Deck & Commander Strategies
Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator / Vial Smasher the Fierce
This Grixis Pirates deck aims to assemble various combos involving cards like Underworld Breach and Brain Freeze to win through storm or mill. It relies on card draw, disruption, and fast mana to execute its combo lines quickly.
Abdel Adrian, Gorion's Ward
A control and value deck leveraging Candlekeep Sage’s ability to draw and control the board. It uses taxing effects like Smothering Tithe and disruption spells to slow opponents and win through incremental advantage or a lab man-esque effect.
Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
An artifact storm deck focused on drawing massive amounts of cards through Jhoira’s triggers and artifacts to generate storm count and combo off with cards like Displacer Kitten for a lethal storm finish.
Marwyn, the Nurturer
A mono-green storm and ramp deck that develops a board of elves and big creatures, enhancing Marwyn’s counters to generate large amounts of mana, then closing out the game with overwhelming creature damage.
Candlekeep Sage
Supporting a control-value plan that accumulates card advantage and stabilizes the board. The deck uses Candlekeep Sage to draw cards and support the control elements provided by Abdel Adrian.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Ryan’s timely use of Cyclonic Rift to bounce Underworld Breach significantly disrupted Shaun’s combo sequence, demonstrating the importance of interaction in cEDH.
- 2
Phillip’s use of Mystic Remora and Smothering Tithe early on applied pressure on opponents’ mana development and card usage, generating significant advantage.
- 3
Cal’s aggressive ramp with Marwyn and creatures like Great Oak Guardian and Kogla allowed him to exert early board pressure, forcing opponents to respond.
- 4
Shaun’s use of Mental Misstep to counter Mana Vault highlighted the value of efficient counters to slow down opponents’ mana acceleration.
- 5
The interplay between taxing effects, counterspells, and removal shaped the game’s flow, emphasizing resource management and timing in a multi-player cEDH environment.
Notable Cards
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Underworld Breach
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Demonic Consultation
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Cyclonic Rift
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Rhystic Study
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Smothering Tithe
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Mana Crypt
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Mana Vault
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Raff, Weatherlight Stalwart
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Great Oak Guardian
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Force of Negation
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Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
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Marwyn, the Nurturer
Gameplay Summary
The game begins with each player establishing their board state and mana base, setting up for their respective strategies.
Shaun, piloting the Grixis Pirates deck with Malcolm and Vial Smasher, aims to assemble combos like Underworld Breach and Brain Freeze.
Phillip’s deck with Abdel Adrian and Candlekeep Sage focuses on controlling the board and accumulating value with cards like Mystic Remora and Smothering Tithe.
Ryan’s Jhoira artifact storm deck seeks to draw large amounts of cards and execute a storm win, while Cal’s mono-green Marwyn deck develops a board of elves and big creatures to overwhelm opponents. Early turns feature key interactions such as Phillip establishing control with Mystic Remora and Smothering Tithe, Cal ramping aggressively with Yavimaya Cradle and casting powerful creatures like Kogla, and Shaun attempting to combo off with Underworld Breach and Demonic Consultation.
Ryan stabilizes by casting Jhoira and setting up artifact mana acceleration.
A pivotal moment occurs when Shaun tries to resolve Underworld Breach but runs into disruption from Ryan’s Cyclonic Rift, halting Shaun’s combo temporarily.
Throughout the midgame, players carefully manage resources and interact with each other’s threats, with notable counters and removals shaping the board state.
The game’s progression revolves around each player trying to leverage their unique win conditions while disrupting opponents’ plans, leading to tense decision-making and calculated plays.
