Marath's School for Naya Assassins

Commander / EDH

Izulde

Creature (26)

• 1x Angel of Jubilation
• 1x Avenger of Zendikar
• 1x Brimaz, King of Oreskos
• 1x Dragonlord Dromoka
• 1x Elderscale Wurm
• 1x Elvish Piper
• 1x Eternal Witness
• 1x Forgotten Ancient
• 1x Genesis Hydra
• 1x Grand Abolisher
• 1x Kalonian Hydra
• 1x Linvala, Keeper of Silence
• 1x Mentor of the Meek
• 1x Nightshade Peddler
• 1x Nylea, God of the Hunt
• 1x Omnath, Locus of Rage
• 1x Pathbreaker Ibex
• 1x Purphoros, God of the Forge
• 1x Scavenging Ooze
• 1x Seedborn Muse
• 1x Selvala, Explorer Returned
• 1x Shaman of Forgotten Ways
• 1x Sigarda, Host of Herons
• 1x Sun Titan
• 1x Vexing Shusher
• 1x Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger

Sorcery (7)

• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Green Sun's Zenith
• 1x Idyllic Tutor
• 1x Journey of Discovery
• 1x Natural Order
• 1x Revoke Existence
• 1x Sylvan Scrying

Land (34)

• 1x Arid Mesa
• 1x Canopy Vista
• 1x Cavern of Souls
• 1x Clifftop Retreat
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Flagstones of Trokair
• 6x Forest
• 1x Inkmoth Nexus
• 1x Mosswort Bridge
• 4x Mountain
• 1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1x Opal Palace
• 5x Plains
• 1x Plateau
• 1x Sacred Foundry
• 1x Selesnya Sanctuary
• 1x Stomping Ground
• 1x Sunpetal Grove
• 1x Temple of the False God
• 1x Winding Canyons
• 1x Windswept Heath
• 1x Wooded Foothills

Enchantment (9)

• 1x Aid from the Cowl
• 1x Aura Shards
• 1x Bonds of Mortality
• 1x Cathars' Crusade
• 1x Darksteel Mutation
• 1x Doubling Season
• 1x Mirari's Wake
• 1x Sigarda's Aid
• 1x Sylvan Library

Planeswalker (3)

• 1x Ajani Steadfast
• 1x Elspeth, Sun's Champion
• 1x Xenagos, the Reveler

Commander (1)

Artifact (15)

• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Basilisk Collar
• 1x Bow of Nylea
• 1x Chromatic Lantern
• 1x Darksteel Ingot
• 1x Fellwar Stone
• 1x Gorgon Flail
• 1x Gorgon's Head
• 1x Grafted Exoskeleton
• 1x Quietus Spike
• 1x Scroll Rack
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Sword of Kaldra
• 1x Sword of the Animist

Instant (5)

• 1x Ancient Grudge
• 1x Eladamri's Call
• 1x Enlightened Tutor
• 1x Krosan Grip
• 1x Worldly Tutor

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Maybeboard

Creature (3)

• 1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
• 1x Great Oak Guardian
• 1x Kamahl, Fist of Krosa

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The Origin Story

So this is a deck I've slowly built up over a month+ of time. How it came about was this: One day, I was looking for a new commander, and was at my main dealer's house (card dealer). I was thinking of Roon of the Hidden Realm, and someone else, I forget who, that utilized counters. My dealer goes, "If you want to play with counters, why not Marath?" I looked at him, read his text, and was sold. I already had a base to work with by taking apart my Mayael deck, who I loved for a long time, but who had grown stale and led me to playing with other decks (including one I'll post/discuss another day).

I was doing okay with him, packing a lot of artifact/enchantment hate because of the meta I play in, but after obsessively reading and re-reading Airithne's excellent Marath primer on MTGSalvation, and realizing that I was prone to giant board state decks, I went through a huge, 21 card overhaul that dumped the Angels subtheme I had going (I still want a Naya legendary angel someday, so I can run a Naya angel tribal deck :D) and the litany of one shot artifact/enchantment hate cards. In exchange, I brought in a stronger deathtouch suite, more tutors, more token generators, another wincon, etc. 5 or 6 cards have changed since that transformation, leading to its current version - Marath's School for Naya Assassins.

As you might guess from the name, this is all about killing creatures and keeping board states completely clear. We have no less than 6 deathtouch enablers, and if need be, we can do some mass board wiping with Day of Judgement and Elspeth. Marath isn't a deck that cares about board wiping - it rebuilds quite quickly.

Wincons

Combo - Ashnod's Altar, Cathars' Crusade, Marath - and if I want to do it immediately, Purphoros

Infect - Grafted Exoskeleton + Marath or a fatty, Inkmoth Nexus

Commander Damage - This used to have a bigger Voltron subtheme, so it's secondary now, but still there

Shaman of the Forgotten Ways - Yes, the Shaman is a wincon in and of himself. I've won with it, and it's Marath tech I never see anyone else playing, though I don't know why.

Smash Face - There's enough token generators and big dudes alike in here that this is viable - especially with the Spike coming in.

All-Stars

Shaman of Forgotten Ways - Like I said above, surprising wincon on his own.

Dragonlord Dromoka - I've played her before, and even had a commander once, but she never impressed me. In this deck, though, she's a house who protects wincons, flies, laughs at blue, and provides lifelink.

Sylvan Library/Scroll Rack - I used to also run Sensei's Divining Top, but cut it because these two by themselves are all the topdeck manipulation and draw I need. Scroll Rack in particular has saved my butt so many times, it's not even funny. I think every EDH deck not running blue or black needs to have the Rack. It's that important for being able to dig for what you need.

Chromatic Lantern - The best mana fixer ever. I was so excited when I finally pulled this a few weeks ago. I've been wanting it for the longest time.

Ancient Grudge - IMO, a card that's sadly underrated. 2 for 1 artifact destruction at instant speed. I actually had a guy concede once because I blew up his mana rocks in the first three turns with this card, and he was color mana screwed. Granted, his was a glass cannon deck that if it didn't win early, it wasn't going to win, but still.

There's other great cards, too, obviously, but these are the ones that have put in the most work for me so far.

Other Notes

I'll listen to any and all suggestions, but I have no interest in making this aggro or dedicated combo. So that means no Earthcraft, nor putting in my Illusionist's Bracers, etc. I'm considering picking up the Elesh Norn and Kamahl combo (hence the Maybe), and I definitely want to get Linvala and probably Arid Mesa.

This deck thus far is almost exactly what I want it to be - fun, flavorful, and semi-competitive. I took 2nd in an EDH tournament with it, and while I know there's ways to turn him into a hyper nasty Turn 2-3 combo deck win, that's just not my interest for now. (That may change in the future, depending on meta shifts).

Hope you guys have enjoyed this decklist, and my rambling commentary. :)

Date added	7 years
Last updated	3 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	19 - 0 Mythic Rares 41 - 0 Rares 20 - 0 Uncommons 5 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.33
Tokens	Cat Soldier 1/1 W, Elemental 5/5 RG, Elemental X/X G, Emblem Ajani Steadfast, Emblem Elspeth, Sun's Champion, Plant 0/1 G, Satyr 2/2 GR, Soldier 1/1 W