With the recent toys elves received in C14 plus the recent banning of everyone's favorite mana dork Roffy , I decided I'd update my Elf list to include these changes. I haven't played with some of these new cards, so they aren't set in stone.
The list is pretty standard... Play a bunch of mana dorks which in turn cast your bombs & get turned sideways for most of the time infinite damage off Ezuri or a big Craterhoof.
The main combo of the deck is any creature that taps to add 4+ mana (Priest, Archdruid, Channeler w/4 elves, a pumped Viridian Joiner, or Karametra w/4 devotion) combined with any of Staff of Domination, Umbral Mantle, or Sword of Paruns. We have numerous ways in G to tutor for the dudes, but have to rely on drawing into the 3 enablers.
Here are a few cards I've recently cut & why: (opinions welcomed on these)
Acidic Slime, Bramblecrush, Krosan Grip - I've had these in the deck forever but recently cut them. Freya & Song of the Dryad seem better. Bane of Progress - I like this card & recently went to search for it with Fauna Shaman only to find I had cut it from the list. Maybe it gets added back in sometime, but I do run a ton of stuff I'd hate to get blown up. Door of Destinies, Coat of Arms, Eldrazi Monument - These cards are fine, but I cut them to focus on making faster mana. If you want to be more combat oriented, by all means add these in. Joraga Warcaller - read the cards above... Every time I drew this card it felt clumpy. Lys Alana Huntmaster - I want to like this card. It seems good in theory. It's so slow though and I've yet to get any good mileage out of it. Soul of the Harvest - Regal Force seemed to always be better than this card & I don't think I need both. Garruk Wildspeaker - He's so simple for what I'm wanting to do, but I don't know if I have room for him anymore.
Cards I have yet to/want to try out: Winter's Orb - seems pretty mean with cards like Earthcraft, Cradle, & Elvish Guidance. I'm not sure this is the direction I want the deck to take though. Aluren - adds a ton of opportunities to explode... It also does the same for my opponents which is my fear. A lot of creature heavy builds in my meta make me hesitant to try it out. Myriad Landscape - ramp in a land had to be good right? It's probably too slow for this deck though. Triumph of the Hordes - I see a ton of elves decks using this. It definitely seems capable of stealing some games here and there. I typically have Ezuri doing most of the work & I'm not sure if this is needed. Reap and Sow - land d &/or put Cradle into play seems nice. I may cut one of the other land tutors for this. Omnath, Locus of Mana - card seems pretty absurd, but I've never owned one or tried it out to know if it's worth it.
Let me know if you've got any suggestions on how I can improve the list. I am by no means an expert with the deck yet, although it has been one of my faves to play since I put it together.
I haven't been a fan of Reap and Sow in non-elfball mono-green, but that may be because I have the ability to run more Explore effects. It feels somewhat clunky at 4 mana. I'd personally try to add Bane back, but I'm a huge fan of the card. A lot of your artifacts and enchantments combo out on the spot, so there's not as much fear of really destroying that much value.
Lys Alana is kind of clunky, but have you considered its cheaper brother Wirewood Hivemaster?
I'm not a huge fan of Omnath because floating green mana is a lot clunkier than it sounds at first glance. A one-sided Upwelling isn't really that exciting in my experience.
Working on a competitive elfball build of my own, and this seems like an excellent resource. Thanks for posting the list!
Those all seem like solid adds, just not sure what to cut. I forgot about Deserted Temple. My only copy has been chilling in my mono black deck, & I didn't consider adding it. It should be pretty solid with Cradle, Nykthos & the Lodge. So...
-1 Forest
+1 Deserted Temple
I also haven't tested Akroma's Memorial. The CMC is a bit high, but it's more in line with what I want compared to Eldrazi's Monument or Coat of Arms.
Wirewood Hivemaster seems a lot better in the deck than Lys Alana, but I don't really know what to cut. Gotta find room for 3 potential adds...
This is a very good list that is quite fine tuned. My Ezuri list runs all permanents so I can run Primal Surge. It's totally worth it, you have to make a few sacrifices, but Sylvan Scrying becomes Expedition Map and Primal Surge flat out wins the game with a haste enabler. I like Garruk, Primal Hunter. He's very good for card advantage. So is Slate of Ancestry. That card is flat out absurd here.
This is a very good list that is quite fine tuned. My Ezuri list runs all permanents so I can run Primal Surge. It's totally worth it, you have to make a few sacrifices, but Sylvan Scrying becomes Expedition Map and Primal Surge flat out wins the game with a haste enabler. I like Garruk, Primal Hunter. He's very good for card advantage. So is Slate of Ancestry. That card is flat out absurd here.
At that point, you're giving up all your good ways to fetch Regal Force (GSZ/Chord/NO/Pact). Not to mention Beast Within and Crop Rotation offer so much utility.
The other problem is that G-Wave practically wins the game as frequently as Surge (for any decent investment), so I feel there's not enough gain from going all-permanents.
Triumph of the Hordes - I see a ton of elves decks using this. It definitely seems capable of stealing some games here and there. I typically have Ezuri doing most of the work & I'm not sure if this is needed.
I've found Triumph of the Hordes to be very useful when Ezuri is being hated on. You don't always have the ability or mana to swing full out, and this card is a backup was of stealing a victory.
Other cards that may be worth considering:
- Tangle - because sometimes tempo is all you require.
- Obsidian Battle-Axe works well with enough warriors (and Ezuri is also a warrior)
Crop Rotation's stunningly better than Expedition Map, and even Expedition Map's a slightly worse Sylvan Scrying. GSZ@X≥10 generally wins on the spot, and the difference between 10 and 13 mana isn't huge. Not to mention mono green has 0 ways of tutoring for Primal Surge, so you're completely overhauling your deck construction for the chance at drawing a single card. At least in GB builds you have the capability of running Runescarred and tutoring for it, but here you can just be SOL.
It's not being worth such a slave to a theme for such a minor benefit. And Beast Within is absolutely spectacular; I'm not sure if you play in a group where people don't play enough threatening permanents, but its flexibility is bar-none.
I agree that the non permanent cards are good. Part of the reason I run all permanents is sort of as a mini challenge, but ultimately, my point is that with Primal Surge it's literally you win the game. You will run into your haste enabler, and win the game. There are enough good permanent cards an elf deck can run, where you don't need the non land permanents and winning on turn 4 with Primal Surge is hilarious.
Thanks for the suggestions. I'll add Slate of Ancestry to the cards I need to pickup & test.
I get what you're saying about Primal Surge being an additional win con, but I have 13 non-permanents in my current list, most of which being tutors that keep my deck performing consistently. If I want to mix it up, I may play around with adding it, but right now I like the way the deck runs.
I'm looking at getting a handful of the cards suggested here in the thread at my LGS this weekend & will play a couple games & post here my results/update my list when done.
The list is pretty standard... Play a bunch of mana dorks which in turn cast your bombs & get turned sideways for most of the time infinite damage off Ezuri or a big Craterhoof.
The main combo of the deck is any creature that taps to add 4+ mana (Priest, Archdruid, Channeler w/4 elves, a pumped Viridian Joiner, or Karametra w/4 devotion) combined with any of Staff of Domination, Umbral Mantle, or Sword of Paruns. We have numerous ways in G to tutor for the dudes, but have to rely on drawing into the 3 enablers.
1 Ezuri, Renegade Leader
Mana dorks: 13
1 Heritage Druid
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Joraga Treespeaker
1 Arbor Elf
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Boreal Druid
1 Priest of Titania
1 Elvish Archdruid
1 Viridian Joiner
1 Elvish Harbinger
1 Wirewood Channeler
1 Karametra's Acolyte
Fatties: 4
1 Chameleon Colossus
1 Regal Force
1 Craterhoof Behemoth
1 Terastodon
Other green dudes: 18
1 Quirion Ranger
1 Wirewood Symbiote
1 Seeker of Skybreak
1 Wirewood Herald
1 Elvish Visionary
1 Fauna Shaman
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Fierce Empath
1 Elvish Champion
1 Jagged-Scar Archers
1 Imperious Perfect
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Wood Elves
1 Eternal Witness
1 Yeva, Nature's Herald
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Immaculate Magistrate
1 Skyshroud Poacher
1 Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury
Tutors: 9
1 Summoner's Pact
1 Worldly Tutor
1 Crop Rotation
1 Sylvan Scrying
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Natural Order
1 Primal Command
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Chord of Calling
Removal: 4
1 Song of the Dryads
1 Beast Within
1 Desert Twister
1 Karn Liberated
Needs more gas: 3
1 Skullclamp
1 Sylvan Library
1 Harmonize
Haste please: 3
1 Concordant Crossroads
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Thousand-Year Elixir
C-c-c-combo: 3
1 Umbral Mantle
1 Staff of Domination
1 Sword of the Paruns
Moar manas: 4
1 Sol Ring
1 Earthcraft
1 Elvish Guidance
1 Mana Reflection
1 Genesis Wave
1 Creeping Renaissance
Lands: 35
28 Forest
1 Strip Mine
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
1 Wirewood Lodge
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Mutavault
1 Cavern of Souls
Here are a few cards I've recently cut & why: (opinions welcomed on these)
Acidic Slime, Bramblecrush, Krosan Grip - I've had these in the deck forever but recently cut them. Freya & Song of the Dryad seem better.
Bane of Progress - I like this card & recently went to search for it with Fauna Shaman only to find I had cut it from the list. Maybe it gets added back in sometime, but I do run a ton of stuff I'd hate to get blown up.
Door of Destinies, Coat of Arms, Eldrazi Monument - These cards are fine, but I cut them to focus on making faster mana. If you want to be more combat oriented, by all means add these in.
Joraga Warcaller - read the cards above... Every time I drew this card it felt clumpy.
Lys Alana Huntmaster - I want to like this card. It seems good in theory. It's so slow though and I've yet to get any good mileage out of it.
Soul of the Harvest - Regal Force seemed to always be better than this card & I don't think I need both.
Garruk Wildspeaker - He's so simple for what I'm wanting to do, but I don't know if I have room for him anymore.
Cards I have yet to/want to try out:
Winter's Orb - seems pretty mean with cards like Earthcraft, Cradle, & Elvish Guidance. I'm not sure this is the direction I want the deck to take though.
Aluren - adds a ton of opportunities to explode... It also does the same for my opponents which is my fear. A lot of creature heavy builds in my meta make me hesitant to try it out.
Myriad Landscape - ramp in a land had to be good right? It's probably too slow for this deck though.
Triumph of the Hordes - I see a ton of elves decks using this. It definitely seems capable of stealing some games here and there. I typically have Ezuri doing most of the work & I'm not sure if this is needed.
Reap and Sow - land d &/or put Cradle into play seems nice. I may cut one of the other land tutors for this.
Omnath, Locus of Mana - card seems pretty absurd, but I've never owned one or tried it out to know if it's worth it.
Let me know if you've got any suggestions on how I can improve the list. I am by no means an expert with the deck yet, although it has been one of my faves to play since I put it together.
Have you considered Deserted Temple? Do you not like Akroma's Memorial as a global haste outlet (too expensive)?
Lys Alana is kind of clunky, but have you considered its cheaper brother Wirewood Hivemaster?
I'm not a huge fan of Omnath because floating green mana is a lot clunkier than it sounds at first glance. A one-sided Upwelling isn't really that exciting in my experience.
Working on a competitive elfball build of my own, and this seems like an excellent resource. Thanks for posting the list!
GX Tron XG
UR Phoenix RU
GG Freyalise High Tide GG
UR Parun Counterspells RU
BB Yawgmoth Token Storm BB
WB Pestilence BW
Those all seem like solid adds, just not sure what to cut. I forgot about Deserted Temple. My only copy has been chilling in my mono black deck, & I didn't consider adding it. It should be pretty solid with Cradle, Nykthos & the Lodge. So...
-1 Forest
+1 Deserted Temple
I also haven't tested Akroma's Memorial. The CMC is a bit high, but it's more in line with what I want compared to Eldrazi's Monument or Coat of Arms.
Wirewood Hivemaster seems a lot better in the deck than Lys Alana, but I don't really know what to cut. Gotta find room for 3 potential adds...
UBRKess, Dissident MageUBR - Controlling Dissidents
GRhonas the IndomitableG - Indomitable Four Drops
WUBOloro, Ageless AsceticWUB - Loot & Renanimate
At that point, you're giving up all your good ways to fetch Regal Force (GSZ/Chord/NO/Pact). Not to mention Beast Within and Crop Rotation offer so much utility.
The other problem is that G-Wave practically wins the game as frequently as Surge (for any decent investment), so I feel there's not enough gain from going all-permanents.
Would you run Collective Unconscious as well (if you weren't mono-permanent)?
GX Tron XG
UR Phoenix RU
GG Freyalise High Tide GG
UR Parun Counterspells RU
BB Yawgmoth Token Storm BB
WB Pestilence BW
If I had non permanent stuff, I'd probably be running Collective Unconscious and Krosan Grip. But Slate of Ancestry is like a reusable Collective Unconscious.
UBRKess, Dissident MageUBR - Controlling Dissidents
GRhonas the IndomitableG - Indomitable Four Drops
WUBOloro, Ageless AsceticWUB - Loot & Renanimate
I've found Triumph of the Hordes to be very useful when Ezuri is being hated on. You don't always have the ability or mana to swing full out, and this card is a backup was of stealing a victory.
Other cards that may be worth considering:
- Tangle - because sometimes tempo is all you require.
- Obsidian Battle-Axe works well with enough warriors (and Ezuri is also a warrior)
- Oran-Rief, the Vastwood is useful and acts as pseudo indestructibility with Cauldron of Souls in order to help keep your elves alive during a boardwipe.
- Wrap in vigor has come in handy in a pinch as well.
- Instill Energy works well with your mega-mana makers.
Hope this helps.
If you want more ideas, my casual elf deck is located here: http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/commander-edh/forum-1-vs-1-commander-decklists/206183-ezuri-smash-v2-0
| B Erebos, God of VampiresB | GYeva SmashG | RBosh ArtifactsR | GURAnimar +1 BeatsGUR | RBVial's Secret Hot SauceRB | UBRNekusar, Draw if you DareUBR | RGBDarigaaz'z DragonsRGB | GBSlimeFEETGB | UBOn-Hit LazavUB | URBrudiclad's Artificer InventionsUR | GUBMuldrotha's ElementalsGUB | WUGKestia's EnchantmentsWUG | GUTatyova - Draw, Land, Go!GU | WGArahbo's EquipmentWG | BUWVarina's ZOMBIE HORDESBUW | WLyra's Angelic SalvationW | WBChurch of TeysaWB | UAzami...WizardsU
Crop Rotation's stunningly better than Expedition Map, and even Expedition Map's a slightly worse Sylvan Scrying. GSZ@X≥10 generally wins on the spot, and the difference between 10 and 13 mana isn't huge. Not to mention mono green has 0 ways of tutoring for Primal Surge, so you're completely overhauling your deck construction for the chance at drawing a single card. At least in GB builds you have the capability of running Runescarred and tutoring for it, but here you can just be SOL.
It's not being worth such a slave to a theme for such a minor benefit. And Beast Within is absolutely spectacular; I'm not sure if you play in a group where people don't play enough threatening permanents, but its flexibility is bar-none.
GX Tron XG
UR Phoenix RU
GG Freyalise High Tide GG
UR Parun Counterspells RU
BB Yawgmoth Token Storm BB
WB Pestilence BW
UBRKess, Dissident MageUBR - Controlling Dissidents
GRhonas the IndomitableG - Indomitable Four Drops
WUBOloro, Ageless AsceticWUB - Loot & Renanimate
I get what you're saying about Primal Surge being an additional win con, but I have 13 non-permanents in my current list, most of which being tutors that keep my deck performing consistently. If I want to mix it up, I may play around with adding it, but right now I like the way the deck runs.
I'm looking at getting a handful of the cards suggested here in the thread at my LGS this weekend & will play a couple games & post here my results/update my list when done.