BEST EDH GENERAL
Commander (EDH) forum
Posted on April 24, 2014, 3:16 p.m. by lotusofblackness
HELLO TAPPEDOUT USERS!
I am looking to make a really good and competetive EDH deck. What is your favorite general IN YOUR OPINION!!!! And please, don't say Animar......
.......I don't want to be "that guy."
My favorite general has become Nekusar, the Mindrazer , but I'm also starting to like Rakdos, Lord of Riots .
April 24, 2014 3:21 p.m.
Magiclover318 says... #4
my brother uses both those, Nekusar, and Rakdos. He loves using them haha
April 24, 2014 3:23 p.m.
There's a particular Hermit Druid that is just bonkers and annoying to play against in 1vs1 if he isn't banned. If you mean more for free for all league, personally I do a lot of work with Riku of Two Reflections . Zur and that new Bant commander is pretty beefy too.
April 24, 2014 3:28 p.m.
miracleHat says... #6
Azusa, Lost but Seeking if built correctly can win on turn 4. Vendilion Clique or any other mono blue edh deck is brutal to play against. Kaalia of the Vast is really explosive, but gets hated on a lot. Momir Vig, Simic Visionary has a lot of combos to choose from. Out of those, i would choose Azusa, Lost but Seeking for being the most consistent (never mana screwed!), and able to hold well in multiplayer and 1v1. If Kaalia of the Vast wasn't hated on as much, i would choose her but i can't even consider her because i will get targeted on asap.
April 24, 2014 3:28 p.m.
miracleHat says... #7
@DaggerV, you are talking about Scion of the Ur-Dragon + Hermit Druid ? Yes, that is also a broken combo deck that I have seen win on turn 1, twice.
April 24, 2014 3:29 p.m.
CrazyLittleGuy says... #8
We have one of these threads every week. It's entirely opinion man, and no one can come to a consensus. Here's a pretty good analysis on most generals though, if you're interested. Linky link
April 24, 2014 3:31 p.m.
I use Phage the Untouchable , but I have yet to win a game.
April 24, 2014 3:44 p.m.
LittleBlueHero says... #10
It really depends on your play style preference. Do you enjoy control, Stompy, Aggro, Burn.... you see where I am going.
Its so hard to pick a favorite because my favorite part of EDH is building multiple decks around all kinds of different Generals. I will admit I find myself in Green in some capacity or another more often than not. I really like ramping to some extent in this format because I LOVE big splashy spells.
Naya with Gahiji, The Honored One and my mono green Omnath, Locus of Mana decks have been my go to decks most recently but I just got a b/w Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts Pillow fort deck up and running too.
April 24, 2014 3:57 p.m.
I have not played a whole lit of EDH, but the ones I have played I have enjoyed have been Oloro, Ageless Ascetic , Damia, Sage of Stone , Nekusar, the Mindrazer and my all time favorite is Riku of Two Reflections . I built a deck with Riku, some more cloning cards, and Biovisionary as a win con...people hated when I cloned Eldrazi two and three times or won in one turn once Biovisionary hit the field.
But that is my favorites.
April 24, 2014 4:39 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #15
Competitive huh?
Damia, Sage of Stone
/The Mimeoplasm
Riku of Two Reflections
Karador, Ghost Chieftain
/Ghave, Guru of Spores
Zur the Enchanter
/Sen Triplets
/Sharuum the Hegemon
Kaalia of the Vast
This list comprises my "kill on sight" list. These generals will make me target you before I target the annoying guy at the table.
April 24, 2014 5:01 p.m.
Maelstrom Wanderer is a fine general, with a lot of room for creativity. He gets out of hand after only casting him a couple times
April 24, 2014 5:27 p.m.
miracleHat says... #17
Ohthenoises, I don't think that you would like my playgroup. I play three of the generals that you mentioned. My friends play two of the others, so yeah. Why are you afraid of Riku of Two Reflections more than Animar, Soul of Elements ?
April 24, 2014 5:46 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #18
Ok, out of all of the comments, I listed the ones that people suggested the most. I also threw in a couple of my personal preference.
Some of my own:
Out of all if these, pick the one that you would use, and won't be too hated.
April 24, 2014 5:52 p.m.
Riku, by a long shot. He offers far more design space than all the others, which is something I value highly. Nekusar is no where near as fun as you think it is (mainly because it is one of the most hated generals). Braids is fun, but often is a little too glass-cannony for my taste. And for aurelia, well, aggro/voltron just seems really boring to me.
April 24, 2014 5:59 p.m.
Arcum Dagsson is probably the most consistent general in the format. However, you need to have an insane budget to play him because you'll need Mana Drain , Mishra's Workshop , etc.
April 24, 2014 6 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #22
Not afraid of Riku of Two Reflections , miracleHat, just very aware of how broken he can be.
Those generals are just on the top of my threat meter. I'm not afraid of them nor do I dislike them. I just recognize their power level and am forced to react accordingly.
My kill order in a game goes like this:
1 Those generals listed.
2 Anyone annoying me or the table. (The guy playing Humility
pillowfort.)
3 - X The players that have the most threatening board state.
April 24, 2014 6:01 p.m.
My favorite EDH deck has Omnath, Locus of Mana at the helm, elf ball him into a crazy beater in a couple turns.
April 24, 2014 6:44 p.m.
I have been slow to comment here because I really think it almost completely depends on who you are playing against!
- Don't run the favorite general that someone else in your group already plays
- Don't run the 5th reanimator (or whatever archetype - fill in the blank) deck in your group
- Don't run a deck built around whatever your group hates (be that Infect, tutoring, aggro, infinite combos, or what have you)
- Don't run a deck that is way under or above the competitve level of the other people at the table
That being said, I usually target:
- The guy who is shutting my own deck down somehow
- One of the two guys that just formed an open alliance with each other - especially if one of them comes off as a "mastermind manipulator"
- The guy who just won using that deck some time ago in recent memory because no one stopped him
April 24, 2014 6:52 p.m.
NerdPounder says... #25
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Azami, Lady of Scrolls yet.
April 24, 2014 6:58 p.m.
Maelstrom Wanderer combo is an interesting setup. Use Scroll Rack to set up a specific set of cascades for the Wanderer that can let you combo out. For example putting Xenograft and Turntimber Ranger on top of your library with the Rack and Cascading into them in that order allowing you to swing in for infinite at each player at the same time, assuming all of the spells are allowed to resolve. Wanderer can also be built hyper-aggro.
Eight-and-a-Half-Tails voltron. I don't think I need to explain.
April 24, 2014 8 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #27
acbooster I'm working on a Maelstrom Wanderer EDH now that's about chaos. Possibility Storm , Knowledge Pool , Storm, and Cascade. So much fun.
April 24, 2014 8:16 p.m.
My friend did the same thing except with Riku. I'm transforming my Wanderer deck into more combo than the hyper-aggro it was. I can still ramp into the Wanderer without help by turn 4, but now I have more fun mana dumps and mana generators.
April 24, 2014 8:17 p.m.
My MW deck is pretty janky, it plays a bunch of land ramp then kills via Goblin Charbelcher .
April 24, 2014 8:19 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #30
My idea with storm was Mind's Desire . Since cascade and P-Storm all say "cast" they will count to my storm count. Then I can play Mind's Desire or other good storm cards for insane amounts. I learned the other day that Storm is a triggered ability. That means that Stifle can counter it and, more importantly, Strionic Resonator can copy it.
April 24, 2014 8:20 p.m.
That actually seems like a pretty sweet deck, especially that Strionic Resonator . Mmmmmm.... all that delicious value!
April 24, 2014 8:24 p.m.
NerdPounder says... #32
I'm really surprised no one has suggested Azami, Lady of Scrolls yet
April 24, 2014 9:38 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #33
I'm either thinking of doing riku or the wanderer. Anyone have some really good decklists to show me so I can get some ideas?
April 24, 2014 10:35 p.m.
Gimme a sec and I'll transfer my relevant lists from 'trice to TO.
April 24, 2014 10:53 p.m.
Ok, here we go. Bear in mind that each one of these decks is built for different levels of competitiveness and are from different times in my EDH career (I've improved since the genesis of some of these creations. Kruphix: The Biggest Battlecruiser, MW Belcher, MW Goodstuff, Momir Vig Goodstuff, Nin Draw-Go, Xenagos Big Beats, and Zegana Good Stuff.
Between all these strategies/cards, you should be able to find some inspiration, even though they aren't all in your exact color combo.
April 24, 2014 11:17 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #36
Thanks! Do you happen to have a deck for riku?
April 24, 2014 11:23 p.m.
De4thStr0ke says... #37
Crosis, the Purger or Numot, the Devastator depending on what mood I'm in both have amazing abilities as a general. Crosis for mono/double mana decks(If this creature deals combat damage Pay 2B if you dochoose a color that player reveals his or her hand and discards all cards of that color) and numot for crushing any opponents hope for building up lands
April 25, 2014 9:35 a.m.
In my opinion its either Karona, False God because she enables most tribals and is fun or Phelddagrif because well, do i need a reason? just looka at her!
April 25, 2014 1:32 p.m.
Foxhound438 says... #39
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher is pretty scary with Purphoros, God of the Forge on the board, but Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius is hilarious if you have things like Gorgon's Head and Dismiss into Dream . get past hexproof with a mere Glaring Spotlight
April 25, 2014 6 p.m.
Foxhound438 says... #40
also, if you want REALLY aggressive, go for Skullbriar, the Walking Grave
April 25, 2014 6:07 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #41
Ok, after lots of research, I think I know which general to use. Despite there being no comments or suggestions for him, I think that I should use Jenara, Asura of War . He is just so effective to whip out the commander damage quickly. No offense, but I just think that he's a lot better than Maelstrom Wanderer or Riku of Two Reflections . Also, being cheaper and not as hated. Please keep giving me suggestions, for I may still change my mind. Thanks for all of the support you've given me for this forum.
April 25, 2014 9:42 p.m.
miracleHat says... #42
Instead of Jenara, Asura of War , Rafiq of the Many is vastly superior in my opinion. When running the swords (Sword of Feast and Famine ), Umezawa's Jitte , you can do a lot of things. Eldrazi Conscription and Might of Oaks are insta kills with rafiq. Finally, you can also run cards like Inkmoth Nexus to win on turn 3 if you are really lucky.
April 25, 2014 9:57 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #43
You are right. I love the Bant colors and I want to make Rafiq of the Many , but I am worried about the price. What is the average price range for a deck like that?
April 25, 2014 9:59 p.m.
miracleHat says... #44
...
Very expensive. The equipment (6 cards) is $138. Noble Hierarch
is a necessity ($58), all of the staples (Jace, the Mind Sculptor
, Chord of Calling
, Natural Order
, Stoneforge Mystic
, Force of Will
, Mana Drain
ect.). That being said, you can make your deck a bit worse and not use cards like Mana Drain
, Force of Will
and Jace, the Mind Sculptor
, but i suggest you do if you have the budget. The first cards that i mentioned though are necessities.
April 25, 2014 10:07 p.m.
lotusofblackness says... #45
Yeah, I am on a really tight budget. I am in the middle of making a Modern and Standard deck (Both pretty pricey). I can try to make a cheaper version of him.......
April 25, 2014 10:09 p.m.
miracleHat says... #46
Here is an outdated rafiq edh deck, but the point is still there. It is expensive, but that is also part of the land base. Even without Jace, the Mind Sculptor , Force of Will , and Mana Drain , it is $1,800. I will figure out what the deck costs without the land base shortly.
April 25, 2014 10:15 p.m.
miracleHat says... #47
The land base is worth $1310 lotusofblackness, so discount that, the deck is $500 really...
April 25, 2014 10:22 p.m.
Azuleblood says... #48
I think Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief looks like a fun/powerful general :)
April 27, 2014 4:31 p.m.
Eduardogbg says... #49
Jenara, Asura of War with 8 mana becomes a 6/6. With 8 mana you can clone Wurmcoil Engine .
With Jenara, Asura of War you'll want to Voltron. There are better voltrons that aren't hated, or at least, won't be hated because there are another one to be hated. Kresh the Bloodbraided is an example.
If you just want to go bant, there's a commander that I don't like much, but people use Derevi, Empyrial Tactician . He can make some tricks
April 27, 2014 6:55 p.m.
HorrorAvengers says... #50
if you're looking for straight-up competitiveness, V-Clique by a long shot and then some, and then some more. But if you want something good and fun, and something that you'll keep friends if you'll play, I'm liking mindraizer, zur is really powerful, pretty much any commander with blue in it.
Magiclover318 says... #2
Mayael the Anima is so much fun, I also am building one with Phenax, God of Deception .
Decklists are provided below for how I built mine :)
Mayael's Deck
Phenax's Deck
April 24, 2014 3:20 p.m.