Great Defender

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Legality

Format Legality
1v1 Commander Legal
Archenemy Legal
Canadian Highlander Legal
Casual Legal
Commander / EDH Legal
Commander: Rule 0 Legal
Custom Legal
Duel Commander Legal
Highlander Legal
Legacy Legal
Leviathan Legal
Limited Legal
Oathbreaker Legal
Oldschool 93/94 Legal
Planechase Legal
Quest Magic Legal
Tiny Leaders Legal
Vanguard Legal
Vintage Legal

Great Defender

Instant

Target creature gets +0/+X until end of turn, where X is its converted mana cost.

ClockworkSwordfish on Rasaad Likes Big Butts

1 year ago

Looks like a great start! I like the idea of combining Rasaad with Raised by Giants to potentially attack for 20... not to mention the mess the rest of your critters will do. I sympathize with having to make cuts. I'm seeing a few cards that I think you could safely cut without missing them too much, though!

For one thing, I think you're a little too heavy on the auras... and of the ones you have, most are kind of subpar. The real problem with auras is that if the creature they're on is killed by anything, you're suddenly down two cards to their one, just like that. I'd say Carapace, Chosen by Heliod, Ritual of Steel and Web are all just very piddly effects. You should aim for enchantments that really make a difference (like Stoneskin!) if you're going to run them... 2 or 3 more toughness isn't really worth a card.

Likewise, I don't really think Animate Wall is worth running. You have seven possible targets which isn't bad, but the problem is that you need to draw a wall and a way to make it able to attack and a way to let it use its toughness for damage. That's kind of a lot of steps. For that reason, probably you could cut most or all of your walls while you're at it. Meanwhile, Treefolk Seedlings will probably never get that big in a two-color deck, and Shield Mate and Snubhorn Sentry don't feel like they'll do enough by the time Rasaad's out and they're usable.

As far as instants go, I'd venture you probably have too many pump spells. Tower Defense is probably strong enough to warrant using, but Solidarity, Iron Will and Bar the Door are mostly overpriced. Your deck's curve isn't so bad, so Great Defender will usually be weaker than you might think, too. If anything, you'd probably prefer having more removal and ways to deal with stuff rather than combat tricks!

Lastly, a lot of your equipment just feels too underwhelming. Slagwurm Armor seems respectable, but Kite Shield, Endoskeleton, Paladin's Shield and Warmonger's Chariot don't do much considering how much mana they ask for.

Overall, the theme is solid and the commander choice is a neat one! I hope these cuts help make your deck the best it can be.

Raging_Squiggle on pump spells

7 years ago

Berserk, Hatred, Fatal Frenzy, Great Defender, Erratic Mutation.

Next time, feel free to use Gatherer at your leisure. That's what I just did.