Introduction
The truth about Yasova is that she's just not THAT good for Commander. In Tiny Leaders (or "Little Buddies" as we call it around here), she can be amazing, but she's just not built to be stellar here. So why, you may ask, would I build a whole thread around her? That's easy, because she's just not that good. I don't worry about getting general hate anywhere I go, no one really knows the strategy I've built around and most people seem very interested in why I chose her, which usually leads to good discussions. I've thought of changing her out many times, but over and over I stay with Yasova because I enjoy her, and every now in then she can win games. But, it's important for the deck to be strong enough on its own to survive and thrive without a build-around general.
The general idea here is to play a lot of utility creatures (i.e. Coiling Oracle), some synergy to win the game (i.e. Aggravated Assault + Bear Umbra), solid equipment to make anything I play able to to get damage in (i.e. Batterskull), and lots of blue to control the tempo of the game (i.e. Venser, Shaper Savant). It's a constant work-in-progress and any help is appreciated!
Why Play Yasova?
So, Yasova is not the optimal commander, we know that already, why in the world would you want to play her as your general? The good news is that Yasova is a 4/2 that has trample, only costs 3CMC and allows you to play UR. Temur (RUG) is, in my opinion, one of the stronger color combinations in commander and has some of the best utility creatures and control cards.
While Yasova isn't a "great" build-around general in commander, her ability is useful and adding a few cards like Greater Good and O-Naginata (which are great in many situations anyways) adds a lot to her usefulness.
You may enjoy playing Yasova if:
You want an under-the-radar general
You enjoy opponents not knowing your strategy the moment you sit down
You enjoy the versatility of winning through combat, synergy or both
You may not enjoying playing Yasova if:
You like to play mainstream commanders
You want to play W and/or B (this deck is really bad at that)
You enjoy playing simple infinite combo builds
Deck List
The following is a list of the 99 cards that I felt best fit in this version of Yasova. The basic idea is to increase Yasova's power with equipment to be able to steal larger creatures with her second ability. Then we use cards like Greater Good or Bazaar Trader to abuse that ability even further. We also have a host of utility creatures that can get damage through if needed. The ultimate win condition is to use either Sword of Feast and Famine or Bear Umbra paired with Aggravated Assault to create endless combat phases. This is a working deck list and your thoughts/comments are always welcome.
Not to ruin your parade but Xenagos and Yasova don't work well together in the creature steal part. Apparently you can't stack it the way you want too because they both happen at the same time. Also Yasova likes Wolfir Silverheart to partner up. Nephalia Smuggler also lets u use enemy ETB creatures and keep them.
Private Mod Note
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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.
Not to ruin your parade but Xenagos and Yasova don't work well together in the creature steal part. Apparently you can't stack it the way you want too because they both happen at the same time. Also Yasova likes Wolfir Silverheart to partner up. Nephalia Smuggler also lets u use enemy ETB creatures and keep them.
Thanks for the feedback!
I confirmed what you said and now I'm just sad, lol. I didn't catch that Yasova has to choose a legal target before Xenagos' ability would resolve (good catch!).
Xenagos is still good enough (imo) for the deck, but I may need to find another pump effect that's more controllable, or just move away from the pump effects, accept Yasova's 4 power (and the ability to steal a plethora of 3CMC or lower creatures) and build into more of a control shell.
After a little more testing, I'm starting to look at the deck like this: if we happen to have a sword or way to buff Yasova, great, but let's just play a solid RUG control and try to execute the Aggravated Assault win (or whatever other wincon we develop), instead of building around her 2nd ability. I would probably cut cards like Fabricate, Loxodon Warhammer, etc. that were meant to build around Yasova's 2nd ability. I would instead add more control (or possible combo if someone has one to suggest here). I was thinking of adding Snapcaster Mage, Mulldrifter and/or maybe others. Thoughts?
Oh, and I decided to buy another set of duals to play in this deck, so I updated the deck with that.
I basically ended up coming to the same conclusion as you with my list in my sig. I added a few cheeky cards that work well with Yas and can make some interesting win conditions.
Nature's Revolt - stealing lands is cool then sacing them for value is fun as well Mudslide - They have to choose to pay to untap things, lucky for us Yasova untaps them if we steal them. Also funny with Natures Revolt, and even funnier with: Wonder - Gives us reach to finish the game out, combos with mudslide so we can untap, and if Natures Revolt is also in play thats game over since no one can untap their lands.
I basically ended up coming to the same conclusion as you with my list in my sig. I added a few cheeky cards that work well with Yas and can make some interesting win conditions.
Nature's Revolt - stealing lands is cool then sacing them for value is fun as well Mudslide - They have to choose to pay to untap things, lucky for us Yasova untaps them if we steal them. Also funny with Natures Revolt, and even funnier with: Wonder - Gives us reach to finish the game out, combos with mudslide so we can untap, and if Natures Revolt is also in play thats game over since no one can untap their lands.
Hey, thanks for stopping by!
Those are some interesting suggestions, I love the synergy and tbh Mudslide is a card I didn't even consider. I'll have to give these guys a try and see how they play out in this version.
- Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest
The truth about Yasova is that she's just not THAT good for Commander. In Tiny Leaders (or "Little Buddies" as we call it around here), she can be amazing, but she's just not built to be stellar here. So why, you may ask, would I build a whole thread around her? That's easy, because she's just not that good. I don't worry about getting general hate anywhere I go, no one really knows the strategy I've built around and most people seem very interested in why I chose her, which usually leads to good discussions. I've thought of changing her out many times, but over and over I stay with Yasova because I enjoy her, and every now in then she can win games. But, it's important for the deck to be strong enough on its own to survive and thrive without a build-around general.
The general idea here is to play a lot of utility creatures (i.e. Coiling Oracle), some synergy to win the game (i.e. Aggravated Assault + Bear Umbra), solid equipment to make anything I play able to to get damage in (i.e. Batterskull), and lots of blue to control the tempo of the game (i.e. Venser, Shaper Savant). It's a constant work-in-progress and any help is appreciated!
Why Play Yasova?
So, Yasova is not the optimal commander, we know that already, why in the world would you want to play her as your general? The good news is that Yasova is a 4/2 that has trample, only costs 3CMC and allows you to play UR. Temur (RUG) is, in my opinion, one of the stronger color combinations in commander and has some of the best utility creatures and control cards.
While Yasova isn't a "great" build-around general in commander, her ability is useful and adding a few cards like Greater Good and O-Naginata (which are great in many situations anyways) adds a lot to her usefulness.
You may enjoy playing Yasova if:
The following is a list of the 99 cards that I felt best fit in this version of Yasova. The basic idea is to increase Yasova's power with equipment to be able to steal larger creatures with her second ability. Then we use cards like Greater Good or Bazaar Trader to abuse that ability even further. We also have a host of utility creatures that can get damage through if needed. The ultimate win condition is to use either Sword of Feast and Famine or Bear Umbra paired with Aggravated Assault to create endless combat phases. This is a working deck list and your thoughts/comments are always welcome.
1 Yasova Dragonclaw
Creature (22)
1 Goblin Welder
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Den Protector
1 Bazaar Trader
1 Coiling Oracle
1 Trinket Mage
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Wood Elves
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Courser of Kruphix
1 Eternal Witness
1 Trygon Predator
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Thrun, the Last Troll
1 Mystic Snake
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Prophet of Kruphix
1 Xenagos, God of Revels
1 Deadeye Navigator
1 Consecrated Sphinx
Instant (14)
1 Brainstorm
1 Constant Mists
1 Arcane Denial
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Delay
1 Impulse
1 Counterspell
1 Chaos Warp
1 Beast Within
1 Krosan Grip
1 Capsize
1 Dismiss
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Ponder
1 Preordain
1 Fabricate
1 Cultivate
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Explosive Vegetation
1 Skyshroud Claim
Enchantment (4)
1 Aggravated Assault
1 Rhystic Study
1 Bear Umbra
1 Greater Good
Artifact (6)
1 Sol Ring
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Expedition Map
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Chromatic Lantern
1 Birthing Pod
Equipment (8)
1 O-Naginata
1 Umezawa's Jitte
1 Empyrial Plate
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Sword of Light and Shadow
1 Loxodon Warhammer
1 Batterskull
Land (38)
1 Command Tower
1 Reflecting Pool
1 Frontier Bivouac
1 Tropical Island
1 Volcanic Island
1 Taiga
1 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Ground
1 Steam Vents
1 Flooded Grove
1 Cascade Bluffs
1 Fire-Lit Thicket
1 Hinterland Harbor
1 Sulfur Falls
1 Rootbound Crag
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Tree of Tales
1 Great Furnace
1 Seat of the Synod
1 Tolaria West
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Alchemist's Refuge
1 Rogue's Passage
1 Kessig Wolf Run
1 High Market
1 Ghost Quarter
1 Tectonic Edge
3 Island
3 Forest
3 Mountain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY8h2vp5Xis
Thanks for the feedback!
I confirmed what you said and now I'm just sad, lol. I didn't catch that Yasova has to choose a legal target before Xenagos' ability would resolve (good catch!).
Xenagos is still good enough (imo) for the deck, but I may need to find another pump effect that's more controllable, or just move away from the pump effects, accept Yasova's 4 power (and the ability to steal a plethora of 3CMC or lower creatures) and build into more of a control shell.
Thoughts?
Oh, and I decided to buy another set of duals to play in this deck, so I updated the deck with that.
Thanks for looking!
After more playing over the week, I'm now looking at making the following changes:
-1 Empyrial Plate
-1 Fabricate
-1 Loxodon Warhammer
+1 Snapcaster Mage
+1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
+1 Mulldrifter
Thoughts?
Nature's Revolt - stealing lands is cool then sacing them for value is fun as well
Mudslide - They have to choose to pay to untap things, lucky for us Yasova untaps them if we steal them. Also funny with Natures Revolt, and even funnier with:
Wonder - Gives us reach to finish the game out, combos with mudslide so we can untap, and if Natures Revolt is also in play thats game over since no one can untap their lands.
Hey, thanks for stopping by!
Those are some interesting suggestions, I love the synergy and tbh Mudslide is a card I didn't even consider. I'll have to give these guys a try and see how they play out in this version.
Thanks for the great suggestions!