Hopefully those D20’s are ready to go, because D&D: Adventures in the Forgotten Realms is finally available on MTG Arena. The exciting new set for standard officially launches on Arena on Thursday July 8. Forgotten Realms looks to bring the unforgettable themes from the classic table top RPG. As with any new set, there are new archetypes to try out and plenty of powerful cards to build around. Here are just a few deck ideas to get those brew-juices flowing on the Forgotten Realms release day.
On the first day of any expansion, it’s important to always test out the new spotlight mechanic. “Venture into the dungeon” is the newest phrase in Magic, and it looks like it could be one of the most unique mechanics to date. Players can select one of three potential dungeons to explore, with each new room providing a new effect. Most effects are beneficial, but there are some dangerous areas for those who want to skip ahead through the dungeon. For the first day of Forgotten Realms, it only makes sense to go all in on the latest new card type.
[Related: Magic Players Will be Venturing for Value With the New Card Type “Dungeon”]
The engine that drives the dungeon deck is the powerful combination of two new legendary creatures. Acererak the Archlich is obvious star of this list as it provides a way to always venture into a dungeon on turn three. To push this over the edge, this list wants to add Varis, Silverymoon Range to provide a second trigger of venturing each time Acererak is cast. Of course there are plenty of support cards to help speed up the process like Yuan-Ti Malison and Eccentric Apprentice. Sultai gives the options to add in some counters or removal as the deck needs, making this a very flexible deck to kick-off the Forgotten Realms experimenting.
While dungeons may be the big new addition to the set, Forgotten Realms features a massive new lineup of treasure-producing spells. After all, what’s the point of going into a dungeon if there isn’t some treasure on the way? In AFR, creatures and spells gain bonuses on the condition that it’s cost was paid using treasure tokens. The card that has the chance to break out utilizing treasure is the uncommon legend Kalain, Reclusive Painter.
The goal of this deck is to use cheap treasure-producing creatures to both power out high-cost threats, as well as buff up smaller creatures as the game goes on. Cards like Forsworn Paladin and Shambling Ghast are great openers for this deck as they allow the treasure cruise to get going early. Then there’s the accidental Magda/dragon package that should seal up games if there are enough treasure tokens laying around from the early game. This deck also gets to play Xorn – and there’s nothing more fun than just saying “Xorn”.
Sacrifice decks have been around for quite some time. There have been a few versions, but the most recent flavor of the deck looks to win the game through Bastion of Remembrance triggers. One of the issues however is the decks consistency. Plumb the Forgotten is a powerful finisher, but sometimes it isn’t enough to finish off an opponent. Luckily this deck gets a huge boost thanks to Orcus, Prince of Undeath.
Many players saw the potential of Orcus reanimating threats for potential blowout moments when the card was revealed. However, the more practical part of the card may be it’s first mode. Granting every creature -1/-1 with a 5/3 flier attached to it is a very formidable threat, especially as Clarion Spirit continues to see play in standard. Notably, Orcus helps kill friendly creatures, allowing Bastion of Remembrance to deal tons of damage to the opponent.
Featured image courtesy of Bram Sels and Wizards of the Coast
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Heartless Act cannot be played in MTGA anymore, any idea of what cards I can take instead? Thanks
These are excellent builds for a first look. At first blush, there looks to be something with white/green and artifact equip. Very excited to draft these for days
That is definitely right! Clearly didn’t have enough coffee this morning as I was reading over the card names – thanks for pointing that out!
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