UPADATE: No more Paradox Engine . It got banned in commander, so now it cannot be used as one of our win conditions:

Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis + Paradox Engine + Phyrexian Altar (or any sacrifice outlet) + 7 creatures.

What if infinite saprolings isn't enough for me?

How can I get more saprolings, like an infinity squared amount? Saprolings are like cowbell in a Blue Oyster Cult song.... need... more... saprolings.

Okay, okay. Let's try to think of something here... Infinite squared saproling cowbells....

How about, Parallel Lives , Doubling Season , Primal Vigor , the whole shebang, then top it off with a Saproling Symbiosis and a Second Harvest ?

Not enough? Okay. Once you do all of that, play Mycoloth .

If that don't do it, nothing will.

I find EDH Hogaak fascinating as a deck.

I don't see Grafted Exoskeleton on your list actually, though you mentioned it in the comments. There's also Glistening Oil if you haven't considered it.

Birthing Pod + Hogaak --> Craterhoof is a combo not on here which is pretty clean, if not infinite.

I've been playing with Carrion and testing Path of Discovery / Beastmaster Ascension . I also feel like if literally any deck can make Awaken the Erstwhile viable, it's this one.

Was surprised to see no Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord , Creakwood Liege , or Izoni, Thousand-Eyed , but I haven't played this deck much, just theorycrafted.

Cards you may not have heard of that combo with Hogaak: Ooze Garden , Monkey Cage (lol), and Reign of the Pit .

Great suggestions, thanks!

Okay, you got me. I was focusing so much on the combo aspect of this deck, that I (for some reason) took out Grafted Exoskeleton , which was a mistake. I need multiple ways of winning. Not just one.

Birthing Pod + Craterhoof Behemoth seems solid. I'll try to find some space for Craterhoof. I personally like Birthing Pod + Razaketh, the Foulblooded .

You're right about the Awaken the Erstwhile .

The reason I haven't been putting in cards like Izoni, Thousand-Eyed , Creakwood Liege or even Monkey Cage , is they're on the high CMC side, and I wasn't really trying to go too deep into a token build. I feel like for Izoni in particular, she wouldn't actually give me that many tokens. A lot of the time, there's only 3 or 4 creatures in my graveyard.

I particularly like your Ooze Garden suggestion. 2-mana 8/8s seem pretty good.

I still need to do some more testing to see if cards like Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord or The Gitrog Monster are worth it in the deck.

hi! i recently got interest into commander. i'm here on your list because golgari is my favorite color, i do play hogaak in modern and both my decks in pauper and modern are both graveyard decks.

i've got no idea with regards to commander and their respective power level, i want to start as a casual player. may i ask what is the power level of this list?

with regards to budget, may i ask if you got some list or recommendation on what to replace to make this list much cheaper? thanks!

Glad to help!

In terms of power level, I would rate this deck as an 8.5/10, which is on the competitive side. I haven't actually done that much testing of this deck in a four player setting, but it definitely wins games.

I feel like if you wanted to make a budget Hogaak deck, you could still keep many of the elements I'm already using. You could use the cards I mention in my description that get you Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis out on turn 3.

And you could still win the main way this deck wins, which is by going for the Greater Good + Zombie Infestation + Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis combo drawing you into the Korozda Guildmage + Phyrexian Altar + Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis combo (even though unfortunately, the Phyrexian Altar is pretty expensive).

Here's a budget list that is loosely connected to my origional deck.

https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/budget-edh-hogaak/

I know budget is all relative, but this was the easiest list I could come up with within the span of 10 minutes.

If you want more in terms of edh, I really recommend the site EDHREC. It's a database of all the decks of all the commanders people have posted online, and it has some useful tools as well. Unfortunately, in Hogaak's page everyone seems to be playing the same cards.

super thanks! this budget list is really helpful towards building my very 1st commander deck. i'll cross checked between your budget and this full build on what expensive cards i can get into, thanks again!

right now i'm trying to cross reference 4-different hogaak decks (your list / mtggoldfish budget / jimmy from command zone / your budget) and i'm quite surprised to find that they differ by more than 50%. at first, i thought that they would be the same since they belong to the same archetype but i was greatly wrong.

Love the deck, super cool. What is the Eternal Witness + Living Death + Life / Death + Phyrexian Altar + 5 other nontoken creatures combo though? I can see infinite mana but does Life / Death somehow help with this combo?

Okay. Wow. I've been playing this wrong the entire time....

For some reason, I never thought you could stack the Eternal Witness trigger after the Living Death resolved. So, you're right ColFrogfoot. I don't need the Life / Death .

Dude, thanks for helping me out!

Have you considered beast whisperer? You have so many one drop creatures and you can cast hogaak for free

Beast Whisperer wouldn't be a bad include... I just already have so much card draw, and I think the deck would probably be okay without it.

If I had to think of a card it would replace, it would probably be Cream of the Crop . The upside to Beast Whisperer is that it's a creature, so it can tap to play Hogaak. Although it does cost 2 more mana than COTC. But the downside to COTC is that it only gets you one card each time, so you could be potentially trashing some bombs. I'll think about it.

Solid suggestion, thanks!

what's your opinion about this card: Return of the Wildspeaker ?

You know killer_eye, I think that is a fantastic include. In this deck, it's a strictly better Soul's Majesty , 'cause it's an instant, and the two modes. I tried putting it in yesterday, and it didn't work. I guess the card was just spoiled, so TappedOut didn't have enough time to upload it into its database?

Anyways, yes! This is a must-include. Thanks for reminding me!

I really like this deck, i wanted to give you some card ideas so youll let me know what you think of them like the cycle lands since they seem like a good idea, Lotleth Troll and Street Wraith also seem to sinergize very well and of course Key to the City

Thanks for the suggestions!

I've thought about Lotleth Troll before, and decided that it's too narrow. In the early game when a discard outlet is most useful, I want the flexibility of being able to discard any card to help play Hogaak.

Now Street Wraith is an interesting idea. Yeah, I think it would be a good include! It'll help with the deck's general consistency, and it'll be an extra boost to Hogaak's "delve count". And I think the same can be said about the cycle lands. But how many cycle lands is too many? Hmm. I might need some help with that.

The thing about Key to the City is that it's a 2 drop, and I don't have that many cards available for that CMC slot. I want to maximize the amount of creatures in that slot to help play Hogaak. But on paper, this card is definitely doing everything this deck wants to do. If you want to add it into your list, it wouldn't be a bad idea.

spicy I just started looking for an edh hogaak list and I see many nice ideas here. Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord feels like a potential wincon. Another favorite of mine is Corpse Dance which could do some clever tricks like sac for mill or go inf.

As always, thanks for the suggestions!

Hmm. So, I've been getting a lot of Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord suggestions, and I guess the reason I haven't been including him is the high mana cost. Sure, 4 mana to play him, and 3 mana to sac Hogaak for 8 damage to each opponent doesn't sound like a lot, but it is. It'll take five Jarad activations to kill everyone outright, and this is assuming you have 15 mana, as well as at least 8 creatures and 20 cards in the graveyard to replay Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis 4 times. If I have that kind of board state, then I'd probably do something else with it.

And I'd imagine, that if you'd intend to use Jarad over multiple turns, that he'd paint a target on your back as soon as you dealt the first 8 damage to each opponent (but I guess, for me at least, just playing this Hogaak deck paints a target on my back. My playgroup has seen it win a bit too much, unfortunately).

Now the Corpse Dance is an interesting suggestion. I don't think I've ever seen this card before today. Would you mind elaborating the "clever tricks" this card can do? I can imagine an infinite combo with a Priest of Gix , a Panharmonicon and any sac-outlet.

On first glance, it looks like an investment that already requires infinite mana, but I could be wrong.

SueMe Instead of all-or-nothing pov on Jarad, instead consider the synergy: sac outlet that hurts the hole table, removal target with recursion that can grow and pack a punch. The damage he brings adds up over time.

Similarly Corpse Dance synergy with the sac outlets in the deck, for mill, for blocking, instant speed recursion/going off with Korozda Guildmage ,ramp with sacrifice. Since it's new to you, it might take practice to get used to all the tech it brings (because buyback). It can revive any creature at instant speed with haste. I'm sure there are inf lines I can't think of atm. Triskelion and Solemn Simulacrum and Mindless Automaton come to mind but there're probably better targets.

Okay. I guess I just got confused because you talked about Jarad as being a potential wincon. There is certainly synergy there, don't get me wrong, but I still think the price is too high.

Corpse Dance could be interesting, and I could always do with a little more recursion. The only thing that's making me skeptical about adding it, is it won't allow me to ever rearrange my graveyard to my satisfaction. However, I can see some sort of, discard Razaketh, the Foulblooded to a discard outlet, then get it out for 3 mana using the Dance. And I know it can do more because of that "Buyback" mechanic. I'll do some testing.

Great list +1

I'm building Hogaak this week and I'm excited to finally play Zombie Infestation .

How would you rate the following in Hogaak?

Syr Konrad, the Grim / Desecrated Tomb ...delve triggers?

Plague of Vermin / Spontaneous Generation ...lots of tokens?

Deathrite Shaman / Hermit Druid ...utility staples?

Cadaverous Bloom ...for the combo turns?

I definitely recommend Skirge Familiar and second Corpse Dance . I play both with Demonlord Belzenlok and they're easily the best cards.

Also, if you like Living Death , try Twilight's Call ...or Rise of the Dark Realms .

Thanks for the upvote and the suggestions!

Yeah Zombie Infestation is definitely one of my favorites.

At first, I was skeptical about the Syr Konrad, the Grim idea, because it seemed to be doing exactly what our combo was doing, and I didn't want to use up another card slot for another Altar of Dementia , but after some thought, I'm starting to reconsider. Maybe Konrad doesn't need a combo to be deadly. I'm picturing a scenario with Konrad on the battlefield, and then resolving a Living Death . Or even just drawing a whole bunch of cards, then discarding a whole bunch of creatures. It'll be something interesting to try out.

I put Desecrated Tomb into my Marchesa, the Black Rose deck, and it did really well, but I don't think it'll do too well in Hogaak's case. In general, I try to stray away from exiling creatures from my graveyard, but even if I did start exiling them, I don't picture myself getting that many bats....

I've never been too much into the token build. I usually don't need a whole bunch of tokens to replay Hogaak, though there are a couple times when I'm short on creatures. I don't think I'll need the Plague of Vermin or the Spontaneous Generation if I'm being honest.

You're right, there's little reason not to include Deathrite Shaman . Maybe I'll take out a Wood Elves for it.

I feel like for each person who makes this deck, they have to make the decision between Hermit Druid and Traverse the Outlands . I personally think I'm fine without the Hermit, so that's why I don't include it and have the Traverse instead.

Now Cadaverous Bloom .... Wow. Just wow. I think this card is busted, and I'm surprised that this is the first time I've ever heard of it. I know it exiles, but that's a small enough price to pay when you're drawing 8 cards a turn. A definite include.

I think I've put in and taken out Skirge Familiar twice now. It's good, but sometimes I need to replace it with some better stuff. For example, that Cadaverous Bloom you just mentioned! If I have the space, I'll add it in.

Hmm. My second Corpse Dance suggestion. I'll give it some thought, but as I said earlier, it hampers my ability to keep my Bridge from Below s on the top of my graveyard.

I think Living Death is enough. I don't particularly need a whole bunch of mass recursion.

Again, thanks for the suggestions! I know I'm rejecting a whole lot of them, but I'd rather stay honest, than give people my false opinions. But that doesn't mean people shouldn't give me a whole bunch of suggestions; the more the merrier!

@SueMe Your reasoning is solid, thank you! It helps the theory-crafting a lot!

Rn I'm looking at all the possible ways to play Hogaak on turn 1... but it's looking like the only way through the mana-gate to play two creatures for a turn 1 Hogaak is with Lotus Petal / Dark Ritual / Chrome Mox / Mox Diamond ...or discarding Bridge from Below and playing a Phyrexian Marauder / Stonecoil Serpent / (etc) for 0. The Bridge combo seems pretty niche, but I'll definitely run Ritual (and Moxs when I'm rich).

If you need another discard outlet, there's Oona's Prowler ... if letting everyone discard isn't too much of a drawback.

Corpse Dance ... do you mean just so you can rearrange your graveyard aesthetically? (note 404.2: that is illegal xD). Delve is one of the few mechanics that actually enables Dance and lets you manipulate the top creature to resurrect whichever you like. Goes infinite with Phyrexian Altar + Symbiotic Wurm .

SueMe explain_ Hmm. My second Corpse Dance suggestion. I'll give it some thought, but as I said earlier, it hampers my ability to keep my Bridge from Below s on the top of my graveyard. _

Haha. Good luck on that turn one Hogaak venture of yours. The only way to do it in my list is to play a Swamp into Putrid Imp , and Lotus Petal into Stitcher's Supplier . Hmm, maybe I should put in a Dark Ritual myself....

Oona's Prowler doesn't seem too bad. I'll keep it in the back of my head in case I need another discard outlet.

Okay, okay, you've caught me. It's just... the yard's gotta look pretty.

You're right about the Hogaak delving thing... Oh all right. I'll put the Dance in.

That Altar + Wurm + Dance thing is pretty cool. I'll keep Symbiotic Wurm under the Maybeboard section, mostly because it's cool, but I don't want to run cards that are purely for the combo (even though, I guess that's what Korozda Guildmage is, but I like Korozda because it works specifically with Hogaak).