OH LORD JESUS IT'S A FIRE! | Neheb EDH | PRIMER

Commander / EDH Suns_Champion

SCORE: 675 | 218 COMMENTS | 65283 VIEWS | IN 271 FOLDERS


500 Upvotes and some Testing! —March 18, 2020

500+ upvotes.

20th most upvoted EDH deck on TappedOut.

3rd most upvoted Mono-Red EDH deck.

Wow. I never thought I'd get here. If you helped, thank you!


This is the deck I can never stop tinkering with. There are too many good options, and more come every set. Oh well.

This update is more potential changes, I'm going to see what I miss and what I don't like. The primer will be updated later. These changes are a real return to the fundamentals. I need more ramp. Specifically, rocks that get Neheb out faster.

I also need some more late game staying power. I've long built this deck under the assumption that I will win quickly or die trying. That's still a thing, but I'd like to also win in the late game sometimes.

IN:

  • 1x Outpost Siege reliable draw into the late game. Been meaning to get it in here forever.
  • 1x Wayfarer's Bauble solid little ramp, might be replaced with another 2cmc rock, but I like the valakut synergy.
  • 1x Arcane Signet 2cmc rock
  • 1x Fellwar Stone 2cmc rock
  • 1x Tectonic Giant sweet new modal draw/damage creature. A gift from R&D to Neheb players.
  • 1x Ugin, the Ineffable all around value. the deck has 18 spells he can help cast, and if I draw a hand full of rocks he can kinda help me storm off in a way. He's mostly here for the colorless permanent removal, 6 mana to nuke an enchant or creature is good for mono red. Might also draw some cards, or prevent/deal damage with some blockers.
  • 1x Rolling Earthquake I found the need for another X-Spell wincon, and this one is the best of the rest.
  • 1x Underworld Breach the card I'm most hyped for. Late game I can just play my entire graveyard (okay, just 1/4th). So cool. Wheel/looting synergy.

OUT:

Some of these have only been cut to test, and some of them are really good cards for Neheb. They might be back soon. Thanks for reading!

Driemer84 says... #1

Thanks for the work you've put into your list and this page! I'd like hear your opinions on a few cards.

I have a Gauntlet of Might laying around, where would you fit that into your list?

Is Blightsteel Colossus a worthwhile pay off for big mana? I just can't help think how fun it would be to Chandra's Ignition one, but I suppose it doesn't end the game immediately on its own like an X spell does. If you're casting it off Neheb mana then a second main phase Blightsteel isn't as impressive since it can't take advantage of haste. I may have just talked myself out of the card, but I'm still interested in what you have to say.

Lastly, does this deck want a Top/Scroll Rack + Fetchland package? I've found them to be pretty useful for filtering away unwanted cards in mono red, as well as giving Valakut instant speed triggers. What has been your experience?

Thanks again!

December 17, 2019 12:28 p.m.

DC_Geno says... #2

Chandra, Acolyte of Flame would be insane for this deck!!! Totally insane!!! Like I mean crazy crazy insane!!!!!!!!!

December 17, 2019 1:04 p.m.

DC_Geno says... #3

Chandra, Acolyte of Flame not only let's you cast spells from your graveyard. It also help spells like Blasphemous Act , Embercleave and convoke spells if you choose to check them out. And of course Chandra, Torch of Defiance to get her emblem.

December 17, 2019 1:21 p.m.

Driemer84 says... #4

gdemay I really like that. It could possibly replace Finale of Promise since you can actually cast X spells off her - ability. Finale seems great when you can easily hit 10 to get the bonus, but the best you can do are cast some of your lower powered spells because you can’t ramp up x if you aren’t paying their mana cost.

How does anyone feel about Experimental Frenzy in the list?

December 17, 2019 2:13 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #5

gdemay Thanks for the comments! Chandra, Acolyte of Flame is actually an awesome suggestion! I just took out Past in Flames so I've been looking for another recursion spell. Totally overlooked her. I will have to find a slot for her next round of changes. I like the interaction with Embercleave, and of course she makes Chandra ToD faster, which is always good. The ability to cast X-spells is huge too.

Driemer84 Thanks for the comments and suggestion!

  • Gauntlet of Might would be a good include if your meta is low on red decks.
  • Blightsteel Colossus is at a weird spot. In my second main phase(the only time I'd be able to cast him) I either want to a) win the game, b) draw cards, or c) protect my board state. He does none of those things, while presenting a huge threat that draws unwanted eyes toward us. Yeah the synergy with Ignition is cool, but that seems a stretch to me. I would not add him.
  • Top/Scroll rack: Yeah this is a cool engine, but I guess I never wanted to shell out $45 dollars for it. It would fit fine in a Neheb deck.
  • Fetches: The meager benefits are simply not worth the price of Fetch lands. If you have them they'd be fine I guess. Also, ascetically, they mess up the mono-redness of the deck. No bueno.
  • Experimental Frenzy no. The deck is not set up for that. I have card draw.

Thanks for the discussion! Keep it going!

December 18, 2019 9:46 a.m. Edited.

Driemer84 says... #6

Thanks for the feedback.

Can you go over how well Bloodfire Colossus works for you? I understand the point of it, by turning one red mana into 18, as well as clearing the board, but at 8 mana it seems tough to get down. I would guess you also need to have Neheb suited up with something that gives pro red or + toughness to survive the blast so he can trigger.

What are your thoughts on the card and what situations come up that it has earned a spot in the list?

December 18, 2019 3:58 p.m.

TrueLycan says... #7

sweet to see the deck still doing so well, especially since it was used as base for my own Neheb deck WAYS back when.

But... is there a reason to run Fork over Reverberate ? It seems like they are just the same card, but Fork makes the spell red. Is that relevant often?

Oh, and maybe a Chrome Mox is a nice little addition as well, Easily the cheapest of the moxen, goes for like $15 (if you grab the Mirrodon one). I'd say always worth a pick-up!

I'll continue to keep my eye out on this deck, to inspire myself for my own list. That Tome of Legends completely went past me, should find a slot for that. Anyway, keep brewing my firey friend, i'll do the same!

December 18, 2019 4:07 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #8

Driemer84 oh course! Always willing to talk Neheb!

Bloodfire Colossus has been kind of a panic button late game. The idea is that Neheb mana makes him easy to cast, then I can hold up a red mana to get some political leverage until my next turn. No one wants their board wiped and to take 6 to the face. If Neheb is protected from him that’s great, but that was never really the plan. He’s also served the role of finisher, 6 damage in the second main is often enough to kill somebody.

That said, he’s on the list of cuts for other things, because he is kind of awkward. He isn’t great in either main phase, where this deck needs to be.

TrueLycan welcome back!

There is no reason to run Fork over Reverberate, that is why this deck runs both.

The Mox is interesting, I feel like mono red has a hard time getting over that card disadvantage. What has been your experience?

Tome of Legends is 100% the pick up. Card draw is king.

December 18, 2019 5:12 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #9

I’d love to hear feedback and discussion on the following cards:

Kozilek, Butcher of Truth as a second main-phase draw 4, plus just being a huge threat. Neheb makes him easy to cast, damage spell or clear combat. He then reloads my hand, draws a removal spell that could have hit Neheb, or beats for 12 with annihilator. Seems good?

Ugin, the Ineffable as flexible draw engine(plus potential attackers) or enchantment/colored permanent removal. The cost reduction on artifacts is a nice plus. Thoughts?

December 18, 2019 5:18 p.m.

Driemer84 says... #10

I like Kozilek. Threatening as a beater the turn after drawing 4 seems pretty good. He seems like he would slot in well as a replacement for Bloodfire Colossus if he is on your list of cuts. They aren’t too far apart in cmc and drawing 4 has a good shot at finding you something to finish off your opponents if that was Bloodfire’s purpose.

Ugin seems like nice utility, though he doesn’t really add to the game plan. It will take multiple turns to take out more than one permanent, but at least he can draw you cards along the way.

What are your thoughts on Rolling Earthquake over Sizzle? It will cost one more to net the same amount of mana from Negev, but it will take out creatures and can be ramped up to kill players.

December 18, 2019 5:41 p.m.

TrueLycan says... #11

oh, in that case i must've just missed Reverberate. My bad that :3 Anyway, Can't vouch for the mox in live gameplay yet, i've ordered it in my latest batch. I'd assume it's fine, especially since my neheb list is actually not terrible at refuling. Sure, not amazing, but it can manage just fine. So by that nature i do have high hopes for it.

As for Kozilek as card-draw/beater. i HIGHLY recommend it if you've got the buget. Exelent sink for access mana, replaces itself itself right away, on top of adding more cards in the hand. The Annihilator is already back-breaking, but with the extra combat steps that becomes such powerhouse it just wins games. And the build-in anti mill tech is a nice little addition that never hurts. Big fan of this card, once again highly recommend it!

Ugin on the other hand? Too slow, to wonky for carddraw. Red's not that horrible at grabbing cards as before. And the fact you have to somehow kill those spirits to actually get the card is a hindrance. The static... can work, the artifacts are there but, at 6 mana i just feel we can do so much better. The -3 on him though, that's some points in favour... another way to hit enchants besides Chaos warp and Steel Hellkite sounds pretty ok. Don't think he'll make my list as a carddraw engine. And frankly i don't think i can slot him in for the removal either. Worth experimenting with, but not in a carddraw slot for sure.

December 19, 2019 2:44 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #12

Driemer84 TrueLycan thanks for the opinions.

Driemer84 I agree if I pick up Kozzy that would be the swap. Ugin seems decent as a removal spell and maybe I'll get a card back from it. But Honestly 6 mana enchantment removal is usually for it... I see a lot of people running Scour from Existence which does a similar thing. Any additional value I can get out of Ugin is just gravy.

That seems like a decent swap. I might move my rolling earthquake over from Firesong and Sunspeaker. Thanks!

TrueLycan thanks for the feedback! I see Kozzy on your list so I assume you're talking from experience. I will try to trade for one.

Ugin would not be a card draw slot, for sure. A removal spot with potential to reduce some costs and draw some cards. 6 mana for a destroy enchantment seems decent enough, like I was saying above. He's fairly affordable so I'll test him out. I hope you'll try him out too so we get more feedback!

December 20, 2019 5:07 p.m.

TrueLycan says... #13

gone over my list a few times, and i think because i also run Ulamog that removal slot is taken. Sure we're still talking about a 10-mana monster VS a 6-mana one. But Ulamog can do a ton of work, especially with the small extra-combat theme build in my itteration of the deck. So i'd guess Ulamog just has more synergy, exiles stuff, useful for hitting problematic lands (like Maze of Ith and Glacial Chasm stuff like that). Not to mention i can regularely exile 40-60 cards from any person's deck. So i guess that just comes down to what's worth more, the ramp for colourless spells Ugin gives, or the exile-clause on Ulamog. Both have their benefits and strenghts, to be sure!

As for Kozzy, yea he's been such an allstar in my list. Even without extra combat he's a menace and a wonderful card to ramp into. The base is just so powerful, let alone with even a few additional attacks per turn. Can't talk him up enough!

December 21, 2019 9 a.m.

thijmnesoy says... #14

I'm liking the cuts 'n adds you did to this deck in the last update! keep it up man! your list inspires me for my own deck list for Neheb (or maybe I'll just go and buy your list, I like it a lot!)

January 4, 2020 1:02 p.m.

Driemer84 says... #15

Tectonic Giant seems built for this deck. Do you think it would be a good replacement for Prophetic Flamespeaker? It would serve the same purpose without having to connect. It would also provide a good mana boost if you don’t need the cards.

January 5, 2020 12:46 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #16

thijmnesoy Thanks friend! I'm glad you like the deck, let me know if you test it out!

Driemer84 yeah Tectonic Giant is a gift from the gods, I was so excited when I saw it. Hoping for more goodies from Theros! But maybe that's pushing it lol!

Everyone, I'm looking to add the following cards soon:

And maybe Kozilek if I can trade for him. Cut suggestions appreciated!

January 5, 2020 6:12 p.m.

Driemer84 says... #17

Suns_Champion I would cut Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion or Prophetic Flamespeaker for Tectonic Giant. Either of the potential cuts serve the same purpose as Giant, but both of them need to connect to take advantage of it.

I’m personally going to try Chandra, Acolyte of Flame before underworld breach. I’m cutting Finale of Promise to give it a shot. If you try Breach, I would still cut Finale for it since the escape cost of your spells is a nonbo with Finale.

I’d cut Sizzle for Rolling Earthquake. It’s a bit more inefficient if you’re casting it just to deal 3 to each opponent, but it has the advantage of hitting creatures and scaling with the game.

I’d cut Desert of the Fervent, Ramunap Ruins, or Thespian Stage for Ancient Tomb. I’ve never been a big fan of the cycling lands because they ether tapped. Ramunap Ruins only nets you one mana in a 4 player game and gets worse as people get eliminated. Thespian’s Stage is only as good as your opponent’s lands, or Valakut if they happen to line up.

I think wasteland and strip mind would be good fits along side Ancient Tomb is you ever decide to cut all 3.

If you pick up Kozilek, Bloodfire Colossus would be a good cut. They both take up a high cmc slot, and I think the draw 4 with a threat left over is better than an 8 mana 6 to all.

What are your thoughts?

January 5, 2020 9:18 p.m.

Holy moly. Thank you for the deck description. Neheb is such an incredible commander, and the deck is awesome. Have you ever considered Brass's Bounty ? This would allow you to take some of the mana to the next turn, or it can ramp you even more if ever needed.

January 8, 2020 12:33 a.m.

HustlerOne1 says... #19

Driemer84 Not the OP, but I think you should reconsider the cycling lands. Yes they enter tapped but its additional card draw when you whiff on the wheels and have big mana. For this type of deck, I think the utility outweighs the negative of entering tapped.

I agree with your other suggestions though!

January 8, 2020 12:39 a.m.

VladMarkov says... #20

Nice deck and few some nice techs here :)

If anything I would suggest to change, is the font color :D :D :D Red background and red font is very hard to read :)

But keep on going, this looks sooooo great :)

Cheers

January 8, 2020 1:19 a.m.

Suns_Champion says... #21

Driemer84 Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion and Prophetic Flamespeaker are too synergistic in this deck to cut, and I'd hate to cut other draw sources. I don't think I'll do Kozzy for now so Bloodfire will probably leave for the Giant.

Ancient Tomb will probably just replace a mountain, I think my mana base can handle it.

The other cut suggestions are solid. Thanks!

seshiro_of_the_orochi thanks for appreciating the primer! I'm pretty proud of it. Brass's Bounty is kinda at a weird spot, because all it does is bank mana for the next turn. I don't think I get enough lands onto the battlefield to make it worth it.

HustlerOne1 Thanks for the imput! I only run the desert cycle land because of the desert-matters-lands. Otherwise I hate my lands entering tapped.

VladMarkov Thanks for the upvote and the comment! Yeah it's a good point, but the deck is just so RED I don't know what else to do!

Thanks all for comments and upvotes! Please continue the discussion!

January 8, 2020 2:41 p.m.

HustlerOne1 says... #22

Suns_Champion I actually think Koz for Bloodfire and Tectonic Giant for Flamespeaker is a good deal. The draw you lose from Flamespeaker is replaced with Koz, and Tectonic Giant has the versatility of doing damage if you need it or giving you more cards. Trading them out like this actually keeps your damage sources the same but nets you an extra draw source. And like Driemer84 said, you don't have to connect to get the effect.

January 9, 2020 12:19 a.m.

HustlerOne1 says... #23

Also I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around Grenzo, Havoc Raiser . I think you could use this slot for Underworld Breach or Past in Flames to give you more fuel. Or you could even slot Prophetic Flamespeaker back in if you decide to make the changes from my previous comment. Am I missing something here? Is this a silver bullet for when you generate a bunch of combat steps but have no gas in hand? Goading a creature is OK and stealing a top deck from an opponent is OK, but I feel like that's not a huge impact or furthering our game plan more than the other cards I mentioned.

January 9, 2020 1:28 a.m.

Suns_Champion says... #24

HustlerOne1 thanks for the continued discussion!

I think I'll line up the following changes:

  • Ugin in for Bloodfire (enchantment/creature removal, artifact cost reducer, and maybe a card draw)
  • Rolling Earthquake in for sizzle (slightly less efficient but also hits creatures and can double as win-con)
  • Tectonic Giant in for Light up the stage (repeatable modal damage/draw in for under-preforming draw) Underworld Breach in for Finale of promise (same purpose, but breach is stronger and more flexible. Ancient tomb in for Mountain

Kozilek will be saved for another time.

Flamespeaker is a great early game draw card and also good late game with the Swords of X and Y. Grenzo is frequently on the cut list but keeps winning me games! He's becoming a pet card for sure. Stealing from opponents libraries has been huge. Early game I can hope to hit small ramp or draw, midgame with Neheb mana I can steal big pieces from their decks. Plus the RR is great for devotion from Nyxthos and Fanatic of Mogis. Adding another creature only makes him better.

So with the 5 changes I'll add a ramp card, add a removal card, stay even on draw (unless you count Ugin) and stay even on damage spells. I think that's pretty solid. Thoughts?

January 9, 2020 1:04 p.m.

Suns_Champion says... #25

450 upvotes!!! Thanks all!

Considering taking out Sword of the Animist for a two CMC mana rock. In fact I’m going to slowly rebuild my ramp package, because I’ve incidentally taken a lot of ramp out while adding other cards over time.

Testing my other changes as well.

January 12, 2020 1:14 p.m.