Ishai & Jeska v Gandalf the Grey v Atsushi v Dihada Bracket 5 cEDH Gameplay with @PuntPals

Deck Strategies

• 

  Jeska, Thrice Reborn & Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker

  This deck leverages Jeska's prowess for aggressive combo finishers combined with Ishai's ability to grow through opponents' spell casts, focusing on fast mana, incremental damage, and card draw to close out games quickly.

• 

  Gandalf the Grey

  A control-combo hybrid that uses efficient ramp and tutoring spells like Dark Ritual, Tainted Pact, and ritual effects to assemble game-winning combos early while disrupting opponents.

• 

  Atsushi, the Blazing Sky

  Utilizes artifact synergies, fast mana, and efficient card draw to generate value and pressure opponents with combo or value-based finishers.

• 

  Dihada, Binder of Wills

  Focuses on flicker effects combined with treasure generation and graveyard synergies to enable infinite combos that mill opponents and generate overwhelming advantage.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Braids, Caretaker of Functioning proved to be a powerful incremental draw engine by forcing opponents to sacrifice artifacts, leading to multiple card draws and life loss over several turns.

• 2

  The interaction around Doomsday and the looping with Cloudstone Curio was a critical moment, highlighting the importance of timely counterspells like Force of Will to disrupt combo lines.

• 3

  Players prioritized efficient mana ramp and careful use of ritual effects to cast expensive spells early, demonstrating typical cEDH pacing and resource optimization.

• 4

  The final lethal sequence involved complex combo interactions with flicker effects and treasure generation, showing the depth of synergy exploitation possible in these decks.

Notable Cards

• 

  Jeweled Lotus

• 

  Mox Diamond

• 

  Dark Ritual

• 

  Tainted Pact

• 

  Simian Spirit Guide

• 

  Cloudstone Curio

• 

  Force of Will

• 

  Wheel of Fortune

• 

  Doomsday

• 

  Dihada, Binder of Wills

Summary

The cEDH game featured a fast-paced and interactive multiplayer match involving five commanders, where players focused heavily on ramp, card draw, and resource management. Early turns saw players establishing mana bases with fetchlands, Lotus Pedals, and fast mana artifacts such as Mox Diamond and Jeweled Lotus. The gameplay quickly escalated with powerful spells like Dark Ritual, Tainted Pact, and Braids, Caretaker of Functioning, enabling explosive turns that generated large amounts of mana and card advantage. One pivotal sequence involved a Doomsday loop interaction that was interrupted by a well-timed Force of Will counterspell, showcasing the high level of interaction and timing in the game. Toward the end, Dihada was setting up a complex combo involving flicker effects and treasure generation to mill opponents and win in a few activations, but the game concluded shortly after with a lethal play from Jeska/Ishai, capitalizing on incremental life loss and card draw synergies.