BW Slinger
- bonzaientertainmen
- 3 hours ago
- 10 min read
Welcome back to Make Mine Magic, where I look at a Universes Beyond Legendary Creature and try to convince you to play a Commander from Magic IP instead. This week, I really have my work cut out for me. When you hear Spellslinger, a few things come to mind: Instants, Draw, Storm, rituals, combo, etc. Your mind probably drifted to Blue and Red as the go to colors for that strategy. There's actually a little more room for the strategy than just Izzet, you just have to look for it.
Before this current glut of Universes Beyond content we find ourselves in, Final Fantasy, Sonic the Hedgehog, Spider-Man, Avatar the Last Air Bender, and more, I had put together an Orzhov spell slinger deck. You might think I'm crazy, but these colors are well suited to do the things a Spell Slinger strategy needs to enable a victory. While I was building and testing it, the unthinkable happened: a great option was spoiled in Final Fantasy.
Papalymo Totolymo is a 1/2 Dwarf Wizard for only 2 mana. It has a great ability to force opponents who lost life in a turn to sacrifice their strongest creatures. It does come at the cost of the commander himself, as you have to sacrifice Papalymo to activate the ability. He has something more appealing going for him though. Each noncreature spell I cast means I do 1 damage to each opponent and I gain 1 life. In a deck built around noncreature spells, that damage can add up quickly.
My challenge today is in convincing you that Sorin of House Markov is a better option as a BW Spellslinger deck than Papalymo Totolymo. I might have my work cut out for me here. Papalymo Totolymo comes down early and has his ability trigger constantly.
Sorin of House Markov is a 2 mana 1/4 Human Noble with Lifelink and Extort. He's not much of an attacker, but at least he blocks better than he attacks. Already, we can notice how Sorin starts to edge out Papalymo. They're both 2 mana, but Sorin only needs 1 color of mana to cast, whereas the Papalymo needs black and white. The probability that I draw one black producing mana and one other mana source by turn 2 is much higher than drawing one black and one white producing mana source in my first 9 cards of the game. Sorin edges out the competition when it comes to playability. There's more though. Sorin even has the advantage on stat line, being a 1/4 compared to a 1/2 creature. Toughness isn't going to win a game, but it will keep my commander in the fight longer.
When we compare Papalymo's drain ability to Extort, the advantage is less clear. Papalymo only triggers on noncreature spells. A spellslinger deck is not built around creatures, but it doesn't eschew them entirely. A portion of the deck will have no chance to trigger the ability. Extort, on the other hand, triggers with any spell I cast, but for the cost of 1 black or white mana. The higher cost comes with a higher reward. Extort still only hits opponents for 1 life, but rewards me with the cumulative amount of life gained. As long as I have more than 1 opponent, that 1 mana equates to 1 or 2 additional life. A lot of the draw spells in black, all your Sign in Blood variants, cost 2 life in addition to their mana. That extra life starts to look good thanks to extort. Papalymo plus a Read the Bones means I'm net down 1 life. With Sorin, if I cast Diresight and pay the mana I can actually come out ahead on life, or at least neutral, through more of the game. Sorin has a tenuous lead so far.
The cards start to diverge with their second abilities. Paplymo Totolymo has the ability to sacrifice himself and make opponents sacrifice creatures. 4 mana and the ability to tap is a high bar. Why would you want to sacrifice your commander though? His ability isn't going to trigger if he's in the command zone. I want to play my commander very early so I can get the most utility from him. That means he's going to die more than usual and become pricey to recast. I also can't use the ability the turn he comes out since it's a tap ability. It just slows me down at a key juncture in the game. Sorin can trigger his second ability the same turn he comes out; I just have to gain a little life to make it happen. If I hit the 4 life threshold, Sorin of House Markov flips over to Sorin, Ravenous Neonate. He still has Extort on the flip side and a very relevant -1 ability to do damage to any target equal to the life I gained this turn. The Food token ability isn't very impactful aside from the 2 loyalty counters. The -6 ability is removal in its own way. At his best, Papalymo would remove 3 creatures. With this ultimate, Sorin removes 1 creature and can then block the second best creature on the board. That's a practical way to remove 2 creatures and even deter other attackers. Sorin's secondary ability, and flip side, has greater upside than Papalymo, so he gets the edge again.
There is a timing restriction to be aware of with Sorin that could expose him to being removed if used improperly. If I gain the 4 life in my first main phase, or during combat, I have no choice but to flip Sorin. That's not a may ability. If there a lot of creatures on the field Sorin is now open to being attacked, since Planeswalkers are valid targets. I could stack the deck with spells like Darkness or Holy Day, but I'm not guaranteed to have them for each combat step. This could be a liability, but it could also be a strategic boon if used properly. If there are a lot of creatures on the board, I just wait to gain life until my second main phase. If the board is rather empty, I have no qualms with flipping Sorin early and getting access to his Loyalty abilities. With a little mindfulness, a potential liability becomes an asset.
To recap, Papylmo has the benefit of triggering his drain ability on each qualifying spell at no additional cost. Sorin has greater upside though, enough to offset the loss induced from common black draw spells. Sorin also has better stats, which would be negligible were it not for damage based removal. Sorin or House Markov isn't going to die to a Lightning Bolt or even Abrade. When looking at secondary abilities, Sorin maintains his lead. Sacrificing a commander to remove up to 3 creatures is inefficient. Transforming into a Planewalker can also be inefficient, but the -2 ability brings with it the potential to remove an opponent, which is a much higher ceiling. For all these reasons, Sorin of House Markov is a better BW spellslinger commander than Papalymo Totolymo. Make Mine Magic!
Lucky for you, I have a deck that shows how strong Sorin Spell Slinger really is. The first order of business for a spellslinger deck is card draw. I mentioned Sign in Blood variants earlier in the article, and they do play a large role. I have some great one offs though. Syphon Mind is a great option with some variance. It works best when I have all my opponents still in the game. 4 mana to draw 3 cards and be up more comparatively because of the discard effect is a great rate. Paying 4 to draw 1 card is less palatable. Profane Insight is a great endstep play. If I have 3 mana lying around, I'll trade it and a life for a card. Thanks to extort I'll make the life back. Foulmire Knight, the other half of the card, is surprisingly relevant in games. Deathtouch makes him a relevant blocker that opponents avoid attacking into. At only 1 mana, I'm guaranteed to get that Extort ability. Darkstar Augur is a great way to trade life for cards. If I happen to have an extra mana, I can make a second copy and double the cards drawn each upkeep. Twilight Prophet is a great way to draw, gain, and punish opponents when I do so.
All these spells and Extort triggers add up when it comes to mana. I don't want to get caught unable to cast my second or third spell in a turn, so I need mana acceleration. Crypt Ghast is great in this role as it doubles the value of my swamps, and it has extort too. Even if I lose my commander, I can still I can use it as an analog for Sorin and drain opponents when I cast spells. In a similar vein, Life Insurance has been a great addition. It turns dead creatures indirectly into treasure for me. The life loss hurts, but I have many ways to regain what it costs me, including from the Extort stapled onto it. I've found cost reducers to be a better option in this deck than traditional ramp options. Of course, I'm running Pearl Medallion and Jet Medallion. They're simple and cost effective. On their own, they can pay for my Extort triggers for each spell. I also like the Defiler series here. Defiler of Flesh and Defiler of Faith work with permanents, so it might seem like a nonstarter in a spellslinger deck. In fact, a lot of my support cards are permanents, so I get a lot of value from these two. They're less narrow than Bontu's Monument and Oketra's Monument.
I have one more way to beat the mana concern: play cards that don't cost anything. Abolish is more costly for an artifact/enchantment spell than I would usually consider. Abolish does allow me to pitch away a Plains and save my mana. I can go bigger though, and I have. Patrician's Scorn is an enchantment sweeper at 4 mana. Why pay 4 mana for this effect when I could pay nothing? All I have to do is cast another white spell to cast this one for free. Snuff Out lets me trade 4 life into a removal spell. 4 life is a bigger deal in 60 card formats, but in EDH, we get 40 life. Every time I play this card I wind up back to my old life total in no time at all.
My strategy needs to do more than just cast spells to be effective; I need some incidental payoffs as well. Magecraft is great for this, turning instants and sorceries into bonuses. Sedgemoor Witch rewards those cast triggers with a Pest token, which just so happens to gain me life when it dies. Spell Satchel becomes a 2 mana rock, or better yet, a source of card draw if I cast enough. Professor Onyx warps the idea of extort and hits my opponents for 2 each time and rewards me equally. No additional cost needed.
Magecraft is a little limited in these colors, but I wasn't deterred from finding great payoffs for my strategy. There are some great cards out there that behave the same way, but without Magecraft printed in the text box. Monastery Mentor is the most recognizable of this category. This 2/2 Human Monk not only has Prowess, but spits out another monk token with Prowess each time I cast a noncreature spell. That's not my only source of monks these days. Thanks to Tarkir: Dragonstorm, I got Aligned Heart, which spits out an ever increasing number of Monk tokens when I cast 2 spells in a turn, which is what I want to do anyway. Shrine of Loyal Legions is from a cycle I often put into a draft, but cut along the way. That's not the case this time. I play this and let it stack up counter after counter until I'm ready for those Myr tokens. It's a great feeling to find a home for a card that usually doesn't make the cut.
I have one last class of cards worth mentioning. Since I'm a spell slinger deck, I want to both protect the spells I'm casting from troublesome blue players and control how my opponents impact the board. My options are limited and interesting in BW. Mana Tithe and Lapse of Certainty are classics in White. Black provides me Withering Boon stops troublesome commanders while Imp's Mischief doesn't necessarily counter a spell, but it redirects it to a more profitable target. There are some solid newcomers that deserve some attention. Mage's Attendant brings with it a Force Spiking Wizard token. Aven Interrupter ushers a spell into exile as it's being cast. It's plotted, so opponents can play it later, but with a 2 mana tax, a tax that affects every card in exile or graveyards. That adds up and makes Aven Interrupter worth protecting.
The deck is powerful and could offer some strong play patterns if this was it, but its not. I needed some ways to close out the game. I'm already playing spells and gaining life, so I'm Aetherflux Reservoir was an easy include, as was its little cousin Dynavolt Tower. That's a good way to clear out one opponent, but harder to clear the whole table. Tendrils of Agony stacks up well if I can string together multiple spells. I'm not looking to take someone at 40 life out, but a half dozen instances of this aren't outside the realm of possibility. My final haymaker is Approach of the Second Sun. I can't remember a time I've cast it twice in the same turn to win, but the turn after, I have pulled off more than once. That's in part thanks to Revival//Revenge.
Let's look at the deck as is.
Batwing Brume | ||
Infectious Inquiry | ||
Gruesome Realization | ||
Hoarder's Greed | Cloud Key | |
Demon's Due | Pontiff of Blight | |
Syndicate Heavy | ||
Giant Killer | Blind Obedience | |
Null Elemental Blast | ||
Kaya's Ghostform | ||
Holy Day | Invasion of Gobakhan | |
Chancellor of the Annex | ||
Semester's End | Warping Wail | |
Onakke Oathkeeper | Reverent Mantra | |
Damn | ||
Spectacular Pileup | Flare of Fortitude | Murderous Cut |
Requisition Raid | Flare of Malice | Force of Despair |
Karn's Bastion | Blast Zone | War Room |
Secluded Steppe | Barren Moore | Bojuka Bog |
Desert of the Glorified | Desert of the True | Scavenger Grounds |
Temple of Silence | Isolated Chapel | Castle Locthwain |
Witch's Cottage | Field of Ruin | Ghost Quarter |
Swamp x12 | Plains x9 | |
This is great. Papalymo Tatalymo and the idea for Make Mine Magic really sped up the publication of this article. I'm glad I got to share it with you. The deck is playing really consistently. This is just more proof that there are powerful and underexplored ideas within traditional Magic sets, and you don't need to dip into Universes Beyond to fill that role.
Thanks for reading and all the support to date. I have affiliate links with Mana Pool and TCG Player to help fund these off the wall strategies. It's what makes all this possible.
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