How To Gain Life And Influence People

Commander / EDH* Lifegain Multiplayer WB (Orzhov) WUB (Esper)

andreuswolf

Creature (25)

• 1x Ajani's Pridemate
• 1x Archaeomancer
• 1x Archangel of Thune
• 1x Baleful Strix
• 1x Bloodgift Demon
• 1x Burnished Hart
• 1x Crested Sunmare
• 1x Crypt Ghast
• 1x Divinity of Pride
• 1x Drogskol Reaver
• 1x Duskmantle Seer
• 1x Erebos, God of the Dead
• 1x Grand Abolisher
• 1x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
• 1x Mulldrifter
• 1x Phyrexian Delver
• 1x Pontiff of Blight
• 1x Serra Ascendant
• 1x Serra Avatar
• 1x Sphinx of the Steel Wind
• 1x Sunscorch Regent
• 1x Treasury Thrull
• 1x Twilight Prophet
• 1x Vizkopa Guildmage
• 1x Windborn Muse

Enchantment (9)

• 1x Blind Obedience
• 1x Dawn of Hope
• 1x Exquisite Blood
• 1x Ghostly Prison
• 1x Phyrexian Arena
• 1x Phyrexian Reclamation
• 1x Propaganda
• 1x Sanguine Bond
• 1x Underworld Connections

Land (36)

• 1x Arcane Sanctum
• 1x Bojuka Bog
• 1x Castle Locthwain
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Drowned Catacomb
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Fetid Pools
• 1x Glacial Fortress
• 1x Godless Shrine
• 1x Hallowed Fountain
• 3x Island
• 1x Isolated Chapel
• 1x Mana Confluence
• 5x Plains
• 1x Prairie Stream
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Sunken Hollow
• 7x Swamp
• 1x Temple of Deceit
• 1x Temple of Enlightenment
• 1x Temple of Silence
• 1x Terramorphic Expanse
• 1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
• 1x Watery Grave

Artifact (7)

• 1x Chromatic Lantern
• 1x Commander's Sphere
• 1x Crawlspace
• 1x Elixir of Immortality
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Spectral Searchlight
• 1x Whip of Erebos

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Sorin Markov

Commander (1)

Sorcery (11)

• 1x Austere Command
• 1x Council's Judgment
• 1x Diabolic Tutor
• 1x End Hostilities
• 1x Expropriate
• 1x Increasing Ambition
• 1x Merciless Eviction
• 1x Notion Rain
• 1x Obzedat's Aid
• 1x Toxic Deluge
• 1x Vindicate

Instant (10)

• 1x Blue Sun's Zenith
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Crypt Incursion
• 1x Cyclonic Rift
• 1x Dissipate
• 1x Forsake the Worldly
• 1x Lim-Dul's Vault
• 1x Reality Shift
• 1x Sphinx's Revelation
• 1x Utter End

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Maybeboard

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Tamiyo, the Moon Sage

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A heavily modified version of Eternal Bargain. The idea behind this deck is to sit squarely behind a wall of lifegain and subtly control the board state via careful use of politics, alliances and manipulation.

Cards like Tidal Force, Wall of Reverence, Archetype of Imagination and Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts will keep me safe from harm while allowing me to gain life or control the board. Crypt Ghast will allow my swamps and shock-swamps to fix for more mana, and if color screw becomes a problem Chromatic Lantern will fix it for me.

I have a strong affection for Will of the Council cards because they're very interactive and fun to play, which is part of the point of Commander. I particularly love Magister of Worth and Split Decision. Additionally, Tempt with Glory and Tempt with Immortality can persuade my enemies to improve my position for short-term gains on their part, while careful use of Benevolent Offering, Intellectual Offering and Infernal Offering can bring me out ahead even though me and my enemy are technically getting the same thing. Perhaps I might even be persuaded to cast Blue Sun's Zenith on another player - for the right price on their part.

Exquisite Blood will grow my life total off the suffering of my enemies, while Sanguine Bond will make my fortune their misfortune - and combined together, they are the keys to an instant and crushing victory (although I've personally resolved not to achieve victory in this manner unless my opponent is exceptionally dishonorable). Debt to the Deathless grants me devastating late-game damage potential, especially with Crypt Ghast in play.

Lim-Dul's Vault, Increasing Ambition and Diabolic Tutor will assist me in gaining the cards I need when I need them, and I can use Pull from Eternity, Elixir of Immortality, Archaeomancer, Obzedat's Aid, or Phyrexian Rebirth to return to me anything my enemies dare try to take from me.

If subtle manipulation and scheming doesn't work, I'll just drop Archangel of Thune and quickly make my creatures unmanageable. I don't need green mana to buy the services of powerful creatures - Serra Avatar or Sphinx of the Steel Wind will more than suffice.

If circumstances become truly dire, I can respond with Supreme Verdict or Merciless Eviction. If my creatures are sufficiently large (perhaps because of Archangel of Thune or Cradle of Vitality), I can instead use Toxic Deluge to ruin my enemies' board state while causing my own only minor discomfort.

Date added	9 years
Last updated	4 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	14 - 0 Mythic Rares 44 - 0 Rares 17 - 0 Uncommons 10 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.84
Tokens	City's Blessing, Horse 5/5 W, Manifest 2/2 C, Soldier 1/1 W w/ Lifelink
Folders	Esper EDH, Oloro, Decks to learn from, Oloro