Back when Faithless Looting was unbanned in Modern, some players were a bit concerned about what the powerful engine would do to the format. As it turns out, Faithless Looting has largely been outshined by Mox Opal. It still shows up in Reanimator decks and Modern Hollow One, but it’s hardly a dominant force.
The deck that garnered the most attention when Faithless Looting was unbanned, Izzet Phoenix, also quickly fell by the wayside. Fortunately, for anyone looking to break out these powerful birds in Modern, now may be your chance.
A unique take on Izzet Phoenix just put up a 5-0 result in a Modern League, and while that isn’t an incredible feat by any means, it does showcase that maybe the deck is being slept on. This deck is very synergistic and excels in attrition battles. Let’s dive in and see what Izzet Phoenix brings to the table.
The Threats
Izzet Phoenix is an archetype that revolves around playing a ton of cheap instants and sorceries in order to maximize two key recursive creatures. The first, as you may have guessed, is Arclight Phoenix. By itself, Arclight Phoenix doesn’t apply a ton of pressure. However, in multiples, the damage starts to add up quickly.
As we will see in the next section, this deck does a great job churning through its library and getting Arclight Phoenix into the graveyard. From there, casting three spells to return it is trivial.
In addition to Arclight Phoenix, Demilich also serves as a recursive threat that you can often get into play for free. Demilich is big enough to enable Harmonizing Winternight Stories for one mana, and lets you recast removal spells or cantrips when it attacks.
Finally, the last creature in the deck is Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student. Tamiyo is obviously a great card, but it works overtime in this deck. That’s because with so many cantrips and Faithless Looting in the mix, you’ll often be able to play Tamiyo and transform it immediately.
After that, its +2 ability can minimize the effect of small creatures like Ocelot Pride, while its -3 ability lets you generate value. Notably, if you return Manamorphose to your hand, you’ll get an additional mana to work with for your efforts.
The Spells
In order to make all of your creatures as threatening as possible, you need a high density of cheap spells. Both Demilich and Arclight Phoenix reward you for casting lots of spells on the same turn. You also want to be able to reliably cast a flurry of spells on subsequent turns. That way, if the opponent kills your creatures, you can bring them back to play right away with no troubles.
With this in mind, cantrips play a huge role. Thought Scour and Consider are great options, since they replace themselves while also fueling your graveyard. Any copies of Arclight Phoenix or Demilich you Mill over in the process will enter the battlefield in no time.
Faithless Looting plays a crucial role, too. Not only does Faithless Looting ensure that copies of Arclight Phoenix won’t get stuck in your hand, but it also keeps the spells flowing and lets you get rid of excess lands later in the game.
While you don’t have access to Treasure Cruise in Modern like you do in Pioneer, one major advantage Modern Izzet Phoenix has is getting to play free spells. Manamorphose is not your ordinary cantrip. Because it gives you your mana back, you’ll be able to bring back Arclight Phoenix on turn two pretty consistently.
Surgical Extraction can perform a similar task, while serving as a reasonable disruptive element versus Phlage, Titan of Fire’s Fury. It’s a bit surprising to not see any copies of Gut Shot as another free spell that kills Ocelot Pride and Ragavan, Nimbler Pilferer. Flex slots that don’t function as cantrips do come at a premium, though, so it may be hard to fit both Surgical Extraction and Gut Shot in the maindeck.
A Tough Position
Ultimately, as cool as Izzet Phoenix is, it’s in a rough position in the metagame. This is mainly because of how vulnerable the deck is to hate pieces. Graveyard hate is annoying enough, and you’ll run into plenty of Soul-Guide Lantern effects as long as Urza’s Saga decks are running around. Esper Ketramose often plays Relic of Progenitus in the maindeck, which can be a nuisance as well.
Artifact hate cards are at least a little less concerning thanks to the power of Flame of Anor. As an Izzet deck, though, enchantment hate cards like Leyline of the Void are much harder to fight through. You basically have to find Sink into Stupor to give yourself at least a little reprieve.
Besides graveyard hate, you’ll also commonly run into High Noon out of Boros Energy and Esper Phelia. High Noon singlehandedly destroys your “cast a bunch of spells on the same turn” gameplan. As long as Izzet Prowess and Ruby Storm remain strong options in Modern, you’re bound to face down High Noon from time to time.
If you can somehow avoid these problematic elements, your synergies are quite powerful. This is just easier said than done. We’re hopeful Izzet Phoenix will get its chance to shine in Modern at some point. Just don’t expect it to emerge as a top tier strategy in the near future.
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