Speed Kills (Balthier and Fran Ultra-Budget)

Commander / EDH Bracket 2 RG (Gruul) Vehicle

clayperce

Vehicles (23)

• 1x Adventurer's Airship
• 1x Burner Rocket
• 1x Demolition Stomper
• 1x Earthrumbler
• 1x Esika's Chariot
• 1x Fleetwheel Cruiser
• 1x Gastal Thrillroller
• 1x High-Speed Hoverbike
• 1x Hoard Hauler
• 1x Lumbering Worldwagon
• 1x Mighty Servant of Leuk-o
• 1x Mobile Garrison
• 1x Mobile Homestead
• 1x Raiders' Karve
• 1x Reckoner Bankbuster
• 1x Rocketeer Boostbuggy
• 1x Rover Blades
• 1x Smuggler's Copter
• 1x The Regalia
• 1x Thunderous Velocipede
• 1x Untethered Express
• 1x War Balloon
• 1x Weatherlight

Support (6)

• 1x Chandra, Spark Hunter
• 1x Commune with Beavers
• 1x Defend the Rider
• 1x Dowsing Device  ^Flip
• 1x Guidelight Matrix
• 1x Hunter's Insight

Lands (38)

• 1x Avishkar Raceway
• 1x Bonders' Enclave
• 1x Buried Ruin
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Evolving Wilds
• 1x Fire-Lit Thicket
• 10x Forest
• 1x Karplusan Forest
• 1x Khalni Ambush  ^Flip
• 1x Mech Hangar
• 1x Mossfire Valley
• 12x Mountain
• 1x Raging Ravine
• 1x Restless Ridgeline
• 1x Rocky Roads
• 1x Stump Stomp  ^Flip
• 1x Temple of Abandon
• 1x Wild Roads

Ramp (8)

• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Farseek
• 1x House Cartographer
• 1x Intrepid Stablemaster
• 1x Rampant Growth
• 1x Sakura-Tribe Elder
• 1x Spider Manifestation
• 1x Wandertale Mentor

Targeted Disruption (6)

• 1x Abrade
• 1x Hajar, Loyal Bodyguard
• 1x Return to Nature
• 1x Royal Treatment
• 1x Run Over
• 1x Vines of Vastwood

Commander (1)

Crews (15)

• 1x Dynamite Diver
• 1x Hangar Scrounger
• 1x Hazoret, Godseeker
• 1x Iron Spider, Stark Upgrade
• 1x Jolene, Plundering Pugilist
• 1x Keeper of Fables
• 1x Khenra Charioteer
• 1x Kona, Rescue Beastie
• 1x Legion Warboss
• 1x Loyal Apprentice
• 1x Okk
• 1x Ornery Tumblewagg
• 1x Speedway Fanatic
• 1x Thopter Engineer
• 1x Traveling Botanist

Mass Disruption (3)

• 1x Anger of the Gods
• 1x Chain Reaction
• 1x Fog

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Maybeboard

Vehicles (8)

• 1x Adrestia
• 1x Cybership
• 1x Lifecraft Engine
• 1x Magmatic Galleon
• 1x Night Scythe
• 1x Recon Craft Theta
• 1x Skysovereign, Consul Flagship
• 1x Unlicensed Hearse

Support (5)

• 1x Bitter Work
• 1x Hammer of Purphoros
• 1x Herd Heirloom
• 1x Oviya, Automech Artisan
• 1x Quest for Renewal

Land (1)

• 1x Cragcrown Pathway  ^Flip

Crew (3)

• 1x Cyberman Patrol
• 1x Ohran Frostfang
• 1x Tiger-Dillo

Hamsters! (2)

• 1x Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes
• 1x Rolling Hamsphere

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This is a VERY inexpensive (i.e., aiming for USD $25) Bracket 2 deck, with a simple plan:

• Play Ramp. We have a few Mana dorks (with Power 2, so they can crew Vehicles more effectively), but the emphasis is on Land Ramp (from spells and from a number of the Vehicles). This is mostly to provide some insurance against board wipes, but it also serves to thin the deck and power up the occasional Lumbering Worldwagon.
• Play Vehicles. We generally want to play them before their Crews (so they'll be over their summoning sickness by the time the Crews arrive).
• Play Crews. It's perhaps worth mentioning that because Crewing a vehicle doesn't require the {T} symbol, Creatures can do it even if they're summoning sick.
• Repeat as needed, setting up for ~Turn 5, when we have enough mana to cast Balthier and Fran and pay for their triggered ability.

MVPs (so far):

• Lumbering Worldwagon, Mighty Servant of Leuk-o, and The Regalia: These Vehicles are just sooooooo good!
• House Cartographer and Kona, Rescue Beastie: Their Survival ability makes them perfect for Crewing Vehicles.
• Iron Spider, Stark Upgrade: Vigilance (which allows us to Attack and then Tap after Declare Blockers), +1/+1 counters, and Card Advantage? Sweet!
• Dowsing Device  , Khenra Charioteer, Speedway Fanatic, and Thopter Engineer: Haste and Trample effects are superb in this deck.

Possible Adjustments:

• War Balloon isn't legal until the Avatar set officially releases. Adrestia or Lifecraft Engine are both good options in the meantime.
• Guidelight Matrix, Mech Hangar, Raging Ravine, Restless Ridgeline, Rocky Roads, and Wild Roads are great if we get "Vehicle-flooded", but they're mostly for rebuilding after boardwipes ... if that's not a big risk in your meta, they can easily be swapped out.
• I love me some Dowsing Device   ... but honestly, Hammer of Purphoros may be even better.
• Herd Heirloom is a solid option if we need to lean into more Trample effects. Oviya, Automech Artisan is good too, though she's extremely fragile.
• Bitter Work is still a little pricey for the deck, but will be a must-add once its cost comes down.
• Cragcrown Pathway   would be my first choice for a Land upgrade.
• Quest for Renewal is pretty bonkers in this deck; it would be my first upgrade if I was trying to push into Bracket 3. Cyberman Patrol would probably be my second. Or maybe Ohran Frostfang ... especially if we leaned into Trample effects just a bit more.
• Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes are very good (and EXTREMELY fun) in this deck ... especially with Rolling Hamsphere :-)

Thanks in advance for any suggestions, and please don't hesitate to +1 Upvote if you like the deck!

Cheers!

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Shout-outs to ...

• Blake Scholar of Magic and DG Hermit, for their deck tech and Brawl gameplay videos of a similar (though higher-budget) deck.
• FullFatMayo, for their take on Ultra-budget Balthier and Fran.
• michael921, for his always-outstanding advice!

Top Ranked	Achieved #28 position overall 2 months ago Achieved #16 position in Commander / EDH 2 months ago
Date added	3 months
Last updated	1 month
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	4 - 0 Mythic Rares 25 - 0 Rares 29 - 0 Uncommons 20 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	2.67
Tokens	Cat 2/2 G, Copy Clone, Emblem Chandra, Spark Hunter, Goblin 1/1 R, Pilot 1/1 C, Royal, Start Your Engines!, Thopter 1/1 C, Treasure, Vehicle 3/2 C