My Meren deck started the same way that most other Meren decks do, with the 2015 Plunder the Graves precon. After buying the precon, I quickly fell in love with the commander and her attrition-style gameplay. So I upgraded the deck based on that style of gameplay, and you can get very far with that, especially on a budget. But unfortunately, I decided that I had hit a wall.

So I completely redesigned the deck. This went from a pseudo-stax build usually winning through Avenger of Zendikar and Pathbreaker Ibex to a highly effective combo build.

There are two primary combos in this deck: the Necrotic Ooze combo and the Mike & Trike combo. The Necrotic Ooze combo consists of Triskelion and Phyrexian Devourer both being in the graveyard. With both activated abilities, Necrotic Ooze turns your library into +1/+1 counters and then shoots the table for somewhere around 150 damage. What's great about this combo is that it's tutorable with a single card: Buried Alive. The Mike & Trike combo consists of Mikaeus, the Unhallowed and Triskelion. Triskelion deals two damage to itself and 1 damage to something else, dies, and comes back with an extra counter. Repeat for infinite damage. This is also tutorable with a single card, Tooth & Nail.

One of the great things about this deck is that as far as combo decks go, it's pretty budget. This is great because it still makes it play like a Meren deck. You still recur creatures for value while placing a soft-lock on the board, the only difference is that it can win a lot faster. So if you're looking to play a pretty solid Meren combo deck that still uses its commander, this is what I built the deck for, and I hope it inspires you.

What really gives this deck its consistency is its tutors. Tutors are great, but recurrable tutors are even better. If you basically always grab Eternal Witness with a tutor, the tutor resolves before Eternal Witness enters the battlefield and you can recur the tutor. That's what makes Eternal Witness probably the single best card in the deck. It's not dirt cheap, but seriously, shell out the extra couple of bucks if you're on the fence, because the difference is astronomical.

There are a couple of cards in here that are not exactly budget, and if your wallet is empty, you can take them both out. Those cards are Tooth & Nail and Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. Take these out and you do lose the Mike & Trike combo, but the deck can still pull out a win easily with Necrotic Ooze.

There's so much more I'd like to say about specific cards because everything is in here for a reason, but this is going a little long. The list is far from completed, and I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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Date added 8 years
Last updated 7 years
Legality

This deck is Commander / EDH legal.

Rarity (main - side)

6 - 0 Mythic Rares

27 - 0 Rares

18 - 0 Uncommons

19 - 0 Commons

Cards 100
Avg. CMC 3.30
Tokens Eldrazi Scion 1/1 C, Elephant 3/3 G, Experience Token, Morph 2/2 C
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