Spoiler season’s almost over, and my refresh button is worn out.
Eldritch Moon, while ultimately a departure from the original Innistrad, has done a wonderful job of sticking to the spirit of Innistrad while divesting itself utterly from the original plan of Werewolves, Vampires, and Zombies. Innistrad was all about monsters; Eldrazi are monsters, aren’t they?
The Eldrazi are some of the weirdest monsters in the Multiverse, and they keep getting wilder, both individually and together. On one hand, their everywhere, whether in the form of Eldrazi Spawns or Scions, and on the other, they’re wildly unique creatures. Wherever they go, things get weird.
Eldritch Moon spoilers are weird, too. Between transforming Eldrazi monstrosities and novel abilities, the set is unlike any other. One of the things I like most about this set is its ability to inspire with just one card.
I mean really, what is this set?
These cards, and so many others, open up the potential for new decks…or, in reality, open us up to decks that have already existed. While new sets are exciting, it can often be difficult to get a hold of some of the best new cards early on, especially for more casual players. At the first Friday Night Magic following a non-rotating set’s release date, lots of players opt to keep the same deck they played the week before with no new additions at all. And hey, I understand that. But that’s okay. Eldrazi turn things on their heads, so we’re going to do the same here!
Instead of building great decks and adding a few cards to support the strategy, I wanted to try something different and dive face-first into decks inspired completely by new cards, but with as few new cards as possible. That way, if you decide you like them and you’d like to try it that first week, you’ll be able to get most of what you need!
To really push that theme, let’s limit the decks to one new card. Let’s see if you can pick them out!
Okay, I’m really excited for a new Tamiyo. For those of you who didn’t play the original version, sweeping the battlefield on turn 4 with Day of Judgment or Supreme Verdict with a Tamiyo, the Moon Sage as a follow-up was par for the course for many of the format’s control decks. Tamiyo, the Moon Sage was a great role-player, providing that firm, controlling hand those decks needed to get their real gameplan online.
Tamiyo, Field Researcher is a bit more, well, assertive. She comes down earlier, demands more commitment (in color), and she puts way more pressure on your opponent to do something now, as her emblem can be reached pretty quickly and can spell game over for most opponents who can’t keep up with a hand recharge and, you know, free spells. She is the queen of subtle advantage, making attacking or blocking difficult with her +1, removing your opponent’s pressure with her -2, and ending the game with her ultimate.
At first, I considered what I thought to be the best card created for her, and again it already existed.
Oath of Gideon is the most powerful play before Tamiyo, Field Researcher. It’s on curve, provides two creatures for her +1 the next turn, and it’s on color, too! Oath of Gideon is exactly what we want for this style of deck.
That mana lends us to a Bant deck, but hitting three colors on time is asking a lot, even for a well-oiled machine. Let’s bring another planeswalker-loving card into the mix.
Oath of Nissa is a neat card that’s seen play in everything from G/W Tokens to R/G Eldrazi Ramp. Its mana cost is negligible, it very often upgrades itself with its trigger, and in this case, it eases the mana requirements of Tamiyo and allows us to get a little faster and looser with our manabase, namely our basic lands.
White, green, and a bit of blue so far. Tamiyo’s still got more to pull from those colors, though. How about recruiting one of the format’s most ubiquitous two-drops, Sylvan Advocate?
Sylvan Advocate is an awesome card in every respect, but it also has vigilance. Tamiyo’s +1 ability targeting a Sylvan Advocate lets the Advocate attack, draw a card, and then defend and draw another card. This was an early catch by those brewers prowling the spoilers like me, but its power is undeniable.
Okay, so Nahiri’s red. Oath of Nissa can not only help us find the Mountain to cast her, it also allow us to play her off a playset of Forests. Sure. We can play red. Black? Okay, maybe just the one. In fact, we can play lots of one-ofs. Planeswalkers are historically poor in multiples, especially if their negative loyalty abilities don’t immediately off them.
Okay, enough nonsense. Let’s jam as many planeswalkers in here as we can.
Creatures (14)
Planeswalkers (10)
- 1 Sarkhan Unbroken
- 1 Kiora, Master of the Depths
- 1 Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
- 1 Ob Nixilis Reignited
- 1 Chandra, Flamecaller
- 1 Nahiri, the Harbinger
- 1 Arlinn Kord
- 1 Jace, Unraveler of Secrets
- 1 Sorin, Grim Nemesis
- 1 Tamiyo, Field Researcher
Lands (22)
Spells (11)
This deck contains far more Standard-legal planeswalkers than it doesn’t, and it’s a roaring good time.
The creature base is simple, neat, and surprisingly flexible. Thraben Inspector is constantly impressive, and in a planeswalker deck, it’s exactly the one-drop you want. You can easily cast it and a planeswalker in the same turn, and once you’re out of steam, you can crack the Clue to reload. It’s a great chump blocker and it forces your opponent’s hand. Every other planeswalker is spoken for, so the only flip planeswalker is Nissa, Vastwood Seer, and in a deck like this, I prefer her. While 0/1 Plants are fine, hitting the fourth land to cast one of the deck’s five four-mana planeswalkers is a bit more important.
Dragonlord Atarka is easy to hard-cast, but I like it for another reason: both Sarkhan Unbroken and Nahiri, the Harbinger can summon her with their ultimates! In the end, this was what made Sarkhan playable, though admittedly a 4/4 Dragon each turn is just fine, too. Nine Oaths help each planeswalker shine, and two sweepers make gummy battlefields a bit more manageable. Only a couple of planeswalkers can handle multiple creatures at once, and this felt like one of the deck’s weaknesses.
One card is missing from this list.
Even though Deploy the Gatewatch was spoiled in time for me writing this, I tried it and just wasn’t happy with it. It felt like playing See the Unwritten in a control deck. I think you probably need sixteen-plus copies of planeswalkers to play this spell, and even with all the variety present in this deck, it’s not a Collected Watch-any.
As is, this list played like a dream. It took a few tries to get here, but all of these planeswalkers can’t be wrong. The deck was, naturally, full of singletons, but all of them did something unique on their own and in conjunction with others. The deck created really fun interactions. Arlinn Kord’s place makes Gideon, Ally of Zendikar a beast the moment he enters the battlefield. Sarkhan Unbroken lets you add a black mana in case you’re missing it for a turn 6 Sorin, Grim Nemesis. The Kiora, Master of the Depths untap ability works great with Tamiyo, Field Researcher and her +1. Interactions were everywhere, and I’m pretty sure I didn’t come close to finding all of them. Every draw was either powerful or got you to a powerful draw or board state. The deck wasn’t actually too soft to aggro decks, and aside from being a bit fragile to life loss and burn, this was an exemplary deck in practice.
The second deck was spawned by an eager reader, who left a great observation in the comments.
Lone Rider has me thinking of possible Odric, Lunarch Marshal decks, possibly alongside Gisela, the Broken Blade.
– Gavin March
Gavin hit on a card that I didn’t get around to brewing with much in Shadows over Innistrad: Odric, Lunarch Marshal.
Odric, Lunarch Marshal is all about static, vanilla abilities. As a Timmy deep down, I appreciate having a double strike, lifelink, trample, haste, vigilant, indestructible bruiser. But my whole team getting all that? Now I’m giddy!
Lone Rider is a great brewing card. It’s cheap, meaning you can play a lot of them, and it’s not embarrassing in combat, especially in multiples. The main trick is getting the three life to flip it over and really give your team a strong boost. While we could just gain three life with cards like Chaplain’s Blessing or the ever-spicy Ojutai’s Command returning Lone Rider, giving him enough power to gain it itself is probably good enough.
This is already a staple in Mono-White Humans, and why shouldn’t it be? It’s great in the mirror match, and it provides a huge boost to an otherwise shrimpy team. The closer we can get to making Lone Rider a 3/3 with the power to flip itself (literally and poetically), the more satisfied I’ll be with the brew.
While I was at it, I wanted to explore the idea of nontoken creatures that weren’t creature spells that Always Watching could benefit, which put me on an almost forgotten card, Myth Realized.
If you have a freshly cast Myth Realized out and you cast Always Watching, it will animate as a 2/2 vigilant creature. This may not seem like much, but think about how good Myth Realized would be if it entered the battlefield with even one lore counter on it! That pushed me towards Ondu Rising, Encircling Fissure, and another good lifegainer, Shambling Vent.
While we’re at it, Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim not only gains life but also gives deathtouch to add to Odric, Lunarch Marshal’s repertoire, which makes first strike and trample so much better.
I know I’m building two different decks side-by-side, but that’s what brewing is for. Let’s see which potion tastes better!
Creatures (23)
- 2 Knight of the White Orchid
- 2 Anafenza, Kin-Tree Spirit
- 1 Kytheon, Hero of Akros
- 2 Anointer of Champions
- 1 Blood-Cursed Knight
- 4 Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim
- 2 Bygone Bishop
- 4 Thraben Inspector
- 1 Odric, Lunarch Marshal
- 4 Lone Rider
Lands (22)
Spells (15)
Within this unassuming deck, you have the power of aggressive decks like Mono-White Humans with the durability of a midrange deck with cards like Myth Realized. The deck never lets its foot of the gas, and it doesn’t really need to thanks to its lifegain and often superior toughness to survive combat. The deck has a pretty good method to gain life, and in the late-game and post-sideboard, the draw power in this deck can get dizzying. Without having to worry about the Human subtheme of most aggressive white decks, were allowed to play the best options for our deck without sacrificing flavor. Black and white are technical enemies, but they work great in this list. Once your Lone Rider flips, It That Rides as One will lead your army of puny mortals furiously into battle!
Two other commenters mentioned Eldritch Evolution among their favorite cards, and they’re in good company: it’s arguably the most powerful Birthing Pod effect in Standard for many years.
I loved Eldritch Evolution, and I firmly believe it’s one of the strongest cards in the set, but I’m struggling to find it a home in Standard. The most obvious choice would be a G/W Angel deck with Sylvan Advocates, Gisela, the Broken Blade, Thalia’s Lancers and a couple copies of Bruna, the Fading Light.
What do you think of this card, and will it be the namesake of its own archetype like Collected Company, or will it just be a random one or two off for value like Evolutionary Leap?
– Alejandro Pumpido
Alejandro is in good company; Eldritch Evolution is already shaping up to be one of the most powerful cards in the new set. Turning something as simple as an Elvish Visionary or a Matter Reshaper into something powerful is at the top of my list, but I’m honestly not sure where to start outside of there. Luckily, Ari Pike had his thinking cap on.
Turn four Nahiri, the Harbinger, discard Eldritch Evolution. Turn five Goblin Dark-Dwellers, sacrifice itself to the Evolution to get Emeria Shepherd? Follow it up with a Plains on turn six to get back Goblin Dark-Dwellers or something bigger discarded to Nahiri over the next two turns and replay something else?
– Ari Pike
If there’s one value sorcery in this set, it’s Eldritch Evolution. This is just one path, but I think he’s hot on the trail of a fun new archetype.
There are so many uses, both in deck creation and within the actual game, for so many cards in Eldritch Moon. By the time you read this, it’ll almost be time for the full spoiler. Will you be ready?