Perfect card for a deck that wants to climb city hall
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The Meaning of Life: "M-hmm. Well, it's nothing very special. Uh, try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations"
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Whether its blue players countering your spells, red players burning you out, or combo, if you have a problem with an aspect of Magic's gameplay, you can fix it!
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
I love noncreature-based token makers as a big fan of spell slinger and control, but this one is far outclassed by things like Rise from the Tides for the amount of tokens it can make, or Talrand's Invocation mentioned earlier due to its cmc. It's not cheap enough, produces enough, nor is it repeatable enough to consider for token production. Sad, really, since eagle tokens are neat.
Right now, I'm third most against this bit about mana abilities.
605.1b A triggered ability is a mana ability if it meets all of the following criteria: it doesn’t have a
target, it triggers from the resolution of an activated mana ability (see rule 106.11a) or from
mana being added to a player’s mana pool, and it could add mana to a player’s mana pool when
it resolves.
Bolded by me. That extra clause there disqualifies a lot of abilities that are just making mana, and I've yet to see a reason why they would go out of their way to protect Mana Flare mana but let you stifle something like Eladamri's Vineyard. Like, I half suspect somewhere in the game there's a card that I've never heard of that's like "Whenever you pick your nose, destroy all lands and add 1/2 a mana to your mana pool" that they don't want to skip the stack, but I've never seen it.
The was a change at some point, I'm not sure when. It used to be that triggered mana abilities could be triggered by any mana ability, not just activated mana abilities.
The upshot of the previous rule was that if you had Caged Sun naming Green and turned it into a Forest (eg, March of the Machines + Conspiracy naming saprolings + Life and Limb), tapping Caged Sun for G would end the game in a draw without any player gaining priority to do anything about it.
After the change, such a situation can still cause a draw, but at least players get the opportunity to respond with instants/flash.
I would be willing to pay 2 more for scry 3, maybe even scry 2, but not scry 1. Cantrips are always complicated because they can either be effects worth "half a mana" (such as Aggressive Urge) or just a card plus 2. For the latter, there's a huge difference between going from 2 to 4 à la Dismiss and going from 4 to 6.
Scry 1 is strictly worse than a cantrip, even though cantrips, cycling, scry, and clash all serve the same function of improving deck consistency.
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
A low casted, self-pumping general with built in protection and haste seems like a solid voltron contender, though mono-black might not be the optimal voltron shell. Other hot-take, a free sac-outlet in the command zone is a rare and powerful thing to have.
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
The one time i faced it as a commander it was just as sturdy as one would expect. Any halfway decent board wipe was in there. Enjoyed the deck tech for once, but would say it get's stale after a while.
Other than that he's a great roleplayer in the right deck. Once again, very decent in Alesha, Who Smiles at Death.
Always happy to see them in Edgar Markov too. Sac outlet, stays on the field post-most-wraths, haste and growing when stuff dies...Yahenni might very well be the most powerful 3-drop in the deck, and that's in a deck where 3-drops have to be pretty freaking strong to make the cut.
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My Commander decks:
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
Yahenni is an accidental all-star in my Hapatra, Vizier of Poisons deck. I put them in as temp filler while I was waiting to get some other cards and ended up leaving them in. I run a couple of the Swords in the deck to protect Hapatra, but a giant Yahenni with a Sword is pretty lethal when Hapatra gets hated constantly, and there's creatures dying left and right. When they run out of fodder I like to use Pharka, God of Affliction to give them more creatures to kill Yahenni just gets super big, super fast. Love them!
I like that she creates a bit of a different deck style. She combines voltron with MBC and the ability to go wide. She wants you to run a lot of creatures so she can sac them to gain indestructible, so you can choose to go aggro (which as a cheap beater she supports) or to go for value creatures that are just there for their effect and for Yahenni to eat. That she gains counters from creatures dying, but not your own creatures, means that you want to run sweepers (which she handily survives) and good spot removal. Its great when your voltron commander gets big from things that you want to do anyway, like Karlov growing from you gaining life or Akiri line slinger getting big from you running artifact ramp, you don't have to dedicate slots to equips and auras to boost your commander, you just get to run cards that help your deck in general and make your general bigger as a side effect.
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The Meaning of Life: "M-hmm. Well, it's nothing very special. Uh, try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations"
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Whether its blue players countering your spells, red players burning you out, or combo, if you have a problem with an aspect of Magic's gameplay, you can fix it!
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
Are one or more of the following true of your deck? If so, you may like Yahenni!
- You can get value out of a zero-mana instant speed sacrifice outlet, albeit one that isn't as powerful as the elite contenders at 2 or 3 CMC (AShnod's Altar, Bloodflow Connoisseur, Carrion Feeder, Phyrexian Altar, Goblin Bombardment, Viscera Seer)
- You tend to cause a LOT of opposing creatures to die, constantly - most likely with Grave Pact effects, which combine nicely with the first point.
- Your deck cares about Vampires as a creature type.
- You are in the market for a monoblack Voltron commander that can use and abuse Wrath effects.
This describes a significant amount of black-based Commander decks, making Yahenni a reasonable headliner and an excellent role-player. I have yet to make time to add one to my wife's Vamps tribal deck but I am sure they'll impress.
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Sufferer of EDHD
Commander - Currently Playing: RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G) RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B) WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
@Kelzam gets a like just for using the epicene "they" just like Yahenni.
Aetherborn die quickly, but Yahenni can survive a Wrath and be much stronger for it.
They're great in any deck that likes to kill creatures, obviously. I have used them in Ghave to good effect, though the question becomes, how many of this effect do you need?
Yahenni loses sac shenanigans to some extent (but sac shenanigans are kinda winmoar if you're the only one with creatures), but they do have indestructible (in case of wipe) and get to take advantage of multiplayer, e.g. if I sac something and trigger Grave Pact, my Unruly Mob only gets one +1/+1 counter; Yahenni gets n counters, where n is the number of opponents with a creature to sac and neither Tajuru Preserver nor Sigarda, Host of Herons. 2B is also cheaper than Ob Nixilis, Unshackled (though the tax is always nice) and Death's Presence. And they can benefit more from Blade of the Bloodchief's ability because they're a vampire. (Which also means they can be used with Bloodline Keeper if you're playing tokens or vampire tribal.)
Also, I thought development didn't do free sac outlets anymore? After Falkenrath Aristocrat...
Edit: Okay, why aren't the colored mana symbols showing up?
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Card advantage is not the same thing as card draw. Something for 2B cannot be strictly worse than something for BBB or 3BB. If you're taking out Swords to Plowshares for Plummet, you're a fool. Stop doing these things!
I play it and I love it in standard but still havrn't found a spot for it. Might be worth venturing into building something with him at the head, as it grows and protects himself and fits lovely in my favourite playstyle, my pet, everevolving commander deck has Asmira in the head and they are quite similar in a way.
Haste is an awesome plus for a commander.
One more mana and 10 fewer exiled cards and you get a Power Nine card! It is however the power nine card that is legal in this format, so dollar price is probably the biggest seller here in that comparison.
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Zedruu: "This deck is not only able to go crazy - it also needs to do so."
One more mana and 10 fewer exiled cards and you get a Power Nine card! It is however the power nine card that is legal in this format, so dollar price is probably the biggest seller here in that comparison.
I thought I would never see this card again. When this was first printed, I know of only one guy who ever tried to play it. I don't even remember what his wincon was. All I can really remember about the deck, exudes this card, is I think he played Force of Will with it. In EDH, I would be less sure to play this. Thinning your deck? Digging for answers? There are better cards.
Out of all the cards in Magic's history, I would think this one is probably the one that literally begs people to cheat and stack the top ten cards in their favor.
Good art, good name, and you know what? It's a pretty good card in a 99-card format. It's just not as good if your deck relies on specific cards to win; if your reason for wheeling is to dig for combo, you probably don't include this. A Leovold deck would have liked this as much as any other wheel, though.
There might be something you can do with Mirror of Fate, but that's going down some shaky roads.
diminishing returns isn't exactly high up on the blue cards i'd run, to be honest. isn't there some sort of uu spell that does something similar out recently?
that being said, it definitely isn't a BAD card, it's just hard to use effectively. you can't reorder the top of your library (you need to hide cards like 11 or more in), you can't guarantee that you're not going to exile silver bullet that you really need, and you can't know what your opponents are going to draw into. that being said, molten psyche is definitely a good friend here.
or wait. it says draws up to 7 cards. does that mean can choose to draw from 0 to 7 cards? or does it mean draw cards so you have 7 cards in hand?
Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest WUR Voltron Control
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun WU Unblockable Mirror Trickery
Ra's al Ghul (Sidar Kondo) and Face-Down Ninjas
Brudiclad, Token Engineer
Vaevictis (VV2) the Dire Lantern
Rona, Disciple of Gix
Tiana the Auror
Hallar
Ulrich the Politician
Zur the Rebel
Scorpion, Locust, Scarab, Egyptian Gods
O-Kagachi, Mathas, Mairsil
"Non-Tribal" Tribal Generals, Eggs
AND IT COMES TO PASS!!!
Perfect card for a deck that wants to climb city hall
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
Beating Face with Bane
Beatrice, the Golden Witch
EDH Primers
Phelddagrif - Zirilan
EDH
Thrasios+Bruse - Pang - Sasaya - Wydwen - Feather - Rona - Toshiro - Sylvia+Khorvath - Geth - QMarchesa - Firesong - Athreos - Arixmethes - Isperia - Etali - Silas+Sidar - Saskia - Virtus+Gorm - Kynaios - Naban - Aryel - Mizzix - Kazuul - Tymna+Kraum - Sidar+Tymna - Ayli - Gwendlyn - Phelddagrif 4 - Liliana - Kaervek - Phelddagrif 3 - Mairsil - Scarab - Child - Phenax - Shirei - Thada - Depala - Circu - Kytheon - GrenzoHR - Phelddagrif - Reyhan+Kraum - Toshiro - Varolz - Nin - Ojutai - Tasigur - Zedruu - Uril - Edric - Wort - Zurgo - Nahiri - Grenzo - Kozilek - Yisan - Ink-Treader - Yisan - Brago - Sidisi - Toshiro - Alexi - Sygg - Brimaz - Sek'Kuar - Marchesa - Vish Kal - Iroas - Phelddagrif - Ephara - Derevi - Glissa - Wanderer - Saffi - Melek - Xiahou Dun - Lazav - Lin Sivvi - Zirilan - Glissa
PDH - Drake - Graverobber - Izzet GM - Tallowisp - Symbiote Brawl - Feather - Ugin - Jace - Scarab - Angrath - Vraska - Kumena Oathbreaker - Wrenn&6
The upshot of the previous rule was that if you had Caged Sun naming Green and turned it into a Forest (eg, March of the Machines +
Conspiracy naming saprolings + Life and Limb), tapping Caged Sun for G would end the game in a draw without any player gaining priority to do anything about it.
After the change, such a situation can still cause a draw, but at least players get the opportunity to respond with instants/flash.
Two Score, Minus Two or: A Stargate Tail
(Image by totallynotabrony)
I would be willing to pay 2 more for scry 3, maybe even scry 2, but not scry 1. Cantrips are always complicated because they can either be effects worth "half a mana" (such as Aggressive Urge) or just a card plus 2. For the latter, there's a huge difference between going from 2 to 4 à la Dismiss and going from 4 to 6.
Scry 1 is strictly worse than a cantrip, even though cantrips, cycling, scry, and clash all serve the same function of improving deck consistency.
On phasing:
A low casted, self-pumping general with built in protection and haste seems like a solid voltron contender, though mono-black might not be the optimal voltron shell. Other hot-take, a free sac-outlet in the command zone is a rare and powerful thing to have.
Edit: okay maybe not since they're death abilities are asynergystic. But still...
Other than that he's a great roleplayer in the right deck. Once again, very decent in Alesha, Who Smiles at Death.
Chandra, Torch of Defiance - Oops! All Chandras.
Prime Speaker Zegana - Draw for Power.
Pir & Toothy - Counterpalooza.
Arcades, the Strategist - Another Brick in the Wall.
Zacama, Primal Calamity - Calamity of Double Mana.
Edgar Markov - Vampires Don't Die.
Child of Alara - Dreamcrusher.
http://www.commandercast.com/category/articles/generally-speaking
Follow me on Twitter: @generalspeak
(Also known as Xenphire)
Onering's 4 simple steps that let you solve any problem with Magic's gameplay
Step 1: Identify the problem. What aspect of Magic don't you like? Step 2: Find out how others deal with the problem. How do players deal with this aspect of the game when they run into it? Step 3: Do what those players do. Step 4: No more problem. Bonus: You are now better at Magic. Enjoy those extra wins!
- You can get value out of a zero-mana instant speed sacrifice outlet, albeit one that isn't as powerful as the elite contenders at 2 or 3 CMC (AShnod's Altar, Bloodflow Connoisseur, Carrion Feeder, Phyrexian Altar, Goblin Bombardment, Viscera Seer)
- You tend to cause a LOT of opposing creatures to die, constantly - most likely with Grave Pact effects, which combine nicely with the first point.
- Your deck cares about Vampires as a creature type.
- You are in the market for a monoblack Voltron commander that can use and abuse Wrath effects.
This describes a significant amount of black-based Commander decks, making Yahenni a reasonable headliner and an excellent role-player. I have yet to make time to add one to my wife's Vamps tribal deck but I am sure they'll impress.
RCRDaretti: Superfriends Forever RCR
WGBDoran: Ent-mootWBG
GGGMultani: Group Bear HugGGG
GB(B/G)The Gitrog Monster: Dredgefall DurdleGB(B/G)
RGWGahiji, the Honored Group Hug MonsterRGW
UB(U/B)Yuriko, Ninja Trinket AggroUB(U/B)
WUBRGAtogatog: Assembling a OHKOWUBRG
Aetherborn die quickly, but Yahenni can survive a Wrath and be much stronger for it.
They're great in any deck that likes to kill creatures, obviously. I have used them in Ghave to good effect, though the question becomes, how many of this effect do you need?
C Blade of the Bloodchief
W Unruly Mob
B Mausoleum Harpy Ob Nixilis, Unshackled Scavenger Drake
R Havengul Vampire Rockslide Elemental
G Algae Gharial Death's Presence Lumberknot Rot Shambler
Elenda, the Dusk Rose
Yahenni loses sac shenanigans to some extent (but sac shenanigans are kinda winmoar if you're the only one with creatures), but they do have indestructible (in case of wipe) and get to take advantage of multiplayer, e.g. if I sac something and trigger Grave Pact, my Unruly Mob only gets one +1/+1 counter; Yahenni gets n counters, where n is the number of opponents with a creature to sac and neither Tajuru Preserver nor Sigarda, Host of Herons. 2B is also cheaper than Ob Nixilis, Unshackled (though the tax is always nice) and Death's Presence. And they can benefit more from Blade of the Bloodchief's ability because they're a vampire. (Which also means they can be used with Bloodline Keeper if you're playing tokens or vampire tribal.)
Also, I thought development didn't do free sac outlets anymore? After Falkenrath Aristocrat...
Edit: Okay, why aren't the colored mana symbols showing up?
On phasing:
Haste is an awesome plus for a commander.
One more mana and 10 fewer exiled cards and you get a Power Nine card! It is however the power nine card that is legal in this format, so dollar price is probably the biggest seller here in that comparison.
A "fixed" Time Twister....
I thought I would never see this card again. When this was first printed, I know of only one guy who ever tried to play it. I don't even remember what his wincon was. All I can really remember about the deck, exudes this card, is I think he played Force of Will with it. In EDH, I would be less sure to play this. Thinning your deck? Digging for answers? There are better cards.
Out of all the cards in Magic's history, I would think this one is probably the one that literally begs people to cheat and stack the top ten cards in their favor.
There might be something you can do with Mirror of Fate, but that's going down some shaky roads.
But I love Mirror of Fate. It's so underrated, the edhrec page for it is like 50% my zedruu deck.
I'm surprised that you don't have a Mindslaver in order to donate someone a Mirror of Fate and make them use it to deck themselves.
that being said, it definitely isn't a BAD card, it's just hard to use effectively. you can't reorder the top of your library (you need to hide cards like 11 or more in), you can't guarantee that you're not going to exile silver bullet that you really need, and you can't know what your opponents are going to draw into. that being said, molten psyche is definitely a good friend here.
or wait. it says draws up to 7 cards. does that mean can choose to draw from 0 to 7 cards? or does it mean draw cards so you have 7 cards in hand?
Legacy - Solidarity - mono U aggro - burn - Imperial Painter - Strawberry Shortcake - Bluuzards - bom