I have a tendency to bounce around making a new EDH every other week, so recently decided to settle down and focus on building one really solid new deck. I decided to combine my two main Magic loves - G/B and artifacts - as a perfect Commander for that style of deck had recently been printed. Without further ado, the decklist:
This was pretty clearly built to take advantage of Glissa's ability, and slowly build up advantage over the course of the game until the win can be taken with one of the higher cost bombs. Some of the choices in here are to be changed as soon as I can get hold of the cards to do so. In particular:
In my meta I find Vulturous Zombie something of wasted space in a deck as it is guaranteed to eat quick removal. If that's not the case for you, awesome, but just wanted to give you the heads up.
I've been extensively testing Glissa on Cockatrice over the last two months, and the biggest problem she has is that she becomes a huge target once you've got something worthwhile in the graveyard. With that in mind, two major changes that my deck went through:
1) Less offensive equipment, and more defensive equipment. Lightning Greaves at minimum is a must, and Swiftfoot Boots is also helpful. On top of those two, I'd seriously considering looking at Darksteel Plate. Equipped to Glissa, the Plate will let you continuously crack an Oblivion Stone or Nevinyrral's Disk.
2) Less cantrip-ing artifacts. The baubles and spellbombs are cute, but they're often dead cards without an active Glissa, and they're sub-par compared to other conventional draw engines (e.g., Phyrexian Arena). You need to ask yourself "would I want to see this artifact without Glissa around?". Nihil Spellbomb and Expedition Map are strong enough to make the cut, but things like Mishra's Bauble are just bad.
In a nutshell, Glissa is most effective when you're playing a Rock shell that splashes some quality artifacts as opposed to an artifact deck that splashes some Rock cards.
I am going to have to disagree on this point. It's free card draw plus a peak at what may be coming from an opponent. Also the bauble's work excellently with Salvaging Station regardless of if Glissa is on the board. I mean, if you want to build a competitive incredibly efficient deck, maybe no, but I have yet to come across a situation with my own Glissa deck where I have regretted having a bauble in my hand.
I am going to have to disagree on this point. It's free card draw plus a peak at what may be coming from an opponent. Also the bauble's work excellently with Salvaging Station regardless of if Glissa is on the board. I mean, if you want to build a competitive incredibly efficient deck, maybe no, but I have yet to come across a situation with my own Glissa deck where I have regretted having a bauble in my hand.
While that may true, in a vacuum things like Phyrexian Arena or even one-shots like Harmonize are going to do more in the long-run. The problem with the baubles is that they might as well read: 0: Cycle. And they're even worse because they have the Ice Age slow-draw wording. I'm still not convinced of their power by Salvaging Station, either. I tried running an Auriok Salvagers/Salvaging Station engine in Jor Kadeen, and I ultimately ended up cutting it. A 6-mana investment that requires multiple cards just to set up a draw engine (esp. given you're already in a strong draw color, B), and is easily disruptible, just seemed sub-par. It rarely does want you want, especially in a format with Austere Command & Co. being so prevalent.
I'd rather play something that just will draw me cards straight up, as opposed to messing around with reanimating baubles. To each their own :).
I'm surprised you aren't running Grave Pact (butcher of malakir). You are already running quite a few sac effects (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Fleshbag Marauder, Yavimaya Elder, Bottle Gnomes, Sylvok Replica, Moriok Replica, Claws of Gix ) that all would trigger pact and in turn make a bunch of triggers from Glissa, the Traitor.
Other artifacts that have nice sac effects: Copper Gnomes - Sacing these guys gets an artifact out of your hand and into play at instant speed. Scarecrone - This guy gets you a card when he is saced and gets you an artifacts creature to play from the yard. Triskelion - While it doesnt read sacrifice you can shoot somthing for two points of damage, and use the third counter to shoot itself for one.
Since you are looking to get alot of stuff in your graveyard, some graveyard shenanigans become helpful. Take a look at Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker. You are currently running 3 folks with power of one that I noticed (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Bottle Gnomes, Sylvok Replica) and the three I suggested (Copper Gnomes, Scarecrone, Triskelion) also all have a power of 1. While your general likes to have folks in your graveyard Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker offers some nice abilities in case you lose your general and want a back up plan.
I'm betting there are other power one creatures that have sac effects in black if you are interested in persuing Shirei as a subtheme.
Diabolic Edict is not a spell I have ever been happy to draw, I would recommend some other type of removal.
Board wipes are always handy to reset in case another player takes off: Decree of Pain - This one is amazing, while expensive to cast it draws you cards, and can be cycled for an immediate effect Plague Wind - Another expensive to cast one, a one sided wrath, this seems especially good with Glissa out there.
In my meta I find Vulturous Zombie something of wasted space in a deck as it is guaranteed to eat quick removal. If that's not the case for you, awesome, but just wanted to give you the heads up.
So far, he hasn't been too bad, but you're certainly right about his vulnerability. Once I get some more games in, I'll see how he goes and swap him if needed.
I've been extensively testing Glissa on Cockatrice over the last two months, and the biggest problem she has is that she becomes a huge target once you've got something worthwhile in the graveyard. With that in mind, two major changes that my deck went through:
1) Less offensive equipment, and more defensive equipment. Lightning Greaves at minimum is a must, and Swiftfoot Boots is also helpful. On top of those two, I'd seriously considering looking at Darksteel Plate. Equipped to Glissa, the Plate will let you continuously crack an Oblivion Stone or Nevinyrral's Disk.
2) Less cantrip-ing artifacts. The baubles and spellbombs are cute, but they're often dead cards without an active Glissa, and they're sub-par compared to other conventional draw engines (e.g., Phyrexian Arena). You need to ask yourself "would I want to see this artifact without Glissa around?". Nihil Spellbomb and Expedition Map are strong enough to make the cut, but things like Mishra's Bauble are just bad.
In a nutshell, Glissa is most effective when you're playing a Rock shell that splashes some quality artifacts as opposed to an artifact deck that splashes some Rock cards.
1. For some reason I thought Greaves was already there, but apparently I missed it. It'll definitely go in, and I think Plate will also. Thanks for the reminder!
2. While conventional draw engines are probably more efficient overall, I wanted to avoid going too deep into the Rock style of deck as I already run a Ghave, Guru of Spores build that very much fits that archetype. The artifact theme here is in part a way to differentiate the decks. As has been mentioned, the baubles work amazingly with Glissa and Salvaging Station, and so far I've found I've been able to stick one or the other consistantly enough to make it worthwhile.
I'm surprised you aren't running Grave Pact (butcher of malakir). You are already running quite a few sac effects (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Fleshbag Marauder, Yavimaya Elder, Bottle Gnomes, Sylvok Replica, Moriok Replica, Claws of Gix ) that all would trigger pact and in turn make a bunch of triggers from Glissa, the Traitor.
Other artifacts that have nice sac effects:
Copper Gnomes - Sacing these guys gets an artifact out of your hand and into play at instant speed. Scarecrone - This guy gets you a card when he is saced and gets you an artifacts creature to play from the yard. Triskelion - While it doesnt read sacrifice you can shoot somthing for two points of damage, and use the third counter to shoot itself for one.
Since you are looking to get alot of stuff in your graveyard, some graveyard shenanigans become helpful. Take a look at Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker. You are currently running 3 folks with power of one that I noticed (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Bottle Gnomes, Sylvok Replica) and the three I suggested (Copper Gnomes, Scarecrone, Triskelion) also all have a power of 1. While your general likes to have folks in your graveyard Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker offers some nice abilities in case you lose your general and want a back up plan.
I'm betting there are other power one creatures that have sac effects in black if you are interested in persuing Shirei as a subtheme.
Diabolic Edict is not a spell I have ever been happy to draw, I would recommend some other type of removal.
Board wipes are always handy to reset in case another player takes off: Decree of Pain - This one is amazing, while expensive to cast it draws you cards, and can be cycled for an immediate effect Plague Wind - Another expensive to cast one, a one sided wrath, this seems especially good with Glissa out there.
Grave Pact and Butcher are thing I keep considering, then removing, then considering again. If Vulturous Zombie doesn't work out, I may throw one back in. As you say, it would be great for Glissa triggers. I don't know if I'd go so far as to add a Shirei sub-theme, but Copper Gnomes and Scarecrone seem worth considering on their own.
Edict is there to deal with indestructable creatures, which otherwise I have trouble dealing with.
I'm running two board wipes already - Nevinyrral's Diskand Damnation. If I was going to run a third, Plague Wind would be in, but I'm not sure I have room for it.
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1 Glissa, the Traitor
Creatures:
1 Nezumi Graverobber
1 Priest of Yawgmoth
1 Sakura Tribe Elder
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Eternal Witness
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Bottle Gnomes
1 Sylvok Replica
1 Moriok Replica
1 Disciple of Bolas
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Acidic Slime
1 Silklash Spider
1 Vulturous Zombie
1 Razormane Masticore
1 Harvester of Souls
1 Duplicant
1 Steel Hellkite
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Sheoldred, Whispering One
Artifacts:
1 Claws of Gix
1 Mishra's Bauble
1 Executioner's Capsule
1 Codex Shredder
1 Conjurer's Bauble
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Expedition Map
1 Nihil Spellbomb
1 Phyrexian Furnace
1 Triangle of War
1 Skullclamp
1 Thornbite Staff
1 Ratchet Bomb
1 Ichor Wellspring
1 Mycosynth Wellspring
1 Mind Stone
1 Druidic Satchel
1 Golgari Keyrune
1 Loxodon Warhammer
1 Mimic Vat
1 Moonglove Extract
1 Sculpting Steel
1 Trading Post
1 Nevinyrral's Disk
1 Acorn Catapult
1 Memory Jar
1 Salvaging Station
1 Spine of Ish Sah
1 Garruk Relentless
Instants:
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Go for the Throat
1 Murder
1 Beast Within
1 Krosan Grip
1 Putrefy
Sorceries:
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Diabolic Intent
1 Victimize
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Damnation
1 Bramblecrush
1 Jarad's Orders
Lands:
13 Swamp
13 Forest
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Cabal Coffers
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Command Tower
1 Forbidden Orchard
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Phyrexia's Core
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Reliquary Tower
This was pretty clearly built to take advantage of Glissa's ability, and slowly build up advantage over the course of the game until the win can be taken with one of the higher cost bombs. Some of the choices in here are to be changed as soon as I can get hold of the cards to do so. In particular:
Harvester of Souls -> Grave Titan
Nevinyrral's Disk -> Oblivion Stone
Bramblecrush -> Vraska the Unseen
Triangle of War -> Jester's Cap
Any comments or feedback would be greatly appreciated.
1) Less offensive equipment, and more defensive equipment. Lightning Greaves at minimum is a must, and Swiftfoot Boots is also helpful. On top of those two, I'd seriously considering looking at Darksteel Plate. Equipped to Glissa, the Plate will let you continuously crack an Oblivion Stone or Nevinyrral's Disk.
2) Less cantrip-ing artifacts. The baubles and spellbombs are cute, but they're often dead cards without an active Glissa, and they're sub-par compared to other conventional draw engines (e.g., Phyrexian Arena). You need to ask yourself "would I want to see this artifact without Glissa around?". Nihil Spellbomb and Expedition Map are strong enough to make the cut, but things like Mishra's Bauble are just bad.
In a nutshell, Glissa is most effective when you're playing a Rock shell that splashes some quality artifacts as opposed to an artifact deck that splashes some Rock cards.
stuff
I am going to have to disagree on this point. It's free card draw plus a peak at what may be coming from an opponent. Also the bauble's work excellently with Salvaging Station regardless of if Glissa is on the board. I mean, if you want to build a competitive incredibly efficient deck, maybe no, but I have yet to come across a situation with my own Glissa deck where I have regretted having a bauble in my hand.
While that may true, in a vacuum things like Phyrexian Arena or even one-shots like Harmonize are going to do more in the long-run. The problem with the baubles is that they might as well read: 0: Cycle. And they're even worse because they have the Ice Age slow-draw wording. I'm still not convinced of their power by Salvaging Station, either. I tried running an Auriok Salvagers/Salvaging Station engine in Jor Kadeen, and I ultimately ended up cutting it. A 6-mana investment that requires multiple cards just to set up a draw engine (esp. given you're already in a strong draw color, B), and is easily disruptible, just seemed sub-par. It rarely does want you want, especially in a format with Austere Command & Co. being so prevalent.
I'd rather play something that just will draw me cards straight up, as opposed to messing around with reanimating baubles. To each their own :).
stuff
Other artifacts that have nice sac effects:
Copper Gnomes - Sacing these guys gets an artifact out of your hand and into play at instant speed.
Scarecrone - This guy gets you a card when he is saced and gets you an artifacts creature to play from the yard.
Triskelion - While it doesnt read sacrifice you can shoot somthing for two points of damage, and use the third counter to shoot itself for one.
Since you are looking to get alot of stuff in your graveyard, some graveyard shenanigans become helpful. Take a look at Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker. You are currently running 3 folks with power of one that I noticed (Sakura-Tribe Elder, Bottle Gnomes, Sylvok Replica) and the three I suggested (Copper Gnomes, Scarecrone, Triskelion) also all have a power of 1. While your general likes to have folks in your graveyard Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker offers some nice abilities in case you lose your general and want a back up plan.
I'm betting there are other power one creatures that have sac effects in black if you are interested in persuing Shirei as a subtheme.
Diabolic Edict is not a spell I have ever been happy to draw, I would recommend some other type of removal.
Board wipes are always handy to reset in case another player takes off:
Decree of Pain - This one is amazing, while expensive to cast it draws you cards, and can be cycled for an immediate effect
Plague Wind - Another expensive to cast one, a one sided wrath, this seems especially good with Glissa out there.
So far, he hasn't been too bad, but you're certainly right about his vulnerability. Once I get some more games in, I'll see how he goes and swap him if needed.
1. For some reason I thought Greaves was already there, but apparently I missed it. It'll definitely go in, and I think Plate will also. Thanks for the reminder!
2. While conventional draw engines are probably more efficient overall, I wanted to avoid going too deep into the Rock style of deck as I already run a Ghave, Guru of Spores build that very much fits that archetype. The artifact theme here is in part a way to differentiate the decks. As has been mentioned, the baubles work amazingly with Glissa and Salvaging Station, and so far I've found I've been able to stick one or the other consistantly enough to make it worthwhile.
Grave Pact and Butcher are thing I keep considering, then removing, then considering again. If Vulturous Zombie doesn't work out, I may throw one back in. As you say, it would be great for Glissa triggers. I don't know if I'd go so far as to add a Shirei sub-theme, but Copper Gnomes and Scarecrone seem worth considering on their own.
Edict is there to deal with indestructable creatures, which otherwise I have trouble dealing with.
I'm running two board wipes already - Nevinyrral's Diskand Damnation. If I was going to run a third, Plague Wind would be in, but I'm not sure I have room for it.