Alela, Dancer of the Magister's Citadel

Commander / EDH Artifact Budget Casual Enchantment WUB (Esper)

Demon519

Artifact (21)

• 1x Nihil Spellbomb
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Wayfarer's Bauble
• 1x Witching Well
• 1x Azorius Signet
• 1x Courier's Capsule
• 1x Dimir Signet
• 1x Elsewhere Flask
• 1x Golden Egg
• 1x Guild Globe
• 1x Ichor Wellspring
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Wishclaw Talisman
• 1x Commander's Sphere
• 1x Etherium Astrolabe
• 1x Heraldic Banner
• 1x Bident of Thassa
• 1x Trading Post
• 1x Whip of Erebos
• 1x Bolas's Citadel

Enchantment (9)

• 1x Favorable Winds
• 1x Omen of the Sea
• 1x Seal of Cleansing
• 1x The Birth of Meletis
• 1x Banishing Light
• 1x Etchings of the Chosen
• 1x Oblivion Ring
• 1x Profane Procession  ^Flip
• 1x Elspeth Conquers Death

Sorcery (6)

• 1x Ponder
• 1x Dance of the Manse
• 1x Fabricate
• 1x Day of Judgment
• 1x Time Wipe
• 1x Dusk / Dawn

Land (34)

• 1x Arcane Sanctum
• 1x Castle Vantress
• 1x Caves of Koilos
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Esper Panorama
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Glacial Fortress
• 1x Irrigated Farmland
• 7x Island
• 1x Isolated Chapel
• 1x Lonely Sandbar
• 1x Nimbus Maze
• 6x Plains
• 1x Prairie Stream
• 1x Scoured Barrens
• 1x Secluded Steppe
• 1x Shambling Vent
• 3x Swamp
• 1x Temple of Deceit
• 1x Terramorphic Expanse
• 1x Vault of the Archangel

Instant (8)

• 1x Swords to Plowshares
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Dovin's Veto
• 1x Muddle the Mixture
• 1x Mortify
• 1x Perplex
• 1x Clutch of the Undercity
• 1x Utter End

Planeswalker (2)

• 1x Serra the Benevolent
• 1x Tezzeret, Artifice Master

Commander (1)

Creature (19)

• 1x Baleful Strix
• 1x Crashing Drawbridge
• 1x Ethersworn Canonist
• 1x Myr Retriever
• 1x Vantress Gargoyle
• 1x Emry, Lurker of the Loch
• 1x Grand Architect
• 1x Junk Diver
• 1x Pilgrim's Eye
• 1x Arcanist's Owl
• 1x Ethersworn Adjudicator
• 1x God-Eternal Bontu
• 1x Sphinx Summoner
• 1x Athreos, Shroud-Veiled
• 1x Sharuum the Hegemon
• 1x Shimmer Dragon
• 1x Sun Titan
• 1x Magister Sphinx
• 1x Sephara, Sky's Blade

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Maybeboard

Artifact (3)

• 1x Lightning Greaves
• 1x Swiftfoot Boots
• 1x Mace of the Valiant

Creature (2)

• 1x Erebos, Bleak-Hearted
• 1x Faerie Formation

Instant (1)

• 1x Whir of Invention

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Testing grounds for budget-friendly, non-infinite, sodium-free (fair) Alela, Artful Provocateur. This build is looking to play a value-aggro style. It's a casual build and relies on having Alela stick around, and to that effect, Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots would be assets. I am trying it out without much protection for now, as having the opponent focus too much on removing Alela can give you time to find actual threats. There is a focus on drawing cards and many of the artifact spells will help with this.

After some revision, the deck has a good mix of artifacts and enchantments. Dance of the Manse and Bolas's Citadel are some of the bigger threats. Magister Sphinx takes one opponent to a point where just a few faeries or the activated ability of the Citadel can finish them off.

The Maybeboard contains a small stax package that doesn't lean too hard into control. Ethersworn Canonist will slow opponents down without absolutely ruining the game. With over 30 artifacts in the main deck, it shouldn't hurt the player much at all. Lodestone Golem is a similar idea and seems a bit lackluster, but is worth trying out. Phyrexian Revoker acts like Pithing Needle but is easier to remove since it's a creature. This hopes to promote some interaction whereas traditional stax just shuts people down. Phyrexian Revoker does have the notable advantage of being able to shut down a nonland card's ability to produce mana, such as Elves, Ashnod's Altar, etc. I will be experimenting with some of these and more, so consider the maybeboard fairly seriously.

Day of Judgment can replace or be added alongside Dusk / Dawn if you want to be able to fetch a board wipe with Cluth of the Undercity's Transmute ability. Scourglass is negative synergy with Alela herself but may be needed when your opponents are ahead of you. Noxious Gearhulk and Mystical Tutor provide utility. Traxos, Scourge of Kroog has a whopping 41 Historic spells in the current main deck, so he should be easy to swing with each turn. Bonus points if you equip him with Mace of the Valiant for vigilance and take advantage of his trample ability.

Sphinx Summoner should primarily be...summoning sphinxes. The biggest/most impactful artifact creatures in the main deck are Sharuum the Hegemon and Magister Sphinx. Go figure!

Finally Myr Retriever and Junk Diver go almost infinite with Krark-Clan Ironworks. The loop produces -1 mana each time, and it only really manages to accomplish creating a bunch of Faeries with Alela. Still, not a bad trade. Crashing Drawbridge could take advantage of this and allow you to turn those dozen or so new Faeries sideways. I know there are ways to go infinite with KCI but part of the purpose of this deck is to avoid salt and play fair without having to hold back.

So, there you have it: my semi-final build of Alela. The maybeboard is like a transformative sideboard and it really depends on your style and what you find fun. If you want to play Esper-colored artifacts and enchantments, why not try Alela? She deserves so much better than the pre-con. Please feel free to leave suggestions and other comments. There's probably some cool or powerful stuff I missed out on but keep in mind this build is avoiding playing expensive cards. Serra the Benevolent is, at the time of this writing, the most expensive card in the deck, listed at $7 USD.

I will not run the artifact lands like Seat of the Synod because Commander has many ways to destroy artifacts, and I don't want to make it easier for opponents to Strip Mine me out of the game. The temptation is there to use animation like Ensoul Artifact and Skilled Animator, but I don't think it's worth the risk when Alela can just keep making 2/1 fliers.

Date added	4 years
Last updated	4 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	8 - 0 Mythic Rares 32 - 0 Rares 22 - 0 Uncommons 21 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.21
Tokens	Angel 4/4 W w/ Vigilance, Emblem Serra the Benevolent, Emblem Tezzeret, Artifice Master, Faerie 1/1 U, Goat 0/1 W, Thopter 1/1 C, Wall 0/4 C