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Introduction

Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain is the new U/R commander from Dominaria, which draws a card whenever a historic (read: artifact or legendary) spell is cast.

This deck is a combination of fast artifact combo, and blue moon-style stax. It seeks to disrupt opponents’ fast combos before storming off itself. It runs many cheap, asymmetric artifact stax pieces which also function as cantrips when the commander is in play. As a result it simultaneously staxes opponents, filters through the deck, and advances the storm plan.

For even more Jhoira focused discussion, come join us over in the Jhoira discord!

Invite link here: https://discord.gg/MXDav8R

Acorlew, Bolsheviktory, Rick from the cedh discord
Jhoira is in a unique position of an Izzet commander that can provide large built-in value as soon as she resolves. Unlike Nin, Jhoira does not have an activated ability, doesn’t need to overcome summoning sickness, and has a relevant body as a 3/3 (she blocks Tymna!). Unlike Kess, Jhoira doesn’t require using the graveyard for value, which means running the best non taxing stax: Cursed Totem and Grafdigger’s Cage. She lives through minor board wipes such as whipflare and pyroclasm. Her card draw ability is on cast, rather than on ETB, meaning we draw regardless of our historic spells being countered, and can draw on historic creatures even through Torpor orb.

As an Izzet commander, Jhoira plays enough basics to overcome Back to Basics and Blood Moon effects, which cripple greedy manabases. This is relevant in the prevalent 4 color partner meta. Blue gives us a heavy interaction/control suite as well as the best artifact tutors, and red gives us efficient artifact/creature sweepers as well as the blood moon package. Due to the card draw Jhoira provides, we run a large artifact suite to attack specific strategies, such as such as Pithing Needle, Sorcerous Spyglass, Phyrexian Revoker.

This gives us multiple avenues to attack our opponents: Counter magic, asymmetric stax, and creature wipes.

Not Garta’s List is a crappy inside joke from the Jhoira discord. Garta had the original cheerios Jhoira deck, and this is decidedly NOT that.

Cheerios is not a good fit for CEDH for many reasons. It’s very fragile, it’s slower than better dedicated fast combo decks such as flash hulk, and it runs many, many dead cards.

If Jhoira is removed, she now costs 6 mana to play, and garbage cards such as Astral Cornucopia or Accorder's Shield are now dead in hand. It cannot run a proper grindy game, and folds easily to stax effects.

Though we can race with a fast hand, as early as turn 1 with the typical Dramatic Scepter combo, we primarily want to play staxy control and combo off in the midgame.

To do this, we want hands with high interaction and relevant stax pieces, slam Jhoira for value at a safe time or while still holding interaction, and start accruing value.

Once we’ve gummed up the board with stax, and stopped relevant win attempts, we should enter the midgame or late game with enough resources to attempt a win.

As long as we can hold up some interaction, playing an early Jhoira and getting early/midgame value off of artifacts is also a valid route to victory.

Island, Flooded Strand, Volcanic Island, Aetherflux, Brainstorm, Hurkyl’s Recall, Sensei’s Divining Top

Turn order: Us, Breakfast hulk, Selvala brostorm, CVT. Hand: Keep

This is a greedy keep with no interaction, but we can bluff holding up interaction past turn 1. Brainstorm + fetchland will hopefully fix up our hand at the end of T2. We can lean on the Teferi player to answer nonsense from the hulk player, and possibly draw interaction with T2 Brainstorm if needed. In the meantime, we have enough lands to guarantee drops, and Sensei’s, which is our best value piece.

Scalding Tarn, Lotus Petal, Helm of Awakening, Izzet Signet, Mystic Remora, Mountain, Wooded Foothills

Turn order: Sidisi ANF, CVT, Us, Child of Alara Druid. Hand: Above average, keep!

Even when going third, Sidisi and Teferi rely on noncreature spells to function. Even if the druid player properly plays only dorks, we should see multiple cards off Remora, since the other players will want to develop their board. We can maintain this for at least three turns, while also holding up a land to bluff interaction. If they have T1 interaction, the Teferi player will likely prefer stopping fast druid shenanigans over countering our remora, and can be leaned on to interact with druid or Sidisi until we draw something. Even if remora is countered, this is a T3 Jhoira with a follow up Lotus petal.

Flooded Strand, Fellwar Stone, Mountain, Hurkyl’s Recall, Fabricate, Paradoxical Outcome, Polluted Delta

Turn order: FCT, Us, Breya combo, Selvala Brostorm Hand: Too slow, Mulligan

We are in a fast combo pod, with two decks that will prefer to defend their combos over interaction with others’ plans. Though we have plays to make, we have no interaction and are nowhere near fast enough to answer anything.

Fellwar Stone, Island, Sol Ring, Island, Island, Mystical Tutor, Back to Basics

Turn order: FCT, Us, Breya combo, Selvala Brostorm (Second mulligan) Hand: Keep

We have a T2 Back to Basics, which severely punishes Breya and Tazri, and a T3 Jhoira. We can keep the Mystical tutor after seeing the second turn develop, and finding an appropriate spell such as a board wipe, wheel, or paradoxical outcome, as needed.

In addition to the following, please see Sigi’s excellent Chain Veil Teferi's matchup section. It plays very similar stax/answers and is far more comprehensive.

Stax: Torpor Orb, Phyrexian Revoker

We can aggressively wipe the mana dorks they will likely play early game. This removes their early ramp as well as ability to sacrifice them to food chain. Once the dorks are wiped, blood moon effects are very effective. Countermagic will be of use here, as well as misstepping any 1 cmc tutors they may cast. Be prepared for the Tazri player to switch to Lab man + consultation once food chain is dealt with.

Torpor Orb will stop both the Tazri search triggers as well as the ally damage triggers.

Phyrexian Revoker naming Food Chain stops their main win condition.

Stax: Grafdigger’s Cage, Pithing Needle, Phyrexian Revoker, Cursed Totem

A very dangerous match up, we want to be able to react to flash as early as possible. Wiping the mana dorks/ Tymna is relevant to take them off card draw and ramp.

Depending on the specific combo, we can name Nomads En Kor with Pithing/Sorcerous/Revoker, or ideally play Cursed Totem. Blood Moon/Back to Basics massively hurts their 4 color manabase as well.

Stax: Grafdigger’s Cage, Pithing Needle, Phyrexian Revoker, Cursed Totem, Silent Gravestone

We want to stop hard to remove unfavorable stax pieces such as Rule of Law/Stony Silence while playing our own stax pieces to stop their main combo assembly, through Yisan/Birthing Pod/Reanimation. If relevant, we can also stop Luminarch Ascension activations.

We tend to play a better midrange game so long as Jhoira stays alive, and can dig to a Cyclonic Rift or board wipe spell.

Stax: Pithing Needle, Phyrexian Revoker naming Necropotence, Gilded Drake, possibly Blood Moon/Back To Basics, Winter Orb

Zur mostly dodges the stax we might play. While we can shut off Necropotence activation, or attack the graveyard for Yawmoth’s Will plays (DD and otherwise), we mainly rely on stack interaction here.

Good Zur players will fetch basic lands when possible, limiting the usefulness of our Blood Moon and Back to Basics package. Winter Orb can be of use if Zur’s artifact ramp can be removed. Luckily, we have mass artifact destruction, Pyroblast/ Gilded Drake/bounce for Zur, and overall considerably more stack interaction.

Stax: Pithing Needle, Phyrexian Revoker, Winter Orb

Like us, Teferi is primarily a control deck that can pivot to moderately fast combo if needed. It plays similar amounts of stack interaction, and isn’t hit hard by our stax. However, Teferi is very vulnerable to artifact disruption in the form of removal or mass bounce, especially when they are attempting to untap mana sources with a resolved Teferi.

In the current creature heavy meta, answering Teferi’s win attempt with a Teferi on the field frequently means Teferi will not survive until their next turn. Teferi plays a very similar stax package, meaning their stax frequently helps us rather than hindering us.

Cards listed by function in the deck. Cards with multiple functions are listed under multiple categories.
We run a pretty standard blue and artifact tutor package. We interact with opponents using counter magic and stax, so we need ways to reliably find both.
Fairly standard suite of counter magic for a control deck
A below average number of lands due to the heavy artifact ramp we play. There are many basics to break parity on Blood Moon effects and Back to Basics.
  • Dack Fayden - Great into storm heavy, low creature metas, but dies too easily in the current creature heavy T&T meta.

  • Into the Roil - Necessary in very stax heavy metas, that play hard to remove threats like Rule of Law or Stony Silence

  • Red Elemental Blast - Great in a very blue heavy meta

  • Rhystic Study - Should be considered in spell heavy metas, or metas with Food Chain style wincons

  • Sorcerous Spyglass - Heavy activated ability metas, such as Hermit Druid, Dramatic Scepter, Thrasios, Sisay, etc

  • Spellskite - Spot removal heavy metas, or multiple Selvala players (steals Umbral Mantle, untap effects, pump spells

Paradox Engine Ban Out: Paradox Engine In: Arcane Signet

This is just a measure to make the deck legal. Until the list is updated completely, and tested with some possible new tech, we still have isorev, and the words of wind plans to execute.

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Top Ranked
  • Achieved #5 position overall 6 years ago
Date added 6 years
Last updated 5 years
Key combos
Legality

This deck is not Commander / EDH legal.

Rarity (main - side)

8 - 2 Mythic Rares

46 - 3 Rares

22 - 3 Uncommons

14 - 2 Commons

Cards 100
Avg. CMC 1.76
Tokens Bird 2/2 U, Emblem Dack Fayden
Folders Commander, Deck Ideas, Inspiration, Intrstng, Want To Build, cEDH Primer decks, cEDH, Interesting Things, Favs, Top Tier
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