War Tax

Enchantment

(X)(Blue): Creatures can't attack this turn unless their controller pays (X) for each attacking creature he or she controls.

Legality

Format	Legality
1v1 Commander	Legal
Archenemy	Legal
Canadian Highlander	Legal
Casual	Legal
Commander / EDH	Legal
Commander: Rule 0	Legal
Custom	Legal
Duel Commander	Legal
Highlander	Legal
Legacy	Legal
Leviathan	Legal
Limited	Legal
Oathbreaker	Legal
Planechase	Legal
Premodern	Legal
Quest Magic	Legal
Tiny Leaders	Legal
Vanguard	Legal
Vintage	Legal

Discussion (49)

DreadKhan on The Quackening

5 days ago

I have a Quest for Ula's Temple deck which does some similar things, I liked Dreamscape Artist because it can reshuffle your library as needed, incase you don't have a relevant creature to work with on top. It's technically only 1 mana and a card to Harrow (you get back 2 untapped lands, so it can also helping mana fixing) Blue, and I could be wrong but I think your Commander wants the odd Discard outlet too. A worse (but still potentially useful) piece of Blue ramp is Apprentice Wizard, it's not as good as Dreamscape, it's like Worn Powerstone, which is a good rock if you want bigger ramp to potentially cast a big creature a bit sooner. Thran Dynamo and Gilded Lotus are big ramp rocks with decent ratios. Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and Cabal Coffers are pretty good together, if you have a lot of devotion to a colour Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx can help, Deserted Temple can untap any land that makes extra mana. Less rampy and more of a big Scry effect, Soothsaying is a neat card if you care about your deck order. Scroll Rack is better but costs more.

Just a general idea, you might throw in things like Reconnaissance Mission, Bident of Thassa, and Coastal Piracy along with some Unblockable or Shadow creatures (Thalakos and Dauthi are the Blue and Black tribes). You can also throw in stuff like Sword of the Animist, Dowsing Dagger  ^Flip, Prying Blade, Goldvein Pick, Grim Hireling, and any other attack payoffs you can find to generate more value over time. I understand you want a sea-monster theme, but you might want a way to draw some cards/get in some chip damage to soften people up. The only drawback to Shadows is that they can't chump block. If you really want your evasive creatures to be able to chump, there are some small flyers like Spectral Sailor and Thousand-Faced Shadow that have other upsides, these are risk free but are way less evasive than Shadows.

On that note, if you're worried about getting attacked you might look at Propaganda, War Tax, Flood, and Fatespinner are all great ways to make you hard to attack. Mass Diminish, Polymorphist's Jest, Sudden Spoiling, AEtherize, Aetherspouts are all great cards for people to fear.

Callous Oppressor is a funny repeatable theft effect, Ritual of the Machine and Helm of Possession can both steal stuff and are great with tokens, Thieving Skydiver can steal an artifact creature fwiw, Sower of Temptation is a so-so theft effect that shines bright if you can flicker or bounce it, Thalakos Deceiver is probably way better since he permanently steals whatever and can be reanimated, Inevitable Betrayal and Bribery are both pretty sweet.

The biggest (and perhaps best) theft effects are Mass Manipulation and Cultural Exchange, exchange requires bodies but can also be used aggressively to just ruin two players' boards.

Inkwell Leviathan, Lochmere Serpent, Spawning Kraken, Stormtide Leviathan, and Wrexial, the Risen Deep are some relevant creatures I use, some are better than others but there is nothing as bad as Sea Serpent or Bog Serpent, both cards I love but don't use.

If you like Whelming Wave, you might like Spectral Deluge as well.

Hope some of this helps, Big Dimir is a fun deck!

DreadKhan on Thantis the Warweaver

2 months ago

For Clackbridge, ymmv but I felt like mentioning that I've been burnt by it lots of times. I'm sure there are metas where it's a much better card, where people consistently have nothing they want to sacrifice, in my experience I was giving my opponent a free sac outlet every turn that also turned off my 8/8, which felt legit bad.

I use Deathtouch/Trample in my OG Multani deck, it's not especially rare for him to swing as a 30/30 vs the first opponent I'm going to eliminate, those two together usually means they can't block enough of his power to survive. Having both on an 8/8 is fine, but it's really great when you can get over 20 power with some consistency, I could see Grismold achieving that by the time you're ready to eliminate someone.

My issue with Sunder Shaman is that there are so, so many better ways to remove artifacts and enchantments in Jund, and most of them aren't RRGG to cast, an officially awkward to cast spell. I know he's got Green here, but I remember trying to make Kaya's Wrath work in an Esper deck. It proved consistently impossible to cast, and when I could it held up other stuff because it's just too colour intensive. Something like Kogla, the Titan Ape is probably many times the card, providing a bigger body that fights something on ETB sounds a lot better, add in that Kogla is maybe easier to cast with a bigger board presence and I feel the point should be made. If you want something small that can do something similar, there is Caustic Wasps, which is evasive and kills artifacts, as well as stuff like Thrashing Brontodon and Reclamation Sage, without using a non-creature option. Sunder Shaman seems to combine a so-so body with an ability that isn't particularly easy to guarantee, people can stop your attacks in a variety of ways and Shaman needs to deal damage. Kogla just needs to swing and something is getting blown up, that's much more relevant. If you want something earlier than Kogla you can use Outland Liberator  ^Flip, which can work without attacking and on every attack if you can get it flipped, I'd actually say that's a lot more consistent than Shaman. If anything I'd run more artifact/enchantment removal, there are tons of people who run infuriating stuff like Propaganda and even the dreaded War Tax. If I was building Thantis like this, I think I'd want War Cadence, very politically relevant. I personally love removal in most decks, and I wouldn't hesitate to run some in a deck like this, especially clunky damage based wipes, because Thantis can be huge sometimes and survive a Blasphemous Act.

Haha, I think Duo AND Crown would be pretty absurd, both only hurt your opponents. Still, I do agree he might be trying to do too many things at once here, and that's why it's hard to cut cards.

Monarch is a good way to get people swinging, but Coveted Jewel is the real 'kingmaker' you can run to create utter chaos. It's one thing to turn down 1 free card, but to turn down 3 mana and 3 cards is just madness, and letting someone else keep that 3 mana for their next turn is likewise unacceptable, so it can create a ton of chaos. Something like Kamahl, Fist of Krosa could be pretty interesting, if a land is a creature it either has to get tapped down or swung with, and small creatures die. Jolrael, Empress of Beasts can turn their entire land base into 3/3s. I'm not saying you should threaten people's mana bases, but I'd feel remiss if I didn't bring it up.

Re: running more Green ramp, I like to run more Green mana sources in a deck that runs lots of Green ramp, as long as I have Green ramp and Green mana I can find whatever other mana I want. There are so many decent 2 and 3 mana ramp spells in Green, even stuff like Wood Elves or Farhaven Elf can work beautifully, if you dig out a tapped dual it feels pretty good with Wood, Farhaven just finds whatever basic you need.

DreadKhan on Zur the enchanter $100 budget

2 months ago

Cool idea with good execution!

Not sure if you are 100% satisfied with your mana base, some stuff like Esper Panorama, Darkwater Catacombs, Skycloud Expanse, and Ash Barrens can help fix your mana, I always find Zur is a hassle to get out without stretching the budget. There are also somewhat worse options like Obscura Storefront, it's worse than Arcane Sanctum but not by a ton. I recently found out about Planar Atlas, but this looks like exactly what Zur needs to get out faster, but I do run Signets and Signet Lands, so I have more use for colourless arguably. If you're using a Sun Titan, any lands that fetch something before going to the Graveyard become pretty strong in my experience, but Myriad Landscape is hilarious if you can recur it.

Not sure if it's outside your budget, but Mirrormade is the cheapest Copy Enchantment I know of that Zur can fetch, and it can also copy an artifact, so if there is a ramp rock out Zur can find mana. Another way Zur can ramp you is The Restoration of Eiganjo  ^Flip, which also turns into a creature. Dance of Many is a pretty interesting option if someone has a really big body out against you, not sure if you face many Blightsteels.

If you like to run Rule of Law effects in Zur, you might enjoy using a little Moderation to fuel you, it's a nice cheap card. If you can draw enough cards, Stronghold Machinist and/or Stronghold Biologist are pretty interesting cards. Obviously better with Necropotence though.

If you have Vanishing on Zur, you can fetch Out of Time to wipe the board in a shockingly thorough manner, if the board is full nothing is coming back. Obviously better if you can copy it before it goes away, but Copy Enchantment and Estrid's Invocation are both pretty pricey, and there are few things as good as copying All That Glitters. Another weird thing you could do is combine Spy Kit with Cornered Market, nobody can play creatures, if you have Zur out then you should be set.

If Propaganda or Ghostly Prison are too pricey, War Tax can be an interesting alternative, it's especially useful in a Rule of Law deck where you can't play multiple Sorcery speed spells, this lets you use spare mana to hassle whomever you want, it's non-targeted and scales with the game.

I always wonder if non-cEDH Zur decks should consider running Honden of Seeing Winds and Sanctum of Calm Waters to draw cards, Zur can find you a few other Shrines if you ever draw into a Draw engine, none better than Sanctum of Stone Fangs. I guess you'd have to decide how much work 2-3 cards per turn is worth, at least once it's set up it doesn't use more resources.

DreadKhan on pew = PEW PEW PEW (Ghyrson Starn)

3 months ago

Not sure if you've got enough bodies for it, but Kyren Negotiations lets each creature ping your opponent each turn, which your Commander can buff.

I like the idea of throwing in lifelink equipment, some of it has other upsides. The ones I think look most interesting are Shadowspear, which gives buffs and can remove Indestructible, and maybe Resurrection Orb, but you do have to send your Commander to the graveyard I think to get the recursion.

If you want a way to get a 1 drop into your hand more reliably, there is Dizzy Spell, which is much cheaper than Fabricate and can find any 1 drop. There are other Transmute cards for different MV, all Black or Blue. Blue can't find 4 drops IIRC, but can find a bunch of others.

A generically helpful creature in a deck that likes a 1/1 flying token is Faerie Formation, which makes tokens and draws cards, both tend to be helpful on their own, getting both is nice. Another card that I feel like is kind of good in this deck would be Arc Mage, it's a nice budget way to ping two creatures for 1, in a pinch it can also do 2 if your Commander isn't out.

If you go the Propaganda route, some other cards to consider are War Tax and Ensnaring Bridge. If you can keep your creatures power low enough (and have some draw), Noetic Scales can be very good at keeping the board clear of big threats, and you can deal with the weenies I suspect.

DreadKhan on unthinkable apocalypse

4 months ago

I'm not certain the Commander has enough explosive power to consistently win vs 2 decks, but I have very good results in 1 v 1 with my Rakdos deck, and it often has spare cards by the end of the game, be it wipe or removal, because the deck just runs so much of those, with lots of the removal hitting more than 1 target (I love stuff like Phyrexian Purge, Fire Covenant, Make an Example, and Volcanic Offering can each be a terror of a card, and a deck running all of them has lots of pinpoint removal that will clear lots of stuff out. Ashes to Ashes and Reckless Spite also exist fwiw, and if you aren't certain you'll have creatures out, Tergrid's Shadow can do a bit of work, as can Plaguecrafter or Demon's Disciple, cards Sedris can recur for 2B even. Another value card is Dredge the Mire, which can cheat in the 3 worst creatures in people's graveyards, note certain creatures will kill you if you control them, so check before playing! Necromantic Selection not only clears the field, it also gives you back the best thing, this is extra juicy if you use some sort of Indestructible creature(s) that won't die. If you consistently have a fairly big creature, or one with Deathtouch and Lifelink, Chandra's Ignition is one sided by definition, one of many cards that shines brightly with Basilisk Collar (which is also very good with Jaya Ballard, Task Mage or even good old Banshee, Jaya's 6 damage wipe really is amazing if you've got Collar on her, though it'll kill her too). If you expect to have multiple opponents, Goad is a very strong effect, Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant is potentially pretty solid, lots of card draw. There is also Kardur, Doomscourge that will force everyone's hand. Spectacular Showdown is a great card if you've actually got a board of your own to finish people off, keep in mind that on your next turn, you not only won't have been attacked by any pre-existing creature, everyone else will have swung for the fences with Double Strike, and they will likely have nothing left to defend with, making your Double Strikers very effective. Another Goad source that is great with a creature heavy board is Agitator Ant, which is hilarious a lot of the time. If you're using Goad effects, War Tax can let an opponent have a way around them, if there is a tax to attack Goad fails, and War Cadence is absolutely devastating with Goad, even a tax of 1 to block can make blocking impossible for weenie decks, and you can use either on anyone's turn.

As you've got access to Blue, there are a few non-Rakdos tricks you can use, the most hilarious I know of is Mass Diminish, note that it lasts until your next turn and have a good laugh. There is also Sudden Spoiling, which is powerful but lasts for that turn, or Polymorphist's Jest, which is similarly a 1 turn solution. I use Mass Diminish more aggressively, to make a player hyper-vulnerable to attackers (and make them unable to counter attack), getting two casts is just savage. Visions of Duplicity can create some chaos with it's two casts, Cultural Exchange is obscene if someone else has better creatures. Bident of Thassa is glorious if you want both of it's effects, forcing people to attack is incredibly mean, and this doesn't require you to run a weenie like Goblin Diplomats, but that's also a fun card fwiw. If you're going to run Oriq Loremage, you might slip in a huge creature to Unearth, something like Dragon Tyrant can be huge and not break the bank, Double Strike and Firebreathing are really good together, and you won't have to pay the upkeep with Unearth, he's dead before that matters.

I was looking at your land count and average Mana Value and I think you probably are running too few lands at this point, it's very tempting to cut them, but 30 is probably too few for a MV that is over 2.5. You might get away with adding 2 mana ramp, but I'd still aim for at least 36 lands (or MDFCs that count as a land, you probably already have the best two MDFCs in those colours, but people also run Malakir Rebirth  ^Flip) to ensure you can consistently cast stuff. There is a smattering of ways you can run less lands/ramp, but these all come with downsides, but in Grixis you can run 4 solid Bounce Lands, Dimir Aqueduct and Guildless Commons should be in here as well if you want a lower land count, these let you hit another land drop when you draw them. You might also run stuff like Thran Dynamo or Worn Powerstone to help you hit higher MVs sooner, ramping by only 1 mana feels bad compared to hitting a land drop most of the time, there is also Gilded Lotus, but hitting 5 mana can be rough. Coalition Relic can charge for 1 turn, Skyclave Relic is super versatile/rugged, and Everflowing Chalice can be huge if you want, 6-10 mana is absurd but sometimes comes up. Cantrips like Ponder and Preordain are also good at digging for a land, but I know in Talrand it stings pretty bad when you Preordain and don't find a land and I needed one. As for some cards to remove, I'll take a look, but if I'm trying to build a deck that can handle attention, I look first at cards that will hurt only 1 player, unless that card will almost certainly end that player, either right away or in a few turns.

A few to consider removing (I may be missing why you have them in, so user discretion is advised or something): Archive Trap, Outpost Siege, Palace Siege, Ponder, Preordain, Haunting Echoes, Cruel Ultimatum (this seems insanely hard to cast, and hits only 1 player, unless you can copy it I'd run Captive Audience if I want to hose one player hard), Cranial Extraction, Cormela, Glamour Thief, Kess, Dissident Mage, Kroxa, Titan of Death's Hunger, Lobber Crew, Loyal Subordinate, Nekusar, the Mindrazer, Obeka, Brute Chronologist, Phenax, God of Deception, Runo Stromkirk  ^Flip, Spear Spewer, and Thermo-Alchemist.Some maybe cards include Angrath, Captain of Chaos, and Cryptolith Fragment  ^Flip (for another land, maybe a better rock, there is Thought Vessel, but fixing is sweet in Grixis).

Hope some of this is helpful!

hootsnag on Hurkyl, Tempo Master Wizard

4 months ago

Portent, Crawlspace, Web of Inertia, Dream Tides, War Tax, Glacial Chasm, Monastery Siege, Cryptic Command, Extract, Portcullis, Dissipation Field, Overburden, Archmage Ascension, Frozen Aether, Reins of Power, Rapid Hybridization, Siren's Call, Cyclonic Rift, Mission Briefing, Reality Shift, and Resculpt are just a few you could potentially use. You can very easily go creatureless if you want to. You just have to lean on different win conditions and use cards like Ward of Bones /etc.

DreadKhan on Why So Serious?

4 months ago

You might enjoy Agitator Ant, it is pretty funny in chaos decks, as is Angel's Trumpet. It's a weird card, but War Cadence is really useful to make blocking impossible. There is also War Tax, which is the opposite yet also very fun. If you aren't big on combos, Protection Racket can either give you non-lands or deal damage, extra juicy with Exquisite Blood obviously. He's clunky now, but Kaervek the Merciless deals a heap of damage, both him and Vial are good with Mask of Griselbrand, as is Rite of the Raging Storm.

Not quite sure it fits, but Fatespinner does a fair bit of work, adding a substantial cost to attacking for your opponents while doing nothing to you.

DreadKhan on Killing You Softly with Card Draw

4 months ago

I often find War Tax and Flood are playable, especially if I usually am not the most threatening deck (and thus are less targeted depending on groups), either can very much ruin a deck's day. There is also Mass Diminish that can either neutralize a threat or make someone super vulnerable, in addition to just being the funniest way to use resources most of the time. I feel like there are a few situations you'd prefer Polymorphist's Jest, but Mass Diminish's shockingly long duration means it can do crazier stuff in my experience.

You might want good old Ivory Tower in here, not sure if you play in a meta where people win via non-infinite combat/damage, obviously a stinky garbage fire if everyone plays infinite combo.

Since you'll often have extra cards, not sure if Dreamscape Artist as a repeatable Blue Harrow matters enough (it's slow but the untapped lands make it 'cheap' ramp), also nice with Graveyard utilization.