Eirdu, Carrier of Dawn // Isilu, Carrier of TwilightEirdu, Carrier of Dawn // Isilu, Carrier of Twilight | Art by Lucas Graciano

Hello, fellow Elemental Gods, I'm Brian, your usual host of Brew For Your Buck (BFYB), and I'm back with another preview deck tech! That's right, it's already time to look ahead to Lorwyn Eclipsed.

We've only got a few previews so far, but the commander I'm writing about today will likely be my favorite card from the set: Eirdu, Carrier of Dawn // Isilu, Carrier of TwilightEirdu, Carrier of Dawn // Isilu, Carrier of Twilight.

What Do Eirdu and Isilu Do?

There's a lot to break down with E&I (the shorthand I'll use for the rest of the article), so let's take it in chunks.

To begin, we can only cast the Eirdu side since it's the only side with a mana cost. This is unlike some of the recent Spider-Man legends, an example of which we can see here. Five mana for a 5/5, flying, lifelinking commander is a pretty great baseline, but the real treat is giving all our creature spells convoke.

With Eirdu on the battlefield, we can cast creatures without spending mana, just by tapping creatures - including tokens - instead.

We can transform Eirdu for just on our first main phase, unlocking the Isilu side. Isilu gives all of our nontoken creatures persist, a mechanic we covered all the way back in the first edition of BFYB. 

Persist combos are some of the most common in Commander, since there are so many ways to get rid of the -1/-1 counter that shuts off the mechanic by default. By giving any of our nontoken creatures persist, we open up a massive number of new combos and fun synergies.

Convoke and persist both want a lot of creatures, so when choosing an effect we want to add to the deck, we'll lean towards creatures most of the time. This means that cards that get better in creature-heavy decks will also be on our radar.

There are already a few decklists on EDHREC for E&I to use as a starting point, but on first glance I think we can make some pretty substantial improvements.

Let's get started.

Key Cards for EirduEirdu

The obvious starting point to take advantage of convoke is to include creatures that trigger when they're tapped. Sadly, Orzhov () doesn't have too many of these.

Stonybrook SchoolmasterStonybrook Schoolmaster might be worth considering, since it brings another creature with it to help pay for future convoke costs. But even then, it's a blue creature so it can't be used to pay for or like creatures of those colors can.

Instead, I want to focus on creatures that we can use to fill out the effects that every Commander deck needs. In turn, we'll have plenty of creatures to use for convoke. And, later, persist.

Mana Acceleration

The most important thing to do early in a game of Commander is ramp, and creatures that do so essentially ramp us twice, since we can use them to convoke out another creature later.

White's ramp is second only to green, and playing around the "catch-up" effects is pretty easy to do if we build the mana base correctly with bounce lands like Orzhov BasilicaOrzhov Basilica and Arid ArchwayArid Archway.

The OG Knight of the White OrchidKnight of the White Orchid has recently been joined by Claim JumperClaim Jumper, Sand ScoutSand Scout, and Deep Gnome TerramancerDeep Gnome Terramancer (to name a few), all capable of getting dual lands to fix our mana as well.

One underrated gem is Zhentarim BanditZhentarim Bandit, and we'll even include the classic Solemn SimulacrumSolemn Simulacrum since it has a death trigger too.

Card Velocity

Solemn is a good example of the next effect we want to address: card velocity. This is often tough to come by in Orzhov. Staples like Trouble in PairsTrouble in Pairs are of course very strong, but we'd rather include card draw effects that are attached to creatures.

While there are plenty of Spirited CompanionSpirited Companion variants, repeatable effects keep the cards flowing over time. White's contribution will mainly be the weenie-based card draw, like Welcoming VampireWelcoming Vampire and Enduring InnocenceEnduring Innocence.

Black's contribution will come from creatures dying, with the likes of Grim HaruspexGrim Haruspex, Midnight ReaperMidnight Reaper, and Morbid OpportunistMorbid Opportunist doing the work here. They also work with the persist engines that we'll set up later in the game.

Black also has some fantastic options for burst card draw, but we'll get to those in the persist section of the article. Remember, Eirdu will provide us with a big "mana" advantage, so we want plenty of cards to be able to spend it effectively.

Flashing in Other Effects

Creatures with flash amplify the effectiveness of convoke. Casting creatures at instant speed is usually strong, and now we can do it for no mana. Like our last two categories, we'll pick creatures with effects that we want to include in our deck anyway.

Guardian of FaithGuardian of Faith is a prime example, allowing us to phase out creatures to protect them from removal. Village Bell-RingerVillage Bell-Ringer becomes a weird ritual if we're really going hard on a convoke turn.

SolitudeSolitude and Necron DeathmarkNecron Deathmark are great options to put into the spot removal slots for the deck.

All of these creatures work well with persist too, since their enters-the-battlefield triggers can be reused.

Going Wide

Finally, we'll add in some creatures that make more creatures to make sure we have plenty of fodder for convoke.

Another new preview from Lorwyn Eclipsed is Bitterbloom BearerBitterbloom Bearer, the creature-ized version of the iconic BitterblossomBitterblossom.

Jadar, Ghoulcaller of NephaliaJadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia, Charismatic ConquerorCharismatic Conqueror, OphiomancerOphiomancer, and Oketra's MonumentOketra's Monument all pump out white and black tokens to put to use casting creature spells.

We'll have plenty of Aristocrats synergies in the deck too, so these also double as fodder generators when it's time to start sacrificing creatures for value and victory.

Key Cards for IsiluIsilu

I'm not going to lie, this half of the card is the more exciting side, and the cards that synergize with Isilu are really fun. As I hinted at before, any creature with a powerful enters, leaves, or dies trigger can be recycled over again.

Win Conditions

While we can't use Murderous RedcapMurderous Redcap, the primary win condition with many persist combos, we can use any other creature that deals damage or forces opponents to lose life instead.

Wernog, Rider's ChaplainWernog, Rider's Chaplain is my favorite. Even without a way to go infinite, if he dies with Isilu on the board, we make a minimum of two Clues, assuming each opponent wants to get drained for two life.

Gray Merchant of AsphodelGray Merchant of Asphodel, a.k.a. Gary, has won many a game by recycling his trigger, and his larger, Dragony cousinhis larger, Dragony cousin has done the same.

In addition to the win conditions, there are literally thousands of options for creatures with good triggers to abuse, so I'm not going to belabor the point. Instead, we can get into how to really abuse all our creatures having persist.

Abusing Persist

The first goal is eliminating the -1/-1 counters. If a creature with persist enters the battlefield without a -1/-1 counter, or loses it afterwards, persist will trigger again when it dies.

Cathars' CrusadeCathars' Crusade is a win condition all on its own, and with the amount of creatures we play and tokens we make, it's worth the inclusion just for that. And of course, it conveniently negates the -1/-1 counter a persist creature would get when it reenters the battlefield. (If a creature would have one +1/+1 counter and one -1/-1 counter, instead the counters cancel each other out and cease to exist.)

Scholar of New HorizonsScholar of New Horizons does double duty, getting rid of the counters and ramping us at the same time.

Nesting GroundsNesting Grounds gives us the ability to move counters around in our mana base. It's not restricted to our own creatures, so we're free to pick off opposing X/1s at will.

Bringer of the Last GiftBringer of the Last Gift is Living DeathLiving Death on a body. To be clear, both of these should go in the deck, not just the creature. When our whole board has persist and our opponents' creatures don't, casting one of these is probably game over.

Bringer also works with Eirdu. While all our creatures won't have persist, convoke makes Bringer a lot easier to cast, and once its trigger is on the stack, we can sacrifice our entire board in response with one of the many instant-speed sac outlets, like Umbral Collar ZealotUmbral Collar Zealot, and get all the creatures that were in our graveyard and on the battlefield back.

Following that train of thought, cards that allow us to selectively sacrifice creatures for an advantage really shine. God-Eternal BontuGod-Eternal Bontu, Pitiless CarnagePitiless Carnage, and Plumb the ForbiddenPlumb the Forbidden are great examples that provide burst draw along with the sacrifice outlet.

Again, these are just a few examples of the many options we have available.

Persist Combos

I do want to mention a few ways to enable the persist infinite combos. Mikaeus, the UnhallowedMikaeus, the Unhallowed and Luminous BroodmothLuminous Broodmoth allow us to alternate between -1/-1 counters and those of another type, so we just decide which one to use and alternate.

Vizier of RemediesVizier of Remedies just eliminates the counters altogether. Yes, SolemnitySolemnity does the same, but also stops a lot of our combo enablers as well, so I think it's actually incorrect to include it, and mentioned here as a PSA.

Once we're set up with a combo enabler, we can make infinite mana with Phyrexian AltarPhyrexian Altar, machine gun the table with Blasting StationBlasting Station, or if we want to be really silly, put our whole deck in the graveyard with Altar of DementiaAltar of Dementia and cast Living DeathLiving Death to reanimate every creature we have.

Sure, we could just mill our opponents, but why not go for the style win?

Gameplay

I see the gameplay for a typical E&I deck to open the game with ramp or other utility creatures, providing setup for mid-game convoking and persisting. The best case scenario is being able to cast Eirdu and immediately use it and other creatures to convoke out another.

Then, assuming Eirdu lives, transform it into Isilu the following turn. Now the primary engine is set up and we can proceed to look for ways to win via combo lines or good old attrition/Aristocrats strategies. 

The biggest threats to the deck are opposing cards that stop graveyard shenanigans (Rest in PeaceRest in Peace), sacrifice effects (YasharnYasharn), or free spells (LaviniaLavinia).

Persist makes us very resilient to board wipes, and sometimes we may even encourage them. Card velocity will be important due to our mana advantage, so ideally we keep opening hands with at least one way to dig through the deck. 

I could go on and on about the potential card choices and mini-packages that can be added to this deck, but sadly we don't have that kind of time.

Wrap Up and Mini-BFYB

Thanks for making it this far! As is tradition with my preview deck techs, I'll include a mini-BFYB analysis for those of you looking to build the deck without breaking the bank:

• Phyrexian AltarPhyrexian Altar ($55.42) --> Pitiless PlundererPitiless Plunderer ($1.92)
• Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER ($36.20) --> Cruel CelebrantCruel Celebrant ($0.47)
• SolitudeSolitude ($21.07) --> Ravenous ChupacabraRavenous Chupacabra ($0.27)
• Blasting StationBlasting Station ($21.07) --> Vengeful BloodwitchVengeful Bloodwitch ($0.23)
• The Meathook MassacreThe Meathook Massacre ($21.07) --> Corpse KnightCorpse Knight ($0.80)
• Kokusho, the Evening StarKokusho, the Evening Star ($18.63) --> Serrated ScorpionSerrated Scorpion ($0.10)

Eirdu // Isilu is an awesome new Orzhov commander that combines two great mechanics into a single, creature-based deck. I’m really excited to see what other “flip-legends” might be coming in Lorwyn Eclipsed.

My final cut of the deck list is below, and I’d love to hear your feedback about my choices or cool tech you found for the deck. I'd also like to know what you think of the creature density versus the other card types.

Note: I didn't include any Game Changers to keep the price down and for the sake of being bracket flexible, but you can always use them to power up the deck.

I’ll be back next time featuring a Spider-Man commander on BFYB, so be on the lookout for that too.

Until then, happy brewing and I’ll see you next time!

Eirdu & Isilu Commander Deck List

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