FRANCISCO/MALCOLM V. RAVOS/KODAMA V. ZURGO & OJUTAI V. RAKDOS - cEDH Gameplay

Deck Strategies

• 

  Francisco, Fowl Marauder

  A control-combo deck utilizing free counterspells and protection spells to establish a secure board state, aiming to execute a combo finish with Walking Ballista to deal lethal damage.

• 

  Kodama of the East Tree and Ravos, Soultender

  A ramp and value-based deck leveraging utility lands, creature recursion, and incremental advantage to maintain board presence and pressure opponents over time.

• 

  Zurgo and Ojutai

  An aggressive tempo deck combining Zurgo's fast, low-cost aggression with Ojutai's control elements to disrupt opponents and finish games quickly.

• 

  Rakdos, the Muscle

  A midrange or aggressive deck focused on efficient removal, card advantage through exile effects, and leveraging Rakdos's abilities to pressure opponents and control the board.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Using Vexing Shusher effectively shut down free counterspells and mana rocks, maintaining control over the stack and board state.

• 2

  The Francisco player leveraged free counter magic and protection spells to successfully protect their combo pieces and execute a lethal Walking Ballista sequence.

• 3

  The removal and counter interactions early in the game slowed down opponents' development, allowing the combo player to set up their win condition without excessive disruption.

• 4

  Efficient land drops and utility land fetches helped ramp and fix mana to enable casting key spells at the right time.

Notable Cards

• 

  Walking Ballista

• 

  Mystic Remora

• 

  Vexing Shusher

• 

  Agadeem's Awakening // Agadeem, the Undercrypt

• 

  Urza's Saga

• 

  Castle Vantress

Summary

The game started with players developing their mana bases and deploying early interaction pieces, including a Mystic Remora and a Vexing Shusher to disrupt free counterspells and mana rocks. Early turns showcased players jockeying for board presence while holding interaction to protect their key plays. The Francisco, Fowl Marauder deck focused on setting up a counterspell-heavy disruption suite with free interaction and protection spells, aiming to establish a strong control position. Kodama of the East Tree and Ravos, Soultender's deck was ramping into value creatures and utility lands to maintain board presence and pressure. A critical turning point came when the Francisco player attempted to execute a combo involving Walking Ballista, supported by free counter magic and protection spells. Despite a counter on the Ballista, the player found a way to remove counters and proceeded to use Walking Ballista's ability to deal lethal damage across the table, effectively winning the game with a board wipe style finish. The game ended relatively quickly, highlighting the high-pressure, combo-centric nature of cEDH gameplay where efficient interaction and timely execution of combos determine the outcome.