Can Xantcha be the most busted Rakdos general of all time?
Deck Help forum
Posted on Feb. 28, 2019, 12:50 a.m. by RexStrangelove
3: Draw a card, opponent loses 2 life. What's not to abuse?
I'm trying to build the most busted Xantcha deck ever. I strongly believe that she is an upper Tier 2 general in multiplayer, 1.5 if I can get her solved.
My deck:
Cyber Communists Plotting Red Revolt
Commander / EDH*
SCORE: 2 | 75 VIEWS | IN 1 FOLDER
RexStrangelove says... #3
Word ^ That seems like a totally serviceable strategy.
And yeah, it blows that you can't equip her. Before I read the exact text, my gut reaction was to slap a Jitte or a Helm of the Host on her, sit back, sip some brandy, and profit as the chaos unfold.
If Will Smith was my genie? Broooooo....
February 28, 2019 1:50 a.m.
What no just build this infinite Mana on turn 3 and kill everyone with xantcha since after one player dies xantcha goes back to the command zone. If you're looking to make it competitive don't go for the silly beatdown route or politics, that's fun, not tier 1.5. Get as many 2-card infinite Mana combos in there and a lot of tutors
February 28, 2019 8:10 a.m.
You are incorrect-- Xantcha, Sleeper Agent does not go back to the command zone when a player dies. Xantcha's effect is a control-changing effect, akin to Mind Control . Per 800.4a, in a multiplayer game, when a player leaves the game all control-changing effects will end. Thus, Xantcha returns to your control when her controller dies. This is explicitly stated in her Gatherer rulings.
Ultimately, that is one of the issues I see holding her back as an ultra-competitive commander. There are enough infinite mana decks floating about that I would be concerned with playing her--after all, someone could assemble their infinite combo, kill off her controller, the kill off you, all the while drawing the cards needed to win against the remainder of the table.
February 28, 2019 8:41 a.m.
RexStrangelove says... #6
Daaaaaaaaaamn...I didn't realize that was how it worked, but you're totally right.
That sucks, now I need a buncha hokey sac outlets so I don't get stuck with my own hot potato. Diabolic Intent might have just earned itself a slot back into this deck.
February 28, 2019 1:22 p.m.
I could be mistaken, but even though you can't put equipment on zantcha you can put aura's and the like to buff her beatdown on your behalf.
February 28, 2019 5:13 p.m.
simplebricks says... #8
Xancha worldgorger combo can be made pretty fast if you break the bank. I have no real cEDH experience but the fact that if she is on board and you play the combo you win is significant. There are also the Mikaeus and Triskellion combo that can somewhat use cards from the worldgorger combo so you can have a couple of alternate win-cons and a deck full of ramp, tutors and interaction.
RexStrangelove says... #2
The concerns you bring up are 100% valid, and funnily enough, we reached completely opposite conclusions.
I was thinking "this is awesome for multiplayer because one of my opponents will have a free weapon that comes swinging for 5 commander damage every turn, meanwhile my other opponents will have a mana sink that draws them cards and hurts the dude who has been whooping on them since turn 2."
It creates this awesome tension--and even though you're the one who started it? Xantcha can't hit you, and the people she's attacking have a card draw engine for as long as they keep her alive...a card draw engine that hurts the person attacking them every turn. She's a vanilla 5/5...there's all kinds of decks that can chump her all day and are grateful for the card advantage. Plus, she's only 3 CMC and this deck runs 20+ mana rocks. If you kill her, there's a real chance she's gonna be stuck on you next.
And from a Dennis Reynolds way of looking at it--it's very good that your opponents are wasting brain power on this stupid political crap instead of thinking about their cards.
I built this deck figuring it would suck in 1v1 because I'll be receiving 100% of the opponent focus and I can't rely on my opponents to activate Xantcha for me a few times, so she'll be strictly slower.
Although, now that you say it, I totally see what you're saying.
February 28, 2019 1:06 a.m.