I did not like Ikoria. There was something irksome about card design referring to punch out tokens as technology. Ability counters felt gimmicky though they have stuck around since then. Mutate is a total disaster. I've never seen it actually show up in a game and that's a good thing. If you ask 5 people about an unusual interaction with mutate you'll get 5 different answers. Normally I don't mind high risk high reward gameplay, like Voltron with auras. With mutate we get a lot of keywords and payoffs for when you use the mechanic, but you lose out on power. Mutate is a worse version of bestow with a constellation effect generally tacked on. I would have rather had bestow. Add to this the total flavor fail that if you mutate a creature it doesn't gain the type MUTANT. That should have been an easy win. I would have rather had more time on Theros and more bestow in the game. At least with that mechanic, you get a little protection from board wipes and a power boost when you enchant a creature.
This is not an article about mutate. Don't worry. But in the spirit of Making EDH Weird Again, I want to turn our attention to the other game warping mechanic from the set. A mechanic so overpowered they were too cowardly to explain it in full on the card. The rules lived in reminder text so they could be changed if it was a bust. A mechanic such a poor fit for our format they had to rewrite the rules to allow cards to start in a zone that didn't exist in EDH. These cards live in the sideboard in any other format We don't have sideboards or wishboards in Commander and don't allow cards to start in other zones. Thank goodness. Part of the challenge of deckbuilding means your resources belong in your deck. If you haven't caught on yet I'm talking about Companion. After a disastrous debut warping every other constructed format, the nerfing seems to have worked. Now once in the game you can pay to draw it from the companion zone and only at sorcery speed. It was nerfed so hard from how it debuted that it almost doesn't seem worth it, which is quite an improvement. On its own, it's not even weird enough to consider writing about. But, if you go all in on it a very weird and variable deck can be designed.
I started this deck with the intent to jam it full of every available companion. 9/10 since Lutri, the Spellchaser was born under the ban hammer. I wanted each companion in the deck to have an opportunity to play to its strengths and open the door to allow the greatest number of companions to sit in the zone. I don't even have to know which companion I have at the start of the game.
It was easy to pick the commander in this case, Jegantha, The Wellspring. Gruul got left out for a potential companion bonanza because WUBRG elevates its color identity. An early draft of this deck had Keruga, The Macrosage and Kaheera, the Orphanguard as companion options. Building it turned out kind of dull since I was just jamming the best 3 drops from each tribe. The deck didn't have much of an early game with the 3+ CMC restriction. Just because I want to get weird doesn't mean I don't want a capable deck that gives me a decent enough chance to win. I had a decent list before, then I decided to up the challenge.
My breakthrough for this deck came thanks to Kaldheim. A couple of those flipping Gods not only gave me a chance to play cards in the early game, but provided me with targets for Lurrus, The Dream Den to pull out of the graveyard, Egon, God of Death/Throne of Death, Alrund, God of the Cosmos/Hakka, Whispering Raven, and Cosima, God of the Voyage/The Omenkeel. That means I would have to drop Kaheera from the companion zone. It wasn't a huge deal since I could throw it into the deck itself. You'll notice a bunch of decent 3 drop creatures from the tribes it cares about survived from the earlier list to this version.
I felt like I was on a roll and decided to delve deeper into mechanics that had an alternative cost or ability so I had options in the early game. I went through an odd list in my head to get the ball rolling. Discard was unreliable in the first 3 turns, so madness and flashback were out. Bloodrush needed an attacking creature and wouldn't add to my board presence, so that was a bust.
A stroll into Ravnica brought me to FUSE. I get to add the CMC of both halves to meet the Keruga stipulation. I can just as easily play the cheaper side of something like Far/Away or either half of Wear/Tear. Goodbye early game Sol Ring or Signet. If I'm not ramping neither are you.
The next plane of inspiration was Lorowyn. Or is it Shadowmoor? I guess we'll see in the near future what happened there. One of the flagship mechanics, on elementals no less, was Evoke. I can pay full price for the creature and the ETB, or just pay the Evoke cost and get the ETB. Sometimes that works better if I have some sacrifice triggers like Butcher of Malakir, Dictate of Erebos, or Grave Pact. That's not the direction this deck is going in though. I just want some cheaper options on cards with mana value or greater and odd casting costs. Think more along the lines of Mulldrifter. This staple is included more for the draw clause than the 2/2 flyer it offers. Ingot Chewer and Wispmare join Wear//Tear to knock out early ramp options like Sol Ring and Urban Burgeoning. Would I pay full price for the creature portion as well? Maybe yes, maybe no. I've done both before in the late game. The Chewer has more of a markup than the mares but sometimes you just want more power on the board. The last Evoke creature I want to talk about is the classic Shriekmaw. A 5 mana evasive 3/2 is lacking but the added Doom Blade effect is where it's at. I've fired this off as a Doom Blade on turn 2 many times.
That still only offered a handful of early plays. I can do better, or at least compromise. Even if I don't cast a spell onto the field right away I can certainly invest in the future. That means an old standby like suspend opens the door to early actions as does another Kaldheim mechanic, Foretell. I already liked Doomskar. If I can tuck it away as a foretold spell for the future and get a cheaper rate on it in the mid game I will. It helps me build back my board on that same turn. That's just as true for Crush the Weak. It sweeps away utility creatures and small tokens while Doomskar will take care of that and anything else. Rise Of The Dread Marn future proofs me from an opposing boardwipe on the cheap. Or even my own. A single B is too cheap to resist. Ravenform and Poison the Cup are good targeted removal options. Green Slime and Saw it Coming offer cheap counters for when it matters most.
There are more investment based mechanics. Suspend is a classic but it had some slim pickings. Plunder is over costed removal, but there's always an early artifact or utility land that could use removing. It can act as a deterrent early on if it gets suspended. If a player holds onto a card for an extra turn or two because he sees Plunder suspended that's a win for me. Riftmarked Knight gives me a couple of evasive bodies if I play my cards right, literally. Rousing Refrain fills a key role of ramp and better yet recurs itself. So if I whiff early on I'll see it again in a couple turns. Foretell does a little better for me.
Keen eyed readers may have noticed something in particular about the cards I've chosen so far. Go ahead and look back if you haven't caught it. Everything is an odd CMC. That means we can add Obosh, The Prey Piercer into the options as a companion. The damage doubling will be clutch as combat damage is a key way to knock out other players with this deck. I could even add insult to injury and add Void Winnower to the deck to taunt opponents or Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign for free casts. If extra damage isn't your thing the extra card draw from Keruga is. It will keep my hand stacked with options to play now or later.
I added a couple of phyrexian mana cards here. Two of the three can come down on curve regardless of the colors available, Porcelain Legionnaire and Spined Thopter. Not the most impressive threats but an early presence can help keep the pressure up and telegraph that you're more of a threat than expected. Norn's Annex is a pressure relief valve. If I'm going to be attacked for more than 4 life it pays to pay the life and get it down as early as possible. No fixing required. If no one is going wide there's no need to pay the life to play it early. There aren't a lot of reliable ways to gain life in the deck so being cognizant of how much life you're willing to spend throughout the game is a must.
We're coming to the end of options that fit our potential companions and allow early plays, but what's left will take us somewhere exciting. Adventure stamped instants and sorceries onto creatures. What's great for the deck is those instants and sorceries exile themselves and allow us to catch the odd 3+ creature later on. So we can ramp early with Fertile Footsteps or clear away a small creature with Stomp and drop Beanstalk Giant or Bonecrusher Giant later on. Since we're rocking a couple of giants already, Realm-Cloaked Giant is a good fit. Ardenvale Tactician and Queen of Ice may not be the power level some decks are looking for, but their adventure side keeps early creatures too tangled up to hurt me when I'm most vulnerable. Or it can clear the way for some beaters later on.
So what does the final deck look like?
Jegantha, The Wellspring
Keruga, The Macrosage | Obosh, the Preypiercer | |
Kaheera, The Orphanguard | Egon, God of Death | Crush the Weak |
Zirda, the Dawnwaker | Alrund, God of the Cosmos | Far//Away |
Yorion, Sky Nomad | Cosima, God of the Voyage | Wear/Tear |
Lurrus, of the Dream-Den | Feline Sovereign | Insult//Injury |
Toxic Deluge | Keeper of Fables | Turn//Burn |
Submerge | Kutzil's Flanker | Crush the Weak |
March From Velis Vel | Jedit Ojanen, Mercenary | Saw it Coming |
Shamanic Revelation | Unbreakable Formation | Rise of the Dreadmarn |
Explore the Underdark | Make a Stand | Ravenform |
Navigation Orb | Ingot Chewer | Plunder |
Wayward Swordtooth | Mulldrifter | Riftmarked Knight |
District Guide | Shriekmaw | Rousing Refrain |
Skyclave Relic | Wispmare | Doomskar |
Commander's Sphere | Beanstalk Wurm | Green Slime |
Realm Cloaked Giant | Beanstalk Giant | Poison the Cup |
Ardenvale Giant | Brazen Borrower | Fumigate |
Queen of Ice | Young Blue Dragon | Porcelain Legionnaire |
Murderous Rider | Sword Coast Serpent | Spined Thopter |
Merchant of the Veil | Gingerbread Hunter | Norn's Annex |
Void Winnower | Pristine Talisman | Druidic Satchel |
Yenett, Cryptic Sovereign | Rosethorn Acolyte | |
Maze's End | Baldur's Gate | Basilisk Gate |
Gond Gate | Heap Gate | Thran Portal |
Black Dragon Gate | Citadel Gate | Cliffgate |
Manor Gate | Sea Gate | Gateway Plaza |
Azorious Guildgate | Dimir Guildagat | Rakdos Guildgate |
Gruul Guildgate | Selesnya Guildgate | Bojuka Bog |
Blast Zone | Echoing Depths | Scavenger Grounds |
Plains x3 | Island x3 | Swamp x3 |
Mountain x2 | Forest x3 |
This deck is certainly a theme deck. As you can see I managed to make room for 4 other companions in the 99 meaning we used 7 of the available 9. The final count stands like this, Jegantha in the command zone, Keruga and Obosh battle it out between the companion zone and the 99. Zirda, Yorion, Kaheera, and Lurrus are all firmly in the 99. Umori and Gyruda are both sitting out on behalf of their even mana value. How odd.
I'm playing 5 colors so of course I put in Maze's End and the gate package. It's a sneaky way to get the table to give a second thought to what you're deck is capable of. A lot of the newer gates like Heap Gate and Basilisk Gate work better with Zirda, the Dawnwaker because it reduces the cost of their abilities. Explore the Underdark and Navigation Orb kind of telegraph the plan but that's not always bad. District Guide is a little slower, but it works well enough with Yorion, Sky Nomad it's sticking around. Wayward Swordtooth works well to accelerate my plan by playing multiple lands in a turn. The fact it happens to be a Dinosaur just means it works well with Kaheera. The real surprise comes from March from Velis Vel. This is a finisher in its own right. It's a surprise set of attackers twice over thanks to Flashback.
The early game may start a little slow since we don't have perfect mana or ramp options. That just means we need to play smart and use politics to our advantage. And always having access to perfect mana gets dull anyway. That's why we're trying to get weird. But let's stay away from Ikoria for a while.
Let me know what you think of the deck. Have you messed around with Companions before? Do you think the restrictions on them are worth the benefit of 101st card?
As always, don't forget to use my TCG Player and Mana Pool links if you're buying cards or other products.
Post Article Update: A new card type has come into being since I rewrote this article and put together the deck list you see now. Rooms were a small splash from Duskmourn but they may have pushed me to a critical mass of cards I can play cheap early even though they have a mana value of at least 3. I'm currently retooling the list to remove cards like the Kaldheim gods and all other creatures that do not fit Kaheera, the Orphanguard's Companion criteria. I'll move a third option into contention in the companion zone. Stay tuned.
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