For the first time, I am considering making two different decks that feature the same commander. The commander in question is Kess, Dissident Mage. Kess is an extremely interesting and versatile commander who can potentially be built around in a lot of different ways. I am almost finished making a Kess deck which is intended to keep opponents from keeping many creatures on the board while winning with a few big threats, but I am also intrigued by the idea of building a separate Kess deck intended to win via commander damage, using instants and sorceries to pump her up to lethal damage. The two decks would both make use of her fairly unique ability, but would play very differently.
Have any of you ever run multiple decks using the same commander, and if so, which commanders, and why?
I had a Hazezon enchantress deck that became just ramp. I always wanted enchantress, and he was the wincon...but eventually I thought it worked better if I focused more on him.
Realizing it was too slow i turned to a lot of Clone variants and a good stuff mix that didn't synergize at all from Altar of the Brood to Slithermuse.
Finally coming to my senses - and realizing there's a lot of noncreature stuff to flicker, too - i've gotten to my first decent controlish built. Reflector Mage, Lavinia of the Tenth, Exclusion Ritual, ... i went all out Azorius Fun Police. It worked well, but lacked ways to finish out the game.
As it turned stale, i was looking for win cons, while disliking infinites. Finally i turned to token flooding the board with Elspeth, Sun's Champion and friends, escalating things with Cathars' Crusade/Panharmonicon and turning tokens into CA via Coastal Piracy/Bident of Thassa. I've been tweaking that idea and its control shell ever since then and it's both fun to maneuver, strong and bearable for my opponents.
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To this day, whenever i have an urge to sift through possibly overlooked cards for Brago, King Eternal, i'm considering other/additional builds. I just keep on stumbling over ideas that could be fun to build around.
Until now i am happy to run a few gems like Wu Spy when i find them. But chances are, the day will come and i will overturn my whole deck concept and move on.
Realizing it was too slow i turned to a lot of Clone variants and a good stuff mix that didn't synergize at all from Altar of the Brood to Slithermuse.
Finally coming to my senses - and realizing there's a lot of noncreature stuff to flicker, too - i've gotten to my first decent controlish built. Reflector Mage, Lavinia of the Tenth, Exclusion Ritual, ... i went all out Azorius Fun Police. It worked well, but lacked ways to finish out the game.
As it turned stale, i was looking for win cons, while disliking infinites. Finally i turned to token flooding the board with Elspeth, Sun's Champion and friends, escalating things with Cathars' Crusade/Panharmonicon and turning tokens into CA via Coastal Piracy/Bident of Thassa. I've been tweaking that idea and its control shell ever since then and it's both fun to maneuver, strong and bearable for my opponents.
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To this day, whenever i have an urge to sift through possibly overlooked cards for Brago, King Eternal, i'm considering other/additional builds. I just keep on stumbling over ideas that could be fun to build around.
Until now i am happy to run a few gems like Wu Spy when i find them. But chances are, the day will come and i will overturn my whole deck concept and move on.
i think he means two decks at the same time using the same commander. Like derevi aggro and derevi control. One guy at my lgs has both derevi decks and can use either one.
I have made an attempt to do this in the past, but instead opted to build different commanders.
i think he means two decks at the same time using the same commander. Like derevi aggro and derevi control. One guy at my lgs has both derevi decks and can use either one.
I have made an attempt to do this in the past, but instead opted to build different commanders.
Yeah, i got that. I might've been a bit vage.
I could totally see me building several Brago, King Eternal decks. 'til now i rather rebuilt my deck instead of doing that.
Usually i'm moving from one new deck project to the next. But who knows, if i get to a point where i'm out of Commanders i'd like to build, i will go back to him.
I have had twin decks for Riku of two Reflections, built around each half of his ability to copy for the better part of four years. One of them is built around warp world/genesis wave, while the other wins with eye of the storm and epic experiment. The overall concepts are the same: ramp -> exploded and copy it, but the effect in game is different.
I'd thought about this with Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim. My main list is a hybrid of reanimator and combo, but BW Clerics have been one of my favorite pet archetypes since Onslaught Block. If I did a Clerics deck, she'd probably be at the helm.
This is an interesting idea. I like the concept just for the fact that your playgroup won't know deck they are playing against as soon as you show your commander. This could be especially effective when you have a powerful deck that your playgroup knows how to target just to throw them off. You wouldn't even need to limit yourself to two decks really. For me, I have too many commanders I already want to build to ever do this.
I have two Karador, Ghost Chieftain decks. It was my first commander, and I always loved it, but now it is a competitive deck and I don't play it very often (because I dislike competitive EDH). So, I built a second Karador deck, and to keep from being too good I made it a Spirit-Tribal deck with no Stax effects or Grave pacts. I sac my creatures for value and bring them back to slowly overwhelm the board and win via combat damage.
It's a fun deck, although Abzan spirits has bad support.
I am a firm believer in having multiple decks to be able to sit down with any type of meta, and this was a good way for me to keep playing Karador.
I have no plans of doing this with any of my other commanders.
I can't imagine doing this with very many commanders, honestly. Riku, as someone mentioned, perhaps (though my own Riku deck capitalizes on both parts of his ability). Kess is an exception, at least for me. Her ability is so open-ended, you could build her in any number of ways. Spellslinger card advantage? Yep. Aggro? Sure! Repeating theft/Threaten effects to kill opponents with their own stuff? Oh, yeah! Token swarm? Sure, she can do that, too.
I also have two Karador, Ghost Chieftain decks as he is a very flexible buildaround dude. My first is a grindy dredge list with lots of utility creatures, ramp, and big battlecruiser finishers. This one fairly quickly outstripped the rest of my playgroup so it only gets broken out from time to time when people want to test out their newer decks against the table's boogeyman.
The second is an infinitely casual enchantress deck focused, in part, on voltroning up Karador with Bestow creatures since he can cast them from the yard. Nighthowler is a pet card that is the secret, true commander of the deck.
I have built multiple decks of each Numot, the Devastator and Intet, the Dreamer, but at that point they were the only options for generals in those colors. So, I imagine that this practice is pretty common for those who played any EDH before the 2011 products. Still, I never quite warmed to Zedruu or Numot in Jeskai, and had my own issues with Shu Yun and Narset also. So, it wasn’t until the partners came out that my choices for Jeskai started to make more sense for each build.
It makes sense to have multiple decks with Kess, Dissident Mage. She’s very robust and doesn’t demand a lot of support in any particular direction. I actually built out a reanimator deck starting with Mairsil, the Pretender, and then ended up building the same concept with Kess and actually considered it an improvement. The deck still consistently builds up a solid Mairsil.
Kess is basically the spell version of Karador, Ghost Chieftain, so no surprise that others are using him in multiple builds also. Riku of Two Reflections also, he seems like he would do whatever you’d want to do with him. His spell copying ability seems similar to Kess’, more mana intensive and timing restricted but able to still repeatedly use the graveyard.
But now with the options that we have for each set of colors, I am thinking a single general would be picked to support multiple builds only if it’s both powerful and straightforward. Straightforward obviously because too specific and you would just want one deck, but powerful also because you are more likely to go for a different commander otherwise if you change concept.
Others that players might use to develop multiple decks – Zur, the Enchanter, Derevi, Empyrial Tactician, Prossh, Skyraider of Kher, Sharuum the Hegemon, Animar, Soul of Elements. I think the queen of this is Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice. The Atraxa players I play with, you never know what’s going to be in their deck this time. And EDHrec seems to agree, there are a few always-run cards in Atraxa and a few strategies like infect that are hard to support elsewhere, but generally you don’t know what you’re going to get in a Bant + Black deck where the general is nearly always the best thing to do with 4 mana regardless of what you drew.
Zirilan mostly to try out different variations - recurring dragons, not recurring dragons, blinking dragons, etc.
Phelddagrif basically to refine my understanding of the deck with each iteration. Most of the core of control pieces has stayed fairly similar, but my decisions on value and late-game plans have changed pretty dramatically.
I think the queen of this is Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice. The Atraxa players I play with, you never know what’s going to be in their deck this time. And EDHrec seems to agree, there are a few always-run cards in Atraxa and a few strategies like infect that are hard to support elsewhere, but generally you don’t know what you’re going to get in a Bant + Black deck where the general is nearly always the best thing to do with 4 mana regardless of what you drew.
Good call on Atraxa. I have seen a lot of varieties of Atraxa deck, in addition to the obvious infect and superfriends versions, and there seems to be a virtually limitless variety of cards that interact well with her.
Animar also. It seems you can build Animar in any number of ways, and about the hardest thing to do with Animar is to build a deck that isn't completely broken.
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Have any of you ever run multiple decks using the same commander, and if so, which commanders, and why?
(U/B)(U/B)(U/B) JUMP IN THE LINE, ROCK YOUR BODY IN TIME
(R/W)(R/W)(R/W) RISING FROM THE NEON GLOOM, SHINING LIKE A CRAZY MOON
(U/R)(R/G)(G/U) STEALIN' WHEN I SHOULD HAVE BEEN BUYIN'
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When Conspiracy was released in 2014, it was my third commander deck and i ran nothing but bombs on a stick. Sphinx of Uthuun, Chancellor of the Spires, Diluvian Primordial, Great Whale, Luminate Primordial, Myr Battlesphere, ... you get the idea. It was fun, slow and the avg. CMC was abysmal.
Realizing it was too slow i turned to a lot of Clone variants and a good stuff mix that didn't synergize at all from Altar of the Brood to Slithermuse.
Finally coming to my senses - and realizing there's a lot of noncreature stuff to flicker, too - i've gotten to my first decent controlish built. Reflector Mage, Lavinia of the Tenth, Exclusion Ritual, ... i went all out Azorius Fun Police. It worked well, but lacked ways to finish out the game.
As it turned stale, i was looking for win cons, while disliking infinites. Finally i turned to token flooding the board with Elspeth, Sun's Champion and friends, escalating things with Cathars' Crusade/Panharmonicon and turning tokens into CA via Coastal Piracy/Bident of Thassa. I've been tweaking that idea and its control shell ever since then and it's both fun to maneuver, strong and bearable for my opponents.
__________________________________________________
To this day, whenever i have an urge to sift through possibly overlooked cards for Brago, King Eternal, i'm considering other/additional builds. I just keep on stumbling over ideas that could be fun to build around.
Tokens + Fatties + Proteus Staff
Enchantress with Cloudform/Lightform and powerful auras for my main guy
Theft with Vedalken Plotter, Treachery, Control Magic and Annex
...
Until now i am happy to run a few gems like Wu Spy when i find them. But chances are, the day will come and i will overturn my whole deck concept and move on.
I have made an attempt to do this in the past, but instead opted to build different commanders.
UB Vela the Night-Clad BUDecklist
WBG Ghave, Guru of Spores GBW
WUBRGThe Ur-DragonWUBRGDecklist
I could totally see me building several Brago, King Eternal decks. 'til now i rather rebuilt my deck instead of doing that.
Usually i'm moving from one new deck project to the next. But who knows, if i get to a point where i'm out of Commanders i'd like to build, i will go back to him.
Kemba | Linvala | Talrand | Geth | Krenko | Zada | Patron of the Orochi | Medomai | Athreos | Gisela | Trostani | Nin | Silumgar | Kaervek | Jarad | Xenagos | Sydri | Narset | Roon | Zurgo | Ghave | Marath | Uril | Tasigur | Animar | Riku | Riku | Sek'Kuar | Cromat
(Also known as Xenphire)
It's a fun deck, although Abzan spirits has bad support.
I am a firm believer in having multiple decks to be able to sit down with any type of meta, and this was a good way for me to keep playing Karador.
I have no plans of doing this with any of my other commanders.
8.RG Green Devotion Ramp/Combo 9.UR Draw Triggers 10.WUR Group stalling 11.WUR Voltron Spellslinger 12.WB Sacrificial Shenanigans
13.BR Creatureless Panharmonicon 14.BR Pingers and Eldrazi 15.URG Untapped Cascading
16.Reyhan, last of the Abzan's WUBG +1/+1 Counter Craziness 17.WUBRG Dragons aka Why did I make this?
Building: The Gitrog Monster lands, Glissa the Traitor stax, Muldrotha, the Gravetide Planeswalker Combo, Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix + Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa Clues, and Tribal Scarecrow Planeswalkers
The second is an infinitely casual enchantress deck focused, in part, on voltroning up Karador with Bestow creatures since he can cast them from the yard.
Nighthowler is a pet card that is the secret, true commander of the deck.
It makes sense to have multiple decks with Kess, Dissident Mage. She’s very robust and doesn’t demand a lot of support in any particular direction. I actually built out a reanimator deck starting with Mairsil, the Pretender, and then ended up building the same concept with Kess and actually considered it an improvement. The deck still consistently builds up a solid Mairsil.
Kess is basically the spell version of Karador, Ghost Chieftain, so no surprise that others are using him in multiple builds also. Riku of Two Reflections also, he seems like he would do whatever you’d want to do with him. His spell copying ability seems similar to Kess’, more mana intensive and timing restricted but able to still repeatedly use the graveyard.
But now with the options that we have for each set of colors, I am thinking a single general would be picked to support multiple builds only if it’s both powerful and straightforward. Straightforward obviously because too specific and you would just want one deck, but powerful also because you are more likely to go for a different commander otherwise if you change concept.
Others that players might use to develop multiple decks – Zur, the Enchanter, Derevi, Empyrial Tactician, Prossh, Skyraider of Kher, Sharuum the Hegemon, Animar, Soul of Elements. I think the queen of this is Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice. The Atraxa players I play with, you never know what’s going to be in their deck this time. And EDHrec seems to agree, there are a few always-run cards in Atraxa and a few strategies like infect that are hard to support elsewhere, but generally you don’t know what you’re going to get in a Bant + Black deck where the general is nearly always the best thing to do with 4 mana regardless of what you drew.
Zirilan mostly to try out different variations - recurring dragons, not recurring dragons, blinking dragons, etc.
Phelddagrif basically to refine my understanding of the deck with each iteration. Most of the core of control pieces has stayed fairly similar, but my decisions on value and late-game plans have changed pretty dramatically.
EDH Primers
Phelddagrif - Zirilan
EDH
Thrasios+Bruse - Pang - Sasaya - Wydwen - Feather - Rona - Toshiro - Sylvia+Khorvath - Geth - QMarchesa - Firesong - Athreos - Arixmethes - Isperia - Etali - Silas+Sidar - Saskia - Virtus+Gorm - Kynaios - Naban - Aryel - Mizzix - Kazuul - Tymna+Kraum - Sidar+Tymna - Ayli - Gwendlyn - Phelddagrif 4 - Liliana - Kaervek - Phelddagrif 3 - Mairsil - Scarab - Child - Phenax - Shirei - Thada - Depala - Circu - Kytheon - GrenzoHR - Phelddagrif - Reyhan+Kraum - Toshiro - Varolz - Nin - Ojutai - Tasigur - Zedruu - Uril - Edric - Wort - Zurgo - Nahiri - Grenzo - Kozilek - Yisan - Ink-Treader - Yisan - Brago - Sidisi - Toshiro - Alexi - Sygg - Brimaz - Sek'Kuar - Marchesa - Vish Kal - Iroas - Phelddagrif - Ephara - Derevi - Glissa - Wanderer - Saffi - Melek - Xiahou Dun - Lazav - Lin Sivvi - Zirilan - Glissa
PDH - Drake - Graverobber - Izzet GM - Tallowisp - Symbiote Brawl - Feather - Ugin - Jace - Scarab - Angrath - Vraska - Kumena Oathbreaker - Wrenn&6
Good call on Atraxa. I have seen a lot of varieties of Atraxa deck, in addition to the obvious infect and superfriends versions, and there seems to be a virtually limitless variety of cards that interact well with her.
Animar also. It seems you can build Animar in any number of ways, and about the hardest thing to do with Animar is to build a deck that isn't completely broken.