This deck is for casual play, I have not purchased the deck yet but some of the more expensive cards I already have. Its mostly a budget deck but I'm just looking for some guidance here from you guys! Our group generally frowns on infinite combos and land destruction so I'd like to keep that out.
the Eldrazi Monument print from the last commander set is cheap.
I think one big thing you can do to up the deck is drop a lot of the expensive noncreature spells for creature spells. Marchesa's value comes from abusing enter the battle field/ "when this creature dies" effects. The best way to further abuse that is have a good portion of those creatures have a cmc of 4 or less, so that some turns, you are using 3-5 abilities per turn. Here's a list of some budget all stars. Prices are tcgplayer mid and set to lightly played, so you can get the cards even cheaper if you're willing to scour the website.
Carrion Feeder ($.60) - Sac outlets are really important, they let you use the abilities again when you need to after Marchesa board is up. This one is great because its ability protects itself from everything short of exile when Marchesa is out. Can get big and deal some damage. If you get this out turn 1 and manage a good board, he will deal a lot of damage throughout the game.
Sidisi's Faithful ($.03) - This can keep an annoying commander off board for a whole game. Blocks well and lacks defender so you can still get counters on it.
Grenzo, Dungeon Warden ($1.23) - A lot of fun if you run the heavy creature suite. Lots of the best creatures you can run have low power because their ability is what makes them powerful. He can climb up or be casted to get anything in your deck too. I personally cap at 6.
Pain Seer ($.18) - Budget Dark Confidant that functions pretty well here. Late game you can sac him to pivot around the life loss if needed.
Fleshbag Marauder/Merciless Executioner ($.25) - Awesome for hexproof and voltron, great in general. 3/1 is how you want your bear stats distributed here as well.
Grim Haruspex ($.28) - Draw off of all these creatures you're saccing or blocking with. Cards like this are the gears that keep your deck running. Marchesa's strat can empty your hand pretty fast. But that's a good thing.
Sage of Fables ($.88) - Cast this before Marchesa and she'll come down with a 1/1 counter on her. This is some serious value. If you can Swing/ get a counter on it after you drop Marchesa, non exiling Board wipes are gonna put you way, way ahead. If you notice, most of the suggestions already/ future ones are wizards. It's not a theme worth devoting to, the interaction with Marchesa is honestly enough justification. The rest is icing.
Matter Reshaper ($2.07)- If you run that low curve, this guy is great. Without it, he may not be worth it, but he does hit lands.
Necroplasm ($1.04) - Kills tokens. You have the magic ability to dance around his self destruction and then bring him back and reset the counters. If there's any deck this guy belongs in, it's here.
Smothering Abomination ($.27) - With the heavy creature stat, you can't sac enough creatures. You may lose some damage if the creature you sacced has to wait til EoT to come back, but drawing is really important. You want to flood the board and let cards like this slowly fill your hand up. Sure, its great to cast a spell that draws you 5 cards at once, but that spell was probably not 4 mana, nor did it give you an awesome evasive body. This guy sticking is gonna draw you a lot of cards.
Fleshwrither ($.30) - Here comes the fun part. This guy lets you play a really nice toolbox. If you can keep this guy out and devote the proper mana, he can usually assemble a win. You won't believe the answers you will have at 4 cmc.
Dimir House Guard (.18) - If you end up liking the 4 cmc idea, he's another great card. Gets more than just creatures and doubles as a sac outlet you can protect even without a counter. Fear makes it easier to get one on if you really need to. He is usually just used for transmute, but his other functions synergize with the deck.
Clones. There's a bunch. Phyrexian Metamorph is apparently no longer budget...Dack's Duplicate ($1.05) and Clever Impersonator ($3.04) are probably the best. You really want 2-3 of these, bouncing around on the best ETBs, even if they aren't your own, is a great way to win. A player casting Avenger of Zendikar without haste may win you the game. Sac the clones before your turn, hit that land drop and you can win on the spot
Marton Stormgald ($.55) - So, so powerful. With the heavy creature theme, this guy can lead an alpha strike that overkills the board.
Aura Thief ($2.73) - People are going to question if this card is real. Pillow forts go from your biggest problem to something you want to see at the table. I've had games where I've stolen one player's pillow fort, killed the other two players from behind it, and then him. In my experience, it is rare for any deck to lack a decent enchantment.
Agent of Erebos ($.05)- If you have a problem with opponent's graveyards, here's your guy.
Disciple of Bolas ($.27) - This will draw you a ton and pad your life if you've spent too much. Can save you in a few different ways.
Falkenrath Aristocrat ($2.89) - Another very hard to kill sac outlet, and quite the beater. Will get counters off her own ability a few times as well.
Mulldrifter (.45) Another great source of draw and on an evasive body. Winged blockers are pretty great too. Players will need trample before they bother swinging at you.
Grey Merchant of Asphondel (.05) - Call him Gary, we all do. Another way to pad your life after spending a ton. This guy is really neat if you have some clones out as other creatures. Sac them and copy Gary, adding two B devotion for each clone. Ends games quickly.
River Kelpie ($.42) - Another insane source of draw. Every time a dude comes back, you can draw. Persist is interesting here as well, Swinging after the -1/-1 counter with Marchesa out will negate the counter allowing persist to trigger again.
Rune-Scarred Demon ($6.41) - I thought this was cheaper but I listed it anyways. Wonderful guy to resolve. If you do, you can probably guarantee a win.
One thing you're really going to want are pain lands and talismans
These can help you manage you life total. I have had many games where I ping myself counting on life totals. There's a system you can work out to make sure you always get your triggers, but players can drop their own life/ leave you on the throne. Missing a turn of dethrone is a big problem.
Here are some cards that are pricer, but worth every $ if you can ever throw it
Mikeaus, the Unhallowed ($20)- Get this out with Marchesa and you can really abuse abilities. Tons of infinite combos with cards, like drawing your whole deck if River Kelpie is out
Sneak Attack ($40~) By far the best card to run in Marchesa. This is why I run Dimir House Guard, as well as another transmute at 4 cmc
1x Anger
1x Archaeomancer
1x Archetype of Aggression
1x Baleful Strix
1x Blood Tyrant
1x Burnished Hart
1x Dack's Duplicate
1x Disciple of Bolas
1x Erebos, God of the Dead
1x Exava, Rakdos Blood Witch
1x Feldon of the Third Path
1x Fleshbag Marauder
1x Grave Titan
1x Grimgrin, Corpse-Born
1x Hellhole Flailer
1x Kokusho, the Evening Star
1x Mulldrifter
1x Ogre Battledriver
1x Oona's Blackguard
1x Pyreheart Wolf
1x Rockslide Elemental
1x Sepulchral Primordial
1x Sheoldred, Whispering One
1x Shriekmaw
1x Solemn Simulacrum
1x Taurean Mauler
1x Thraximundar
1x Tymaret, the Murder King
1x Urabrask the Hidden
1x Wonder
1x Decree of Pain
1x Promise of Power
1x Rise of the Dark Realms
//Enchantment (5)
1x Dictate of Erebos
1x Grave Betrayal
1x Phyrexian Arena
1x Phyrexian Reclamation
1x Unspeakable Symbol
//Instant (10)
1x Counterflux
1x Crosis's Charm
1x Dimir Charm
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Grixis Charm
1x Hinder
1x Spell Crumple
1x Steam Augury
1x Swan Song
1x Wild Ricochet
//Artifact (10)
1x Bident of Thassa
1x Chromatic Lantern
1x Gem of Becoming
1x Hammer of Purphoros
1x Lightning Greaves
1x Sol Ring
1x Swiftfoot Boots
1x Thought Vessel
1x Unscythe, Killer of Kings
1x Whip of Erebos
//Planeswalker (4)
1x Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
1x Liliana Vess
1x Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker
1x Ob Nixilis of the Black Oath
1x Bloodfell Caves
1x Choked Estuary
1x City of Brass
1x Command Tower
1x Crumbling Necropolis
1x Dimir Aqueduct
1x Dismal Backwater
1x Dragonskull Summit
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Evolving Wilds
1x Foreboding Ruins
1x Grixis Panorama
4x Island
1x Izzet Boilerworks
4x Mountain
1x Opal Palace
1x Rakdos Carnarium
1x Reliquary Tower
1x Rupture Spire
1x Shinka, the Bloodsoaked Keep
1x Smoldering Marsh
1x Sunken Hollow
4x Swamp
1x Swiftwater Cliffs
1x Tainted Isle
1x Tainted Peak
1x Terramorphic Expanse
1x Transguild Promenade
the Eldrazi Monument print from the last commander set is cheap.
I think one big thing you can do to up the deck is drop a lot of the expensive noncreature spells for creature spells. Marchesa's value comes from abusing enter the battle field/ "when this creature dies" effects. The best way to further abuse that is have a good portion of those creatures have a cmc of 4 or less, so that some turns, you are using 3-5 abilities per turn. Here's a list of some budget all stars. Prices are tcgplayer mid and set to lightly played, so you can get the cards even cheaper if you're willing to scour the website.
Carrion Feeder ($.60) - Sac outlets are really important, they let you use the abilities again when you need to after Marchesa board is up. This one is great because its ability protects itself from everything short of exile when Marchesa is out. Can get big and deal some damage. If you get this out turn 1 and manage a good board, he will deal a lot of damage throughout the game.
Sidisi's Faithful ($.03) - This can keep an annoying commander off board for a whole game. Blocks well and lacks defender so you can still get counters on it.
Grenzo, Dungeon Warden ($1.23) - A lot of fun if you run the heavy creature suite. Lots of the best creatures you can run have low power because their ability is what makes them powerful. He can climb up or be casted to get anything in your deck too. I personally cap at 6.
Pain Seer ($.18) - Budget Dark Confidant that functions pretty well here. Late game you can sac him to pivot around the life loss if needed.
Fleshbag Marauder/Merciless Executioner ($.25) - Awesome for hexproof and voltron, great in general. 3/1 is how you want your bear stats distributed here as well.
Grim Haruspex ($.28) - Draw off of all these creatures you're saccing or blocking with. Cards like this are the gears that keep your deck running. Marchesa's strat can empty your hand pretty fast. But that's a good thing.
Sage of Fables ($.88) - Cast this before Marchesa and she'll come down with a 1/1 counter on her. This is some serious value. If you can Swing/ get a counter on it after you drop Marchesa, non exiling Board wipes are gonna put you way, way ahead. If you notice, most of the suggestions already/ future ones are wizards. It's not a theme worth devoting to, the interaction with Marchesa is honestly enough justification. The rest is icing.
Matter Reshaper ($2.07)- If you run that low curve, this guy is great. Without it, he may not be worth it, but he does hit lands.
Necroplasm ($1.04) - Kills tokens. You have the magic ability to dance around his self destruction and then bring him back and reset the counters. If there's any deck this guy belongs in, it's here.
Smothering Abomination ($.27) - With the heavy creature stat, you can't sac enough creatures. You may lose some damage if the creature you sacced has to wait til EoT to come back, but drawing is really important. You want to flood the board and let cards like this slowly fill your hand up. Sure, its great to cast a spell that draws you 5 cards at once, but that spell was probably not 4 mana, nor did it give you an awesome evasive body. This guy sticking is gonna draw you a lot of cards.
Fleshwrither ($.30) - Here comes the fun part. This guy lets you play a really nice toolbox. If you can keep this guy out and devote the proper mana, he can usually assemble a win. You won't believe the answers you will have at 4 cmc.
Dimir House Guard (.18) - If you end up liking the 4 cmc idea, he's another great card. Gets more than just creatures and doubles as a sac outlet you can protect even without a counter. Fear makes it easier to get one on if you really need to. He is usually just used for transmute, but his other functions synergize with the deck.
Profaner of the Dead ($.25) - This is Sidsi's Faithful on steroids. You can easily cycle through this and keep other aggro decks off the board.
Clones. There's a bunch. Phyrexian Metamorph is apparently no longer budget...Dack's Duplicate ($1.05) and Clever Impersonator ($3.04) are probably the best. You really want 2-3 of these, bouncing around on the best ETBs, even if they aren't your own, is a great way to win. A player casting Avenger of Zendikar without haste may win you the game. Sac the clones before your turn, hit that land drop and you can win on the spot
Marton Stormgald ($.55) - So, so powerful. With the heavy creature theme, this guy can lead an alpha strike that overkills the board.
Aura Thief ($2.73) - People are going to question if this card is real. Pillow forts go from your biggest problem to something you want to see at the table. I've had games where I've stolen one player's pillow fort, killed the other two players from behind it, and then him. In my experience, it is rare for any deck to lack a decent enchantment.
Agent of Erebos ($.05)- If you have a problem with opponent's graveyards, here's your guy.
Disciple of Bolas ($.27) - This will draw you a ton and pad your life if you've spent too much. Can save you in a few different ways.
Falkenrath Aristocrat ($2.89) - Another very hard to kill sac outlet, and quite the beater. Will get counters off her own ability a few times as well.
Mulldrifter (.45) Another great source of draw and on an evasive body. Winged blockers are pretty great too. Players will need trample before they bother swinging at you.
Grey Merchant of Asphondel (.05) - Call him Gary, we all do. Another way to pad your life after spending a ton. This guy is really neat if you have some clones out as other creatures. Sac them and copy Gary, adding two B devotion for each clone. Ends games quickly.
River Kelpie ($.42) - Another insane source of draw. Every time a dude comes back, you can draw. Persist is interesting here as well, Swinging after the -1/-1 counter with Marchesa out will negate the counter allowing persist to trigger again.
Rune-Scarred Demon ($6.41) - I thought this was cheaper but I listed it anyways. Wonderful guy to resolve. If you do, you can probably guarantee a win.
One thing you're really going to want are pain lands and talismans
Underground River ($4)
Sulfurous Springs ($3)
Shivan Reef ($4)
Talisman of Indulgence ($2)
talisman of Dominance ($2)
These can help you manage you life total. I have had many games where I ping myself counting on life totals. There's a system you can work out to make sure you always get your triggers, but players can drop their own life/ leave you on the throne. Missing a turn of dethrone is a big problem.
Here are some cards that are pricer, but worth every $ if you can ever throw it
Scourge of the Throne ($8.25) Very powerful creature.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker ($15) - Exactly what you want here. Abuse more etbs.
Sakashima, the Impostor ($11.39) - Clone Marchesa, Dethrone stacks!
Mikeaus, the Unhallowed ($20)- Get this out with Marchesa and you can really abuse abilities. Tons of infinite combos with cards, like drawing your whole deck if River Kelpie is out
Sneak Attack ($40~) By far the best card to run in Marchesa. This is why I run Dimir House Guard, as well as another transmute at 4 cmc
Hope this was helpful!
URXSurf's Up, Mizz Magnus!XRU
URGWKynaios and Tiro's Multiplayer MenagerieWGRU