Hey there.  I've been playing MTG for about 4 years now and so far I have done very well with my g/w spiritual beatdown deck ( I like to call it "A Legendary Spiritual Smackdown").  I mostly only play casually with my friends so im not looking to go to tournaments or anything.  Anyway, heres the list:

Total:  60 cards

Lands: 20

11x  Forest

  8x  Plains

  1x  Okina, Temple to the Grandfathers

Non-creature spells: 20

  4x  Unchecked Growth

  3x  Spiritual Visit

  3x  Kodama's Might

  2x  Strength of Cedars

  2x  Ethereal Haze

  2x  Kodama's Reach

  2x  Ghostly Prison

  1x  Wear Away

  1x  Long-Forgotten Gohei

Creatures: 20

  3x  Lifespinner

  3x  Kami of False Hope

  3x  Promised Kannushi

  2x  Shinen of Life's Roar

  1x  Hana Kami

  1x  Sekki, Seasons' Guide

  1x  Myojin of Cleansing Fire

  1x  Kodama of the North Tree

  1x  Kodama of the South Tree

  1x  Oyobi, Who Split the Heavens

  1x  Arashi, the Sky Asunder

  1x  Yomiji, Who Bars the Way

Mostly, my strategy involves stalling for as long as possible with Ghostly Prisons, Kami of False Hope, and Ethereal Hazes or until i can get out enough spirits for my Lifespinners, using spliced Visits and False Hope Kamis as fodder.  I usually try to get out either Oyobi or South Tree asap so I can benefit the most from playing my arcane spells.  Then I try to get out either Sekki, Arashi, or North and then go to town with all the Unchecked Growths and Mights and generally steamroll anything in front of me.  My main problems have been the general mana-intensiveness involved with the Legends.  Kodama's Reach remedies this somewhat but it's still a problem.

Any help you could give would be much appreciated.  I only ask that if you do suggest adding any creatures, that they be spirits.  The only card I refuse to change is Sekki, as he is my favorite card (don't ask why.  not even I know....).  Hope you can help me out here. 

Thanks,

Jim

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Well, Jim, everything looks alright to me, but of course we can always do better, can't we? Sure we can. And we will.

First of all, it looks like you're running an Arcane engine with your non-creature spells. If that's the case, I can tell you that you want to lean towards the cheaper ones. The more expensive ones make it so much harder to afford Splice costs, and since you've already cited mana as your problem area, we're going to need to trim down your mana curve.

Strength of Cedars can come out, in favor of the fourth copies of Kodama's Might and Spiritual Visit-- your most powerful Arcane spells, by merit of their one-mana Splice costs. You generally want to have a copy of at least one of these spells in your hand throughout the game, so that whenever you play a spell, you can get an extra token or pump if you need it. Those Spirit tokens are going to be important to you-- not only do they chump block and buy you time to set up your Legendary Spirits, they also provide Lifespinner fodder.

Second, take out Ghostly Prison for a third Ethereal Haze and a third Kodama's Reach. Ethereal Haze works great in decks that want to Splice, even when said decks aren't trying to stall for anything, simply because it's a very cheap Arcane spell. This is one of the main reasons Lava Spike and Reach Through Mists were popular: one mana, and Arcane. The Kodama's Reach is just plain necessary if you want mana for Oyobi, Sekki, Arashi, Yomiji, and the gang. Unless you're Lifespinning them out, but you'll still need mana for Splice costs.

Next, your creatures. Take out Promised Kannushi. Soulshift is nice, but not being able to sack the Kannushies to Lifespinner isn't. Instead, I recommend Dripping-Tongue Zubera, the Spirit that can chump block twice. Heck, if you can sack even two of them to Lifespinner, you get 4 tokens (because each one's ability sees that two Zuberas hit the graveyard). If Soulshift means that much to you, then what you reall want is Forked-Branch Garami, able to resurrect two Spirits for the price of one. The one, of course, being the Garami. Just having this in play is solid gold Wrath insurance.

Finally, if there's one card I could throw into this deck for the fun of it, it'd be Bounteous Kirin. Not only is it a Legendary Spirit, but it also has evasion and an ability that will let you gain plenty of life-- so you don't have to be too cautious about stopping your opponent's attacking creatures, instead settling for regaining whatever life you've lost.

Take whatever lessons you can learn from me, Jim, and embark on your own spiritual journey, so that one day men will whisper of your Legend.

Good luck!

~BMoor