SPIDERS EVERYWHERE! — Aragorn vs Shelob vs Emmara vs Nekusar - Manasplaining #01

Deck Strategies

• 

  Emmara, Soul of the Accord

  Generate numerous 1/1 white Soldier tokens with lifelink by tapping Emmara, aiming for a wide board presence to overwhelm opponents and gain incremental life advantages.

• 

  Nekusar, the Mindrazer

  Force opponents to draw extra cards to deal damage to them, leveraging Nekusar's ability to punish card drawing and whittle down life totals through burn damage.

• 

  Shelob, Child of Ungoliant

  Build a spider tribal deck where all spider tokens gain deathtouch when Shelob is on the battlefield, creating a threatening defensive and offensive presence that deters attacks.

• 

  Aragorn, the Uniter

  Cast multicolored spells to trigger Aragorn’s abilities: creating tokens, dealing damage to opponents, scrying, and boosting creatures, focusing on maximizing value from diverse colored spells.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Shelob’s presence turning all spider tokens into deathtouch threats drastically altered attack considerations, forcing players to rethink their aggression.

• 2

  Aragorn’s triggers encouraged casting multicolor spells to generate multiple benefits each turn, balancing between token creation, damage, and board buffs.

• 3

  Nekusar’s strategy pressured opponents through card draw punishment, requiring careful management of hand sizes and draw steps by all players.

• 4

  Protecting key creatures like Faramir with Lightning Greaves ensured their continued impact on the game, highlighting the importance of artifact equipment in maintaining board presence.

• 5

  Ramp with lands like Vivid Grove enabled faster casting of multicolored spells, critical for Aragorn’s deck to perform efficiently early in the game.

Notable Cards

• 

  Lightning Greaves

• 

  Twin-Silk Spider

• 

  Faramir, Steward of Gondor

• 

  Vivid Grove

Summary

The game started with each player setting up their mana base and beginning to establish their board presence. Emmara, Soul of the Accord focused on creating a steady stream of 1/1 white Soldier tokens with lifelink. Nekusar, the Mindrazer aimed to inflict damage on opponents by forcing them to draw excessive cards, leveraging his ability to punish card draw. Shelob, Child of Ungoliant built a spider-themed deck where all spiders gain deathtouch, creating a threatening board state that discouraged attacks. Aragorn, the Uniter pursued a multicolor spell strategy to maximize his triggers, generating tokens, dealing damage, and buffing creatures with each colored spell cast. Early turns saw the players developing their lands, ramping mana, and deploying key artifacts such as Lightning Greaves to protect important creatures like Faramir, Steward of Gondor. A notable turning point was when Shelob entered the battlefield, granting deathtouch to all spider tokens and significantly raising the stakes for attackers. The token strategies of Emmara and Aragorn also began to flourish, producing multiple creatures to pressure opponents and defend their own life totals. Meanwhile, Nekusar's strategy of drawing cards to inflict damage was a constant threat, creating tension around each player's draw step. The game was characterized by incremental board development, tactical attacks, and defensive plays centered around token production, deathtouch spiders, and card draw punishment. The interaction between these strategies set the stage for a dynamic multiplayer Commander match where positioning and timing of plays were key to gaining advantage.