate than his Flamewake counterpart. What's more, the metalcraft requirement on his reanimation effect makes him arguably much more difficult to take advantage of. At the very least, it severely restricts our card choices when constructing the deck, as we must play many more artifacts than we otherwise might. Still, his 4 power enables Flamewake to rise from its ashes, and makes for a much more threatening clock.

The Backup

Witch's Oven and Makeshift Munitions are our sacrifice outlets which take full advantage of phoenix recursion. While Flamewake wings are tasty enough straight out of the oven, cooking a Kuldotha Phoenix produces the most grub. Either bird can also be shot out of our cannon before being prepped for the dinner table, but things really start to heat up when we begin to turn all of these baked birds into bullets. Of course, should the need arise, we can simply use the food tokens as intended, gaining massive amounts of life perpetually. Paired with Gadrak, the sheer number of metal trinkets you'll be amassing should not be underestimated. When this engine gets online, you'll be thankful to have plenty of dice at your disposal. At least, until you decide it's time to throw it all at your opponent's face.

While on the topic, Gadrak, the Crown-Scourge is the largest creature in the deck. His 5 power helps bring Flamewake Phoenix back to life, and much like Kuldotha Phoenix, he benefits from the high number of artifacts we'll be playing. The treasure tokens he produces add to our artifact count, too, and help to boost our mana count for casting higher-costed spells. With the ability to sacrifice our phoenixes each turn, Gadrak will keep the riches flowing until you're rich enough to dive into swaths of gold coins Scrooge McDuck style.

Myr Servitor is an artifact creature that I've admittedly been trying to find a home for over the years. Fortunately, I think I've finally done just that, as I don't think I could make a more fitting shell for him if I tried. As an artifact, he enables both Kuldotha Phoenix and Gadrak. What's more, he makes perfect ammunition for Makeshift Munitions, goes well with any Witch's Oven or The Underworld Cookbook recipe, and he pitches to Faithless Looting without worry! This is all on top of it being an easily recurred blocker and attacker that multiples as the game goes on!

The Underworld Cookbook acts as a discard outlet to get our flaming fowl out of the hand and into the graveyard where they're much cheaper to cast. Among their other previously mentioned uses, the food tokens spawned also add to our artifact count for Kuldotha and Gadrak. Faithless Looting is another discard outlet which also digs for engine pieces. We'll almost always be binning our burning birds, but Myr Servitor and/or extra Makeshift Munitions/Cookbooks also work.

Embalmer's Tools is yet another artifact that makes metalcraft live. It's also extremely useful in reducing the recursion cost of Kuldotha Phoenix. Since the cost reduction stacks, you'll pretty much never be sad to see multiple copies find their way to your hand!

Desecrated Tomb spits out bat tokens every time a phoenix revives, a myr is rebuilt, or a Looting is flashed back. These bats can then be used as blockers, bullets, or blitzers, all depending on the board state. All in all, this artifact adds to the already overwhelming inevitability the deck presents.

Tips and Tricks

Finding your phoenixes is a must. Even with few (or no) discard fodder cards available, it's often the right play to cast Faithless Looting just to dig for your birds. You draw before you discard, so any phoenix or myr you find off the top of the deck can simply be buried for later. If you don't see any, just toss what you don't need with the plan of flashing looting back on the next turn to try again.

In practice, I've seen a few pilots play out their turns without activating Witch's Oven or other effects "because there's no need." If you have the mana to recur your creatures, there's simply no reason not to sacrifice them. Kuldotha and Flamewake both have haste, so you have nothing to lose by tributing them. Additionally, the tokens created will almost always benefit you in some way. Again, this is all assuming you're not planning on using your mana elsewhere.

Additional Options

Additional Options | Casual | James Heslip

• (12)
• 1 Breya's Apprentice
• 1 Chained Brute
• 1 Dargo, the Shipwrecker
• 1 Dark-Dweller Oracle
• 1 Firewing Phoenix
• 1 Impulsive Pilferer
• 1 Lightning Phoenix
• 1 Magma Phoenix
• 1 Pyrewild Shaman
• 1 Sokenzan Smelter
• 1 Squee, Goblin Nabob
• 1 Warcry Phoenix

• Instants (4)
• 1 Cathartic Pyre
• 1 Galvanic Blast
• 1 Thrill of Possibility
• 1 Voltage Surge

• Sorceries (4)
• 1 Repeating Barrage
• 1 Seize the Spoils
• 1 Tormenting Voice
• 1 Wild Guess

• Enchantments (1)
• 1 Fiery Bombardment

• Artifacts (5)
• 1 Ceremonial Knife
• 1 Fodder Cannon
• 1 Prying Blade
• 1 Servo Schematic
• 1 Trading Post

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Much of our alternative options consist of cards that pair well with Faithless Looting or other sacrifice/discard effects that we run. Firewing Phoenix, Warcry Phoenix, and Magma Phoenix all act as great discard fodder, and each has an activated ability that has a reduced cost under one or more Embalmer's Tools. Lightning Phoenix doesn't have the same luxury, but it's not difficult to bring back once the engine is online. Plus, they're all on theme as phoenixes! Squee, Goblin Nabob is cheaper than I remember, and also works well in the shell.

We have a lot of draw power options as well. Tormenting Voice. Wild Guess, Cathartic Pyre, and Thrill of Possibility are all extra copies of Faithless Looting, though a bit more expensive as far as mana cost is concerned. If you're having trouble finding your key cards, try running a couple of them. You could also try Dark-Dweller Oracle or Breya's Apprentice, who take full advantage of recurring creatures and multiplying artifact tokens respectively.

Trading Post is a card that I desperately wanted to find room for, as it seemed perfect in our shell. With it, we could discard our phoenixes for easy casting later (plus gain some extra life), spawn goats to act as munitions, recur lost artifacts (potentially discard to looting out of necessity), or just draw extra cards off of tokens. In the end, I felt it increased our overall mana curve too much, and in many cases was just a "win more" card. You might feel differently, though. To be honest, I'm still trying to squeeze it in somehow.