Ever since I first picked up a Magic card all those years ago, I've been fascinated with tribal decks. My best friend introduced me to the game with his Five-Color Sliver deck, and I loved how the deck just functioned so well together. Each creature, every spell, just fed off each other. The internal synergy was fantastic. I wanted to replicate it.
I've had many tribal decks over the years in the realm of 60-card decks: Myr. Allies. Tribal Elves was my first-ever deck, and in fact I still have it to this day. But Humans have always held a special place in my heart, ever since the release of Innistrad. I was just so glad an under-utilized tribe was getting support at last. When I started playing EDH, I knew that I wanted to translate this fondness over the the 100-card realm.
Deck History
My first attempt at Human Tribal in EDH was headed by Captain Sisay, using her as a source of constant card advantage. But eventually, every game became the same repetitive strategy, and I redesigned it so Saffi Eriksdotter took the helm. This came with its own problems though: because of her reputation, I was frequently targeted and hated off the board out of fear I was going to combo off at any second. The games weren't fun--I mean, who likes sitting on the sidelines?--so I feared that the dream would have to die. But then Conspiracy was released, and Selvala, Explorer Returned worked her way into my collection. She offered everything I could want: she was a constant source of card advantage, a way to ramp and flood the board, and was unassuming enough that I could fly under the radar until I was ready to take out the table with my Humans. For many months I've enjoyed playing this deck, and it has received many a compliment from the various members of my playgroup as being a breath of fresh air in my meta.
Fast forward to Khans of Tarkir, and the reveal of Anafenza, the Foremost. At first I just shrugged and thought she was a decent beater, maybe as a Voltron general. Then I saw her creature type, and the brewer in me grinned and rubbed his hands together with glee. She would be an ideal new general, one that could help keep the aggression going with her attack trigger. Her exiling ability was just gravy. Adding black to the Selesnya color scheme would help recoup the loss of card advantage brought by ditching Selvala.
The problem lay within the fact that while I wanted to be an aggro deck, the black Humans the color provided me with did not lend itself well to that strategy. The cards felt a lot more grindy than I was used to, so to accommodate this I switched to more of a midrange style of play, taking advantage of cards like Grave Pact and sac outlets to accumulate advantage. Sprinkle in some combo finishers and you've got yourself a deck.
But Seriously, Why Anafenza?
An examination of Anafenza starts at the top, literally in this case: her Junk (or rather, Abzan) coloring means that she offers the bother the superior Humans found in both green and white as well as black's various removal and card draw options. Being a 4/4 body means that, with the aid of some anthems like Cathars' Crusade she can be a force to be reckoned with. But it's her abilities that make her unique: whenever she attacks, she will put a +1/+1 counter on a tapped creature you control. Furthermore, any creature sent to the opponent's graveyard will be exiled instead, no matter if it's from the field, hand or library.
Now, put that all together and you see a solid, aggressive creature that could be a wonderful general for a Stax deck. And it's true: Anafenza's abilities do play very well into that style of play. He's also a unique "hate bear" that completely hoses graveyard strategies, and Taleran has a thread for Abzan Hatebears here. I've even thought about using her will black's various mill effects, as I don't need to fear the ever-popular Eldrazi anymore with Anafenza in play. But for this deck, Anafenza's biggest strengths are her typing, as well as the bluff she offers.
The deal with the typing should be obvious: she's a Human, and this is a tribal deck. Makes perfect sense. But on paper, she's an aggro general. People don't expect her to play the slow, grindy, Grave Pact game. You don't even really need Anafenza at all; there are games where she just sits on the sidelines and lets her foot soldiers do the work. The graveyard is the real strength of this deck, not Anafenza.
With that said, an argument can be made the Karador, Ghost Chieftain is a better choice as a general. But he's not a Human, nor is he subtle enough. People see him and they immediately go for their Rest in Peace and such, because they know and expect a graveyard deck. With Anafenza, there's (hopefully) a delayed reaction, which might very well be their own undoing.
So, to review, you should play this deck if:
You like tribal/thematic decks
You like using the graveyard as a resource
You don't mind using a smattering of mind games to try and get a leg up on the competition
This is only the first draft of the list, but on paper it looks promising. I'm not sure if I'll enjoy this more than I did Selvala, but I want to give it a shot. Any and all constructive criticism would be helpful.
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Since you already have Saffi and Angel of Glory's Rise, why not run a "free" sac outlet or two like Martyr's Cause or Fanatical Devotion to have access to some fun combos as a back-up win condition? Just sac the Angel and whatever ETB humans you have available (Witness, Knight-Captain, etc.), rescue the Angel with Saffi, Angel brings back Saffi and everyone else, lather rinse, repeat.
Fiend Hunter also does neat stuff with Glory's Rise; he exiles her, sac him and other ETB humans, she comes back, brings them back, etc.
My Gahiji Humans list in my sig explains these in greater detail.
Since you already have Saffi and Angel of Glory's Rise, why not run a "free" sac outlet or two like Martyr's Cause or Fanatical Devotion to have access to some fun combos as a back-up win condition? Just sac the Angel and whatever ETB humans you have available (Witness, Knight-Captain, etc.), rescue the Angel with Saffi, Angel brings back Saffi and everyone else, lather rinse, repeat.
Fiend Hunter also does neat stuff with Glory's Rise; he exiles her, sac him and other ETB humans, she comes back, brings them back, etc.
My Gahiji Humans list in my sig explains these in greater detail.
I actually used your list as an inspiration of sorts for this one I do have a couple sac outlets in the form of Cartel Aristocrat and Fiend of the Shadows but I could see adding in one more non-creature one as well. I'll take a look through your Gahiji list and see if there's anything I may have missed.
I was never a fan of Dearly Departed in Selvala, mainly because I never had a reliable way to get it to the graveyard. It might serve better in this though with all my sac outlets.
Devout Chaplain I wasn't fond of either because it required a board presence to get going; I could see it being better here given people shouldn't be targeting me from the get-go to avoid getting blitzed off the table.
The other creatures you mentioned are good, but lend themselves more to an aggressive style of play. I ran them all in Selvala, but here I felt they clashed a little bit. I could try melding the two styles together, but again there's a tension between the two strategies that makes the whole feel awkward.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Soldier of the Pantheon blocks most generals for days. It's a good inclusion. Chumping a huge The Mimeoplasm over and over again is very satisfying.
While gaining life and being an A-grade chump blocker are nice pluses, Soldier really doesn't do enough otherwise to make it a worthwhile inclusion in my opinion. Does anyone else have experience with this card in EDH that could convince me otherwise?
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Soldier of the Pantheon blocks most generals for days. It's a good inclusion. Chumping a huge The Mimeoplasm over and over again is very satisfying.
While gaining life and being an A-grade chump blocker are nice pluses, Soldier really doesn't do enough otherwise to make it a worthwhile inclusion in my opinion. Does anyone else have experience with this card in EDH that could convince me otherwise?
I play him in my Isamaru deck, and Soldier+Sword of anything and its opposite is an incredible beat stick in any multiplayer match because he becomes almost impossible to block very easily, plus the lifegain and protection make him almost never a dead draw.
I'm also have a Human Tribal Anafenza build I'm working one. I like what you have and it's given me some ideas I might wanna try out. My list will also use a fair sure of sac outlets/death triggers, as well as token generation. Granted many of the tokens will be spirits and zombies, thanks to cards like Abzan Ascendancy, Requiem Angel, Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts and Xathrid Necromancer. I plan on using Conspiracy to turn all my creatures into Humans so I can get unlimited tokens with a free sac outlet.
I'm also have a Human Tribal Anafenza build I'm working one. I like what you have and it's given me some ideas I might wanna try out. My list will also use a fair sure of sac outlets/death triggers, as well as token generation. Granted many of the tokens will be spirits and zombies, thanks to cards like Abzan Ascendancy, Requiem Angel, Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts and Xathrid Necromancer. I plan on using Conspiracy to turn all my creatures into Humans so I can get unlimited tokens with a free sac outlet.
It's nice to meet another Tribal Human user, and I'm glad I could serve as some sort of inspiration for your efforts. Do you have a full decklist put together yet? If so I'd like to take a look to see if there were any cards I may have missed.
You should consider using altar of dementia as a sac outlet. I find it pairs well with anafenza.
Altar probably would be a lot less clunky than running Undercity Informer + Priest of Gix, and would make that particular combo require only three cards rather than four. Great suggestion!
Living Death and Twilight's Call would be the main cards I'd consider testing. I would probably only run one of the two. It seems like it would be great as a late-game trump card.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
I was never a fan of Dearly Departed in Selvala, mainly because I never had a reliable way to get it to the graveyard. It might serve better in this though with all my sac outlets.
Except that I do not own an Entomb. But your point is a valid one; I can always use something like Buried Alive or Jarad's Orders instead.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Glory seems good if you are going to run Jarad's Orders and Bury Alive. It will give you protection from most exile effects. Masako the Humorless basically gives your guys a version of Vigilance that works with Anafenza. It would make Glare of Subdual more appealing since your guys can still block.
Throwing Filth into your graveyard and having Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth will give your guys some much needed evasion.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To the people that say that a card needs to be a higher rarity because of Limited... I hate you guys so much. I present to you with this.
Glory seems good if you are going to run Jarad's Orders and Bury Alive. It will give you protection from most exile effects. Masako the Humorless basically gives your guys a version of Vigilance that works with Anafenza. It would make Glare of Subdual more appealing since your guys can still block.
Throwing Filth into your graveyard and having Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth will give your guys some much needed evasion.
I like the suggestion of Glory; I've been less than impressed with Fiend of the Shadows as I really only use it as a sac outlet. Beyond that, it's very lackluster. Glory is a five drop I can use for Pod and has a relevant graveyard ability. I'll probably swap those two around.
Filth + Urborg seems like it would be good too. Unfortunately my Mimeoplasm list has claimed my only copies of those two for the time being, so those will go on the waiting list.
Just curious but does the deck run smooth without a lot of mana ramp?
The deck only needs seven mana to go off, so it's fairly consistent. There's also very little need to have 20 mana available to you at any time; it's not as if I'm looking to fire off a game-breaking Genesis Wave. But for the longer games, you still need ramp to keep pace and allow you to do more. The seven ramp sources in the deck have proven to be enough, although bad hands can and do happen.
I want to thank everyone for their interest so far. One thing I'm starting to notice the more that I play the deck is that I'm missing the pure aggression that Selvala allowed me to have; this is turning into another sit back and durdle deck until I combo off, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. Does anyone have any ideas how to push the aggression a little bit more, while still retaining the midrange elements (Grave Pact, etc) that black gives to the deck?
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Wow, just when I thought there were no EDH deck concepts left...
This is really cool. Wish I hadn't just traded off my Anafenza.
How about Retribution of the Ancients? Especially with Dearly Departed, this could be pretty handy. You already have several cards that deal with counters.
Where is Thraben Doomsayer? He seems like he'd be the backbone to quite a lot of interactions (Skirsdag Flayer, for one.) Gallows at Willow Hill is also decent, I use it in my Mistform Ultimus deck and it's worked out pretty well. Also, there is Ravenous Demon...
Not gonna lie, I was originally gonna post how I have given up on this deck because I miss Selvala too much. I even went as far as to take apart Anafenza and remake Selvala. Then I saw this:
Wow, just when I thought there were no EDH deck concepts left...
This is really cool. Wish I hadn't just traded off my Anafenza.
Easily one of the best compliments I've ever received regarding one of my decks...ever. And because of that, I'm gonna keep Anafenza as my second Human deck that I pull out whenever I want a change of pace from Selvala.
Kavu, has for your recommendations, I don't feel I have enough +1/+1 counter enablers to make Retribution of the Ancients worthwhile otherwise it would totally have a spot in this list.
I'm going to put the deck back together, and start testing some changes. After I play some games with my playgroup on Tuesday I'll finalize the first round of changes and post them here, along with some game summaries if people want them.
Keep the ideas coming people! They're greatly appreciated.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Awesome. My EDH decks are usually these high-synergy artifact-dependent decks, which often puts me in blue-red, so it's nice to see another high-synergy deck in the exact opposite colors. There's also a bunch of cards here that I've always thought were cool but never found a place for them.
I'm thinking of building a version of this deck, and a few cards I thought of were:
I made my own version of an Anafenza EDH commander deck. Please check it out and let me know any comments or feedback. I really want to make this work cheers!
Are you having problems drawing cards at all? I'm trying to decide what black card drawing spells to run if any. There is always Phyrexian Arena or Underworld Connections...but I'm wondering if running the cluestones would be worth it along with the cycling lands for some added card draw after you get to the mana you need. The preliminary decklist I have has a pretty low curve
It's been a busy week, hence the lack of updates here. I'm going to add a change log to the original post in this thread shortly, but for those who can't wait for that, here are the first round of changes that I've made:
I'm trying to shift the deck into more of an aggro-control area for the moment. The combos present involve cards that are great on their own, rather than being clunky and dead draws. I did cut down on the sac outlets though, something that I'm not sure was correct. More play-testing will need to be done to see if more combo consistency is needed.
Awesome. My EDH decks are usually these high-synergy artifact-dependent decks, which often puts me in blue-red, so it's nice to see another high-synergy deck in the exact opposite colors. There's also a bunch of cards here that I've always thought were cool but never found a place for them.
I'm thinking of building a version of this deck, and a few cards I thought of were:
Yisan is a card that I should probably find room for, as having a Hibernation's End with legs is fantastic. Juniper Order Ranger and Deathreap Ritual are a couple other cards I've added in. Ranger in particular works amazingly with Persist creatures if you wanted to go that route.
Sisay is a great card advantage engine, and there are a fair amount of good Abzan colored Human Legends out there that she could be worthwhile. It's not a particular direction that I'd like to take this deck--I'll leave that to Rafiq--but it'd be cool to see if it could work.
Vizkopa Guildmage is interesting when you add it to the various Soul Warden combos this deck has available, as it can actually win you the game instead of making you the target of every general under the sun. I'm just not sure if it does enough on its own to warrant an inclusion.
I made my own version of an Anafenza EDH commander deck. Please check it out and let me know any comments or feedback. I really want to make this work cheers!
After taking a quick look-though, a couple things stood out at me:
--With only 34 lands and a couple of sources of ramp, how have your hands been? Have you been getting stuck on mana a lot, for instance? Part of me would like to see additional cheap ramp like Rampant Growth and Farseek given the aggressive nature of this list.
--If you're going to focus on the +1/+1 counter aspect of Anafenza, look take a gander at Hardened Scales. Also, Doubling Season is always fantastic.
--I'm not a big fan of Planeswalkers in EDH unless you're sure you can protect them. Serra Ascendant is a powerful card, but does put a target on your back if you drop him early. Also, Magister of Worth seems a bit counter-intuitive for what you're trying to do.
Are you having problems drawing cards at all? I'm trying to decide what black card drawing spells to run if any. There is always Phyrexian Arena or Underworld Connections...but I'm wondering if running the cluestones would be worth it along with the cycling lands for some added card draw after you get to the mana you need. The preliminary decklist I have has a pretty low curve
Drawing cards hasn't been too much of a problem, but given the midrange nature of the deck additional card draw never hurts, hence the additions of Pain Seer and Mentor of the Meek. I would run Abzan Banner before any of the cluestones though.
Also, if you're running cycling lands, Life from the Loam is your best friend.
It is, except that I don't have one Hence the Pain Seer instead.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
My curve is really close to 3 (if you notice I have a lot of 3 drops, Aethervial comes in handy here). I decent amount of fixing as well, I may switch out a kodama's reach for rampant growth or farseek (or both). Hardened scales is too situational if I don't draw it early (i.e., first 4-5 turns). The magister of worth keeps board states in both single/multiplayer in check, plus gives you a 4/4 flyer once everything is said and done. Since most creatures are 3 drops I can use Immortal Servitude to get them back from the grave
I've made some more changes since I posted that, going for more of an "overrun" type of scenario now with Beastmaster's Ascention, Craterhoof, Garruk Wildspeaker, and multiple anthem effects. I do think dearly departed could be interesting for sure
PS. you may be right about the planeswalkers, I may remove both Ajani's and add Dearly Departed + another card to get him in the grave. Also may switch out Sword of Light and Shadow for Fire and Ice (or have both in there).
P.S.S. Made more changes / did more testing, deck works really well. Next cuts are going to be Knight of the Reliquary (and play imposing soverign, maybe or something better)
My curve is really close to 3 (if you notice I have a lot of 3 drops, Aethervial comes in handy here). I decent amount of fixing as well, I may switch out a kodama's reach for rampant growth or farseek (or both). Hardened scales is too situational if I don't draw it early (i.e., first 4-5 turns). The magister of worth keeps board states in both single/multiplayer in check, plus gives you a 4/4 flyer once everything is said and done. Since most creatures are 3 drops I can use Immortal Servitude to get them back from the grave
I've made some more changes since I posted that, going for more of an "overrun" type of scenario now with Beastmaster's Ascention, Craterhoof, Garruk Wildspeaker, and multiple anthem effects. I do think dearly departed could be interesting for sure
PS. you may be right about the planeswalkers, I may remove both Ajani's and add Dearly Departed + another card to get him in the grave. Also may switch out Sword of Light and Shadow for Fire and Ice (or have both in there).
P.S.S. Made more changes / did more testing, deck works really well. Next cuts are going to be Knight of the Reliquary (and play imposing soverign, maybe or something better)
I would think that Sunblast Angel would better fit Magister's role than than the Magister itself does, although the latter does add a fun element in the form of Will of the Council.
I'd find something else to cut than Knight of the Reliquary; the card can turn into a huge beatstick while at the same time fix your mana. I'm also unsure whether or not Imposing Sovereign does enough in general. I used to run one in Selvala and I wound up cutting him early on.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
Another round of edits that I'm currently testing:
- Dearly Departed, Glory, Jarad's Orders
I'm removing my little "graveyard package" for the time being, as this deck gets targeted enough already with graveyard hate and I really don't want to exacerbate that. Beyond that, while Glory is a great card and probably will work its way back into the deck at some point in the future, Dearly Departed just doesn't do enough/doesn't make my humans big enough for my likings.
+ Cathars' Crusade; Sadistic Hypnotist; Varolz, the Scar-Striped
I feel like the deck needs some more free sac outlets to help its cause. Hypnotist lends itself to the midrange nature of the deck, although only working at sorcery speed can be an awkward restriction in certain situations. Fallen Angel would be the card I swap in if Hypnotist doesn't prove versatile enough. Varolz, on the other hand, does work at instant speed, and his ability to turn my dead humans into Scavenge enablers is incredibly relevant, especially in the late game if the combo route to victory doesn't look like it's possible. Finally, Crusade serves as another win condition, especially with the additional token makers I've added to the deck.
+ Blood Artist, Ophiomancer, Sengir Autocrat, Custodi Soulbinders, Knight-Captain of Eos, Requiem Angel
Artist and the Angel both offer additional death triggers for this deck, with the former doubling as a win condition and the latter being another token producer. Ophiomancer combos nicely with my instant sac outlets and Grave Pact effects to maintain control over the board. Autocrat, Soulbinders, and the Knight each produce tokens and can be recurred with Reveillark. Knight-Captain in particular is useful, as he can serve as a Fog on a stick.
- Chameleon Colossus; Hero of Bladehold; Angelic Overseer; Ravenous Demon; Gigantomancer; Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts
Colossus and Hero both are great Humans, but their main value is in attacking, something that this deck doesn't do very frequently. Overseer probably will come back into the deck at some point, as an Indestructible Hexproof flier is too good to pass up, but she needed to be gone for curve reasons, with the same reason applying for the demon. Gigantomancer was a decent alternate win condition, but with the additional token makers and Cathars' Crusade now in the deck, he seems sub-par in comparison. Finally, Teysa was just a rattlesnake, and really didn't do anything on her own, hence the cut.
+ Chord of Calling, Dark Prophecy
Chord is an excellent tutor, especially considering how cluttered the board can become with all my random dorks. Being able to combo off at instant speed--not to mention fetching whatever utility creature I may need--is too good to pass up. So glad I was able to snag one in a trade this past week. Dark Prophecy, with my additional sac outlets, provides a constant source of draw, something that this deck really needs.
I'm going to slowly start cleaning up the original post, add some more sections and whatnot. Who knows, I may try to turn this into a Primer. As always, I'd really appreciate any other thoughts/suggestions/decklists you'd like to share with me.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
EDH GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG UBRNicol Bolas and his SuperfriendsPawnsUBR
Modern UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW WUBRGHumansWUBRG BGMidrangeBG
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
Ever since I first picked up a Magic card all those years ago, I've been fascinated with tribal decks. My best friend introduced me to the game with his Five-Color Sliver deck, and I loved how the deck just functioned so well together. Each creature, every spell, just fed off each other. The internal synergy was fantastic. I wanted to replicate it.
I've had many tribal decks over the years in the realm of 60-card decks: Myr. Allies. Tribal Elves was my first-ever deck, and in fact I still have it to this day. But Humans have always held a special place in my heart, ever since the release of Innistrad. I was just so glad an under-utilized tribe was getting support at last. When I started playing EDH, I knew that I wanted to translate this fondness over the the 100-card realm.
Deck History
My first attempt at Human Tribal in EDH was headed by Captain Sisay, using her as a source of constant card advantage. But eventually, every game became the same repetitive strategy, and I redesigned it so Saffi Eriksdotter took the helm. This came with its own problems though: because of her reputation, I was frequently targeted and hated off the board out of fear I was going to combo off at any second. The games weren't fun--I mean, who likes sitting on the sidelines?--so I feared that the dream would have to die. But then Conspiracy was released, and Selvala, Explorer Returned worked her way into my collection. She offered everything I could want: she was a constant source of card advantage, a way to ramp and flood the board, and was unassuming enough that I could fly under the radar until I was ready to take out the table with my Humans. For many months I've enjoyed playing this deck, and it has received many a compliment from the various members of my playgroup as being a breath of fresh air in my meta.
Fast forward to Khans of Tarkir, and the reveal of Anafenza, the Foremost. At first I just shrugged and thought she was a decent beater, maybe as a Voltron general. Then I saw her creature type, and the brewer in me grinned and rubbed his hands together with glee. She would be an ideal new general, one that could help keep the aggression going with her attack trigger. Her exiling ability was just gravy. Adding black to the Selesnya color scheme would help recoup the loss of card advantage brought by ditching Selvala.
The problem lay within the fact that while I wanted to be an aggro deck, the black Humans the color provided me with did not lend itself well to that strategy. The cards felt a lot more grindy than I was used to, so to accommodate this I switched to more of a midrange style of play, taking advantage of cards like Grave Pact and sac outlets to accumulate advantage. Sprinkle in some combo finishers and you've got yourself a deck.
But Seriously, Why Anafenza?
An examination of Anafenza starts at the top, literally in this case: her Junk (or rather, Abzan) coloring means that she offers the bother the superior Humans found in both green and white as well as black's various removal and card draw options. Being a 4/4 body means that, with the aid of some anthems like Cathars' Crusade she can be a force to be reckoned with. But it's her abilities that make her unique: whenever she attacks, she will put a +1/+1 counter on a tapped creature you control. Furthermore, any creature sent to the opponent's graveyard will be exiled instead, no matter if it's from the field, hand or library.
Now, put that all together and you see a solid, aggressive creature that could be a wonderful general for a Stax deck. And it's true: Anafenza's abilities do play very well into that style of play. He's also a unique "hate bear" that completely hoses graveyard strategies, and Taleran has a thread for Abzan Hatebears here. I've even thought about using her will black's various mill effects, as I don't need to fear the ever-popular Eldrazi anymore with Anafenza in play. But for this deck, Anafenza's biggest strengths are her typing, as well as the bluff she offers.
The deal with the typing should be obvious: she's a Human, and this is a tribal deck. Makes perfect sense. But on paper, she's an aggro general. People don't expect her to play the slow, grindy, Grave Pact game. You don't even really need Anafenza at all; there are games where she just sits on the sidelines and lets her foot soldiers do the work. The graveyard is the real strength of this deck, not Anafenza.
With that said, an argument can be made the Karador, Ghost Chieftain is a better choice as a general. But he's not a Human, nor is he subtle enough. People see him and they immediately go for their Rest in Peace and such, because they know and expect a graveyard deck. With Anafenza, there's (hopefully) a delayed reaction, which might very well be their own undoing.
So, to review, you should play this deck if:
However, you probably shouldn't use this deck if:
- You want to abuse the graveyard
- You like general-centric decks
- You think Capsize-locking the table is a fun time
- You hate tribal decks
Decklist1 Mother of Runes
1 Bloodsoaked Champion
1 Soul Warden
1 Veteran Explorer
1 Cartel Aristocrat
1 Skirsdag Flayer
1 Skirsdag High Priest
1 Knight of the White Orchid
1 Saffi Eriksdotter
1 Pain Seer
1 Blood Artist
1 Fiend Hunter
1 Mentor of the Meek
1 Thraben Doomsayer
1 Teysa, Orzhov Scion
1 Grim Haruspex
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Eternal Witness
1 Xathrid Necromancer
1 Mangara of Corondor
1 Ophiomancer
1 Varolz, the Scar-Striped
1 Nekrataal
1 Custodi Soulbinders
1 Sengir Autocrat
1 Asmira, Holy Avenger
1 Ranger of Eos
1 Disciple of Bolas
1 Karmic Guide
1 Reveillark
1 Sadistic Hypnotist
1 Knight-Captain of Eos
1 Juniper Order Ranger
1 Sun Titan
1 Requiem Angel
1 Twilight Shepherd
1 Angel of Glory's Rise
1 Sol Ring
1 Skullclamp
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Birthing Pod
Enchantments
1 Dark Prophecy
1 Grave Pact
1 Deathreap Ritual
1 Hibernation's End
1 Dictate of Erebos
1 Cathars' Crusade
1 Martyr's Bond
Instants
1 Path to Exile
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Abzan Charm
1 Utter End
1 Chord of Calling
Sorceries
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Cultivate
1 Wrath of God
1 Explosive Vegetation
1 Rout
1 Austere Command
1 Duneblast
Lands
1 Windswept Heath
1 Selesnya Guildgate
1 Selesnya Sanctuary
1 Temple Garden
1 Sunpetal Grove
1 Golgari Guildgate
1 Golgari Rot Farm
1 Temple of Malady
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Orzhov Guildgate
1 Orzhov Basilica
1 Caves of Koilos
1 Isolated Chapel
1 Gavony Township
1 Vault of the Archangel
1 Command Tower
1 Windbrisk Heights
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Sandsteppe Citadel
7 Forest
6 Plains
6 Swamp
This is only the first draft of the list, but on paper it looks promising. I'm not sure if I'll enjoy this more than I did Selvala, but I want to give it a shot. Any and all constructive criticism would be helpful.
Change Log:
Deranged Outcast --> Thraben Doomsayer
Priest of Gix --> Mentor of the Meek
Undercity Informer --> Teysa, Orzhov Scion
Reborn Hero --> Asmira, Holy Avenger
Hua Tuo, Honored Physician --> Chameleon Colossus
False Prophet --> Hero of Bladehold
Highway Robber --> Glory
Woodland Sleuth --> Juniper Order Ranger
Knight-Captain of Eos --> Ravenous Demon
Fiend of the Shadows --> Karmic Guide
Sadistic Hypnotist --> Angelic Overseer
Captain of the Watch --> Dearly Departed
Mind's Eye --> Jarad's Orders
Aura Shards --> Deathreap Ritual
Hero of Bladehold --> Ophiomancer
Angelic Overseer --> Varolz, the Scar-Striped
Ravenous Demon --> Sengir Autocrat
Glory --> Custodi Soulbinders
Dearly Departed --> Knight-Captain of Eos
Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts --> Sadistic Hypnotist
Gigantomancer --> Requiem Angel
Beast Within --> Chord of Calling
Jarad's Orders --> Cathars' Crusade
Underworld Connections --> Dark Prophecy
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
Since you already have Saffi and Angel of Glory's Rise, why not run a "free" sac outlet or two like Martyr's Cause or Fanatical Devotion to have access to some fun combos as a back-up win condition? Just sac the Angel and whatever ETB humans you have available (Witness, Knight-Captain, etc.), rescue the Angel with Saffi, Angel brings back Saffi and everyone else, lather rinse, repeat.
Fiend Hunter also does neat stuff with Glory's Rise; he exiles her, sac him and other ETB humans, she comes back, brings them back, etc.
My Gahiji Humans list in my sig explains these in greater detail.
Playtesting | Karador, Ghost Chieftain | Narset, Enlightened Master | Ephara, God of the Polis
Established | Gahiji, Honored One | Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker | Opal-Eye, Konda's Yojimbo | Rubinia Soulsinger
Retired | Medomai the Ageless | Diaochan, Artful Beauty
-
View User Profile
-
View Posts
-
Send Message
StaffCavern of Souls' mana can be spent on most of your creatures and it makes them uncounterable
Avacyn's Collar does funny things with Skullclamp
Champion of the Parish can get large quickly
Dearly Departed is an interesting way to pump your team
Devout Chaplain is a strong board control effect
Herald of War is a decent enabler
Riders of Gavony can boost your team
Currently Playing:
Legacy: Something U/W Controlish
EDH Cube
Hypercube! A New EDH Deck Every Week(ish)!
I actually used your list as an inspiration of sorts for this one
I have a Cavern of Souls, I just forgot to add that in.
I was never a fan of Dearly Departed in Selvala, mainly because I never had a reliable way to get it to the graveyard. It might serve better in this though with all my sac outlets.
Devout Chaplain I wasn't fond of either because it required a board presence to get going; I could see it being better here given people shouldn't be targeting me from the get-go to avoid getting blitzed off the table.
The other creatures you mentioned are good, but lend themselves more to an aggressive style of play. I ran them all in Selvala, but here I felt they clashed a little bit. I could try melding the two styles together, but again there's a tension between the two strategies that makes the whole feel awkward.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
UW Approach UW
EDH
U Azami, Lady of Scrolls U
While gaining life and being an A-grade chump blocker are nice pluses, Soldier really doesn't do enough otherwise to make it a worthwhile inclusion in my opinion. Does anyone else have experience with this card in EDH that could convince me otherwise?
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
I play him in my Isamaru deck, and Soldier+Sword of anything and its opposite is an incredible beat stick in any multiplayer match because he becomes almost impossible to block very easily, plus the lifegain and protection make him almost never a dead draw.
UW Approach UW
EDH
U Azami, Lady of Scrolls U
x Karn, silver golem x & RKrenko, mob bossR
My modern decks:
GUInfect GU
under construction
modern affinity & phelddagrif edh
It's nice to meet another Tribal Human user, and I'm glad I could serve as some sort of inspiration for your efforts. Do you have a full decklist put together yet? If so I'd like to take a look to see if there were any cards I may have missed.
Altar probably would be a lot less clunky than running Undercity Informer + Priest of Gix, and would make that particular combo require only three cards rather than four. Great suggestion!
Living Death and Twilight's Call would be the main cards I'd consider testing. I would probably only run one of the two. It seems like it would be great as a late-game trump card.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
Except that I do not own an Entomb. But your point is a valid one; I can always use something like Buried Alive or Jarad's Orders instead.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
Throwing Filth into your graveyard and having Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth will give your guys some much needed evasion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY8h2vp5Xis
I like the suggestion of Glory; I've been less than impressed with Fiend of the Shadows as I really only use it as a sac outlet. Beyond that, it's very lackluster. Glory is a five drop I can use for Pod and has a relevant graveyard ability. I'll probably swap those two around.
Filth + Urborg seems like it would be good too. Unfortunately my Mimeoplasm list has claimed my only copies of those two for the time being, so those will go on the waiting list.
The deck only needs seven mana to go off, so it's fairly consistent. There's also very little need to have 20 mana available to you at any time; it's not as if I'm looking to fire off a game-breaking Genesis Wave. But for the longer games, you still need ramp to keep pace and allow you to do more. The seven ramp sources in the deck have proven to be enough, although bad hands can and do happen.
I want to thank everyone for their interest so far. One thing I'm starting to notice the more that I play the deck is that I'm missing the pure aggression that Selvala allowed me to have; this is turning into another sit back and durdle deck until I combo off, and I'm not sure how I feel about it. Does anyone have any ideas how to push the aggression a little bit more, while still retaining the midrange elements (Grave Pact, etc) that black gives to the deck?
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
This is really cool. Wish I hadn't just traded off my Anafenza.
How about Retribution of the Ancients? Especially with Dearly Departed, this could be pretty handy. You already have several cards that deal with counters.
Where is Thraben Doomsayer? He seems like he'd be the backbone to quite a lot of interactions (Skirsdag Flayer, for one.) Gallows at Willow Hill is also decent, I use it in my Mistform Ultimus deck and it's worked out pretty well. Also, there is Ravenous Demon...
Easily one of the best compliments I've ever received regarding one of my decks...ever. And because of that, I'm gonna keep Anafenza as my second Human deck that I pull out whenever I want a change of pace from Selvala.
Kavu, has for your recommendations, I don't feel I have enough +1/+1 counter enablers to make Retribution of the Ancients worthwhile otherwise it would totally have a spot in this list.
However, I love the suggestion for Thraben Doomsayer. Ravenous Demon makes Disciple of Bolas and my Pact effects better, as well as adds some much-needed muscle to the deck.
I'm going to put the deck back together, and start testing some changes. After I play some games with my playgroup on Tuesday I'll finalize the first round of changes and post them here, along with some game summaries if people want them.
Keep the ideas coming people! They're greatly appreciated.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
I'm thinking of building a version of this deck, and a few cards I thought of were:
And a few more janky cards that I probably won't include, but they seem interesting:
I made my own version of an Anafenza EDH commander deck. Please check it out and let me know any comments or feedback. I really want to make this work
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/ruler-of-the-amber-throne/
[Commander] Rafiq of the Many (Tier 1)
[Commander] Marchesa, the Black Rose (Tier 1)
[Commander] Five Color Artifacts (Tier 2)
BRWC Mardu Shops - Tymna and Akiri Artifacts BRWC
War Priest of Thune --> Pain Seer
Deranged Outcast --> Thraben Doomsayer
Priest of Gix --> Mentor of the Meek
Undercity Informer --> Teysa, Orzhov Scion
Reborn Hero --> Asmira, Holy Avenger
Hua Tuo, Honored Physician --> Chameleon Colossus
False Prophet --> Hero of Bladehold
Highway Robber --> Glory
Woodland Sleuth --> Juniper Order Ranger
Knight-Captain of Eos --> Ravenous Demon
Fiend of the Shadows --> Karmic Guide
Sadistic Hypnotist --> Angelic Overseer
Captain of the Watch --> Dearly Departed
Mind's Eye --> Jarad's Orders
Aura Shards --> Deathreap Ritual
I'm trying to shift the deck into more of an aggro-control area for the moment. The combos present involve cards that are great on their own, rather than being clunky and dead draws. I did cut down on the sac outlets though, something that I'm not sure was correct. More play-testing will need to be done to see if more combo consistency is needed.
Alright, onto the comments:
Yisan is a card that I should probably find room for, as having a Hibernation's End with legs is fantastic. Juniper Order Ranger and Deathreap Ritual are a couple other cards I've added in. Ranger in particular works amazingly with Persist creatures if you wanted to go that route.
Sisay is a great card advantage engine, and there are a fair amount of good Abzan colored Human Legends out there that she could be worthwhile. It's not a particular direction that I'd like to take this deck--I'll leave that to Rafiq--but it'd be cool to see if it could work.
Vizkopa Guildmage is interesting when you add it to the various Soul Warden combos this deck has available, as it can actually win you the game instead of making you the target of every general under the sun. I'm just not sure if it does enough on its own to warrant an inclusion.
After taking a quick look-though, a couple things stood out at me:
--With only 34 lands and a couple of sources of ramp, how have your hands been? Have you been getting stuck on mana a lot, for instance? Part of me would like to see additional cheap ramp like Rampant Growth and Farseek given the aggressive nature of this list.
--If you're going to focus on the +1/+1 counter aspect of Anafenza, look take a gander at Hardened Scales. Also, Doubling Season is always fantastic.
--I'm not a big fan of Planeswalkers in EDH unless you're sure you can protect them. Serra Ascendant is a powerful card, but does put a target on your back if you drop him early. Also, Magister of Worth seems a bit counter-intuitive for what you're trying to do.
Drawing cards hasn't been too much of a problem, but given the midrange nature of the deck additional card draw never hurts, hence the additions of Pain Seer and Mentor of the Meek. I would run Abzan Banner before any of the cluestones though.
Also, if you're running cycling lands, Life from the Loam is your best friend.
It is, except that I don't have one
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
I've made some more changes since I posted that, going for more of an "overrun" type of scenario now with Beastmaster's Ascention, Craterhoof, Garruk Wildspeaker, and multiple anthem effects. I do think dearly departed could be interesting for sure
PS. you may be right about the planeswalkers, I may remove both Ajani's and add Dearly Departed + another card to get him in the grave. Also may switch out Sword of Light and Shadow for Fire and Ice (or have both in there).
P.S.S. Made more changes / did more testing, deck works really well. Next cuts are going to be Knight of the Reliquary (and play imposing soverign, maybe or something better)
[Commander] Rafiq of the Many (Tier 1)
[Commander] Marchesa, the Black Rose (Tier 1)
[Commander] Five Color Artifacts (Tier 2)
I would think that Sunblast Angel would better fit Magister's role than than the Magister itself does, although the latter does add a fun element in the form of Will of the Council.
If you're going for overrun effects, don't forget Kamahl, Fist of Krosa.
I'd find something else to cut than Knight of the Reliquary; the card can turn into a huge beatstick while at the same time fix your mana. I'm also unsure whether or not Imposing Sovereign does enough in general. I used to run one in Selvala and I wound up cutting him early on.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG
- Dearly Departed, Glory, Jarad's Orders
I'm removing my little "graveyard package" for the time being, as this deck gets targeted enough already with graveyard hate and I really don't want to exacerbate that. Beyond that, while Glory is a great card and probably will work its way back into the deck at some point in the future, Dearly Departed just doesn't do enough/doesn't make my humans big enough for my likings.
+ Cathars' Crusade; Sadistic Hypnotist; Varolz, the Scar-Striped
I feel like the deck needs some more free sac outlets to help its cause. Hypnotist lends itself to the midrange nature of the deck, although only working at sorcery speed can be an awkward restriction in certain situations. Fallen Angel would be the card I swap in if Hypnotist doesn't prove versatile enough. Varolz, on the other hand, does work at instant speed, and his ability to turn my dead humans into Scavenge enablers is incredibly relevant, especially in the late game if the combo route to victory doesn't look like it's possible. Finally, Crusade serves as another win condition, especially with the additional token makers I've added to the deck.
+ Blood Artist, Ophiomancer, Sengir Autocrat, Custodi Soulbinders, Knight-Captain of Eos, Requiem Angel
Artist and the Angel both offer additional death triggers for this deck, with the former doubling as a win condition and the latter being another token producer. Ophiomancer combos nicely with my instant sac outlets and Grave Pact effects to maintain control over the board. Autocrat, Soulbinders, and the Knight each produce tokens and can be recurred with Reveillark. Knight-Captain in particular is useful, as he can serve as a Fog on a stick.
- Chameleon Colossus; Hero of Bladehold; Angelic Overseer; Ravenous Demon; Gigantomancer; Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts
Colossus and Hero both are great Humans, but their main value is in attacking, something that this deck doesn't do very frequently. Overseer probably will come back into the deck at some point, as an Indestructible Hexproof flier is too good to pass up, but she needed to be gone for curve reasons, with the same reason applying for the demon. Gigantomancer was a decent alternate win condition, but with the additional token makers and Cathars' Crusade now in the deck, he seems sub-par in comparison. Finally, Teysa was just a rattlesnake, and really didn't do anything on her own, hence the cut.
- Beast Within, Underworld Connections
Beast Within was needed in a different deck, while Connections was subpar in comparison to its replacement.
+ Chord of Calling, Dark Prophecy
Chord is an excellent tutor, especially considering how cluttered the board can become with all my random dorks. Being able to combo off at instant speed--not to mention fetching whatever utility creature I may need--is too good to pass up. So glad I was able to snag one in a trade this past week. Dark Prophecy, with my additional sac outlets, provides a constant source of draw, something that this deck really needs.
I'm going to slowly start cleaning up the original post, add some more sections and whatnot. Who knows, I may try to turn this into a Primer. As always, I'd really appreciate any other thoughts/suggestions/decklists you'd like to share with me.
GWSelvala and the Return to HumanityGW
UWDragonlord Ojutai, Control's Elder DragonUW
UBGTasigur, the God-Pharaoh's Gift to EDHUBG
UBRNicol Bolas and his Super
friendsPawnsUBRModern
UWUW Control/Midrange/Bad JundUW
WUBRGHumansWUBRG
BGMidrangeBG