Help Building an EDH Control Deck
Commander (EDH) forum
Posted on Oct. 15, 2014, 5:58 p.m. by HeroInMyOwnMind
I have been accused of building decks that are "all the same" by some people in my playgroup and I am trying to add in a couple that have different win cons, but I am struggling with the best way to go about it.
Generally, I build decks that ramp into doubling effects, and use exponential growth as the basis of their win con.
I have 4 different commander damage decks; Uril, the Miststalker (enchantment voltron), Sigarda, Host of Herons (equipment voltron), Skullbriar, the Walking Grave (instant/sorcery voltron), and Kresh the Bloodbraided (destroy opponents creatures voltron).
I also have Karador, Ghost Chieftain (lifegain deck, trust me), Jenara, Asura of War (token deck and +1/+1 counter deck), Xenagos, God of Revels (haste/trample creature deck), and Ezuri, Renegade Leader (overrun and mana manipulation deck).
I want to build a control deck, but every time I try I end up with an infinite combo deck, or a deck with lots of oppression but no real victory outside of having people acknowledge that they are locked down and have them scoop.
I am looking for not only deck ideas, but deck strategies that may stray from my normal tactics. I want to make a Green/Blue deck (so far I have settled on Kruphix, God of Horizons as the commander, but it's not set in stone) and I want to make a Green/Red/Blue deck with Surrak Dragonclaw , but I have not found a way to make him control-orientated and still capitalize on his abilities.
If you guys can give me an example of decks in those colors that work, with explanations why they work I would really appreciate it. Ideally, I would be able to maintain control without going infinite or have semi-infinite combos that simultaneously prevent every other player from being able to play their deck.
Any help you can offer is appreciated, but if someone can sort of walk me through a play by play of how a particular control deck wins with all of its strengths and weaknesses, it would give me the best idea of what to strive for.
HeroInMyOwnMind says... #3
Perhaps my phrasing could have been better. I do understand the idea of control, and my problem was that every time I built a deck with any control it just felt like I was building a deck that completely prevented other players from playing. I was essentially supporting decks that "did the same thing" with counter spells, or controlled the game to provide an opening for a infinite combo win condition. Both tactics feel unsportsmanlike in my play group.
I agree with you about the optimization of those colors; generally I found that all roads lead to that sort of puzzle-piece game style that wins the game without much concern for what other people are doing. It's a little too much of a game of solitaire for both my tastes, and the people I play against; if I am the one doing it, at least. If anyone else does it, it's not a problem for some reason.
I want to play a deck that is less aggressive and obvious, and has more subtlety and responses than what I normally play. I suppose what I really need is a win condition to support that isn't a huge rush of damage, and preferably doesn't rely on infinite combos.
I tend to be too attracted to cards that can win the game without much interaction. "I played big monster. Big monster hit you. You die."
So maybe something with more interaction with other players and with smaller combos that don't require the deck to be focused around winning with the exact same cards every time. I want to incorporate control into the deck too, but I need an idea of what the deck should accomplish and why.
I still feel like I am not conveying the idea well enough, and it is probably because I don't understand the play style to begin with. So if you can suggest an example of something that might be what I am looking for, even that might help me out.
Either way, thanks for the response.
October 15, 2014 7:21 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #4
I'm not really sure what you're going for, then. The way you're explaining it makes it sound like you do really want to play some kind of highly synergistic deck, but that you feel too bad about that strategy to commit to it. I guess what I'm struggling to understand is what kind of win condition you're seeking, since combos are out of the question and both fatties and control locks seem uninteractive.
October 15, 2014 8:19 p.m.
HeroInMyOwnMind says... #5
Maybe that is why I am having such a hard time with it then. I can't think past straight forward victories, and it feels like other people can build decks in very round-about ways (even if they are less effective) and still have a chance at victory, but it might because they don't look for a specific type of win and happen to come across a favorable situation in a game that they happen to be able to take advantage of at the time. I suppose I will just browse around decks until something feels like it might work.
If it strikes other people to be as convoluted as I initially thought it was when I tried to build it, maybe it really is just an exercise in futility. I just don't want to hear that all my decks are the same. =/
October 15, 2014 9:43 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #6
I think it's worth at least trying to work to some solution.
Maybe you should start with a mechanic or card that appeals to you and go from there. Even just experimenting in this way might open up other opportunities.
October 15, 2014 10:44 p.m.
How do you feel about Turbo-fog? Angus Mackenzie is a wonderful Turbo-Fog general, I had him in my old Superfriends deck: There are some who call me... Angus?
Superfriends is another fun way to do control while having it be different! I have another one, the current superfriends model I'm working with is E. V. I. L., a Grixis deck.
All in all, I say that Bant, Esper, or Grixis are the go-to's for control.
October 16, 2014 12:19 a.m.
NotSoLuckyLydia says... #9
Kruphix is actually really neat for control. The stockpile mana ability he gives you allows you to play lots of ramp and counters, then win games with Draw X spells like Blue Sun's Zenith or Stroke of Genius . If you do it without actual infinite combos, it takes longer, but you can still durdle behind a wall of counters and an enormous hand, waiting to build up 75+ mana to deck an opponent. You can also go for a mass kill with Prosperity , ending the game in a draw.
October 16, 2014 2:29 p.m.
Amarin1492 says... #10
I had the same problem when building my Oloro, Ageless Ascetic EDH. I've found some cards that might win the game but don't infinite combo. These cards can be "win condition"-ish, but they are also interactive and do not win on the spot.
Rite of Replication kicked, targeting the right creature.
Rise of the Dark Realms backed up by the counter magic of your control deck, this card can build you an instant army (including plenty of nice ETB effects).
Archaeomancer + Ghostway is not an infinite combo, but the synergy is very powerful and will help your creatures survive the board wipes that are common in EDH. It also allows you to block without losing your creatures and lets you repeat ETB effects.
Alternatively, you could make a control deck whose focus is commander damage. Zur the Enchanter could be played as a voltron/control mixture. It wouldn't be the world's strongest EDH strategy, but it could be fun.
Epochalyptik says... #2
I think you misunderstand the point of control.
Control as a strategy doesn't just win by itself. Control is something you use to support a real win condition, such as an infinite combo. Most commonly, control decks protect combos or voltron strategies (see Zur the Enchanter ), or they accentuate goodstuff decks (see non-combo
decks).
October 15, 2014 6:33 p.m.