<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass" href="#" target="_blank">The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.deviantart.com/douzen/gallery">Douzen</a></em></p>
<p>Hello there! My name's Ezra, and I'm here to introduce a Commander deck built around a new card from <em>Avatar: The Last Airbender Eternal</em>.</p>
<p>Looking at spoilers from this upcoming set, I was pleasantly surprised by how simple many of the cards are. Between text reminding new players what keyword abilities like flying and vigilance do, straightforward spells, and creatures with no abilities at all ("vanilla"), it has a very "Core Set" feel.</p>
<p>I'm excited to use cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass" href="#" target="_blank">The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to show beginning players how the game works, whether it's <em>Magic </em>in general or the Commander format.</p>
<h2>Slow and Steady</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass"></div></div>
<p>The Terror of Serpent's Pass is a great way to introduce a new player to the slow and steady pace of a more casual Commander game. It's also a good way to introduce one of the big differences between this format and other formats: commander damage.</p>
<p>Commander has an alternative way to win called commander damage, where dealing 21 damage in combat to an opponent with your commander causes that player to lose. The 21 number is because the format originally called Elder Dragon Highlander/EDH only allowed <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=t%3A%22elder+dragon%22+set%3Alegends">these 7/7 Elder Dragons</a> as commanders, and 21 damage represented exactly three attacks.</p>
<p>21 commander damage is also possible in just three attacks with The Terror; even fewer if it has the right buffs on it!</p>
<h3>Hexproof</h3>
<p>Because commanders cost <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-2" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> more to cast every time they are put into the command zone, and there are a lot of opponents packing removal spells, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swords to Plowshares" href="#" target="_blank">Swords to Plowshares</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, the Equipment <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swiftfoot Boots" href="#" target="_blank">Swiftfoot Boots</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <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> are very popular in this format.</p>
<p>Luckily for us, our commander has hexproof built right in. This means we don't have to worry about popular removal, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Generous Gift" href="#" target="_blank">Generous Gift</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Deadly Rollick" href="#" target="_blank">Deadly Rollick</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Chaos Warp" href="#" target="_blank">Chaos Warp</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Beast Within" href="#" target="_blank">Beast Within</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> going after The Terror.</p>
<h2>The Gameplan</h2>
<p>So we have an expensive but powerful commander and are focusing on cards with a blue color identity, where should we go from here?</p>
<h2>Mana That Makes Sense</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Worn Powerstone"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thran Dynamo"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Rogue&#039;s Passage"></div></div>
<h3>Mana Rocks</h3>
<p>Blue is pretty much all-in on artifacts as a way to accelerate our mana. Especially with a commander as expensive as The Terror of Serpent's Pass, we're going to want to have both a high land count and a high "mana rock" count. It's usually a good idea to customize mana rocks to a deck's commander's mana value (for example, including a lot of two-mana ramp spells to get a four-mana commander out ahead of schedule), but with our commander costing so much mana, we're just going to mix and match rocks with a bunch of different mana values from 1-4 and even throw in <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dreamstone Hedron" href="#" target="_blank">Dreamstone Hedron</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> for good measure.</p>
<p>Some of these mana rocks also have fun built-in utility, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sonic Screwdriver" href="#" target="_blank">Sonic Screwdriver</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ring of the Lucii" href="#" target="_blank">Ring of the Lucii</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> hampering blocking prospects and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stonespeaker Crystal" href="#" target="_blank">Stonespeaker Crystal</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> keeping opponents with graveyard-based decks on their toes.</p>
<h3>Utility Lands</h3>
<p>EDHREC data for other mono-blue decks with seven-mana commanders show 34-35 lands for three of them and a higher 38 lands for the super land-focused <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Patron of the Moon" href="#" target="_blank">Patron of the Moon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>As a reminder from the last beginner deck we made, <a href="https://www.tcgplayer.com/content/article/What-s-an-Optimal-Mana-Curve-and-Land-Ramp-Count-for-Commander/e22caad1-b04b-4f8a-951b-a41e9f08da14/?srsltid=AfmBOoqpjErRSBU8dbRzekkUbkDnVkMr0zzP8lQta0DcIw3A9_bu9pPF" target="_blank" rel="noopener">articles like this one</a> argue 34-35 lands is far too low, pointing out even 36 lands "would translate to 14.5 lands in 40-card decks or 21.8 lands in 60-card decks."</p>
<p>With a seven-mana commander, we're <em>really</em> going to want to make our land drops every turn. Even though The Terror has some built-in protection through hexproof, mass removal, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wrath of God" href="#" target="_blank">Wrath of God</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Farewell" href="#" target="_blank">Farewell</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, will make it start costing <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-7" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> or even more mana as the game progresses.</p>
<p>As a starting player, missing land drops and being unable to cast your spells feels really bad, especially in a slow format like casual Commander. For these reasons, let's get the mana count higher in this deck and take advantage of utility lands, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blighted Cataract" href="#" target="_blank">Blighted Cataract</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Castle Vantress" href="#" target="_blank">Castle Vantress</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Memorial to Genius" href="#" target="_blank">Memorial to Genius</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, for more card draw and selection alongside <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> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Secluded Starforge" href="#" target="_blank">Secluded Starforge</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to make our already fearsome commander even more scary.</p>
<p>If you're interested in a more in-depth discussion about how many lands to run in Commander depending on your deck, check out this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OBtYR4XcOlg" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EDHRECast video</a>!</p>
<h2>Card Draw</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sea Gate Oracle"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Memory Deluge"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Flow of Knowledge"></div></div>
<p>One of blue's big advantage is in its card draw. It can come in many forms, whether it's a classic creature like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mulldrifter" href="#" target="_blank">Mulldrifter</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, a cheap way to filter through the deck like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Thirst for Knowledge" href="#" target="_blank">Thirst for Knowledge</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, or a simple but powerful sorcery like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Overflowing Insight" href="#" target="_blank">Overflowing Insight</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Over 20% of this deck is devoted to spells that at draw at least two extra cards.</p>
<p>Drawing a lot of cards is great at any portion of the game: early on, it allows us to make all our land drops on time and build out our mana; later on, when other players may have run of of stuff to do, we are able to cast spells like Flow of Ideas and Opportunity to refill our hand and access the kinds of cards we need for any given situation.</p>
<h2>Buffing The Terror</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Take Flight"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="O-Naginata"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Hedron Matrix"></div></div>
<p>It's not just all about playing lands and drawing cards: we have to eventually be prepared to win the game, too. That's where Equipment to enhance our commander come in.</p>
<p>Between evasion from <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kitesail" href="#" target="_blank">Kitesail</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Prowler&#039;s Helm" href="#" target="_blank">Prowler&#039;s Helm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, trample from <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="O-Naginata" href="#" target="_blank">O-Naginata</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Haunted Cloak" href="#" target="_blank">Haunted Cloak</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and massive damage increases from <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fireshrieker" href="#" target="_blank">Fireshrieker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Hedron Matrix" href="#" target="_blank">Hedron Matrix</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, we'll be able to close out the game in short order.</p>
<p>And don't forget, our commander's built-in hexproof takes a number of answers out of the equation for our opponents, so we'll be able to focus our disruption on the spells that really matter.</p>
<p>Speaking of disruption...</p>
<h2>Disrupting Opponents</h2>
<p>Commander isn't always just about advancing your own gameplan, but about stopping your opponents from doing what they want to do.</p>
<p>There are two main types of disruption: targeted (which can stop a single thing) and mass (which can stop lots of stuff at once).</p>
<h3>Targeted Disruption</h3>
<p>Another of blue's strengths as a color is the abundance of efficient counterspells, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Counterspell" href="#" target="_blank">Counterspell</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> (the actual card), <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Disdainful Stroke" href="#" target="_blank">Disdainful Stroke</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> (great in a casual Commander where everyone is slamming big spells), and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Negate" href="#" target="_blank">Negate</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> (flexible answer to most of the stuff that can actually deal with our commander).</p>
<p>Blue also gives us access to interesting and unique ways to blank opposing commanders without putting them into the command zone, like the older <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Imprisoned in the Moon" href="#" target="_blank">Imprisoned in the Moon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and the brand new <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Observed Stasis" href="#" target="_blank">Observed Stasis</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<h3>Mass Disruption</h3>
<p>One of blue's most played cards in Commander is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cyclonic Rift" href="#" target="_blank">Cyclonic Rift</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. While it's not included here (high salt score + more than doubles the price tag of the deck), the concept of returning a bunch of stuff to multiple opponents' hands is prevalent in a lot of other blue cards.</p>
<p><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Engulf the Shore" href="#" target="_blank">Engulf the Shore</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Scourge of Fleets" href="#" target="_blank">Scourge of Fleets</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are variations on a theme and can buy us time to keep doing what we do best: assembling more mana, more cards in hand, and more ways to make our commander pack an extra punch. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Whelming Wave" href="#" target="_blank">Whelming Wave</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a perfect fit for our strategy, because it will reset a lot of the board without affecting <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass" href="#" target="_blank">The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or a lot of our own big sea monster threats.</p>
<p>If an opponent gets a little too aggressive at us and does an all-out attack, thinking we don't have a lot of blockers available, we can punish them big time with cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aetherize" href="#" target="_blank">Aetherize</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aetherspouts" href="#" target="_blank">Aetherspouts</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>One advantage of having a lot of mana sources combined with many instant speed spells is our ability to draw more cards, counter spells that harm us, and/or deal with stuff already in play, depending on what the game requires at any given moment. This is a great introduction to what it feels like to be a blue mage.</p>
<h2>The Terror of Serpent's Pass Commander Decklist</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 The Terror of Serpent&#039;s Pass
[/Commander]
[Creatures]
*1 Burnished Hart
*1 Charix, the Raging Isle
*1 Lorthos, the Tidemaker
*1 Monstrosity of the Lake
*1 Mulldrifter
*1 Scholar of the Ages
*1 Scourge of Fleets
*1 Sea Gate Oracle
*1 Solemn Simulacrum
*1 Tempest Djinn
*1 Triskaidekaphile
*1 Whirler Rogue
[/Creatures]
[Instants]
*1 Aetherize
*1 Aetherspouts
*1 Counterspell
*1 Disdainful Stroke
*1 Engulf the Shore
*1 Flow of Knowledge
*1 Insidious Will
*1 Memory Deluge
*1 Mystic Confluence
*1 Negate
*1 Neutralize
*1 Opportunity
*1 Pull from Tomorrow
*1 Quick Study
*1 Repulse
*1 Rewind
*1 Run Away Together
*1 Scour for Scrap
*1 Thirst for Discovery
*1 Thirst for Knowledge
[/Instants]
[Sorceries]
*1 Curse of the Swine
*1 Displacement Wave
*1 Flow of Ideas
*1 Overflowing Insight
*1 River&#039;s Rebuke
*1 Whelming Wave
[/Sorceries]
[Artifacts]
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Dreamstone Hedron
*1 Fireshrieker
*1 Haunted Cloak
*1 Hedron Archive
*1 Hedron Matrix
*1 Kitesail
*1 Mind Stone
*1 O-Naginata
*1 Prowler&#039;s Helm
*1 Ring of the Lucii
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Sonic Screwdriver
*1 Stonespeaker Crystal
*1 Thought Vessel
*1 Thran Dynamo
*1 Wayfarer&#039;s Bauble
*1 Worn Powerstone
[/Artifacts]
[Enchantments]
*1 Imprisoned in the Moon
*1 Observed Stasis
*1 Take Flight
[/Enchantments]
[Lands]
*1 Blighted Cataract
*1 Castle Vantress
*33 Island
*1 Memorial to Genius
*1 Myriad Landscape
*1 Rogue&#039;s Passage
*1 Scavenger Grounds
*1 Secluded Starforge
[/Lands]"></span></div>
<div>
<h2>Deck Checklist</h2>
<ul>
<li>55 mana sources (40 lands, 14 artifact ramp, one card with islandcycling)</li>
<li>20 ways to draw multiple cards</li>
<li>10 targeted disruption</li>
<li>14 mass disruption</li>
<li>8 cards to buff our commander</li>
</ul>
</div>
<div>
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
<p>If you or someone in your life is just getting into Commander or <em>Magic </em>in general, this deck would be a great place to start. It's just one color, less than $25, and has a straightforward and fun gameplan.</p>
</div>


monoblue

A Beginner-Friendly Commander Deck With The Terror of Serpent's Pass

The Top 40 Monocolored Commanders