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Happy Little Accident[al murder]s! :D (Anhelo)

Commander / EDH* UBR (Grixis)

grizzbear_98

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Lands (35)

Win Conditions (6)

Recursion (2)

Advantage (21)

Casualty Fodder (14)

Ritual (4)

Boardwipe (2)

Tutor (2)

Commander (1)

Commander: Anhelo, the Painter

Control (18)

Ramp (9)

Copy (3)

Maybeboard

Other (6)

There are two main parts to the deck, that being the control/advantage portion that takes full advantage of anhelo's ability to copy spells, alongside token generation to create bodies to sacrifice to casualty. A big problem I noticed in Anhelo decks is that many of them lack ways to actually win the game beyond getting a bunch of value, which I aimed to change through the use of very obvious win condition cards. There are no real combos in this deck to win the game, but it does consistently win through out-valuing opponents and setting up for our win condition cards.
Each card explained by its given category. Several appear multiple times, which are explained in all sections that they are in.
In order to take full advantage of Anhelo's ability, we need to constantly make a board of creatures that we can sacrifice. Most of the time we do this through token generation, but there are other cases.
  • Black Market Connections - A card that really does everything we want if we're willing to pay the life. Creatures to sacrifice with casualty, treasures to ramp, and card draw on top of it makes it an auto include. Though we definitely won't be paying all 6 life every turn.
  • Bloodghast - One of the best fodder cards. Returning on landfall combined with the advantage we get from casualty makes this nearly permanent.
  • Cryptic Pursuit - Both fodder and advantage in one card make this a unique utility choice. Extremely versatile due to its second ability.
  • Curse of the Restless Dead - Tends to fly under the radar, but this can make a lot of bodies when placed on the right player.
  • Deekah, Fractal Theorist - Triggering on copy makes the card an auto include in my opinion. Using Casualty turns into a +1 in creatures, and further fuels blockers and fodder.
  • Field of the Dead - While this card did destroy other formats, here it just serves as a hidden subtheme and value engine. More bodies to sacrifice is never a bad thing.
  • Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia - A body to sacrifice every turn cycle. Does more work than you'd expect since his token generation is not conditional. Extremely good if played early, and still solid played late.
  • Metallurgic Summonings - Admittedly I think this card is just worse than Deekah. But ti being an enchantment makes it much harder to remove, and therefore still worth including.
  • Poppet Stitcher   - Same reasons as Metallurgic and Deekah, making bodies on cast is good. The flip of this is really only used in niche situations, and the likelihood of wanting to is very low.
  • Rotten Reunion - Graveyard hate that makes a fodder body. It having flashback at instant speed just makes it even better.
  • Shark Typhoon - While admittedly very expensive mana cost wise, the tokens having flying makes it worth it.
  • Skyclave Shade - Bloodghast at home. It's the same effect except it costs mana. Still overall solid though.
  • Talrand, Sky Summoner - See Deekah, Metallurgic, Poppet Stitcher, Shark Typhoon...

  • Wizards of Thay - Really unique utility card, serving to pseudo ramp and provide fodder with the myriad copies. being able to cast sorceries at flash speed is also extremely underrated and lets us bide our time to cast relevant threats and wincons. Notable the reduction DOES effect the cost of X spells, auto paying for 1.

Copying cards that generate us advantage is the main strategy we want to enable with Anhelo. Turning every draw 2 into a draw 4 gets out of control very fast.

  • A Little Chat - Card selection, plus it effectively has casualty 2 casualty 1 due to Anhelo.

  • Archmage Emeritus - Yes, I would very much love to draw 2 additional cards on every instant or sorcery I play because magecraft triggers on copy.
  • Big Score - This card becomes insane when copied. It effectively goes +2 in card advantage and neutral on mana due to the treasures. Notable the additional cost is not payed on copy since the copy is not cast, which is the case for all other cards that list additional costs.
  • Black Market Connections - A card that really does everything we want if we're willing to pay the life. Creatures to sacrifice with casualty, treasures to ramp, and card draw on top of it makes it an auto include. Though we definitely won't be paying all 6 life every turn.
  • Blue Sun's Zenith - When copied with Anhelo, this cann draw an insane amount of cards, or even function as a wincon to deck someone out if the situation calls for it, though this is very rare.
  • Brainstorm - Blue staple, copying it effectively reads "Draw 4, put 2 on top." With several ways to shuffle our deck or draw more cards, the drawback is negligible.
  • Cryptic Pursuit - Both fodder and advantage in one card make this a unique utility choice. Extremely versatile due to its second ability.
  • Deep Analysis - Solid draw spell that doesn't mind being discarded either for the cost of another spell or to hand size.
  • Dig Through Time - This card will almost guaranteed cost . Without copying this is a solid source of advantage, with a copy this digs a whopping 14 cards deep.
  • Fact or Fiction - Almost always a good card draw spell in blue, but copied lets us dig pretty deep at 10 cards seen.
  • Frantic Search - Fairly standard blue spell to dig, since it is effectively free. When copied, this nets you 3 additional mana to use as the situation needs.
  • Mystic Remora - Blue staple to draw some cards. Very strong played early, still solid played late.
  • Ponder - Card selection is good, especially when you're able to do it again after shuffling the first time.
  • Preordain - Digging 2-3 for is great. Dig 4-6 for the same cost when paying the casualty cost is even better.
  • Rhystic Study - Card advantage for your opponents casting spells is very good in this deck, since it also lets us use our mana to generate advantage rather than control more often.
  • Sea Gate Restoration   - Admittedly I usually play this as a land early on. Most of the time this will net you 8 cards or more ideally, so it can be very strong if actually played.
  • Silundi Vision   - A card I find to be very underrated in spellslinger decks, when using casualty this goes +1 and digs 12 cards deep.
  • Syphon Mind - Telling your opponents to all discard 2 and then drawing 6 is an insane effect. Even when not copied, this card can be insane.
  • Thrill of Possibility - When casualtied this is 2 mana +2 in card advantage. Very good for very cheap.
  • Unexpected Windfall - Exactly the same as Big Score except it costs . It's very good for the same reasons.

  • Valakut Awakening   - Card selection is great, plus copying this lets it go +1 in card advantage and allows even more selection. Can be played as a land if needed.

    • Obviously all of our win conditions are very expensive, so we need to ensure that we live long enough to cast them, and preferably with insurance. Notably targeted removal takes significantly more advantage of copy synergies than counterspells do, and as such more targeted removal is present.

  • Arcane Denial - Counterspell that draws you a card. Yes they get to draw too, but ultimately still worth it.

  • Bojuka Bog - Graveyard hate on a land. Especially satisfying when played against any graveyard deck, but really never bad.
  • Chaos Warp - Permanent removal is needed, even if this one can be a little scary.
  • Counterspell - The classic counterspell.
  • Cut / Ribbons - Cut is removal. Ribbons is a wincon. Also doesn't mind being discarded since Ribbons is an aftermath spell. Overall very strong, though Ribbons is definitely our weakest wincon.
  • Deadly Rollick - Free exile removal of 2 creatures if you can pay the casualty cost...yeah.
  • Deflecting Swat - This will probably never get copied, but it's still worth playing for protection.
  • Feed the Swarm - Primarily here as enchantment removal since we're not in green or white, but it can hit creatures in a pinch. Beware, copying this will lose you a LOT of life.
  • Jwari Disruption   - This is mostly here to be a land with a different name so I could satisfy a personal goal of no two lands with the same name. But it does work as a counterspell in a pinch.
  • Make an Example - When copied this boardwipes anyone with 3 or less creatures. Sacrifice also gets around pesky things with indestructible.
  • Malakir Rebirth   - Really our only protection outside of counterspells, but it does what it needs to do.Also a land, but you really don't want to play it as one.
  • Narset's Reversal - Arguably the most versatile countermagic for its cost, the downside is that the spell is not removed. But this gets around uncounterable spells, works as a pseudo-copy for your spells, or steals spells that you want from your opponents.
  • Otawara, Soaring City - A land that doubles as a control piece. Can't be copied with Anhelo, but being hard to counter since it is a land ability plus being cost reduced by legends make it VERY good in any blue deck.
  • Rotten Reunion - Graveyard hate that makes a fodder body. It having flashback at instant speed just makes it even better.
  • Soul Shatter - Chances are most people's most important creature will be the highest costed. Plus gets around indestructible.
  • Terminate - Standard Rakdos removal spell, can hit 2 creatures when copied.

  • Vandalblast - Targeted artifact removal of 2 artifacts in a pinch, artifact boardwipe ideally.

    • We have a few additional synergies for copying spells as well, though I tried not to lean too much into it as a subtheme, as I felt I would lose consistency.

  • Dualcaster Mage - Copies something and then gets to be sacrificed to casualty later. No Dualcaster Mage combos are present, see the exclusions section.

  • Errant, Street Artist - Repeatable copy effect turns out is very strong when your commander focuses on copying spells, AKA not casting them. Having flash is very much a plus as well.
  • Twinning Staff - Easily one of the MVPs of this deck, 3 mana for this is insane. Having both this and Errant on board can also become very crazy very quickly. Copying many of our spells once is already strong, three resolutions of something like Dig Through Time or our wincons becomes absurdly powerful.
    • This is a lot of value and decent control so far, but how do we actually win? We run 6 win condition cards to cast late game, 7 if you include the previously mentioned Blue Sun's Zenith in niche situations. Resolving any of these copied will likely kill at least one opponent, if not all, if resolved later in the game.
  • Crackle with Power - Even if this is only cast with X = 2, when copied this will deal 40 damage total. Played after resolving a copied ritual, it's reasonable to see this played for X + 5+, AKA 25 damage to 5 targets, which will likely kill almost everyone.
  • Cut / Ribbons - Cut is removal. Ribbons is a wincon. Also doesn't mind being discarded since Ribbons is an aftermath spell. Overall very strong, though Ribbons is definitely our weakest wincon.
  • Exsanguinate - Lifegain in a pinch, but doubles as wincon, albeit X will need to be pretty high to do this.
  • Nexus of Fate - Admittedly, I normally don't like extra turn spells. Then someone resolved Expropriate on me. Now I'm in my villain arc. Taking 2 extra turns at instant speed is VERY strong alongside Anhelo, let alone that you can draw into it again. This also serves as protection against mill decks. Admittedly this doesn't directly win you the game, but with 2 extra turns under your belt, it likely will result in it.
  • Torment of Hailfire - Alongside Crackly With Power, this wins me most of my games. Played for even something like X = 5, when copied that becomes sacrifice/discard 10 or lose 30. Played after a big ritual, this becomes unrecoverable.

  • Worst Fears - I'll admit, this is a pet card. But taking 2 players turns when Anhelo is out can be backbreaking, especially when you can play as those players without fear of removal. You can also use this opportunity to permanently remove a commander, since you decide where it goes.

    • So obviously our wincons are pretty expensive mana-wise, and we know how to get there in terms of time, but what about in terms of mana?

  • Arcane Signet - Staple EDH ramp for any color.

  • Black Market Connections - A card that really does everything we want if we're willing to pay the life. Creatures to sacrifice with casualty, treasures to ramp, and card draw on top of it makes it an auto include. Though we definitely won't be paying all 6 life every turn.
  • Cormela, Glamour Thief - An interesting ramp piece for instants and sorceries, combined with some recursion. Plus we can sacrifice her to casualty to trigger that recursion in a pinch.
  • Fellwar Stone - Chances are this will tap for at least two of our colors.
  • Storm-Kiln Artist - By far the most absurd Magecraft card. Anhelo allows this to net 2 treasures on every spell cast. This card is also unique in that it can swing if it wants to if anough spells are cast on your turn.
  • Talisman of Creativity - I prefer the talisman cycle to the signet cycle.
  • Talisman of Dominance - See above.
  • Talisman of Indulgence - See above.
  • Wizards of Thay - Really unique utility card, serving to pseudo ramp and provide fodder with the myriad copies. being able to cast sorceries at flash speed is also extremely underrated and lets us bide our time to cast relevant threats and wincons. Notable the reduction DOES effect the cost of X spells, auto paying for 1.
    • There is one other way we have of ramping in rituals. Temporary mana is effectively still mana, and copying these can lead to some very scary spells cast.
  • Cabal Ritual - Chances are this is making 5 unless you've just resolved a Dig Through Time. Nets 8 when copied.
  • Dark Ritual - The standard black ritual, this one is slightly less insane when copied, but still nets a solid 5 .
  • Mana Geyser - By far the best of our rituals. This can potentially net an absurd amount of , even when assuming it's played in a 4 player pod where everyone has hit their landdrop and is tapped out, on turn 5 this nets 15 uncopied. When casualty is payed on this, win the game that turn, otherwise you WILL become a target. This easily pays for your big X spells, so it shouldn't be too difficult to do so.

  • Seething Song - A fairly standard red ritual. Nets 7 when copied.

    • We only have one true boardwipe, as well as an artifact boardwipe. Ideally I would like to play more, but can't really find the space.

  • Blasphemous Act - for a boardwipe. Doesn't get around indestructible, but still very good.

  • Vandalblast - Targeted artifact removal of 2 artifacts in a pinch, artifact boardwipe ideally.

    • Recursion isn't that big of a part of our strategy, since usually our value spells will draw us more value, but we are running two pieces beyond our flashback spells.

  • Cormela, Glamour Thief - An interesting ramp piece for instants and sorceries, combined with some recursion. Plus we can sacrifice her to casualty to trigger that recursion in a pinch

  • Lier, Disciple of the Drowned - Giving my entire graveyard flashback while also shutting off counterspells makes this a fantastic setup to close out a game, or even just gain more value. Just be warned that shutting off counterspells is a double edged blade.

    • We're only running 2 tutors in order to keep the power level of this deck down a bit, but they are still present for consistency.

  • Mystical Tutor - The standard blue tutor, will usually end up fetching either a wincon or an advantage card, though I occasionally have used it to fetch a boardwipe or a ritual as well. Be warned, copying this does nothing.

  • Solve the Equation - Fetch any instant or sorcery to your hand. Extremely versatile and incredibly good when copied. Usually I will tutor up a value card and a control piece in the early to mid game, or a wincon and a control piece in the late game.

    • We are running 35 lands total, with 30 normal lands and 5 flip lands, all of which have different names to enable Field of the Dead. Some of these that are not worth elaborating on are:

  • The shock lands.

  • The pain lands.
  • The battlebond lands.
  • The slow lands.
  • One of each basic.
  • One of each snow basic.
  • Two of the three relevant pathways.
  • Two of the three relevant fetch lands.
  • One of the three filter lands, Cascade Bluffs
  • Our triome, Xander's Lounge
  • Command Tower, Exotic Orchard, and Mana Confluence, as all are commander staples.

    • Onto others that I will explain more on:

    • Bojuka Bog - Graveyard hate on a land. Especially satisfying when played against any graveyard deck, but really never bad.
    • Field of the Dead - While this card did destroy other formats, here it just serves as a hidden subtheme and value engine. More bodies to sacrifice is never a bad thing.
    • Jwari Disruption   - This is mostly here to be a land with a different name so I could satisfy a personal goal of no two lands with the same name. But it does work as a counterspell in a pinch.
    • Malakir Rebirth   - Really our only protection outside of counterspells, but it does what it needs to do.Also a land, but you really don't want to play it as one.
    • Otawara, Soaring City - A land that doubles as a control piece. Can't be copied with Anhelo, but being hard to counter since it is a land ability plus being cost reduced by legends make it VERY good in any blue deck.
    • Path of Ancestry - While yes this is a commander staple, I will elaborate on it a bit just to say that running the lands that tap for one of the three colors in any three color commander (in this case, Crumbling Necropolis) is ALWAYS worse than running Path of Ancestry. Both enter tapped and tap for any color, why would I not take the additional effect of a scry when I cast my commander? Even in cases like this, where it isn't a tribal deck, it is worth it over the vanilla tri lands.
    • Reliquary Tower - Yes, it sucks that this only taps for colorless, but with the amount we're drawing and our control/value based strategy, we need to not have a hand size restriction or we will be discarding a lot.
    • Sea Gate Restoration   - Admittedly I usually play this as a land early on. Most of the time this will net you 8 cards or more ideally, so it can be very strong if actually played.
    • Silundi Vision   - A card I find to be very underrated in spellslinger decks, when using casualty this goes +1 and digs 12 cards deep.
    • Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth - A fantastic card for fixing and a staple in most black decks

    • Valakut Awakening   - Card selection is great, plus copying this lets it go +1 in card advantage and allows even more selection. Can be played as a land if needed.

    Many cards got excluded from this list for one reason or another, so here's a few and why they are not in the list:

  • The entire maybeboard was in the list at some point, but got cut for one reason or another. All of them are good cards in Anhelo lists, but just didn't make the cut here. Bedevil was cut for Chaos Warp since the latter hits permanents, Kess, Dissident Mage and Ral, Storm Conduit were cut for more casualty fodder, Mindsplice Apparatus is a fantastic card that just didn't have enough use in this specific deck due to the costs of my cards, Wheel of Misfortune just wasn't very necessary to play, and Notion Thief was a very difficult cut, but it did improve consistency. Admittedly, I'd like to find a way to get Kess and Notion Thief back in, but it isn't urgent.

  • For some lands, both the Castle cycle and the buddy lands are excluded since they would come in tapped WAY too often, and the same is true but worse for the Eldraine lands. Mystic Sanctuary could potentially be good. but I don't think it's good enough.
  • Takenuma, Abandoned Mire is also great, but we're just not running enough creatures for it to be worth it. I'd rather run any dual.
  • Obviously include the true dual lands if you have them or can proxy them, but I don't want to spend that kind of money.
  • Cabal Coffers "Oh the combo is so good with Urborg," yeah, I know. Unfortunately there's a whole 5 swamps in this deck and Urborg. When is this ever going to tap positively? I'm not adding it.
  • Double Vision is a fantastic card, but I found it to just be too high cost to cast and for it to be worth it in this deck.
  • Mana Drain don't own it. Objectively better than counterspell, but I don't own it and I honestly wouldn't buy it, so I won't even proxy the card among friends. Same is true for Mana Crypt
  • Mystic Confluence great card for this deck, but it's just too mana intensive for me to want to run it.
  • Snapcaster Mage it's not the worst, but it's too mana intensive for me to want to include over a repeatable recursion.
  • Underworld Breach honestly, I go back and forth on if my recursion slot should go to this or Lier, Disciple of the Drowned. I went with Lier for now since the flashback lasts for longer than a turn, but this might find its spot eventually.
  • Expropriate I'm a villain, not a monster. Honestly though, I just don't find this card fun, if you want to play it cut Worst Fears or Nexus of Fate for it.
  • Jeska's Will and Cyclonic Rift are both incredibly good cards and worth playing, but we don't allow them in our playgroup. I recommend adding them as long as your playgroup allows them. Cut Seething Song for the former, unsure of what to cut for the latter, but possibly Jwari Disruption   or Terminate.
  • Vampiric Tutor and Demonic Tutor aren't included for power level reasons. They might find their way in eventually, potentially along with Gamble.
  • Brass's Bounty is an interesting card for this deck, but I find it puts a target on your back unless you use the treasures immediately. It is a good budget option, however.
  • Twinflame yes, I know about the Dualcaster Mage + Twinflame combo, no I will not add it to the deck. I find the deck is consistent enough without it, and Twinflame will just sit in hand unless I have the combo, so consistency would take a hit. Also unless I hard draw Dualcaster, I have no way to search it out without adding the other tutors, which I do not want to do for power level reasons.
  • More extra turn spells would probably be good. I will not be adding them because I personally don't find taking egregious amounts of extra turns entertaining, since everyone else at the table needs to sit through them. As such I am only running one.
  • Another boardwipe. Since as previously mentioned Cyclonic Rift is banned in our playgroup, Flood of Tears and Toxic Deluge are my inclinations.
  • Mizzix's Mastery obviously the overload is insane, and the normal does get two spells cast with Anhelo, it's just a very high cost, and doesn't negate additional costs. I am trying to justify its addition, however.
  • Ghoulish Procession could be VERY good, but I need to test it more. Unsure of what to cut for it.
  • Lim-Dul's Vault a great card that I don't know if is really needed here? Honestly I forgot about it when deck building, and it is tempting.

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    99% Casual

    Competitive

    Date added 1 year
    Last updated 1 year
    Key combos
    Legality

    This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
    Rarity (main - side)

    15 - 0 Mythic Rares

    51 - 0 Rares

    11 - 0 Uncommons

    16 - 0 Commons
    Cards 100
    Avg. CMC 3.13
    Tokens Construct */* C, Copy Clone, Drake 2/2 U, Fractal 0/0 GU, Manifest 2/2 C, Morph 2/2 C, Shapeshifter 3/2 C, Shark */* U, Treasure, Zombie 2/2 B, Zombie 2/2 B w/ Decayed
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