CEDH Gameplay! Thrasios/Yoshimaru vs Sisay vs Ob Nixilis vs Malcolm/Kediss

Deck Strategies

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  Thrasios, Triton Hero / Yoshimaru, Ever Faithful

  Ramp mana quickly with artifact and land synergy, then leverage ETB effects and card draw engines like Ristic Study to build a resilient board state. Use Thrasios's ability for card selection and incremental advantage, aiming to outvalue opponents and win through incremental damage from Yoshimaru and efficient tempo plays.

• 

  Sisay, Weatherlight Captain

  Utilize Sisay to cheat legendary permanents onto the battlefield, focusing on assembling powerful combos or board states through legendary synergy. Control the board with versatile creatures and use Sisay's ability to accelerate threats and lock down opponents.

• 

  Ob Nixilis, Captive Kingpin

  Control and disrupt opponents through removal and black-based interaction while draining life and generating card advantage. Use Ob Nixilis's abilities to pressure opponents' life totals and maintain board control, potentially closing out the game with overwhelming attrition.

• 

  Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator / Kediss, Emberclaw Familiar

  Leverage artifact and creature synergy to ramp and control the board. Use Malcolm's and Kediss's abilities to manipulate the board and generate incremental advantage, aiming to outpace opponents through efficient resource use and timely removal.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  The timely casting of Flusterstorm to counter Ristic Study prevented a massive card draw and resource snowball, showcasing the importance of holding interaction for pivotal spells.

• 2

  Guy's Cradle in play enabled explosive mana acceleration, allowing the Thrasios/Yoshimaru player to cast multiple spells and gain numerous counters quickly, highlighting synergy between mana production and creature growth.

• 3

  Volatile Storm Drake's ETB effect created a complex situation where players had to decide whether to kill or redirect the creature to avoid empowering an already threatening board state.

• 4

  Players deliberately chose when to feed Yoshimaru’s counters, balancing the risk of letting the deck grow too powerful against the necessity of maintaining board presence.

• 5

  Multiple players used treasure tokens and mana artifacts efficiently to ramp into key spells early, demonstrating the value of quick mana acceleration in competitive Commander.

Notable Cards

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  Flusterstorm

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  Gilded Drake

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  Mana Vault

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  Talisman of Unity

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  Arcane Signet

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  Mana Confluence

Summary

The game featured four competitive decks with a focus on ramp, interaction, and value generation. Early turns were marked by players ramping mana and casting key utility creatures while holding interaction to disrupt opponents. Notably, a Ristic Study was cast multiple times to draw cards and generate value, but a well-timed Flusterstorm countered a potentially game-shifting Ristic Study, preventing a cascade of card draw that could have accelerated the game. The Thrasios/Yoshimaru player developed a strong board presence with the help of a Gilded Drake and a Guy's Cradle, enabling explosive mana generation and multiple counters on creatures, showcasing the deck's synergy and the power of incremental value through ETB effects and mana sinks. Midgame saw attempts at stealing and exchanging control of creatures, such as with Volatile Storm Drake's ETB effect, which created tense decision points and board tension. Players needed to carefully decide when to remove or redirect such threats given the potential for mana and card advantage swings. Overall, the game revolved around managing threats, counterspells, and resource advantage, with a heavy emphasis on protecting key pieces like Thrasios and exploiting mana acceleration from cards like Guy's Cradle. The game remained interactive and close, highlighting the importance of timing and resource management in competitive Commander.