Captain Howler, Sea ScourgeCaptain Howler, Sea Scourge | Art by Mirko Failoni

Chumming the Waters

Hello fellow brewer and welcome back to Brew For Your Buck, where we swap out the top 10 most expensive cards in a deck with 10 budget cards that add a unique twist.

We have a special article this week, the first of reader deck tech submissions! This one comes from Ryan (the one I've mentioned many times), who submitted a new commander from Aetherdrift: 

I love sharks, I love pirates, and a commander from the new set? A perfect way to kick off the deck techs! I always ask that readers submit their goals for their deck, and they don't just have to be about budget! Ryan’s goals for his Captain Howler deck are as follows:

• Keep it casual: combos are okay but no fast mana (besides Sol RingSol Ring), free counters, or high powered tutors.
• Mana base needs an overhaul, only 32 lands and a lot of them are basics.
• Consolidate and focus the deck’s strategy.
• Bonus points for abusing Captain Howler on opposing turns to mess with combat.

These are some excellent goals, and ones that merge great with the BFYB strategy for this deck. Ryan’s list starts at $347.46, compared to EDHREC’s average list price of$156.90, so we know we can get the price down in addition to meeting the other goals. Let’s remove the top 10 nonlands and see where we get to:

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Jeweled AmuletJeweled Amulet ($8.00)
               2. Nezahal, Primal TideNezahal, Primal Tide ($7.76)
               3. Ledger ShredderLedger Shredder ($6.97)
               4. Kiki-Jiki, Mirror BreakerKiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker ($6.97)
               5. Fear of Missing OutFear of Missing Out ($6.09)
               6. Jace's ArchivistJace's Archivist ($5.21)
               7. GambleGamble ($5.05)
               8. Professional Face-BreakerProfessional Face-Breaker ($4.69)
               9. Slicer, Hired MuscleSlicer, Hired Muscle ($4.27)
               10. Seething SongSeething Song ($4.23)

Total Value of Cuts: $59.24

Not a huge amount of savings here, but we did remove the Kiki-JikiKiki-Jiki/FOMOFOMO infinite combo, and a flexible tutor with GambleGamble, in line with Ryan’s goals for a more casual-focused experience. Very convenient that they were in the top ten list!

But where are all the expensive cards? Well, Ryan did ask me to look at the mana base. Not only is it in need of some tweaking, but it makes up a massive portion of the cost of the deck.

Replacing the expensive lands leads to an additional $234.90 in savings, for a total of $294.14. Since tweaking the mana base is one of Ryan’s goals, we’ll start there, then look at some other replacements.

Additions

Mana Base

First, I want to get three more lands in the deck. 35 is still a bit low but with all the cycling available to help draw us into them, it should be ok.

I’m going to cut these cards to make room, since I don't think they really push the deck's strategy much:

Rite of Flame is like a land you can only use for a turn, AlexiosAlexios is similar to SlicerSlicer, which we already removed, and DispelDispel is too narrow. So what goes in?

I love the flexibility of the double-faced cards, and Pinnacle MonkPinnacle Monk/Rush of InspirationRush of Inspiration even help with the deck's gameplan.

As for the bounce land, you can get yourself from discard fodder for free, and have the edge case of untapping it right away with Frantic SearchFrantic Search.

Now we need to replace the expensive lands. This is a big list, so I’m going to include a quick review of the more interesting additions. You can see the final deck for the new mana base, but I’ll include the cost savings in the wrap up as usual.

• Forgotten CaveForgotten Cave - to go along with its best friend Lonely SandbarLonely Sandbar
• Shivan ReefShivan Reef, Sulfur FallsSulfur Falls, Stormcarved CoastStormcarved Coast for some cheaper dual lands
• Remote IsleRemote Isle, Smoldering CraterSmoldering Crater - more cycling lands, but these two are extra important because...

Library Fluctuations

I’ve advised in my beginner articles that asking yourself “how do I win the game?” is an important question when deck building.

For Ryan, it’s either discard a bunch of cards and smash with Captain Howler and friends, or the combo of MalcolmMalcolm and Glint-HornGlint-Horn. I like this combo because it's on theme (Pirates & Discard) so we'll leave it as an option as a win condition.

I’m going to add another combo into this by throwing in two artifacts. FluctuatorFluctuator ($0.55) and Library of LengLibrary of Leng ($1.06), along with any cycling or card means we can infinitely discard cards, meaning our fearless Captain can infinite pump himself and his friends or we deal infinite damage with Glint-HornGlint-Horn, Brallin, Skyshark RiderBrallin, Skyshark Rider, and the newly printed Magmakin ArtilleristMagmakin Artillerist ($0.21).

Going Wide

Okay, so how do we win without a combo? Drake HavenDrake Haven ($0.26) is the first thing that comes to mind, making us a 2/2 flyer as long as we have the mana to pay for it.

This will greatly increase the availability of creatures to pump with Captain Howler, and you don't even need to make too many for them to become scary airborne threats.

Speaking of, The Locust GodThe Locust God ($2.71) works really well with all of the cycling we're doing. Assuming you can discard and draw one card at a time, you get (n-1) 3/1 flying hasty Insects, where n is the number of cards drawn.

And yes, it's also a finisher with LibraryLibrary/FluctuatorFluctuator if you manage to set that up.

"Helping" Opponents

Ryan said that I'd get bonus points for enabling shenanigans with Captain Howler to pump opposing creatures while our opponents are attacking each other.

To enable this, we want some instant speed discard outlets, so AquamoebaAquamoeba ($0.06) is a must to go with the Ghostly Pilferer that's already in the deck. Tectonic ReformationTectonic Reformation ($0.19) and the newly printed Rhet-Tomb MysticRhet-Tomb Mystic ($1.13) are also "discard outlets" in that they grant cycling to all every card of the two most plentiful card types in the deck.

With these three, we can "help" our opponents do extra damage, and I'm already grinning at all of the ridiculous political situations that this deck can get Ryan into.

Synergy Replacements

Rounding out the replacements, I want to include some cards that offer similar effects to a card we removed.

Starting with Circular LogicCircular Logic ($0.13) to replace DispelDispel. The former can pretty quickly turn into into a one mana CounterspellCounterspell in this deck, making it far more flexible than Dispel and more in line with the deck's theme.

The same goes with Change of FortuneChange of Fortune ($0.20) to replace Jace's ArchivistJace's Archivist. Sometimes, you just need a refill!

Wrap Up & Savings

Let's see what we saved:

81% savings!! That's certainly up there in our highest percentage saved for the whole series! I had a lot of fun looking for cards to go in this deck, and there are SO MANY cool ones. Here are some honorable mentions real quick:

• Hazoret's MonumentHazoret's Monument as another discard outlet
• ForbidForbid, FoilFoil, and Muddle the MixtureMuddle the Mixture as counterspells
• Forgotten CreationForgotten Creation as an optional wheel effect
• Abandoned SarcophagusAbandoned Sarcophagus seems like it could get goofy
• Surly BadgersaurSurly Badgersaur the red Bone MiserBone Miser seems especially combo-rific
• Turbulent DreamsTurbulent Dreams could be a budget Cyclonic RiftCyclonic Rift?

Ryan, I hope you like the final product. Clearly you can take this deck in a lot of different directions and up and down the power level curve, so let me know in the comments if you have suggestions for additions, questions about what I added, or your own feedback for Ryan. If you're interested in having a deck featured on the series, send an email to [email protected] along with an Archidekt list and a few sentences about your goals for the deck. Until then, happy brewing, and I'll see you next time when we brew for your buck!

Please note: card prices listed in this article are accurate at the time of writing, but prices can vary over time and between locations.

Brian Cain

Brian played Magic intermittently between 2003 and 2017 when he fully embraced his love for Commander. Finding ways to maximize the value of each piece of cardboard in the deck is one of his favorite things to explore, especially if it involves putting lands in the graveyard! Outside of Magic, Brian works as a consultant in the marine industry, turning his passion for boats and ships into a career.