Who would you suggest for a R/W EDH General?
Deck Help forum
Posted on May 11, 2012, 7:24 p.m. by CptDanger
I'm thinking about making a R/W EDH deck since a lot of people on campus play EDH and it seems to be a growing format. What do you all think about general choices? I was thinking about either Gisela, Blade of Goldnight or Jor Kadeen, the Prevailer.
Also: I've never made an EDH deck before so is there anything I should know? Should I just throw cards in that are just excellent cards overall? Is there a ratio of land to non-land cards that I should be around?
Land count is usually just below 40 land. Staple cards that would be must in's for your deck (no matter what general you choose) would be Boros Signet, Darksteel Ingot, Sol Ring and Command Tower. You'll also want some artifact/enchantment hate like Return to Dust and Orim's Thunder. Graveyard hate is usually also a mustGrafdigger's Cage is an example. If you plan on winning through a creature strategy Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots are great for protecting your creatures.
May 11, 2012 8:14 p.m.
This guide:
http://community.wizards.com/go/thread/view/75842/18884586/Zergs_EDH_Deckbuilding_Guide
... is something that I found very useful when I was just getting into the format over a year ago. Some of things you should hold true for every EDH you'll ever build, while some other things you can take with a grain of salt.
The best way to immerse yourself in EDH is to get a group of friends and just play the hell out of it. Don't get frustrated or burned out if your opponents' decks are better/faster/stronger, either. Yours will have that same caliber in the future.
If I, personally, had to give you advice, get used to browsing around magiccards.info (yes, it's a URL) for ideas and inspiration. Using the Advanced Search option, you can easily find just about any card to suit your wants and needs. For example, below is a list of all R/W Legendary Creatures.
http://magiccards.info/query?q=t%3A%22legendary+creature%22+c%21wrm&v=card&s=cname
(Notice that it's a short list.)
How powerful your Commander is as a stand-alone creature largely depends on how you will build around it, similar to what it does, what it prevents, what it draws out, and what it doesn't do. Obviously, the only real strategy to use with Rhys the Redeemed is generating/abusing creature tokens. Inversely, there are about a million different things you can do with the likes of Zur the Enchanter.
If you go Jor Kadeen, the Prevailer, your deck will probably include lots of potent equipment (namely Umezawa's Jitte, Sword of Fire and Ice, etc.), lots of equipment-support cards (Puresteel Paladin, Leonin Abunas, Leonin Shikari, Stoneforge Mystic), a good deal of combat-efficient creatures (Mirran Crusader, Paladin en-Vec, Riders of Gavony), some "Anthem" effects (Honor of the Pure, Knight Exemplar, Balefire Liege), and, finally, some fat bombs for a late-game boost (Akroma, Angel of Wrath, Avacyn, Angel of Hope , Magmatic Force, Storm Herd).
Of course, this is just one of a handful of ways to do it. You could always make a Human-Tribal EDH with Artifact support, a R/W Artifact-disruption deck, or just straight beat-down with enough utility Artifacts for Metalcraft.
(continued in next post)
May 11, 2012 8:14 p.m.
There's a lot to learn about EDH and deckbuilding, but the most important thing to remember is that it's a casual format. It was designed to be played around the kitchen table and your deck should reflect that sense of "Thursday night Magic at John's apartment", if you catch my drift.
That's not to say your deck needs to suck on purpose, at all. To have the most fun in EDH, I find, you should have a good handful of "group-hug" cards, like Jace Beleren, Temple Bell, and cards that give advantages to everyone (though maybe more to you than anyone else). Not only will this take a target off of your back, your games will also be more lengthy and enjoyable instead of "Turn-3, Jokulhaups. Go."
Overall, just have fun with deckbuilding. Building a deck in EDH is one of the most challenging yet rewarding aspects of the game of Magic, IMHO. Have a blast!
May 11, 2012 8:14 p.m.
kevinmtg24 says... #7
I wouldnt recommend Gisela, Blade of Goldnight. Yes, she is good but her ability just makes the game not fun for your opponent and EDH/Commander is a very social format. Shes kind of like Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger or Sen Triplets. I LOVE Jor Kadeen, the Prevailer, but you can also choose from Agrus Kos, Wojek Veteran, Basandra, Battle Seraph, Brion Stoutarm, and Razia, Boros Archangel.
May 11, 2012 10:13 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #8
I wrote an EDH article here that you may want to check out in addition to the information zandl provided.
In the article I give a link to a list of EDH generals. I do think that Gisela, Blade of Goldnight is a good choice.
May 11, 2012 10:18 p.m.
Hum. I didn't realize this thread got this much love. I wasn't getting notifications and I didn't think to check it on my own. Thanks a bunch, guys. I've decided to make a U/B EDH instead simply because of my extreme lack of white cards / extreme abundance of blue and black cards. I sort of feel like I wasted your times in a sense, but the insight you all provided made this thread worth it. :3
zandl: thanks for the fountain of info you provided. I usually just use the Wizards' Gatherer and view peoples' comments there, see what they have to say, etc. And I also thought the same thing, that's why I'm including some spares I have like Font of Mythos, Jace Beleren, Otherworld Atlas, etc. in the deck. I watched an EDH game on campus and I overheard one of the people using Jace's +2 ability and people were asking "Jace has umpteen counters, why don't you use his third ability yet?" and his response was, "Why? The first ability gives more cards for everyone, makes the game more fun, and makes it go quicker." and that just stuck with me.
Mr_Nate says... #2
I think Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
is a strong choice. I also think Brion Stoutarm
is a fun general to build around.
May 11, 2012 7:49 p.m.