Meren of Clan Nel Toth was released in the Commander2015 WotC product, and immediately began making a splash.
Meren Provides unique benefits when compared to the other Experience Counter commanders that were released, as she provides a benefit, even while EXP is at 0. The duality of her effect (either providing a 'Genesis' effect or a 'Reanimate' effect) is what sets Meren apart from her fellow EXP crowd.
To play a properly tuned Meren deck, you will follow a simple skeleton of a plan, with a myriad of possible alternatives along the way. Your primary objective as a pilot of the deck is to generate value by using Meren to the best of your abilities. Typically, playing disruptive creatures to destabilize your opponent's game plan is the best course of action, especially early in the game. As the game progresses, there are a number of things to keep an eye out for:
Opportunities to go for the Necrotic Ooze combo (detailed further down)
The risk you face by overextending into the field, or graveyard (which you should consider as an extension of the cards you have in play)
The opportunities to put your opponent in a 'lock' (Usually either through Braids, Cabal Minion/Contamination/ Mindslicer+Sacrifice-outlet. Though other locks do exist within the deck.)
While keeping an eye out for these goals, you want to maintain your disruption and pressure (attacking) along the way. An opponent who can't play their spells, is a (soon-to-be) dead opponent.
While other commander options are possible within the Archetype of Golgari colours, Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest & Savra, Queen of the Golgari as the most notable graveyard themed decks, they do not provide the same inevitable engine that Meren does for us. Both require additional cards to be good. In a vacuum, Meren is the best play (of the golgari commanders) when topdecking, because she leverages value out of the graveyard, without any additional effects other than having cards there. This is what sets Meren above the others for a grave-centric playstyle.
You should play this deck if:
You like creature reliant strategies
You like graveyard shenanigans
You want to be able to win with combat or combo, as needed
You like stax-style decks that can attack both mana bases and hands
You should not play this deck if:
You prefer playing with big, fatty creatures
You prefer playing decks that are light on creatures
You prefer playing spells on your opponent's turns
You dislike graveyard strategies
Origins of the Archetype-- Meren is the latest and greatest evolution in the long line of rock-style decks.
"The Rock" decks are generally B/G or B/G/x coloured, and represent the strengths of these two colours extremely well. If you were to play against a who's who of trope cards for "The Rock" deck in modern, you would run into such cards as Liliana of the Veil, Scavenging Ooze, Dark Confidant, Abrupt Decay, Thoughtseize, and Tarmogoyf. In fact, all of the above join our Meren list of strong options, with the exception of Tarmogoyf, which is noticeably less powerful in Commander.
I started playing Magic: The Gathering during the summer of affinity. What a time to play. *groan*
I started playing traditional EDH at the time that WotC released their original precons.
The year after that (right when CMDR2013 was released by the mothership, I discovered Duel Commander and began playing it on cockatrice. It quickly became my format of choice.
When Meren was spoiled I had that moment of "Oooing and Ahhhing" which I am sure that most Commander players will experience at least once. I had found the commander which just felt right for how I liked to play the game. Grindy, creature-based matches, with the occasional combo finish for a good measure. I started brewing lists right away.
After becoming better acquainted with perfekt, on cockatrice, we began swapping lists, ideas, tech, and lines of play. Constructing and tuning the deck as best as we could.
Currently I play between 3-6 matches with the deck daily, and have played several hundred to date. Most as regular matches, some (usually about 10 at a time) to directly test a specific card.
I maintain a 'maybeboard' of every card (that I have come across) which I consider a meta call, a potential playable, or worth testing.
The below list and information is a product of my own experience, as well as the expertise of players, like perfekt, who have given excellent input on this commander.
The most important pieces in any Meren deck is the Mana-creatures. They are one of most valuable assets that access to G brings to the table, and they synergise extremely well with Meren. Dorks bring out your good stuff faster, and then later on, you can pop them off for valuable sacrifice effects and to build up experience counters. 1 Mana
Dryad Arbor--This is easily tied for your best mana dork. Arbor is included in the '1 mana" section because it effectively costs you the mana that you would get from a land-drop on the turn you play it. Dryad arbor is especially powerful in this deck, as Meren can reanimate the 0CMC Dryad Arbor when you have no EXP. Usually during the end-step of the turn that Meren enters play.
Birds of Paradise--B/G mana and it flies? This is one of your auto-includes.
Boreal Druid--Basically your least good mana elf. He got cut in my own list, but some lists will run him in addition to all of the above. The colourless mana is the biggest drawback. I run an additional 2cmc dork instead of Boreal.
Deathrite Shaman--Another auto-include, the 1/2 body hurts for Skullclamp, but his utility against opposing graveyard decks more than makes up for it.
Elves of Deep Shadow--Better that Llanowar Elves v1, v2, or v3 as it makes the opposite colour of mana you used to cast it. So playing it means that you have at least 1 green mana, but no guarantee that you have black mana. EoDS gives it to you. The lifeloss is negligible in most matchups.
Llanowar Elves--Version 1, 2, & 3 of this card all deserve their slot. 1 mana, makes 1 mana, and is a 1/1. You want a decent amount of bodies at the 1 mana slot to both get a pod chain going quickly, and to have creatures to bring back into play if you only have 1EXP during an endstep. An extra mana the next turn can't hurt!
2 Mana
Beastcaller Savant--Was in my testing slot for a while. I like the rainbow mana, the haste is a nice boon, if you have a followup play or really need to pressure a planeswalker. The drawback is almost non-existent in this deck with high creature counts. I have never had a problem, and just always make sure to use him first. Also is an elf for Priest of Titania Ultimately, I have cut him for dorks with less specific usage requirements, but I would not fault a deck for playing him.
Devoted Druid--One of the better 2 drop mana elves. an extra mana when you need it, as well as a guaranteed EXP when you really need that 1 more. If I absolutely needed to add one more dork to my list, this is probably my first look.
Bloom Tender--Will produce 2 mana most of the time. Personal taste here. Priest of Titania and this are competitng for the slot. I have been running Bloom Tender, just because the colour fixing is a great boon. Same reason Elves of Deep Shadow is better than Llanowar Elves, Bloom Tender is better that Priest of Titania most of the time.
Priest of Titania--My second choice after Bloom Tender because she counts every elf in play. Even opponent's. I have found that she will make 2+ mana more often that BT, and the chance that she makes 3+ is pretty nice If you are constrained by budget, this can easly save you a few bucks over buying Bloom Tender, which hase been steadily going up in price.
Heart Warden--Amazing inclusion if you are running a more elfball list. The 2Sac:Draw is what puts her above the other 2 cmc, G mana producers though. Which makes her a contender for a slot, I am not running her currently, but will be looking towards her if/when Necrotic Ooze gets banned.
Lotus Cobra--Explosive, a very good inclusion in a full fetch list, but just not as strong as in 3 colour decks. Found to be a little too win-more or bad (with no 'middle of the road') for most tastes. This is another card that will be reconsidered after an NOoze banning. Since we will become a more stax focused deck, and explosive draws is what Stax is all about.
Magus of the Library--Used to punish draw/go decks when you haven't yet gotten access Mindslicer. It is definitely a powerhouse for draw when it works, but it suffers from the plague of it being insanely good every now and then, but pretty bad the rest of the time. Ultimately, I have chosen to cut it. Most of the time, you do not want to be sitting on cards in hand just to turn this guy on.
Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary--Many people will be surprised by the lack of this card's presence in my lists. The truth of the matter, GG isn't the easiest on 2, and we play a lot of dual lands, so the forest count is never incredibly high. If we get a Forest/Swamp battle-land in the coming sets, we will reconsider Rofellos.
Satyr Wayfinder--So incredibly good. This takes the slot over Sylvan Ranger as the land finder, as he also gets some juice into the yard to start accruing value once Meren is in play.
Sylvan Caryatid--One of your best at 2 mana. 3 Toughness & Hexproof make her a solid blocker if needed.
Sylvan Ranger--Almost made obsolete by Satyr Wayfinder, I would only run this in an elfball variation of the deck.
Vine Trellis--Only good if you have/expect a particularly heavy aggro meta. I would not even consider it otherwise.
Wall of Roots--Very strong defender, and it's ability to make mana the turn it comes down, and technically twice per round is the real strength. Probably one of the better 2 drops, most likely in the top 5 of the 2 drop dorks. I am not running it because aggro doesn't seem particularly powerful at the moment. If we see a resurgence of aggro decks, this will be strongly reconsidered.
Werebear--a 1/1 early, and a 4/4 later. I can dig it. Note: Errata changed him to "Human Bear Druid" so Cavern of Souls tuned to "Human" can cast him. Omitted currently, because a 2 mana 1/1 that only makes 1 isn't super spicy, despite the fact that he will quickly become a 4/4. This, like Wall of Roots, will be reconsidered should aggro decks make a resurgence.
3 or more Mana
Catacomb Sifter--Devoid. Blocks Sword of Feast and Famine. Makes 2 Bodies to that can contribute to EXP. One very good part about Sifter is his Scry 1 ability when another creature you control dies. Note: You cannot Green Sun's Zenith for Catacomb Sifter.
Courser of Kruphix--Life gain is valuable. The real issue is the ease with which courser can be removed due to it's multiple card types. Very good, but I have found that I wanted the slot for other cards.
Wood Elves--Definitely one of your best. if you don't plan on using the ramp that turn, and you don't absolutely need black mana, you can go and get Dryad Arbor with the Wood Elves, which is the real great play. 3 mana for a 1/1 and a 1/1 mana dork out of the deck. I like it.
Yavimaya Elder--Initial thoughts seems good, but lacks from the mana insensitivity issue. If we really want this type of draw effect, we can play Heart Warden. If we need the land search, we can add in Sylvan Ranger. Basically these effects can be found lower on the curve, and with easier mana costs.
Oracle of Mul Daya--"G's Jace... -perfekt" But man does she build value. having a full fetch deck, you can have turns where you may change the top card 3 or 4 times, playing your lands as you go. The 'draw' that she provides is key in the midgame, and a turn or two with her in play can really shore up your late game mana base squarely. Remember to try to avoid cracking forest fetches if you can, as they can get a surprise Dryad Arbor blocker if you need it.
The Core Bayou City of Brass Command Tower Llanowar Wastes Mana Confluence Overgrown Tomb Twilight Mire Woodland Cemetery
These cards are considered staples for the deck. And should be seriously considered before anything else for the land base. They are the best dual lands available for the deck, as they can all, always, enter untapped, with the exception of Woodland Cemetery (which will almost always enter untapped) and Twilight Mire (which will always enter untapped, but produce colourless unless you have another land. Twilight Mire is your 'worst' multi-coloured land because of this drawback.
Fetches are highly recommended Bloodstained Mire Marsh Flats Misty Rainforest Polluted Delta Verdant Catacombs Windswept Heath Wooded Foothills
The 7 Fetch land setup has become pretty traditional fare for 2 colour decks. Here, it allows us access not only to our Duals, but to access Dryad Arbor as well. You should make strong considerations before choosing not to include all the fetch lands in your list. Also, because we run the Crucible, playing as many of the "good" fetchlands as possible is even more important.
Other Choices
Bojuka Bog--Probably the best of the EtbTapped lands that you can get. The Bog effect is so incredibly good against some decks, that the concession of it coming in tapped is more so 'something we have to live with' because there is no other land like this. I want to cut this card so badly, because the times that we draw it and have to spend a landdrop on an ETB tapped land are such feel-bad moments, but the Crop Rotation into Bog for instat speed hate is too good of a play that we just can't bear to go without it currently.
Cabal Coffers--A very explosive level of mana production. This card has fantastic potential to fuel a late game. That said, most lists rund a lower swamp count in the first place, so in the absence of Urborg, Coffers might not be making any mana at all. This has lead to me cutting it from my personal list. Some players may prefer to continue running it, especially if they are building a more black focused deck.
Cavern of Souls--Some of the best anti-control value we can get. Either "Shaman" or "Human" is a decent name on this, as both types show up later in the list, most notably on 2 of our best creatures. Dark Confidant and Fauna Shaman.
Dryad Arbor--AHHH Finally! The time to talk about Dryad Arbor has finally come. I have referred to 'the Arbor' a lot already, and here is why. Dryad Arbor is one of your very best lands. Having the creature super-type, and 0cmc allows it to be searched for by Green Sun's Zenith on turn 1. And returned to play by Meren, even when you have 0-EXP. This means that Dryad Arbor will often be the creature brought back the turn Meren comes into play for the first time. So do not be afraid of trading off your Arbor by blocking in combat for a trade, if you intend on resolving Meren next turn. You will want something to bring back anyway, and getting to kill the opponent's creature on the way down is the type of grindy matchup we are aiming for. Arbor is also part of the best value-style Buried Alive (Arbor, Braids, Cabal Minion, and either Eternal Witness or Bloodghast)
Gaea's Cradle--What can be said about Cradle that hasn't already been said elsewhere on the internet? This is the single biggest mana production engine in the deck. But remember, you have to have something to do with all that mana. Because of this exact fact, I believe Cradle is less powerful than the other 'in-contention' green cards of Survival of the Fittest and Sylvan Library. More on that later. Cradle deserves a spot in this deck. We are heavy creature focused, and it is often too good not to have.
Golgari Rot Farm--Not bad as far as dual lands go, but we are again encountering the issue of entering tapped, and the risk of getting this Wastelanded, is pretty high. Good if you are short on some duals, as it makes 2 mana, and sorta "draws" you a land to play on the following turn.
Temple of Malady--While temple does make both colours, the drawback of coming in tapped is a huge deal most of the time. Personally, I have cut Temple from my own list for this reason. That said, in an elfball style deck, where you usually have more mana per turn on average anyway, it becomes easier to find a turn to play the Temple, at which point the scry 1 becomes more valuable.
Tainted Wood--A viable option for a 2 colour land. The "sometimes" nature of it makes it more of a controversy to play. If you are playing a swamp heavy list, this may be for you though.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth--Most commonly seen alongside Cabal Coffers, this card has a pretty good claim to be in this deck even without coffers. A lot of our mana dorks produce G, with few being able to produce the B. So adding the Swamp subtype to all of our lands it a pretty spicy inclusion for colour fixing. This card should always merit a slot, as it is just better than a basic Swamp.
Colourless Lands/Utility Lands
Blighted Fen--Wow! This card is powerful. If you are playing a Crucible of Worlds list like me, this card needs a slot. A lot of decks have become fond of these single creature builds. I am sure you can think of them. But having this card, and getting to reuse it continuously is enough to stall those decks out for a few turns, which is all you need to get your Meren value-town express rolling before you get back to keeping them locked down.
Blighted Woodland--I have found this to be win-more, expecially compared to it's sister in the cycle that I just talked about. I have no interest in running this, but it has been included here for parity. You may choose to run it, and I would recommend it if you are playing the big-mana build of Meren.
Dust Bowl--Popular card in more land-focused lists. I have found that cutting it has been correct for me, because you'd rather have a better land against many mono coloured decks. In a world without NOoze, we are more of a Crucible-Stax list, and this card becomes much better.
High Market--Just an extra sacrifice outlet, and the extra life can't hurt.
Phyrexian Tower--Your best "sac a creature" land, the adding of BB is extremely powerful and explosive, especially when combined with Dryad Arbor.
Tectonic Edge--This is your best, secondary Wasteland effect. If you find you are needing more target land destruction than just Wasteland, this is your best bet.
Volrath's Stronghold--Controversial, as it does what Meren does, only worse. However, sometimes you really just need that creature back, and you don't have Meren out. Maybe Meren has been cast too many times so you let her hit the grave instead of CMDR zone, that way you can use Stronghold to get her back.
Wasteland--This is an auto include in this format. Do you really need to be told why?
Creature Choices
This section will cover the viable creature options that are not mana-creatures. 1 CMC
Caustic Caterpillar--This card is lovely in Meren, as it creates good synergies while still being useful in it's own right. You ned to have answers to Artifacts and Enchantments, and this little guy does that, sacrifices himself to trigger Meren, and can be easily recurred for repetitions of the effect.
Viscera Seer--This M11 common does a great job of providing a sacrifice outlet as needed. Sometimes it is difficult to find a way to continuously trigger Meren and add counters. While the Scry 1 ability is nothing to sing about, it can be useful for land/non-land decisions.
2 CMC
Bloodghast--Ghast is a valuable inclusion in the Meren deck mostly due to the nature in which he is easily recurred. Having a constant source of 'bodies' by repeatably recurring the ghast can fuel your more powerful sacrifice outlets like Braids, Cabal Minion and Sadistic Hypnotist.
Brain Maggot--Maggot is excellent hand disruption stapled onto a creature. The information alone about an opponent's hand is valuable, and temporarily taking one of their cards is just spicy.
Dark Confidant--What can really be said about Bob? He is an incredible source of card advantage, and with the average CMC of most Meren decks being between 1.5 and 2.5, the cost of greatness turns out not to be too high after all. Thank you Bob Maher Jr.!
Elvish Visionary--A great card for elfball style deck lists, this slot can also be occupied by Wall of Blossoms for the same effect on a bigger butt.
Fauna Shaman--One of your very best, and potentially most threatening, creatures. Fuels Meren's reanimate ability, tutors for your answers, and is on a solid 2/2 body. MVP right here. Absolutely worth inclusion. Now all we need is a promo version of her...
Mayor of Avabruck/Howlpack Alpha--Currently being tested, with positive results so far. Having a threat on T2 is ideal in some situations, and the threat of making a constant stream of 2/2 (sometimes 3/3) Wolf tokens can be a nightmare for a control player to have to ensure does not happen. A side benefit is that while the day side is up, Mayor actually pumps Meren to a 4/5, which has been relevant when playing against Tasigur decks. Being able to bounce of Tasigur is an excellent boon, and allows the Meren pilot to accrue value from their commander much faster than the Tasigur player. Can also be cast off of Cavern of Souls tuned to 'Human.'
Mesmeric Fiend--The better Brain Maggot, Fiend is essentially just slightly more resilient to removal by not being an enchantment. Oh, and that convenient rules loophole to permanently exile cards. The way it works. When you put his ETB effect on the stack, don't let it resolve yet. Hold priority and sacrifice him in some way (or make him leave the field somehow), then his LTB effect of 'returning the card' will trigger. Now, allow the stack to resolve. Return the exiled card (of which there is none), and then look at their hand and exile a card. There will be no effect that will ever return the card to their hand. Spicy right? It is the same stack tricks that you will see done sometimes with Fiend Hunter.
Nether Traitor--Useful for punishing opposing planeswalkers. Shadow basically translates as unblockable in this format. Very useful in builds running Scourge of Nel Toth as a finisher.
Phyrexian Revoker--Most of us know how powerful this card is in Vintage, and that power translates well here. Having an almost Pithing Needle on a body is pretty spicy. Having it on a colourless 2/1 body, better. Sure, you lose the ability to name lands, but being able to shut-off mana abilities is a nice trade.
Scavenging Ooze--ScOoze is an all star in, and against, this deck. I have often found myself sandbagging some removal against opposing G-decks because of ScOoze. In Duel Commander at the moment, you need to have a source of repeatable graveyard hate. Bojuka Bog helps, but is a one-shot effect.
Withered Wretch--Wretch is the secondary ScOoze effect for the deck. Most list will not run him, as ScOoze is better, but if you find you have a particularly heavy graveyard-meta, it might be the right choice to have Wretch help pick up some slack.
Yixlid Jailer--A very potent card in the right situation. it use to be an old sideboard answer to Dredge, as it makes the dredge cards no long have the ability. It attacks well, and can be made to have almost no effect on your deck. Something worth noting though is that it is a non-bo with the Necrotic Ooze kill condition, or the Mikeaus, the Unhallowed+Triskelion kill conditions. So if you plan on using those to win, you better make sure that you do not have Yixlid Jailer in play. It wont't be difficult to get him out of play, so that shouldn't be an issue. Just be aware of it.
3 CMC
Bone Shredder--An alternative to a kill spell, Shredder is good for the flying body, easy to recur, and self-sacrifices... eventually. That is the biggest issue with Shredder. Losing it on your next upkeep is not very good if you wanted it to die immediately, to be recurred during the endstep of the turn you cast it. Overall, well worth consideration, especially if you find that you need more kill conditions. For me, the drawbacks of it being Terror rather than Murder coupled with the upkeep death, is what ultimately led to the cut from my, and several lists.
Eternal Witness--Regrowth on a very good stick. 2/1's excell in this deck, as they block well and are still Clamp-able for some added value. You will never be upset to draw Eternal Witness later in the game, as she just does so much for a single card. Recurring Eternal Witness with Meren is a quick route to victory. Especially if you have some decent removal spell to keep recurring as well. I am looking at you Abrupt Decay.
Fleshbag Marauder/Merciless Executioner--Functionally the same card, neither share a type with our commander which would edge them out as slightly better because of Cavern of Souls. Some lists prefer playing both, but one is generally enough. This is usually set into a pod chain to generate some value while dropping one of your mana dorks when it hits, so that you can use it to keep going up the chain. I prefer the Fleshbag, as at least Zombie is a decent type, and might have some type sharing if you absolutely must type Cavern in order to cast him, and you lose no value choosing to play Fleshbag with something so niche in mind.
Grim Haruspex--an innovation by perfekt, Haruspex has some great synergies with the deck. You are almost never casting her face down, but the draw comes in very handy if you are just starting to get an engine rolling.
Liliana, Heretical Healer--One of the control punishers. Landing her on T2 off a mana dork can just be GG if you can trigger the flip before they can remove her. The ability to pressure opponent's hands, while fueling Meren's genesis/reanimate ability just feels mean. The fact that she brings along a body when she flips, effectively keeping your power on board the same, is just icing on the cake.
Liliana's Specter--There are several of these 'specter' effects lower on the curve, and some that are better than this, but those all either have the effect when they deal combat damage, or they do not have flying. So the combination of the ETB effect, and flying is what pushes this Specter into the realm of strong. You can chump block opposing larger walkers, while still pressuring hands. And if you need to, you have something that can attack walkers without the lose of 'value' by not attacking them. The huge boon this brings is the 2/1 body. We have taled about this P/T type a lot already. Very juicy target for Skullclamp. Great blocker. Trading her in combat is always a 2 for 1.
Nissa, Vastwood Seer/Nissa, Sage Animist--The land search is valuable, but the drawback of being forced to get a forest is a big letdown for this card. Nissa can be especially powerful when she flips, as a free Phyrexian Arena every turn, with the chance to just randomly ramp us is nice, but the work to get her to flip often puts us much further into the lategame, where the card advantage that the flipped Nissa provides has lss time to make an impact. Either we are already ahead, and it helps stay ahead, whether we needed it or not, or we are so far behind, that no real random draw value can be garnered from her in time to make a difference. The ability to pop out a token immediately, which blocks well, is nice, but it not being able to survive blocking Tasigur is an issue. Overal, it is a personal preference, and most preferences would rather have Sylvan Ranger here.
Reclamation Sage--Sage is a second Caustic Caterpillar effect, and carries that all important 2/1 body. She is also typed as an elf, for that interaction with Priest of Titania. Definitely worth inclusing in elfball lists, and a solid choice in most lists regardless.
4 CMC
Braids, Cabal Minion--Braids is one of the most devastating creatures that you can resolve against an opponent with an empty board. To immediately force the opponent to sacrifice a mana piece, can be a huge tempo swing for the Meren player, who has the ability to just sacrifice Braids on their turn, to be recurred during the endstep with Meren again. An unchecked and properly fueled Braids, will win the game. Braids is one of the primary reasons that both Bloodghast and Bitterblossom are included in nearly all Meren lists.
Corpse Augur--One of the new cards out of the CMDR2015 product, in the Meren deck to start with, Augur is a valiant inclusion for potential draw power beginning in the midgame and onward. A 4/2 body on a creature which we want to die in the first place, is excellent balance of cost:benefit. This is worth consideration as a slot in the 4 CMC Birthing Pod chain.
Mindslicer--I have found that this card is the tutor target more often than anything else. If I am podding to 4CMC, this is the very first look. The symmetrical effect is anything but that in this deck. Wit's Ending an opponent will usually give you the opportunity to immediately resolve Meren if you have not yet, and begin accruing value. For me, this card has defeated a resolved Consecrated Sphinx into Sphinx's Revelation for 5. If you have a sacrifice outlet in play, never use it right away the turn it comes down. Mindslicer the hands in their draw step, so you can time walk your opponent. There will be the opportunity to resolve Meren the following turn, after you are positive that you won't run into counter magic or removal before you get to trigger Meren.
Necrotic Ooze--NOoze is the bread and butter kill condition. The most common method is having Phyrexian Devourer and Triskelion in your graveyard. Using the Devourer ability to remove cards from the top of your library for +1/+1 counters, and then using the Trike ability to throw those counters at your opponent's face. You can do this all at instant speed, and respond to any non split-second removal on ooze or your graveyard by restarting the combo. Always go 1 card at a time. never say "I exile my deck." Always do 'Exile top card. Remove counters to damage you. Rinse and repeat.' Allowing the stack to empty each time. This way there is no ideal time to spend removal on Nooze without you being able to restart the combo.
Skinrender--Excellent inclusion in the pod chain. Most creatures can be removed by it's mandatory etb effect. Well worth consideration in a creature heavy meta. Sometimes dropping the -3/-3 on a larger creature is safer than removing it anyway. (Tasigur... )
Smothering Abomination--This card is on my testing list currently, so I'll update this after I have gotten a couple dozen games in while using it. On the surfact, a 4 mana 4/3 flyer is pretty spicy on it's own, and the sac outlet+draw engine looks too good to be true. We will see.
5 CMC
Acidic Slime--Slime has been on the chopping block for me for a while, but it just keeps saving itself in the very next game I play. It is a reminder of how versatile Slime really is, that the ability to hit any land is the real saving grace. So often, it is possible to assemble an engine to get 1-2 triggers per turn, which can just decimate an opposing mana base if left unchecked. Slime is well worth consideration.
Gray Merchany of Asphodel--Gary (as he is lovingly called) is one of the best forms of life gain/staying power that the deck can muster up. Often more powerful than Kokusho, the Evening Star, Gary can often result in bigger swings of life at once, and can effectively put the game out of reach for aggro decks. He also blocks after the lifegain has happened, whereas Kokopuffs only gains you life on her death, which is not the position which we want to be in against a potentially lethal attack if the lifegain will keep us alive. Gary is a good consideration in the more controlling versions of the deck, but is currently not favoured. If for some reason the Necrotic Ooze combo kill is dismantled by some meta shift/banning, I expect more decks will begin using Gary & Koko as the new kill conditions in a non-combo version of the deck.
Sadistic Hypnotist--While the drawback of sorcery speed does disable some of the shenanigans you can do with sacrificing, as well as prevent you from using it on an opponent's drawstep, the power of this card is still through the roof. If I have not been able to pod into Mindslicer, but I am podding 5, this is one of my very first considerations. A timely hypnotist can destroy any control deck, but it will be exceedingly powerful against any deck that doesn't vomit it's hand in the early turns of the game. Hypnotist is well worth it's slot.
Sidisi, Undead Vizier--The tutor ability is a little expensive, but having it stapled to a recurring body is nothing to scoff at. Definitely worth consideration for a slot.
Titania, Protector of Argoth--Titania is a very potent choice when you are running the full fetch/Bloodghast style lists. Titania does not take long to assemble an extremely dangerous army, and is an excellent "army-in-a-can" style card. In a list running Titania, it is important to try to hold an uncracked fetchland as long as possible. This ensures that, if you also have a fetchland or Wasteland in the graveyard, you immediately have 2 additional 5/3s, which is much better than one extra. Putting 10-15 power into play for 5 mana, or a pod activation, can be enough to close an aggro game in short order. Titania is often worth inclusion, as it grants your deck closing power without needing to go for the combos. You can just beat down.
Whisperwood Elemental--Preventing a wrath from affecting you too badly is very powerful. Also never underestimate an ever-growing army of 2/2s in a deck that is nearly 40% creatures. Elemental is one of your ideal tutor targets or pod targets if you have already disrupted the hand some, but are worried about a wrath-effect off the top. An opponent will not be very excited about giving you a ton of EXP, and an army of 2/2s just to clear your board once.
6 CMC
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed--Very powerful if you can get him down with a sac-engine in play, and an excellent card to draw when facing an aggressive deck, effectively turning all of your creatures into 2-for-1s. Mike is popular for the Mike & Trike combo with Triskelion, but is decent on his own. The biggest issues he brings to the table are the BBB in his mana cost, and that he does nothing other than being a 5/5 for 6 by himself. I have chosen to forgo the inclusion of Mike in my lists, but he is well work lists that seek to abuse sacrifice shenanigans more than others.
Phyrexian Devourer--Devourer is only in the deck because of the Necrotic Ooze combo. By itself, it can be a decent attacker/blocker, if you are willing to exile some cards. Of course by doing so, you will risk exiling Necrotic Ooze. If I could cut Devourer, I would. But NOoze is the best combo for the least mana in these colours, so it is what we play.
Primeval Titan--The reason some people play duel commander? PrimeTime is an insane amount of value, and getting his ability even once will often spell doom for an opponent who is not very well established. Part of our land base is a little tool-boxy, so getting out stuff like Blighted Fen and Phyrexian Tower can sometimes be even better value than just defaulting to Cradle. Make sure that you have something to do with the mana before you get cradle. Often a Bojuka Bog and the Fen can be much better choices, especially if your opponent is hellbent.
Triskelion--The other half of the NOoze combo, and still nothing to scoff at by itself. Able to clean up opposing x/1s extremely well, Trike is certainly not a bad creature if you can resolve it. Even without the combo. Also able to kill itself and be reanimated during the endstep (at 6+EXP) for functionally an uncounterable Forked Bolt every round.
Non-Creature Spell Choices
Garruk Relentless--Makes a very powerful army if you just keep zeroing him, Garry (note; two r's, as opposed to Gary, mentioned at 5 CMC) can be a win condition all on his own. The removal option associated with him is great, as is his flip side, but making 2/2s can win the game if left unchecked.
Garruk, the Veil-Cursed--I felt that the flip side deserved it's own talking point. 1/1 Deathtouching Wolves...awesome. But the real gravy, is his -1 Loyalty ability. Sacrifice a creature, tutor for a creature. We already like sacrificing creatures in this deck, as it just fuels the EXP aspect, and out entire curve is a veritable toolbox who's who of the best creatures at their specific jobs in B/G.
Liliana of the Veil--I have never felt like I was in a bad spot if I play mana dork on T1, Liliana on 2. Her +1 is almost a joke to this deck, as we do not mind having creatures in the graveyard at all, and the edict effect is excellent removal. Liliana is an all star in this deck, and really hedges up our matchup against control decks like GAAIV or Dragonlord Ojutai. As no draw-go control deck can abide a constantly acting Liliana.
Nissa, Voice of Zendikar--Added to the list for testing post Oath of the Gatewatch. On the surface, seems powerful, creates a stream of bodies which we don't care if they die. I only with they were the 1/1 Plant tokens which were printed with the BFZ set. Nissa will likely be powerful enough to merit a slot for a while, until we decide as to her overall effectiveness.
Skullclamp--An insane level of card advantage, and definitely one of the "oops" moments for WotC R&D's Future Future League. They thought it would be 'too powerful' as a +1/+1, so they made it a +1/-1 instead. I love thise types of oops cards. So powerful, that it is only legal in Vintage and Commander. Certainly a powerhouse here, where we want creatures to die anyway. So why not get some draw power while we are at it.
Umezawa's Jitte--This card is so powerful, but so random for the deck. We have no real way to tutor it out without spending one of our better tutors on it; at which point we'd rather just be getting a more relevant card for the situation at hand. So it really is luck of the draw with Jitte. It can flat out win aggro matchups, and control is not thrilled to see it come down either. So the real question is: Do you cut it? I could see playing a few different cards in this slot, but Jitte is certainly a safe bet. Especially in a more creature-heavy meta.
Crucible of Worlds--Wasteland lock, recurring fetch lands, even replaying Dryad Arbor, Crucible is well worth a slot in the deck. We operate off of the principle of creating a grindy match. Eeking out card advantage wherever we can. Thinning our deck with fetches, and always guaranteeing that we have a land drop; effectively "drawing" an extra card every turn, just that it is always a land, will build over time and become relevant as the game goes on. The side use against the random land destruction decks is incredibly useful, as is the potential to Wasteland-lock the more greedy mana bases of some multi-colour decks.
Tangle Wire--Currently being tested as use against the big mana decks. We want any form of disruption that we can get, and Tangle Wire provides us the one thing we need against them. Time. It gives us the time we need to start deploying our strategy, while they suffer under it. We develop a larger board presence early, so it doesn't hurt us nearly as bad as it does them, not to mention the well known stacking shenanigans that you can do with Wire.
Birthing Pod--Pod is oh so powerful, and will generate such value if not immediately dealt with. The strength is that none of our creatures, ever actually stay dead. Pod is love. Pod is life. Our toolbox can be spread all up and down the pod chain, and it is something to think about during deck construction. "Do I have removal at 3, 4, and 5? How about hand disruption? Do I have a solid value choice no matter what slot I am at?" All of these are questions to ask when building the creature base of a deck with Birthing Pod in it.
Meren is an deck in which to run a few of the key enchantments within the colours that we gain access to. All to great effect.
Animate Dead--This card is a concession to the very real presence of other reanimation decks, as well as the fact that sometimes, you either won't have the access to Meren, or enough EXP to have her raise dead the creature that you absolutely need. We play this over Dance of the Dead because the ability to block the turn it comes in can be especially relevant, as well as the lack of needing to pay 1B just to untap the creature each turn.
BitterblossomBlossom will absolutely destroy a control player if you can resolve it early, and they have no method of dealing with it quickly. A constant stream of creatures that you got for the investment of 2 mana is disastrous for them. This is the same reason that Mayor of Avabruck/Howlpack Alpha is being tested and likely added to the main list. Furthermore, Bitterblossom is fuel on its own for either a Braids, Cabal Minion or a Contamination lock. As it can provide the creature to sacrifice every turn. This solidifies its right to inclusion by a landslide.
Contamination--Often powerful enough to end the game, when fueled, all on its own. Contamination is sometimes better than Blood Moon against some decks. Turning all lands into only the ability to produce B, instead of their normal colour and amount(I am looking at you Cradle). can be backbreaking to any non-black decks. One of the benefits of playing this in a deck full of creature-based ramp, is that we can still effectively produce G mana through the use of our elves. That effectively turns the Contamination completely one sided. Keep in mind that this even effects lands like Cabal Coffers so if an opponent activates their coffers under it, they get a single black mana. And hold them to it if you are in a tournament. They activated an ability. It is done.
Evolutionary Leap--Incredible pace that this card can present. Having an additional sac outlet has been proving useful, ad the tempo that you can get by "drawing" an extra creature every turn, while building up EXP counters is wonderful.
Survival of the Fittest--Probably the most broken stand-alone card in the deck. Survival will end games for you like nothing else. Remember, it is 7 mana (after survival has resolved) to search out the whole combo, and cast the NOze.
Sylvan Library--Incredibly powerful card draw, life rarely matters, and against some decks, like Jace, life is unimportant entirely. Great at un-mulliganing, and earns it's slot time and time again.
Recurring Nightmare--On the fence with this card. Very powerful, but generally it is slower reanimation than any other effect we run. This might get replace my Necromancy in the coming weeks. More testing required.
Song of the Dryads--One of our most versatile pieces of removal, I have even been impressed with it by colour-screwing opponents. You can put it on any permanent. Even their spicy lands, and make sure they only get measly little forest out of it.
Pernicious Deed--One of the wrath-like effects that our colour combination affords us, Deed is extremely potent. Able to drop it against a tapped out opponent and then sit on it, allows you to have a sweeper which dodges traditional counter-magic, and scales as needed. Keep in mind that is is Artifacts, Enchantments, & Creatures. Not "non-land permanents." This means that planeswalkers will be unaffected.
Phyrexian Arena--Great in the more controlling black builds, less good in the elfball versions. Mostly because this wants to come down on T2 off a mana dork, before countermagic really comes online. I have chosen to eschew it, but I wouln't fault anyone for playing this fine card. It is very powerful when left alone.
You have precious few slots available for non-permanent spells. Therefore, it is imperative that each slot be carefully assigned.
Crop Rotation--One of the better uses that rotation provides is toolboxing the portion of our deck that is perhaps the most difficult to access directly. The land base. Rotation provides, effectively, a second copy of Cavern of Souls, Phyrexian Tower, Wasteland, or Gaea's Cradle as needed in specific situations. It also provides instant-speed graveyard hate with ETB effect of Bojuka Bog. Which is why the ETBtapped land merits the potential of inclusion in the deck.
Abrupt Decay--Abrupt Decay is the very best removal that we get access to, and it is unlikely to ever have a better version of it's effect printed. There is no logical reason to no have Decay included in a decklist. It is the very best at it's job.
Beast Within--While the drawback of providing an opponent with a 3/3 is unfortunate, it is important to have a removal spell that is non-black. As it provides additional answers to difficult to remove Creatures like Animar. The double of it being a very potent versionVindicate is not to be underestimated. Certainly one of the top tiers of our removal package. The only drawback of handing out a token can become somewhat of an issue.
Dismember--Dismember's current strengths are killing opposing Tasigurs, slowing down the mana development of opposing decks, all for the lowly cost of 1. The life-loss is almost always a non-issue. Dismember is the premier removal for the deck.
Duress--Playing Duress, and it's fellow Thoughtseize, is an art in this deck. They occupy opposite ends of the "timing" scale in an ideal world. Thoughtseize is excellent as a turn 1-2 play to disrupt opponent's early tempo, and give you the time you need to establish some early tempo. Duress is good at doing this as well, but the exclusivity of it's selection makes it a better protection card, when trying to establish a combo or a key spell. This can be in the early turns of the game, if you are looking for the opportunity to resolve something devastating like Sylvan Library or a similar effect.
Reanimate--Reanimate is an excellent card in such a graveyard-centric deck. Typically it may be viewed as something to combine with Buried Alive for the Necrotic Ooze-combo, though this view point is not the best position. I am a heavy advocate of using Reanimate, and similar effects, as aggressively as possible. Eking out as much value as possible from something like a Sakura-Tribe Elder or Dark Confidant, or even returning something threatening like Mayor of Avabruck can be enough to gain you the tempo that you need to keep the steam going.
Thoughtseize--I have talked about this card with Duress, listed above. Just always remember the alliteration of Defensive Duress, Threatening Thoughtseize, and you will remember the best way to use/hold these cards. Obviously, this depends on the matchup, but it is a good rule of thumb for a starting point.
Green Sun's Zenith--Love getting that Dryad Arbor on turn 1. Easily one of our favourite lands. The tutor effect is awesome, the value is fantastic. We would like some form of hand disruption or creature removal that is on a G creature, but it is unlikely that we will see a decent one as it is not within the G colour pie.
[card[Demonic Tutor[/card]--Well, it is demonic tutor. It is anything you need on a given turn. Always worth running.
Sylvan Scrying--Your most common targets are Cradle, Tower, or Wasteland. (Cavern of Souls vs. Blue decks) As one of these three will benefit any given game state. Always consider all 3 any time you are casting this spell, and do not tunnel vision on getting cradle to get a lot of mana.
Buried Alive--Essentially a triple Eladamri's Call in this deck. Your defaults are the combo, or the value. Value will usually be Braids, Bloodghast, and either Dryad Arbor or Eternal Witness usually.
Toxic Deluge--Well, it i the best wrath effect in the game, arguably. 3 mana. Gets under Teeg, beats regenerate and indestructible... just awesome value.
Maelstrom Pulse--Decent Removal. Generally useful against the more fair decks, since 3 mana is a lot against the decks trying to do unfair things. Not great against decks that flood the board all of a sudden, so it is constantly on the fence about it's inclusion.
Deck Change Log
Of note: If I have talked about the card above, it has been tested unless it is specifically stated otherwise. All card which have not been tested, but are listed above, will be identified as such in their descriptions.
13.1.2016 Out: Umezawa's Jitte--In: Evolutionary Leap Inconsistency with Jitte, meant that we'd rather have a better powerhouse card, and another sac-outlet.
17.1.2016 Out: Vendetta--In: Bloom Tender An extra mana dork that taps for 2. Removal wasn't relevant enough.
7.2.2016 Out: Beast Within--In: Tangle Wire Testing out. Big mana deck are an issue, So an extra card to play containment.
7.2.2016 Out: Yavimaya Hollow--In: Forest Hollow made for many terrible openers. Needed to increase green consistency.
21.2.2016 Out: Garruk Relentless--In: Command Tower Garruk has not been performing well recently, and we would rather have his effect lower on the curve, if we are to have it at all. Increasing the land count for the time being, to test out whether or not it will raise the number of times we flood, or just keep us from getting land-screwed.
Match-ups & Concerns Matchups
Dragonlord Atarka and Atarka, World Render--These two match-ups are addressed together, as they play extremely similar games, and are effectively combated the same way. Disruption and destruction are your most important things here. Kill the mana-elves. Kill the mana-elves. Oh, don't forget to kill the mana-elves. You want to make sure that should they ever reach the mana they need to cast their commanders from just their lands, that every potential kill condition in your deck is available. And that includes any and all Diabolic Edict-effects that you play. Similar to the Ezuri match, detailed below, you are playing a control-role in this match, and once you establish control, there is very little that they can do to re-take the driver's seat. Braids, Cabal Minion is one of your very best cards if you can get her down early even for a turn or two's worth of value.
Ezuri, Renegade Leader--The most important thing in an Ezuri match is to ensure that you have as much removal as possible. Ezrui is a numbers game, and if you can keep their numbers low, you can grind out enough value and stay alive long enough to get them hellbent with an empty board. At which point, finishing the game is a matter of going through the motions. Your most important cards are Fleshbag Marauder, Dismember, Maelstrom Pulse, Abrupt Decay, Pernicious Deed, and Toxic Deluge. Eternal Witness can also play a very important role, recurring your non-creature removal spells. Especially if you can get Meren into play, and start looping E-Wit every turn.
Jace, Vryn's Prodigy/Jace, Telepath Unbound--This match is all about the hand disruption. If you can get Mindslicer into play with one of your sac lands, you can quickly take control of these games. Your most important method here is to establish a clock, while doing as much hand disruption & mana disruption as possible. If you can get Mayor of Avabruck or Bitterblossom into play early, you can devote your efforts to disruption from that point on. Also noteworthy, is that both of those threats will also fuel Contamination or Braids, Cabal Minion. Try to resolve either Liliana, Heretical Healer (and then get her to transform) or Liliana of the Veil to have a constant source of pressure on you opponent's hand.
Sidisi, Undead Vizier--Sidisi presents a very glass cannon approach to their deck. With the usual goal of Buried Alive+Reanimation for the Necrotic Ooze combo. Some timely hand disruption can go a long way. Try to sandbag Crop Rotation to spin a land into an instant speed Bojuka Bog once they try to cast a reanimation spell. Don't over-extend, because they can use Sidisi to get their own Bog against you. Scavenging Ooze is one of your all-stars, as well as Deathrite Shaman. If you can resolve Necrotic Ooze, they are forced to remove it before they can Buried Alive, as you will win before they can resolve any reanimation spell.
Current Concerns
Big-mana decks, both ones that go wide, and ones that go big. The latter is a more pressing issue than the former.
I read the whole thing! Great start. Love the layout. But until I get your full current decklist, I'm not sure what to suggest as additions and removals just yet.
But yeah, my approach is always to pull from the massive Maybeboard I have for ideas from years of practicing with Sisay, so I've got lots of opinions about our Green overlap. But after that, I trust the experts: http://mtgtop8.com/archetype?a=521&meta=103&f=EDH <-- The four Meren decks that have made top 8 finishes at major tournaments worldwide.
The 3-star decklists are the best start, and here we Julien Debelleix's Meren which placed 3rd among 79 players with 3 Tasigur in the top 8 as well as 2 Narset, so that's a helluva promising finish for this new deck: http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=11029&d=262799&f=EDH
In general, what do you think you need more of? What are your weaknesses? Any particularly challenging matchups? What from this (and other) decklists might you have overlooked to help in those situations? For instance, Smothering Abomination is an interesting sac outlet that guarantees great value. Does Massacre Wurm make sense to add (in particular, are you anticipating a lot of weenie/elfball decks?)? For that matter, Minister of Pain looks particularly great for that. Phyrexian Delver looks pretty spicy for Meren in general. Kwiznek has made me love/fear Evolutionary Leap, so that one's definitely worth consideration. Diabolic Intent, ooh la la.
As for "I love these green cards and they've proven themselves over the years" options, if you're leaning more elfball: Arbor Elf, Birds of Paradise, Bloom Tender, Boreal Druid, Craterhoof Behemoth, Devoted Druid, Dryad Arbor, Elvish Mystic, Elvish Visionary, Eternal Witness, Fauna Shaman, Fierce Empath, Fyndhorn Elves, Joraga Treespeaker, Llanowar Elves, Lotus Cobra, Nissa, Vastwood Seer, Priest of Titania, Quirion Ranger, Reclamation Sage, Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Scavenging Oooze, Sylvan Ranger, Sylvan Safekeeper, Titania, Protector of Argoth, Voyaging Satyr, Wirewood Symbiote, Wood Elves, and Yisan, the Wander Bard. Good green stuff in general: Sylvan Library, Wild Growth, Chord of Calling, Crop Rotation, Worldly Tutor, Garruk Wildspeaker, Survival of the Fittest, Birthing Pod, and Green Sun's Zenith. Since we're both playing bicolor 4-CMC generals, I think we have a lot in common in terms of curve and mana needs. To that end, I recommend 38 lands with no more than 4-5 colorless lands to ensure castability of cards at any given time (I personally run Wasteland, Cavern of Souls, Yavimaya Hollow, and Hall of the Bandit Lord, but the latter two are kind of Sisay-specific).
There are a few things in my maybeboard that I love but I just don't have the space for/don't perfectly suit my gameplan, but maybe are good for you: Primeval Titan, Lignify, Ulvenwald Tracker, Life from the Loam, Nature's Claim, Sylvan Scrying, Nature's Lore, and Three Visits--admittedly almost entirely cut for not being aggro/combo enough, so it depends on your expected pace or if you're struggling with threat density.
All the above may already be super obvious stuff to you, but I hope I've helped at least a little!
We spoke on cockatrice. Agent of Cuba here:
We didn't get to compare notes so here goes. Initially i was reluctant to go all out on stax but so far its been the most rewarding strategy. Stax strategies help this deck stand on fair to favored footing with the more unfair/faster opponents. Making their mana awkward or slugging their plays with winter orb/tangle wire gives us a privileged position as we rebuild our board at no cost.
FYI: This is not to say that a creature ladden version is wrong, this general is still new to the scene and the bag isn't entirely out on how best to move forward. The two abilities on Meren permit for different approaches, the creature version is just too much of a fair deck for my liking. This one is my most preferable.
My combo is the devourer-ooze-triskelion combination, its easily attainable and harder to break up so i saw no reason to deviate.
My stax package is:
Winter Orb
Tangle Wire
Braids, Cabal Minion
Contamination - This card is nuts
Death Cloud - Agaisnt aggro decks we can come up on the backfoot if the toxic deludge/Minister of Pain don't come to hand, this guy can work as a backbreaking equalizer and can be cast for more gain off the strength of our mana dudes. Coupled with our reanimation and land recurring effects our recovery is guaranteed. This is our upheaval.
Dust Bowl - Mana denial grinder, works best with crucible,loam and with Dryad Arbor+Meren
Pox, Static Orb and Smokestack are additional tools i've been considering but have yet to figure how best to adapt them.
I enable these with
Bloodghast - synergizes with Crucible + Contamination/Braids/Death Cloud
Crucible of Worlds - Synergizes with Bloodghast, Wasteland/Dust Bowl, Braids and helps us recover from our Death Cloud
Life from the Loam - Helps us recover from Death Cloud, Synergy with Dust Bowl and Braids
Bitterblossom - Helps us buff some of the tax from Cloud and Braids, also locks the OP with Contamination on the curve
Titania, Protector of Argoth - Fuels a fatal board prescence with Braids, Dust Bowl, Death Cloud
Mox Diamond - Enables us to recover from Death Cloud, Winter Orb and Contamination. Also makes for sick openers - if you pitch Arbor and are able to resolve a meren, at end of turn you can reanimate arbor.
My distuption package is:
Mindslicer
Cabal Therapy(Currently Undecisive)- Before i removed it from my list this was used as a tricky way to sac mindslicer or a dude with pattern of rebirth attached.
Mesmeric Fiend
Thoughtseize
Phyrexian Revoker
Liliana of the Veil
Liliana, Heretical Healer/Defiant Necromancer
Sadistic Hypnotist(currently undecisive)- A Complete hand raper but the 5 mana is more restrictive than i expected, it's not missed though.
The argument that our general is vulnerable to removal is true but nothing special, our general is also a game-ending engine and our strategy is built to either rip that removal from their hands or make them harder to resolve, then grind them down on the back of that engine.
Resolving your stax effects in the first 4 turns is a guaranteed victory, therefore cards like mox diamond are included, you can even try dark ritual/chrome mox/ culling the weak if you have the space and want a more aggressive tempo. Stax works best when you're ahead so its important to have your threats/answers be as cheap and mana efficient as possible.
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Currently playing
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
Pernicious Deed is worth running also, just couldn't find a spot i'd rather cut at the moment.
The exclusion of Raven's Crime and/or Hymn to Tourach was based on local meta, they weren't standouts in past decks but worth another try in this capacity
I know that we have talked on cockatrice about this, but I wanted to reply here as well.
I have been testing out Tangle Wire in place of Beast Within, and have been suitably impressed. I have updated my decklist above, as well as the change log.
I have not been a fan of the Life from the Loam loop, because, on the surface, it looks good with Braids, it doesn't actually get you closer to casting Meren, as you are sacrificing a land, and playing a land every turn. So it locks you from casting Meren if she isn't in play yet, or you don't have an inordinate amount of mana after the braids sac effect when you untap next turn. Overall, it might be good, but I prefer something more proactive at the moment.
I still have to test Winter Orb, but I suspect that it will be taking over one of the slots in a post-NOOze-ban world. Since the current list I am cultivating with that in mind is more elf-ball. I'll do some testing in the coming couple of weeks, but I suspect the more big mana versions of the deck like it better, because they play more dorks, and the Mox Diamond. Which I can see running when Orb and LftL are both in the list. Not to mention that Mox makes T2 Meren much easier.
In general, what do you think you need more of? What are your weaknesses? Any particularly challenging matchups? What from this (and other) decklists might you have overlooked to help in those situations? For instance, Smothering Abomination is an interesting sac outlet that guarantees great value. Does Massacre Wurm make sense to add (in particular, are you anticipating a lot of weenie/elfball decks?)? For that matter, Minister of Pain looks particularly great for that. Phyrexian Delver looks pretty spicy for Meren in general. Kwiznek has made me love/fear Evolutionary Leap, so that one's definitely worth consideration. Diabolic Intent, ooh la la.
I have updated the OP quite a bit since you posted. Sorry for such a late reply. Minister of Pain is currently on my list of cards to test, as he is likely a huge trump in the Yisan m/u, which has been troublesome in the past couple weeks.
I know that we have talked on cockatrice about this, but I wanted to reply here as well.
I have been testing out Tangle Wire in place of Beast Within, and have been suitably impressed. I have updated my decklist above, as well as the change log.
I have not been a fan of the Life from the Loam loop, because, on the surface, it looks good with Braids, it doesn't actually get you closer to casting Meren, as you are sacrificing a land, and playing a land every turn. So it locks you from casting Meren if she isn't in play yet, or you don't have an inordinate amount of mana after the braids sac effect when you untap next turn. Overall, it might be good, but I prefer something more proactive at the moment.
I still have to test Winter Orb, but I suspect that it will be taking over one of the slots in a post-NOOze-ban world. Since the current list I am cultivating with that in mind is more elf-ball. I'll do some testing in the coming couple of weeks, but I suspect the more big mana versions of the deck like it better, because they play more dorks, and the Mox Diamond. Which I can see running when Orb and LftL are both in the list. Not to mention that Mox makes T2 Meren much easier.
Hmmnnn
I prefer Beast because walkers can be a problem, and the games where you can't interact with any threats they have are sure losses. I don't think wire helps with the problems we have like Beast does, i'd suggest making room for both if possible.
I like the Loam loop as it helps the Dust Bowl synergy, Filling the grave with Meren targets and discard options. If you have braids and Loam on loop on turn 4 as your post suggests that still puts you ahead since your opponent cant get out of the lock, their land resources are more likely to run out in comparison to your own, and you always have the option of sacing another creature in one upkeep to advance on the land count.
If you run crucible then Loam can feel unnecessarily redundant but its worth considering that Loam is harder to take out of an equation.
Moxes are sweet, i's suggest to be generous with the land count if so. If i run Mox Diamond again i may jump to 40 land 38 - Thespians Stage +Dark Depths/ 39 lands - 38 plus Maze of Ith/Arena
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Currently playing
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
Thought-Knot Seer - This card has been unbelievable so far
Thragtusk - I tried the gift boar in a budget version and he went the extra mile, with Recurring Nightmare or the sac effects + Meren's ability this makes a power loop in the grindy games
Varolz - He's a regenerating beater and sac outlet, you can blank most boardwipes/removal, increase EXP and then recur whatever the hell you saced
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Currently playing
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
I prefer Beast because walkers can be a problem, and the games where you can't interact with any threats they have are sure losses. I don't think wire helps with the problems we have like Beast does, i'd suggest making room for both if possible.
I have just not found myself wanting for Beast Within that much. We are a creature heavy deck, and most of our creatures (well, in my list at the least) can't attack through a 3/3 profitably, so I usually rather just attack Planeswalkers down, than give my opponent a decent blocker against us. I think it is a niche case where I run into a walker, and don't have creatures on board. They certainly aren't as widely played as they are in Traditional, so I haven't been missing the Beast Within. Besides. I have the Maelstrom Pulse, which is just better removal when it comes down to it.
I like the Loam loop as it helps the Dust Bowl synergy, Filling the grave with Meren targets and discard options. If you have braids and Loam on loop on turn 4 as your post suggests that still puts you ahead since your opponent cant get out of the lock, their land resources are more likely to run out in comparison to your own, and you always have the option of sacing another creature in one upkeep to advance on the land count.
If you run crucible then Loam can feel unnecessarily redundant but its worth considering that Loam is harder to take out of an equation.
Moxes are sweet, i's suggest to be generous with the land count if so. If i run Mox Diamond again i may jump to 40 land 38 - Thespians Stage +Dark Depths/ 39 lands - 38 plus Maze of Ith/Arena
I am highly anticipating the transformation of this into a LandStax deck; post NOoze ban. I have been testing the elfball, and it just doesn't have the fast closing powet that an Ezuri Elfball deck has. So Stax looks like the way to go in a few months. I definitely like the Mox if I up the land count, and add the Hex/Stage Depths combo. Not to mention Realms Uncharted SPICY!
If I can find one more source of creature advantage (Like Bitterblossom, or Mayor of Avabruck) that is still 2cmc, I can definitely lean more into the stax archetype. I tried Awakening zone, but the fact that the tokens don't attack, and the producer costs 3cmc rather than 2cmc is one strike too many against it for me.
I tried an alternative list without the combo, the combo lets you pull wins out your ass faster but it is a pain when the other pieces are not as good. I'd encourage you to try it regardless.
This list needs more tuning but this is what i'm working with on stax
And Songs of the Dryad should be here
Yeah, I'm saying that it's good if you want to run the combo. If you aren't running Triskelion then it's obviously less good for the reasons you mentioned
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Playing with proxied cards at sanctioned events is good, actually.
1) I don't like that Boreal doesn't add a color so i used wild growth.
Running a high number of non-creature permanents should not be unusual, though our commander likes creatures its more proactive to use creatures you actually want to recur and take advantage of; the non-creature spells allow us to explore other cost effective answers most creatures don't afford us. You get wrecked by any deck that is combo or goes over the top if you don't pack disruption spells and cheaper answers. We can't afford to not be interactive against those decks.
2) Do you mean my stax list or the combo list?
I didnt have hyptonist on paper so i was running it without, definitely worth having. Varolz is there as a instant sac outlet yes and he's good against removal and the beatdown.
My point is that Meren doesn't need to be Karador 2.0 and probably shouldn't be, she works wonderfully as a ROCK deck
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Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
Right so, those 4 cards were all the result of a tournament where i struggled unnecessarily against Marath and Tasigur
Nature's Claim - Cost efficient answer to Earthcraft and other threats that i need to respond to immediately. i cut it since it wasn't something i felt i needed anymore with Beast Within in the roster
Beast Within - I felt light on removal, and its a catch all removal, a 3/3 Beast is not something i'm afraid of, i mean - its just a vanilla, which is a preferable trade for a planeswalker(which can be hard to deal with, an Animar or any other big threat) You would think Vampire Hexmage is the best alternative there but Beast is multi purpose and its never dead in your hand so i don't see any reason to not play it. A 3/3 Beast is not a problem SERIOUSLY GUYS!
Sinkhole - In stax a tempo advantage within the first 4 turns makes the game much more favorable. I added Sinkhole to enable more backbreaking starts that can segue into more backbreaking engines like Braids/Tangle Wire, even without these on hand, being a land drop ahead changes the math greatly. Also, Land D is a good way of attacking control/tri-color decks. And Its turn 2 land D at that.
Crop Rotation - The benefits of being 2 colors is that we can play more special lands, and our special lands help us kick ass. Our lands have special effects that either helps us activate our sac engines or help us respond to effects. Crop at worst is also great response to a Wasteland or Land D effect. As for crop being countered, If you want insurance you can fetch for Dryad Arbor and sac her instead, since she is both a land and creature Meren will either count the EXP or return it as a 0 cost creature after. I try to play it smart, and only use it when i'm confident it would resolve or if really need it.
These are lands we have available and all the things they can do for us
Based on what your lands do, Crop is effectively a substitute effect for them. There aren't any G: exile all cards from target player's graveyard effects
I haven't been a fan of Dust Bowl as much as I guess I should be. i am going to be testing some aggro-loam iterations of the deck in the next month or so, in anticipation of a Necrotic Ooze banning.
I definitely like Loam in the post-ban world, since that ban will actually open up 3 of our slots, instead of just one.
What I think I might be looking at post ban is Mox Diamond, Loam, and Dust Bowl as the 3 'new' additions. This is all in the dark at the moment, but the potential is clear.
Tangle Wire is back on my "soon to be cut" list. I have only been a fan in a very narrow field of situations. Usually, winning the die roll, and T1 dork. I thin Minister of Pain will be taking the slot going forward. I have to test him out a bit more, but he seems to fit the bill of what we need. Not to mention the fact that he is awesome against the Elf or Yisan decks that like to go wide.
Mike is a great inclusion, I have him in my Traditional version of the deck for when my LGS does that, but the BBB is a seriously prohibitive cost, for no immediate impact. Sure, he is usually cheated in with some other method, but we want our 6 drops to have an Sudden Impact. heh. Trike and Prime Time are examples of what we want for so much mana. Removal or ramp, just for entering play. Trike doesn't earn the slot for himself though. NOoze gives it to him.
Mike seems like decent wrath insurance, but the fact that he doesn't protect Meren is what ultimately calls for the cut.
Boral Druid might get another chance when the tuned list is forced to eschew the combo because Necrotic Ooze gets banned. Since, like you said, it does bring down some of the better 3 drops on T2. However, Devoted Druid will likely get the same nod, because it can bring in 5 drops (Like Titania, or more importantly, Sadistic Hypnotist, on T3. So some testing will be done.
Mayor is insane. Against control, it is on par with Bitterblossom It forces them to spend mana on their own turns, just to keep it from flipping. I highly recommend it. and have a glowing write up for it in my OP above.
Catacomb Sifter has been tested, but it was before I started writing this that it ultimately got cut, along with Courser of Kruphix We didn't really want mana creatures at the 3cmc slow, that didn't provide lasting advantage. Wood Elves Is cheaper than Sifter Mana wise, provides the same ramp, is a good Skullclamp target, and the ramp is permanent, rather than a 1-shot.
Today i participated in our store's EDH Championship it was a small 12-man event
4 rounds top 8 I went to third place
I'm hungry and tired AF now but i'll try to give a brief play by play of the games
My games went as follows
Round 1 vs Child of Alara Reanimator (DRAW)
Round 2 vs Kozilek the Great Distortion (2-0)
Round 3 vs Tasigur (0-2)
In game one i had one window to kill Tasigur with deludge after my opponent cast him with no mana up on turn 3
I untapped and played Nissa, Vastwood Seer instead of Deludge. This still bothers me because the Tasigur killed me
Game 2 my opponent had a wasteland-Loam lock. I started the game on 4 nonbasics and drew only one basic land for the duration of the game.
I attempted to cast Sakura Tribe Elder and Wood Elves to get some nonbasics but both were swiftly countered
Round 4 vs Animar (2-1)
Game one was a massacre,
Game 2 my opponent Led off with a forest and a bird. I led off with a Fyndhorn on the play and a dismember to kill the Bird. The following turn my opponent played a fire lit thicket and passed. With him having only two cards in hand i dug for wasteland with sylvan scrying and popped his thicket.
He responded with Tinder Wall. Played sanctum of ugin, saced Wall and Cast Magus of the Moon
My turn i Oracle of Mul Daya and went to 6 lands with two succesful reveals
My opponent drew no lands for two turns then conceded
Game 3 My opponent led with a Breeding Pool off a fetch into a Birds of Paradise
I began with a Deathrite Shaman
My opponet played a land and cast Marath
I played a land then cast Toxic Deludge
My opponent played a Rootbound Crag and cast Sakura Tribe Elder
I played a land then cast Winter Orb
My opponent conceded after three missed land drops
Top 8
Quarterfinal VS Horde of Notions (2-1)
First game i led with a Lanowar Elf, into Wall of Roots, then Braids which was countered by Evasive Action
My opponent kept his lands untapped, i played Cavern, cast Meren and genesis on Braids
My opponent cast Global Ruin, keeping 3 of his lands while i lost Cradle, High Market, Mana Confluence but kept Bayou
I cast Braids off a swamp and my opponent conceded.
Game 2 was a loss to a Global Ruin which killed all my lands. I cast Deathrite which was Plowshared, Conceded
Game 3 i led with a duress which revealed wayfarer, Global Ruin(**** this card, seriously) and 5 lands. Pitched Ruin
My opponent's hand had little action, I had varolz, nissa, a flipped Liliana and Meren on Board. I was able to ultimate on Liliana and cycle through the forests in my deck with Nissa.
My opponent was unable to interact and died
Semifinals vs Child of Alara Reanimator again (0-2)
Game 1 - I was able to lower my opponent to 1 life. He was able to Cast Child, Play Phyrexian Tower and wipe my board
I played one land (to go to 5) and passed the turn
In my hand was a Triskelion I was fixing to cast
My opponent Reanimated Ashen Rider with Animate Dead, saced it with a Phyrexian Tower to exile 2 of my lands
He repeated this process with dance of the dead and i was left with 2 lands and a Triskelion in hand.
I drew Phyrexian Devourer and conceded
Luckily this game ended so quickly i was able to hitch a ride home
Either we shuffle like ***** or he had the blessing of every God in Asgard.
My opener was a Arbor Elf off a Forest
His first turn was a land
I played Command Tower then cast Nissa and fetched a Forest
My Opp cast Demonic Tutor
I played Bloodghast, then a Wasteland and beat for 2
My opp played a Blood Crypt. Careful Study pitching Ashen Rider and exiled a land
My next play was wayfinder which found an Overgrown Tomb and pitched Elvish Mystic, Bitterblossom and Liliana. Played a Tomb and Passed
My opponent played Phyrexian Tower, exiled a land then played animate dead.
From here he drew 3 more reanimate spells in a row and he repeated this process until i spared myself the embarrasment
This was the first outing for Meren in our playgroup, I felt like i built my deck well despite some minor setbacks thanks to a delayed late order.
Diabolic Intent was supposed to be Sylvan Scrying but was delayed
Was unable to bag a Mayor of Avabruck before the tournament
Contamination was delayed in my order
My friend could not find his Magus of the Abyss so I ran Mindslicer, which was dissapointing despite the high hopes i had for him
Cards i'm considering trimming
Massacre Wurm - The 3 Black hurt to cast, aside from him being quite bad in a control heavy meta
Nooze Combo -(J/K) But those 2 other dead cards are really getting on my last nerve
Since we're light on removal, if anyone can't bag an Abyss this is the best replacement
It's a 'sac' outlet, and removal. Against creature light decks you can always use it a one shot removal, and since he's a creature we can always recur him. In the spirit of maintaining Synergy within our deck he plays beautifully with Kalitas, Bitterblossom, Mayor of Avabruck, Bloodghast and our own general.
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Currently playing
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
Sorry, I should clarify. Your opponent chooses the target, but you still control the ability. This means that hexproof creatures are illegal targets, even if your opponent wants to "choose" them as the target.
702.11b “Hexproof” on a permanent means “This permanent can’t be the target of spells or abilities your opponents control.”
If the creature you want to target has hexproof, then you'll first need a way to remove hexproof.
Both have synergistic buyback abilities, and alone they provide powerful bodies on the ground. You can also use Jarad's Ability to drain opponents in a grind.
As a bonus Vinecrasher and Jarad can shave off healthy chunks of life.
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Currently playing
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
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Introduction
Meren of Clan Nel Toth was released in the Commander2015 WotC product, and immediately began making a splash.
Meren Provides unique benefits when compared to the other Experience Counter commanders that were released, as she provides a benefit, even while EXP is at 0. The duality of her effect (either providing a 'Genesis' effect or a 'Reanimate' effect) is what sets Meren apart from her fellow EXP crowd.
To play a properly tuned Meren deck, you will follow a simple skeleton of a plan, with a myriad of possible alternatives along the way. Your primary objective as a pilot of the deck is to generate value by using Meren to the best of your abilities. Typically, playing disruptive creatures to destabilize your opponent's game plan is the best course of action, especially early in the game. As the game progresses, there are a number of things to keep an eye out for:
While other commander options are possible within the Archetype of Golgari colours, Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest & Savra, Queen of the Golgari as the most notable graveyard themed decks, they do not provide the same inevitable engine that Meren does for us. Both require additional cards to be good. In a vacuum, Meren is the best play (of the golgari commanders) when topdecking, because she leverages value out of the graveyard, without any additional effects other than having cards there. This is what sets Meren above the others for a grave-centric playstyle.
You should play this deck if:
You should not play this deck if:
Origins of the Archetype-- Meren is the latest and greatest evolution in the long line of rock-style decks.
"The Rock" decks are generally B/G or B/G/x coloured, and represent the strengths of these two colours extremely well. If you were to play against a who's who of trope cards for "The Rock" deck in modern, you would run into such cards as Liliana of the Veil, Scavenging Ooze, Dark Confidant, Abrupt Decay, Thoughtseize, and Tarmogoyf. In fact, all of the above join our Meren list of strong options, with the exception of Tarmogoyf, which is noticeably less powerful in Commander.
Current Deck List
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Elves of Deep Shadow
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Bloom Tender
1 Brain Maggot
1 Dark Confidant
1 Fauna Shaman
1 Mayor of Avabruck
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Sylvan Caryatid
1 Bloodghast
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Wood Elves
1 Eternal Witness
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Mindslicer
1 Necrotic Ooze
1 Skinrender
1 Shriekmaw
1 Acidic Slime
1 Sadistic Hypnotist
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Titania, Protector of Argoth
1 Phyrexian Devourer
1 Triskelion
1 Primeval Titan
1 Bayou
1 Blighted Fen
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Command Tower
1 City of Brass
9 Forest
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Gilt-Leaf Palace
1 High Market
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Mana Confluence
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Polluted Delta
3 Swamp
1 Tectonic Edge
1 Twilight Mire
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Wasteland
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Woodland Cemetery
Artifacts:
1 Skullclamp
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Tangle Wire
1 Birthing Pod
1 Animate Dead
1 Bitterblossom
1 Evolutionary Leap
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Contamination
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Song of the Dryads
1 Pernicious Deed
Instants:
1 Crop Rotation
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Dismember
Sorceries:
1 Duress
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Reanimate
1 Thoughtseize
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Sylvan Scrying
1 Buried Alive
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Maelstrom Pulse
Planeswalkers:
1 Liliana of the Veil
Card Choices
Mana Base Choices
The most important pieces in any Meren deck is the Mana-creatures. They are one of most valuable assets that access to G brings to the table, and they synergise extremely well with Meren. Dorks bring out your good stuff faster, and then later on, you can pop them off for valuable sacrifice effects and to build up experience counters.
1 Mana
The Core
Bayou
City of Brass
Command Tower
Llanowar Wastes
Mana Confluence
Overgrown Tomb
Twilight Mire
Woodland Cemetery
These cards are considered staples for the deck. And should be seriously considered before anything else for the land base. They are the best dual lands available for the deck, as they can all, always, enter untapped, with the exception of Woodland Cemetery (which will almost always enter untapped) and Twilight Mire (which will always enter untapped, but produce colourless unless you have another land. Twilight Mire is your 'worst' multi-coloured land because of this drawback.
Fetches are highly recommended
Bloodstained Mire
Marsh Flats
Misty Rainforest
Polluted Delta
Verdant Catacombs
Windswept Heath
Wooded Foothills
The 7 Fetch land setup has become pretty traditional fare for 2 colour decks. Here, it allows us access not only to our Duals, but to access Dryad Arbor as well. You should make strong considerations before choosing not to include all the fetch lands in your list. Also, because we run the Crucible, playing as many of the "good" fetchlands as possible is even more important.
Other Choices
This section will cover the viable creature options that are not mana-creatures.
1 CMC
Deck Change Log
Of note: If I have talked about the card above, it has been tested unless it is specifically stated otherwise. All card which have not been tested, but are listed above, will be identified as such in their descriptions.
Match-ups & Concerns
Matchups
But yeah, my approach is always to pull from the massive Maybeboard I have for ideas from years of practicing with Sisay, so I've got lots of opinions about our Green overlap. But after that, I trust the experts: http://mtgtop8.com/archetype?a=521&meta=103&f=EDH <-- The four Meren decks that have made top 8 finishes at major tournaments worldwide.
The 3-star decklists are the best start, and here we Julien Debelleix's Meren which placed 3rd among 79 players with 3 Tasigur in the top 8 as well as 2 Narset, so that's a helluva promising finish for this new deck: http://mtgtop8.com/event?e=11029&d=262799&f=EDH
In general, what do you think you need more of? What are your weaknesses? Any particularly challenging matchups? What from this (and other) decklists might you have overlooked to help in those situations? For instance, Smothering Abomination is an interesting sac outlet that guarantees great value. Does Massacre Wurm make sense to add (in particular, are you anticipating a lot of weenie/elfball decks?)? For that matter, Minister of Pain looks particularly great for that. Phyrexian Delver looks pretty spicy for Meren in general. Kwiznek has made me love/fear Evolutionary Leap, so that one's definitely worth consideration. Diabolic Intent, ooh la la.
As for "I love these green cards and they've proven themselves over the years" options, if you're leaning more elfball: Arbor Elf, Birds of Paradise, Bloom Tender, Boreal Druid, Craterhoof Behemoth, Devoted Druid, Dryad Arbor, Elvish Mystic, Elvish Visionary, Eternal Witness, Fauna Shaman, Fierce Empath, Fyndhorn Elves, Joraga Treespeaker, Llanowar Elves, Lotus Cobra, Nissa, Vastwood Seer, Priest of Titania, Quirion Ranger, Reclamation Sage, Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary, Sakura-Tribe Elder, Scavenging Oooze, Sylvan Ranger, Sylvan Safekeeper, Titania, Protector of Argoth, Voyaging Satyr, Wirewood Symbiote, Wood Elves, and Yisan, the Wander Bard. Good green stuff in general: Sylvan Library, Wild Growth, Chord of Calling, Crop Rotation, Worldly Tutor, Garruk Wildspeaker, Survival of the Fittest, Birthing Pod, and Green Sun's Zenith. Since we're both playing bicolor 4-CMC generals, I think we have a lot in common in terms of curve and mana needs. To that end, I recommend 38 lands with no more than 4-5 colorless lands to ensure castability of cards at any given time (I personally run Wasteland, Cavern of Souls, Yavimaya Hollow, and Hall of the Bandit Lord, but the latter two are kind of Sisay-specific).
There are a few things in my maybeboard that I love but I just don't have the space for/don't perfectly suit my gameplan, but maybe are good for you: Primeval Titan, Lignify, Ulvenwald Tracker, Life from the Loam, Nature's Claim, Sylvan Scrying, Nature's Lore, and Three Visits--admittedly almost entirely cut for not being aggro/combo enough, so it depends on your expected pace or if you're struggling with threat density.
All the above may already be super obvious stuff to you, but I hope I've helped at least a little!
My Captain Sisay Duel Commander Primer
Duel Commander Mega-Thread
We didn't get to compare notes so here goes. Initially i was reluctant to go all out on stax but so far its been the most rewarding strategy. Stax strategies help this deck stand on fair to favored footing with the more unfair/faster opponents. Making their mana awkward or slugging their plays with winter orb/tangle wire gives us a privileged position as we rebuild our board at no cost.
FYI: This is not to say that a creature ladden version is wrong, this general is still new to the scene and the bag isn't entirely out on how best to move forward. The two abilities on Meren permit for different approaches, the creature version is just too much of a fair deck for my liking. This one is my most preferable.
My combo is the devourer-ooze-triskelion combination, its easily attainable and harder to break up so i saw no reason to deviate.
My stax package is:
Winter Orb
Tangle Wire
Braids, Cabal Minion
Contamination - This card is nuts
Death Cloud - Agaisnt aggro decks we can come up on the backfoot if the toxic deludge/Minister of Pain don't come to hand, this guy can work as a backbreaking equalizer and can be cast for more gain off the strength of our mana dudes. Coupled with our reanimation and land recurring effects our recovery is guaranteed. This is our upheaval.
Dust Bowl - Mana denial grinder, works best with crucible,loam and with Dryad Arbor+Meren
Pox, Static Orb and Smokestack are additional tools i've been considering but have yet to figure how best to adapt them.
I enable these with
Bloodghast - synergizes with Crucible + Contamination/Braids/Death Cloud
Crucible of Worlds - Synergizes with Bloodghast, Wasteland/Dust Bowl, Braids and helps us recover from our Death Cloud
Life from the Loam - Helps us recover from Death Cloud, Synergy with Dust Bowl and Braids
Bitterblossom - Helps us buff some of the tax from Cloud and Braids, also locks the OP with Contamination on the curve
Titania, Protector of Argoth - Fuels a fatal board prescence with Braids, Dust Bowl, Death Cloud
Mox Diamond - Enables us to recover from Death Cloud, Winter Orb and Contamination. Also makes for sick openers - if you pitch Arbor and are able to resolve a meren, at end of turn you can reanimate arbor.
My distuption package is:
Mindslicer
Cabal Therapy(Currently Undecisive)- Before i removed it from my list this was used as a tricky way to sac mindslicer or a dude with pattern of rebirth attached.
Mesmeric Fiend
Thoughtseize
Phyrexian Revoker
Liliana of the Veil
Liliana, Heretical Healer/Defiant Necromancer
Sadistic Hypnotist(currently undecisive)- A Complete hand raper but the 5 mana is more restrictive than i expected, it's not missed though.
The argument that our general is vulnerable to removal is true but nothing special, our general is also a game-ending engine and our strategy is built to either rip that removal from their hands or make them harder to resolve, then grind them down on the back of that engine.
Resolving your stax effects in the first 4 turns is a guaranteed victory, therefore cards like mox diamond are included, you can even try dark ritual/chrome mox/ culling the weak if you have the space and want a more aggressive tempo. Stax works best when you're ahead so its important to have your threats/answers be as cheap and mana efficient as possible.
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
Pernicious Deed is worth running also, just couldn't find a spot i'd rather cut at the moment.
The exclusion of Raven's Crime and/or Hymn to Tourach was based on local meta, they weren't standouts in past decks but worth another try in this capacity
1 Triskelion
1 Phyrexian Devourer
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Necrotic Ooze
1 Shriekmaw
1 Minister of Pain
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Arbor Elf
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Elves of Deep Shadow
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Devoted Druid
1 Priest of Titania
1 Bloodghast
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Dark Confidant
1 Fauna Shaman
1 Lotus Cobra
1 Eternal Witness
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Birthing Pod
1 Mox Diamond
1 Tangle Wire
1 Winter Orb
1 Skullclamp
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Contamination
1 Sylvan Library
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Dismember
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Life from the Loam
1 Buried Alive
1 Reanimate
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Garruk Relentless
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Polluted Delta
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Windswept Heath
1 Bayou
1 Overgrown Tomb
3 Swamp
5 Forest
1 Wasteland
1 Dust Bowl
1 Tectonic Edge
1 Marsh Flats
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Temple of Malady
1 Twilight Mire
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Command Tower
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 High Market
1 Treetop Village
1 Gilt-Leaf Palace
1 City of Brass
1 Mana Confluence
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Rishadan Port
1 Death Cloud
1 Thoughtseize
1 Crop Rotation
1 Beast Within
1 Grave Titan
1 Courser of Kruphix
1 Bitterblossom
1 Crucible of Worlds
1 Mwonvuli Acid-Moss
1 Garruk Wildspeaker
1 Hissing Quagmire
Karador Pattern Rector GWB
Anafenza the Foremost GWB
Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
I have been testing out Tangle Wire in place of Beast Within, and have been suitably impressed. I have updated my decklist above, as well as the change log.
I have not been a fan of the Life from the Loam loop, because, on the surface, it looks good with Braids, it doesn't actually get you closer to casting Meren, as you are sacrificing a land, and playing a land every turn. So it locks you from casting Meren if she isn't in play yet, or you don't have an inordinate amount of mana after the braids sac effect when you untap next turn. Overall, it might be good, but I prefer something more proactive at the moment.
I still have to test Winter Orb, but I suspect that it will be taking over one of the slots in a post-NOOze-ban world. Since the current list I am cultivating with that in mind is more elf-ball. I'll do some testing in the coming couple of weeks, but I suspect the more big mana versions of the deck like it better, because they play more dorks, and the Mox Diamond. Which I can see running when Orb and LftL are both in the list. Not to mention that Mox makes T2 Meren much easier.
I have updated the OP quite a bit since you posted. Sorry for such a late reply. Minister of Pain is currently on my list of cards to test, as he is likely a huge trump in the Yisan m/u, which has been troublesome in the past couple weeks.
Hmmnnn
I prefer Beast because walkers can be a problem, and the games where you can't interact with any threats they have are sure losses. I don't think wire helps with the problems we have like Beast does, i'd suggest making room for both if possible.
I like the Loam loop as it helps the Dust Bowl synergy, Filling the grave with Meren targets and discard options. If you have braids and Loam on loop on turn 4 as your post suggests that still puts you ahead since your opponent cant get out of the lock, their land resources are more likely to run out in comparison to your own, and you always have the option of sacing another creature in one upkeep to advance on the land count.
If you run crucible then Loam can feel unnecessarily redundant but its worth considering that Loam is harder to take out of an equation.
Moxes are sweet, i's suggest to be generous with the land count if so. If i run Mox Diamond again i may jump to 40 land 38 - Thespians Stage +Dark Depths/ 39 lands - 38 plus Maze of Ith/Arena
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
I'm running this ATM
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Elves of Deep Shadow
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Brain Maggot
1 Dark Confidant
1 Fauna Shaman
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Bloodghast
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Eternal Witness
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Shriekmaw
1 Acidic Slime
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Titania, Protector of Argoth
1 Phyrexian Devourer
1 Triskelion
1 Primeval Titan
1 Bayou
1 City of Brass
1 Gilt-Leaf Palace
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Mana Confluence
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Twilight Mire
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
1 High Market
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Wasteland
1 Yavimaya Hollow
1 Gaea's Cradle
5 Forest
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Bojuka Bog
3 Swamp
1 Birthing Pod
1 Skullclamp
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Contamination
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Crop Rotation
1 Beast Within
1 Dismember
1 Duress
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Reanimate
1 Thoughtseize
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Buried Alive
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Necrotic Ooze
1 Life from the Loam
1 Diabolic Intent
1 Hissing Quagmire
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Shizo, Death's Storehouse
1 Treetop Village
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Winter Orb
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Dust Bowl
1 Temple of Malady
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Priest of Titania
1 Wall of Roots
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Lotus Cobra
1 Thragtusk
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Thought-Knot Seer
1 Varolz, the Scar-Striped
1 Animate Dead
1 Tangle Wire
New Additions
Thought-Knot Seer - This card has been unbelievable so far
Thragtusk - I tried the gift boar in a budget version and he went the extra mile, with Recurring Nightmare or the sac effects + Meren's ability this makes a power loop in the grindy games
Varolz - He's a regenerating beater and sac outlet, you can blank most boardwipes/removal, increase EXP and then recur whatever the hell you saced
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
I have just not found myself wanting for Beast Within that much. We are a creature heavy deck, and most of our creatures (well, in my list at the least) can't attack through a 3/3 profitably, so I usually rather just attack Planeswalkers down, than give my opponent a decent blocker against us. I think it is a niche case where I run into a walker, and don't have creatures on board. They certainly aren't as widely played as they are in Traditional, so I haven't been missing the Beast Within. Besides. I have the Maelstrom Pulse, which is just better removal when it comes down to it.
I am highly anticipating the transformation of this into a LandStax deck; post NOoze ban. I have been testing the elfball, and it just doesn't have the fast closing powet that an Ezuri Elfball deck has. So Stax looks like the way to go in a few months. I definitely like the Mox if I up the land count, and add the Hex/Stage Depths combo. Not to mention Realms Uncharted SPICY!
If I can find one more source of creature advantage (Like Bitterblossom, or Mayor of Avabruck) that is still 2cmc, I can definitely lean more into the stax archetype. I tried Awakening zone, but the fact that the tokens don't attack, and the producer costs 3cmc rather than 2cmc is one strike too many against it for me.
This list needs more tuning but this is what i'm working with on stax
And Songs of the Dryad should be here
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Overgrown Tomb
3 Swamp
5 Forest
1 Shizo, Death's Storehouse
1 Twilight Mire
1 Hissing Quagmire
1 Treetop Village
1 Temple of Malady
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Mana Confluence
1 City of Brass
1 Command Tower
1 Wasteland
1 Dust Bowl
1 Dryad Arbor
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 High Market
1 Tainted Wood
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Thoughtseize
1 Life from the Loam
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Death Cloud
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Crop Rotation
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Dismember
1 Go for the Throat
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Sylvan Library
1 Garruk Wildspeaker
1 Winter Orb
1 Birthing Pod
1 Skullclamp
1 Arbor Elf
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Lotus Cobra
1 Bloodghast
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Primeval Titan
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Titania, Protector of Argoth
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Eternal Witness
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Shriekmaw
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Phyrexian Arena
1 Bayou
1 Gilt-Leaf Palace
1 Brain Maggot
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Courser of Kruphix
1 Wall of Roots
1 Yavimaya Hollow
1 Duress
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Tangle Wire
1 Priest of Titania
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Acidic Slime
1 Thragtusk
1 Massacre Wurm
1 Nature's Claim
1 Beast Within
1 Dark Confidant
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Wild Growth
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Bitterblossom
1 Thought-Knot Seer
1 Sinkhole
1 Varolz, the Scar-Striped
1 Reanimate
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
Blue lives don't matter in the slightest.
Blue lives don't matter in the slightest.
Running a high number of non-creature permanents should not be unusual, though our commander likes creatures its more proactive to use creatures you actually want to recur and take advantage of; the non-creature spells allow us to explore other cost effective answers most creatures don't afford us. You get wrecked by any deck that is combo or goes over the top if you don't pack disruption spells and cheaper answers. We can't afford to not be interactive against those decks.
2) Do you mean my stax list or the combo list?
I didnt have hyptonist on paper so i was running it without, definitely worth having. Varolz is there as a instant sac outlet yes and he's good against removal and the beatdown.
My point is that Meren doesn't need to be Karador 2.0 and probably shouldn't be, she works wonderfully as a ROCK deck
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Nature's Claim - Cost efficient answer to Earthcraft and other threats that i need to respond to immediately. i cut it since it wasn't something i felt i needed anymore with Beast Within in the roster
Beast Within - I felt light on removal, and its a catch all removal, a 3/3 Beast is not something i'm afraid of, i mean - its just a vanilla, which is a preferable trade for a planeswalker(which can be hard to deal with, an Animar or any other big threat) You would think Vampire Hexmage is the best alternative there but Beast is multi purpose and its never dead in your hand so i don't see any reason to not play it. A 3/3 Beast is not a problem SERIOUSLY GUYS!
Sinkhole - In stax a tempo advantage within the first 4 turns makes the game much more favorable. I added Sinkhole to enable more backbreaking starts that can segue into more backbreaking engines like Braids/Tangle Wire, even without these on hand, being a land drop ahead changes the math greatly. Also, Land D is a good way of attacking control/tri-color decks. And Its turn 2 land D at that.
Crop Rotation - The benefits of being 2 colors is that we can play more special lands, and our special lands help us kick ass. Our lands have special effects that either helps us activate our sac engines or help us respond to effects. Crop at worst is also great response to a Wasteland or Land D effect. As for crop being countered, If you want insurance you can fetch for Dryad Arbor and sac her instead, since she is both a land and creature Meren will either count the EXP or return it as a 0 cost creature after. I try to play it smart, and only use it when i'm confident it would resolve or if really need it.
These are lands we have available and all the things they can do for us
[b]Sac Engines
[b]Recurring:[/b]
[b]Protection:
[b]Anti-Control
[/b]
[b]Disruption[/b]
[b]Creature Removal
[b]Annoyances:
Based on what your lands do, Crop is effectively a substitute effect for them. There aren't any G: exile all cards from target player's graveyard effects
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
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[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
Pawn of Ulamog is great in multiplayer EDH, where Gravepact effects are much more viable. I think it's too slow for 1v1.
Blue lives don't matter in the slightest.
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[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
I definitely like Loam in the post-ban world, since that ban will actually open up 3 of our slots, instead of just one.
What I think I might be looking at post ban is Mox Diamond, Loam, and Dust Bowl as the 3 'new' additions. This is all in the dark at the moment, but the potential is clear.
Tangle Wire is back on my "soon to be cut" list. I have only been a fan in a very narrow field of situations. Usually, winning the die roll, and T1 dork. I thin Minister of Pain will be taking the slot going forward. I have to test him out a bit more, but he seems to fit the bill of what we need. Not to mention the fact that he is awesome against the Elf or Yisan decks that like to go wide.
Mike seems like decent wrath insurance, but the fact that he doesn't protect Meren is what ultimately calls for the cut.
Mayor is insane. Against control, it is on par with Bitterblossom It forces them to spend mana on their own turns, just to keep it from flipping. I highly recommend it. and have a glowing write up for it in my OP above.
4 rounds top 8 I went to third place
I'm hungry and tired AF now but i'll try to give a brief play by play of the games
My games went as follows
Round 1 vs Child of Alara Reanimator (DRAW)
Round 2 vs Kozilek the Great Distortion (2-0)
Round 3 vs Tasigur (0-2)
In game one i had one window to kill Tasigur with deludge after my opponent cast him with no mana up on turn 3
I untapped and played Nissa, Vastwood Seer instead of Deludge. This still bothers me because the Tasigur killed me
Game 2 my opponent had a wasteland-Loam lock. I started the game on 4 nonbasics and drew only one basic land for the duration of the game.
I attempted to cast Sakura Tribe Elder and Wood Elves to get some nonbasics but both were swiftly countered
Round 4 vs Animar (2-1)
Game one was a massacre,
Game 2 my opponent Led off with a forest and a bird. I led off with a Fyndhorn on the play and a dismember to kill the Bird. The following turn my opponent played a fire lit thicket and passed. With him having only two cards in hand i dug for wasteland with sylvan scrying and popped his thicket.
He responded with Tinder Wall. Played sanctum of ugin, saced Wall and Cast Magus of the Moon
My turn i Oracle of Mul Daya and went to 6 lands with two succesful reveals
My opponent drew no lands for two turns then conceded
Game 3 My opponent led with a Breeding Pool off a fetch into a Birds of Paradise
I began with a Deathrite Shaman
My opponet played a land and cast Marath
I played a land then cast Toxic Deludge
My opponent played a Rootbound Crag and cast Sakura Tribe Elder
I played a land then cast Winter Orb
My opponent conceded after three missed land drops
Top 8
Quarterfinal VS Horde of Notions (2-1)
First game i led with a Lanowar Elf, into Wall of Roots, then Braids which was countered by Evasive Action
My opponent kept his lands untapped, i played Cavern, cast Meren and genesis on Braids
My opponent cast Global Ruin, keeping 3 of his lands while i lost Cradle, High Market, Mana Confluence but kept Bayou
I cast Braids off a swamp and my opponent conceded.
Game 2 was a loss to a Global Ruin which killed all my lands. I cast Deathrite which was Plowshared, Conceded
Game 3 i led with a duress which revealed wayfarer, Global Ruin(**** this card, seriously) and 5 lands. Pitched Ruin
My opponent's hand had little action, I had varolz, nissa, a flipped Liliana and Meren on Board. I was able to ultimate on Liliana and cycle through the forests in my deck with Nissa.
My opponent was unable to interact and died
Semifinals vs Child of Alara Reanimator again (0-2)
Game 1 - I was able to lower my opponent to 1 life. He was able to Cast Child, Play Phyrexian Tower and wipe my board
I played one land (to go to 5) and passed the turn
In my hand was a Triskelion I was fixing to cast
My opponent Reanimated Ashen Rider with Animate Dead, saced it with a Phyrexian Tower to exile 2 of my lands
He repeated this process with dance of the dead and i was left with 2 lands and a Triskelion in hand.
I drew Phyrexian Devourer and conceded
Luckily this game ended so quickly i was able to hitch a ride home
Either we shuffle like ***** or he had the blessing of every God in Asgard.
My opener was a Arbor Elf off a Forest
His first turn was a land
I played Command Tower then cast Nissa and fetched a Forest
My Opp cast Demonic Tutor
I played Bloodghast, then a Wasteland and beat for 2
My opp played a Blood Crypt. Careful Study pitching Ashen Rider and exiled a land
My next play was wayfinder which found an Overgrown Tomb and pitched Elvish Mystic, Bitterblossom and Liliana. Played a Tomb and Passed
My opponent played Phyrexian Tower, exiled a land then played animate dead.
From here he drew 3 more reanimate spells in a row and he repeated this process until i spared myself the embarrasment
This was the first outing for Meren in our playgroup, I felt like i built my deck well despite some minor setbacks thanks to a delayed late order.
Diabolic Intent was supposed to be Sylvan Scrying but was delayed
Was unable to bag a Mayor of Avabruck before the tournament
Contamination was delayed in my order
My friend could not find his Magus of the Abyss so I ran Mindslicer, which was dissapointing despite the high hopes i had for him
Cards i'm considering trimming
Massacre Wurm - The 3 Black hurt to cast, aside from him being quite bad in a control heavy meta
Nooze Combo -(J/K) But those 2 other dead cards are really getting on my last nerve
This is the list i played
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Elves of Deep Shadow
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Dark Confidant
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Bloodghast
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Eternal Witness
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Shriekmaw
1 Acidic Slime
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Titania, Protector of Argoth
1 Primeval Titan
1 Bayou
1 City of Brass
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Mana Confluence
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Twilight Mire
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Wasteland
1 Gaea's Cradle
7 Forest
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Bojuka Bog
3 Swamp
1 Birthing Pod
1 Skullclamp
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Crop Rotation
1 Beast Within
1 Dismember
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Thoughtseize
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Life from the Loam
1 Hissing Quagmire
1 Treetop Village
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Winter Orb
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Dust Bowl
1 Temple of Malady
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Priest of Titania
1 Wall of Roots
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Bitterblossom
1 Lotus Cobra
1 Golgari Rot Farm
1 Buried Alive
1 Reanimate
1 Phyrexian Devourer
1 Triskelion
1 Necrotic Ooze
1 Wood Elves
1 High Market
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Sadistic Hypnotist
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Animate Dead
1 Blighted Fen
1 Polluted Delta
1 Massacre Wurm
1 Varolz, the Scar-Striped
1 Sylvan Scrying
1 Duress
1 Mindslicer
Moving forward i have this list in mind
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Elves of Deep Shadow
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Phyrexian Revoker
1 Dark Confidant
1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
1 Satyr Wayfinder
1 Scavenging Ooze
1 Bloodghast
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Eternal Witness
1 Liliana, Heretical Healer
1 Oracle of Mul Daya
1 Braids, Cabal Minion
1 Shriekmaw
1 Acidic Slime
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Titania, Protector of Argoth
1 Primeval Titan
1 Bayou
1 City of Brass
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Mana Confluence
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Twilight Mire
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Cavern of Souls
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Wasteland
1 Gaea's Cradle
7 Forest
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Bojuka Bog
3 Swamp
1 Birthing Pod
1 Skullclamp
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Recurring Nightmare
1 Pernicious Deed
1 Crop Rotation
1 Beast Within
1 Dismember
1 Green Sun's Zenith
1 Thoughtseize
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Maelstrom Pulse
1 Life from the Loam
1 Hissing Quagmire
1 Treetop Village
1 Reclamation Sage
1 Winter Orb
1 Nissa, Vastwood Seer
1 Dust Bowl
1 Temple of Malady
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Priest of Titania
1 Wall of Roots
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Bitterblossom
1 Lotus Cobra
1 Golgari Rot Farm
1 Buried Alive
1 Reanimate
1 Phyrexian Devourer
1 Triskelion
1 Necrotic Ooze
1 Wood Elves
1 High Market
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Mesmeric Fiend
1 Sadistic Hypnotist
1 Liliana of the Veil
1 Blighted Fen
1 Polluted Delta
1 Thought-Knot Seer
1 Contamination
1 Diabolic Intent
1 Magus of the Abyss
1 Song of the Dryads
1 Mayor of Avabruck
A card we haven't discussed in the forum is
Magus of the Abyss (Braids 2.0)
Since we're light on removal, if anyone can't bag an Abyss this is the best replacement
It's a 'sac' outlet, and removal. Against creature light decks you can always use it a one shot removal, and since he's a creature we can always recur him. In the spirit of maintaining Synergy within our deck he plays beautifully with Kalitas, Bitterblossom, Mayor of Avabruck, Bloodghast and our own general.
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us
No, you choose the target.Sorry, I should clarify. Your opponent chooses the target, but you still control the ability. This means that hexproof creatures are illegal targets, even if your opponent wants to "choose" them as the target.
If the creature you want to target has hexproof, then you'll first need a way to remove hexproof.
Edited for clarity
Blue lives don't matter in the slightest.
Would cards like Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord and Centaur Vinecrasher make worthwhile additions?
Both have synergistic buyback abilities, and alone they provide powerful bodies on the ground. You can also use Jarad's Ability to drain opponents in a grind.
As a bonus Vinecrasher and Jarad can shave off healthy chunks of life.
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Meren of Clan Nel Toth (Stax)GB
[Team Stepfathers]: We beat you and you hate us