This deck was first built by me two years ago as my very first Elder Dragon Highlander deck. I had only heard whispers of the format and my brother had to convince me to give it a shot after much resistance on my part. I didn't know much about the format at this point. I didn't know there was a ban list, I used Tinker and Tolarian Academy to power out Mindlsaver and Magister Sphinx along with infinite combos galore. It didn't go well, as you can imagine, and my group convinced me to take it apart and build something more "casual". As a former "Spike Legacy Player", as my group dubbed me, this was a hard concept for me to grasp and took some time. I went through plenty of decks throughout the next year each one following the pattern of the last: Build the deck; play the deck; take the deck apart. Eventually my group got better and I started to understand what Commander (by time I figured it out the name had changed!) was all about. My decks started to last longer and longer at this point usually a few months before someone got sick of it or I got bored. My latest deck was a Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck that lasted from most of the fall and all of winter before I came to a realization. I missed the color blue. After I had disassembled Sharuum all that time ago I had barely touched blue and I was aching for it. I went through idea after idea trying to figure out what I could build to satisfy my desire without alienating myself from my friends. List after list, nothing could keep my interest for more then a day and then I was on to the next idea. That is until I came across the Hegemon herself once again. I thought to myself "No combos? No douchebagery? A Sharuum list that the Godfather of EDH himself would approve of? Now that's a challenge I can wrap my head around!", and so Sharuum take two was underway for me.
I like to think that I take a quite different approach to Sharuum the Hegemon than the vast majority of people out there. My goal is to go against the general consensus of the moans and groans that pop up when my Commander is usually revealed and instead play a fair and fun game with no combos or "DB" cards as they are often referred. Did I measure up to this goal? I like to think so and if you believe that I haven't then please by all means let me know and I will eradicate the issue as soon as possible.
About Me:
My name is Ryan Addleman. I'm a 23 year old male living just south of Cleveland, Ohio and am currently employed at a company called Aeratech Home Medical which is owned and operated by my future father in law. I am not currently in school but do plan to go back and get my Respiratory Therapist license once my fiance Abigail finishes up with her schooling. I've been playing Magic since roughly 2001, ranging from kitchen table casual to Legacy with a dabble of Standard/Draft now playing exclusively Commander. Depending on who you ask I suffer from mild to moderate Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. I tell you this because it often greatly effects my deck building, especially when it comes to Commander. So there will be times that I will not include a card for reasons that don't quite make sense and I apologize in advance for any confusion I cause. Also with this deck in particular I only run cards that are black bordered, new framed, and non foil. So please consider this when suggesting cards to add. I appreciate your understanding I know I can be quite difficult sometimes.
General Strategy:
The idea behind this deck is to be as flexible as possible in all aspects of the game. While at heart it is definitely a control deck do not discount it's ability to go full offensive when it needs to be. I run very little tutors and no infinite combos so winning with this deck always takes quite a bit of planning and little bit of luck. The goal is to always to be one step ahead of your opponents, trying to get them to spend their resources early until you can start to get ahead of them little by little and eventually overpower them. This deck does not win fast by any means, like any control deck it is a slow and grueling battle for victory. Like I said before though, don't discount her ability to go offensive just don't expect to be clearing the table in one turn. There are many ways to play each hand and learning how to evaluate your opponents moves and come up with the best plan to counteract it is not always an easy task and definitely not something I always accomplish. This is definitely a very reactive deck and should not be played as a proactive deck unless absolutely necessary.
I'm not very good at explaining strategy obviously. All I can say is try to get as much value as you can out of each play and the game will be yours. Synergy is king, or queen, in artifice.
I like that Scourglass saves my artifacts, I don't like that there is an upkeep restriction but it could still be worth considering. If anything it will replace Ratchet Bomb so I'll keep it on my watch list.
He was in the list originally! I just wasn't sure he was good enough to run, Planeswalkers tend to die real fast in my group. Any other walkers you'd suggest?
Well for now I'm going to put the Planeswalker thing to the side. I made a few changes to the list most notably adding in Scourglass and Semblance Anvil as suggested by Tweakedsynth and Darksteel Forge and Mirrorworks that was suggested by my friend. The land base needs some work so that'll be my next project.
Combine those other two cards with Nevinyrral's Disk or Karn, Silver Golem and you can blow up all your opponents permanents EVERY turn or eat a land with Karn for each 1 mana spent.
I'd definitely add the cheaper painlands and m10/innistrad lands:
Memory Jar was a favorite card in my old deck.
I also loved to use Erratic Portal and Crystal Shard to reset my Sharuum or Sundering Titan. (There's not a new template for Erratic Portal though).
I don't think Mycosynth Lattice would really fit in my list. Only four of my non land permanents aren't artifacts so it wouldn't do much for me. As far as the lands go I went with Scars lands and M10 lands. I'd like to also get the Ravnica lands when I get more money.
I do have a few blink cards in my list already in the form of instants. I like the instant speed variety because you can't see them coming like you can with Crystal Shard.
I play Baleful Strix in my noncombo Sharuum list. It's totally worth adding, but only if you decide to run planeswalkers in your deck. I run 10 planeswalkers, and it's great for protecting them. Since you don't have any, I'd agree that it isn't quite worth a slot in your deck.
I play Baleful Strix in my noncombo Sharuum list. It's totally worth adding, but only if you decide to run planeswalkers in your deck. I run 10 planeswalkers, and it's great for protecting them. Since you don't have any, I'd agree that it isn't quite worth a slot in your deck.
Since I run zero Planeswalkers I think I'll definitely say no to this card.
Also added a wish list of cards I'm currently trying to get a hold of.
Glad you like it! I put a lot of work into this list and happy to see it's appreciated. As far as Dispense Justice goes, I already have three instant speed removal and they all cost one white so I don't see this replacing any of them. Plus I don't like the attacking clause, it's the same reason I don't run Condemn. I like that it's on theme though.
well, the thing is, with all the shroud/hexproof/indestructible around, a little bit of sacrificing comes in handy from time to time, plus it's a 2 for 1 card...
I don't think I'm going to add Wing Shards or Dispense Justice, they're just not really needed. Stoic Rebuttal isn't better then any of my counter spells even if it is on theme.
I'm currently testing some suggested cards like Baleful Strix and the two Tezzeret's along with Kuldotha Forgemaster. Also looking at possibly adding Mycosynth Lattice but not sure if it does enough here. Land base still needs work, waiting on money.
@Dm225:
Mono-U Tezzy is the bees knees, especially in a deck like Sharuum. UB Tezzy's power depends entirely upon what exactly you are trying to achieve with him. In more combo-centric builds he's (at worst) an over-costed Impulse which can dig for combo pieces. In lists like your own, I feel his strength comes from his second ability and ultimate, the latter of which can seal a game for you.
Good luck! Be sure to bump with testing updates. I'd like to see how UB Tezz works out for you.
Private Mod Note
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Thanks, Heroes of The Planes! You guys are great!
Actual Truth:
"You heard it here folks:
Anyone who disagrees with "Jack from NC" is an idiot."-The Dead Weatherman
Tezzeret the Seeker is obviously a bomb and should fit in perfectly, Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas isn't as straight forward as the former but I feel is still quite powerful. His second ability doesn't interest me that much, the third ability is nice and I imagine will definitely be relevant, but it's the first ability I like the most on him. An Impulse every turn can really put me ahead in the game and usually with this deck when it starts to get ahead it just starts snow balling until I overpower everyone else and win.
The plan is to keep this thread consistently updated. I won't be adding a change log because I change cards around so often it would almost be pointless, but I do always keep the list in the first post up to date with every single change no matter how small. I will also try to make sure it doesn't fall too far down in the pages here. I'd like to also set up a primer-esque first post since I feel my list does enough different from most Sharuum the Hegemon lists to warrant it. I'd like to do it sooner rather than later but I'd like to make sure there is at least a little interest in my style of play before I put the time in.
Luckily Sundering Titan got cut for Ethersworn Adjudicator right before the Titan got banned so no harm there. The two Walkers will be tested on Friday and I will let you know the results after I get a few games in. I predict the results will be pretty good though. I will do my best to add a change log from here on out but like I said quite a bit of my changes are one card at a time so expect a bunch of little updates as opposed to large sweeping changes.
Also I play Commander every Friday night, usually four to six games, so I will start adding weekly game reports to help give you and idea where the deck is going. I will also try to add the "primer-esque" part to my first post sometime tonight. I say it like that because I know there's new rules and don't want to make any false claims until I actually earn the title of primer. Like I said before though, that is the end goal for this thread.
My thoughts on Prototype Portal are rather negative sadly. I just don't think it's a very good card and I doubt it will ever be a serious contender for a slot in my list.
Going to hopefully get quite a few games into night with the current list and will be posting some notes tomorrow about my results.
I meant to take some notes on each game last night but I forgot to bring a notepad so all I've got to work on is my memory, which isn't that great. I can tell you that the Flicker cards I was worried about have convinced me to give them some more time by Momentary Blink practically winning me a game by itself and Cloudshift saving me from spot removal a couple times. Scourglass on the other hand I am not convinced on. The only time I really liked it at all was when I could flash it into play before my upkeep, otherwise it loses all elements of surprise and really under performs. If I get my hands on a Mycosynth Lattice it will most likely be replacing it.
Both the Tezzerets performed very well even though I whiffed three times in a row with Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas he worked out awesomely for me the rest of the night.
Deck List:
1 Sharuum the Hegemon
Artifact
1 Azorius Signet
1 Chrome Mox
1 Coalition Relic
1 Darksteel Forge
1 Dimir Signet
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Mimic Vat
1 Mind's Eye
1 Mox Opal
1 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Orzhov Signet
1 Sculpting Steel
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Sol Ring
1 Talisman of Dominance
1 Talisman of Progress
1 Trading Post
1 Unwinding Clock
1 Vedalken Orrery
Creature
1 Arcum Dagsson
1 Duplicant
1 Ethersworn Adjudicator
1 Filigree Angel
1 Indomitable Archangel
1 Inkwell Leviathan
1 Kuldotha Forgemaster
1 Leonin Abunas
1 Master of Etherium
1 Master Transmuter
1 Memnarch
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
1 Scarecrone
1 Sharding Sphinx
1 Shimmer Myr
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Spellskite
1 Sphinx of the Steel Wind
1 Sphinx Summoner
1 Steel Hellkite
1 Steel Overseer
1 Trinket Mage
1 Vedalken Archmage
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Careful Consideration
1 Cloudshift
1 Counterspell
1 Dispatch
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Forbidden Alchemy
1 Ghostly Flicker
1 Hinder
1 Momentary Blink
1 Mystical Teachings
1 Path to Exile
1 Return to Dust
1 Spell Crumple
1 Stoic Rebuttal
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Thirst for Knowledge
Planeswalker
1 Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
Sorcery
1 Open the Vaults
1 Roar of Reclamation
Land
1 Ancient Den
1 Buried Ruin
1 Command Tower
1 Drowned Catacomb
1 Exotic Orchard
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Glacial Fortress
10 Island
1 Mystic Gate
8 Plains
1 Reflecting Pool
1 Seat of the Synod
1 Sunken Ruins
4 Swamp
1 Tectonic Edge
1 Vault of Whispers
Deck History:
This deck was first built by me two years ago as my very first Elder Dragon Highlander deck. I had only heard whispers of the format and my brother had to convince me to give it a shot after much resistance on my part. I didn't know much about the format at this point. I didn't know there was a ban list, I used Tinker and Tolarian Academy to power out Mindlsaver and Magister Sphinx along with infinite combos galore. It didn't go well, as you can imagine, and my group convinced me to take it apart and build something more "casual". As a former "Spike Legacy Player", as my group dubbed me, this was a hard concept for me to grasp and took some time. I went through plenty of decks throughout the next year each one following the pattern of the last: Build the deck; play the deck; take the deck apart. Eventually my group got better and I started to understand what Commander (by time I figured it out the name had changed!) was all about. My decks started to last longer and longer at this point usually a few months before someone got sick of it or I got bored. My latest deck was a Karador, Ghost Chieftain deck that lasted from most of the fall and all of winter before I came to a realization. I missed the color blue. After I had disassembled Sharuum all that time ago I had barely touched blue and I was aching for it. I went through idea after idea trying to figure out what I could build to satisfy my desire without alienating myself from my friends. List after list, nothing could keep my interest for more then a day and then I was on to the next idea. That is until I came across the Hegemon herself once again. I thought to myself "No combos? No douchebagery? A Sharuum list that the Godfather of EDH himself would approve of? Now that's a challenge I can wrap my head around!", and so Sharuum take two was underway for me.
I like to think that I take a quite different approach to Sharuum the Hegemon than the vast majority of people out there. My goal is to go against the general consensus of the moans and groans that pop up when my Commander is usually revealed and instead play a fair and fun game with no combos or "DB" cards as they are often referred. Did I measure up to this goal? I like to think so and if you believe that I haven't then please by all means let me know and I will eradicate the issue as soon as possible.
My name is Ryan Addleman. I'm a 23 year old male living just south of Cleveland, Ohio and am currently employed at a company called Aeratech Home Medical which is owned and operated by my future father in law. I am not currently in school but do plan to go back and get my Respiratory Therapist license once my fiance Abigail finishes up with her schooling. I've been playing Magic since roughly 2001, ranging from kitchen table casual to Legacy with a dabble of Standard/Draft now playing exclusively Commander. Depending on who you ask I suffer from mild to moderate Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. I tell you this because it often greatly effects my deck building, especially when it comes to Commander. So there will be times that I will not include a card for reasons that don't quite make sense and I apologize in advance for any confusion I cause. Also with this deck in particular I only run cards that are black bordered, new framed, and non foil. So please consider this when suggesting cards to add. I appreciate your understanding I know I can be quite difficult sometimes.
The idea behind this deck is to be as flexible as possible in all aspects of the game. While at heart it is definitely a control deck do not discount it's ability to go full offensive when it needs to be. I run very little tutors and no infinite combos so winning with this deck always takes quite a bit of planning and little bit of luck. The goal is to always to be one step ahead of your opponents, trying to get them to spend their resources early until you can start to get ahead of them little by little and eventually overpower them. This deck does not win fast by any means, like any control deck it is a slow and grueling battle for victory. Like I said before though, don't discount her ability to go offensive just don't expect to be clearing the table in one turn. There are many ways to play each hand and learning how to evaluate your opponents moves and come up with the best plan to counteract it is not always an easy task and definitely not something I always accomplish. This is definitely a very reactive deck and should not be played as a proactive deck unless absolutely necessary.
I'm not very good at explaining strategy obviously. All I can say is try to get as much value as you can out of each play and the game will be yours. Synergy is king, or queen, in artifice.
06/28/12
-Scourglass
-Etherium Sculptor
+Mycosynth Lattice
+Arcum Dagsson
07/13/12
-Mirrorworks
-Mycosynth Lattice
-Semblance Anvil
-Baleful Strix
-Sanctum Gargoyle
-Treasure Mage
-Swamp
-Swamp
+Coalition Relic
+Gilded Lotus
+Trading Post
+Master of Etherium
+Memnarch
+Steel Overseer
+Open the Vaults
+Roar of Reclamation
Semblance Anvil is definitely something to consider.
B Lover Since '09 ~
Standard:
meh.
Modern:
Urzatron GR
Vintage:
Contol-Slaver UBR
EDH:
Drana B
Jhoira UR
Savra BG
Turned into:
Adun Oakenshield BGR
Sharuum BUW
Turned into:
Memnarch U
KiKi-Jiki R
Turned into:
Godo R
Turned into:
Aurelia RW
The Mimeoplasm UBG
Rasputin Dreamweaver UW
Turned into:
Geist of Saint Traft -French 1v1 UW
Nekusar UBR
(Jace Beleren)
I also run Liliana Vess in my Esper deck(Sen Triplets is my general).
The combo of Darksteel Forge and Mycosynth Lattice. Hey, all my stuff is indestructible!
Combine those other two cards with Nevinyrral's Disk or Karn, Silver Golem and you can blow up all your opponents permanents EVERY turn or eat a land with Karn for each 1 mana spent.
I'd definitely add the cheaper painlands and m10/innistrad lands:
Memory Jar was a favorite card in my old deck.
I also loved to use Erratic Portal and Crystal Shard to reset my Sharuum or Sundering Titan. (There's not a new template for Erratic Portal though).
B Lover Since '09 ~
Standard:
meh.
Modern:
Urzatron GR
Vintage:
Contol-Slaver UBR
EDH:
Drana B
Jhoira UR
Savra BG
Turned into:
Adun Oakenshield BGR
Sharuum BUW
Turned into:
Memnarch U
KiKi-Jiki R
Turned into:
Godo R
Turned into:
Aurelia RW
The Mimeoplasm UBG
Rasputin Dreamweaver UW
Turned into:
Geist of Saint Traft -French 1v1 UW
Nekusar UBR
I do have a few blink cards in my list already in the form of instants. I like the instant speed variety because you can't see them coming like you can with Crystal Shard.
If you like the blink cards why not get some card advantage from it? Mistmeadow Witch and Venser, the Sojourner.
Overlooking Tezzeret is a mistake. Hes a great trinket mage and voltaic key.
B Lover Since '09 ~
Standard:
meh.
Modern:
Urzatron GR
Vintage:
Contol-Slaver UBR
EDH:
Drana B
Jhoira UR
Savra BG
Turned into:
Adun Oakenshield BGR
Sharuum BUW
Turned into:
Memnarch U
KiKi-Jiki R
Turned into:
Godo R
Turned into:
Aurelia RW
The Mimeoplasm UBG
Rasputin Dreamweaver UW
Turned into:
Geist of Saint Traft -French 1v1 UW
Nekusar UBR
Like I said before Tezz is going in eventually, just have to get a hold of a copy and find a spot.
Still considering adding one or two walkers, something along the lines of;
-Ponder
-Preordain
+Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
+Tezzeret the Seeker
stuff
Since I run zero Planeswalkers I think I'll definitely say no to this card.
Also added a wish list of cards I'm currently trying to get a hold of.
Glad you like it! I put a lot of work into this list and happy to see it's appreciated. As far as Dispense Justice goes, I already have three instant speed removal and they all cost one white so I don't see this replacing any of them. Plus I don't like the attacking clause, it's the same reason I don't run Condemn. I like that it's on theme though.
Wing Shards is probably better than Dispense Justice if you really want to go that route.
However, if you're really worried about shroud/hexproof/indestructible, you're in the color with counters. That's a ton more flexible.
stuff
I'm currently testing some suggested cards like Baleful Strix and the two Tezzeret's along with Kuldotha Forgemaster. Also looking at possibly adding Mycosynth Lattice but not sure if it does enough here. Land base still needs work, waiting on money.
Mono-U Tezzy is the bees knees, especially in a deck like Sharuum. UB Tezzy's power depends entirely upon what exactly you are trying to achieve with him. In more combo-centric builds he's (at worst) an over-costed Impulse which can dig for combo pieces. In lists like your own, I feel his strength comes from his second ability and ultimate, the latter of which can seal a game for you.
Good luck! Be sure to bump with testing updates. I'd like to see how UB Tezz works out for you.
Thanks, Heroes of The Planes! You guys are great!
Actual Truth:
The plan is to keep this thread consistently updated. I won't be adding a change log because I change cards around so often it would almost be pointless, but I do always keep the list in the first post up to date with every single change no matter how small. I will also try to make sure it doesn't fall too far down in the pages here. I'd like to also set up a primer-esque first post since I feel my list does enough different from most Sharuum the Hegemon lists to warrant it. I'd like to do it sooner rather than later but I'd like to make sure there is at least a little interest in my style of play before I put the time in.
Also I play Commander every Friday night, usually four to six games, so I will start adding weekly game reports to help give you and idea where the deck is going. I will also try to add the "primer-esque" part to my first post sometime tonight. I say it like that because I know there's new rules and don't want to make any false claims until I actually earn the title of primer. Like I said before though, that is the end goal for this thread.
Going to hopefully get quite a few games into night with the current list and will be posting some notes tomorrow about my results.
Some cards I'm watching closely to see if they'really worth it are;
Scourglass
Cloudshift
Ghostly Flicker
Momentary Blink
Both the Tezzerets performed very well even though I whiffed three times in a row with Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas he worked out awesomely for me the rest of the night.