I've built a deck based on Knight of New Alara before. However, this was years ago, and a few recent changes have reinvigorated my interest in the Alara Reborn four-drop. For starters, Faeburrow Elder was printed in Throne of Eldraine. Sadly, the immediate years after the printing saw the treefolk's price tag settle at something much too high for our meager budget. That is, until Dominaria Commander's reprint brought the value down to just slightly higher than $1! Dominaria Commander also brought with it Fallaji Wayfarer, which was the final point of temptation I needed to go back to the drawing board with this classic.

Alara Aggro| Casual | James Heslip

• Creatures (26)
• 2 Qasali Pridemage
• 4 Bant Sureblade
• 4 Dryad Militant
• 4 Faeburrow Elder
• 4 Fallaji Wayfarer
• 4 Knight of New Alara
• 4 Marisi's Twinclaws

• Enchantments (8)
• 4 Blessing of the Nephilim
• 4 Crystallization

• Artifacts (4)
• 4 Civic Saber

• Lands (22)
• 7 Forest
• 7 Plains
• 4 Fortified Village
• 4 Radiant Grove

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Cost: 23$ at the time of writing

The Core

With effects that mirror KoNA, Civic Saber and Blessing of the Nephilim are our secondary core. While similar to each other, their differences give them strengths and weaknesses in different situations. Saber, as an example, survives when the creature holding it dies, while Blessing (being an aura) does not. However, Blessing does give a nice boost to the toughness of our creatures, something Saber can't provide.

The Backup

Saber is a decent 1-drop, but it's not our only play. Dryad Militant, despite having a mana value of one, is a multicolored creature that holds the sword or Blessing well. As an added bonus of playing the two-color Savannah Lions, If the opponent's strategy revolves around their graveyard at all, we get some great main-deck disruption!

Bant Sureblade lands on turn two. Similar to Militant, it's actually more colors than its mana value, which makes it a perfect fit for the deck. Any of our color-based buffs will boost him threefold. What's more, a single other multicolored creature in play gifts him with First Strike! Qasali Pridemage pairs well with the soldier for this reason, as well as for the potential Exalted triggers. The list also needed some artifact and enchantment interaction which Pridemage provided while still being on theme.

Faeburrow Elder is a respectable threat when buffed thanks to his Vigilance, but he also shines with his mana ramp potential. Alone, he taps for two mana, but we have the potential for a full five. This extra mana helps immensely with consistently dropping our four-drops as early as possible.

The deck's biggest threats are Fallaji Wayfarer and Marisi's Twinclaws. Wayfarer's "all colors" ability means any of our buffs multiply her stats by a factor of five, making her a 7/9 in the right conditions. For three mana, that's a bargain I'm willing to pay for any time! As if this wasn't great enough, Wayfarer also gives the rest of our deck Convoke, making those four-drops even easier to cast! While they've got fewer colors, the Twin Claws come with Double Strike, making them the heaviest hitters we have available. A single boost from KoNA, Saber, or Blessings means these mean cats are swatting for ten damage every time they attack!

Crystallization is the deck's creature removal of choice. Being multiple colors means we can convoke it into play if Fallaji Wayfarer is present. With Blue as a part of its tri-color identity, Faeburrow Elder will more often tap for three or more mana, should we not have a Wayfarer to make it to the full five.

Tips and Tricks

Blessing of the Nephilim is best used for enchanting Fallaji Wayfarer, since they get the highest boost from it. Of course, Twin Claws is powerful with the aura. Consider your opponent's removal. Both are vulnerable to burn and toughness reducing effects, but Blessing can prevent this.

This list has no real card advantage engines to speak of. It's all about making a bunch of beefy hitters and overwhelming the opponent with sheer stats, so play accordingly.

Additional Options | James Heslip

• Creatures (20)
• 1 Arcus Acolyte
• 1 Conclave Cavalier
• 1 Darling of the Masses
• 1 Figure of Destiny
• 1 Fleecemane Lion
• 1 Hero of Precinct One
• 1 Jinnie Fay, Jetmir's Second
• 1 Judge's Familiar
• 1 Kitchen Finks
• 1 Knight of Autumn
• 1 Naya Hushblade
• 1 Nip Gwyllion
• 1 Odious Trow
• 1 Safehold Elite
• 1 Slippery Bogle
• 1 Steward of Valeron
• 1 Sumala Woodshaper
• 1 Transguild Courier
• 1 Vernadi Shieldmate
• 1 Wilt-Leaf Cavaliers

• Instants (5)
• 1 Assure // Assemble
• 1 Double Cleave
• 1 Dromoka's Command
• 1 Might of the Nephilim
• 1 Nature's Chant

• Sorceries (3)
• 1 Flower // Flourish
• 1 Reborn Hope
• 1 Safewright Quest

• Enchantments (3)
• 1 Armadillo Cloak
• 1 Earnest Fellowship
• 1 Trace of Abundance

• Artifacts (2)
• 1 Glass of the Guildpact
• 1 Springleaf Drum

• Lands (1)
• 1 Guildmages' Forum

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Cousin to Bant Sureblade is Naya Hushblade, which was in my original list for obvious reasons. However, her gaining Shroud instead of the much more desirable Hexproof made it difficult to equip or enchant her. So, she was the first creature to be swapped out, making room for the newer Faeburrow Elder and Fallaji Wayfarer in our current list.

Hero of Precinct One is one of the more significant options available to us. While not multicolored itself, the vast majority of our deck would trigger it, making filling our field with humans a cinch. If tokens are your thing, you could continue the theme with Darling of the Masses, whose citizens gain a nice +2/+2 from KoNA. Being three colors, Jinnie Fay, Jetmir's Second might also find room in the same list.

If the idea of Wayfarer and all it does for the list is what stands out the most for you, then you could also throw in Transguild Courier. It costs more mana to play, and doesn't have the Evoke effect, but it's still respectable in the deck.

I really like the idea of Reborn Hope being able to grab anything we want it to, but I couldn't bring myself to make room for it. Still, I feel it could be a powerful inclusion to consider. This is especially true if you find yourself playing any multicolored removal options.