Massive creatures? Check. Fury of nature? Check. All in the new Temur Avalanche Intro Pack from Magic: The Gathering? Check. Straight from the latest set Khans of Tarkir, these Intro Decks aim to introduce players to the game by offering fun gameplay whilst learning the rules. If you fancy dabbling with Magic: The Gathering, then now is your chance.

25 Lands

• 2 Frontier Bivouac
• 1 Rugged Highlands
• 1 Swiftwater Cliffs
• 1 Thornwood Falls
• 8 Forest
• 5 Island
• 7 Mountain

22 Creatures

• 2 Elvish Mystic
• 2 Heir of the Wilds
• 2 Runeclaw Bear
• 2 Alpine Grizzly
• 1 Icefeather Aven
• 2 Summit Prowler
• 1 Pine Walker
• 1 Thundering Giant
• 1 Avalanche Tusker
• 1 Bear’s Companion
• 2 Glacial Stalker
• 1 Tusked Colossodon
• 2 Snowhorn Rider
• 2 Woolly Loxodon

The Creatures

The aim of this deck is to overwhelm your opponent with big, unsurmountable fields of creatures until their life total reaches zero. Not only that, but there are a plethora of cards with the Ferocious mechanic which grant additional effects if you control a creature with power 4 or more. So, on the surface, Temur Avalanche possesses good synergy as far as strategies go.

The majority of the creature base in this Intro Pack cost 4 or more mana to cast. This can be the basis of a powerful late game, but makes you very vulnerable early game. The usage of Elvish Mystic allows you to accelerate you mana by tapping the mystic to add 1 Green mana to your pool. It is crucial to have an opening hand that contains this as it will get you to your big creatures fast. In the meantime, Heir of the Wilds and Alpine Grizzly can help keep control over the board with Deathtouch and cheap Ferocious stats, respectively. With the main mechanic of the deck being Ferocious, is it essential to keep a 4+ power creature on board to keep the abilities live.

13 Spells

• 1 Stubborn Denial
• 2 Savage Punch
• 1 Titanic Growth
• 1 Force Away
• 1 Lightning Strike
• 2 Temur Banner
• 1 Roar of Challenge
• 1 Dragon Grip
• 1 Temur Charm
• 1 Windstorm
• 1 Icy Blast

The Spells

The spells in this deck ensure you only battle when you need to, and if you do, you can control the result. In the early game, it can be quite easy to be overwhelmed by rush strategies and removal of your early war machine. That is why using removal and counter spells at the right time can keep you in the game long enough to bring your goliaths down upon the enemies heads. Whilst board control is being contested, you can drop a Temur Banner or two to aid the mana acceleration even more for the late game domination.

When vying for board control, there are a few cards that stand out amongst the rest as top tools for success. The first is Dragon Grip, an enchantment aura that grants a creature +2 power, and First Strike. This is great no matter the duration of the game as that extra power and the ability to take the first swing can turn the tables in your favour. Other cards such as Titanic Growth and Temur Charm also allow you to keep the opponent at bay, and, at the right moment, cause havoc to their field. The former gives a creature +4 power and toughness temporarily for that extra damage when needed. The latter can force a battle between two creatures with the favour lying with yours, counter a spell unless the controller pays more mana, or render weak creatures unable to block that turn. These cards are to be carefully used to maximise the chance of a powerful late game.

Other Key Cards

Other key cards that aid the overall strategy of the Intro Pack are Icefeather Aven and Icy Blast. Both of these cards can manipulate the enemy lines to grant you enough time for your forces to gain critical mass. Icefeather Aven is a morph creature that can be cast face down so the opponent is none the wiser to what it really is. At the right moment, you can flip it face up for its morph cost. The morph ability for this creature allows you to return a creature to its owner’s hand. This is powerful when returning key, powerful cards that opponent owns. As for Icy Blast, you can pay X mana plus one Blue, and when you do, you can tap creatures up to the amount you paid for X. The bonus is when you have a creature with 4 or more power as the creatures do not untap during the upkeep step.

In conclusion, the Temur Avalanche Intro Pack is built with power in mind. It contains massive creatures, massive combos, and massive damage. The main problem with such a strategy is the mana cost. Although the creatures are powerful, you can often find yourself left out to dry before you can even lay down the big combo pieces. Even though it contains the most mana acceleration out of the 5 Intro Packs, if you do not see Elvish Mystic early on then the deck can suffer. That said, it is a good introduction to the game of Magic: The Gathering and is great fun when playing with friends.