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Grazilaxx, in search of Blue Beat Street

Commander / EDH Mono-Blue

sully314

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Creature (25)

Enchantment (5)

Instant (16)

Sorcery (10)

Commander (1)

Commander: Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar

Artifact (10)

Land (33)

Maybeboard

Creature (2)

Artifact (2)

Instant (1)

CoAsTaL pIrAcY

eXtRa TuRnS

TeTsUkO 3.0

Hello, and welcome to my favorite deck to play. This decklist has been an evolving project for years now, ever since the printing of Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive back with the Dominaria set release in 2018. Eventually, Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar would take the helm, providing some much needed value in the command zone. As with the Commander, the win conditions of this deck have changed several times over the years, from infect to go-wide token strats to ultimately extra turns, however the core characteristic of the deck has always remained the same; attack aggressively with evasive blue creatures and kill opponents through combat.

This deck relies upon cheap and evasive creatures to deal combat damage to opponents, triggering Grazilaxx and other Coastal Piracy type effects. The resulting card draw will eventually find us an extra turn spell. The ultimate goal is to chain one extra turn spell into the next into the next, gaining enough value each combat to find the next extra turn. With enough turns, our hoard of tiny creatures will kill the table

Ideally, these early turns involve dropping a land and creature on each turn, curving out to our Commander, Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar. This will usually allow for 2 cards drawn off of the combat trigger on turn 3. Good opening hands include 2-3 lands, and 1-2 pre-Grazilaxx creatures. Turn one cantrips such as preordain and ponder make 2 land opening hands much safer to keep, as does artifact ramp. Don't be afraid to mulligan with this deck, so long as you land Grazilaxx and an evasive creature or two on curve you will draw cards.

These are the turns we want to firmly establish our draw/value engine. Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar will draw us up to 3 cards per combat. Assuming we have 3 evasive creatures, a Coastal Piracy effect will double the number of cards drawn. These turns are also the prime window for us to equip high value artifacts such as Sword of the Animist and Sword of Feast and Famine, or cipher Stolen Identity onto a suitable creature. The goal is to be generating enough value and cards drawn per combat to feel confident in casting our first extra turn spell.

At this point we are looking to win given the first opportunity. Each combat phase is likely netting us 6+ cards drawn from our Coastal Piracy effects, or a similar amount of value off of equipment and creature effects. If we haven't found one already, we are biding our time until we reach an extra turn spell. Once found, cast it! Obviously backing it up with counter magic or waiting till your opponents are tapped out is ideal, but often just making them have the interaction will get you there. Once the first extra turn spell slips through, you usually don't have to worry about protecting the rest that follow. Take turns and kill them until they die!

Extra Turns: -Capture of Jingzhou -Karn's Temporal Sundering requiring Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar, Esior, Wardwing Familiar, Kira, Great Glass-Spinner, Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive, or Thassa, God of the Sea as a creature. -Notorious Throng requiring Brazen Borrower, Faerie Mastermind, Faerie Vandal, Mercurial Spelldancer, Nightveil Sprite, Slither Blade, Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive, or Thieving Skydiver to have dealt damage this turn. -Temporal Manipulation -Time Warp

Extra Mileage: -Archaeomancer -Mercurial Spelldancer -Mission Briefing -Narset's Reversal -Mystic Sanctuary

When to take them: Taking an extra turn is an immediate heads up to the table that 'hey, this guy's an issue'. That is why the set up matters. Making sure we accrue enough value each combat to find our next extra turn, or beginning the chain with the second already in hand, is a good rule to follow to make sure the win goes off without a hitch. Sometimes though, an extra turn can be a great value play. Rarely would I turn down a turn 4 extra turn if I can do so. The card draw and extra land drop will usually put you in a good position moving into the next few turns.

Combo: 1 evasive creature with Stolen Identity ciphered on. SI targets Archaeomancer. Archibald targets [insert extra turn spell]. Attack enemies until death.

Damned If You Do, Damned If You Don't: Grazilaxx, Illithid Scholar allows you to give your opponents some interesting choices. Creatures such as Archaeomancer, Sower of Temptation, Thassa's Oracle, and Thieving Skydiver can all be attacked into player with valid blocks. Will they choose to take some chip damage and allow you to draw additional cards, or will they allow you to return these creatures to hand so you can replay them and get more ETB value from them? *On that note, Fair Thoracle?!? Yes, cast that Thassa's Oracle! Looking at the top X and picking the best is good, you'll be fine. And if she scares some chump into wasting removal on her, even better.

General Note: Many of the creatures and spells in this list are multifunctional. Keep an open mind and grind out the extra value where you can find it.

Paper differences: None, fully papered at last!

Upcoming Replacements: Deepfathom Skulker for Enduring Curiosity (better cmc, more resilient). Propaganda for Sword of the Animist (generates more value, accelerates wins). Ominous Seas for Silent Hallcreeper (more immediate payoff, big bodies aren't very relevant). Sword of Forge and Frontier for Sword of Feast and Famine (just better). Muddle the Mixture for Flare of Denial (I've found the transmute to not be extremely relevant, free interaction protects wins better).

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98% Casual

Competitive