Patch 2.0.3
It's time to get political with this upgrade take on Silverquill Statement 2021 precon!
By far the most interesting precon I've seen recently (barring the Warhammer 40k precon, which I am stoked for!) is the Breena, the Demagogue commander deck that dropped last year with the Strixhaven set. I really like the flavor of Strixhaven in general, most especially the Silverquill school. I've been a longtime Orzhov fan, and I think the vorthos of the deck here fits perfectly with the build style I've gone into.
For a long time, I've enjoyed playing more alternative wincon styles, and I think using table politics is an exciting way to weave into that, more than just a wincon, I think this deck will bring some interesting decisions to the table that will leave some feeling loved and others begging for a deal. My favorite card here is absolutely the notorious Wedding Ring, but there's so much more to Breena than making sneaky deals with other players to focus in on each other. The entire series of Council cards (i.e. Council's Judgment or Tyrant's Choice) make the game far more meta and political to the table itself, with players voting to get themselves ahead or set others back--we have friends like Ballot Broker to make sure things sway a little more in our favor--which will undoubtedly get them wondering how they can use us to help achieve their victory. That's the point of the deck, gaining resources from alliances that favor the house over the other players until they whittle each other down low enough for us to finish the deal. Further infighting with artifacts like Crown of Doom and Bloodthirsty Blade and buffs from the Vow cards will help our opponents ping one another down while providing a kind of Pascifism effect once it comes down to a 1 on 1.
Our win condition overall will be a Token or Counter based sweep, either overwhelming opponents during a board wipe (if we are able to set up correctly) with a big blast from Felisa, Fang of Silverquill or just stacking up counters onto Breena, the Demagogue to swing for lethal Commander damage with either the Flying ability or going unblockable with Rogue's Passage. There's also the potential to go infinite with Sanguine Bond and Exquisite Blood, however, I don't think that will happen too often as the setup takes a while and I've opted to exclude Vizkopa Guildmage on the basis that I just don't think infinite's should be too prevalent in a deck. A final big treat would be using Bitterblossom, Sigil of the Empty Throne, and Court of Grace and our Inkling generators to build an army of flyers that will eventually get buffed by our lord, Deathbringer Liege or gaining Indestructible and a host of other bountiful stats from Elspeth Resplendant.
We can use a whole host of utility to win the affection of our dear opponents, most notably forging deals with Spectral Searchlight and Victory Chimes to further collude with players while giving ourselves a little boost in resources as well. Who would want to destroy artifacts that are helping them ramp? Nobody! Going further we have political cards like Scheming Symmetry and Tenuous Truce that will give players incentive to work with us to ensure our other opponents drop down to 0. We've got a whole host of cards that will dissuade opponents from attacking us. I've seen some folks recommend removing Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts from the deck,--at least until I cough up the coin to throw in No Mercy-- but I think it feels too damn to throw out. The classic Ghostly Prison comes in as a crucial piece of protection, along with a buffed up High Priest of Penance from the +1/+1 Counters Breena will provide is enough to make folks think twice before swinging at us.
But we shouldn't be punishing our players for attacking us, since negative stimulus is much harder to train with in comparison to reward! That's why we are running cards that emplores the players to swing at one another. Calculating Lich is a very devastating threat when faced down by a horde of Tokens (late game bomb, anybody?) along with a frisky inclusion of a few curses--a taste of another upcoming EDH deck I'm putting together--Curse of Vitality and Curse of Disturbance will put a target on the head of the opponent who dared to vote against us in the most recent election cycle. Duelist's Heritage as well will give us a huge boon, since we may give a target attacking creature Double Strike, we drive deals with our opponents to hit harder and stronger, all the while preparing to deliver or own devastating blows, perhaps even combing in with Necropolis Regent for a huge spike in counters.
I was taken away by this precon and I've had a lot of fun crafting what I believe to be one of the most politically charged decks I've ever built, and that's really saying something in reference to my group hug Bunkis Bunno deck. Building around Breena has made me realize that there is a huge difference in Group Hug or Fun Police decks vs. Political decks, and I would go as far as to say this deck is even more politically themed than one of my favorite classic builds in Zedru the Greathearted. I'm hoping it brings some intrigue to the table and gets a bit more interaction moving. Politics has seemed like something my playgroup doesn't want to get too involved in, but I think if the cards revolve around it, then it's fair game!
Cheers and please leave a like! Recommendations and conversation is welcome.
Flip
