Goblin Tribal tips
Commander Deck Help forum
Posted on Sept. 10, 2015, 1:08 a.m. by ComradeJim270
I'm pretty psyched about Zada, Hedron Grinder. The moment I saw it I started brewing a goblin tribal deck with this dude at the helm and I'm continuing to do so, but I hit a bit of a snag in that I'm really not sure how to do goblins in EDH.
They seem extremely fragile. The fact that a Starstorm for two can kill a lot of my board is unnerving and I am not sure how to mitigate the problems that go with that. I'm also not sure if there are some goblins I should be especially aware of, or creatures, artifacts and enchantments that synergize well with them.
For Zada in particular, spells that allow my goblins to survive getting burned by my own stuff is also great, because it opens up a lot of new options.
The decklist isn't ready to make a debut yet, but I'm eager to hear any advice on building goblins!
ComradeJim270 says... #3
While that is very true, it simply doesn't hold the same appeal as having Zada in the command zone. But I do think tokens would be invaluable for this deck as cannon fodder. A lot of things that make goblin tokens seem to be one-shot, though. They lack staying power.
September 10, 2015 1:45 a.m.
Ehhh, staying power isn't as important when your deck is running Purphoros, God of the Forge, Impact Tremors and Warstorm Surge.
September 10, 2015 1:51 a.m.
ComradeJim270 says... #5
True. Those things don't have a huge impact per body, but it all adds up. I'll certainly try them out.
September 10, 2015 1:53 a.m.
I'm also working on a Zada build. I'd suggest cheap cantrips like Crimson Wisps and Balduvian Rage for card draw unseen in red. I also like the potential of threaten effects and things like Heat Shimmer, and Twinflame and Outmaneuver for some climatic shenanigans.
September 10, 2015 2:53 a.m.
ComradeJim270 says... #7
Agreed, O-Higgs. That seems to be the consensus among people brewing Zada. Getting the right blend of instants and sorceries will be tricky, but for the purposes of this discussion I'm primarily interested in the creatures those will all be copied onto when they hit Zada.
Which creatures are best for this, and how do I most effectively play them?
September 10, 2015 2:59 a.m.
I would highly recommend Dualcaster Mage and Soul's Fire.
September 10, 2015 3:16 a.m.
Well, Krenko, Mob Boss for sure. Goblin Matron, Beetleback Chief, Siege-Gang Commander, Goblin Warrens. Any thing that makes tokens basically, along with some support like Charmbreaker Devils, Legion Loyalist, Mana Echoes.
I'm not running goblin tribal because I've never been too good with it/found it fun. So sorry if I end up not being terribly helpful.
September 10, 2015 3:16 a.m.
I'd also keep in mind that copied spells wont trigger Zada's ability.
Apologies if I'm just stating the obvious.
September 10, 2015 3:18 a.m.
All good, I more meant for spells that put copies of creatures into play/swarms of tokens.
September 10, 2015 4:11 a.m.
weisemanjohn says... #12
Well, there are also the staple tribal cards like Door of Destinies and Coat of Arms to make the mass of goblins more physically powerful and resiliant.
September 10, 2015 7:28 a.m.
Could Arc Trail be used to deal 1 to Zada and 2 to your opponent, then do the same for each creature you control? That might be neat. You could use Comet Storm yourself, for hefty damage. Volley of Boulders, too. (high cmc, but 5 damage per creature should win you the game)
Blades of Velis Vel, Downhill Charge, Enrage, Fists of the Anvil.
Furious Resistance will let your weenies team up and kill fatties. Heat Shimmer could be killer with Impact Tremors or Purphoros. Chaos Warp is a mono-red edh staple, and could turn a boatload of tokens into real permanents.
Outmaneuver, Overblaze, Seize the Day, Soul's Fire, Temur Battle Rage, Titan's Strength, Twinflame.
As far as goblins go, you should have all the lords (Goblin King, Goblin Chieftain, Goblin Warchief). It's already been mentioned, but goblins that make tokens are good. There are also some great tutors like Goblin Matron, and the Goblin Recruiter + Goblin Ringleader team is really strong. A few sac outlets like Skirk Prospector, Goblin Bombardment or Goblin Chirurgeon should help, and a few beefy wincons like Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Lightning Crafter, Skirk Fire Marshal.
Anything that has a "Draw a card" clause is amazing draw for red, like Zap
September 10, 2015 11:13 a.m.
Skirk Fire Marshal, Skirk Prospector, Reckless One, Gempalm Incinerator,Quest for the Goblin Lord, Goblin Chirurgeon, and Moggcatcher are all good choices for a goblin tribal deck.
The best goblin tribal commander is probably Krenko, Mob Boss though. I know your excited for the new card that was spoiled, but he is a huge advantage for the deck. Like you mentioned, goblins are fragile. He helps the deck take off fast in order to finish opponents before being fragile comes into play and he can prevent you from over extending and burning through your whole hand of cards because you can rely more on the tokens created. Plus, when your opponents do start playing board wipes he helps you quickly rebuild your lost board state.
September 10, 2015 11:43 a.m.
ComradeJim270 says... #15
@O-Higgs: it would be insanely broken, otherwise.
@alecm: For Zada to get the trigger the spell must target absolutely nothing else. So that won't work.
A lot of cards there are likely inclusions, plus couple combat tricks in there I didn't think of, thanks! Not seeing the value in Skirk Fire Marshal though, that seems suicidal.
@abenz419: Krenko is in the 99. If it helps, think of this not as a goblin deck that had Zada at the helm but as a Zada deck that has a strong goblin tribal element.
Unless someone has better ideas for my creatures.
September 10, 2015 12:59 p.m.
@ComradeJim270, Skirk Fire Marshal is definitely volatile, but it has won we more than a few games. It can act as a board wipe if required, and destroy your opponent if you have the right amount of health advantage (you can activate the ability in response to itself for 10-30 damage, easy). I've even used it to turn a loss into a draw, though that felt kind of grimy.
It might not fit in every deck (Zada's effect won't touch it, for one thing), but it's come through for me enough times that I had to at least mention it :p
enpc says... #2
Honestly, I would use Anax and Cymede as the commander. Then you can run Zada in the 99. Now you have access to all of Red AND white's buffs. then you just fill the deck with goblin token producers, cards like Krenko, Mob Boss and red/white buffs. Not to mention you now get access to the radiance mechanic. Rally the Righteous seems good.
Now just throw in a Mirari and have fun.
September 10, 2015 1:37 a.m.