Stranglehold

Enchantment

Your opponents can't search libraries.

If an opponent would begin an extra turn, that player skips that turn instead.

Discussion (51)

dingusdingo on Sen Triplets Stax/Control

1 week ago

Thoughts for edits

Thopter Foundry + Sword of the Meek + Time Sieve suffers from being a 3 piece combo and from card quality. Foundry can be worthwhile for instant speed blockers, but the other two are dead draws without the combo assembled.

Sensei's Divining Top with either Grim Monolith + Power Artifact or Dramatic Reversal + Isochron Scepter is a much nicer package, as all the pieces have strong value independently.

I would recommend Tainted Pact for running with Laboratory Maniac . It serves as an A + B combo for winning (+ draw 1 card ofc), and is safer for the purposes of your deck than Demonic Consultation , although you could easily run that for cheaper CMC comboing. Worth noting that Pact has synergy with Isochron, or can be used for getting the last combo piece for a Top combo.

It seems as if assembling infinite mana + draw deck is your goal. I would recommend slotting Copy Artifact + Winds of Rebuke as an alternate wincon to lab man wins. Combos with dramatic scepter (you copy the scepter, imprinting winds of rebuke, to mill everyone out and pass to them, causing draws into empty libraries for GG). Copy Artifact and Winds of Rebuke also both have very high card quality, both are playable independently.

My last combo suggestion is for Praetor's Grasp . Especially with Sen having the potential to steal combo pieces, you have the potential to stop win cons as well as getting closer to your own. Praetor's Grasp will run as a functional tutor here, grabbing faster ramp or the combo pieces you need.

ad nauseum is a strong card, but you should consider the following. You are already pressuring your own life total with Dark Confidant as well as Phyrexian Arena , plus incidental damage from Mana Crypt as well as Ancient Tomb and the talismans. Your average cmc 2.33, meaning your Ad Naus will usually dig 10-20 cards, depending on damage and what you flip.. You also don't run any rituals, and have no way of reusing rocks outside of Dramatic Reversal . Supporting cards like Chain of Vapor or Hurkyl's Recall give extra mileage to Ad Nauseum as they let you re-ramp your own mana positive rocks after landing the Ad Naus, and Yawgmoth's Will is a monster in Ad Naus decks. You are also light on creatures and pack a medium sized removal package, so creatures can get free swings and reduce your Ad Nauseum that way too. You are running white, so you could decide to make ad nauseum + Angel's Grace a win-con as a possibility too. Right now Ad Nauseum looks more like expensive card draw in this deck than a strong win condition. As it stands, I firmly believe Necropotence is stronger in this current list.

You should consider swapping slower, permanent based draw spells for faster, instant/sorcery speed draw spells. Brainstorm + Ponder + Preordain + Sleight of Hand will all bring down the cmc for Ad Naus, help guarantee smoothness in your early game, and give you cantrips to "win immediately" with Lab man. They also allow you to hold up counterspells more meaningfully. You could cut Padeem, Teferi, and the U/B Tezzeret, those changes alone would cut 10 CMC out of your deck for speed and Ad Naus purposes. For what it's worth, I also believe that Scroll Rack is most effective in edh with decks that sustain larger handsizes (gives ability to dig deeper), and would also be a proponent of cutting for a cantrip. One final note on card draw, your commander acts as card advantage for you,

Your removal package can be modified to be faster and stronger. Council's Judgment has some nice perks, but it should be tertiary to both Swords to Plowshares as well as Path to Exile . Both of them are just far more efficient. You also only have two answers to artifacts or enchantments on the board, Cyclonic Rift or Council's Judgment . 2-3 more bounce spells could help with board state by quite a bit, especially if you are able to stax them out of replaying their pieces. 1-2 pieces or artifact/enchantment removal will also go a long way to helping your board presence, especially since cEDH skews towards non-creature permanents.

Humility + Night of Souls' Betrayal is a nice creature lock, but I would rather see wipes in both of those slots. Humility wrecks card advantage from your own commander, and Night is low card quality outside of combo. Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite is the preferred -x/-x effect, as it kills many of the strongest hate bears in the format (+ lab man) and allows your own hatebears to win through beatdown. I wouldn't recommend Elesh in a bear-lite build, so I would propose two wipes or pieces or removal instead.

Disallow is high cmc for a counter, consider running something else if you still want Ad Naus. If you want to hamper activated abilities, run either Pithing Needle or Phyrexian Revoker , both can deal with some of the premiere critters of the format, from Sisay to Thrasios. There are still plenty of fantastic 1 or 2 cmc counters that are common in the format that you don't run, such as Negate and Counterspell . Special mention to Swan Song for also doubling as a dramatic scepter + Copy Artifact wincon

Land base looking strong. Only changes I would suggest are remove the ETB tapped manlands, because speed is important, as well as swap out the artifact lands for basics. With a very high artifact density, you don't need to be worried about metalcraft enabled for Opal, and having nonbasics that don't give abilities and only produce 1 color of mana is not worthwhile when you can get caught by someone else's Back to Basics

As a closing note, I wanted to draw your attention to cards I see that may pose a problem for this build. Kataki, War's Wage Back to Basics Stranglehold Ruination

apex457 on Mogis: A Very Silly Commander

1 week ago

Maybe try the Maralen of the Mornsong and Stranglehold combo to keep people from ever playing or drawing cards. I am in the process of puting together my own mogis deck and I really do enjoy looking at where other people have seemed to take it to.

Driemer84 on Kiki's Delivery Service

1 month ago

I know what you mean about too many decks. I have 5 with a 6th in progress and even that feels like too many.

Here is where I'm at with Kiki-Jiki.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker

I think you're right about Dark-Dweller though. I already run Outpost Siege and it's really the same effect with less investment and vulnerability. I'll probably stick with that.

I'll give Flameshadow and Feldon some more thought and a test run. What I really want out of these cards is more etb triggers and Panharmonicon just owns them all when it comes to that. I'm not sure if the it's worth the extra mana you need to invest in Flameshadow and Feldon. Flameshadow also incentivizes you to over extend since you can't get those triggers without casting your creature and I'm not sure that's a good thing. I've found if you have a good value creature on board along with Kiki-Jiki, you just want to sit on your hand and in that situation, Flameshadow does nothing.

Nim Deathmantle seems like it competes with Feldon. Feldon produces a lot of repeatable value, but it can't combo like Deathmantle. I'll have to get some games in with it. My only problem with Deathmantle is that, like Flameshadow, there are times when you cast it and it sits there and does nothing because you don't have mana to take advantage of it, or you don't have a way to trigger it.

I understand the power of Helm of the Host, but I always found it so expensive and clunky. Maybe it provides enough free wins to be worth it, but I'm not on board yet. If I decide to run Helm and Deathmantle, then Godo seems like and auto-include. He's already borderline with only Thornbite Staff and Skullclamp.

Another card I think would be cool in this deck is Helm of Possession . Tokens are perfect sac fodder for the Helm, and with a sac outlet it's a great way to rid your opponents of their best threats.

The remainder of the cards I'm looking at are just generic hate cards like War's Toll , Stranglehold , Price of Glory , and Ruination . Red has so many hosers that I want to try out. They don't necessarily synergize with the deck, they're just their to grief my opponents.

TheGeneralAdvisor on [cEDH] Krenko Combo [Primer]

1 month ago

I think I would speed the deck up. You have a lot of control here, and if your meta needs it that’s fine, but cards like Stranglehold , Blood Moon and the like are all very slow. It’s basically skipping a turn to play them and hope that nobody deals with it, and they don’t actually advance you winning the game. Wheel of Fate is way too slow as well. As a personal opinion, I also find cards like Extraplanar Lens very clunky and vulnerable, and they rarely speed the game up faster than a Gauntlet of Might . Power is a fine substitute although I think it’s probably too slow for what you’re doing.

Sword of the Paruns is a slow combo piece that I probably wouldn’t run over the other options you’re already running. Goblin Bushwhacker , Goblin Ringleader , and Moggcatcher can be cut as well. You don’t have enough gobos unless you recruit them and it’s not worth a slot in the deck for that synergy. Finding another card draw would be much better. Bushwhacker isn’t necessary; you just have more efficient ways of winning. I think even Boggart Shenanigans could be cut as it’s somewhat redundant and slows the deck down.

If you find yourself going infinite pretty quick (which is the goal obviously) Apex of Power will get you there. It’s easy to cast (sometimes just with a ritual or hymn) and should finish the game for you. Aggravated Assault is pretty standard for Krenko combo as well.

You already have most of the cheap rocks aside from Grim Monolith , so I’d probably add that one. Also Final Fortune and Last Chance are essentially Time Walk for a deck that really just wants another turn to finish the game. Anger is a better haste enabler than Ogre Battledriver and you can add Cathartic Reunion to give you another discard outlet.

I think as a guideline for straight combo decks, a card should answer a few basic questions:

1. Does this card help me win, and if so, how fast is it compared to the rest of the deck? (ramp, lands, tutors, card draw, turns)

2. If this is a combo card, is it the most efficient one I can run? If it’s not, is it worth having the redundancy?

3. If it’s not a combo card and it’s not helping me win faster, why is it in the deck? (Meta, utility, maybe some recovery)

I’m sure there’s something I missed but hopefully this is useful to you.

simondiamond2012 on Sidistique, Version 2: Ad Nauseam Fishbowl Variant

1 month ago

@hthomas88:

"did u have any line of tutoring, example what to search first, second, etc?

--> This is a Turbo Ad Nauseam list. We want to find and resolve Ad Nauseam, above all things.

If in the event Ad Nauseam is countered, we find Yawgie Doggie and play it from the yard.

Alternatively, we can also go the direct tutor route, which is slow but still possible, by manually assembling Paradox Engine + Strionic Resonator .

In the event of a heavy blue combo meta, such as Teferi Chain Veil Stax, we race them ideally because the hypergeometric distribution of the deck is in our favor.

But since things aren't ideal, we also have targeted hand hate, Boseiju, Who Shelters All, and Defense Grid to protect Ad Nauseam. You may have to get 1 of these cards prior to getting Ad Nauseam, which is why the other tutors come in handy.

============================== "any advice on how to play acording the matchups? (stax, flash hulk, blue control meta, etc)"

--> That depends on your meta, and turn order.

For Stax:

Bear in mind, not every stax deck operates the same way and each one attacks on a separate axis, based on their resource denial pieces.

Also bear in mind that Stax is the bane of this deck archetype. If you get stuck behind a tax piece, like Sphere for example, you may have to go find Helm of Awakening to offset the board. Alternatively, if you get stuck behind Stranglehold, you may have to Vampiric Tutor for Unstable Obelisk or Ad Nauseam to break through, which is less than ideal.

Be mindful of the following Stax pieces:

Anti-Search Effects (Stranglehold, Aven Mindcensor, Leonin Arbiter, etc.)

Null Rod/Stony Silence

Gaddock Teeg/Lavinia, Azorius Renegade

Ethersworn Cannonist

Cursed Totem

Sphere effects (Sphere of Resistance, Thorn of Amethyst, etc.)

Anything that prevents you from doing something for cheap or free must be dealt with prior to going off. In the case of creatures, use a kill spell. In the event of Null Rod or Stony Silence, you'll have to Ad Naus into Skirge Familiar then kill the table the long way via Exsanguinate + Yawg's Will (using Ad Naus and Exsanguinate again).

You can also use politics and sit back in order to let others deal with the on-board issues, but I'd suggest sitting and being patient. The longer the game goes, the less it favors you.

==============================

Against flash-hulk variants, race them, but don't be afraid to use a hand hate spell on them if you have one in hand. An E.O.T. Ad Nauseam may very well pave the way to victory.

Against TCV Stax or other fast combo decks, race them. This archetype is the 3rd fastest archetype, just barely behind Grenzo Doomsday and 4C Breakfast Hulk. Hope of Ghirapur may help here, but only marginally; if there's 2 or 3 other blue decks, Defense Grid might be the way to go. (If nothing else, it baits out a counter.)

For seat positioning, if you're not going first, bear in mind who's at the table and what's in your hand. If you can Ad Naus turn 1 or 2, go for it, including on your main phase. Remember, you don't answer questions, you ask them! (As in, "Opponents, may I see a Force of Will?".)

If your meta is stax heavy (4 or more decks in your LGS meta), ANF might not be so hot going in. But if it's lots of midrange non-blue stuff, roast'em with Fishbowl.

Having a knowledge of your meta and who's sitting at the table with you will be of great help. It's all on a case by case basis.

In a blind meta, usually it's best to find Ad Nauseam first, then drop all your fast rocks into Ad Nauseam on the same turn, so that you hide your power level to the table. (The worst that happens is you don't get there, but often times, someone else will get greedy first and splurge. Let them take the fall for you and enjoy the ensuing counter war.)

If you sit at a table with a mirror match and there's at least one other control player there (preferably no more than one), don't be afraid to use a hand hate spell as a political tool to strip Ad Nauseam out of the mirror opponent's hand. This can buy you political favor.

Let me know what your meta looks like and I may be able to help you better.

CaptSillva on Kaalia Lose Friends

1 month ago

Combo decks got you down? Hmm, well I'm not sure what kind of combos are running around in your play group, but perhaps Stranglehold can put a dapper on their plans. This card is just so back breaking against a lot of the more unfair decks. It even shuts down most ramp spells.

Alternatively Blind Obedience is great against stuff like Elves and Artifacts that just want to keep playing cheap mana sources and tapping them right away.

Then there is Linvala, Keeper of Silence who can just lock out some decks.

You of course could easily make room for a Bojuka Bog to help deal with graveyard strategies.

deakmana on [cEDH] Krenko Combo

1 month ago

Like SamsWrath said above, needs room for the Mox Diamond :P I wouldn't touch the Iso Scepter combo with 10ft pole though.

I think Siege Gang should be pulled, he's bringing up the curve too much and not doing a lot. Wasteland should be swapped for Dwarven Ruins as its pretty narrow and too responsive.

I'd pull Defense Grid in favor of Expedition Map which can tutor up your Cavern of Souls. Defense Grid has a higher chance of being dropped, and then the next combo player will just win.

Dragon Fodder should %100 be Goblin Instigator. Gets you the same number of gobs but its reduceable via Warchief and is tutorable and copyable by Matron/Recruiter and Kiki. Then replace Krenko's Command with Goblin Chirurgeon. That'll lower the deck cmc, adds another combo enabler, and has some value for protecting Krenko.

I'd run Grafdigger's Cage over Stranglehold as you can drop it turn 1 and forget it, where Strangle competes for turn drop with Krenko. It's a nonbo with Moggcatcher, but that's about it.

Thorn of Amethyst might be worth it. Add to maybeboard?

I'd also just pull Hanweir Battlements. Its just so rare that you have Krenko mana + an open red source + this land untapped.

griffstick on Future card spike speculation thread

1 month ago

So the new simic legend has been spoiled and its busted. It's a Birthing Pod with legs. So Thornbite Staff is gonna spike. That's easy to say. But I think all the search hate cards are gonna spike too because this card is that strong. I think the metta will shift because of this card. And search hate will be an answer to this card. So cards like Aven Mindcensor, and Stranglehold are gonna get a price spike.