MTG Foundations may just be a glorified core set, but it’s undoubtedly brought a multitude of Constructed staples to various formats. This goes beyond just Standard, as potent bombs like Sire of Seven Deaths continue to make waves in Modern and beyond.
Every week, it seems like a new brew featuring intriguing Foundations cards begins to make some noise. Well, this week is no exception. On a whim, one player decided to construct a Cat typal deck and run it through a Magic Online Pioneer League.
Right away, the deck went undefeated through five rounds, showing perhaps more promise than even the pilot expected. MTG Foundations brought some strong Cats to the table that make an appearance here. While it’s unlikely this deck will burst onto the competitive scene anytime soon, there’s no doubt the deck is capable of some powerful draws.
Cat Payoffs
- Mana Value: 2W
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 2/2
- Card Type: Legendary Creature- Cat Avatar
- MTG Sets: Foundations
- Card Text: Other Cats get +1/+1. Whenever Arahbo or another nontoken Cat you control enters, create a 1/1 white Cat creature token.
At the forefront of the archetype, we have a pair of elite Cat payoffs that reward you for staying on theme. The best of the best is definitely the new Arahbo. Arahbo is absolutely unbelievable. On its own, you’re getting four power and four toughness worth of stats across two bodies thanks to the buff it provides. Once you start playing other Cats, though, Arahbo quickly gets out of hand.
The obvious downside is that at three mana, there’s a good chance Arahbo will fall victim to a cheap removal spell like Torch the Tower. This is why it will sometimes be in your best interest to find a window to play Arahbo and another Cat on the same turn while your opponent is tapped low.
The other way to get some additional value from Arahbo is to hit it off Collected Company along with another Cat. This enables you to get two Cat tokens out of the exchange before your opponent can remove Arahbo.
From there, you can follow up with the other three mana Lord this deck gets access to: Feline Sovereign. Flein Sovereign doesn’t have the insane upside of generating a wide board state like Arahbo, but giving you the opportunity to blow up artifacts or enchantments when you connect is surprisingly powerful in Pioneer.
Fable of the Mirror-Breaker is everywhere, and most matchups have at least a couple important artifacts or enchantments to get off the board. Then there are matchups like Jund sacrifice where Feline Sovereign becomes arguably your best path to victory.
Rounding out the “Lord” effects are two copies of Regal Caracal. Regal Caracal is strong, but at five mana, it makes sense to play a low number (especially in a Collected Company deck that relies on a high density of three-drops).
Cats: New and Old
- Mana Value: 1W
- Rarity: Rare
- Stats: 1/1
- Card Type: Creature- Cat Scout
- MTG Sets: Foundations
- Card Text: Whenever another creature you control enters, put a +1/+1 counter on this creature. As long as this creature has three or more +1/+1 counters on it, it has flying and is a Kn ight in addition to its other types.
In order to maximize all of these effects, the rest of the deck needs to feature a lot of Cats up the curve. Fortunately, there’s a solid mix of Cats available from Foundations and beyond.
In the one-drop slot, Savannah Lions joins Sacred Cat as reasonable plays to make. Neither card is that impressive but being able to have a board presence before playing your Lords is necessary to help push damage.
At two mana, things get a little juicier. Fleecemane Lion is a very aggressive card that conveniently dodges two-damage removal spells. Meanwhile, Skyknight Squire excels in creature matchups, since it quickly threatens to grow rather huge and attack in the air.
Felidar Cub is the last two-mana creature in the maindeck. Once again, this card isn’t anything special. In a world full of enchantments, though, it’s still better than it looks.
Rounding out the deck are a couple copies of Brimaz, King of Oreskos and Kutzil’s Flanker. These cards add some beef to the three-drop section of the deck, which further increases the effectiveness of Collected Company.
A Glimmer of Hope
- Mana Value: 3G
- Rarity: Rare
- Card Type: Instant
- MTG Sets: Dragons of Tarkir, Mystery Booster 2
- Card Text: Look at the top six cards of your library. Put up to two creature cards with converted mana cost 3 or less from among them onto the battlefield. Put the rest on the bottom of your library in any order.
All in all, this deck likely has too many individually weak cards to be a real contender in the format at the moment. Plus, unlike other creature decks like Azorius Humans, this deck is missing disruptive elements such as Thalia, Guardian of Thraben. This means that you have to rely on your best threats, most importantly Arahbo and Collected Company, pulling their weight.
The good news is that both of these cards are extremely strong and can win games out of nowhere. In attrition-based matchups, if you can resolve Collected Company on the opponent’s end step and hit Arahbo and another Cat, you can immediately develop a wide board. This is especially true if you then have a good follow up on your turn.
The reality is, Arahbo is so powerful that it gives this otherwise mediocre shell a glimmer of hope. If you really enjoy unique typal strategies, this Cats deck is a reasonable option at the FNM level.
