Rocco’s Silver Bullets [Casual Hatebears Primer]

Commander / EDH Control Hatebears Prison RGW (Naya) Stax Toolbox

freddiefrick

Lands (39)

• 1x Battlefield Forge
• 1x Brushland
• 1x Cabaretti Courtyard
• 1x Canopy Vista
• 1x Cinder Glade
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Copperline Gorge
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Exotic Orchard
• 5x Forest
• 1x Fortified Village
• 1x Game Trail
• 1x Jungle Shrine
• 1x Karplusan Forest
• 1x Kessig Wolf Run
• 1x Monumental Henge
• 2x Mountain
• 4x Plains
• 1x Radiant Grove
• 1x Razorverge Thicket
• 1x Rockfall Vale
• 1x Rugged Prairie
• 1x Sacred Peaks
• 1x Sanctum of Eternity
• 1x Shatterskull Smashing  ^Flip
• 1x Sheltering Landscape
• 1x Temple of Triumph
• 1x Terramorphic Expanse
• 1x Witch Enchanter  ^Flip
• 1x Wooded Ridgeline
• 1x Eagles of the North

Cards (5)

• 1x Fauna Shaman
• 1x Heartwood Storyteller
• 1x Loran of the Third Path
• 1x Yisan, the Wanderer Bard
• 1x Alms Collector

Ramp (14)

• 1x Avacyn's Pilgrim
• 1x Carpet of Flowers
• 1x Elvish Mystic
• 1x Llanowar Elves
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Wild Growth
• 1x Armored Scrapgorger
• 1x Farseek
• 1x Gala Greeters
• 1x Priest of Titania
• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Huatli, Poet of Unity  ^Flip
• 1x Relic of Legends
• 1x The Restoration of Eiganjo  ^Flip

Slowers (11)

• 1x Gaddock Teeg
• 1x Kataki, War's Wage
• 1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
• 1x Archon of Emeria
• 1x Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar
• 1x Thalia, Heretic Cathar
• 1x Magus of the Moat
• 1x Sunspine Lynx
• 1x Windborn Muse
• 1x Yasharn, Implacable Earth
• 1x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed

Finishers (6)

• 1x Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
• 1x Jetmir, Nexus of Revels
• 1x Aurelia, the Law Above
• 1x Etali, Primal Conqueror  ^Flip
• 1x End-Raze Forerunners
• 1x Kamahl, Heart of Krosa

Bouncers (3)

• 1x Mistbreath Elder
• 1x Wirewood Symbiote
• 1x Temur Sabertooth

Commander (1)

Misc Tools (12)

• 1x Deflecting Swat
• 1x Flare of Fortitude
• 1x Spore Frog
• 1x Hajar, Loyal Bodyguard
• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Selfless Spirit
• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Hornet Nest
• 1x Sevinne's Reclamation
• 1x Timeless Witness
• 1x Yeva, Nature's Herald
• 1x Sun Titan

Removal (9)

• 1x Swords to Plowshares
• 1x Remorseful Cleric
• 1x Soulless Jailer
• 1x Beast Within
• 1x Klothys, God of Destiny
• 1x Manglehorn
• 1x Skyclave Apparition
• 1x Werefox Bodyguard
• 1x Whiptongue Hydra

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Maybeboard

Ramp (14)

• 1x Avacyn's Pilgrim
• 1x Elvish Mystic
• 1x Fyndhorn Elves
• 1x Gilded Goose
• 1x Tinder Wall
• 1x Utopia Sprawl
• 1x Deep Gnome Terramancer
• 1x Goblin Anarchomancer
• 1x Priest of Titania
• 1x Circle of Dreams Druid
• 1x Faeburrow Elder
• 1x Llanowar Tribe
• 1x Llanowar Visionary
• 1x Karametra's Acolyte

Removal (8)

• 1x Dawnbringer Cleric
• 1x Lion Sash
• 1x Beast Within
• 1x Cemetery Prowler
• 1x Generous Gift
• 1x Angel of Finality
• 1x Silklash Spider
• 1x Archon of Valor's Reach

Cards (2)

• 1x Wedding Announcement  ^Flip
• 1x Welcoming Vampire

Bouncers (13)

• 1x Nurturing Pixie
• 1x Scapegoat
• 1x Shepherd of the Flock
• 1x You're Ambushed on the Road
• 1x Horned Kavu
• 1x Kor Skyfisher
• 1x Essence Reliquary
• 1x Getaway Car
• 1x Blood Clock
• 1x Erratic Portal
• 1x Stampeding Serow
• 1x Stampeding Wildebeests
• 1x Umbilicus

Misc Tools (5)

• 1x Selfless Savior
• 1x Melira, the Living Cure
• 1x Marisi, Breaker of the Coil
• 1x Baeloth Barrityl, Entertainer
• 1x Gandalf the White

Finishers (3)

• 1x Ulvenwald Oddity  ^Flip
• 1x Defiler of Vigor
• 1x Crovax, Ascendant Hero

Slowers (12)

• 1x Doorkeeper Thrull
• 1x Harsh Mentor
• 1x Hushbringer
• 1x Phyrexian Revoker
• 1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
• 1x Tithe Taker
• 1x Aven Mindcensor
• 1x Eidolon of Rhetoric
• 1x Angel of Jubilation
• 1x Arasta of the Endless Web
• 1x Baird, Steward of Argive
• 1x Urabrask the Hidden

Old Ramp (14)

• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Wild Growth
• 1x Armored Scrapgorger
• 2x Farseek
• 2x Nature's Lore
• 1x Overgrown Battlement
• 2x Rampant Growth
• 1x Cultivate
• 2x Hourglass of the Lost
• 1x The Restoration of Eiganjo  ^Flip

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I've been trying to make a budget or casual stax/hatebears/prison list and finally settled on Rocco. I tend to think that resource denial without tutors is a poor strategy -- you will never be able to guarantee access to the right piece at the right time -- so I was happy when I figured out how to set up Rocco, a consistent tutor for anything I might need, for this purpose. The list is still somewhat in flux (suggestions appreciated) but I'm mostly happy with it for now. Think of the deck as a magazine of silver bullets and Rocco as the gun that selects the perfect one to fire. Politics is your best friend: play table police, target the strongest players, and quietly set up a soft lock before beating face.

What are Stax, Prison, and Hatebears strategies?

When Magic players refer to stax, prison, and hatebears, they are talking about resource denial strategies which seek to defend their gameplan by obstructing opposing players. These decks may use symmetrical and asymmetrical effects to slow the game down, deny certain interactions, and limit options for their opponents. This section defines some key terms for talking about resource denial strategies.

• Asymmetrical effects affect only the opponents of the stax player. By limiting the opponent's actions, resource denial decks can pull ahead simply by going at a normal game pace relative to their opponents. Examples: Grave Pact, Rhystic Study, Esper Sentinel, Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, God-Pharaoh's Statue, Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger, Narset, Parter of Veils.
• Symmetrical effects affect all players equally. If a resource denial deck is playing symmetrical effects, it must be able to execute its gameplan in spite of them. This is called "breaking parity". For example, Rest in Peace is a symmetrical graveyard hate piece. A resource denial deck that runs Rest in Peace may break parity by simply not relying on the graveyard whatsoever. Alternatively, decks may use combos to break parity: consider Winter Orb. Originally a "continuous artifact", Winter Orb's effect only turns on if the artifact is untapped. Urza, Lord High Artificer allows a player to break parity by letting them tap Winter Orb before their untap step, so that they do not suffer its effects but their opponents do. In this way, symmetrical pieces become asymmetrical. Examples: Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Humility, Solemnity, Rampaging Ferocidon, Archon of Emeria, Collector Ouphe.
• A lock is a kind of combo that prevents a certain kind of action from taking place. Soft locks refer to the layering of many hate effects so that nothing can practically be done to lift the lock. Hard locks, on the other hand, are sleeker combos that shut down an aspect of the game all at once. For example, Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir and Knowledge Pool locks your opponents from casting spells. Maha, Its Feathers Night and Night of Souls' Betrayal prevents your opponents' creatures from being on the battlefield. Derevi, Empyreal Tactician and Stasis and a creature with vigilance skips all untap steps. Some resource denial decks look to attain a hard lock and break parity to win, while others aim to impose soft locks throughout the game while they advance their own gameplan.

Each of the three strategies achieves the goal a little differently:

• Originally slang for the card smokestacks, stax permits players to take game actions, but levies a tax on them while doing so. Examples: Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Rhystic Study, Spiteful Visions.
• Hatebears refers to hate effects stapled to "bears" (Grizzly Bears type creatures). Usually, hatebears wins by pumping these creatures and swinging at their locked down opponents. This deck is a hatebears deck. Examples: Thalia, Guardian of Thraben, Aven Mindcensor, Manglehorn, Magus of the Moon, Drannith Magistrate.

• Prison is more about achieving hard locks and winning with the slimmest of conditions. Examples: Painful Quandary, Oppression, Rule of Law, No Mercy, Hokori, Dusk Drinker, Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir, The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale.

On Stax, Prison, and Hatebears in Casual EDH

It is my firm belief that resource denial decks have a critical place in casual EDH as well as cEDH. This is a point of much contention usually centered the astute observation that people don't like getting their toys taken away from them.

Resource denial is something that makes Magic unique. Not many games permit such a high level of interaction among players. Moreover, casual EDH is all about exploring Magic's diverse 30 year card pool.

Resource denial is needed to diversify the casual Commander metagame. Commander's structure incentivizes midrange matchups. Aggro (non-commander damage) decks are challenged because they have six times the life to eliminate (as opposed to 1v1), and control is hard because every card needs to 3 for 1 (approximately). Resource denial is the most efficient way to control 3 opponents at once: using permanents that change the game for everyone simultaneously. Similarly, many resource aggregation strategies in casual EDH go unpunished due to taboo associated with the hate pieces (land ramp in particular is guilty of this). Resource denial is needed in order to balance these otherwise optimal strategies.

Resource denial creates unique puzzles and play patterns for opponents. Trying to play around a Rule of Law or an Oppression is a unique aspect of Magic that most people have not tried yet. Teamwork among the other three players may be necessary to dismantle a lock.

Combos are the best form of aggro and without hate only fold to counterspells, which can be difficult to time. It is much simpler and more efficient to play Rest in Peace to shut down a reanimator deck rather than counter every reanimation spell they cast.

I believe this deck to be a fair hatebears list with a clear, achievable wincon: combat damage after creating a locked game.

Strategy

As this deck is a highly reactive strategy, the gameplay will be very dynamic and different from game to game. Before the game begins, try to figure out what the weak points are of all your opponents and identify what pieces you will need to obtain to stop them. Mulligan for ramp, colors, and protection. The first couple of turns should be spent fixing colors, ramping, and potentially playing any early game hate or protection pieces in your hand. Some hands will not need to cast Rocco until late in the game, some will need to cast him on turn 4 to get extra gas quickly.

The first Rocco cast will usually be for X=1 or X=2 to get Wirewood Symbiote/Mistbreath Elder or Selfless Spirit/Hajar, Loyal Bodyguard. If you have a one-time bounce spell and are facing more removal-heavy opponents, the protection can be better to fetch first. Otherwise, Wirewood Symbiote is the best card to get: instant speed bounce on Rocco so we can freely recast him from hand. Once we have that, our entire gameplan is unlocked.

Now that the engine is online, identify which player is the scariest to the table and begin cutting deals to stop them. Use your toolbox as a bargaining chip to get other players to not attack you and to not remove your things. Play the corrupt policeman at the table -- take care of problems in exchange for favors. If a player ever denies your deal and the opponent is not threatening a win, use that window to advance your own board state instead.

Some useful combos:

• Mistbreath Elder or Temur Sabertooth + Magus of the Moat: bounce Magus on your upkeep, attack, then play Magus in main 2 to prevent opponents. Ideally do this under the effects of Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar and a protection effect.
• Wirewood Symbiote + Eternal Witness: bounce Witness and replay for lots of recursion.

Minor update 3: cut Mossfire Valley and Sungrass Prairie for Forest and Mountain. The untapped mana early is far more important, especially green mana for ramp. Minor update 2: Removing a number of bouncers in place of mana dorks.

• Light the Way -> Llanowar Elves
• Alley Evasion -> Avacyn's Pilgrim
• Roaring Primadox -> Elvish Mystic
• Archetype of Courage -> Priest of Titania
• Armored Scrapgorger -> Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
• Mountain -> Shatterskull Smashing  

Minor update: Sunspine Lynx was cheaper than I expected and does more than Giant Cindermaw, even though it will usually hit us for a good deal of damage. Beyond this, I realized that the best way for this deck to break parity is: bounce your hate pieces on your turn, act without them, then replay. For example, keep Magus of the Moat on the table most of the time, but on your turn use Mistbreath Elder or Roaring Primadox to evade its effect before recasting at the end of your turn. Archon of Emeria is another good effect to potentially lift. I'm removing some of the weaker, one-time use bouncers and swapping in more permanent bouncers to make it easier to accomplish this. Sanctum of Eternity is another no-brainer way to bounce Rocco.

• Giant Cindermaw -> Sunspine Lynx
• Ash Barrens -> Sanctum of Eternity
• Rescuer Chwinga -> Roaring Primadox
• Whitemane Lion -> Eiganjo Free-Riders (White creatures are usually the ones with symmetrical effects we're trying to avoid. And of course, this hits Rocco too.)

Date added	1 month
Last updated	2 weeks
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	6 - 0 Mythic Rares 49 - 0 Rares 18 - 0 Uncommons 15 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	2.80
Tokens	Beast 3/3 G, Dinosaur 3/3 G w/ Trample, Human 1/1 W, Illusion X/X U, Insect 1/1 G w/ Flying, Deathtouch, Spirit 1/1 C, Timeless Witness 4/4 B, Treasure