I badly need help with creature cuts, what to run, and wincons for Scarab God zombie mill
Commander (EDH) forum
Posted on April 4, 2019, 1:32 a.m. by HollowProphet
Hey all! I am back and I am continuing learning how to build my deck. I will keep it short as I am getting ready for bed. I'm the guy who built this as my first non-precon deck ever. I have gotten extremely strong and helpful feedback from here so I wanted to come back and get some more advice on what creatures or other spells to cut. I am going for zombie graveyard play and mill to play with graveyards for now. Please help educate me on how to know what to swap, cut, etc when replacing spells in an existing deck. I don't know what cuts to make for creatures, what counters to run, or what my wincons are even... because right now I do not even have any that I am aware of.
The build: http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/where-is-your-scarab-god/
Incoming cards are as follows:
I was going to cut Mystic Remora as when I've played it I have not been to pay the upkeep and play what I needed to out of my hand. This is [u]not[/u] a final cut but I just have not had luck with it. [b]I also was NOT scrying and doing the life loss with Scarab God, I missed all my triggers and felt so dumb after[/b]. But I am not being hard on myself, it is just something I have to get used to and get into the habit of, it is part of Commander anyway! So what I was going to try was Graveborn Muse and Forgotten Creation .
I am going to cut some counterspells too, this list is as of a day or so ago but today I placed the orders for the new cards. I just don't know what to cut and what to run at this point, it seems like I have a TON of firepower now compared to when I first pieced it together just two weeks ago and now the deck has taken on a life of its own. I tried to work on some token generation too.
Also, I have at LEAST $60+ I want to blow at Star City this weekend, any recommendations on heavy hitters I can pick up while I'm saving on cards anyway?? I am thinking maybe Grave Pact and Rise of the Dark Realms . Pickups at Star City possibly include Rot Hulk and Reality Shift .
I am new and am abandoning hope because I don't know what to do and I don't want to waste time or money on stuff when I am not getting the answers I need and no one really wants to take the time to help me. Then I get frustrated because I put so much time into this build and I don't know things due to lack of experience.
ZendikariWol says... #3
Something that always helps me is sorting my cards by CMC before cuts. If you look at any of my EDH decks (except the Feldon of the Third Path one, that's an odd case), they all incluse a MAXIMUM of like 2-3 7-mana plays, 3-6 6-drops, 8 5-drops, etc.
April 4, 2019 8:27 a.m.
My suggestion is organize your cards in 3 ways:
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Role: Essentially put all of your cards into piles related to each utility role (ramp, draw, removal), one for combo pieces, one for other win cons, one for additional bonuses (for example, even if a card doesn't make you win, it may have an additional bonus to turn the tide), and one for land. Depending on the deck, these differ greatly on how many should be in each, but note which pile seems to have more cards than it should. Rank each of those piles by how over the top they are in your opinion.
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Mana Cost: Set a pile for each nonland card based on it's mana cost. Note which cards are most expensive and which aren't. Your highest ranked category should be 0.
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Importance: Rank your cards from most important to least important for your meta. If a card is built for dealing with some part of your meta but not all, it shouldn't be that high on the list for example. Your highest rank should be 0.
Following this, multiply the ranking for each card by the Mana cost and by the ranking of their category and take out the card with the highest number.
That's how I do it (like actually).
Also note: I do this on an Excel spreadsheet with each of my decks. Makes it wayyyyy easier to calculate.
April 4, 2019 9:46 a.m.
Don't give up, it might seem like a long way to the level of skill and involvement that you want but the more you play you'll learn more quickly every time about what works and what doesn't.
Don't make snap decisions on cuts if they don't do something you want in a situation, there may be more situations where its actually very good. I like to theorycraft even while I'm playing - if I think something is being a bit underwhelming or not advancing my plan enough, think of something that would be absolutely ideal, flexible and effective - then when you're done you can go looking for the thing that does that. Likely you'll not find it exactly, but you'll find something close and you can see how that goes. Evolution.
As for missing your upkeep triggers, a dice on top of your deck is a tried and tested way to remind you that something is going on before your draw step!
Finally, consume plenty of online and in-person content. Keep asking and you will be able to gather what you need. Drop another reply in here and we'll get you some more card-specific answers. (first off Rise of the Dark Realms is excellent and probably pretty decent in your deck (though Scarab Boi does exile things) but it's a big wedge of cash and personally I expect its due a Commander precon reprint).
OK so some advice in a muddled order but hopefully a help.
enpc says... #2
Where Is Your Scarab God
Commander / EDH* HollowProphet
SCORE: 2 | 1 COMMENT | 189 VIEWS | IN 2 FOLDERS
April 4, 2019 4:40 a.m.