Budget Building Requirements
Commander (EDH) forum
Posted on Dec. 30, 2019, 12:14 a.m. by JANKYARD_DOG
Hiya all, got some questions for the hivemind to answer regarding building on a budget. I'm making an Extreme Budget Build (.50$/card and UW in color) of an existing deck (or trying) and am hitting a few road blocks.
First off; If you rely heavily on your commander would you as a budget builder still make sure to include Lightning Greaves /Boots or would you include extra counters/bounce to save their hide for the sake of keeping true to the monetary goals?
Second, Mana rocks. The classic debate of Sol Ring 's mandatory inclusion continues, but even some signets now come in over $1, close to 2. They aren't rare cards by any means and the average person generally has some kicking about, however, alot of the cheap rocks are in the 3cmc slot and if you're not in green real estate options get slimmer. So how do you stay on curve? Take the hit and include them or add extra early draw maybe so you hopefully hit more lands. Or on that topic increase your land count and forget the rocks all together?
And lastly Lands. Given the mana hungry nature of the game, especially in this case, there's the question of basics vs tap lands. My theory is limit tapped to dual lands, but my concern is drawing into only one type given the lack of available options and not wanting to be slowed down by said tapped lands. So how do we get that 'Good but not great' balance to not be dead in the water half the time?
That's it for now, trying to use my brain power up so I might actually sleep eventually XD. Any questions or if anything isn't clear just let me know and I'll try to remedy it asap. For now, thanks for reading and all your comments. Arrivederci
dingusdingo says... #4
1) Is it better to run Lightning Greaves or more counterspells?
Gonna go with Greaves here. You have 3 opponents, there is 1 of you. If you trade counterspell for removal 1-for-1 all day, you're going to run out of cards protecting your shit faster than your opponents will run out of cards trying to get rid of it. Also consider Swiftfoot Boots for budget option! Also consider Neurok Stealthsuit if you're in blue.
2) Mana rocks
Less cost to cast is far superior here, but accounting for budget adds roadblocks. From a play perspective, its better to invest mana turn 2 to have a big turn 3, rather than invest mana turn 3 to have a big turn 4. Look for rocks that come out on turn 2. If the talismans are too pricey, consider the even more budget signets Gruul Signet etc. etc. for the whole color wheel. There are also a handful of extremely nice 2 CMC budget rocks, Mind Stone Prismatic Lens Fractured Powerstone . The talismans are a pretty good investment though, because you can use them in so many different decks. Same with a card like Sol Ring . If you're gonna splurge, rocks are usually a good spot to do it. Also about lands vs. rocks, you should include both. You want to get ahead of the mana curve in 99.9% of situations in MTG.
3) Lands, color, tapped vs untapped
When building for EDH, I try to go for lands that give access to more than one color, that enter untapped, and you can use multiple times. These lands have been pretty well identified, and you can no longer get them for $1 or $2 like previously. This is another great spot to splurge when deckbuilding, because you can always use lands in future decks if you disassemble, and it makes a big power level difference. If you must include enter tapped lands, look for lands with lots of color diversity of unique abilities. Arcane Sanctum and other tri color lands are my go-to for budget 3-4 color decks. After that, ETB tapped two color lands are preferred. It is worth noting that if you have included good color diversity with your rocks, it makes color diversity from lands easier too. So having all the signets + talismans really helps if your lands aren't as good. Its okay to include ETB tapped lands, but know that the more you include will take away speed from your deck. Definitely agreeable for budget players though!
My last recommendation for mana color production is plug your list into tappedout and use their data to make changes. It will show you all the color costs in your deck, against all the color producers in your deck. Wonderful tool for seeing your mana production needs.
Joe_Ken_ says... #2
My Damon Blackblade deck came in under $50 so if you would like to check that out to give you some ideas then you can.
Budget Blackblade
December 30, 2019 7:56 a.m.