Exert.dec

Nothing too revolutionary here. This is simply an example of an aggro Boros deck that combines some of the best exert dorks with some of the best support tools for them. Mostly this is effects that give vigilance however there is an untap effect in Kytheon and flicker effects to untap as well. While there is not much synergy with EtB effects to abuse with the flicker effects in this list they are good enough stand alone cards so that when given two extra sets of mild synergy they should perform.

This list is simple enough in what it is trying to do that you could easily replace any of the exert or support cards with other cube aggressive staples. I imagine few cubes will have the narrower exert cards in this list but you really don't need them. The great thing about this deck is that basically all the cards are good solid stand alone cards. The bonus synergies they have are all for free.

With the Always watching this list has less reason to use token generation than most other white aggressive lists. Boros decks are typically either weenie decks, token decks or burn decks. This is unusual in that it is very zoo like. The dorks are generally pretty able to attack in this list and when exerted are easily the power of zoo stuff. As such this list is packing far less removal than you normally find in this colour pairing. It simply won't need to clear the path as often as other Boros decks do to get through the damage.

I have overly forced the theme in this list so as to highlight as many new cards as possible. I am sure more refined builds using less new cards and more generically powerful things are possible. As mentioned, most cubes won't contain many of these newer things yet or ever and so some conventional filler is likely a necessity. Even with just a few exert cards it is worth considering things that have good synergy with them. Cubes may not have Always Watching but almost all will have Kytheon and Restoration Angel. The best exert cards (those with Glory in the name! and Crop Crasher) have performed so well thus far that I have added in more and expect all the cards to be much much better than initially rated. Essentially it is just one of those mechanisms I have underrated. You find that every now and again, a mechanism is just good and lots of cards with it make the cube. Things like escalate, evolve, level up, scry, cycling, delve and now apparently exert!



24 Spells

Bloodlust Inciter
Gideon's Lawkeeper
Path to Exile
Forked Bolt

Kytheon, Hero of Akros
Soldier of the Pantheon
Town Gossipmonger
Thraben Inspector

Glory-Bound Initiate
Gust Walker
Battlefield Scavenger
Nef-Crop Entangler

Selfless Spirit
Lightning Helix
Unexpectedly Absent
Khenra Earthshaker

Oketra's Avenger

Flickerwisp
Ahn-Crop Crasher
Always Watching
Devoted Crop-Mate / Combat Celebrant

Ajani Goldmane
Restoration Angel

Glorybringer

16 Lands


The last two cards I was considered were Devoted Crop-Mate and Combat Celebrant. Both are a little bit awkward. One messes around with value and the other is just a very high risk card. They are not the solid reliable direct tempo dorks you ideally want for this kind of deck. If either has a hope of being good this list should at least make it apparent. A nice testing ground due to some of the support.

This list looks very fair indeed. It contains few premium high pick things and would be fairly easy to replicate in drafts. Despite it looking pretty fair this list also looks brutally effective. It has far fewer weaknesses than RDW, white weenie or the usual things in between those archetypes. This is probably slower than most but the momentum this deck gets going seems much harder to stop. This list looks like it would perform very well in my cube meta with basically no bad matchups and plenty of good ones. When a synergy is so potent it propels a themed version of a somewhat existing archetype to the forefront it often leads to a number the support cards and in this case the lower power level exert things to actually find a home in cube.