I've tinkered with nearly all the Golgari options for commander to some degree, except Mazirek. He's done good work in the 99 but normally just as a scalable overrun effect to close games not really an effect I'm looking for as a commander.
I realize Dredge 6 is better than Dredge 1, what I mean is that if you are being targeted by everyone's removal and you find yourself forced to use high-Dredge cards turn after turn you'll be in trouble. I don't know. I feel like having 1 creature card out of 99 cards as an insurance policy isn't that bad.
Interesting. So as the game starts do you favor a cautious approach and only dredge as-necessary? I feel like while hanging back can be dangerous as well, dredging lightly to bait removal is probably the way to open a game.
This is a hard question to answer, I've been playing the deck for sometime so alot of the basic mechanics of playing the deck are more instinctual. Also of note I play LED dredge in legacy so I have a lot of experience baiting gy hate. Most people play gy hate too early.
My list functions more as a midrange to control deck so the early game is spent making land drops and keeping the board in check. Midgame dredge becomes a larger focus as I'm digging for more answers. That transition is based heavily on cards in hand and usually occurs when I can cast multiple spells per turn or at least recur an answer and cast it.
My primary edh deck has been Savra, Queen of the Golgari for quite some time. Updating my post about it on here to a primer style is a long put off project. In addition to the various sacrifice effects it runs a fairly heavy dredge package. Decking isn't a huge concern but I do have a few outs.
Golgari Thug: You're likely running this anyway because it has the 3rd highest dredge number availble.
Volrath's Stronghold: already mentioned by a couple people this card is insane. 3 mana uncounterable recursion effect that is brought back by Life From the Loam
Abundance: This is a replacement ability. If you have no cards in your library or if you've filtered out all cards of either classification it can bypass your draw. Fun fact combine with Sylvan Library for 3 cards a turn with some level of selection for Zero Life Paid (additional fun fact this card makes Nekusar the Mindrazer players cry)
The hardest part about knowing when/how much to dredge isn't a matter of decking but getting enough junk in the yard to entice graveyard hate without actually losing much. People fear a large graveyard most don't take the time to look at what's actually in it. I'll usually stall at 20-30 cards to bait a bojuka bog holding back dredgers in my hand to reload afterward.
I haven't tried junk enchantress yet I did however have a second Golgari deck for a while using Pharika and the various constellation creatures from Theros alongside the available Enchantresses.
While it felt pretty powerful whe enough enchantments matter pieces were active the problem was it only had things I couldn't fit in my primary EDH deck. I've been trying to find a suitable home for them ever since.
I've been trying to convince myself to finally build Bant enchantress-tokens with an intent to use various Seedborn Muse Effects and token doublers with opposition and glare of subdual. Getting all if that to fit into a neat package has been problematic.
My durdle-tastic GB midrange deck can't keep up with my local metagame. So I dredged up an older decklist of mine spruced it up with some new toys from Shadows/Eldritch Moon. While I'm not expecting a world beater this has been putting enough pressure on more dangerous decks to force them to expend resources on staying alive. I am interested to see if I missed anything obvious along the path of black aggression.
I'd like to request a hybrid list from Meren and Karador, I realize this should devalue white but its more the overlapping elements that interest me anyway.
I have asked this on both sides of the fence. Why would lifegain or all-in lists not play him more to push a win before the life loss is relevant. And also, recently, why play him at all. Mardu and Jund can play Sin Prodder now. Its a turn slower but makes them take damage or give you cards. One extra mana for +1/+1 and menace.
He is conditionally a great card restricts your list a bit.
Punisher cards are nearly 100% trash (vexing devil has been ok in the past but even it has gone away) giving opponents choices is not in your best interest
Kambal interests me, I am quite thuroughly a black mage, in commander. Both my edh decks at present care about the graveyard. tribal zombie aggro with mass reanimation as a back up plan, and bg control with a graveyard value plan ewit, volrath's stronghold, genesis but the primary kill is mass reanimation... this may give me a way to break free from the graveyard
Fear not I am almost certain this will be an FNM promo.
I think Varolz, the Scar-Striped isn't the man you're looking for but rather skullbriar, the walking grave or maybe Reyhan, Last of the Abzan to protect your investments.
This is a hard question to answer, I've been playing the deck for sometime so alot of the basic mechanics of playing the deck are more instinctual. Also of note I play LED dredge in legacy so I have a lot of experience baiting gy hate. Most people play gy hate too early.
My list functions more as a midrange to control deck so the early game is spent making land drops and keeping the board in check. Midgame dredge becomes a larger focus as I'm digging for more answers. That transition is based heavily on cards in hand and usually occurs when I can cast multiple spells per turn or at least recur an answer and cast it.
Golgari Thug: You're likely running this anyway because it has the 3rd highest dredge number availble.
Volrath's Stronghold: already mentioned by a couple people this card is insane. 3 mana uncounterable recursion effect that is brought back by Life From the Loam
Abundance: This is a replacement ability. If you have no cards in your library or if you've filtered out all cards of either classification it can bypass your draw. Fun fact combine with Sylvan Library for 3 cards a turn with some level of selection for Zero Life Paid (additional fun fact this card makes Nekusar the Mindrazer players cry)
The hardest part about knowing when/how much to dredge isn't a matter of decking but getting enough junk in the yard to entice graveyard hate without actually losing much. People fear a large graveyard most don't take the time to look at what's actually in it. I'll usually stall at 20-30 cards to bait a bojuka bog holding back dredgers in my hand to reload afterward.
While it felt pretty powerful whe enough enchantments matter pieces were active the problem was it only had things I couldn't fit in my primary EDH deck. I've been trying to find a suitable home for them ever since.
1 Balthor the Defiled
Creatures (40)
1 Carnophage
1 Carrion Feeder
1 Cryptbreaker
1 Diregraf Ghoul
1 Dread Wanderer
1 Gravecrawler
1 Boneknitter
1 Crypt Creeper
1 Relentless Dead
1 Shepherd of Rot
1 Withered Wretch
1 Yixlid Jailer
1 Cemetery Reaper
1 Death Baron
1 Diregraf Colossus
1 Fleshbag Marauder
1 Lord of the Accursed
1 Lord of the Undead
1 Mogis's Marauder
1 Nantuko Husk
1 Phyrexian Ghoul
1 Plague Belcher
1 Zombie Master
1 Zombie Trailblazer
1 Grave Defiler
1 Graveborn Muse
1 Kalitas, Traitor of Ghet
1 Liliana's Reaver
1 Risen Executioner
1 Soulless One
1 Undead Warchief
1 Vengeful Dead
1 Gray Merchant of Asphodel
1 Noxious Ghoul
1 Sidisi, Undead Vizier
1 Gempalm Polluter
1 Grave Titan
1 Gravespawn Sovereign
1 Helldozer
1 Mikaeus, the Unhallowed
1 Dark Salvation
1 Graf Harvest
1 Sol Ring
1 Stoneforge Masterwork
1 Bad Moon
1 Cover of Darkness
1 Dread Summons
1 Gate to Phyrexia
1 Hero's Downfall
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
1 Necropotence
1 Never // Return
1 Phyrexian Arena
1 Endless Ranks of the Dead
1 Whip of Erebos
1 Call to the Grave
1 Dark Triumph
1 Liliana's Mastery
1 Living Death
1 Murderous Cut
1 Sorin Markov
1 Zombie Apocalypse
1 Army of the Damned
Lands (36)
1 Barren Moor
1 Bojuka Bog
1 Cabal Coffers
1 Cradle of the Accursed
1 Crypt of Agadeem
1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
1 Polluted Mire
1 Unholy Grotto
28 Swamp
Thank you in advance.
Punisher cards are nearly 100% trash (vexing devil has been ok in the past but even it has gone away) giving opponents choices is not in your best interest