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Decklist

the epic Storm


UPDATED 03/01/2023 (v13.9)

Main Deck
4 Brainstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/brainstorm https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/mercadian-masques/brainstorm?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Gathering-Brainstorm-Mercadian-Masques/dp/B005OV85NE/ref=sr_1_10?keywords=mtg+brainstorm&qid=1662601671?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003FC5HR6&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=3BY6ONM3HIRLDBHJ https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/13157?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Brainstorm.webp Brainstorm 1 Instant

Draw three cards, then put two cards from your hand on top of your library in any order.

An incredibly tough-to-play spell that can make or break a game all on its own. Brainstorm can often fix hands needing two specific types of cards and finding them both at once or simply putting a few situational cards back on top of the library. An important feature of this card is that in matchups with discard, it is very relevant to preserve these and use them to protect the best cards in hand.

When playing TES, sequencing cantrips is extremely important, but there are also games where one card means winning on turn one. Some players scoff at casting a Brainstorm in the main phase on the first turn, but TES is an explosive deck! It certainly can be the correct play given the context and breaking gameplay norms in combo decks is nothing new.

Collaborating Brainstorm with a shuffle effect is generally the way to go to avoid drawing dead spells, access lands, or too many copies of Chrome Mox or Mox Opal. There are times when sitting on Brainstorm for multiple turns while continuing to draw spells just to put back worse ones is the correct thing to do.

4 Mishra's Bauble https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/coldsnap/mishras-bauble?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DQ81E/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B0062DQ81E&linkId=3709c2a1961f567669d830586997760e https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/24821?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/MishrasBauble.webp Mishra's Bauble 0 Artifact

, Sacrifice Mishra’s Bauble: Look at the top card of target player’s library. Draw a card at the beginning of the next turn’s upkeep.

“Where did Ponder go?” It’s been replaced by a card with more synergy within The EPIC Storm! While it may seem lackluster in comparison, Mishra’s Bauble is the glue that has pushed TES into a new era.

The most obvious level up is how well it enables Metalcraft for Mox Opal to assist with additional mana stability, but there’s so much more to Mishra’s Bauble than that. An underrated aspect of the card is the free information in a very explosive deck, being able to look at the top card of the opponent’s library can often let the storm pilot know if the coast is clear to combo-off. A more common scenario is looking at the top card of your own library in conjunction with a fetchland such as Bloodstained Mire to provide card selection on if the top of the deck should be drawn or not. If this is the line, when is it right to activate Mishra’s Bauble?

It’s context-based, but activating the zero mana artifact on your opponent’s turn delays the draw until the next turn. This means that the extra card was protected from opposing discard or safe from being shuffled back by someone else’s Echo of Eons. Speaking of Echo of Eons, using these free enablers means additional card advantage on turns with a quick draw 7 as there wasn’t mana spent on casting these, unlike Ponder. Allowing the Storm deck to increase speed, create card advantage, and play to the table.

The card that may have benefited even more than Mox Opal would be Galvanic Relay, a card advantage engine that rewards the Storm deck for having more spells to cast on the set-up turn and Mishra’s Bauble does that while helping create mana to cast even more spells. Mishra’s Bauble likely should’ve been included long ago.

4 Wishclaw Talisman https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/wishclaw-talisman https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/throne-of-eldraine/wishclaw-talisman?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07XLD49SB/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07XLD49SB&linkId=927fc2d22a39d7091ce0dd6e477757d7 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/78342?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/WishclawTalisman.webp Wishclaw Talisman 2 Artifact

Wishclaw Talisman enters the battlefield with three wish counters on it.

, , Remove a wish counter from Wishclaw Talisman: Search your library for a card, put it into your hand, then shuffle your library. An opponent gains control of Wishclaw Talisman. Activate this ability only during your turn.

When The EPIC Storm made the switch from Infernal Tutor to Wishclaw Talisman it raised the artifact count high enough to support Mox Opal, which created a fundamental shift in deck construction.

A common play pattern is to cast Wishclaw Talisman on the first turn using Mox Opal or Chrome Mox. This allows a six-mana line on the second turn to cast Ad Nauseam, where previously it would’ve required seven mana for Infernal Tutor. Unlike Infernal Tutor, the search on Wishclaw Talisman isn’t tied to a stipulation. This means being able to search for anything, such as a sided in copy of Chain of Vapor. Because of this, TES is incentivized to run powerful singleton copies of cards to search for such as Echo of Eons.

One of the truly fantastic aspects of Wishclaw Talisman is that its activated ability isn’t sorcery speed, it’s on your turn. This means that when Ad Nauseam is on the stack, when it’s met with a Force of Will, activating Wishclaw Talisman for an instant is something that’s possible. It’s also uncounterable, which allows for sneaky situations to build up Storm count and then just activating Wishclaw Talisman into a lethal Tendrils of Agony.

4 Burning Wish https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/burning-wish https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/judgment/burning-wish?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DPPOK/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DPPOK&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=CIDUK6LRWA7RELGX https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/17548?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/BurningWish.webp Burning Wish 2 Sorcery

You may choose a sorcery card you own from outside the game, reveal that card, and put it into your hand. Exile Burning Wish.

One of the defining features of The EPIC Storm (TES). An incredibly powerful and resourceful element that is quite diverse in what it can do. Burning Wish allows TES to not play answers for problematic cards by either providing a solution or an alternative route to victory. One of the greatest things Burning Wish does for this deck is it allows for game one answers to permanent-based disruption as well as the flexibility of beating cards such as Veil of Summer. That’s the true beauty of Burning Wish — it can be a number of different things.

The “wish board” is comprised of Storm engines, win conditions, protection, and a few solution-based cards. The entire sideboard is not full of Burning Wish targets as it doesn’t create the greatest value out of the available slots. Generally, try to have no more than 6-7 Burning Wish targets.

Lastly, having included Burning Wish into the deck, threat density is very high in comparison to other Storm decks meaning that less time is spent finding threats with cantrips which leads to a faster kill.

3 Galvanic Relay https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/galvanic-relay/ https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/239780/magic-modern-horizons-2-galvanic-relay?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092N73PYP/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B092N73PYP&linkId=111f2b1edfc073546b8696be15b998b0 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/90631?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/GalvanicRelay.webp Galvanic Relay 3 Sorcery

Exile the top card of your library. During your next turn, you may play that card.

Storm (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn.)

As a Storm engine, Galvanic Relay fills the role in an odd way. By casting the spell, it signals that most of the current combo turn is over. Resolving the card is an investment in a future turn, which means that one has to live and not get locked out of the game during that turn. The most effective Galvanic Relays tend to be against slower blue decks where “drawing” 4-5 cards next turn is plenty to win the game. It is especially good with artifact acceleration such as Lotus Petal and Chrome Mox to generate Storm while leaving cards in play as opposed to ritual effects, which become more of a rummaging effect. Playing at least one copy in the sideboard makes Burning Wish a much bigger threat compared to only being able to find Echo of Eons or Thoughtseize.

Especially when blue decks are loading up on Hullbreacher style effects, having an engine that goes around anti-draw effects and is able to be found with Burning Wish is important. Because Galvanic Relay exiles the cards, it plays well with Lion’s Eye Diamond. Lion’s Eye Diamond kind of becomes an initial mana source.

Recently, we’ve moved Galvanic Relay into the main deck for Wishclaw Talisman to find as a cheap, uncounterable way to create card advantage. The benefits of having access to Galvanic Relay in the first game will often outweigh having to hand the opponent a Wishclaw Talisman as opposing cards in fair-blue matchups are rarely as powerful.

1 Ad Nauseam https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/ad-nauseam https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/shards-of-alara/ad-nauseam?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001IW1BD4/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B001IW1BD4&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=6LPODG3HEDEI7QMV https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/31356?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/AdNauseam.webp Ad Nauseam 5 Instant

Reveal the top card of your library and put that card into your hand. You lose life equal to its converted mana cost. You may repeat this process any number of times.

The EPIC Storm is the best Ad Nauseam deck in Legacy. Between Chrome Mox and Mox Opal to act as additional copies of Lotus Petal as well as a lower average converted mana cost, Ad Nauseam has an increased power level here. Our primary Storm engine and game plan, we’ve catered our deck to maximize its potential.

Something to keep in mind is that Ad Nauseam is an instant, you can cast the spell in response to a Brainstorm or on an end step. There’s also the “Chrome Mox trick” — which is to cast Chrome Mox, in response cast Ad Nauseam, and in response to Ad Nauseam activate Lion’s Eye Diamond! You do this to be able to imprint after Ad Nauseam has resolved and is only viable if you didn’t have a card you could imprint before casting Ad Nauseam.

There are other instant-speed tricks involving Mishra’s Bauble and Lion’s Eye Diamond as well, where using the triggers on Mishra’s Bauble to allow Lion’s Eye Diamond mana to cast Ad Nauseam on the opponent’s upkeep to play around Force of Negation.

1 Echo of Eons https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/echo-of-eons https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/modern-horizons/echo-of-eons?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07T2FSD3X/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07T2FSD3X&linkId=c94354730114bd803bb6a5cafc260b4a https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/72464?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/EchoofEons.webp Echo of Eons 6 Sorcery

Each player shuffles their hand and graveyard into their library, then draws seven cards.

Flashback  (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)

Previously, Echo of Eons was only a Burning Wish target. That changed when The EPIC Storm added Wishclaw Talisman to the deck. There’s more reason than ever to play two copies in the 75. The difference-maker was Wishclaw Talisman’s ability to consistently find Lion’s Eye Diamond to pair with the copy of Echo of Eons (either naturally drawn or retrieved by Burning Wish).

Echo of Eons works very well with Lion’s Eye Diamond, which is why Wishclaw Talisman’s ability to find it is so important. First, play Burning Wish to retrieve Echo of Eons, then play Lion’s Eye Diamond (this plays around artifact disruption), discard the hand and add three blue to flashback your pseudo-Timetwister. Another way of getting Echo of Eons into the graveyard is to Thoughtseize yourself. While not ideal, it is a “build your a Diminishing Returns!”. Something to keep in mind, Echo of Eons is symmetrical, meaning the opponent will also draw a fresh seven-card hand. This is an issue against blue decks. To offset this, cards such as Orim’s Chant / Silence, Defense Grid, and even sideboard options such as Hope of Ghirapur or Xantid Swarm are recommended over discard spells opening up another engine versus counterspell archetypes.

Echo of Eons is the first three-mana storm engine legal in Legacy that’s playable in quite some time. This helps quite a bit against Prison strategies or decks trying to lock TES out of the game such as Maverick or Death & Taxes.

2 Orim's Chant https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/planeshift/orims-chant?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DQO8Q/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DQO8Q&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=ZPMYXUEOMI254LMU https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/15195?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/OrimsChant.webp Orim's Chant 1 Instant

Kicker (You may pay an additional as you cast this spell.)

Target player can’t cast spells this turn. If this spell was kicked, creatures can’t attack this turn.

The primary reason this card is played is the strength of Prismatic Ending, that said, Orim’s Chant has brought some new life to The EPIC Storm. Ever since the switch to Veil of Summer, TES has had some difficulty with Mindbreak Trap and Stifle. With Orim’s Chant, those issues have been greatly reduced especially with the ability to search for it off of Wishclaw Talisman. Something that may not be obvious about Orim’s Chant is its flexibility, in combo match-ups, it’s an ace in the hole for blowing the opponent out of the water in a crucial spot.

In situations against aggro decks, Orim’s Chant can be used as a figurative “Time Walk” to buy yourself some time. What this means is casting Orim’s Chant in the opponent’s upkeep to stop them from casting spells, if needed, you can use the Kicker ability as well.

2 Silence https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/silence/ https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/magic-2010-m10/silence?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003VLVOQ4/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003VLVOQ4&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=QODDXVJVC2HUHHA4 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/32853?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Silence.webp Silence 1 Instant

Your opponents can’t cast spells this turn.

“Why split Orim’s Chant and Silence?” In today’s age, Leyline of Sanctity has never been less popular — only appearing in Oops! All Spells and Dredge.

The primary reason for the split is Surgical Extraction effects followed by cards that name a card such as Cabal Therapy, Anointed Peacekeeper, or Meddling Mage. The difference between Silence and Orim’s Chant is very unlikely to matter in a large volume of games which means that splitting them for Surgical Extraction purposes is ideal.

4 Rite of Flame https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/coldsnap/rite-of-flame?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00428PGTG/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00428PGTG&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=LHYEAMFU5A23RQHV https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/24675?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/RiteofFlame.webp Rite of Flame 1 Sorcery

Add  , then add  for each card named Rite of Flame in each graveyard

A defining characteristic of The EPIC Storm, this card is one of the reasons this deck is blazing fast. It costing one mana is important for two reasons — first, it’s easier to cast in comparison to other “Ritual” effects available that cost two, and second, its converted mana cost’s impact on Ad Nauseam.

Something that is often overlooked when viewing Rite of Flame and is the ability to make two red mana which is important because it generates just enough to meet the red mana requirement for both Burning Wish and Empty the Warrens in a single turn. Two Rite of Flame is also the perfect amount of mana to cast Empty the Warrens! Things become a little more interesting when more than two copies of Rite of Flame are available (see below).

Mana Generated by Rite of Flame
Cast off a single red mana source, in one turn.

  • 1 Rite of Flame – Two red mana.
  • 2 Rite of Flame – Four red mana.
  • 3 Rite of Flame – Seven red mana.
  • 4 Rite of Flame – Eleven red mana.
4 Dark Ritual https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/dark-ritual https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/mercadian-masques/dark-ritual?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OV88JA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005OV88JA&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=TYBVYNA7DXJWYEP2 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/13287?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/DarkRitual.webp Dark Ritual 1 Instant

Add   .

One of the most powerful cards in this deck and Legacy as a whole. If multiple “Ritual” effects are in hand, including a Rite of Flame, cast Dark Ritual second as it is an instant. This is incredibly helpful when it comes to playing around Daze, Spell Pierce, and sometimes Flusterstorm.

Mana Generated by Dark Ritual
Cast off a single black mana source, in one turn.

  • 1 Dark Ritual – Three black mana.
  • 2 Dark Ritual – Five black mana.
  • 3 Dark Ritual – Seven black mana.
  • 4 Dark Ritual – Nine black mana.
4 Lion's Eye Diamond https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/mirage/lions-eye-diamond?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002KYN62S/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002KYN62S&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=NOPWMNVWFDYARFE7 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/7103?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/LionsEyeDiamond.webp Lion's Eye Diamond 0 Artifact

Discard your hand, Sacrifice Lion’s Eye Diamond: Add three mana of any one color. Activate this ability only any time you could cast an instant.

The card is responsible for most turn one wins and is a total game-changer. When using Lion’s Eye Diamond it’s crucial to maintain priority and activate it in response to other spells before passing priority/checking to see if there are any responses.

With the inclusion of Galvanic Relay into The EPIC Storm, Lion’s Eye Diamond has become even better than it was in the past. The drawback of discarding our hand when there are 8 to 10 cards in exile that are castable means that it’s the closest to Black Lotus that this card has ever felt like!

Try to cast Lion’s Eye Diamond at opportune times, Lion’s Eye Diamond can be played very differently depending on the matchup. Letting Lion’s Eye Diamond sit on the table and threaten the opponent in some situations can be correct while hiding it in hand or on top of the deck can be better in other scenarios. Playing Lion’s Eye Diamond right before Wishclaw Talisman or Burning Wish is often the right play pattern so that the artifact cannot be destroyed by effects such as Abrupt Decay or Force of Vigor.

4 Lotus Petal https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/tempest/lotus-petal?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0030AEJ7W/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0030AEJ7W&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=KR6GCZM6RNUJ564I https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/9475?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/LotusPetal.webp Lotus Petal 0 Artifact

Sacrifice Lotus Petal: Add one mana of any color.

Initial mana sources with no drawback that are almost always a pleasure to see — especially off of Ad Nauseam. They, like Chrome Mox, enable speedy early turn combos and generate Storm for free. Lotus Petal can also fix our mana, especially in post-board games for Prismatic Ending!

4 Mox Opal https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/mox-opal https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/scars-of-mirrodin/mox-opal?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0045AU8F8/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0045AU8F8&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=DI5TADZ2JXAH64QE https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/38197?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/MoxOpal.webp Mox Opal 0 Artifact

Metalcraft :Add one mana of any color. Activate this ability only if you control three or more artifacts.

The EPIC Storm finally has enough artifacts to support Mox Opal! This change happened when TES realized it was able to swap Infernal Tutor for Wishclaw Talisman. With this swap, it brought the total number of artifacts up to 18-22 (this number fluctuates on if running Mishra’s Bauble over Ponder).

With over a third of The EPIC Storm being artifacts, Mox Opal can be active on the first turn. This helps significantly when trying to cast a first turn Wishclaw Talisman and then passing the turn. A cool trick with Mox Opal is to cast Brainstorm AND THEN shuffle your deck with Bloodstained Mire or Polluted Delta on turn one. This allows another spell to be cast such as an additional cantrip or a business spell.

Another fancy play with Mox Opal and Chrome Mox is to play Mox Opal first, cast Chrome Mox, with the imprint ability on the stack cast Brainstorm (or even Ad Nauseam!) and then imprint onto Chrome Mox after gaining new information/cards. While on the topic of Chrome Mox, even playing it for no-imprint cost now adds extra value with Mox Opal, which is something that should be mentioned for newer Storm pilots.

3 Chrome Mox https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/chrome-mox https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/mirrodin/chrome-mox?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DW728/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DW728&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=454N266O4RIR6GO3 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/19831?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/ChromeMox.webp Chrome Mox 0 Artifact

Imprint — When Chrome Mox enters the battlefield, you may exile a nonartifact, nonland card from your hand.

: Add one mana of any of the exiled card’s colors.

A card that divides TES from ANT. Chrome Mox provides additional early mana to allow for Ad Nauseam, Echo of Eons, Galvanic Relay, or Empty the Warrens. A huge part of why TES has such an incredibly high success rate post-Ad Nauseam is Chrome Mox acts as an initial mana source to continue “combo-ing” out for the turn.

One of the better uses of Chrome Mox is to allow a first turn Wishlcaw Talisman meaning that the second turn combo-ing often only needs six mana. Chrome Mox also helps to enable Mox Opal very early. Lists have recently bounced back and forth on the number of Chrome Mox in the main deck. At the moment, three copies are being played — this is because the format has sped up a bit with the decline in popularity of “true” control decks in the format.

4 Bloodstained Mire https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/onslaught/bloodstained-mire?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OV6AHC/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B005OV6AHC&linkId=88c91457d31b6bf512d8dadf1e8576d4 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/18249?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/BloodstainedMire.webp Bloodstained Mire None 0 Land

 Pay 1 life, Sacrifice Bloodstained Mire: Search your library for a Swamp or Mountain card and put it onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.

Notice there are four copies of Bloodstained Mire and less of the deck’s secondary “fetchlands” — Scalding Tarn and Marsh Flats.

The difference between Bloodstained Mire and Marsh Flats may not be noticeable at a quick glance, but it’s there. Every fetchland in the current iteration of TES cannot get one land, except for Bloodstained Mire which can get every single land with the switch from Tundra to Scrubland. This change makes Bloodstained Mire the best fetchland in the deck and the reason that there are four copies. Pithing Needle could be a concern, but in the average use case of the card the opponent would be naming Wishclaw Talisman.

There’s more to Bloodstained Mire and the other fetchlands as well. They provide shuffle effects for cards like Brainstorm or Mishra’s Bauble which help with the quality of draws. Fetchlands protect TES’s mana from effects like Wasteland or Rishadan Port, which is key considering TES is a four-color deck with plenty of non-basic lands.

2 Scalding Tarn https://theepicstorm.com/product/scalding-tarn https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/zendikar/scalding-tarn?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002R3NU7S/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002R3NU7S&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=VYC7IHBTFZC4K3YT https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/38480?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/ScaldingTarn.webp Scalding Tarn None 0 Land

 Pay 1 life, Sacrifice Scalding Tarn: Search your library for a Island or Mountain card and put it onto the battlefield. Then shuffle your library.

Notice there are two copies of Scalding Tarn and a single copy of the deck’s tertiary “fetchland” — Marsh Flats.

The difference between Scalding Tarn and Marsh Flats may not be noticeable at a quick glance, but it’s there. Every non-Bloodstained Mire fetchland in the current iteration of TES cannot get one land, for Scalding Tarn it cannot search out Scrubland. If a white source was desired, it would have to be a copy of Plateau. The main decision for this split over running a copy of Flooded Strand is that at its core, The EPIC Storm is a Rakdos deck. Scalding Tarn being able to search for Badlands is very important.

There’s more to Scalding Tarn and the other fetchlands as well. They provide shuffle effects for cards like Brainstorm or Mishra’s Bauble which help with the quality of draws. Fetchlands protect TES’s mana from effects like Wasteland or Rishadan Port, which is key considering TES is a four-color deck with plenty of non-basic lands.

1 Marsh Flats https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/zendikar/marsh-flats?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002R3K3XW/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B002R3K3XW&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=SGENL4UAG3J636YX https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/34646?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/MarshFlats.webp Marsh Flats None 0 Land

 Pay 1 life, Sacrifice Verdant Catacombs: Search your library for a Plains or Swamp card, put it onto the battlefield, then shuffle.

Notice there are four copies of Bloodstained Mire and less of the deck’s secondary “fetchlands” — Scalding Tarn and Marsh Flats.

The difference between Bloodstained Mire and Marsh Flats may not be noticeable at a quick glance, but it’s there. Every non-Bloodstained Mire fetchland in the current iteration of TES cannot get one land, for Marsh Flats it cannot search out Volcanic Island. If a blue source was desired, it would have to be a copy of Underground Sea.

There’s more to Marsh Flats and the other fetchlands as well. They provide shuffle effects for cards like Brainstorm or Mishra’s Bauble which help with the quality of draws. Fetchlands protect TES’s mana from effects like Wasteland or Rishadan Port, which is key considering TES is a four-color deck with plenty of non-basic lands.

1 Underground Sea https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/1599/magic-revised-edition-underground-sea?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DOUNM/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DOUNM&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=ECXVXMEHUYF4VDSR https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/38624?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/UndergroundSea.webp Underground Sea None 0 Land

 Add  or .

A searchable land that provides two of the deck’s primary colors without any drawbacks. In this list, Underground Sea tends to be the primary fetchland target.

This means that it’s best to pair Underground Sea with its complement which would be Taiga &dmash; a prominent secondary land. When having both lands in play, all four colors are available which makes gameplay much easier.

1 Volcanic Island https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/1608/magic-revised-edition-volcanic-island?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003WZR3Q4/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B003WZR3Q4&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=FGA3QEBMQRRL26YK 38644 https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/VolcanicIsland.webp Volcanic Island None 0 Land

 Add  or .

A searchable land that provides two of the deck’s primary colors without any drawbacks. With the return of Scrubland, Volcanic Island has a natural pairing although it’s less desirable than Underground Sea paired with Plateau.

In the right metagame, Pulverize can be found in the sideboard. TES would need more than a couple of Mountains in the deck. Volcanic Island is currently one of three Mountains for this purpose.

A trick for playing with red “dual lands” is to sit back on “fetchlands” and make sure they don’t get hit by Wasteland if in a position where casting Pulverize is necessary.

1 Badlands https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/1339/magic-revised-edition-badlands?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OVGUFE/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005OVGUFE&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=Y2SAEJU5LXWLUXJ5 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/30298?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Badlands.webp Badlands None 0 Land

 Add  or .

A searchable land that provides two of the deck’s primary colors without any drawbacks.

Badlands is one of three Mountains in the deck for Pulverize in the sideboard — previously if a Wasteland were to hit a Mountain, Pulverize would be shut off. Not anymore! A trick for playing with red “dual lands” is to sit back on “fetchlands” and make sure they don’t get hit by Wasteland if in a position where casting Pulverize is necessary.

With no copies of Tundra in the decklist, Badlands is left without a natural pairing. Which is fine in some circumstances, when only having a single land having an option that provides both combo colors can be very crucial.

1 Scrubland https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/beta-edition/scrubland?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DS2E0/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DS2E0&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=CZBF3H4D5BHORJUH https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/38588?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Scrubland.webp Scrubland None 0 Land

 Add  or .

A searchable land that provides two of the deck’s primary colors without any drawbacks.

Scrubland can be played as an additional white source while helping balance the mana in the deck, the issue is its complement is Volcanic Island. This shouldn’t be a big deal, especially with the absence of Abrupt Decay.

A problematic situation is that scrubland provides black and white mana which represents our protection mana AND our primary combo colored mana, what does this leave Volcanic Island doing? It creates a natural tension on the mana base which is why the recommended land pairing is Underground Sea and Plateau.

1 Plateau https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/beta-edition/plateau?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DROEE/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DROEE&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=5S763QYIQR7UWLMV https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/38570?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Plateau.webp Plateau None 0 Land

 Add  or .

A searchable land that provides two of the deck’s primary colors without any drawbacks.

Plateau (much like Scrubland) is here to primarily be a white source while helping balance the mana in the deck. Currently, there are three black sources, three red sources, two blue sources, and two white sources. Plateau is fairly critical to this by allowing a single Wasteland on the other white mana generator to not cause Orim’s Chant / Silence or Prismatic Ending to be shut off.

When pairing Plateau with Underground Sea all four colors are available which makes gameplay much easier, this is something many players look to accomplish in the early game. A perfect example would be that Prismatic Ending can be cast off of this dynamic duo on the end step, untap, and then being able to win the game while having all of the necessary resources.

Sideboard
4 Prismatic Ending https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/modern-horizons-2/prismatic-ending?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092N73PYP/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B092N73PYP&linkId=111f2b1edfc073546b8696be15b998b0 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/90419?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/PrismaticEnding.webp Prismatic Ending 1 Sorcery

Converge — Exile target nonland permanent if its mana value is less than or equal to the number of colors of mana spent to cast this spell.

Not the Modern Horizons 2 card that many had in mind for Storm combo when the set was spoiled, but it’s been fantastic! Prismatic Ending answers most hate-permanents on curve from Deafening Silence and Thalia, Guardian of Thraben to Trinisphere. This might seem weird, but Prismatic Ending does answer Sphere of Resistance effects for two mana. The trick is to announce the spell for one mana, then pay the tax with a second color. Now the spell meets the requirements to be cast while also meeting the color requirements to exile the problematic permanent!

One of the beautiful aspects of Prismatic Ending is the versatility it provides from answering one mana enchantments, creatures such as Collector Ouphe, or artifacts like Chalice of the Void. Against Chalice of the Void, you can use Prismatic Ending’s scalable nature to pay two mana to remove a Chalice of the Void with a counter on it. One of the best things that Prismatic Ending does is stopping the “snowball effect” that these permanent-based disruption decks aim to create.

Typically, with a bounce spell, it’s required to sit and plan for an opportune time to cast it before moving in for the kill. Not anymore! Cleanly removed forever with this white haymaker.

3 Thoughtseize https://theepicstorm.com/product/thoughtseize https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/lorwyn/thoughtseize?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002C11WKM/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B002C11WKM&linkId=f9841c7c16b802e302cb7b117ef3b5f0 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/28269?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Thoughtseize.webp Thoughtseize 1 Sorcery

Target player reveals their hand. You choose a nonland card from it. That player discards that card. You lose 2 life.

A Burning Wish target that helps against fair blue decks as well as combo matchups.

While a three-mana discard spell doesn’t seem incredibly desirable, it does come up! Thoughtseize is actually sided in quite a bit as well against decks where Veil of Summer or Galvanic Relay aren’t what we’re looking for. A piece of advice, try not to telegraph over multiple turns that future plans include Thoughtseize. Don’t allow the opponent to hold open Veil of Summer in case they have a copy. Pick spots carefully for when to cast Thoughtseize in a Veil of Summer world.

Thoughtseize’s importance has gone through the roof due to the popularity of Mindbreak Trap — being able to select it with Burning Wish and discard the nuisance is critical.

1 Slaughter Pact https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/future-sight/slaughter-pact?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Gathering-Slaughter-Future-Sight/dp/B005OV7LJI/?&_encoding=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&linkCode=ur2&linkId=d5c7918c2dd96ef89a26652f336e9690&camp=1789&creative=9325 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/26762?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/SlaughterPact.webp Slaughter Pact 0 Instant

Destroy target nonblack creature.

At the beginning of your next upkeep, pay . If you don’t, you lose the game.

“Why Slaughter Pact over Chain of Vapor?” I’d like to start out by saying that both cards are exceptionally good and you can’t really go wrong with either. That said, the fundamental turn of importance has increased from the prison strategies in Legacy. This is why we play something like Crash instead of Abrade or Echoing Truth — you need to be able to answer the problem and then win quickly before the next issue arises. We’re more likely to do that by playing zero mana value answers!

The common response to this would be that Chain of Vapor is only one mana, while that is true, these cards are often retrieved via Wishclaw Talisman. This would mean that we’re looking at one mana for a Slaughter Pact against two for the Chain of Vapor. While Chain of Vapor is more versatile, we’re not looking for flexibility out of the slot — this is vital for how you view deck construction.

Prismatic Ending has a range of cards covered, Crash is ideal for artifacts, what we want is a cost-effective answer for creatures and that’s exactly what Slaughter Pact does well.

1 Galvanic Relay https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/galvanic-relay/ https://www.tcgplayer.com/product/239780/magic-modern-horizons-2-galvanic-relay?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092N73PYP/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B092N73PYP&linkId=111f2b1edfc073546b8696be15b998b0 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/90631?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/GalvanicRelay.webp Galvanic Relay 3 Sorcery

Exile the top card of your library. During your next turn, you may play that card.

Storm (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn.)

As a Storm engine, Galvanic Relay fills the role in an odd way. By casting it, it signals that most of the current combo turn is over. Resolving the card is an investment in a future turn, which means that one has to live and not get locked out of the game during that turn. The most effective Galvanic Relays tend to be against slower blue decks where “drawing” 4-5 cards next turn is plenty to win the game. It is especially good with artifact acceleration such as Lotus Petal and Chrome Mox to generate Storm while leaving cards in play as opposed to ritual effects, which become more of a rummaging effect. Playing at least one copy in the sideboard makes Burning Wish a much bigger threat compared to only being able to find Echo of Eons or Thoughtseize.

Especially when blue decks are loading up on Hullbreacher style effects, having an engine that goes around anti-draw effects and is able to be found with Burning Wish is important. Because Galvanic Relay exiles the cards, it plays well with Lion’s Eye Diamond. Lion’s Eye Diamond kind of becomes an initial mana source.

In many non-blue matchups, Galvanic Relay can be boarded in as a very fast engine. On turn one, even finding it with Wishclaw Talisman might be good enough against a deck without zero-mana permanent hate. It can also be cast through Gaddock Teeg, though a removal spell would still need to be found to win the game with Tendrils of Agony.

1 Empty the Warrens https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/empty-the-warrens https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/time-spiral/empty-the-warrens?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005OVIC1Y/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B005OVIC1Y&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=AJXI36BB3UF7ZY4L https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/25535?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/EmptytheWarrens.webp Empty the Warrens 4 Sorcery

Create two 1/1 red Goblin creature tokens.

Storm
 (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn.)

By playing a copy of Empty the Warrens in the sideboard, TES effectively play four copies in the 75 — it’s best to play the most copies possible while not decreasing Ad Nauseam percentages. Empty the Warrens is also the deck’s fastest combo option (as it requires the least amount of mana) against decks trying to lock out the game. Depending on the metagame, how often we cast Empty the Warrens fluctuates.

In metagames with lots of Delver of Secrets, TES plays Empty the Warrens more frequently as it’s an easier card to cast when the opponent is trying to attack resources. Casting Empty the Warrens from hand is a lot less resource-intensive as only four mana is needed.

Meanwhile, in these match-ups, Ad Nauseam at its absolute cheapest is a seven-mana line that loses to Daze, Spell Pierce, and even itself. Delver decks pressure the life total very quickly, and Empty the Warrens is a great way to turn the tide.

Now more than ever, Empty the Warrens plays a critical role in the sideboard — that is allowing for a line that doesn’t lose to Hullbreacher or Narset, Parter of Veil effects. The way the sideboard is currently constructed, every Storm engine that wins on the same turn says, “draw” which creates an extra emphasis on our goblin horde. Empty the Warrens is also our sole way of defeating Veil of Summer at the moment.

1 Tendrils of Agony https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/tendrils-of-agony https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/scourge/tendrils-of-agony?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DV378/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DV378&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=YEISOXCBLP3IEDBL https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/18866?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/TendrilsofAgony.webp Tendrils of Agony 4 Sorcery

Target player loses 2 life and you gain 2 life.
Storm (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn. You may choose new targets for the copies.)

Another way to win the game via Burning Wish, currently with a copy in the main deck the usage is split but this allows for more versatility between combo lines.

Tendrils of Agony can be a liability in the metagame with Veil of Summer’s presence, if the opponent is representing it I would look towards Grapeshot or Empty the Warrens if possible.

Traditionally, TES has only played a single copy of Tendrils of Agony in the deck. This is due to Tendrils of Agony being not the greatest card to draw, this has changed due to Wishclaw Talisman’s ability being uncounterable (by traditional measures) into a Tendrils of Agony once the Storm count is high enough.

1 Aeve, Progenitor Ooze https://theepicstorm.com/product/aeve-progenitor-ooze https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/modern-horizons-2/aeve-progenitor-ooze?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092N73PYP/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B092N73PYP&linkId=111f2b1edfc073546b8696be15b998b0 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/90673?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/AeveProgenitorOoze.webp Aeve, Progenitor Ooze 5 Legendary Creature — Ooze

Storm (When you cast this spell, copy it for each spell cast before it this turn. Copies become tokens.)

Aeve, Progenitor Ooze isn’t legendary if it’s a token.

Aeve enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it for each other Ooze you control.

2/2

A sideboard plan against various blue strategies. Aeve, Progenitor Ooze allows The EPIC Storm to beat a variety of different hate cards in ways that don’t seem obvious. Aeve, Progenitor Ooze is the first creature in Magic to be printed with Storm. This presents a few interesting properties about it as opposed to every other current Storm spell: It cannot be countered by Force of Negation or Flusterstorm! It is not taxed by Thalia, Guardian of Thraben effects, and it can be cast through many of the hate bears such as Lavinia, Azorius Renegade and Gaddock Teeg as both of those only locks out non-creature spells.

A sweet interaction is to cast many artifact spells into a Wishclaw Talisman into Aeve, Progenitor Ooze against an Ethersworn Canonist. Unlike Goblin Tokens, the copies of Aeve, Progenitor Ooze have a few unique properties. They actually have a mana value of five because they are copies of a permanent spell that enter the battlefield as tokens. This means that cards like Engineered Explosives and Ratchet Bomb are not easy answers. In terms of somewhat commonly played cards, Terminus, Supreme Verdict, and Toxic Deluge are the only cards that could sweep away the Ooze Tokens. This all makes giving an opponent a Wishclaw Talisman much less risky and really increases the value of resolved Wishclaw Talisman.

While Aeve, Progenitor Ooze may seem difficult to cast, Lion’s Eye Diamond () in conjunction with Wishclaw Talisman makes it easy.

The resurgence of Aeve, Progenitor Ooze is mostly due to the return of Counterbalance out of Izzet Delver. We’re able to cast spells into the blue enchantment, even if they’re countered, Slime Time allows an easy win. There’s also the fact that Aeve, Progenitor Ooze doesn’t use life-total as a resource in a match-up where it’s often pressured.

1 Pulverize https://theepicstorm.com/product/pulverize https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/mercadian-masques/pulverize?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0062DQEEA/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0062DQEEA&linkCode=as2&tag=tes019-20&linkId=OQXPZ76HSP3VE5ND https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/13215?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/Pulverize.webp Pulverize 6 Sorcery

You may sacrifice two Mountains rather than pay this spell’s mana cost.

Destroy all artifacts.

An answer to cards such as Chalice of the Void, Sphere of Resistance, and Thorn of Amethyst that can be retrieved by Burning Wish.

The real struggle with this card is always finding space for a third mountain in the deck, currently, that is possible with this decklist configuration. With only seven “fetchlands” lands, it’s much easier to support Pulverize off the back of the inclusion of Taiga as both the third Mountain and the second green source.

Currently, the most common artifact prison decks are also all Blood Moon decks. This means that they provide us with the necessary tools in order to cast this heavy-hitting spell!

1 Echo of Eons https://www.theepicstorm.com/product/echo-of-eons/ https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/modern-horizons/echo-of-eons?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07T39S5NC/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B07T39S5NC&linkId=dcdd65bfc80893aa222e6289ff512d93 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/72464?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/EchoofEons.webp Echo of Eons 6 Sorcery

Each player shuffles their hand and graveyard into their library, then draws seven cards.

Flashback  (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)

For a more in depth look at the initial impressions of this card, check out this article. Let’s start with the basics. Echo of Eons works very well with Lion’s Eye Diamond.

First, play Burning Wish to retrieve Echo of Eons, then play Lion’s Eye Diamond (this plays around artifact disruption), discard the hand and add three blue to flashback a pseudo-Timetwister. Another way of getting Echo of Eons into the graveyard is to Thoughtseize yourself. While not ideal, it is a “build-your-own Diminishing Returns!”. Echo of Eons is symmetrical, which means the opponent will also draw a fresh seven-card hand off of Echo of Eons. This is an issue against blue decks. To offset this, cards such as Hope of Ghirapur, Defense Grid, and Veil of Summer are great, opening up another engine versus counterspell archetypes.

Echo of Eons is the first three-mana storm engine that’s been legal in Legacy that’s playable. This helps quite a bit against Prison strategies or decks trying to lock out the game like Maverick or Death & Taxes.

1 Peer into the Abyss https://shop.tcgplayer.com/magic/core-set-2021/peer-into-the-abyss?partner=theepicstorm&utm_campaign=affiliate&utm_medium=theepicstorm&utm_source=theepicstorm https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Gathering-Peer-into-Abyss?&_encoding=UTF8&tag=tes019-20&linkCode=ur2&linkId=1a5d54c30a71682f074cffa2c9f68f22&camp=1789&creative=9325 https://www.cardhoarder.com/cards/81461?affiliate_id=theepicstorm https://www.theepicstorm.com/wp-content/themes/tes-2022/assets/img/cards/PeerintotheAbyss.webp Peer into the Abyss 7 Sorcery

Target player draws cards equal to half the number of cards in their library and loses half their life. Round up each time.

Make sure to check out Alex McKinley’s article for first thoughts on Peer into the Abyss.

This card has taken the former slot of Infernal Tutor. The reason being is that Burning Wish into Infernal Tutor and then Ad Nauseam is a nine mana line to win the game, the same can be done now without the middle man of Infernal Tutor. The benefit of this change is that Peer into the Abyss while it does cause life-loss is not life-total dependent. A player can cast Peer into the Abyss at two life, draw twenty-plus cards, and then win the game — this is a huge break-through. Unlike Echo of Eons, it doesn’t use the graveyard!

This is the closest thing TES has to a deterministic Storm engine.

Brainstorm
Brainstorm
Card Name: Brainstorm
Mana Cost:
Converted Mana Cost: 1
Types: Instant
Card Text:

Draw three cards, then put two cards from your hand on top of your library in any order.

Card Notes

An incredibly tough-to-play spell that can make or break a game all on its own. Brainstorm can often fix hands needing two specific types of cards and finding them both at once or simply putting a few situational cards back on top of the library. An important feature of this card is that in matchups with discard, it is very relevant to preserve these and use them to protect the best cards in hand.

When playing TES, sequencing cantrips is extremely important, but there are also games where one card means winning on turn one. Some players scoff at casting a Brainstorm in the main phase on the first turn, but TES is an explosive deck! It certainly can be the correct play given the context and breaking gameplay norms in combo decks is nothing new.

Collaborating Brainstorm with a shuffle effect is generally the way to go to avoid drawing dead spells, access lands, or too many copies of Chrome Mox or Mox Opal. There are times when sitting on Brainstorm for multiple turns while continuing to draw spells just to put back worse ones is the correct thing to do.

Deck List Explanation

With [[The Initiative]] entering Legacy, the metagame has been completely shaken up — it’s time to adapt or die. Many decks are looking to either go under or over [[The Initiative]] while still needing to compete with Izzet Delver. It’s difficult for The EPIC Storm to go any faster than its current speed, we’re sort of maxed out. We’ve been coasting by just looking to dodge the more fragile but faster combo decks for some time due to low metagame percentage. With this increase, many players have added a number of copies of [[Mindbreak Trap]] to their sideboards. This forces us to make a change. This is where [[Silence]] and [[Orim’s Chant]] come into play.

These cards allow us to interact with the faster combo decks while also beating [[Mindbreak Trap]]. On top of that, we gain access to [[Prismatic Ending]] as an answer to [[Deafening Silence]], [[Chalice of the Void]], and [[Thalia, Guardian of Thraben]]. [[Prismatic Ending]] is just incredibly versatile and cost-efficient. Want to know more? Watch the video.

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On the play versus Urza Echo


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