Let's get political! Not really. I do want to talk about politics in EDH though. There are two extremes when it comes to politics. One is the quid pro quo style where you use resources to help an opponent with the expectation you get something of greater value in the future. That's the indirect way of doing it, the direct way is forcing your opponents to vote or choose. There are a couple of mechanics out there that let the table vote on the mode of a spell. This can be a dangerous proposition. If people vote against you than you wind up with an inferior resolution to the spell. It would be like picking the worst mode of a modal spell. That's the direction I want to take the deck, to be a total glutton for punishment.
I want to give my opponents choice in this deck. Every spell will be interactive. This isn't going to be a cop out where I let my opponent pick the mode of a modal spell or what I'm going to destroy with my removal spells. There is a classic spell I'm sure you're familiar with that summarizes my game plan; Fact or Fiction. This old school draw spell lets one of my opponents split the top 5 cards of my library into 2 piles and I keep the cards in one of those piles. Could I get all 5? Absolutely. Is 2 or 3 more likely? Of course. It's a fun draw spell that gets the table talking. There are variations on this where I can I separate the cards or some of the piles are face down. It gets wacky. Take Steam Augury for instance. It's Fact of Fiction in reverse. Going 5-0 is much more dangerous with this spell, that's worth keeping in mind.
My creatures also get in on separating cards into piles. Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign lets an opponent take 4 cards and make 2 piles. I can abuse it by blinking it but since it reduces the cost of other Sphinxes I added in Sphinx of Uthuun and Sphinx of Clear Skies to take advantage of the cost reduction and double up my pile making strategy. Atris, Oracle of Half Truths isn't a sphinx, but he does a fine imitation of the effect. Just be sure to vary who you're asking to make the piles. People will try to take advantage of giving you more cards if you plan to use them on their behalf.
There is another mechanic that lends itself to the idea of letting an opponent choose something on my behalf; Tribute. This Born of the Gods mechanic was one and done, and I can see why. With it, you select an opponent and that person says if I can power up the creature I just cast with +1/+1 counters or get some other boon. Let's look at Fanatic of Xenagos. For 3 mana I get a base 3/3 with Trample. My opponent gets to decide if I actually have a 4/4 trampler or if it attacks hastily as a 4/4 on this turn. More often than not I wound up with the counters rather than the other tradeoff. A slightly stronger creature is generally more palatable to an opponent.
My draw options were well served with this choice element to the deck, as were my creatures. I was surprised with how well my removal options fit into the deck theme. Fatal Grudge requires a little cost on my part since I have to sacrifice a permanent, but making opponents sacrifice a permanent is a great way to get around indestructible, protection, hexproof, etc. make an example is halfway to a board wipe. Everyone gets an element of choice with this. They make the piles, I choose what stays or goes. I never mess around with letting an opponent keep all his creatures and I made that point very clear. I'm glad no one pressed to test on that. Pick Your Poison is cheap and can hit multiple permanents. Rags // Riches is a split. Rags is straight up removal. No nuance or choice. Riches is where it's at since opponents choose what to give me. Mogg Assassin is the odd choice for the deck. Coin flipping is a mechanic I don't enjoy but was palatable in this deck. The flip does fit well, staying on theme of not having control. That's just when I win, that control gets placed back on an opponent if I lose. I always coordinated with an opponent before I tapped the goblin.
I have choice based draw, creatures, and removal. The only deck function I was worried about was choice based ramp. I was right too. I borrowed a couple of ideas from my Abzan Mill Deck and they worked relatively well. Rootweaver Druid gives my opponents a choice to find lands and if so, I get to keep one. If they're all in lock step to say no, I don't get any lands. I've gotten comfortable putting some blame on the player to my right. If the opponents on my left say no, they can be at a disadvantage if that last opponent decides to get the lands. I'm all for planting that thought before I even see the creature. Avatar of Growth makes the choice an even playing field. Opponents and I each get to say what is most beneficial and go with that. There is no cumulative worry. Tempt With Discovery is another spell that puts me on a more even footing with opponents when it comes to choice. 4 mana for 1 land is a bad rate but it happens. If my opponents choose to take the deal I benefit with even more lands.
This last category of choice is different than the others as everyone gets involved. I'm talking about vote cards. Voting can be fun as everyone gets involved. People vote for their best interest so the best mode for me may not be what resolves. The way most vote cards are designed, I'm insulated from any repercussions. Often, opponents got more mad at each other for picking the “wrong” mode than at me for playing the card. I first encountered this phenomenon years ago while playing against an Expropriate. I was playing against essentially a cEDH Narset deck. The opponent hard casts Expropriate and I look at my other 2 opponents and say we have to choose to give up a permanent. They both were newer to the game and didn't want to, instead choosing the extra turn option. After explaining what was going to happen if they chose to give away extra turns they thought they could win on their next turn. None of us got to untap again. I'm still mad at those 2 guys and would attack them excessively if I ever saw them in my pod again. It's a good thing I don't remember what they look like.
So, of course I added Expropriate to my deck. Why, you might ask? Who am I to deny future players such a visceral memory in the game? Bite of the Black Rose on the other hand is not so iconically evil. It really has the potential to make enemies across the table though. I've seen someone choose the -2/-2 option, thinking his larger creatures were safe, only to have the next 2 opponents hammer him for wiping out their tokens. Capital Punishment is another would be removal spell. The token player is always down to make people sacrifice creatures. It's the Voltron player that's usually the wild card. He knows that one creature is likely going down, so he will bargain hard to make sure people don't blow up that glass cannon. Tyrant's Choice behaves similarly but as a powered down option. I've found the 4 life is more often what resolves in a game. Timing is key for this. Coercive Portal is another voting based removal option. I would actually add this to a nonvoting deck that doesn't have a lot of board wipes available. Even if it sits there and gains incremental value turn after turn it's a win for me.
The voting plan left one issue for me, who would headline the deck? There aren't a lot of 4 color options to begin with. Partner and its variants expand my options but not in a meaningful way. Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder is the big thing in this sans white commander options. Cascade doesn't give my opponents choices but it does take the choice of what I cast next out of my hands. It would also show off more voting cards. Showing off more of a deck is a dream for me as a deck builder, but this time it sped up different feelings. I went with Yidris. He takes a lot of heat so that also didn't help with my playtesting. I was switched to a Friends Forever option to take some of the heat off me and allow me to develop my strategy in a game. Cecily, Haunted Mage and Elmar, Ulvenwald Informant are an interesting pair. Cecily does a little free casting under the right circumstances. She pairs well with my Sphinxes and Fact or Fiction cards. Elmar is more of a head scratcher. The token is nice but I'm not set up to take advantage of the untap ability. More testing would have been great with these two but I moved away from the deck shortly after.
I could keep going, but I think it's best to cut it off here. Here's the deck
Plargg and Nassari | Fact or Fiction | Consuming Tide |
Sivriss, Nightmare Speaker | Deliver Unto Evil | Barroom Brawl |
Fanatic of Xenagos | Callous Oppressor | Fatal Grudge |
Flame-Wreathed Phoenix | Disorienting Choice | Mogg Assassin |
Nessian Demolok | Dubious Challenge | Necrotic Plague |
Nesian Wilds Ravager | Dredge the Mire | Pick Your Poison |
Oracle of Bones | Epiphany at the Drownyard | Prisoner's Dilemma |
Pharagax Giant | Fatespinner | Rags//Riches |
Siren of the Fanged Coast | Forgotten Lore | Make an Example |
Snake of the Golden Grove | Guided Passage | Karn, Scion of Urza |
Thunder Brute | Hostile Negotiations | Jace, Architect of Thought |
Bite of the Black Rose | Intrude on the Mind | Atris, Oracle of Half Truths |
Capital Punishment | Intuition | Sphinx of Clear Skies |
Emissary Green | Library of Lat Nam | Sphinx of Uthuun |
Expropriate | Manifold Insights | Burning Rune Demon |
Mob Verdict | Murmurs from Beyond | Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign |
Selvala's Stampede | Oath of Druids | Rootweaver Druid |
Split Decision | Oath of Ghouls | Avatar of Growth |
Steam Augury | Realms Uncharted | Tempt with Discovery |
Truth or Tale | Scrounge | Split the Spoils |
Boneyard Parley | Shrouded Lore | |
Command Tower | Exotic Orchard | Bojuka Bog |
Scavenger Grounds | Vivid Creek | Vivid Marsh |
Pit of Offerings | Vivid Crag | Vivid Grove |
Island x7 | Mountain x6 | Swamp x6 |
Forrest x6 | ||
That's the structure of the deck. The play experience was not what I expected. People didn't like a lot of politics in any game. There was a predictable pattern. People thought it was fine the first time, they groaned the third, then got more and more annoyed each time after that. That's a little reductive but the point stands. The politics had a net negative effect on the game. People were not excited to continually make choices about game play. It dragged games out because people were constantly weighing decisions. Even if they weren't thrilled with making choices players still took the time to maximize their outcome. Politics in moderation would be a more viable plan.
4 Color decks seem to have a problem with a lack of identity. Adding these themes is a way for me to force an identity onto the deck that wasn't available by design or lore. My mileage has varied but it's been a fun ride. If you're enjoying it please use my Mana pool and TCG Player links the next time you pick up any cards or accessories.
I think it's important to share the highs and lows with you. Usually, I play these decks to show you they're fun and viable. Sometimes I play these decks so you don't have to. Thanks for your support along the way. Reading and sharing these articles certainly helps. So does using my affiliate links. Here are my TCG Player and Mana Pool links if you're buying cards or other products.
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