MTG Salvation

In many circles, massive land destruction is frowned upon. However, people don't like facing off against decks that run these spells because the players that pilot them usually cast them just to reset the game without any follow-up to victory. Not Zurgo. When Zurgo's in play, casting a well-timed Jokulhaups means that the game will end soon. People will scoop not out of anger, but of acceptance. "Yes, you have a solid clock. I won't recover in time to stop it. You win." People will groan whenever a player casts an Obliterate and then does nothing else afterwards. That's just not cool. However, floating up mana for a Faith's Reward afterwards may actually have players nod in appreciation of how you just won the game. Whenever I whip out Zurgo as general, my playgroup knows that I'm gonna be constantly wiping the board. I automatically become the archenemy. However, the good thing about this deck is that you could survive archenemy status. With so many boardwipes and mana rocks to recast Zurgo constantly, the deck gets the job done.




Basically, early game is about getting as many mana rocks into play. Most of the major boardwipes are expensive spells so you need that early mana. Zurgo also costs 5 mana so you want to cast him as early as possible and cause some mayhem. Fortunately, boardwipes isn't the only way to get Zurgo to land commander damage unopposed. Making him unblockable or giving him protection from creatures usually gets the job done. Also, shadow usually makes him unblockable. Giving Zurgo doublestrike makes him a 2-turn clock instead of his usual stand as a 3-turn clock.

The moment I saw him spoiled in the Duel Decks that presented Tarkir I knew I wanted to build such a deck around him. All of his abilities are great but it's his indestructibility during your own turn that made me want to build around it.

Unfortunately, thanks to the Reserved List, this deck is ridiculously expensive as is. It cashes in at about $1,966, which is ridiculously expensive compared to other decks I've built. Hopefully, as with my other decks, I will get around to a budget build, since Zurgo Helmsmasher is a cheap card in and of itself. A budget build should also be easy to make since half the deck's price is due to Mishra's Workshop alone. If only someone would've had the foresight to include Guardian Beast and Mishra's Workshop in Chronicles like they did with City of Brass...

Updates:

awesome list. been thinking of making zurgo for a long time, just never got around to it.

any room for Shizo, Death's Storehouse? just another way for him to get through

and Hatred can come out of nowhere sometimes, or Tainted Strike.

Guardian Beast could be very important for all of your artifacts as well, a pseudo-avacyn perhaps. Or Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer/Goblin Welder

Thanks!

Shizo, Death's Storehouse is definitely a card I can find a slot for.

Hatred and Tainted Strike are solid wincons. I could try and find some slots for it in order to test them. That way it would be even faster to win with Zurgo.

Guardian Beast is definitely a great Avacyn-like way to protect my artifacts. I will definitely find a slot for it.

Thanks for the suggestions! Yeah, this deck is pretty brutal but it is fun to play with. It's also fun to play against because it usually makes people leery and play more carefully.

Quote from ColdRay »

Hi DementedKirby,

Seeing that you've marked your deck as competitive, I'll base my feedback on that.

First of all, I think there's room for improvement in terms of mana rocks. Mana Crypt should definitely be in there. I'd also include Mana Vault, Mox Opal and Chrome Mox. Manalith seems strictly worse than Commander's Sphere. I'd definitely cut all the keyrunes and cluestones. They are too slow. Consider cards such as Thran Dynamo and Gilded Lotus if you want to keep your focus on high sweeper numbers and having a mana advantage to recast your commander.

I don't see Vampiric Tutor and Enlightened Tutor on your list. I'd definitely find room for those and cut Diabolic Tutor. Generally, your curve seems high, and there's quite a few cards which are strictly better than the ones you've got on your list.

Have you tried looking at other lists at tappedout, or perhaps edhrec? You can easily filter away some of the worse, janky decks.

https://edhrec.com/commanders/zurgo-helmsmasher?f=in=Mana Crypt

I'd consider cutting down the average CMC by a lot. I can definitely recommend Mother of Runes. Also, your commander screams for Stoneforge Mystic, Sigarda's Aid and possible a couple of Swords of X and Y.

Sorry for the late reply. You're right, it could be more competitive. I don't have so many equipment to warrant including so many equipment tutors, though. Also, the deck may seem voltron but I don't want it to be. If there are no creatures on the field thanks to all the wraths and massive land destruction, everyone scoops when Zurgo's the only thing in play. Even so, if no one scoops, he easily gets the kill. That's what I'm going for: consistency.

You do have many points which I took into consideration in order to make the deck faster. I swapped out the more expensive mana rocks for cheaper ones. I also reduced the amount of expensive spells in favor for Enlightened Tutor and Vampiric Tutor. I'll post the changes I made when I can get to the computer that has the changes written in it.

I think I like blood mist over true conviction. I know that true conviction affects everything and gives lifelink, but if you're blowing up the world anyways, 3R becomes a lot easier to cast than 3WWW and hits before zurgo does, making your clock that much quicker. It's also immune to obliterate unlike some of the equipment.

Quote from weltkrieg »

I think I like blood mist over true conviction. I know that true conviction affects everything and gives lifelink, but if you're blowing up the world anyways, 3R becomes a lot easier to cast than 3WWW and hits before zurgo does, making your clock that much quicker. It's also immune to obliterate unlike some of the equipment.

Blood mist is a card i often forget about... i think it should be tested and has good synergy with what you are trying to do here. But, that being said, I think that Boros Charm could easily replace either of those cards. Boros Charm really fits this deck, a way to protect Zurgo off your turn, or the double strike when you need it. I think its almost worth running Sunforger + Mistveil Plains, but thats just my opinion.



Also, maybe some manlands would be nice as well, so you have a way to plink people down after a board wipe if you cant cast Zurgo for whatever reason. All three of the dual colored arent bad, Lavaclaw Reaches, Shambling Vent, and Needle Spires

Quote from weltkrieg »

I think I like blood mist over true conviction. I know that true conviction affects everything and gives lifelink, but if you're blowing up the world anyways, 3R becomes a lot easier to cast than 3WWW and hits before zurgo does, making your clock that much quicker. It's also immune to obliterate unlike some of the equipment.

Good call on Blood Mist. Hitting with Zurgo after casting it means a whopping 14 commander damage fairly early. All your reasons for the swap are spot on. I will definitely consider the change.

Quote from rshizz »

Quote from weltkrieg »

I think I like blood mist over true conviction. I know that true conviction affects everything and gives lifelink, but if you're blowing up the world anyways, 3R becomes a lot easier to cast than 3WWW and hits before zurgo does, making your clock that much quicker. It's also immune to obliterate unlike some of the equipment.

Blood mist is a card i often forget about... i think it should be tested and has good synergy with what you are trying to do here. But, that being said, I think that Boros Charm could easily replace either of those cards. Boros Charm really fits this deck, a way to protect Zurgo off your turn, or the double strike when you need it. I think its almost worth running Sunforger + Mistveil Plains, but thats just my opinion.

Also, maybe some manlands would be nice as well, so you have a way to plink people down after a board wipe if you cant cast Zurgo for whatever reason. All three of the dual colored arent bad, Lavaclaw Reaches, Shambling Vent, and Needle Spires

Boros Charm definitely has some perks here. The problem with running Mistveil Plains is that I hardly have any permanents in play. So I won't be able to activate it often.

As for the manlands, my only hesitation is that they enter the battlefield tapped.

EDIT:
Actually, I swapped out the guild double lands for the manlands. So it was a pretty balanced swap.

Swapped out Blood Mist for Duelist's Heritage. It costs 1 less and it can also help opponents take each other out. Definitely a good swap.

Quote from DementedKirby »

Swapped out Blood Mist for Duelist's Heritage. It costs 1 less and it can also help opponents take each other out. Definitely a good swap.

Good call. Anything else you see from Commander 2016? Boompile is a decently cheap board wipe, but hits your mana rocks. Conqueror's Flail is actually interesting, while the +3/+3 is nice, the Grand Abolisher effect on a non-creature can certainly help ensuring your boardwipes don't get countered.

Quote from rshizz »

Quote from DementedKirby »

Swapped out Blood Mist for Duelist's Heritage. It costs 1 less and it can also help opponents take each other out. Definitely a good swap.

Good call. Anything else you see from Commander 2016? Boompile is a decently cheap board wipe, but hits your mana rocks. Conqueror's Flail is actually interesting, while the +3/+3 is nice, the Grand Abolisher effect on a non-creature can certainly help ensuring your boardwipes don't get countered.

I have considered Boompile but haven't tested it yet. The randomness is the only thing holding me back. I do run other spells that hurt my other permanents like Jokulhaups, Obliterate, and Planar Cleansing. I've also considered Nevinyrral's Disk but it enters the battlefield tapped and opponents can anticipate it (like Boompile). Yet, again, I have considered it.

As for Conqueror's Flail, Zurgo is indestructible during my turn, so I worry more about what happens outside of my turn. However, as you pointed out, it prevents counters being cast during my turn and it gives a considerable boon to Zurgo.

Will all the mana rocks, Spire of Industry is definitely worth considering here.

Quote from DementedKirby »

Will all the mana rocks, Spire of Industry is definitely worth considering here.

yeah for sure.

A bunch more land questions:

Have you thought about the filter lands? I know some people don't like them too much but personally I like the Fetid Heath/Graven Cairns/Rugged Prairie/Shadowblood Ridge cards.

Inventors' Fair seems interesting too, not sure if you can afford the colorless too much but a tutor is always nice

Flagstones of Trokair if you play against any LD, easy replacement for a Plains

Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, helps color fix and turn pain lands into not as much pain lands. Also pretty simple swamp swap


And call me crazy, but i got thinking about Bludgeon Brawl... You have a lot of artifacts, and most of them help pay for the equip cost. Wrath, then attach the rocks to Zurgo and swing for some serious damage. Maybe worth a shot? haha

Quote from rshizz »

Quote from DementedKirby »

Will all the mana rocks, Spire of Industry is definitely worth considering here.

yeah for sure.

A bunch more land questions:

Have you thought about the filter lands? I know some people don't like them too much but personally I like the Fetid Heath/Graven Cairns/Rugged Prairie/Shadowblood Ridge cards.

Inventors' Fair seems interesting too, not sure if you can afford the colorless too much but a tutor is always nice

Flagstones of Trokair if you play against any LD, easy replacement for a Plains

Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, helps color fix and turn pain lands into not as much pain lands. Also pretty simple swamp swap


And call me crazy, but i got thinking about Bludgeon Brawl... You have a lot of artifacts, and most of them help pay for the equip cost. Wrath, then attach the rocks to Zurgo and swing for some serious damage. Maybe worth a shot? haha

Lol, yeah, Bludgeon Brawl would be hilarious indeed.

The filter lands would be very useful. I'm trying to avoid lands that enter the battlefield tapped, so I'll probably swap out those manlands for the Lorwyn/Shadowmoor filter lands.

Inventors' Fair could possibly be exchanged with Reliquary Tower. I don't worry too much about massive land destruction because I'm the one blowing things up, lol, so I don't really think I need Flagstones of Trokair. Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth is a land I could definitely include. I could maybe swap out a Swamp for it because I'm running too many basics. However, tutoring them up with Sword of the Animist is always a good thing.

Now that you mention it, I don't think having 13 basics is that bad. I could probably swap out a basic plains for Flagstones of Trokair and a basic swamp for Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth. I did make some changes recently to the deck, which I've yet to update on the original post. Once I verify what those are, I can update everything. Since I know I will add Spire of Industry, I could probably swap out a basic mountain for that, as well.

Here're the latest changes in the deck:

• Duelist's Heritage is just flat out better than Blood Mist. I can choose an opponent's creature as well which means I can help take out another player. The politics alone are worth it. Also, it has a lower casting cost.
• The manlands were swapped out for filterlands because at the end of the day, I want the deck to be as quick as possible. Lands entering the battlefield tapped doesn't help with the tempo.
• Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth helps lands produce B (at least until I get Chromatic Lantern in play). Spire of Industry is practically another Mana Confluence because of all the artifacts in the deck. Flagstones of Trokair doesn't enter tapped, provides colored mana, and with all the land destruction I'm doing, I can at least get a plains back. Oh, and not just a basic plains, but any plains.
• Finally got convinced on Hatred. I can attack one player the turn Zurgo enters play and then take out a different player in one shot on the next turn. Definitely worth it. Guardian Beast is too expensive to acquire for a lot of people and if I wrath (which I'm doing constantly) it's biting the dust. That's also why I took out Gisela. So I added Champion's Helm which protects Zurgo from spot exile, spot removal outside of my turn, and any annoying things like bouncing or changing (Imprisoned in the Moon, Song of the Dryads, Darksteel Mutation, etc.), or anything else.

General's Kabuto is another option if you are looking for more shroud options too, albeit more expensive than Champion's Helm.

let us know how those changes feel

I do think that it might be beneficial to keep at least one man land, as now that you have cut two more creatures Zurgo is really the only wincon. If he gets Darksteel Mutationed or extremely expensive to cost or whatever else, i dont see you being able to do much for a long time.

Also, I know you mentioned that you didnt like the disk, but other than Rout, all of your boardwipes are sorcery speed. There could be some incentive to add some type of instant board wipe for someone who can go off in one turn. And while people can anticipate it, it also helps slow down the game if people hold onto their cards waiting for it to pop.

You're right on the deck having such few wincons, but with all the mana rocks it's very feasible to get a turn 1 o turn 2 Zurgo and start smacking people with it. The deck is meant for turbo aggro so I'm not too worried about cards like Song of the Dryads, Darksteel Mutation, or Imprisoned in the Moon. The existence of those cards does warrant adding some more enchantment hate but I don't really want to add Nevinyrral's Disk. It's just begging to be destroyed ahead of time by an opponent at a moment I wouldn't want to. Plus, it destroys Zurgo since I'd probably use it during another player's turn. Although few, I do have responses for such situations like All is Dust and Planar Cleansing. If anything, I could probably try to squeeze in an Austere Command. Though the concern on those type of commander-denying cards is duly noted and taken into consideration.

As for the manlands, Zurgo may be my main wincon. If I were to add any of them I would maybe add Lavaclaw Reaches since I can pump it. But this deck doesn't play so that games last more than 7 turns. Games are usually over the moment I blow up all lands and/or creatures because there would be so little in the way of getting rid of Zurgo; people just scoop. I feel that adding too many alternate plans that aren't synergistic may dilute the efficiency of the deck. How do you run yours?

I dont have a zurgo deck, yet I have been wanting to make one for some time, but there are some other things that take priority before I can get to this deck.

And you are probably right, i was just bringing up things that I thought might come up. I'd value your opinion and experience over mine

Quote from rshizz »

I dont have a zurgo deck, yet I have been wanting to make one for some time, but there are some other things that take priority before I can get to this deck.

And you are probably right, i was just bringing up things that I thought might come up. I'd value your opinion and experience over mine

Lol, I welcome any and all opinions! Even experienced veterans can sometimes overlook something. Anything you can think of don't hesitate to throw my way!

It's been a while since I've tested or given any attention to the deck. However, I do have plans to make a budget friendly version (which is very feasible) which would only be slightly less competitive. Also, here are some latest cards I've assessed from recent sets:

• Battle at the Bridge could get rid of pesky indestructible creatures like Avacyn, Angel of Hope.
• Cascading Cataracts is not only indestructible but can give me colored mana in any combination by investing 5 which could come from colorless sources.
• Dusk to Dawn is another board wipe (against stronger creatures, in any case).
• Insult to Injury guarantees Zurgo's damage goes through while also doubling it.
• Key to the City makes Zurgo unblockable and can potentially net me a draw when it untaps.
• Onward to Victory gives a serious boost to Zurgo's power while also potentially giving doublestrike.

It's not that great a wrath since you'd basically have to only cast it during your turn in order to not lock yourself out of mana during your next turn. That being said, you can always just use your mana rocks next turn. It's great to have another wrath available, but for 1 more I can just use Damnation which is so much better.

I like how Hour of Revelation is a strictly better Planar Cleansing. It has the potential of only costing WWW. Granted, triple white is still difficult to cast in a tri-colored deck, but mana has never been an issue here with all the mana rocks. 3WWW is harder to cast and I still run Planar Cleansing anyways.

Some cards that I definitely wanna test out with Zurgo!

• Shifting Shadow
  
• Teferi's Protection
  
• Fortunate Few

Shifting Shadow is broken. I enchant Zurgo, which has indestructible in my turn. Therefore, during my upkeep, I still get to tutor for another creature in my deck. Since there are so few, I can basically use it to tutor for Avacyn, Angel of Hope, which makes everything else indestructible. Then, I get a free creature in play again thanks to Avacyn being indestructible. Broken broken broken! It's not as broken as it seems because you're not "tutoring" for a creature. You're revealing from the top of your library until you reveal another creature card. If I only run Avacyn, Angel of Hope as my other creature, this card would basically be a tutor that just searches for Avacyn. If I have Avacyn in my hand it's pretty much useless. However, if Avacyn is in my library, I get to cheat it into play for 2R and waiting around for a whole turn.
Teferi's Protection is great at protecting my stuff from my own boardwipes as well as protection me from other boardwipes. I can reset the board for everyone else while keeping my own protected and safe. Definitely need to find a slot for it in the deck!
Fortunate Few is a great wipe in that it can be very political. Opponents won't choose any of my things but that's fine because Zurgo is indestructible in my turn and he's all that matters to stay alive. I might test it out to see but it probably won't make it in the final cut.

So far the only card that interests me from Ixalan is Star of Extinction. Zurgo will survive and dealing 20 damage to each creature pretty much guarantees that almost all other creatures will die. Giving 20 damage to each planeswalker pretty much guarantees they die, too. Although a bit expensive, it could be considered a creature + planeswalker boardwipe.

What about Hammer of Nazahn? Indestructible for Zurgo, not only on our turn but also on opponent's

Quote from Tigier »

Quote from DementedKirby »

However, if Avacyn is in my library, I get to cheat it into play for 2R and waiting around for a whole turn.

Why is it waiting around?
Since the enchantment is equipped once avacyns is put into play using that effect it will get haste and can already attack.

Also you could consider Athreos, God of Passage since he is indestructible and can bring zurgo back to your hand if your opponents destroy him during their turns where he can be casted in a cheaper manner or at least reduces an opponents life. it can protect your other creatures as well during your own bw if they arent indestructible and if you get him out using shifting shadow he can use its effect again next turn to bring out avacyn....so you dont rely on a single target for it.

Soul of New Phyrexia is another alternative to avacyn....he fullfils the same role and can use his ability even from the graveyard once. use his effect before the upkeep and he will stay alive even if he entered through shifting. and the 5 should be affordable.

Welcome to the forums!

You're right on Avacyn; the enchantment gives her haste. I don't include Athreos because I also removed Erebos, which is better to me for what I want for the deck. I hardly run any creatures so Athreos wouldn't really be pulling its own weight. I ended up swapping Greed back in over Erebos, God of the Dead because if I get out Erebos with Shifting Shadow, the aura would go to the graveyard since Erebos stops being a creature the moment it hits the battlefield due to lack of devotion. That being said, Soul of New Phyrexia is something I could definitely consider for testing - at least in a budget build.

Quote from P3RS3CUTR0LL »

What about Hammer of Nazahn? Indestructible for Zurgo, not only on our turn but also on opponent's

Hammer of Nazahn is actually a pretty good suggestion. It'll allow me to equip things onto Zurgo for free as long as he's equipped with the hammer. Meaning that I don't have to spend 10 to cast Worldslayer and equip it in the same turn. That and it gives Zurgo actual indestructibility to boot. It's definitely worth testing.