Trinkets & Tools — Birthing Pod
Hello everyone!
My name is Dom, and I'm primarily an EDH and Draft player. I played Magic on and off since the original Mirrodin block up until Lorwyn, but then took a long break until I came back for good right before Theros. My favorite aspect of the game is brewing, and I think that is why EDH has become one of my favorite formats. There's nothing better than sitting down and playing a deck for the first time and watching the work you put into building the deck come together.
This series focuses mostly on artifacts and enchantments, particularly ones that are typically described as 'build arounds' and that require a fair amount of work in order to maximize their potential. I will discuss strategy, deck building guidelines, and which commanders pair best with the cards in question. This inaugural article discusses a personal favorite artifact of mine, .
A quick search on EDHREC shows that Birthing Pod is currently used in over 5,000 decks, putting it as the sixth most popular card from the entire New Phyrexia set. That’s quite an accomplishment, considering this is the set that gave us the Praetor cycle, the Chancellor cycle, an incredible array of powerful equipment, and, of course, many truly busted cards featuring the Phyrexian mana symbol. (or just Pod, for short) is a green creature tutor that allows its user to take a creature from their deck and put it directly into play; and it can do this every turn. The only caveat is you must sacrifice a creature in play in order to search, and the creature you look for must have a converted mana cost of exactly one more than the sacrificed creature. Despite this seemingly strict limitation, Pod still manages to be a card that quickly demands an answer, providing the deck is properly built to utilize it.
Deck Building
A great deal of Pod's power comes from its ability to grab specific answers; assuming the answer is in your deck. Need to deal with a problematic enchantment? Go get . Are your opponents trying to fill up their graveyards? Search out and start exiling. Perhaps the table's voltron player is suddenly looking too strong? Find your before it’s too late!
Pod can also advance your game plan by searching out the appropriate creatures to execute your strategy. It is child's play to find ramp creatures like which can quickly help you build your mana base. Creatures with card draw bolted on can be found too such as or . One of Pod's most useful abilities is grabbing win conditions such as combo enablers like or to finishers like or . Below is an overview of the creatures most commonly played in decks with Pod according to its EDHREC entry as of this writing.
Ramp | , , , , , , , , , , , , Satyr WayfinderSatyr Wayfinder |
Removal | Acidic SlimeAcidic Slime, Reclamation SageReclamation Sage, Sheoldred, Whispering OneSheoldred, Whispering One, TerastodonTerastodon, Fleshbag MarauderFleshbag Marauder, Woodfall PrimusWoodfall Primus, ShriekmawShriekmaw, Merciless ExecutionerMerciless Executioner, Scavenging OozeScavenging Ooze, Caustic CaterpillarCaustic Caterpillar, Bane of ProgressBane of Progress, DuplicantDuplicant, Demon of Dark SchemesDemon of Dark Schemes, Qasali PridemageQasali Pridemage |
Recursion | Eternal WitnessEternal Witness, Sun TitanSun Titan, Karmic GuideKarmic Guide, ReveillarkReveillark, Greenwarden of MurasaGreenwarden of Murasa |
Draw | Disciple of BolasDisciple of Bolas, MulldrifterMulldrifter, Prime Speaker ZeganaPrime Speaker Zegana, Smothering AbominationSmothering Abomination, Grim HaruspexGrim Haruspex |
Tutors | Sidisi, Undead VizierSidisi, Undead Vizier, Fauna ShamanFauna Shaman, Fierce EmpathFierce Empath, Rune-Scarred DemonRune-Scarred Demon, Recruiter of the GuardRecruiter of the Guard, Woodland BellowerWoodland Bellower |
Sacrifice Outlets | Viscera SeerViscera Seer, Jarad, Golgari Lich LordJarad, Golgari Lich Lord |
Clones | Phyrexian MetamorphPhyrexian Metamorph, Clever ImpersonatorClever Impersonator |
Counters | Glen Elendra ArchmageGlen Elendra Archmage |
Finishers | Avenger of ZendikarAvenger of Zendikar, Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth, Grave TitanGrave Titan, Butcher of MalakirButcher of Malakir, Seedborn MuseSeedborn Muse, Elesh Norn, Grand CenobiteElesh Norn, Grand Cenobite |
Combo Pieces | Deadeye NavigatorDeadeye Navigator, Mikaeus, the UnhallowedMikaeus, the Unhallowed, Mazirek, Kraul Death PriestMazirek, Kraul Death Priest, Blood ArtistBlood Artist, Zulaport CutthroatZulaport Cutthroat |
According to EDHREC, this list is a good representation of the many uses Pod sees across EDH decks. There are many creatures throughout Magic’s history with useful effects bolted onto them, and this is just a small sample of the possibilities. A good number of these creatures, such as Grim HaruspexGrim Haruspex, Butcher of MalakirButcher of Malakir, and Blood ArtistBlood Artist provide extra value out of your sacrifices when activating the Pod. As you’ll see in a moment, this synergy leads to Pod being a common inclusion among black and green decks with a sacrifice theme.
While this list contains many useful cards for Pod decks, let's consider some cards that I was shocked to see apparently aren’t played as frequently. Archfiend of DepravityArchfiend of Depravity is a devastating card that single-handedly ruins token strategies while leaving your board intact. Another pair of cards that should go in many Pod decks are Soul of the HarvestSoul of the Harvest and Garruk's PackleaderGarruk's Packleader. Both creatures provide enormous card advantage in the creature-heavy decks where Pod is typically played.
Birthing PodBirthing Pod decks have one solemn rule that must be obeyed: always pay attention to your curve. Your curve must have both fodder and targets for Pod spread across multiple costs so you can get what you need when you need it. This helps make your deck more consistent while keeping Pod versatile. For example, my own Mazirek, Kraul Death PriestMazirek, Kraul Death Priest deck (which I'll be showing off shortly) has several creature-based sacrifice outlets, such as Viscera SeerViscera Seer, Bloodthrone VampireBloodthrone Vampire, Bloodflow ConnoisseurBloodflow Connoisseur, Dimir House GuardDimir House Guard*, and Sadistic HypnotistSadistic Hypnotist. These creatures fill every slot in my curve from one to five, making them much easier to Pod regardless of what creatures I have in play.
*Dimir House Guard pulls double duty in this deck as a way to tutor for Pod as well!!!
Commanders
With all of this in mind, I’d next like to discuss which commanders suit Birthing PodBirthing Pod the best. According to EDHREC, the two most popular commanders that feature Pod are Meren of Clan Nel TothMeren of Clan Nel Toth and Karador, Ghost ChieftainKarador, Ghost Chieftain. These two are undisputedly the most common users of Pod, with over 800 Meren decks and over 500 Karador decks. Upon closer inspection, over 61% of Karador decks include Pod with Meren a close second at 59%. Beyond this, the statistics start to become a less clear cut. While Derevi, Empyrial TacticianDerevi, Empyrial Tactician, Roon of the Hidden RealmRoon of the Hidden Realm, and Animar, Soul of ElementsAnimar, Soul of Elements show up as the 3rd through 5th most common users of Pod with over 200 decks each, Pod itself only shows up between 20% and 30% of the time in those decks. Since all three of those popular commanders are from Commander pre-constructed decks that are chock full of good creatures, it’s not surprising that Pod shows up as often as it does. However, after a little bit of digging around on EDHREC, I discovered four very different commanders that include Pod at much higher rates, despite having fewer decks overall. These commanders are Yasova DragonclawYasova Dragonclaw (45% run Pod), Savra, Queen of the GolgariSavra, Queen of the Golgari (43%), Yisan, the Wanderer BardYisan, the Wanderer Bard (42%) and Mazirek, Kraul Death PriestMazirek, Kraul Death Priest (37%). These commanders have much more to gain from including Pod in their builds.
Meren and Karador are both black and green decks that focus on gaining gradual value through reanimation. Both decks play several utility creatures that synergies with their core ability to bring acreature back from the graveyard to the battlefield each turn. As such, these decks are a natural fit for Birthing PodBirthing Pod since the decks already run plenty of great tutor targets like Grave TitanGrave Titan, Acidic SlimeAcidic Slime, and Eternal WitnessEternal Witness. Meren synergizes especially well with Pod because those decks often play fairly balanced curves to maximize her reanimation ability. In addition, Meren decks need sacrifice outlets such as Pod to help her gain experience counters. Running Pod in a Karador deck can be very useful because Karador guarantees you’ll have a creature to cast and then feed to Pod each turn. Pod is an effective way to grab specific combo pieces like ReveillarkReveillark which can be repeatedly sacrificed and returned. Other less common commanders that can utilize Pod in a similar way include Teneb, the HarvesterTeneb, the Harvester and Ravos SoultenderRavos Soultender (when paired with a green partner like Reyhan, Last of the AbzanReyhan, Last of the Abzan!)
If you’re interested in a Golgari deck with Pod that's more focused on sacrificing your creatures than bringing them back to life, Savra and Mazirek are two commanders that are definitely worth a look. Both have powerful abilities that trigger anytime you sacrifice one of your own creatures. In addition, these decks often play edict-effect cards like Grave PactGrave Pact, Harvester of SoulsHarvester of Souls, and Pawn of UlamogPawn of Ulamog that create additional effects anytime a creature you control dies. In decks like these, Pod’s sacrifice ability becomes just as valuable as the tutor half, while letting you grab new creatures for future sacrifice. This strategy also works well in Kresh the BloodbraidedKresh the Bloodbraided decks, who surprisingly only runs Birthing Pod 29% of the time. This seems like an oversight, as Pod could be used in these decks to grab edict effects like Merciless ExecutionerMerciless Executioner or cards that pump up Kresh’s power like Xenagos, God of RevelsXenagos, God of Revels, all while giving Kresh additional +1/+1 counters.
Finally we have two commanders with play styles all their own that can make great use of Birthing Pod, Yasova and Yisan. Yasova is an interesting commander who has the ability to steal one of your opponent’s creatures each turn. Birthing PodBirthing Pod fills a niche role in this deck as one of the best available sacrifice outlets for the Temur clan, letting you sacrifice the stolen creature to grab something of your own. Much like Animar as mentioned above, Yasova decks are capable of running plenty of great tutor targets due to the color combination the deck falls in, including some powerful blue creatures like Kiora’s FollowerKiora’s Follower (which untaps Pod) and Prime Speaker ZeganaPrime Speaker Zegana. Yisan on the other hand uses Pod simply as a way to get more creatures onto the battlefield. What sets Yisan apart from other creature-centered commanders is the way Yisan’s ability works, it’s a lot more common to have a board presence containing multiple creatures of various mana costs. As a result, Pod becomes a much more consistent tutor.
Before we finish up this week's article, I'd like to talk about one more card, not a creature or a commander, but an enchantment from the recently released set Aether Revolt, that I imagine will quickly find its way into plenty of Birthing PodBirthing Pod decks. That card is Aid from the CowlAid from the Cowl. Revolt is an interesting ability in EDH, but Pod is an easy way to trigger it every turn. Not only that, but the kinds of creature-heavy decks that Pod is good in also happen to be a great fit for the Aid. Together this pair provide consistent opportunities to put a free permanent into play each turn, on top of the tutoring from Pod. I haven't tried it yet myself, put I'm very excited to see these two cards come together.
Conclusion and Sample List
Birthing PodBirthing Pod is an incredibly powerful and versatile tool so I want to leave you with my own Mazirek, Kraul Death PriestMazirek, Kraul Death Priest decklist that features Pod in full force. Pod has many uses in this deck, helping me grab token creators like MycolothMycoloth and Avenger of ZendikarAvenger of Zendikar, additional sacrifice outlets like Sadistic HypnotistSadistic Hypnotist, and cards that give my giant army a way to push damage through like Pathbreaker IbexPathbreaker Ibex. As a forewarning, this list is slightly budget so be forewarned that I excluded some normally great options like Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth, Phyrexian AltarPhyrexian Altar, and Grave PactGrave Pact. Still, the deck manages to be quite ruthless due to the undeniable power Pod provides. If you have found any unique uses for Pod that I didn't talk about here, let me know! I'd also love to see your own takes on EDH decks with Pod! You can find me on Twitter @DomSaccento.
Mazirek's Nest
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