Betor, Ancestor's VoiceBetor, Ancestor's Voice | Art by Lius Lasahido

Welcome to a new Deck Forge, a column series where I take a Magic creator's decklist from Archidekt and compare it to the average decklist generated from EDHREC's deck database to see what ideas and insights might be found. If you're curious how I went about doing this, I'll go over it briefly at the end of this article.

This week the deck we're tossing into the Forge is Betor, Ancestor's VoiceBetor, Ancestor's Voice, as played by The Professor from Tolarian Community College from episode #94 of Shuffle Up & Play.

Who won the game? You'll have to watch the video to find out! The Professor's cool deck was gifted to him by his friend Alec of The Faerie Conclave podcast.

What Does Betor, Ancestor's VoiceBetor, Ancestor's Voice Do?

Betor, Ancestor's VoiceBetor, Ancestor's Voice is actually the #4 most popular Abzan () commander in the EDHREC deck database! A deck built around Betor wants you to gain as much life as possible during your turn, since its trigger happens at the beginning of your end step. Betor has lifelink so once it can attack the life gain can help with that.

The trigger wants other creatures on the battlefield to grow with +1/+1 counters, and creatures in the graveyard you can reanimate back to the battlefield, so this suggests a deck that is chock full of creatures.

I divided each deck's cards into categories that you'd expect from a Betor deck; let's step through each and compare and contrast the two.

Lifegain

In Both Decks

These three cards are certainly what you'd expect to see, with Soul's AttendantSoul's Attendant being one of the proverbial "Soul Sisters" that can really rake up life gain, though life you gain during your opponents' turns won't directly feed Betor's ability.

Children of KorlisChildren of Korlis and Rhox FaithmenderRhox Faithmender can really ramp up life gain in a single turn. I'm actually a bit surprised there are only three cards in common, but that just goes to show the wide variety of lifegain choices available across the Abzan color combination.

In Only The Professor's Deck

Courser of KruphixCourser of Kruphix provides some card selection by letting you play lands from the top of your library, with the landfall trigger gaining a bit of life. Creeping BloodsuckerCreeping Bloodsucker deals a point of damage to each opponent during your upkeep, so that's good for three points of life during your turn for most of the game. Essence HarvestEssence Harvest is a way to go on the offense with lifegain, and takes advantage of Betor boosting your creatures with +1/+1 counters.

FumigateFumigate's lifegain is certainly on theme, though it will usually be tough to play this and Betor on the same turn to juice the Betor ability. Gray Merchant of AsphodelGray Merchant of Asphodel isn't going to be quite as powerful as it usually is in a mono-black deck, but even if the only other black permanent is Betor that's still nine life gained which is big game. Plus, Betor can bring it back when it dies!

If you can set Eternity VesselEternity Vessel's charge counters high enough, you can drain your own life for effects and then a landfall trigger will gain your life back, and it will likely be a be rush of life for Betor.

These three all seem solid and aggressive creatures, and easily brought back from the graveyard with Betor.

Does anyone else remember when Twilight ProphetTwilight Prophet was a crazy expensive card? I don't even know if I own one, but I might need to pick a few up now. Once you ascend the card draw and the lifegain will work wonders! Wurmcoil EngineWurmcoil Engine is a classic that plays great with the lifegain theme and is great to bring back from the graveyard.

In Only EDHREC's Average Deck

The two Wardens are the other "Soul Sisters" cards I would have expected to be in both decks, while Archangel of ThuneArchangel of Thune is a spicy way to spread a ton of +1/+1 counters to your entire team, including Betor.

Bloodthirsty ConquerorBloodthirsty Conqueror turns combat damage to a potentially large life gain, while Dragonlord DromokaDragonlord Dromoka shuts down spell interaction during your turn.

Envoy of the AncestorsEnvoy of the Ancestors plays well with Betor's +1/+1 counter ability, and Vault of the ArchangelVault of the Archangel is an excellent late game mana sink when you've got a sizeable battlefield.

Lifegain Payoffs

In Both Decks

Drawing cards for life is always a nice tradeoff when you're constantly gaining life!

Doom WhispererDoom Whisperer is an amazing card that I so rarely see played, so I'm thrilled to see it in both decks. On the other hand, Vilis, Broker of BloodVilis, Broker of Blood surprises me to see it in both decks, given its heavy black mana commitment. But if you can keep it around it will draw a bunch of cards.

These are two excellent reanimation spells that provide some redundancy with Betor's ability to bring creatures back from the graveyard.

In Only The Professor's Deck

EDHREC luminary Dana Roach would be beaming with pride to see all these card draw spells in The Professor's deck, which helps decks make land drops and keep the gas flowing. Peer into the AbyssPeer into the Abyss is a spicy include!

Tivash, Gloom SummonerTivash, Gloom Summoner is a great way to trade your lifegain for a huge flying Demon token, and since it has lifelink it makes an awesome recipient of Betor's +1/+1 counters. Underrealm LichUnderrealm Lich is spicy tech to fill your graveyard with creatures you can get back with Betor. Unspeakable SymbolUnspeakable Symbol is another excellent way to boost the size of lifelink creatures, and is pretty insane in conjunction with Eternity VesselEternity Vessel.

In Only EDHREC's Average Deck

Anguished UnmakingAnguished Unmaking and Bitter TriumphBitter Triumph are nice removal options in a deck that easily recoups the life, but I really love seeing Beledros WitherbloomBeledros Witherbloom here to trade ten life for a full untap of all your lands once a turn!

Black Market ConnectionsBlack Market Connections trades life each turn for a burst of resources, while Bolas's CitadelBolas's Citadel can go bonkers casting spells from the top of your deck. Celestine, the Living SaintCelestine, the Living Saint provides a little bit of reanimation redundancy for Betor.

Enduring TenacityEnduring Tenacity turns lifegain into a win condition. Exemplar of LightExemplar of Light and Heliod, Sun-CrownedHeliod, Sun-Crowned play with the +1/+1 counter theme in the average deck, and Exemplar even draws an extra card for you.

Lathiel, the Bounteous DawnLathiel, the Bounteous Dawn is another redundancy piece, this time with the +1/+1 counter side of Betor. You should easily be able to take advantage of both triggers for Lunar ConvocationLunar Convocation. Ripples of UndeathRipples of Undeath plays a similar graveyard stocking role as Underrealm LichUnderrealm Lich in The Professor's deck, and I think I like that a bit better since it can take Betor's +1/+1 counters.

Rodolf DuskbringerRodolf Duskbringer is yet another card that brings creatures back from the graveyard based on the life you gain, and makes an excellent recipient of +1/+1 counters. Sanguine BondSanguine Bond is another way to make lifegain a win condition, and Serra AscendantSerra Ascendant can just be silly if you deploy it early enough in a game where you start at 40 life.

Staff of CompleationStaff of Compleation offers a lot of choices to trade life for a variety of effects, while the awesome Sylvan LibrarySylvan Library gives you extra cards.

Vito, Thorn of the Dusk RoseVito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose is another way to turn your lifegain into a win condition, while Willowdusk, Essence SeerWillowdusk, Essence Seer plays around with the +1/+1 counter subtheme.

Removal

I'm not going to comment on the removal options since most of them are common to Commander decks; the breakout is presented here for the curious. I do like seeing a bit more interaction as shown in The Professor's deck, though I appreciate the two spells that can be played as lands on the back side in the average deck to keep making land drops in a pinch.

In Both Decks

• Haywire MiteHaywire Mite
• Assassin's TrophyAssassin's Trophy

In Only The Professor's Deck

• DamnDamn
• Beast WithinBeast Within
• Reclamation SageReclamation Sage
• Settle the WreckageSettle the Wreckage
• Noxious GearhulkNoxious Gearhulk
• Elesh Norn, Grand CenobiteElesh Norn, Grand Cenobite

In Only EDHREC's Average Deck

• Path to ExilePath to Exile
• Swords to PlowsharesSwords to Plowshares
• Infernal GraspInfernal Grasp
• Feed the SwarmFeed the Swarm
• Toxic DelugeToxic Deluge
• Fell the ProfaneFell the Profane
• Witch EnchanterWitch Enchanter

Mana

Similarly I won't comment on the mana choices since most of them are common to Commander decks; the breakout is presented here for the curious. I will comment that I rarely like seeing artifact mana outside of Sol RingSol Ring in green decks when green has so many excellent land ramp spells that can also fix your colors.

In Both Decks

• Sol RingSol Ring
• Birds of ParadiseBirds of Paradise
• Elves of Deep ShadowElves of Deep Shadow
• Arcane SignetArcane Signet
• Sakura-Tribe ElderSakura-Tribe Elder

In Only The Professor's Deck

• Llanowar ElvesLlanowar Elves
• Avacyn's PilgrimAvacyn's Pilgrim
• Chromatic LanternChromatic Lantern
• Wood ElvesWood Elves

In Only EDHREC's Average Deck

• FarseekFarseek
• Talisman of HierarchyTalisman of Hierarchy
• Talisman of ResilienceTalisman of Resilience
• Kami of Whispered HopesKami of Whispered Hopes
• CultivateCultivate

Other Cards

In Both Decks

None! What are the unique cards to each deck that aren't directly tied to Betor's themes?

In Only The Professor's Deck

The Professor leans a bit heavily into graveyard stocking with MulchMulch and Satyr WayfinderSatyr Wayfinder, while Batwing BrumeBatwing Brume is a surprise defensive card that can prevent combat damage and potentially even cause a big life loss if an opponent has gone wide and is attacking with a bunch of creatures.

Lingering SoulsLingering Souls provides easy fodder to sacrifice to Umbral Collar ZealotUmbral Collar Zealot for more library selection and graveyard stocking, while InkshieldInkshield is blowout card to turn a big attack into a huge flying offense.

Thrun, the Last TrollThrun, the Last Troll is tough to deal with, especially if Betor keeps stacking it up with +1/+1 counters. Unburial RitesUnburial Rites is another reanimation spell, but this has flashback.

In Only EDHREC's Average Deck

I really like Selfless SpiritSelfless Spirit here since it can be sacrificed to protect from a battlefield sweeper, and easily returned to the battlefield with Betor or any number of reanimation effects to run it back.

Buried AliveBuried Alive seems a little risky and could "draw aggro" with graveyard removal, but it can combine with a big life gain turn with Betor to bring back something from the graveyard that started the turn in your deck. TerrasymbiosisTerrasymbiosis and Kutzil, Malamet ExemplarKutzil, Malamet Exemplar play well with the +1/+1 counter theme to draw extra cards.

Eternal WitnessEternal Witness, Disciple of FreyaliseDisciple of Freyalise, and Eerie UltimatumEerie Ultimatum are just good cards in the Abzan colors, with Disciple being another spell that can double as a land in a pinch.

Mana Curve

The Professor's Betor

Avg Mana Value: 3.35

EDHREC Average Deck

Avg Mana Value: 3.02

The Professor's deck is a bit chonky at the five mana spot, so I have to give props to the EDHREC average deck in this regard.

Land Base

The Professor's deck runs 40 lands, compared to the average deck running just 35. If you add in the two spells that can be played as lands, I do still think that's a bit land light for a five-mana commander.

Conclusion

I'm not surprised to find the average EDHREC deck list to be closer to what I would likely build as a stock Betor deck, but I do appreciate many of the spicy choices that The Professor's deck has, particularly Peer into the AbyssPeer into the Abyss! To better fix that curve, I'd probably look to trim his deck's stack of five-mana spells and bulk up the number of two- and three-mana spells.

I also like that the Professor's deck doesn't really lean too much into +1/+1 counter synergies, a mechanic that I find a bit wearisome to keep track of and tends to really complicate the battlefield.

If you have a Betor deck or are interested in building one, which direction would you lean? What sort of cards would you put in the deck that didn't get featured in either?

Do Your Own Deck Forge!

Start by pulling up the commander you want to compare in EDHREC; note the tags if you want to focus the deck lists down - in this case I selected Lifegain, and then clicked on the Average Deck button.

Once you generate the deck list, click on the Export button and select Archidekt

It will bring it over into Archidekt but you will be in sandbox mode, so you can tinker with the list and use the Playtester, but if you want to run a comparison, you'll need to click on the "To save this as a new deck, click here" button.

Once you do that, click on the Compare button on the upper right hand side.

Then you'll be able to select another Archidekt list to compare it to; in this case, I pointed directly to The Professor's Betor deck list.

When you click Compare Decks, you'll get some stats on how many cards match versus not matching, and there will be drill downs into the cards for each one.

Have fun!

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