The Scorpion GodThe Scorpion God | Art by Lius Lasahido

Greetings and salutations my fellow brewers, from a place where November is apparently still firmly set in Summer. I'm Arnaud, and I'm thrilled to take you on a journey of nasty counters, untimely deaths, and value engines.

Last time, we parted ways with the usual poll, and I'm quite pleased at seeing that the results seem to increase week after week. Third place went to Zimone, Paradox SculptorZimone, Paradox Sculptor, with 14 votes. I wonder if this is due to her being a recent and somewhat boring commander.

Second spot, a close contender, is Yennett, Cryptic SovereignYennett, Cryptic Sovereign, accruing 29 votes (39%). I'll be honest, I was secretly rooting for her, so don't be too surprised if she comes back in a poll sometime in the near future.

With 31 votes (42%), our winner therefore is none other than our Lord of Counters, The Scorpion GodThe Scorpion God.

Of the three, this one is by far the least popular, with 2,577 decks to its name. Comparatively, The Locust GodThe Locust God has 6,319 and The Scarab GodThe Scarab God proudly boasts 12,413.

This doesn't mean however that there's no fun to be had. 6/5 for isn't too bad of a ratio, and its ability to come back over and over again by somehow skirting the commander tax is nothing to scoff at. Oh, and it can also produce an insane amount of card draw.

Let's cut the banter here and dive right in, by taking each and every card from the regular and budget options on EDHREC, and dumping them into Archidekt.

This nets a grand total of 309 cards. Time to sharpen the axe.

First Trim – The Cardboard Chainsaw Massacre

Before getting to work, a quick word on methodology. These articles are all about building decks without using any card worth $1.11 or more. This doesn't mean they can't get powerful, but don't expect anything absolutely mind-blowing. My goal here is to try providing something that can be both fun and decent to play around casual tables, in Bracket 2 to low-3s.

With these considerations out of the way, let's cut. Getting rid of anything worth more than $2 already sinks the list down to 211 cards, and it's only the beginning.

Before diving deeper, let's take a look at the nicest options in the $1.11-$2 range, in case you feel like indulging yourself some treats:

• Persistent ConstrictorPersistent Constrictor: Probably one of the best outlets available for this deck, period. And that persist is annoying as hell.
• Tainted StrikeTainted Strike: Counters are counters. And that's a nasty wincon.
• PhyresisPhyresis: Likewise.
• Grim PoppetGrim Poppet: A Triskelion for -1/-1 counters? Sure, even if the mana value is a bit steep.
• Massacre WurmMassacre Wurm: No, it does not give -1/-1 counters, but it will still sweep the table and hurt your opponents in the process.

This leaves four cards in the $1-$1.10 range:

• Diabolic TutorDiabolic Tutor: Likely to go away. I'm not a fan of tutoring in these decks
• HeartstoneHeartstone: This, on the other hand, is almost an auto-include, if only for the commander's ability.
• Thought VesselThought Vessel: A versatile rock I like to include in almost any deck up to two colors.
• Swiftfoot BootsSwiftfoot Boots: They have yet to make a more universal protection outlet.

This brings the list down to 195 cards already. It's been a while since the 200-card threshold was passed this early in the brew. Onwards.

Second Trim – Cardward Scissorhands

Before deciding on the actual direction this deck will go (spoiler, it seems quite straightforward), let's address the veggies.

As things stand, they're not too bad:

I will probably not touch the Draw section too much, despite having a nice outlet in the command zone. Your commander won't always be on the battlefield, and you need some gas to keep going.

Removal is going to be the tricky part here, as there are a bunch of -1/-1 counter enablers lying around. I'll keep it to a minimum, to make way for the core strategy.

All of this leads to the following cuts:

Things are looking quite good around here. 140 cards and counting, time to get into the meat of the deck.

Third Trim – Cutting Off the Rough Edges

Now that the bothersome part has been taken care of, let's take a closer look at the fun bits.

First, the core issue: there's a bunch of infect and proliferate outlets out there, and I believe this is a serious contender for a winning strategy. There are a few missing key enablers here though: Ichorclaw MyrIchorclaw Myr and Phyrexian VatmotherPhyrexian Vatmother

Second, there are a bunch of spells that put, in one way or the other, -1/-1 counters on stuff around the table. This is closer to the commander's spirit, but I'm not 100% certain they are enough to secure victory.

Third, a few tutors. Say goodbye.

Fourth, a few recursion outlets. Since the infect options are rather far and between, these will prove handy.

I will forego most of the wither options, as they do not really help toward victory per se.

Finally, I believe an alternative wincon should be helpful, if the Poison plan was to fail. As such, I'll add good old ExsanguinateExsanguinate. Not the most original way to end a game, but efficient at the later stages nonetheless.

With all of that in mind, let's slim the list down some more:

And just like that, the list is already down to 110 cards. Let's finish this.

Final Trim – Heart-Wrenching Choices

I always feel a mix of emotions when I reach this section; both relief and a mild sense of dread. Relief, because I can safely rely on the fact that those final cuts are mine and mine alone, and don't necessarily reflect what you should do (nor do the ones before that, to be honest, but even more here). Dread, because these are usually the hardest ones to do.

Here is what I would remove to reach the fated 100:

• Instill InfectionInstill Infection: Much too expensive for a cantrip that provides a single -1/-1 counter.
• Deadly TempestDeadly Tempest: Most of the creatures are already removal on legs, this should be fine.
• Fellwar StoneFellwar Stone, Charcoal DiamondCharcoal Diamond and Fire DiamondFire Diamond: There are no spells worth more than five mana ( costs excepted), so I believe this should be fine.
• Thrill of PossibilityThrill of Possibility and Tormenting VoiceTormenting Voice: Technically, these are more Quality Advantage than Card Advantage cards.
• Banewhip PunisherBanewhip Punisher: Cost is slightly too steep to remove a single creature, even with assorted draw.
• Zulaport CutthroatZulaport Cutthroat: Almost no tokens in sight. This is an exceptional card, but tangential to the core strategy.
• Tragic SlipTragic Slip: I wish these were counters.

And with that, I give you:

Additional Trim – A Look Into the Past

It's now time to go back... in time (don't judge, I'm dead tired) to check if a deck brewed a year and a half ago stood the test of... time (damn). Did Wort fare well?

"Nope", "Nuh-uh", "Definitely not" and "Absolutely Not" jump to mind. See for yourself:

• Artifact MutationArtifact Mutation: $1.17
• Krenko, Tin Street KingpinKrenko, Tin Street Kingpin: $1.28
• Brightstone RitualBrightstone Ritual: $1.36
• Impact TremorsImpact Tremors: $1.50
• Mizzix's MasteryMizzix's Mastery: $1.61
• Mana GeyserMana Geyser: $1.64
• Pinnacle MonkPinnacle Monk: $1.66
• Krark, the ThumblessKrark, the Thumbless: $1.90
• Seething SongSeething Song: $5.64 (!!!)

I think that Seething SongSeething Song takes home the prize for being the card with the craziest price spike insofar. Funny how you can find one for less than €2 in Europe... But I digress.

Let's replace these with the following:

• 2 Mountain: Lose a land, gain two lands.
• CultivateCultivate, Rampant GrowthRampant Growth and Skyshroud ClaimSkyshroud Claim: To keep the ramp nominal.
• Krenko, Mob BossKrenko, Mob Boss: At best, it wins games. At worst, he makes for a nice diversion.
• Jaya's Immolating InfernoJaya's Immolating Inferno: Burn the world to a crisp. Twice.
• Increasing VengeanceIncreasing Vengeance: Why copy once when you can do that twice?
• Skirk ProspectorSkirk Prospector: Turn Goblins into mana to make more Goblins for more mana...

You can find the updated list here. 

Conclusion

For once, I'll keep this simple. Thank you for following me in these crazy builds for close to three years.

And I'm really looking forward to hearing your suggestions on anything I may have missed.

See you in two weeks!

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