{"ops":[{"insert":"The Idea / Goal"},{"attributes":{"header":2},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"The idea behind this deck was \"what if I can guarantee "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ashaya's Enduring Bond"}},{"insert":" will always hit its namesake "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ashaya, Soul of the Wild"}},{"insert":" when cast for 5 mana?\" With Gruul being no stranger to powerful high-mana creatures and big mana enablers (including Ashaya itself capable of filling both roles fairly well), the answer was simple: every nonland card in the deck would simply cost 6 mana or more "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"except"},{"insert":" for Ashaya and one other spell to hit with the commander's first casting at 3 mana.\n\nExcept, it wasn't "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"quite"},{"insert":" that simple. The fact that the commander specifically requires you to control a legendary creature or planeswalker before you can cast it at all complicates things, and means it can't just be cast as soon as you have three lands with nothing else on the field. Naturally that means we'll have to lean heavily into legends, but the fact that this idea specifically puts all but two of our spells in the 99 at 6 mana or higher pretty much forces us into a bracket 2 deck that will spend most games playing draw-land-go until we can cast a six or seven mana legend. The goal from there will be to set ourselves up so we explode rapidly and hopefully overrun our opponents with big beaters faster than they can rein us in.\n\nKey Cards"},{"attributes":{"header":2},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"We've already mentioned "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ashaya, Soul of the Wild"}},{"insert":", which suggests utilizing some payoffs for landfall and having a lot of lands. Picking something that will pair well with Ashaya for our 3 mana cast of the commander will be important to get the value train rolling, which naturally lead me to "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nissa, Resurgent Animist"}},{"insert":". In addition to being thematic, as both a legendary and a Lotus Cobra-style effect, she fits beautifully with our intended game plan by netting us extra mana for every land, including a small rebate on every creature spell we cast (including off of the commander's discover effect) while Ashaya's out, helping to keep our explosive turns going. Nissa's second resolution effect will also help us find powerful elementals like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nyxbloom Ancient"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Omnath, Locus of Rage"}},{"insert":", or "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ancient Greenwarden"}},{"insert":" more reliably.\n\nRamp, Ramp, Ramp"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"In order to carry out our plan, we'll need a lot of mana. Both of our hidden commanders in Nissa and Ashaya help here once we can start the ball rolling, especially together, but they're just the beginning. The deck is packed with ramp options, too many to go through them all, but let's look at a few categories and highlights:\n\nCards like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Old Gnawbone"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Klauth, Unrivaled Ancient"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Sakiko, Mother of Summer"}},{"insert":" can net us tons of mana when we swing in with our big attackers, letting us bring out even more threats after combat for next turn.\n\nWe can also get one-shot bursts of mana from spells like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Brass's Bounty"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Reckless Endeavor"}},{"insert":", or the death effect on "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ancient Adamantoise"}},{"insert":". "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Fungal Reaches"}},{"insert":" can also build up to this slowly in a pinch, especially in combination with true mana doublers (more on those later).\n\nThe land base plays multiple important roles in this effort too. Lands like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Myriad Landscape"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Crystal Vein"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Temple of the False God"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Untaidake, the Cloud Keeper"}},{"insert":" among others can help get that first legendary card out a little bit early or squeeze through the first couple castings of our commander. Once the ball gets rolling, powerhouse lands like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Evendo, Waking Haven"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Three Tree City"}},{"insert":" (likely declaring elementals, though other types might make sense depending on the board state) can give us a huge amount of mana turn after turn.\n\nWe'll always be happy to see additive mana like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Groundchuck & Dirtbag"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Zendikar Resurgent"}},{"insert":", or "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger"}},{"insert":". But the real all-stars are "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nyxbloom Ancient"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Mana Reflection"}},{"insert":", which work with nonlands like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"The Great Henge"}},{"insert":" and even treasure tokens, while giving a bigger boost to anything that taps for multiple mana, even simple filter and bounce lands, to say nothing of the flood of mana from doubling or tripling Nykthos or Evendo.\n\nLand Synergies"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"While the deck doesn't strictly rely on it, there are a few powerful landfall effects available for Ashaya to supercharge. "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Omnath, Locus of Rage"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Rampaging Baloths"}},{"insert":" can produce a horde of tokens, "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Geode Rager"}},{"insert":" can easily force all of our opponents to swing out at each other and leave us alone, "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Glacier Godmaw"}},{"insert":" can lead to huge blowout swings with haste and vigilance, and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Moraug, Fury of Akoum"}},{"insert":" can see us getting a frightening number of combats.\n\nAshaya can get big fast, so why not have a few more creatures just as big? "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Multani, Yavimaya's Avatar"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Molimo, Maro-Sorcerer"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ulvenwald Hydra"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Lumra, Bellow of the Woods"}},{"insert":" all compound on Ashaya turning all of your creatures into lands to go tall, and most of them have a little bit of extra utility to boot.\n\nFun Odds & Ends"},{"attributes":{"header":3},"insert":"\n"},{"insert":"At a preposterous average mana value just shy of 7(!), this may be the perfect deck for "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Triple Triad"}},{"insert":", as any flip other than a land is going to nearly guarantee you can cast at least one or two of your opponents' spells, and getting all three may not be that uncommon. In a similar vein, "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Lurking Predators"}},{"insert":" will be a kill-on-sight threat with nearly half the deck being high-cost bomb creatures. But even scarier is the threat of a "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Primal Surge"}},{"insert":"; with only four other non-permanent cards in the deck, successfully resolving this card is likely to lead to a nearly insurmountable lead even if it doesn't give you an immediate swing for game.\n\nWith the deck aiming to win virtually only through combat damage, we have more than a few ways to help bring that plan to its conclusion. Big eldrazi with Annihilator like "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Kozilek, Butcher of Truth"}},{"insert":", "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre"}},{"insert":", and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ulamog, the Defiler"}},{"insert":" can help clear a path. Classic finishers "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Blightsteel Colossus"}},{"insert":" and "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Etali, Primal Conqueror // Etali, Primal Sickness"}},{"insert":" lurk in the deck to one-shot a vulnerable player with poison damage. And there's no shortage of +1/+1 counters and overrun effects, with "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Nissa, Ascended Animist"}},{"insert":" deserving special mention for combining a potentially massive overrun alongside Ashaya with a stream of large tokens, utility removal, and a legend that can enable our commander's first casting for less than 6 mana.\n\nOne final trick to call out: "},{"insert":{"card-link":"Ba Sing Se"}},{"insert":" makes for a uniquely interesting utility land in this deck. Turning a land into a meager 2/2 isn't very strong here, but it's worth noting that earthbending can target lands that are "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"already"},{"insert":" creatures, including "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"any"},{"insert":" of your non-token creatures while Ashaya's on the board. The 2 +1/+1 counters aren't bad, but the real draw here is the chance to protect a key creature (like Nissa or Ashaya) from most forms of removal. Alongside theft effects from Triple Triad or Etali, it can also make sure lands and (with Ashaya) creatures you've borrowed stay on your side of the field through removal, since earthbend's death/exile trigger always returns the affected permanent under "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"your"},{"insert":" control (though the reminder text doesn't make this fact clear). And it also has one more little trick: in a pinch, Ba Sing Se can turn any of the deck's legendary lands into a legendary land "},{"attributes":{"italic":true},"insert":"creature"},{"insert":", enabling our commander in a situation where we might otherwise be stuck.\n"}]}