MTG Salvation

Hello everyone,
I’m a pretty new player when it comes to Magic and Commander, having played only about four game nights with my friends so far. Thus my experience is limited to the preconstructed decks that I borrowed for those nights and the things I did some reading up on. With Christmas we have another get together and I felt it was time to get my own deck. Initially the idea was to just pick up a preconstructed deck myself but having seen the others play their own decks, I figured this can be a backup plan in case I can’t get a deck made myself. The only issue is that it’s my first time trying to build a deck and thus I can do with some help on the finishing touches and tweaking.

When it comes to playing games I know that I’m not a highly competitive player, with themes and synergies being important aspects and if I have some chances at winning a game, I’ll be happy enough. I asked my friends for some suggestions on what to play and mentioned the same to them, leading to a joking remark that actually inspired an idea/concept that I want to try to build. I’m not sure yet how viable the idea will be, but I’ve spent the past days putting together a potential list of cards for this.

The thing they suggested me not to build was five color Slivers, which from a lands perspective I can understand as I am trying to build an entry level deck which I can either upgrade down the line or in the least doesn’t set me back too much if the idea fails. However, reading up on Slivers I am somewhat intrigued by them and am looking to build a two color version of them instead. For the Commander of the deck I’m looking at Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer. He was in one of the preconstructed decks that I’ve played and it would be interesting to use his ability to make a potential Sliver army. From what I read on Slivers Blue/Red is not the best two color combination to have, but I’m still willing to try.

From what I gathered so far, it’s going to be a deck that is rather mana intensive, so I plan on running 38 lands but won't go as far to get any of the fetchlands. And in digging around I came across Inspiring Statuary, which is currently making me want to focus the token making on artifact related stuff: artifact creatures, treasure and clue tokens being the main ones. Eldrazi tokens are an option to since they can be used for mana as well.

With that in mind I managed to put together somewhat of a list of cards that I potentially want to include in the deck, but looking at adding some support I do feel a bit overwhelmed and thus am looking on advise/suggestions on what to do for things like card draw, interaction, removal and such. Also, other tweaks and suggestions for making my idea a playable deck are of course welcome.


Considerations :
These are mostly cards that I came across that I haven’t decided on whether to run them or not. They do fit the theme, but having people noticed mentioning maintaining a curve I am not sure if these would push my initial list or not.
Lightning Greaves
Mimic Vat

This is an awesome idea!

At the end of the day, it feels like you're running too many low-impact token makers. You don't need a ton of tokens to just instantly win the game once you have a tokenized Bonesplitter Sliver on the battlefield; having say that token plus three more (including one from Brudiclad) means you are suddenly swinging out for at 32 plus whatever other slivers you have. As a result, your goal should be too

1) Run cards that generate a LOT of tokens at once.
2) Run cards to ramp to your endgame of casting Brudiclad, ideally with a developed board.
3) Run cards to clone Bonesplitter/Battle/Thorncaster/Bladed sliver so you can win the game.

Possible cuts:
- Horns***gle, Wily Goblin, Sailor of Means, Brazen Pillager, Pirate's Pillage, Pirate's Prize - these are the kinds of things I mean when I say "low-impact token makers". Even with the delicious, delicious combo potential with my favorite card of all time Crystal Shard, it feels like it's too slow.

- Izzet Locket, a land: You can do better for ramping.

- Arcane Adaptation: A bit overkill I think, compared to the power of cloning.

Possible Additions: I like most of your considerations; the best among them are probably Spell Swindle, Mimic Vat, and Mechanized Production. Precursor Golem is likely too risky; I'd pick a different "mega token maker" below.

- Better ramp: Mind Stone, Etherium Sculptor, Prismatic Lens, Wayfarer's Bauble, Sphere of the Suns, Worn Powerstone are all quite affordable. Obviously Thran Dynamo is amazing if you have the $$$ (nevermind Mana Crypt and Mana Vault). I'd add back in at least two ramp cards but maybe more.
- More token makers: Whirler Rogue, Siege-gang Commander, Pia and Kiran Nalaar, Maverick Thopterist, Curse of Opulence (which doubles as a ramp card). Sai, Master Thopterist seems better than Efficient Production, but neither seems great unless you get your artifact camp up closer to 21 total.
- Related; I assume a lot of your wins will be on the back of a Cloned Sliver. You're running most of the best clone effects I can think of, but it's so crucial to your gameplan that I'd at least consider one or two more - Stolen Identity, Saheeli's Artistry, and Echo Storm are the affordable ones not in the list already. Followed Footsteps is a bit fragile for my tastes and I assume Kiki-jiki, Mirror-breaker is right out for budget reasons.
- There are a few slivers you aren't running. I assume Synapse Sliver got benched for budget reasons? I think I'd take a second look at Shadow Sliver, Synchronous Sliver, Fury Sliver, and Two-headed Sliver/Belligerent Sliver, especially the latter menace ones since Evasive slivers that have double digit powers is some good.Taurean Mauler and Shapesharer are also virtual slivers.
- More answers won't hurt anyone. It seems you are intentionally avoiding counterspells, and Cyclonic Rift probably is out of budget. I'd consider Curse of the Swine (doubles as a token maker), Chaos Warp, Imprison in the Moon, even Aftershock. Draw is good too - Thirst for Knowledge stands out as good for this deck.
- A Trinket Mage package. I think this might be worth it with just Retrofitter Foundry and Sol Ring plus artifact lands as targets, since Ring and Foundry are SO GOOD for you, but it begets adding Skullclamp if you can (it's expensive but would be bonkers in this list) and possibly other silver bullets (Pithing Needle, Relic of Progenitus, Brittle Effigy).

Welcome to salvation. We tend to save the commander main area for more generic and broad questions about commander or specific cards rather than discussing decklists. Due to that I am going to move your list over to the multiplayer section just for organization sake.

Thread moved from commander main to commander multiplayer.

@ ISBPathfinder
My apologies, I posted it in that forum since I saw a few other threads that inquired about help there.


@ Hawk7915
First of all, thank you for your reply and suggestions. As you indicated some cards are more than likely to be outside of my budget, since this is going to be my first time getting cards. Nonetheless, I have made some notes on those you suggested, just so I can look into maybe getting them when/if I decide to upgrade this deck.

I took your advise and took out the cards you suggested as cards to consider as cuts, while adding one or two cards from each of the suggested sections to fill out the list.

I wasn't too sure about Echo Storm as a potential inclusion, as I feel that my clone effects should in the least be capable of cloning a Sliver as well in order to have something to make use of for Brudiclad's ability. Taurean Mauler and Shapeshifter are one's I'll also not end up running, while they count as Sliver creatures they don't have any abilities to share with the other Slivers, so I'm rather including some of the other mentioned Slivers in your instead. And would Shadow Sliver be good enough? I can see it giving evasion but it also stops me from using them as blockers from what I get.

As far as counterspells go, I wasn't intentionally avoiding them. For removal and such I've been heavily relying on looking at other Brudiclad lists and the ones I looked at didn't always have them. So I was mostly unsure of what to add for those sections of the deck, which is why I am asking for help with things here. I did add Mana Leak to the updated list, as it looks to have a versatile mana cost.

Been contemplating the suggestion made so far a bit more and trying to incorporate a bit more of that. I removed Treasure Map from my list and ended up adding Unsubstantiate, adding some more interaction while also changing out a card for a cheaper one. The main reason for that is that I do want to try and see if I can have some budget left over to potentially add Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker.

Mechanized Production might still go in to have an alternative way to win and produce tokens, with Gleaming Barrier probably being the card I'll take out for it.

Glad to be of service! I had a brain fart on Echo Storm, so don't add/keep that - forgot it can only target artifacts.

For counterspells, I'd prefer any of the following over Mana Leak (in roughly this order of power):

Counterspell
Negate
Arcane Denial
Dissipate/Void Shatter/Faerie Trickery
Stoic Rebuttal
Disdainful Stroke
Izzet Charm

I fear Mana Leak is too likely to get muscled past at a key moment (Izzet Charm shares that weakness but makes up for it in versatility). While all of these (except Counterspell) have a weakness they should be more reliable and they should all be under a $1. If you're willing to spend a little more, Counterflux, Mystic Confluence, and Swan Song are probably stronger than the bottom half of that list.

Hmmm, well, I gave these suggestions a bit of thought. So far I can tell that Brudiclad isn't a cheap Commander to cast and this deck would be relying on him a lot. Also, getting a token copy of a key Sliver will take some mana as well, so chances are I won't have much left each turn. Also, the mana base will be pretty basic so that makes me want to avoid the three mana cost ones and probably those with double blue in them.

I like versatility so I'll be considering Izzet Charm as an alternative first, or Swan Song should I be able to pick one up.

Love the idea! Super creative! I’m following the thread to see what develops.

So have been tracking down cards the past weeks to get this deck put together. A few I got from my friends so that helped a bit in budgeting the deck, so along with finding a good deal on a Kiki-Jiki and a Galerider Sliver, I'll be running both of those in the deck. Ended up getting a copy of Izzet Charm as well to replace the Mana Leak.

Also went and assembled what is probably going to be the land base that I'll be using. Though one of my friends recommended to invest a bit more into it than I initially planned to do, since he mentioned that with the recent reprints of Steam Vents and Cascade Bluffs that their prices are at a low for now. So yeah, I spent a bit more than intended on this, especially after I already splurged on an unplanned Sliver Hive.

Due to the spending I haven't picked up one of those Temple lands. I did get the lifegain one and Izzet Guildgate, but from what I've been reading those are considered bad? Either way, I'd love some suggestions on whether or not this is decent enough to use.

Quote from Tears of Tomorrow »

While this is a great idea, I must point out that Brudiclad can only turn tokens into other tokens... Meaning that, in order to abuse his effect, you need to make copies of your key slivers first. And those copies must be made when Brudiclad is already on the field and ready to swing, you cannot just make the copes on a random turn, and then wait like 3 o 4 turns before actually capitalizing on them: reason being, that Commander is a format full of removal, so it's really unlikely that those tokens would survive long enough.

Thus, you best bet to make this work is to use token makers that are either really cheap or repeatable, so that you can use them in the same tun when you cast Brudiclad: the guy is strong and all, but he costs 6 mana, so a card like Rite of Replication, despite being exceptionally powerful and a potential wincon,, might not always be what you need.

In addition to Feldon, which you're already playing, I would thus recommend two other cards: Heat Shimmer is cheap enough that you should conceivably be able to cast it in the turn you play Brudiclad (and if you have Dualcaster Mage, the two can make an infinite combo), and Saheeli Rai is a very helpful card for you, because she lowers everyone's life, helps you filter you draws, is easier to keep alive compared to a creature, and by the time you cast Brudiclad she's a repeatable token-maker that costs you no additional mana. Not to mention, her token has Haste so you can swing big immediately.

I would also recommend looking into cards like Faithless Looting, Fact or Fiction and their ilk, to help dig faster through your deck while loading the grave for Feldon. Oh and speaking of Feldon: he, and many other creatures in your deck, most definitely need Haste, and they also need to be protected from enemy removal. As such, I strongly recommend making room for Swiftfoot Boots and Lightning Greaves.

Hope this is helpful!

Thanks for your input and suggestions. I can see replacing Rite with Saheeli Rai, though this is probably something that will happen after our game day as with Christmas coming up it's going to be more challenging to pick up any new cards for me. I might ask my friends if they happen to have spare copies of the other cards you mentioned.

Would you happen to have any suggestions on potential cuts (in addition to Rite) to make as well?

Quote from Tears of Tomorrow »

Don't misunderstand, Rite is a great card. I'm not advocating for removing it.

Here's the thing. The way I see it, lands would be there to make mana, and boots/greaves would be there to protect your key pieces and grant haste. I'll throw in Sol Ring, Izzet Signet and Commander's Sphere as generic cards every commander deck in your colors wants to run.

Literally every other card in the deck, in my opinion, should belong to one of three categories: Sliver, mass token maker, and draw power. So yeah, if you're running a card that doesn't belong in any of these three categories and is not one of those five aforementioned artifacts, that's a card you should cut. Ingot Chewer for example.

Don't try to interfere with the enemy strategy, that's not how this deck wants to win. This deck wants to win by having out an army of Slivers before the enemy can even THINK of enacting a strategy, so focus on that.

I think I understand it, it's just that this is my first time building a deck so it's one huge learning process and thus tips like this are quite welcome.

So based on what you said, Ingot Chewer could be a potential cut and looking at my list I am considering these as options as well:
- Spell Swindle : I just feel it might be too high costed to run, as the deck wants to be focused on getting a Sliver token made to copy than keeping up the mana. There is potential for it to put out some tokens but unsure if it's worth it.
- Zndrsplt's Judgment : Cards like Heat Shimmer and Saheeli are just lower costed so should help speed up the deck.
- Thopter Engineer : Only a single token and looking at it, Brudiclad is turning all tokens into copies that are unlikely to be artifact creatures, making that part less important. A place where Swiftfoot Boots could slot in instead.
- Hour of Eternity : Definitely a cut, as just am noticing this card produces tokens that won't be Slivers.
- Chaos Warp : Could be a cut, but it's also the only thing that can potentially deal with anything that stops me from attacking with my Slivers.

I've also been wondering about Trinket Mage as it only hits two cards and has the potential of doing little if you draw it later in the game. Though it does fetch ramp in Sol Ring and a token producer in Retrofitter Foundry.

Eldrazi Skyspawner and Emrakul's Hatcher. On the fence about the Skyspawner since it only creates a single token. Emrakul's Hatcher feels like you could do some shenanigans with to produce some tokens, it does cost quite a bit of mana but would also be a good Feldon target. So could see Skyspawner be a cut if necessary while keeping the Hatcher around for a bit longer.

I updated my planned list in the first post to include these changes, even though I'm probably not going to be able to get all of them before the planned game day we have. So it's going to be changes that I can do in order to improve the deck for after that, as I did do a quick asking around and at the moment no one around here has a Lightning Greaves in stock, so left that one out.

Should I get a copy I could use it to replace Emrakul's Hatcher unless I can find a different card to cut for it.

So did have my little game day with the deck yesterday and it was fun to pilot, though I'll probably need a few more games with it to find parts that I want to improve since we only got two games in. Nonetheless, my sliver surprise managed a second place the first game and still managed third the other game despite getting targeted a little bit more. So in the least that means I am doing something right

The feedback that I got from my group was with a bit more explosiveness in token generation it would do even better, so I feel getting that Dualcaster Mage combo in will help a bit in that regard. And one of my friends gave me a little Christmas present to help with that, so now I'm likely to take out Emrakul's Hatcher and give my Palinchron gift a place in this deck.

One other change I'll be making is taking out Ghost Quarter, just to have slightly less colorless sources and within our group hating out lands isn't really necessary. I can always bring it back in later but right now I don't feel its that necessary for me.