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Funeral In Carpathia [[EDH + Primer]]

Commander / EDH Aggro BG (Golgari) Competitive Dredge Primer Reanimator

TearsInRain23

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Creature (36)

Planeswalker (2)

Land (34)

Enchantment (5)

Artifact (7)

Instant (5)

Sorcery (10)

Commander (1)

Commander: foil Meren of Clan Nel Toth

Meren of Clan Nel Toth EDH Deck Primer

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Introduction

This deck is my longest running, game store competitive level Meren of Clan Nel Toth deck. It is designed with the skeleton of a The Gitrog Monster -styled "lands to the graveyard" theme and has proven highly versatile in many different types of play environments. Conceived to be played primarily for 1v1 matches, this deck is capable of holding its own in multiplayer as well, though at a moderately more fair capacity. This deck is proficient in unleashing powerful combos and tight card synergies that create an oppressive and merciless experience to whomever plays against it. This deck is fast and is meant to be played with a near careless regard for your own means in order to properly eviscerate your opponents.

The Primer

Deck Overview

Why Meren? Why ?

Well, perhaps the more complex question is, why Meren of Clan Nel Toth and not The Gitrog Monster , Karador, Ghost Chieftain , Muldrotha, the Gravetide , or Lord Windgrace .

Meren of Clan Nel Toth is a beast of a recursion engine. The experience counters are easy to accumulate and with this deck, once you hit 8 counters, you no longer need to keep track of them for the remainder of the game. Her being a two color commander also keeps things simple when needing to color fix, especially for early plays. What makes her more proficient than the other commanders are listed with the following reasons:

  • The Gitrog Monster : While a secondary theme to this deck and a worthy inclusion in the 99, the big bad frog requires a heavy land cycling focus and can be a risk to play if the engine isn't going.
  • Karador, Ghost Chieftain : Simply put, too expensive. Meren recurs without needing to pay casting costs. This deck also likes to get things out of the graveyard quickly, so creatures rarely linger for more than a turn or two to make the cheaper casting cost of the spectral centaur relevant. The white mana he brings does not bring enough synergistic cards to the table to justify breaking up the tightness of the two color combo.
  • Muldrotha, the Gravetide : I'll admit, this one would be the first choice for substituting Meren out, simply for the addition of blue granting access to dimir spells. The biggest drawbacks come with speed. Casting permanents is not as strong as simply moving them from the graveyard to play and the gravespawn elemental costs 6 mana before she can be brought out.
  • Lord Windgrace : Again, the lands matter theme is a subtheme and would require this deck to be shifted completely in that direction. The access to jund colors do nothing to significantly improve the flow and speed of the deck. Plus, as a planeswalker, the black panther is too easy to remove.

Meren is the cheapest to cast of all these popular reanimators and can start combos off almost immediately. Having her out early enables a large portion of the deck to be played at its full potential, making her a vital necessity to achieving victory.

Deck Strengths

This deck has two major strengths that I find to be highlights to every game won: speed and answers. This deck is fast and relies heavily on early game power houses that do one of three things: provide utility, draw cards, draw opponent's removal. The deck also has a great deal of synergy that allows the mid-game to become a battle of combo breaking with its own source of reusable removal spells and its ability to go infinite with a few lucky draws/ tutors. This deck also manages to win through a variety of different combo types and methods from infinite damage, infinite tokens, creature overrun, and resource strangulation.

Deck Weaknesses

This deck does not have a very definitive weakness beyond two things: consistent graveyard hate (a one time Bojuka Bog is not difficult to recover from, but recurrable Tormod's Crypt is game ending); and consistent battlefield hate/ exile effects. Early game answers to Meren herself slow the deck down a few turns easily. Hand hate is rare in my meta but the one time this deck faced it it lost hard due to lacking any resources to get what I needed. Creatures are this decks bread and butter and they are the easiest to remove. If they're done so before the deck is ready to operate off their removal, it can greatly stilt the early game. While not impossible, this deck can be slow to recover from multiple turns of resource denial, especially if land destruction comes into play (It hasn't yet, but it could happen.)

The 99

  • Acidic Slime : Classic removal on a stick with deathtouch. Mid to late game answer to problem artifacts and enchantments. Has been known to be used to destroy 2 lands in a single turn.

  • Azusa, Lost but Seeking : Wonderful card to play early game with a good draw engine. Combos well with Ramunap Excavator and The Gitrog Monster and/or Lotus Vale . Otherwise sacrifice fodder.

  • Birds of Paradise : Early game ramp, mid to late game sacrifice fodder. Occasional blocker of flying creatures.

  • Creakwood Liege : Tokens for sacrifice and a banner buff to my creatures makes this guy a popular card to play when I want my opponents to waste their removal.

  • Dark Confidant : Early game draw that garners a lot of removal hate. Mid to late game sacrifice fodder.

  • Elvish Piper : Early game acceleration to big creatures. Often played to draw attention to be removed. Mid to late game sacrifice fodder.

  • Elvish Visionary : Personal favorite for recurring ETB draw and sacrifice.

  • Eternal Witness : When it is not a creature I need returned to my hand. Often targeting my tutors or sacrifice enabling artifacts/ enchantments that get hated out.

  • Fauna Shaman : An amazing tutor that tends to draw out a lot of hate. Inferior budget version of Survival of the Fittest but has the upside of being a recurring target if Meren brings it back into play.

  • Grave Titan : Combo-enabler and powerful creature on its own merit that unleashes a horde of tokens for overrunning opponents and/ or for sacrificing purposes. Wins when unanswered. Goes infinite with Ashnod's Altar and Nim Deathmantle . Wins when unanswered.

  • Gray Merchant of Asphodel : A feel good ETB trigger to double up with a sacrifice outlet and Meren mid to late game. Has the potential to turn games around and come back from low life or even surprise killing a player (has happened more than once).

  • Grim Flayer : Early game beater and amazing card advantage if it gets through. Often a decent mid game beater and usually nothing more than sacrifice fodder late game.

  • Jadelight Ranger : Experimental recent addition. Offers great ETB card advantage that can go to the hand or graveyard. The +1/+1 counters rarely come into play as anything more than a nuisance to opponents. A more expensive but more versatile Elvish Visionary .

  • Krav, the Unredeemed : A new edition and a powerful sacrifice outlet that must be dealt with immediately else it gets out of control. Wins when unanswered.

  • Lord of Extinction : A massive beater and occasional win-con with its sheer size. Key play is after you've confidently exhausted any opponent removal. Wins when unanswered.

  • Mikaeus, the Unhallowed : Combo-enabler and the scariest creature in the deck. When it is not going infinite with Walking Ballista or Woodfall Primus it is doubling the ETB effects of sacrificed creatures and buffing the board. Wins when unanswered.

  • Noxious Gearhulk : An all star recurring removal spell in the deck that has the added benefit of gaining life lost from any potential plays that caused you to lose an uncomfortable amount of life.

  • Oracle of Mul Daya : Classic card ramp and a great way to filter land draws which can quickly become this deck's comeuppance if the land is a dead draw.

  • Overseer of the Damned : More amazing removal with the added benefit of providing sacrifice fodder. Its flying is not irrelevant in the current meta this deck faces either.

  • Protean Hulk : At its best when it can die to your sac outlet and fetch Mikaeus, the Unhallowed and Walking Ballista . Also capable of fetching whatever is most necessary at the current situation, or can be a big beater when players are too scared to kill it and I do not have an outlet to sacrifice ready to go.

  • Ramunap Excavator : Combos well with Azusa, Lost but Seeking and cards like Lake of the Dead , Lotus Vale , Greater Good (For that land discard), The Gitrog Monster , Dryad Arbor , Ash Barrens , Hissing Quagmire , and Verdant Catacombs .

  • Ravenous Chupacabra : Redundancy in recurring kill spells tends to properly infuriate the opposition.

  • Razaketh, the Foulblooded : Most powerful tutor and biggest flying body in the deck. Wins when unanswered.

  • Rune-Scarred Demon : More tutor that flies. Need I say more?

  • Sakura-Tribe Elder : An all-star in early game ramp with Meren. Drawing him early usually puts me in the lead so quickly the opposition can not recover.

  • Sheoldred, Whispering One : A simply high valued creature that must be answered before it locks down opponents and recurs everything double time from your graveyard. Wins when unanswered.

  • Smothering Abomination : Surprisingly efficient card draw and mid-game engine. The added flying makes it an amazing utility creature.

  • Solemn Simulacrum : A staple ramp-and-draw card for any sacrifice themed deck.

  • Spore Frog : The bane of any 1v1 match for your opponent. With this fungal toad in play you're practically guaranteed the time you need to build (or rebuild) your board state. Can not save you from everything. Will draw a lot of hate on you as a player for playing it.

  • The Gitrog Monster : The good ole land sacrifice engine is great card draw on a dangerous body that is often left to operate due to the more apparent threats you'll be playing.

  • Thragtusk : Value sacrifice fodder for the lifegain and creature token. Middle of the road card that can save you in a pinch but often found to be pitched back into the library for something better.

  • Titania, Protector of Argoth : Combo-enabler with certain cards that creates some throw away big beaters. Not to be underestimated. Wins when unanswered.

  • Walking Ballista : Early game free experience counters, utility creature removal, and good to keep in the graveyard. Win condition with mikaues, the unhallowed and some form of repeatable sacrifice outlet. Wins when unanswered.

  • Woodfall Primus : An often land eating behemoth that will not go away. Win condition with mikaues, the unhallowed and some form of repeatable sacrifice outlet. Wins when unanswered.

  • Wurmcoil Engine : Combo-enabler and a favorite for sacrificing. Goes infinite with Ashnod's Altar and Nim Deathmantle . Wins when unanswered.

  • Yavimaya Elder : Versatile and a combination of Sakura-Tribe Elder and Solemn Simulacrum . Amazing early game ramp and all game card advantage.

  • Garruk, Apex Predator : Aggressive planeswalker hate is highly valued in the local meta. Deathtouch token production and redundancy in the Noxious Gearhulk effect. 1v1 matches tend to end when this walker enters play. Wins if unanswered.

  • Nissa, Voice of Zendikar : My personal favorite planeswalker. Amazing early game play for the tokens and threat of buffing my entire board. Often neglected to be dealt with (or protected well enough) resorting to the ultimate often being used. Wins if unanswered.

  • Buried Alive : Fetches for the tools to deal with whatever needs to be dealt with at the time using Meren and the other reanimation engines to get them out of the grave and into play. Popular fetch tool for combo pieces.

  • Cultivate : Pure mana ramp. Always a great early draw in case the land draw isn't working in your favor.

  • Damnation : When you just need to say "screw this board, I'm wiping it."

  • Demonic Tutor : Get anything you want for 2 mana. No worries.

  • Diabolic Intent : Get anything you want for 2 mana. No worries. That creature you sacrificed just helped further the cause.

  • Life from the Loam : A double whammy with the land recursion effect and then the dredge to pseudo draw three cards into your graveyard for more shenanigans.

  • Living Death : Can close out games in the right situation and the most efficient one sided boardwipe in the deck.

  • Primal Growth : A better Cultivate with a relevant kicker.

  • Reanimate : Can put massive things out really early. The life lost is inconsequential 90% of the time.

  • Yawgmoth's Will : When you need to recur more than you've already been recurring. Plays instant and sorceries as well as destroyed or discarded artifacts and enchantments for maximum value.

Feedback

Criticism and suggestions are always welcome! This deck is constantly looking to be honed and improved. This is a paper only deck so no outrageous suggestions that are only affordable in Online only prices. I do not ever plan to take this deck beyond local gaming store tournament level but that does not mean I don't want to hear feedback regarding its conclusions and what could potentially be a better fit. My goal is to optimize this deck without bending into tier 1 competitive overplayed combos and otherwise unfun competitive turn 1 win mechanics.

Thank you very much in advance for any input given.

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Casual

91% Competitive

Revision 43 See all

(6 years ago)

-1 Bitterblossom main
+1 Cultivate main
+1 Damnation main
-1 Kokusho, the Evening Star main
-1 Massacre Wurmfoil main
+1 Putrefy main