#cEDH Tournament Round 3 - Niv Parun, Yisan, Kenrith, Yidris - Gameplay Ep 79

Deck Strategies

• 

  Niv-Mizzet, Parun

  Builds towards a Curiosity combo that wins through repeated card draw and damage pings, relying on mana acceleration and protection to assemble the combo pieces.

• 

  Yisan, the Wanderer Bard

  Uses Yisan's ability to tutor for key creatures that generate infinite mana combos (such as Ashaya and Magus of the Candelabra) to win through overwhelming board presence or infinite mana lines.

• 

  Kenrith, the Returned King

  A stax/control shell that disrupts opponents with cards like Opposition Agent and uses Survival of the Fittest and Gilded Drake for value and combo potential, aiming to steal opponents’ key creatures and leverage them for a win.

• 

  Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder

  Storm-based deck trying to build mana and cast multiple spells in one turn to win through a storm kill, using interaction and disruption to protect its combo turns.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Baal’s use of Opposition Agent to exile key creatures disrupted Yisan’s combo potential effectively.

• 2

  The destruction of Circle of Dreams Druid by Assassin’s Trophy was a pivotal stalling move against Yisan’s infinite mana line.

• 3

  Baal’s attempt to win by stealing Niv-Mizzet with Gilded Drake failed due to Curiosity remaining under Diogo’s control, highlighting the importance of control over combo pieces.

• 4

  Pedro’s activation of Homeward Path during Niv-Mizzet’s trigger sparked a debate on kingmaking, showing the delicate social dynamics and rulings in competitive commander play.

• 5

  Diogo’s final winning play involved redirecting a Yisan activation with Deflecting Swat to trigger Niv-Mizzet’s Curiosity combo, demonstrating clever use of interaction to seize victory.

Notable Cards

• 

  Curiosity

• 

  Niv-Mizzet, Parun

• 

  Yisan, the Wanderer Bard

• 

  Opposition Agent

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  Survival of the Fittest

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  Gilded Drake

• 

  Allosaurus Shepherd

• 

  Circle of Dreams Druid

• 

  Assassin's Trophy

• 

  Deflecting Swat

• 

  Rhystic Study

• 

  Esper Sentinel

Summary

The game featured four competitive decks with distinct strategies, each jockeying for position and control in a highly interactive cEDH setting. Early turns saw careful ramping and development, with Baal on Kenrith leveraging stax elements like Opposition Agent to disrupt tutors and combos, while Pedro on Yisan set up for a potential infinite mana combo using Ashaya and Magus of the Candelabra. Diogo on Niv-Mizzet focused on assembling his Curiosity combo but struggled initially with mana issues, while Bruno on Yidris aimed for a storm kill but faced resource constraints. Key turning points included Baal using Assassin's Trophy to destroy the critical Circle of Dreams Druid, stalling Yisan’s infinite mana potential, and later casting Survival of the Fittest to tutor and steal Niv-Mizzet with Gilded Drake, aiming to loop Niv-Mizzet for a win. However, the table realized that the Curiosity enchantment was still controlled by Diogo, limiting Baal’s win potential. A notable moment involved a judge ruling on a suspected kingmaking play involving Homeward Path, which was ultimately allowed. The game concluded when Diogo cleverly used Deflecting Swat to redirect a Yisan activation, triggering Niv-Mizzet’s combo and winning the game by dealing lethal damage to all opponents through a card draw and ping loop.