My Top Deck Brings All the Boys to the Yard

Everyone is vying for the top deck

Magik is a lot of fun to play and to deck build for. For this deck I really wanted to lean into the allies that concern themselves with the top of the deck. You may notice the lack of Legion I think he would be a fine addition but he doesn’t like discarding Digging Deep. I also found I was tight on the ally limit often and I would rather have Cosmo and Hulk in play with a rotating crew at the third slot, that’s also the reason for White Fox’s absence. Psylocke is also joining the fun despite not caring much about the top deck, but she helps give consistency to Press the Advantage. That's just an overview, let's really start...

Digging in

Digging Deep is a card that this deck is not centered on I would say but does a lot of things for us!

1. It is a wild so things like Soul Strike, Exorcism, Magik's Crown, Soulsword, Magic Barrier, and Mystical Armor all benefit from having Digging Deep on the top of the deck.

2. We have 2 allies, Rictor and Cosmo, and 2 events, Scrying and Magic Attack, that all discard from the top of the deck and can bring Digging Deep to hand. This makes it so Scrying can potentially bring 2 cards to hand and set a card on top of the deck that is useful for any thing else we have in hand or in play.

3. Being a wild resource helps us pay for things like Drop Kick to ensure we get maximum benefit. Especially in a deck with more than resources.

With Limbo you can kind of wait for the opportune moment to put Digging deep on top of your deck or start with Digging Deep and get all the uses you can out of it's wild resource and then use Cosmo or Rictor or either of your events that discard to bring that Digging Deep to hand.

The Giant Green Guy in the Room

How in the world are we playing with and and expected to use Hulk at all in this deck?

There are sooooo many ways in this deck to change the top card and get to a card with a that Hulk can discard. Let us count the ways! Keep in mind all of the below is helpful not just to line up things for Hulk but for a litany of other things you'd like to do with Magik.

1. Stepping Disc - this is an excellent way to get a card with a on top of the deck. We aren't going to be playing Magic Barrier much and certainly not in the player phase, so Stepping Disc can put it on top of the deck for us. We can then be ready as well and basic attack with a buffed Soulsword and then use Hulk to discard Magic Barrier! Also Magic Attack has a as well if needed!

2. Scrying - this is another awesome option to set the top of the deck. This will let us look at 3 cards and if one of them is a then we can leave it on top of the deck for Hulk!

3. Spiritual Meditation - it's free cycling baby!

4. Cosmo - He always hits and will change the top card of the deck at the same time, great for getting Digging Deep to hand as well.

5. Rictor - Will also change the top card of the deck, and can pull Digging Deep to hand if discarded. Fitting as he is on the art! I chose Rictor over Goldballs because for only discarding 1 card, compared to up to 3, he has both a higher floor and potentially ceiling than Goldballs.

6. Magic Attack - Will change the top of the deck as well as hit for a good amount of damage.

7. Drop Kick - Card draw will give us a new look at the top card.

8. Press the Advantage - TIME OUT

   I have got to show some love for Press the Advantage here. Something is going to be stunned/confused when Magik is around so this card is just crazy good value. It can be played off the top of the deck for free and then will draw you a card. Much like the other cards mentioned in this section it will help you dig through your deck in search of the right resource you need. It has a to help with getting a confused with Exorcism. This is a small but mighty card with Magik.

9. Limbo - and of course there is Limbo. Hopefully you had better options but some times the deck gives you exactly what you wanted and you don't need to use Limbo at all so saving it to throw a Clobber on top near the end of your turn for Hulk is not as unlikely as you might think!

10. Very last resort - there are 7 other cards in this deck (not counting Hulk) with a printed . Which actually could be handy in scenarios like Ultron. Just check on everyone else’s allies first!

Thanks for reading, I hope you have as much fun piloting this deck as I have. Magik is definitely a strong hero but I like that it can take a skilled hand and/or someone with good knowledge of the deck and hero to really elevate her to that level. This is not a "just play the top card of the Invocation Deck and win" or "just play cards for free with Toon counters" situation. If you stick with it a lot of the decisions that can be made on Magik's turn will start to come into focus and then you are not only playing faster but doing more as well.

P.S.ideboard

I struggle a little with alternative recommendations for Magik and this deck specifically. Obviously if playing against a stalwart villain I would likely swap Drop Kick and Press the Advantage for something else. Steady I am less concerned about as I find Magik can still status well in those situations.

If you wanted a little easier deck to pilot then you can cut the Digging Deep cards for something that will remove some decision points for you while providing something that can perhaps thin your deck further, like:

-3 Digging Deep

+1 Superpower Training +1 Hand Cannon +1 Lock and Load

That will add some consistency on getting your upgrades and Soulsword into play and help remove cards from your deck. Things like Cosmo and Rictor just lose some value but that will still run great.