<a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sergeant John Benton" href="#" target="_blank">Sergeant John Benton</a> | Art by Wei Guan
Hello there! Welcome back to Archetypes of Imagination, the weekly series where I build decks based on popular Commander archetypes using <a href="https://tagger.scryfall.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Scryfall's tagging system</a> and<a href="https://edhrec.com/tags" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> EDHREC's Tag pages</a>. This week, we'll be building a deck focused on being nice to our opponents, also known as Group Hug. 
Partially inspired by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfG67OLpQoU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Spice8Rack's recent video on group hug decks</a>, and partially just because I'm such a nice person, we'll be focusing on helping out the other players at the table this week. There's a ton of great group hug commander options, including the recently released <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ms. Bumbleflower" href="#" target="_blank">Ms. Bumbleflower</a> that Spice talked about. But, I'm looking for a more direct way to win the game - a way to leverage my kindness into victory with ease. So, this train of thought brought me to… <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sergeant John Benton" href="#" target="_blank">Sergeant John Benton</a>!
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sergeant John Benton"></div></div>
It's one of the simpler Commander designs in recent memory, but it's certainly a powerful card. For , we get a 2/4 with trample and haste. And, when this creature hits one of our opponents, both us and the opposing player will draw an amount of cards equal to the damage it dealt. While Benton only has two base power, he's got some extremely relevant abilities (trample and haste) that make him a prime target for pump spells. But, we'll also need some ways to protect our commander, because our hybrid voltron-group hug game plan will make Benton a prime target for opposing removal spells. 
It looks like we've got a solid road map for this deck. Let's get brewing
<h2>Pump Spells for Sergeant John Benton</h2>
To find pump spells, <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=commander%3Aselesnya+legal%3Aedh+order%3Aedhrec+%28otag%3Aenlarge+or+otag%3Aboost-power+or+otag%3Agiant-growth+or+otag%3Acombat-trick%29&amp;unique=cards&amp;as=grid&amp;order=edhrec" target="_blank" rel="noopener">I searched Scryfall</a> for cards tagged with “enlarge,” “combat trick,” “boost power,” and “giant growth.” There were a ton of options, so I'll stick to talking about the best ones for this deck. 
Some of my favorite spells are those that provide some benefit beyond just bumping up Benton's power. For example, <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kaya&#039;s Onslaught" href="#" target="_blank">Kaya&#039;s Onslaught</a> also gives him double strike to make sure our opponents feel really, really, really loved by our commander as he smacks them twice. There's also <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Go Forth" href="#" target="_blank">Go Forth</a>, a newer card that can act as a pump spell or fetch a land in a pinch. Although that'll rarely come up with the amount of cards we'll be drawing, I like having that flexibility. 
Then, one of my favorite combat tricks of all time is here too: <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gift of the Viper" href="#" target="_blank">Gift of the Viper</a>. Because Benton has trample, we can ensure that all but one of his power gets dealt to our opponents as combat damage. The interaction between trample and deathtouch is super powerful, so it's great that this spell gives our commander a deathtouch counter to ensure it can keep crashing through for damage turn after turn.
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Kaya&#039;s Onslaught"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Go Forth"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gift of the Viper"></div></div>
There's also more classic pump spells here, like the ever-useful <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Invigorate" href="#" target="_blank">Invigorate</a> (free spells are always good), the math-intensive <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Exponential Growth" href="#" target="_blank">Exponential Growth</a> (to ensure we're spreading the love), and the hard-to-get-rid-of <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gryff&#039;s Boon" href="#" target="_blank">Gryff&#039;s Boon</a> (repeatable evasion and a small power boost work well together).
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Invigorate"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Exponential Growth"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gryff&#039;s Boon"></div></div>
In case our opponents don't take kindly to our kindness, I've also included a whole host of protection spells. These can be found with the “protects creature” tag on Scryfall, but I chose to focus on cards that could also pump up our commander (and thus only primarily used ones from our <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=commander%3Aselesnya+legal%3Aedh+order%3Aedhrec+%28otag%3Aenlarge+or+otag%3Aboost-power+or+otag%3Agiant-growth+or+otag%3Acombat-trick%29&amp;unique=cards&amp;as=grid&amp;order=edhrec" target="_blank" rel="noopener">previous Scryfall search</a>). 
There's a ton of these, but my favorites include <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Vines of Vastwood" href="#" target="_blank">Vines of Vastwood</a>, <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Take Up the Shield" href="#" target="_blank">Take Up the Shield</a>, and <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tyvar&#039;s Stand" href="#" target="_blank">Tyvar&#039;s Stand</a> Vines is a classic, protecting a creature for and giving it +4/+4 if we can pay another . This card is great with or without the kicker, so it's got a slot in this deck. <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Take Up the Shield" href="#" target="_blank">Take Up the Shield</a> won me many a Outlaws of Thunder Junction Draft last year, so it's possible I'm biased towards this card. But protecting a creature and giving it lifelink for a turn, while also providing it with a permanent (albeit, small) power and toughness boost is a lot for just one card. 
Lastly, <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tyvar&#039;s Stand" href="#" target="_blank">Tyvar&#039;s Stand</a> is a great mana sink should we have some extra on hand, or an on-rate protection spell should that suit the game state better. There's not much more I can ask for from a card.
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Vines of Vastwood"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Take Up the Shield"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tyvar&#039;s Stand"></div></div>
<h2>Making Use of a Full Hand</h2>
Because we're being so nice to our opponents, our hand will usually be full of cards. Aside from effects like <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Reliquary Tower" href="#" target="_blank">Reliquary Tower</a>, it'll be hard to use all of those cards before we have to discard them. There's a few effects in this deck that make good use of a full hand, though, like <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nostalgic Dreams" href="#" target="_blank">Nostalgic Dreams</a>. This can let us rebuy our best discarded cards, and any other cards that have happened to make their way to the graveyard over the course of the game (like our pump spells). So, in the late game, if we've got a handful of lands, we can exchange those for our favorite power and toughness boosting effects! 
Should we be more interested in killing our opponents with those cards, we can use <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Inner Calm, Outer Strength" href="#" target="_blank">Inner Calm, Outer Strength</a> and <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Empyrial Plate" href="#" target="_blank">Empyrial Plate</a> to do just that.
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Nostalgic Dreams"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Inner Calm, Outer Strength"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Empyrial Plate"></div></div>
Before I show you the full decklist, I wanted to shout out a pair of cards from Lost Caverns of Ixalan that make a big splash in this deck. <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar" href="#" target="_blank">Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar</a> and <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sovereign Okinec Ahau" href="#" target="_blank">Sovereign Okinec Ahau</a> pair extremely well together: they provide extra power to our already-buffed creatures, protection from our opponents' interactive spells, and even extra card advantage. 
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sovereign Okinec Ahau"></div></div>
I find it so cool that two cards from the same set work so well in this deck! Those Magic designers really know what they're doing, huh. 
<h2>Sergeant John Benton Group Hug Deck List</h2>
Anyways, as promised, here's the full decklist:
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Archetypes of Imagination - Building a Group Hug Deck" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="&nbsp;
[Commander]
*1 Sergeant John Benton
[/Commander]
&nbsp;
[Enchantments]
*1 Exploration
*1 Gryff&#039;s Boon
*1 Hardy Outlander
*1 Season of Growth
*1 Wild Defiance
[/Enchantments]
&nbsp;
[Instants]
*1 Archdruid&#039;s Charm
*1 Beast Within
*1 Become Immense
*1 Blessed Defiance
*1 Blossoming Defense
*1 Choose Your Weapon
*1 Collective Resistance
*1 Crop Rotation
*1 Defend the Rider
*1 Embiggen
*1 Flare of Faith
*1 Fleeting Flight
*1 Gaea&#039;s Gift
*1 Generous Gift
*1 Giant Growth
*1 Gift of the Viper
*1 Go Forth
*1 Groundswell
*1 Inner Calm, Outer Strength
*1 Inscription of Abundance
*1 Invigorate
*1 Kaya&#039;s Onslaught
*1 Might of Old Krosa
*1 Mortal&#039;s Ardor
*1 Mutagenic Growth
*1 Overprotect
*1 Path to Exile
*1 Prey&#039;s Vengeance
*1 Ram Through
*1 Rustler Rampage
*1 Snakeskin Veil
*1 Swords to Plowshares
*1 Take Up the Shield
*1 Titanic Growth
*1 Tyvar&#039;s Stand
*1 Vines of Vastwood
[/Instants]
&nbsp;
[Creatures]
*1 Avacyn&#039;s Pilgrim
*1 Birds of Paradise
*1 Elvish Mystic
*1 Fyndhorn Elves
*1 Guardian Augmenter
*1 Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar
*1 Leonin Lightscribe
*1 Llanowar Elves
*1 Monastery Mentor
*1 Nyxborn Hydra
*1 Scrawling Crawler
*1 Selvala, Heart of the Wilds
*1 Sovereign Okinec Ahau
[/Creatures]
[Sorceries]
*1 Bushwhack
*1 Exponential Growth
*1 Nostalgic Dreams
*1 Phytoburst
*1 Promise of Loyalty
*1 Scale Up
*1 Single Combat
*1 Summer Bloom
[/Sorceries]
&nbsp;
[Artifacts]
*1 Caduceus, Staff of Hermes
*1 Empyrial Plate
[/Artifacts]
[Lands]
*1 Bountiful Promenade
*1 Branchloft Pathway // Boulderloft Pathway
*1 Brushland
*1 Centaur Garden
*12 Forest
*1 Horizon Canopy
*1 Hushwood Verge
*1 Krosan Verge
*1 Overgrown Farmland
*11 Plains
*1 Reliquary Tower
*1 Sungrass Prairie
*1 Witch&#039;s Clinic
*1 Wooded Bastion
[/Lands]"></div>
<h2>Hit the Road, Jack</h2>
Thanks for reading the latest edition of Archetypes of Imagination! Before you go, I wanted to talk about a few cards that I think really make this deck spectacular. We all know that every deck needs board wipes, but the specific ones you choose can make a big difference. Because this deck cares so much about its commander, it would really love to keep it around even when the rest of the board becomes too threatening. That's why I included <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Single Combat" href="#" target="_blank">Single Combat</a> and <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Promise of Loyalty" href="#" target="_blank">Promise of Loyalty</a> as this deck's sweepers. It's not too big of an adjustment from the typical <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wrath of God" href="#" target="_blank">Wrath of God</a> I'd slam in a -based deck, but little adjustments like this are my favorite part about EDH deck building!
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Single Combat"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Promise of Loyalty"></div></div>
Thanks once again for reading! I'll see you all next week, for another edition of Archetypes of Imagination: a group slug deck!

selesnya group hug

Making a Group Hug Commander Deck With Sergeant John Benton