I think the spectacular healing roll really killed the Johktari's momentum.  Coshade didn't seem to focus on the enemy mage after that point.  I think a better backup strategy (take my opinion for whatever it's worth, I've played a total of 7 games so far) rather than trying to summon bigs on the run which got focused down by the Priestess' creature advantage at that point, would be to take advantage of the Johktari's +1 ranged and go for damage spells at that point.  You already had Elusive down and you could pretty much outmaneuver Brogan and the knight of Westlock with Fast.  I put Hawkeye and a lot of attack spells in my Johktari deck for that reason.  It's unfortunate that the Johktari's abilities don't always synergize well, but you used fast and elusive to really good advantage early on and througout the game.

If you can't tell, Johktari is one of my top 3 favortie mages!  I'm not quite sure how to make her work optimally in practice, but I have a lot of theories. 

And congrats to Pilgrim to not panicking when you were down to half your life points.  I like to see mid to late game strategies pay off over early aggression as I like games where both sides summon a lot of creatures and set them loose on each other.  I'm not sure any mage other than the Priestess or Priest could pull this off, because cheap to include heal spell were key in this game.

I read it, liked it, found it useful, as were the replies so far.  I don't comment much because I don't get to play very often and figure it's better to be quiet and be thought a fool than to speak and prove everyone right.

After i read that you have to hit yourself with the sweeping attack im just not going to include War Sledge in any spellbook.

Wait, is that official?  When I read someone reference this rule I thought it was a joke.  You have to hit yourself with a sweeping attack when there's no other viable target?

Okay, so this is my first attempt posting a spell book.  The idea of the book is to stay as far away from the action as possible setting up a kill zone in the center of the board.  The armor is for if she gets cornered or teleported.  I have little experience playing (7 games so far) but I'm hoping to increase that now that I've cleared it with my wife.  I know this game totally favors aggro, and I'm out to change that... somehow.  Open to suggestions.  I know this book is flawed.  I don't know what I'll do the first time I face any kind of Wizard.  I've played a Warlock and that wasn't pretty.  Started off well enough but plants got incinerated left and right.

Anyhoo...

[spellbook]
[spellbookheader]
[spellbookname]The Craven Maven[/spellbookname]
[mage]Druid[/mage]
[/spellbookheader]
[spells]
[spellclass]Attack[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNA01]2 x  Acid Ball[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX2FFA02]2 x  Hurl Rock[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1a09]2 x  Jet Stream[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1a08]2 x  Geyser[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKA01]2 x  Surging Wave[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Conjuration[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNW01]2 x  Bloodspine Wall[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ03]1 x  Etherian Lifetree[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ12]1 x  Vine Tree[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1j22]1 x  Tanglevine[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ10]1 x  Stranglevine[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ08]3 x  Seedling Pod[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ09]1 x  Samara Tree[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNJ02]1 x  Corrosive Orchid[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1w04]2 x  Wall of Thorns[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Creature[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNC21]4 x  Thornlasher[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC20]2 x  Vine Snapper[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC10]2 x  Raptor Vine[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1c36]1 x  Tarok, the Skyhunter[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNC06]1 x  Kralathor, The Devourer[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Enchantment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=DNE01]1 x  Barkskin[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e36]2 x  Rhino Hide[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e29]2 x  Nullify[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e02]2 x  Block[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1e01]2 x  Bear Strength[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Equipment[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1q07]1 x  Elemental Cloak[/mwcard]
[mwcard=MWSTX1CKQ06]1 x  Eagleclaw Boots[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ04]1 x  Druid's Leaf Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q09]1 x  Enchanter's Ring[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ06]1 x  Mohktari's Branch[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1q02]1 x  Bearskin[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ01]1 x  Dancing Scimitar[/mwcard]
[mwcard=FWQ10]1 x  Storm Drake Hide[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNQ08]1 x  Vinewhip Staff[/mwcard]
[spellclass]Incantation[/spellclass]
[mwcard=mw1i28]3 x  Teleport[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i24]1 x  Seeking Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i06]2 x  Dispel[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i07]3 x  Dissolve[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i01]1 x  Banish[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNI02]2 x  Burst of Thorns[/mwcard]
[mwcard=mw1i12]1 x  Force Push[/mwcard]
[mwcard=DNI04]1 x  Renewing Rain[/mwcard]
[/spells]
[cost]Total cost: 120 pts[/cost]
[/spellbook]

Rd 1 Leaf Ring and tree bond a Vinetree in the corner.  Against a likely solo build, I put down as many vines as I can to hinder movement and cast Vinewhip staff for the stuck condition.  Against opponents that summon big expensive creatures, I invariably banish them, particularly if there are any enchantments on them.  Other than that, I haven't needed much more than a Thornlasher/Vinesnapper/Raptorvine combo.  I teleport the mage to the killzone, keep him there with stuck, occasionally pulling him back in with a snatch.  In my limited experience, the Druid can win most damage races because of the high dice to cost ratio of most of her plants.  Again, I've never faced a Wizard and the one time I faced a Forcemaster I got bouldered to death.  Hence the blocks.

Just curious (I'm a beginner, still have only played about 5 games total) - is there an advantage to have Force Hold over a couple more Tanglevines?  Tanglevines are so cheap for a Johktari's spellbook, and they have no upkeep cost. 

Okay... so... the straywood beastmaster won the tournament.  He still looks silly with that beard!

I wish the warlord had fared better at Gencon.  And did I miss it or was the Necromancer completely unrepresented?  I'd like for all the builds to have a shot at winning so that player skill is the deciding factor.  I think the beastmaster aviary is an affirmation for how balanced the mages really are.  A single new card like Etherian lifetree can have a huge impact down the line.  Here's hoping an overlooked card in some future expansion (or already released product) puts the Warlord over the top at the next Gencon.  Goblin Aviary!?

Comic books and graphic novels are cool.  I'll definitely support a prose novel or two.  But I'd really geek out over a Mage Wars video game!!! 

Yeah, I'm shallow that way.

It's good that you're not getting discouraged. The Druid is a very tricky mage to get down and Force Masters take a lot of getting use to in order to defend against. What was your tree that you bonded to? A Vine Tree can put out enough Vine Markers to slow a Force Master down sometimes. Also liberal use of Tangle Vine and Surging Wave can cause them fits.

I did have the Vine Tree (tree bonded) out the first game against the Beast Master.  He flew over the vine markers with Makunda.  The second game he had an elemental wand with hurl boulder, so I didn't have time to set up.  I moved in to dissolve the wand and he double struck me with his weapon, and followed up with another hurl boulder spell.

One of the major things I consistently forget to do is use guards.  I could have saved my mage a lot of grief simply by using guards.