Ephara, Cradle of Civilization

Commander / EDH Blink Protection Tokens WU (Azorius)

soratoXIII

Land (35)

• 1x Adarkar Wastes
• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Arch of Orazca
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Fabled Passage
• 1x Flooded Strand
• 1x Glacial Fortress
• 1x Hall of Heliod's Generosity
• 1x Hallowed Fountain
• 1x Hengegate Pathway  ^Flip
• 1x Irrigated Farmland
• 6x Island
• 1x Kjeldoran Outpost
• 1x Kor Haven
• 1x Mistveil Plains
• 1x Mystic Gate
• 1x Nimbus Maze
• 1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 5x Plains
• 1x Port Town
• 1x Prairie Stream
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Sea of Clouds
• 1x Seachrome Coast
• 1x Strip Mine
• 1x Temple of Enlightenment

Ramp (9)

• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Arcane Signet
• 1x Azorius Signet
• 1x Fellwar Stone
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Prismatic Lens
• 1x Talisman of Progress
• 1x Thought Vessel
• 1x Smothering Tithe

Flickeree (20)

• 1x Charming Prince
• 1x Gilded Drake
• 1x Meddling Mage
• 1x Wall of Omens
• 1x Watcher for Tomorrow
• 1x Glasspool Mimic  ^Flip
• 1x Spell Queller
• 1x Archaeomancer
• 1x Clever Impersonator
• 1x Glen Elendra Archmage
• 1x Phyrexian Metamorph
• 1x Selfless Squire
• 1x Stunt Double
• 1x Venser, Shaper Savant
• 1x Cavalier of Dawn
• 1x Karmic Guide
• 1x Peregrine Drake
• 1x Reveillark
• 1x Sun Titan
• 1x Agent of Treachery

Interaction (9)

• 1x Swords to Plowshares
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Cyclonic Rift
• 1x Fierce Guardianship
• 1x Forbid
• 1x Supreme Verdict
• 1x Austere Command
• 1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
• 1x Sublime Epiphany

EpharaEngine (4)

• 1x Luminarch Ascension
• 1x Nadir Kraken
• 1x Sacred Mesa
• 1x Faerie Artisans

Commander (1)

Flickerer (15)

• 1x Ephemerate
• 1x Whitemane Lion
• 1x Crystal Shard
• 1x Eerie Interlude
• 1x Eldrazi Displacer
• 1x Ghostly Flicker
• 1x Soulherder
• 1x Stonecloaker
• 1x Brago, King Eternal
• 1x Felidar Guardian
• 1x Restoration Angel
• 1x Lumbering Battlement
• 1x Venser, the Sojourner
• 1x Yorion, Sky Nomad
• 1x Deadeye Navigator

Utility (5)

• 1x Mystical Tutor
• 1x Rhystic Study
• 1x Cathars' Crusade
• 1x Time Warp
• 1x Approach of the Second Sun

Defense (2)

• 1x Solitary Confinement
• 1x Lavinia of the Tenth

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Maybeboard

Interaction (6)

• 1x Dovin's Veto
• 1x Narset's Reversal
• 1x Disallow
• 1x Generous Gift
• 1x Ondu Inversion  ^Flip
• 1x Dusk / Dawn

Flickerer (2)

• 1x Mistmeadow Witch
• 1x Niambi, Esteemed Speaker

Flickeree (1)

• 1x Cloudblazer

EpharaEngine (1)

• 1x Saltskitter

Utility (1)

• 1x Sea Gate Restoration  ^Flip

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Thoughts Moving Forward

Mainly analyzing Maybeboard cards. Not sure how many Counterspell or other interaction effects I want to push to until it gets more heavy playtesting. I might have enough, I might not at this point.

Possible Additions/Thoughts

Cloudblazer - Draw engine.

Mistmeadow Witch - Blink engine.

Disallow - Strong interaction.

Dovin's Veto - Strong interaction.

Dusk / Dawn - Board wipe and recursion.

Generous Gift - Utility removal (or hit Ephara for a free 3/3 in a pinch).

Narset's Reversal - Potentially crazy interaction.

Sea Gate Restoration   - A land or sometimes a permanent Reliquary Tower for all that card draw.

Ondu Inversion   - A land or sometimes a board wipe.

Niambi, Esteemed Speaker - Slightly better, slightly worse Whitemane Lion.

Saltskitter - Ephara Engine enabler.

Expensive "One Day" Inclusions:

Tundra - Best dual land.

Mana Vault - Ramp is ramp.

Mana Drain - Counterspell, with rebates.

Force of Will - Counterspell, but "free".

Force of Negation - Negate, but "free".

Palinchron - Peregrine Drake, but self returning.

Possible Drops/Thoughts

Elspeth, Sun's Champion - Pricey at 6 CMC but can wrath and make tokens to block or get big.

Crystal Shard - Might be too slow as an engine?

Version 5 Adjustments: IN PROGRESS

After getting sick of looking at the deck, I'm coming back to it with fresh eyes. Choosing not to lean too hard into infinite combos to dilute the main strategy of the deck.

V5 Edits

+Cathars' Crusade - With the token production and blinkers, can be a resilient wincon if the board gets swarmed with my creatures.
+Approach of the Second Sun - Alternative wincon as Ephara can cycle through cards very quickly.
+Ancient Tomb - Can make for a Turn 3 Ephara.
+Fellwar Stone - Can make for a Turn 3 Ephara.
+Kjeldoran Outpost - Keep going back and forth on this and Castle Ardenvale. Sac a Plains vs. 2 more activation cost is rough.
+Felidar Guardian - Blink piece and can help go infinite on Cathars' Crusade.
+Glasspool Mimic   - Seems strong to play as a land and then maybe Ghostly Flicker into the Mimic later. Can combo out with card:Archeomancer and Time Warp.
+Hengegate Pathway   - Probably better than a basic if my basic count stays high enough.
+Lumbering Battlement - Enables too many infinite blink combos which I can take advantage of.
+Meddling Mage - Want to try out to stop Commanders/Tutors, but also to infinitely name every card in Magic with blink combos.

-Aven Mindcensor - Not sure how often this deck is going to be running into cEDH level decks where tutors win or lose games.
-Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir - While good, limits opponent ability to interact with each other as well. I can't answer everything by myself.
-Elspeth Conquers Death - Not quite good enough as a singleton. Not enough permanent flicker synergy.
-Leyline of Anticipation - Probably not quite worth it. Deck seems like it has plenty of Instant speed things to do.
-Castle Ardenvale - See Kjeldoran Outpost entry.
-Thassa's Oracle - Too slow of a wincon considering I'm not intentionally trying to combo out.
-Island - See Glasspool Mimic  .
-Plains - See Hengegate Pathway  .
-Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite - Hurts to cut, but doesn't quite have enough synergy for the CMC.
-Reflector Mage - See Meddling Mage.

Version 4 Adjustments

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Starting to playtest the deck a bit more heavily and making adjustments from there to make it more effective at closing out games.

V4 Edits

+Time Warp - Wincon.
+Ephemerate - Good, cheap flicker card.

-Linvala, Keeper of Silence - A bit pricey and doesn't quite stop enough.
-AEtherling - Very high CMC, although an efficient blink engine after that.

Version 3 Adjustments

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A bit more fine tuning in terms of land base and strategy after discussion with EDH Discord members and RL friend. Starting to have to make decisions between "cEDH" meta and the less competitive local meta. For example, Mystic Remora is probably a lot stronger in cEDH meta while against local playgroups that tend to be slower and use more creatures, Rhystic Study is stronger.

V3 Edits

+Thassa's Oracle - Wincon.
+Wall of Omens - Good early aggression blocker and incidental card draw.
+Reflector Mage - Lock down certain cards (or Commanders).
+Selfless Squire - Can protect from damage and blinkable.
+Sublime Epiphany - Replacing Cryptic Command.
+Strip Mine - Abusable with Sun Titan.
+Mind Stone - T2 mana rock.
+Prismatic Lens - T2 mana rock.
+Arch of Orazca - Slow, but can form a wincon with Peregrine Drake combos.
+Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx - Can possibly form infinite mana combos with Peregrine Drake.
+Sea of Clouds - Dual land.

-Skycloud Expanse - Meh.
-Gilded Lotus - Too slow.
-Castle Vantress - Slowly got edged out on lands.
-Temple of the False God - Early game it can hurt to miss the land drop.
-Tolaria West - Lands aren't a key part of my strategy worth 3 CMC.
-Ponder - Adds little.
-Ghostly Prison - Might not need, doesn't protect Planeswalkers.
-Propaganda - Might not need, doesn't protect Planeswalkers.
-Cryptic Command - Sublime Epiphany might be better?
-Fact or Fiction - Not good enough, mostly kept for sentimental reasons.
-Duplicant - Too high of CMC for effect.

Version 2 Adjustments

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Ended up dropping a number of "good cards" that are not focused on the gameplan of the deck. Added more highly synergistic cards to make more reliable engines and wincons.

Creature Edits

+Agent of Treachery
+Aven Mindcensor
+Cavalier of Dawn
+Charming Prince
+Faerie Artisans
+Lavinia of the Tenth
+Nadir Kraken
+Peregrine Drake
+Soulherder
+Spell Queller
+Stunt Double
+Watcher for Tomorrow
+Yorion, Sky Nomad

-Angel of Serenity
-Burnished Hart
-Fiend Hunter
-Flickerwisp
-Grand Arbiter Augustin IV
-Hushwing Gryff
-Phantasmal Image
-Snapcaster Mage
-Sower of Temptation
-Weathered Wayfarer

Land Edits

+Castle Ardenvale
+Castle Vantress
+Fabled Passage
+Hall of Heliod's Generosity
+Island
+Port Town

-Azorius Chancery
-Celestial Colonnade
-Kjeldoran Outpost
-Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
-Plains
-Plains
-Strip Mine

Other Card Type Edits

+Arcane Signet
+Crystal Shard
+Eerie Interlude
+Fierce Guardianship
+Ghostly Flicker
+Mystical Tutor
+Elspeth Conquers Death
+Solitary Confinement
+Smothering Tithe

-Arcane Denial
-Brainstorm
-Bribery
-Detention Sphere
-Enlightened Tutor
-Ghostway
-Land Tax
-Lightning Greaves
-Omniscience
-Return to Dust
-Sphinx's Revelation

Version 1 Goal

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A reasonably strong EDH deck that's to be played against opponents of a wide range of skill levels. The Commander should be a central engine in the deck, although not necessarily the win condition. Budgetary restrictions are not non-existent, but fairly loose. It'll probably be a long time before I ever grab a Tundra or Mana Vault for this deck in other words, but $20 cards are no problem.

Special Thanks To

From EDH Discord:
Mogis, The Real Commander Legend
Chromatic / IncendoRuina

RL Friends:
Geo / Calyptic

Date added	5 years
Last updated	3 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 0 Mythic Rares 55 - 0 Rares 20 - 0 Uncommons 7 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.51
Tokens	Angel 4/4 W, City's Blessing, Copy Clone, Emblem Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Emblem Venser, the Sojourner, Golem 3/3 C, Pegasus 1/1 W, Soldier 1/1 W, Tentacle 1/1 U, Treasure