Nightmare Realm

Commander / EDH* Budget Mill UB (Dimir)

GeistKing

Creature (31)

• 1x Consuming Aberration
• 1x Dreamborn Muse
• 1x Duskmantle Guildmage
• 1x Endling
• 1x Fleet Swallower
• 1x Fog Bank
• 1x Geth, Lord of the Vault
• 1x Glen Elendra Liege
• 1x Guard Gomazoa
• 1x Guiltfeeder
• 1x Hedron Crab
• 1x Jace's Archivist
• 1x Lazav, Dimir Mastermind
• 1x Lochmere Serpent
• 1x Massacre Girl
• 1x Mirko Vosk, Mind Drinker
• 1x Mortivore
• 1x Murderous Rider
• 1x Nighthowler
• 1x Oona, Queen of the Fae
• 1x Riddlekeeper
• 1x Sewer Nemesis
• 1x Silent Arbiter
• 1x Sire of Stagnation
• 1x Tomebound Lich
• 1x Tree of Perdition
• 1x Tymaret, Chosen from Death
• 1x Undead Alchemist
• 1x Vantress Gargoyle
• 1x Vizier of Tumbling Sands
• 1x Wight of Precinct Six

Planeswalker (2)

• 1x Ashiok, Dream Render
• 1x Ashiok, Nightmare Weaver

Land (37)

• 1x Barren Moor
• 1x Choked Estuary
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Darkwater Catacombs
• 1x Dimir Aqueduct
• 1x Dismal Backwater
• 1x Drowned Catacomb
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Fetid Pools
• 1x Halimar Depths
• 1x Ipnu Rivulet
• 8x Island
• 1x Jwar Isle Refuge
• 1x Lonely Sandbar
• 1x Nephalia Drownyard
• 1x River of Tears
• 1x Skyline Cascade
• 1x Sunken Hollow
• 7x Swamp
• 1x Tainted Isle
• 1x Temple of Deceit
• 1x Terramorphic Expanse
• 1x Underground River
• 1x Watery Grave

Artifact (7)

• 1x Altar of the Brood
• 1x Arcane Signet
• 1x Dimir Cluestone
• 1x Folio of Fancies
• 1x Mindcrank
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Talisman of Dominance

Commander (1)

Sorcery (9)

• 1x Devastation Tide
• 1x Dread Summons
• 1x Enter the God-Eternals
• 1x Glimpse the Unthinkable
• 1x Mind Funeral
• 1x Mind Grind
• 1x Scheming Symmetry
• 1x Startled Awake  ^Flip
• 1x Traumatize

Instant (8)

• 1x AEtherize
• 1x Counterspell
• 1x Didn't Say Please
• 1x Dramatic Reversal
• 1x Drown in the Loch
• 1x Into the Story
• 1x Thought Collapse
• 1x Vona's Hunger

Enchantment (5)

• 1x Fraying Sanity
• 1x Memory Erosion
• 1x Patient Rebuilding
• 1x Psychic Corrosion
• 1x Sphinx's Tutelage

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This is my version of a budget deck with Phenax, God of Deception as my Commander. I've run this deck many times in my budget EDH group (All of us being under 200 dollars or so and no one using $20+ powerhouse cards). I've decked multiple people and often take a few down the ol' fashion way thanks to Guiltfeeder, graveyard buffed creatures, or easy snipes.

Even when this deck loses it always made people pay a hefty price. Most of the time I do well it's because in a multiplayer Commander game (3-5) players, I'm usually the least threatening board state early on. Hide behind those walls. It is a good way to become a sleeper until my Commander comes online and starts doing some work on libraries. I reiterate, this deck shines when there are more players. 1v1 is can be a tad slow, especially for those creature heavy decks, but if you get a single wall it can stall long enough. You need lots of graveyards to abuse. That doesn't mean you are a declawed cat in 1v1 but if that's what your solely looking to do, you may need to make some changes.

Some fun things to do is get giant zombies out with Undead Alchemist or Enter the God-Eternals or even a multitude of them with Dread Summons not because they are threats to life total, but when you get a handful of zombies or ten 2/2 zombies that is some serious mill potential when Phenax, God of Deception comes online.

Fraying Sanity + Traumatize will instantly deck your opponent. I've done it on turn 5 before, but can be done on turn 3 if you get lucky with sol ring.

Mindcrank + Duskmantle Guildmage triggers an infinite loop with mill or damage if you use our buddy's activated ability.

Originally, when I created this deck a few years ago, I had all these 0/6 and 0/7 walls. I think that is a big mistake in many Phenax decks. Sure they could provide your Commander a huge chunk of mill when he is live, but ultimately there are many walls the provide little other than that for you. If it doesn't have evasion of self protection like Fog Bank or Guard Gomazoa you are just asking for a useless wall that will die to a green fatty, an evasive wizard ninja, or a death-touching rot boy. So give yourself creatures that provide more utility, you will see a world of difference.

4-21-19 Updated with War of the Spark

7-14-19 Updated with Core 2020 Scheming Symmetry is the best addition to a mill deck we could ask for. You tutor a card for 1 mana. Give the opponent the same choice, but then you just mill whatever they searched for. Win win.

10-7-19 Updated with Eldraine. We were given plenty of fun new toys to play with. Vantress Gargoyle is an absolute beauty. Murderous Rider gives us more bang for our buck compared to a single creature destroy. Drown in the Loch Do I need to explain this nice add in? Lochmere Serpent and Folio of Fancies are optional but I enjoy the recursion and drawing mixed with mill.

2-5-20 Updated with Theros. While there were a few "maybe" cards that appeared tempting, one that actually made it in was Tymaret, Chosen from Death because at best he is already 2 toughness but black devotion is easy to hit with this deck for extra Phenax mill. BUT the real deal sealer is that ol' angry lad and Lochmere are ways to stop people from anti-mill hate cards like Gaea's Blessing. As soon as it hits the graveyard, get rid of it.

Date added	6 years
Last updated	4 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	7 - 0 Mythic Rares 43 - 0 Rares 19 - 0 Uncommons 15 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.41
Tokens	City's Blessing, Faerie Rogue 1/1 UB, Zombie 2/2 B, Zombie Army 0/0 B
Folders	ideas EDH, CheapTheme, Mill, Tentative, Commander