When Tasigur was initially spoiled, I was immediately excited for him. Finally, there was an infinite mana outlet in the Command zone for UBG! As I've played with Tasigur recently, I've been consistently impressed with how versatile and powerful he is as a Commander. To me, Tasigur is the epitome of Magic: The Gathering’s Sultai wedge.
Black is for extortion, corruption, and reanimation. Tasigur’s power is built on the back of enslaved zombies, which power was gained via an ancient pact with the Rakshasa Tiger-Demons and the Naga, and is represented in cards like Demonic Tutor, the devious Vizier, Sidisi, and Vampiric Tutor. Tasigur is ruthless and capricious, preferring to wound his victims in a way that leave no mark on the flesh. His power over his undead minions is well-represented by cards like Reanimate, Animate Dead, and Life // Death. Such Reanimation is a twisting of nature’s life cycle, and Tasigur happily wields this power to inflict his cruelty in nefarious ways; sending poisonous Typhoid Rats on an ambassador’s ship to infect an unsuspecting opponent is a hallmark tactic of Tasigur.
But in order to subvert nature’s cycle, Tasigur needs to have an understanding of nature, represented by Green. Green is about strength, natural growth, and the feral triumph of predators over prey. This ferocity, strength, and feral instinct is represented most aptly by Survival of the Fittest, Protean Hulk, and Beast Within. Growth is represented by cards like Life from the Loam, Birds of Paradise, and Nature's Claim. Tasigur happily uses the strength of nature and amplifies it through his corrupting power of Reanimation.
Finally, Tasigur is devious, a characteristically Blue trait. All of his corrupted power over the Life Cycle is directed towards his own sinister goals. Plans within plans to take advantage of the opportunity that is the world, Tasigur craves knowledge and control above all else. His desire for control is well represented by cards like Mana Drain, Chain of Vapor, and Force of Will. His driving desire to accumulate knowledge is captured by cards like Spellseeker, Mystical Tutor, and Windfall. And his devious plans are represented by cards like Flash, Gilded Drake, and Intuition.
All in all, Tasigur represents the best colors in Commander and offers a unique representation for how you want to describe yourself, dear reader. In fact, a more complete description of this Wedge's philosophy can be found below, described by MTGSal user KarnTerrier:
UBG is about mixing the cold amoral detachment and manipulative nature of Blue with the immoral selfishness of Black and the dog-eat-dog savagery of Green. Green/Black will do anything to survive, while Blue/Black will do anything to thrive, but Blue/Black/Green sees surviving and thriving as the same thing. In its eyes, Green's drive to eat and grow is no different from Blue's desire to perfect itself using whatever resources are available, and no different from Black's desire to acquire power and wealth using any means necessary. Green hunger and Black greed and the Blue desire to improve oneself are all just different expressions of the same fundamental drive - the drive to take whatever you can and use it to build yourself up, the drive to consume, literally or metaphorically. Fundamentally, Blue/Black/Green is about predation.
Its primary tools are realism, efficiency, adaptability, stealth, and total ruthlessness. Green/Blue and Green/Black are both color pairs associated with seeing the world for what it is: Green/Blue is the truth-seeker, the observer studying and examining the world to better understand it, while Green/Black is the cynic, the gritty and pragmatic survivalist that's all too aware of how harsh and unforgiving the world can be. Together, they form a color triad with a deep understanding of the world around it, a color triad that has absolutely no illusions about how the world works, a color triad with a keen awareness of its surroundings that knows exactly how to use everyone and everything in its environment to its advantage.
It knows how to make the most of whatever resources are available, without letting anything go to waste or remain unused. Green/Black is used to surviving for long periods of time with very little sustenance, but it retains its scarcity mindset even in times of plenitude, so it can never hope to move beyond bare subsistence.
Conversely, Blue/Black is very skilled at using resources to improve its lot in life, but it doesn't know how to survive when those resources aren't available. Green/Black is like the poor man who wins the lottery and quickly squanders his wealth because he doesn't know what to do with it, while Blue/Black is like the rich investor who goes bankrupt and can't adapt to a life of poverty because she has no idea how to cut expenses or keep a budget. Blue/Black/Green is more like the con artist who's equally talented at grifting common crooks on the street for a few hundred bucks and swindling businessmen in boardrooms for millions of dollars worth of investments. Blue/Black would die of starvation and exposure in the Abzan desert, while Green/Black would be a hopeless and worthless vagabond in the cities of Esper, but Blue/Black/Green could find a way to survive in either. It's wise enough to conserve resources when they're scarce, driven enough to utilize its resources to their fullest potential when they're in abundance, and savvy enough to when the time is right for either.
It displays similar versatility in other areas. Blue, Black, and Green are the colors most associated with stealth: Blue/Black is associated with deception and subtlety, while Green predators rely on physical concealment to stalk and pounce on their prey, taking advantage of cover and camouflage. As a result, Blue/Black/Green knows there's a time to hold back and conserve energy and hide its capabilities, and a time to go all out and fully exert itself and unleash its full strength. It's capable of acting restrained and civilized when interacting with polite society, and just as capable of raw brutal savagery when the veneer of civilization is no longer present. It's capable of feigning helplessness or subservience when it's in a disadvantaged position, but as soon as it has the upper hand, it'll gladly stab its masters in the back and betray anyone who was foolish enough to show it mercy.
Blue/Black/Green has no limitations whatsoever; there is absolutely nothing that it won't do to stay alive and get ahead. While all colors are capable of being ruthless and Black even holds ruthlessness as one of its core values, Blue/Black/Green is the only color combination that's almost wholly defined by total ruthlessness in all things. On its own, Green is savage but fundamentally honest; it may use stealthy tactics, but it won't lie or manipulate people or hide behind laws and social customs. Blue/Black/Green, on the other hand, is a Social Darwinist: It sees society as just another part of nature, and it sees deception and manipulation as simply being natural tactics for a predator to take advantage of. In its eyes, being a social predator is no different than being a natural predator. Green will confront its enemies head-on, even if it means risking defeat; Blue/Black/Green will only confront its enemies head-on when it's certain that it will win.
Having access to the three best colors in Commander alongside a Commander who takes advantage of graveyard synergies, infinite mana combos, and recurring control pieces, Tasigur is an excellent choice for grindy, long-term games or for executing a quick combo line.
The FlashHulk package was chosen for several reasons:
Its CMC efficiency (all you need to do is cast Flash with Hulk in hand)
The speed with which it can be executed (2 mana combos are REALLY good)
The synergy of the pieces to the deck as a whole (creatures are really good in a Reanimator/Control shell)
And because I think it best embodies the Sultai color identity (winning off of a dying creature that was manipulated into dying is nearly a perfect representation of the Sultai identity)
Looking to win in a spectacularly ruthless and slightly gruesome way? Welcome to the Sultai Brood.
The Mardu warrior was overjoyed when Tasigur set him free and granted him passage through the jungle. He failed to notice the Sultai leader’s cruel smile. – here
Well, benjameenbear, there’s better Flash Hulk Commanders that I could be playing. Why should I play with Tasigur?
I believe the primary reason to choose Tasigur over any other Commander is because of how incredibly well he can grind. His ability allows you to reuse cards that you’ve already cast, thereby giving you additional copies of the best removal and interaction spells in your deck. How would you feel if you could jam in 3 copies of Force of Will, 4 copies of Abrupt Decay, 2 copies of Nature’s Claim, AND 2 copies of Assassin's Trophy to your decklist? Without compromising any other deckslots? Personally, I say “Sign me up!” Beyond the ability to infinitely recur the same spells repeatedly, Tasigur's ability is also inherently political. Your opponents are not always united against you; sometimes, they're united against a different opponent who is threatening to combo or who has an overwhelming board presence. None of your opponents want to lose the game; this is contradictory to the purpose of playing Commander! And because they don't want to lose, they will help you get the best spell with Tasigur's ability in order to not lose to a different opponent. If no one else has an answer to stop the current threat, you can target an opponent who would lose and have them give you the answer needed to stop the current threat.
On top of these reasons, I think Tasigur is also better because he enables Eldritch Evolution to be a one-card combo all by itself. By sac-ing Tasigur to the Evolution, you can effectively get any creature you want into play for a significantly reduced cost. Add in the fact that Tasigur can Delve cards away to fuel his casting cost and you have a very efficient 2 card combo that you can play with a great deal of consistency. The primary target for Eldritch Evolution is to find Razaketh, the Foulblooded and get it into play with another body to sacrifice. Once Razaketh hits play, you can then sac the other creature to go and get Life // Death. Life/Death will then turn your lands into additional bodies to sacrifice to Razaketh’s ability, allowing you to assemble a host of 2 card combos as long as you have 4 lands. Being able to have this kind of combo line is extremely powerful and gives you additional flexibility of how you play out your deck in-game.
Now, let’s look at Tasigur in comparison with the other Sultai and Flash Hulk Commanders available.
GWUBThrasios, Triton Hero + Tymna the Weaver – probably the strictly better Commander for employing a Flash Hulk package, the addition of W opens up the CephalidBreakfast combo and Angel's Grace synergies. Because there’s such an easy way to self-mill your entire library at instant speed, one that has natural synergy with Hermit Druid, it’s very easy to sac the Hulk and win from the ‘yard entirely. Thrasios not requiring colored mana in order to functionally draw your deck is a much stronger infinite outlet by default, and many decks have shifted towards Thrasios for that reason. This opens up additional infinite mana options (i.e. Power Artifact + Basalt Monolith) that are less effective in Tasigur. I believe that Tasigur offers strong political interactions, a cleaner mana base, and an additional one-card win condition in Eldritch Evolution that is simply too good to pass over. I think it really depends on what flavor of Flash Hulk you like. I personally prefer a more traditional Flash Hulk package that I can run alongside the Razaketh Combo line (described previously). And also because Sultai was the first color combination of deck that I had success with in my Commander career.
UBGSidisi, Brood Tyrant – the old-school Sidisi can be built in a couple of different ways. A purely Competitive Commander build that I’ve seen mashes three different combo lines into one deck: Food Chain combo, FlashHulk combo, and Hermit Druid combo. The crazy thing about this hyper competitive build is that all three of those combos kinda work together. The other way to build Sidisi is similar to what DementedKirby has (his very excellent Primer on value Sidisi can be found here). A value and graveyard based synergy deck is still a very strong way to play Sidisi. I prefer Tasigur over Sidisi because he almost always costs under 3 CMC to cast, even if he’s died 2 or 3 times already (gotta love that Delve ability), and his recursive ability is more akin to what I like as a player. Being able to recur cards from my ‘yard to interact with my opponents is much preferred instead of generating a board presence through self-mill. Tasigur is reactive whereas Sidisi is proactive; I’m a control player at heart.
UBGThe Mimeoplasm – my love for the amorphous Dino-Arm monstrosity is pretty substantial, I’m not going to lie. Anytime you can put the Dino-Arm Commander into play and eat someone’s face off makes my inner 8 year old feel like he’s controlling Jurassic Park. And the synergies that The Mimeoplasm has with Sultai’s color combination is pretty significant as well. The primary reason we play Tasigur over The Mimeoplasm is because Tasigur will usually cost less and, again, favors a more reactive strategy. Additionally, I think that the ‘Plasm also has a negative reputation going for it, possibly leading to the targeting of your deck before the game even starts.
UBGDamia, Sage of Stone – the card advantage she can accrue to you as a player is the real deal. Having a functional Necropotence in your Command zone is quite powerful and rewards fast combo decks pretty significantly. As an example of how you can build Damia, I recommend you check out the retired thread here for additional insight as to how you can build Damia and her strengths. Tasigur almost always costs less than Damia and allows a much stronger Control plan than what Damia can offer. Damia, by herself, is also not a combo piece and so Tasigur’s Eldritch Evolution is extremely relevant when comparing the two.
Ok, so the real reason you’re here is to see the decklist. I personally find it easier to see each card sorted according to function, so I’ve listed the decklist accordingly. Each section is sorted by the Converted Mana Cost (CMC) of the card and then alphabetically; the number immediately to the left of the card indicates the CMC of the respective card, not how many copies are represented in the deck.
An important thought before the decklist is presented. I do not claim that the one presented below is the absolute end-all-be-all of Tasigur decklists for three reasons:
The list below is a selection of the cards that have been most effective in the games that I have played. There might be cards that work for your playstyle better than others, and the list below is a reflection of what has been most optimal given my game experience.
Many of the card choices are chosen to maximize particular synergies, Survival of the Fittest being the main culprit followed by Mikaeus, the Unhallowed and Gaea's Cradle. There are 26 creatures in the deck, some of them more expensive in CMC than other, non-creature options, and they are all chosen to help Survival be useful at any stage in the game. You can easily do a higher concentration of spells OR creatures without diluting the deck too much.
I believe that competitive Commander is an exercise in metagaming; no list you read online will be perfect for your own hometown meta, and too many primers online insist haughtily that their list/card choices are the best possible ones EVER. That's an unhealthy mindset that stifles creativity and flexibility in deckbuilding, and I won't allow that nonsense in my thread.
For you budget minded players that can only spend around $150 or so to build a deck, this list is for you. It eschews the primary Flash Hulk plan and instead focuses on infinite mana creation. There’s also a heavier creature theme to take advantage of the natural recursion and creature synergies in the deck.
Competitive Commander games and strategies are dictated by decks that can break the two in-born balances of the game: cards drawn per turn (card advantage) and mana production. Since the game pace is defined by these limitations, any deck that can affect either of these in their favor will have an inherent advantage over any other deck that they play against.
To delve a little further into the philosophy of Magic: The Gathering, this game is ultimately a game of math, statistics being the most predominant. I won't go into the technicalities of probabilities and statistics (because I find it boring and because I don't have a great grasp on the math) but the two things that restrict this game, generally, are mana availability and number of cards drawn per turn. Every deck, that is top-tier and competitive, finds some ways to overcome these restrictions. I won't go into the structured play of Standard, Modern, or Legacy, and simply focus on EDH. EDH is a wonderful format where these restrictions are prohibitive since we are running singletons of every card except basic lands. This means that we need to fill in redundancy of card effects without being able to use multiple copies of a particular card. This necessitates a vast breadth of knowledge of the available card pool in MTG and what is good, which is a side benefit of playing EDH. As an Combo-Control deck, however, these restrictions are especially prohibitive because we are trying to maintain card advantage and card parity with not just one opponent, but most likely three or four opponents at the same time. The more mana and card advantage that we have, consequently, the greater our opportunity to interact with each of our opponents OR more quickly execute our own game strategy.
The more infamous cEDH decks that are played are usually Ad Nauseam Storm variants (Jeleva Grixis Storm or Zur the Enchanter Storm probably being the most notable) because they play all the fast mana rocks and rituals available (to maximize the amount and colors of mana available to them in the early stages of the game) and also the most advantageous card draw spells that are legal in the format, the most recognizable of which are Ad Nauseam, Necropotence, or Timetwister. Because they play all the best cards in the best colors for combos, ramp, interaction, and card advantage, they overcome both of these balances and sit atop the Competitive Commander scene.
But, with Protean Hulk's unbanning on 4/24/2017, there has been a sharp increase in the number of decks that utilize the fat Combo-Pig in order to find an infinite combo of some sort. Breakfast Hulk decks are now a little more populous as the competitive Commander deck of choice because the win condition is so compact; you typically only need to activate Hermit Druid once or cast Flash with Hulk in hand. Since this can theoretically be done on T2-T3 with some consistency, Hulk variants are very effective at winning the game because you can shortcut the typical mana constraints of executing an infinite combo for just 1G or 1U.
This decklist aims to take advantage of this compact win condition and also attempts to synergize the pieces of that combo into the deck as seamlessly as possible. Consequently, the card choices are influenced substantially by what will make the combo pieces better outside of the Combo.
The next tier of decks that dominate the cEDH scene are Stax variants because they oppressively restrict opponents' card-draw, board, and/or resource development simultaneously. Stax decks are very effective because their effects are symmetrical across the table; unlike U decks, Stax decks aren't looking to 1-1 their opponents. They don't have to conserve a Counterspell for every play that each of otheir opponents might do in order to maintain control of the game. For example, a player can instead play Winter Orb and constrain all of their opponents' mana production, restricting the basic pillar of mana production that Commander, and MTG generally, requires. They then usually have cards in their decklist that will help them break parity on those Stax effects (meaning that they and ONLY they can get around those Stax effects) and continue to execute their game plan. Cursed Totem is another Stax All-Star, and is one of the most significant Stax/Hate pieces you'll come up against.
READ THIS!
It's important to note that this deck has been configured to support a more mid-range strategy in addition to rushing the Flash Hulk Combo. The average CMC is above 2.5 and includes several cards in the main decklist that might be suspect for a more streamlined, low-to-the-ground CMC deck. Disciple of Bolas is an example of this type of concession, as it presents a method to sacrifice a creature (check for Protean Hulk synergies), gain life (survive early Aggro beats to get into the late-game), draw cards (to accrue card advantage over opponents), and is itself a creature (check for Survival of the Fittest synergy). The deck is designed this way to allow maximum resiliency to the deck as a whole, giving you opportunities to win at any stage of the game. After you play this deck a few times, your opponents will get wise to your strategy and you'll therefore need to adjust YOUR playstyle and strategy accordingly. The decklist is designed to cater to this flexibility instead of being pigeon-holed into combo-ing out all the time every time. Do you need to hold up interaction during the early turns to stop another Fast Combo deck at the table? No problem, there's an excellent selection to enable this. Looking to race slower, more mid-range decks to assemble a win in the early turns of the game before anyone else has set up? The tutor package is robust enough to allow you to do this to. And if you get stopped during the early game to combo, you should have plenty of resources and card advantage to really shine in the late-game.
Spells are chosen for this deck based on these criteria: how expensive is it to cast (CMC considerations)? How powerful is the effect (Power consideration)? Does it provide card advantage? Does it synergize with the rest of the deck? Nearly all of the Removal and Counterspells in the deck are under 3 CMC, allowing you the greatest opportunity to hold up interaction during an opponent's turn or to protect your own Combo turn with the lowest amount of mana spent to do so. Nearly every card is also looking to generate some form of card advantage. In the case of extremely powerful cards, like Assassin's Trophy, the card advantage to the card is put aside in favor of the raw power the card provides.
Tasigur himself is a primary way of generating Card Advantage and he should be cast and utilized often. His ability is powerful enough to warrant the inclusion of 2 cards that are kinda not so good on their own: Seedborn Muse and Training Grounds. Both of these cards enable Tasigur, and you by extension, to be the Policeman at the table. The two cards together create a nearly unbeatable card advantage machine that puts a hard stop on anyone else's ability to combo off without Interaction from you.
This section will be an attempt to give you some guidelines on how you can be the best Control player at your table and ensure that you always have the best chances to end up winning the stack so that you can win the game.
It is very important to me that I give you Laboratory Maniac user Cameron a specific shout out here, since this section is an expansion/adaptation of a section of his Tasigur Primer that can be found here. Cameron accurately captures the primary points of critical thinking that is necessary for evaluating threats at the table and I humbly admit that I stand on his shoulders for this section.
I’m going to assume that you are familiar with the decks that your opponents will be playing and, more importantly, familiar with your opponents themselves. Understanding how your opponents think will allow you the best chance to call their bluffs and generally squeeze every benefit possible out of a game. So, how do you know what to interact with?
This question series is something that I mentally go through every time a major, or what appears to be a major, spell hits the stack or permanent entering the battlefield. It’s helped me a great deal in knowing what spells to counter and which ones to let slide so that I can conserve my resources and win.
Do I Care About the Spell/Permanent? – this is the first thing I ask myself. Does the spell/permanent (which I will nickname ‘Action’ throughout this discussion) immediately affect my board state? If an opponent is destroying a mana rock that I need in order to complete my own combo lines or board development, I probably care A LOT about that Action. If it’s a mana rock, the answer would be ‘No’, so I would probably let the Action slide. As an example, one of my most hated cards, because of how many times it's wrecked my Memnarch deck, is Bane of Progress and that card must ABSOLUTELY be dealt with if I'm to win a game with Memnarch. The next question, of similar import, is does the Action affect my own gameplan? If it does hinder my ability to execute my win condition/combo lines, then I probably should care about the Action and do something about it.
Is the Action a Threat? – following the judgment about whether or not I care about the spell, the next question to ask is “Will this stop me from winning?” If it does, you should again interact with the Action if you can. The ultimate goal of Commander is to win and defeat your opponents. Anything that hinders that goal needs to be interacted with if possible. If this means that a substantial amount of your board state is destroyed/invalidated, you should probably interact with the Action. In a similar vein of thinking, you should also ask yourself “Does this Action allow an opponent to win the game RIGHT NOW?” If yes, interact with them to disrupt the Action so you can complete the primary goal of the game. If no, then you can probably let it slide.
Does it hurt other opponents? - Once you’ve identified that you care about the Action and have deemed it a threat, it’s then important if this kind of threat hinders our opponents even more than us. A common example of this type of evaluation is a Wrath effect. Generally speaking, you have creatures in the deck because you care about their usefulness and value to helping you win the game. Typically your creatures are an important way that you execute your combo. However, if it hurts an opponent even more than you, and isn’t a MAJOR threat to your ultimate goal (winning), then it might be a good idea to let the Wrath occur because it hinders one of your opponents even more than you. Anything that hinders your opponents will help give you more opportunities to achieve the ultimate goal.
Who deals with the Action? – turn order matters in this particular question. If you’re third in line to respond to the Action, it might be that an opponent that can respond earlier than you will respond to the Action. If the Action occurs and you’re next in turn order, is there another Blue deck behind you that can interact/prevent the Action? If so, will they perceive the Action to be a big enough Threat to them to stop it for you? If a Blue player behind you has mana open, a significant number of cards in hand, and has only interacted a few times during the game, it might be wise to pass priority so that you force this Blue player to spend a resource to interact with the Action if it’s a threat to them. This is how you can conserve your own resources and create windows of opportunity to win the game for yourself.
How do I deal with it? – if the responsibility to interact with the Action unavoidably falls to you, you then need to ask how you can deal with it. The goal of a competitive Commander game is to win, and we usually do this by fizzling out the Fast Combo players, allowing Stax pieces to hit the board that are tolerable to our own strategy and board development but oppressive to our opponent’s strategies/board states, and to maintain card and/or mana advantage over other Control decks. Seems like a tall order, no? Well, it is. That’s why you’re reading this, presumably. Knowing how to conserve your resources and when to interact is a critical skillset that you need to learn. You then need to evaluate how you need to deal with it. Does the Action need to be answered on the stack? Can we use resources that are already on our board to stop/hinder the Action (Vedalken Shackles is a great way to steal out a combo creature out from underneath a Combo player, for example). You generally want to conserve Counterspells for the spells that are most Threatening, the ones that you CANNOT let resolve. Ad Nauseam or Flash are prime examples of Actions that demand a Counterspell. Targeted Removal spells, like Chain of Vapor or Blink of an Eye, we try to reserve for High Value permanents. Mass Removal is generally used when the resource or board development of our opponents is superior to our own and we need to reset them and cost them more time and resources to redevelop that board state.
Is this the Right Opportunity? – sometimes, if you interact with an Action prematurely, you simply allow a player before you to untap and execute their own combo line and win if you cast/interact too soon. Understanding Table order is important in this assessment, as you generally want a player behind you to answer the Action if at all possible so that you maximize your own chances of winning on your turn or of keeping ahead of a player before you in turn order from executing their own combo. The resources at the table are finite, so you want to try and use timing and politics to maximize your ability to have your opponents respond to Actions and conserve your resources.
I hope that this question sequence is relevant to you and helps to shed some insight on how I personally evaluate any Action that occurs within a game.
Opening Hands & Mulligans
With Vancouver mulligans being the accepted and normal way to Mulligan for Commander games, it's important that you know how to evaluate your opening hand and determine if it's keepable or if you need a fresh 7. Generally speaking, an ideal opening hand will have 1-2 lands, 2-3 mana sources, 1-2 card advantage spells, 1 tutor, and 1-2 interaction spells. This kind of opening hand gives you the greatest flexibility to how your opponents start their opening hand. Some example hands are demonstrated here to give you an idea of how I would evaluate some opening hands.
It's also important to note which decks you're playing against. Are you sitting down with a bunch of other fast combo decks? Is Stax more present in your opponent's decks potentially? Or are you playing against more casual players? Depending on what you're playing against, it's important that you evaluate your hand according to what you'll need to best fight against your opponents.
This is a slow hand, frankly. The lack of additional mana sources besides the lands makes this unattractive. While there are some great interaction pieces present in the Decay and Chain, I think the hand is probably a little slow. I would ship this off for a fresh 7.
This is a fantastic hand. You can easily assemble the signature Flash Hulk combo and execute it with protection on T3, T2 if you're feeling brave/crazy. The sequence would be T1 Fetch land -> Mana Crypt -> Spellseeker, finding Flash. T2 play the Grave untapped, cast Diabolic Intent, sac the Spellseeker to find Protean Hulk. From here, you have enough mana to cast Flash and win or you could slow roll it to get protection on Turn 3 by casting [the Shaman. This hand would definitely be an auto-keep since you can race so quickly if you wanted to.
While this hand has the coveted Eldritch Evolution, it's risky in the mana production it can generate. Gaea's Cradle is a risky land to play with only one creature in the opening hand. I think that I would keep this one, though, and take the risk that I can Brainstorm into more mana sources. I'd make it my goal to get an early Tasigur into play and attempt the Eldritch Razaketh Combo line once I have enough mana sources.
Early Game: Turns 1-3
Ok, so you've got your starting hand and the dice have been rolled to determine turn order. You'll want to evaluate your opening hand to see if you want to aggressively combo out and attempt to win quickly or if you want to slow roll your game plan and maintain control. The two most important things to consider in the opening sequences is card advantage and mana advantage. We want to have more than our opponents in these respective departments, if possible, so try and sequence your playing accordingly. If you started out with some good mana sources, play them out so that you can cast more spells more quickly.
Also try and keep an eye on any notorious combo decks that you're sitting down with. What are they doing? If they're aggressively tutoring in the first few turns of the game, it's likely that they're going to try and jam their combo ASAP. This means that you'll want to prioritize keeping mana up for removal/interaction so that you don't lose the game too early.
The early stages of the game are what will set you up for the rest of it. Make sure that you try and develop your mana sources as quickly as possible since mana advantage is what will allow you to do more things in the course of a game. One of the reasons that our deck has a fairly small mana curve is so that you can deploy a number of cards quickly within the early turns of the game. This will help you to solidify your position at the table as you go into the Mid Game
Mid Game: Turns 3-5
Yeah, the Mid Game stage for a competitive Commander game is right about T3. This is where Combo decks will be trying to win or set up their win condition. Mid Range Control/Combo decks are going to try and get a Card Advantage engine of some sort established and generating value. Stax decks will have slammed down some sort of Stax piece that will be most likely hindering the table from effectively executing their respective strategies. Like the 'How to Play Control' section indicates, you'll want to fizzle the combo players, out maneuver the Mid Range decks, and keep Stax pieces at a tolerable level for your own board development and strategy.
If you've elected to try for an aggressive combo execution, I recommend having at least one Counterspell in hand so that you can force it through (pun intended) any opposing interaction. Nearly all of the tutors in the deck are cheap enough in CMC that you should be able to chain a few of them together in the early turns and threaten a win at any time. That's one of the beautiful things about the Flash Hulk combo; it can be done at instant speed for a VERY low CMC. Because the combo is so compact AND operates at instant speed, you can basically choose the best window of opportunity for yourself and proceed to win. Bonus points if you can Combo win in response to someone else attempting to Combo off!
If, on the other hand, you've elected to slow roll your strategy and maintain some control over the board, than you will want to prioritize continuing to develop your mana and card advantage. Casting Tasigur for a reduced casting cost (thanks, Delve!) is probably a great idea so that you can being to hold up mana during others' turns and start getting cards from your 'yard. There's almost no card in the deck that you don't want to see, so while there might be some less good picks that your opponents give you, you will largely appreciate the extra cards that you'll be accumulating. Some cards that I would look to tutor for at this stage of the game are Survival of the Fittest, Seedborn Muse, and Sylvan Library. All of these cards will help you keep card advantage flowing or help you dig into combo pieces so that you can win the game.
Handle threats as they come with the Removal spells and Counterspells that are in the deck. Hostage Taker is like Dimir's version of Dack Fayden and can help you simultaneously hinder an opponent and advance your own mana development. Eldritch Evolution is really going to shine at this stage of the game since you'll probably be able to cast it quickly in this stage of the game. You can then put Razaketh, the Foulblooded into play and start chaining tutors together or you can put Nezahal, Primal Tide to start attacking for 7 and draw you cards. Skullclamp is here so that any Wrath effects that an opponent casts will get you cards or so that you can turn those early game mana dorks (think Llanowar Elves or Elvish Mystic) into card advantage. Skullclamp is a great card draw engine and turns out creatures into additional sources of card advantage.
In summary, this is the stage of the game where you want to be able to lock in your strategy and start executing it. If you're looking for fast combo, chain tutors together until you have the two card combo you want in hand. If you're firmly on the Control/Grindy plan, get those card advantage engines going with a strong mana base.
Late Game: Turns 5+
Alright, now we're here, the end-game. And yes, it does start on T5 when you're playing against a host of other competitive Commander decks.
So, it's likely that you've stopped the combo players from being able to go off with your excellent understanding of 'How to Play Control in Commander' and/or lost some resources yourself via Wrath effects, Removal effects, or Retaliation antics. One of the nice things about Tasigur is his stats; a 4/5 is no joke and can successfully block a majority of the creatures that you would see. This makes attacking you an unfavorable proposition for your opponents and encourages them to send any attacks elsewhere, therefore conserving your life total.
Ideally you'll have at least one card advantage engine going for you that is helping to keep your hand full of things to do. Rhystic Study is an all-star at this stage of the game when mana margins on opposing spells are thin. Seedborn Muse + Tasigur, the Golden Fang or Muldrotha, the Gravetide will help you to recur any cards you need from the 'yard. While I feel I've already addressed Tasigur's political value at the beginning of the Primer, I think it's worth repeating: use Tasigur's ability to recur key Removal and Counterspells in order to keep the table at an equilibrium. We want the table to be gummed up and for our opponents to have spent resources to unsuccessfully execute their combos. Once that ideal equilibrium has been achieved, you can usually begin to start chaining tutors or card draw spells together in order to find, assemble, and execute one of the infinite combos in the deck.
Now, there are two primary combos in the deck that operate on totally different lines. The primary combo is the FlashHulk plan to infinitely deal damage to your opponents. The secondary combo is DramaticScepter for infinite mana, which will then be funneled into Tasigur's ability to "draw" your deck and recur certain cards over and over again. A brief explanation of each combo will follow.
Flash Hulk Combo Explanation
The end goal of the Flash Hulk Combo is to get the following three creatures into play: Carrion Feeder, Mikaeus, the Unhallowed, and Walking Ballista. So, if you assemble these pieces without using Flash or Protean Hulk, that's ok too and can actually be a sneaky way to assemble the pieces. Mikaeus is quite powerful as a card, so he is welcome as a value creature as well. The technical steps to this combo are as follows:
Cast Flash with Protean Hulk in your hand. Once Flash resolves, you are going to put the Hulk into play as part of Flash's resolution.
Choose not to pay the reduced mana cost of the creature, as Flash specifies, causing the Hulk to be sacrificed as part of the spell's resolution.
Hulk's dying trigger will go onto the stack. This is an opportunity for an opponent to Trickbind you and cause your combo to fizzle, for your information.
Once the Hulk's dying trigger resolves, you are going to search your library for Phyrexian Delver and Carrion Feeder, two creatures whose CMC equals 6 exactly (to satisfy the Hulk's dying trigger). EDIT: This chain can also include Body Snatcher AND Sylvan Safekeeper, affording you the protection of your Flash Hulk combo from instant speed spot removal.
As Phyrexian Delver ETB, return the Hulk to play. EDIT: WIth Body Snatcher, respond to its ETB trigger with Carrion Feeder's sacrifice activated ability. This will put the Snatcher's Dying trigger on top of the stack ABOVE the Snatcher's ETB trigger, and will resolve first according to the Stack rules, allowing you to get the Hulk back to play with NO life loss AND with protection via Sylvan Safekeeper. The Snatcher will be exiled.
Sacrifice the newly Reanimated Hulk to the Feeder via the Feeder's activated ability.
The Hulk's dying trigger will now go on the stack again.
Once this second Hulk trigger resolves, search your library for Mikaeus, the Unhallowed and Walking Ballista. The Ballista's CMC is equal to 0 when it is in your deck, so you'll be able to put it into play alongside Mikaeus and still satisfy the Hulk's trigger.
State-based effects, via Mikaeus, cause the Ballista to be a 1/1 (it is a technically non-Human creature). You then sacrifice the Ballista to the Feeder via the Feeder's ability.
Since the Ballista has undying, courtesy of Mikaeus, and also has no +1/+1 counters, its undying ability will trigger, causing it to come back to play with a +1/+1 counter.
With the Ballista's natural ability to remove +1/+1 counters, remove the +1/+1 counter and deal 1 damage to any target.
Sacrifice the Ballista to the Feeder's ability, causing step 9 to occur again.
Repeat steps 9-12 until every opponent has received a lethal amount of damage via the Ballista's ability. You'll also have an incidentally massive Carrion Feeder that you can swing at somebody with in order to kill them.
This combo will allow you to kill the table at instant speed and with a great deal of flexibility since the main conversion steps in the combo outlined are activated abilities not requiring a tap symbol.
Now, if one of your combo pieces is stuck in hand, you can instead substitute the Phyrexian Delver selection in Step 4 with Body Snatcher and the Feeder. (EDIT: The primary Flash Hulk line can now focus exclusively on the Snatcher. See the updated Combo explanation on how to use the Snatcher exclusively.) When the Snatcher ETB, it has a trigger that forces you to discard a creature card or exile the Snatcher. You can then discard the stranded creature combo piece to your graveyard and the Snatcher will survive its trigger. Then, sacrifice the Snatcher to Carrion Feeder to pick up the Hulk again. Sac the Hulk again, and go find Phyrexian Delver and the other part of the combo and continue looping the death triggers for Ballista, Mikaeus, and the Feeder.
Dramatic Scepter Combo Explanation
This is a combo that, alongside mana producing non-land permanents that tap to generate that mana, generates infinite mana of any color (usually). You then funnel this mana into Tasigur's activated ability to "draw" your deck (via the 'graveyard via Tasigur's ability). It then allows you to recur certain cards as many times as you like.
The first part of the combo (getting infinite mana via Dramatic Scepter) is pretty straightforward, but is explained in technical detail as follows:
Cast Isochron Scepter. Once it resolves, its Imprint trigger will go on the stack.
Select Dramatic Reversal for the Scepter's Imprint trigger, exiling it from your hand as per the Imprint trigger.
Now that you have the Reversal Imprinted on the Scepter, you can cast a copy of Dramatic Reversal with the Scepter's activated ability.
Tap non-land mana producing permanents to generate at least 2 and another color of mana.
Activate the Scepter's ability to cast a copy of Reversal, untapping all non-land permanents you control, including the Scepter.
This will reset your non-land permanents and net a mana of whatever color you tapped for in Step 4.
Repeat Steps 3-5 to get an infinite amount of mana as explained in Step 6.
Ok, cool, you now have infinite mana. So how do we actually win from here? First, we cast Tasigur from our Command Zone.
With the infinite mana we created earlier, we then use that mana to activate Tasigur's activated ability.
This will cause the top 2 cards of your library to be put into your 'yard and a non-land card from your 'yard going back to your hand, as per an opponent's choice.
With infinite mana, keeping activating Tasigur's ability until you've self-milled your library into your 'yard.
As you keep activating Tasigur's ability, you will no longer be milling two cards from the top of your library BUT you will still be receiving a non-land card from your 'yard of an opponent's choice. Eventually, your opponents will be forced to return every single non-land card from your graveyard back to your hand.
With every single non-land card in your hand and infinite mana available, you now cast Beast Within targeting an opponent's permanent.
You then activate Tasigur's ability after the Beast Within has resolved. Since Beast Within is the only non-land card in your 'yard, an opponent will be forced to return the Beast Within to you.
Repeat Steps 5-6 to destroy every single permanent each opponent controls. They now have a horde of 3/3 beast tokens.
You then cast Reality Shift on any one of your opponent's beast tokens to exile the token and Manifest the top card of that opponent's library, creating another 2/2 creature.
Repeat Steps 5-6, but with Reality Shift instead of Beast Within, to Manifest every single card from each of your opponent's decks. You will also be able to exile every beast token AND every Manifested card you just created via Beast Within/Reality Shift, even though your opponents no longer have a library that they can Manifest cards from.
With the very best 7 cards (you have to discard down to hand size at EOT) non-land cards in your library in your hand and infinite mana, you then simply pass the turn to each opponent. Barring upkeep effects that prevent them from drawing/losing (Angel's Grace is the only card I can think of), they will draw from an empty library and lose as a state-based effect. If they do have an Angel's Grace, or you suspect they have one, I recommend that you play Volrath's Stronghold and activate its ability to put a creature card on top of your library to keep from losing to your own empty library. This happens so infrequently that it will almost never be a concern to you.
These two combos are the most efficient ways that you can close out the game, but don't underestimate Tasigur beats as another way to kill a player. His 4 power adds up after 6 turns, and you can easily pressure the Ad Nauseam or Doomsday player's life total and force them to deal with your cheap Commander.
Once you've shown your opponents the RealityWithin each of them, their minds (libraries) will be so drained at this momentous revelation that they'll die. Or, if you've instead shown them the undead power of the UnhallowedBallista, their dead bodies will be so pierced with ballistas as to resemble macabre pincushions. Like I said at the beginning of the Primer, welcome to a ruthless and slightly gruesome method of winning.
Destroy your Opponents with the dual power of the Reality Within and the Unhallowed Ballista!
Important Note:Bolded cards indicate which cards are currently part of the main decklist. Other cards that have been considered for the deck will be included in the card choices section for purposes of a semi-complete Primer.
Creatures
Walking Ballista - one of the win conditions of this deck and a critical piece of our Flash Hulk package, this Ballista either kills everyone at once or lots of creatures over time. The ability to dump mana into its ability to grow it makes it useful in sniping down x/1 creatures and can also give you a big beatstick if you have the mana for it. It has synergies with Survival and Skullclamp and becomes utterly ridiculous with Seedborn Muse in play. A very versatile card that allows us a great deal of control when we're not combo-ing off with it.
Birds of Paradise - a mana dork that adds one mana of any color, these Birds are quite simply the best T1 accelerant (arguments for Deathrite Shaman hinge on what's available in graveyards). It can be sacced to Razaketh for combo potential, is a tapping non-land mana permanent for the Dramatic Scepter combo, has synergy with Survival of the Fittest, and is eminently Skullclamp-able if you need to draw cards in a pinch.
Deathrite Shaman - the original 1 mana planeswalker, the Shaman can help Scavenge from graveyards in order to fuel its abilities. It acts as incidental grave-hate and usually adds mana on a consistent basis if you're playing competitively (you'll probably see fetch-lands in each opponets 'yard as well as your own over the course of a game). It, sadly, doesn't have great synergy with the Dramatic Scepter combo but is a warm body for Razaketh and Skullclamp. The incidental 'yard hate is what pushes this card as an auto-include into the deck.
Llanowar Elves, Fyndhorn Elves, Elvish Mystic - a mana dork that taps for G. It costs 1 CMC so that we can come out of the gates quickly for this deck while affording all of the same benefits that the Birds have in terms of synergies. Valuable card for tempo generation and has all the synergies we like.
Arbor Elf - this card is useful because it can untap a dual land to get off-G mana generation. Very useful during the Dramatic Scepter combo so that you can generate pretty much any color of mana.
Caustic Caterpillar - a one mana Naturalize that we can cast on T1 and then hold up mana for during Combo players' turns. Many infinite combos require some sort of Enchantment or Artifact to stay in play (looking at you, Food Chain) and this Caterpillar eats through them quickly if you need to cast and activate it in one go or you can set it and forget it until you need it. It's a creature for Survival synergies and it also synergizes very well with Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. It's also a body that you can sac to Razaketh and Skullclamp. Overall, a great card for what this deck is trying to do.
Elves of Deep Shadow - another mana dork that allows us to filter Green mana into black, this card's life loss makes it a self-kill card during the Dramatic Scepter combo.
Sylvan Safekeeper - with the update to the Flash Hulk combo as of 12/5/2018, there is now room for the Flash Hulk package to include the Safekeeper so that you can cleanly win THROUGH instant speed spot removal. It's also useful in being able to protect our key creatures from interaction over the course of a game by sacrificing lands that we can get back with Life from the Loam.
Carrion Feeder, Viscera Seer - free sac outlets that cost 1 CMC, these cards are crucial to the deck executing the Flash Hulk combo smoothly. It's pretty easy to get the Feeder to be a 5/5 or more and it can become a legitimate pressure to the table if not dealt with and the Seer can provide Card Quality. Both synergize with Survival, Cradle, Mikaeus, and Skullclamp. Both are included to ensure redundancy to the Flash Hulk chain.
Phantasmal Image - a very useful spell, it's the cheapest option available when you need a second Phyrexian Delver, Hostage Taker, or Venser, Shaper Savant again. It's creature-ness makes it ideal during Survival chains and is another creature for Razazketh to eat so that you can tutor for whatever you need.
Baleful Strix - one of the best 2 drops in the game of MTG ever printed, this little Strix stops an early Aggro beats cold (except for you, cursed Animar!). It replaces itself, has deathtouch, flying to block any relevant creature, replaces itself via its draw trigger, has synergy with Razaketh and Skullclamp, and helps Eldritch Evolution find some useful cards. A very powerful yet subtle card, this is one of the best cards to have been printed in a while. It sees consistent Legacy play and has placed in Top 8 lists!
Snapcaster Mage - ah, Snappycaster. A fantastic way to recur many of the cheap instants and sorceries in the deck, this card is very much worth its price tag in this deck. One of the signature combo pieces in the deck is an Instant, so being able to cast it again after a Counterspell is very valuable to this deck. The fact that it's a creature that has 1 toughness (for Skullclamp) is very relevant and can be tutored for via Survival of the Fittest. Razaketh enjoys eating it as well for a better card. Quite simply a fantastic card to have in the deck.
Gilded Drake - theft effects are one of the most crippling ways that you can eliminate an opponent's Commander from the Board. Being able to switch creatures via the Drake is better because your control over the thefted card isn't conditional on having a healthy Drake on your side of the table; the exchange has already happened and is permanent! The fact that it costs 2 CMC is what makes this card so valuable for cEDH. It's an awesome card that I'm never sad to see when I draw it and is often a card I tutor for in order to stop a potential fast start from one of my opponents.
Coiling Oracle - not quite as good as the Strix. Its ability to potentially put a land into play untapped is really neat but our land count is super low. Its lack of flying and deathtouch make the Strix the strictly better choice, in my opinion.
Wood Elves - being able to fetch an untapped Forest is sometimes the difference between combo-ing off or not. The Elves are a cheap an easy way to do so with a body that you're happy to sac to Razaketh or Skullclamp. This card is also meant to help you get into the late-game in the case that you're heavily disrupted or there's unfavorable board conditions for your combo. Casting this and reanimating it a few times is a great way to make your land drops.
Reclamation Sage - barely didn't make the list simply because my own personal playgroup plays creature heavy lists. It is eminently Skullclampable, great fodder with Razaketh, and tutorable via Survival while being easy to cast. A great card, just not quite a good fit for my personal meta.
Thrashing Brontodon - a pretty decent card from Ixalan that can kill Artifacts and Enchantments at instant speed, this is another decent inclusion for the deck. It has all the synergies we're looking for and can self-sac itself to make Skullclamp a guaranteed way to generating card advantage whilst equipped to the Dinosaur.
Plaguecrafter, Fleshbag Marauder, Merciless Executioner - since these cards are all variations of each other with the newly printed Plaguecrafter being the strictly better choice, we don't reliably Reanimate or otherwise take advantage of these cards to their best effect. Additionally, our list is as tight as possible as is, and there's simply not room for these guys in the deck.
Spellseeker - a fantastic card that enables you to find the Flash Hulk combo with any 2 creatures in hand and Survival of the Fittest in play. She can also find pretty much any type of effect that you're looking to find: need some removal? Go and get Abrupt Decay or Assassin's Trophy. Need a Counterspell? Check. What about finding the eponymous Flash because you have the Hulk in hand? You bet. Spellseeker is a wonderful card and we're absolutely happy to include her in our deck.
Body Snatcher - a decent Reanimation piece by itself, its real value comes from being able to get a Flash Hulk piece out of your hand and into the graveyard so that you can continue to Combo off. It's incidental Reanimation effect is also supremely useful and the creature count in the deck should be able to consistently allow you to use the Snatcher's effect to its full extent. It checks all the boxes for synergy and has added utility with its ability to continue the Flash Hulk chain even if Hulk or Mikaeus is stuck in your hand. EDIT: The Snatcher can now be used as the primary combo piece in the Flash Hulk chain. See the combo section for an explanation.
Venser, Shaper Savant - sometimes you just really need some all-purpose removal to solve a problem on the board. Venser lets you do that AND solve a problem on the stack. Clampable, Razaketh-able, Survival-able, Flash, Venser allows us a clean answer to any non-Shroud/Hexproof permanent on the board. Venser also has the advantage of being able to be Reanimated outside of Tasigur's ability, which can be useful sometimes.
Hostage Taker - this is basically Dimir's version of Dack Fayden. Its primary purpose is to steal those early game mana artifacts so that you can both advance your own mana development while restricting an opponent's. The best thing to steal, obviously, is Mana Crypt since you're guaranteed to put yourself ahead in mana advantage. I think this is a really great card that more people should be playing. Its CMC does make it unattractive but helps you to survive Mid-Range decks and hinder opposing Combo decks.
Ravenous Chupacabra - another decent removal spell for the deck, it's a fine inclusion for budget purposes as it has all the primary synergies we're looking for. Besides, the art is hella cool. We simply have limited deck space and are trying to have the decklist be as streamlined as possible. It's better in a dedicated Flicker deck since we can't quite as consistently retrigger it as other types of decks.
Notion Thief - for those people who love to play Wheel of Fortune effects, this Thief can literally steal you the game when an opponent tries to Wheel or Windfall the table. In fact, this creature is so powerful that we include Windfall to intentionally take advantage of this mini-Combo. Probably one of the best Dimir cards for Commander, this Thief is excellent at what it does. Skullclamp-able, can be fetched via Survival, and is in a good CMC range to consistently cast over the course of a game, this Thief absolutely deserves its slot in the deck.
Disciple of Bolas - one of the weaker cards in the deck, I find the Disciple's ability to sac creatures to draw cards and gain life to be very useful. At the very least, you can always sac Tasigur to draw a fresh 4 and gain 4 to keep yourself in the game theoretically. This card is a concession to how the decklist is built and is a way to make sure we can survive effective Mid-Range decks and any undue life loss we experienced.
Phyrexian Delver - I thought very long and hard between this and Body Double for the Flash Hulk chain. Ultimately, the utility of being able to clone the Delver via Phantasmal Image persuaded me to run this card over the Body Double. The Delver Reanimates the targeted creature in whole while the Double doesn't, and that distinction sometimes makes a significant difference in how the Chain plays out. Plus, I think the new Delver art is really cool. The life-loss is pretty substantial, however, so the Double might come in if I find myself unable to combo due to life constraints.
Sidisi, Undead Vizier - an excellent example of Sultai ruthlessness, Sidisi turns those early mana dorks into a relevant tutor effect. She has decent stats by herself and can block most things pretty profitably. And she sits just inside the cast-able CMC range for this deck at 5. Overall, a really good black card that helps to dig into tutors. Has synergies with all of the relevant cards in the deck.
Seedborn Muse - one of the better green cards for Commander, this Muse takes Tasigur to level 9000 all by herself. Being able to untap every single mana source enables you to play a super strong Control game, and she essentially acts as an additional card draw engine if you can get Tasigur into play AND protect her. The fact that she's a creature means that she plays into all of the relevant synergies in the deck.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - what doesn't Mikaeus do? He provides an anthem effect for almost every creature in the deck, but being able to grant Undying to your board is what makes him super powerful. It makes all of the sacrifice effects in the deck WAY better and also pushes Skullclamp over the top as a card advantage piece. The resiliency he creates to the board is quite awesome and his static destroy Human ability is sometimes relevant (take that, Kaalia!). More often than not, Mikaeus is entering play via the Hulk, so his casting cost is normally something we don't worry about too much. He's also a decent creature to attack with. Adding in the synergies that he has with Survival and his importance to the Flash Hulk combo line, and he's an auto-include in the deck that gives you significant late-game power should the game last that long.
Consecrated Sphinx - this is an absurdly strong Commander card that you could easily play. However, it draws Hate unlike anything else. I think you could choose to play both the Sphinx and Nezahal together, but I prefer Nezahal because it has the ability to protect itself. Choosing to play the Sphinx is not a bad choice at all, though, so feel free to run it in your own deck.
Muldrotha, the Gravetide - I know I was initially hyped when this card was spoiled and Muldrotha has exceeded my expectations. Being able to recur lands, artifacts, and enchantments is really quite relevant and helps to give this deck some incredible late-game advantage. Because she's a creature, she's fairly easy to get into play by herself from the 'yard and helps to recur key pieces of our deck to keep our card and mana advantage on point. She has synergies with the important parts of the deck and almost single-handedly ensures that we have a very strong Mid-Late Game strategy.
Protean Hulk - the Fat Combo Pig itself. Since this deck is based around this Pig/Lizard thing, I won't spend too much time discussing why this card is good. I still don't understand why the Commander Committee decided to allow this Pig back into the format...
Nezahal, Primal Tide - the first reason you should run this Dinosaur is because EVERY deck should run a dinosaur, if able. Dinosaurs are just hella cool. Nezahal, however, is a legitimate, consistent, and effective source of card advantage. Because it's not a may trigger you are required to draw cards whenver a non-creature spell is cast by an opponent. Combined with its really solid stats and its incredible ability to protect itself, Nezahal is the premier Card ADvantage piece for most Reanimator based decks currently. What makes Nezahal even more attractive is that it can be put into play via Eldritch Evolution if Tasigur is the additional cost. A very powerful source of card advantage, I've yet to be disappointed by its performance or miss Consecrated Sphinx.
Razaketh, the Foulblooded - probably the best B card to have been printed in a very long time, Razaketh is absolutely awesome in this deck and is indeed one of the focuses of the deck. I refer you to the Commander Analysis section where I outline his functionality to the decklist as a whole. Nevermind the fact that he's an 8/8 trampling flyer that can take a serious chunk out of an opponent's life when he starts turning sideways.
Artifacts
Mox Diamond - being able to get one mana of any color is really important for this deck in addition to being extremely relevant to the Dramatic Scepter Combo. It helps us to get on the board quickly and start setting up our strategy while also being an important mana permanent.
Mana Crypt - it's my opinion that fast mana is what makes competitive Commander games as broken as they are. When you can cheat on lands by playing 0 CMC mana rocks that generate the mana you need that count towards Storm count it pushes otherwise fairly costed draw 7 effects into overperforming card advantage pieces. The Crypt is one of the best mana rocks in the game and we're playing it. That is all.
Chrome Mox - another 0 CMC mana rock that generates mana of a specific color, I go back and forth between this card and the Diamond all the time. In the end, I've decided that exiling a card is a little more painful than discarding a land card. This decision could easily flux the other way, especially if your opponents are playing their own cheap CMC draw 7 effects.
Mox Amber - because Tasigur is pretty much always going to be on the field and we have a decent collection of legendary creatures in the deck already, this mana rock should pretty consistently generate mana over the course of the game. However, I can see some cases where it won't and is just a dead card on the field. And those moments would be absolutely crippling to the deck. It VERY importantly is a dead mana rock during the Tasigur -> Eldritch Evolution -> Razaketh -> -> Life/Death combo line since the Amber won't be able to generate the colors that Tasigur needs to execute the infinite mana combo.
Engineered Explosives - most of the relevant cards on our opponent's side of the table are under 3 CMC. We can consistently cast this card for either 1, 2, or 3 Sunburst counters and keep killing our opponent's cards within this range. This card is a little narrow in its application but I think it's good enough that it could earn a spot in the future.
Sol Ring - pretty standard inclusion for Commander decks and is probably the marquee card for Commander, in all honesty.
Skullclamp - one of the strongest Card Advantage spells of MTG's history, this card is extremely powerful in this deck. Between the sac effects in the deck and the high number of X/1 creatures, this card will very consistently be drawing you upwards of 4-6 cards per game. Its CMC combined with the way it takes advantage of the deck's core strategy and synergies makes it a very powerful card.
Sensei's Divining Top - this is the card I most want to find space for in the deck. It allows you to draw your deck with the Dramatic Scepter combo in the case that Tasigur is somehow unavailable to us. It also helps to smooth our draws and hopefully help us draw into relevant cards at every stage of the game. This card also has great synergy with Counterbalance, a card that I absolutely love in cEDH games.
Mana Vault - this card was contemplated and is still being contemplated as an inclusion into the deck. With Seedborn Muse being present alongside Dramatic Reversal, it should consistently untap over the course of a game. And it does power Isochron Scepter by itself but only produces colorless mana during the Dramatic Scepter combo. Ultimately, this card competes with Sol Ring and the Ring does untap all by itself.
Dimir Signet, Simic Signet, Golgari Signet - each of the Signets generate relevant colored mana during the Dramatic Scepter combo and come down in the early turns of the game. They also make great Delve material for when they've died or can easily come back to Muldrotha's ability. The colored mana that they produce without the cost of life is what's important to this deck.
Isochron Scepter - a primary Combo piece to the deck. It also can be used for value by imprinting one of the 14 Instants in the deck that are 2 CMC or lower. A really good card in this deck since it's already trying to play low CMC Instants anyways, this card is really significant. It's obviously included in the deck for its combo potential with Dramatic Reversal and non-land mana producing permanents.
Fellwar Stone - this usually is going to generate the relevant colors that you need, most especially the U/G mana that this deck needs in order for the Dramatic Scepter to actually generate the mana needed to kill your opponents. It costs 2 CMC and is able to tap for mana immediately after you cast it, so it's certainly worth including.
Talisman of Dominance - the life loss in order to generate the relevant color of mana (U) in order to execute the Dramatic Scepter combo will actually kill us. And without Aetherflux Reservoir in the main list to recoup the life loss in the middle of the Dramatic Scepter combo, we can't profitably run this card. Otherwise, this is a really good mana rock for any Dimir based deck.
Aetherflux Reservoir - this card is a payoff card for the Dramatic Scepter combo while also providing incidental life gain over the course of the game. However, this card isn't the focus of the deck nor is the Dramatic Scepter combo a focus of the deck, so this card is excluded. It is quite powerful and is now the preferred Win Condition for Storm decks, so feel free to include it if you so desire.
Gilded Lotus - this card is really powerful because you can cast it and still have mana up in order to interact with your opponents. It also helps to ensure that we can get into the late game and maintain mana advantage over our opponents consistently. It's also nice because it enables the Dramatic Scepter combo all by itself since it produces 3 mana of any color. I'm rarely sad to see this card because I know that it will advance my mana generation so significantly. While it's on the higher CMC side, I think it's worth it for its sheer mana output.
Enchantments
Carpet of Flowers - depending on the number of opponents that you're playing against who have Islands in their deck, this card is basically a colored Sol Ring that consistently scales as the game progresses. One of the best green cards for competitive Commander games since Islands are so prevalent in the competitive meta.
Mystic Remora - this little fish is so excellent against opposing competitive Commander decks. The 4 is almost never going to get paid by your opponents, which translates to a draw whenever they cast a non-creature spell. Since it's a recurring trigger for each opponent, this fish can generate a staggering number of cards drawn over the course of the game. The cumulative upkeep is almost trivial to the value that it creates. And in the case that an opponent decides to return it to your hand via Tasigur's ability, thank them. This card seriously draws an absurd amount of cards.
Training Grounds - this card is included solely for its interactions with Tasigur. Being able to reduce his activated ability to just the colored mana symbols is crucial in order to effectively leverage his ability more than once a turn cycle. Most of the interaction spells cost 2 CMC or less, so being able to recur AND cast the interaction spell all at once for just 4 CMC (of varying mana symbols, of course) is the best thing we can be doing to keep the table under control. Training Grounds also costs just U, so it's never a constraint on our mana sources or our ability to keep up interaction in order to get it on the table. And if an opponent does give it to us via Tasigur's ability then they just enabled us to get more value from them in the long run via more recurred cards enabled by the lowered Activation cost. Win win for us.
Exploration - a very good way to make sure that you can get all of your lands into play for maximized mana production over the course of a game. It has great synergy with Life from the Loam to make sure that we're hitting our land drops and it can also be a great ramp card at the beginning of the game. Its CMC is super low, which makes it additionally attractive.
Survival of the Fittest - possibly one of the most broken cards in MTG that was ever legal, I still have bad memories of when Survival Vine was still legal and people were putting 2-3 Vengevines into play for free. It sucked. But this enchantment is one of the most powerful utility cards in the deck and is one of the cards that the deck is built around. Being able to cycle creatures into the one you need RIGHT NOW is too good to pass up. You can pitch mana dorks that you draw in the late game for relevant creatures. It can helps you assemble the Flash Hulk package all by itself with Spellseeker being included in the deck. All in all, one of the best cards in the deck.
Animate Dead - its synergy with Muldrotha, the Gravetide is the primary reason that this excellent Reanimate effect is in the deck. It's also powerful on its own and has a CMC that is great. We have some powerful cards that we can cheat in and the synergy with this card and Survival is also noteworthy. A premier Black card, this is a really powerful effect for the deck.
Dance of the Dead - very similar to Animate Dead, except that you have to pay to untap the creature. The upkeep cost of untapping the creature is a little prohibitive for what the deck wants to do, and this deck isn't all-in on a Reanimator plan, so we don't want a ton of cards that Reanimate things.
Sylvan Library - one of the best card advantage spells in Commander because of its CMC and the fact that you can choose if you want to draw the 2 extra cards. Most of the time, it's usually correct to just take the 2 extra cards and pay the extra 8 life so that you can dig deeper into the deck. It's also an enchantment and will most likely survive the removal effects that opponents have available to them. A very strong card, it's one of the best card drawing spells in the deck.
Counterbalance - one of the interesting thing about playing against opposing, optimized Commander decklists is that their CMC curve starts to shrink and gets concentrated around the 2 CMC mark. Because of this trend, we can take advantage of this type of deck configuration and play Counterbalance and have a solid expectation of countering 1-2 spells FOR FREE over the course of a game off of blind flips. Of course, the efficacy of Counterbalance increases when you add in Brainstorm and Sensei's Divining Top and I've ran Tasigur this way in the past. It's not currently included because this version of Tasigur is more combo-focused whereas a decklist including the Counterbalance and Top-Deck manipulation cards is all about value and playing the long-term. This card could EASILY make its way back into the main decklist in the future.
Search for Azcanta/Azcanta, the Sunken Ruin - a recent Standard staple that is actually relevant for competitive Commander decks too. Turns out that flipping this card isn't hard AT ALL and can produce an obscene amount of card advantage when it's become Azcanta. Combine with Seedborn Muse for maximum broken-ness. We don't play this card because we're a creature centric deck in this iteration; there's a decent chance that the top 4 of our deck doesn't include a non-creature, non-land card. We want every card to be effective, so this card doesn't currently get a deck slot.
Rhystic Study - I remember when this card was like $2-$3. Now, it's a Commander staple that costs $15+. And for good reason. This enchantment draws more cards than any other permanent you can play. Asking your opponent "Are you gonna pay 1 for that?" is really annoying, but drawing a card for so little a mana investment is too good. You're literally drawing cards for free when your opponents are playing the game. And if your opponents decide to "play" around the Study and be able to pay for the trigger, than chances are that you've just gained a significant amount of tempo on them. I've never drawn less than 1 card off of the Study; I can confidently state that at the very least the Study will replace itself.
Necropotence - one of the more powerful cards in Commander, Necropotence does a pretty good job of intimidating the unbelievably broken Yawgmoth's Bargain (seriously, what was R&D thinking during the Urza Block? They printed so many banned/restricted cards in that block...). The 'Potence is good at ensuring that you always have a full grip of 7 cards in hand at the cost of some life. The triple black is hard to assemble, sometimes, but the card advantage is worth it. A solid inclusion in your own deck, I highly recommend it.
Necromancy - similar to Animate Dead except that you can cast it at instant speed, which can certainly be relevant. We're not a heavy Reanimator deck, so we don't really want to run this card.
Instants
Pact of Negation - because we're a combo deck, we want to be able to protect our combos for as little mana as possible. Pact is simply the cheapest option available for protection. Do note that if you have the mana available during your upkeep to pay for the Pact trigger you MUST pay it. Generally, it's a good idea to do so, since you don't want to lose the game, but you aren't going to lose if you forget about the trigger. Like my friend Steely Dan. He's "lost" to his Pact trigger over 7+ times, haha.
Summoner's Pact - I've chosen to build this deck with a more Mid-Range slant so that we aren't blown out of the water in the case that we're disrupted or receive a disproportional amount of hate. This Pact is much more effective in decks that are all-in towards the Flash Hulk combo. While it IS our primary combo, we're not 100% committed to it like other decks are in favor of longevity. And we literally only have Hulk as a relevant creature to search for, so it's a card that should be used for more combo focused decklists.
Chain of Vapor - all purpose removal that fits nicely under Isochron Scepter. It cleanly bounces any problem permanent that you may be encountering for just U. Very good at what it needs to do and is an instant. It's very rare that an opponent will actually sac a land to copy it and target one of your things. Just watch out for The Gitrog player, I guess.
Rapid Hybridization, Pongify - they cleanly answer any creature on the board and replace it with a vanilla creature token that has no abilities. Creatures, in Commander, are powerful in direct proportion to the number of useful abilities they have or the abilities they possess. 3/3 creature tokens are just useless creatures that take a LONG time to kill you in a 40 life format. I prefer to play this card over other kill spells just to be sure I have as many answers to a T2 Animar as possible.
Vampiric Tutor - the best top of deck tutor available. It's pretty obvious why this card is in the deck, methinks, so I won't explain it too much.
Mystical Tutor - again, another fairly self-explanatory inclusion in the deck, it's great to be assemble the Flash Hulk win condition if you have this and Hulk in hand and is a great way to be able to leave mana up during other players' turns.
Worldly Tutor - while our creature package is really powerful, I think that the other tutor effects in the deck are better. I could easily be wrong about excluding this tutor, but this remains to be seen.
Stubborn Denial - this is a pretty decent counterspell during the early turns of the game. But with Tasigur in play, it becomes a one mana Negate. And that is REALLY good. Because Tasigur turns on the Ferocious trigger by itself.
Swan Song - a really versatile counterspell, it can stop opposing interaction for just U. The 2/2 Swan that you create is fairly inconsequential in the long run, so feel free to cast this to counter the spells you need to. Ad Nauseam and Time Spiral are definitely at the top of that list, but this card is in the deck to win the counter war.
Mental Misstep - because this deck is geared more towards the long term, Misstep has limited viability in the later stages of the game. If you were to activate Tasigur's ability in the late game with this card, it's almost guaranteed that you'll get this card back and basically be given a dead card.
Dispel - similar to Swan Song, this card wins the counter wars and stops many of the relevant spells that you would see against the game.
Nature's Claim - simple and efficient removal for artifacts and enchantments. Because we are winning in a primarily combo fashion, the 4 life that we give an opponent is mostly inconsequential. The versatility of being able to destroy a problem permanent at instant speed for just a G is really invaluable. Currently, [CARD}Caustic Caterpillar[/CARD] is filling this role since it's a creature and has the preferred synergies for the decklist as a whole. If your meta is dominated by Artifact-centered decks (think Arcum Dagsson, Teferi Combo, or Grixis Storm), than it might be wise to include this card alongside other pieces of removal.
Mana Drain - arguably the best counterspell printed because it produces mana for you on your next turn. This card enables us to hard cast Tasigur if we need to or our other high CMC creatures. If not one of our creatures, we can easily convert the one-time mana jolt into artifact mana via our mana rocks. A great card that has a CMC of 2 to make sure we can easily cast it after potentially picking it up via Tasigur's ability.
Counterspell - because OG Counterspell is good at what it does.
Arcane Denial - some players might balk at the fact that you're letting your opponent draw 2 free cards off of countering their spell, but I think the versatility of being able to counter ANY spell for just 1U is too valuable to pass up. It also replaces itself so that you can keep card parity. A very useful spell and I like the new art as well.
Muddle the Mixture - this card Transmutes for Dramatic Reversal, Isochron Scepter, AND Flash. Nevermind the other 2 CMC targets in the deck. A phenomenal tutor effect for the deck that also provides a relevant Counterspell effect at any stage of the game. Really a fantastic card for this deck and I highly recommend playing it somewhere in your 99 if you're playing Tasigur Flash Hulk.
Trickbind - another versatile Counter effect that stops most combos cold. The Split Second is extremely relevant and could easily be included in your deck if you need to stop a certain effect from triggering (opposing Hulk triggers, Thrasios triggers, The Chain Veil, etc.). A really great counter effect that helps to buy a turn or stop an opponent from executing a combo/synergy that would cripple you or leave you behind in the game.
Abrupt Decay - die, Food Chain! That is all. Most of the relevant permanents in a competitive Commander game are at 3 CMC or under it. This card destroys all of them, no questions asked. An extremely versatile removal spell, the "can't be countered" clause is super relevant for our Control plan. And we won't be sad to see it back in our hands via Tasigur's ability because it's so versatile.
Assassin's Trophy - many players have already remarked on how incredibly powerful this card is for 60 card formats, but I'd like to highlight it even more. Many competitive decks run a VERY light Basic land count. And if you know you're going against a Hermit Druid variant, this card is an instant speed, 2 CMC Vindicate. And even if you do Rampant Growth an opponent BUT destroy the key permanent they needed in order to win or develop their board, I'll take that trade any day. This card's power scales in direct proportion to how streamlined and efficient your opponents' decks are.
Reality Shift - I personally love this card. From when it was first spoiled I knew that it would be a staple for any and all of my U based decks. It's unconditional creature removal at instant speed for 2 CMC. And do not underestimate the Manifest ability. Not only does it provide the basis for decking our opponents out via the Reality Within combo but it also frequently strands a valuable card as an un-morphable 2/2 creature. So, in some ways, it's almost a 2 for 1 if you get lucky with the Manifest. And more often than not, you're going to get lucky. I love this spell and I think it's an auto-include for this deck, combo potential notwithstanding.
Cyclonic Rift - I think the power of this card is readily apparent to any player that has been playing Commander. The fact that it scales depending on the stage of the game is super valuable to the deck's strategy. And you can emergency use to bounce an problem permanent that hits the board in a pinch. A fantastic card for Commander, it's another one of the cards I would consider an auto-include.
Dimir Charm - this card is surprisingly versatile in its application and used to be in the deck until Assassin's Trophy was printed. All three modes can be relevant at various moments in the game; many pertinent creatures that you'll see on the opposite side of the table have 2 power; countering a Demonic Tutor, Timetwister, or Time Spiral is especially valuable; and making that opposing Vampiric Tutor look especially useless is great. If you were to include Paradox Engine in the deck (which you could easily do), then this is another card that you can put under Scepter to kill the table.
Flash - this card is the namesake for one of our signature combos. I'm not explaining why this card is in the deck...
Dramatic Reversal - one of the primary combo pieces for the deck, it forms the basis for the Dramatic Scepter combo. An explanation of why the card is useful? It wins the game under a Scepter and allows you to usually double your mana output for a turn if needed.
Beast Within - again, it's clean, unconditional removal for any problem permanent that you see on the other side of the table. Do note that you can also use it to kill your own Hulk in the case that you've got in play somehow, perhaps via Animate Dead or Phyrexian Delver. It also is invaluable for our Reality Within combo and is just generally another useful card for the deck as a whole.
Intuition - the card that sets up the best Catch-22 situations for your opponents. When I usually cast this (almost always during an opponent's EOT), it usually signals that I'm going to attempt to execute a combo on my turn. There are numerous piles that you can create so that you get the card that you want, and experience with those piles comes from playing the deck and what you have on board. As a general note, I most often save this card until I have one half of one of my combos in hand. Then, I can create 3 card piles where I will be guaranteed to get the card that I want. It also has political applications in that you're able to tutor for cards that you need in your 'yard and have an opponent give you the card needed to stop a different opponent from executing a combo or Action.
Putrefy - a fine removal spell, its CMC and more limited range of targets just push it out of the deck. A fine budget replacement however.
Cryptic Command - the Blue Wrath of God, this was the card that inspired me to switch to playing U in the first place. Its versatility and power is well known at this point, nevermind the choke hold it had on Standard for the time it was legal. I include this card as part of the Primer for mostly nostalgia purposes.
Force of Will - the best Counterspell effect for MTG, period. It's the only reason that the MTG Legacy scene isn't a Yu-Gi-Oh farce. Being able to counter a spell for NO mana is too powerful to pass up, especially when going against other competitive decks. Play Force of Will or proxy it if you can.
Sorceries
Imperial Seal - a monetarily expensive top-of-deck tutor, it's a decent inclusion for the deck. I probably should be playing it, but I feel that the other tutor effects in the deck are a little bit better.
Demonic Tutor - find the card you need right now for just 1B. This card is undeniably good and Commander is the sole reason that this card is over $20+ now.
Diabolic Intent - a reprint that desperately needed to occur, this card makes the high density of mana-dorks an actual useful component of the deck. We don't mind sacing things to the 'yard in order to get a better card. The synergy in sacing a live Hulk, as part of the spell's cost, is also noteworthy. Another tutor effect to make sure that we can execute our strategy as consistently as possible in a 99 card deck format.
Life from the Loam - this card is VERY awesome and I had mostly forgotten about it until I read Cameron's Tasigur Primer. It can help us recur Fetch-lands to ensure that our mana development is solid throughout the course of a game, it helps to fuel Tasigur's Delve cost, and it also acts as a card advantage spell when combined with Barren Moor and Tranquil Thicket. There are also a number of utility lands that are valuable to recur, the most notable one being Strip Mine. This card helps to fuel the late-game strategy for the deck and acts as a solid source of mana development and card advantage.
Life // Death - both halves of this spell are useful to the deck's strategy. Razaketh loves to eat our lands that have been Animated via the Life effect and we are totally okay with Reanimateing a spent creature for the mid/late game. The art is cool and both sides of the card are relevant to the deck.
Toxic Deluge - the cheapest and most effective Wrath effect in the format. Gets around indestructible, shroud, and hexproof while clearing the board. A fantastic card.
Eldritch Evolution - one of the primary reasons to be playing Tasigur in the first place, it allows you to exchange a cheaply casted Tasigur (via Delve) into a better creature. If you have a sac outlet on the table (Carrion Feeder and Phyrexian Tower come to mind), then you can exchange Tasigur for Protean Hulk and attempt to win. Or, you can get Razaketh, the Foulblooded into play and chain tutor effects together (via Life // Death and try and win that way. Or, if you want to slow-roll the game and play the control angle, get Nezahal, Primal Tide into play and start drawing a ton of cards. The flexibility of this tutor, in conjunction with Tasigur's (usually) low casting cost and you have a recipe for consistently getting your best creatures into play consistently.
Windfall - sometimes you have a hand full of fast mana and a Windfall. Being able to dump your hand and then draw a fresh one before your opponents get a chance to develop their early board presence can do a lot to set the tempo of the game in your favor. It also forms a mini-Combo in the deck with Notion Thief to take complete control of the game and most likely win. I prefer Windfall over Timetwister because it dumps my cards into the 'yard, fueling Tasigur's Delve cost. This is a very useful draw 7 effect that has synergy with the deck's strategy and compliments the not inconsequential Reanimte effects in the deck.
Timetwister - the only piece of the Power 9 legal in Commander, it allows a fast mana hand to be extra broken since we can dump our fast mana pieces and then 'Twister into a fresh 7 cards. There's also the opportunity to disrupt our opponent's plans with the 'Twister by forcing them to cycle away the cards they may or may not have been tutoring for. The main reason this card is in the deck is for its synergy with Notion Thief. While the Thief takes advantage of our opponents' draw spells/effects, adding in another draw 7 effect is a great way to break the table and gain nearly insurmountable card advantage over the table.
Morbid Curiosity - I tested this card after seeing how successful it was in my wife's Kaalia list and I have not been disappointed by it yet. It provides another way to take advantage of Tasigur's cheap casting cost and exchange him for 6 new cards. The sacrifice effect is also an additional cost, so you can use it to kill off your Hulk despite the Curiosity getting countered.
Damnation - if you're playing in a meta that emphasizes creatures and creature swarms, it might be useful to run an additional Wrath effect alongside Toxic Deluge. It's a fine effect for the deck and I recommend it if you need this type of effect in your deck.
Lands
I'm not going to really explain why the colored mana producing lands are in the deck and instead focus this section on the utility lands that I'm running in the deck. Hopefully you can understand why I'm playing Watery Grave, Llanowar Wastes, and Tropical Island...
Volrath's Stronghold - being able to recur our many creatures helps to keep us live in every stage of the game, more especially in the late game. I love this card and wish that they would reprint it for us Commander players because of how useful it is. It incidentally can also help us to keep from being decked, something that may come up during the Reality Within combo or if someone else is trying to mill you out.
Phyrexian Tower - it's a nice, free sac outlet to ensure that if the Hulk is in play somehow you can kill it dead. It also helps to turn mana dorks into pseudo ramp effects for our deck.
Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth - a nice way to ensure that all of our lands tap for mana consistently. We could run Cabal Coffers if we wanted to, but the Cradle is usually better for us since we don't have to spend mana to get an large return out of the Cradle.
Cephalid Coliseum - this deck can hit Threshold pretty easily to take advantage of its looting effect. What's really cool about this card is that it helps make Life from the Loam a super powerful card advantage engine AND it also can force an opponent to discard three cards if you have Notion Thief in play. A hidden gem of a land, particularly in this list.
Gaea's Cradle - another one of the reasons that we're running a creature heavy package in the deck is to make sure that the Cradle can tap for a bunch of mana. The power of Cradle is obvious, methinks, but do remember that it becomes a dead land if your board is empty of creatures.
Strip Mine - because sometimes you need to take out opposing lands and/or mana screw people. This card with Life from the Loam is great at ensuring that your opponent's land counts don't get too high or ensuring that certain lands are always dead. We don't like opposing Gaea's Cradles.
Barren Moor, Tranquil Thicket - these cards are great cantrips and are preferred because they CAN'T be recurred via Tasigur's ability. This enables you to free up slots that would normally be dedicated to cards like Ponder, Preordain, and Brainstorm for actually relevant cards that are applicable during all stages of the game. They also help to fuel Life from the Loam and turn that card into a card advantage machine and consistent way of getting land drops EVERY turn. I've been very pleased with their inclusion. Lonely Sandbar is omitted because our Blue mana is to important for interaction purposes. We want every instance of Blue mana producing permanents in our deck to be present on the battlefield if possible, so it's not likely that we would actually want to cycle the Sandbar whereas we're fine in cycling away Green or Black mana for new cards.
The first person I'd like to thank is Dies_To_Doom_Blade. He was the first person to profitably post a Tasigur list on the MTGSalvation forums and his Reanimator list was the de facto Tasigur Reanimator list on the internet. While he's since switched over to the UBRG Partner combination of Thrasios, Triton Hero + Vial Smasher the Fierce for his Reanimator list, his Tasigur list was instrumental in helping me to develop my own competitive deck-building skills and evaluating cards critically. His excellent list can be found here and I HIGHLY recommend that you check it out.
I'd also like to thank the Laboratory Maniacs user/contributor Cameron. His Tasigur Loam list briefly entertained a Flash Hulk package and is the direct reason that I decided to update my own Tasigur list to the Flash Hulk list that you see here. His decklist can be found here. His Primer has also influenced the writing of this one, and I'd like to personally thank him for his thorough analysis of Tasigur and competitive Commander gameplay. I would also like to publicly recognize Laboratory Maniacs user Cameron for his well worded thoughts on Threat Assessment. They form the backbone of the "How to Play Control in Standard" section of this Primer. Cameron accurately captures the primary points of critical thinking that is necessary for evaluating threats at the table and I reiterate that I stand on his shoulders for this section.
Next, I'd like to thank my playgroup. Losing on T2 doesn't feel like a lot of fun, but you've entertained me as I've developed this deck into the Mid-Range Creature Based Combo list that it is today. Many thanks especially to my wife and her skilled playing of Kaalia. Her Kaalia list (initially developed by myself and played almost exclusively by her) is found in my signature and is THE benchmark that I measure my decks against. And this Tasigur list has performed very admirably against it and is thus added to my roster of decks.
Finally, I'd like to thank you, dear reader. This is a lot of text and I hope that it's been informative and useful to you in developing your own Tasigur list or playstyle.
This is a running log of any changes that are made to the Current decklist so that it remains current and up to date and so that you can follow what has changed about the decklist. The reasoning why a card substitution occurred will be found within the body of the thread itself, so reasoning won't be mentioned within this section.
10/17/2018-10/23/2018 Changes
Complete overhaul of decklist and Original Post. Too many changes to really keep track of, but the list has been edited to try and conform to Primer status.
Added an update to the Flash Hulk combo lines via Artaud's excellent explanation of how to more effectively use Body Snatcher. This also affords the deck an opportunity to squeeze in Sylvan Safekeeper somewhere in the deck to protect key creatures from interaction.
New Atraxa Reanimator Variant. Definitely more casual but can occasionally have some strong lines of play with the explosive power of a top Tier Reanimator deck. It aims to win through ETB abuse and creature beatdown. There is also a mild PHyrexia theme going on as well, which I find to be very pleasing.
I've actually brought this deck out of retirement and added it to my roster. Adding in the Flash Hulk package is exactly what the deck needed to become a deck I enjoy playing again.
The official OP list will be updated to reflect the current Flash Hulk list that I'm playing with. Perhaps I'll build out a Primer for the Flash Hulk List since Dies_to_Doom_Blade has switched over to a RUGB Reanimator list.
The new Assassin's Trophy is crazy awesome. Wizards hasn't printed a card this powerful in quite a while. I recommend picking up copies of this card, because I think it's going to be a $50 card pretty easily.
Lowers the curve, increases removal count, and gets rid of a strangely slow card. Nissa, while quite powerful as a card draw engine with her emblem, was just not quite good enough. While the list I'm playing is more of a Mid-Range FLash Hulk deck and is NOT all-in on the combo, Nissa wasn't a card I was happy to see frequently.
I've drawn Greater Good a few times now and wished it was something else. I think I'm going to try Snapcaster Mage. I'm also looking at Disciple of Bolas critically since it requires that I have another card in play. It's pulled its weight in games that have gone long, drawing me cards and padding my life total, but it's not the most efficient card and the deck is relatively mana light so it's hard to cast it consistently.
I'll be doing a set review for Guilds for each of my Primers. I will also be turning this Tasigur thread into a Flash Hulk Primer with Dies_to_Doom_Blade's blessing, but that will be months down the road probably. I just started a new quarter at school and my company is really starting to ramp up in sales and developments, so my time is getting crunched pretty significantly.
EDIT: As I review the decklist for potential Primer status, I realize that it's, quite frankly, suboptimal in many ways. I will be critically evaluating the list and probably making some massive changes to it as I think a little more deeply about what is most effective in a 4 player, cEDH game.
The Primer is mostly complete at this point. It just needs some additional writing in the Card Choices section in order to be complete in its entirety, and I'm tired of writing today.
Updated a few card links to ensure that the Primer meets expectations from the Primer committee.
EDIT: After double-counting my list, I realize I'm one card over. I've also pondered the applications of Morbid Curiosity and the reactive style of this deck and I believe that the Curiosity isn't a good fit. I'll be replacing it with a Wheel effect, most likely Timetwister, in order to maximize the mini-combo of Notion Thief + Wheel effect.
Good luck with the Primer committee!! I'm really liking how in-depth you've made it covering most of the major bases of a BUG commander. How has the recent changes been?
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Hey hey, DementedKirby! Good to see you chiming in here. Thanks very much for your compliment, comrade. The Primer committee likes the Primer so far. There were only a couple of card tag issues in this Primer iteration, so I think I've finally found the Primer template and format that works for me. I could probably write a Primer of this quality in about 4-5 hours now. It's certainly taken a lot of time figuring that out, though, heh.
In regards to the recent changes that I've made as of yesterday, I haven't had the chance to test them out explicitly, but I can't imagine how adding Timetwister would drastically and negatively impact the way the deck plays out. I play just as much fast mana as the other Storm and Combo decks out there, so I can take advantage of the draw-7 effect reliably. And it adds an additional draw-7 effect for Notion Thief, marginally increasing the number of times that the Thief and Wheel combo happens. Time will tell though.
But in a more general sense, changing the Tasigur list to a Flash Hulk combo list has injected the list with some serious power. Because the combo efficiency of Flash Hulk is so compact and operates at Instant speed, there's literally no point in a game from T2 onwards where my opponents can afford to make even one mistake. And despite their best efforts, I can still win through hate and countermagic. This list is successful against my wife's Kaalia list (Primer in my signature), which to me is a signal of a top-tier deck. The amount of Stax that Kaalia can put out is no joke and Tasigur can navigate it well. I've also come to really enjoy the mid-range style of play that I've built the deck around. The deck has a ton of synergies that aren't immediately apparent and it can assemble combo lines quickly and from a variety of different cards. So, in short, I've been extremely pleased with the results of the decklist as it's been changed to in comparison with the Tasigur Reanimator list I had previously.
That's great to hear! I've been simmering in my brain as to how to go about adding the combo potential of BUG to my Sidisi Primer. These three colors, in my opinion, are the best for Commander. The best lands, enchantments, tutors, and creatures are in those color. The best combos are as well. Flash Hulk was suggested to me on more than one occasion and when Protean Hulk was unbanned I tried it for a while but found it lackluster. It was probably due to the lack of effective sacrifice outlets. I did use Hermit Druid + Laboratory Maniac during the first versions of the deck to much success and then I simply used Hermit Druid to guarantee zombies and graveyard protection at instant speed by adding the two original eldrazi titans to it. There's honestly just so many good and proven combos to include.
Timetwister + Notion Thief is no joke. You're not only depriving opponents of a hand but if they're dependent on their graveyard you just deprived them of that, too. Since it'll be the only card in your graveyard, it's also relatively easy to quickly recover it with Tasigur afterwards.
Anyways, I'm glad to see your work with Tasigur. I'm gonna definitely make reference to your thread in my Sidisi primer the next time I update it so that others may see your insight and what other options are available to them in BUG.
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That's... ambitious, haha. Good luck on your quest for the Complete EDH compendium! A worthy goal to say the least.
I'd appreciate the shoutout. I think between you and me we have the most active Primers on MTGSalvation. Once this Tasigur Primer gets approved I'll have 4 active Primers, which I feel an appreciable amount of pride about. I think it's good writing, if I do say so myself.
In regards to the combo potential for Sidisi, I really like Hermit Druid since it interacts with Sidisi so nicely. There's a cEDH Primer for Sidisi that I think you should check out, located here. It's a super streamlined build that merges Flash Hulk, Hermit Druid, and Food Chain together. I'm personally extremely leery of a deck that only runs 28 lands, but it seems to work ok for the main pilot.
That's... ambitious, haha. Good luck on your quest for the Complete EDH compendium! A worthy goal to say the least.
Thanks! I really like the format but I want the theme of my decks to be as dissimilar as possible to each other. Having many decks means that it'll be a long time before I get bored of any of them.
I'd appreciate the shoutout. I think between you and me we have the most active Primers on MTGSalvation. Once this Tasigur Primer gets approved I'll have 4 active Primers, which I feel an appreciable amount of pride about. I think it's good writing, if I do say so myself.
For sure! I'm currently doing a second masters so I'm a bit pressed for time again. But when I'm able to give some solid attention to my threads I'll be sure to give the shoutout. Lol, yeah, we do have a growing list of primers! Hopefully I'll have the time to update my Kydele + Vial Smasher primer. It's the deck I think I've been testing most since Guilds of Ravnica along with Sidisi. So far I have the core and lots of the layers but it's still lacking. But those are key sections that need some attention so I have to make sure to give the ol' razzledazzle.[/quote]
In regards to the combo potential for Sidisi, I really like Hermit Druid since it interacts with Sidisi so nicely. There's a cEDH Primer for Sidisi that I think you should check out, located here. It's a super streamlined build that merges Flash Hulk, Hermit Druid, and Food Chain together. I'm personally extremely leery of a deck that only runs 28 lands, but it seems to work ok for the main pilot.
I gave the link a peek and it seems great! Especially from a combo perspective. I'll definitely give it a solid read and analysis when I have the time for it. I'm currently working on two assignments at once that I have to hand in by Monday plus I got a gig I gotta play at on Sunday so I'm really crunched for time. But once the holidays are around I will definitely have the break I need to really immerse in my hobbies.
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I wonder - why Flash-Hulk? Sure it enables fastest win in a format but your deck does not focus on that so assembling it may be a problem. Tasigur has build-in condition "win with infinite mana" but instead of appropriate engines (except for Dramatic-Scepter) you run 5 cards which have zero synergy with your Commander and the rest of the deck. Wouldn't Palinchron-Navigator/Image/mana doubler serve you better?
Thanks for chiming in, Artaud. Flash Hulk has a great deal of synergy with the deck I believe. And in comparison to the ridiculous mana cost of any Palinchron combo, I find that Flash Hulk package to be much more compact and effective. Let's take a critical look at the two combos.
For a Palinchron combo, I'm going to assume that it would be run alongside Phantasmal Image since that's clearly the most mana efficient way to win. This combo requires, at the minimum, 7 actual lands in order to be effective. On top of that, both halves of the combo are sorcery speed, requiring me to tap out on my turn most likely in order to combo. Additionally, Palinchron has a trigger that is more easily responded to in comparison to the Hulk. The Image I'm already playing in the deck, so this change would only require me to add Palinchron to the deck. By cutting the Flash Hulk package, I would be able to free up additional slots in the deck and possibly add in Deadeye Navigator.
So let's look at Deadeye. By itself, he isn't good at all, needing in fact another creature in order to be truly effective. Otherwise, it's just a vanilla 5/5 for 6, which isn't even that good of a rate anymore. But, it does shortcut the land requirement somewhat because you only need 3 lands in order to go infinite. But again, this is another sorcery speed play that requires a certain number of lands in order to win.
The main reason that the Flash Hulk package is in this deck is BECAUSE it wins the game on an entirely different axis than what most Tasigur decks do at a lower CMC and at instant speed. You're right, Tasigur naturally rewards infinite colored mana generation. But the Flash Hulk package is, in my opinion, better.
Great discussion! You're certainly helping to stretch my brain and thinking and articulate the explicit reasons I'm running the Flash Hulk package more clearly.
I'll address your points in turn.
1) Milling key combo pieces is a fair point. What would I do if I were to mill Hulk via Tasigur's ability? There are at least 6 elements of Reanimation in the deck and 10 tutors that can go and find these cards. The 6 Reanimation/Recursion effects are: Muldrotha, Volrath's Stronghold, Animate Dead, Life // Death, Body Snatcher, and Phyrexian Delver. 3 of these cards are creature cards, meaning that I can go and find them via Survival of the Fittest or Eldritch Evolution in order to get that Hulk combo piece into play. Additionally, Snapcaster Mage can recycle one of the hard tutors (i.e. Vampiric Tutor or Demonic Tutor or Diabolic Intent) to find these pieces in addition to the 10 tutor effects in the deck. I'm not too worried about the recursion elements of the deck because there are so many redundant tutors and ways to duplicate the Reanimation effect I'd need in order to execute the Flash Hulk line.
I will also say that, if I'm in the position where I'm playing the long game with Tasigur and I'm actively using his ability and the milling of a Flash Hulk piece has occurred, then the game state has probably degenerated into an equilibrium of sorts that Tasigur can totally take advantage of with his ability. Indeed, this is one of the primary reasons that I chose Tasigur to be the Commander in the first place, as the Primer indicates. If I'm in this particular game state, then it's simply a matter of time before I draw enough Permission and Control pieces to force through one of the Combos I need.
Finally, the Reanimation effects are not the sole focus of the deck and are included because they are meant to be a back up to the Combos and give the deck flexibility and consistency. I'll happily spend an Animate Dead to get back a Protean Hulk to play so that any Wrath effect automatically becomes a losing proposition for my opponent. And should they exile the Hulk, no worries either. I'm still running the Dramatic Scepter Combo.
Perhaps the synergies with the Flash Hulk package aren't explicit enough to you and other readers. I'll try and clarify the synergies that I see for each of the Combo cards and try to demonstrate that the Flash Hulk package is not totally dead in this deck.
Flash - besides being the primary way to kill the Hulk, this card is a cheap way to get an ETB creature into play outside of normal Sorcery speed timing. The creatures that have ETB effects in this deck that can profitably take advantage of Flash are Phyrexian Delver, Body Snatcher, Sidisi, Undead Vizier, Spellseeker, and Wood Elves. Additionally, it also acts as an instant speed discard outlet to get some of the juicier targets into the 'yard for a Reanimation effect. I'll happily spend 1U to get Muldrotha into the 'yard so I can Life // Death it to play on my turn and recur some more cards. Flash helps to shortcut the amount of mana that I would need to spend in order to get these more expensive creatures into play with the Reanimation utility that the deck has. I wouldn't underestimate the utility that Flash has in this deck at all.
Carrion Feeder - it's a nice 1 drop that can scale as I feed it creatures. The synergy with Mikaeus is fairly obvious, but the Feeder is also the primary way that I take advantage of Skullclamp. The Feeder makes the Clamp a legitimate source of card advantage to the deck, enabling me to sacrifice creatures at will that don't have 1 toughness so that I can draw cards off of 'Clamp. Additionally, the Feeder acts as another way to get a spent creature into the 'yard in order to Reanimate it. An instant speed sac outlet is also a great way to protect my creatures from exile effects so that my creatures are constantly available to me over the course of a game. And, at times, it can be a legitimate threat on the ground, occasionally being a 5/5 or larger that can put pressure on more reactive Combo Control decks, particularly Ad Nauseam variants. It is tutorable via Survival of the Fittest, counts as a creature for Gaea's Cradle, can kill itself and other creatures for Skullclamp, and has obvious synergy with Mikaeus.
Phyrexian Delver - having an ETB creature that can Reanimate creatures is really good. Being a creature itself is even better since it's tutorable via Survival, counts as a creature for Cradle, carries a Skullclamp like a boss, is an excellent target for Eldritch Evolution, and is a nice Reanimation target if it's in the 'yard so that I can quickly build a board presence. I've intentionally tried to diversify the Reanimation effects across different card types in order to keep Muldrotha live at the mid and late game stage regardless of what I have in my 'yard, and the Delver is an important Reanimation effect for this deck. Besides being a combo piece for the Flash Hulk package itself.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - there is a reason this card is $20+. It certainly doesn't see any Constructed play, which means that the value of this card is almost strictly determined by the Commander market. And Mikaeus is just GOOD. Giving the majority of our board Undying makes Wrath effects a liability for my opponents. The utility of killing Human creatures for free has some minor applications (Kaalia is the one that comes to mind). But otherwise, Mikaeus makes our creatures a whole lot better. He makes Skullclamp a great source of card advantage and helps to get additional utility out of the ETB creatures that are in the deck. He's a creature himself, so he is tutorable via Survival, counts as a creature for Cradle, can himself carry Skullclamp like a boss, is a fine target and sac creature for Eldritch Evolution. Mikeaus is just a good card in any creature based deck, and this version of Tasigur is built to maximize synergies with The Unhallowed.
Protean Hulk - the main piece of the Flash Hulk combo. Not much needs to be said about that. While Flash is definitely the most obvious way to kill the Combo Pig, getting it into play with Phyrexian Tower or with a sac effect in play OR in hand means that you can win after getting it into play. And even if you choose not to assemble the Unhallowed Ballista combo, the Hulk still provides a ton of value if you just use his dying trigger fairly. I'll be pleased, if I'm playing against lesser tier decks, to get Spellseeker, Carrion Feeder, and Phantasmal Image off of the Hulk dying. Or maybe I just need to replace the Hulk with Muldrotha in order to grind hard. Or maybe I have Tasigur in play and I need Seedborn Muse to start accruing late game card advantage because Mikaeus has been somehow exiled. All of these options are fantastic and I'd happily play the Pig in a Black based deck simply because of how good it is at generating an effective and powerful board presence.
Walking Ballista - well, I hope by now that you understand that the Ballista has primary synergies with the deck. Check for Survival, Check for Skullclamp, and Check for Cradle. But the Ballista is also massively powerful with Seedborn Muse in play. I once had the Ballista as a 15/15 by the time it came back to my turn. I could kill any creature I wanted at instant speed and I could also severely damage any player's life total at instant speed. Nevermind being a 15/15. The Ballista is one of the best creatures to have been printed in recent memory. It even sees play in Legacy Tron/Eldrazi decks. If that doesn't speak to the power of this creature, I'm not sure anything else will.
2) This is probably the most significant point you've brought up. Body Snatcher is included in the deck as a clean solution to this problem, since it forces you to discard a creature card in order to keep it in play. This is the primary reason that the Snatcher is in the deck, in all honesty. It's a fairly mediocre Reanimation effect otherwise, but the discard clause makes it so that we can smoothly execute the Flash Hulk combo regardless of which Zone the pieces are in (with the exception of the exile zone, of course). I'm not sure if you've actually read the Primer, but I outline the exact situation that you describe here during the Flash Hulk combo explanation. I encourage you to read it if you haven't done so already.
I've found that the current iteration of the deck has a great balance between the two main combos. I run plenty of mana effects to jam a fast Combo line if it's available and I already run a significant number of tutors to the deck. The only tutors that could be added that would focus the deck more on the Flash Hulk plan is Worldly Tutor and Summoner's Pact. The deck could easily support the Worldly Tutor and the Pact is just too narrow for a 3 color deck anyways. The only other fast mana pieces that could conceivably be added to the deck are Chrome Mox and Mana Vault. I find that the current mana ramp package to be sufficient and very effective for my playstyle, so I feel no need to tool the deck to focus on the Flash Hulk combo any more than I already do.
I'll politely agree to disagree with your evaluation of the ETB creatures that are in the deck. Having the ability to perform the effects listed at instant speed is quite relevant if I'm the game-state or my board development warrants it.
I really like the idea of Woodfall Primus. I'll have to consider it in place of Hostage Taker. I think the Taker deserves some additional testing before I entirely dismiss her. There's been some awesome situations where she exiles a key creature or mana rock and gives it to me or acts as a 4 CMC Commander removal spell. I'm not totally sold on her yet, because I've had more situations where she's a 4 CMC Commander removal spell or where an opponent gets the chance to get their permanent back from underneath the Taker. Get Wreckt Leviathan has been very up and down for me in the past. Sometimes it's great, and saves the day and keeps it at equilibirum, and other times it's an emergency panic button that resets my field just as hard as anyone else's. The decklist as is is very land lite, and the Leviathan punishes decks that are land lite and mana rock/dork heavy. I think there's a litte too much anti-synergy with the Leviathan for my liking and it's tested poorly in the past. Bane of Progress is pretty awesome and dominates if it resolves. I hadn't fully considered the Bane in this deck, but it might be worthwhile to take a look at it critically.
As mentioned previously, the Reanimation effects are not a focus of the deck. The Reanimation effects that are there are to give the deck resiliency and consistency. Frantic Search has also been another card that's been very hit or miss in testing. And it's certainly not my favorite card to get back with Tasigur should that happen. I've been pretty content with the discard effects that I have in the deck, as Survival is VERY frequently a card I tutor for within the first stages of the game so it's generally always available to me. And if it isn't because it's removed, there are enough additional tutor effects that can replicate what the Survival does. Additionally, having Combo pieces stranded in hand doesn't really occur that frequently.
For the meta I'm playing in, and for a cEDH meta generally, Carpet of Flowers is superior to Exploration. There will come a time in the game where I'm no longer concerned about hitting land drops consistently and the Exploration becomes an empty piece of cardboard. The Carpet is always live, as there is always a minimum of 2 Islands in play at any given time. Life from the Loam has been sufficient in recurring lands from the 'yard and I've found no need for Walking Crucuible or Crucible itself. I did have a version of Tasigur where I played the Crucible and it was mostly a mediocre card when I was playing it. It was nice when the version of Tasigur I was playing was a streamlined Control list, but this deck is not a truly streamlined Control list. There are a lot of Control elements that help to supplement the Combo lines and/or buy time to execute them.
Great ideas and comments, sir. The deck may seem good-stuffy to you but it's performed admirably for me and each card has been carefully thought about and/or tested. The Core synergies that the deck is built around are Mikaeus, Cradle, Survival, Razaketh, and Skullclamp. Many, if not all of the cards in the deck and the decklist itself, have been maximized to push these particular synergy pieces. It's why the deck is so mana dork heavy when that's often a liability for cEDH games.
Thanks for the compliments, sir! I appreciate the thoughtful responses as it's forced me to elucidate some of the card choices more concretely.
Yup, I've noticed that in the cEDH servers that there has been a trend towards shifting away from glass-cannon decks. If you're a combo deck, you need to have some sort of built-in resiliency or add more control elements in order to keep ahead of the other glass-cannon combo decks. Tasigur's strategy, and this decklist generally, has been created in such a way as to keep pace with this trend. That's why the card choices are what they are, for the most part. And Tasigur does play the long game very well, the main reason I chose him over other Sultai options.
The list of reprints that are relevant to the Sultai wedge is absolutely ridiculous. I'll simply touch on the ones that I feel are the most relevant for Tasigur and the different strategies he can employ.
Ultimate Master Review
Tasigur, the Golden Fang - he got reprinted with some new art! I actually prefer the old art, but perhaps seeing the new art in person will change my mind.
Demonic Tutor - awesome reprint with some hella cool art.
Snapcaster Mage - I think they've reprinted this in every Masters set so far. Someone can correct me if I'm wrong. But this is possibly one of the best 5 creatures in all of MTG history and deserves its reprint.
Bitterblossom for those that are dedicated to the Hard/True Control variations of Tasigur, this card can be a Forcefield or a Win Condition depending on how the long the game goes. The new art is pretty cool as well.
Temporal Manipulation - a hella cool reprint that can be a win condition if you have a way to not deck yourself once you've achieved infinite mana. Volrath's Stronghold comes to mind.
Entomb - this card was very much needing a reprint and the new art is pretty evocative. I like it.
Reanimate - for those Tasigur pilots who want to focus on a Reanimator strategy, this is a great reprint with some hella cool art.
Glen Elendra Archmage - a card that was desperately needing a reprint, this little Wizard is awesome at protecting our plays. While it's expensive on the CMC side, it's very good at what it needs to do.
Woodfall Primus - a great Flash target, this card also forms a mini-Combo with Mikaeus and Carrion Feeder to clear the opponents of pretty much every relevant card.
Pattern of Rebirth - another awesome art reprint, this card is very strong in a Tasigur shell since there are plenty of sac effects in the B.
Maelstrom Pulse - cleans up any token strategy like a boss while hitting multiple permanent types. A great card for the deck.
Phyrexian Tower - the art is sooooo cool on this card. It's another reprint that needed to happen, so congrats Wizards for making a smart choice.
This... is awesome. I can't believe I didn't even think about staggering the Snatcher's triggers like you've outlined. I'll be needing to update the Card Choices section post-haste as well as the strategy section as well. Good look, comrade.
At this point I think it's going to be Hostage Taker. The card is good when it's good, but has a lot of variance that I don't particularly like. The built-in protection that Sylvan Safekeeper offers during the Flash Hulk combo is great, ensuring a solid win that can counter instant speed interaction. This is, quite simply, too good to pass up. It also has some good synergy with Life from the Loam, a card I find myself tutoring for fairly frequently.
Well, hot damn, Lavinia, Azorius Renegade is absolutely broken for the cEDH scene. It single-handedly stops nearly every competitive Combo deck in this format as long as she's in play and she has a massively attractive mana cost as a build around Commander. This deck is going to have to adapt to this by possibly increasing the amount of removal being played maindeck and/or upping the land count. Thankfully, she doesn't stop our main Flash Hulk plan too badly but she DOES stop Isochron Scepter all by herself. Whew. What a great card for the cEDH scene.
Well, hot damn, Lavinia, Azorius Renegade is absolutely broken for the cEDH scene. It single-handedly stops nearly every competitive Combo deck in this format as long as she's in play and she has a massively attractive mana cost as a build around Commander. This deck is going to have to adapt to this by possibly increasing the amount of removal being played maindeck and/or upping the land count. Thankfully, she doesn't stop our main Flash Hulk plan too badly but she DOES stop Isochron Scepter all by herself. Whew. What a great card for the cEDH scene.
Her first ability just hurts decks that cast big spells thanks to mana dorks and mana rocks but mana-based ramp will do just fine. That being said, she's an amazing hate bear.
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But in order to subvert nature’s cycle, Tasigur needs to have an understanding of nature, represented by Green. Green is about strength, natural growth, and the feral triumph of predators over prey. This ferocity, strength, and feral instinct is represented most aptly by Survival of the Fittest, Protean Hulk, and Beast Within. Growth is represented by cards like Life from the Loam, Birds of Paradise, and Nature's Claim. Tasigur happily uses the strength of nature and amplifies it through his corrupting power of Reanimation.
All in all, Tasigur represents the best colors in Commander and offers a unique representation for how you want to describe yourself, dear reader. In fact, a more complete description of this Wedge's philosophy can be found below, described by MTGSal user KarnTerrier:
Having access to the three best colors in Commander alongside a Commander who takes advantage of graveyard synergies, infinite mana combos, and recurring control pieces, Tasigur is an excellent choice for grindy, long-term games or for executing a quick combo line.
The Flash Hulk package was chosen for several reasons:
On top of these reasons, I think Tasigur is also better because he enables Eldritch Evolution to be a one-card combo all by itself. By sac-ing Tasigur to the Evolution, you can effectively get any creature you want into play for a significantly reduced cost. Add in the fact that Tasigur can Delve cards away to fuel his casting cost and you have a very efficient 2 card combo that you can play with a great deal of consistency. The primary target for Eldritch Evolution is to find Razaketh, the Foulblooded and get it into play with another body to sacrifice. Once Razaketh hits play, you can then sac the other creature to go and get Life // Death. Life/Death will then turn your lands into additional bodies to sacrifice to Razaketh’s ability, allowing you to assemble a host of 2 card combos as long as you have 4 lands. Being able to have this kind of combo line is extremely powerful and gives you additional flexibility of how you play out your deck in-game.
Now, let’s look at Tasigur in comparison with the other Sultai and Flash Hulk Commanders available.
An important thought before the decklist is presented. I do not claim that the one presented below is the absolute end-all-be-all of Tasigur decklists for three reasons:
6x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Mana Sources (14)
0x Mana Crypt
0x Mox Diamond
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Carpet of Flowers
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Elvish Mystic
1x Fyndhorn Elves
1x Llanowar Elves
1x Sol Ring
2x Dimir Signet
2x Fellwar Stone
2x Simic Signet
3x Wood Elves
5x Gilded Lotus
Tutors (9)
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Vampiric Tutor
2x Demonic Tutor
2x Diabolic Intent
2x Survival of the Fittest
3x Eldritch Evolution
3x Intuition
3x Spellseeker
8x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
Combo Pieces (9)
0x Walking Ballista
1x Carrion Feeder
1x Viscera Seer
2x Dramatic Reversal
2x Flash
2x Isochron Scepter
5x Phyrexian Delver
6x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
7x Protean Hulk
1x Sylvan Safekeeper
1x Training Grounds
2x Animate Dead
2x Life from the Loam
2x Life // Death
2x Phantasmal Image
2x Snapcaster Mage
4x Body Snatcher
5x Seedborn Muse
6x Muldrotha, the Gravetide
Counterspells (8)
0x Pact of Negation
1x Stubborn Denial
1x Swan Song
2x Arcane Denial
2x Counterspell
2x Mana Drain
2x Muddle the Mixture
5x Force of Will
Removal (9)
1x Caustic Caterpillar
1x Chain of Vapor
2x Abrupt Decay
2x Assassin's Trophy
2x Cyclonic Rift
2x Gilded Drake
2x Reality Shift
3x Beast Within
3x Toxic Deluge
Card Draw (9)
1x Mystic Remora
1x Skullclamp
2x Baleful Strix
2x Sylvan Library
3x Rhystic Study
3x Timetwister
3x Windfall
4x Notion Thief
7x Nezahal, Primal Tide
1x Strip Mine
1x Volrath's Stronghold
1x Phyrexian Tower
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Cephalid Coliseum
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Command Tower
1x Mana Confluence
1x Underground Sea
1x Watery Grave
1x Tropical Island
1x Breeding Pool
1x Bayou
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Barren Moor
1x Tranquil Thicket
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Woodland Cemetery
1x Hinterland Harbor
1x Morphic Pool
1x Llanowar Wastes
1x Yavimaya Coast
1x Polluted Delta
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Marsh Flats
1x Flooded Strand
1x Island
1x Swamp
1x Forest
1 Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Creature
1 Viscera Seer
1 Sylvan Safekeeper
1 Phantasmal Image
1 Snapcaster Mage
1 Birds of Paradise
1 Caustic Caterpillar
1 Fyndhorn Elves
1 Deathrite Shaman
1 Carrion Feeder
1 Elvish Mystic
1 Walking Ballista
1 Baleful Strix
1 Wood Elves
1 Spellseeker
1 Llanowar Elves
1 Body Snatcher
1 Seedborn Muse
1 Gilded Drake
1 Phyrexian Delver
1 Notion Thief
1 Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
1 Protean Hulk
1 Muldrotha, the Gravetide
1 Nezahal, Primal Tide
1 Razaketh, the Foulblooded
Enchantment
1 Carpet of Flowers
1 Training Grounds
1 Mystic Remora
1 Rhystic Study
1 Survival of the Fittest
1 Sylvan Library
1 Animate Dead
1 Bayou
1 Tropical Island
1 Underground Sea
1 Volrath's Stronghold
1 Phyrexian Tower
1 Strip Mine
1 Cephalid Coliseum
1 Breeding Pool
1 Mana Confluence
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1 Gaea's Cradle
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Flooded Strand
1 Polluted Delta
1 Yavimaya Coast
1 Llanowar Wastes
1 Marsh Flats
1 Verdant Catacombs
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Underground River
1 Drowned Catacomb
1 Command Tower
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Barren Moor
1 Hinterland Harbor
1 Woodland Cemetery
1 Watery Grave
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Island
1 Swamp
1 Forest
Artifact
1 Mox Diamond
1 Isochron Scepter
1 Dimir Signet
1 Simic Signet
1 Fellwar Stone
1 Skullclamp
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Gilded Lotus
1 Muddle the Mixture
1 Stubborn Denial
1 Intuition
1 Cyclonic Rift
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Dramatic Reversal
1 Abrupt Decay
1 Force of Will
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Swan Song
1 Reality Shift
1 Mana Drain
1 Flash
1 Pact of Negation
1 Arcane Denial
1 Counterspell
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Beast Within
1 Assassin's Trophy
Sorcery
1 Life from the Loam
1 Life // Death
1 Toxic Deluge
1 Eldritch Evolution
1 Timetwister
1 Windfall
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Diabolic Intent
1 Lion's Eye Diamond
1 Shadow of Doubt
1 Trickbind
1 Snapcaster Mage
6x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Mana Sources (13)
1x Sol Ring
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Llanowar Elves
1x Elvish Mystic
2x Urborg Elf
2x Dimir Signet
2x Simic Signet
2x Golgari Signet
2x Sakura-Tribe Elder
3x Wood Elves
3x Commander's Sphere
4x Solemn Simulacrum
5x Gilded Lotus
Combo Pieces (5)
2x Dramatic Reversal
2x Isochron Scepter
2x Life // Death
5x Peregrine Drake
6x Deadeye Navigator
Tutors (8)
2x Diabolic Intent
3x Spellseeker
3x Praetor's Grasp
3x Eldritch Evolution
5x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
5x Final Parting
8x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
Removal (13)
1x Caustic Caterpillar
1x Nature’s Claim
1x Rapid Hybridization
2x Reality Shift
2x Blink of an Eye
3x Plaguecrafter
3x Reclamation Sage
3x Beast Within
4x Ravenous Chupacabra
4x Hostage Taker
5x Acidic Slime
5x Shadowborn Demon
6x Noxious Gearhulk
1x Skullclamp
2x Coiling Oracle
2x Baleful Strix
2x Impulse
3x Sultai Charm
3x Windfall
3x Morbid Curiosity
4x Disciple of Bolas
4x Notion Thief
5x Mulldrifter
8x Dig Through Time
Recursion/Utility (13)
1x Carrion Feeder
2x Animate Dead
2x Stitch Together
4x World Shaper
5x Seedborn Muse
5x Body Double
5x Phyrexian Delver
5x Havengul Lich
5x Living Death
5x Grimgrin, Corpse-Born
5x The Mimeoplasm
6x Muldrotha, the Gravetide
6x Izoni, Thousand-Eyed
Lands (36)
1x Temple of the False God
1x Command Tower
1x Opulent Palace
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Woodland Cemetery
1x Hinterland Harbor
1x Watery Grave
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Breeding Pool
1x Lonely Sandbar
1x Barren Moor
1x Tranquil Thicket
1x Yavimaya Coast
1x Llanowar Wastes
1x Underground River
1x Jungle Hollow
1x Thornwood Falls
1x Dismal Backwater
6x Swamp
6x Island
6x Forest
To delve a little further into the philosophy of Magic: The Gathering, this game is ultimately a game of math, statistics being the most predominant. I won't go into the technicalities of probabilities and statistics (because I find it boring and because I don't have a great grasp on the math) but the two things that restrict this game, generally, are mana availability and number of cards drawn per turn. Every deck, that is top-tier and competitive, finds some ways to overcome these restrictions. I won't go into the structured play of Standard, Modern, or Legacy, and simply focus on EDH. EDH is a wonderful format where these restrictions are prohibitive since we are running singletons of every card except basic lands. This means that we need to fill in redundancy of card effects without being able to use multiple copies of a particular card. This necessitates a vast breadth of knowledge of the available card pool in MTG and what is good, which is a side benefit of playing EDH. As an Combo-Control deck, however, these restrictions are especially prohibitive because we are trying to maintain card advantage and card parity with not just one opponent, but most likely three or four opponents at the same time. The more mana and card advantage that we have, consequently, the greater our opportunity to interact with each of our opponents OR more quickly execute our own game strategy.
But, with Protean Hulk's unbanning on 4/24/2017, there has been a sharp increase in the number of decks that utilize the fat Combo-Pig in order to find an infinite combo of some sort. Breakfast Hulk decks are now a little more populous as the competitive Commander deck of choice because the win condition is so compact; you typically only need to activate Hermit Druid once or cast Flash with Hulk in hand. Since this can theoretically be done on T2-T3 with some consistency, Hulk variants are very effective at winning the game because you can shortcut the typical mana constraints of executing an infinite combo for just 1G or 1U.
This decklist aims to take advantage of this compact win condition and also attempts to synergize the pieces of that combo into the deck as seamlessly as possible. Consequently, the card choices are influenced substantially by what will make the combo pieces better outside of the Combo.
READ THIS!
It's important to note that this deck has been configured to support a more mid-range strategy in addition to rushing the Flash Hulk Combo. The average CMC is above 2.5 and includes several cards in the main decklist that might be suspect for a more streamlined, low-to-the-ground CMC deck. Disciple of Bolas is an example of this type of concession, as it presents a method to sacrifice a creature (check for Protean Hulk synergies), gain life (survive early Aggro beats to get into the late-game), draw cards (to accrue card advantage over opponents), and is itself a creature (check for Survival of the Fittest synergy). The deck is designed this way to allow maximum resiliency to the deck as a whole, giving you opportunities to win at any stage of the game. After you play this deck a few times, your opponents will get wise to your strategy and you'll therefore need to adjust YOUR playstyle and strategy accordingly. The decklist is designed to cater to this flexibility instead of being pigeon-holed into combo-ing out all the time every time. Do you need to hold up interaction during the early turns to stop another Fast Combo deck at the table? No problem, there's an excellent selection to enable this. Looking to race slower, more mid-range decks to assemble a win in the early turns of the game before anyone else has set up? The tutor package is robust enough to allow you to do this to. And if you get stopped during the early game to combo, you should have plenty of resources and card advantage to really shine in the late-game.
Tasigur himself is a primary way of generating Card Advantage and he should be cast and utilized often. His ability is powerful enough to warrant the inclusion of 2 cards that are kinda not so good on their own: Seedborn Muse and Training Grounds. Both of these cards enable Tasigur, and you by extension, to be the Policeman at the table. The two cards together create a nearly unbeatable card advantage machine that puts a hard stop on anyone else's ability to combo off without Interaction from you.
It is very important to me that I give you Laboratory Maniac user Cameron a specific shout out here, since this section is an expansion/adaptation of a section of his Tasigur Primer that can be found here. Cameron accurately captures the primary points of critical thinking that is necessary for evaluating threats at the table and I humbly admit that I stand on his shoulders for this section.
I’m going to assume that you are familiar with the decks that your opponents will be playing and, more importantly, familiar with your opponents themselves. Understanding how your opponents think will allow you the best chance to call their bluffs and generally squeeze every benefit possible out of a game. So, how do you know what to interact with?
This question series is something that I mentally go through every time a major, or what appears to be a major, spell hits the stack or permanent entering the battlefield. It’s helped me a great deal in knowing what spells to counter and which ones to let slide so that I can conserve my resources and win.
With Vancouver mulligans being the accepted and normal way to Mulligan for Commander games, it's important that you know how to evaluate your opening hand and determine if it's keepable or if you need a fresh 7. Generally speaking, an ideal opening hand will have 1-2 lands, 2-3 mana sources, 1-2 card advantage spells, 1 tutor, and 1-2 interaction spells. This kind of opening hand gives you the greatest flexibility to how your opponents start their opening hand. Some example hands are demonstrated here to give you an idea of how I would evaluate some opening hands.
It's also important to note which decks you're playing against. Are you sitting down with a bunch of other fast combo decks? Is Stax more present in your opponent's decks potentially? Or are you playing against more casual players? Depending on what you're playing against, it's important that you evaluate your hand according to what you'll need to best fight against your opponents.
This is a slow hand, frankly. The lack of additional mana sources besides the lands makes this unattractive. While there are some great interaction pieces present in the Decay and Chain, I think the hand is probably a little slow. I would ship this off for a fresh 7.
This is a fantastic hand. You can easily assemble the signature Flash Hulk combo and execute it with protection on T3, T2 if you're feeling brave/crazy. The sequence would be T1 Fetch land -> Mana Crypt -> Spellseeker, finding Flash. T2 play the Grave untapped, cast Diabolic Intent, sac the Spellseeker to find Protean Hulk. From here, you have enough mana to cast Flash and win or you could slow roll it to get protection on Turn 3 by casting [the Shaman. This hand would definitely be an auto-keep since you can race so quickly if you wanted to.
While this hand has the coveted Eldritch Evolution, it's risky in the mana production it can generate. Gaea's Cradle is a risky land to play with only one creature in the opening hand. I think that I would keep this one, though, and take the risk that I can Brainstorm into more mana sources. I'd make it my goal to get an early Tasigur into play and attempt the Eldritch Razaketh Combo line once I have enough mana sources.
Early Game: Turns 1-3
Also try and keep an eye on any notorious combo decks that you're sitting down with. What are they doing? If they're aggressively tutoring in the first few turns of the game, it's likely that they're going to try and jam their combo ASAP. This means that you'll want to prioritize keeping mana up for removal/interaction so that you don't lose the game too early.
The early stages of the game are what will set you up for the rest of it. Make sure that you try and develop your mana sources as quickly as possible since mana advantage is what will allow you to do more things in the course of a game. One of the reasons that our deck has a fairly small mana curve is so that you can deploy a number of cards quickly within the early turns of the game. This will help you to solidify your position at the table as you go into the Mid Game
Mid Game: Turns 3-5
Yeah, the Mid Game stage for a competitive Commander game is right about T3. This is where Combo decks will be trying to win or set up their win condition. Mid Range Control/Combo decks are going to try and get a Card Advantage engine of some sort established and generating value. Stax decks will have slammed down some sort of Stax piece that will be most likely hindering the table from effectively executing their respective strategies. Like the 'How to Play Control' section indicates, you'll want to fizzle the combo players, out maneuver the Mid Range decks, and keep Stax pieces at a tolerable level for your own board development and strategy.
If, on the other hand, you've elected to slow roll your strategy and maintain some control over the board, than you will want to prioritize continuing to develop your mana and card advantage. Casting Tasigur for a reduced casting cost (thanks, Delve!) is probably a great idea so that you can being to hold up mana during others' turns and start getting cards from your 'yard. There's almost no card in the deck that you don't want to see, so while there might be some less good picks that your opponents give you, you will largely appreciate the extra cards that you'll be accumulating. Some cards that I would look to tutor for at this stage of the game are Survival of the Fittest, Seedborn Muse, and Sylvan Library. All of these cards will help you keep card advantage flowing or help you dig into combo pieces so that you can win the game.
Handle threats as they come with the Removal spells and Counterspells that are in the deck. Hostage Taker is like Dimir's version of Dack Fayden and can help you simultaneously hinder an opponent and advance your own mana development. Eldritch Evolution is really going to shine at this stage of the game since you'll probably be able to cast it quickly in this stage of the game. You can then put Razaketh, the Foulblooded into play and start chaining tutors together or you can put Nezahal, Primal Tide to start attacking for 7 and draw you cards. Skullclamp is here so that any Wrath effects that an opponent casts will get you cards or so that you can turn those early game mana dorks (think Llanowar Elves or Elvish Mystic) into card advantage. Skullclamp is a great card draw engine and turns out creatures into additional sources of card advantage.
In summary, this is the stage of the game where you want to be able to lock in your strategy and start executing it. If you're looking for fast combo, chain tutors together until you have the two card combo you want in hand. If you're firmly on the Control/Grindy plan, get those card advantage engines going with a strong mana base.
Late Game: Turns 5+
Alright, now we're here, the end-game. And yes, it does start on T5 when you're playing against a host of other competitive Commander decks.
Ideally you'll have at least one card advantage engine going for you that is helping to keep your hand full of things to do. Rhystic Study is an all-star at this stage of the game when mana margins on opposing spells are thin. Seedborn Muse + Tasigur, the Golden Fang or Muldrotha, the Gravetide will help you to recur any cards you need from the 'yard. While I feel I've already addressed Tasigur's political value at the beginning of the Primer, I think it's worth repeating: use Tasigur's ability to recur key Removal and Counterspells in order to keep the table at an equilibrium. We want the table to be gummed up and for our opponents to have spent resources to unsuccessfully execute their combos. Once that ideal equilibrium has been achieved, you can usually begin to start chaining tutors or card draw spells together in order to find, assemble, and execute one of the infinite combos in the deck.
Now, there are two primary combos in the deck that operate on totally different lines. The primary combo is the Flash Hulk plan to infinitely deal damage to your opponents. The secondary combo is Dramatic Scepter for infinite mana, which will then be funneled into Tasigur's ability to "draw" your deck and recur certain cards over and over again. A brief explanation of each combo will follow.
Flash Hulk Combo Explanation
The end goal of the Flash Hulk Combo is to get the following three creatures into play: Carrion Feeder, Mikaeus, the Unhallowed, and Walking Ballista. So, if you assemble these pieces without using Flash or Protean Hulk, that's ok too and can actually be a sneaky way to assemble the pieces. Mikaeus is quite powerful as a card, so he is welcome as a value creature as well. The technical steps to this combo are as follows:
Now, if one of your combo pieces is stuck in hand, you can instead substitute the Phyrexian Delver selection in Step 4 with Body Snatcher and the Feeder. (EDIT: The primary Flash Hulk line can now focus exclusively on the Snatcher. See the updated Combo explanation on how to use the Snatcher exclusively.) When the Snatcher ETB, it has a trigger that forces you to discard a creature card or exile the Snatcher. You can then discard the stranded creature combo piece to your graveyard and the Snatcher will survive its trigger. Then, sacrifice the Snatcher to Carrion Feeder to pick up the Hulk again. Sac the Hulk again, and go find Phyrexian Delver and the other part of the combo and continue looping the death triggers for Ballista, Mikaeus, and the Feeder.
Dramatic Scepter Combo Explanation
This is a combo that, alongside mana producing non-land permanents that tap to generate that mana, generates infinite mana of any color (usually). You then funnel this mana into Tasigur's activated ability to "draw" your deck (via the 'graveyard via Tasigur's ability). It then allows you to recur certain cards as many times as you like.
The first part of the combo (getting infinite mana via Dramatic Scepter) is pretty straightforward, but is explained in technical detail as follows:
These two combos are the most efficient ways that you can close out the game, but don't underestimate Tasigur beats as another way to kill a player. His 4 power adds up after 6 turns, and you can easily pressure the Ad Nauseam or Doomsday player's life total and force them to deal with your cheap Commander.
Once you've shown your opponents the Reality Within each of them, their minds (libraries) will be so drained at this momentous revelation that they'll die. Or, if you've instead shown them the undead power of the Unhallowed Ballista, their dead bodies will be so pierced with ballistas as to resemble macabre pincushions. Like I said at the beginning of the Primer, welcome to a ruthless and slightly gruesome method of winning.
Creatures
Artifacts
Enchantments
Instants
Sorceries
Lands
I'd also like to thank the Laboratory Maniacs user/contributor Cameron. His Tasigur Loam list briefly entertained a Flash Hulk package and is the direct reason that I decided to update my own Tasigur list to the Flash Hulk list that you see here. His decklist can be found here. His Primer has also influenced the writing of this one, and I'd like to personally thank him for his thorough analysis of Tasigur and competitive Commander gameplay. I would also like to publicly recognize Laboratory Maniacs user Cameron for his well worded thoughts on Threat Assessment. They form the backbone of the "How to Play Control in Standard" section of this Primer. Cameron accurately captures the primary points of critical thinking that is necessary for evaluating threats at the table and I reiterate that I stand on his shoulders for this section.
Next, I'd like to thank my playgroup. Losing on T2 doesn't feel like a lot of fun, but you've entertained me as I've developed this deck into the Mid-Range Creature Based Combo list that it is today. Many thanks especially to my wife and her skilled playing of Kaalia. Her Kaalia list (initially developed by myself and played almost exclusively by her) is found in my signature and is THE benchmark that I measure my decks against. And this Tasigur list has performed very admirably against it and is thus added to my roster of decks.
Finally, I'd like to thank you, dear reader. This is a lot of text and I hope that it's been informative and useful to you in developing your own Tasigur list or playstyle.
10/17/2018-10/23/2018 Changes
- Morbid Curiosity
+ Timetwister
- Underground River
+ Sylvan Safekeeper
- Sidisi, Undead Vizier
- Hostage Taker
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
1x Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice
1x Ashen Rider
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Bloom Tender
1x Consecrated Sphinx
1x Deadeye Navigator
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Eldrazi Displacer
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Eternal Witness
1x Fleshbag Marauder
1x Gilded Drake
1x Glen Elendra Archmage
1x Havengul Lich
1x Jace, Vryn's Prodigy
1x Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
1x Kederekt Leviathan
1x Loyal Retainers
1x Notion Thief
1x Phyrexian Delver
1x Primeval Titan
1x Rune-Scarred Demon
1x Seedborn Muse
1x Sheoldred, Whispering One
1x Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon
1x Sun Titan
1x Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir
1x Terastodon
1x The Mimeoplasm
1x Venser, Shaper Savant
1x Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger
1x Woodfall Primus
1x Anguished Unmaking
1x Beast Within
1x Cyclonic Rift
1x Dismember
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Entomb
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Forbidden Alchemy
1x Frantic Search
1x Intuition
1x Mystical Tutor
1x Sultai Charm
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Chromatic Lantern
1x Crucible of Worlds
1x Fellwar Stone
1x Mana Crypt
1x Sol Ring
1x Buried Alive
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Exhume
1x Life/Death
1x Living Death
1x Reanimate
1x Toxic Deluge
1x Animate Dead
1x Carpet of Flowers
1x Dance of the Dead
1x Greater Good
1x Necromancy
1x Pernicious Deed
1x Survival of the Fittest
1x Jace Beleren
1x Nissa, Vital Force
1x Venser, the Sojourner
1x Adarkar Wastes
1x Arcane Sanctum
1x Bayou
1x Breeding Pool
1x Cephalid Coliseum
1x Command Tower
1x Exotic Orchard
1x Fetid Heath
1x Flooded Grove
1x Flooded Strand
1x Godless Shrine
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Murmuring Bosk
1x Opulent Palace
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Phyrexian Tower
1x Polluted Delta
1x Sandsteppe Citadel
1x Scrubland
1x Seaside Citadel
1x Strip Mine
1x Sunken Ruins
1x Swamp
1x Temple Garden
1x Twilight Mire
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Volrath's Stronghold
1x Watery Grave
1x Wooded Bastion
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
6x Tasigur, the Golden Fang
Mana Sources (15)
0x Mana Crypt
1x Sol Ring
1x Llanowar Elves
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Deathrite Shaman
2x Urborg Elf
2x Grim Monolith
2x Dimir Signet
2x Golgari Signet
2x Simic Signet
3x Wood Elves
4x Crypt Ghast
4x Solemn Simulacrum
5x Gilded Lotus
6x Mana Reflection
Combo Pieces (6)
2x Dramatic Reversal
2x Isochron Scepter
5x Paradox Engine
5x Seedborn Muse
10x Omniscience
12x Enter the Infinite
Win Conditions (5)
0x Walking Ballista
2x Thrasios, Triton Hero
4x Aetherflux Reservoir
6x Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
7x Memnarch
Sac Outlets (6)
1x Carrion Feeder
2x Soldevi Adnate
3x Ashnod's Altar
4x Greater Good
5x Sadistic Hypnotist
8x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
2x Animate Dead
2x Life // Death
2x Flash
3x Eternal Witness
5x Phyrexian Delver
6x Deadeye Navigator
6x Muldrotha, the Gravetide
Tutors (6)
2x Diabolic Intent
2x Demonic Tutor
3x Eldritch Evolution
5x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
7x Rune-Scarred Demon
7x Protean Hulk
Removal (11)
1x Rapid Hybridization
1x Caustic Caterpillar
2x Reality Shift
2x Cyclonic Rift
3x Beast Within
3x Reclamation Sage
4x Venser, Shaper Savant
4x Ravenous Chupacabra
4x Hostage Taker
4x Phyrexian Scriptures
4x Damnation
Card Draw/Advantage (10)
1x Skullclamp
2x Coiling Oracle
2x Baleful Strix
2x Sylvan Library
2x Pull from Tomorrow
3x Windfall
3x Morbid Curiosity
4x Disciple of Bolas
5x Nissa, Vital Force
6x Prime Speaker Zegana
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x Cephalid Coliseum
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Ancient Tomb
1x Opulent Palace
1x Command Tower
1x Reflecting Pool
1x Forbidden Orchard
1x Underground Sea
1x Tropical Island
1x Bayou
1x Overgrown Tomb
1x Breeding Pool
1x Watery Grave
1x Hinterland Harbor
1x Drowned Catacomb
1x Woodland Cemetery
1x Sunken Ruins
1x Flooded Grove
1x Twilight Mire
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Polluted Delta
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Flooded Strand
1x Marsh Flats
2x Swamp
1x Island
1x Forest
EDIT: For my own personal records, here' the casual Chainer list that I was playing if I decided I want to rebuild it.
5x Chainer, Dementia Master
Mana Sources
0x Everflowing Chalice
1x Sol Ring
2x Leaden Myr
2x Charcoal Diamond
2x Coldsteel Heart
2x Soldevi Adnate
3x Phyrexian Totem
3x Worn Powerstone
3x Unstable Obelisk
4x Solemn Simulacrum
4x Crypt Ghast
5x Magus of the Coffers
5x Black Market
6x Caged Sun
Sac Outlets
1x Carrion Feeder
1x Vampiric Rites
2x Disciple of Griselbrand
3x Ashnod's Altar
3x Phyrexian Altar
5x Krav, the Unredeemed
5x Sadistic Hypnotist
8x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
Tutors
3x Buried Alive
4x Diabolic Tutor
5x Sidisi, Undead Vizier
5x Final Parting
7x Rune-Scarred Demon
1x Skullclamp
2x Dusk Legion Zealot
2x Sign in Blood
3x Phyrexian Rager
3x Morbid Curiosity
3x Read the Bones
4x Smothering Abomination
4x Disciple of Bolas
5x Liliana's Contract
5x Ob Nixilis Reignited
5x Bloodgift Demon
6x Phyrexian Gargantua
6x Kothophed, Soul Hoarder
6x Harvester of Souls
6x Demonlord Belzenlok
Removal
2x Malicious Affliction
3x Merciless Executioner
3x Fleshbag Marauder
4x Mutilate
4x Ravenous Chupacabra
4x Slum Reaper
5x Yawgmoth's Vile Offering
5x Shadowborn Demon
5x Kagemaro, First to Suffer
6x Life's Finale
6x Noxious Gearhulk
7x Scour from Existence
7x Meteor Golem
7x Butcher of Malakir
4x Grimoire of the Dead
5x Gray Merchant of Asphodel
6x Kokusho, the Evening Star
6x Marionette Master
6x Wurmcoil Engine
7x Phage the Untouchable
7x Abhorrent Overlord
9x Void Winnower
Lands
1x Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
1x Cabal Stronghold
1x Cabal Coffers
1x Crypt of Agadeem
1x Thespian's Stage
1x Barren Moor
1x Everglades
1x Myriad Landscape
1x Westvale Abbey
27x Swamp
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
The official OP list will be updated to reflect the current Flash Hulk list that I'm playing with. Perhaps I'll build out a Primer for the Flash Hulk List since Dies_to_Doom_Blade has switched over to a RUGB Reanimator list.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
-Nissa, Vital Force
+Assassin's Trophy
Lowers the curve, increases removal count, and gets rid of a strangely slow card. Nissa, while quite powerful as a card draw engine with her emblem, was just not quite good enough. While the list I'm playing is more of a Mid-Range FLash Hulk deck and is NOT all-in on the combo, Nissa wasn't a card I was happy to see frequently.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
I'll be doing a set review for Guilds for each of my Primers. I will also be turning this Tasigur thread into a Flash Hulk Primer with Dies_to_Doom_Blade's blessing, but that will be months down the road probably. I just started a new quarter at school and my company is really starting to ramp up in sales and developments, so my time is getting crunched pretty significantly.
EDIT: As I review the decklist for potential Primer status, I realize that it's, quite frankly, suboptimal in many ways. I will be critically evaluating the list and probably making some massive changes to it as I think a little more deeply about what is most effective in a 4 player, cEDH game.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
EDIT: After double-counting my list, I realize I'm one card over. I've also pondered the applications of Morbid Curiosity and the reactive style of this deck and I believe that the Curiosity isn't a good fit. I'll be replacing it with a Wheel effect, most likely Timetwister, in order to maximize the mini-combo of Notion Thief + Wheel effect.
Changes
- Disciple of Bolas
- Morbid Curiosity
+ Timetwister
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
BGU [Primer] Sidisi, Brood Tyrant BGU | BG [Primer] Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest BG | G [Primer] Polukranos, World Eater G
My YouTube Channel:
The Commander Tavern - a channel I just started where I'll post deck techs and gameplays. Please support by checking it out. Maybe you'll like its content and subscribe! Thanks!
In regards to the recent changes that I've made as of yesterday, I haven't had the chance to test them out explicitly, but I can't imagine how adding Timetwister would drastically and negatively impact the way the deck plays out. I play just as much fast mana as the other Storm and Combo decks out there, so I can take advantage of the draw-7 effect reliably. And it adds an additional draw-7 effect for Notion Thief, marginally increasing the number of times that the Thief and Wheel combo happens. Time will tell though.
But in a more general sense, changing the Tasigur list to a Flash Hulk combo list has injected the list with some serious power. Because the combo efficiency of Flash Hulk is so compact and operates at Instant speed, there's literally no point in a game from T2 onwards where my opponents can afford to make even one mistake. And despite their best efforts, I can still win through hate and countermagic. This list is successful against my wife's Kaalia list (Primer in my signature), which to me is a signal of a top-tier deck. The amount of Stax that Kaalia can put out is no joke and Tasigur can navigate it well. I've also come to really enjoy the mid-range style of play that I've built the deck around. The deck has a ton of synergies that aren't immediately apparent and it can assemble combo lines quickly and from a variety of different cards. So, in short, I've been extremely pleased with the results of the decklist as it's been changed to in comparison with the Tasigur Reanimator list I had previously.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Timetwister + Notion Thief is no joke. You're not only depriving opponents of a hand but if they're dependent on their graveyard you just deprived them of that, too. Since it'll be the only card in your graveyard, it's also relatively easy to quickly recover it with Tasigur afterwards.
Yeah, I've lurked your Kaalia primer a couple of times and it seems incredibly evil and solid. If not for my very reliable Zurgo Helmsmasher deck I'd definitely consider building it. But I'd first like to try and build a commander for every available color combination before I start building repeats. Currently I'm at R (Zada, Hedron Grinder), G (Polukranos, World Eater), GU (Edric, Spymaster of Trest), UB (Phenax, God of Deception), WU (Brago, King Eternal), BG (Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest), UR (The Locust God), UBR (Nekusar, the Mindrazer -> which I'm slowly gathering the pieces to change it into Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix + Vial Smasher the Fierce), BUG (Sidisi, Brood Tyrant -> still deciding which version to finally complete in paper), BRW (Zurgo Helmsmasher), and GWUB (Atraxa, Praetors' Voice). Besides those I'm considering building Gisela, the Broken Blade into Brisela, Voice of Nightmares for W, Firesong and Sunspeaker for RW, Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis for RGWU, Animar, Soul of Elements for URG, Saskia the Unyielding for BRGW, Reveka, Wizard Savant for U, and Kozilek, the Great Distortion for . Whew! Quite a few, I know!
Anyways, I'm glad to see your work with Tasigur. I'm gonna definitely make reference to your thread in my Sidisi primer the next time I update it so that others may see your insight and what other options are available to them in BUG.
BGU [Primer] Sidisi, Brood Tyrant BGU | BG [Primer] Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest BG | G [Primer] Polukranos, World Eater G
My YouTube Channel:
The Commander Tavern - a channel I just started where I'll post deck techs and gameplays. Please support by checking it out. Maybe you'll like its content and subscribe! Thanks!
I'd appreciate the shoutout. I think between you and me we have the most active Primers on MTGSalvation. Once this Tasigur Primer gets approved I'll have 4 active Primers, which I feel an appreciable amount of pride about. I think it's good writing, if I do say so myself.
In regards to the combo potential for Sidisi, I really like Hermit Druid since it interacts with Sidisi so nicely. There's a cEDH Primer for Sidisi that I think you should check out, located here. It's a super streamlined build that merges Flash Hulk, Hermit Druid, and Food Chain together. I'm personally extremely leery of a deck that only runs 28 lands, but it seems to work ok for the main pilot.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Thanks! I really like the format but I want the theme of my decks to be as dissimilar as possible to each other. Having many decks means that it'll be a long time before I get bored of any of them.
For sure! I'm currently doing a second masters so I'm a bit pressed for time again. But when I'm able to give some solid attention to my threads I'll be sure to give the shoutout. Lol, yeah, we do have a growing list of primers! Hopefully I'll have the time to update my Kydele + Vial Smasher primer. It's the deck I think I've been testing most since Guilds of Ravnica along with Sidisi. So far I have the core and lots of the layers but it's still lacking. But those are key sections that need some attention so I have to make sure to give the ol' razzledazzle.[/quote]
I gave the link a peek and it seems great! Especially from a combo perspective. I'll definitely give it a solid read and analysis when I have the time for it. I'm currently working on two assignments at once that I have to hand in by Monday plus I got a gig I gotta play at on Sunday so I'm really crunched for time. But once the holidays are around I will definitely have the break I need to really immerse in my hobbies.
BGU [Primer] Sidisi, Brood Tyrant BGU | BG [Primer] Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest BG | G [Primer] Polukranos, World Eater G
My YouTube Channel:
The Commander Tavern - a channel I just started where I'll post deck techs and gameplays. Please support by checking it out. Maybe you'll like its content and subscribe! Thanks!
Thanks for chiming in, Artaud. Flash Hulk has a great deal of synergy with the deck I believe. And in comparison to the ridiculous mana cost of any Palinchron combo, I find that Flash Hulk package to be much more compact and effective. Let's take a critical look at the two combos.
For a Palinchron combo, I'm going to assume that it would be run alongside Phantasmal Image since that's clearly the most mana efficient way to win. This combo requires, at the minimum, 7 actual lands in order to be effective. On top of that, both halves of the combo are sorcery speed, requiring me to tap out on my turn most likely in order to combo. Additionally, Palinchron has a trigger that is more easily responded to in comparison to the Hulk. The Image I'm already playing in the deck, so this change would only require me to add Palinchron to the deck. By cutting the Flash Hulk package, I would be able to free up additional slots in the deck and possibly add in Deadeye Navigator.
So let's look at Deadeye. By itself, he isn't good at all, needing in fact another creature in order to be truly effective. Otherwise, it's just a vanilla 5/5 for 6, which isn't even that good of a rate anymore. But, it does shortcut the land requirement somewhat because you only need 3 lands in order to go infinite. But again, this is another sorcery speed play that requires a certain number of lands in order to win.
The main reason that the Flash Hulk package is in this deck is BECAUSE it wins the game on an entirely different axis than what most Tasigur decks do at a lower CMC and at instant speed. You're right, Tasigur naturally rewards infinite colored mana generation. But the Flash Hulk package is, in my opinion, better.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
I'll address your points in turn.
1) Milling key combo pieces is a fair point. What would I do if I were to mill Hulk via Tasigur's ability? There are at least 6 elements of Reanimation in the deck and 10 tutors that can go and find these cards. The 6 Reanimation/Recursion effects are: Muldrotha, Volrath's Stronghold, Animate Dead, Life // Death, Body Snatcher, and Phyrexian Delver. 3 of these cards are creature cards, meaning that I can go and find them via Survival of the Fittest or Eldritch Evolution in order to get that Hulk combo piece into play. Additionally, Snapcaster Mage can recycle one of the hard tutors (i.e. Vampiric Tutor or Demonic Tutor or Diabolic Intent) to find these pieces in addition to the 10 tutor effects in the deck. I'm not too worried about the recursion elements of the deck because there are so many redundant tutors and ways to duplicate the Reanimation effect I'd need in order to execute the Flash Hulk line.
I will also say that, if I'm in the position where I'm playing the long game with Tasigur and I'm actively using his ability and the milling of a Flash Hulk piece has occurred, then the game state has probably degenerated into an equilibrium of sorts that Tasigur can totally take advantage of with his ability. Indeed, this is one of the primary reasons that I chose Tasigur to be the Commander in the first place, as the Primer indicates. If I'm in this particular game state, then it's simply a matter of time before I draw enough Permission and Control pieces to force through one of the Combos I need.
Finally, the Reanimation effects are not the sole focus of the deck and are included because they are meant to be a back up to the Combos and give the deck flexibility and consistency. I'll happily spend an Animate Dead to get back a Protean Hulk to play so that any Wrath effect automatically becomes a losing proposition for my opponent. And should they exile the Hulk, no worries either. I'm still running the Dramatic Scepter Combo.
Perhaps the synergies with the Flash Hulk package aren't explicit enough to you and other readers. I'll try and clarify the synergies that I see for each of the Combo cards and try to demonstrate that the Flash Hulk package is not totally dead in this deck.
Flash - besides being the primary way to kill the Hulk, this card is a cheap way to get an ETB creature into play outside of normal Sorcery speed timing. The creatures that have ETB effects in this deck that can profitably take advantage of Flash are Phyrexian Delver, Body Snatcher, Sidisi, Undead Vizier, Spellseeker, and Wood Elves. Additionally, it also acts as an instant speed discard outlet to get some of the juicier targets into the 'yard for a Reanimation effect. I'll happily spend 1U to get Muldrotha into the 'yard so I can Life // Death it to play on my turn and recur some more cards. Flash helps to shortcut the amount of mana that I would need to spend in order to get these more expensive creatures into play with the Reanimation utility that the deck has. I wouldn't underestimate the utility that Flash has in this deck at all.
Carrion Feeder - it's a nice 1 drop that can scale as I feed it creatures. The synergy with Mikaeus is fairly obvious, but the Feeder is also the primary way that I take advantage of Skullclamp. The Feeder makes the Clamp a legitimate source of card advantage to the deck, enabling me to sacrifice creatures at will that don't have 1 toughness so that I can draw cards off of 'Clamp. Additionally, the Feeder acts as another way to get a spent creature into the 'yard in order to Reanimate it. An instant speed sac outlet is also a great way to protect my creatures from exile effects so that my creatures are constantly available to me over the course of a game. And, at times, it can be a legitimate threat on the ground, occasionally being a 5/5 or larger that can put pressure on more reactive Combo Control decks, particularly Ad Nauseam variants. It is tutorable via Survival of the Fittest, counts as a creature for Gaea's Cradle, can kill itself and other creatures for Skullclamp, and has obvious synergy with Mikaeus.
Phyrexian Delver - having an ETB creature that can Reanimate creatures is really good. Being a creature itself is even better since it's tutorable via Survival, counts as a creature for Cradle, carries a Skullclamp like a boss, is an excellent target for Eldritch Evolution, and is a nice Reanimation target if it's in the 'yard so that I can quickly build a board presence. I've intentionally tried to diversify the Reanimation effects across different card types in order to keep Muldrotha live at the mid and late game stage regardless of what I have in my 'yard, and the Delver is an important Reanimation effect for this deck. Besides being a combo piece for the Flash Hulk package itself.
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed - there is a reason this card is $20+. It certainly doesn't see any Constructed play, which means that the value of this card is almost strictly determined by the Commander market. And Mikaeus is just GOOD. Giving the majority of our board Undying makes Wrath effects a liability for my opponents. The utility of killing Human creatures for free has some minor applications (Kaalia is the one that comes to mind). But otherwise, Mikaeus makes our creatures a whole lot better. He makes Skullclamp a great source of card advantage and helps to get additional utility out of the ETB creatures that are in the deck. He's a creature himself, so he is tutorable via Survival, counts as a creature for Cradle, can himself carry Skullclamp like a boss, is a fine target and sac creature for Eldritch Evolution. Mikeaus is just a good card in any creature based deck, and this version of Tasigur is built to maximize synergies with The Unhallowed.
Protean Hulk - the main piece of the Flash Hulk combo. Not much needs to be said about that. While Flash is definitely the most obvious way to kill the Combo Pig, getting it into play with Phyrexian Tower or with a sac effect in play OR in hand means that you can win after getting it into play. And even if you choose not to assemble the Unhallowed Ballista combo, the Hulk still provides a ton of value if you just use his dying trigger fairly. I'll be pleased, if I'm playing against lesser tier decks, to get Spellseeker, Carrion Feeder, and Phantasmal Image off of the Hulk dying. Or maybe I just need to replace the Hulk with Muldrotha in order to grind hard. Or maybe I have Tasigur in play and I need Seedborn Muse to start accruing late game card advantage because Mikaeus has been somehow exiled. All of these options are fantastic and I'd happily play the Pig in a Black based deck simply because of how good it is at generating an effective and powerful board presence.
Walking Ballista - well, I hope by now that you understand that the Ballista has primary synergies with the deck. Check for Survival, Check for Skullclamp, and Check for Cradle. But the Ballista is also massively powerful with Seedborn Muse in play. I once had the Ballista as a 15/15 by the time it came back to my turn. I could kill any creature I wanted at instant speed and I could also severely damage any player's life total at instant speed. Nevermind being a 15/15. The Ballista is one of the best creatures to have been printed in recent memory. It even sees play in Legacy Tron/Eldrazi decks. If that doesn't speak to the power of this creature, I'm not sure anything else will.
2) This is probably the most significant point you've brought up. Body Snatcher is included in the deck as a clean solution to this problem, since it forces you to discard a creature card in order to keep it in play. This is the primary reason that the Snatcher is in the deck, in all honesty. It's a fairly mediocre Reanimation effect otherwise, but the discard clause makes it so that we can smoothly execute the Flash Hulk combo regardless of which Zone the pieces are in (with the exception of the exile zone, of course). I'm not sure if you've actually read the Primer, but I outline the exact situation that you describe here during the Flash Hulk combo explanation. I encourage you to read it if you haven't done so already.
I've found that the current iteration of the deck has a great balance between the two main combos. I run plenty of mana effects to jam a fast Combo line if it's available and I already run a significant number of tutors to the deck. The only tutors that could be added that would focus the deck more on the Flash Hulk plan is Worldly Tutor and Summoner's Pact. The deck could easily support the Worldly Tutor and the Pact is just too narrow for a 3 color deck anyways. The only other fast mana pieces that could conceivably be added to the deck are Chrome Mox and Mana Vault. I find that the current mana ramp package to be sufficient and very effective for my playstyle, so I feel no need to tool the deck to focus on the Flash Hulk combo any more than I already do.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
I really like the idea of Woodfall Primus. I'll have to consider it in place of Hostage Taker. I think the Taker deserves some additional testing before I entirely dismiss her. There's been some awesome situations where she exiles a key creature or mana rock and gives it to me or acts as a 4 CMC Commander removal spell. I'm not totally sold on her yet, because I've had more situations where she's a 4 CMC Commander removal spell or where an opponent gets the chance to get their permanent back from underneath the Taker. Get Wreckt Leviathan has been very up and down for me in the past. Sometimes it's great, and saves the day and keeps it at equilibirum, and other times it's an emergency panic button that resets my field just as hard as anyone else's. The decklist as is is very land lite, and the Leviathan punishes decks that are land lite and mana rock/dork heavy. I think there's a litte too much anti-synergy with the Leviathan for my liking and it's tested poorly in the past. Bane of Progress is pretty awesome and dominates if it resolves. I hadn't fully considered the Bane in this deck, but it might be worthwhile to take a look at it critically.
As mentioned previously, the Reanimation effects are not a focus of the deck. The Reanimation effects that are there are to give the deck resiliency and consistency. Frantic Search has also been another card that's been very hit or miss in testing. And it's certainly not my favorite card to get back with Tasigur should that happen. I've been pretty content with the discard effects that I have in the deck, as Survival is VERY frequently a card I tutor for within the first stages of the game so it's generally always available to me. And if it isn't because it's removed, there are enough additional tutor effects that can replicate what the Survival does. Additionally, having Combo pieces stranded in hand doesn't really occur that frequently.
For the meta I'm playing in, and for a cEDH meta generally, Carpet of Flowers is superior to Exploration. There will come a time in the game where I'm no longer concerned about hitting land drops consistently and the Exploration becomes an empty piece of cardboard. The Carpet is always live, as there is always a minimum of 2 Islands in play at any given time. Life from the Loam has been sufficient in recurring lands from the 'yard and I've found no need for Walking Crucuible or Crucible itself. I did have a version of Tasigur where I played the Crucible and it was mostly a mediocre card when I was playing it. It was nice when the version of Tasigur I was playing was a streamlined Control list, but this deck is not a truly streamlined Control list. There are a lot of Control elements that help to supplement the Combo lines and/or buy time to execute them.
Great ideas and comments, sir. The deck may seem good-stuffy to you but it's performed admirably for me and each card has been carefully thought about and/or tested. The Core synergies that the deck is built around are Mikaeus, Cradle, Survival, Razaketh, and Skullclamp. Many, if not all of the cards in the deck and the decklist itself, have been maximized to push these particular synergy pieces. It's why the deck is so mana dork heavy when that's often a liability for cEDH games.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Yup, I've noticed that in the cEDH servers that there has been a trend towards shifting away from glass-cannon decks. If you're a combo deck, you need to have some sort of built-in resiliency or add more control elements in order to keep ahead of the other glass-cannon combo decks. Tasigur's strategy, and this decklist generally, has been created in such a way as to keep pace with this trend. That's why the card choices are what they are, for the most part. And Tasigur does play the long game very well, the main reason I chose him over other Sultai options.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Ultimate Master Review
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Thanks for chiming in!
At this point I think it's going to be Hostage Taker. The card is good when it's good, but has a lot of variance that I don't particularly like. The built-in protection that Sylvan Safekeeper offers during the Flash Hulk combo is great, ensuring a solid win that can counter instant speed interaction. This is, quite simply, too good to pass up. It also has some good synergy with Life from the Loam, a card I find myself tutoring for fairly frequently.
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
UB Dralnu, Lich Lord
RBW [Primer]-Kaalia of the Vast
BUG [Primer]-Tasigur, the Golden Fang
GWU [Primer]-Arcades, the Strategist
WUB Primer-Aminatou, the Fateshifter
UBR Nicol Bolas, the Ravager
Her first ability just hurts decks that cast big spells thanks to mana dorks and mana rocks but mana-based ramp will do just fine. That being said, she's an amazing hate bear.
BGU [Primer] Sidisi, Brood Tyrant BGU | BG [Primer] Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest BG | G [Primer] Polukranos, World Eater G
My YouTube Channel:
The Commander Tavern - a channel I just started where I'll post deck techs and gameplays. Please support by checking it out. Maybe you'll like its content and subscribe! Thanks!