EDH - Powering up the Lich

Commander / EDH

lordgreyii

Land (36)

• 1x Ancient TombGC
• 1x Cabal Coffers
• 1x Caves of Koilos
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Flagstones of Trokair
• 1x Glacial ChasmGC
• 1x Godless Shrine
• 1x Inkmoth Nexus
• 1x Isolated Chapel
• 1x Marsh Flats
• 1x Phyrexian Tower
• 6x Plains
• 4x Plains
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Scrubland
• 5x Swamp
• 7x Swamp
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Artifact (10)

• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Ensnaring Bridge
• 1x Gilded Lotus
• 1x Lotus Petal
• 1x Mana VaultGC
• 1x Phyrexian Altar
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Soul Conduit
• 1x Zuran Orb

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion

Creature (15)

• 1x Academy Rector
• 1x Agent of Erebos
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Crypt Rats
• 1x Darien, King of Kjeldor
• 1x Dark Confidant
• 1x Kothophed, Soul Hoarder
• 1x Mesa Enchantress
• 1x Necrotic Sliver
• 1x Peacekeeper
• 1x Platinum Angel
• 1x Sengir Autocrat
• 1x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
• 1x Teysa, Orzhov Scion
• 1x Wall of Blood

Sorcery (14)

• 1x Beseech the Queen
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Demonic Collusion
• 1x Demonic TutorGC
• 1x Diabolic Intent
• 1x Idyllic Tutor
• 1x Ill-Gotten Gains
• 1x Repay in Kind
• 1x Reprocess
• 1x Reverse the Sands
• 1x Rite of Consumption
• 1x Toxic Deluge
• 1x Wrath of God
• 1x Yawgmoth's Will

Commander (1)

Enchantment (15)

• 1x Contamination
• 1x Darkest Hour
• 1x Grave Pact
• 1x Land Tax
• 1x Lich
• 1x Lich's Mastery *f-pre*
• 1x Mobilization
• 1x Near-Death Experience
• 1x Necropotence
• 1x Phyrexian Arena
• 1x Phyrexian Reclamation
• 1x Phyrexian Unlife
• 1x Sacred Mesa
• 1x Solitary Confinement
• 1x Soul Echo

Instant (8)

• 1x Ad NauseamGC
• 1x Angel's Grace
• 1x Enlightened TutorGC
• 1x Faith's Reward
• 1x Hatred
• 1x Second Sunrise
• 1x Swords to Plowshares
• 1x Vampiric TutorGC

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By popular demand, my Lich deck has resumed its competitive nature. I note that I could streamline it even further: the expensive (CMC) tutors making way for the expensive ($) tutors, Magus of the Mirror swaps for Mirror Universe.

I also note that the deck has evolved a bit from the original, but the token theme works beautifully alongside the actual win conditions.

On to the actual deck!

This is easily the scariest and most frustrating deck I have to play against. It runs nearly every effect in Magic that allows you to live at below 0 life, and by the gods it wants to be below 0 life. The basic concept: I'm gonna be "dead", and then I'm going to swap life totals with you. Now YOU are dead because you're not a lich, while I either have a shiny new life total to spend or huge chunk of cards drawn from 'gaining' life. (Rules note: exchanging and/or redistributing life totals causes you to gain life. Lich and Lich's Mastery replaces gaining life with drawing cards. Delicious.)

The deck is resilient; multiple win conditions, multiple tutors, and multiple ways of bringing things back from the graveyard.

It is perfectly capable of winning out of absolutely nowhere, but note: if you're playing this deck, play conservatively. I once handed this deck off to someone, they played Lich turn 1... and promptly lost to bounce spell.

Main Win Conditions:

How to be at or below zero: Lich; Lich's Mastery; Phyrexian Unlife; Soul Echo; Angel's Grace; Platinum Angel

How to use being at or below zero to win: Repay in Kind; Reverse the Sands; Soul Conduit; Magus of the Mirror

Alternate Win conditions:

Near-Death Experience: You can easily manipulate your life total in this deck. Getting out Near-Death Experience at EOT with Academy Rector and promptly going to 1 life is mean and so so wonderful.

Hatred + Inkmoth Nexus

Hatred + Rite of Consumption

Wall of Blood + Rite of Consumption

Tips and Tricks:

Zuran Orb is a powerhouse. Sac lands before a Second Sunrise for more mana, or draw all the cards with Lich or Lich's Mastery.

Assemble Teysa, Orzhov Scion and Darkest Hour along with a sac outlet to make infinite mana and/or infinite draw.

Loop Necrotic Sliver to make people unhappy.

Date added	10 years
Last updated	6 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	3 - 0 Mythic Rares 55 - 0 Rares 16 - 0 Uncommons 4 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.39
Tokens	Emblem Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Pegasus 1/1 W, Serf 0/1 B, Soldier 1/1 W, Spirit 1/1 W
Folders	Decks, other people's lists, Potential, Orzhov Decks, Lich, Edh decks, like, make it, Non-Budget Ideas, Commander decks