Kess, Archmage of Grixis

Commander / EDH Spellslinger UBR (Grixis)

Verstaka

Land (35)

• 1x Terramorphic Expanse
• 1x Ash Barrens
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Dimir Aqueduct
• 1x Smoldering Marsh
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Izzet Boilerworks
• 1x Grixis Panorama
• 1x Sunken Hollow
• 1x Crumbling Necropolis
• 1x Rakdos Carnarium
• 7x Island
• 4x Mountain
• 3x Swamp
• 1x Sulfur Falls
• 1x Bojuka Bog
• 1x Dragonskull Summit
• 1x Drowned Catacomb
• 1x Arcane Lighthouse
• 1x Watery Grave
• 1x City of Brass
• 1x Steam Vents
• 1x Blood Crypt
• 1x Mana Confluence

Creature (7)

• 1x Nightscape Familiar
• 1x Nekusar, the Mindrazer
• 1x Niv-Mizzet, Parun
• 1x Baral, Chief of Compliance
• 1x God-Eternal Kefnet
• 1x The Locust God
• 1x Archfiend of Depravity

Enchantment (5)

• 1x Waste Not
• 1x Mystic Remora
• 1x Liliana's Caress
• 1x Thousand-Year Storm
• 1x Rhystic Study

Sorcery (24)

• 1x Cathartic Reunion
• 1x Read the Bones
• 1x Fiery Confluence
• 1x Breaking / Entering
• 1x Beacon of Unrest
• 1x Grave Upheaval
• 1x Notion Rain
• 1x Buried Alive
• 1x Dreadbore
• 1x Increasing Ambition
• 1x Devastation Tide
• 1x Crush of Tentacles
• 1x Mizzix's Mastery
• 1x Whispering Madness
• 1x Windfall
• 1x Wheel of Fate
• 1x Vandalblast
• 1x Mana Geyser
• 1x Past in Flames
• 1x Dark Deal
• 1x Reforge the Soul
• 1x Rise of the Dark Realms
• 1x Dark Petition
• 1x Torment of Hailfire

Artifact (6)

• 1x Wayfarer's Bauble
• 1x Izzet Signet
• 1x Dimir Signet
• 1x Rakdos Signet
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Primal Amulet  ^Flip

Commander (1)

Instant (22)

• 1x Fact or Fiction
• 1x Evacuation
• 1x Steam Augury
• 1x Reality Shift
• 1x Psychic Spiral
• 1x Rakdos Charm
• 1x Counterflux
• 1x Frantic Search
• 1x Increasing Vengeance
• 1x Chaos Warp
• 1x Spell Swindle
• 1x Reverberate
• 1x Dark Ritual
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Reiterate
• 1x Seething Song
• 1x Disallow
• 1x Mystical Tutor
• 1x Cabal Ritual
• 1x Swan Song
• 1x Fork
• 1x Cyclonic Rift

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Maybeboard

Sorcery (14)

• 1x Cruel Ultimatum
• 1x Finale of Revelation
• 1x Finale of Promise
• 1x Ignite Memories
• 1x Command the Dreadhorde
• 1x Finale of Eternity
• 1x Exsanguinate
• 1x Molten Psyche
• 1x Wheel of Misfortune
• 1x Toxic Deluge
• 1x Blatant Thievery
• 1x Gamble
• 1x Damnation
• 1x Wheel of Fortune

Instant (7)

• 1x Bedevil
• 1x Electrodominance
• 1x Expansion / Explosion
• 1x Volcanic Offering
• 1x Capsize
• 1x Twincast
• 1x Fury Storm

Creature (1)

• 1x Laboratory Maniac

Land (4)

• 1x Reflecting Pool
• 1x Maze of Ith
• 1x Boseiju, Who Shelters All
• 1x Glacial Chasm

Artifact (2)

• 1x Runechanter's Pike
• 1x Pyromancer's Goggles

Enchantment (1)

• 1x Telepathy

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Spell slinging is a deck archetype that has always appealed to me but was tricky for me to implement into EDH for some time. I initially made a Melek, Izzet Paragon deck but the CMC for him was far too prohibitive in colors that wouldn't ramp. In 2015 we got Mizzix of the Izmagnus who was fun enough to play, especially since her CMC was low enough that I could feasibly play her, but after a few months I found the deck became boring. After several game nights I finally realized the problem I was having with it. With only Red and Blue my options were limited to digging through my deck, keeping counters up, and assembling the combo to storm out or win with a ludicrously large Fireball effect. Running through deck ideas I found that I have a lot more fun by splashing a third color. I tried Riku of Two Reflections for some time but the deck that took shape was less spellslinger and more rampy tempo. I would have loved to try Jeskai but when the 2017 EDH decks were released there wasn't a commander in those colors suited to the archetype and that years precons brought us Kess, Dissident Mage, a Legendary that felt tailor made for me.

WIN CONS

Incremental value from locust god, Niv-Mizzet, Parun, Guttersnipe, or Thousand-Year Storm if they survive one or more table rotations.

Torment of Hailfire

Rise of the Dark Realms

Outlasting my opponents by wheeling and refilling my library with cards like Psychic Spiral and Elixir of Immortality

Date added	7 years
Last updated	3 years
Splash colors	B
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	9 - 0 Mythic Rares 40 - 0 Rares 20 - 0 Uncommons 17 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.39
Tokens	Bird 2/2 U, Insect 1/1 UR, Manifest 2/2 C, Octopus 8/8 U, Treasure, Zombie 2/2 B
Folders	Decks Owned