Deck & Commander Strategies
Talion, the Kindly Lord
A heavy control deck that draws cards whenever opponents cast spells, leveraging stifle effects, counterspells, and aiming to win with combos like Bloodchief Ascension and Mindcrank.
Vadrik, Astral Archmage
A storm combo deck that uses ritual spells and tutoring to quickly assemble a lethal storm count and win through a fast combo sequence.
Vial Smasher the Fierce
An Ad Nauseam combo deck that accelerates mana with a high land count and seeks to resolve Ad Nauseam or similar combos to win by drawing and casting lethal spells in one turn.
Tivit, Seller of Secrets
A deck that uses incremental advantage and disruptive creatures to control the board while setting up a midrange or combo finish.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Choosing the number for Talion's life loss and draw trigger is a critical strategic decision, often between 1 or 2, depending on opponents' deck compositions and common mana values of their spells.
- 2
The early establishment of interaction like Mystic Remora and Mana Crypt significantly influences tempo and card advantage in the early game.
- 3
Vial Smasher’s quick Ad Nauseam combo can end games abruptly before control decks can stabilize, demonstrating the importance of keeping combo decks in check early.
- 4
Tainted Pact combined with Underworld Breach creates a powerful recursion and selection combo that can rapidly reduce the deck to a single card, achieving a fast and efficient win.
- 5
Players must weigh the risk of keeping slow mana hands against the potential for explosive starts, particularly in fast cEDH metas.
Notable Cards
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Talion, the Kindly Lord
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Mystic Remora
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Mana Crypt
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Ad Nauseam
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Tainted Pact
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Underworld Breach
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Bloodchief Ascension
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Mindcrank
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Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
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Orcish Bowmasters
Gameplay Summary
The game featured four competitive decks with different strategies, including a new Talion build focused on control and card draw from opponents' spells, a Vadrik storm list, a Vial Smasher Ad Nauseam combo deck, and a Tivit deck.
Early turns saw players establishing mana and interaction, with Talion prioritizing early control elements like Mystic Remora and casting its commander to set up its unique life loss and card draw mechanic.
The Vial Smasher deck aimed to resolve Ad Nauseam or a similar combo finish, leveraging Valakut and a high land count to accelerate mana and combo potential.
Vadrik's storm deck also pursued a fast combo win through ritual acceleration and tutoring.
The pivotal moment occurred when Vial Smasher successfully assembled a fast combo using Tainted Pact and Underworld Breach interactions, winning the game quickly before other decks could establish their board states.
The first game ended swiftly due to this explosive combo, highlighting the power and speed of the Ad Nauseam approach in cEDH settings.
The players then prepared for a second game, focusing on optimizing early plays for Talion and other decks.