I’m not sure if it’s ever been mentioned in this thread, but I’m building a Ruhan deck right now and I’ve been eyeing putting in a copy Earnest Fellowship. Obviously it’s a your milage may vary kind of card and has a chance of turning off your removal as well as opponent’s removal, but it makes Ruhan unblockable and untargetable by a vast swath of cards. Obviously a no-go if you’re relying on auras, Thassa’s ability or godsend but I feel it’s worth considering since it gives Ruhan protection from three colors and can give all color protection in conjunction with sword of feast and famine.
Anyone have experience playing with it?
I've had my eye on that card for awhile but have never had the opportunity to play with it. I'd love some feedback on this as well.
Hello, great list. I got some cool ideas for my ruhan list. Have you tried using Hall of the Bandit lord? Thinking of adding it to my list, wondering about your thoughts on it. Also wanted to get your thoughts on Venser, the Sojourner. Vensers' plus one can sometimes be relevant here. Blinking snapcaster, stoneforge, and Sad bot. And obviously the unblockable helps get ruhan in for more damage.
I actually don't like the comes into play tapped clause from Hall; I've had a lot of success with Hanweir Battlements in the last few months though, so I agree that the effect is highly useful!
I think your thoughts on Venser, the Sojourner are really solid. I might have overlooked his utility in the past. Have you been using him to pretty good effect?
Also I really want to try out Sunbird's Invocation but you have a lot more countermagic so it may not be as good for you. Marauding Looter is interesting too for budget decks at least.
Maybe I'm thinking too narrowly in regards to Settle the Wreckage, but I just hate to ramp my opponent. It's like, yeah, I just exiled his army, but now he has the mana for a game ender. In regards to the treasure lands, while they are cute, they're just a tad too durdly for me to warrant their inclusion. Maybe in a more casual meta they would work, and they definitely seem fun, but they just aren't right for this build, in my opinion.
That said, it sounds like you might have a different Ruhan build that you are working on. I'd love to see it! Send it my way!
Key to the City is a card that went completely under my radar during spoiler season, and now that I've been experimenting with it in my Alesha deck I think it absolutely deserves a spot in this build, I just have to figure out what to cut. Good call!
First off, awesome work on this primer. It's all kinds of dope.
Now, I want your thoughts on a few pieces of tech that I've been running in a different deck that you might find useful. Sword of the Animist It should be ran in almost any deck that doesn't run green... Hell, There's a ton of decks that run green that should still run it. You end up pulling ahead more then you'd think. It's an attack trigger, not a damage trigger and you can slap it on anything.
Your assessment was absolutely correct. I replaced Tithe with Sword of the Animist and it is absolutely nuts how much work it puts in.
Hey, great discussions and suggestions so far! I have a tuned up Ruhan deck for duel commander built and I was hoping to find some knowledge on here geared towards duel commander. Any of you have a version of Ruhan for duel?
I don't have a version specific for duel, but I have played with this deck 1v1. As I mentioned in the primer, Ruhan only gets better the fewer opponents there are because he loses the drawback of his randomness, so I think he translates really well to 1v1. If you were going to build him specific for duel, I would recommend taking out some of the biggest creatures and replacing them with more targeted removal, and maybe think about some stax/land destruction effects because it's easy for Ruhan to race opponents due to his low CMC. Also, I would refer to some of the tournament decklists on mtgtop8.com.
First off, awesome work on this primer. It's all kinds of dope.
Now, I want your thoughts on a few pieces of tech that I've been running in a different deck that you might find useful. Sword of the Animist It should be ran in almost any deck that doesn't run green... Hell, There's a ton of decks that run green that should still run it. You end up pulling ahead more then you'd think. It's an attack trigger, not a damage trigger and you can slap it on anything. Godsend and Sword of Kaldra Are the other folk at your LGS running evil nasty Gods? Eldrazi titans? Avycn 1.0? No need to worry anymore! These 2 equipments will send all their icons of worship to the land of myths.:link: Really, with the 5 new Gods that were just released, I've seen enough "God decks" at my LGS to make stuff like this needed lately...
Thank you for the compliment and the suggestions!
I don't know why but I initially chose to ignore Sword of the Animist for use in a 3-color deck (not a ton of basics to grab). I run it in my mono-U Mistform Ultimus deck and it puts in work! I'm glad you brought it up though, because it made me think about it a second time, and I think I will try it out. This coincides with finding Tithe really underwhelming the last few times I've had it. I think the sword will be a suitable replacement.
However, I'm not sure what I could/would cut for Godsend or Sword of Kaldra, or if I wouldn't be better served to just include Council's Judgment. I'll have to think on those for a bit longer.
I think only one card really stands out to me from this set, and that is...
Pull from Tomorrow: This is a really efficient draw spell that, like Blue Sun's Zenith, is instant speed and remains relevant throughout the game because of its X cost. I will be including this when I decide what I'm willing to cut.
February 2017 Updates: Removed Sigarda's Aid, Batterskull, Assemble the Legion, and Supreme Verdict, added Keranos, God of Storms, Devastation Tide, Planar Cleansing, and Suppression Field.
A Sliver Queen Planeswalker deck is now dominating the meta and has been for a few months. As it runs plenty of creature sweepers, I felt it safe to run fewer of them, in a sense letting the planeswalker player deal with creature threats, instead replacing it with broader sweepers to help get rid of a board full of planeswalkers and tokens. The same player also runs a Purphoros, God of the Forge deck, so they help to remove an indestructible enchantment and tokens. The same player also runs a Derevi, Empyrial Tactician deck, so the inclusion of Suppression Field hoses both his planeswalker deck and Derevi's ability. Keranos was included for his card advantage as well as having the ability to redirect his damage directly to a planeswalker (and Derevi for that matter).
Two cards stood out to me this set, both of which would be a fantastic include for anyone looking to begin building this deck, though I will not be including them myself.
Disallow: This is a hot new counter that is fantastically versatile. It will be an autoinclude in a lot of decks, but because it does not operate with Sunforger it will not be included in my build. However, this spell should not be overlooked.
Trophy Mage: This is a budget Stoneforge Mystic. It grabs Sword of X and Y, Sunforger, and Whispersilk Cloak. I haven't decided on whether or not I'll add this because I don't find myself often wanting for more equipment tutors, but it is notable regardless.
A little late on the analysis of new toys, but here goes.
Duelist's Heritage: This card does not specify that your creatures have to be the ones attacking, making it very threatening to your opponents. I plan to experiment with this card in the future, but I need to find something to cut.
Now that I'm looking at the set again, I'm realizing how few the new cards were.
Hey Cool Seedling, I am totally in love with this deck and have been looking for a Jeskai commander for ages and thanks to you I have chosen Ruhan. I am in love with the Sunforger Tool Box idea that you have going on so I am including that in my list for sure, thanks for the awesome idea.
Two things, unless I have miscounted, you currently only have 98 cards in your decklist, one of the missing is Ruhan himself, but the other I am not so sure of what it is. Also, obviously spoilers have only just ended but do you have any pre-thoughts you wish to share in regards to Commander 2016 cards? Off the top of my head I cannot think of any, though it may be that some exist.
As for the Paradoxical Outcome, I would worry that you would be dropping too low in your creature count. Of course if you feel that isn't a relevant factor then I would be inclined to say that Paradoxical Outcome is a strong addition for the reasons you have mentioned. Beyond that, it is only dependent on your maximum handsize and your ability to replay any permanents bounced this way.
Thanks for reading, and thanks for the decklist, I cannot wait to get my own version of it up and running ^w^
I'm really glad you like the deck so much! If you make any changes/new discoveries, definitely let me know!
There are only 98 because I removed Ancestral Vision to experiment with some other cards, but haven't actually found any superior alternatives yet. I should probably just add it back to the list until I find something better. Good catch.
Thanks for your input. I've still been looking around for a copy. When I pick one up and have some play testing to confirm I'll report back.
Insidious Will: I love the versatility on the card; I think it could be useful if someone wanted to include it in their build. However, it's CMC is a bit too prohibitive for me and it doesn't interact with Sunforger, so I'll probably skip this.
Paradoxical Outcome: I really like this card. It's the perfect way to preserve your cards in response to a board wipe, or as an emergency card draw. It may replace Restoration Angel. Besides being able to duplicate ETB, she's largely included to help one of my established creatures evade removal; this aligns with the second function but on a larger scale. I'd be interest in anyone's perspective on this.
I've had my eye on that card for awhile but have never had the opportunity to play with it. I'd love some feedback on this as well.
I actually don't like the comes into play tapped clause from Hall; I've had a lot of success with Hanweir Battlements in the last few months though, so I agree that the effect is highly useful!
I think your thoughts on Venser, the Sojourner are really solid. I might have overlooked his utility in the past. Have you been using him to pretty good effect?
Maybe I'm thinking too narrowly in regards to Settle the Wreckage, but I just hate to ramp my opponent. It's like, yeah, I just exiled his army, but now he has the mana for a game ender. In regards to the treasure lands, while they are cute, they're just a tad too durdly for me to warrant their inclusion. Maybe in a more casual meta they would work, and they definitely seem fun, but they just aren't right for this build, in my opinion.
That said, it sounds like you might have a different Ruhan build that you are working on. I'd love to see it! Send it my way!
Key to the City is a card that went completely under my radar during spoiler season, and now that I've been experimenting with it in my Alesha deck I think it absolutely deserves a spot in this build, I just have to figure out what to cut. Good call!
Your assessment was absolutely correct. I replaced Tithe with Sword of the Animist and it is absolutely nuts how much work it puts in.
Still nothing to add.
There's really nothing to see here.
Hour of Revelation is strictly better than Planar Cleansing and will be replacing it in my deck.
Aside from that, I don't think there's anything notable.
I don't have a version specific for duel, but I have played with this deck 1v1. As I mentioned in the primer, Ruhan only gets better the fewer opponents there are because he loses the drawback of his randomness, so I think he translates really well to 1v1. If you were going to build him specific for duel, I would recommend taking out some of the biggest creatures and replacing them with more targeted removal, and maybe think about some stax/land destruction effects because it's easy for Ruhan to race opponents due to his low CMC. Also, I would refer to some of the tournament decklists on mtgtop8.com.
Thank you for the compliment and the suggestions!
I don't know why but I initially chose to ignore Sword of the Animist for use in a 3-color deck (not a ton of basics to grab). I run it in my mono-U Mistform Ultimus deck and it puts in work! I'm glad you brought it up though, because it made me think about it a second time, and I think I will try it out. This coincides with finding Tithe really underwhelming the last few times I've had it. I think the sword will be a suitable replacement.
However, I'm not sure what I could/would cut for Godsend or Sword of Kaldra, or if I wouldn't be better served to just include Council's Judgment. I'll have to think on those for a bit longer.
I think only one card really stands out to me from this set, and that is...
Pull from Tomorrow: This is a really efficient draw spell that, like Blue Sun's Zenith, is instant speed and remains relevant throughout the game because of its X cost. I will be including this when I decide what I'm willing to cut.
Removed Sigarda's Aid, Batterskull, Assemble the Legion, and Supreme Verdict, added Keranos, God of Storms, Devastation Tide, Planar Cleansing, and Suppression Field.
A Sliver Queen Planeswalker deck is now dominating the meta and has been for a few months. As it runs plenty of creature sweepers, I felt it safe to run fewer of them, in a sense letting the planeswalker player deal with creature threats, instead replacing it with broader sweepers to help get rid of a board full of planeswalkers and tokens. The same player also runs a Purphoros, God of the Forge deck, so they help to remove an indestructible enchantment and tokens. The same player also runs a Derevi, Empyrial Tactician deck, so the inclusion of Suppression Field hoses both his planeswalker deck and Derevi's ability. Keranos was included for his card advantage as well as having the ability to redirect his damage directly to a planeswalker (and Derevi for that matter).
Two cards stood out to me this set, both of which would be a fantastic include for anyone looking to begin building this deck, though I will not be including them myself.
Disallow: This is a hot new counter that is fantastically versatile. It will be an autoinclude in a lot of decks, but because it does not operate with Sunforger it will not be included in my build. However, this spell should not be overlooked.
Trophy Mage: This is a budget Stoneforge Mystic. It grabs Sword of X and Y, Sunforger, and Whispersilk Cloak. I haven't decided on whether or not I'll add this because I don't find myself often wanting for more equipment tutors, but it is notable regardless.
A little late on the analysis of new toys, but here goes.
Duelist's Heritage: This card does not specify that your creatures have to be the ones attacking, making it very threatening to your opponents. I plan to experiment with this card in the future, but I need to find something to cut.
Now that I'm looking at the set again, I'm realizing how few the new cards were.
I'm really glad you like the deck so much! If you make any changes/new discoveries, definitely let me know!
There are only 98 because I removed Ancestral Vision to experiment with some other cards, but haven't actually found any superior alternatives yet. I should probably just add it back to the list until I find something better. Good catch.
Thanks for your input. I've still been looking around for a copy. When I pick one up and have some play testing to confirm I'll report back.
Insidious Will: I love the versatility on the card; I think it could be useful if someone wanted to include it in their build. However, it's CMC is a bit too prohibitive for me and it doesn't interact with Sunforger, so I'll probably skip this.
Paradoxical Outcome: I really like this card. It's the perfect way to preserve your cards in response to a board wipe, or as an emergency card draw. It may replace Restoration Angel. Besides being able to duplicate ETB, she's largely included to help one of my established creatures evade removal; this aligns with the second function but on a larger scale. I'd be interest in anyone's perspective on this.