MTG Salvation

The Pauper EDH Top 50's
These lists are for both New and Old players of the format, and are also for those that are interested
in trying Pauper EDH and want to know what good options are available to them, as there are close to
8,000 playable commons in the Pauper card pool.

These lists are the culmination of my experience in the format, as well as from discussion with other
players who regularly play or have played the format, and from a good amount of research.

While great for 1v1 games, these lists are more focused on Multiplayer Games of Pauper EDH.

Discussion is both welcomed and encouraged, I'd like to see this format grow and prosper.
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Wow! This is great! It must have been a tremendous amount of work. Thanks for this!

I will need to take a much more in-depth look at your lists but honestly I don't think you missed much.

Rack and Ruin is an uncommon only, unless I'm missing something.

Off the top of my head, I think you're missing Retrace spells. Flame Jab and Raven's Crime are all-stars in my books. Monstrify is the worst one and probably the only one not worth including. I could see Oona's Grace not being quite good enough to fit in the top 25, too, though it's a very good card.

I also think Palace Sentinels, Thorn of the Black Rose and Entourage of Trest are also worth mentioning as important creatures. Particularly in White and Green, they are great ways to obtain card advantage that they normally don't have access to. Something could also be said for Crown-Hunter Hireling, though I have yet to test it.

Thanks Upkeep! Your insight is always appreciated. The present resources for Pauper Edh on this forum were woefully
outdated, so I've brought it up to current 2017 times.

Good catch on the Rack and Ruin. Spellchecking, card legality, and formatting are important in a big presentation like this.

Flame Jab (Pauper Darkblast) and Raven's Crime are in. Reusable spells are a powerful thing in any Pauper format.

Palace Sentinels, Thorn of the Black Rose, and Entourage of Trest are in as well. These do make games a whole lot
more interesting on top of the obvious benefits.

I've always been on the fence about Oona's Grace, I've seen it used on occasion. I feel blue has enough solid draw options,
and I don't know anyone who's a fan of Crown-Hunter Hireling either,

Thanks Again!

This is certainly incredibly useful. Currently trying my hand at PDH deckbuilding, and this is a great resource. One minor note: Mind Stone will be pauper-legal with the next Masters set.

Quote from Skios »

This is certainly incredibly useful. Currently trying my hand at PDH deckbuilding, and this is a great resource. One minor note: Mind Stone will be pauper-legal with the next Masters set.

Thanks Skios! PDH deck building is always a fun and challenging thing.

Mind Stone was a common in it's original printing back in Weatherlight.

With over half the Dominaria set spoiled/leaked (but no card rarities listed as of yet), i'm sure
there will be some interesting card choices for Pauper EDH on the horizon.

This is great. Zada is now an uncomon and her deck was practically full of comons. Nice.

Alright, this has been a long time coming, Pauper EDH is getting some love.

There are some powerful legendary Uncommon rarity Commanders coming down the pipe in Dominaria.

• Adeliz, the Cinder Wind
  
• Arvad the Cursed
  
• Baird, Steward of Argive
  
• Danitha Capashen, Paragon
  
• Grunn, the Lonely King
  
• Raff Capashen, Ship's Mage
  
• Rona, Disciple of Gix
  
• Shanna, Sisay's Legacy
  
• Slimefoot, the Stowaway
  
• Slinn Voda, the Rising Deep
  
• Tatyova, Benthic Druid
  
• Tiana, Ship's Caretaker
  
• Valduk, Keeper of the Flame

Some good commons of note so far for Pauper EDH.

• Caligo Skin-Witch
  
• Ghitu Chronicler
  
• Keldon Overseer
  
• Vicious Offering
  
• Saproling Migration

SO much good stuff for PDH in Dominaria, it's insane!

I'm looking forward to Tatyova, Benthic Druid as a general. There are so many interesting directions to take a general like this.

Garna, the Bloodflame also offers some sweet possibilities to break up a stalled board state. Giving Haste is also great!

Tiana, Ship's Caretaker makes auras great! Auras that make creatures become even better, since they also give you a body to attach other auras. I'm thinking of Cartouche of Solidarity.

I don't think Arvad the Cursed will see much play. There aren't too many legendaries to put in the 99 with him...

Kwende, Pride of Femeref could be an excellent general leading lots of First Strike creatures.

Very exciting time overall!

Great compilation!

with the last few sets came a lot of exellent staples for the pauper cmdr format.

DOes this list still get updated?

Quote from Khalar89 »

Great compilation!

with the last few sets came a lot of exellent staples for the pauper cmdr format.

DOes this list still get updated?

Thanks Khalar89.

Yes, there are quite a few absolutely playable cards that have been released in the recent sets,

...and yes, the list still gets updated.

I intend to increase the lists to 50 Creatures/50 Non Creature spells for each color.

Input is both encouraged and welcomed from any and all Pauper EDH players.

Updated lists are up!

War of the Spark
Promises to be a good set for Pauper EDH.

New cards of note:

Ob Nixilis's Cruelty
One of the best Black removal spells to come along in quite some time, Dismember meets Unmake.
Handles 95% of the creatures you'll see in Pauper EDH.

Burning Prophet
Pseudo Prowess and Scry 1 with every non creature spell you cast. Helps red move through their
deck quicker. This is the closest thing red has ever had to an Augur of Bolas in pauper, and in fact
would compliment the Augur very well when ran in tandem.

Other interesting playable cards:

Crush Dissent: Blue Mystic Snake? Four mana is a lot for a non hard counter, but it's not an
entirely bad card. There are better options in Rewind and Foil.

Kaya's Ghostform: This could definetly see some play in the right deck, as it is efficient costing
only a single B mana, but it has stiff competition in Undying Evil and Unearth.

Modern Horizons

New cards of note:

Pondering Mage:
ETB Ponder attatched to a 3/4 wizard, really solid card at common rarity.

Scour all Possibilities
Basically a Preordain with flashback, very nice!

Defile:
Really good removal at common rarity, black's version of Skred.

Mother Bear:
An excellent card, a pseudo flashback abilty that generates solid mid game board presence.

Springbloom Druid:
An ETB speed Harrow on this Elf. Good stuff!!

Murasa Behemoth: Excellent green fatty with trample, easy to make this an 8/8 in the right deck!

Orcish Hellraiser:
An excellent early pressure card that gives a pseudo Shock if/when it hits the graveyard.

Goblin War Party:
Another solid goblin token generator, an entwined stat buff/haste for your creatures is just icing on the cake.

Shenanigans: Reapeatable artifact hate utilizing Dredge! So good.

Ephemerate:
More flicker excellence for white, a Cloudshift with Rebound!

Recruit the Worthy:
Long term token production, white gets its own Lab Rats.

Cave of Temptation: Excellent filter land that buffs a creature, love it!

Throne of Eldraine

With the entire set now spoiled, there are two commons that stand out for Pauper EDH.

Arcane Signet: A truly outstanding mana rock for multicolored decks.
With an estimated pricetag of around 20$, this is the most efficient
mana rock in the entire format.

Witch's Cottage: A nice variation and co-partner of Mortuary Mire.
This will definately see play in mono black decks. These lands are
the closest thing to a Volrath's Stronghold effect in Pauper EDH.
***Counting as a Swamp this card is searchable via Liliana's Shade
and Twisted Abomination, as well as anything with swampcycling
for that matter.

Perhaps less interesting, but true love’s kiss (better than forsake the worldly I think), silverflame ritual (anthem is quite powerfull with all those 1/1 tokens white got)

Foulmire knight - I feel 1/1 deathtouch for 1 is fairly good in multiplayer snd the option for cantripping it pulls it over for me. It is fairly clearly more powerfull than rager (1/1 deathtouch>>2/2 and the difference is worth 1 mana ecspecially when you can pay over 2 turns)
(outside flickering, but I would pick tome raider for that)

Quote from Zombie Shakespeare »

Mythic Sanctuary looks promising.
Land - Island
This enters the battlefield tapped unless you control three or more other islands.
When this enters the battlefield untapped you may put target instant or sorcery card from your graveyard to the top of your library.

Thread.

image via MythicSpoiler.com

Excellent land, more instant/sorcery recursion for blue.
Even without seeing this card in action yet, this land will definately see play and will
be a "staple" in mono blue and multicolored decks that run heavy in blue.
Thanks for the input Zombie Shakespeare, Mystic Sanctuary is in.

Quote from Reaper9889 »

Perhaps less interesting, but true love’s kiss (better than forsake the worldly I think), silverflame ritual (anthem is quite powerfull with all those 1/1 tokens white got)

Foulmire knight - I feel 1/1 deathtouch for 1 is fairly good in multiplayer snd the option for cantripping it pulls it over for me. It is fairly clearly more powerfull than rager (1/1 deathtouch>>2/2 and the difference is worth 1 mana ecspecially when you can pay over 2 turns)
(outside flickering, but I would pick tome raider for that)

True Love's Kiss is superior to Forsake the Worldly, PRO: Draw a card, CON: not as splashable in multicolored decks.

Yeah I was looking at Silverflame Ritual, a very cool pseudo anthem. A freind of mine has a very effective Sigil Captain
deck and this will probably be showing up in it. Travel Preparations for all your creatures and a high likeability of
Vigilance for a turn on top of that when cast with Adamant. I may use this in my Warden of the Eye deck.

Thanks for the input Reaper 9889, even without seeing these cards in action yet, they will get spots on the list.

Ups, I made a mistake: foulmire is uncommon

Quote from Zombie Shakespeare »

I feel like Thrill of Possibility and Merchant of the Vale may be worthwhile in some decks as well. An instant speed Tormenting Voice seems decent. Merchant reminds me a bit of Insolent Neonate. I always wanted to try to make a deck built around Alesha work and both of these seem like good fits in a deck like that.

Agreed, Thrill of Possibility and Merchant of the Vale are both viable and excellent card filtering additions
to mono red, and any multicolor decks that run red. Thanks again for your input Zombie.

***I've also been looking at Queen of Ice. For a common this is an excellent tempo oriented wizard and a good
addition to any Azorius aggro/control decks. She's a one creature Frost Breath on the Sorcery-Adventure side,
and she provides a Wall of Frost effect on the creature side. Easily splashable, excellent synergy with bounce
for reuse of her Rage of Winter Adventure, has a solid power/tougness, and is a really good aggro rattlesnake.
I will definately be adding her to my Ascended Lawmage deck.

Theros Beyond Death: new additions to the Top 50’s.

Daybreak Chimera

Omen of the Sea

Lampad of Death’s Vigil

Updates/Additions to the Pauper Edh Top 50 Lists:

Double Masters, Zendikar Rising, and Commander Legends brings us some excellent downgrades
and some brand new cards.

Everflowing Chalice Excellent fast mana, Trinket Mage searchable. Pauper Sol Ring.

Myr Retriever Excellent artifact recur

Filigree Familiar pseudo Pauper Solemn Simulacrum

Maelstrom Colossus BIG Cascade on a huge body for BIG mono green stompy ramp decks.

Crib Swap The best instant speed spot removal white now has.

Ancestral Blade Excellent, superior to Flayer Husk.

Benevolent Blessing Outstanding Flash Aura, superior to Cho-Manno's Blessing/Ward of Lights.

Archaeomender Blue gets its own Sanctum Gargoyle/Trusty Packbeast. Excellent Artifact Recur.

Eyeblight Massacre Very nice downgrade, Disfigures the entire board.

Fleshbag Marauder It's about time for this one....

Cast Down Perhaps the best instant speed removal black has in Pauper EDH.

Feed the Swarm Awesome, black gets its own evil version of Disenchant/Naturalize.

Fin-Clade Fugitives An absolute beating.

Makeshift Munitions Excellent sac outlet, pauper Goblin Bombardment.

Fiery Cannonade Excellent downgrade, instant speed pauper Pyroclasm, WoW!

Rapacious Dragon Flicker Combo, a red Prosperous Pirates.

Thriving Bluff

Thriving Grove

Thriving Heath

Thriving Isle

Thriving Moor

Kaldheim Definite power creep with this set in the commons department.

Behold the Multiverse Excellent Instant speed card draw card here, Pauper Glimmer of Genius. Can be cast as early as turn 3 with Foretell.

Ravenform Blue gets a Sorcery speed Crib Swap that can also hit an Artifact!

Masked Vandal Is this better than Reclamation Sage?, I think so!

Snow Dual Lands Wow, Pauper dual lands with actual land types. Now my Twisted Abomination's can Swampcycle for an early game Ice Tunnel LoL!

Elderfang Disciple Functional reprint of the mighty Burglar Rat. Recur, bounce and flicker for some multiplayer misery.

Bound in Gold Pretty much a quicker Faith's Fetters, very nice.

Feed the Serpent Wow!, Pauper now has a Vraska's Contempt.

Goldvein Pick One of the best common rarity equipment's to come out in a long time. Pauper Sword of the Animist.

Snakeskin Veil Very Nice! Green get's another premium quality counterspell, Lol!

Demon Bolt Red gets another excellent removal spell. Foretell makes this is an instant speed Flame Slash.

Seize the Spoils Red gets more card draw. Tormenting Voice with a payoff.

Shimmerdrift Vale Choose your color mana fixing. Nice!

Starnheim Courser Excellent cost reduction. Voltron decks will love this flyer, cheaper equipment and aura's.