The Undisputed Rasputin

Commander / EDH Blink Control Value Engine WU (Azorius)

Lordmax606

Creature (31)

• 1x Aether Channeler
• 1x Archaeomender
• 1x Aven Mindcensor
• 1x Body Double
• 1x Brago, King Eternal
• 1x Containment Priest
• 1x Displacer Kitten
• 1x Drift of Phantasms
• 1x Eldrazi Displacer
• 1x Fiend Hunter
• 1x Karmic Guide
• 1x Mirror Entity
• 1x Mnemonic Wall
• 1x Mulldrifter
• 1x Nevermaker
• 1x Phantasmal Image
• 1x Restoration Angel
• 1x Reveillark
• 1x Skyclave Apparition
• 1x Snapcaster Mage
• 1x Solemn Simulacrum
• 1x Stonecloaker
• 1x Stoneforge Mystic
• 1x Sun Titan
• 1x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
• 1x Thassa, Deep-Dwelling
• 1x Trinket Mage
• 1x Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre
• 1x Vedalken Aethermage
• 1x Venser, Shaper Savant
• 1x Walking Ballista

Enchantment (3)

• 1x Out of Time
• 1x Parallax Wave
• 1x Touch the Spirit Realm

Land (38)

• 1x Academy Ruins
• 1x Azorius Chancery
• 1x Calciform Pools
• 1x Celestial Colonnade
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Field of Ruin
• 1x Flood Plain
• 1x Flooded Strand
• 1x Glacial Fortress
• 1x Glasspool Shore  ^Flip
• 1x Hallowed Fountain
• 1x Irrigated Farmland
• 8x Island
• 1x Mystic Gate
• 1x Mystic Sanctuary
• 1x Nimbus Maze
• 1x Ondu Skyruins  ^Flip
• 8x Plains
• 1x Prairie Stream
• 1x Razortide Bridge
• 1x Riptide Laboratory
• 1x Skycloud Expanse
• 1x Tolaria West
• 1x Winding Canyons

Artifact (6)

• 1x Azorius Signet
• 1x Chromatic Orrery
• 1x Nim Deathmantle
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Voyager Staff

Planeswalker (2)

• 1x Tezzeret the Seeker
• 1x The Eternal Wanderer

Commander (1)

Instant (15)

• 1x Cyclonic RiftGC
• 1x Disallow
• 1x Disorder in the Court
• 1x Ghostly Flicker
• 1x Heliod's Intervention
• 1x Lae'zel's Acrobatics
• 1x Memory Deluge
• 1x Momentary Blink
• 1x Muddle the Mixture
• 1x Path to Exile
• 1x Sphinx's Revelation
• 1x Sublime Epiphany
• 1x Swords to Plowshares
• 1x Tale's End
• 1x Vanish into Memory

Sorcery (4)

• 1x All is Dust
• 1x Austere Command
• 1x Supreme Verdict
• 1x Vanquish the Horde

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Sideboard

Creature (3)

• 1x Duplicant
• 1x Linvala, Keeper of Silence
• 1x Mistmeadow Witch

Enchantment (1)

• 1x Leyline of Sanctity

Sorcery (1)

• 1x Wrath of God

Artifact (3)

• 1x Glaring Spotlight
• 1x Meekstone
• 1x Mortarpod

Instant (2)

• 1x Crib Swap
• 1x Trickbind

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Maybeboard

Creature (7)

• 1x Angel of Serenity
• 1x Clever Impersonator
• 1x Diluvian Primordial
• 1x Glen Elendra Archmage
• 1x Sanctum Gargoyle
• 1x Sunblast Angel
• 1x Yorion, Sky Nomad

Artifact (5)

• 1x Blasting Station
• 1x Coalition Relic
• 1x Crystal Shard
• 1x Oblivion Stone
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots

Sorcery (6)

• 1x Flicker
• 1x Martial Coup
• 1x Reality Strobe
• 1x Rite of Replication
• 1x Rout
• 1x Wash Out

Instant (5)

• 1x Cryptic Command
• 1x Enlightened TutorGC
• 1x Ghostway
• 1x Mystic Confluence
• 1x Return to Dust

Land (5)

• 1x Darksteel Citadel
• 1x Halimar Depths
• 1x Minamo, School at Water's Edge
• 1x Mistveil Plains
• 1x Tectonic Edge

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Ugin, the Spirit Dragon

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The Undisputed Rasputin

Intro

Welcome to my Rasputin Dreamweaver UW Flicker Commander deck guide. Why Rasputin you ask? Well not only is he Russia's greatest love machine, he provides a generous amount of mana, can save himself from combat damage, and often goes under the radar regarding who wears the "target hat" at the table. On top of all that, he is fun as hell!

Before we go too far, we need to go over one imporant keyword.

Flicker - To flicker a permanent is to exile it from play, then return it to the battlefield at a later time. Typically, the permanent is returned instantly or at the next end step.
(See Ghostly Flicker vs Ghostway)

Edited 11/2022 Show

Significant upgrade through new cards. With Commanders becoming more synergistic and core to a successful deck, less focus on mass removal and more focus on removal package for controlling opponents Commanders. More synergy around countering triggered abilities to increase threat of perma-exile trickery (see below for details). Additionally, increased focus on combo win through cards like Displacer Kitten/Eldrazi Displacer. Updated tutor targets section.

Edited 06/2015 Show

Updated for Commander rules changes. Trickbind replaced Spell Crumple, Crib Swap replaced Spin into Myth. Removed Zoetic Cavern/Vesuvan Shapeshifter for High Market/Duplicant. Updated deck notes and description of Trickbind.

Deck Concept

The design of the deck is based around flicker effects, which obviously interact well with both the Commander and almost every creature in the deck. When simply flickering Rasputin, this allows you to ramp out a big Sphinx's Revelation, fast Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre, a siege of value cards through mana manipulation through Chromatic Orrery, or unexpected combo turns. When used on your other creatures, provides incremental value which can help edge out the game in your favor.

Additionally, the deck has great interaction with Nim Deathmantle, allowing you to wrath with Rasputin in play, and return many of your creatures using his starting mana and the mana he brings back when revived.

Lastly, the deck provides a good amount of control while not simply sitting on counterspells. A multitude of wrath effects, exile/tuck, bounce, and the increasingly valuable trigger counters help you play interactively and not be that jerk who never lets people resolve spells.

Execution

The deck has a number of attack angles that provide unique winning conditions at both the early and late game.

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General Damage

After tutoring up the key equipment (Nim Deathmantle and Skullclamp), you have yourself a black intimidated 7/2 beatstick zombie Rasputin Dreamweaver. That's right folks, three measly whacks from this old guy will do the trick.

X Mana

More often than not you will simply fall into a number of interactions with your Rasputin and/or Nim Deathmantle that will lead to an inevitable infinite mana combo. While this is not the sole intent of the deck, it is there and open for abuse at your discretion.

Some examples of these aforementioned interaction include:

Rasputin Dreamweaver + Eldrazi Displacer = {INFINITY}

Rasputin Dreamweaver + Nim Deathmantle + ...

... Phantasmal Image/Clever Impersonator/Glasspool Mimic   = {INFINITY}
... Mirror Entity = {INFINITY}

Chromatic Orrery + Mnemonic Wall + Ghostly Flicker = {INFINITY}

Obviously these interactions become more degenerate when bringing in outlets for the mana such as Skullclamp to draw X, Sphinx's Revelation to gain life and draw, or Mirror Entity to make your army massive. It also goes without saying, Walking Ballista tends to enjoy exceptionally large amounts of mana.

More notably, when recurring with Clone effects, you can easily abuse creatures with exceptional etb triggers such as Venser, Shaper Savant to return all of your opponents permanents or Karmic Guide to bring back all of your creatures from the yard.

Endless Recursion

There also exist some interactions that allow you to repeatedly recur creatures from your graveyard until you (or your opponents) have had enough WITHOUT going after {INFINITY}. One example is:

Reveillark + Mirror Entity + (Karmic Guide OR Body Double)

This allows you to recur any creature with power less than 2 from our graveyard to play X times which will usually end the game on the spot. These become more complex/powerful when including cards such as Fiend Hunter or clones.

Mirroring Big Beats

Flickering Rasputin even a few times can allow your small army of weak fliers to get more than large enough to knock a player or two out in one foul swoop when channeled through Mirror Entity

Wrathing Their Stuff

Either through Lae'zel's Acrobatics/Disorder in the Court end of turn, or Rasputin Dreamweaver + Nim Deathmantle, or Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre, a wrath effect where you get to keep your stuff is a great way to pull way ahead. Other methods that require more planning include Yorion, Sky Nomad or Parallax Wave

Flicktory (Flicker to Victory)

Clone something huge in play, then trigger it a few more times. Avenger of Zendikar wrecking your playgroup? Make one of your own and flicker it 2 or 3 times. Or simply get a few triggers out of your Diluvian Primordial and slam your opponents' spells back at their domes.

Discussion about Combos

While there certainly are infinite combos that exist in the deck, there are many points of discussion around them.

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One, they are mostly 3 card interactions that are exceedingly vulnerable. For example, once a Rasputin Dreamweaver + Nim Deathmantle interaction begins, a simple instant artifact removal on the stack leaves your general stuck in your graveyard. No chance to go back to the general zone, he sits there for the rest of the game. This results in you having to be tactical when planning when to initiate a combo instead of throwing it at the wall constantly and seeing if it sticks.

Two, every deck needs a way to win late game provided you did what your deck was designed to do. Green ramp decks can typically win off the back of a Tooth and Nail entwined once they have ramped X times. Black decks often tutor their way to late game victories through Exsanguinate or excessive graveyard recursion. Most blue decks go off of taking X turns and grinding through some combination of Omniscience and draw (or the dreaded Thassa's Oracle combos). Control decks are no exception. Control the game and rely on 2-3 cards to pull out a victory. It is no different than every other deck late game "I win" button.

Three, combos are optional. You are never forced to use them, or required to tutor for them. More often than not, I simply fall into 5-6 card interactions that just "goes off". Did I tutor into it? Nope. Do people still get upset? Sometimes. Do I feel bad? Absolutely not! EDH is the place for big things to happen.

That being said. most often the best games are ones where there are challenging interactions and an abundance of thought provoking magic. I highly recommend all EDH players do not build "combo" decks that always tutor the same cards as early as possible and intend to win the game the same way every time. Variety is the spice of life!

Counterspell vs Trickbind

As you can see, I have many copies of Stifle effects in the mainboard (Tale's End, Trickbind, Disallow, Sublime Epiphany) instead of the traditional Commander counterspell staples. What gives!? In what world is a conditional counter better than a real hard counter with upside? Warning, this is a long-winded summary...

tl;dr - in our deck, Stifle effects provide the threat of controlling players commanders via powering up our delayed flickers into permanent removal while also stopping powerful and common abilities our deck isn't able to interact with otherwise. Additionally, exiling many creatures with cards like Parallax Wave or Order in the Court become significantly more deadly.

Abusing delayed triggers with flicker and stifle

Well, with the not-so-recent nerf regarding shuffling Commanders into players decks, Spell Crumple-esk effects lost much of its original muster in Commander and has been widely replaced with traditional powerful counterspell effects like Mana Drain/Dovin's Veto/Cryptic Command.

Years ago, when players saw counter magic mana open, and they knew Spell Crumple was a possibility, it was far too risky to attempt to resolve their commander in the event that they would be condemned to the nether region of their deck. Due to changes to replacement effects of commanders also allowing shuffle effects to be replaced with the command zone, tuck effects were reduced to a simple Cancel. The niche effect to take away the most commonly cast and important resource of most peoples decks was lost, and we have seen a dramatic increase in commander-centric designs as there is little to no fear for your commander's long-term wellbeing.

Cryptic Command was a natural replacement having a huge range of utility - being able to stop commanders in a pinch (for a turn perhaps) as well as many key cards such as Time Stretch or Tooth and Nail, and can also act as a one turn Fog, or bounce another key permanent. However, ideally our deck should be able handle the consequences of those spells resolving. It is the commander that is central to most deck strategies, and thus a new card should replace Spell Crumple that aggressively makes players think twice before resolving one.

How do we instill that fear again? Well, Stifle effects have a very unique property when interacting with flicker-esk effects. Allow me to provide an example:

I cast Voyager Staff and use its activated ability targeting your commander. "That was a bizarre play..." you ponder to yourself, as you move your commander away from the board, the shorthand most people use when temporarily exiling a creature to soon be returned. End of turn comes around, and you, bewildered as you are at my play, begin to move your commander back onto the board. Suddenly, I tap {1}{U}, and resolve Trickbind targeting the delayed triggered ability that was destined to return your beloved permanent back to play, thus trapping him in the horrible exile zone for the remainder of the game.

Yes, that is an atrocious outcome. A second read of the cards in question may be required, or a rule check to ensure that what just happened is in fact possible. Perhaps you may even attempt to move your general to the Command Zone now, but alas, as you may only do that as a replacement effect during zone movements, and since your commander isn't actually moving zones, it must instead be stuck in exile and a harsh lesson learned.

The end result of this event? Next time I flicker your commander, perhaps you avoid the risk and simply move them directly to the Command zone. Better safe than sorry, right?

Sure, that isn't always the result, but it does happen enough and has enough synergy with our deck alone to make Stifle effect and inherently valuable card. Considering the amount of removal (both spot and mass) the deck has, the bigger issues are usually commanders, etb triggers, activated combos, or planeswalker ultimates. Plus, now there is a little fun pokerface game that gets played whenever you exile their commanders.

: Stifle stops things such as:

• Stops creatures returning from delayed flicker abilities such as Order in the Court or Vanish into Memory
• Prevents any enter the battlefield triggers (Sorry Craterhoof Behemoth and Thassa's Oracle)
• Stops Planeswalker abilities (including ultimates) even though loyalty is paid
• Stops storm triggers from happening
• Stops cascade triggers
• Prevents equipment from attaching to a creature
• Stops the Annihilator ability from Eldrazi (eg: Kozilek, Butcher of Truth)
• Prevent suspended cards from being cast after the last time counter has been removed (no joke, look it up!)
• Graveyard triggers that shuffle in (Looking at you Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre)

As you can see, even without interacting with our own triggered abilities, it still remains to be a highly functioning card that is rarely "dead".

NOTE: Cryptic Command is still an EXCELLENT card and I routinely sideboard it in when playing in larger multiplayer games or when no one general present is a "MUST KILL ON SIGHT" type of role.

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Tutoring Targets

Transmutation via Tolaria West, Muddle the Mixture, or Drift of Phantasms give a diverse range of searchable targets to fill many situations. It is also uncounterable (except by Stifle-esk abilities) and not limited to a specific tutor target type (unlike other {U}/{W} tutors).

Transmute {0} targets via Tolaria West

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Wincon

• Walking Ballista

Removal

• Field of Ruin - land destruction
• Ondu Skyruins   - mass removal

Utility

• Glasspool Mimic   via Glasspool Shore   (clone)
• Winding Canyons (flash creatures)
• Riptide Laboratory (bounce/value)

GY recur

• Academy Ruins (artifacts)
• Mystic Sanctuary (spells)

Transmute {2} targets via Muddle the Mixture

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Wincon

• Nim Deathmantle

Removal

• Cyclonic Rift (bounce)
• Heliod's Intervention (artifacts)

Flicker/Value

• Disorder in the Court (mass target)
• Momentary Blink (spot)
• Snapcaster Mage (more spells)

Tutor/Draw

• Stoneforge Mystic (Nim Deathmantle/Skullclamp as needed)
• Vedalken AEthermage (see list below)

Utility

• Tale's End (counter/stifle)
• Phantasmal Image (clone)
• Azorius Signet (ramp)

Transmute {3} targets via Drift of Phantasms

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Removal

• Skyclave Apparition (all things cmc<=4)
• Fiend Hunter (control creature)
• Crib Swap (exile creature)

Flicker/Value

• Ghostly Flicker (multi-target)
• Eldrazi Displacer (our creatures)

Tutor/Draw

• Sphinx's Revelation (big draw)
• Trinket Mage (see list below)

Utility

• Stonecloaker (GY hate)
• Aven Mindcensor (search counter)
• Aether Channeler (swiss army)
• Disallow (counter/stifle)
• Archaeomender (GY recur)

{1} artifact tutors via Trinket Mage
What is a blue deck without Trinket Mage!?

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Wincon

• Walking Ballista (mana dump)

Flicker/Value

• Voyager Staff (single target disruption/protection)

Tutor/draw

• Skullclamp (draw engine)

Utility

• Sol Ring (ramp!)
• Razortide Bridge (fix missed land drop)

(Also, Meekstone or Glaring Spotlight from the SB)

Wizard targets via Vedalken AEthermage
Much like transmute, targeted cycling can effective provide a diverse range of tutorable targets to fit the current situation. In this case, Vedalken AEthermage allows us to search for any of the following Wizards at instant speed.

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Wincon

• Mirror Entity (mana dump/combo)

Removal

• Crib Swap
• Venser, Shaper Savant (bounce)

Flicker/Value

• Snapcaster Mage more spells

Tutor/draw

• Trinket Mage (See list above)

Utility

• Aven Mindcensor (search counter)
• Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir (no more instants)
• Archaeomender (GY recur)
• Aether Channeler (swiss army)
• Rasputin Dreamweaver (anti-tuck)

(Also, Glen Elendra Archmage from the SB)

Date added	13 years
Last updated	1 year
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 1 Mythic Rares 49 - 6 Rares 17 - 3 Uncommons 10 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.58
Tokens	Bird 1/1 W, Clue, Copy Clone, Illusion */* U, Phyrexian Germ 0/0 B, Samurai 2/2 W w/ Double strike, Shapeshifter 1/1 C
Folders	EDH Decks, Untap, Blue/White EDH Decks, Likes, Rasputin, Decks n' shit I want, Things I want, edh ideas, Inspiration, New EDH