Red Scare: Zada EDH [PRIMER]

Commander / EDH* Daedalus19876

SCORE: 324 | 277 COMMENTS | 57674 VIEWS | IN 113 FOLDERS


Didgeridooda says... #1

I really don't think Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx has a place here at the moment. The # of permanents you run for devotion is a little low. Though don't cut any lands, your count is good when adding a few more rocks. The reason you might struggle with red mana is due to the low ramp in this deck. Get some red producing rocks.

Chrome mox scales with competitive level, if you want to be top tier, then it is something that you will want to use.

I run a budget Krenko deck, and this one seems to try to run a similar strategy.

I think you should move away from things like Dragon Fodder. I know you see them as your primer to get the deck going, but I think you need to focus on the main idea which is Zada. This deck is completely dependent on having him out, protecting him, and being able to pay the commander tax 2,3,4,5 times. That is not a bad thing.

Goblin Recruiter, Goblin Matron, Moggcatcher maybe even Goblin Wizard, Goblin Lackey, Warren Instigator to get Krenko out.

Mana Geyser can go. Fiery Gambit I could see as a for fun card, but not a card that should be in a deck trying to be competitive. The 6 token spells opens up many spots. Spawning Bed for a mountain. Emrakul's Hatcher costs too much. I would rather run Zealous Conscripts. Mogg War Marshal too small of an effect.

You might not like this idea, but the method you are using to pump out tokens is very inefficient, and will be easily disrupted. I hope you don't take this as me being harsh, I am just trying to help. If you would prefer I didn't please let me know. If you have any questions also please let me know.

July 21, 2016 1:45 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #2

Didgeridooda: What you say makes sense, but I don't 100% agree :)

On the first level, this isn't intended to be a top-tier competitive deck: Zada will never manage to achieve that level, because she requires you to focus too much focus on her own ability, and too many cards that are bad without her. That's the reason I'm not playing Chrome Mox here: the gain is marginal and the cost is high, for a deck that doesn't actually need it.

I took a look at your Krenko deck, and I'm not sure if we have the same strategies. In your deck, you have a reliable token-producer in the command zone at all times, so of course it makes sense to construct your deck around him. You've suggested replacing my token generators with several ways for me to tutor for Krenko. But this seems like a bad strategy here, because it makes my deck even more disruptable with spot removal. While Krenko is an amazing card, and I'm never unhappy to draw him, he always eats spot removal within a turn cycle. You can get around this by re-casting him, but I have very little protection for him (I'm in mono-red, after all), and no graveyard reanimation (again, mono-red). Also, I don't have much of a goblin tribal theme, so the goblin tribal cards have less value in this deck compared to yours. (I still might add Moggcatcher, because it can tutor for Krenko or my few utility goblins without going so "all-in".)

Paired with any of the 12 targeted cantrips in the deck, Emrakul's Hatcher gives me four cards. I'd 100% rather have that than Zealous Conscripts. Mana Geyser and Fiery Gambit almost always win the game if I resolve them. You suggested that I cut Dragon Fodder and Mogg War Marshal to focus more on Zada...but Zada is useless unless I have at least four creatures out at the time that I cast her. I can't just "focus on her" without token makers (which are, admittedly, subpar on their own despite being quite necessary).

You're probably right about cutting Spawning Bed for a Mountain, though (actually, it'll probably become Hanweir Garrison). It's never pulled its weight.

The biggest difference between our decks is that you plan to win by damage, while I plan to win by card advantage. There isn't much overlap between my Zada deck and your Krenko deck, other than the reliance on tokens. They're just constructed very differently, and have different requirements. Thank you for your comment regardless, though!

(Also, Zada is female in the lore, not that it matters.)

July 21, 2016 2:56 p.m. Edited.

HorrorLegend says... #3

This is a very well thought out deck. I cant think of many suggestions that haven't already been mentioned. Price of Glory is a great addition so if you can ever find time to include it, I'd highly suggest it. Other than that, love the deck, love the flavor and definitely a +1 upvote from me!

July 28, 2016 7:17 p.m.

AeroOnFire says... #4

Can you explain how burn at the stake is a win con? I don't understand how it interacts with Zada.

July 30, 2016 10:07 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #5

AeroOnFire: It isn't a win-con with Zada, per se, but when comboing off, the deck often creates several hundred creatures (usually by Twincasting Chancellor of the Forge or Emrakul's Hatcher etc repeatedly), allowing you to just cast Burn at the Stake as normal. People forget, but it's lethal with only 14 creature tokens.

July 30, 2016 10:28 p.m.

infinitemana says... #6

I would never leave home without a few board wipes just in case, and Chain Reaction and Blasphemous Act are perfect reset buttons for a token deck. Also, Relentless Assault is just a very strong card for any deck that attacks.

August 3, 2016 2:06 p.m.

acbooster says... #7

I usually end up loving the decks you put out, and this one is no different :) +1 from me, I don't have any suggestions for this one

August 6, 2016 9:19 p.m.

Onzq says... #8

+1 from a fellow Zada player! Ever tried Possibility Storm in here? Neat interaction with zada as the copying still happens but you get 2 spells with the price of one. Zada if you wanna check out my version

August 18, 2016 4:06 p.m.

Onzq says... #9

Pardon me. Failed to see it the first time but PS is already there. Anyway, keep on fighting the good fight

August 18, 2016 4:17 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #10

infinitemana: Yeah, Blasphemous Act is a sweet card, but I took it out of here a little while ago. Every time that I wanted to cast it, I was either going to lose anyway, or it would hurt me more than it would help me. This deck has trouble re-establishing dominance in the late game after a board wipe, which I will freely admit is its greatest flaw. This version online isn't 100% synced with my paper version, but I include Mogg Infestation and Descent of the Dragons as "board wipes" that can also give me a positive benefit if needed.

acbooster and Onzq: Thank you! I appreciate the support, and I'm glad you all like the deck :)

August 18, 2016 6:28 p.m.

PlattBonnay says... #11

2 things. First, I'm not understanding the logic behind Faithless Looting. Why bother? And second, why play Blood Moon over Magus when the whole point of the deck is to flood the board with creatures?

August 23, 2016 9:14 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #12

PlattBonnay: Faithless Looting is a good way to dig for combo pieces in the early game. It can also find land or token-makers. And although I probably should play Magus of the Moon too, I'm playing Blood Moon because 1) I own a copy and 2) it's harder to remove.

August 23, 2016 9:25 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #13

I really like your deck, +1 from me.

What do you think about Akroma's Memorial, Door of Destinies and Obelisk of Urd to boost your tokens?

August 26, 2016 4:52 p.m.

acbooster says... #14

Coat of Arms would be better here than Door of Destinies since the Door requires you to cast spells with the type, there aren't many Goblin cards in here.

August 26, 2016 4:55 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #15

Yes you are absolutely right, but Eldrazi Monument would fit perfectly IMO.

August 26, 2016 5:10 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #16

Or maybe Descent of the Dragons! :)

August 26, 2016 6:02 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #17

Hipparchos: I can't play Akroma's Memorial (pro-red shuts down my cantrips) and with regards to the others, my tokens aren't always of the same types. But if I end up pushing this deck more towards goblins (which is a definite possibility, to keep it more distinct from my new Oathbreakers and Kingslayers: Adriana EDH deck) they'll go in immediately :)

I used to have Eldrazi Monument in here (no reliance on typing), but I don't have enough copies haha. And this deck hasn't been updated recently, but my IRL version does include Descent of the Dragons in place of Burn at the Stake (Descent is awesome).

Thanks for your comment! I don't think your +1 came through (T/O is so glitchy sometimes) so do you mind clicking it again? (sorry)

August 26, 2016 8:31 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #18

Haha well it was 2 am when i wrote my comment. Sry about that, i totally misread the card.

Can't wait to test your Adriana, Captain of the Guard deck. Maybe finally i'll get hands on a cool Boros commander.

Sure my upvote worked, i was #47 . :)

August 27, 2016 4:48 a.m.

Hipparchos says... #19

Also i really hope you keep this deck up to date and maybe you have time to revamp w/o budgetary restrictions. It's a hell of a blast to play and i really love how it explodes. :D Most notably it's not in the usual token colours mana symbol gmana symbol w.

August 27, 2016 4:59 a.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #20

Hipparchos: T/O just informed me of your +1; there's an irritating latency there. Oh well - not your fault about the lag! :)

I've been loving my Adriana, Captain of the Guard deck so far (though I have not built it IRL yet). It plays like a fusion of this deck, and my Avacyn, the Purifier  Flip deck, and my DOA Hazezon Tamar deck. It needs a few adjustments, but it's a fun deck to play, so I'm satisfied.

Honestly, this deck is pretty close to my list IRL. I'd have to check to be sure, but I think I added Descent of the Dragons and something else over Burn at the Stake and...something. I'll get that change logged here ASAP (and I need to make this deck description better).

This deck is basically my janky storm deck. It's capable of unbelievably explosive turns (casting perhaps 40 spells in a turn and storming out), but it's disruptable because it's hard to recover from mass removal, or from repeated removal of Zada herself. I really want to make it more consistent, but that's proven to be difficult. Oh well.

Honestly, this almost IS the deck without budgetary restrictions. I'd maybe add Burning Wish, Blood Moon, Ruination, Mana Vault, and Gauntlet of Might if I had no budget (and no morals)? But there aren't many changes to make here until new cards are printed, TBH. The deck relies on a very specific interaction - targeted cantrips - and unless more of those are printed I think this deck isn't going to change in form much. This deck will never be my most competitive deck, and I've accepted that.

I appreciate your interest in my decks ;)

August 27, 2016 5:53 a.m.

Hipparchos says... #21

Yeah sometimes T/O acts weird. Credit where credit is due, so an upvote was just mandatory :)

Adriana, Captain of the Guard is a commander which gives you so much value attacking several oponents at once. I guess all other Boros commanders would support her perfectly. I test all decks on XMage, sadly Conspiracy 2 won't be added until next week.

Well i have to admit Burn at the Stake isn't that bad. This card did one shot an opponent everytime i had enough tokens on the board.

I'm always looking for new ideas! :)

August 27, 2016 8:32 a.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #22

Hipparchos: If you end up building a version of either this deck or Adriana, Captain of the Guard, I'd love to see how yours turns out :)

Burn at the Stake isn't bad at all - I murder people with it pretty frequently. It's just not central to the "main combo" and it's expensive (in terms of mana) and it's a dead card if I draw it early, so I was testing some other stuff in its place.

As am I! Feel free to leave any other comments or suggestions on any of my decks; they're always appreciated :)

August 27, 2016 2:35 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #23

Well, maybe i will. But first i still work on my Ricku deck Don't copy, get inspired. Maye you have time to give it a shot. :)

Indeed, in the starting hand it's already a dead card. But so evil when u pull it off to finish someone at 40 life. :D

August 27, 2016 3:42 p.m.

Daedalus19876 says... #24

Hipparchos: I once finished off an Oloro player who was at 260 life with it, haha. Good times, good times...

August 27, 2016 3:44 p.m.

Hipparchos says... #25

Haha that are the most hilarious games and ones you remember always. :D

August 27, 2016 3:58 p.m.

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