Commander 2019 Lightning Round! | CEDH Gameplay

Deck Strategies

• 

  Anje Falkenrath

  Aggressively discard cards to enable powerful graveyard synergies and draw multiple cards per turn, leveraging madness and efficient creatures for tempo and pressure.

• 

  K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth

  Utilize life payment as a resource to fuel reanimation and combo loops, particularly involving graveyard recursion and Aetherflux Reservoir for life gain and damage output.

• 

  Volrath, the Shapestealer

  Leverage creature theft and graveyard recursion to steal and replay opponents' threats, while assembling combo pieces like Cephalid Coliseum for infinite combos.

• 

  Elsha of the Infinite

  Control the board with disruption and generate card advantage through cantrips and tutors, enabling powerful combos and tempo plays with instant and sorcery spells.

• 

  Atla Palani, Nest Tender

  Ramp quickly and produce tokens to overwhelm opponents, using the ability to sacrifice tokens for value and board presence.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Adam's use of K'rrik's life payment to repeatedly cast spells from the graveyard, combined with Aetherflux Reservoir, creates a powerful life gain and damage loop that serves as a primary win condition.

• 2

  Mike's sequencing around Time Twister and Gamble shows the importance of careful timing in cEDH to avoid losing crucial combo pieces to shuffle effects.

• 3

  Ryan leverages Anje's discard triggers aggressively, cycling through cards to maintain hand size and pressure opponents, but faces setbacks from Verity Circle punishing his discard strategy.

• 4

  Garrett's early use of Force of Vigor to handle artifacts counters threats but leaves him vulnerable to Pyroclasm and other board wipes that slow his ramp and combo assembly.

• 5

  Folger's deployment of Atla Palani and Birds of Paradise accelerates mana but is disrupted early by targeted removal and aggressive plays from other players, demonstrating the fragility of ramp strategies in cEDH.

Notable Cards

• 

  Aetherflux Reservoir

• 

  Mystic Remora

• 

  Scroll Rack

• 

  Pyroclasm

• 

  Dark Confidant

• 

  Buried Alive

• 

  Hermit Druid

• 

  Cephalid Coliseum

• 

  Carpet of Flowers

• 

  Force of Vigor

• 

  Verity Circle

• 

  Gamble

• 

  Cremate

Summary

The game begins with a tense opening sequence where players develop their boards with ramp and disruption, highlighted by a turn one Pyroclasm that weakens Garrett's early mana dork presence. Adam, piloting K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth, leverages life payment synergies and graveyard recursion with cards like Dark Confidant, Buried Alive, and Aetherflux Reservoir, creating a looping combo that both gains him life and deals damage through the Reservoir. Mike on Elsha of the Infinite establishes a disruptive presence with Mystic Remora and Scroll Rack, setting up card advantage and tutoring key spells like Time Twister. Meanwhile, Ryan's Anje Falkenrath deck executes a rapid discard and draw engine, aggressively cycling through cards and maintaining pressure with efficient creatures and removal. As the game progresses, Garrett's Volrath, the Shapestealer deck struggles to find islands for Carpet of Flowers but attempts to assemble combo pieces like Cephalid Coliseum and Mystical Tutor. Folger on Atla Palani, Nest Tender, ramps quickly with Birds of Paradise and sets up for token generation but faces early disruption from Garret's Hermit Druid and Force of Vigor. The pivotal turning point is Adam's graveyard loop with K'rrik, which allows him to stabilize life totals and threaten eliminations through Aetherflux Reservoir. Mike's manipulation of the top of his library with Scroll Rack and Enlightened Tutor, combined with Verity Circle's punishment of Anje's discard strategy, shifts momentum. Ryan's Anje remains a constant threat through explosive card draws and selective discards, maintaining aggressive board presence and pressure on opponents. The game unfolds with multiple interactions around graveyard recursion, life payment, and card advantage engines, with Adam's K'rrik deck showing the strongest combo potential. The match highlights the importance of sequencing and disruption in a fast-paced cEDH environment, with key plays involving time-twister effects, Pyroblast counters, and life payment loops defining the flow. Ultimately, the game showcases a dynamic interplay of aggressive discard, graveyard combos, and card manipulation as players vie for control and the win condition through combo damage and attrition.