1.1k
3/8/2024
The Riddlemaster
Deck Size: 100
Commander / EDH
Legal
Est deck cost: $1585.35
Salt Sum: 64.15
1.1k
3/8/2024
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Commander

Quantity: 1Price: $1.29
Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign

Flying Sphinx spells you cast cost {2} less to cast. Whenever Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign or another Sphinx enters the battlefield under your control, reveal the top four cards of your library. An opponent separates those cards into two piles. Put one pile into your hand and the other into your graveyard.

Creature
Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign (hou) 52
1

Bonus Value

Quantity: 6Price: $33.74
Dig Through Time

Delve (Each card you exile from your graveyard while casting this spell pays for {1}.) Look at the top seven cards of your library. Put two of them into your hand and the rest on the bottom of your library in any order.

Instant
Dig Through Time (plg21) 2
1
Leyline of Anticipation

If Leyline of Anticipation is in your opening hand, you may begin the game with it on the battlefield. You may cast spells as though they had flash.

Enchantment
Leyline of Anticipation (wot) 23
1
Panharmonicon

If an artifact or creature entering the battlefield causes a triggered ability of a permanent you control to trigger, that ability triggers an additional time.

Artifact
Panharmonicon (sld) 605
1
Reenact the Crime

Exile target nonland card in a graveyard that was put there from anywhere this turn. Copy it. You may cast the copy without paying its mana cost.

Instant
Reenact the Crime (mkm) 297
1
Sublime Epiphany

Choose one or more — • Counter target spell. • Counter target activated or triggered ability. • Return target nonland permanent to its owner's hand. • Create a token that's a copy of target creature you control. • Target player draws a card.

Instant
Sublime Epiphany (m21) 74
1
Uba Mask

If a player would draw a card, that player exiles that card face up instead. Each player may play lands and cast spells from among cards they exiled with Uba Mask this turn.

Artifact
Uba Mask (chk) 272
1

Interaction

Quantity: 19Price: $431.61
Archmage's Charm

Choose one — • Counter target spell. • Target player draws two cards. • Gain control of target nonland permanent with mana value 1 or less.

Instant
Archmage's Charm (sch) 2
1
Counterspell

Counter target spell.

Instant
Counterspell (mh2) 308
1
Cryptic Command

Choose two — • Counter target spell. • Return target permanent to its owner's hand. • Tap all creatures your opponents control. • Draw a card.

Instant
Cryptic Command (p09) 1
1
Cyclonic Rift

Return target nonland permanent you don't control to its owner's hand. Overload {6}{U} (You may cast this spell for its overload cost. If you do, change "target" in its text to "each.")

Instant
Cyclonic Rift (2xm) 339
1
Disallow

Counter target spell, activated ability, or triggered ability. (Mana abilities can't be targeted.)

Instant
Disallow (aer) 31
1
Engulf the Shore

Return to their owners' hands all creatures with toughness less than or equal to the number of Islands you control.

Instant
Engulf the Shore (soi) 58
1
Evacuation

Return all creatures to their owners' hands.

Instant
Evacuation (9ed) 75
1
Familiar's Ruse

As an additional cost to cast this spell, return a creature you control to its owner's hand. Counter target spell.

Instant
Familiar's Ruse (mm3) 37
1
Fierce Guardianship

If you control a commander, you may cast this spell without paying its mana cost. Counter target noncreature spell.

Instant
Fierce Guardianship (c20) 35
1
Foil

You may discard an Island card and another card rather than pay this spell's mana cost. Counter target spell.

Instant
Foil (uma) 55
1
Force of Negation

If it's not your turn, you may exile a blue card from your hand rather than pay this spell's mana cost. Counter target noncreature spell. If that spell is countered this way, exile it instead of putting it into its owner's graveyard.

Instant
Force of Negation (2x2) 346
1
Force of Will

You may pay 1 life and exile a blue card from your hand rather than pay this spell's mana cost. Counter target spell.

Instant
Force of Will (dmr) 418
1
Imprisoned in the Moon

Enchant creature, land, or planeswalker Enchanted permanent is a colorless land with "{T}: Add {C}" and loses all other card types and abilities.

Enchantment
Imprisoned in the Moon (sld) 1102
1
Lofty Denial

Counter target spell unless its controller pays {1}. If you control a creature with flying, counter that spell unless its controller pays {4} instead.

Instant
Lofty Denial (m21) 56
1
Mana Drain

Counter target spell. At the beginning of your next main phase, add an amount of {C} equal to that spell's mana value.

Instant
Mana Drain (2x2) 348
1
March of Swirling Mist

As an additional cost to cast this spell, you may exile any number of blue cards from your hand. This spell costs {2} less to cast for each card exiled this way. Up to X target creatures phase out. (While they're phased out, they're treated as though they don't exist. Each one phases in before its controller untaps during their next untap step.)

Instant
March of Swirling Mist (neo) 447
1
Negate

Counter target noncreature spell.

Instant
Negate (p09) 8
1
Raise the Palisade

Choose a creature type. Return all creatures that aren't of the chosen type to their owners' hands.

Sorcery
Raise the Palisade (ltc) 425
1
Stubborn Denial

Counter target noncreature spell unless its controller pays {1}. Ferocious — If you control a creature with power 4 or greater, counter that spell instead.

Instant
Stubborn Denial (ktk) 56
1

Land

Quantity: 34Price: $330.76
Ancient Tomb

{T}: Add {C}{C}. Ancient Tomb deals 2 damage to you.

Land
Ancient Tomb (plst) TMP-315
1
Castle Vantress

Castle Vantress enters the battlefield tapped unless you control an Island. {T}: Add {U}. {2}{U}{U}, {T}: Scry 2.

Land
Castle Vantress (eld) 390
1
Cavern of Souls

As Cavern of Souls enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. {T}: Add {C}. {T}: Add one mana of any color. Spend this mana only to cast a creature spell of the chosen type, and that spell can't be countered.

Land
Cavern of Souls (plst) AVR-226
1
Island

({T}: Add {U}.)

Land
Island (thb) 251
24
Myriad Landscape

Myriad Landscape enters the battlefield tapped. {T}: Add {C}. {2}, {T}, Sacrifice Myriad Landscape: Search your library for up to two basic land cards that share a land type, put them onto the battlefield tapped, then shuffle.

Land
Myriad Landscape (cmm) 660
1
Mystic Sanctuary

({T}: Add {U}.) Mystic Sanctuary enters the battlefield tapped unless you control three or more other Islands. When Mystic Sanctuary enters the battlefield untapped, you may put target instant or sorcery card from your graveyard on top of your library.

Land
Mystic Sanctuary (eld) 247
1
Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

{T}: Add {C}. {2}, {T}: Choose a color. Add an amount of mana of that color equal to your devotion to that color. (Your devotion to a color is the number of mana symbols of that color in the mana costs of permanents you control.)

Land
Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx (ths) 223
1
Otawara, Soaring City

{T}: Add {U}. Channel — {3}{U}, Discard Otawara, Soaring City: Return target artifact, creature, enchantment, or planeswalker to its owner's hand. This ability costs {1} less to activate for each legendary creature you control.

Land
Otawara, Soaring City (neo) 414
1
Reliquary Tower

You have no maximum hand size. {T}: Add {C}.

Land
Reliquary Tower (sld) 695
1
Rivendell

Rivendell enters the battlefield tapped unless you control a legendary creature. {T}: Add {U}. {1}{U}, {T}: Scry 2. Activate only if you control a legendary creature.

Land
Rivendell (ltr) 259
1
Soldevi Excavations

If Soldevi Excavations would enter the battlefield, sacrifice an untapped Island instead. If you do, put Soldevi Excavations onto the battlefield. If you don't, put it into its owner's graveyard. {T}: Add {C}{U}. {1}, {T}: Scry 1.

Land
Soldevi Excavations (all) 143
1

Ramp/Reduction

Quantity: 10Price: $453.13
Herald's Horn

As Herald's Horn enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. Creature spells you cast of the chosen type cost {1} less to cast. At the beginning of your upkeep, look at the top card of your library. If it's a creature card of the chosen type, you may reveal it and put it into your hand.

Artifact
Herald's Horn (c17) 53
1
Jeweled Lotus

{T}, Sacrifice Jeweled Lotus: Add three mana of any one color. Spend this mana only to cast your commander.

Artifact
Jeweled Lotus (cmr) 319
1
Kefnet's Monument

Blue creature spells you cast cost {1} less to cast. Whenever you cast a creature spell, target creature an opponent controls doesn't untap during its controller's next untap step.

Artifact
Kefnet's Monument (akh) 231
1
Mana Crypt

At the beginning of your upkeep, flip a coin. If you lose the flip, Mana Crypt deals 3 damage to you. {T}: Add {C}{C}.

Artifact
Mana Crypt (plst) EMA-225
1
Mana Vault

Mana Vault doesn't untap during your untap step. At the beginning of your upkeep, you may pay {4}. If you do, untap Mana Vault. At the beginning of your draw step, if Mana Vault is tapped, it deals 1 damage to you. {T}: Add {C}{C}{C}.

Artifact
Mana Vault (4ed) 334
1
Sapphire Medallion

Blue spells you cast cost {1} less to cast.

Artifact
Sapphire Medallion (c14) 266
1
Sol Ring

{T}: Add {C}{C}.

Artifact
Sol Ring (cmm) 703
1
Thought Vessel

You have no maximum hand size. {T}: Add {C}.

Artifact
Thought Vessel (sld) 1495★
1
Urza's Incubator

As Urza's Incubator enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. Creature spells of the chosen type cost {2} less to cast.

Artifact
Urza's Incubator (dmr) 453
1
Warden of Evos Isle

Flying Creature spells with flying you cast cost {1} less to cast.

Creature
Warden of Evos Isle (ema) 76
1

Recursion

Quantity: 5Price: $148.67
Echo of Eons

Each player shuffles their hand and graveyard into their library, then draws seven cards. Flashback {2}{U} (You may cast this card from your graveyard for its flashback cost. Then exile it.)

Sorcery
Echo of Eons (mh1) 46
1
Learn from the Past

Target player shuffles their graveyard into their library. Draw a card.

Instant
Learn from the Past (dtk) 60
1
Midnight Clock

{T}: Add {U}. {2}{U}: Put an hour counter on Midnight Clock. At the beginning of each upkeep, put an hour counter on Midnight Clock. When the twelfth hour counter is put on Midnight Clock, shuffle your hand and graveyard into your library, then draw seven cards. Exile Midnight Clock.

Artifact
Midnight Clock (eld) 346
1
Quest for Ancient Secrets

Whenever a card is put into your graveyard from anywhere, you may put a quest counter on Quest for Ancient Secrets. Remove five quest counters from Quest for Ancient Secrets and sacrifice it: Target player shuffles their graveyard into their library.

Enchantment
Quest for Ancient Secrets (zen) 59
1
Time Spiral

Exile Time Spiral. Each player shuffles their hand and graveyard into their library, then draws seven cards. You untap up to six lands.

Sorcery
Time Spiral (usg) 103
1

Sphinx

Quantity: 25Price: $186.15
Alhammarret, High Arbiter

Flying As Alhammarret, High Arbiter enters the battlefield, each opponent reveals their hand. You choose the name of a nonland card revealed this way. Your opponents can't cast spells with the chosen name (as long as this creature is on the battlefield).

Creature
Alhammarret, High Arbiter (pori) 43
1
Argent Sphinx

Flying Metalcraft — {U}: Exile Argent Sphinx. Return it to the battlefield under your control at the beginning of the next end step. Activate only if you control three or more artifacts.

Creature
Argent Sphinx (som) 28
1
Auton Soldier

You may have Auton Soldier enter the battlefield as a copy of any creature on the battlefield, except it isn't legendary, is an artifact in addition to its other types, and has myriad. (Whenever it attacks, for each opponent other than defending player, you may put a token that's a copy of this creature onto the battlefield tapped and attacking that player or a planeswalker they control. Exile the tokens at end of combat.)

Creature Artifact
Auton Soldier (who) 353
1
Chancellor of the Spires

You may reveal this card from your opening hand. If you do, at the beginning of the first upkeep, each opponent mills seven cards. Flying When Chancellor of the Spires enters the battlefield, you may cast target instant or sorcery card from an opponent's graveyard without paying its mana cost.

Creature
Chancellor of the Spires (nph) 31
1
Consecrated Sphinx

Flying Whenever an opponent draws a card, you may draw two cards.

Creature
Consecrated Sphinx (mp2) 8
1
Conspiracy Unraveler

Flying You may collect evidence 10 rather than pay the mana cost for spells that you cast. (To collect evidence 10, exile cards with total mana value 10 or greater from your graveyard.)

Creature
Conspiracy Unraveler (mkm) 379
1
Dazzling Sphinx

Flying Whenever Dazzling Sphinx deals combat damage to a player, that player exiles cards from the top of their library until they exile an instant or sorcery card. You may cast that card without paying its mana cost. Then that player puts the exiled cards that weren't cast this way on the bottom of their library in a random order.

Creature
Dazzling Sphinx (c21) 352
1
Defiler of Dreams

Flying As an additional cost to cast blue permanent spells, you may pay 2 life. Those spells cost {U} less to cast if you paid life this way. This effect reduces only the amount of blue mana you pay. Whenever you cast a blue permanent spell, draw a card.

Creature
Defiler of Dreams (dmu) 393
1
Dream Eater

Flash Flying When Dream Eater enters the battlefield, surveil 4. When you do, you may return target nonland permanent an opponent controls to its owner's hand. (To surveil 4, look at the top four cards of your library, then put any number of them into your graveyard and the rest on top of your library in any order.)

Creature
Dream Eater (grn) 38
1
Enigma Thief

Prowl {3}{U} (You may cast this spell for its prowl cost if you dealt combat damage to a player this turn with a Sphinx or Rogue.) Flying When Enigma Thief enters the battlefield, for each opponent, return up to one target nonland permanent that player controls to its owner's hand.

Creature
Enigma Thief (znc) 4
1
Guardian of Tazeem

Flying Landfall — Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, tap target creature an opponent controls. If that land is an Island, that creature doesn't untap during its controller's next untap step.

Creature
Guardian of Tazeem (bfz) 78
1
Jwar Isle Avenger

Surge {2}{U} (You may cast this spell for its surge cost if you or a teammate has cast another spell this turn.) Flying

Creature
Jwar Isle Avenger (ogw) 58
1
Prognostic Sphinx

Flying Discard a card: Prognostic Sphinx gains hexproof until end of turn. Tap it. Whenever Prognostic Sphinx attacks, scry 3.

Creature
Prognostic Sphinx (cp1) 1
1
Rescuer Sphinx

Flying As Rescuer Sphinx enters the battlefield, you may return a nonland permanent you control to its owner's hand. If you do, Rescuer Sphinx enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it.

Creature
Rescuer Sphinx (war) 65
1
Roaming Throne

Ward {2} As Roaming Throne enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. Roaming Throne is the chosen type in addition to its other types. If a triggered ability of another creature you control of the chosen type triggers, it triggers an additional time.

Creature Artifact
Roaming Throne (lci) 344
1
Scholar of the Lost Trove

Flying When Scholar of the Lost Trove enters the battlefield, you may cast target instant, sorcery, or artifact card from your graveyard without paying its mana cost. If an instant or sorcery spell cast this way would be put into your graveyard, exile it instead.

Creature
Scholar of the Lost Trove (jmp) 496
1
Serum Sovereign

Flying Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, put an oil counter on Serum Sovereign. {U}, Remove an oil counter from Serum Sovereign: Draw a card, then scry 2.

Creature
Serum Sovereign (one) 410
1
Sphinx Ambassador

Flying Whenever Sphinx Ambassador deals combat damage to a player, search that player's library for a card, then that player chooses a card name. If you searched for a creature card that doesn't have that name, you may put it onto the battlefield under your control. Then that player shuffles.

Creature
Sphinx Ambassador (m10) 73
1
Sphinx of Enlightenment

Flying When Sphinx of Enlightenment enters the battlefield, target opponent draws a card and you draw three cards.

Creature
Sphinx of Enlightenment (gn2) 2
1
Sphinx of Foresight

You may reveal this card from your opening hand. If you do, scry 3 at the beginning of your first upkeep. Flying At the beginning of your upkeep, scry 1.

Creature
Sphinx of Foresight (prna) 55s
1
Sphinx of Lost Truths

Kicker {1}{U} (You may pay an additional {1}{U} as you cast this spell.) Flying When Sphinx of Lost Truths enters the battlefield, draw three cards. Then if it wasn't kicked, discard three cards.

Creature
Sphinx of Lost Truths (zen) 69
1
Sphinx of the Final Word

This spell can't be countered. Flying, hexproof Instant and sorcery spells you control can't be countered.

Creature
Sphinx of the Final Word (ogw) 63
1
Sphinx of Uthuun

Flying When Sphinx of Uthuun enters the battlefield, reveal the top five cards of your library. An opponent separates those cards into two piles. Put one pile into your hand and the other into your graveyard.

Creature
Sphinx of Uthuun (m13) 69
1
Vexing Sphinx

Flying Cumulative upkeep—Discard a card. (At the beginning of your upkeep, put an age counter on this permanent, then sacrifice it unless you pay its upkeep cost for each age counter on it.) When Vexing Sphinx dies, draw a card for each age counter on it.

Creature
Vexing Sphinx (dmr) 297
1
Windreader Sphinx

Flying Whenever a creature with flying attacks, you may draw a card.

Creature
Windreader Sphinx (m14) 81
1

Maybeboard

Quantity: 2Price: $10.98
Reflections of Littjara

As Reflections of Littjara enters the battlefield, choose a creature type. Whenever you cast a spell of the chosen type, copy that spell. (A copy of a permanent spell becomes a token.)

Enchantment
Reflections of Littjara (khm) 400
1
Virtue of Knowledge

Enchantment
Virtue of Knowledge // Vantress Visions (woe) 279
1

Deck Stats

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Description

{"ops":[{"insert":"Out of the hundreds, and hundreds of decklists I've made, this is my favorite thing I've ever built. \nIt's my baby, a labor of love I've constantly updated since Hour of Devastation, and a deck I always carry. This is Battlecruiser Magic at its finest: big, evasive creatures that generate card advantage, and a ton of protection to keep the value coming.\n\nHere's how you do it: \nTurn 1-4, ramp out like a mofo. Steal a Sol Ring with Archmage's Charm, do whatever it takes to gain mana or card advantage."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Turn 3-5: Get your big friend out."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Turn 4-6: Play an additional value engine, then start churning through your deck for as many sphinxes as possible."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Turn 7+: Clown on some fools with massive flying beaters and infinite counterspells. You can usually start playing 3-4 Sphinxes per turn around turn 6-8, and draw like 10 cards from their etb triggers. Your recursion pieces loop eachother, so you'll never deck out, and you can liberally bin stuff that will be useful later."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"\nTips and tricks:\nUba Mask is the best. It's ideally played right after Unesh lands. It hoses your opponents' chances of digging for answers once you start popping off, and it won't punish you at all, since all your \"draw\" will be off of "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Fact or Fiction"}},{"insert":" ETBs that don't trigger it."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Sandbag your removal and counters to protect Unesh at all costs. This is a very commander-dependent deck, and he lets you rebuild from nothing insanely quickly. Everything else on your board is expendable."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"You can use almost all of your recursion pieces as grave-hate in a pinch!"},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"It's okay to be passive until your victory is assured. As long it won't kill you or your game plan, it's ok to let stuff resolve, since you will "},{"attributes":{"italic":true,"bold":true},"insert":"always"},{"insert":" draw into answers. Your opponents' false sense of security often leads to you having four or five \"non-threatening\" 4+ power fliers stick around, which is usually enough to kill someone later in the game."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"Auton Soldier is a singular win condition if you copy Unesh. On attack you get 12 FoF triggers, more if you had a good setup, and go through 60 cards in one go."},{"attributes":{"list":"bullet"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"\nMy favorite 5 sphinxes, asked nobody:\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sphinx Ambassador"}},{"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Defiler of Dreams"}},{"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Chancellor of the Spires"}},{"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Jwar Isle Avenger"}},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":{"card-link":"Guardian of Tazeem"}},{"insert":" "},{"attributes":{"list":"ordered"},"insert":"\n"}]}
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