I have been putting a bit more focus into my Ephara Tokens list but I had intended to play Ephara as a multiple deck build. This build was focused on ETB creatures primarily as well as some enablers. I noticed there were a lot of cool one shot flicker effects in blue and white and I thought to myself, if I pay a few mana and flicker ETB creatures I get to ETB again plus Ephara draw for cheap.
So, this is my second list for Ephara. Its a little rough yet as I haven't spent as much time on it but I like the idea of having a commander where you might not know which deck I am playing when you see my commander.
Of note, I think I might want a few more counters and possibly a little more access to artifact / enchantment removal.
Cards like Avacyn and the Primordials are a real bummer if they get stuck in your hand, and you are really hurting for mana here.
I still think Mulldrifter can be useful as a Divination in a pinch. Knight of the White Orchid can be obnoxious in a blink build because people run green.
You actually have several combos in the current list, so maybe you could include some combo-y cards? Like the Rishadan package.
Cards like Avacyn and the Primordials are a real bummer if they get stuck in your hand, and you are really hurting for mana here.
I still think Mulldrifter can be useful as a Divination in a pinch. Knight of the White Orchid can be obnoxious in a blink build because people run green.
You actually have several combos in the current list, so maybe you could include some combo-y cards? Like the Rishadan package.
Crossing my fingers to see how it works out.
Expensive Cards - A agree that they can be a little clunky. In the end though as I tried building this too often the small 2-5 mana creatures are like decent with some of the one time flicker cards but the expensive 6+ mana creatures were the ones I really wanted to be flickering them. I was a little conflicted when it came to running Avacyn, Angel of Hope to be honest but I felt like with all of the flicker effects I actually had a lot of extra ways to defend her in play. When it comes to offense and defensive capabilities she is strong but normally her weakness is exile spot removal and counterspells. Given all of the flicker effects I felt that she was actually a valuable asset over time given that I can potentially keep her alive via flickers. In a lot of ways I was evaluating both her and Elesh Norn similarly in this boat. I am running 6 cards at 6+ mana to play them which is a little heavy but I also felt that those were very strong and impactful cards.
Mulldrifter - I had it in the list to get started but I cut it because I felt that in a lot of cases I want ETB creatures that come in and stay (in case i can abuse them later). I could evoke and then flicker Mulldrifter but I didn't want to feel like I needed to play it that way which is why I felt the small lifegain benefit of Cloudblazer might outshine the small benefit of the evoke with the mulldrifter. I think both have small benefits to them but I felt that I was more often going to play either one as a 5 mana effect and in that light I liked Cloudblazer more given the small lifegain. I could run both of them but I was just running light on room. With a commander like Ephara at the helm I dont know how much dedicated card draw I need right now.
Knight of the White Orchid - I will see if I can work it in. My meta doesn't always have as much green ramp in it which can make it awkward especially if you get into a situation where you get to flicker creatures. Due to this I resorted to the 4 mana ramp creatures that have no condition because I felt like it was very situational as to what I could do with this.
Combos - I am not aware of any infinites offhand but there are some more subtle ones. Palinchron was deliberately omitted because of things like Deadeye Navigator. I do have Archaeomancer / Mnemonic Wall + Ghostway / Eerie Interlude / Displace / Ghostly Flicker but none of those go infinite. I deliberately left mana generation ETBs out of the list as that would be about the only way I would be looking to use them.
Overall, it looks to be a bit fun. Its a value based deck for sure. I dont really know how I am going to "win" but I dont usually worry about that much.
Private Mod Note
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Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
So, this is my second list for Ephara. Its a little rough yet as I haven't spent as much time on it but I like the idea of having a commander where you might not know which deck I am playing when you see my commander.
Of note, I think I might want a few more counters and possibly a little more access to artifact / enchantment removal.
1 Ephara, God of the Polis
CREATURES (32)
1 Gilded Drake
1 Snapcaster Mage
1 Stoneforge Mystic
1 Whitemane Lion
1 Eldrazi Displacer
1 Recruiter of the Guard
1 Stonecloaker
1 Angel of Condemnation
1 Archaeomancer
1 Brago, King Eternal
1 Clever Impersonator
1 Faerie Artisans
1 Glen Elendra Archmage
1 Kor Cartographer
1 Phyrexian Metamorph
1 Saltskitter
1 Solemn Simulacrum
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Venser, Shaper Savant
1 Body Double
1 Cloudblazer
1 Ixidron
1 Karmic Guide
1 Mnemonic Wall
1 Reveillark
1 Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1 Deadeye Navigator
1 Sun Titan
1 Diluvian Primordial
1 Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1 Luminate Primordial
1 Avacyn, Angel of Hope
1 Sol Ring
1 Wayfarer's Bauble
1 Lightning Greaves
1 Sword of the Animist
1 Thought Vessel
1 Oblivion Stone
1 Sword of Feast and Famine
1 Panharmonicon
1 Conjurer's Closet
ENCHANTMENT (4)
1 Mastery of the Unseen
1 Leyline of Anticipation
1 Opposition
1 Parallax Wave
INSTANT (15)
1 Cloudshift
1 Essence Flux
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Arcane Denial
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Long Road Home
1 Mana Drain
1 Turn to Mist
1 Displace
1 Eerie Interlude
1 Forsake the Worldly
1 Ghostly Flicker
1 Ghostway
1 Faith's Reward
1 Return to Dust
PLANESWALKER (2)
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Venser, the Sojourner
1 Arid Mesa
1 Command Tower
1 Flooded Strand
1 Gemstone Caverns
1 Glacial Fortress
1 Hallowed Fountain
1 Irrigated Farmland
6 Island
1 Kor Haven
1 Prairie Stream
1 Marsh Flats
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Moorland Haunt
1 Myriad Landscape
1 Mystic Gate
1 Nimbus Maze
6 Plains
1 Polluted Delta
1 Reliquary Tower
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Strip Mine
1 Terrain Generator
1 Thespian's Stage
1 Tundra
1 Windswept Heath
1 Winding Canyons
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
I still think Mulldrifter can be useful as a Divination in a pinch. Knight of the White Orchid can be obnoxious in a blink build because people run green.
You actually have several combos in the current list, so maybe you could include some combo-y cards? Like the Rishadan package.
Crossing my fingers to see how it works out.
Expensive Cards - A agree that they can be a little clunky. In the end though as I tried building this too often the small 2-5 mana creatures are like decent with some of the one time flicker cards but the expensive 6+ mana creatures were the ones I really wanted to be flickering them. I was a little conflicted when it came to running Avacyn, Angel of Hope to be honest but I felt like with all of the flicker effects I actually had a lot of extra ways to defend her in play. When it comes to offense and defensive capabilities she is strong but normally her weakness is exile spot removal and counterspells. Given all of the flicker effects I felt that she was actually a valuable asset over time given that I can potentially keep her alive via flickers. In a lot of ways I was evaluating both her and Elesh Norn similarly in this boat. I am running 6 cards at 6+ mana to play them which is a little heavy but I also felt that those were very strong and impactful cards.
Mulldrifter - I had it in the list to get started but I cut it because I felt that in a lot of cases I want ETB creatures that come in and stay (in case i can abuse them later). I could evoke and then flicker Mulldrifter but I didn't want to feel like I needed to play it that way which is why I felt the small lifegain benefit of Cloudblazer might outshine the small benefit of the evoke with the mulldrifter. I think both have small benefits to them but I felt that I was more often going to play either one as a 5 mana effect and in that light I liked Cloudblazer more given the small lifegain. I could run both of them but I was just running light on room. With a commander like Ephara at the helm I dont know how much dedicated card draw I need right now.
Knight of the White Orchid - I will see if I can work it in. My meta doesn't always have as much green ramp in it which can make it awkward especially if you get into a situation where you get to flicker creatures. Due to this I resorted to the 4 mana ramp creatures that have no condition because I felt like it was very situational as to what I could do with this.
Combos - I am not aware of any infinites offhand but there are some more subtle ones. Palinchron was deliberately omitted because of things like Deadeye Navigator. I do have Archaeomancer / Mnemonic Wall + Ghostway / Eerie Interlude / Displace / Ghostly Flicker but none of those go infinite. I deliberately left mana generation ETBs out of the list as that would be about the only way I would be looking to use them.
Overall, it looks to be a bit fun. Its a value based deck for sure. I dont really know how I am going to "win" but I dont usually worry about that much.
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
UW Ephara Hatebears [Primer], GB Gitrog Lands, BRU Inalla Combo-Control, URG Maelstrom Wanderer Landfall