First, a little about me. Drawing cards in MTG is my addiction. If it says "draw a card" on it, I have to actively stop myself from just jamming it into a list. I also wanted to brew something that did the whole card draw thing that wouldn't get me hated off the table by my play group (lookin' at you
Edric, Spymaster of Trest
. I've been wanting to make an enchanter deck for a long while now, and originally tried all the enchantress creatures in a
Uril, the Miststalker
shell, but really really disliked the potential of getting blown out after going all in on Uril. Plus, drawing the enchantress's was really unreliable. Combined with the fact that Uril comes down on turn 5 without ramp, and everything about it just felt "wrong" in so many ways. Add in the fact that
Tuvasa the Sunlit
has the magic words "whenever" and "draw a card" printed right on her, I had to give an enchanter deck another go with such an awesome repeatably used ability. One last note, I really dislike instant win or infinite combos in EDH/Commander, so I generally avoid including them where I can. Whenever I have won or lost to them it always feels anticlimactic and boring.
THE CREATURES
Some of these guys are obvious no brainers. All the enchanters that draw you cards whenever you cast or have an enchantment ETB instantly went in the deck. These are your engine pieces that fuel
Tuvasa the Sunlit
and get the ball rolling on drawing cards. However, all of the enchanter creatures themselves are kinda expensive 3 drops with serious wet noodle bodies giving you no board threat. A lot of my choices are attempts at making these 0/2 dingus's actually useful just for being there.
Sakura-Tribe Scout + Skyshroud Ranger
- This deck draws a ton of cards when it does start taking off, sometimes so much you're discarding at the end of every turn. These dudes help get extra lands into play, breaking the "1 land a turn" rule of MTG. Getting ahead of your opponents on resources is one of the absolute best ways to win in MTG.
Sublime Archangel
- Ran across this in my search for how to make my otherwise squishy enchanters useful. Any type of evasion plus this angel turns your whole board into a beating. Combined with Angelic Exaltation + Sigil of Valor
and suddenly you can easily be swinging huge amounts of damage around.
Shanna, Sisay's Legacy
also falls into this category.
Birds of Paradise
,
Avacyn's Pilgrim
, and
Noble Hierarch
- These are the few T1 ramp dorks that allow you to tap for different colors of mana, allowing a T2
Tuvasa the Sunlit
.
Aura Gnarlid + Yavimaya Enchantress
- Cheap dudes that get bigger at the cost of doing exactly what Tuvasa wants to do? Sign me up!
Faerie Seer
- A cheap evasive guy that carries auras, equipment, and is half a
Preordain
? I'll take it.
Auramancer + Heliod's Pilgrim
- Finding or rebuying one of your big threat aura's that also can carry one? Seems legit.
Rafiq of the Many
- With the exalted subtheme making my creatures useful, this seemed like an obvious addition.
Herald of the Pantheon + Starfield Mystic + Sunscape Familiar
- Making all your cheap enchants cheaper? Don't mind if I do. 1 or 2 of these with 1 or 2 enchanters turns all your enchantment spells into
Ancestral Recall
s. Seems good.
THE ARTIFACTS
Not much here.
Chromatic Lantern
ramps slightly, but more importantly fixes your mana for all the cheap spells.
Helm of the Gods
and
Sigil of Valor
give you another Tuvasa passive and another
Sublime Archangel
effect.
THE ENCHANTMENTS
First a word over some of the choices. Lots of these enchantments are oddball sub-optimal choices on the surface but share one thing in common. Many of them draw you a card when they ETB. This allows you to start drawing cards without Tuvasa, helping you find another enchanter. It's a built in assist since Tuvasa turns into a pretty big "deal with this" threat at the table. I know the first suggestion many will give is
Favor of the Overbeing
+
Shield of the Oversoul
+
Steel of the Godhead
, but the problem I have with them is that they only work on Tuvasa, where the other enchantments can turn any single creature into a threat.
Cryptolith Rite
- All my enchanters are also
Birds of Paradise
? And I draw a card if I have Tuvasa? I'll take it.
Wild Growth
,
Utopia Sprawl
,
Abundant Growth
,
Unbridled Growth
,
Nylea's Presence
,
Urban Utopia
, and
Fertile Ground
- Some ramp and some fixing. These hang around through most wrath's, and also power up your
Helm of the Gods
,
All That Glitters
, and
Ethereal Armor
. Also draw cards until you secure another enchanter. Add in
Estrid, the Masked
and suddenly you've got some serious ramp.
All That Glitters
,
Ethereal Armor
,
Ancestral Mask
,
Eidolon of Countless Battles
- Your bread and butter. Gives any creature a Tuvasa passive. Surprise KO people by activating
Inkmoth Nexus
and putting one of these on it.
Canopy Cover
+
Shielding Plax
- Shields any threat you've got on the board, making it substantially harder to target. Gives you a prime target to follow up with
All That Glitters
,
Ethereal Armor
or
Ancestral Mask
.
Season of Growth
- Turns all your creatures into filtering, and more card draw when you start tron'ing up some threats.
Fists of Ironwood
+
Promise of Bunrei
- Enchantments that draw you a card off Tuvasa and gives you more creatures. One gives more when your threats get hit, the other gives you some punchthrough when opponents have chump blockers.
Bear Umbra
+
Hyena Umbra
+
Spider Umbra
- Protects your creatures, and with Bear Umbra ramps you up.
Cartouche of Knowledge
+
Traveler's Cloak
+
Unquestioned Authority
- Evasion, draws a card.
Kenrith's Transformation
+
Seal of Cleansing
+
Seal of Primordium
- Removal that also synergies with your enchanters.
Finest Hour
- Exalted synergy
Psychic Corrosion + Sphinx's Tutelage
- Alternate win con if attacking somehow isn't an option.
THE LACK OF ANY OTHER SORCERIES AND INSTANTS
Primal Surge
- I know the lack of instant speed removal is kinda risky, but with the design of the deck if you resolve this, you can flip the whole deck, make a massive attack threat, and get your
Eidolon of Blossoms
+
Psychic Corrosion
+
Sphinx's Tutelage
and mill everyone out simultaneously. Just be careful and keep track of how many cards are left in your library, or else you risk accidentally killing yourself by drawing out more than you can afford. Eidolon is not a "may" ability.
I'd love to hear any feedback people have. There are so many more cards I wanted to include, but there are just too many synergies to cram into a single deck with a 100 card limit.
