Pretty well started as a dare. What's the worst creature type in magic that you could build a compete tribal EDH deck out of? And can you make it PLAYABLE?
Now, don't get me wrong, there are some excellent elephants available. And then there's the Endangered Armodon. Loxodon Anchorite? The Peacekeeper? Ventara, Bull, or Wild Elephant? They're not exactly "choice" EDH picks...
But as YouTube and the Internet have proven, SOMEONE had to do it!
The HOW:
No real combos to speak of, but a great deal of synergy keeps this deck rolling and the giggles coming:
My playgroup loves to see this deck in any multi, EDH or otherwise. It means several things: I won't be playing some insane table-smashing denial monster, that I'll probably lose (and badly), and that we can all have a few laughs at the expense of the packyderms.
Examples?
Tapping a Power Matrix will always yield a sing-song round of "Well I be-done seen about ev-er-y thing... When I see... An elephant... FLY!!"
Painfully fluorescent pink sleeves. How could it not?
Or my +1/+1 counters: stale, bright orange "Circus Peanuts" candy or Peanut M&M's (perfect counters for EDH and it's long games with regular board-wipes).
Playing Southern Elephant elicits a "Oh HEY! Got some boiled peanuts, ya'll want some?"
See Family Guy reference below:
And lets not kid ourselves; An active Kazandu Tuskcaller with Quest for Renewal? Yes, it's hilarious in the only format it would ever last, and it's very likely I own 99% of the elephant tokens pulled at our local game store via donation
The Pics:
This is generally the more fun of my EDH decks, and the most "casual" one I can wrap my brain around when deck building. I did, in all fairness, give it the full EDH treatment: Anything that has been printed as a first run and is available as a foil typically is (about 80%), and everything else is black-bordered (look the other way, Sol Ring and Ivory Tower, LOOK AWAY). All told, the deck has run me maybe $20 in purchased cards, and everywhere I go people ask if I'm the "elephant guy" and offer me foil elephants, even the foil Kazandu Tuskcaller, Terastodon, and Mammoth Umbra on night #1 of the prerelease drafts (Thanks Ben, Shawn!)
edit September '12: Sheldon Menery has written an article and featured my deck at StarCity Games! Thanks Sheldon!
This is amazing. I don't even know if I should critique this at all, about the only thing that I would do differently is tie in a little more drawing power and some tribal pump. Like Harmonize and Mind's Eye, and then maybe Coat of Arms and Door of Destinies.
This is amazing. I don't even know if I should critique this at all, about the only thing that I would do differently is tie in a little more drawing power and some tribal pump. Like Harmonize and Mind's Eye, and then maybe Coat of Arms and Door of Destinies.
It looks gorgeous, you did a really good job.
Saire, thank you! It was fun to build, but the reactions and smiles it gains are far and away the most rewarding.
Card draw is definitely a problem. Harmonize had never occured to me, and I bet I could swing an "elephants trumpeting could be harmonic" angle... Mind's Eye as well. The closest I can get otherwise is maybe a Slate of Ancestry or Collective Unconscious. Naturally Soul's Majesty features a cat. And Regal Force is a FROG? Dare to dream...
Coat of Arms has earned a permanent place of dishonor amongst our good-sized play group. Really, anything that could be considered an "auto-in" for tribal decks is frowned on. If only a printing was available that I could jokingly tie the art to elephants somehow, I'd be all over it.
Door of Destinies - I love this card, and it's two different arts. It's quite a force in my Marrow-Gnawer deck, but at the table, I have to make an argument for my packyderms fitting through that door, and I never get far with that.
Tribal Unity - Similar to the two above, and Beastmaster Ascension as well. CATS! BLASTED CATS!
Tribal Forcemage - I ran Elvish Herder and then this for the longest time, until there were enough printed elephants to fill out a deck. When I came across a foil Brawn (he's elephant enough, huzzah!) I removed the last of any creatures not directly Elephant related. Even Brass Herald takes a ton of flack (Don't try to argue that the ram's horn might possibly be a tusk. Especially if you're married to a D.V.M.)
Kamahl, Fist of Krosa - I would kill to be able to use Kamahl here, eating that spare Gaea's Cradle mana all day long. Theme and creature type, as well as what I suspect are unspoken cries of "Then the deck would be REALLY good!" force him out though (and Kamahl was a "bear" guy in the books and art). In this vein, though, I'm really looking forward to the partially spoiled M11 Overrun refresh...
Garruk Wildspeaker - I can't tell you how much I hate this guy. You make 3/3s and they AREN'T elephants? Beasts are BIGGER! Wolves are SMALLER! Everytime I open one, or see it across the table, it gets an INSTANT errata check. Maybe THIS one was printed correctly? Elephants? No? Screw you, Garruk!
Regrowth/Restock > Recollect - This is absolutely true. But elephants never forget (they can always "recollect!")
It's cheesy on purpose!
I absolutely welcome all comments and suggestions; even if it means I have to share my corny "tribal-nazi" answers
Only things I can think of are Eladamri's Call, Worldly Tutor, and maybe Congregation at Dawn so you can get your best guys and POSSIBLY be a threat, which is sure to bring laughs. Don't anger the elephants, bro!
Maybe Decree of Savagery instead of Vitalizing Wind? It doesn't pump quite as much, but the Decree's pumping is permanent. Also flavor shouldn't be an issue for switching them, since neither card depicts elephants.
Edit: Also, Elfhame Palace and Graypelt Refuge seem like direct upgrades to the Vividlands. I can understand not wanting ELFhame, but the Refuge seems like a perfect fit.
First: YOU ARE FANTASTIC. this is what edh is all about!
Second: I think it would be hilarious to get some good alternate art done to force some of the more powerful/un-flavorful cards to be more flavorful. Also, you should definitely make Tolsimir Wolfblood ride an elephant haha
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
Cockatrice Alias: Knullset
My Current EDH Decks WUBRG Lorwyn Block Horde of Notions WUBRG UG Momir Vig Glimpse Combo UG UW "Rasputin Dreamcrusher" Control UW
As someone who likes animal-themed tribal, I approve. I made a Bear tribal deck for constructed, and all my friends LOVED it. At first, it was just my "Animal Companions" deck. Featured Gorilla Chieftains & Gorilla Berserkers, Grizzly Bears, Balduvian BearsSkyshroud Elf, and of course, Ancient Silverback for big beef. Later the deck just became all about Bears, and every time I casted a Bear, I would look to the left, then the right and exclaim "BEAR POWER!" I even ran a single Coat of Arms(because an army of Bears charging at you with a Coat behind them is epic) and Bonesplitters because an angry bear with a rusty axe is more frightening than just an angry bear >_>. Overrun is just an obvious auto-include.
So kudos, my hat goes off to you and your wacky animal tribal deck. One thing I'm thinking you could justify adding, Riptide Replicator. Artificial elephants FTW!
You guys are great; I never expected so much attention, praise, or feedback on this deck
On those suggestions, I love Eladamri's Call, and I imagine it wouldn't be hard to get the art professionally altered for an elephant...
Worldly Tutor and the other "top of deck" tutors have always gotten me milled immediately, regardless of what I chose. The reasoning from most opponents (and it makes sense) is that if there were something good enough for me to tutor for, they likely don't want me to have it. My two counter-points to this are the Defense of the Heart and Chord of Calling, both of which have to be countered before I announce my targets (Why hello there, free Terastodon and Brass Herald!). Congregation at Dawn suffers the same anti-EDH drawback, too.
Elfhame Palace doesn't make the cut for the reasons you mention, but Graypelt Refuge is brilliant! Shopping for a foil version of it and the Mistveil Plains that was suggested via AIM right now, which fits very well with the Krosan Verge and Grasslands fetch abilities : )
Calprinicus, you've got a good eye for catching the sledge-only equipment! If I had pictured each of the forests, I wonder if you'd have caught that they all have "tusking" damage to their trunks and bark? Aren't all EDH players at least a LITTLE OCD?
3drinks, if you're checking back in, I've got a strict tribal bear deck on the collection-desk that I can't seem to get off the ground, would you like a look?
How about vigor? He looks like an elephant who had his trunk cut off, and he's really p.o'd about it. I thought it was an elephant the first time I saw the art. Vigor the trunkless elephant.......
Awesome deck, but now we need to petition Wizards for a legendary GW elephant for a better general. I love the fun flavor of this, and who's gonna complain about getting stomped by elephants?
How about vigor? He looks like an elephant who had his trunk cut off, and he's really p.o'd about it. I thought it was an elephant the first time I saw the art. Vigor the trunkless elephant.......
Be careful what you wish for, FunkyDragon. We no sooner request a :symw::symg: legendary elephant than they print a 4/4 Elephant Construct artifact creature with :symr:,:symb:, and activated abilities in Scars of Mirrodin. I am hopeful for M11 and Scars, though. Base sets almost always have elephants, and Mirrodin did have the Loxodons (even though the M:TG lore guys tell me the whole plane was wiped clear at the end of Fifth Dawn).
And tinkering with the deck this afternoon, I notice not many cards are suggested for removal, but dozens of great additions are posted. Ouch >.<
An elephant general would mean I could go for the general-damage kill, and add:
Wow, this blew me away! I honestly didn't think there were enough Elephants to make an EDH deck irregardless of quality. It's had me thinking of other "real" animal themes since yesterday.
Really, really cool!
There a couple of typos that mean that the links don't work. If you want to change them in your deck list, here's the ones I found:
Wow, this blew me away! I honestly didn't think there were enough Elephants to make an EDH deck irregardless of quality. It's had me thinking of other "real" animal themes since yesterday.
Really, really cool!
There a couple of typos that mean that the links don't work. If you want to change them in your deck list, here's the ones I found:
Thanks, Zimagic. I'm still getting the hang of the CARD and DECK tags, and spent more time adding them manually that I should have spent spell checking
3drinks, if you're checking back in, I've got a strict tribal bear deck on the collection-desk that I can't seem to get off the ground, would you like a look?
Sure, I <3 me some bears! Also, those Trailblazer's Boots are soooooooooooo win!
Mirror Entity is an elephant. And a good one at that
Find for me a tusk, trunk, and/or massive flappy ear (I see those! MORE massive!) in the art and I'll be all over it! Otherwise, changelings are cheating for tribal decks : )
I've thought about building an Elephant EDH deck for a while but I've put it off since I have two other tribal EDH decks and a GW Tokens deck already. I really like what you've done with the deck.
See what I did there? Got a little knife there, don't he?
Stampy's Revenge!
1 Tolsimir Wolfblood
//Elephants (37):
1 Bull Elephant
1 Crazed Armodon
1 Endangered Armodon
1 Ghalma's Warden
1 Iron Tusk Elephant
1 Loxodon Anchorite
1 Loxodon Convert
1 Loxodon Gatekeeper
1 Loxodon Hierarch
1 Loxodon Mender
1 Loxodon Mystic
1 Loxodon Partisan
1 Loxodon Peacekeeper
1 Loxodon Punisher
1 Loxodon Smiter
1 Loxodon Stalwart
1 Loxodon Wayfarer
1 Metamorphic Wurm
1 Mosstodon
1 Noble Elephant
1 Prized Elephant
1 Rabid Elephant
1 Rampant Elephant
1 Rogue Elephant
1 Selesnya Sentry
1 Siege Mastodon
1 Southern Elephant
1 Spelltithe Enforcer
1 Terastodon
1 Trained Armodon
1 Trumpeting Armodon
1 Vintara Elephant
1 War Elephant
1 War Mammoth
1 Wild Elephant
1 Wild Mammoth
1 Woolly Mammoths
1 Kazandu Tuskcaller
1 Brawn
//Artifacts (6):
1 Sol Ring
1 Power Matrix
1 Dead-Iron Sledge
1 Behemoth Sledge
1 Slate of Ancestry
1 Loxodon Warhammer
//Requisite Elephant Flavor (3):
1 Mammoth Umbra
1 Call of the Herd
1 Elephant Guide
//Handy Bits (14):
1 Aura Shards
1 Defense of the Heart
1 Glare of Subdual
1 Lurking Predators
1 Marshal's Anthem
1 Mirari's Wake
1 Quest for Renewal
1 True Conviction
1 Chord of Calling
1 Cultivate (FNM foil)
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Overwhelming Stampede (foil)
1 Ranger's Path (foil)
1 Skyshroud Claim
//Land (37):
1 Arctic Flats (foil)
1 Elephant Graveyard
1 Graypelt Refuge (foil)
1 Krosan Verge
1 Windbrisk Heights (foil)
1 Mosswort Bridge (foil)
1 Selesnya Guildgate (foil)
1 Selesnya Sanctuary (foil)
1 Stirring Wildwood (foil)
1 Sungrass Prairie
1 Sunpetal Grove (foil)
1 Wooded Bastion
1 Secluded Steppe
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Gavony Township (foil)
2 Snow-Covered Plains (Ice Age, Coldsnap foil)
2 Snow-Covered Forest (Ice Age, Coldsnap foil)
9 Plains (Unglued, Unhinged, Zendikar)
9 Forest (Unglued, Unhinged, Zendikar)
Pretty well started as a dare. What's the worst creature type in magic that you could build a compete tribal EDH deck out of? And can you make it PLAYABLE?
Now, don't get me wrong, there are some excellent elephants available. And then there's the Endangered Armodon. Loxodon Anchorite? The Peacekeeper? Ventara, Bull, or Wild Elephant? They're not exactly "choice" EDH picks...
But as YouTube and the Internet have proven, SOMEONE had to do it!
No real combos to speak of, but a great deal of synergy keeps this deck rolling and the giggles coming:
Glare of Subdual and Quest for Renewal
Kazandu Tuskcaller and Quest for Renewal
Mosswort Bridge and Overrun or Vitalizing Wind
Rampant Elephant/Trumpeting Armodon and Dead-Iron Sledge
Dead-Iron Sledge and Elephant Graveyard/Yavimaya Hollow
My playgroup loves to see this deck in any multi, EDH or otherwise. It means several things: I won't be playing some insane table-smashing denial monster, that I'll probably lose (and badly), and that we can all have a few laughs at the expense of the packyderms.
Examples?
Tapping a Power Matrix will always yield a sing-song round of "Well I be-done seen about ev-er-y thing... When I see... An elephant... FLY!!"
Painfully fluorescent pink sleeves. How could it not?
Or my +1/+1 counters: stale, bright orange "Circus Peanuts" candy or Peanut M&M's (perfect counters for EDH and it's long games with regular board-wipes).
Playing Southern Elephant elicits a "Oh HEY! Got some boiled peanuts, ya'll want some?"
See Family Guy reference below:
edit September '12: Sheldon Menery has written an article and featured my deck at StarCity Games! Thanks Sheldon!
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
It looks gorgeous, you did a really good job.
Edit: Also, Regrowth/Restock > Recollect
However, all three are good too.
Driving Stick with Isochron Scepter.
Trinkets and Treasure: An Artificer's Toolbox.
Proc Drops: Playing with One Drops.
Deck Primer: Toshiro Umezawa
Saire, thank you! It was fun to build, but the reactions and smiles it gains are far and away the most rewarding.
Card draw is definitely a problem. Harmonize had never occured to me, and I bet I could swing an "elephants trumpeting could be harmonic" angle... Mind's Eye as well. The closest I can get otherwise is maybe a Slate of Ancestry or Collective Unconscious. Naturally Soul's Majesty features a cat. And Regal Force is a FROG? Dare to dream...
Coat of Arms has earned a permanent place of dishonor amongst our good-sized play group. Really, anything that could be considered an "auto-in" for tribal decks is frowned on. If only a printing was available that I could jokingly tie the art to elephants somehow, I'd be all over it.
Door of Destinies - I love this card, and it's two different arts. It's quite a force in my Marrow-Gnawer deck, but at the table, I have to make an argument for my packyderms fitting through that door, and I never get far with that.
Tribal Unity - Similar to the two above, and Beastmaster Ascension as well. CATS! BLASTED CATS!
Tribal Forcemage - I ran Elvish Herder and then this for the longest time, until there were enough printed elephants to fill out a deck. When I came across a foil Brawn (he's elephant enough, huzzah!) I removed the last of any creatures not directly Elephant related. Even Brass Herald takes a ton of flack (Don't try to argue that the ram's horn might possibly be a tusk. Especially if you're married to a D.V.M.)
Kamahl, Fist of Krosa - I would kill to be able to use Kamahl here, eating that spare Gaea's Cradle mana all day long. Theme and creature type, as well as what I suspect are unspoken cries of "Then the deck would be REALLY good!" force him out though (and Kamahl was a "bear" guy in the books and art). In this vein, though, I'm really looking forward to the partially spoiled M11 Overrun refresh...
Garruk Wildspeaker - I can't tell you how much I hate this guy. You make 3/3s and they AREN'T elephants? Beasts are BIGGER! Wolves are SMALLER! Everytime I open one, or see it across the table, it gets an INSTANT errata check. Maybe THIS one was printed correctly? Elephants? No? Screw you, Garruk!
Regrowth/Restock > Recollect - This is absolutely true. But elephants never forget (they can always "recollect!")
It's cheesy on purpose!
I absolutely welcome all comments and suggestions; even if it means I have to share my corny "tribal-nazi" answers
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
R Grenzo, Havoc Raiser
BG Varolz, the scar-striped
Only things I can think of are Eladamri's Call, Worldly Tutor, and maybe Congregation at Dawn so you can get your best guys and POSSIBLY be a threat, which is sure to bring laughs. Don't anger the elephants, bro!
Edit: Also, Elfhame Palace and Graypelt Refuge seem like direct upgrades to the Vivid lands. I can understand not wanting ELFhame, but the Refuge seems like a perfect fit.
Second: I think it would be hilarious to get some good alternate art done to force some of the more powerful/un-flavorful cards to be more flavorful. Also, you should definitely make Tolsimir Wolfblood ride an elephant
My Current EDH Decks
WUBRG Lorwyn Block Horde of Notions WUBRG
UG Momir Vig Glimpse Combo UG
UW "Rasputin Dreamcrusher" Control UW
So kudos, my hat goes off to you and your wacky animal tribal deck. One thing I'm thinking you could justify adding, Riptide Replicator. Artificial elephants FTW!
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
On those suggestions, I love Eladamri's Call, and I imagine it wouldn't be hard to get the art professionally altered for an elephant...
Worldly Tutor and the other "top of deck" tutors have always gotten me milled immediately, regardless of what I chose. The reasoning from most opponents (and it makes sense) is that if there were something good enough for me to tutor for, they likely don't want me to have it. My two counter-points to this are the Defense of the Heart and Chord of Calling, both of which have to be countered before I announce my targets (Why hello there, free Terastodon and Brass Herald!). Congregation at Dawn suffers the same anti-EDH drawback, too.
Decree of Savagery instead of Vitalizing Wind? I'm opting for both! Thanks for the suggestion, I'd somehow missed it >.<
Elfhame Palace doesn't make the cut for the reasons you mention, but Graypelt Refuge is brilliant! Shopping for a foil version of it and the Mistveil Plains that was suggested via AIM right now, which fits very well with the Krosan Verge and Grasslands fetch abilities : )
3drinks, if you're checking back in, I've got a strict tribal bear deck on the collection-desk that I can't seem to get off the ground, would you like a look?
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
Um... it's a yak with a turtle shell.
2023 Average Peasant Cube|and Discussion
Because I have more decks than fit in a signature
Useful Resources:
MTGSalvation tags
EDHREC
ManabaseCrafter
And tinkering with the deck this afternoon, I notice not many cards are suggested for removal, but dozens of great additions are posted. Ouch >.<
An elephant general would mean I could go for the general-damage kill, and add:
Real Goretex brand elephant boots!
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
That's damned funny.....
Driving Stick with Isochron Scepter.
Trinkets and Treasure: An Artificer's Toolbox.
Proc Drops: Playing with One Drops.
Deck Primer: Toshiro Umezawa
Really, really cool!
There a couple of typos that mean that the links don't work. If you want to change them in your deck list, here's the ones I found:
Commander BLOG: The Crazy 99
Gonti ; Sissay
Thanks, Zimagic. I'm still getting the hang of the CARD and DECK tags, and spent more time adding them manually that I should have spent spell checking
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
Sure, I <3 me some bears! Also, those Trailblazer's Boots are soooooooooooo win!
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
Find for me a tusk, trunk, and/or massive flappy ear (I see those! MORE massive!) in the art and I'll be all over it! Otherwise, changelings are cheating for tribal decks : )
And nice quotes
:symr::symg: 99 Permanents, But... :symr::symg:
:symw::symg: Every Elephant :symg::symw: Support your local game stores!
Wasteland Gaming | Tower Games
I think Changelings are fine for tribal decks, I don't know if I would run all of them, but at least Chameleon Colossus, Mirror Entity, maybe Changeling Titan and Changeling Hero.
Volrath's Laboratory is another way to produce Elephant tokens.
Urza's Incubator is a card you should definitely run, helps lower the costs, especially good in this deck since most of them cost 4+.
Sunpetal Grove is a GW land you're missing.
I really wish Wizards would make a GW Legendary Elephant Lord.
norbert88
Official EDH Forums
Member of Team Revolution
Jinxed Idols Podcast
Follow Me on Twitter!
- whhhhhaaat?
Standard Decks:
UBRGrixis ControlRBU
Also there is jandor's saddlebags. The 7th edition is just the bags, no horse. Elephant could wear saddlebags, right?