Staples?
Commander Deck Help forum
Posted on April 17, 2017, 11:31 p.m. by ERoss8
Hi! I've been playing Commander for a little while now, and have started to create my own decks. I keep hearing about "staples" for each color. Can someone please tell me what they are? Thanks!(I already know about sol ring, lightning greaves, and, in white, Knight of the White Orchid)
buildingadeck says... #3
Colorless:
Dimir Signet or other on-color signets
White
Blue
Red
Black
Green
This is the best I have off the top of my head. The multicolored ones add some things, too.
April 18, 2017 12:07 a.m.
Gidgetimer says... #4
There is a difference between a good card and a staple, the previous comment was a bunch of good cards only a few of which are staples. Even the lists people try to make get unwieldy quickly and are more of a chore to update than people seem to think going in. The lists MindAblaze linked are a good place to start. The ones on Epocholyptik's page were pretty good when they were updated regularly and even though there is no evolving meta to make cards change in power some cards get banned (like Prophet of Kruphix) and others get printed that need to be added. So just be sure to use the lists as a baseline instead of comprehensive resources.
April 18, 2017 1 a.m.
buildingadeck says... #5
@Gidgetimer: I made that list in about five minutes. If I see the cards often enough to rattle off a list that quickly, they're probably staples.
April 18, 2017 1:04 a.m.
Well a lot of those cards arent staples. Stuff like mana dorks are generally poor in EDH outside elf specjfic decks or peoples untap combo decks. Trinisphere and the other tax effects arent common. Angels Grace and Silence are just bad on their own.
Path to Exile, Swords to Plowshares, Counterspell, Demonic Tutor, Sol Ring, Mana Crypt, Kodama's Reach and its none arcane counterpart, Mana Vault and Crypt, Command Tower, Opal Tower, Signets. Those are all staples. You will see them in a ton of decks and generally improve the decks they are in.
April 18, 2017 1:47 a.m.
buildingadeck says... #7
LeaPlath: Trinisphere and other stax effects are common in the common archetype known as stax. Green runs mana dorks so that it can run cards like Null Rod and other effects that hose over the non-green ramp effects. I've played over 500 edh games in the past couple months, and I can back up my list with numbers. Mana dorks are important.
Angel's Grace and Silence show up in white decks with Ad Nauseam, but since Ad Nauseam decks make up a good portion of the decks played in the competitive combo lists, they show up frequently enough to be considered staples in those archetypes. The same is true of Food Chain/Eternal Scourge in Tazri and Prossh builds. The question wasn't universal staples, but merely staples, which the cards I listed are a part of. Opal Palace is hardly a staple, btw. I'd play Tarnished Citadel first.
Check out the cEDH subreddit to find better information than that which I provided if you're interested in knowing more about a list of staples because I think one was made there at some point.
April 18, 2017 4:48 a.m.
MagicalHacker says... #8
Thanks for the mention, MindAblaze!
ERoss8, if you want to see all staples, go to this page at edhrec.com, and there you can see which cards are being played in large percentages of decks, including new cards quickly becoming staples. The lists on my profile can include them, but they're not built to show which cards are played the most, but rather, which cards can fill a common/important role in a deck.
April 18, 2017 5:43 a.m. Edited.
I would like to point out that a card might be a staple for a certain deck or archetype does not make it a staple in general.
There are also going to be different list depending if you are playing competitive or not.
Also, I hardly ever see basic lands listed as staples, and I've seen new comers get wrecked by non basic land hate. As they had few if any basics.
And what some consider staples would not make the cut in other metas. Take elesh norn for example. In a creature heavy play group, this is a staple. In a control/stax/combo play group not so much as creatures are less relevant. Although her effects do stop some combo engines, those decks run a lot of targeted removal or counters.
April 18, 2017 7:31 a.m.
buildingadeck says... #10
In a control heavy meta, you just run Elesh + Living Plane. Boom.
I'm not arguing that staples aren't dependent upon the meta/level of competitiveness, but the flaw with the OG post is that it simply asks for staples. I stand by the notion that the cards I listed are staples, though edhrec does a better job of not having a competitive bias.
April 18, 2017 7:34 a.m.
SSJ_Weegee says... #11
No one mentioned Solemn Simulacrum? That card is used in almost every deck I see!
April 18, 2017 8:08 a.m.
Yep, I have that combo in my attraxa deck. My meta don't like seeing it. As it can go off very early. I only have it as early as turn 4 or 5, but it can be done turn one with right cards. My best was turn 1 rhystic study, followed by turn two consecrated sphinx (hard cast), followed by turn three elesh norn (hard cast), and turn four living plane.
And I wasn't talking about anyone's list in particular, just stating facts and opinions. Cause for me a staple is a card that you should be running unless you have a good reason not to.
April 18, 2017 8:43 a.m.
buildingadeck says... #13
Right, but that is still circumstantial based on the deck list or meta. Like in The Gitrog Monster, Dakmor Salvage is a staple, but that is not the case for any other deck. Ad Nauseam is a staple in any black deck that has the right curve.
April 18, 2017 9:02 a.m.
MindAblaze says... #14
I think pskinn01 hit the nail on the head. A staple is a card you should be running (almost) no matter what your strategy is because it makes your deck stronger/faster/more consistent. You might see Diabolic Tutor a lot in your meta, but the strictly better Demonic Tutor is your staple for example.
April 18, 2017 11:29 a.m.
buildingadeck says... #15
@MindAblaze: This would be true except that competitive edh staples are different from 75% and casual edh staples. It's context dependent. Imperial Seal for instance is a competitive edh staple, but it is not commonly played in 75%/casual decks due to its price, thus not making it a staple for those metagames.
April 18, 2017 11:50 a.m.
@buildingadeck this person says they are building their first decks. I think it might intimidate them more than necessary to suggest $500 tutors and $200 counters are staples. Turn 2 locks leading to turn 20 wins via Derevi damage are hopefully something he won't have to deal with at his lgs drop in commander night.
I second the reference to edhrec.com - great site that can help you see the most common selections for any given general. Another nice intro is the top 10 lists over at the manasource on youtube. Wedge (the host) has ~10 minute videos for the most common mono blue, red, and any color cards. These are all good staples and he gives you examples of their use and what kind of commanders they often pair with. Hopefully he will update the series with black, green, artifacts, etc. in the future too.
April 18, 2017 12:58 p.m.
buildingadeck says... #17
Yeah, I may have misinterpreted "a little while." Oh well.
April 18, 2017 1:05 p.m.
MindAblaze says... #18
I didn't mention Imperial Seal because 400+ dollar cards are usually prohibitive for most players. Thats why my example compared Diabolic Tutor and Demonic Tutor. It was a simple illustration of mana efficiency and value in a easy to grok format. When you start talking about Cruel Tutor, Vampiric Tutor, Diabolic Intent, Diabolic Revelation, Sidisi, Undead Vizier etc you're going to choose the card that fits your budget and your strategy the best. I don't run Demonic Tutor in my CDC build, but I do have room for Sidisi, Undead Vizier as she's easier to abuse. Deadeye Navigator decks like Rune-Scarred Demon.
Context is important, but when it matters less efficiency makes for a staple.
April 18, 2017 1:19 p.m.
I started seriously collecting the staples for edh only over the last couple years. In my experience, staples are typically tutors, removal or lands/fast mana artifacts. Anyone just starting out should consider grabbing the best of these in the desired color(s) they can afford.
April 18, 2017 1:22 p.m.
MindAblaze says... #20
Fetches and shocks for sure. There's a few other fetchable lands available now that are fairly affordable too, so those should probably be acquired so you can work toward Duals.
April 18, 2017 2:56 p.m.
buildingadeck says... #21
Imp Tutor is only a $160 if you get the judge promo. But like I said, misread "a little while."
MindAblaze says... #2
Staples are, generally, the cards you will probably want for a given strategy. MagicalHacker and Epochalyptik both have lists on their profile that try to encapsulate the options for each colour. Basically the best removal, card draw, ramp and tutors available are your "staples." Stuff like Demonic Tutor, Force of Will, Sylvan Library and Swords to Plowshares all fit the bill. There's no way I could list them all though, so check out those guys profile pages for their lists.
April 18, 2017 12:01 a.m.