[RETIRED] Kumena, master of merfolk!

Commander / EDH* Casual GU (Simic) Merfolk Multiplayer Tribal

Giro

Creature (27)

• 1x Ambassador Laquatus
• 1x Deeproot Elite
• 1x Empress Galina
• 1x Enclave Cryptologist
• 1x Fallowsage
• 1x Glen Elendra Archmage
• 1x Grimoire Thief
• 1x Kiora's Follower
• 1x Kopala, Warden of Waves
• 1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
• 1x Lord of Atlantis
• 1x Lullmage Mentor
• 1x Master of the Pearl Trident
• 1x Merfolk Looter
• 1x Merfolk Sovereign
• 1x Merrow Harbinger
• 1x Metallic Mimic
• 1x Murkfiend Liege
• 1x Rootwater Diver
• 1x Sage of Fables
• 1x Seafloor Oracle
• 1x Seahunter
• 1x Seedborn Muse
• 1x Surgespanner
• 1x Thada Adel, Acquisitor
• 1x Wake Thrasher
• 1x Wanderwine Prophets

Sorcery (4)

• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Harvest Season
• 1x Nature's Lore
• 1x Sylvan Scrying

Land (34)

• 1x Alchemist's Refuge
• 1x Ancient TombGC
• 1x Breeding Pool
• 1x Cavern of Souls
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Exotic Orchard
• 1x Flooded Grove
• 6x Forest
• 1x Halimar Depths
• 1x Hinterland Harbor
• 1x Homeward Path
• 7x Island
• 1x Minamo, School at Water's Edge
• 1x Novijen, Heart of Progress
• 1x Path of Ancestry
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Strip Mine
• 1x Survivors' Encampment
• 1x Temple of the False God
• 1x Unclaimed Territory
• 1x Winding Canyons
• 1x Yavimaya Coast
• 1x Yavimaya Hollow

Artifact (11)

• 1x Gilded Lotus
• 1x Herald's Horn
• 1x Lifecrafter's Bestiary
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Mana VaultGC
• 1x Paradise Mantle
• 1x Paradox Engine
• 1x Sapphire Medallion
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots
• 1x Vedalken Orrery

Commander (1)

Enchantment (14)

• 1x Burgeoning
• 1x Cryptolith Rite
• 1x Deeproot Waters
• 1x Freed from the Real
• 1x Growing Rites of Itlimoc  ^Flip
• 1x Kindred Discovery
• 1x Leyline of Anticipation
• 1x Merrow Commerce
• 1x Opposition
• 1x Path of Discovery
• 1x Pemmin's Aura
• 1x Quest for Renewal
• 1x Rhystic StudyGC
• 1x Utopia Vow

Instant (9)

• 1x Beast Within
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Crop Rotation
• 1x Cyclonic RiftGC
• 1x Force of WillGC
• 1x Heroic Intervention
• 1x Mana Drain
• 1x Pact of Negation
• 1x Swan Song

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Sideboard

Artifact (4)

• 1x Coat of Arms
• 1x Mana Web
• 1x Sensei's Divining Top
• 1x Vanquisher's Banner

Sorcery (2)

• 1x Gaea's Blessing
• 1x Triumph of the Hordes

Enchantment (1)

• 1x Carpet of Flowers

Creature (1)

• 1x Cryptoplasm

Instant (1)

• 1x Inspiring Call

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Maybeboard

Enchantment (5)

• 1x Coastal Piracy
• 1x Curse of Bounty
• 1x Intruder Alarm
• 1x Shapers' Sanctuary
• 1x Steely Resolve

Creature (3)

• 1x Drowner of Secrets
• 1x Patron Wizard
• 1x Thrasios, Triton Hero

Instant (1)

• 1x Mystical TutorGC

Artifact (2)

• 1x Emerald Medallion
• 1x Throne of the God-Pharaoh

Sorcery (1)

• 1x Fabricate

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Hey guys!
I've never really written anything for any of my decks so I decided to actually write something for once, I've had this deck built on Tappedout for a while now but finally got to build it and play it recently so im gonna share my little guide on it and thoughts on some of the cards.

I would recommend this deck to anyone who likes to generate a lot of value from their cards and who just likes playing tribal/merfolk in general.
So lets start talking about the deck.

Why Kumena?

I had wanted to make sure I could make a merfolk EDH with a merfolk as the commander, when Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca was released I knew right away he would be the one to lead the deck.
His abilities scream merfolk commander.
All of them enable one or multiple merfolk to tap (regardless of summoning sickness) to activate his abilities and sometimes even another merfolks ability, and so he fit perfectly.

*As a side note I also picked him over Thrasios, Triton Hero as I didn't want this deck to be too strong/competitive.
I will however add in how you could change the deck to be stronger and more combo centered for those that prefer that.
If you'd like to know why I didn't pick a certain commander just ask. I didn't want to list them all unless someone asked specifically.

Strategy:

The deck is fairly simple, get merfolk out and swing once we have our merfolk army and lords out such as Lord of Atlantis
Once Kumena is out we can start drawing, all while working towards setting up some of our untappers we can get our tap/untap engine going and start drawing more often / putting 1/1 counters on our merfolk through Kumenas third ability.

That whole get merfolk out and swing is a straightforward strategy so i wont go into too much detail about that, Ill instead talk about how our engine works.

Id rather not swing.. Tap me down!

Swinging may not always be an option, so these cards give us other ways to tap our merfolk.
Most of this is pretty self explanatory. If youre not sure just ask and I can explain. 1. Survivors' Encampment : Nice land that doesn't come in tapped and will let us use a creature like Fallowsage to produce colored mana and gets us a draw.
2. Cryptolith Rite : Insane ramp in the deck.
3. Utopia Vow : A nice tap card and is actually part of a small combo that Ill explain later. Note that you can't attack with whatever creature you have equipped.
4. Freed from the Real : Can be used to tap but is mainly used for its untapping ability. Will talk about in the combo section.
5. Lullmage Mentor : I dont often get to use this ability but it does work sometimes and it works nicely when it does.
6. Paradise Mantle : Another card that allows us to tap and is part of another combo.
7. Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca : Our commander and one of the most important card in the deck. It gives most of our merfolk their tab abilities.

1. Opposition : Looks really good but im still not sure on it. Needs more play test.

   Let me do that again! Untappers to abuse tappers!

   Here we have the cards that will allow us to untap and use our tap abilities again!
2. Paradox Engine : Probably one of the best cards in this deck. I usually get this out once I have a mana rock out such as Mana Vault or Gilded Lotus . If Kumena is out with another 2 merfolk I can usually use them to draw then cast to untap and continue for a bit.
3. Kiora's Follower : Lets me untap cards like Mana Vault or Empress Galina .
4. Minamo, School at Water's Edge : Mainly Empress Galina , its a blue land that doesnt come in tapped so it wouldnt make sense to not have it in the deck.
5. Freed from the Real : Again part of a combo which I will explain later.
6. Merrow Commerce : Cheap enchantment that will untap my merfolk? Sure!
7. Pemmin's Aura : Combo card again.
8. Quest for Renewal : Its like a mini Seedborn Muse that is super easy to activate.
9. Seedborn Muse : She's not a merfolk but is wayyy too good to not have in the deck.
10. Murkfiend Liege : Another non-merfolk in the deck. He works really well here so I didnt have it in me to take him out.

    Cant hit 'em? Try a combo!
    

    Fallowsage : Infinite Draw
    a. Cryptolith Rite + Fallowsage + Freed from the Real
    b. Cryptolith Rite + Fallowsage + Pemmin's Aura
    c. Fallowsage + Freed from the Real + Utopia Vow
    d. Fallowsage + Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow
    e. Fallowsage + Freed from the Real + Paradise Mantle
    f. Fallowsage + Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura
    Grimoire Thief : Infinite Mill
    a. Cryptolith Rite + Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief
    b. Cryptolith Rite + Grimoire Thief + Pemmin's Aura
    c. Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief + Utopia Vow
    d. Grimoire Thief + Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow
    e. Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief + Paradise Mantle
    f. Grimoire Thief + Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura
    Wake Thrasher : Infinite power and toughness. (If you cant swing this guy might be a bit useless, but he's here anyways)
    a. Cryptolith Rite + Freed from the Real + Wake Thrasher
    b. Cryptolith Rite + Pemmin's Aura + Wake Thrasher
    c. Freed from the Real + Utopia Vow + Wake Thrasher
    d. Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow + Wake Thrasher
    e. Freed from the Real + Paradise Mantle + Wake Thrasher
    f. Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura + Wake Thrasher
    

    Synergy cards / More value!

    These are cards I haven't spoken about that I feel make the deck run more smoothly.
11. Deeproot Waters : Getting this card out early is actually super nice. Works nicely with cards like Metallic Mimic and makes it a bit easier to use Lullmage Mentor counter ability.
12. Herald's Horn : Reduces cast cost of our merfolk and potentially draws us a card? Sounds good.
13. Kindred Discovery : Card draw on attacks (can draw per attacker) and when a merfolk his our side of the board? Insane!
14. Lifecrafter's Bestiary : Being able to scry before our draw is really nice, and having the ability to pay one green for a draw if we cast a merfolk is also really nice.
15. Path of Discovery : Can draw us a card if its a land, otherwise can fix the top of our deck and put a +1/+1 counter on our merfolk, also synergies well with Glen Elendra Archmage .

    Sideboard?

    These cards can be changed for whatever you like. Ive picked mine out based on my playgroup and what we are playing. For example one of my friends runs mill so Gaea's Blessing is a really good anti mill card while also being able to get me 3 cards back and drawing me another. Mana Web and Carpet of Flowers are good into blue decks and so on.. Pick what you like.

    Making the deck stronger?

    These are just a few suggestions, im not gonna change the deck completely or anything
    Alright, so you wanna make the deck a bit better or just go crazy with it? Its gonna get a tad bit expensive.
    These are my suggestions.
    First, you can keep Kumena as the commander if you like but I would suggest swapping him for Thrasios, Triton Hero , his scry into draw ability is just insane, 4 colorless mana may seen like a lot, but it can be pretty easy to get to.
    With our new commander in place now we need a way to use his ability to our his full potential. The best way? Infinite mana.
    Most of you already know a lot of the combos so Ill just throw a couple down.
16. Basalt Monolith + Power Artifact ,
17. Grim Monolith + Power Artifact ,
18. Dramatic Reversal + Isochron Scepter used when you have mana rocks on the field,
19. Bloom Tender + Freed from the Real .
    There are many, many more combos you can add or use if you dont like these but these should be able to generate you the mana you need. Using the mana produced you can draw most / all of your deck to get the win cons you need.
    Win cons could be anything like Blue Sun's Zenith to make any player draw their whole deck and lose, or a Capsize to bounce all permanents all of your opponents own.
    You can also add some tutors like Fabricate to help get your combo pieces if you like, its up to you how far you want to take the deck but these the small changes I would make..

    Cards im not sure about:

Triumph of the Hordes : Standard way to win in green decks sometimes, im not sure I like it though.
Vanquisher's Banner : Card draw and pumps up my merfolk but it seems a bit slow to me.
Coat of Arms : Makes our merfolk much much stronger, however im not sure I like it.. Feels better than Vanquisher's Banner even thought we get no card draw.

Thats the deck fellas, feel free to comment what you think I should change or if you notice something doesnt make sense! + 1s are appreciated <3 Thanks! Enjoy!

Date added	7 years
Last updated	5 years
Key combos	Grim Monolith + Power Artifact Dramatic Reversal + Isochron Scepter Bloom Tender + Freed from the Real Basalt Monolith + Power Artifact Fallowsage + Freed from the Real + Paradise Mantle Fallowsage + Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura Fallowsage + Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow Fallowsage + Freed from the Real + Utopia Vow Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief + Paradise Mantle Grimoire Thief + Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief + Utopia Vow Grimoire Thief + Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow Freed from the Real + Paradise Mantle + Wake Thrasher Paradise Mantle + Pemmin's Aura + Wake Thrasher Freed from the Real + Utopia Vow + Wake Thrasher Pemmin's Aura + Utopia Vow + Wake Thrasher Cryptolith Rite + Fallowsage + Freed from the Real Cryptolith Rite + Fallowsage + Pemmin's Aura Cryptolith Rite + Freed from the Real + Grimoire Thief Cryptolith Rite + Grimoire Thief + Pemmin's Aura Cryptolith Rite + Freed from the Real + Wake Thrasher Cryptolith Rite + Pemmin's Aura + Wake Thrasher
Legality	This deck is not Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 0 Mythic Rares 47 - 5 Rares 25 - 4 Uncommons 8 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	2.91
Tokens	Beast 3/3 G, Bird 2/2 U, Merfolk 1/1 U, Merfolk 1/1 U w/ Hexproof
Folders	2 Color