Baral's Response [Ver.2.4.]

Commander / EDH Combo Competitive Cruel Control Mono-Blue

EternalSoldier

Instant (32)

• 1x Brainstorm
• 1x Capsize
• 1x Cryptic Command
• 1x Cyclonic Rift
• 1x Desertion
• 1x Dig Through Time
• 1x Disallow
• 1x Disappearing Act
• 1x Dismiss
• 1x Dramatic Reversal
• 1x Fact or Fiction
• 1x Familiar's Ruse
• 1x Force of Will
• 1x Frantic Search
• 1x High Tide
• 1x Mana Drain
• 1x Mission Briefing
• 1x Mystic Confluence
• 1x Mystical Tutor
• 1x Negate
• 1x Nexus of Fate
• 1x Pact of Negation
• 1x Pull from Tomorrow
• 1x Remand
• 1x Rewind
• 1x Spell Swindle
• 1x Summary Dismissal *f-pre*
• 1x Supreme Will
• 1x Thirst for Knowledge
• 1x Time Stop
• 1x Whir of Invention
• 1x Whispers of the Muse

Artifact (15)

• 1x Aetherflux Reservoir
• 1x Chromatic Lantern
• 1x Chrome Mox
• 1x Darksteel Ingot
• 1x Gilded Lotus
• 1x Helm of Awakening
• 1x Isochron Scepter
• 1x Mana Crypt
• 1x Mana Vault
• 1x Mox Opal
• 1x Paradox Engine
• 1x Primal Amulet  ^Flip
• 1x Scroll Rack
• 1x Sensei's Divining Top
• 1x Sol Ring

Sorcery (8)

• 1x Bribery
• 1x Merchant Scroll
• 1x Mystic Speculation
• 1x Ponder
• 1x Preordain
• 1x Time Spiral
• 1x Treasure Cruise
• 1x Windfall

Enchantment (4)

• 1x As Foretold *f-pre*
• 1x Precognition Field
• 1x Rhystic Study
• 1x Search for Azcanta  ^Flip

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Jace, the Mind Sculptor

Commander (1)

Land (33)

• 1x Academy Ruins
• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
• 1x Geier Reach Sanitarium
• 24x Island
• 1x Maze of Ith
• 1x Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Soldevi Excavations
• 1x Tolaria West

Creature (6)

• 1x Consecrated Sphinx
• 1x Curious Homunculus  ^Flip
• 1x Emrakul, the Promised End
• 1x Snapcaster Mage
• 1x Torrential Gearhulk
• 1x Walking Ballista

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Maybeboard

Creature (2)

• 1x Archaeomancer
• 1x Jace, Vryn's Prodigy  ^Flip

Enchantment (2)

• 1x Mystic Remora
• 1x Telepathy

Instant (2)

• 1x Mnemonic Nexus
• 1x Stroke of Genius

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About The Commander

Baral, one with many counterspells. This deck has been upgraded many times throughout the years, and it is my very first deck uploading to Tapped Out. Baral is rather unfun to play against and it is not suggested to play if your friends are casual. In terms of counterspells, we tend to run an average of 15 in the deck. The rest will be a bunch of draws, combos, and mana rocks. Baral lets you reduce instant and sorcery spells that you cast cost 1 less! This will also affect your buyback effects as we'll playing some of them to make the deck having more synergies. If you successfully counter a spell, you may also loot by drawing a card, and then discard a card.

Card Choices

Of Land

• Academy Ruins - Always nice to have for returning artifact combos from graveyard like Paradox Engine.

• Boseiju, Who Shelters All - This card is just here for saving up an extra counterspell.

• Geier Reach Sanitarium - Either this and/or Mikokoro, Center of the Sea. Giving everyone a card draw, but if you have Consecrated Sphinx, you draw a handful of cards!

• Maze of Ith - Prevents from giant creatures attacking us when we are defenseless.

• Soldevi Excavations - A strange card that lets you scry 1, and taps for .

• Tolaria West - To transmute at sorcery speed only for any land or cost like Mana Crypt.

Of Planeswalker

• Jace, the Mind Sculptor - I used to run Jace, Vryn's Prodigy  , but in my Ver.2.3. I'd like to test out Jace, the Mind Sculptor instead.

Of Creature

• Consecrated Sphinx - A new card to Ver.2.3. Card draws for every of your opponent's draw phase! Why don't you want to play this?

• Curious Homunculus   - A good card that works like Baral when it flips.

• Emrakul, the Promised End - She's there to end the game faster. She controls target opponent that let us ruin their day!

• Walking Ballista - To kill your opponents with infinite mana? To kill their creatures? It can do whenever you want is the best part of this card. We don't usually play it and is much of a backup plan.

Of Enchantment

• As Foretold - You might ask why I don't run Omniscience. The problem is I find Omniscience is too costly. We also do need to have enough mana for countering cards to protect Omniscience.

• Precognition Field - Future Sight? Quite different actually. I would rather not run Future Sight because it let us reveal the top card for our opponent, whereas Precognition Field let us peek the top card any time and cast if it is instant or sorcery spell. It also let us exile the top card if it does not help our next draw.

Of Artifact

• Aetherflux Reservoir - A second backup win condition like Walking Ballista. Make sure your ability don't get countered or it's a huge pain.

• Chromatic Lantern - Our mana rocks like Chrome Mox, Darksteel Ingot, Gilded Lotus... Chromatic Lantern is what I would prefer to talk about because people kept asking me why I choose to play this. This let us our lands play any color of our choice, and also cards in our deck like Maze of Ith, Ancient Tomb, Boseiju, Who Shelters All either hurt ourselves when we them, or like Maze of Ith that does not produce mana. With Chromatic Lantern, we use it not only because of this, but also if we control opponent's creatures with other mana color symbol for activating an ability, we can use them freely!

• Helm of Awakening - Newly added for Ver.2.3. Gives all player's spells cost less. Yet, it will be a lot more useful I assume. Currently testing this out. I do not own Sapphire Medallion, but I would also run it if I own one, which will be in the deck tech in a future release. Cloud Key? Probably not, we have enough to produce and reduce mana.

• Isochron Scepter - A combo piece with any converted mana cost 2 or less. This works with Dramatic Reversal particularly for infinite mana when we have enough mana rocks to produce two or more. It also let us imprint Mana Drain to counterspell!

• Paradox Engine - Works similar to Seedborn Muse, Unwinding Clock. Cards like these breaks the game. This card is a major piece for our deck to win the game. You are ought to have that on the battlefield at all times to untap all of our mana rocks. Go wild!

• Scroll Rack - Been testing out this card. It helps a lot, but barely shows up in my deck. This is not a draw effect but does a lot when you need something important. Works like Sensei's Divining Top.

Of Instant

• Capsize - A major win condition for our deck with Paradox Engine. Let us buy back the card and recast it and bounce all permanents, including lands! Might as well bounce your opponent out of the game.

• Dramatic Reversal - Just to untap all non-land permanents, particularly mana rocks. Works with Isochron Scepter.

• Familiar's Ruse - Counterspells like Disappearing Act. We want to use their boucne effect on Snapcaster Mage and Torrential Gearhulk just to let us recast the two creatures over and over and over. This spellslinging effect does have a limit, so it does not go infinite times, but it increases the number of our counterspells.

• Nexus of Fate - When you run this, do not run Laboratory Maniac, plus this deck does not work well by milling our deck.

• Summary Dismissal - A recently added card to the deck. It a very underrated considering it removes the burger stack. This card is does not counterspells, therefore, you may remove uncounterable cards as well.

• Time Stop - Alright, my turn, untap...In response, I cast Time Stop!! End your turn. This card also exiles all cards on the stack like Summary Dismissal, but also skip their turn essentially.

• Whir of Invention - I usually grab Paradox Engine, but do grab whatever artifact you want that you need.

• Whispers of the Muse - I draw my entire deck with the buyback cost. Works with mana rocks + Paradox Engine.

Of Sorcery

• Mystic Speculation - Scry my entire deck with the buyback cost. Reorganize everything, and whatever you want that's from top to bottom. Works with mana rocks + Paradox Engine.

• Time Spiral - To me, I find Time Spiral is better than Timetwister for what it's worth at. Although more expensive to cast, but you also get to untap up to 6 lands!

Maybeboard

• Jace, Vryn's Prodigy   - If you do not own Jace, the Mind Sculptor, this will work just as fine, and a lot cheaper. Or don't run it at all.

• Telepathy - I sided out for Ver.2.3. because it was such an unfair card. Being played in Turn 1 is absolutely ruthless! Play it if you want to make your opponent's cry.

• Archaeomancer - Probably a bit too slow for the deck, still is really good card to play.

• Mystic Remora - Haven't found what to side out, perhaps Rhystic Study?

• Stroke of Genius - Not sure if I want to play this card.

• Windfall - Already have Time Spiral. Do I want more wheel effects?

• Mnemonic Nexus - Sided out for Ver.2.3. The card has been fairly useful at times. It is also one of the very few, if not, the only card that has instant speed to shuffle your graveyard back to the library.

Conclusion

Let me know what other cards you would suggest! The world of Magic is too large for me to cover every card in existence. I might run fetchlands.

Date added	6 years
Last updated	5 years
Legality	This deck is not Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	18 - 0 Mythic Rares 37 - 0 Rares 11 - 0 Uncommons 8 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.12
Tokens	Treasure