Deck #23: Sultai (Blue-Black-Green)
Hey Guys! Dave here. Today I wanted to explore the “new” (depending on when you are reading this) companion mechanic. I’m writing this with the knowledge that the mechanic was nerfed, now requiring a payment of 3 generic mana at sorcery speed to put the companion into your hand before casting it. While this is a big hit overall, I still wanted to make a deck utilizing the mechanic because it is a very neat concept and I wanted to explore it just a little bit.
Back in 2015 or so, I was inspired to build a Sidisi, Brood Tyrant deck utilizing Altar of Dementia and the Eldrazi titans to mill continuously. At the time, I didn’t read the card very well and thought Sidisi put a 2/2 Zombie into play per creature milled. Good times! I eventually shelved the idea until I could focus a bit more on how to fully utilize her actual ability; one 2/2 Zombie per mill IF you hit a creature. Well, Gyruda, Doom of Depths was printed (five years later), COVID has us all shut inside, and I decided it was time to tackle the project.
The first step was to think about how my ramp package would work without the infamous Sol Ring – but that wasn’t very difficult at all. Most ramp packages seem to run Sol Ring and maybe Wayfarer's Bauble in the one drop slot, then go off with two mana ramp anyway. I just replaced the 1 CMC must have with a spare Mana Crypt I had and that was settled. NOTE, Mana Crypt isn’t needed for this deck, you are just as good running another CMC 2 spell such as the Talismans, Fellwar Stone, or Arcane Signet in this spot and still function as a deck. I also decided this was one of the few times Chrome Mox would be important. Generally the mox is reserved for more competitive decks that want fast mana to combo off where the card disadvantage won’t matter, but hitting turn 4 with this deck is kinda important as you want to drop your commander early for value. Being able to make two mana on turn one to get into the game quicker is nice when you don’t have a typical one or three drops on your curve to fill in the gaps. This is also why I choose to run more ramp than I typically do in ensure I get something early in the game.
Card draw is usually the second thing I tackle when deck building, and this was no exception. The difference being that every card I mill over should be producing card advantage through my commander. This first led me to consider any card draw effects with a flashback or similar mechanic. Deep Analysis and Chemister's Insight were my first thoughts as they both draw two cards and can be cast from the yard. There are other considerations here as well, but most of them only draw a single card and didn’t seem very impactful. I included Baleful Strix because it discourages attacks with deathtouch and can produce value if hit off Gyruda, Doom of Depths (or Temur Sabertooth if you decide to run it; I ultimately cut this green favorite of mine but always look for ways to include him again). Ancient Excavation is a must include card for any deck running Blue and Black because the instant speed card selection is powerful AND you can always fix your mana in a pinch. After that I decided to go big. This deck is ultimately built around a bit of a reanimator strategy and I picked some of my favorites.
The mill part of this deck is important if you want to flood the field with zombies. Incremental mill effects are key in ensure you maximize the number of zombies you can make. I still included Altar of Dementia because it acts as an alternate win condition and can allow you to sacrifice creatures for value in response to removal. Life from the Loam ensures you continue to hit land drop as the game goes on and with a few cycle lands in the deck you may be able to set up a decent engine during the game. Titans' Nest is an amazing card for this deck, not only does it allow a potential one card mill per turn, it can really ramp you into hard casting some of the big threats the deck runs due to the pseudo-delve ability!
Originally, I was running a Necrotic Ooze combo in the deck, however, after a few games I decided I wanted a more streamlined combo that still utilized the graveyard. I switched over to a combo package involving Muldrotha, the Gravetide, Animate Dead, Phantasmal Image, and Lion's Eye Diamond. The combo works by using Muldrotha to replay the Image, coping Muldrotha. Sacrifice the original Muldrotha and use the copy to cast Lion’s Eye. Sacrifice Lion’s Eye for three black to cast Animate Dead, returning Muldrotha and repeat the loop. This provides infinite mana and allows you to recast all your other permanents from the graveyard. This combo can win in one turn and doesn’t require all the parts be in the graveyard to start. The best part is that each card functions well with the deck individually which reduces the chance of a bad draw.
In closing, I wanted to address one massive weakness this deck has, Void Winnower. This card basically says you are not allowed to play Magic by cutting off your deck from casting spells and preventing your creatures from blocking. I’ve included TWO answers to this problem and I’m welcome to hear if anyone has another solution working within the deck building constraints. The first solution is Curse of the Swine, by paying an odd number into X you have an odd CMC – so for 3 mana you can exile the eldrazi menace and replace it with a 2/2 pig. Second (was) Sickening Shoal; however I recently re-discovered the Finale of Eternity which is an excellent answer to the eldrazi menace. You will still have to pay quite a bit of mana (11 total) but you get a three for one and the potential to bring your entire yard back into play. And again, there are other solutions that you may want to include as well, such as counter magic or maybe an XUU bounce spell, but I decided to go more reactive with removal instead. Sometimes you just get got, and that’s fine. Until next time, Happy Gaming!
