Manaless and Bananaless

Commander / EDH Artifact Casual Jank Storm WUB (Esper)

EleshNornsFs

Lifegain (32)

• 1x Angel of Vitality
• 1x Angel's Mercy
• 1x Arashin Cleric
• 1x Beacon of Immortality
• 1x Benediction of Moons
• 1x Boon Reflection
• 1x Cathedral Sanctifier
• 1x Chaplain's Blessing
• 1x Charming Prince
• 1x Congregate
• 1x Contemplation
• 1x Crypt Incursion
• 1x Cursebreak
• 1x Dazzling Reflection
• 1x Divine Offering
• 1x Elixir of Immortality
• 1x Feudkiller's Verdict
• 1x Healing Grace
• 1x Healing Salve
• 1x Heroes Remembered
• 1x Light of Hope
• 1x Lone Missionary
• 1x Recuperate
• 1x Renewed Faith
• 1x Rest for the Weary
• 1x Rhox Faithmender
• 1x Righteous Confluence
• 1x Riot Control
• 1x Serra Ascendant
• 1x Solemn Offering
• 1x Soothing Balm
• 1x War Report

Cheating (1)

• 1x Master Transmuter

Draw? What's that? (1)

• 1x Rhystic Study

Just in case your Citadel dies (1)

• 1x Sharuum the Hegemon

Topdeck Manipulation (1)

• 1x Sensei's Divining Top

Ramp (30)

• 1x Arcane Signet
• 1x Azorius Signet
• 1x Blinkmoth Urn
• 1x Cabal Ritual
• 1x Coalition Relic
• 1x Dark Ritual
• 1x Darksteel Ingot
• 1x Deranged Assistant
• 1x Dimir Signet
• 1x Dreamstone Hedron
• 1x Fellwar Stone
• 1x Fractured Powerstone
• 1x Gemstone Array
• 1x Hedron Archive
• 1x K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth
• 1x Mana Vault
• 1x Manalith
• 1x Mind Stone
• 1x Mox Opal
• 1x Obelisk of Esper
• 1x Orzhov Signet
• 1x Prismatic Lens
• 1x Prismite
• 1x Prophetic Prism
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Sphere of the Suns
• 1x Talisman of Dominance
• 1x Talisman of Hierarchy
• 1x Talisman of Progress
• 1x Worn Powerstone

WinCon (4)

• 1x Aetherflux Reservoir
• 1x Brain Freeze
• 1x Sphinx-Bone Wand
• 1x Tendrils of Agony

Yeah, casting my whole library in a single turn sounds like a good idea right now. (1)

• 1x Bolas's Citadel

Commander (1)

"Land" (18)

• 1x Agadeem's Awakening  ^Flip
• 1x Beyeen Veil  ^Flip
• 1x Blackbloom Rogue  ^Flip
• 1x Chrome Mox
• 1x Glasspool Mimic  ^Flip
• 1x Hagra Mauling  ^Flip
• 1x Kabira Takedown  ^Flip
• 1x Lotus Bloom
• 1x Lotus Petal
• 1x Malakir Rebirth  ^Flip
• 1x Mana Crypt
• 1x Mox Tantalite
• 1x Pelakka Predation  ^Flip
• 1x Sejiri Shelter  ^Flip
• 1x Silundi Vision  ^Flip
• 1x Skyclave Cleric  ^Flip
• 1x Umara Wizard  ^Flip
• 1x Zof Consumption  ^Flip

Tutor (10)

• 1x Demonic Tutor
• 1x Dimir Infiltrator
• 1x Enlightened Tutor
• 1x Fabricate
• 1x Grim Tutor
• 1x Mystical Tutor
• 1x Reshape
• 1x Treasure Mage
• 1x Vampiric Tutor
• 1x Whir of Invention

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Tezzeret, my servant, come witness my newest creation!... Ha! You think I have need for such pitiful sources of power as mana?! No! This grand Citadel shall be powered by your spark and your blood!

What Is It?

To be frank, this deck is a godless, janky monstrosity. In a sense, it is a one card combo, but in another sense the whole library is the combo. It is a Lifegain/Storm deck that uses Bolas's Citadel to cast the whole library in a single turn.

Why?

The idea was conceived and developed in a forum thread by Reznorboy titled Manaless and Bananaless, thus the deck's name. His post had a few key points. First was how much fun it was to blast through your library with Bolas's Citadel. Next was the issues that stop it from really shining, being land and life. If you have already played your land for the turn, you can't play another with the Citadel, stopping you from storming off, and if you are out of life, you can't keep casting either. Reznorboy had a solution to each problem, drawing inspiration from the classic Manaless Dredge deck, and using Oloro, Ageless Ascetic as your commander to help with the life problem.

Then How Does it Work?

Manaless Dredge doesn't work well for EDH. It has a narrow list with little variation, and runs everything in multiples, meaning that it simply doesn't translate well to 100 card singleton. The landless solution came in 2 parts: 0-cost mana rocks and Zendikar Rising's new Modal Duel-Faced Cards (MDFC'S for short). The rocks have added advantage of not costing any life to cast with Citadel. MDFC'S provide land on the back side, but because they are spells on the front, they can be cast with the Citadel without interrupting the storm. With so few sources of mana, and only a single combo piece, the deck requires a ton of tutors to even function, as well. Playing 100 cards would cost a lot more than your 40 starting life and Oloro, Ageless Ascetic can only do so much. The life total problem was solve through spells such as Chaplain's Blessing that give an amount of life greater than their CMC, in essence creating a Dark Ritual-type effect with your life.

But What Does It Do?

The wincons are simple at straightforward. There are the 2 classic storm cards, milling or dealing damage based on how many cards have been cast in a turn, which easily reaches 50 or more. There is Aetherflux Reservoir which provides increasing lifegain, and lets you use your life to damage others. Finally, the is Sphinx-Bone Wand, which deals increasing damage for every spell you cast.

How Do I Operate It?

Playing it is straightforward. For your opening hand you need at least one MDFC or artifact that can be played for free. If you don't have that, mulligan. With one such card in hand, my current test data indicates that you have a 50% chance of being able to storm off by T10. With two, it goes to 75% and with three, 90%. Play what you can, and sit tight until you can tutor for what you need.

In this next section, I have every card, with a brief description or explanation, organized by function.

"Land"

Agadeem's Awakening   -The only unique MDFC in the list. It enters untapped if you pay 3 life, which is useful on occasion.

Beyeen Veil  , Blackbloom Rogue  , Glasspool Mimic  , Hagra Mauling  , Kabira Takedown  , Malakir Rebirth  , Pelakka Predation  , Sejiri Shelter  , Silundi Vision  ,Skyclave Cleric  , Umara Wizard  , Zof Consumption   - All the remaining MDFC'S. The spell sides don't actually do anything for the deck, other than exist.

Chrome Mox - A mana rock that comes at the cost of a card in your hand. Most cards are redundant enough that it doesn't matter what you throw away.

Lotus Bloom - This is an interesting card in that it functions like a Black Lotus that takes three turns to actually enter the battlefield. It is great to have turn one, but it's value diminishes rather quickly. Note that you don't have to wait if you cast it with the Citadel.

Lotus Petal - Because this one only has one use, it is situational. The best use I have found is either for Dark Ritual or to tutor for a different rock.

Mana Crypt - This is one of the best turn 1 card you can get. It will immediately allow you to play some more rocks, ramping you absurdly quick. The average damage is negated by Oloro.

Mox Tantalite - The philosophy behind this one is the same as Lotus Bloom. It is really good T1, but loses value quickly.

Ramp

Arcane Signet - One mana of any color for 2. Really good.

Azorius Signet - 2 cost, activate for 1 to give 2. Provides decent fixing and ramp.

Blinkmoth Urn - With adequate T1 ramp, this becomes your best friend. If you don't cast this early it becomes a dead card. Probably next on the chopping block.

Cabal Ritual - Costs 2, gives 3. Great for fixing to get the BBB required by Citadel. You rarely have threshold when cast.

Coalition Relic - Taps for 1, but can also tap to give 1 next turn. Can give steady ramp or a quicker burst.

Dark Ritual - Costs 1, gives 3. Absolute god tier. One of my favorite cards in the history of MTG.

Darksteel Ingot - A 3 cost indestructible rock that gives 1.

Deranged Assistant - Taps for 1, but mills you 1. Milling 1 is scary for a deck that relies on 1 specific card to win. Also up for elimination.

Dimir Signet - Decent fixing and ramp.

Dreamstone Hedron - Costs 6, taps for 3. Good to play smaller rocks and then sacrifice for draw.

Fellwar Stone - Costs 2, taps for a color an opponent can produce. U and B are extremely common in EDH, so can almost always tap for a useful color.

Fractured Powerstone - Costs 2, taps for 1.

Gemstone Array - Great color fixing, and allows for ramp by storing mana for a later turn at a rate of 2 to 1.

Hedron Archive - Costs 4, taps for 2. Like Dreamstone Hedron, it is an excellent source of draw.

K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth - Turns all in casting costs to . Endlessly useful. Makes it so you can cast Bolas's Citadel for . Or just 8 life and if you have a Dark Ritual.

Mana Vault - Costs 1, taps for 3, won't untap unless you pay 4. Will deal damage to you if tapped, so use wisely.

Manalith - Costs 3, taps for 1. Very basic.

Mind Stone - Costs 2, taps for 1. Also a good source of draw.

Mox Opal - Costs 0, taps for 1 if you control 3 artifacts. Bad turn 1, but amazing after that.

Obelisk of Esper - Costs 3, taps for W, U, or B. Effectively same as Manalith.

Orzhov Signet - Decent fixing and ramp.

Prismatic Lens - Costs 2, taps for 1. Also filters colors.

Prismite - Filters mana at a rate of 2 to 1.

Prophetic Prism - Draws a card and filters.

Sol Ring - Costs 1, taps for 2. Wins games. Steals girlfriends.

Sphere of the Suns - Costs 2, enters tapped, taps for 1 of any color. Can only be used 3 times, so use sparingly. After it is used up, it makes for great fodder for Reshape.

Talisman of Dominance, Talisman of Hierarchy, Talisman of Progress - Excellent 2 cost ramp. Taps for colorless or colored at the cost of 1 damage.

Worn Powerstone - Costs 3, enters tapped, taps for 2. A good little rock.

Lifegain

Angel of Vitality - She provides a small boost to your lifegain. It adds up quick.

Angel's Mercy - Net lifegain of 3.

Arashin Cleric - Net gain 1, and a small body.

Beacon of Immortality - A little expensive to cast. You need to have 13 or more life to gain anything from this spell, but if you do, the gains can be huge.

Benediction of Moons - Costs 1, but can gain 2 to 8, depending on the situation.

Boon Reflection - Doubling your lifegain is huge. Hitting this card early in the storm almost guarantees a success.

Cathedral Sanctifier - Net gain 2.

Chaplain's Blessing - Net gain 4.

Charming Prince - Net gain 1. Scrying 2 is sometimes more helpful.

Congregate - At its worst, it will probably brake even. At its best, life for days.

Contemplation - A small boost to lifegain. Its biggest benefit is helping recoup the cost of the mana rocks.

Crypt Incursion - A variable amount of lifegain. Helps counter reanimators.

Cursebreak - Net 0 to delete a problematic enchantment.

Dazzling Reflection - Amazing against a voltron deck.

Divine Offering - Variable gains.

Elixir of Immortality - Gains 5 and can help recover from a really bad day.

Feudkiller's Verdict - Net gain 4, and some giants if you are already ahead.

Healing Grace - Net gain 2.

Healing Salve - Net gain 2.

Heroes Remembered - Net gain 11. Can also be suspended early on for more gain.

Light of Hope - Net gain 3.

Lone Missionary - Net gain 2.

Renewed Faith - Net gain 3.

Wincons

Aetherflux Reservoir - This card is your best bet. It does both the things the deck needs in the most effective ways. It's lifegain is absurd and the 50 life is an absolute Death Star laser.

Brain Freeze - A good spell to remove a tapped out opponent. It won't kill them until they draw, so if they have mana open and cards in hand, they can still pull off a miracle.

Sphinx-Bone Wand - To be honest, I have never actually used this one. I can't tell you much about it, other than the fact that it probably isn't good if it is one of the last cards you cast.

Tendrils of Agony - A great nuke that also give you life to work your way to the next kill. The only problem with this card, as well as Brain Freeze, is if you hit it too early to do any real harm.

Miscellaneous

Master Transmuter - This card does not see enough play. It can pull off some serious BS and even a theoretical T2 win. It is the most efficient way to cast Bolas's Citadel and you will never have a shortage of artifacts to bounce.

Rhystic Study - I wanted a little extra draw and this seemed like the best way to get it. I would have included a Mystic Remora, but the deck is too mana starved to make it work.

Sharuum the Hegemon - This is just about your only back up plan if someone counters or destroys your Citadel.

Sensei's Divining Top - The top deck manipulation is vital in the early game. It helps you dig deeper to get those sweet little mana nuggets.

The Big One

Bolas's Citadel - This is it. This is the big one. The one piece that makes the deck a deck. The plane that carries the nukes. The angel of death and the end of the war. Without it, there is no hope. With it, a thunderous calamity and then silence. If it gets exiled, scoop. If it gets destroyed, pray that you have a Sharuum the Hegemon readily available.

More descriptions to be added later.

If you want to help or give suggestions, also check the most recent updates to see what I am specifically looking for at the moment! Thank you!

Top Ranked	Achieved #12 position overall 3 years ago Achieved #9 position in Commander / EDH 3 years ago Achieved #1 position in Commander / EDH Artifact 3 years ago Achieved #1 position in Commander / EDH Casual 3 years ago
Date added	3 years
Last updated	3 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	10 - 0 Mythic Rares 25 - 0 Rares 32 - 0 Uncommons 33 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	2.78
Tokens	Giant Warrior 5/5 W, Knight 2/2 W w/ Vigilance
Folders	Need to Build, Ancient Dinosaur Immortals!