Magic the Gathering - Aetherflux Reservoir Deck (Kaladesh Standard)

by ElspethFTW, Old School Duelist

Aetherflux Reservoir is one of the coolest Magic cards in the Kaladesh set. Not only does it allow you to pay 50 life to deal 50 damage to a target creature or player, but it can gain you a lot of life during the course of the game. In Kaladesh Standard, one deck found a way to take full advantage of this life gain while also giving you a powerful win condition. This deck is White/Blue (W/U) Reservoir, at one time the best Aetherflux Reservoir deck in Standard.
 
Here's the deck list:
 
Creatures (16)
4     Thraben Inspector 
2     Pilgrim's Eye    
3     Reflector Mage 
4     Cloudblazer    
3     Torrential Gearhulk
 
Spells (17)
3     Essence Flux   
4     Anticipate   
4     Unsubstantiate  
4     Engulf the Shore   
2     Glimmer of Genius  
 
Artifacts (3)
3     Aetherflux Reservoir   
 
Lands (24)
13     Island  
3     Plains   
4     Port Town 
4     Prairie Stream  
 
Sideboard (15)
2     Dispel 
3     Negate   
2     Stasis Snare   
4     Niblis of Frost  
2     Summary Dismissal  
2     Jace, Unraveler of Secrets  

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This deck is all about making value plays. Thraben Inspector was one of the best creatures in Standard for a reason. Not only is the Inspector a 1/2 for just one mana, but you get a Clue token in addition. This gives the deck early card advantage. Two copies of Pilgrim's Eye allow you to search out one of the many basic lands in the deck and soon you'll see why there are 13 basic Islands.

Three copies of Reflector Mage allow you to stay ahead on tempo by messing with your opponent's creatures. Cloudblazer is an awesome value creature that both gains you life and draws you cards. Lastly, there are three Torrential Gearhulks to recycle your spells at instant speed, while also providing big bodies to close out the game if the Reservoir plan is taking too long.

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Essence Flux is a great way to "blink" your creatures and recycle their effects. It's better if you use it on a Spirit. While there aren't any Spirits in the main deck, there are 4 copies of Niblis of Frost in the sideboard. Anticipate filters your draws so that you're drawing cards you need rather than cards that you don't.

 Unsubstantiate is a poor man's Remand, by bouncing your opponent's spells, essentially countering them but sending them back to their hand instead. It's the poor man's version since the classic Modern card also draws you a card. But one thing that it does that Remand doesn't is bounce creatures, including your own. This will come in handy later. Glimmer of Genius gives you Scry 2 and draw 2 cards, and the energy doesn't matter in this deck.
 
The most important noncreature spell in this deck is the 4 copies of Engulf the Shore. The reason it's so good is that you don't mind returning your own creatures to hand, since they are have enter the battlefield abilities that you want to reuse anyway. This is why you need so many basic Islands, although Prairie Stream counts as an Island, too.

The gameplan is relatively straightforward. Make sure that you're always playing a turn or more ahead of your opponent.Once you have Reservoir on the board, try to cast as many spells as you can each turn. Keep in mind that you gain life when you cast spells on your opponent's turn, as well. It's all about maximizing how many spells you cast while also keeping in mind how ahead you are on tempo. It takes a bit of skill to play this deck, but the results are worth it, as decks like this can win a tournament. 

The sideboard gives you Dispels, Negates, and Summary Dismissals for control matchups. Niblis of Frost gives you an aggressive flyer if you need it. Not only is it a Spirit that can tap down an opponent's creatures for a turn, but it also has Prowess. These are very good against aggro decks that will try to race your Aetherflux Reservoir.

Stasis Snare helps you deal with big threats at instant speed. In Standard at the time, these included threats such as Emrakul and Ulamog. The two copies of Jace, Unraveler of Secrets give you an additional draw engine while also letting you bounce opponent's creatures. Jace's ultimate is pretty sweet, too, automatically countering the first spell your opponent casts every turn.
 
This is a great deck that could be built relatively on the inexpensive side. The most expensive cards of this deck are the Aetherflux Reservoirs, Torrential Gearhulks, Port Towns, and Prairie Streams. It was a good Standard deck that wouldn't break the bank. If you like taking old Standard decks out for a spin, this is a good one to try.

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