Infinite Guideline StationInfinite Guideline Station | Art by Piotr Dura

Greetings and salutations, my dear brewers, and welcome to the vast expanses of endless space. I'm Arnaud, and I'm thrilled to take you a journey of colourful trips, hyperdrive blinks, and cosmotronic blasts.

Last time – three weeks ago already, time does fly – we parted ways with the usual poll. With 36 votes (27%), third place went to Vohar, Vodalian DesecratorVohar, Vodalian Desecrator. Looks like Reanimator shenanigans will have to wait. Kellan, the KidKellan, the Kid came second, doing slightly better with 40 votes (29%). Sorry Kid, some other time, maybe. The top spot, by quite a margin, went to the Infinite Guideline StationInfinite Guideline Station, earning 60 votes (44%).

This big hunk of metal is beefy on more than one regard:

• First, it can create a significant threat on the field, spawning several bots to help it conquer the universe.
• Second, it can provide massive card draw if stationed.
• Third, it sports a more than decent body. 7/15 means all it takes are three hits to take someone out.
• Finally, it's all colours, which leads to a lot of fun toys to tinker with.

Without further ado, let's grab each and every card from the commander's EDHREC page, both regular and budget, to make sure nothing goes amiss.

350 cards. An encouraging start.

First Trim – Turning Off the Bright Lights

To those of you reading this for the first time, come on in, don't be shy! This series is all about building on a tight budget. More specifically, no cards worth $1.11 and above are allowed.

Remember when the list had 350 cards? After axing everything above the $2 mark, it's already down to 232. And it's not over, not by a mile.

Before getting rid of the rest, let's have a look at the remaining bling, in case you feel like you want to spend a little more:

• Fellwar StoneFellwar Stone: At $1.11, this barely misses the cut. Usually I'd be annoyed, but not this time.
• Sami, Wildcat CaptainSami, Wildcat Captain: If you haven't already, take them for a spin, it's a wild deck to play.
• Anguished UnmakingAnguished Unmaking: One of the best removal spells of all time, period.
• Inspirit, Flagship VesselInspirit, Flagship Vessel: Works hand in hand with the commander and is a powerhouse on its own.
• Devastating OnslaughtDevastating Onslaught: This sound hilarious with the Station out.
• Insidious RootsInsidious Roots: Manaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
• Ripples of PotentialRipples of Potential: An excellent protection outlet.

This leaves only a couple of cards in the $1.00-1.10 bracket:

• Baleful StrixBaleful Strix: One of my favourite Birds in the game. It draws, it chumps, it kills. What more to ask for?
• Cloud KeyCloud Key: Cute outlet, but sadly not compatible with the mad idea I have in mind.

With these cuts, the list is down to 212 cards. Time to dig the mud.

Second Trim – Grab the Cash for the Christmas Tree

Usually, at this point in the brew I present a graph with all the veggies. Don't worry, it'll be there. But before anything else, I'd like to present my somewhat crazy idea.

What if the concept was pushed a bit further, with another tweak. What if the set boundaries are not enough? What if life was made just a little more difficult?

Let's not dilly-dally: what I want is to build a deck entirely made of multicolored cards. Granted, that's somewhat difficult for lands, but that aspect can be mitigated by playing only nonbasics that produce at least two colors.

So without further ado, I'm going to mercilessly axe each and every single-colored card, as well as all the colorless ones. This means I'll probably have to add some stuff back in, but I'm not too worried.

This should lead to some interesting decisions to keep the list at least somewhat playable.

Fair warning, I wouldn't try my luck outside of Bracket 2 with this thing.

Will it be clunky? Sure thing. Will it be fun? Hopefully. Will it spin stories? I'm counting on it!

So. Cutting each and every colored outlet has shrunk the list down to 133 cards, and it's not over, far from it.

Truth to be told, the veggies situation isn't that bad:

Decent card draw, more than adequate ramp, and enough removal for days.

I'm going to revamp the board wipe package, as it's sorely lackluster, and probably add a few other outlets, but insofar, I'm rather pleasantly surprised.

This is what I would cut there:

After giving the land base a much needed makeover, the list is down to... wait, 94 cards ?

That's right, and I'm not done yet. I want to dig further, to have ample room to add stuff back in. Trust me, just a little bit more.

Third Trim – Further Down the Rabbit Hole

Let's settle down and talk strategy for a bit. I'll be honest: the original list looked more like a pile of various good-stuffy spells rather than a build with a plan.

It made me think of that drawing your three-year old kid brought back from kindergarten. "Look dad, I used all of the crayons! All of them!". Cute, and an absolute masterpiece, but the pattern is... hard to discern.

So let's clear things up a bit. The Infinite Guideline StationInfinite Guideline Station basically cares about two things: populating the board, and getting stationed to draw a bunch of cards, over and over again.

So my idea is to turn this into a honed Swiss-Army knife. It'll be centred on the value generated by the commander but will pack several other outlets to make do without it.

And it will blink.

Before adding stuff back into the list, there's a bunch of weird additions I'd like to cut, which I gathered in the Misc section:

• Bring to LightBring to Light: I'm not a big fan of tutors, especially in janky brews like these.
• Combine ChrysalisCombine Chrysalis: Giving flying to your bots is cute. That second ability is too expensive. Out.
• Cranial RamCranial Ram: Feels a bit win more. 
• Interceptor MechanInterceptor Mechan: Simply too mana-intensive for such an effect.
• Mm'menon, Uthros ExileMm'menon, Uthros Exile: Aside from the commander's effect, the artifacts are rather far and between.
• Sami, Ship's EngineerSami, Ship's Engineer: Excellent flavour-wise, but rather useless in the end.
• Seedship BroodtenderSeedship Broodtender: Mill is not part of the strategy, and while the second effect is nice, it's also rather expensive.
• Station MonitorStation Monitor: I like the cheap cost, I'm not a fan of the effect.
• Syr Vondam, the LucentSyr Vondam, the Lucent: The boost is nice, but not game-ending.
• Wake the PastWake the Past: Again, not enough artifacts to make this worthwhile.

This was rather expeditious. 85 cards. Let's get to the fun part.

Final Trim – Swimming Back to the Surface

So. 15 cards to add back to the list.

First, I feel like a couple more board wipes would be right at home.

• Time WipeTime Wipe: Bounces the commander back to hand for more silly plays later on while cleaning the board.
• Death Begets LifeDeath Begets Life: Sure, it costs a hefty eight mana to cast, but I'm assuming you'll play this in more relaxed pods, so such a figure isn't unreachable, and drawing 15 cards in one fell swoop feels rather good in my book.

Second, blink spells. I believe that a lot of the fun comes from generating a beautiful army of robots to then exterminate your opponents Terminator-style. I'm adding these:

• Vanish into MemoryVanish into Memory: One of my favourite spells, and a criminal omission here. Seriously, I've found no trace of this outlet anywhere. For , you save your commander, draw seven cards, then bring him back on your next upkeep and discard nothing since it's not a creature anymore, then create a bunch of robots. And in a pinch, you can use it on another creature on any battlefield. If this is not value, tell me what is!
• Go Ninja GoGo Ninja Go: A recent addition from TMNT. I absolutely hate this set, but the card is sweet. My only regret is that it's a sorcery.
• Don & Leo, Problem SolversDon & Leo, Problem Solvers: Conjurer's ClosetConjurer's Closet has been buffed.
• Disorder in the CourtDisorder in the Court: Saves your stuff from a board wipe, simply flickers them, or fogs an opponent.
• Roon of the Hidden RealmRoon of the Hidden Realm, Mistmeadow WitchMistmeadow Witch, and Turn to MistTurn to Mist: Each one blinks any annoying or useful creature.

Third, card draw. 10 spells seem a bit low, despite the other additions, so two or three more won't hurt.

• Borrowed KnowledgeBorrowed Knowledge: A recent addition from Secrets of Strixhaven that's likely to replenish your hand if you're in a tight spot. It's unlikely all players will be close to Hellbent when you cast it.
• CloudblazerCloudblazer: A classic of blink decks, that will also make for a nice multicolored permanent.
• Witherbloom CharmWitherbloom Charm: Cheap, efficient, and versatile.

Finally, let's add the last dab:

• Tam, Mindful First-YearTam, Mindful First-Year: Acts almost as a Mother of RunesMother of Runes
• Simic CharmSimic Charm: A cheap way to give hexproof to your board and one of the only cheap available options, might I add.
• Linvala, Shield of Sea GateLinvala, Shield of Sea Gate: And here's another one.
• Baylen, the HaymakerBaylen, the Haymaker: A jack of all trades in this deck, considering the tokens you'll be making from the Station.
• Glare of SubdualGlare of Subdual: This is a criminally underplayed management outlet that will sway from you any unprotected creature.
• Tawnos, Urza's ApprenticeTawnos, Urza's Apprentice: Get double tokens or double draw from your commander? Yes, please!

And with this, I give you:

Additional Trim – A Look into the Past

Before closing shop, let's take a look at a past Trim and see how clement time has been with it.

It's time to head back to Bloomburrow (my, I feel like the set came out a few months ago...), and examine Bria, Riptide Rogue.

Honestly, it could have been worse. Given how bad the few past Trims aged, I'm rather pleasantly surprised here:

• Pinnacle MonkPinnacle Monk: $1.21
• Reconnaissance MissionReconnaissance Mission: $1.55
• Thundertrap TrainerThundertrap Trainer: $1.60
• Haze of RageHaze of Rage: $1.76
• CounterspellCounterspell: $1.77
• Thought VesselThought Vessel: $2.05
• Teferi's Ageless InsightTeferi's Ageless Insight: $2.33
• Decanter of Endless WaterDecanter of Endless Water: $2.94 (!)
• SnapSnap: $3.38 (!!)
• Fiery IsletFiery Islet: $3.77 (!!)

Exactly ten cards. Let's find suitable replacements:

• Archmage EmeritusArchmage Emeritus: A must-play in any spell-slinger deck. This has dropped considerably in price thanks to the recent precon reprint.
• Stormcarved CoastStormcarved Coast: It's no Fiery Islet, but it'll do the job.
• Cascade BluffsCascade Bluffs: To replace the MDFC.
• ExpediteExpedite: Cantrip and haste at instant speed.
• NegateNegate: It's worse than Counterspell, but less colored as well.
• Rapid HybridizationRapid Hybridization: Cheap removal.
• Fellwar StoneFellwar Stone: To make up for the lost Decanter. One of the best mana rocks, period. (yes, this has dropped in price since I started writing the paper).
• AetherizeAetherize: A neat board wipe that never fails to impress.
• Lightshell DuoLightshell Duo: Double Prowess, double fun.
• Blasphemous ActBlasphemous Act: At $1.03, it would be blasphemy not to include it.

You can find the updated list here.

Conclusion

A weird one, this has been. I'm rather curious of hearing your opinion on this particular take.

Was the additional building challenge to your taste? Should I have stuck to a more traditional brewing process?

Let me know in the comments below, and I'll see you in two weeks!