Description

(this is an old version of the list. I've updated the list here which seems to be performing strictly better)

Deck guide here: https://youtu.be/MRO4q5JhKhY

Izzet the new mono U tempo?

The goal of tempo is obviously to control the pace of the game, and although we lost a lot of the greatest cards in rotation from mono blue tempo, we've gained a few others which might make this kind of strategy viable again.

We have fast, hard hitting cards which can become a threat if not dealth with like [[Lightning Stormkin]], [[Brazen Borrower]] and [[Brineborn Cutthroat]], while also running way too much control, including [[Ionize]] which also allows us to inflict hurt on their life total. [[Spectral Sailor]], [[Chemister's Insight]], and the scry trigger on [[Mischievous Chimera]] helps us to keep up with card advantage and find the things we need to control the pace of the game.

It seems pretty good in my playtesting so far. Mishievous Chimera really surprised me - I thought no way it would fit in a Tier 1 or even Tier 2 deck, but this might be changing my mind.

{{Mischievous Chimera}}

The thing about Chimera is (much like an actual Chimera) it's a mashup of a lot of different things. On it's face, it seems not quite good enough to be aggro and not quite good enough to fit into a flash, control, or spells pay-off deck. However, when you are trying to do all of those things in the same deck, and when you also happen to have a flying subtheme, it turns out to be pretty dang good.

Its scry trigger kind of sort of does what [[Curious Obsession]] used to do in mono blue tempo.

Aggro sub-theme?

A lot of these cards are fast, either with flash or with haste to allow them to inflict hurt shortly after they come down, along with 4 [[Shock]] that can either serve as control or could go face. With the correct sideboard strategy, it is possible to sideboard out some of the control for additional aggro for a surprise shift in strategy on game 2.

Potential for viable budget play

If you remove the [[Brazen Borrower]], this deck seems like a very viable competitive budget deck that could even squeeze in under $100, much like mono blue tempo. A possible substitute could be running [[Pteramander]], maybe even playing 4 copies and removing an island. [[Bonecrusher Giant]] is also a possible substitution to act as both control and a creature threat.

Sibeboard

I haven't playtested this much in best-of-3 and there's a lot of different approaches you might take to sideboarding this deck. One approach is to play into one of the sub themes of the deck (aggro, fliers, flash, or spells) to make your opponent feel like they are playing against a totally different deck in game 2. The sideboard I've listed above is more oriented toward Tempo and provides silver bullets for certain match-ups.

[[Lava Coil]] is exile/removal for bigger things

[[Mu Yanling, Sky Dancer]] is a huge tempo card that can provide a small amount of control while also generating threats if your opponent can't deal with her. She seems like a great fit for a tempo deck in certain matchups.

[[Mystical Dispute]] is for counterspell mirrors

[[Narset, Parter of Veils]] is a silver bullet for Esper Control, Simic Ramp, or any deck that relies heavily on card draw

[[Flame Sweep]] is for Cavalcade, Knights, or other go-wide strategies



Feedback about ways to improve this deck are greatly appreciated :)