BPDC Season 2 - Epic Tribal Warfare

The Kithkin have an uphill climb to prove their worth in the Lorwyn Block metagame: they're light on evasion and light on card advantage, which puts them at a severe disadvantage against some of the other tribes. The Kithkin may need to unite instead under the 'Soldier' banner instead, or look for ways to augment their ranks with some spells from another color.

They curve nicely, but lack much in the way of late-game firepower.

Among other cards, look to employ the services of:

Mosquito Guard
Kinsbaile Skirmisher
Order of the Golden Cricket
Surge of Thoughtweft
Kinsbaile Balloonist

For those saproling enthusiasts out there (I know there are several!) the Merrow present the next generation of sick lifegain and token-creation aggro-combo action. While the Merrow can't amass quite the same numbers that the saps were able to produce, they have one key advantage over their fungal brethren: Islandwalk. However, keeping them alive against Hurly-Burly and Festercreep is going to be the challenge.

Key combo pieces will be something like:

Mothdust Changeling
Judge of Currents
Stonybrook Schoolmaster
Streambed Aquitects
Weight of Conscience

The blue-black tribe of the Faeries has caught the attention of many early deckbuilders for their controlling tricks and support cards. They certainly do look strong to start with, having access to tapping, drawing, counterspells, discard, removal, evasion, and flash, among others. However, in sheer power they lack, and their finisher is most likely either Mulldrifter or Latchkey Faerie, both of which are a little light on the toughness.

Faerie tribal players would do well to start with:

Spellstutter Sprite
Pestermite
Dewdrop Spy
Dreamspoiler Witches
Latchkey Faerie

I am skeptical that the Boggarts got the juice to get it done on the BPDC table. Sure, they can be fast and explosive, but one problem with burning up your resources early is that you need to have a bit of gas left for the final push. My testing with Lorwyn's goblin tribe has shown this to be a difficult aspect of the archetype, but perhaps you'll have better luck with them than I have. They will certainly be fun -- that much is always true with goblins.

The core of a Boggart deck may include the following:

Facevaulter
Tarfire
Adder-Staff Boggart
Mudbutton Torchrunner
Warren Pilferers

There are many ways to interpret an Elementals deck in Lorwyn Block -- mono-red? Five-color? Or, as some have tried, simply , which gives access to the firepower and mana acceleration of red and the combo-sifting in blue (and the card draw of Mulldrifter). Surely there are enough strong elementals in all colors to go around, and dabbling in a third or fourth color for answers may be enough to put this deck near the top of the tribal food chain.

No matter which way you go, you'll probably want to look at:

Smokebraider
Inner-Flame Acolyte
Seething Pathblazer
Sunflare Shaman
Mulldrifter

While the Treefolk have some amazing tools in normal Magic, their all-common counterparts aren't as flashy. However, some of the biggest beatsticks in the block (and certainly the most playable ones) collectively comprise the Treefolk tribe. The trick is to back up the fat with a support color that can clear a path for the beats to commence. Striking the proper balance is the art of supporting this tribe.

Treefolk decks start with:

Bosk Banneret
Battlewand Oak
Cloudcrown Oak
Ambassador Oak
Nameless Inversion

One of Magic's favorite tribes (and all of fantasy, for that matter) is the Elves. Lorwyn put an evil spin on them, pushing them into . This seems to be a natural home for them in Lorwyn Block, coupling their acceleration and efficiency with black's removal and recursion. Elves are a whole lot trickier in this format than usual, and several strong cards reflect this sinister hunter's instinct.

Elves have as some critical cards:

Leaf Gilder
Gilt-Leaf Ambush
Lys Alana Bowmaster
Eyeblight's Ending
Lys Alana Huntmaster

Eegag says: "Lorwyn's Elves are solid in many aspects, yet they lack the flashy cards that some other tribes possess. The Elf tribe has removal, efficient creatures, and limited sources of card advantage (Lys Alana Bowmaster) and virtual card advantage (Lys Alana Huntmaster). With the right mix, these cards can coalesce into a cohesive deck that provides the proper balance of answers and threats while not being dependant on any one card or combination."

And last, we come to the Giants. The tribe I was the most excited about coming into Lorwyn, and therefore, the worst possible tribe. Is this collection of massively overcosted creatures even remotely playable? It will take a braver soul than me to reach this conclusion, I'm afraid. There are a couple decently cheap Giants, and the Changelings will need to come into play as well, but I think a run could be made of this tribe.

A tribal deck of Giants wants to see:

Blind-Spot Giant
Avian Changeling
Lowland Oaf
War-Spike Changeling
Giant's Ire

Hope to see you and your favorite tribe out at BPDC 2.01 on Monday, April 28 at 8:30pm EST in /join BPDC!