Ugin's Manifestations

Commander / EDH Casual GWU (Bant)

NorrYtt

Creature (31)

• 1x Ainok Survivalist
• 1x Aven Mindcensor
• 1x Birds of Paradise
• 1x Brine Elemental
• 1x Chromeshell Crab
• 1x Deathmist Raptor
• 1x Den Protector
• 1x Dust Elemental
• 1x Echo Tracer
• 1x Exalted Angel
• 1x Hidden Dragonslayer
• 1x Hooded Hydra
• 1x Hushwing Gryff
• 1x Icefeather Aven
• 1x Ixidron
• 1x Jeskai Infiltrator
• 1x Kheru Spellsnatcher
• 1x Nantuko Vigilante
• 1x Noble Hierarch
• 1x Phyrexian Dreadnought
• 1x Riptide Pilferer
• 1x Seedborn Muse
• 1x Stratus Dancer
• 1x Thelonite Hermit
• 1x Thousand Winds
• 1x Trygon Predator
• 1x Vesuvan Shapeshifter
• 1x Voidmage Apprentice
• 1x Voidmage Prodigy
• 1x Whisperwood Elemental
• 1x Willbender

Instant (8)

• 1x Brainstorm
• 1x Cyclonic Rift
• 1x Dig Through Time
• 1x Ethereal Ambush
• 1x Momentary Blink
• 1x Path to Exile
• 1x Reality Shift
• 1x Swords to Plowshares

Land (37)

• 1x Azorius Chancery
• 1x Bant Panorama
• 1x Breeding Pool
• 1x Calciform Pools
• 1x Canopy Vista
• 1x Command Tower
• 1x Flooded Grove
• 1x Flooded Strand
• 6x Forest
• 1x Glacial Fortress
• 1x Hallowed Fountain
• 1x Hinterland Harbor
• 2x Island
• 1x Krosan Verge
• 1x Misty Rainforest
• 1x Mystic Gate
• 2x Plains
• 1x Prairie Stream
• 1x Saltcrusted Steppe
• 1x Savannah
• 1x Seaside Citadel
• 1x Selesnya Sanctuary
• 1x Simic Growth Chamber
• 1x Sunpetal Grove
• 1x Temple Garden
• 1x Tropical Island
• 1x Tundra
• 1x Windswept Heath
• 1x Wooded Bastion
• 1x Zoetic Cavern

Enchantment (6)

• 1x Cloudform
• 1x Lightform
• 1x Mastery of the Unseen
• 1x Mirari's Wake
• 1x Secret Plans
• 1x Trail of Mystery

Planeswalker (1)

• 1x Ugin, the Spirit Dragon

Commanders (2)

Sorcery (9)

• 1x Austere Command
• 1x Cultivate
• 1x Kodama's Reach
• 1x Ponder
• 1x Preordain
• 1x Serum Visions
• 1x Treasure Cruise
• 1x Wildcall
• 1x Write into Being

Artifact (6)

• 1x Scroll Rack
• 1x Sensei's Divining Top
• 1x Skullclamp
• 1x Sol Ring
• 1x Thran Dynamo
• 1x Torpor Orb

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Maybeboard

Creature (4)

• 1x Frontline Strategist
• 1x Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker
• 1x Jenara, Asura of War
• 1x Mischievous Quanar

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This is my Morph+Manifest-themed Bant (GWU) commander deck that showcases those mechanics. I built it because I love how much "danger" Morph+Manifest can add to the battlefield via hidden information.

Pros

1. Unique deck opponents have never seen before with oddball partner pairing: Sidar Kondo + Thrasios, Triton Hero

2. Opponents have to deal with more hidden information than usual; there's a chance they walk into every trick you have

3. Relatively high skill cap due to library manipulation and setting morph/manifest traps for opponents

4. Hose shenanigans with Torpor Orb / Hushwing Gryff while having creature effects that still work

5. Can softlock with Brine Elemental + Vesuvan Shapeshifter

Cons

1. Inherently creature-based strategy susceptible to those kinds of hosers (Sweepers, Humility, Moat, infinite life)

2. Many turns to kill even when it's winning. Could swap to Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker or Jenara, Asura of War as the commander for big flying commander damage finisher.

3. Even though morph is easy for colors, unmorphing and deck in general has fierce color requirements requiring a strong mana base.

4. Not very disruptive if opponents are going for combo kills. Voidmage Prodigy can be a hero, though.

5. Slow to get moving and morphs/manifests are not the most powerful cards ever, i.e. not "competitive". Den Protector and Mastery of the Unseen overperform, though.

Mechanics Primer

"Morph" (and "Megamorph") let you cast a card from your hand for 3 mana as a hidden facedown 2/2 (this is casting a spell and can be countered, but opponent's don't know what it is!). It has no color, creature types, and has converted mana cost zero. Turning up your morph ("unmorphing") reveals the card as a special action (doesn't use the stack). Many morphs trigger an ability when turned face up, like Willbender who redirects a targeted spell or ability (gotcha!).

Manifest goes one step further and "morphs" usually the top card of your library as a facedown 2/2. Opponents don't know what it is! If it happens to be a facedown creature card, you can pay the mana cost to turn it face up at any time. If it happens to be a morph card, you can instead pay the morph cost to turn it face up. If you use Momentary Blink on a manifested permanent (like Ugin, the Spirit Dragon!), it returns face up if it's a permanent, or stays in exile if it's an instant or sorcery (because instant/sorcery can't ever enter the battlefield).

Turning morphs/manifests face up is NOT "entering the battlefield", and my deck abuses this with Torpor Orb and Hushwing Gryff to cripple opposing ETB creatures without harming my morphs/manifests. The deck goes deeper here with Phyrexian Dreadnought and Dust Elemental that are BETTER without their ETB trigger. You can manifest a Phyrexian Dreadnought and pay just 1 to turn it face up for a 12/12 trample with no sacrifice trigger. Similarly, Ixidron is NOT an ETB trigger ("as" not "when"), and it allows reusing your own morph creatures while making dangerous creatures (including commanders) just 2/2s without abilities.

There are other goofy things manifest can do that I've left out. If you manifest a Chronozoa then turn it face up, it will NOT have any vanishing counters on it, so it will die very soon and mitosis.

I've found that the "smashy" morphs like Krosan Colossus frighten opponents too much compared to the "utility" morphs, so I just play utility ones and play the political game with their effects. Since Thrasios reveals cards drawn, you can play mind games with opponents with morphs they've already seen.

You need a significantly large number of morphs in the deck to keep opponents on their toes which one it could be. That said, Ainok Survivalist and Nantuko Vigilante are VERY similar cards but you really want that effect. It's possible to go even deeper with a 4-color partner pairing (Thrasios + Ravos for example) giving access to black morphs like Silent Specter and the fun Ghastly Conscription.

Gameplay

In general, Thraxios is the long game partner to refuel while Sidar Kondo is the aggro partner that ensures some damage gets through. Thraxios at 2-drop and Sidar Kondo at 4-drop help your overcrowded 3-mana morph plays. At some point in the 5 or 6 mana mark, you will want to leave up mana for unmorph tricks if the opportunity presents itself, or use Thraxios's 4: ability if it doesn't.

Manipulate the top card of your library so that your manifest cards hit something worthwhile. Use Ugin as a boardwipe that leaves your morphs and manifests alone. If you use Mastery of the Unseen and Thraxios too much you might get close to decking before dealing enough damage to kill each opponent.

Date added	7 years
Last updated	4 years
Legality	This deck is Commander / EDH legal.
Rarity (main - side)	9 - 0 Mythic Rares 43 - 0 Rares 22 - 0 Uncommons 16 - 0 Commons
Cards	100
Avg. CMC	3.05
Tokens	Manifest 2/2 C, Morph 2/2 C, Saproling 1/1 G, Snake 1/1 G