So, currently I am playing with a near-complete Teysa deck that I have become proud of. It mostly focus's on her second ability rather than her first. It does feature an infinite combo, and a lot of other cards are dedicated to helping that. However, it's still very fun if I play without the combos, as it turns into a great deck that can manage it's own through nullifying combat damage, stealing from graveyard, and generally playing big swingers.
However, I wanted to make a commander that is dedicated to fun for all, while still holding it's own to win if played right. At first I made a Kruphix deck, but it quickly became a "here's 52 ways to put 25 cards down in a turn while paying 80 for X" deck. This wasn't very fun (it was a proxy, so no money was wasted.)
Now I am contemplating making Iroas, God of Victory as a human tribal. He seems to be a fun beat-down deck. However, I wanted to check to see if anyone else here could think of a really fun EDH deck that holds it's own. By fine for all, I mostly mean it doesn't accelerate from "this turn all I do is place a land" into "this turn I place a land, put omniscience and mill myself for victory." If I am going to win, I want it to be obvious, but hard to stop, as it's more fun for my play group.
While not needing to be budget, it has to be able to be budgeted. If the deck simply cannot survive or do well at all without those four $50 cards, I will pass, but thanks, haha. Send your 800 dollar decks, go ahead! I will more than likely just chop the super expensive cards and replace good cards with their cheaper counterparts if need be.
Thanks for your help guys. It can be hard to find a fun commander IMO, because some people have a lot of fun doing things like placing omniscience on the board. I, however, do not, and that's ok.
I do have a Daretti deck! It is super fun to play, but I don't play it because my friend actually uses a commander deck that really, really messes my day up. I save Daretti for matches without him.
Braids, Conjurer Adept is the most fun at our group. Basically it skips the game ahead to the point where huge monsters start wrecking each other. Unlike Pheldagriff Briads can actually win games from time to time.
It's hard to not go with the commander. It seems like the ultimate "go f%&# yourself" card and it came from the guy with a lovecraft yellow sign as his picture. But, I'll have to pass, lol.
Braids, Conjurer Adept is the most fun at our group. Basically it skips the game ahead to the point where huge monsters start wrecking each other. Unlike Pheldagriff Briads can actually win games from time to time.
Ok, now we are talking. It doesn't directly hurt anyone else. If anything, it allows me to establish defenses early game, and since I am not the direct cause of the damage being dealt (killing me won't stop them, unlike Nekusar), they will want to go after each other. I am picky, and I don't like mono-blue, but a proxy test never hurt.
Braids, Conjurer Adept is the most fun at our group. Basically it skips the game ahead to the point where huge monsters start wrecking each other. Unlike Pheldagriff Briads can actually win games from time to time.
Ok, now we are talking. It doesn't directly hurt anyone else. If anything, it allows me to establish defenses early game, and since I am not the direct cause of the damage being dealt (killing me won't stop them, unlike Nekusar), they will want to go after each other. I am picky, and I don't like mono-blue, but a proxy test never hurt.
Braids, Conjurer Adept is indeed mono blue but it doesn't have to feel like traditional mono blue. You can go focused at maximizing what you get out of it and finding ways to prevent your opponents from taking advantage. But i go for the more 'fun' route by just letting people get their braids trigger and trying to have enough trickery to keep myself in the game. Stuff like Aetherize are important, Control Magic and the like are critical and Clone and his/her buddies are a big help. I have a list in my sig that is pretty well up to date. One common strategy i use is just Braids out big mana rocks and let everyone else extend their fatties because someone will pull the Wrath of God trigger and clear everything out. At this point you'll have a few big mana rocks and can just cast the big Krakens you have.
Braids, Conjurer Adept also can be very cheap to build. Think about Grozoth when putting the deck together and you'll be fine.
Don't listen to the blasphemy! Zedruu only wants to give nice things, making her give mean things is twisted and wrong!
OT: I'm considering my opinion on this invalid because of "I want it to be obvious, but hard to stop." Which is basically the opposite of what I do for fun. I do "Sudden, explosive, and dies to removal!"
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
Zedruu the Greathearted Can be fun for sure, but donating stuff that locks unsuspecting opponents out of games is not what i would call fun. Getting a bunch of Hunted creatures and switcheroo effects can be fun for sure.
If Unglued stuff is allowed in your group take a look at Not an other Aether Vortex.
What are you? A sadist? You may as well just have everyone at his table ritually flog themselves for half an hour whilst Jhoira suspends a bunch of giant monsters and then blows up all their lands. This deck makes everyone who plays against it miserable by default because there's about 4 cards in all of magic that interact with suspend. I'm not sure about you, but i don't really have fun playing against a deck i can't interact with. He may as well go and play Hearthstone.
Alright, we do have to note all the shiny new Eldrazi Processors to deal with Suspend. That said, few people play them.
Pretty much any deck that plays a 'fair' game, has removal/a few (but not many) wipes in order to deal with the explosive players, and doesn't do wincons that are particularly targeted at one person or that seem unfair. For a low-level, casual game of multiplayer, this would be my vote.
Also, I have seen Phelddagrif win. Lately my friend's been going for Commander damage, which Pheldy's not bad for.
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"It is better for all the world if, instead of waiting to execute degenerate offspring for crime or to let them starve for their imbecility, society can prevent those who are manifestly unfit from continuing their kind. The principle that sustains compulsory vaccination is broad enough to cover cutting the Fallopian tubes... Three generations of imbeciles are enough."
--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.
Commanders dont tend to typically make games "fun" its card choices and play styles. Jhoira CAN be fun if you suspend stuff like Greater Gargadon instead of Eldrazi following an Obliterate
I have made blue braids and would like to think it was fun but really, everyone else was playing control the "gifts" instead of letting it reign down and chaos ensuing. Mono blue and I was the aggro deck trying to stop others from whacking my leviathans and colossi (no, not blightsteel!)
Go through your binders/boxes and pick out FUN cards and see what you end up with for colours then choose a commander that wont get your hated off the table for showing thier face. sidenote a friend had a whacky Jhoira deck and people still didnt trust them so they got all the hate unnecessarily.
Fun = AVOID mass hand discard, mass land destruction, complete counter spell control
Try = Will of the council cards, tempting offers, and anything that will make opponents interact with the game more often.
For table funsies I would put forth a Voltron style deck - They can be strong and weak at the same time! I had a Zurgo deck that I loaded with fun equipment, angels, and enchantments that worked very well. People could have fun killing Zurgo but with the density of threats I had Gisela or Aurelia could pick up the mantel and beat down the table.
What are you? A sadist? You may as well just have everyone at his table ritually flog themselves for half an hour whilst Jhoira suspends a bunch of giant monsters and then blows up all their lands. This deck makes everyone who plays against it miserable by default because there's about 4 cards in all of magic that interact with suspend. I'm not sure about you, but i don't really have fun playing against a deck i can't interact with. He may as well go and play Hearthstone.
Every normal counterspell interacts with Suspend...... Not the act of suspending, but when it comes off of suspend...
Jhoira is one of those commander's that's only really powerful if you intentionally use her that way (Suspend right BEFORE your turn, which knocks it down to 3 turns immediately) and are using the big flashy, uncounterable spells (like Blightsteel Colossus or Obliterate).
A middle of the road Jhoira would be a fun deck to play against, and it's exactly what the OP wanted; playing colors that are fun to play outside of instantly winning, but can immediately shift gears if need be.
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Oath of the Gatewatch; the set that caused the competitive community to freak out over Basic Lands.
I personally run irons and love him dearly. He is pretty much what you described. Easy to see coming but hard to stop. I currently run him as trying to curve out into him so he is active when he drops or the turn after at latest then hold back all my spells while I beat face till someone finally wreaths to get rid of my three small creatures. Things that are surprisingly effective, battalion creatures like the one drop that becomes a 3/3 when you trigger battalion. Or the angel that lightning helixes. And to push through the late game, run the basic extra combat step cards and board pumps. Look at things like aggravated assault and nobilis of war for the repeated damage. Consider throwing in a stoneforge mystic package with grafted exoskeleton for infect wins. If you want to win more often with him, definitely run all of the Armageddons and only play to four lands, sandbag lands, blow up the world, play out the lands you held onto.
He's a really fun general who is hard to answer. And the best part, even when he gets answered, he's cheap to recast. He's also cheap to build, give him a try
Pack it with other self sacrificing cards such as Necropotence and Lich, protect yourself from death with Platinum Angel or Angel's Grace, then hit the table with Repay in Kind or other life equalizing/swapping cards. And you always have Near-Death Experience (whose name aptly fits the theme of the deck) as a alternate win con. But seriously, nothing puts you out on a limb at a six person EDH table like a good ol' Lich sans any protection.
In my opinion what makes commander fun are funny ideas in peoples decks that somehow works out. That and teh banter. I played against a saproling deck recently and I mean, it's just a bunch of plants that slowly slowly gets counters but somehow it was a nice deck and not totally hopeless against anything.
Regarding people saying braids I wholeheartedly disagree with it being fun to just skip ahead to huge monsters hitting eachother. Cards like that and pheldagriff just skews decks so much. What is the point of having a decent curve, of playing enough lands or running acceleration if anyone can dump out anything all the time. Then the decks just turn into heaps of cards where the one with the biggest cards win.
But as with most things opinions are just opinions so it's up to what your playgroup likes.
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IMO, if you are enjoying your Teysa deck, and you have a mature and competitive playgroup, keep playing it if it makes you happy. There definitely won't be one deck that will make every player happy (I don't like playing against group hug and chaos builds, which seem to be loved by more casual players).
Yeah chaos is actually not fun because it prolongs games for no reason. people like to plan and set up to go for the big play and just having the table flipped every turn and your hand completely change is a pain.
The exception is Norin since that is his game plan.
My personal most fun deck is Zirilan, of the claw eat dragons! everyone can kill creatures right?. it's got nothing particularly tricky just..furance of rath, scourge of the throne, dragon tyrant making life totals disappear. I mean people wont see it coming at first but they will learn they really have to kill zirilan before the dragons get all in their face. Of course mono red is not known for its interaction.
If interaction and durdling is what you want then it's Glissa, the traitor, grinding value forever... typically I win with Craterhoof again quite the click boom but I need to get a board before it's lethal.
Well, the ultimate "fun" commander is Phelddagrif, though as far as I know, it has trouble actually "winning". Most of the time you will win by making your opponents kill each other with all the extra resources you gave them =P
I don't know, won a 3 man with Daddy Hippo. The Sharuum player thought I was hate killing him as he was trying to set up his winning combo. Hunted Phantasm turn 3 + sword turn 4 makes any player cry.
Better flushing out exactly what "fun" is should help figure out commanders. And what is more fun than academic debate about what fun is.
I think Warp World is a good litmus test for what people see as fun. It has a big splashy effect that changes the game radically. If people see it coming they prepare but due to the random nature of the card you are never quite sure how it will play out. But Warp World also is a very ponderous card that takes a huge amount of time to resolve and can often unearth obscure rules issues that tables without a level 3 judge might have difficulty figuring out. Certain decks like Mizzix of the Izmagnus will just fall apart when WW resolves, and people that are behind are likely to get much more behind.
Take a poll of your group and see if they like Warp World.
If they do then stuff like Jhoira of the Ghitu and the more combo guys will be fun as no one minds people getting screwed over for a big splashy effect.
If they hate Warp World then Blue Braids might be a good choice because it allows everyone to play the stuff they already like (cards in their decks) and doesn't in and of itself screw people over. Phelddagrif is an other card that lets people do what they want but gives them more.
For the record my group started with enjoying Warp World but after the 20th or so time resolving it we decided to move on. Though i think we have had enough WW free time to justify squeaking it back in.
Well, the ultimate "fun" commander is Phelddagrif, though as far as I know, it has trouble actually "winning". Most of the time you will win by making your opponents kill each other with all the extra resources you gave them =P
Friend of mine built Voltron 'griff, stacked Sword of Feast&Famine, Sword of Fire&Ice, Umezawa's Jitte, killed your tokens, killed you. Was scary!
The "Crazy One", playing casual magic and occasionally dipping his toes into regular play since 1994.
Currently focusing on Pre-Modern (Mono-Black Discard Control) and Modern (Azorious Control, Temur Rhinos).
Find me at the Wizard's Tower in Ottawa every second Saturday afternoons.
The result (unless people use their 2nd rite of replication copy to make another Lich) is everyone draws their entire deck, then attempt to win before they draw out and lose.
However, I wanted to make a commander that is dedicated to fun for all, while still holding it's own to win if played right. At first I made a Kruphix deck, but it quickly became a "here's 52 ways to put 25 cards down in a turn while paying 80 for X" deck. This wasn't very fun (it was a proxy, so no money was wasted.)
Now I am contemplating making Iroas, God of Victory as a human tribal. He seems to be a fun beat-down deck. However, I wanted to check to see if anyone else here could think of a really fun EDH deck that holds it's own. By fine for all, I mostly mean it doesn't accelerate from "this turn all I do is place a land" into "this turn I place a land, put omniscience and mill myself for victory." If I am going to win, I want it to be obvious, but hard to stop, as it's more fun for my play group.
While not needing to be budget, it has to be able to be budgeted. If the deck simply cannot survive or do well at all without those four $50 cards, I will pass, but thanks, haha. Send your 800 dollar decks, go ahead! I will more than likely just chop the super expensive cards and replace good cards with their cheaper counterparts if need be.
Thanks for your help guys. It can be hard to find a fun commander IMO, because some people have a lot of fun doing things like placing omniscience on the board. I, however, do not, and that's ok.
This is pretty much the definition of Jhoira of the Ghitu.
Or, if you want something that can win more incrementally, check out Daretti, Scrap Savant.
No, I was being literal.
I do have a Daretti deck! It is super fun to play, but I don't play it because my friend actually uses a commander deck that really, really messes my day up. I save Daretti for matches without him.
Pelldagrif huh... maybe... just, maybe...
In Progress
GBIshkanah, Grafwidow ~ BWGRTymna the Weaver & Tana, the Bloodsower ~ UGRashmi, Eternities Crafter ~ RGAtarka, World Render
It's hard to not go with the commander. It seems like the ultimate "go f%&# yourself" card and it came from the guy with a lovecraft yellow sign as his picture. But, I'll have to pass, lol.
Ok, now we are talking. It doesn't directly hurt anyone else. If anything, it allows me to establish defenses early game, and since I am not the direct cause of the damage being dealt (killing me won't stop them, unlike Nekusar), they will want to go after each other. I am picky, and I don't like mono-blue, but a proxy test never hurt.
Braids, Conjurer Adept is indeed mono blue but it doesn't have to feel like traditional mono blue. You can go focused at maximizing what you get out of it and finding ways to prevent your opponents from taking advantage. But i go for the more 'fun' route by just letting people get their braids trigger and trying to have enough trickery to keep myself in the game. Stuff like Aetherize are important, Control Magic and the like are critical and Clone and his/her buddies are a big help. I have a list in my sig that is pretty well up to date. One common strategy i use is just Braids out big mana rocks and let everyone else extend their fatties because someone will pull the Wrath of God trigger and clear everything out. At this point you'll have a few big mana rocks and can just cast the big Krakens you have.
Braids, Conjurer Adept also can be very cheap to build. Think about Grozoth when putting the deck together and you'll be fine.
In Progress
GBIshkanah, Grafwidow ~ BWGRTymna the Weaver & Tana, the Bloodsower ~ UGRashmi, Eternities Crafter ~ RGAtarka, World Render
Also, if you do go with Braids, Conjurer Adept, do consider Paradox Haze. No one says you can't double dip, right?
Hell you can do better than that. Ulamog's Crusher, Hand of Emrakul, and Artisan of Kozilek are all really powerful budget beats.
U Memnarch
RWU Zedruu the Greathearted
Don't listen to the blasphemy! Zedruu only wants to give nice things, making her give mean things is twisted and wrong!
OT: I'm considering my opinion on this invalid because of "I want it to be obvious, but hard to stop." Which is basically the opposite of what I do for fun. I do "Sudden, explosive, and dies to removal!"
If Unglued stuff is allowed in your group take a look at Not an other Aether Vortex.
In Progress
GBIshkanah, Grafwidow ~ BWGRTymna the Weaver & Tana, the Bloodsower ~ UGRashmi, Eternities Crafter ~ RGAtarka, World Render
Alright, we do have to note all the shiny new Eldrazi Processors to deal with Suspend. That said, few people play them.
Pretty much any deck that plays a 'fair' game, has removal/a few (but not many) wipes in order to deal with the explosive players, and doesn't do wincons that are particularly targeted at one person or that seem unfair. For a low-level, casual game of multiplayer, this would be my vote.
Also, I have seen Phelddagrif win. Lately my friend's been going for Commander damage, which Pheldy's not bad for.
--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.
I have made blue braids and would like to think it was fun but really, everyone else was playing control the "gifts" instead of letting it reign down and chaos ensuing. Mono blue and I was the aggro deck trying to stop others from whacking my leviathans and colossi (no, not blightsteel!)
Go through your binders/boxes and pick out FUN cards and see what you end up with for colours then choose a commander that wont get your hated off the table for showing thier face. sidenote a friend had a whacky Jhoira deck and people still didnt trust them so they got all the hate unnecessarily.
Fun = AVOID mass hand discard, mass land destruction, complete counter spell control
Try = Will of the council cards, tempting offers, and anything that will make opponents interact with the game more often.
Building silly decks for silly games.
Every normal counterspell interacts with Suspend...... Not the act of suspending, but when it comes off of suspend...
Jhoira is one of those commander's that's only really powerful if you intentionally use her that way (Suspend right BEFORE your turn, which knocks it down to 3 turns immediately) and are using the big flashy, uncounterable spells (like Blightsteel Colossus or Obliterate).
A middle of the road Jhoira would be a fun deck to play against, and it's exactly what the OP wanted; playing colors that are fun to play outside of instantly winning, but can immediately shift gears if need be.
He's a really fun general who is hard to answer. And the best part, even when he gets answered, he's cheap to recast. He's also cheap to build, give him a try
Modern
Pack it with other self sacrificing cards such as Necropotence and Lich, protect yourself from death with Platinum Angel or Angel's Grace, then hit the table with Repay in Kind or other life equalizing/swapping cards. And you always have Near-Death Experience (whose name aptly fits the theme of the deck) as a alternate win con. But seriously, nothing puts you out on a limb at a six person EDH table like a good ol' Lich sans any protection.
Regarding people saying braids I wholeheartedly disagree with it being fun to just skip ahead to huge monsters hitting eachother. Cards like that and pheldagriff just skews decks so much. What is the point of having a decent curve, of playing enough lands or running acceleration if anyone can dump out anything all the time. Then the decks just turn into heaps of cards where the one with the biggest cards win.
But as with most things opinions are just opinions so it's up to what your playgroup likes.
Did I write something useful? Leave a like.
Any new cool Daretti cards printed in the latest set? Tell me about it!
Rules Advisor
Fun for who? I am currently piloting Mizzix of the Izmagnus and my worst enemy is Derevi, Empyrial Tactician. It's also the most fun to play against because it is such an uphill battle.
IMO, if you are enjoying your Teysa deck, and you have a mature and competitive playgroup, keep playing it if it makes you happy. There definitely won't be one deck that will make every player happy (I don't like playing against group hug and chaos builds, which seem to be loved by more casual players).
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
The exception is Norin since that is his game plan.
My personal most fun deck is Zirilan, of the claw eat dragons! everyone can kill creatures right?. it's got nothing particularly tricky just..furance of rath, scourge of the throne, dragon tyrant making life totals disappear. I mean people wont see it coming at first but they will learn they really have to kill zirilan before the dragons get all in their face. Of course mono red is not known for its interaction.
If interaction and durdling is what you want then it's Glissa, the traitor, grinding value forever... typically I win with Craterhoof again quite the click boom but I need to get a board before it's lethal.
Pioneer:UR Pheonix
Modern:U Mono U Tron
EDH
GB Glissa, the traitor: Army of Cans
UW Dragonlord Ojutai: Dragonlord NOjutai
UWGDerevi, Empyrial Tactician "you cannot fight the storm"
R Zirilan of the claw. The solution to every problem is dragons
UB Etrata, the Silencer Cloning assassination
Peasant cube: Cards I own
I don't know, won a 3 man with Daddy Hippo. The Sharuum player thought I was hate killing him as he was trying to set up his winning combo. Hunted Phantasm turn 3 + sword turn 4 makes any player cry.
BWREDGAR MARKOV VAMPIRESBWR
I think Warp World is a good litmus test for what people see as fun. It has a big splashy effect that changes the game radically. If people see it coming they prepare but due to the random nature of the card you are never quite sure how it will play out. But Warp World also is a very ponderous card that takes a huge amount of time to resolve and can often unearth obscure rules issues that tables without a level 3 judge might have difficulty figuring out. Certain decks like Mizzix of the Izmagnus will just fall apart when WW resolves, and people that are behind are likely to get much more behind.
Take a poll of your group and see if they like Warp World.
If they do then stuff like Jhoira of the Ghitu and the more combo guys will be fun as no one minds people getting screwed over for a big splashy effect.
If they hate Warp World then Blue Braids might be a good choice because it allows everyone to play the stuff they already like (cards in their decks) and doesn't in and of itself screw people over. Phelddagrif is an other card that lets people do what they want but gives them more.
For the record my group started with enjoying Warp World but after the 20th or so time resolving it we decided to move on. Though i think we have had enough WW free time to justify squeaking it back in.
In Progress
GBIshkanah, Grafwidow ~ BWGRTymna the Weaver & Tana, the Bloodsower ~ UGRashmi, Eternities Crafter ~ RGAtarka, World Render
Friend of mine built Voltron 'griff, stacked Sword of Feast&Famine, Sword of Fire&Ice, Umezawa's Jitte, killed your tokens, killed you. Was scary!
To answer the OP, the answer is Horobi, Death's Wail with a seasoning of Endless Whispers and a dash of Retribution of the Ancients. Politics for everyone!
Currently focusing on Pre-Modern (Mono-Black Discard Control) and Modern (Azorious Control, Temur Rhinos).
Find me at the Wizard's Tower in Ottawa every second Saturday afternoons.
Cast Damnation
Cast mycosynth lattice
Cast hive mind
Cast karn
Cast Lich
Activate Karn targeting Lich
Kill Karn
Cast Rite of Replication targeting Lich
Cast Horizon Chimera
Cast Regrowth targeting Rite of Replication
Cast Rite of Replication targeting Horizon Chimera
Cast Brainstorm
The result (unless people use their 2nd rite of replication copy to make another Lich) is everyone draws their entire deck, then attempt to win before they draw out and lose.
Good luck
WUBRGReaper King - Superfriends
WUBRGChild of Alara - The Nauseating Aurora
WUBSharuum the Hegemon - Christmas In Prison
WUBZur the Enchanter - Ow My Face
WRJor Kadeen, the Prevailer - Snow Goats
BRGrenzo, Dungeon Warden - International Goblin All Purpose Recycling Facility Number 12
WGSaffi Eriksdotter - Saffi Combosdotter
UPatron of the Moon - The Age of Aquarius
BHorobi, Death's Wail - Bring Out Your Dead
GSachi, Daughter of Seshiro - Sneks