Hi all! My store is getting into pauper EDH so I thought I'd join in and build a deck. For those unfamiliar with the rules:
1. Same as normal commander, except...
2. General must be an uncommon creature.
3. The rest of your deck can only be cards that were at any point printed at common.
4. Banned generals for our group are so far limited to Shriekmaw and Psychatog. This may change as time passes.
I wanted to make a combo deck that utilizes the general, so what this deck does is ramp up, beat down, and try to assemble an infinite mana combo. Once you have infinite mana, you can just activate the guildmage's ability a billion times, play a creature that is huge, draw a billion cards, and play your whole deck. If that fails, bashing face with huge dudes and drawing a bunch of cards is not a bad backup plan either. Cards that generate multiple creatures in one shot are also really funny with this general.
The general, and the deck itself, are quite mana hungry so that's why I have so many rampers. The main plan is to draw cards and ramp up into big dudes, or turn my smaller guys into big dudes with the guildmage. All the while, I try to assemble the parts for one of two infinite combos:
Land untapping creature + Freed From the Real + Land that makes 2 or 3 mana = infinite mana
This can also be achieved with Galvanic Alchemist, a land untapper, and 1 land that makes 4 mana total.
From there, I can play the general, use its first ability a billion times, then play a creature with a billion counters on it, draw my whole deck, and play my entire deck. Plop Strider Harness and Whispersilk cloak on one dude and go to town.
Looking forward to your thoughts, thanks for checking this out.
Interesting build. I just went for tons of giant dudes with counters and use card advantage to get more giant dudes. Nice find with scatter the seeds and strider harness (I'm currently running arcbound hybrid for if I go infinite :P). Just a couple of things I think would go great in your deck:
undying and persist creatures are stupid good. undying even nets you more cards. Also, Aerie Ouphes + Zameck guildmage's first ability = infinite damage to flying creatures and grazing kelpie is great grave hate.
Every green deck should run lignify.
Why no evolve dudes? They net at least one card for every creature drop.
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Currently trying to think up a way to abuse giant oyster
I didn't do any infinite combos with my build, but I do like yours - though it might upset some of my friends...
Why not use some of the other Eldrazi Spawn spawning creatures? They're tremendous value, IMHO - not just the Predator.
I would heartily endorse Horned Helm as a quick means of giving trample - and Vorrac Battlehorns are also good. Nothing is scarier in Pauper than a trampling Crusher.
I'm honestly not sure you need so much draw such as Frantic Search and Foresee - I'd focus more on ramp so you can easily use both the Guildmage's abilities to their fullest, and thin down the deck so you get usable cards WHEN you draw (instead of more lands!) Ramp attached to bodies is doubly valuable, too, so you can put a +1/+1 on them and then draw off it later - Wood Elves, Farhaven Elf, Borderland Ranger, Civic Wayfinder, Sylvan Ranger... I'd run those over most of your draw spells.
I'd focus more on ramp so you can easily use both the Guildmage's abilities to their fullest, and thin down the deck so you get usable cards WHEN you draw (instead of more lands!)
This. I just played a couple games today and I couldn't manage to get lands (As in, I recurred Sakura Tribe Elder to get more land) and it wasn't easy.
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Currently trying to think up a way to abuse giant oyster
With a persist creature, your commander and ashnod's altar you can make infinite colorless mana. I know that in color-intensive decks that's less than optimal though.
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For Lists, Click Here EDH: GW: Selvala, Let us help YOU. UB: Mirko Vosk, when outmatched cheat BW: Vish Kal, The Arbiter of Reanimation UG: Prime Speaker Zegana, the science of sorcery RB: Malfegor, Traitor's Haven UW: Daxos, Control-Fort-Tron BG: Pharika, Goddess of Stax RW: Gisela, Boros Control RG: Ruric Thar, a Primal Surge deck RU: Niv-Mizzet the Firemind, Spellslinger?!?! B:(Pauper) Mikaeus the Unhallowed R: Kurkesh, Onakke Ancient: The Power of Engineering
the problem with running more ramp guys over draw is that i reach a critical mass of ramp, with all the land enchants. i will play a bit more with the deck and see how i like the draw spells, but for now i will keep them. so far i've been very happy, and frantic search is actually bonkers in this deck with all the enchantments.
on spot removal: i'm not keen on it in decks like this, though stuff like flood is good since it's repeatable.
made a small update to include flood and sea gate oracle over mystic remora and snap.
1. Same as normal commander, except...
2. General must be an uncommon creature.
3. The rest of your deck can only be cards that were at any point printed at common.
4. Banned generals for our group are so far limited to Shriekmaw and Psychatog. This may change as time passes.
My general is Zameck Guildmage.
I wanted to make a combo deck that utilizes the general, so what this deck does is ramp up, beat down, and try to assemble an infinite mana combo. Once you have infinite mana, you can just activate the guildmage's ability a billion times, play a creature that is huge, draw a billion cards, and play your whole deck. If that fails, bashing face with huge dudes and drawing a bunch of cards is not a bad backup plan either. Cards that generate multiple creatures in one shot are also really funny with this general.
Here's the decklist:
1 Zameck Guildmage
Lands (35)
10 Forest
10 Island
1 Simic Growth Chamber
1 Simic Guildgate
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Terramorphic Expanse
1 Bant Panorama
1 Command Tower
1 Halimar Depths
1 Khalni Garden
1 Quicksand
1 Desert
1 Haunted Fengraf
1 Lonely Sandbar
1 Remote Isle
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Slippery Karst
Ramp (11)
1 Ondu Giant
1 Cultivate
1 Kodama's Reach
1 Reap and Sow
1 Dawn's Reflection
1 Fertile Ground
1 Overgrowth
1 Utopia Sprawl
1 Verdant Haven
1 Wild Growth
1 Krosan Tusker
1 Juniper Order Druid
1 Krosan Restorer
1 Ley Druid
1 Tidewater Minion
Dudes with counters (10)
1 Aquastrand Spider
1 Phantom Tiger
1 Spike Colony
1 Cytospawn Shambler
1 Fertilid
1 Floodchaser
1 Helium Squirter
1 Kavu Primarch
1 Vigean Hydropon
1 Sporeback Troll
Value creatures (10)
1 Coiling Oracle
1 Archaeomancer
1 Mnemonic Wall
1 AEther Adept
1 Scrivener
1 Mold Shambler
1 Wickerbough Elder
1 Yavimaya Elder
1 Mulldrifter
1 Sea Gate Oracle
Multiple creature generators (5)
1 Kozilek's Predator
1 Maul Splicer
1 Scatter the Seeds
1 Acorn Harvest
1 Sprout Swarm
1 Ulamog's Crusher
Tutors (4)
1 Drift of Phantasms
1 Vedalken AEthermage
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Muddle the Mixture
Card draw (7)
1 Rhystic Study
1 Foresee
1 Amass the Components
1 Compulsive Research
1 Deep Analysis
1 Rush of Knowledge
1 Frantic Search
Combo Pieces (4)
1 Freed from the Real
1 Galvanic Alchemist
1 Cloud of Faeries
1 Ghostly Flicker
Miscellaneous Goodstuff (4)
1 Night Soil
1 Spidersilk Armor
1 Flood
1 Capsize
Artifacts (4)
1 Expedition Map
1 Whispersilk Cloak
1 Neurok Stealthsuit
1 Strider Harness
The general, and the deck itself, are quite mana hungry so that's why I have so many rampers. The main plan is to draw cards and ramp up into big dudes, or turn my smaller guys into big dudes with the guildmage. All the while, I try to assemble the parts for one of two infinite combos:
Cloud of Faeries + Ghostly Flicker + Archaeomancer/Mnemonic Wall/Scrivener + 2 lands that make 4 mana total (land enchantment ramp spells, simic growth chamber, etc.) = infinite mana
or
Land untapping creature + Freed From the Real + Land that makes 2 or 3 mana = infinite mana
This can also be achieved with Galvanic Alchemist, a land untapper, and 1 land that makes 4 mana total.
From there, I can play the general, use its first ability a billion times, then play a creature with a billion counters on it, draw my whole deck, and play my entire deck. Plop Strider Harness and Whispersilk cloak on one dude and go to town.
Looking forward to your thoughts, thanks for checking this out.
"Death - an outmoded concept. We sleep, and we change."
Awesome sig and avatar by Mr. Stuff over at High~Light Studios!
undying and persist creatures are stupid good. undying even nets you more cards. Also, Aerie Ouphes + Zameck guildmage's first ability = infinite damage to flying creatures and grazing kelpie is great grave hate.
Every green deck should run lignify.
Why no evolve dudes? They net at least one card for every creature drop.
BPauper Glissa EDHG
WMaw of the Obzedat PDHB
Why not use some of the other Eldrazi Spawn spawning creatures? They're tremendous value, IMHO - not just the Predator.
I would heartily endorse Horned Helm as a quick means of giving trample - and Vorrac Battlehorns are also good. Nothing is scarier in Pauper than a trampling Crusher.
I'm honestly not sure you need so much draw such as Frantic Search and Foresee - I'd focus more on ramp so you can easily use both the Guildmage's abilities to their fullest, and thin down the deck so you get usable cards WHEN you draw (instead of more lands!) Ramp attached to bodies is doubly valuable, too, so you can put a +1/+1 on them and then draw off it later - Wood Elves, Farhaven Elf, Borderland Ranger, Civic Wayfinder, Sylvan Ranger... I'd run those over most of your draw spells.
But that's just me.
This. I just played a couple games today and I couldn't manage to get lands (As in, I recurred Sakura Tribe Elder to get more land) and it wasn't easy.
BPauper Glissa EDHG
WMaw of the Obzedat PDHB
For Lists, Click Here
EDH:
GW: Selvala, Let us help YOU.
UB: Mirko Vosk, when outmatched cheat
BW: Vish Kal, The Arbiter of Reanimation
UG: Prime Speaker Zegana, the science of sorcery
RB: Malfegor, Traitor's Haven
UW: Daxos, Control-Fort-Tron
BG: Pharika, Goddess of Stax
RW: Gisela, Boros Control
RG: Ruric Thar, a Primal Surge deck
RU: Niv-Mizzet the Firemind, Spellslinger?!?!
B:(Pauper) Mikaeus the Unhallowed
R: Kurkesh, Onakke Ancient: The Power of Engineering
on spot removal: i'm not keen on it in decks like this, though stuff like flood is good since it's repeatable.
made a small update to include flood and sea gate oracle over mystic remora and snap.
do you guys think this deck wants Rhystic Deluge?
"Death - an outmoded concept. We sleep, and we change."
Awesome sig and avatar by Mr. Stuff over at High~Light Studios!