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Daredevil Theme Deck

Commander / EDH

goblinsoup

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Land (37)

Creature (11)

Instant (20)

Enchantment (12)

Commander (1)

Commander: foil Mathas, Fiend Seeker

Artifact (15)

Sorcery (3)

Planeswalker (1)

Fluff-wise the deck must haves are:

  • His two most iconic enemies: Kingpin and Bullseye.
  • His most iconic lover: Elektra.

Ideally should also include:

  • The other 2 former lovers that round out his "Big 3" - Karen Page and Black Widow
  • Best friend Foggy Nelson

Nice to haves:

  • His Billy Club... it's not Mjolnir level of plot device, but it is a signature part of his costume and super heroics
  • The Hand ... born in the pages of Daredevil this evil organization has made its way into other heroes' books and the 616.
  • His most noteworthy Frenemy: The Punisher
Voltron up and hope for the best. Keep your fingers crosssed that this is one of those attrition heavy games where people naturally get into topdeck mode while you've got voltron pieces in play. Otherwise, pray to luck into combo.

The crux of the deck, which you may or may not have gathered by now, is a spot removal heavy voltron deck leaning heavily on Sunforger (the Billy Club!) with a single, not so easy to assemble combo as backup. The deck relies on opponents to bring sweepers while it does its best to manage single target threats. It has cards to mitigate its own weakness to sweepers and spot removal, but overall I think it's not voltron-y enough and the combo is not consistently or easily acquired since it's 3 pieces, none of which are the commander.

The reason I went spot removal heavy is to help Mathas get past blockers while also synergizing with the Bounty Counter mechanic. Additionally, red and white instant spot removal is quite flexible (StP, Chaos Warp, Oblation, Rakdos Charm) and very fetchable by the deck's Billy Club (sunforger). Most importantly, the deck itself is themed. Daredevil is hunting down the bad guys, i.e. your opponent's creatures, keeping the streets of Hell's Kitchen safe.

Crime Wins (i.e.Combo) Show

In the Clutches of the Kingpin - Grave Titan+Ashnod's Altar+Nim Deathmantle for infinite zombies (and colorless mana although we have no way to use it). Previously also included Marionette Master as a non Grave Titan option for infinite damage without having to attack.

This is not how I want to win. Combo is the backup plan. In this case the Kingpin's goons overrun Hell's Kitchen and wipe out the competition.

Victory for The Hand - Puppeteer Clique+Ashnod's Altar+Nim Deathmantle doesn't guarantee a win, but combos with Altar and Deathmantle to unearth all creatures in all opponents graveyards for the turn, which can be enough to knock someone out.

The Hand has run amok and resurrected all the criminals and ne'er-do-wells that Daredevil has spent all game taking out...at least, temporarily.

Mathas, Fiend Seeker - Mechanically, having Menace fits the Devil of Hell's Kitchen reputation thematically. Also, all of Daredevil's acrobatics means he's hard for opponents to pin down without a bit of help. Placing Bounty Tokens is the equivalent of Daredevil seeking out criminals on the mean streets of Hell's Kitchen. Bonus points, Mathas is about as close to Matt Murdock as mtg is ever gonna get. Fiend Seeker while literal in the mtg lore also sounds like someone seeking out danger...a daredevil. Plus, he's even wearing a red suit in the art.
Grave Titan is the Kingpin. Physically menacing and surrounded by henchmen. Originally represented by Krenko, the goblin mob boss just wasn't impactful enough to represent Daredevil's archenemy. One of the few non-voltron threats in the deck.

Royal Assassin - If Kingpin is Daredevil's archenemy then Bullseye is his nemesis. Responsible for the deaths of two of Matt's lovers, Bullseye, the world's deadliest assassin, is as obsessed with Daredevil as Daredevil is with the Kingpin. Working as he often does as the top hit man for various crime bosses, this card only made too much sense. Art of the modern version even has the same Black and white color scheme. Creature removal/bounty redeemer.

Queen Marchesa - Human Assassin typeline with deathtouch. She spawns more assassins (The Hand ninjas she sometimes leads) and the art depiction is a dark haired woman wearing a bit of red. Works for me! (Note: while I love Queen Marchesa as Elektra, part of me would like to swap Marchesa out for an angel so that the big 3 love interests are all angels...Angel of Despair perhaps). Card advantage via monarch or deathtouch blockers when not monarch.

Archangel Avacyn  /Avacyn, the Purifier - Pretty proud of this one. This is Karen Page. It's entirely debateable which of either Elektra or Karen Page is the main/most important love interest of the Daredevil mythos. As Archangel Avacyn, Karen gives Matt that inner strength to keep on fighting against the odds (temporary indestructibility) while also comes the closest of anyone to getting him to hang up the costume and lead a normal life. At one point after their initial relationship ends, however, while struggling to become an actress in L.A., Karen becomes addicted to heroine and sells out Matt's secret identity to the Kingpin who uses that information to systematically destroy Matt Murdock's life in the Born Again story arc. When Archangel Avacyn flips, she deals 3 damage to each opponent and ALL creatures, which is enough to kill Mathas, betraying him just like Karen betrayed Matt. The flash indestructibility has been useful, although the low creature count makes it somewhat difficult to flip her when desired. 4/4 flying vigilance isn't irrelevant and can be suited up if Mathas is removed.

Angel of the Dire Hour - Natasha Romanova the Black Widow and the 3rd of Daredevil's big 3 love interests. An Avenger and hero in her own right, Natasha still has a soft spot for Matt comes to his aid when he needs it. Just like in the comics, Angel of the Dire Hour swoops in to save the day when Daredevil gets overwhelmed.

Chandra, Flamecaller - Typhoid Mary a pyrokinetic villain, and, yes, another former lover. Much needed card advantage.

Bounty Hunter - This is Frank Castle. He and Daredevil cross paths while on the hunt for the same criminals. They have a grudging respect for one another despite clashing (sometimes physically) due to a difference in their methods. Mechanically, he can gun down anyone Mathas puts a bounty counter on which is incredibly thematic and useful.

Captivating Crew - Despite perhaps being more known and a bigger part of Jessica Jones's mythos, The Purple Man was originally introduced in the pages of Daredevil and continues to be a foe to old Hornhead. This card gives us the mind control and lots of purple in the art. What more can I ask for? Zealous Conscript was another contender, but the card name, art & mechanics of Captivating Crew are more fitting. Once used this to steal Kesler's Avacyn, Archangel of Hope commander. I was then able to equip her, give her doublestrike and one-shot him with his own commander. That's right, the Purple Man pulled a Jessica Jones repeat on Avacyn.

Puppeteer Clique - The Beast, which is a mystical entity that The Hand worships. It is invoked during their resurrection rituals and causes the resurrected to become loyal to The Hand. At one point it possesses Daredevil giving rise to the Shadowland event. Always useful to resurrect opponents' creatures for some easy ETB value.

Humble Defector - The Gladiator. Early Daredevil foe that eventually is reformed and attempts to give up his life of crime and violence. At times he even acts as a security guard for Nelson & Murdock. He is sometimes blackmailed and/or manipulated by more formidable enemies of Daredevil into returning to his criminal ways. Deck needs card advantage, but it's also political and usually not the major threat at the table. Ideal scenario is this card leads to collusion with another weak deck at the table to pass him back and forth for two cards per turn.

Silverblade Paladin - Foggy Nelson is Matt Murdock's best friend and law partner. Soulbond seems fitting. Doublestrike enabler.

Orzhov Advokist = Assistant D.A. turned girlfriend (that's lady friend number 5 so far, if you're keeping track) turned law partner, Kirsten McDuffie. Boosts Mathas's P/T and if opponents do the same, I'm at least temporarily protected...hopefully long enough to find an answer to the threat they're powering up.

Sunforger - Daredevil's iconic and ever-versatile Billyclub. It's a baton, a staff, a nunchaku, a throwing weapon, a grappling hook, and a blind man walking stick, not to mention a tape recorder, microphone, and projectile firing device. Through the magic of comic book physics it works like Cap's Shield and comes back to hand when thrown... except when he wants to embed it in solid concrete to prove a point. The deck has a sunforger package, but even when just used for the power boost, it cranks Mathas up to a 3 turn clock. The package includes spot removal (both destroy and exile for all permanent types), indestructibility for my permanents, a counterspell, a damage redirection effect, graveyard removal, and a catch-all one time use "oh shit" button (Teferi's Protection).

Mask of Memory - the iconic, identity obscuring horned mask...and some much needed card draw.

Whispersilk Cloak - the red suit. I'm not entirely happy with this slot, but making Mathas unblockable is sometimes the only way to get him to connect. Shroud is a double edged sword.

Swiftfoot Boots - the costume really does cover him head to toe. I'm not running any other hexproof effects =(

Umezawa's Jitte - nearly as iconic as his Billy Club are Elektra's sais. Elektra uses it to stab Ben Urich. Bullseye uses it to kill Elektra. Daredevil uses it to kill Bullseye. After the first combat damage, it turns Mathas into a 3 turn clock. It can also be used to remove small utility creatures, preferably after placing a bounty or two on them.

Blade of the Bloodchief - There aren't any other iconic swords the Daredevil mythos, but there sure are a ton of generic ones. Ikari uses kamas. Gladiator uses circular wrist blades. Tons of mooks run around with knives. The Hand ninjas have katanas. As a vampire type line it has the potential to boost Mathas's power quite quickly.

Nim Deathmantle - The Hand use mysticism, rituals, ceremonies, etc. to resurrect the dead. Keeps Mathas alive and boosts his P/T, although the intimidate is relatively worthless except against Simic color identities. This is also part of the 3 card combo win with Grave Titan and Ashnod's Altar.

Ashnod's Altar - Altar used by The Hand when resurrecting Elektra, Bruce Banner and others. Deck doesn't have much use for this outside of the combo with Deathmantle + Grave Titan except as a sac outlet to avoid an exile/Song of Dryads and sacrificing creatures to a captivating crew activation.

Tamiyo's Journal - The Daily Bugle (or Daily Bulletin in the Netflix MCU shows since Marvel Studios didn't own the rights to Spider-Man at the time). "Journal" being a popular newspaper name and the deck sorely needing card advantage, this works out.

Boros Signet, Orzhov Signet, and Rakdos Signet - legal documents and much needed ramp/fixing.

Sol Ring - Wedding ring. Yes, Matt Murdock has in fact been married, though it was later annulled. Doesn't help us cast Mathas, but Sunforger is pretty mana intensive to re-attach if using frequently.

Chromatic Lantern - a traffic light if there ever was one in MtG (thank you, for this flavoring). Much needed mana fixing.

Fellwar Stone - I got nothing, but with 3 colors in the identity, this often hits two colors.

Valorous Stance - Daredevil makes a lot of these. Sure he usually handles street level threats, but occasionally he's a bit of a martyr like that time he took a beating from The Hulk. Flex slot and fetchable with Sunforger. Keeps Mathas alive through destroy effects OR can be used as spot removal.

Faith's Reward - See Shielded by Faith above. Anti Nev's Disk, Bane of Progress, Wave of Vitriol, MLD tech. Sadly, while it can be fetched by sunforger, the stack order means it won't work in response to sweepers or removal. It has to be cast afterwards.

Teferi's Protection - He's the protector of Hell's Kitchen. Super hero'ing isn't about beating up criminals. It's about saving innocent bystanders and victims. This card is my "oh shit" button with sunforger. Unlike Faith's Reward, this one can be used in response to sweepers. You still lose tokens if phased out, but don't lose +1/+1 counters Fetchable by Sunforger.

Debt of Loyalty - Gladiator turning a new leaf and being given a chance by Daredevil. This card is awesome. Can be used to regenerate your own creature or as cheap, instant speed, permanent creature theft on an opponent's. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Deflecting Palm - Daredevil the martial artist. Fun little "gotcha" combat trick for those annoying Consuming Aberrations and other one-hit killers. Fetchable by Sunforger

Wear/Tear - Daredevil's costume goes through the ringer. Luckily, spandex is affordable for a successful attorney doing double duty as a night time vigilante. While fetchable with sunforger, Fuse only lets you use both modes at once if it is cast from your hand.

Rack and Ruin - Not a scientist, Daredevil's answer to most villainous contraptions are to smash them to bits. Cheap, instant speed 2-for-1 and fetchable with sunforger.

Oblation - Matt's Catholicism and an all purpose answer to any permanent type (and even card draw in a pinch). Fetchable by Sunforger.

Chaos Warp - Alternate universe versions of Daredevil and another all purpose answer to any permanent type. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Shattering Pulse - sometimes his super senses get overwhelmed. The deck tends to play at instant speed once it's gotten Mathas online and voltron'd. The buy-back lets me use this as a mana sink if I want to hold up mana to protect my board state via Faith's Reward/Teferi's Protection/etc. but end up not casting any of it. Not sure if that's worth the slot or not. Artifact removal. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Dark Temper - Despite being a hero and despite integrity being one of his defining characteristics, he's a passionate person whose circumstances often lead him to dark places. He's been known to let his anger get the better of him like that time he mutilated a helpless, defeated Bullseye. It's functionally a Murder as long as Mathas is in play. Creature removal. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Terminate - Tactic used by Bullseye, Elektra, Punisher, and other villains. Creature removal. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Go for the Throat - See Terminate above (might get cut since it's not fetchable with Sunforger).

Unlicensed Disintegration - The implication of guns or explosive weaponry may make this more of a Punisher tactic specifically. Creature removal. Fetchable by Sunforger.

Swords to Plowshares - After Gladiator turns over a new leaf he becomes a successful costume shop owner.

Steelshaper's Gift - [redacted because it spoils stuff from the TV show]. Options are Sunforger, Jitte, Blade of the Bloodchief, Nim Deathmantle, Mask of Memory, Swifties, or Whispersilk.

Open the Armory - another Steelshaper's gift. Essentially the same fluff as well.

Vampiric Tutor - This is Stick, the man who trained a young Matt Murdock how to cope with his heightened senses and how to fight. You know what tutors do.

Gamble - The Man Without Fear isn't afraid to take risks. You know what tutors do.

Boros Charm, Orzhov Charm, and Rakdos Charm - Daredevil symbol, rosaries, and crucifix. Boros charm offers sweeper protection and a one-time doublestrike effect. Orzhov is instant speed removal or can bounce a creature to save it. Rakdos Charm may be the best charm in EDH since it's always relevant with artifact destruction, graveyard removal, and anti-token tech.

Lapse of Certainty - Villains have enacted schemes with the goal of making Daredevil question his sanity. Karen causes him to question whether or not being a superhero is worth the risks. Foggy points out that being Daredevil is a self destructive behavior and is the cause of all the horrible things that have happened in his life. Mechanically, no one expects the non-blue counterspell,and even an over costed memory lapse can stop that last minute answer to lethal damage.

Shielded by Faith - Our hero is a devout catholic and his faith is about as front and center as mainstream religion tends to get in super hero comics from Marvel & DC. It's one of the pillars that make up Matt Murdock. Can also be placed on a different threat and moved to Mathas when he gets played.

Rule of Law - He may be a masked vigilante, but his day job is in the courthouse. The deck isn't slinging a lot of spells on its own turn. High instant spot removal count means this shouldn't be much of a drawback. That said, I'm not convinced it's much help either. Was definitely included more for flavor than deck strategy. We don't have many people trying to throw a ton of spells around on their turns.

Prison Term - Bad guys go to jail. Sometimes it's more difficult to remove an enchantment than it is to bring a creature back from the graveyard or recast a commander.

Smoke - Daredevil often sets up fights to take advantage of the fact that he doesn't need to see. Deck doesn't often have a lot of creatures other than Mathas in play so he's mostly unaffected. Reduces chance of crackback. Helps against go-wide strategies and mana dork heavy decks.

Ghostly Prison - Keep those criminals behind bars! The deck doesn't tend to have many blockers and isn't running sweepers so this is its best defense against go wide strategies. It also really wants to be swinging with Mathas, particularly early on while the board is relatively empty, but that means it doesn't have any blockers which invites people to crack back or get in chip damage early.

Sphere of Safety - Daredevil is the protector of Hell's Kitchen. It's his turf.

Duelist's Heritage - Murdock was the son of boxer, Battlin' Jack Murdock. He was Matt's idol growing up. This card gives Mathas doublestrike, but it can also pump up opponents creatures swinging at someone else. This card has proven its value to me in so many games of EDH whether I was the one playing it, or someone else.

Land Tax - extortion by criminal elements Daredevil works against.

Assemble the Legion - Daredevil forms the Marvel Knights, which is actually referred to in-universe as "Daredevil's Unnamed Superhero Team," to defeat Ulik and then bring The Punisher to justice. It's card I've been wanting to try out. Terrible late game unless the board is clear and everyone is in topdeck mode. Probably not worth the slot, but the dream of dropping this on turn 3 or 4 and letting it build up is enticing.

Blind Obedience - obligatory blind joke coupled with religious connotations. Extort is useful since the deck cmc is pretty low and it can create more opportunities for Mathas to slip in unblocked.

Animate Dead - The Hand resurrecting their foes to serve them. I've come to view this as a staple in any EDH deck whether it's for my own creatures or someone else's.

Bitter Feud - Represents the personal vendetta and animosity between Daredevil and Bullseye. Mechanically, this works with doublestrike. This can turn a doublestriking 7 power Mathas into a one-hit-KO. It can also be played politically to incentivize two other players to hit one another. Certainly a weak slot. Dictate of the Twin Gods is infinitely better, but this was more thematic.

Rogue's Passage - Josie's Bar where all of the criminals and hoodlums hang out. It's where Daredevil goes when he needs to rough people up and get a message to spread among Hell's Kitchen's underworld. Unblockable Daredevil is good.

Slayers' Stronghold - During the Shadowland event, The Hand creates a japanese style castle in the middle of Hell's Kitchen to serve as Daredevil's stronghold. The +2/0 and vigilance have been useful, although the 3 mana to grant haste is a bit expensive.

Sunhome, Fortress of the Legion - Marvel Knights base that Moon Knight insists on setting up over Daredevil's protests. Doublestrike enabler.

Vault of the Archangel - Gravesite of Battlin' Jack Murdock and/or Elektra. Possible cut as I've been burned a couple times by having colorless mana producers. I thought the deathtouch and lifelink could be necessary. Still would be if I ever have an Assemble the Legion or Grave Titan get up and running. Have yet to use it despite seeing it a few times (usually alongside Slayers and Sunhome)

Mystifying Maze - The streets of Hell's Kitchen are dark and dangerous. Political card as well since it can save someone else.

Mistveil Plains - gosh this art is ugly. Reminds me of sewage runoff right into the Hudson river. City flavoring and sunforger tech.

Marionette Master represented The Owl, who is another crime boss that Daredevil comes to grips with. Not nearly as powerful, cunning, or physically threatening to DD. I ran it as a second option for the Deathmantle+Ashnod combo, but the card just doesn't pull its weight on its own despite allowing the option of winning without combat damage.

Gift of Immortality - Like The Hand, The Chaste (the secret organization that opposes The Hand... the one Stick is a member of) can also resurrect people. Keeping Mathas alive isn't so great when all of his gear and +1/+1 counters fall off. It had some synergy with Grave Titan and Marionette Master as a non-infinite version of the Ashnod's combo, but it's not worth the slot.

Master Warcraft - Daredevil often sets up fights to take advantage of the fact that he doesn't need to see. Can be used to fog opponents for a turn, force attacks, or force blocks. I have a foil one and thought it woulbe a cute option wi sunforger. I've never once saw it or felt the need to tutor for in the 10 or so games.

Make a Stand - See Valorous stance above. Cut due to lacking the flexibility of Valorous while costing more. Almost never wanted to see it in hand and there are already multiple copies of the effect that can be fetched via Sunforger.

Hero's Downfall -his is a referee to the Born Again story. Didn't make the cut since it can't be fetched via sunforger and I already have so many creature kill effects. If sunforger gets dropped, this should take a slot from one of the other creature kill cards for the added target flexibility.

Dark Impostor - Thematically we have a couple options. Ikari is another assassin (DD practically collects these as villains). He was given the same enhanced senses as Daredevil via experiments funded by Bullseye except that Ikari still has his normal vision. His costume is a japanese stylized version of the original yellow Daredevil costume. Another option is for it to represent the other superheroes that have taken up Daredevil's identity at varying times including Iron Fist and Black Panther. Yes, the impostors were heroes and not "dark" as the card implies (avoiding the obvious joke here). Only in consideration because repeated exile removal is necessary for the Avacyn Archangel of Hope that Kesler has been running as his commander.

Harsh Mentor - Stick as a creature instead of Vamp tutor. Name fits perfectly and the art is a guy holding a staff (the namesake stick). Forces decks to remove him before going infinite with some combos. Kesler has started running Ashnod's+Nim Deathmantle+token producer combo in his deck after losing to my version of it followed by losing to Stickles's Mike+Trike combo then his Leyline+Helm of Obedience combo. Stickles runs the aforementioned Mike+Trike. You run Squirrel Nest. Clearly he's not a great answer since he has to sit on board giving opponents all the time in the world to remove him, but I don't have a whole lot of options.

Starke of Rath - another option for Gladiator. Additional destroy effect on a stick, although without homeward path this is very risky.

Thraben Inspector - this could be Ben Urich or perhaps a 3rd option for Karen Page if needed. Early chump blocker and replaces itself.

Confusion in the Ranks - Daredevil often sets up fights to take advantage of the fact that he doesn't need to see. Would love to use it, but the deck doesn't have a way to take advantage of it or break symmetry on the effect. This was a just a card that stuck in my head from years ago when I considered building Norin the Wary as a Daredevil deck.

Underworld Connections - Very much on theme for the villains and even Daredevil at times uses informants. Card advantage would be welcome.

Black Market - haven't had much need for big mana, but the theme of criminality is there if it's ever needed.

Merciless Eviction - there have been times where a sweeper would be quite useful. Theme fits quite well.

Splinter Twin - early on, Matt kept his identity secret from Foggy and Karen. Spider-man outted him in a letter to Karen, so he concocted a ruse where he posed as his own twin brother Mike Murdock to throw them off. Yes... Silver Age Daredevil is... not so good. Also, the aforementioned Iron Fist and Black Panther stand-ins. An option for an infinite combo, which would also suggest the inclusion of Kiki Jiki as a redundancy.

Combat Celebrant - if Splinter Twin comes in, this is a combo option. Egyption themed and loves to fight...clearly this is Moon Knight as long as Silverblade Paladin is Foggy.

Restoration Angel - possible option for an angel replacement of Anya the Mericless. Situationally less powerful, and blinking a geared up Mathas is less than ideal, but still better than losing him to spot removal. If Splinter Twin/Kiki Jiki becomes a finisher, it combos with Kiki (but not splinter twin).

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