What kind of EDH deck will benefit from Vedalken Orrery?
Commander (EDH) forum
Posted on March 23, 2022, 4:39 p.m. by MortisAngelus
I have owned a Vedalken Orrery since 2014. To this day I struggle to find a home for it. I usually add it but in the end I always end up cutting it, mostly because of its high cmc.
At the time I have 4 mana, I can usually directly cast something better, and if not, it gets insta removed by opponents.
I have had it in creature, artifact and semi-spell slinger decks but it always gets cut.
Would it be better to just sell it while prices are still somewhat high?
Please give me tips on how to make a deck with it. I was considering adding it in Hinata, Dawn-Crowned, but that still feels like a stretch. Or?
TypicalTimmy says... #3
Honestly, all decks do. The less time your opponent has to react, the better. Think of it this way: You dump your hand on your turn and get a bunch of creatures out thinking you're going to swing for lethal on the following turn.
Cyclonic Rift, or worse Damnation.
Cast it all on their end step and you prevent this.
Your best bet is to always give your opponent the least room as possible.
March 23, 2022 5:21 p.m. Edited.
Last_Laugh says... #4
It's best in draw-go controlly sort of decks or anything with Seedborn Muse type untaps and lots of draw but is good most anywhere honestly.
March 23, 2022 5:51 p.m. Edited.
griffstick says... #5
I found it to be incredibly useful in a plainswalker build. Although plainswalkers are very sorcery speed being able to use their loyalty abilities only on your turn makes you think it's bad to play them out right before your turn starts. That's true because you miss out on one activation of their loyalty abilities, but on the other hand. Being able to flash out a plainswalker right befor your turn starts protects it from getting taken out because you are now able to hold up and for removal or cast creature spells to defend your plainswalkers. Additionally plainswaker decks have lots of sorcery spells, including wrath spells. Being able to cast Blasphemous Act at instant speed is awesome. Or being able to cast Rise of the Dark Realms right before your turn starts is a great way to win the game. Or casting Vicious Shadows right before Wrath of God resolves is another way to sneak in the win. Also other spells that are good at sorcery speed are also in plainswalker decks. And those spells are the ones that Tutor for plainswalkers or Legendary cards. Those spells are usually sorcery speed.
Another type of deck that would like Vedalken Orrery is an Enchantment deck. Lots of entertainment decks use auras for control and being able to cast auras like Flickering Ward as flash speed is strong. Or Control Magic at flash speed is strong. Also casting sagas right befor your turn starts seems good too. Cast the saga befor your turn starts and on your turn you go to stage 2 of the saga just like that.
Maybe your deck have ways of unhappiness your lands and or mana dorks on each untap step with cards like Seedborn Muse.
In other words it's good in almost every deck. The only deck I've ever removed it from is my Iroas deck. Because it's a Devotion deck. And Because Iroas, God of Victory is my commander and I want to hit with him I often cast spells befor combat to turn him on.
So basically throw it in every deck but the ones I've listed above I feel are the best ones.
March 23, 2022 7:42 p.m. Edited.
griffstick says... #6
I think Nymris, Oona's Trickster is the best deck for Vedalken Orrery
March 23, 2022 7:46 p.m.
JANKYARD_DOG says... #7
I use Orrery in my Selenia deck because almost every gain/drain spell is a sorcery, and if I bounce her back to hand on an opponents turn I can basically flash it in at the end of turn for pseudo haste. Also helps to have some of the Wincon enchantments be more of a 'Surpise! Gotcha!' moment like "Upkeep, win the game if you have 1 life"
March 23, 2022 7:59 p.m.
griffstick says... #8
I'd like to add that there's a good chance the cards value will continue to increase basically for ever and with this next set coming out putting a focus on demons Liliana's Contract is gonna become a super star win con. And with Vedalken Orrery it gets really good
March 23, 2022 8:02 p.m.
Cloudstone Curio or other bounce archetypes are the most likely decks to want to include the Orrery. Even then there are sometimes better alternatives (perhaps all you need is an Emergence Zone to fill that role for example). But in general the decks that like to do the bounce house thing will enjoy the flexibility afforded by an Orrery to play all those lovely enchantments and creatures at instant speed as their primary means of interaction.
March 24, 2022 9:43 a.m.
TheoryCrafter says... #10
If your creature enters the battlefield during an opponent's control, it doesn't have summoning sickness on your next turn. It helps with color schemes that lack haste and the fact it isn't a creature makes it a supplement to Inspiring Statuary.
March 24, 2022 12:41 p.m.
fadelightningmm says... #11
TypicalTimmy hit the nail on the head. I think it belongs in every deck to optimally play, but it depends on your play style. I usually cut orrery because I don’t tend to like playing draw go games. Also I found, like you did, that orrery was a lightning rod for removal when I played it. For four mana I want more impact on my game.
March 24, 2022 10:06 p.m.
It's a good card, but it is only great when played properly, and that in and of itself is an art. It isn't any better than Leyline of Anticipation except that it can go in any deck due to being colorless and can be a second copy of that card.
To begin with, it's critical in controlling decks that want to cast primarily on our opponents' turns. In this case we can hold our mana open for counterspells or removal, but if we don't need it we can just cast permanents on our opponent's end step before our turn.
It also can be used for functional "mana doubling," which is especially good in combo decks (though) it is good in any deck. Often I have two expensive combo pieces in my hand, but it is too early to get them both on on a single turn. With Orrery I can flash one out on my opponent's end step before my turn and then the second on my turn. It's then game, set, and match! Its also good this way with board wipes. Most our sorcery speed and bad for me to play in that my opponents get to rebuild first. If I instead play it on my opponents' end step before my turn, then I get to be the first to rebuild, and they'll have spent the prior turn developing their board further rather than rebuilding, setting them back more.
It can be bad in a deck where you want to play at sorcery speed and are too fast to want to play it early in the game where it is best, or if you don't plan for the above situations. My Ezuri, Renegade Leader deck is just too fast and synergistic to want to play a do nothing artifact that I can't attack with on turn three. My Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow deck is focused on using ninjutsu during the attack phase, leaving me not enough mana to maker orrery or leyline worth it, and can start hitting on turn two, so orrery would be bad. My Inalla, Archmage Ritualist deck, on the other hard, loves these effects (I play Leyline and Teferi in that deck) to be able to have the flexibility to control the board if needed since I can cast my wizards on my opponents' end steps, and to mana double to sequence infinite combos.
As for value, it isn't likely to go anywhere, because JLK from the Command Zone will keep repping it till the moon, and CZ's reach is huge. He's toned it down lately because people blame him for the price, but when it eventually gets reprinted he'll just start doing it again.
March 24, 2022 10:16 p.m.
Quickspell says... #13
I use Vedalken Orrery to great effect in my Liesa, Forgotten Archangel deck. Cards like Mother of Runes or Dauthi Voidwalker are best cast during your last opponents turn so you can tap them right away when it’s your turn. Orrery is perfect here. But also any deck with expensive creatures that don’t have haste want this card.
Niko9 says... #2
Really, Orrery is a good card, but it takes a player who wants that kind of playstyle. I enjoy cards with flash and things where I can interact with my opponents, but I've tried Orrery and never really liked it. Just passing your turn to functionally take your turn during your opponents feels, I don't know, kind of disruptive to the table. It's a smart way to play, for sure, but passing turn and waiting to see what people do just kind of muddles the game, for me at least. I kind of like people having turns, playing things, and then you may have cards to respond. But with Orrery it's more of, your turn becomes our turn and I'll dictate more of the pace of the game than anyone else.
Heh, yep, I tried it and hated it. But I can see why players play it to maximize the effectiveness of the cards in their hand, just because you have more information when you play. Plus, adding in a Seedborn Muse or something like it means that you take four turns per round, and that's just very, very good : )
March 23, 2022 5:01 p.m.