Archidekt Deckbuilding Contest - April (Locked)

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"Given the prompt, my immediate thought was trying to rescue a failed keyword design. In 1994 Rampage seemed intimidating (especially without reminder text), but the truth was that it wasn’t. Once you knew how it worked you could either chump with a single blocker and not trigger it, or simply take the damage from the under powered creature. A “fixed” rampage that triggers for every blocking creature showed up for a few sets, and was left behind until Dominaria United and "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"General Marhault Elsdragon"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":". Granting a beefier new rampage to all of your creatures. I opted to run with that. "},{"insert":"\n\n"},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"I find it necessary to commit to the bit, so all of the Gruul Rampagers, plus the majority of the fixed Rampagers are here for the beatdown. Our ambition is to build out our midrange board and force bad blocks with our lure effects ("},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Invasion Plans"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Nemesis Mask"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Tempting Licid"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"). Interaction gives us some ways to clear troublesome board states ("},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Laccolith Rig"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Rabid Gnaw"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Rust Scarab"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"), while our draws are catered to our combat focus ("},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Infiltration Lens"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Family's Favor"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Neyith of the Dire Hunt"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":") with a few cheat effects to help with some of our over-costed older spells ("},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Defense of the Heart"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Kodama of the East Tree"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"). We also have a number of surprising ways to enhance our creatures for extra survivability and to keep the math in our favor ("},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Tyvar's Stand"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Embercleave"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":{"card-link":"Nylea, God of the Hunt"}},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"). Turning sideways and staying close to the ground does leave us weak to flyers, so we do have a few pieces of anti-flyer tech ("},{"insert":{"card-link":"Cockatrice"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Gravity Well"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sunset Strikemaster"}},{"insert":" ).\n\n"},{"attributes":{"color":"#ffffff"},"insert":"Our hope is to keep our Commander on the board and give our opponents two bad choices: blocking and/or death. "},{"insert":"\n\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"This is a deck created for the April Deck Competition!\n\nThe commander is Otrimi which is usually seen as a Mutate Commander. I decided to go a different path and heavily incorporate Emerge into the theme as well, cheating out larger creatures and recycling those that are sacrificed for the cost.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"This deck is built around combining death touch, first strike, and trample to exploit the way that these keywords interact.\n\nThe general gameplan for this deck is to first play out some creatures with death touch.\nThen play out "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Aragorn, Hornburg Hero"}},{"insert":". Now all of your death touch creatures will be able to attack with first strike.\nYou can then take advantage of the fact that your creatures likely won't be blocked with card like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Professional Face-Breaker"}},{"insert":" , and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Toski, Bearer of Secrets"}},{"insert":" .\nYou can then use "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Aragorn, Hornburg Hero"}},{"insert":"'s second ability to then massively buff all of your creatures, and swing in for the win.\n\nThere are also quite a few cards that will give all your creatures trample. This isn't 100% necessary for the deck to function, but it greatly accelerates the deck. Especially if your opponents have a lot of chump blockers. It also opens up some options to win without your commander, with cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Quilled Greatwurm"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Cazur, Ruthless Stalker"}},{"insert":" .\n\nI also tried to build on somewhat of a budget, but I included a list of more expensive cards that I thought would be good in the deck.\n\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"GREETINGS! And welcome to the wonderful world of confusion. Where ownership is made up and posession doesn't matter!!\n\nThis decks sole purpose is to play your deck. And keep you from playing it. Great!! You cast an indestructible 99/99 for 90 mana? I see that energy and cast my 1 red mana and exchange control. And then!! I get my creature back... because words are funny. Key words like \"Return to its owners hand\" and \"whenever an artifact enchantment or creature enters the battle we MUST exchange control of them. (Luckily i hacked the system and can make ALL your stuff artifacts, and all MY stuff artifacts too. Keywords are cool!!) \n\nThe whole point of this deck is being a 3. But its the 5-ist three you ever saw. Because i look for one card. Confusion in the ranks. Otherwise... this deck honestly isnt even mid. \n\nThe hate for this enchantment is real. So, I made sure exile, and grave yard were able to be manipulated to get it back. With eternal witness and riftsweeper skull of orm effects. Draw is a wonderful thing as well. And I make sure its definately group \"hug\" with cards like howling mine and everyone gets to see SOO many cards because of our favorite wizard Teferi!! Or, more aptly, because of his puzzlebox. \n\n\nYes. IM AWARE there are some game changers in this deck. HOWEVER, if you put knives on a roomba, it doesnt mean its ALWAYS gonna poke you, but when it does, you deserved it. So while playing this deck understand that there is VERY subtle nuance and there are VERY mean tricks to play. My favorite example would be:\n\nNature's Revolt in play\nConfusion in the Ranks in play\n\n-Path to exile the threat creature-\n\nThey get a land... that they have to now exchange with another creature...\n\nIts a carnival of etb/Ltb triggers and a right rauccus old time. Not for the feint of heart pod. And MOST definately a \"Last game\" deck. Because you will either be cross eyed from the triggers or you wont be able to breathe because you're laughing so hard. \n\nAnd in the theme for this month, its a deck that doesnt have keywords persay, because it steals YOUR keywords.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"This deck, based on an idea I had a long time ago, was built for the April 2026 deckbuilding contest, around the keyword ability splice. \n\nChun-Li is my favourite Street Fighter character to play, and azorius is... my least favourite color combination to play. In trying to figure out how to make the deck enjoyable for me after getting the secret lair, I really wanted to make a deck that encompassed the spirit of the character- many hits, potentially a big hit to KO. It occurred to me that using "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Zethi, Arcane Blademaster"}},{"insert":" (Chun-Li)'s ability to put kick counters on spells and cast them on multiple turns would be optimal to do another thing I really want to do in a game of MTG- summon "},{"insert":{"card-link":"The Unspeakable"}},{"insert":" . Being able to save the spells needed to get the Unspeakable from your library- "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Peer Through Depths"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sift Through Sands"}},{"insert":" "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Reach Through Mists"}},{"insert":" - so you can cast them all on the same turn works great with Chun-Li's ability. And- all of them are arcane spells, so why not maximize the utility of this subtype of spell at the same time.\n\nThis is a bracket 1-2 Arcane spellslinger deck. Chun-Li can exile an arcane instant with a kick counter, and then each turn you can splice a spell from your hand onto it for extra value. The deck includes other utility spells like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Flawless Maneuver"}},{"insert":" that can be cast conditionally for free, as well as a number of cost reducing effects like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Arcane Melee"}},{"insert":" to maximize the number of spells that can be cast each turn, as splicing costs can add up. We can also use cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Flockchaser Phantom"}},{"insert":" to help us use convoke to cast even more spells! A lot of the splicing provides card advantage to help dig through the deck to find the pieces we need. We've got a few ways to get the Unspeakable back into the library in case it ends up in the yard, such as "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Campfire"}},{"insert":" . The Unspeakable itself lets us get value from our arcane spells not exiled with Chun-Li, as we can get them back to hand to recast later.\n\nThe deck has a light spirits subtheme, as many of the OG kamigawa cards that care about arcane also care about spirits. Spirits like"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Vega, the Watcher"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sire of the Storm"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nikko-Onna"}},{"insert":" provide us extra value for our arcane payoffs like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Baku Altar"}},{"insert":". I also tried to include cards that have names that feel like they could belong with the video game (Arcane Melee is pretty good) as well as other cards that might not be the best payoff but felt thematically right to include (I really enjoy "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Monastery Mentor"}},{"insert":" 's flavour text- \"One path. Many feet.\" COUNTLESS KICKS!)\n\nOnce you have your two main beaters, the game can be won in true fighter style- with damage. Cards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Show of Confidence"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Scroll of the Masters"}},{"insert":" can pump them up, to deliver game ending blows.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"Ok so white angels may not be the most unique deck, but this is a fresh new twist on it! With a dual lynch pin strategy we take advantage of both Convoke and Persist, given to all of our creatures by Eirdu's two sides. \n\nWe can simultaneously go wide with tokens while also going tall with strong angels, then protect them all by flipping Eirdu and giving them all Persist to protect us from either targeted removal or an entire board wipe! With a few ways to self-sacrifice our own angels if need be and plenty of strong ETB effects there's never ending synergy between angels and Eirdu.\n\nWith a side hustle of +1/+1 counters we're able to chain sacrifice our creatures to retrigger their ETB effects, but also to be able to untap them to use as blockers. There are a few tricks in here as well, loyal unicorn giving us the ability to attack in with everyone without fear of having any small creatures die but also with vigilance allowing us to tap our creatures to convoke more creatures out in the 2nd main phase.\n\nThere are plenty of upgrades that could be made to this, but I did try to keep the price and power down a bit to fit a more casual T2 tribal bracket. Armageddon would be great with Eirdu's convoke ability allowing us to continue casting creatures while everyone else was trying to replay lands but also with Avacyn we would keep our lands as well! (just a little evil lol) \n\nMy MVP of the deck nomination goes to Helm of the Host, why bother choosing one side of Eirdu when you can have both at the same time!?\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Aegar-anteed Kill [UR Deathtouch Wizards]"},{"insert":"\n\nAegar, the Freezing Flame loves deathtouch! It makes it much easier to clear the threshold into excess damage, creating a snowballing card draw machine as cool and Giant as he is.\n\n(1) Deathtouch\nThese Equipment artifacts grant deathtouch. Now even 1 damage is considered lethal, and any amount of damage after is excess. Some boost power, so even 1/X Wizards block for excess when equipped.\n\n(2) Artifact Tutor\nWith only seven ways to grant deathtouch in UR, all equipmpent, artifact and Equipment tutors help us find our weaponry.\n\n(3) Copy Artifact\nOnce we have some deathtouch Equipment, we can copy them so everyone can get deathtouch.\n\n(4) Pinger\nThe pingers that can deal 2+ or more damage, when equipped with deathtouch, automatically deal excess damage, allowing us to draw from Aegar very easily. There are many pingers that deal just 1 damage, which still makes them lethal threats when armed. \n\n(5) Damage Increaser\nTo help the 1 damage pingers, these cards amplify the damage to get into excess range.\n\n(6) First Strike and Trample\nWhile most of these Wizards don't want to get their hands dirty in combat, granting first strike and trample gives additional value to deathtouch.\n\n(7) Ping Fodder\nGive your opponents tokens that your pingers can kill, in case they don't have any creatures left or it is politically advantageous not to antagonize them. Goblin Spymaster also eggs opponents into attacking, and if they choose to attack into you, you have deathtouching blockers at the ready.\n\n(8-13) Ramp, Draw, Removal, Board Wipe, Protection, Lands\nHopefully Aegar provides the draw and the deathtouch provides the removal that you need, but these can be a giant helping hand if you need one. Some of the ramp is in the form of untappers, which can later help duplicate your pingers' actions.\n\nI'd love to hear what you all think, thanks for reading this far!\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"\"i think we should take their precious hope and born it to the ground\"\n\n"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"1. Finishing Through Copied Burn"},{"insert":"\nWith "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Fire Lord Azula"},{"insert":" on the battlefield and copy effects like "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Veyran, Voice of Duality"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Jeong Jeong, the Deserter"},{"insert":", or "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Crackling Spellslinger"},{"insert":", you can simply chain burn spells such as "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Brimstone Volley"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Breath of Malfegor"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Lightning Strike"},{"insert":", or "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Feed the Flames"},{"insert":". If "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Dictate of the Twin Gods"},{"insert":" is active, damage is doubled and the game ends quickly, even without attacking.\n\n"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"2. Finishing Through Insurrection / Theft"},{"insert":"\nIn the mid-to-late game, once the table has developed a board of creatures, "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Insurrection"},{"insert":" ends the game by stealing everything, untapping, and swinging for lethal. If any creatures survive, "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Iguana Parrot"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Ty Lee, Artful Acrobat"},{"insert":" can secure evasion, and "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Rogue’s Passage"},{"insert":" closes out lethal with the commander. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Fire Nation Turret"},{"insert":" can complement the kill with direct damage.\n\n"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"3. Finishing Through Explosive Value / Storm-like Play"},{"insert":"\nWith engines such as "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Arcane Bombardment"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Past in Flames"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Mizzix’s Mastery"},{"insert":", or "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Sozin’s Comet"},{"insert":", you recast or copy a large sequence of spells. With "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Niv-Mizzet, Parun"},{"insert":" or "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Niv-Mizzet, Visionary"},{"insert":" drawing cards throughout the process, the deck accumulates triggers until it kills the entire table through damage or generates overwhelming value. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Omniscience"},{"insert":" serves as the “easy button,” turning everything into infinite resources.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"The stipulation of this deck is that it contains every card with the Cipher mechanic. \n\nStep 1 : Play an unblockable creature\nStep 2: Encode a Cipher card on it \nStep 3: ...\nStep 4: Profit\n\nAncient Cellarspawn and wraiths are the best win conditions, however the real victory is getting a high score in number of times you've cast an encoded spell. \n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"Spellslinger decks are often stretched thin between spells to cast, card draw to replenish them, ramp to pay for them, and payoffs to make it worthwhile. "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Buyback"},{"insert":" is a keyword that can return a spell to hand when it resolves, distilling the entire spell/draw requirement into a handful of cards that we need find only one of. This means we can sling spells indefinitely with a deck full of ramp and payoffs. Every bit of cost reduction we can get multiplies the number of spells we can cast, so "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Affinity"},{"insert":" is an incredible supporting synergy.\n\n[[Sami, Wildcat Captain]] normally leads decks that dump artifacts in order to cast Eldrazi for cheap, but all we need here is 3-4 artifacts to turn our Buyback spells into 1-mana cantrips. Those artifacts could be mana rocks like [[Seance Board]], protection like [[Mithril Coat]], payoffs like [[Sentinel Tower]], or lands like [[Rustvale Bridge]], all serving double duty.\n\nEach Buyback spell will give us constant access to one of several effects, all of which play into some aspect of our gameplan:\n• [[Anoint]]: Protect Sami, payoff creatures, or blockers\n• [[Invulnerability]]: Protect ourselves\n• [[Change of Heart]]: Disrupt attackers or make deals\n• [[Recruit the Worthy]]: Token generation\n• [[Seething Anger]]: Power buff (tall)\n• [[Haze of Rage]]: Power buff (wide)\n• [[Searing Touch]]: Removal or burn\n\nOnce the spellslinging engine is running, we can use it to drive one of several payoffs:\n• Burn opponents directly with [[Guttersnipe]] and friends\n• Go wide with a token army and power buffs, like [[Monastery Mentor]] and [[Gandalf, White Rider]]\n• Go tall with [[Sami, Wildcat Captain]]'s double strike and trample/power buffs, like [[Anax and Cymede]] and [[Seething Anger]]\n\nWith the cost reduction from Affinity, we'll need exclusively colored mana for our spells. Depending on which Buyback spell we find first, we want massive quantities of either red and white mana, so every mana source in the deck can produce both. This manifests in mana rocks like [[Gilded Lotus]] and in the wide variety of dual lands, from [[Sundown Pass]] to [[Dimension X]]. The few exceptions to this rule provide other utility, like [[Darksteel Citadel]] for our artifact count, or [[Lindblum, Industrial Regency // Mage Siege]] which comes with a burn payoff.\n\nUnique inclusions and interactions:\n• [[Aria of Flame]]: Breaks even on 1 player in 4 casts and ramps\n• [[Caldera Pyremaw]]: Ramping burn, crazy with [[Seething Anger]]\n• [[Sphinx-Bone Wand]]: Ramping damage for removal or burn\n• [[Anax and Cymede]]: Overrun effect with the targeted spells\n• [[Stormsplitter]]: Exponential army, crazy with [[Haze of Rage]]\n• [[Seance Board]]: Ramping mana for spells, often taps for 8+\n• [[Bender's Waterskin]]: Every untap counts, basically taps for 4\n• [[Hot Dog Cart]]: Not just a joke, the food counts for Affinity!\n• [[Skyclave Relic]]: Indestructible ramp that fully solves Affinity\n• [[Shellshock]]: 3-for-1 that fully solves Affinity\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"This deck is meant to put all of the curses on yourself, but with the other triggers of cards in the decklist, it ends up hurting opponents more than yourself. \n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"Tired of discarding due to hand size? Hate seeing the other players with full hands? Feel like you are slowly descending into madness?\n\nWell, this deck is the solution to that! If it isn't abundantly clear already, this Commander deck revolves around the \"Madness\" keyword ability. Madness allows you to cast spells for an alternate cost if the card is discarded. It also gets around timing rules and can be done at instant speed (this is worth noting)!\n\nThe basic philosophy of the deck is that discarding is usually a negative or, at best, a neutral effect. With Madness, you get to still cast the card when discarding, and often for a reduced cost. On top of that, if you force your opponents to discard with you, you can create a significant asymmetric advantage.\n\nThere are three major components to the deck that enable its \"engine\": cards that allow only you to discard (Likeness Looter, etc.), cards that make an opponent or each player discard (every Liliana, etc.), and cards that benefit from discarding (Bone Miser, Shadowgrange Archfiend, etc.).\n\nEven though Kefka does not have the Madness keyword, he does fit and enable the discard theme quite well and allows full access to the Grixis colors, where most of the Madness cards are contained. I'll be honest with you. Does only 1/4 of the deck contain cards that have the Madness keyword? Yes. Did I add a few Mayhem cards because it is a very similar effect and I was hoping you guys wouldn't notice? Also, yes (just kidding, of course). Think of the other cards as the discard shell around the soft, Madness turtle.\n\nYou can't have a madness deck without Anje Falkenrath. A number of other cards were also chosen because they have a repeatable discard effect: Azra Oddsmaker, Jace, Vryn's Prodigy, and Inti, Seneschal of the Sun. The Madness cards chosen were the best and brightest ("},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"mimes with tiny hands"},{"insert":" they looked at my Madness deck and said, \"wow, what a beautiful deck\"). Cards like Shadowgrange Archfiend, From Under the Floorboards, and Big Game Hunter can be very powerful if played for their Madness cost. And cards like Necrogen Mists are a nuisance for your opponents while keeping your discard engine running. Tergrid, God of Fright is the cherry on top of that sundae.\n\nIt should also be noted that cards like Psychic Frog and Chainer, Nightmare Adept allow you to discard during your opponent's combat, too, which can permit you to do Madness shenanigans that make it difficult for your opponent to plan attacks when you have open mana (e.g., From Under the Floorboards at instant speed).\n\nOverall, a fun, whacky deck with a method to its madness.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"insert":"The linchpin of this deck is "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"proliferate"},{"insert":" (as is flash but that's less interesting).\n\nThis is an Alt Wincon deck. Not that unique for "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Sokrates"},{"insert":" but I believe my approach is. \n\nFor a simple explanation: use proliferate to ramp with "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Everflowing Chalice"},{"insert":" and other rocks so you have enough mana to deploy your wincons at flash speed and win at upkeep. And/or suddenly proliferate wincons like "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's Elocutors"},{"insert":" & "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Darksteel Reactor"},{"insert":" with "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Radstorm"},{"insert":" or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Inexorable Tide "},{"insert":"before your opponents even know what your doing.\n\nI built proliferate into this deck specifically for "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's Elocutors "},{"insert":"and it was so fun and silly it became a large part of the decks identity. Not every wincon in the deck needs it but it's never unwelcome and I've accomplished some ridiculous commander feats - like making 24 "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Replicated Ring "},{"insert":"tokens and pumping that mana into "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"GoGo "},{"insert":"to copy "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"The Millennium Calendar's "},{"insert":"activated ability 12 times.\n\nThis deck is pretty dynamic. There are some obvious straight path wins like "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Divine Intervention "},{"insert":"and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Clockspinning "},{"insert":"(technically a draw) or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Approach of the Second Sun"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Remand"},{"insert":", but a path lesser traveled is more fun and there are plenty of those. Once, with "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Jace Wielder of Mysteries"},{"insert":", "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Ichormoon Gauntlet "},{"insert":"and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Inexorable Tide"},{"insert":", I took took two extra turns and oopsed into drawing out my deck. Sounds rude but I wasn't trying to, it just happened.\n\n"},{"attributes":{"underline":true},"insert":"The 6 wincons are:"},{"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's Elocutors "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Inexorable Tide "},{"insert":"or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Radstorm"},{"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Darksteel Reactor "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Inexorable Tide "},{"insert":"or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Radstorm"},{"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Devine Intervention "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Clockspinning "},{"insert":"or extra upkeeps\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"The Millennium Calendar "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"GoGo"},{"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Jace, Wielder of Mysteries "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Consecrated Sphinx"},{"insert":"\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Approach of the Second Sun "},{"insert":"- Usually needs "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Remand "},{"insert":"or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Narset's Reversal"},{"insert":"\n(All of these wincon plans are expensive so a beefy, ploriferated "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Everflowing Chalice "},{"insert":"or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Astral Cornucopia "},{"insert":"is indispensable.)\n\nI've also ended a game with "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Harsh Justice"},{"insert":"! Nobody wins but it feels so good. Not usually a good card but I threw it in the deck because it felt Sokrates esque and I've never taken it out.\n\n\nFinally, if you’re still reading, a typical game goes like this:\n1) Lie low - Don't draw aggro, don’t play big threats on board and appease your opponents with some extra card draw. I've found that usually with"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":" Sokrates"},{"insert":" most people only send one creature at you for that extra card draw good will. I also don't have much interaction aside from counter spells and I rarely use them unless absolutely necessary. I want to save those to protact my wincons in the late game.\n2) Draw cards - Obviously. Dig until you find your wincon of choice and essential combo pieces, including counter spells, extra upkeeps and/or flash enablers (e.g., "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's, Radstorm, Paradox Haze, High Fae Trickster, Flusterstorm"},{"insert":", a couple extra cheep spells for storm count.)\n3) Ramp - It's expensive to deploy these wincons all at once and we don't want to give our opponents any more time to react than necassary.\n4) 1 more turn - This is were it gets tense. Some set up pieces like "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Paradox Haze "},{"insert":"or "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Heliod "},{"insert":"put your opponents on edge. And some wincons like "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's "},{"insert":"need one upkeep to get online. This is usually the turn cycle your opponents start giving you side eye. They know you're ready to do something, and they're right. Be strategic.\n5) Go for the win - With enough mana, flash and a counter spell or two ready you will get that sudden, explosive, unlikely but sweet, sweet "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Azor's Elocutors"},{"insert":" win.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"The premise: a combat that only goes one way"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Most Commander decks have to negotiate combat. They swing, the opponent blocks, creatures trade, both sides lose something. It's a conversation.\n\nThis deck doesn't negotiate.\n\nShadow creates a layer of combat that conventional armies simply cannot access. Creatures with shadow only interact with other creatures with shadow, which means that in a typical Commander pod where nobody else is playing shadow, your entire board attacks through an invisible wall every single turn.\n\nShadow and cipher: the combination that makes both mechanics work"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Cipher is a mechanic that most players have quietly dismissed since Dragon's Maze, and honestly, with good reason — in a vacuum, encoding a spell onto a creature and hoping it connects repeatedly is too fragile to build around. The creature dies, gets blocked, gets tapped. The engine never fires, and just here, is where shadow punches you in the face, being able to trigger cipher every single turn.\n\nThe draw engine: paying for the army with the army"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"The natural question with any aggressive strategy is sustainability — how do you keep the pressure on when the hand runs dry? Here the shadow guarantee answers the question almost automatically.\n\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Coastal Piracy"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Bident of Thassa"},{"insert":" turn every unblocked connection into a card. With six shadow creatures attacking, that's six cards per combat. With both enchantments active, twelve. This isn't a draw engine bolted onto the strategy as support — it's the direct mechanical consequence of doing what the deck does anyway.\n\n"},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor"},{"insert":" is where this gets genuinely unfair. His trigger fires whenever "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"any"},{"insert":" creature deals combat damage to any player — yours, your opponents', anyone's. In a four-player game where your shadow horde is connecting every turn and other players are still swinging at each other, Gix turns the entire table's combat into your personal draw engine. Also it counts as a finisher — if u can draw enough cards on combat and manage to pay its activated ability, you just can target an opponent, discard X cards and take his/her top X cards and playing it for free. \n\n"},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Sygg, River Cutthroat"},{"insert":" and "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"Grenzo, Havoc Raiser"},{"insert":" layer on top of this. Sygg draws at the end of each opponent's step whenever they lost three or more life that turn, which in a four-player pod where your horde attacked two different opponents translates to free draws outside your own turn. Grenzo converts each connection into either a goad — redirecting an opponent's threats toward other opponents — or direct access to the top card of their library.\n\nThe Osborn blueprint"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"The decision of taking Norman as the commander is simple, \"This creature can't be blocked\". Yeah you got me, it doesn't say \"Shadow — it would have been extremely funny — but hear me out, \"po-tay-to, po-tah-to\". It has the best colors for have a great amount of shadows and ciphers, also enables red for agro strats — at the end I didn't take them in consideration cause i dont want that stupid word, \"haste\", even saying it out loud makes me sick. \n\nAs a conclusion, shadow is the position the opponent can't access. Cipher is the system running continuously inside that position. The draw engines are the intelligence network.\n"}]}

{"ops":[{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"What's that? Playing cards...on your own turn? Pish posh, that's what the white, black, and red players say, and try to slow you down while they scheme in their respective corners. "},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"\nThis entire deck is based upon one keyword: "},{"attributes":{"bold":true},"insert":"Flash"},{"insert":" (Ahhhhh, savior of the universe!). Well, more like the phrase: \"As if it had flash\" or \"Any time you could play an instant\". "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Kianne, Corrupted Memory"}},{"insert":" is our captain aboard this quick ship, with many different instant-speed draw engines to get her counters to the perfect amount to play your cards whenever you so please. You know what? What if you didn't just play cards from your hand? "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Augur of Autumn"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Eladamri, Korvecdal"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"The Reality Chip"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Vizier of the Menagerie"}},{"insert":" ,"},{"insert":{"card-link":"The Lunar Whale"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Case of the Locked Hothouse"}},{"insert":" , "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Elven Chorus"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Fortune Teller's Talent"}},{"insert":" ,"},{"insert":{"card-link":"One with the Multiverse"}},{"insert":" , and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ranger Class"}},{"insert":" all allow you to play specific cards from the top of your library, and guess what? At instant speed, you don't even need a hand!\n\nSay \"suck it\" to your players as you constantly play a bajillion spells on their turn, show them the true power that you have when all of your cards have flash\n"}]}