Gishath, Primal Death Lizard

Commander / EDH Battlecruiser Competitive Midrange Ramp RGW (Naya) Tribal

Acute19

Land (38)

• 1x Ash Barrens
• 1x Brushland
• 1x Canopy Vista
• 1x Cinder Glade
• 1x Command Beacon
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Dust Bowl
• 1x Exotic Orchard
• 1x Fire-Lit Thicket
• 4x Forest
• 1x Homeward Path
• 1x Jungle Shrine
• 1x Karplusan Forest
• 1x Krosan Verge
• 1x Mossfire Valley
• 1x Mountain
• 1x Path of Ancestry
• 1x Plains
• 1x Reflecting Pool
• 1x Rogue's Passage
• 1x Rootbound Crag
• 1x Sacred Foundry
• 1x Shinka, the Bloodsoaked Keep
• 1x Snow-Covered Forest
• 1x Snow-Covered Mountain
• 1x Snow-Covered Plains
• 1x Stomping Ground
• 1x Strip Mine
• 1x Sunpetal Grove
• 1x Temple Garden
• 1x Thaumatic Compass  ^Flip
• 1x Windswept Heath
• 1x Wooded Bastion
• 1x Wooded Foothills
• 1x Yavimaya Hollow

Beaters (4)

• 1x Genesis
• 1x Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
• 1x Stonehewer Giant
• 1x Xenagos, God of Revels

Dinosaurs (19)

• 1x Carnage Tyrant
• 1x Charging Tuskodon
• 1x Deathgorge Scavenger
• 1x Etali, Primal Storm
• 1x Ghalta, Primal Hunger
• 1x Kinjalli's Sunwing
• 1x Needletooth Raptor
• 1x Polyraptor
• 1x Raging Regisaur
• 1x Raging Swordtooth
• 1x Rampaging Ferocidon
• 1x Regal Behemoth
• 1x Ripjaw Raptor
• 1x Silverclad Ferocidons
• 1x Taurean Mauler
• 1x Thrashing Brontodon
• 1x Wayward Swordtooth
• 1x Zacama, Primal Calamity
• 1x Zetalpa, Primal Dawn

Cards&Tutors (8)

• 1x Congregation at Dawn
• 1x Eladamri's Call
• 1x Forerunner of the Empire
• 1x Harmonize
• 1x Mind's Eye
• 1x Mirri's Guile
• 1x Tooth and Nail
• 1x Worldly Tutor

Disrupt&Remove (7)

• 1x AEther Flash
• 1x Argentum Armor
• 1x Ghostly Prison
• 1x Grappling Hook
• 1x Maze of Ith
• 1x Path to Exile
• 1x Star of Extinction

Commander (1)

Rocks&Ramp (16)

• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Explosive Vegetation
• 1x Farseek
• 1x Into the North
• 1x Khalni Heart Expedition
• 1x Kodama's Reach
• 1x Mana Vault
• 1x Mirari's Wake
• 1x Nature's Lore
• 1x Oracle of Mul Daya
• 1x Rampant Growth
• 1x Sakura-Tribe Elder
• 1x Skyshroud Claim
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Temple of the False God
• 1x Thunderherd Migration

Protect&Recure (7)

• 1x Atzocan Seer
• 1x Boros Charm
• 1x Champion's Helm
• 1x Conqueror's Flail
• 1x Darksteel Plate
• 1x Reinforcements
• 1x Whispersilk Cloak

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Sideboard

Other (3)

• 1x Staff of Nin
• 1x Sungrass Prairie
• 1x Trapjaw Tyrant

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"Sun Empire commanders are well versed in advanced martial strategy. Still, the correct maneuver is usually to deploy the giant, implacable death lizard."

There's more than one way to skin a cat, or in this case, flood the board with big scary dinosaurs. Most Gishath decks try to maximize the dinosaur output of his ability by cramming in as many as can fit. I instead cultivate a damage amp sub-theme to increase the digging input of Gishath's ability, while also threatening commander damage. Digging a bit deeper goes a long way toward finding those high-impact dinosaurs.

Gishath embodies the fickle nature of a high risk, high reward commander. At his best, he can make other decks' machinations seem quaint. At his worst, Gishath's ability represents an 8 CMC bottleneck with no guarantees on the other end. His high CMC and dependence on combat allows ample opportunity for opponents to shut him down. The challenge for dinosaur decks is to maximize Gishath's ability, while still finding victory conditions when he's caged up. Most dinosaur decks favor the former at the notable expense of the latter.

The damage amp sub-theme can fuel lesser dinosaurs to great effect, with or without Gishath. When Gishath is free, it helps dig deeper. When Gishath is caged, damage amps can still stack for a terrifying board presence. Many of the lesser dinosaurs have Trample, which makes them ideal targets for damage amp. Risk/reward is pretty unavoidable with Gishath, but prioritizing damage amp at least makes the deck a little less fickle.

Abundant ramp and sufficient land also help with consistency... I see some dinosaur decks with 35 lands and 4-6 ramp spells and I just scratch my head.

Enrage adds a little resilience and versatility to the early game.

Removal is pretty light for both board-wipes and individuals. Card draw is limited as well. These dinos gotta focus on what they do best: running people down.

Specifics

• Forerunner of the Empire + Polyraptor is best when Gishath can deal damage (8 Raptors), and Boros Charm sends it infinite.
• AEther Flash + Polyraptor breaks the game, but Greater Gargadon or Thrashing Brontodon can halt the Raptor spigot.
• Gisela, Blade of Goldnight + Tooth and Nail + Xenagos, God of Revels
• Genesis is a surprisingly good target for Eladamri's Call
• Carnage Tyrant has the best flavor text. Awesome card
• Charging Tuskodon is underrated. It brings Trample and built-in damage amp!
• Etali, Primal Storm is a perfect target for Whispersilk Cloak and combos off Worldly Tutor
• Ghalta, Primal Hunger want a Grappling Hook. Easier chomping
• Kinjalli's Sunwing flies over to pester those Hasty creatures. So Hasty. Take a seat
• Needletooth Raptor? More like Needletooth Rattlesnake
• Raging Regisaur? More like Raging Pingisaur
• Raging Swordtooth I get it now. There's the Raging and there's the Enraged...
• Ripjaw Raptor and Silverclad Ferocidons
• Taurean Mauler is just a good card
• Rampaging Ferocidon can occasionally be a game-changer
• Zacama, Primal Calamity appreciates all the 2 mana land-ramp (no Signets)
• Regal Behemoth and Mirari's Wake feel the same
• Wayward Swordtooth roams far and wide
• Zetalpa, Primal Dawn wants to be tutored to the top for Gishath's calling
• Stonehewer Giant should probably grab Darksteel Plate first (self-equip)
• Ghostly Prison, Bane of Tokens
• Maze of Ith, Bane of Voltron
• Mind's Eye is the sustained card draw that this deck hungers for
• Mirri's Guile queues dinosaurs on the top for Gishath to call
• Thaumatic Compass   occupies the utility spot for otherwise wasted turns and eventual defense
• Khalni Heart Expedition is my favorite ramp spell
• Dust Bowl should have plenty of ammo in the late-game
• Homeward Path is a must for this deck

The sideboard subs in for 1v1 matches with a Sungrass Prairie, Staff of Nin, and Trapjaw Tyrant replacing Exotic Orchard, Mind's Eye, and Taurean Mauler.

A lot of the cost is tied up in the mana base, so slow lands can easily make it more affordable. I stayed away from the really big ticket items though.

Let me know what you think and thank you in advanced for any up-votes. Cheers.

Date added	6 years
Last updated	6 years
Exclude colors	UB
Key combos	Forerunner of the Empire + Polyraptor AEther Flash + Polyraptor Gisela, Blade of Goldnight + Tooth and Nail + Xenagos, God of Revels
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	8 - 1 Mythic Rares 47 - 2 Rares 24 - 0 Uncommons 12 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.97
Tokens	City's Blessing, Copy Clone, The Monarch
Folders	commander, Commander, Exemplos de decks