Why 7 Wonders?
This deck is inspired by the recent Commander Versus episode where decks are based on video games. This particular one is based, instead, on a tabletop game called "7 Wonders."
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Commanders
I tried different versions of the deck. First, one that is , as it matches the description of the "growth" and "building slowly" theme. I chose Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix and Ravos, Soultender as my commanders for both colour and flavour reasons, as they are the cards designed after the Oracle of Delphi and Orion, but it immediately fell apart once I realized there's quite no escaping in my current path.
More and more I found that the flavoured cards are mostly land and thus would then need the support from red, which is why for the second version I chose Najeela, the Blade-Blossom at . Najeela not only stands in for Tomyris, but is also a tribal commander for Warriors, very in flavour for 7 Wonders. However, little by little, I find the deck not having any direction, so I eventually abandoned that too.
Finally, I looked at 3 of the wonders in EDHREC (Colossus of Akros, Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx, Pyramid of the Pantheon) first and tried to see if there's a deck that the 3 can intersect. Turns out that Omnath, Locus of Mana works great with versions of all 7 Wonders. Which brings us to where we are now, a deck that represents the collective creation stories within all of the civilisations within 7 Wonders.
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The Wonders
The Colossus of Rhodes - Colossus of Akros
The Lighthouse of Alexandria - Arcane Lighthouse
The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus - Nylea, God of the Hunt, Bow of Nylea
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon - Khalni Garden
The Statue of Zeus in Olympia - Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus - Tormod's Crypt
The Pyramids of Giza - Pyramid of the Pantheon
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Raw Materials
Mine - Strip Mine
Timber Yard - Hickory Woodlot
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Manufactured Goods
Loom - Renowned Weaver - (Also based on Arachne)
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Civilian Structures
Gardens (Garden of Demeter) - Dictate of Karametra
Palace - Opal Palace
Statue - Rhonas's Monument
Temple - Temple of the False God
Theater - Thespian's Stage
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Scientific Structures
Library - Sylvan Library
Observatory - Vedalken Orrery
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Commercial Structures
Bazar (Also, same empire as Halicarnassus) - Bazaar of Baghdad
Haven - Havenwood Battleground
Market - High Market, Market Festival
Vineyard - Magus of the Vineyard, Karametra's Acolyte
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Military Structures
Archery Range - Bitterbow Sharpshooters, Reverent Hunter
Barracks - Lightning Greaves, Swiftfoot Boots, Whispersilk Cloak
Fortification - Darksteel Garrison
Guard Tower - Detection Tower
Stables - Beastbreaker of Bala Ged, Beast Whisperer, Lifecrafter's Bestiary, Goreclaw, Terror of Qal Sisma, Bear Umbra
Walls - Wall of Blossoms, Wall of Roots
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Guild Cards
Craftsmen Guild - Emerald Medallion, Sol Ring
Gamers Guild - Doubling Cube
Philosophers Guild - Cavern of Souls (naming Elves, of course)
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Leaders
Caligula - Rishkar, Peema Renegade (Both are leaders who butt heads with their law making government bodies, the Senate and the Consulate respectively)
Hatshepsut - Titania, Protector of Argoth (Female leaders considered goddesses who dedicated their lives to an ancient land, Land of Punt and Argoth respectively)
Nebuchadnezar - Surrak, the Hunt Caller (Once a leader, later lived among beasts)
Sappho - Yeva, Nature's Herald
Varro - Yisan, the Wanderer Bard (Varro was a scholar of the arts, including grammar and music theory)
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Great Projects
Archives - Scroll Rack
Menagerie - Vizier of the Menagerie
Obelisk - Unstable Obelisk
Rampart Road - Concordant Crossroads
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Babylonion Civilisation
Biblical End of Days - Craterhoof Behemoth
Hebrew Genesis - Primal Surge
Israeli rejection of Nebuchadnezzar - Asceticism
World before creation - Omnath, Locus of Mana
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Egyptian Civilisation
End of the Universe - Sandwurm Convergence
Serpopard - Prowling Serpopard
Wadjet - Rhonas the Indomitable
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Greek Civilisation
Centaur - Courser of Kruphix
Echidna - Polukranos, World Eater
Erymanthian Boar - Archetype of Endurance
Ceryneian Hind - Golden Hind
Lernean Hydra - Hydra Broodmaster
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Roman Civilisation
Colossus - Arbor Colossus
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Yavimaya Elder
Growing Rites of Itlimoc
Llanowar Elves
Courser of Kruphix
Oracle of Mul-Daya
Sakura Tribe Elder
Eternal Witness
Reclamation Sage
Elvish Mystic
Nissa, Vastwood Seer
Avenger of Zendikar
Frontier Siege
Greenwarden of Murasa
Song of the Dryads
Oran-Rief, the Vastwood
Dryad Arbor
Blighted Woodland
Rites of Flourishing
Selvala, Heart of the Wilds
Wood Elves
Bane of Progress
Gaea's Cradle
Desert of the Indomitable
Myriad Landscape
Mosswort Bridge
Tectonic Edge
Tranquil Thicket
Fertile Thicket
Llanowar Reborn
Slippery Karst
Turntimber Grove
Flip
