Raff vs Vish Kal vs Erebos vs Ghave EDH / CMDR game play for Magic: The Gathering

Deck Strategies

• 

  Raff Capashen, Ship's Mage

  Focused on artifact and planeswalker synergy, using cards like Tezzeret the Seeker and Chain Veil to generate multiple activations and powerful emblems for control and incremental advantage.

• 

  Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter

  Utilizes +1/+1 counter synergies with Hardened Scales and powerful artifact ramp like Gilded Lotus to build a large board and maintain pressure with efficient creatures and removal.

• 

  Erebos, God of the Dead

  Leverages life drain enchantments such as Sanguine Bond and Polluted Bonds to drain opponents' life totals while gaining life, maintaining control through incremental damage and disruption.

• 

  Ghave, Guru of Spores

  Focuses on +1/+1 counter accumulation and token generation to create a wide and resilient board, supported by Citadel Siege and synergistic creatures to outvalue opponents.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Dr. Martin's use of Chain Veil to repeatedly activate planeswalkers in one turn created a significant board advantage with multiple emblems.

• 2

  Malcolm's early investment in Hardened Scales and Skullclamp allowed him to quickly grow creatures and draw cards, putting pressure on opponents.

• 3

  Ben's Acidic Slime was a crucial play to disrupt Dr. Martin's Chain Veil combo, demonstrating timely removal impact.

• 4

  The life drain synergy between Sanguine Bond and Polluted Bonds applied consistent multi-player pressure, influencing players' decisions and life totals.

• 5

  Planar Cleansing was used effectively by Malcolm to reset the board state but left Dr. Martin's emblem advantage intact, highlighting the importance of emblem permanence.

Notable Cards

• 

  Tezzeret the Seeker

• 

  Hardened Scales

• 

  Skullclamp

• 

  Sanguine Bond

• 

  Polluted Bonds

• 

  Acidic Slime

• 

  Citadel Siege

• 

  Venser, the Sojourner

• 

  Luminarch Ascension

Summary

The game began with a typical setup, each player developing their mana bases and early board presence. Malcolm, playing Vish Kal, quickly set up a powerful board state with Hardened Scales and Skullclamp, building counters on his creatures while ramping with Gilded Lotus. Dr. Martin's Raff deck focused on artifact and planeswalker synergy, utilizing Tezzeret the Seeker and Chain Veil to generate multiple activations and emblems, establishing a strong planeswalker-centric control strategy. Meanwhile, Erebos's player applied consistent pressure through life-drain effects with cards like Sanguine Bond and Polluted Bonds, leveraging the enchantments to chip away at opponents' life totals while gaining life. Ghave, played by Ben, aimed to grow his board using +1/+1 counter synergies and Citadel Siege but struggled with land drops, limiting his early impact on the game. A key turning point occurred when Dr. Martin executed a powerful Chain Veil combo, untapping artifacts repeatedly to generate multiple planeswalker activations in a single turn, gaining two Venser emblems which proved difficult for opponents to overcome. However, Ben's Acidic Slime destroyed the Chain Veil, temporarily halting Dr. Martin's combo. Malcolm's Planar Cleansing wiped the board again but left Dr. Martin with his emblems intact, maintaining his advantage. Ghave finally stabilized with his commander and began to rebuild. The presence of Sanguine Bond combined with life drain enchantments added a lethal synergy to the board, applying incremental damage to all players. The game featured several strategic interactions including artifact and enchantment destruction, life drain synergies, and planeswalker emblems, with the board state swinging back and forth as players sought to leverage their unique deck strategies to gain the upper hand.