Saheeli Has Gone Mad [Primer]

Commander / EDH Artifact Primer Tokens UR (Izzet)

BerryFrost

Lands (36)

• 1x Ancient Tomb
• 1x Arcane Lighthouse
• 1x Blasted Landscape
• 1x Buried Ruin
• 1x Cascade Bluffs
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Darksteel Citadel
• 1x Deserted Temple
• 1x Foundry of the Consuls
• 1x Ghost Quarter
• 1x Glimmervoid
• 1x Great Furnace
• 1x Homeward Path
• 1x Inventors' Fair
• 8x Island
• 1x Izzet Boilerworks
• 1x Mage-Ring Network
• 1x Reliquary Tower
• 1x Scorched Ruins
• 1x Seat of the Synod
• 1x Shivan Reef
• 1x Spire of Industry
• 1x Spirebluff Canal
• 1x Steam Vents
• 1x Strip Mine
• 1x Sulfur Falls
• 1x Temple of the False God
• 1x Thespian's Stage
• 1x Tolaria West

Board Wipes (5)

• 1x Blasphemous Act
• 1x Cyclonic Rift
• 1x Magmaquake
• 1x Vandalblast
• 1x Volcanic Vision

All Strats (21)

• 1x Ashnod's Altar
• 1x Astral Cornucopia
• 1x Blinkmoth Urn
• 1x Chief Engineer
• 1x Clock of Omens
• 1x Darksteel Forge
• 1x Everflowing Chalice
• 1x Filigree Sages
• 1x Goblin Welder
• 1x Karn, Scion of Urza
• 1x Krark-Clan Ironworks
• 1x Kuldotha Forgemaster
• 1x Master Transmuter
• 1x Mirrorworks
• 1x Mycosynth Lattice
• 1x Scrap Mastery
• 1x Sculpting Steel
• 1x Storm the Vault  ^Flip
• 1x Trading Post
• 1x Unwinding Clock
• 1x Voltaic Key

Thopter Strat (9)

• 1x Coat of Arms
• 1x Efficient Construction
• 1x Hangarback Walker
• 1x Hellkite Tyrant
• 1x Mechanized Production
• 1x Tezzeret, Artifice Master
• 1x Thopter Assembly
• 1x Thopter Spy Network
• 1x Walking Ballista

Target Removal (5)

• 1x Chaos Warp
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Duplicant
• 1x Mystic Confluence
• 1x Spine of Ish Sah

Commander (1)

Draws and Tutors (9)

• 1x Aetherworks Marvel
• 1x Blue Sun's Zenith
• 1x Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
• 1x Mystical Tutor
• 1x Reshape
• 1x Sensei's Divining Top
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Stroke of Genius
• 1x Thoughtcast

Ramp (9)

• 1x Basalt Monolith
• 1x Commander's Sphere
• 1x Fellwar Stone
• 1x Gilded Lotus
• 1x Izzet Signet
• 1x Mana Vault
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Thran Dynamo

Copy Strat (5)

• 1x Blightsteel Colossus
• 1x Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer
• 1x Prototype Portal
• 1x Rite of Replication
• 1x Saheeli's Artistry

---

Sideboard

Other (1)

• 1x Tormod's Crypt

---

Maybeboard

Other (8)

• 1x Dark Depths
• 1x Mana Crypt
• 1x Metalworker
• 1x Mishra's Workshop
• 1x Mox Diamond
• 1x Mox Opal
• 1x Rings of Brighthearth
• 1x Ugin, the Spirit Dragon

---

Introduction

This deck is all about spawning Thopters. No, really, that's the primary goal. Spawn Thopters, use some cards that, using the Thopters, will give you more mana. Then use that mana to spawn more Thopters. This isn't a competitive deck, far from it. However, when it comes to playing with a group of friend, a win with this deck is never boring.

The power level of this deck has been purposefully limited. I'm not a competitive person and I prefer to have a good time rather than winning. Thus, the following limitation have been used :

1. No purpose-built infinite mana combo like Staff of Domination.
2. No mass land destruction and minimal single target land destruction.
3. No cards that I consider too open like (rip) Paradox Engine or Vedalken Orrery.
4. I tried to stay away from cards considered 'high hate' like Rhystic Studies.

Some might disagree with my methods, but it made the deck building experience more entertaining.

But, even without all those cards, there is a lot of fun to be had there. If you like :

• Mass token spawning.
• Everything you control being usable to spawn more stuff.
• Resource management.
• Flashy plays and explosive finishers.

Then this deck is for you.

---

Some additional notes :

• Cards in the Maybeboard are cards that could fit in the deck, but I simply couldn't fit them in due to their price. If you already have them, I would agree in adding them in, but they aren't must-buys.

• Cards in the Sideboard are still a work in progress. They should be added in a case-by-case basis depending on your local meta. If there are a lot of graveyard synergy in your games, then Tormod's Crypt might be a good idea.

• This is my first primer, so if you have any suggestions or recommandations, please tell me in the comments.

Why Saheeli?

While there are a lot of possible commanders for this type of token artifact deck, I really wanted to build this deck with Saheeli's second +1 ability in mind. It allows you to give your next spell an "affinity for artifact"-like effect, making the possibility for a fast early-game much more real. This, tied with various high-cost artifacts like Astral Cornucopia or Everflowing Chalice can allow you to keep the momentum of the ability going.

General Strategy

The two main points of this deck are Reuse and Recycle. I tried fitting Reduce in it, but honestly, what you do with this deck is the exact opposite of reducing.

The early game is the main weakness of the deck. While you have many sources of early ramp, if you don't draw them, you might arrive late to the party. Good initial draws include the trio of artifact lands ( Darksteel Citadel + Seat of the Synod + Great Furnace ) as well as cheap mana ramp / CMC 3 or less ( Commander's Sphere / Fellwar Stone / Izzet Signet / Mind Stone / Sol Ring / Mana Vault ). If, by turn 4, you have enough artifacts on play, you can now use Saheeli and play your first expensive artifact. It's quite surprising how useful a turn 4 Thran Dynamo is in a deck focused on expensive colorless cards.

Mid game is all about generating resource advantage. By successfully getting artifact-synergic cards, like Clock of Omens , Chief Engineer or Mirrorworks , you can duplicate your mana sources, reaching high amounts of colorless mana that you can sink in one of your many X cost cards like Hangarback Walker . Any cards you get on the field at that moment is another source of mana for your various ramp cards.

Finally, late game comes in and you need to win. It can be a clear win-con, like Mechanized Production or Hellkite Tyrant giving you the win from your army of Thopters to aggressive victories using Coat of Arms or Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer . If you want, you can even sink ridiculous amounts of mana into a Walking Ballista and shoot down your enemies to death.

Strats Explained

The way I've set up the custom display is by seperating cards in the various strategies this deck uses to win. Here is an explanation for each of them :

• Copy Strat : They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and here is no different. The goal of this strat is to generate value by copying your creatures or enemy creatures to improve your board. The key to this strategy is Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer who, using his ability, will turn all your token into a copy of a single token. If you somehow cast Rite of Replication on your enemy's monster or, even better, on your own Blightsteel Colossus , any number of token you have will become copies of it, turning the table around in a flash.

• Thopter Strat : This one is more versatile than the copy strat since it has clearer win conditions. This strategy is all about making more and more Thopters and winning using either alternate win conditions or a classic beatdown. Both Hellkite Tyrant and Mechanized Production will win you the game through sheer quantity of Thopters, but you can also aim for an aggro victory using Coat of Arms . The choice is yours.

Reuse and Recycle

However, the fun of this deck comes with resource manipulation. Using cards like Trading Post , Kuldotha Forgemaster , Goblin Welder or Master Transmuter , you can abuse effects that allows artifacts to move between the graveyard, the field and your hand and surprise your opponents by finding mana, protection or even a win from anywhere. Every turn, you could tap Everflowing Chalice , then return it to your hand to play it again with even more mana. Or maybe juggle Spine of Ish Sah with Master Transmuter to destroy anything that bothers you. Heck, simple strategies with Clock of Omens and any mana producer can lead to degenerate amounts of mana.

Notable Cards

Win Conditions

• Blightsteel Colossus ... I mean, it's Blightsteel. If this giant somehow touch your opponent, they lose. Mixed with some of the copy cards we have in our deck, it can be, well, deadly. Plus, as an artifact, we have many ways to make it go from deck to field to graveyard to field again, so, unless exiled, it shall continuously show up to bother.
• Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer has the power to turn all your tokens into copies of a single token. Mixed with all the cards in the Copy Strat category, you have the power to turn the game on its head. Why not control an army of 10/10 Hangarbacks that, if the opponent somehow clear them, turn into 10 Thopters for further shenanigans? Maybe copy your opponent's Blightsteel Colossus and make an army of 11/11 Trample, Infect, Indestructible Golems? The only thing preventing you is your imagination (and what's available on the field).
• Coat of Arms is the simplest win con to understand. 10 Thopters? +10/+10 each. What's not to love?
• Hangarback Walker might not be the most logical win con on this list. While it technically won't win you games by itself, it is the root of most combos in this deck and thus merits its place by association. With so many ways to pump, copy and recycle Hangarback, you will get an army of Thopters in no time.
• Hellkite Tyrant + Mechanized Production are the two alternate win conditions of the deck. They both rely on having a lot of Thopters on the board at once, which can be done easily if the game is close or if you're already winning. This doesn't require much explaining, but make sure to use them at the right moment since both are cards that are hard for this deck to fetch from the graveyard.
• Walking Ballista is amazing if you manage to pump it with lots of mana. I mean, you can simply gun down your opponent's health. Most of the time, though, it might be used more as a board clear, but sometimes, it might just win you the game.

Thopter Strat

Includes Coat of Arms , Hangarback Walker , Walking Ballista , Hellkite Tyrant and Mechanized Production .

• Efficient Construction is one of the simplest Thopter generation card. For every artifact, you get a Thopter. Easy does it.
• Tezzeret, Artifice Master is good in terms of versatility, but it is a Planeswalker and, thus, is more fragile than other card types if it is attacked. The goal is to have enough chump-blockers through Thopters to prevent him from being decimated.
• Thopter Assembly is a great way to get an influx of Thopters. However, playing it from your hand is very inneficient. A good strategy would be to get it on the field from your graveyard via cards like Master Transmuter at the end of your opponent's turn.
• Thopter Spy Network gives you a free Thopter since, well, it would be surprising not to control an artifact by turn 4. It also makes your Thopters and other artifact creatures into drawing machines which, no matter the game, is always a nice things.

Copy Strat

Includes Blightsteel Colossus and Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer .

• Prototype Portal is great in a really sneaky way. People might expect a wave of Blightsteels using this portal, but something as simple as closing a Sol Ring or Thran Dynamo can become really scary. If you can untap the portal, then you can get multiple strong mana rocks per turn.
• Rite of Replication is a classic clone card that, once kicked with the colorless mana you surely have, will give you five copies of a creature. Five Blightsteel Colossus ? Or maybe five of your opponent's key creature? I mean, it's not just good, it's great. Plus, those tokens can be used by Brudiclad to turn all your tokens into even more copies of that token. Ergo, not kicking it can still be a viable option.
• Saheeli's Artistry is very good in our deck since both tokens that are created ends up being artifacts, getting all the bonuses from our artifact synergy cards. Plus, it creates a token of two different cards, which can be helpful in some situations.

Extreme Ramp

Let's be honest, having X-cost cards without lots of mana isn't fun. Here are some cards that are here to help you pay those cards :

• Ashnod's Altar is more used in situations where you wanna turn lots of Thopters into mana for even more Thopters. It is also meant as a redundant card to have beside Krark-Clan Ironworks , albeit being weaker since this only affects creatures.
• Astral Cornucopia is there for the sake of redundancy. While it is weaker than Blinkmoth Urn and Everflowing Chalice in the sense that it converts its cost to production 3 to 1, even if that mana is colored, sometimes, that colored mana will make or break your strategy and having large mana generation will help, even if inneficient.
• Blinkmoth Urn sounds good in our deck, and it is, but the drawback might make it look less awesome. However, our deck contains a lot of cards that requires tapping artifact as cost, which can disable the drawback of the urn.
• Chief Engineer is great to turn any and all of your artifacts, even the non-mana ones, into a way to generate "mana" for your big hitters.
• Clock of Omens doesn't seem like a mana-generating artifact, but being able to turn two Thopters into an extra use of a powerful mana rock can quickly generate value.
• Everflowing Chalice is one of our main mana generator. Using many recycling cards, you can generate mana from the chalice and find a way to replay it and double its counter count. It's probably one of the best card in this deck.
• Filigree Sages doesn't see as much play as its brother Voltaic Key , but it is still a valid side-grade. Sure, it is more expensive and is a creature, but it is still an artifact and can be used more than once, leading to some infinites that can be really helpful.
• Krark-Clan Ironworks . No, this isn't Modern, but KCI is an amazing card to have in an artifact heavy deck. Not only can it turn Thopters into mana, but can also act as a sacrifice outlet to get artifacts in the graveyard or to save one from an exile card. It is also meant as a redundant card to have beside Ashnod's Altar .
• Voltaic Key is a classic artifact. Pay 1 to untap another artifact once. Basically doubles the output of one strong mana rock or... well, any other artifact, really.
• Storm the Vault   is a legal Tolarian Academy that can only be used in a Red/Blue Artifact deck. Well, well, what do we have here? This is easily one of the strongest ramp card we have once we flip it.

Draw and Tutors

• Aetherworks Marvel is amazing in a token deck since tokens do go to the graveyard once they die before being exiled. Overall, having one on the field can be very useful, even more when our deck can cycle cards between the graveyard and the field.
• Blue Sun's Zenith might be more expensive than Stroke of Genius , but has the ability to be repeatable. Since the deck doesn't have instant recursion, having our most powerful draw engine be auto-recursive, is really helpful.
• Goblin Welder is just a good card in an artifact deck. You get to switch a card from your field with one from your graveyard. Can be useful in any situation where you have a Thopter to sacrifice.
• Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain is an overall good draw engine in the early game.
• Mystical Tutor is there to be a panic button if you can't draw the right solution to a problem. Great to find Cyclonic Rift when needed.
• Reshape is ridiculous. For a pretty low price, you get to fetch any artifact in your deck and put it on the field. As a sacrifice, just throw a Thopter, and pull out more ramp, or maybe Blightsteel Colossus .
• Sensei's Divining Top is a very strong, cheap artifact that can filter the top of your deck and help you get the right draws at the right time.
• Skullclamp is a known broken card that works amazingly with 1 health tokens like Thopters. For 1 mana and a Thopter, you draw 2 cards. Nothing bad here.
• Stroke of Genius is added as a source of redundancy beside Blue Sun's Zenith . Since you can often pull an insane amount of mana from nowhere, having it used for a draw spell is great.
• Thoughtcast is an overall good drawing card when used beside artifacts.

Top Ranked	Achieved #61 position overall 5 years ago
Date added	5 years
Last updated	3 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	11 - 0 Mythic Rares 47 - 0 Rares 26 - 1 Uncommons 8 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.72
Tokens	Construct 0/0 C, Copy Clone, Emblem Tezzeret, Artifice Master, Goat 0/1 W, Phyrexian Myr 2/1 U, Servo 1/1 C, Thopter 1/1 C, Treasure
Folders	Decks I follow, saheeli, Artifact Decks, Mazzi interessanti