Mtg Deck Tech: Bant Dinosaurs in Rivals of Ixalan Standard!

[@SBMTG]

There are 13 blue sources in this deck, not 5. The main deck blue sources don't feel bad to draw game 1; they make colors you care about other than blue, and with Farmland, if you draw it late or after you have a blue source already, you can cycle it, and Botanical sanctum helps you get turn 1 Commune. Drover of the Mighty makes blue in games 2 and 3 when you need it to, and the 1 island in the sideboard actually translates into 4 islands because we're playing 3 Thunderherd Migration. As far as "WHY ONLY PLAY BLUE IN THE BOARD THAT LOOKS STOOOOOPID", doing this is actually fairly common. You shouldn't be looking to play MORE cards in your splash - that's just bad logic. The fewer cards we have in our splash, the better. We also have the ability to never reveal to the opponent that we're even playing blue in game 1, which is an advantage. Thirdly (not sure that's a word), Nezahal doesn't go in here. Although one blue source is easy, two is a little harder, and besides, we've got Carnage Tyrant backed up by Negate to win against control in games 2 and 3, so we already have a post-sideboard control plan. Countering the few spells that can actually deal with Tyrant is enough. Finally, if you're still reading, I just want to make a broader point about deckbuilding. Adding blue for sideboard counterspells isn't revolutionary (as we've already established), and there are still a LOT of people questioning it. Given, those may be newer players who haven't expanded their deckbuilding horizons yet, but I see this attitude all the time even from veteran players: That there are set (and yet mostly unwritten) "rules" for Mtg deck design. This is a regressive attitude. Think about chess. It's been around for over a millenia, and it's still evolving. Still changing. Magic has been around for only 25 years and yet it seems sometimes like over half of the player base has these very concrete, set-in-stone ideas about deckbuilding theory. Like some people read the little handbook that came with a starter deck in 1995 that said "a deck should have roughly x creatures, y spells, and z mana sources" and that's. Just. It. Forever. I think sometimes we have a tendency as a community to put deck design in boxes marked "midrange", "aggro", "control", or "combo", and although many decks are that, there tends to be open hostility when a deck ISN'T one of those things (this Bant Dinosaurs deck is a midrange deck, I'm not talking about it, just making a general point, although this train of thought started when I got comments from people ignorant to the concept sideboard splashes). All I'm saying is that there are two ways to approach a deckbuilding concept you haven't encountered before: 1. Open-minded interest in a new idea ("does that work?" or "oh neat"); or 2. Repulsion at the exposure to a new idea ("I know better than this" or "this isn't how you build a deck!") I've seen this number 2 reaction in just about every endeavor I've pursued (I also played fighting games sort-of-semi-competitively for a while, and GOD FORBID you suggest to a non-tournament-yet-hardcore-wannabe Smash Bros or Tekken player that tournament players are better than them, or know more about matchups, or know counters better, or have a deeper knowledge of combo trees...anything really), and I've never understood it. I'm not claiming to be single-handedly evolving Magic: the Gathering with my revolutionary counterspells-in-the-board theory; I'm just asking the same thing I asked those Smash Bros players years ago: don't you want your skill to evolve? Sorry for the rant. This was loooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong Love you guys

[@nathanjacquart4395]

Strictly Better MtG So, in response to this very long statement.. Before Shadows rotated out of Standard I built an Abzan Seasons Past deck with the Gitrog Monster. In many ways the deck was counterintuitive but it shut down so many strategies. It was shockingly dominant. Temur Energy even was just a fair match. I felt really good about it. Then I took it to an FNM at a store I had not been to before and ran into a guy still running B/G snake. I laughed a little inside and took match one without incident... Then I lost this game. Hard. He sideboarded in a couple of islands and a play set of Negates... That was all it took to utterly destroy me.. All that to say, I get you. Personally I thought it was genuinely brilliant move strategically. I thought I was playing one deck and got treated to something else. He would only side in the blue if he lost game one just to throw off the opposition. And playing Carnage Tyrant in one of my decks, I wouldn't mind having a Negate once in awhile when I know the other guy is holding up a Settle...

[@dvorak2676]

Strictly Better MtG i read it and enjoyed it ; very well written and interesting, thank you

[@germaine5933]

I remember the Proper-Bloom decks of old that transforms the deck from a combo deck to an aggro/tempo deck by pulling in 15 creatures from the SB. Not much of those kinds of decks nowadays.

[@DonovanPresents]

Is there any other card that can replace Carnage Tyrant? I like to make the deck a little cheaper (I.e. $34 cheaper) just because the price.

[@michaelmendez3572]

I read it! Just a suggestion here. And only cuz I love your channel. But put that rant in a lil 3-4 minute vid. Your fans would love it. And the haters would eat it up. Anyway. Keep doing your thing

[@nickdarian8017]

This is the best version of Dino's that I have seen. Thank you Dev! Any nay-sayers don't know what they are talking about, and that's fine, lets keep it that way! My Dino decks are very powerful, but if I am up against Approach or White in general, I know my W:L is dropping to 20%. With the Negate, I have crawled that way back up. Cheers!

[@Shaun_GTI]

Dev! This is the best wife stealing video yet! firstly, cat = +1...was it Igby or Figby from "smart cookies'? Secondly, you toss in car parts at the intro - that was pure magic. keep it up, at the end of this video my wife was nodding, and saying she agrees with the logic! That's a HUGE DEAL!!!! Excellent. Third you got the Dino Tshirt from Rugrats on! Lastly.... 2 videos in 1 day... that's BOSS Someone hire this man!

[@airsoftkombat]

YEEEEEEEES i knew it. i was thinking of a similar list and BAM.. dev does it. thank youuuu!!!

[@samhaskins127]

Thanks Dev! Always fun, informative, & entertaining!

[@maxwellbrody3260]

Finally the white Dino’s getting some love. Trapjaw is great. This list looks super, Dev.

[@bartholomewfargo]

I would love to do a Modern dinos deck. What changes would you make in that case? I know that opens up a lot of options for just about all of the utility spells, but do you think there's enough good stuff out there to make a "decent" dino tribal deck?

[@GilgameshGaming13]

Only a comment for the people watching this video, as I see it at this point there are 6500 views on this video but only 439 likes...wtf guys, it should be a automatic reaction when you start watching to show some kind of support and press that LIKE button and support the creator and his work, helps more than you think...ps. And you Dev keep up the good work, it was your channel that got me into the game years ago ! greets from Bosnia !

[@johnseiluns7807]

Nice Dev. I run. A four color deck. Bant with a splash of red. Took 3rd at fnm last night. Made a few adjustments and think I have it. Just saying Zacama and lightning strikes are nice. Especially with settle the wreckage and ixalan's binding. Also carnage tyrants and torrentials.

[@level87code]

you are kicking ass with these decks. wondering if you are going to make a video about the challenger decks, i would love to see what score you give them.

[@offeral]

I play Naya dinos on MTGO with an enrage deck and it does a lot of work with Ranging Raptors :)

[@BryceInTheBox]

I don't like videos very often, but the last three have been yours. May the Sun shine upon your face while your enemies are laid to waste.. . I was going to delete that last part, but I feel I've gone too far. Gonna just hunker down and commit.

[@jackpabich763]

Stay! Please? It's never too far. Who knows, you may get the chance to travel anywhere in all of time and space!

[@00naruhina]

Obviously it's worse but I just want to say Scaled Behemoth is basically budget Carnage Tyrant.

[@louiebafford1346]

I’ve been waiting all day you had me worried

[@kevinsykes9984]

SBMtG is easily becoming one of my favorite channels, I would say on par with the professor (Maybe even better). One thing that I would just love though would be if you posted a link to tappedout.com. Its a little thing, but would really be nice.

[@nicklabaque]

Kevin Sykes you can copy the decklist with a button or TCG Player and I'm sure you can create a new deck list on Tappedout.com by pasting this decklist somewhere , as in every good MTG sites ;)

[@kevinfrieden7929]

thumbs up for the new soundtrack :D

[@LedPESRule]

Awesome as usual, love these Deck Techs! But where are our Commander Deck Techs at? Or even Pauper? Anyways, love you and your content, loyal new subscriber here

[@christopherpumphrey7023]

Kimmels commercial almost gave me a heat attack! Damn volume was so high

[@epicisgorillaz]

One thing I ask, is it possible to include suggestions as to what to side board out, when you're siding in for Aggro/control? I'm very new to the whole competitive scene, and the thing I struggle with the most, is knowing what to take out when side-boarding.

[@djnewellmit]

I really like the effort to break the mold for a dino deck. The white removal package is very versatile. Would you consider Admiral's Order over Negate? It is the best answer to Settle, and it provides a hard counter for anything in the late game. But I can see that the double blue would be very problematic with the mana setup.

[@friedpinnapple]

Pretty interesting deck ive had a lot of trouble against control decks with my own Naya dinosaurs. Im debating if primal tide could serve as a control counter by letting you draw for each counter played i think it would need blossoming defense or negate to really work

[@bryankopkin6869]

Dev i think u should make a deck teck video but your cats explains the deck tech

[@seanwilliams6613]

Hey anyone know what the opening song was for the vid it’s real tranquil

[@matthewarnold4557]

Id love to see an esper approach deck

[@dakotatemplarius5230]

Hey boss just curious, how do you feel about Atzocan Seer vs control with its sac effect and more ram to get to carnage I’d say two to switch out with kinjalli sunwing

[@Bayonette]

Always upvote dino decks.

[@valentinoreid9253]

Best mana ramp in standard is spell swindle

[@darrylkristovich7815]

Hello I got the Huatli Dinosaur deck and Huatli Warrior Poet card and was curious if you could give me advice on a Dinosaur theme deck? Thank you in advance! :D

[@kylerucker3539]

Dev, you really need to do mono blue mill!!! Its AMAZING against control and midrange decks. It can take aggro and tribal decks in game 2. Just wanted to let you know

[@rolandbraj5904]

I love this deck but i would change some parts, forexample i dont like K. Sunwing i would rather use authority of consuls and Sieghorn ceratops is fine if i replace Drover of mighty to Atzocan Seer because nearly same stat only -1 power (2/3) but i can get 1 dino from the graveyard and its amazing in mid and late game. The seer doesnt need a dino for stat buff and its really important because i played aganist competetive decks and they removed nearly instant my drover but if i can use it as an alternative way. With these 3 changes mana curve wont be so bad and i get some extra ability heal from authority and resurrection and a growing threat. And lastly Endless sun land is insanely strong in dino decks. I mean in all dino decks. If a settle of wreckage would hit my tyrant then i can save it for 2 mana (i know i exile it but i can get it back) and it works well aganist wreska contempt and other remove spells if i dont have blossoming defense for protect my creatures. Even if i would lose my trapjaw and i get it back, the whole horror card advantage game begins again.

[@manicallydepressedclown]

Im new to magic so sorry if i sound sped. Where can i by these cards my game store doesnt sell, specific cards and idk if my parents would be okay with ordering cards from amazon. I guess i could play it on untap.in

[@jaynecobb5207]

reptilian I order my sinlgles from face to face games. It’s a Canadian company. Channel fireball also sells magic out of Washington I think

[@EskimoBobTLF]

Good stuff Dev. You got any ideas for a naya zacama deck?

[@JaxonBurn]

Travis Fregoso he’s already done Naya Dinos! He went with lots of ramp to get the big boys out sooner, mostly red and green with just enough white to play Gishath, Zacama, etc.

[@rafaelrios7984]

Is there a way to contact u about a deck iv been using? Its dinos and its working very well

[@DonovanPresents]

Did you give up on the whole "mono-blue monument" deck idea? I could see some Merfolk work in that monument's favor.

[@kevinbohn9479]

Looks fun

[@oscarmurcia9522]

Went through the deck list and the blue really confused me.

[@Jonasz314]

I was expecting Hadana's Climb, which would make the Dinosaurs really fearsome. But all this for Negate? Please. It's not a control deck.

[@jackpabich763]

No Nezahal? It's been the finisher for practically all decks you run with blue and this is a Dino deck with blue!

[@Arghore]

I may well give this a spin :)

[@parkerstockett7609]

Which do you prefer dev, this dino list or your naya list?? I absolutely love your naya list I'm not sure how much I like this one.

[@JashSmash84]

If you're running blue and you're a dinosaurs deck there's not really much reason to not main board a copy or two of the blue elder dino in my opinion. It does a lot of good stuff and is also very anti control like this deck is trying to be (also justifies having blue sources in the main deck)

[@JashSmash84]

Andy Jokerst shouldn't be too bad with 5 blue sources, thunderherd migration and drover

[@Hero-er9oj]

I did this in my bant ramp Dino deck. Feels OK using fumigate when you can protect nezahal from it

[@oldmanfivetimes]

You should try out a G/W build.

[@Niedomysm]

I am all for this

[@KCBGhost]

How come your not playing Nezahal? I feel like you could play at least one copy against control and it just makes sense if your adding blue anyway

[@nicholassalamone770]

Bant is Really good right now.

[@Olorin323]

I think I might want Thrashing Brontodon as 2x instead of Deathgorge...I think Sunwing at 3 is good with all the aggro running around

[@glytch5]

I got my turn 5 ghalta hijacked... that sucked.

[@LookitCrows]

Is this better than your naya dinos deck?

[@lawfullyblind8403]

So why no nezahal?

[@Epok17]

No u/g nissa?

[@Jonasz314]

10 cards with cc >= 5, that's quite a top-heavy curve. You can't really include Drover of the Mighty as ramp, it's not an extra land. Only an accelerator to get a 4-drop on turn 3, which gets blown out by every single removal in the format. Dinosaurs have done squat in constructed format, it's just way too slow to get in motion, and even then, the payoff isn't really flashy. Enrage triggers look great on paper, in practice it's too clunky and requires a perfect setup to be efficient. I think Dinosaurs are great in draft, but don't have much of place in constructed.

[@firemaker282]

what's the highest score you've given a deck?

[@DuncanEllis]

rawr. I was expecting Nezahal, tbh.

[@mr.mammuthusafricanavus8299]

LOL I was wondering that also, Nezahal is fun

[@ericclark127]

Champion of rhonas

[@L8RSTORM]

I like the deck idea but I can take out the blue

[@JediMasterRevenantMADNESS]

Hey, Dev, now that Attune has been banned, do you think you could try giving us a budget energy deck of some sort? I can't find a single list that doesn't still have at least one of the two banned energy based cards.

[@nicklabaque]

MADNESS Look at the soon-coming Challenger decks ;)

[@JediMasterRevenantMADNESS]

None of which are energy decks. Counter surge is a pseudo energy deck, but not a full on energy deck.

[@nicklabaque]

Ok I understand 🤔

[@SunFlowband]

MOAR DINOS PLZ

[@theheroclixvillian]

This is more of a selsna deck with a splash of blue.

[@bastienclarke1810]

Rockin

[@mattman8436]

If you build it they (dinosaurs) will come.

[@Chris-Collectible]

where is the blue in the deck

[@TheAnanaki]

Sideboard

[@Chris-Collectible]

it should be in the deck not just in the sideboard

[@SBMTG]

Why

[@Chris-Collectible]

Strictly Better MtG I just think it should Is all

[@kylesavage4525]

He has it at sb for control match ups not generally to counter non-creature spells. Plus if u have negate and islands show up at game 1 opponent will likely see that coming while if u just splash it after game 1 he will be just like ''Whaaaat?!''. People tend not to look at lands so much at games unless there is a specific land they need to look out for.

[@alessandroverrecchia5763]

dope video tho!

[@kingmate2000]

Is Selesnya Deck no Bant...

[@SBMTG]

Look again. Check out that sideboard

[@wadelaughlin1137]

Not where I play, Main deck is the"color" of the deck. if it was bant, it would be be B/W/G

[@wadelaughlin1137]

U/W/G I mean

[@robbiebeenham5980]

Could just play green white and use heroic intervention instead of splashing blue...

[@robbiebeenham5980]

suppose doomfall would be a problem

[@Jonasz314]

I really don't get the blue aspect of this deck. To shore up Negate? You never have enough mana to play a dinosaur and follow that up with negate. Control plays sweepers after you play your biggest threat, where you're tapped out. If you want to hose Control, go Abzan instead of Bant and play Duress. It works 10x better than playing counter magic in a tap-out deck.

[@dvorak2676]

Jonasz314 not 100% positive about this, but i think this deck ISN'T a tap-out deck especially when playing against control. tell me if i'm wrong

[@Nitron2097]

How the hell is Tyrant still $17?

[@G.Bonkers]

Are you related to Iraqveteran8888?

[@jortikkaa568]

Dev clean your camera lens pls :)

[@TheCollin]

R O A R

[@wadelaughlin1137]

Is it just me or is this not REALLY Bant?( U/W/G)

[@Niedomysm]

wade Laughlin technically it is Bant even though there is only one blue card and that's not even in the main

[@wadelaughlin1137]

I disagree, This deck is definitely G/W with a ( miniscule) splash of blue.

[@SunniestAutumn]

wade Laughlin We have a word for a GW deck with a splash of blue. It's Bant.

[@wpmer]

Noti squaaad

[@jguitar151]

5 main deck blue sources in a deck with only negate in the sideboard and a whole sideboard slot for an island. no ty. love you dev, but no.

[@TruDesiged]

I agree, He only needs 1 or 2 blue sources for negate only. Strange on him, I know he wants cycling but still.

[@SBMTG]

Also sb island, maindeck thunderherds to search for it, and driver of the mighty to tap for it PLUS Commune to help us find blue when we need it. There are 13 blue sources in this deck

[@jguitar151]

I don't know man, I read the rant and your reply so I better see where you're coming from but I just keep thinking of scenarios where the 3 irrigated farmland and botanical sanctum are gonna be upsetting to have in game 1. Like on turn 3 you have two forests and a drover out and you need to draw an untapped land to play ripjaw raptor and instead you get irrigated farmland. In a two color deck you don't need to worry about that nearly as much. My main gripe is whether or not its worth sacrificing consistency for sideboard negates in standard. In modern and legacy yeah this strategy works because mana is essentially perfect but in standard it hurts more. Maybe in a control meta this is worth it, but not currently.

[@jacobusstefanusvandervyver4211]

Don t see why trapjaw is a good card? A card that blocks it hopefully will die anyway and if not you will just trade with your trapjaw

[@nathanwatts2909]

This isn't bant, it's G/W dinos

[@SBMTG]

Take a real close look at the sideboard

[@nathanwatts2909]

I would hardly class 4 Negates and an a Island as Bant to be fair

[@SBMTG]

If there’s even 1 copy of a blue card it’s a Bant deck. Them’s The rules

[@nathanwatts2909]

Yeah that's true, however my point is what's the point of having blue in the deck when you're only running 4 copies of one spell, that is blue in the sideboard? With no blue cards in the mainboard, yeah sure you have plenty of things that help you produce blue mana. However it seems pointless if you don't run any blue spells in the main. I'm not saying it would work, but if say for argument's sake you ran 1 or 2 Nissa planeswalkers and a Primal Tide, then yeah ok no issue at all. Just seems odd and redundant to run blue (in a massively pro-dominant G/W deck) and not have any blue spells in the main and run only 4 copies of 1 spell in the side.

[@alessandroverrecchia5763]

Bant 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

[@isaachill1613]

7th!! Notification Squaad

[@isaachill1613]

7th Notification Squad!!

[@KyokushinFighter229]

Hey Dev, thanks for another sweet deck. I've been playing/brewing with dinos since your Nayasaurs video and it's been one of the most fun tribes to play imo. Base G/W is something I've been working on too but I couldn't find it in me to take out red. Here's this list if you're interested, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it: deck.tk/7LBD2r8J

[@Jonzin4BeatzNYC]

My girlfriend has dermatitis and I love her anyway!

[@angogobloggian7702]

Heyyy first