How exactly does Maralen work in a competitive game? My first tutor would be to grab something that kills her, there's like zero reason to let her live long enough to give you or anyone else anything. Everyone at that table will know what's coming and nobody is interested in letting you have those tutors.

@FancyTuesday, Okay. Perhaps she will not work in a competitive game. My bad.

I like the deck but FancyTuesday does make a point. But in my play group there are alot of people that would let her live for a few turns but getting the combo would be almost impossible. The tutors are great idea to hurt your opponents but it would maybe last 1-2 turns and if they really dont like you they will grab there stuff then kill it before your turn.

Now on the positive side of things... Deck looks promising but due to you losing life i would suggest Platinum Emperion for late game that way if for some reason you cant do combo early at least you can protect your self from killing your self and others.

Don't get me wrong, it's a cute idea and all and if you're playing with someone who's casual or cocky enough to let you have her then you basically win.

The problem is that at a table with 4 people gunning to kick ass and take names leaving Maralen on the board is allowing 3 opponents to Tutor. You can't think in terms of it being 1 tutor per player, it's 1 tutor for you and 3 for your opponents. In terms of card advantage it is not in any one player's interest to let her stay alive but the guy playing the fastest combo, and even without any metagame knowledge whatsoever I'd guess it's probably the guy playing Maralen.

If you're looking to build a deck with some teeth to break out when you wanna win I wouldn't go with one that will only work once against any given group (if that) and whose very nature allows them to interrupt it.

Sorry, I know I'm being a downer here. I'll shut up unless you want advice on where to go with another deck, I just can't think of much to say that's constructive based on Maralen Combo.

I have no issue with advise or constructive criticism. Knowing the decks I typically play against in my group of friends, pulling this off turn 3 wouldn't be an issue. I don't expect this deck to clean house every game or even 50% of the games I play, but I do expect it to be a fun combo to pull off as well as something new that my friends have not seen.

I have no issue building decks, I like to think I'm fairly decent at it so I don't necessarily need help building a new competitive deck. But thank you. (:

I shouldn't have listed the deck as competitive, which I corrected and removed.

And as far as Platinum Emperion goes, if this deck doesn't pop turn 3 or 4, I already lost so having him can only screw me more. But thanks for the suggestion.

Platinum Angel is better than emperion IMO

Shadow of Doubt

Can't play Shadow of Doubt , I do not have blue in the Commander's colors.

+1 love it, gotta build a Malaren deck now :)

Ob Nixilis, Unshackled I realize it costs a lot, but it's fun in combination with your general

@TheHamster, in this scenerio Ob Nixilis would kill me with Ad Nauseam. However I'm building a more practical deck with Maralen and Ob Nix. So stay tuned! (:

Sounds fun :D you should check out my Phage deck Oops, I touched you!

"You're not going to have fun playing against it, but secretly you're going to like it."
Is the most accurate description of Maralen of the Mornsong there is.