Horde of NotionsHorde of Notions | Art by Adam Rex

This week, I'll be covering a deck tech with a commander from the ancient past. No, not that far back, but around the mid-to-late 2000's. It's Horde of NotionsHorde of Notions, from the first Lorwyn set.

It's almost 20 years worth of cards to cover. However, we have the good fortune to focus on a particular creature type, which really cuts this down. Let's get into it, shall we?

Greeting the Horde

Our first Elemental-orientated commander is no slouch, even in the present day. Firstly, it's got solid stats as a 5/5, and it has a suite of relevant keywords. It also simply needs us to have all five colors up to reanimate what we need out of our graveyard.

It's a lot, but a number of cards have been printed since then that can really help with this. And with the release of Lorwyn Eclipsed, Horde is about to get so much better.

I would like to note that the deck list below can be helmed by Mass of MysteriesMass of Mysteries or Ashling, the LimitlessAshling, the Limitless, but we're sticking to Horde for our purposes. Or, if you compleatly want to, Omnath, Locus of AllOmnath, Locus of All can, too, but I wouldn't recommend it.

Elementary, My Dear Reader

A lot of Elemental cards have been released since Horde first came out. Not only that, but a lot of kindred support has come out, too. That said, let's put the spotlight on our creatures.

Most of them have ETBs (enters the battlefield) triggers, giving us another avenue to exploit. One of the best of these is Risen ReefRisen Reef, which either ramps us or draws cards, depending on what we hit with the trigger.

ShimmercreepShimmercreep and ShinestrikerShinestriker are both Elementals with ETBs that can be reanimated by Horde. The former can also be a win condition with the right cards. Ones that can double its trigger or, in the cases of Ashling and Mass, make a copy of. With Horde, though, you can completely reanimate it if it's in your bin.

Meanwhile, speaking of triggers, Twinflame TravelersTwinflame Travelers can copy triggers for every Elemental. The catch is that it can't copy Horde's ability, since it isn't a trigger. Though, what it can trigger will be quite a lot.

Also, for some good board wipe insurance, Omnath, Locus of RageOmnath, Locus of Rage will spawn big tokens while hitting things should any of our Elementals die. Its Temur () aligned incarnation, Omnath, Locus of the RoilOmnath, Locus of the Roil, is the only Elemental-centric option in that lineage. It's also no slouch, as the ETB can eliminate big threats or even players with a big enough board. The landfall ability is just really tasty gravy.

There's so many to cover, and I've only scratched the surface. Pick and choose your favorites! I did with mine, as you'll see below.

Bolstering Notions

A contemporary Horde deck can be summed up with two themes: Elemental and Reanimator.

Cards like EntombEntomb and Final PartingFinal Parting ensure that we get the correct Elemental we need, when we need it. It almost turns Horde into a toolbox deck of sorts, letting us pick the right cards for the present situation.

Also working in tandem with Horde are certain cards that can produce all five colors when tapped. Not only cards like Chromatic LanternChromatic Lantern and Faeburrow ElderFaeburrow Elder, but also Timeless LotusTimeless Lotus and Jegantha, the WellspringJegantha, the Wellspring. Their abilities will mean we can just tap those instead of lands to pay for Horde's ability.

There are also certain instants and sorceries that can be cast through Horde's ability. A freshly printed example of this is Ashling's CommandAshling's Command, which is a kindred instant. The card isn't cheap to cast, but its utility is nothing to sneeze at. Make a token of an Elemental you have? Check. Ramp? Check. Card draw? Check. On the other hand, Crib SwapCrib Swap is an oldie but goodie, but five mana to remove a creature is not the best rate.

There's also a myriad of kindred options as well, like Molten EchoesMolten Echoes and the Kindred cycle from around a decade ago, like Kindred DominanceKindred Dominance. It's, again, a case of pick and choose what you like.

Horde of Notions Commander Deck List

Notions' End

The list lacks many kindred elements, but a lot of it is wrapped up in the creature lineup.

For instance, Incandescent SoulstokeIncandescent Soulstoke gives a slight buff to Elementals, and does an impression of Ashling. Meanwhile, Mass of MysteriesMass of Mysteries is a card that'll cause all sorts of shenanigans. Not only do a lot of the Elementals have effects when they come in, but also get much stronger under myriad, which the Mass gives. Throw in Yarok, the DesecratedYarok, the Desecrated for some brain-melting.

In addition, the above is also the gist of the game plan. It's elementary, you might say. Obviously, we're going to stomp our opponents flat and/or outvalue them.

Given these points, a card that can do both is Maelstrom WandererMaelstrom Wanderer. It provides both value (double cascade) and damage (seven power plus mass haste). If it so happens to be in the graveyard, that makes Eerie UltimatumEerie Ultimatum that much better. Albeit, it's a situational case, but the Ultimatum still provides a lot for what it does.

Earlier, I mentioned that you can mix and match your favorite Elementals for the lineup. While a few will stand out, like Risen ReefRisen Reef, what others make it in will vary from deck to deck.

For example, I made use of a lot of the Elementals from the Dance of the Elements precon, and threw in some personal favorites, like Vernal SovereignVernal Sovereign and Ingot ChewerIngot Chewer.

The End of Mysteries

Summing up, revisiting Horde of Notions was a blast from the past, and now has a modern, refreshed look to it. At the same time, so much support has been released since it came out that it may as well be a whole new deck! I never built Horde back in those ancient times, but I could only imagine that the old list would've heavily drawn from the original Lorwyn block.

Tune in next week where I resume my Beyond the Multiverse series, with some news.