Wild Awakening: Standard Gruul Ferocious

Note: This article was translated from Chinese by AI and may contain errors. Read the original Chinese version.

Before We Start

The “Ferocious” ability that debuted in Khans of Tarkir, which gives extra effects when you control a creature with power 4 or greater, has by now blended into sets as naturally as an evergreen keyword, and there are quite a few related cards, so it looks easy to build a themed deck, but is it powerful enough? Let’s try it and see!

Card Analysis

First, let’s open Scryfall and set conditions for a search, which gives 20 cards that interact positively with creatures of power 4 or more. That looks like a lot, but unless a card is a creature that can reach the ferocious condition on its own (hereafter ferocious creature), it is mostly not practical; filtering creatures by this condition leaves 5, and after removing the more expensive Vaultborn Tyrant and the weaker Jolene, Plundering Pugilist, the following 3 remain.

Outcaster Trailblazer is a powerful resource engine and a serviceable one-shot accelerant; in a deck built around ferocious it is nearly equivalent to drawing a card for each next creature, and it meets the ferocious condition itself, a card that earns more the more card advantage it draws. Dragonhawk, Fate’s Tempest is likewise a powerhouse that impulse-draws based on the number of ferocious creatures when it enters or attacks, but what is truly scary is that the unused portion converts into direct damage, and if the board allows it can even kill a full-life opponent outright, especially when Cactusfolk Sureshot gives the other ferocious creatures haste and trample; as long as you control three other ferocious creatures, Dragonhawk can enter and rush in immediately for 21 damage.

The ferocious decklist built around these three cards is as follows:
Decklist

The other ferocious creatures chosen here are Slumbering Cerberus, Hazoret, Godseeker and Spinner of Souls. The reason for picking Slumbering Cerberus and Hazoret is that they are the cheapest ferocious creatures in the card pool; a casting cost of just 2 is the most powerful support recent sets have given the ferocious strategy, and it is no exaggeration to call them the key puzzle piece that fills out the curve. Hazoret is a stable ferocious source with built-in indestructible, but it is not easy to get going, so only one is included as a mascot (if you don’t like it you can swap in Tyrox, Saurid Tyrant). Spinner of Souls is another resource engine, converting your other creatures’ deaths into new cards in hand, so your creatures can trade with the opponent’s without worry.

For acceleration, the first choice is naturally the enduring Llanowar Elves, plus three copies of Ruby, Daring Tracker, which interacts with ferocious, for acceleration and beats; Ruby can also pair with Hazoret to deal direct damage to the opponent, helping Hazoret get going faster.

Spell choices are a matter of personal taste; for my picks, I first use Burst Lightning, which can deal direct damage, and Hunter’s Talent, which provides trample at level two, as removal, and the latter can also become a draw engine at level three. For the last three slots, I put in Bolt Bend, which has a ferocious cost reduction, for interference.

Gameplay Demo

Game one was against Domain. It didn’t look like a very favorable matchup, but thanks to Outcaster Trailblazer I developed at super speed, had three ferocious creatures on the board by turn three, and smashed the opponent outright. In game two Hazoret did great service, absorbing the opponent’s Go for the Throat under the guidance of Bolt Bend, and in the end got going to deliver the final blow. Game three was Dragonhawk’s turn; although it was only the minimum pairing with Cactusfolk Sureshot, entering alone dealt 13 direct damage that turn, and the next punch sent the opponent on their way.

Conclusion

This April we are about to return to Tarkir, and judging from the new card previews released so far, Tarkir: Dragonstorm will return to the three-color clans of Khans of Tarkir, so the Temur color combination is quite likely to get ferocious again; maybe this deck will super-evolve in the new set? Let’s wait and see!