A Tale of Two Decks

A Tale of Two Decks

In this series of articles I discuss two Commander decks I built, and some of the decisions that I made while building them. If you are unfamiliar with commander, I wrote an series of articles introducing the format [here] {http://butlerwpn.blogspot.com/2011/03/commander-introduction.html}. If you are interested in some of my typical deck building process for commander I wrote about that [here] {http://butlerwpn.blogspot.com/2011/03/its-all-in-cards.html}.

Part of what I enjoy about Commander is the amazing possibilities that can brought to bear. In many ways the restrictions on deck-building on the format are not-restrictive enough when building a creative deck. So I obviously create more restrictions for myself.

Niv-Mizzet the Firemind - All commons and Uncommons (the only rare is the commander).
Scion of the Ur Dragon - The entire creature base is multicolored legends.
Zedruu the Greathearted - Group-hug, functions off a lot of every player draw and damage.

But all of my commander decks followed the same self-imposed rule: Don't be a greedy bastard. Now this rule translated into me avoiding various 'infinite' combos in my deck, as well as avoiding mass land destruction, extra-turns, tons of counter-magic, and tucking generals - because let's face it none of these things I find fun when I'm faced with another deck that does them to me.

So I thought to myself, what if I take this rule away. What if, I built a deck where the sole purpose is to be that greedy bastard.

Disclaimer: I do not support or condone this style of deck or deck-building. I firmly believe that commander is first and foremost about fun. By stepping outside of my usual bounds, I have created not one, but two decks that actively take fun away from my opponents. I strongly encourage other players to avoid this whenever possible.

I have several commander decks now, and they slowly rotate into the box that I take with me to Tuesday casual play (when we do commander). As they rotate into and out of that box, I tend to revise the decks. Sometimes it's a simple tweak, sometimes it's something more major. Most of my decks are rather stable and resistant to change because they are designed to do something, attempt to do it well, and only when a card is good (or too good) for that particular strategy can it push out something already on the list.

I've had mixed feelings/results with my Grixis deck, led by Thraximundar, for some time now. Every time I revise that deck I have to cut or put aside a large chunk of cards that are really quite good or fun. So I decided that I would take apart the entire deck, and rebuild from the ground up.

I had to come up with how the new deck would come together though. I thought of a few possibilities, but I eventually settled on a strategy that wins by casting (sometimes repeatedly) very high cost, very broken spells (usually sorceries). But I had a few questions that needed answering

(1) How to make infinite mana.

There are actually so many ways to make an arbitrarily large amount of mana in magic, that the question was not if I was going to do it, but how. I settled to put two different ways into the deck, and got a third as a bonus.

Palinchron + Mana Flare; Generate 14 mana (with 7 lands), play and bounce Palinchron for 11, untap all 7 lands and you net 3 mana with each iteration.

Deadeye Navigator + Zealous Conscripts + Gilded Lotus; Pair the Navigator with the Conscripts, generate 3 mana with the lotus, then use 2 of that mana to blink the conscripts, which untaps the lotus. Generate lots of blue, then do it more to generate whatever other colors you need.

Gravy? Deadeye Navigator can be paired with Palinchron to net 5 mana every time you blink the illusion.

(2) Powerful spells.

I imagined myself winning by repeatedly casting Cruel Ultimatum. Cruel Ultimatum, at 7 mana and a sorcery, would often decide a game if resolved during it's life in standard. However, this being a singleton format, I needed to find other cards on that level (that could turn the game on resolution).

I found quite a few, actually:

Time Warp - Because taking additional turns is the most broken thing you can do in commander.
Bribery - My personal favorite, what is yours becomes mine and all that.
Insurrection - I've seen this card suddenly end games more than any other.
Banefire - Because when you are packing endless mana, endless damage is a good thing to spend it on.
Exsanguinate - Is simply too good in multiplayer to pass up.
Diabolic Revelation - To find goodies, that can end the game.

(3) The Second Tier

At this point I knew I was running a suite (ended up being 12) of suitably broken instants or sorceries. and Infinite mana, and the presence of Deadeye navigator means that I could take advantage of enters-the battlefield abilities.

What I was looking for now was cards that supported that strategy and/or had synergy with the cards I already picked out.

I needed to bring back instants and sorceries, so I could cast them over and over. So I grabbed support cards like Izzet Chronarch and Mnemonic Wall, as well as Charmbreaker Devils (a personal favorite). I wanted to get extra value when I did cast those spells, so I included cards that can copy spells like Echo Mage, Malek, Izzet Paragon, and Nivix Guildmage (who by the way gives me any number of copies of a given spell with unlimited mana).

I also was looking for ways to spend unlimited mana. In addition to potentially blinking EtB creatures like Solemn Simulacrum, Rune-Scared Demon, or Chancellor of the Spires, I also included Azure Mage to help me draw cards, and Havengul Lich to grab creatures out of graveyards.

(4) The Third Tier

With the core functionality of the deck down, I had a limited number of slots remaining to add utility cards. Utility cards are simply cards that don't necessarily fit your strategy or theme, but remain useful.

Propaganda to discourage attacks
No less than 4 'board wipes' (Damnation, Evacuation, etc).
A few cards to destroy troublesome artifacts and/or enchantments (Shattering Pulse, Steel Hellkite).
At least one way to deal with a difficult general (Chaos Warp).
Boseiju, Who Shelters All - to make my broken spells uncounterable.
Tectonic Edge - to deal with any troublesome lands.

(5) The Commander

Sometime around the half-way point of actually building this deck, I realized I did not want Thraximundar to be at the helm anymore. Absolutely none of the new deck asked anyone (myself included) to sacrifice anything. At that point, Thrax would simply sit on the sidelines and provide me access to my selection of colors - only rarely acting as a 7+ mana removal spell.

Unfortunately, there aren't too many choices for Grixis commanders (10 to be exact), and almost none of them line up with my theme. Only Sol'Kanar the Swamp King even remotely cares about the casting of spells (and even then only black). He would have been my first choice, but I didn't have a free copy, so Crosis, the Purger became the Commander.

I see either of these two as an advantage. If I saw an unknown player reveal a Thraximundar commander, I would expect an oppressive sacrifice-based deck, and play accordingly. There's no real stigma or tell about either Crosis or Sol'Kanar. Unless you've seen my deck in action, you don't really know what your in for until I'm resolving Blatant Thievery.

=== The Other deck

After my deck had been sleeved and eliminated it's first table of players (Exsanguinate, never got infinite mana) I returned to all the cards that did not make it into the deck. I was honestly disappointed, there were a lot of awesome cool cards in there that I now would not be playing with. Particularly, Thraximundar looked at me with puppy-dog eyes (Which is something that is quite disturbing coming from a Zombie Assassin).

Of course, I would make another deck, and it would be Blue-Black-Red, and this time Thraximundar would be large and in charge.

(1) The General

At this point I already knew who was going to represent the deck, Thraximundar. So really the only question is what themes or effects do I play with Thrax?

Well, obviously Thrax likes it when creatures are sacrificed, and he doesn't care who does it. So that means I need creatures to sacrifice, ways to sacrifice them, and ways to make my opponents sacrifice creatures.

If creatures are getting sacrificed, Thraximundar can get fairly large. I will probably want ways to protect him. Also I should consider the possibility that at 6/6 minimum, I can probably take out a player with commander damage with some effort.

That sounds like a main focus, and a potential subtheme- so it's time to start picking cards.

(1) Making Creatures

The first thing I needed was creatures to sacrifice. Now, keep in mind that I am attempting to do this is Blue-Black-Red. That is to say, not white or green, which are the principle colors for making tokens. Yet despite this limitation I found many cards that could give me creatures to work with.

These types of Cards came in three flavors. The first flavor were cards that actually just made token creatures; see Rakka Mar, Bloodline Keeper, Grave Titan. The second flavor were cards that grabbed creatures from my opponents such as Roil Elemental and Insurrection. Lastly were creatures that I could get more than one use out of because they rarely stay in the graveyard such as Mortus Strider and Reassembling Skeleton.

(2) Sacrifice Outlets

Once I had a handful of creatures to potentially sacrifice, I went looking for ways to get rid of them.

A constant go-to for this role is Claws of Gix, which has the advantage of being a sac outlet for any kind of permanent. Viscera seer tosses creatures looking for whatever I need. Finally, spawning pit serves double duty. It both functions as a sacrifice-outlet, and a maker of new tokens.

(3) Grave Pact

Once I had some cards that made creatures, and some cards that got rid of them, I went looking for cards that care about creatures dying. Thraximundar himself fits into this niche - except that he specifically cares about when a creature is sacrificed.

Some examples of cards that care about creatures dieing or being sacrificed include: Black Market, Prince of Thralls, and Skirsdag High Priest.

Thus far it seemed like creatures were going to die - a lot. So I also started looking for cards that could somehow take advantage of stocked graveyards. Nezumi Graverobber (flipped), Sheoldred, and Oversold Cemetery all fit this bill.

(4) What about the general?

Earlier, I mentioned that protecting my general and attempting a general-damage win could be in the cards. Well, it kinda is - but not by much. I decided upon a 3-card equipment suite to make this possible, but at only 3 cards it's unlikely to be very consistent.

Darksteel Plate - To make troublesome creatures like Thrax and Sheoldred more troublesome.
Nim Deathmantle - To get reuse out of any of my creatures.
Loxodon Warhammer - Extra life gain and also pushes damage through with trample.


=== Mirror Mirror

So two decks, same colors, but designed in two entirely different ways. One mostly commander centric (what can I do to abuse Thraximundar?) the other designed around individual spells, and how to abuse them. It may come as some surprise that these two decks have a few similarities besides simply the land. That is what I want to go back and look at. What cards did I deem so useful that I put them in both decks?

Land: Aside from the obvious swamp, island, and mountain cards - both decks feature a suite of color-fixing lands in the form of the ravnica bounce-double lands, rupture spire, crumbing Necropolis, Crosis's catacombs. Also both decks contain non-basic utility lands such as tectonic edge and Reliquary tower.

Board wipes: Both decks ended up running 4-5 board wipes. What's interesting is that they both share 3: Disaster Radius, Plague Wind, and Nevinyrral's Disk. The first two, while expensive, provide a wrath-like effect that does not affect one's own board position. The disk is in both decks because although it clearly transmits your intention to wipe the board, and gives your opponents a turn before you can pull it off - it is one of the few ways this color arc can deal with enchantments.

Card advantage/ramp: While both decks have different ways to draw cards and put more lands onto the table. Three cards fill this role that they share: Solemn Simulacrum, Rune-Scarred Demon, and Azure Mage.

Here are some other cards that both decks share, and their intended purpose

Venser's Journal - incremental life gain. It's very quiet also, typically the rest of the table doesn't even notice your at 60+ until someone lands a suitable attacker.
Phyrexian Metamorph - Get their best creature. Or artifact.
Steel Hellkite - It's very conditional, but Steel Hellkite can sweep tokens or get rid of pesky artifacts or enchantments in a pinch.
Exsanguinate - Simply because it can turn a game on it's head, or end it out of nowhere.
Insurrection - See Exsanguinate
Shattering Pulse - Reusable removal (even or especially for artifacts) - their should always be room for that.
Propaganda - I think I've lost count to how many times this card has saved me from a big attack because the opponent played one too many spells in their first main.

WPN Events July, August

Magic: The Gathering
July Events
    Magic: The Gathering: Casual Play: Here, you rule. Come to play, trade, or build decks for Magic: the Gathering. New Players Welcome. Also frequently run odd formats such as planechase, archenemy, commander, emperor, multiplayer, etc.
    Tuesdays:  2,9,16,23,30; 5:30-9:00pm

    Friday Night Magic: Here, you rule. Standard type 2 constructed event. $7.00 entry. DCI sanctioned w/ prize support! Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Fridays: 5,26; 5:30-9:00pm.

    Friday Night Magic - 2HG: We always do something a bit off for our nights before the pre-release. This time around it is Two-headed giant standard constructed. $7.00 per player. DCI sanctioned w/ prize support! Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Friday, 12; 5:30-9:00pm.

    Magic 2014 Core Set Prerelease!: Come experience the newest core set of Magic with this sanctioned sealed deck pre-release. Once again NDC is proud to host an officially sanctioned pre-release event. Please note the times and prices below. Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Saturday, 13, 11:30 registration; 12:30 play begins. $30 sealed deck.
    Saturday, 13, 4:30 registration; 5:15 play begins. $25 2HG sealed deck.
    Sunday, 13, 11:30 registraiton; 12:15 play begins. $30 sealed deck.

    Magic 2014 Launch Draft!: Come celebrate the official release of the Magic 2011 core set with a DCI sanctioned Draft. Swiss rounds. $16.00 entry. Prizes based on attendance. Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Friday, 19: 5:30-9:00.

    Highlander / Commander: Participate in the most awesome format ever. Elder Dragon Highlander AKA Commander. 100card singleton commander format. Multi-player with victory points. $7.00 entry. Prizes to be distributed as store credit.
    Tuesday: 30th 5:00-9:00pm

    Modern Masters (draft): Modern masters is a special reprint set containing a wide variety of cards dating from 8th edition through Lorwyn block. The packs automatically include one foil, and are designed with limited play in mind. Thus, we have set aside the Tuesday after release to be a night to draft with this unique set. 
    Tues, 2nd 5:30-9:00pm

    Kaijudo
    Kaijudo Duel Days: We are proud to offer more fun, and challenging events with Kaijudo, rise of the Duel Masters. Casual League runs concurrently to this slightly more organized tournament event. $5.00 entry w/ prize support. Hosted by Russel Young and Dan Regewitz.
    Tuesdays 2,9,16,23,30; 4-9pm.

August Events
    Magic: The Gathering: Casual Play: Here, you rule. Come to play, trade, or build decks for Magic: the Gathering. New Players Welcome. Also frequently run odd formats such as planechase, archenemy, commander, emperor, multiplayer, etc.
    Tuesdays:  6,13,20,27; 5:00-9:00pm

    Friday Night Magic: Here, you rule. Standard type 2 constructed event. $7.00 entry. DCI sanctioned w/ prize support! Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Fridays: 2,9,23. 5:30-9:00pm

    Friday Night Magic - Draft: Join us for our monthly draft. We expect to draft M13 core set. $16.00 entry. DCI sanctioned. Hosted by Dan Regewitz.
    Friday: 16th 5:30-9:00pm

    Friday Night Magic (modern): With the release of Modern Masters, I expect a number of people may be willing to try their hand at this exciting non-rotating format that allows any card printed after 8th edition or Mirrodin block for use, excluding cards on the Modern banned list. Come enjoy this wonderfully diverse format. $7 entry. Prizes can be distrubuted as store credit.
    Friday: 30th 5:30-9:00pm

    Magic GAME DAY!: Experience the power of play. NDC Butler to host a Magic Game day. This event is open to all players. Entry $10.00. Standard constructed. First place gets a championship mat. Exclusive promos to be handed out to all participants and additional promos to be handed out to the top 8 finishers. Additionall prizes will handed out for this event! Here, you Rule!
    Saturday: 10th 11:30am registration opens. 12:30pm start time.

    Commander Event: Participate in the most awesome format ever. Elder Dragon Highlander AKA Commander. 100card singleton commander format. Multi-player with victory points. $10.00 entry. Prizes to be distributed as store credit.
    Tuesday, 27th: 5:30-9:00pm.

    Kaijudo
    Kaijudo Duel Days: We are proud to offer more fun, and challenging events with Kaijudo, rise of the Duel Masters. Casual League runs concurrently to this slightly more organized tournament event. $5.00 entry w/ prize support. Hosted by Russel Young and Dan Regewitz.
    Tuesdays 6,13,20,27; 5-9pm.