<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zenos yae Galvus" href="#" target="_blank">Zenos yae Galvus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.artstation.com/mokhman" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Alexander Mokhov</a></em></p>
<p>Previews are now flooding in for <em>Magic's </em>upcoming <em>Universes Beyond - Final Fantasy </em>set. And with new previews comes new monocolored legends to fuel our deckbuilding frenzy here on <em>The Monolith</em>, the EDHREC series where it's all mono, all the time! Today we're delving into the murky swamps of mono-black to play a deck that your opponents are going to absolutely hate. Oh sorry, did I say opponents plural? I meant opponent singular. Introducing the monstrous new legend that'll be leading our deck today, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zenos yae Galvus" href="#" target="_blank">Zenos yae Galvus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards side-by-side"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Zenos yae Galvus"></div></div>
<h2>What Does Zenos yae Galvus Do?</h2>
<p>For <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-3" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-b" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-b" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> we get a 4/4 Human Noble Warrior that on entering the battlefield will choose exactly one creature that an opponent controls.</p>
<p>Once your "first friend" is chosen, all other creatures on the battlefield will get hit with a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Massacre Wurm" href="#" target="_blank">Massacre Wurm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> style -2/-2. Now board wipes in the command zone have always been pretty decent, and very handy. Having repeatable access to a card like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Massacre Girl" href="#" target="_blank">Massacre Girl</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> isn't exactly fun and flashy but it can lock down a game of Commander for control minded players.</p>
<h3>Til Death Do Us Part</h3>
<p>But whilst the soft board wipe attached to our commander is cool and all, that's not why we're here. Oh no no no. Because Zenos has a hidden backside with an absolutely bonkers bit of rules text. One that will have Standard players asking, "Why is this even legal in our format?" and will have Commander players asking, "It does what?!"</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards only-back"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Zenos yae Galvus"></div></div>
<p>When the enemy creature chosen as part of Zenos' ETB dies, our commander will immediately transform into its reverse side. Shinryu, Transcendent Rival is an 8/8 Dragon with flying that will have us instead choose a player as it transforms. Then, and here's nuts the part, when the chosen player loses the game, we win the game.</p>
<h2>The Game Plan for Zenos yae Galvus</h2>
<p>So the path is clear. In this deck we enter ourselves into mortal combat with one of the other players around the table. Our second and third opponents will no longer matter to us; all we care about is taking one player, and only that player, down. It's a fight to the death!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Compelled Duel"></div></div>
<p>Or at least, that's the most obvious way to build it. It's also the easiest way to completely telegraph your game plan to the rest of the table. And besides, we're playing mono-black. Why be honorable about it? Let's win the game in a far, far sneakier way.</p>
<h2>Whoever Loses, I Win</h2>
<p>Because the player we choose to hinge our efforts on is tied to the transform trigger on Zenos' backside, and because that trigger only comes into effect when our chosen creature leaves the battlefield, we have a horrible secret power up our sleeves: we can win the game on a combat trick.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sneak Attack"></div></div>
<p>In fact, playing Zenos this way is like taking part in a triple threat wrestling match and winning the champ's belt without even pinning them. We can win the game due to someone else's combat damage. We can win the game without even attacking.</p>
<p>Yes I did make this a wrestling reference, I'm sorry I don't know anything about <em>Final Fantasy. </em>That's about as close as I could get. Feel free to provide your own analogy in the comments.</p>
<h3>Trick Shot</h3>
<p>Here's the ideal scenario for winning the game at instant speed with Zenos on board. First, we need to have picked a creature when he entered. The ideal target for this is something that's difficult to kill but we have a spell in hand that can deal with it. For example, an indestructible creature that we can cast <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Defile" href="#" target="_blank">Defile</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> on.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Barbed Servitor"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Defile"></div></div>
<p>That helps to prevent our opponents from killing the creature early, or the creature's controller chump blocking with it, before we're ready to make our choice. We want to be able to transform Zenos at the perfect moment.</p>
<p>Then we're going to wait for an opponent's life to be in danger. Maybe they're about to take more burn than they can handle. Or maybe an opponent is swinging in with a tonne of commander damage that they can't block. That's when we strike.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Booby Trap"></div></div>
<p>Wait until lethal damage is about to resolve and then kill the creature you chose when Zenos entered the battlefield with some instant speed removal. Doesn't matter if they die, bounce, or exile, as Zenos will transform when that creature leaves the battlefield. If it resolves without interference, Zenos will flip and you'll be able to choose the unlucky target as a dance partner, winning you the game as soon as they die.</p>
<h3>Force Their Hand</h3>
<p>The truly bonkers thing about all this is that we can force our opponents to accidentally kill each other using a perfectly timed combat trick. The thing about combat tricks is that most of them don't actually specify that they need to be used on a creature you control. For example, if an opponent is about to take unblocked damage from a creature with at least nine power, we can simply cast this:</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tainted Strike"></div></div>
<p>Even when the other players at the table are perfectly aware of what we're up to and decide to swing on the player with the most health, we can add a lethal edge to their attacks with cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tainted Strike" href="#" target="_blank">Tainted Strike</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Now, all of a sudden, their nine damage becomes ten poison counters.</p>
<p>And of course we can do this to our own creatures too! If you've got a big trampler to bundle in with (or your opponent does), watch as they hastily assemble a wall of chump blockers to soak up the damage and then whack some instant speed deathtouch onto the creature.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Touch of Moonglove"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Alchemist&#039;s Gift"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lash of Thorns"></div></div>
<p>The absolute best example is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Touch of Moonglove" href="#" target="_blank">Touch of Moonglove</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, which will not only wipe out every creature with a single point of your trample damage each, but will also drain the blocking player for every blocker that dies in the process. This effectively increases your creature's power by one for every blocker, and then dealing damage as though it were never blocked.</p>
<h2>Backup Options</h2>
<p>Now this is all well and good but we don't want to spend the entire game just sitting around waiting for someone to die. The quickest and most effective way to cause someone to lose the game is to make them lose ourselves. Lucky for us, there's a nice collection of cards in black that do just that.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vorpal Sword"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Summon: Primal Odin"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Phage the Untouchable"></div></div>
<p>That's right, mono-black is one of the best color identities we can be in if we want to make our opponents straight up lose the game. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vorpal Sword" href="#" target="_blank">Vorpal Sword</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one of my favorite dumb artifacts that I've wanted a good home for for a while. The activation is super expensive, but you're only one <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rogue&#039;s Passage" href="#" target="_blank">Rogue&#039;s Passage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> away from slicing down another player for good.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Triskaidekaphobia"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vraska, Scheming Gorgon"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Strixhaven Stadium"></div></div>
<p>What's extra great about these lose-the-game effects is that they're abilities that will go on the stack. You don't have to reveal your hand until that player is guaranteed to lose the game. Just look out for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stifle" href="#" target="_blank">Stifle</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> effects!</p>
<p>Once it's on the stack, you can hold priority and cast your instant speed kill spell to trigger Zenos. This can be much more effective than using cards like the brand new <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Summon: Primal Odin" href="#" target="_blank">Summon: Primal Odin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. This card definitely seems like it was printed as an intentional combo piece with Zenos, but it's very telegraphed. The first chapter will achieve your transformation for you. But you'll have to wait a whole other turn for the effect you want on the creature to win the game.</p>
<h3>Consolation Prize</h3>
<p>In general this whole thing is pretty easy to interact with. Someone could hold up removal to kill Zenos. They could play the aforementioned <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stifle" href="#" target="_blank">Stifle</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to counter the transform or "lose the game" effect. Or they could just straight up counter the kill spell in the first place.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Counterspell"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Stifle"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Murder"></div></div>
<p>The thing is though, even if someone stops us winning the game, it's very likely we're still going to take a player out. If we have to win the old fashioned way, we're still one third of the way there. We can add a few additional payoffs to the situation though, to get the most bang for our kill-bucks.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of Vengeance"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Elbrus, the Binding Blade"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sengir, the Dark Baron"></div></div>
<p>These cards aren't exactly slam dunks but they do fit the theme of assassinating our opponents pretty well. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Vengeance" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Vengeance</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> feels like the best of the bunch due to its low cost and insidious nature. The target of the Curse isn't very likely to remove it as it doesn't actually do anything to them until they die. And at that point, who cares? Meanwhile, if we didn't win the game due to their loss, we're flooding our hand and our life points.</p>
<h2>My Last Friend</h2>
<p>If you want to end your EDH games a little bit quicker, or if you like picking one opponent at the table to absolutely bully, then <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zenos yae Galvus" href="#" target="_blank">Zenos yae Galvus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> might be the deck for you. Just be warned that he's going to be an absolute lightning rod for removal. And I can foresee quite a lot of players not enjoying playing against this deck too much!</p>
<p>Thanks so much for reading <em>The Monolith </em>and I'll see you on the next issue for some more monocolored shenanigans. Until then have a lovely day, and why not check out some of these articles from the wonderful writers here at EDHREC.com:</p>
<p></p>
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Ruin a Player's Day With Zenos yae Galvus - Commander Deck Tech

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Interpret the Signs" href="#" target="_blank">Interpret the Signs</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | <a href="https://www.cynthia-sheppard.com/">Cynthia Sheppard</a>)</h6>
<div></p>
<p>A new month is upon us, which means it's time for the next Archidekt Deckbuilding Contest!</p>
<p>This is a monthly contest with a different theme each month.</p>
<p>Your goal is to build a Commander legal deck that fulfills the prompt in a creative or unique fashion. At the end of each month, three finalists will be selected for you to vote on.</p>
<p>Whoever gets the most votes will be crowned the winner, although all three finalists receive a prize.</p>
<p>For this month's competition, we're looking into the past and trying to decipher the cryptic names of old <em>Magic</em> decks.</p>
<p></div>
<div></p>
<h3>What’s The Contest All About?</h3>
<p>Working within the parameters of the prompt provided below, construct a decklist with your own creative spin. Three chosen finalists will be awarded <a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/">store credit to use on Cardsphere</a>.</p>
<p><strong>For May's deckbuilding contest, build a Commander-legal deck based on the name of a classic sixty card deck.</strong></p>
<p><strong> However, Rather than adapting the strategy of the deck, develop a creative interpretation based only on the deck's name.</strong></p>
<p><strong> A non-exhaustive list of wacky deck names is included here, but you can choose any deck from competitive sixty card formats. </strong></p>
<p><strong>Including an explanation of your thought process in the deck description will help your submission stand out.</strong></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>Tin Fins, Zoo, Maverick, The Rock, MUD, Deadguy Ale, Fruity Pebbles, </strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>Four Horsemen, Cephalid Breakfast, Full English Breakfast</strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>Nic Fit, Raisin Bran, Quick n' Toast, The Mighty Quinn, </strong></em></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>The Truffle Shuffle, Ice Station Zebra, Zero Effect, Spring Tide, Iggy Pop</strong></em></p>
<p></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Inkwell Leviathan"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cavalier of Night"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Toggo, Goblin Weaponsmith"></div></div>
<p>This month's prompt is about interpreting a deck name in a creative way, without consideration for the cards in the actual deck. For example, Tin Fins sounds like a deck built around sea creatures and artifacts.</p>
<p>That could be copying <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Inkwell Leviathan" href="#" target="_blank">Inkwell Leviathan</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, or suiting merfolk up with as many equipment as possible. Four Horsemen might include only four creatures, each riding a horse, or be a deck built around a four card combo.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lotus Petal|tmp|294"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Zombie Master"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Zaffai, Thunder Conductor"></div></div>
<p>Some names are harder to interpret. You might have an idea of what a Fruity Pebbles deck would do, but what about Raisin Bran? Or Nic Fit? The color of Raisin Bran might remind you of the old artifact border, while raisins might represent the desiccated figures of Zombies.</p>
<p>For Nic Fit you might focus on the apparent typo, and include cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zaffai, Thunder Conductor" href="#" target="_blank">Zaffai, Thunder Conductor</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> which have spelling mistakes in their text.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Creative Technique"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Reinterpret"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thirst for Meaning"></div></div>
<p>Of course, you can pick any deck from the long history of Magic tournaments. Keep in mind, however, that the more strange and cryptic the deck name the more opportunity you have for creative interpretation.</p>
<p>That shouldn't stop you from exploring an idea for UR Delver or Domain Overlords, but be careful you don't simply recreate that strategy in Commander.</p>
<h3>How To Participate</h3>
<ul>
<li>Brew an EDH/Commander legal deck on <a href="https://archidekt.com/">Archidekt</a> that satisfies the prompt.</li>
<li>Any unreleased cards spoiled during the contest’s duration are allowed.</li>
<li>Silver-bordered and acorn cards, while cool, are not allowed.</li>
<li>Digital-only cards (such as those designed for the Alchemy format on Arena) are not allowed.</li>
<li>Strictly one deck submitted per user.</li>
</ul>
<p>Reply to the Archidekt news post, or submission post on the <a href="https://discord.gg/sctEc9Ru36">Archidekt Discord</a> with a link to your deck before <strong>9:00 pm EST</strong> (UTC -4, currently) on <strong>Wednesday, May 14, 2025</strong> (do not submit the same deck in multiple places).</p>
<p>Only one submission per user! From the eligible submissions, we'll select three finalists with lists that we believe best embody the spirit of the prompt. Deck descriptions are not required but certainly may provide valuable context!</p>
<div></p>
<p>On <strong>Wednesday, May 21, 2025</strong>, we’ll announce three finalists via the Archidekt Discord and a brief article on EDHREC highlighting each deck.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/sets">Each finalist will be awarded credit to use on Cardsphere</a>. The value of the credit is in US dollars and depends on the finalist's placement in deck upvotes at the end of the week-long polling period:</p>
<ul>
<li>1st Place Prize - $250</li>
<li>2nd Place Prize - $150</li>
<li>3rd Place Prize - $100</li>
</ul>
<p></div>
<p>Finalists will be contacted via email or Discord (depending on where they submitted) regarding their winnings within roughly 24 hours following the conclusion of voting on <strong>Wednesday, May 28, 2025</strong>.</p>
<p>Please note, you must have a Cardsphere account in order to receive your winnings. It's quick and free-- <a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/signup?referrer=archidekt_contest">register here</a> if you don't have an account already!</p>
<p><a href="https://archidekt.com/contestRules">Official contest rules</a>.</p>
<p>If you have any questions, feel free to ask here, or join the Archidekt <a href="https://discord.gg/sctEc9Ru36">public Discord server</a>. We look forward to seeing what you all come up with!</p>


Archidekt Deckbuilding Contest - May 2025

<p style="text-align: right;"><em>(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aeve, Progenitor Ooze" href="#" target="_blank">Aeve, Progenitor Ooze</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | by <a href="https://www.andrewkmar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Andrew Mar</a>)</em></p>
<p>Hello and welcome back to <em>The Monolith</em>, the series in which we get players building more monocolored decks. Today I'll be continuing my quest to break each archetype out of its regular color pie by building a Storm deck in mono-green!</p>
<p>Storm? In mono-green? It's more likely than you think! And we'll even be storming off with fan-favorite and veritable meme card, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Slime Against Humanity" href="#" target="_blank">Slime Against Humanity</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>But how can I win a game without my <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Guttersnipe" href="#" target="_blank">Guttersnipe</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Archmage Emeritus" href="#" target="_blank">Archmage Emeritus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>? What's the point of playing a million spells if there isn't a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Grapeshot" href="#" target="_blank">Grapeshot</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> at the end of it? Well that's simple, we just put our storm payoff directly into our command zone, with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aeve, Progenitor Ooze" href="#" target="_blank">Aeve, Progenitor Ooze</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<h2>Gooped and Gagged</h2>
<p>Let's take a look at our commander for this build.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Aeve, Progenitor Ooze"></div></div>
<p>For <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-2" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-g" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-g" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-g" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> Aeve is a legendary 2/2 Ooze with storm. If you've not played with one of the most broken keywords in <em>Magic's </em>history before, storm spells copy themselves when cast for each spell you've already cast before it this turn. So if it's the third spell you've cast this turn, for example, you'll get two token copies of Aeve entering the battlefield with it.</p>
<p>Normally that'd be a problem for Aeve seeing as the card is legendary, but its rules text states that token copies of the card won't count as legendary to stop you from having to sacrifice them all to the legend rule as soon as they enter.</p>
<p>As if that wasn't enough, each of them will enter with a +1/+1 counter on it for each other Ooze you control. That means each copy gets bigger and bigger as it enters, seeing all the copies that came before it, not to mention any Oozes you already had on board.</p>
<p>If we can cast enough spells in a single turn before dropping our commander, we could get ourselves a pretty enormous board. And the wider the board gets, the taller it gets as well.</p>
<h2>Slime Time</h2>
<p>So we want to be casting a lot of spells on our turn, but the question remains: what spells will we be casting?</p>
<p>For this deck idea, we'll be committing some crimes. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Slime Against Humanity" href="#" target="_blank">Slime crimes</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Slime Against Humanity"></div></div>
<p>You're looking at a three mana green sorcery that creates a 0/0 Ooze token and then puts +1/+1 counters on it equal to the number of same-named cards in your graveyard or in exile (plus two). It's one of those silly "you can have any number in a deck" cards, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Persistent Petitioners" href="#" target="_blank">Persistent Petitioners</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Hare Apparent" href="#" target="_blank">Hare Apparent</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. This card also does well in Ooze typal decks as the card will also check for Ooze cards when dishing out its +1/+1 counters.</p>
<p>Importantly for this build, it's a spell we can cast a lot of and one that makes a progressively larger Ooze creature token each time we do so. The plan is to use that Ooze to make mana, draw us cards, and even buff up our Aeve tokens as they enter. So how do we go about doing that? Let's talk about mana first.</p>
<h2>They're Green, They May as Well Be Forests</h2>
<p>This deck was predominantly inspired by my favorite Standard deck in the current meta, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Insidious Roots" href="#" target="_blank">Insidious Roots</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. This Golgari (<span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-bg" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>) enchantment makes a Plant token every time a creature card leaves your graveyard. Then all your Plants get bigger. When combined with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler" href="#" target="_blank">Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, which can not only trigger the card's effect but also lets your tokens tap for mana on the turn they come down, you can do some pretty crazy comboing!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Insidious Roots"></div></div>
<p>But why let the dual colored decks have all the fun? With enough setup (afforded to us by the naturally longer games of Commander) we can do something just as nuts, and have a payoff card ready to roll in our command zone to boot.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Enduring Vitality"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cryptolith Rite"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jaheira, Friend of the Forest"></div></div>
<p>Our Ooze tokens might not tap for mana on their own, but there's a few different cards in green that will provide us with the same effect. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Enduring Vitality" href="#" target="_blank">Enduring Vitality</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is by far the strongest of the bunch, giving us the rules text we need as well as reanimating itself the first time it gets removed. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jaheira, Friend of the Forest" href="#" target="_blank">Jaheira, Friend of the Forest</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> isn't a bad pick either for a cheap option, as we'll mostly want to be tapping token creatures anyway.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Elven Chorus"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Citanul Hierophants"></div></div>
<p>The above options cost a little more mana to get on the board, but <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Elven Chorus" href="#" target="_blank">Elven Chorus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> does provide us with some potential extra reach if we find ourselves with nothing to cast in hand mid-storm. If there's a creature card on the top of our library, it could get us back up and running just when we need it.</p>
<h3>I Need That Mana Now!</h3>
<p>The other element of the combo we'll need to replicate is Tyvar's bonus effect of giving activated abilities haste, allowing you to effectively replace your spent mana by tapping the token you've just made. As Tyvar himself is out of your color identity, you'll have to get some other options.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Surrak and Goreclaw"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Concordant Crossroads"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Akroma&#039;s Memorial"></div></div>
<p>Giving haste to your creatures in mono-green isn't super easy, especially when you need it to be a static effect that'll account for each creature entering the battlefield this turn. That's why colorless cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Crashing Drawbridge" href="#" target="_blank">Crashing Drawbridge</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> unfortunately won't cut it. We do have options, but they're either very expensive to cast, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Surrak and Goreclaw" href="#" target="_blank">Surrak and Goreclaw</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, very expensive to buy, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Concordant Crossroads" href="#" target="_blank">Concordant Crossroads</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, or both (looking at you, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Akroma&#039;s Memorial" href="#" target="_blank">Akroma&#039;s Memorial</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>).</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Runadi, Behemoth Caller"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thousand-Year Elixir"></div></div>
<p>A better fit would be the classic <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Thousand-Year Elixir" href="#" target="_blank">Thousand-Year Elixir</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, which can find a home in pretty much any deck that cares about creatures tapping. But specifically for this deck, I think you'll struggle to find a better fit for what we want to achieve than <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Runadi, Behemoth Caller" href="#" target="_blank">Runadi, Behemoth Caller</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>This card is an absolute slam dunk in our deck as it not only works as a mana creature itself, it also gives haste to all creatures on our board with three or more +1/+1 counters on them. For the record, that's basically every Ooze we make after the first. Not to mention that it'll give haste to pretty much every copy of Aeve if things are going well.</p>
<h2>Budget Blubber</h2>
<p>The next element we need in our cursed combo is something to reduce the cost of our spells. Much like with the flash-in-the-pan Ruby Storm deck we saw in Modern last year, by reducing the cost of our spells we can potentially make them mana neutral (or perhaps even positive!) to allow us to keep comboing off.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Emerald Medallion"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cloud Key"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Helm of Awakening"></div></div>
<p>We've actually got a decent amount of options here as well, including <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Emerald Medallion" href="#" target="_blank">the green version</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ruby Medallion" href="#" target="_blank">Ruby Storm&#039;s medallion</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> which will reduce all of our green spells by <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-1" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Primal Amulet"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Semblance Anvil"></div></div>
<p>We're in mono-green, so we shouldn't struggle too much for mana, but ideally we want to drop all the colorless cost from our slime crimes. That way we just need to pay for the green, which our token will be able to do for us from the last copy of the spell we've cast. For that we'll need to get two cost-reducers on board.</p>
<p>But just like with our haste problems, there's actually a fantastic card available to us that'll make our lives much easier. The <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Locket of Yesterdays" href="#" target="_blank">Locket of Yesterdays</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> makes me feel like someone from the past knew I was going to build this deck one day. Fitting, seeing as it was printed in <em>Time Spiral</em>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Locket of Yesterdays"></div></div>
<p>This card will reduce the cost of all our spells for each other copy of it already in the graveyard. Literally perfect for reducing the price of our slime crimes. From the third one we cast onwards, we'll only be paying <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-g" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>. And we could even reduce that if we add in <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Defiler of Vigor" href="#" target="_blank">Defiler of Vigor</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span></p>
<h2>Outta Slime, Outta Time</h2>
<p>As with every storm deck, you can assemble the absolute perfect engine with everything you need to pop off. But if you run out of spells, your turn will come to a crashing halt and deflating fizzle. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Slime Against Humanity" href="#" target="_blank">Slime Against Humanity</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> isn't a cantrip, which means we need to make sure we're drawing enough cards to keep our engine ticking as we cast it over and over again.</p>
<p>Green has a few ways of drawing cards, but most of them are tied to the creatures you control. Which, for the combo we're assembling here, is kinda perfect! A card like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Garruk&#039;s Uprising" href="#" target="_blank">Garruk&#039;s Uprising</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will trigger a card draw for every slime crime we make after the first, as well as giving us trample when we finally swing out with all our tokens.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Garruk&#039;s Uprising"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Outcaster Trailblazer"></div></div>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Outcaster Trailblazer" href="#" target="_blank">Outcaster Trailblazer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> gives us double effectiveness as it not only gives the same card draw effect as Garruk's Uprising, but we can also plot it. Plotting allows us to cast it for free on a subsequent turn, which will then count towards our storm tally when we need it! He even comes with a free mana of any color when he enters.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Selvala, Heart of the Wilds"></div></div>
<p>For a wildly good fit in our deck though, check out <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Selvala, Heart of the Wilds" href="#" target="_blank">Selvala, Heart of the Wilds</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Selvala gives us a card draw whenever a creature enters under our control with more power than any creature on the battlefield. As each Ooze will be one point bigger than the last one, we can chain these draws off one after another.</p>
<p>Then with a huge board we can tap for a massive amount of green mana with Selvala's ability - mana we can then use to cast more spells and even our commander to finish off the turn.</p>
<h2>I Ooze, You Lose</h2>
<p>Now it's time to finish the game. Our perfect board state looks something like this:</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Garruk&#039;s Uprising"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Runadi, Behemoth Caller"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Locket of Yesterdays"></div></div>
<p>We'll also want five untapped mana sources, or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Selvala, Heart of the Wilds" href="#" target="_blank">Selvala, Heart of the Wilds</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> in an ideal world, to allow us to cast our commander and also give extra card draw. Then all the slime crimes we already have in hand will give us a head start.</p>
<p>We cast as many of said crimes as possible, effectively paying zero for each one. Our storm count gets bigger and bigger until we tap for five and bring out <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aeve, Progenitor Ooze" href="#" target="_blank">Aeve, Progenitor Ooze</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Let's say we've cast seven copies of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Slime Against Humanity" href="#" target="_blank">Slime Against Humanity</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> beforehand.</p>
<p>One by one, eight copies of Aeve will enter the battlefield. They'll have a minimum power and toughness ranging from 9/9 to 16/16. Every single one will have haste from Runadi, and trample from Garruk's Uprising.</p>
<p>Swing. Win.</p>
<p>That's it for this week's edition of <em>The Monolith</em>, let me know in the comments below how you would build a deck like this. Mono-green isn't the standard home of Spellslinger decks, but I think it has some chops. For more monocolored shenanigans, make sure to tune in next week to <em>The</em> Monolith. Until then, happy slinging and happy sliming!</p>


Mono-Green Storm with Aeve, Progenitor Ooze

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant" href="#" target="_blank">Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | art by Yumeko)</h6>
<p>Hello, and welcome back to <em>The Monolith</em>, the series in which I, your intrepid host, try to get the world of Commander players to build more mono-colored decks.</p>
<p>With the dust of <em>Tarkir: Dragonstorm </em>beginning to settle, we can start to look ahead at upcoming sets and theory craft around all the previews we've been shown way, way, way too early. Of all the commanders revealed so far from <em><a href="https://edhrec.com/sets/fin" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final Fantasy</a></em>, there are only two cards that are actual, factual mono. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zell Dincht" href="#" target="_blank">Zell Dincht</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> seems like an interesting <em>Landfall</em>-based, mono-red commander, which we might tackle in a later article. Seems like there's some combo potential there for sure.</p>
<p>But for this edition of <em>The Monolith </em>we're going to build around something a bit more... mean. It's <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant" href="#" target="_blank">Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant"></div></div>
<h2>Gifts Unwanted</h2>
<p>For the stunningly cheap cost of a single <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-w" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>, we get a 1/2 Moogle with lifelink, and it's Stiltzkin's activated ability that we'll be building around in this deck. For <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-2" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>, <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-tap" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> we can have one of our opponents assume control of another target permanent we control. Once they get it, we get to draw a card. Kind of like us receiving payment; we are a merchant, after all.</p>
<p>But for this little market stall we'll be running, we're not exactly aiming to come off as a reputable seller. In fact, we'll be sending our opponents some defective wares on purpose.</p>
<h2>Damaged Goods</h2>
<p>That's right! Today we're building a <a href="https://edhrec.com/tags/donate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Donate deck</a> all about giving our opponents cards that you wouldn't want under your control. This is traditionally a deck you'd see with some <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-b" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> in it to get access to all the nasty "deal with the devil" type effects of that color that we could force into the hands of other players.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Harmless Offering"></div></div>
<p>There's definitely other color combos that can make it work, and Jeskai(<span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-w" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>) commander <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zedruu the Greathearted" href="#" target="_blank">Zedruu the Greathearted</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one of the more popular in this archetype, but in mono-white, we're going to need to rifle through the basement of <em>Magic: The Gathering</em> to find some decent targets for our ability, and that, of course, is half the fun of these articles!</p>
<h3>The Archetypal Gift</h3>
<p>There's already quite a few cards that exist in <em>Magic's </em>long history that play by "gifting" things to your opponent's control. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Akroan Horse" href="#" target="_blank">Akroan Horse</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, for example, is a classic card from the original <em>Theros</em> block that might seem terrible to the untrained eye.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Akroan Horse"></div></div>
<p>"A creature I have to give to my opponent? What's the point of that?" The point of course is that the card is a trap that slowly fills your own board with 1/1 tokens as your enemy only gets a measly 0/4 defender.</p>
<p>But there's plenty more where that came from. There's some really fun cursed object style cards that we can very much put into today's deck that fit the theme perfectly.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jinxed Idol"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jinxed Choker"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jinxed Ring"></div></div>
<p>The jinxed cards will be thrown around the table like a hot potato whenever one of our opponents wants to avoid the effect. Normally we'd be a very valid target to take the things back. But with our commander we can just have them leave our control before the trigger goes off, making us a waste of an activation for our competitors.</p>
<p>A handful of artifacts like this in the deck will allow us to sit back and watch the chaos unfold as our opponents argue among themselves over who should take control of the nasty thing next.</p>
<h2>Like a Hole in the Head</h2>
<p>But the true horrors of cards we can force onto our opponents' boards come in the form of things they can't just give away whenever they like. These things will be a constant headache for them. And hopefully, they'll be enough of a drawback that we can potentially win the game whilst our opponents suffer.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Archfiend of the Dross"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Evil Eye of Urborg"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ebon Drake"></div></div>
<p>The reason we normally want to be running black in a deck like this is we get access to cards that are intended to give you a statistical advantage in the short term with under-costed stats and abilities, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Archfiend of the Dross" href="#" target="_blank">Archfiend of the Dross</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. But after a while, they become more of a problem than a boon.</p>
<p>We don't have a huge amount of obvious cards to draw from that fill this archetype in mono-white. And even in general, you need to look at some cards that literally no one plays to find a good selection of cards that fill this niche. Because the cost they come with usually makes them pretty unplayable in standard decks.</p>
<h3>A Great Example of a Bad Card</h3>
<p>An absolute must-include in this deck will be something we can steal from the aforementioned Zedruu lists. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nine Lives" href="#" target="_blank">Nine Lives</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is an enchantment that can prevent up to nine instances of damage for its controller. When the ninth source of damage is stopped, and Nine Lives receives its ninth counter, you exile it.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Nine Lives"></div></div>
<p>When Nine Lives leaves the battlefield, its controller loses the game. This honestly isn't a great card on its own, maybe made a little better by a deck that can easily remove counters from its permanents. But now we can gain almost its full benefit and then just as we're about to take a ninth chunk of damage, send it over to an opponent of our choice to lose the game instead!</p>
<p>Not to mention that the card itself has hexproof, so removing it will be very difficult for our opponents, and if they attempt to board wipe all enchantments, you can hoist it onto someone else in response and have them suffer the consequences. If you're feeling petty, probably the board wiper.</p>
<h2>What the Hell Am I Supposed to Do With This?</h2>
<p>Don't worry, the cards we can gift will get far weirder and far more niche. Most white cards don't give you downsides apart from on themselves, so we'll need to be creative.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Enduring Renewal"></div></div>
<p>For example, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Enduring Renewal" href="#" target="_blank">Enduring Renewal</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is what I would call "a pretty bad way to recur your creatures." For <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-2" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-w" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-w" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> we get the stunning ability of putting any creatures we control that die back into our hand, which ain't bad at all.</p>
<p>The cost, however, is that we not only have to play with our entire hand revealed, we also get a very wacky draw effect. Now, whenever we would draw a card, we instead have to reveal the top card of our library. If it's a creature card, we have to put it into the bin instead.</p>
<p>Wow, that's bad. Unless someone has built a very specific deck to utilize this strange effect, this is going to be a huge pain for our opponents. Although it would go pretty hard in our <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage" href="#" target="_blank">Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck we built in a <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/mono-white-aristocrats-with-anafenza-unyielding-lineage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">previous article</a>.</p>
<h3>How About Some Fetching Headwear?</h3>
<p>Our opponents' heads are looking a little cold; perhaps we could help them out with a lovely new hat. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mindstorm Crown" href="#" target="_blank">Mindstorm Crown</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will do some annoying chip damage over the course of the game - best placed on a player that's taken a lot of damage early on. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Crown of Doom" href="#" target="_blank">Crown of Doom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> however will act like an <em>Innistrad </em>style curse that our opponents will be throwing around like our aforementioned jinxed collection.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Grafted Skullcap"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mindstorm Crown"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Crown of Doom"></div></div>
<p>The absolute worst of the bunch has to be <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Grafted Skullcap" href="#" target="_blank">Grafted Skullcap</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, though. You can hear the finger of the monkey's paw curling as a player said, "I need some more card draw." Here you go, now you draw two every turn! And you also discard your entire hand on your end step...</p>
<h3>Who Needs Creatures Anyway?</h3>
<p>It was bad enough that we made one of our opponents never draw creature cards again. At least they get to replay the ones they lose. This next target is going to be even more screwed over, though.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Steel Golem"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Grid Monitor"></div></div>
<p>Courtesy of some very ugly artifact creatures, these lovely items will stop your players from being able to cast creature spells indefinitely! What the hell! I'm sure there's plenty of decks out there that wouldn't be too bothered by this, but you'd be hard pressed to find a deck that doesn't want to play a single creature in a turn - including their commander, by the way.</p>
<h3>Artifacts Are Overrated</h3>
<p>Is someone playing a lot of artifact cards? What if they had to sacrifice one every single turn? <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rust Elemental" href="#" target="_blank">Rust Elemental</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will see to that.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rust Elemental"></div></div>
<p>Even better though is when we pop one of these guys onto the board of a player who isn't playing any artifacts. Enjoy losing a tenth of your life every turn, and now you don't even get to attack with the creature we gave you...</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lich&#039;s Tomb"></div></div>
<p>If your opponent is upset about having to take that much damage, you could always offer them an alternative with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Tomb" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Tomb</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. What a wonderful gift! Now you won't lose the game if you have zero or less life - except you'll be sacrificing a permanent for every single point of damage you would take from now on. And that's permanent by the way, not <em>nonland</em> permanent.</p>
<p>Be sure to gift this just as an opponent is about to eat a big chunk of damage. We don't want them to sacrifice the Tomb right away after a measly one or two damage.</p>
<h3>A Secret Burn Deck?</h3>
<p>White isn't exactly know for being able to play direct damage against players. I'm sure there's strange old cards out there that I'm not aware of that'll do it, but this special gift allows us to do something similar.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bronze Bombshell"></div></div>
<p>Who designed this card? This is so bizarre. They're making these in <em>Ravnica</em>? Man, old <em>Magic</em> is weird.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mishra&#039;s War Machine"></div></div>
<p>Speaking of old <em>Magic, </em>if we want our opponents to take some damage, why not gift them this terrible old contraption?</p>
<h2>Does This Business Have Legs?</h2>
<p>This was truly one of the strangest decks I've theory-crafted here on <em>The Monolith. </em>Usually when you build these odd contraptions, out of color identity and pushing the boundaries, you at least find a few cards that seem like slam dunks. And whilst there's certainly a couple of options for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant" href="#" target="_blank">Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, he does seem like he's going to stay a pretty niche commander.</p>
<p>If you were building this cursed collection of curiosities, what strange old cards would you be running? I'd love to know down in the comments below! But whilst you're working on those, I'll see you on the next edition of <em>The Monolith</em>, your home for strange and wonderful mono-colored decks!</p>
<p></p>
<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="JP0YYgCeJp"><p><a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/mono-white-aristocrats-with-anafenza-unyielding-lineage/">Mono-White Aristocrats with Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage</a></p></blockquote>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden;" title="&#8220;Mono-White Aristocrats with Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage&#8221; &#8212; EDHREC" src="https://edhrec.com/articles/mono-white-aristocrats-with-anafenza-unyielding-lineage/embed/#?secret=QTDZUvaZvD#?secret=JP0YYgCeJp" data-secret="JP0YYgCeJp" width="500" height="282" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p>
<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="q9sUF64CSk"><p><a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/mechanical-memories-a-history-of-gifting/">Mechanical Memories - A History of Gifting</a></p></blockquote>
<p><iframe loading="lazy" class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; visibility: hidden;" title="&#8220;Mechanical Memories - A History of Gifting&#8221; &#8212; EDHREC" src="https://edhrec.com/articles/mechanical-memories-a-history-of-gifting/embed/#?secret=dVkyswx4Ja#?secret=q9sUF64CSk" data-secret="q9sUF64CSk" width="500" height="282" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe></p>

Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant Deck Building Spotlight

Singleton Shmingleton - Raise Dead

Deckbuilding Contest Finalists - April 2025

<h6 style="text-align: right;"><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Duke Ulder Ravengard" href="#" target="_blank">Duke Ulder Ravengard</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | art by <a href="https://www.ericdeschamps.com/">Eric Deschamps</a></h6>
<p>Welcome back to <em>Bottom of the Barrel</em>, where we pick a theme from EDHREC and look at the “bottom of the barrel.” This means that we look at the least played color-combinations and pick a commander in those colors to brew a spicy new deck around!</p>
<p>Today's theme is a contentious one: infect.</p>
<p>Now, I know what you're thinking, "Nick, why infect? That's the worst!!" Believe me, I've been on the wrong side of an infect deck too, so I echo your sentiment. However, the combination of this theme with this commander was too good to pass up. Speaking of which...</p>
<p>Today's commander is a legendary creature from<em> Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate</em>: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Duke Ulder Ravengard" href="#" target="_blank">Duke Ulder Ravengard</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Duke Ulder Ravengard"></div></div>
<p>According to EDHREC, the most popular infect color combination, with 14,000 decks, is "Witch-Maw" (white, black, blue, and green). The printing of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Atraxa, Praetors&#039; Voice" href="#" target="_blank">Atraxa, Praetors&#039; Voice</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> was largely the reason for this, as her passive proliferate ability is quite good with poison counters.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Atraxa, Praetors&#039; Voice"></div></div>
<p>The least played color combination for infect is colorless, but after several days of brewing, this one stumped me. Colorless is already tricky to play, and focusing solely on infect made it even harder, so I looked for the second least played combination.</p>
<p>The second least played combination, with a modest 73 decks, is Boros (red and white). Boros is known for both Equipment and generally aggressive combat strategies, and these strategies align well with what infect is trying to accomplish.</p>
<p>Usually, infect suffers from one major drawback: it's hard to kill three players with infect. This is where myriad comes in. Duke Ulder can grant a creature myriad and haste, and giving myriad to infect or toxic creatures is an easy way to spread out poison counters to everyone.</p>
<h2>Category #1: Infect, and its younger brother, Toxic</h2>
<p>In Boros, there are only a handful of creatures with infect that we can include: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Core Prowler" href="#" target="_blank">Core Prowler</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> provides us with extra value when it dies, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ichorclaw Myr" href="#" target="_blank">Ichorclaw Myr</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> gets bigger when it becomes blocked, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tine Shrike" href="#" target="_blank">Tine Shrike</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a flying poisonous threat, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Corpse Cur" href="#" target="_blank">Corpse Cur</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can recur any of our infect creatures that die, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Razor Swine" href="#" target="_blank">Razor Swine</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> grants us first strike on top of infect, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Phyrexian Juggernaut" href="#" target="_blank">Phyrexian Juggernaut</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>'s "downside" of always attacking allows us to constantly pressure our opponents.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Core Prowler"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ichorclaw Myr"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tine Shrike"></div></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Corpse Cur"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Razor Swine"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Phyrexian Juggernaut"></div></div>
<p>On top of our infect creatures, we have a few toxic creatures to help push toward our goal: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Skrelv&#039;s Hive" href="#" target="_blank">Skrelv&#039;s Hive</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a white <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bitterblossom" href="#" target="_blank">Bitterblossom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, but for Phyrexian Mites, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="White Sun&#039;s Twilight" href="#" target="_blank">White Sun&#039;s Twilight</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a board wipe that can leave us with a terrifying board, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Myr Convert" href="#" target="_blank">Myr Convert</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can act as a mana dork <em>or</em> a toxic threat, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Annex Sentry" href="#" target="_blank">Annex Sentry</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a good piece of removal in a pinch, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Skrelv, Defector Mite" href="#" target="_blank">Skrelv, Defector Mite</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a great way to protect our creatures while giving them toxic 1.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Skrelv&#039;s Hive"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="White Sun&#039;s Twilight"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Myr Convert"></div></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Annex Sentry"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Skrelv, Defector Mite"></div></div>
<h2>Category #2: Copies, copies, copies!</h2>
<p>Since our options for infect and toxic creatures are so limited, I needed to find ways to make the most out of every creature we have. With this in mind, including creatures that can create copies of other creatures (even if they're temporary) is a must! <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jaxis, the Troublemaker" href="#" target="_blank">Jaxis, the Troublemaker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink" href="#" target="_blank">Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rionya, Fire Dancer" href="#" target="_blank">Rionya, Fire Dancer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> all are perfect ways to copy our infect creatures for maximum value.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jaxis, the Troublemaker"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rionya, Fire Dancer"></div></div>
<p>Aside from Duke Ulder's ability, we have a few other ways to grant myriad to our creatures: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blade of Selves" href="#" target="_blank">Blade of Selves</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> grants myriad to whichever creature is equipped, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Legion Loyalty" href="#" target="_blank">Legion Loyalty</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> grants myriad to <em>all</em> of our creatures.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Blade of Selves"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Legion Loyalty"></div></div>
<p>Also, for all of those pesky <em>temporary</em> copies that we make, I included <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sundial of the Infinite" href="#" target="_blank">Sundial of the Infinite</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. We can't let good tokens go to waste!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sundial of the Infinite"></div></div>
<h2>Category #3: Proliferate</h2>
<p>It's not always guaranteed that we can get in for damage, but if we can get in early enough, that's all we need! If everyone has at least one poison counter, we have plenty of proliferate effects to ensure that our gameplan isn't stalled by a few blockers or an untimely fog.</p>
<p>Some of the best are: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Glistening Sphere" href="#" target="_blank">Glistening Sphere</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to act as a mana rock that proliferates upon entering, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Staff of Compleation" href="#" target="_blank">Staff of Compleation</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to act as a Swiss army knife for our deck, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sword of Truth and Justice" href="#" target="_blank">Sword of Truth and Justice</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to make our infect creatures bigger while granting proliferation on combat damage, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Recon Craft Theta" href="#" target="_blank">Recon Craft Theta</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Filigree Vector" href="#" target="_blank">Filigree Vector</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to act as repeatable ways to proliferate every turn.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Glistening Sphere"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Staff of Compleation"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sword of Truth and Justice"></div></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Recon Craft Theta"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Filigree Vector"></div></div>
<p>If you're wondering, yes, we <em>are</em> including the proliferate all-stars in <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Contagion Clasp" href="#" target="_blank">Contagion Clasp</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Contagion Engine" href="#" target="_blank">Contagion Engine</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Contagion Clasp"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Contagion Engine"></div></div>
<h2>Category #4: Pushing Damage</h2>
<p>To win with poison, let's be honest, this deck needs to attack <em>a lot</em> in the early game. Here's what I included to help with that: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner" href="#" target="_blank">Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can make our small creatures unblockable, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Neyali, Suns&#039; Vanguard" href="#" target="_blank">Neyali, Suns&#039; Vanguard</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can give our attacking tokens double strike (this can be Mites <em>or</em> our myriad copies!), <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Full Throttle" href="#" target="_blank">Full Throttle</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can give us extra combat steps, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dolmen Gate" href="#" target="_blank">Dolmen Gate</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can guarantee the safety of our attackers, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Akroma&#039;s Will" href="#" target="_blank">Akroma&#039;s Will</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can give protection and act as a finisher, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Virtue of Loyalty" href="#" target="_blank">Virtue of Loyalty</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can grow our army, as well as untap them, every turn!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Neyali, Suns&#039; Vanguard"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Full Throttle"></div></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dolmen Gate"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Akroma&#039;s Will"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Virtue of Loyalty"></div></div>
<h2>Category #5: "Secret Spice" 1 and 2</h2>
<p>Our first secret spice for today comes more in the form of a strategy rather than a specific card. Since we are relying heavily on the poison plan, we included a lot of proliferate effects.</p>
<p>What else is good with proliferate? +1/+1 counters. There are so many cards in this deck that grant +1/+1 counters to our creatures that we should have no problem presenting a threatening board even without any poison makers.</p>
<p>For example, if <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Virtue of Loyalty" href="#" target="_blank">Virtue of Loyalty</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is on the board alongside <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aetheric Amplifier" href="#" target="_blank">Aetheric Amplifier</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Contagion Engine" href="#" target="_blank">Contagion Engine</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>? All of our creatures get HUGE. (Specifically, 1 counter turns into 3 then into 6)</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Virtue of Loyalty"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Aetheric Amplifier"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Contagion Engine"></div></div>
<p>Even if you just wanted to focus on the +1/+1 counters side of this deck, you could take out all of the infect creatures and replace them with anything you want and the deck can still operate at a high level.</p>
<p>Our second secret spice is a card that I think deserves the spotlight more often: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Agrus Kos, Eternal Soldier" href="#" target="_blank">Agrus Kos, Eternal Soldier</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Agrus Kos, Eternal Soldier"></div></div>
<p>Our commander grants myriad and haste to something, and Agrus can copy that ability and apply it <em>every creature we control.</em> The same can be said about any additional copying effects (Jaxis, Orthion, etc.). If our entire battlefield has myriad and haste, the game is over.</p>
<h2>Closing Thoughts</h2>
<p data-slot-rendered-content="true">This brings us to the end of our ninth edition of <em>Bottom of the Barrel</em>! I hope you enjoyed exploring a lesser-played color combination in the world of infect! I know you might have tuned out for this one, as poison isn't for anyone, but give it a shot!</p>
<p data-slot-rendered-content="true">If you have any thoughts or ideas about this decklist, let me know in the comments below!</p>
<p>Check out my decklist below!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Bottom of the Barrel - Duke Ulder Ravengard" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Duke Ulder Ravengard
[/Commander]
[Creatures]
*1 Agrus Kos, Eternal Soldier
*1 Annex Sentry
*1 Core Prowler
*1 Corpse Cur
*1 Crawling Chorus
*1 Feldon of the Third Path
*1 Filigree Vector
*1 Grateful Apparition
*1 Ichorclaw Myr
*1 Jawbone Duelist
*1 Jaxis, the Troublemaker
*1 Lost Leonin
*1 Mangara, the Diplomat
*1 Metastatic Evangel
*1 Myr Convert
*1 Necropede
*1 Neyali, Suns&#039; Vanguard
*1 Norn&#039;s Choirmaster
*1 Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink
*1 Phyrexian Juggernaut
*1 Plague Myr
*1 Professional Face-Breaker
*1 Razor Swine
*1 Rionya, Fire Dancer
*1 Skrelv, Defector Mite
*1 Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner
*1 Tine Shrike
[/Creatures]
[Enchantments]
*1 Land Tax
*1 Legion Loyalty
*1 Norn&#039;s Decree
*1 Skrelv&#039;s Hive
*1 Virtue of Loyalty // Ardenvale Fealty
[/Enchantments]
[Artifacts]
*1 Aetheric Amplifier
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Astral Cornucopia
*1 Blade of Selves
*1 Boros Signet
*1 Contagion Clasp
*1 Contagion Engine
*1 Cursed Mirror
*1 Dolmen Gate
*1 Everflowing Chalice
*1 Glistening Sphere
*1 Grafted Exoskeleton
*1 Hedron Archive
*1 Hourglass of the Lost
*1 Mind Stone
*1 Recon Craft Theta
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Staff of Compleation
*1 Sundial of the Infinite
*1 Sword of Truth and Justice
*1 Talisman of Conviction
*1 Throne of Geth
[/Artifacts]
[Sorceries]
*1 Farewell
*1 Full Throttle
*1 White Sun&#039;s Twilight
[/Sorceries]
[Instants]
*1 Akroma&#039;s Will
*1 Path to Exile
*1 Razorgrass Ambush // Razorgrass Field
*1 Swords to Plowshares
*1 Untimely Malfunction
*1 Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge
[/Instants]
[Lands]
*1 Battlefield Forge
*1 Castle Embereth
*1 Command Tower
*1 Elegant Parlor
*1 Escape Tunnel
*1 Fabled Passage
*1 Forgotten Cave
*1 Inkmoth Nexus
*1 Karn&#039;s Bastion
*1 Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
*1 Mirrex
*10 Mountain
*1 Path of Ancestry
*9 Plains
*1 Rustvale Bridge
*1 Secluded Steppe
*1 Spectator Seating
*1 Temple of Triumph
*1 War Room
[/Lands]"></span></div>


Bottom of the Barrel - Duke Ulder Ravengard

<h6 style="text-align: right;"><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage" href="#" target="_blank">Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | art by <a href="https://www.matthew-stewart.com/">Matt Stewart </a></h6>
<h1>Enduring Stupidity</h1>
<p>The week before last on <em>The Monolith </em>we talked about <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/building-hybrid-commanders-as-if-they-were-monocolored">building hybrid mana commanders as though they were just one color</a> which lead to some pretty fun out of pie actions as we made a mono green Aristocrats deck with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis" href="#" target="_blank">Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>I've always loved building Commander decks that try to perform the typical archetypes of one color, without that color present. And a non-black Aristocrats deck provides a lot of fun challenge as so many of the best payoffs for sacrificing your own creatures of course exist in black.</p>
<p>Now this week I had designs to do something very different, we were going to take a look at one of the new monocolored legends from <em>Tarkir: Dragonstorm. </em>And that's when I saw <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage" href="#" target="_blank">Anafenza</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>:</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage"></div></div>
<p>"Wow" I said, "That seems like a great legend to lead a mono white Aristocrats deck!". But surely that's already pretty played out, and we just made one in mono-green anyway.</p>
<p>As white is the go to color pairing for black when building an Aristocrats deck, I could only assume it would be one of the more popular choices for sacking your own creatures off outside of black.</p>
<p>But no, there's even less mono-white Aristocrats decks registered here on EDHREC.com than there are mono green ones! Turns out I was playing it safe.</p>
<p>So let's break that color pie once again and build around what looks to be a very fun new commander from the brand new set.</p>
<h2>The Spirit of the Deck</h2>
<p>First of all, let's take a look at <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage" href="#" target="_blank">Anafenza</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> herself. I'll even embed the card a second time for easy reading, because I'm nice like that. Tell you what, we'll use the alternate art.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage|TDM|327"></div></div>
<p>Our new commander is a three mana, white, Spirit Soldier with Flash and First Strike. She's a 2/2. Or at least she is when she enters the battlefield, because the most important thing about Anafenza is her third line of rules text.</p>
<p>It reads, "Whenever another nontoken creature you control dies, Anafenza endures 2". Endure X is a brand new triggered keyword which allows you to either place X counters on the creature who triggered it, or to create an X/X Spirit creature token.</p>
<p>Anafenza is going to act as our main payoff for sacking our own creatures. She can reward us in one of two ways, by flooding the board with 2/2 tokens or buffing herself up to try and swing in for lethal commander damage.</p>
<h2>The Secret to Mono White Aristocrats</h2>
<p>One of the trickiest things about building an Aristocrats deck is selecting your sacrifice outlets. It's also a good reason that a lot of Aristocrat decks need black in the color identity to function.</p>
<p>Black does have the best pay offs for letting one of your own creatures die, sure. But they also have a glut of good sac outlets they can field as well. Often they'll be filled with creatures that not only allow you to sacrifice your stuff, but also give you a payoff in return. All stapled onto the same card.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Phyrexian Altar"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ashnod&#039;s Altar"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Altar of Dementia"></div></div>
<p>Now any color has access to the big three above, all powerful options that pretty much any self sacrifice deck that can afford them will probably run. And we're likely to put them into our list as well!</p>
<p>But the special secret sauce that white brings to the table that I think seems under discussed when building these decks, is that mono white creatures can often sacrifice themselves.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Selfless Savior"></div></div>
<p>Introducing <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Selfless Savior" href="#" target="_blank">Selfless Savior</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, the reason for shed tears of players everywhere and the archetype for the sort of creatures we'll be running in this deck.</p>
<p>At instant speed, without any extra costs, cards like this can sacrifice themselves to protect your important board pieces.</p>
<p>They're not just for protection, either! There's also plenty of variants that can be used offensively, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bounty Agent" href="#" target="_blank">Bounty Agent</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> which can take out an enemy commander or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Remorseful Cleric" href="#" target="_blank">Remorseful Cleric</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> that can hate on graveyard strategies.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bounty Agent"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Felidar Cub"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Remorseful Cleric"></div></div>
<p>By running a big batch of these creatures in our deck we can ensure that there's always a way for us to sacrifice for value whenever we need. And pretty much always at instant speed with no additional costs.</p>
<p>With a payoff sitting in our command zone, we can start buffing her up or pumping out tokens immediately on turn three.</p>
<h2>To Endure or to Endure, That is the Question</h2>
<p>What's interesting about Anafenza as a commander is that her ability is modal, meaning we have three options to take when building her. We can make a load of tokens. We can make Anafenza very big. Or we can have a little of column A and a little of column B.</p>
<p>If you're building this deck yourself, you'll need to decide on what your wincon is. It could be a pretty standard go wide deck, turning your saviors into Spirits and overrunning your opponents.</p>
<p>Or it could play a little bit more like a Voltron deck. One giant commander swinging into your opponents surrounded by bodyguards.</p>
<p>There's definitely a deck in here that can do both, and one of the nice things about our commander's modal ability is that it should be pretty easy to switch lanes immediately depending on the cards that come out of the deck or the ways in which our opponents are defending against us.</p>
<p>But let's look at each of these builds individually, starting off with the more simple strategy of going wide.</p>
<h2>Spirited Slugging</h2>
<p>In all likelihood you know how to go wide by now. Especially in mono white. We've got a lot of creatures that are going to destroy themselves for our cause and return from the grave to fight for us as Spirit tokens.</p>
<p>But swapping a 1/1 for a 2/2 isn't exactly game breaking. We'll likely want to provide some support for our commander's ability through token doubling using cards like Annointed Procession and Mondrak.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Anointed Procession"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mondrak, Glory Dominus"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ojer Taq, Deepest Foundation"></div></div>
<p>There's plenty of cards that will reward you for making tokens in white. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bennie Bracks, Zoologist" href="#" target="_blank">Bennie Bracks, Zoologist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a pretty popular commander for token focused decks, and because of your cards' ability to sacrifice themselves at instant speed you could very easily be drawing a card on every players' end step with a big enough board.</p>
<p>You could also play classics like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mentor of the Meek" href="#" target="_blank">Mentor of the Meek</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or the more recent <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Enduring Innocence" href="#" target="_blank">Enduring Innocence</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> which has the benefit of also providing a risk free sacrifice fodder. A truly sacrificial lamb.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bennie Bracks, Zoologist"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mentor of the Meek"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Enduring Innocence"></div></div>
<p>If we are going wide then we're going to need some board wide buffs to push us over the finish line before enduring a game ending board wipe. <em>Wilds of Eldraine </em>provided us with one of the best mono-white token deck finishers ever printed not too long ago in <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Moonshaker Cavalry" href="#" target="_blank">Moonshaker Cavalry</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. You'll give all your creatures flying and buff them equal to your board size with some of the prettiest art in the set.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Moonshaker Cavalry"></div></div>
<h3>A Sneaky Infinite Combo</h3>
<p>Another option for buffing up your board for the final swing is to play the old classic, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cathars&#039; Crusade" href="#" target="_blank">Cathars&#039; Crusade</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. It's far more annoying than cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Banner of Kinship" href="#" target="_blank">Banner of Kinship</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> as you have to manually track loads of differently sized piles of +1/+1 counters which can be a real headache in token spamming decks.</p>
<p>However, with the ability to immediately put a +1/+1 counter on any of our creatures that enter the battlefield will unlock a spicy little combo with one of the easiest keywords to break in the game's history, Persist.</p>
<p>There's only two creatures I could find in mono-white that Persist. If you're not familiar with the keyword, it basically reanimates a creature that dies. They come back with a -1/-1 counter on them, and it only triggers if they don't already have one of those counters. In theory this means it should only trigger once.</p>
<p>But when a creature has both a -1/-1 counter and a +1/+1 counter on them, they cancel each other out. Which means our creature can Persist all over again.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Kithkin Spellduster"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cathars&#039; Crusade"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ashnod&#039;s Altar"></div></div>
<p>With one of our two Persist creatures out, Cathars' Crusade, and a free sacrifice outlet like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ashnod&#039;s Altar" href="#" target="_blank">Ashnod&#039;s Altar</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, this creature can be infinitely sacrificed. Every time we do so we'll get another trigger from our commander and if we choose to make a Spirit our board will grow bigger and bigger from all the counters Cathar's Crusade gives us.</p>
<p>We can even do this on our opponent's end step so that on our turn we can swing out with an infinitely wide, infinitely large board. Nasty!</p>
<h3>Protect Your Protectors</h3>
<p>If we're going wide then we definitely need to factor in some protection for our board. We're already running creatures that want to sacrifice themselves, and there's a few in white that will not only protect one target, but can make your entire board indestructible. Make sure to include these if this is your chosen strategy!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Boromir, Warden of the Tower"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Selfless Spirit"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lena, Selfless Champion"></div></div>
<p>Outside of that, most cards in your deck will be able to provide single target protection for your key board pieces. Especially your commander, which we'll talk about next.</p>
<h2>Spirited Slaying</h2>
<p>Now making tokens is all well and good. You'll probably want to make at least a few of them regardless of how you build this deck. That way you've got chump blockers and can easily trigger white card draw. But there's an alternative way of building Anafenza that I think is far cooler, and much funnier.</p>
<p>And that's as a Voltron deck. As we know, we can make Anafenza pretty large, pretty easily in this deck. She starts off as a 2/2 but every time one of our creatures dies, she gets two +1/+1 counters.</p>
<p>So in theory, if ten of our creatures die before Anafenza does, she can deal lethal commander damage. The only problem is, she doesn't have any evasion attached to her other than first strike.</p>
<p>Which does make it harder to block and kill her, but won't guarantee we can make it through another player's blockers to deal our lethal damage. Except, that's not true is it? Quite a few of our creatures, when sacrificed, give a target creature protection. Which can make her... unblockable.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cliffside Rescuer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Benevolent Bodyguard"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Alseid of Life&#039;s Bounty"></div></div>
<p>Imagine someone is swinging at you with a potentially lethal commander. They just cracked a Cliffside Rescuer and now they have protection from everything you control.</p>
<p>On top of that, if you'd like to respond to the trigger, they have about five different other protectors on board that can also foil your kill spells or provide further protection. What exactly do you do about that?</p>
<p>Well, that's our plan! By assembling enough of these Selfless Savior style effects we can not only make a commander that's near impossible to deal with, but also one that gets bigger every time we activate one of our countermeasures.</p>
<h3>Rinse and Repeat</h3>
<p>The main problem with this tactic is that it can end up being a bit of a one trick pony. If you swing into an opponent with your unblockable commander and sack all your bodyguards to get them up to 22 power, killing your target... now what?</p>
<p>You've run out of protection and your opponents can just murder your commander, setting us back to step one of the plan.</p>
<p>For that reason we need some to make sure we can cycle our protectors to ensure that we don't leave ourselves high and dry. Not to mention that it would be great to use that Rescuer more than once to ensure we can't be blocked when we next attack.</p>
<p>We should also look for extra value from our sacrifices in true Aristocrats style so that we can set up another turn with a similar board state.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Luminous Broodmoth"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Martyr&#039;s Bond"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Field of Souls"></div></div>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Luminous Broodmoth" href="#" target="_blank">Luminous Broodmoth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is one of my favorite mono white cards, and I've attached a lot of fond memories to it. It also serves as a perfect card to recycle our bodyguards, giving us an extra activation with them.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Martyr&#039;s Bond" href="#" target="_blank">Martyr&#039;s Bond</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will force our opponents to sacrifice their own creatures when we do the same, making it easier for us to swing in without using up our protection. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Field of Souls" href="#" target="_blank">Field of Souls</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> on the other hand will ensure we have something to block with after we've effectively just board wiped ourselves.</p>
<h2>Can Our Opponents Endure?</h2>
<p>It's certainly a deck that requires a lot of moving parts to play well. Which is probably why I love the idea so much. It's playing white out of its color pie, whilst also playing an archetype in a way it's not normally approached.</p>
<p>What do you reckon, could it actually win games? Will our wall of dogs be enough to protect us and see us to victory? Or will the only thing we'll actually endure be an early death and a night of spectating?</p>
<p>Let me know what you think in the comments and tell me if I'm missing any vital pieces that you think could get this strategy over the line. And most importantly, get out there and build some monocolored decks for your next commander night. Until then though, have fun enduring and I'll see you next week.</p>


Mono-White Aristocrats with Anafenza, Unyielding Lineage

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Downsize" href="#" target="_blank">Downsize</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | <a href="https://www.ryanpancoast.com/">Ryan Pancoast</a>)</h6>
<div></p>
<p>Welcome to spring! My name is Ben, and you may know me from <em>Conditions Allow</em>, my article series on EDHREC and <a href="https://commandersherald.com/tag/conditions-allow/">Commander's Herald</a>. It is my great pleasure to bring the Archidekt Deckbuilding Contest to EDHREC.</p>
<p>This will be a monthly contest with a different theme each month.</p>
<p>Your goal is to build a Commander legal deck that fulfills the prompt in a creative or unique fashion. At the end of each month, three finalists will be selected for you to vote on.</p>
<p>Whoever gets the most votes will be crowned the winner, although all three finalists receive a prize.</p>
<p>This month, we're getting into the spring cleaning spirit by cutting a color from our decks.</p>
<p></div>
<div></p>
<h3>What’s The Contest All About?</h3>
<p>Working within the parameters of the prompt provided below, construct a decklist with your own creative spin. Three chosen finalists will be awarded <a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/">store credit to use on Cardsphere</a>.</p>
<p><strong>For April's deckbuilding contest, construct a Commander-legal deck that uses fewer colors than are in the commander's color identity. You may include lands to cast your commander, but spells and abilities must not require the color you're omitting. </strong></p>
<p><strong>For example, if you choose to build an Izzet deck with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Eshki Dragonclaw" href="#" target="_blank">Eshki Dragonclaw</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> as your commander, you cannot include any cards that require green mana to cast or use, but you can include green lands to cast Eshki. As always, decks will be judged on creativity and originality.</strong></p>
<p></div>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Yasova Dragonclaw"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Obosh, the Preypiercer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rigo, Streetwise Mentor"></div></div>
<p>This contest prompt is inspired by the growing list of commanders that don't require all of their colors to be cast. Commanders like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Alesha, Who Smiles at Death" href="#" target="_blank">Alesha, Who Smiles at Death</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Keruga, the Macrosage" href="#" target="_blank">Keruga, the Macrosage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jinnie Fay, Jetmir&#039;s Second" href="#" target="_blank">Jinnie Fay, Jetmir&#039;s Second</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can all helm decks that leave out one color in their identity.</p>
<p>Two color decks often have cheaper mana bases, or you might prefer how a deck with fewer colors plays. Some of these commanders also naturally push you to prioritize one color over the others.</p>
<p>An Alesha deck with no other red cards can more easily optimize it's mana base to pay for her activated ability. On the other hand, you can build Simic <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Yasova Dragonclaw" href="#" target="_blank">Yasova Dragonclaw</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to play the rare theft deck without red.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Nethroi, Apex of Death"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Prossh, Skyraider of Kher"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Raffine, Scheming Seer"></div></div>
<p>Of course, you can choose any commander for this challenge, not just ones that abridge their own mana costs. This is a great opportunity to push strategies outside of their normal colors while having support from a strong commander.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nethroi, Apex of Death" href="#" target="_blank">Nethroi, Apex of Death</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can lead a Selesnya reanimator deck, or a Golgari aggro deck that cheats its smaller attackers into play en masse. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Raffine, Scheming Seer" href="#" target="_blank">Raffine, Scheming Seer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> could make for an interesting Orzhov or even mono black tempo deck.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Inalla, Archmage Ritualist"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Oloro, Ageless Ascetic"></div></div>
<p>Perhaps the easiest route to take is to choose a commander that doesn't need to be cast at all. You can easily build a deck of any color with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Ur-Dragon" href="#" target="_blank">The Ur-Dragon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Oloro, Ageless Ascetic" href="#" target="_blank">Oloro, Ageless Ascetic</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has been helming mono white lifegain decks for almost as long as Commander's been around.</p>
<p>These commanders tend to be more specific to a creature type or theme, however, so building a creative deck that stands out will be more difficult.</p>
<h3>How To Participate</h3>
<ul>
<li>Brew an EDH/Commander legal deck on <a href="https://archidekt.com/">Archidekt</a> that satisfies the prompt.</li>
<li>Any unreleased cards spoiled during the contest’s duration are allowed.</li>
<li>Silver-bordered and acorn cards, while cool, are not allowed.</li>
<li>Digital-only cards (such as those designed for the Alchemy format on Arena) are not allowed.</li>
<li>Strictly one deck submitted per user.</li>
</ul>
<p>Reply to the <a href="https://archidekt.com/forum/thread/11254934">Archidekt newspost</a>, or submission post on the <a href="https://discord.gg/sctEc9Ru36">Archidekt Discord</a> with a link to your deck before <strong>9:00 pm EST</strong> (UTC -5, currently) on <strong>Wednesday, April 9, 2025</strong> (do not submit the same deck in multiple places).</p>
<p>Only one submission per user! From the eligible submissions, we'll select three finalists with lists that we believe best embody the spirit of the prompt. Deck descriptions are not required but certainly may provide valuable context!</p>
<div></p>
<p>On <strong>Wednesday, April 16, 2025</strong>, we’ll announce three finalists via the Archidekt Discord and a brief article on EDHREC highlighting each deck.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/sets">Each finalist will be awarded credit to use on Cardsphere</a>. The value of the credit is in US dollars and depends on the finalist's placement in deck upvotes at the end of the week-long polling period:</p>
<ul>
<li>1st Place Prize - $250</li>
<li>2nd Place Prize - $150</li>
<li>3rd Place Prize - $100</li>
</ul>
<p></div>
<p>Finalists will be contacted via email or Discord (depending on where they submitted) regarding their winnings within roughly 24 hours following the conclusion of voting on <strong>Wednesday, April 23, 2025</strong>.</p>
<p>Please note, <a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/login">you must have a Cardsphere account</a> in order to receive your winnings. It's quick and free-- <a href="https://www.cardsphere.com/">register here</a> if you don't have an account already!</p>
<p><a href="https://archidekt.com/contestRules">Official contest rules</a>.</p>
<p>If you have any questions, feel free to ask here, or join the Archidekt <a href="https://discord.gg/sctEc9Ru36">public Discord server</a>. We look forward to seeing what you all come up with!</p>


Archidekt Deckbuilding Contest - April 2025

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Twinflame Tyrant" href="#" target="_blank">Twinflame Tyrant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | art by <a href="https://xabigaztelua.com/">Xabi Gaztelua</a>)</h6>
<h1>Seeing Red</h1>
<p>Mono-red always has been and always will be my favorite color of deck in EDH. Red was already my favorite color in <em>Magic, </em>but there's just something about going up against everyone's high powered, multicolored decks.</p>
<p>All filled with crazy powerful cards in a suite of colors. And there you are with your pile of cheap cards and a dream, somehow still becoming the threat with copious amounts of direct damage and a wincon baked into your commander.</p>
<p>If the crimson curse lives within you. The need for burn, haste, and impulsivity, then this list is for you. A heap of powerful cards that find a home in any Commander deck with a mono-red legend at the helm. Regardless of your play style, these staples will help you to lean in to mono-red's inherent strengths, and patch over some of its weaknesses.</p>
<p>This is <em>The Monolith</em>, the series in which I convince you to build and play more monocolored decks in EDH, and here are 7 cards that will find a home in any mono-red Commander deck.</p>
<h2>1. Jeska's Will</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jeska&#039;s Will"></div></div>
<p>There's a reason it's recently been dubbed a Game Changer. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jeska&#039;s Will" href="#" target="_blank">Jeska&#039;s Will</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has the ability to create some absolutely explosive turns. For just three mana, you'll be able to pick one of two options.</p>
<p>Either fill your pool with red mana equal to the number of cards in one of your opponents' hands. A surprisingly big chunk of mana usually, especially if you're playing it on curve where most of your opponents will still have full hands from just starting the game.</p>
<p>Alternatively, you can use Jeska's Will to exile the top three cards of your library, keeping them available to play until the end of your turn. Now either of these are relatively good returns for your three mana. You'd obviously prefer to have the cards for longer for the rate, but draw is draw even if its impulsive. Especially in mono-red.</p>
<p>The true power of this card lies in the conditional text at the top though. If your commander is on the field, you can choose both. You get a potentially massive ritual for the cost, or at the very least you'll have cast the card effectively for free. Then you'll put three more cards into your arsenal for the turn.</p>
<p>Jeska's Will has loads of applications, from casting expensive cards early, to helping you storm off. In general, it's just never bad to make a tonne of mana and see three extra cards off the top of your library.</p>
<p>And because you get still one of the effects, even if your commander is out of action, it'll never eat up room in your hand doing nothing. Even if it does suck to only get one of the options.</p>
<h2>2. Ruby Medallion</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ruby Medallion"></div></div>
<p>Ramping in red isn't easy. You can certainly flood the board or your pool with one use mana. There's plenty of rituals or cards that dump out treasure tokens at your disposal that'll ensure you can have single explosive turns with a huge chunk of mana at your disposal.</p>
<p>But largely that mana is gone when it's used. In comparison to green's ability to find multiple lands per turn and consistently increase their available mana from turn to turn, red's version of ramping is usually quite lacking.</p>
<p>The medallions are available in every color in magic's pie, but they're even more essential as ramp for the decks that find themselves in this position. No easy access to increasing mana, and a tendency to spin out when they've tapped their last land. And that's red to a T.</p>
<p>The medallions reduce the cost of all spells you cast of their corresponding color. In this case red for ruby. And that's indefinitely. And for just two mana. Whilst they won't help you with the colorless spells in your deck or any cards that are all red pips (as it only reduces generic mana costs), permanently reducing the cost of almost all your spells for the rest of the game is a phenomenal help to a color that can struggle to get more permanent mana available.</p>
<h2>3. Arena of Glory</h2>
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<p>Red has the ability to claw wins out of nowhere. To massively expedite games and go from the weakest player at the table to the new arch enemy in a matter of moments.</p>
<p>Conversely though, red struggles when games go long. The more time your opponents have to assemble their board states, put up walls, and heal any damage your early plays have done, the more your wins can slip through your fingers.</p>
<p>With that in mind, red needs the ability to play fast. There's a reason that haste is a keyword that's so intrinsically linked with red in the color pie. When you get something on the board, you need it to work right away. And with so many red commanders that rely on their flashy activated and combat abilities to do cool things, you want to get your creatures tapping and attacking as soon as possible.</p>
<p>Enter this lovely nonbasic land from <em>Modern Horizons 3</em>. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Arena of Glory" href="#" target="_blank">Arena of Glory</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> allows you to exert itself (exerted permanents don't untap the turn after) and pay <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> to then add <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span><span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> to your mana pool. If you spend that mana on a creature spell, that creature will gain haste until end of turn.</p>
<p>That's <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Etali, Primal Storm" href="#" target="_blank">Etali, Primal Storm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> immediately pilfering the top card of each deck. Or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Feldon of the Third Path" href="#" target="_blank">Feldon of the Third Path</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> immediately making a token. Heck, maybe even a token copy of Etali!</p>
<h2>4. Untimely Malfunction</h2>
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<p>One of the best defensive abilities red has access to is the ability to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bolt Bend" href="#" target="_blank">Bolt Bend</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> targeted cards. You can't usually counter a spell in red and it's hard to give your own permanents hexproof or indestructible at instant speed.</p>
<p>That means any kill spells, counter spells, or any other kind of disruption sent your way can be pretty devastating. That is, unless it was a targeted effect.</p>
<p>By misdirecting counterspells or turning kill spells back onto the casters' own creatures, red has a unique ability to not stop a shot but pull an innocent bystander into the line of fire instead. There's a few of these effects to pick from in red but <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Untimely Malfunction" href="#" target="_blank">Untimely Malfunction</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is my go to pick since the release of <em>Duskmourn</em>.</p>
<p>Malfunction still hits targeted spells and abilities for a nice and cheap rate of just two mana, but also comes with some extra options for when you need it.</p>
<p>You can use it like an <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Abrade" href="#" target="_blank">Abrade</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> but with protection attached rather than creature damage. Allowing you to destroy a nasty artifact at instant speed on your opponent's board, or any nonland you like if you have a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Liquimetal Torque" href="#" target="_blank">Liquimetal Torque</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> on board.</p>
<p>On top of that you can either use it as evasion by stopping your opponent's nasty blockers from taking part in combat, allowing you to squeeze through with lethal damage, or just attack without having to worry about the blocker's best creature. It's a lovely little toolbox and will be useful in almost all situations in a game of EDH.</p>
<p>And with a format with this many different possible game states, having something that can answer a load of different problems all in one card is a surefire hit in any deck.</p>
<h2>5. Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle</h2>
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<p>One of the best things about playing a monocolored deck is the ease with which you can assemble a mana base for your deck. Having utility lands is great, and you largely won't be punished for running colorless ones in your mono decks, but if you're lazy you can also just dump a pile of basic mountains in sleeves and call it a day there. Even more than that, there's some devilish options in red that reward you for sticking to the peaks with your mana base.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle" href="#" target="_blank">Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> does one of the best things a staple card can do: reward you for simply playing the game. Valakut itself is just a tapped nonbasic mountain.</p>
<p>A great thing to shove out on turn one when not much is happening. But once it's on the board, your sixth mountain onward will gain a brand new ability. That's right, your lands are now <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lightning Bolt" href="#" target="_blank">Lightning Bolts</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>Simply playing a mountain, if you have five or more other mountains on the field, will cause Valakut to deal 3 damage to any player or creature of your choice. Now every land drop you make becomes targeted removal for smaller creatures or puts added pressure on your biggest rival at the table.</p>
<p>Combine this card with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Koth, Fire of Resistance" href="#" target="_blank">Koth, Fire of Resistance</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to not only reliably make your land drops every turn, but to also turn your 3 damage on land drop effects into a massive SEVEN damage when paired with Koth's ultimate. God I love red.</p>
<h2>6. Blasphemous Act</h2>
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<p>One of the many things that red struggles with in a game of Commander is wiping a dangerous board. Board wipes are the most important thing an EDH deck can have, ensuring that one player doesn't run away with the game and giving you a chance to reset play when you fall behind. And whilst red has some of the worst options of any color in this regard, you should absolutely still pack them in your deck.</p>
<p>As the best sweeper in red, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blasphemous Act" href="#" target="_blank">Blasphemous Act</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a must include in almost all mono-red EDH decks. In what was a perfect synergy of cool card design and flavorful effects, this nine mana sorcery will deal a whopping 13 damage to every creature on the battlefield.</p>
<p>Whilst damage isn't the best way to remove creatures, especially ones sporting a toughness of 14 or higher, 13 should take out pretty much everything in sight.</p>
<p>Its contemporary, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Chain Reaction" href="#" target="_blank">Chain Reaction</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> does technically have the ability to do even more damage, but its conditional makes it liable to sitting as a dud card in your hand.</p>
<h3>Wiping a Board For One Mana is Just Very Good</h3>
<p>Blasphemous Act's biggest strength is that its generic cost is reduced by one for every creature on the battlefield. Of course you'd never cast this with zero creatures in play so it'll never actually cost you the full nine mana. In most cases it'll only actually cost you <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>.</p>
<p>And in certain cases where there's only a few creatures on the board that desperately need to go, I'd rather pay a little extra for a guaranteed 13 damage than just three or four with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Chain Reaction" href="#" target="_blank">Chain Reaction</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>Not to mention that in the cases where you are only spending a single mana to wipe an entire board, you'll be able to rebuild incredibly fast directly after and maybe even swing in with a few hasty creatures.</p>
<h2>7. Blood Moon</h2>
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<p>Now this recommendation comes with a grain of salt. In fact, it's much more than a grain. Players don't like it when you mess with their lands. And whilst this isn't exactly an <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Armageddon" href="#" target="_blank">Armageddon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, a lot of modern Commander decks run a huge amount of nonbasics.</p>
<p>Having them all become basic mountains, especially when that player isn't playing red, can be devastating. But it's precisely that reason that makes this card so effective when you're playing mono-red.</p>
<p>It's not a popular tactic but punishing players for their lack of basic lands can give you a significant advantage at the table. If you're not running too many utility lands, this card will effectively do absolutely nothing to your mana base whilst crippling every other players'.</p>
<p>The funniest part of all this being that red is the worst color to kill enchantments with. So even players who have red spells will struggle to use them to reverse the effect.</p>
<p>Mono-red is the most fun way to play <em>Magic: The Gathering</em>. This card simply forces your opponents to do the same!</p>
<h2>What Makes You See Red?</h2>
<p>So there's some absolute bangers for you to slot into every mono-red deck you build henceforth. But there's a whole heap of cards that could easily squeeze their way into this list.</p>
<p>What cards do you run in every mono-red deck you build? Which creatures, sorceries, and enchantments have already hit your list before you even started deck building?</p>
<p>Let me know in the comments below and I'll see you on the next edition of <em>The Monolith</em>. Why not check out my previous list in which I recommend <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/the-monolith-7-cards-you-should-be-running-in-any-monocolored-deck">cards that go in ANY mono deck</a>, regardless of color? But until then, happy deckbuilding, and stay mono!</p>
