Zedruu is a one of a kind commander. Most games of Magic revolve around taking away permamnants, but Zedruu is all about the LOVE. It's like christmas every time you play!
"I give you this"
"...but I don't want it."
"TOO BAD!"
Now, we could give the other players useful things, but in my experience that just has them hating on us anyway with their new toy. SO my Zedruu only give's Coal. Blame the other players for Zedruu's pissed off Santa attitude. The only thing other players can blame us for is having great heart and an open mind.
Now the important aspects of this deck revolve around Instants and Enchantments, making Wild Research a house and a half. We could even call it a mansion, though every once and awhile we discard the card we wanted so its in a wee bit of disrepair. No matter, still does what we want most of the time.
Enchantment Choices:
Leyline of Anticipation - Flash all the things. One of the problems with enchantments is the sorcery speed at which you can play them, as well as the RUW you need to pay to gift someone. At instant speed, instead of playing and hoping that your other players don't have removal before your turn, you can cast your enchantments when you need them. Like at the end of turn, then at the upkeep you can gift and draw all you want.
Omniscience - Again, Zedruu is mana hungry over everything else. This makes Zedruu inherently a late game deck. Many card choices in this deck are permanents with mana abilities attached to them, or are expensively costed. Once you get this enchantment out, those mana abilities are all that you need to pay to play this game. In addition, this deck has many different ways of drawing cards, each draw card helping fuel your engine that Omniscience has created.
Righteous Aura - Defense numero uno. Can come down turn 2, stops Commander Damage, stops Edric's draw advantage. The only disadvantage is its inability to save Venser, the Sojourner.
Solitary Confinement - Even if it's for one turn, this can be a useful fog effect. Add together Sun Titan, Mind Unbound, any of the Draw Creatures, or Zedruu herself, and you have created an extra large stepping stone that other players have to cross before touching you.
Mind Unbound - Draws you an extra card after 1 turn. After 5 turns, you have drawn 20 cards more than your opponents. Long term benefits to be sure, but those benefits are larger than some people see initially.
Statecraft - Give to whatever player attacks you. Then Laugh. Give to a Norin deck, and have the Norin player rage. It's happened before to me. Gave my friend this deck to use, I borrow someone's Norin deck. Mid way through the game, I'm playing archenemy vs everyone else and my friend gives me Statecraft.
You know what sucks more than your token deck being unable to deal combat damage? Being in Red, one of the 2 colors with no enchantment removal.
Pyromancer's Swath - This enchantment essentially reads "at 6 mana with Zedruu out, Nuke target player's hand at the end of every turn." Rarely is this a dead card.
Illusions of Grandeur - We gain 20 life and target player loses 20 life. Or if they kill it then you wasted 4-7 mana. But the chance of that waste is worth it when we are talking a life swing of 40.
Celestial Dawn - At minimum, this color fixes your deck. Against nonwhite players, its a win condition vs most decks. Ulamog, Oblivion Stone, and their ilk can save them, but if they don't have those cards in their hand then they are topdecking for hope.
Confusion in the Ranks - The point of Zedruu is to give as many permanents as possible to your opponent. With this out, you get to take their's as well! Need to give away Celestial Dawn after Zedruu has been tucked? Here is your way to do it(provided the player has an enchantment). Kher Keep turns this enchantment into an instant speed creature steal.
Oath of Lieges - Is that green mage ramping ahead of everyone, or are you having problems with Strip Mine and Crucible of Worlds? Here's your card to catch up. Its Zedruu gift friendly, its politically friendly, it creates a lategame scenario faster than any card in this deck....what more do you want?
Instants!
Another part of the deck is Sunforger. We have 4 cards that can tutor for it, and many a spell that can be casted with it. Double Negative is solely in this deck as a tutorable counterspell. Oblation and Chaos Warp are tutorable Commander killers, Path to Exile for any others. Return to Dust wrecks those two problem artifacts or enchantments. Enlightened Tutor can be tutored for, for which it can get most any noncreature card that sunforge couldn't get.Mirrorweave is a niche card that I fell in love with, as it never disappoints; Sunforger can get it. I've been boardwiped before, only to Mirrorweave my Academy Rector to get 4 enchantments...FOR FREE.
Chain of Plasma can seem like an odd choice. However, uninteruppted, if used with Swans of Bryn Argoll, you can draw your deck. With Kozilek, Butcher of Truth, you can draw it infinitely. With 4 mana free you win the game. At the very least, its an incinerate. I've won with Stuffy Doll and a full hand, as I just discard said hand to Chain of Plasma and deal 24 damage to target player. Seems good.
Other Aspects Nin, the Pain Artist with Psychosis Crawler and /or Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind is just painful for the whole table. Depending on your mana and board presence(read presents), you can outright kill multiple players. Politically Nin can give your allies cards with your free mana, or rather you can pay off your enemies to look elsewhere.
Venser, the Sojourner is our lone Plansewalker. Give him enough time, and his ultimate will win the game. until then, Blinking a permanent that you want back from an opponent is always a lovely past time. Blinking a theft creature gets downright bonkers. Mistmeadow Witch acts as a second Venser for your creatures, though I've used her as removal/defense for annoying creatures the opponent has. Both of these cards LOVE Confusion in the Ranks, which is already an awesome card.
I'll update as time goes on, but currently this is the best rendition of this deck that I have created through multiple play testings. Feedback appreciated, as are card suggestions.
I generally found Sunforger to take up a huge amount of space in the deck while not accomplishing much, if only because my friends all know to disrupt it as soon as they see it, and it is quite disruptable. I've got vague designs for a TarielGrand Melee deck that will probably use it better.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Oh, you think the losers' bracket is your ally, but you merely adopted the scrub tier. I was born in it, molded by it. I didn’t 4-0 an FNM until I was already a man; by then, it was nothing to me but an extra pack to sell for store credit!
I generally found Sunforger to take up a huge amount of space in the deck while not accomplishing much, if only because my friends all know to disrupt it as soon as they see it, and it is quite disruptable. I've got vague designs for a TarielGrand Melee deck that will probably use it better.
I've never tried, and now I know why.
Sunforge has been in the deck since I created it, winning me many games out of nowhere, but I know where you are coming from. I keep flirting with the idea of scrapping the Sunforge package, but many card choices that I'd have in the deck anyway are enhanced with the presence of sunforger. At the very least it has Zedruu killing with commander damage, though that's a rare occurance.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Top Control: The only pure lockdown deck in Modern.
Hmm, don't you think you could use a few extra tutors? With white and blue, hitting enchantments/artifacts for donation or utility is pretty easy. Also, no Rust Elemental or Steel Golem? You may also consider Tel-Jilad Stylus just in case your opponents are actually making use of your "gifts".
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
"You are what you pretend to be, so you must be careful what you pretend to be" from Mother Night
I have enough tutors imo. 7 is already a bunch, with 2 of them being permanents. I might have chosen Mystical Tutor if anything, but I chose the 1 CC tutors in there as is due to Gamble's Flexibility and the other searching for whatever I most likely need from the deck.
Steel Golem beats face. Maybe I can take a net loss of 2 life, but other players won't in my experience, leading to Steel Golem only having an effect for 1-2 turns, if that.
Rust Elemental is definitely a card I want, but I just need to find where to put him.
Tel-Jilad Stylus is one of those cards that could be good, but usually isnt. The gifts I give rarely have need to be taken away.Maybe if Illusions of Granduer is given away, then I can use this, but otherwise I kinda see this as a dead card.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Top Control: The only pure lockdown deck in Modern.
"I give you this"
"...but I don't want it."
"TOO BAD!"
Now, we could give the other players useful things, but in my experience that just has them hating on us anyway with their new toy. SO my Zedruu only give's Coal. Blame the other players for Zedruu's pissed off Santa attitude. The only thing other players can blame us for is having great heart and an open mind.
Zedruu the Greathearted's Gift Deck
1 Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind
1 Nin, the Pain Artist
1 Swans of Bryn Argoll
1 Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
Theft Creatures
1 Gilded Drake
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Vedalken Plotter
Tutor Creatures
1 Academy Rector
1 Stonehewer Giant
1 Stoneforge Mystic
Utility Creatures
1 Sun Titan
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Mistmeadow Witch
1 Psychosis Crawler
1 Stuffy Doll
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Azorius Guildmage
Mana Rocks/Ramp
1 Sol Ring
1 Darksteel Ingot
1 Coalition Relic
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Fellwar Stone
1 Expedition Map
1 Oath of Lieges
Zedruu Gifts
1 Statecraft
1 Pyromancer's Swath
1 Illusions of Grandeur
1 Celestial Dawn
1 Confusion in the Ranks
1 Political Trickery
1 Sunforger
1 Darksteel Plate
1 Lightning Greaves
Draw/Point Removal
1 Brainstorm
1 Prophetic Bolt
1 Chaos Warp
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Oblation
1 Path to Exile
1 Return to Dust
1 Trade Secrets
1 Time Reversal
1 Remand
1 Double Negative
1 Chain of Plasma
1 Mind Unbound
Defense/Mass Removal
1 Solitary Confinement
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Austere Command
1 Righteous Aura
Utility
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Venser, the Sojourner
1 Rite of Replication
1 Enlightened Tutor
1 Gamble
1 Mirrorweave
1 Leyline of Anticipation
1 Omniscience
1 Wild Research
5 Island
4 Mountain
4 Plains
1 Sulfur Falls
1 Glacial Fortress
1 Steam Vents
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Sacred Foundry
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Cascade Bluffs
1 Celestial Colonnade
1 Mystic Gate
1 Nimbus Maze
1 Vivid Meadow
1 Vivid Creek
1 Vivid Crag
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Arid Mesa
1 Clifftop Retreat
1 Command Tower
1 Exotic Orchard
1 Rugged Prairie
1 Temple of the False God
Utility Lands
1 Mistveil Plains
1 Kher Keep
1 Strip Mine
1 Sunhome, Fortress of the Legion
1 Homeward Path
Now the important aspects of this deck revolve around Instants and Enchantments, making Wild Research a house and a half. We could even call it a mansion, though every once and awhile we discard the card we wanted so its in a wee bit of disrepair. No matter, still does what we want most of the time.
Enchantment Choices:
Leyline of Anticipation - Flash all the things. One of the problems with enchantments is the sorcery speed at which you can play them, as well as the RUW you need to pay to gift someone. At instant speed, instead of playing and hoping that your other players don't have removal before your turn, you can cast your enchantments when you need them. Like at the end of turn, then at the upkeep you can gift and draw all you want.
Omniscience - Again, Zedruu is mana hungry over everything else. This makes Zedruu inherently a late game deck. Many card choices in this deck are permanents with mana abilities attached to them, or are expensively costed. Once you get this enchantment out, those mana abilities are all that you need to pay to play this game. In addition, this deck has many different ways of drawing cards, each draw card helping fuel your engine that Omniscience has created.
Righteous Aura - Defense numero uno. Can come down turn 2, stops Commander Damage, stops Edric's draw advantage. The only disadvantage is its inability to save Venser, the Sojourner.
Solitary Confinement - Even if it's for one turn, this can be a useful fog effect. Add together Sun Titan, Mind Unbound, any of the Draw Creatures, or Zedruu herself, and you have created an extra large stepping stone that other players have to cross before touching you.
Mind Unbound - Draws you an extra card after 1 turn. After 5 turns, you have drawn 20 cards more than your opponents. Long term benefits to be sure, but those benefits are larger than some people see initially.
Statecraft - Give to whatever player attacks you. Then Laugh. Give to a Norin deck, and have the Norin player rage. It's happened before to me. Gave my friend this deck to use, I borrow someone's Norin deck. Mid way through the game, I'm playing archenemy vs everyone else and my friend gives me Statecraft.
You know what sucks more than your token deck being unable to deal combat damage? Being in Red, one of the 2 colors with no enchantment removal.
Pyromancer's Swath - This enchantment essentially reads "at 6 mana with Zedruu out, Nuke target player's hand at the end of every turn." Rarely is this a dead card.
Illusions of Grandeur - We gain 20 life and target player loses 20 life. Or if they kill it then you wasted 4-7 mana. But the chance of that waste is worth it when we are talking a life swing of 40.
Celestial Dawn - At minimum, this color fixes your deck. Against nonwhite players, its a win condition vs most decks. Ulamog, Oblivion Stone, and their ilk can save them, but if they don't have those cards in their hand then they are topdecking for hope.
Confusion in the Ranks - The point of Zedruu is to give as many permanents as possible to your opponent. With this out, you get to take their's as well! Need to give away Celestial Dawn after Zedruu has been tucked? Here is your way to do it(provided the player has an enchantment). Kher Keep turns this enchantment into an instant speed creature steal.
Oath of Lieges - Is that green mage ramping ahead of everyone, or are you having problems with Strip Mine and Crucible of Worlds? Here's your card to catch up. Its Zedruu gift friendly, its politically friendly, it creates a lategame scenario faster than any card in this deck....what more do you want?
Instants!
Another part of the deck is Sunforger. We have 4 cards that can tutor for it, and many a spell that can be casted with it. Double Negative is solely in this deck as a tutorable counterspell. Oblation and Chaos Warp are tutorable Commander killers, Path to Exile for any others. Return to Dust wrecks those two problem artifacts or enchantments. Enlightened Tutor can be tutored for, for which it can get most any noncreature card that sunforge couldn't get.Mirrorweave is a niche card that I fell in love with, as it never disappoints; Sunforger can get it. I've been boardwiped before, only to Mirrorweave my Academy Rector to get 4 enchantments...FOR FREE.
Chain of Plasma can seem like an odd choice. However, uninteruppted, if used with Swans of Bryn Argoll, you can draw your deck. With Kozilek, Butcher of Truth, you can draw it infinitely. With 4 mana free you win the game. At the very least, its an incinerate. I've won with Stuffy Doll and a full hand, as I just discard said hand to Chain of Plasma and deal 24 damage to target player. Seems good.
Other Aspects
Nin, the Pain Artist with Psychosis Crawler and /or Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind is just painful for the whole table. Depending on your mana and board presence(read presents), you can outright kill multiple players. Politically Nin can give your allies cards with your free mana, or rather you can pay off your enemies to look elsewhere.
Venser, the Sojourner is our lone Plansewalker. Give him enough time, and his ultimate will win the game. until then, Blinking a permanent that you want back from an opponent is always a lovely past time. Blinking a theft creature gets downright bonkers. Mistmeadow Witch acts as a second Venser for your creatures, though I've used her as removal/defense for annoying creatures the opponent has. Both of these cards LOVE Confusion in the Ranks, which is already an awesome card.
I'll update as time goes on, but currently this is the best rendition of this deck that I have created through multiple play testings. Feedback appreciated, as are card suggestions.
Editing: Spelling, and word changes
u/Anon_Amarth - Fun as a zero sum game: If my opponent is having none of it, then by extension I must be having all of it.
Current Top Control Decklist
Cockatrice: Spage
I generally found Sunforger to take up a huge amount of space in the deck while not accomplishing much, if only because my friends all know to disrupt it as soon as they see it, and it is quite disruptable. I've got vague designs for a Tariel Grand Melee deck that will probably use it better.
I've never tried, and now I know why.
Sunforge has been in the deck since I created it, winning me many games out of nowhere, but I know where you are coming from. I keep flirting with the idea of scrapping the Sunforge package, but many card choices that I'd have in the deck anyway are enhanced with the presence of sunforger. At the very least it has Zedruu killing with commander damage, though that's a rare occurance.
u/Anon_Amarth - Fun as a zero sum game: If my opponent is having none of it, then by extension I must be having all of it.
Current Top Control Decklist
Cockatrice: Spage
First posted EDH deck: Hakim, Beardmaster
Steel Golem beats face. Maybe I can take a net loss of 2 life, but other players won't in my experience, leading to Steel Golem only having an effect for 1-2 turns, if that.
Rust Elemental is definitely a card I want, but I just need to find where to put him.
Tel-Jilad Stylus is one of those cards that could be good, but usually isnt. The gifts I give rarely have need to be taken away.Maybe if Illusions of Granduer is given away, then I can use this, but otherwise I kinda see this as a dead card.
u/Anon_Amarth - Fun as a zero sum game: If my opponent is having none of it, then by extension I must be having all of it.
Current Top Control Decklist
Cockatrice: Spage