Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain | Art by Shiren

Avatar: The Last Airbender represents a rarity for me: a Universes Beyond intellectual property I actually enjoy. Regardless of the property, however, my approach remains the same: find the typal commanders and look for ones that breathe life into existing creature types, coalesce under-supported ones, or move them into new colors or directions.

Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain, much like the character, breaks convention and supports a type that has been referenced a few times, but lacked a leader.

In the Avatar world, Suki is a Kyoshi Warrior, a group of geisha-like makeup-clad all-female Warriors who are named after Kyoshi, an incarnation of the titular embodiment of the bond between the “real” and “spirit” worlds. She breaks conformity by being a fearsome warrior while still embracing her feminine side.

Warriors in Magic

Warriors in Magic have had some support, especially on Tarkir, with the Dromoka and Mardu Warriors. They're one of several white-based small creatures, like Soldiers and Knights. So, how do we tell them apart? 

Soldiers tend to be 1/1s that support each other with numbers. Knights tend to be 2/2s with first strike. Warriors are also 1/1s, but they don’t reference each other that much. Then again, they never got an Onslaught set to themselves.

Our commander, Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain, is a strong example of a commander that leads from the front while supporting her friends. She and her ilk are clearly trained in martial arts, but, as the dangers grow, it becomes clear that they learned about fighting in the abstract, rather than having actual battlefield experience, leading her to get captured multiple times.

As a result, Warriors feel more like a militia than an army, differentiating them from Soldiers and Knights. But how do we get a type without a lot of overlap to work? And are there enough cheap Warriors to make a cohesive aggressive strategy?

What Does Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain Do?

Suki is a 3/3 for , making her an excellent aggressive creature. She can easily lead from the front with her solid rate and is just as good on offense as defense, as shown by the shield and sword in her art. Her other abilities also show her strong leadership skills and the support she has for her teammates.

Suki’s primary ability is an anthem, one of an archetype of effects that provide a static power and toughness boost to all creatures that meet certain criteria: in this case, Warriors we control. These effects represent the resolution with which our Warriors fight. The longer the battle goes on, the stronger our resolve gets.

Suki’s second ability is incredibly powerful, but a bit over-costed. She gives attacking Warriors we control double strike until end of turn for the cost of four mana. She can do this at instant speed, but the benefits to doing so are limited. The best use is likely leaving mana up during declare blockers, so opponents have to play around the ability, and then activating it once blocks are lined up.

The inability to use it defensively, however, is a major limit on Suki’s power level.

Suki is an intriguing commander because, like her character, she defies conventions. She can lead from the front, with her aggressive stats and cost, or from the back, with her anthem effect and the activated ability granting her allies (well, Warriors) a considerable advantage in combat. 

Key Cards for Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain

Much of the core of the deck comes from Tarkir. Cheap Warriors include evasive threats like Aven SkirmisherAven Skirmisher and incidental graveyard hate like Mardu Woe-ReaperMardu Woe-Reaper. These bodies can get quite threatening with enough anthems and synergize well with card draw that cares about casting small creatures.

Tarkir also provided key support spells that reference the creature type. Herald of DromokaHerald of Dromoka is a vigilant Grizzly BearsGrizzly Bears that grants vigilance to all of our Warriors, allowing us to attack and keep up a defense. Arashin ForemostArashin Foremost acts as a smaller version of our commander’s activated ability, granting double strike to another attacking Warrior.

Anthems are strong effects in small creature decks (or "weenie" decks), and they get better and better as they stack up. Spear of HeliodSpear of Heliod is an anthem that gives our hyperaggressive build some important defense, acting as a “rattlesnake” card, one that disincentivizes counterattacks.

Always WatchingAlways Watching, like Herald of DromokaHerald of Dromoka, grants our nontoken creatures vigilance.

Some decks want removal, while others want to go full throttle. Rather than waste time trying to find removal and line it up against opposing threats, we’d rather answer the questions. We can go wide with Secure the WastesSecure the Wastes or tall with Jazal GoldmaneJazal Goldmane, either of which threaten to end games in short succession, regardless of what threats opponents put out.

With a deck that’s committed to the board as much as this one, we need ways to protect against interaction, rather than attempting to remove threats. Akroma's WillAkroma's Will pulls double-duty as a finisher and a protection spell, while Flawless ManeuverFlawless Maneuver, Flare of FortitudeFlare of Fortitude, and Unbreakable FormationUnbreakable Formation, as well as the flashback on Prismatic StrandsPrismatic Strands, can catch opponents by surprise.

As mentioned earlier, we want small Warriors because they trigger certain draw effects. Folk HeroFolk Hero draws us cards for casting Warriors with our commander out, while Mentor of the MeekMentor of the Meek lets us use the excess mana we get from casting cheap creature spells. This helps us dig to find our board-breaking spells.

Our nonbasics are primarily centered around swarming the board and attacking. Windbrisk HeightsWindbrisk Heights and Minas TirithMinas Tirith are among the stronger hidden draw spells in the deck, giving even more benefits to turning our Warriors sideways.

How Does This Suki, Kyoshi CaptainSuki, Kyoshi Captain Commander Deck Win?

Similar to Knights and Soldiers, we’re looking to add to the board early and often, cementing our position with anthems and protection spells while drawing cards to find boardbreaking finishers.

Suki, Kyoshi Captain Commander Deck List

Conclusion

Warriors are, admittedly, similar to other white weenie strategies. They represent martial artists, rather than military Soldiers or feudal Knights, using fighting more as a form of meditation than a form of warfare. As a result, their strength comes more from leadership, tactics, and teamwork than from individual strength.

But how would you build Warriors? And how do you differentiate them from other white weenie types?

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