Cunning Nightbonder

Creature — Human Rogue

Flash

Spells with flash you cast cost {1} less to cast and can't be countered.

Combos

• Cunning Nightbonder + Embercleave

Legality

Format	Legality
1v1 Commander	Legal
Archenemy	Legal
Arena	Legal
Block Constructed	Legal
Canadian Highlander	Legal
Casual	Legal
Commander / EDH	Legal
Commander: Rule 0	Legal
Custom	Legal
Duel Commander	Legal
Gladiator	Legal
Highlander	Legal
Historic	Legal
Historic Brawl	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Leviathan	Legal
Limited	Legal
Modern	Legal
Modern Beyond Horizons	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Pioneer	Legal
Planar Constructed	Legal
Planechase	Legal
Quest Magic	Legal
Tiny Leaders	Legal
Vanguard	Legal
Vintage	Legal

Discussion (24)

Elnxida on Cost Reduction Cards

6 months ago

I've noticed a few* omissions, namely effects that let you pay an alternate cost - which can be less than the regular cost (Zombie creaturess: Rooftop Storm) or reduced by other effects (Samurai: Kentaro, the Smiling Cat).

*Yeah, so I decided to do a proper search and it bloated into more than a "few"... Sorry for the wall of text, but here you go!

You've already got Fist of Suns and Jodah, but here are some less ubiquitous ones:

Echo: Thick-Skinned Goblin

Slowly Increasing 1/turn: As Foretold

Runes: Runeforge Champion

Fist of Suns and Jodah-like: Leyline of Mutation

Alchemy, Dragons: Sarkhan, Wanderer to Shiv

Pay life instead as Activated Ability: Marshland Bloodcaster

Alchemy, cards you don't own 1/turn: Grenzo, Crooked Jailer

From Exile 1/turn: Charred Foyer / Warped Space

Colorless 1/turn: Darksteel Monolith

Creature from exile 1/turn: Tlincalli Hunter

Conditional, Cycling: New Perspectives

Pay life instead 1/turn: Cramped Vents / Access Maze

Additionally, other regular omissions:

Flash: Cunning Nightbonder

Instants and Sorceries: Voracious Reader  ^Flip

Creature spells: Krallenhorde Howler  ^Flip, Honest Rutstein

One Giant: Invasion of the Giants

Target me! (auras, buffs, mutate): Spellwild Ouphe, Elderwood Scion

First Kicked: Vine Gecko

Historic: Ballad of the Black Flag

Not your turn: Geyser Drake

Aura and Equipment: Golden-Tail Trainer

Next Spell (honorable mention?): Hardened Berserker, Saheeli, the Gifted

Pay counters instead: Mutated Cultist

Dragons: Nogi, Draco-Zealot

Alchemy, Dinosaurs: Scalespeaker Shepherd (Not sure why is isn't linking, but I promise it exists)

Alchemy, from graveyard: Shellfish Scholar

Instants and Sorceries MV5+: Spectacle Mage

Prepared: Uvilda, Dean of Perfection  ^Flip

Undaunted keyword: Durnan of the Yawning Portal

First instant/sorcery, conditional: Eluge, the Shoreless Sea, God-Eternal Kefnet

Alchemy, Goblin: Goblin Influx Array

Next instant/sorcery (honorable mention?): Maelstrom Muse

Face-down: Panoptic Projektor

Doctors: The Eleventh Hour

Cards from exile: Commander Liara Portyr

Next instant/sorcery, conditional: Elminster

Spells you don't own: Gonti, Canny Acquisitor

Tsukimi on Fairish Faeries (Alela Budget EDH)

1 year ago

Also I realized today that Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir actually does give our creatures flash, so he'd have excellent synergy with Cunning Nightbonder, Slitherwisp, etc.

Darth_Savage on

2 years ago

My first thought was add maybe 1 or 2 Nighthawk Scavenger to give a couple more rogues that can close out the game. Something else to consider is utility lands Castle Locthwain and Hive of the Eye Tyrant being the most obvious, though I could see a case for Blast Zone too. Varragoth, Bloodsky Sire could have a place as a tutor.

To really work you need a sideboard, so here are some suggestions;

2x Lithoform Blight (land strategies)

2x Cunning Nightbonder (control)

2x Bloodchief's Thirst (more removal, can hit planeswalkers)

2x Fatal Push (more removal)

4x Duress (for combo or to remve sweepers)

3x Faerie Macabre (grave hate or a rogue at worst)

FearRipper70 on U/B Faerie Tempo Control

2 years ago

-1 Island, -2 Force of Negation, -2 Fallen Shinobi, -1 Counterspell, -1 Bloodchief's Thirst, +1 Mistbind Clique, +3 Cunning Nightbonder, +3 Slitherwisp

eldraziboss9142 on Mill Among Thieves

3 years ago

Could I suggest a Cunning Nightbonder? it would make it easier to cast your commander without it being countered.

Saccox on Counter/Flash Pezzent! (10/12 euro/$)

3 years ago

Hi nathanielhebert,thanks for always giving me deck suggestions! Cunning Nightbonder it's a great card but have a problem: the mana. i play this card only with 2 blue mana but with this economic mana base it's very difficult :(

nathanielhebert on Counter/Flash Pezzent! (10/12 euro/$)

3 years ago

Hadn't played a flash deck yet – it's quite effective (and efficient), passing the turn with full mana, waiting to respond and bringing in your creatures with the mana left over. Their abilities synergize well together, and your threats continue to grow if unanswered!

In your opinion, do you think there's room for something like Cunning Nightbonder to protect your assets? Cool deck all the same, and I've got Ikoria-flavoured pieces at hand to cobble it together in paper.

lagotripha on Flashy sparkly dumpster fire

4 years ago

Hi, I love making budget brews for FNM magic. Several pieces of advice -

Playing almost monocolour works wonders - Reliability wins matches, a lot of expensive cards are expensive because they let you have that reliability while doing more explosive stuff. Small things like Mystic Snake being easier to cast than frilled adds up. Here, I'd look at playing almost entirely blue cards for the first 3 turns and reserving double green costs for cards you don't mind delaying a 3-4 turns, and adjusting mana accordingly.

Second, old spells are powerful, new creatures are powerful. If you find two that work well together, you usually have something good enough to win FNM. Cunning Nightbonder or Coralhelm Chronicler didn't make a splash in standard, but you find a strong synergy in older cards and you are off to the races. Flickering your mystic snake is cool - and new interactions appear with every card printed.

For 'draw go' I'd look at what cards from tournament decks that rotated are cheap and match that style and browse.

Dumb cheese like midnight clock/Ominous seas looks a lot less dumb once you include old cards - proliferate effects, better counterspells, more 'discard and draw a new hand' effects, more 'when you draw' effects. I'd probably dig into black and run a bunch of duress effects alongside Dark Deal to make it work, but thats personal preference. Throne of Geth could work too, as you already have an artifact in clock. If you want a green/blue shell that it couls slot right into, look at turbofog (which should have a good matchups rn).

Finally Sideboard aggressively and include slots in the mainboard for sideboard cards. Make a list of the kind of decks that are popular, and put answers mainboard, then more answers sideboard. If you don't expect to see a matchup, dont't bother including cards to win it. Mainboarding Reality Shift is a great choice in a meta running lumimancer. Just look at what is cheap in sideboards for tournament decks if you are stuck for ideas - even in other formats. Tormod's Crypt sill still work if you don't have relic.

Finally, and most importantly, fun. Look at the parts of magic you enjoy the most. For a draw-go style, its all about interacting with your opponent - seeing if you can stick a Mizzium Meddler or Notion Thief . Look for cards that do that and set you up to do that, and go have fun. Don't be scared to put them in as a 1-of if they only sort of work. You can iron out kinks in testing, but if the heart of the deck isn't fun for you, it'll be far more tricky to add that back in.