A Dance of Death

Commander / EDH* EnderA

SCORE: 5 | 10 COMMENTS | 2082 VIEWS | IN 1 FOLDER


Generalsplat says... #1

Then why do you have an infinite noncreature destruction combo in deck?

April 25, 2014 6:36 a.m.

EnderA says... #2

Oops, didn't see that. Thanks for pointing that out! Hmm... what to take out...

I won't cut Mikaeus, the Unhallowed since he just works so well with the rest of the deck. Getting rid of Varolz, the Scar-Striped would remove the infinite sac-engine but removes the ability to Scavenge and a very resilient creature, while tossing Woodfall Primus would remove the key card but also a great card to Birthing Pod into, tutor with Treefolk Harbinger , and some other neat interactions. I think Varolz is the weak one, so I'll cut him. I'll try replacing him with Avatar of Woe . They're quite different, but most importantly the Avatar is a threat that can close out games.

April 25, 2014 7:25 a.m.

Generalsplat says... #3

Avatar of woe is pretty good I wasn't really sure why there was a Varolz in here in the first placeMaybe Grave Pact or the new Dictate of Erebos are good additions?

April 25, 2014 10:03 a.m.

EnderA says... #4

I would much prefer Dictate of Erebos over Grave Pact . Flash and one less colored mana (albeit a higher converted mana cost) is much better. The effect is good, it helps to control the board while making myself a less appealing target.

The main question is what I would cut for it. None of the artifacts are going to be cut, they're all crucial for the deck. Nor am I going to cut a land, a stable mana base is too important. The only enchantment that could theoretically be cut is Unspeakable Symbol , but it combos with several cards and closes out games, both of which are significant benefits.

That leaves the creature pool. The five weakest right now are:

  1. Fierce Empath - I'm not a huge fan of tutors in Commander in general, and that's all this really does. On the upside, it can fetch Krosan Tusker which ensures that it can be relevant at the beginning of the game.
  2. Gyre Sage - It requires a +1/+1 counter in order to do anything, and it's a mana acceleration that's prone to removal. However, it can combo with a few cards, like Unspeakable Symbol .
  3. Ondu Giant - It's mana acceleration that requires 4 mana in the first place, which means it might not get a chance to do what it needs to do when it's most important. It's also pretty boring.
  4. Predator Ooze - It requires triple Green, which is somewhat prohibitive. It's also slow to build up. However, it's indestructible, which works great with the deck.
  5. Thrashing Wumpus - It often kills itself, and is vulnerable to removal in the first place.

April 27, 2014 2:24 a.m.

EnderA says... #5

April 29, 2014 8:12 p.m.

angrychains says... #6

Never seen this commander before, and looks like you're actively avoiding non creatures, but have you considered Worldly Tutor and Noxious Revival ? At the very least they get you a creature you want to the top...

May 13, 2014 1:18 a.m.

EnderA says... #7

Yup, I'm actively avoiding non-creatures. This is for several reasons. Obviously Sapling of Colfenor gets better the higher the creature density in the deck. If I'm going to have a high creature density, then cards like Mikaeus, the Unhallowed , Lotleth Troll , Dictate of Erebos , Cauldron of Souls , Lurking Predators and Whip of Erebos all get stronger, which makes me want an even higher creature density. It ends up being a core feature of the deck, and it makes the deck more interesting.

Worldly Tutor would be amazing in this deck... and in almost every deck. I generally forgo tutors, unless they're more niche and have particularly good synergy with the deck - like Birthing Pod or Treefolk Harbinger . Tutors decrease the variety in games, and variety is precisely the point of limiting a 100 card deck to singletons. The only card you're supposed to be getting reliably is your commander.

Noxious Revival is interesting. I hadn't thought of it. I have no idea if it would be good or bad in this deck. I'll keep it in the Maybeboard and think on it.

Thanks for the suggestions, angrychains!

May 13, 2014 12:36 p.m.

angrychains says... #8

i saw your stance on tutors after i posted, sorry. it seems like you really know what you want out of this deck and i dont know how rigid your tutor policy is exactly, but if you do end up using noxious revival you might consider using Reclaim as well--its a strictly worse version, in my book they aren't true tutors since they only get cards you already drew into, but i'm not sure if you would say the same.

May 13, 2014 2:08 p.m.

EnderA says... #9

Yeah, no problem. Under my policy they aren't tutors. What they can do is limited by what I have at the time (which varies widely), so they don't end up just going after the same things every time. Fierce Empath is borderline, for example. It's only purpose is tutoring, albeit a subsection of my creatures, and I'm seeking to cut it for something when I find something I like. I'll keep Reclaim in my maybe list as well. Again, thanks for the suggestions. :)

May 14, 2014 7:23 p.m.

wyzeman says... #10

February 25, 2020 9:39 a.m.

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