Looking For a New Commander

Commander Deck Help forum

Posted on July 22, 2017, 9:34 p.m. by MoonTurtle7

Hello, Greetings, and Salutations dear people of TappedOut. I've stumbled upon a conundrum that vexes me to no end. I myself have a bad habit of comming to you all far too often, I believe in this case though it may be necessary. I want to make a new deck, but I can't find a commander that holds my interest in terms of construction at the moment. I just always seem to have wandering eyes, I've made two decks and I'm happy with how they play. I still fiddle of course but they're in good spots. Though for whatever reason I can't settle on my next commander. I've looked high and low, consulted friends, looked through videos, and EDHREC.

All I know right now is I want it to be:

-aggressive

-have an engine/synergie

-not use artifacts so much

-not be combo or stax

Bonus points for commanders that are:

-Easy on the wallet

-Use the graveyard or blink

-are not needed 100% for victory

Post your commanders/decks with explanations of how I would get them to run the way I'm talking about, or the gameplan (not needed if explained in the decks description). I do wanna warn people, I'm not a huge fan of the Partner commanders, or Krenko/Purphoros. Those are harder sells, otherwise I 'm fully open for ideas.

I can't thank those willing to suggest things enough, THANK YOU!

greyninja says... #2

Animar, Soul of Elements is a deck I've been running for years. I also get restless with my decks if they don't offer a variety of wincons and synergies.

Three colors is a little harsh on the wallet, mostly the land base, but worth it in the end

July 22, 2017 10:23 p.m.

_Delta_ says... #3

I would suggest Kaalia of the Vast, which is one of my personal favorites that I have started building. Although I do admit the commander is a bit pricey, and is of course reliant on the commander a fair bit which is a disadvantage. Just want to point them out as a possibility.

Anyways I have likely another, better consideration still for you. I was thinking Xenagos, God of Revels, I do not have a decklist made up as this is a commander I don't have a deck for. I have only played against it by a friend of mine. From what I could tell it looked like a lot of fun.

Since I do not have a decklist unfortunately done up for you right now, I suggest you take a look at the following below:

https://edhrec.com/commanders/xenagos-god-of-revels

The deck is pretty straight forward, lots of ramp into big threats that can become really big. I once was on the receiving end of a 30/30 Worldspine Wurm that had been put into play by Quicksilver Amulet and then given a boost by Xenagos, God of Revels along with a Moltensteel Dragon that 10 life was paid to kill me outright. He then followed things up with an Aggravated Assault and killed both other opponents with even more damage.

What do you think of Xenagos, God of Revels anyways? I will try to think of some other possibilities in the meantime.

July 22, 2017 10:38 p.m.

kanokarob says... #4

Sliver Overlord meets all if your criteria... ;)

July 22, 2017 11:09 p.m.

_Delta_ says... #5

I actually thought of that too kanokarob, but I wasn't sure if they were a good choice, but since you brought them up I think slivers could do just fine.

The mana base can get pretty expensive though if you want it looking ideal, although it certainly can still be done cheaper.

I actually play Sliver Overlord and they are one of my favorite decks, but I do fear the deck is rather reliant on the commander a fair bit is my concern. Although a few counterspells and cards like Homeward Path can alleviate this weakness a bit. Slivers can get out of control fast, I know this all too well once I play things like Manaweft Sliver, Paradox Engine and a few other things. The tutor effect of Sliver Overlord is really powerful and I will have to warn you that by playing this commander some people are really going to target you, so you have to be ready for that.

My deck is in need of a few edits but here is my current decklist, I don't own the whole thing in paper yet as I got to start working on upgrading my actual mana base.

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/09-03-16-sliver-overlord-edh/

Also, I would like to direct you to another fellow TappedOut user's deck that i'm familiar with. LVL_666 has put a lot of work into this decklist as you may notice:

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/commander-overlord/

His list is better than mine as he has chosen to include a few things like Tropical Island, Mana Drain etc. Now I doubt your willing to personally spend as much, but his deck is a great example to aspire to for upgrades possibly later on. Anyways I hope some of this is of use to you!

July 22, 2017 11:37 p.m.

_Delta_ says... #6

Oh sorry about that, somehow while making that really long post I forgot to properly display those decklists. Well here they are:


The Queen's Egg

Commander / EDH LVL_666

SCORE: 136 | 275 COMMENTS | 26437 VIEWS | IN 97 FOLDERS



Sliver Overlord EDH

Commander / EDH Delta-117

SCORE: 9 | 9 COMMENTS | 1382 VIEWS | IN 3 FOLDERS


July 22, 2017 11:44 p.m.

Flagellum says... #7

Greetings fellow lunar chelonian the 7th!

I implore you to look into Karametra, God of Harvests. She fits all your criteria except for the added bonus of "-Use the graveyard or blink." Although, there IS the possibility for blinking by using creatures like Whitemane Lion, Fleetfoot Panther, or Stonecloaker to REALLY abuse her ability. This also means that you only really need to run basics saving you more money.

The more creatures you cast, the harder she ramps. Mana dorks all act like Wood Elves which you can sac to things like Evolutionary Leap. You can even cast Panglacial Wurm from your library after casting Llanowar Elves with Karametra in play. Nothing is more hilarious than whipping out a 9/5 trample. Novablast Wurm is another all-star that won't harm your general if she's in play. Worldspine Wurm, Avenger of Zendikar, Rampaging Baloths are all a breeze to play and all these creatures will tickle your aggressive fantasy. Liege of the Tangle can turn those lands you've been tutoring up into beatsticks as well.

My shameless plug, description spells all this out:


Karametra, Goddess of Terra

Commander / EDH* Flagellum

SCORE: 3 | 32 COMMENTS | 837 VIEWS | IN 2 FOLDERS


July 23, 2017 12:28 a.m.

I don't have a list of it up here, and have little to no time to actually play commander, but a deck i've built and that i really like that fits many of your points is Toshiro Umezawa. I play him with basically all the removal i can get, some strong equipments and some fatties that either kill things or want well filled graveyards, for example Avatar of Woe or Nighthowler. That is rounded out by card draw and around 40 swamps. I can't really tell you a price, but i'm pretty sure the deck is far under 50 bucks.

Because your deck is full of removal and powerful creatures and equipment, you don't totally need toshi on the field, but sure he helps chaining all these removals. Toshi uses the grave and said removal spells as his engine and can basically be played with basic lands only as the deck is mono B. You will propably have problems against creature-light decks, but then again, toshi is a pretty nice voltron as well.

July 23, 2017 7:38 a.m.

Panas says... #9

Although i do include combo kills in my Jund Graveborn Manifesto, i still think it suits all of your requirements. I have Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper leading the deck :)

July 23, 2017 12:10 p.m.

MoonTurtle7 says... #10

Thank you all for the suggestions.

Delta-117 and kanokarob, I'm a little iffy on the overlord, he's pretty necessary for the deck to really get going, as well as the mana base easily gets expensive, really expensive.

greyninja, Animar is one I've personally looked into. But the deck relies immensely on him. Which is why I have not made him.

Delta-117, Kaalia of the Vast is one I've gotten the chance to play because of my friend who bought the anthology, but the deck relies too much on Kaalia herself. Xenagos on the other hand is more in a ballpark I'm looking for. Close, but I don't see him having much of an engine. Synergy, kind of, he makes things swing bigger, which is aggressive of course. Not much else besides that though imo. Fun I don't doubt though.

July 23, 2017 12:55 p.m.

KingMathoro says... #11

My personal recommendation based off of your requirements is Elf Tribal with either Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury or Ezuri, Renegade Leader. Elf Tribal is certainly aggro and the decks normally do not rely on combo or artifacts. As for synergies and engines I mean come on. Elves synergy is stupid and they have many engines like: Elvish Archdruid, Wellwisher, Priest of Titania, Heedless One, Eladamri, Lord of Leaves. AND Elves can EASILY be built on a budget. They are without a doubt a very fun and aggro tribe to play with.

July 23, 2017 1:21 p.m.

MindAblaze says... #12

You could probably run Lavinia of the Tenth, it hits all of your pre-reqs; inexpensive, aggressive, Blink-compatible, doesn't have to be combo-focused or reliant on her and doesn't need too many artifacts (although Panharmonicon, Blade of Selves and Conjurer's Closet are useful.) As far as being an engine, if you're flickering her, she can consistently and repeatedly shut off the opponents mana rocks/dorks or any annoying blockers or utility cards they may be abusing.

I also have a list to check out, it's not optimized by any means but there are lots of flickers and lots of ETB effects.

I'm going to have to ask you to come with me...

July 23, 2017 1:38 p.m. Edited.

Suns_Champion says... #13

Hello! my personal favorite and a commander I'm having a ton of fun with is Brion Stoutarm.

-aggressive

-has synergies

-doesn't use artifacts as much

-not combo or stax

-inexpencive

-don't need him 100% the time(Fling, Bloodshot Cyclops can sub)

I'm not exactly sure if he's what you're looking for, but here's my deck for a reference.


Bad Luck Brion

Commander / EDH Suns_Champion

SCORE: 4 | 2 COMMENTS | 212 VIEWS


July 23, 2017 2:02 p.m.

_Delta_ says... #14

Then what about Sedris, the Traitor King? Just thought of this one, as a friend of mine started playing a deck with them, and I have to say it's pretty nasty to see a Void Winnower or something similar played, and or later reanimated.

https://edhrec.com/commanders/sedris-the-traitor-king

-aggressive (Yes)

-have an engine/synergy (Yes, as there is a clear focus on the unearth mechanic).

-not use artifacts so much (Not necessary really, but Panharmonicon, Conjurer's Closet, Sundial of the Infinite and Embalmer's Tools help out.

-not be combo or stax (Yes)

Bonus points for commanders that are:-Easy on the wallet (Yes)

-Use the graveyard or blink (Yes, a lot of).

-are not needed 100% for victory (They are not entirely necessary, however I do admit it helps a lot to have them in play for sure).

July 23, 2017 2:23 p.m.

MoonTurtle7 says... #15

Delta-117 Sedris, the Traitor King is actually one I've been designing, pretty much exactly what I'm looking for. Him, Edric, Karador, and Sek'Kuar were all fellas I was looking at. I wanted to see what other options I may not have seen. I wanted to see if something here might peak my interest more. Because I like them all, but they each have their downsides, like Karador being mostly Combos, and Edric being harder to use against multiple opponents due to the size of his average creature.

July 23, 2017 6:48 p.m.

_Delta_ says... #16

Yeah it can be a hard call at times. My current decks are;

Atraxa, Praetors' Voice,

Sliver Overlord,

Nekusar, the Mindrazer,

Athreos, God of Passage,

Kruphix, God of Horizons(although this one is not playable yet), Talrand, Sky Summoner, and then I have been considering Kaalia of the Vast, The Gitrog Monster, and The Ur-Dragon. So many different playstyles I try to have, but I really do have to set a limit somewhere's at some point lol.

I suggest anyways you keep an eye on Commander2017, there is most certaibly going to be a mardu vampires deck on the way and that might be something to consider.

July 23, 2017 7:30 p.m.

MoonTurtle7 says... #17

I suppose, though that doesn't quell the nagging at the back of my mind. Maybe I should ask how I could go about building these commanders to suit me more perhaps? Sedris and Edric are clear as day to me, the lingering question for me more sits on Karador every time I do research on him it's combos, that is the goal. Line the dominoes up and win. That's it. no combat, no counters or real use of anything besides some tools/tutors and the combo pieces. I mean it's not wrong, just boring to me. I was also looking into Rith, the Awakener, but I think I know how to do it.

July 23, 2017 9:50 p.m.

TearsInRain23 says... #18

From what I read, you seem like someone who could really get into a Wydwen, the Biting Gale. A commander who can get around the commander tax, is an aggressive flyer, can synergize easily into, is cheap and can abuse cheap synergies (etb effects, heavy spell arsenal with a focus on using your graveyard bulk for easy damage i.e. Runechanter's Pike), good colors for what you want (always love Memory Plunder as a surprise budget Snapcaster Mage), could combo with hand filling cards like Kefnet the Mindful, could voltron, could be faerie tribal.. the choice is yours.

July 23, 2017 10:29 p.m.

MoonTurtle7 says... #19

TearsInRain23, could you maybe send me a list, I'm having a hard time kinda visualizing how the deck would go?

July 24, 2017 5:15 p.m.

TearsInRain23 says... #20

http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/05-02-17-the-biting-gale/

This is a good deck to look at for Wydwen. Its not really a combo deck or a stax deck though it utilizes counter spells and the like. It has a voltron aspect to it and creatures that could win just as easily as the commander, making her not required. The aggressiveness of black blue is usually lost with most dimir commanders but you'll be surprised how having a cheap flyer with flash that you can return to your hand instead of the command zone can be easily underestimated.

July 24, 2017 5:28 p.m.

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