<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Korvold, Fae-Cursed King" href="#" target="_blank">Korvold, Fae-Cursed King</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.artstation.com/wisnutan">Wisnu Tan</a>)</h6>
<h1>Epic Preparations</h1>
<p>Hello, EDHREC fans! I’m Bernardo, and this is <em>Epic Experiment</em>, a series where we throw all common sense aside and experiment with some unusual strategies, changing how we normally build our deck. Is it going to work? Who knows?! We’re making science here. When you’re an Izzet mage, blowing things up is half the fun.</p>
<p>Let's talk about <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Korvold, Fae-Cursed King" href="#" target="_blank">Korvold, Fae-Cursed King</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Korvold, Fae-Cursed King"></div></div>
<p>By this point, we all know Korvold is a must-answer threat and how easy it is to break his card draw ability. Korvold lets us draw a card for every permanent we sacrifice, whether it be a Treasure token, a fetch land, or cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Unbridled Growth" href="#" target="_blank">Unbridled Growth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, giving us two cards for one mana. This flexibility allows him to be the perfect commander for almost every permanent-based Jund strategy. The indiscriminate draw enables him to go over the top and makes it almost impossible to defeat him in an attrition battle.</p>
<p>Given Korvold's power level, it's not that much of a stretch to think that he's going to become the target of removal from the other side of the table. This means that it's important to either get enough value from his arrival (which is easy) or to play in such a deliberately tamed shell that we might convince the table that we're not as much of a threat.</p>
<hr />
<h2>Epic Ingredients</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Bitterheart Witch"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of Disturbance"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of Opulence"></div></div>
<p>It's a bit of a challenge to find a niche for such a popular commander. Luckily for me, the answer was pretty much in the name: Fae-Cursed. Curses are an interesting archetype to pair with Korvold because they provide a steady flow of tokens and an efficient timing window to sacrifice them with our commander's attack trigger.</p>
<p>One of the best aspects of a Curse-heavy deck is the ability to pinpoint our hate effects, which helps us avoid potential backlash from other players. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Death&#039;s Hold" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Death&#039;s Hold</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can hold off tokens and go-wide strategies before they get to their anthems. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cruel Reality" href="#" target="_blank">Cruel Reality</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is great against decks that are trying to stick a big threat into play. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Fool&#039;s Wisdom" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Fool&#039;s Wisdom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a nice way to put control decks on a clock, and it's also very good against certain Spellslinger shells.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of Clinging Webs"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of the Restless Dead"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Captive Audience"></div></div>
<p>There are a lot of token-producer Curses that feed our commander rather nicely. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Clinging Webs" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Clinging Webs</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a great way to fight recursion-based decks and is very nice to have after a board wipe. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of the Restless Dead" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of the Restless Dead</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> punishes greedy green players and provides useful self-sacrificing tokens. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Disturbance" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Disturbance</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Opulence" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Opulence</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> play nicely with Korvold's sacrifice trigger timing by being able to sacrifice the freshly created token.</p>
<p>While not necessarily Curses, Group Slug cards certainly fit the Curses style of death by a thousand cuts. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sheoldred, the Apocalypse" href="#" target="_blank">Sheoldred, the Apocalypse</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is an impressive threat that acts as a global <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Fool&#039;s Wisdom" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Fool&#039;s Wisdom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Arasta of the Endless Web" href="#" target="_blank">Arasta of the Endless Web</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> provides lots of useful bodies that can be used to either clog our board or feed Korvold. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Captive Audience" href="#" target="_blank">Captive Audience</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is as close to an Aura as a card can get, and its effects are nasty and should be considered mostly as a way to deal with archenemy scenarios.</p>
<hr />
<h2>The Mixture</h2>
<p><div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Korvold, Curse King" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*Korvold, Fae-Cursed King
[/Commander]
[Creature]
*Birds of Paradise
*Caustic Caterpillar
*Gilded Goose
*Ignoble Hierarch
*Burglar Rat
*Destiny Spinner
*Elderfang Disciple
*Herald of the Pantheon
*Sanctum Weaver
*Tangled Florahedron
*Virus Beetle
*Weaver of Harmony
*Bothersome Quasit
*Demon&#039;s Disciple
*Gloomshrieker
*Plaguecrafter
*Arasta of the Endless Web
*Ravenous Chupacabra
*Sheoldred, the Apocalypse
*Silent Arbiter
*Bitterheart Witch
*Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant
*Shriekmaw
[/Creature]
[Enchantment]
*Curse of Opulence
*Phyrexian Reclamation
*Wild Growth
*Cindervine
*Curse of Shaken Faith
*Fertile Ground
*Trespasser&#039;s Curse
*Wolfwillow Haven
*Curse of Chaos
*Curse of the Clinging Webs
*Curse of Disturbance
*Curse of Hospitality
*Curse of the Restless Dead
*Descent into Avernus
*Maddening Hex
*Myth Unbound
*Overgrowth
*Vow of Lightning
*Vow of Malice
*Vow of Torment
*Vow of Wildness
*Weirding Woods
*Curse of Oblivion
*Curse of Bloodletting
*Curse of Death&#039;s Hold
*Curse of Misfortune
*Curse of Thirst
*Rite of the Raging Storm
*Curse of Fool&#039;s Wisdom
*Captive Audience
*Cruel Reality
[/Enchantment]
[Instant]
*Assassin&#039;s Trophy
*Hagra Mauling
[/Instant]
[Artifact]
*Sol Ring
*Crawlspace
[/Artifact]
[Sorcery]
*Shatterskull Smashing
*Agadeem&#039;s Awakening
*Bala Ged Recovery
*Toxic Deluge
*Damnation
*Turntimber Symbiosis
*Blasphemous Act
[/Sorcery]
[Land]
*Blood Crypt
*Bloodstained Mire
*Bojuka Bog
*Command Tower
*Fire-Lit Thicket
*Ghost Quarter
*Grave Cairns
*Grove of the Burnwillows
*Llanowar Wastes
*Luxury Suite
*Nurturing Peatland
*Overgrown Tomb
*Polluted Delta
*Prismatic Vista
*Riveters Outlook
*Savage Lands
*Spire Garden
*Stomping Ground
*Sulfurous Springs
*Tectonic Edge
*Twilight Mire
*Undergrowth Stadium
*Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
*Verdant Catacombs
*Windswept Heath
*Wooded Foothills
*Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth
*Zitora&#039;s Proving Ground
*3 Forest
*2 Swamp
*Mountain
[/Land]"></span></div><br />
</p>
<hr />
<p>Our commander is an important tool for this list, which means we need to have a few cheap permanents to get more mileage out of it. Most of our removal suite being creatures can help us with this. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Burglar Rat" href="#" target="_blank">Burglar Rat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Elderfang Disciple" href="#" target="_blank">Elderfang Disciple</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Virus Beetle" href="#" target="_blank">Virus Beetle</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>'s discard ETBs are very useful for us to slow down the game to get more value out of our Curses. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ravenous Chupacabra" href="#" target="_blank">Ravenous Chupacabra</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shriekmaw" href="#" target="_blank">Shriekmaw</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> provide targeted creature removal, and together with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Plaguecrafter" href="#" target="_blank">Plaguecrafter</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Demon&#039;s Disciple" href="#" target="_blank">Demon&#039;s Disciple</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, we get a pretty decent creature removal suite.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rite of the Raging Storm"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vow of Malice"></div></div>
<p>It's important to make sure that everyone tries to get value out of our attack-based Curses, whether they want it or not. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant" href="#" target="_blank">Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a great way to cover all bases; it provides everyone with another incentive to hit each other with, and the goad on attack is a nice bonus. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bothersome Quasit" href="#" target="_blank">Bothersome Quasit</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> plays well with our Curses by both providing a forced attack and by clearing the way for potential combatants. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rite of the Raging Storm" href="#" target="_blank">Rite of the Raging Storm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> gives everyone a "why not" attacker, which, together with beneficial Curses like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Hospitality" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Hospitality</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, can provide a nice amount of "incidental" damage.</p>
<hr />
<h2>Methodology</h2>
<p>Our early game tends to be a bit slow if we don't know what everyone else is playing. If that's the case, we should consider holding out our Curses so that we can properly gauge each deck and avoid king-making. If we know our opponents' strategies pretty well right off the bat, then we can instead start casting our Curses right away. We need to have a dedicated card to sacrifice when our commander comes down, so as to avoid losing a land. Don't get me wrong, we should still play Korvold even if we need to lose a land, but we don't want to get blown out by removal too badly.</p>
<p>By the mid-game, we should have our commander online and have a couple of Curses placed, but this is the pivotal point where the game tends to change depending on the harmful Auras we've managed to play. Curses that create tokens, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Opulence" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Opulence</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of the Restless Dead" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of the Restless Dead</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, tend to accelerate our gameplan, while Curses that punish our opponents, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Death&#039;s Hold" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Death&#039;s Hold</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Shaken Faith" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Shaken Faith</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, tend to slow the game down.</p>
<p>Between our Curses, slugs pieces, and commander, we grind pretty well in the late game, though we do lack a bit in sheer power and instead rely on incremental advantages, which can lose us some top deck wars. The most important thing to do to win the late game is to make sure that, by this point, everyone is weakened by a full game's worth of conflicts!</p>
<p>That’s it for this <em>Epic Experiment</em>! What do you think of this list? Do you have any questions about the deck? Which cards did you like? Which did you not? Was this experiment a success? Please let me know in the comments below!</p>


Epic Experiment - Korvold

Epic Experiment - The Beamtown Bullies

Commander Legends Set Review - Wedge and Shard Legends

Archetune-Up - Korvold, King of the Gobbos

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Woodland Cemetery" href="#" target="_blank">Woodland Cemetery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://twitter.com/christinechoi_?lang=en">Christine Choi</a>)</h6>
<h1>Introduction</h1>
<p>This time, the strange place we inhabit is the graveyard. A cemetery, a burial ground, a lichyard. Perhaps none of these is too accurate an appellation, as the headstones stretch to the horizon, and, towering as they are, rise up with the very landscape. No: they <em>are</em> the landscape.</p>
<p>Welcome to <em>Dual Shot</em>, where we brew two decks at the same time... in one deck. This list, at first glance, looks to be a land destruction deck inside a more typical lands deck. While you recycle your own lands with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lord Windgrace" href="#" target="_blank">Lord Windgrace</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Gitrog Monster" href="#" target="_blank">The Gitrog Monster</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="World Shaper" href="#" target="_blank">World Shaper</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, you'll also be burying your opponents' boards with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Thoughts of Ruin" href="#" target="_blank">Thoughts of Ruin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Helldozer" href="#" target="_blank">Helldozer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Keldon Arsonist" href="#" target="_blank">Keldon Arsonist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="World Shaper"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Helldozer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Myriad Landscape"></div></div>
<p>But there's already a lot of overlap between the themes of <a href="https://edhrec.com/themes/lands">Lands</a> and <a href="https://edhrec.com/themes/land-destruction">Land Destruction</a>, according to our data. A few examples: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ramunap Excavator" href="#" target="_blank">Ramunap Excavator</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is showing as the #1 and #4 most synergistic cards in those lists, respectively. Windgrace is the most popular lands commander by far, and an easy second for piloting picks in land destruction lists. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="World Shaper" href="#" target="_blank">World Shaper</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Avenger of Zendikar" href="#" target="_blank">Avenger of Zendikar</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Azusa, Lost but Seeking" href="#" target="_blank">Azusa, Lost but Seeking</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are all very popular choices within those themes, even when you take into account their usefulness and prevalence across all decks, regardless of thematic consideration.</p>
<p>Once you shy away from the salt-generating strategies of mass land destruction, inclusion rates for certain cards look very similar in these two themes. Deck recs tagged with these themes bleed into one another by shape and gestalt, and it can sometimes become difficult to distinguish these archetypes. One often incidentally includes the other.</p>
<hr />
<h2>The Undying Lands</h2>
<p>Instead, in truer <em>Dual Shot</em> fashion, the subtheme you'll be working with here is that of lichdom. And you'll be a lonely lord of the graveyard, as most of what you want to be sacrificing, milling, and destroying are your own lands. The creatures in this list are largely servants to that end. Otherwise, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Mastery" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Mastery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zuran Orb" href="#" target="_blank">Zuran Orb</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> create a bizarre engine for card draw and emergency fuel to avoid killing yourself with the lich's blessing. Phylacteries always have a funny drawback, don't they?</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lich&#039;s Mastery"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Zuran Orb"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Claws of Gix"></div></div>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Zuran Orb" href="#" target="_blank">Zuran Orb</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> only shows up in 1% of lists here at EDHREC, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Mastery" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Mastery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> rears its head just 0.4% of the time. To that end, it's difficult to say that this is a Lands deck with a "lich" subtheme, since we don't have any data as to what that theme would look like. Usually, it seems, these sorts of cards show up as one-ofs: alternate win condtions (or, don't-lose conditions, I guess) that are difficult to nail down exactly right. But we need more than that for this experiment. Unfortunately, things like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich" href="#" target="_blank">Lich</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nefarious Lich" href="#" target="_blank">Nefarious Lich</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> have very prohibitive mana costs, so they didn't make their way into this version, but with how much our lands move around, it's not completely unfeasible.</p>
<p>Aiding in our quest to become the lich lord, we have a package including <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fortune Thief" href="#" target="_blank">Fortune Thief</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Platinum Angel" href="#" target="_blank">Platinum Angel</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vilis, Broker of Blood" href="#" target="_blank">Vilis, Broker of Blood</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stunning Reversal" href="#" target="_blank">Stunning Reversal</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. These are the bare bones (heh) of the smaller side of the <em>Dual Shot</em>, and without diving into some of the less sane "lich tribal" cards (we'll get to those later), this risky subtheme is expanded upon with a number of cards whose synergies aren't immediately obvious.</p>
<p>That sought-after "bridge" concept we've explored in the past shines brightly with the exemplars of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Skola Grovedancer" href="#" target="_blank">Skola Grovedancer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Courser of Kruphix" href="#" target="_blank">Courser of Kruphix</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sophic Centaur" href="#" target="_blank">Sophic Centaur</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and a couple of life-gain taplands are paler imitators. Additionally, there are a few cards that belong in anyone's toolbox that perform especially well here. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Respite" href="#" target="_blank">Respite</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Constant Mists" href="#" target="_blank">Constant Mists</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, otherwise fairly typical <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fog" href="#" target="_blank">Fog</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> effects, prove to be multitaskers in this brew, fueling our lichdom and churning our graveyard, respectively.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Skola Grovedancer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Courser of Kruphix"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sophic Centaur"></div></div>
<p>Anyway, let's see what alternate-reality Windgrace got up to after he was supposed to die.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Windgrace Lichdom" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Lord Windgrace
[/Commander]
[Creatures]
*1 Agent of Stromgald
*1 Azusa, Lost but Seeking
*1 Courser of Kruphix
*1 Elvish Reclaimer
*1 Fortune Thief
*1 Groundskeeper
*1 Helldozer
*1 Keldon Arsonist
*1 Living Twister
*1 Mina and Denn, Wildborn
*1 Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion
*1 Orcish Lumberjack
*1 Platinum Angel
*1 Ramunap Excavator
*1 Scaretiller
*1 Skola Grovedancer
*1 Solemn Simulacrum
*1 Sophic Centaur
*1 Springbloom Druid
*1 The Gitrog Monster
*1 Tireless Tracker
*1 Trench Wurm
*1 Turntimber Sower
*1 Valleymaker
*1 Vilis, Broker of Blood
*1 World Shaper
*1 Zhur-Taa Druid
[/Creatures]
[Instants]
*1 Beast Within
*1 Comet Storm
*1 Constant Mists
*1 Crop Rotation
*1 Firestorm
*1 Grisly Salvage
*1 Putrefy
*1 Respite
*1 Stunning Reversal
*1 Tribute to the Wild
[/Instants]
[Sorceries]
*1 Conflagrate
*1 Cultivate
*1 Decree of Pain
*1 Edge of Autumn
*1 Hurricane
*1 Inner Fire
*1 Life from the Loam
*1 Mwonvuli Acid-Moss
*1 Nylea&#039;s Intervention
*1 Reprocess
*1 Splendid Reclamation
*1 Thoughts of Ruin
*1 Worm Harvest
[/Sorceries]
[Artifacts]
*1 Alhammarret&#039;s Archive
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Claws of Gix
*1 Golgari Signet
*1 Gruul Signet
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Swiftfoot Boots
*1 Zuran Orb
[/Artifacts]
[Enchantments]
*1 Ayula&#039;s Influence
*1 Lich&#039;s Mastery
*1 Mana Flare
*1 The Mending of Dominaria
[/Enchantments]
[Lands]
*1 Akoum Refuge
*1 Barren Moor
*1 Bojuka Bog
*1 Cinder Glade
*1 Command Tower
*1 Dragonskull Summit
*1 Evolving Wilds
*1 Field of Ruin
*5 Forest
*1 Forgotten Cave
*1 Jungle Hollow
*1 Luxury Suite
*4 Mountain
*1 Myriad Landscape
*1 Overgrown Tomb
*1 Reliquary Tower
*1 Rootbound Crag
*1 Savage Lands
*1 Sheltered Thicket
*1 Smoldering Marsh
*1 Spire Garden
*5 Swamp
*1 Temple of Malady
*1 Terramorphic Expanse
*1 Tranquil Thicket
*1 Woodland Cemetery
[/Lands]"></span></div>

<hr />
<h2>The World Churns</h2>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wildfire" href="#" target="_blank">Wildfire</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> seems to be fair enough as a single way to deal with lands <em>en masse</em>, and would make for a fun inclusion, but otherwise the targeted land destruction should be enough to deal with any difficult nonbasics your opponents might field. Really, what you'll be doing is moving your own lands around in a constant dance, stirring the very earth beneath you as one would a soup.</p>
<p>(Do not drink the soup.)</p>
<p>Those cards we mentioned earlier, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich" href="#" target="_blank">Lich</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nefarious Lich" href="#" target="_blank">Nefarious Lich</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, are awfully risky, aren't hexproof, and realistically, if you have two of these effects on board, you're probably going to lose. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Oath of Lim-Dul" href="#" target="_blank">Oath of Lim-Dul</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> seems a bit less likely to end in disaster. But there's nothing quite like a tutor to completely change the direction of your deck. Something like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mastermind&#039;s Acquisition" href="#" target="_blank">Mastermind&#039;s Acquisition</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> might be a better option to augment the lich tribal subtheme.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lich"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mastermind&#039;s Acquisition"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lich&#039;s Mirror"></div></div>
<p>Speaking of, there are quite a few lich effects that aren't in our colors. Cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Illusions of Grandeur" href="#" target="_blank">Illusions of Grandeur</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Delusions of Mediocrity" href="#" target="_blank">Delusions of Mediocrity</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Transcendence" href="#" target="_blank">Transcendence</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are all interesting but outside of our identity. Messing with these effects seems thematically viable, superficially, anyway. It's just that these are as likely to lose you the game as anything else. Under <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lord Windgrace" href="#" target="_blank">Lord Windgrace</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>'s tutelage, having a yard full of permanents seems like a reasonably safe way to offset that danger, but as <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Mastery" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Mastery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> eats away our discard pile, your land recursion strategy weakens.</p>
<p>The inclusion I most wanted to slot in was <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Mirror" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Mirror</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. It felt safely redundant - having Mastery and the Mirror out together means that if you're about to drown in your own strange circuity (read: Mastery completely backfires), you can target <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lich&#039;s Mastery" href="#" target="_blank">Lich&#039;s Mastery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> with its own ability (it has hexproof, not shroud), losing you the game but for the Mirror's saving graces.</p>
<hr />
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>It might be fun to try grabbing every card with the word "lich" in its name...</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lichenthrope"></div></div>
<p>(Reserved List!)</p>
<p>But this deck was an attempt to try and meaningfully focus lichdom as a subtheme, here supporting a larger strategy of rather recklessly moving permanents between zones. Some "tribes" are indeed supported in the sense that there are quite a lot of cards befitting that particular strategy, but prove difficult to combine in an effective way, and demand a good deal of creativity to come up with any sort of thematic cohesion. Then there are tribes that simply lack the cards, like, for example, Moose tribal.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Norwood Riders"></div></div>
<p>Oh, no, wait. That's an Elf.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Game-Trail Changeling"></div></div>
<p>Ah, there! Technically a Moose, I think.</p>
<p>See what I mean?</p>
<p>Anyway, that's it for this week... and for a few other weeks, at that. <em>Dual Shot</em> will be taking a brief break to try and <a href="https://edhrec.com/cards/brisela-voice-of-nightmares">hideously merge</a> some more subthemes and superthemes together for your heckling, er, reading pleasure. In the meantime, let us know what unexplored themes you've tried playing with, and what the results were. Was it something a bit more visible, like liches, or as our own <a href="https://articles.edhrec.com/author/kyle-massa/">Kyle Massa</a> explored <a href="https://articles.edhrec.com/mechanically-minded-proliferate/">one year ago</a>, <em>Proliferate</em>? Or was it significantly stranger, like eyepatch tribal? Seriously, there are only like three Pirates who fit that bill. Not an easy deck to build.</p>
<p>Well, until next time. Have fun, and stay safe out there!</p>


Dual Shot - The Gravelands

Collected Company - Obosh

<h6 style="text-align: right;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rude Awakening" href="#" target="_blank">Rude Awakening</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.mtgpics.com/illus?art=351&amp;reprints=1">Ittoku</a>)</h6>
<h1>Introduction</h1>
<p>"Rude awakening." That's a strange idiom, isn't it? There's the intended meaning of a harsher realization casting a cold, hard shadow on one's naive preconceptions. This plays on the lyrical image of someone being shaken awake, as from a pleasant slumber or a daydreaming doze. The feeling of a sudden turbulence, a dramatic change in one's state of mind (or board), is likely a familiar one for all of us.</p>
<p>And though it can certainly be unpleasant, why is politeness factored into the discussion at all? Is it somehow a breach of decorum to alert someone, even roughly, to the truth of wakefulness?</p>
<p>Wake up, sheeple! Or, wake up sheeple? Oh, uh, Gyrus can actually do that. Commas can be fun.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gyrus, Waker of Corpses"></div></div>
<p>And the sad truth is that although there is a distant and tertiary theme of Dragon tribal in this brew, this <a href="https://edhrec.com/themes/reanimate">Reanimate</a> deck inside a <a href="https://edhrec.com/themes/sacrifice">Sacrifice</a> deck has no method by which to grant Human as an additional creature type to <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nyx-fleece Ram" href="#" target="_blank">Nyx-fleece Ram</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, although I'm sure that's possible in another deck.</p>
<p>Without too much more rambling in the hillsides of madness, I welcome you to the latest edition of <em>Dual Shot</em>, where we brew two decks at the same time... in one deck.</p>
<hr />
<h2>Hidden in the Depths</h2>
<p>We're back to a split more closely approximating 80/20, as was established in <em>Dual Shot</em>'s pilot studies. Actually, sometimes it feels like you have to really dig for the reanimation subtheme to rear its head, even with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gyrus, Waker of Corpses" href="#" target="_blank">Gyrus, Waker of Corpses</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> at the helm. But these two themes enjoy a sort of natural synergy: sacrificing creatures puts them into the graveyard, and in this case, apparently, they're only mostly dead, as your Hydra alarm clock is clamorous enough to get them up and out of their deathbed.</p>
<p>And while we're going to be running cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Victimize" href="#" target="_blank">Victimize</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dread Return" href="#" target="_blank">Dread Return</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, the payoffs are primarily in the shape of sacrifice triggers - in fact, in our 99 lurks a king cursed with gluttony: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Korvold, Fae-Cursed King" href="#" target="_blank">Korvold, Fae-Cursed King</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Korvold almost functions as a hidden commander, fueled by the rest of the deck and either drawing you into an out or turning sideways, himself. Reanimating one of our draconic threats - cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Karrthus, Tyrant of Jund" href="#" target="_blank">Karrthus, Tyrant of Jund</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Atarka, World Render" href="#" target="_blank">Atarka, World Render</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, can easily knock a single player out of the game, but you'll need to rely on the pressure of recursion and card draw in order to eke out a victory - especially with a card as common as <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bojuka Bog" href="#" target="_blank">Bojuka Bog</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> essentially hitting you like it's a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Time Walk" href="#" target="_blank">Time Walk</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> if you're in a lane for reanimation.</p>
<p>One other thing to be wary of is the fact that Gyrus puts a creature token onto the battlefield tapped and attacking - which means that although the creature <em>is</em> attacking, it was never declared as an attacker while moving into to phase (when you declared Gyrus as an attacker) - this means that any tokens you create with on-attack triggers do not trigger. No surprise bonus mana from <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Savage Ventmaw" href="#" target="_blank">Savage Ventmaw</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, sadly. But let's take a look at the pile of cards and see what <em>does</em> work.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Gyrus and the Circle of Corpses" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Gyrus, Waker of Corpses
[/Commander]
[Creatures]
*1 Paradise Druid
*1 Leyline Prowler
*1 Sorcerer&#039;s Broom
*1 Rapacious Dragon
*1 Izoni, Thousand-Eyed
*1 Demanding Dragon
*1 Thrashing Brontodon
*1 Syr Konrad, the Grim
*1 Catalyst Elemental
*1 Battle Rampart
*1 Korvold, Fae-Cursed King
*1 Mayhem Devil
*1 Atarka, World Render
*1 Darigaaz Reincarnated
*1 Malfegor
*1 Tymaret, the Murder King
*1 Swift Warkite
*1 Lyzolda, the Blood Witch
*1 Plaguecrafter
*1 Gorging Vulture
*1 Hope of Ghirapur
*1 Goblin Cratermaker
*1 Bladewing the Risen
*1 Keeper of Fables
*1 Priest of Forgotten Gods
*1 Gluttonous Troll
*1 Judith, the Scourge Diva
*1 Savage Ventmaw
*1 Karrthus, Tyrant of Jund
[/Creatures]
[Instants]
*1 Murder
*1 Bake into a Pie
*1 Gang Up
*1 Dark Ritual
*1 Fling
[/Instants]
[Sorceries]
*1 Gild
*1 Tormenting Voice
*1 Hull Breach
*1 Taste of Death
*1 Painful Lesson
*1 Sign in Blood
*1 Mana Seism
*1 Faithless Looting
*1 Portent of Betrayal
*1 Savage Twister
[/Sorceries]
[Artifacts]
*1 Bloodsoaked Altar
*1 Golden Egg
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Rakdos Cluestone
*1 Gruul Cluestone
*1 Golgari Cluestone
*1 Witch&#039;s Oven
*1 Altar of Shadows
*1 Kolaghan Monument
*1 Golgari Locket
*1 Rakdos Locket
*1 Gruul Locket
*1 Whispersilk Cloak
[/Artifacts]
[Enchantments]
*1 Bloodfire Infusion
*1 Shade&#039;s Form
*1 Moldervine Reclamation
*1 Dark Heart of the Wood
*1 Burning Sands
*1 Rhythm of the Wild
[/Enchantments]
[Planeswalkers]
*1 Angrath, Captain of Chaos
[/Planeswalkers]
[Lands]
*1 Command Tower
*1 Guildmages&#039; Forum
*1 Jund Panorama
*1 Savage Lands
*1 Geothermal Crevice
*1 Rocky Tar Pit
*1 Mountain Valley
*1 Bloodfell Caves
*1 Jungle Hollow
*1 Rugged Highlands
*1 Timber Gorge
*1 Foul Orchard
*1 Cinder Barrens
*1 Golgari Guildgate
*1 Temple of Malady
*1 Cryptic Caves
*1 Sapseep Forest
*1 Rakdos Carnarium
*1 Gruul Turf
*5 Swamp
*4 Mountain
*7 Forest
[/Lands]"></span></div>

<hr />
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>So you might have noticed that this is a shakily modified Korvold Brawl deck. As well, this particular <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dual Shot" href="#" target="_blank">Dual Shot</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is still in the early stages of development. You'll want good utility from your sacrificial lambs, er, Dragons, or whatever weird thing you'll be delivering to the gods. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Spore Frog" href="#" target="_blank">Spore Frog</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <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> are must-includes, and although we want our creatures dying for the cause, a good pair of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lightning Greaves" href="#" target="_blank">Lightning Greaves</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> might be nice for Gyrus, though I'm not exactly sure it's the boot-wearing type. Sandals, maybe. In any case, Gyrus dying to removal isn't the worst thing in the world, as his commander tax can be worked into his casting cost rather elegantly. For example, the first time you cast him, say you make X=3, so you cast him for 6 mana in total. He dies, and then you recast him with X equaling 1, you pay the tax of 2, and you've... spent 6 mana in total. Your clangorous Hydra still enters with six +1/+1 counters. That's the sort of recursion that any Timmy or Tammy could love.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Spore Frog"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ashnod&#039;s Altar"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lightning Greaves"></div></div>
<p>Then some obvious cards to connect our adjacent themes at play: <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Buried Alive" href="#" target="_blank">Buried Alive</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Victimize" href="#" target="_blank">Victimize</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dread Return" href="#" target="_blank">Dread Return</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> - and a few other <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Reanimate" href="#" target="_blank">Reanimate</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>-esque cards (like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Reanimate" href="#" target="_blank">Reanimate</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, perhaps) to get the infrastructure of our thematic bridge up to code.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Buried Alive"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Victimize"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dread Return"></div></div>
<p>While you're cleaning up your mana base - replacing the taplands, gainlands, and lockets with any sort of fetch, even things like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Evolving Wilds" href="#" target="_blank">Evolving Wilds</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Terramorphic Expanse" href="#" target="_blank">Terramorphic Expanse</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> for fixing and sacrifice triggers - you may also tidy up some of the rest of the chaff. While all-stars like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blood Artist" href="#" target="_blank">Blood Artist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest" href="#" target="_blank">Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Gitrog Monsters" href="#" target="_blank">The Gitrog Monsters</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are all very interested in what we're doing, simpler upgrades (read: removal suite) take priority. How did a regular old <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Murder" href="#" target="_blank">Murder</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> find its way in here? Gods, it's like I'm asleep when I add the removal to these decks.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Doom Blade"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Storm&#039;s Wrath"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Reclamation Sage"></div></div>
<p>You'll also have fun slotting in things like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Anger" href="#" target="_blank">Anger</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ramunap Excavator" href="#" target="_blank">Ramunap Excavator</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fleshbag Marauder" href="#" target="_blank">Fleshbag Marauder</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <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>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Pitiless Plunderer" href="#" target="_blank">Pitiless Plunderer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. This reanimation catalogue, though not particularly fleshed out (accidental pun with our Zombie Warrior friend), ends up looking more Mardu than Jund - insofar as it's combat-centric. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gyrus, Waker of Corpses" href="#" target="_blank">Gyrus, Waker of Corpses</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> into <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bladewing the Risen" href="#" target="_blank">Bladewing the Risen</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> into <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Atarka, World Render" href="#" target="_blank">Atarka, World Render</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is wonderfully stupid and probably doesn't even work the way I want it to (remember, when creatures are made to enter the battlefield tapped and attacking, they were never declared as attackers, so "when ~ attacks" triggers don't hit the stack). At any rate, if you need another Dragon, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Prossh, Skyraider of Kher" href="#" target="_blank">Prossh, Skyraider of Kher</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> has got your back. I can only assume that means he has your back, and most of the rest of you, in his mouth, but, hey, free sacrifice outlet.</p>
<p>As it stands, this list is really more of a 90/10 split, but that's owing to one simple truth: that this was just a Korvold deck at first. The Brawl precon got retooled into an EDH deck that looked a little bit too much like many other recs for the Fae-Cursed King. That there was a good deal of overlap in the sacrifice and reanimation themes (and any graveyard strategy, really) led to this becoming an early <em>Dual Shot</em> candidate. And even in its fledgling form, this list hearkens back to <a href="https://articles.edhrec.com/dual-shot-dynamic-stall/">an earlier <em>Dual Shot</em></a> experiment, one with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest" href="#" target="_blank">Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> front and center. By this I mean that a much closer split seems very feasible. As long as you can reliably fill your graveyard (self-mill, sacrifice outlets, big threats eating spot removal), you have fuel for reanimation. If you can secure payoffs for both filling <em>and</em> emptying your yard, then perhaps by some metrics, you've brewed two decks at the same time...<em> in one deck</em>... aaaand <em>Catchphrase!</em></p>
<p>That's all for today. If I'm to field a question to you folks, then it has to be about graveyard synergy. What lists have you played with that did more than one thing with the old lichyard? Were you bringing back lands and maybe hoping for a heavy ping with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lotleth Giant" href="#" target="_blank">Lotleth Giant</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>? Let us know in the comments. Till next we meet.</p>


jund

Epic Experiment - Korvold

Epic Experiment - The Beamtown Bullies

Commander Legends Set Review - Wedge and Shard Legends

Archetune-Up - Korvold, King of the Gobbos

Dual Shot - The Gravelands

Collected Company - Obosh

Dual Shot - Rude Awakening

Archetune-Up - Creating Your Own Theme!

60 to 100 - Korvold the Value-Cursed King

Commander Showdown - Prossh vs Korvold