Building a three color deck

[Killer Joe]

Hi, I have come to the conclusion that I am the happiest playing casual magic when I'm playing a three color deck. Most of the decks I play are some form of control and three colors is a must for my happiness, so, with that said could you help me expand my knowledge of what are good cards for control that would wrok well in a three color deck.

I don't have a specific favorite combination but my latest 'obsession' is Blue/Green/Black. here are some cards I have put on my 'tentative' list for a control deck:
4x Gifts Ungiven
4x Demonic Tutor
4x Eternal Witness
2x Kokusho, The Evening Star
2x Damnation
4x Propaganda
4x Hissing Miasma
4x Counterspell
1x Null Rod
1x Cursed Totem

For lands:
1x Miren, The Moaning Well (for Kokusho)
1x Volrath's Stronghold (for Kokusho)

I'm not big on creature heavy control decks in fact my list has four too many listed....

 

[Spiderman]

What's the format? Vintage?

 

[Killer Joe]

No ante cards, no silver bordered cards, no proxy's and no Vanguard character cards. otherwise, that's it, no B&R list.

 

[Oversoul]

What sort of decks do you expect to be playing against?

And have you considered Recurring Nightmare? Excellent synergy with Kokusho, although you'd want more than just Eternal Witnesses for it to work.

 

[Killer Joe]

This would be a multiplayer game anywhere from 5 to 9 players and I expect a lot of generic creature decks (all non-competetive/non-tournament players). But it's not the strength of their decks I'm worried about it's those deck as a collective threat that's a problem (i.e. ganging-up on me).

 

[Mooseman]

Not to worry KJ, I'll will take you out before turn 7.... (insert maniacal laughter here)

 

[Oversoul]

This would be a multiplayer game anywhere from 5 to 9 players and I expect a lot of generic creature decks (all non-competetive/non-tournament players). But it's not the strength of their decks I'm worried about it's those deck as a collective threat that's a problem (i.e. ganging-up on me).

Abyssal Gatekeeper can be useful for that (unless everyone is using flying creatures). You're already using Propaganda, which I think might be the best answer to that problem. What would your typical Gifts stack look like when playing this deck?

 

[Killer Joe]

Demonic Tutor, Kokusho, Eternal Witness, Volrath's Stronghold

That seems like a nasty pick, to me.

 

[Oversoul]

You might want an additional copy of Stronghold in there, in case it gets hit by Night Soil or something like that...

 

[Killer Joe]

I did think of that but with Eternal Witness and now I've added 3 copies of Gaea's Blessing I'm not too worried. Also, I'm trying to go creature lite or less for this deck.

 

[Shabbaman]

If you play with Gifts Ungiven you really need to play "gifts piles". These are sets of cards you get with Gifts and that guarantee that you get the card you want. In my VWR deck I play with the comparable Intuition, and then I get for instance Life from the Loam, Academy Ruins and Engineered Explosives. No matter what the opponent gives you, you'll get the EE eventually. Yes, I like recurring things and silver bullets

Never mind, I skipped the last half of this thread, you know about Gift stacks. I would recommend the cards I just mentioned though.

 

[Killer Joe]

4x Gifts Ungiven
4x Demonic Tutor
4x Eternal Witness
3x Gaea’s Blessing
1x Regrowth
2x Kokusho, The Evening Star
4x Hissing Miasma
4x Propaganda
4x Naturalize
2x Damnation
4x Counterspell
2x Forbid
2x Capsize
1x Null Rod
1x Cursed Totem
1x Kraken’s Eye
1x Demon’s Horn
1x Wurm’s Tooth

4x Overgrown Tomb
4x Tropical Island
3x Watery Grave
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Polluted Delta
1x Reflecting Pool
1x Miren, The Moaning Well
1x Minamo, School at Water’s Edge
3x Forest
3x Swamp
5x Island
1x Volrath’s Stronghold
1x Maze of Ith

 

[Killer Joe]

Welp, that was weird......how did that font get on there? *shrugs*
Anyway, This is my list and I am DESPERATELY trying to avoid "SHAZAM, I WIN!" type decks.
Mooseman is the only other player with 'skills' and he never plays solid deck archetypes (but that's a whole thread topic in of itself, LOL!) but the rest of them are like country folk in a big city,.....lost.
This deck, though I've never played this combination of colors before, is similar to other decks I've played so it won't be too much of a shock.
Heck, the only reason I even included Gifts Ungiven is because I my four copies right when they came out and I have never used them in a deck. So I thought, why not? And then i realized I had to have a gifts stack and whatnot and so I went with a style I sorta knew already and that's how I came up with the deck list.
Thanks for the input fellas, I'll let you know how it went.

 

[Mooseman]

Unfortunately, I have to get my car inspected tomorrow and I will not be able to foil KJ's evil plans.
Another month goes by and he is free to spread his evil upon the world......

I am actually gonna open some boxes of newish product and see what i have for next month......

 

[Killer Joe]

Too bad, brother, but by next month I'll be resorting to bizzare EXPERIMENTAL decks, tee-hee.....

 

[Killer Joe]

Repay in Kind
http://sales.starcitygames.com/carddisplay.php?product=173377
Killed me. I was at 20 life when this guy named RootWalla (a guy that likes to do random stuff) plays Repay in Kind when another player is at 1 life. I counter it but another player counters my counter.
I die first.

 

[Defenestrator]

Repay is actually pretty good in a Kokusho deck! make sure your cheesy combo isn't done in by an even cheesier infinite life combo!