Khans Of Tarkir Commander Updates!

Doing a set review is only half of my process surrounding Prerelease weekend. The other half, the exciting up-to-the-elbows in cards half, is updating my
31 (or 33, depending on how you count it) decks. It’s a Tetris-puzzle exercise of finding the right spot for the right piece. Because I love variety in
decks and in play styles, I put only one copy of any particular card in a deck. It makes me think harder about how I’m going to best use the card and
prevents deck homogenization. Theme decks get theme cards. If there are no zombie cards, for example, you can’t expect Zombies of Tresserhorn to get an
update. Even if there are zombie cards, they have to be either better in some objective sense or simply more interesting. It’s also the time when I do
other updates to decks, putting in cards that I’ve wanted for a while or seeing an opportunity when a card comes out of another deck.

Selecting cards from new sets, especially one as electrifying as Khans of Tarkir, is easy. Choosing which cards to take out is painstakingly difficult. By
this time, slots are tight. There are only 60-62 slots in a deck. There are in the neighborhood of 3000 cards available to each color. You can see how the
math makes it tight. Then there’s the emotional factor. Some of these cards have created fond memories of games and people I played those games with. I
don’t want to just cast them aside.

Before we get to the deck updates, let’s talk a little about the recent updates to the Banned List. If you haven’t noticed, we dealt away with the category
“Banned as a Commander.” You can read the release note on the official forums,
but I’ll say a few things to clarify. First and foremost, I’d like for you to understand the driving motivation, to get a sense of which was cause and
which was effect. Some people think we did away with BaaC so that we could ban Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary, Erayo, Soratami Ascendant, and Braids, Cabal
Minion. It’s actually the other way around. We decided to cut loose BaaC, and in the process, those cards fell into the new banning criteria. The changes
weren’t about getting rid of cards, they were about streamlining the banned list. We didn’t feel as though having two separate lists was too difficult for
Magic players to grasp. The game is pretty complicated, and most of you don’t have any trouble with that. It wasn’t about making it easier, it was
about making it simpler. We feel like for the long-term health of the format, a tighter banned list structure makes the most sense. We understand
that some of you will disagree philosophically, and that’s fine. We also understand that some of you agree philosophically and are still sad to lose a few
cards that you like. In the end, we feel like the format is healthier without them.

After a long and fruitful discussion, we also decided to unban Metalworker. Some people have argued that it doesn’t make sense to ban Rofellos and unban
Metalworker because they do the same thing. I disagree with that assessment. Yes, they do the same thing in that they both produce mana, but that’s like
saying they’re the same as Elvish Archdruid. Leaving aside that one of legendary and one is not, the difference between the two cards is that Rofellos does
what it does a majority of the time under most circumstances. Metalworker does what it does sometimes, under a narrow set of circumstances. We felt those
circumstances were sufficiently uncommon enough that it was safe to unban Metalworker-while on occasion it might make a great deal of mana, most of the
time it doesn’t violate “too much mana too quickly.” We’re, of course, interested in watching how it plays out.

ADUN’S TOOLBOX

In:

Out:

Just like you, I enjoy drawing cards. Getting to pick from the top four and put the other two into a deck that enjoys recurring stuff from the graveyard is
all upside.

ANIMAR’S SWARM

In:

Out:

Animar likes having the morphs around to cast them for free. Animar doesn’t like that one card that stays back to block it (for some reason, it always
seems to be Acidic Slime). Jeering Instigator takes care of both of those issues. Kheru Spellsnatcher (Spelljack-er, really) is an effort to have some
board control in a deck that I suppose could also run Mystic Snake. Rattleclaw Mystic creates mana in this deck, which can only be upside. I
envision a scenario in which Animar is in play with three counters on it, I play the Mystic face down for zero, then use the mana to play Man-o-War,
Garruk’s Packleader, and Flamtongue Kavu, all while piling up counters on Animar. Of course, there’s also the more boring “play turn 2” path. Surrak
Dragonclaw gives much-needed trample to the deck; making things uncounterable is nice, and will probably keep me in a game or two that I might have
otherwise gotten blown out in. I had Temur Ascendancy in my prerelease deck, and it functioned as well as advertised.

I tried to take out cards based on the similarity of functionality with what I put in. Obviously the morphs go together. I figured that Rattleclaw Mystic
is an upgrade to Wall of Roots, decided that I didn’t want to blow out myself with by Lurking Predators into Archetype of Imagination one turn and Tornado
Elemental the next, and Garruk, Caller of Beasts, was simply always redundant by the time I could cast it.

AURELIA GOES TO WAR

No changes

EREBOS and the HALLS OF THE DEAD

No changes

GLISSA, GLISSA

In:

Out:

HELIOD, GOD OF ENCHANTMENTS

No changes. I thought about Brave the Sands, since it’s an enchantment in an enchantment deck, but its first ability is redundant with Heliod’s, and the
second not all that great. If you’re doing too much blocking, you’re losing.

DREAMING OF INTET

In:

Out:

I love Guided Passage. It was a difficult thing to remove, but it also slowed down games a great deal as someone searched my deck for the worst three cards
to give me. Master the Way is without a doubt made for this deck. Dream scenario is countering something huge with Overwhelming Intellect and one of the
draws being Master the Way. The deck also needed at least one more land. The tri-land works since I don’t have too many enters-the-battlefield tapped
lands, having recently gotten rid of the hideaways. Mana rocks don’t make much sense in green decks, so the Cluestone was an easy cut. And I finally
remembered that I’ve wanted to replace Renegade Doppelganger with Riptide Mangler since forever.

DEMONS OF KAALIA

In:

Out:

Butcher of the Horde is cheap demon that replaces the much more downside-driven Liege of the Pit. Cracking Doom is a card that demands to be played, and
this is my own deck it fits in. Maybe the addition of Death Pits of Rath? It’s worth a thought. The other changes were to fix the sometimes-wonky manabase,
adding another rock.

HALLOWEEN WITH KARADOR

In:

Out:

Putting cards into this deck was simple. Taking stuff out was heart-wrenchingly difficult. Dreadmaw is a sacrifice outlet, and longtime readers know how
much I love those. Abzan Charm simply must be played. Duneblast takes on the role of sweeper, potentially leaving me alone with something huge (and the art
is super-cool). Siege Rhino in a deck that likes to bring creatures back out of the yard was a no-brainer. I found that I could cut Elvish Visionary
because I generally draw enough cards with the deck. Seht’s Tiger comes out to put in the foil Spore Frog I finally acquired. The Tiger will find another
home eventually. Font of Fertility is going to go into a deck with Eidolon of Blossoms. Grim Return was the toughest cut because I just love what it does.
If I find myself regretting the choice, it’ll come back-but I doubt it, because it’s headed for the Kresh deck. Athreos gets cut so that I can put it into
the five-color deck (Children of a Lesser Alara) that I’ll eventually build.

KARRTHUS, WHO RAINS FIRE FROM THE SKY

In:

Out:

I’m pretty sure I’m rarely going to whiff on See the Unwritten, and probably going to have ferocious on most of the time. Dragon Throne of Tarkir because,
um, dragons and multiplying the damage of something immense. Basilisk Collar and BSZ were pretty easy cuts, since neither of them fit the theme
particularly well.

KRESH INTO THE RED ZONE

In:

Out:

Howl of the Horde might be a little narrow, but it’s going to provide an epic turn where the same Fling or Grab the Reins kills three people. Or maybe that
new Grim Return does something silly. I’ve been disappointed with Grimoire of the Dead, probably because the creatures that I might discard are so
proactive that I just want to cast them. Savage Summoning has been mostly dead every time I’ve cast it. It probably belongs in a more reactive deck-like
maybe Intet?

LAVINIA BLINKS

No changes. I thought about Wingmate Roc but eventually decided against it because the deck doesn’t quite do enough attacking to make it worth it. It seems
like there would always be something else to blink with Conjurer’s Closet.

LAZAV, SHAPESHIFTING MASTERMIND

In:

Out:

Clever Impersonator is one of the best cards in the set and goes right with the deck’s theme. Waste Not is a strong card, but it doesn’t really do that
much in this deck. I have some discard (to get more mileage out of Lazav), but for the most part, the card doesn’t do all that much in the deck. It’s a
card that’s a valuable role-player in a deck built for it. I picked up Renegade Doppelganger of the waiver wire when it got released by Intet. I have
future plans for Ninja of the Deep Hours.

ZOMBIES OF TRESSERHORN

In:

Out:

I doubt that I’ll delve too much-I’m certainly not eating zombies with it. I’ve had a love-hate with Cruel Revival since I started playing it in the
original version of this deck. It’s been thoroughly mediocre all the time.

MELEK’S MOLTEN MIND GRIND

In:

Out:

The things this deck worries about are getting killed by creatures and Eldrazi, Phyrexian Furnace taking care of the latter. Burn Away will do that better.

MERIEKE’S ESPER CONTROL

In:

Out:

Oh, Dreamstone Hedron, how you’ve disappointed me. It’s become a case of the decks that can use it have trouble getting to it, and the decks that cast it
easily don’t need it. Utter End is another “must be played card” from this set. Exile is a thing in the world of gods of Theros.

THE MILL-MEOPLASM

In:

Out:

I’m not reanimating too much stuff out of my own graveyard, but Sultai Charm and Sultai Soothsayer give me more opportunity to do it if I want. Villainous
Wealth is just going to be one of those cards that creates the memories we love in this format, and this is the only deck I can play it in. And it combos
pretty nicely with Altar of the Brood. The major cut here is Survival of the Fittest, which is going in that five-color deck.

NATH of the VALUE LEAF

In:

Out:

Nath is about inexpensive cards, both dollar-wise and mana-wise. The deck likes to move creatures in and out of the graveyard, so the card draw is
super-nice. We’ll see how Death Frenzy goes. I imagine it’s going to blow out some token decks. Glissa came out because she has her own deck now, and
Putrefy is just a one-for-one that I don’t particularly need.

NYLEA of the WOODLAND REALM

No changes.

OBZEDAT, GHOST KILLER

In:

Out:

Obzedat is wrath-happy. I’d prefer it to be on other players’ turns, but I’ll deal, especially if I can take out equipment while I’m doing it. As I was
thinking about that, Sunblast Angel popped into my head, with all the Meekstone and Kismet foolishness. I feel like this deck will make better use of Dark
Prophecy than Thraximundar does, especially since it gains life. I love Vish Kal, but the deck doesn’t make enough creatures to really make use of it as
well as I had hoped. It obviously needs to be in a deck with Mikaeus, the Unhallowed. Bottle Gnomes was a holdover from when this was more of a reanimator
deck. The deck never really made enough mana to make WSZ all that saucy.

FORGE OF PURPHOROS

No changes

PURPLE HIPPOS and MARO SORCERERS

In:

Out:

I’m almost always going to have ferocious turned on, so keeping the dangerous creatures off my back for a while with Icy Blast will give me the chance to
get through with some of my own fatties. Phyrexian Rebirth might go over into Obzedat, but we’ll chill it on the bench for now.

ZEGANA and a DICE BAG

In:

Out:

Hardened Scales is one of the crazy cards of the set, and Hooded Hydra makes loads of sense in this deck. Ordeal of Nylea isn’t as cool as I had hoped, and
Opposition is destined for different things.

RAKDOS: LIFE IS SHORT

In:

Out:

The second part of Barrage of Bolders is what I’m focused on, but the first part has me again thinking of Death Pits of Rath. I knew Chandra Nalaar was
“meh” when I put it in, so it was an easy cut.

RITH’S TOKENS

In:

Out:

Ride Down is one of the best combat tricks to come along in a while. Master of Pearls is there because I got a foil one at the PR, and getting a foil
anything at the PR is a sign that you should play it. Rith makes more mana than Ruhan, so it’s a more natural fit for Aurelia’s Fury (and with lots of
tokens and Gaea’s Cradle, potentially lethal). Cathars’ Crusade is an insanely good card-and insanely difficult to keep up with. Like Monday Night Gamer
Todd Palmer did with his Rith deck, I’m taking it out of mine because it’s too high maintenance. Verdant Force doesn’t make soldiers, and I want to begin
moving the deck back to all soldiers, all the time. Hunting Wilds was a little bit of redundant ramp; I feel like I already have enough.

YOU DID THIS TO YOURSELF

In:

Out:

Few cards say “You did this to yourself” better than Deflecting Palm. The reason it’s cheaper than Reflect Damage is that Deflecting Palm deals the damage,
not the original source. You can’t kill someone with their own commander damage with it. You can, however, put a hurting on them if they activate Heartless
Hidetsugu. The Banner is a slight upgrade to Fellwar Stone, which is another card destined for the five color deck.

RURIC THAR AND HIS BEASTLY WEREWOLF FIGHT CLUB

In:

Out:

You can’t have a fight club without some bear-punching. I’m going to eventually have to change the name of the deck because most of the werewolves have
sadly proven to be less than impressive.

THASSA, GOD OF MERFOLK

No changes

THE ALTAR of THRAXIMUNDAR

In:

Out:

Sacrifice outlets that drain people are super-tasty. Sacrificing Kokusho, the Evening Star after returning it from the graveyard with Dawn of the Dead is
even tastier.

TROSTANI and HER ANGELS

No angels, no changes.

MODULAR BLUE (Commander Changed to Sidisi, Brood Tyrant)

In:

Out:

There was a reasonably good chance that Sidisi was going to lead the Mimeoplasm deck, but then it occurred to me it’s a little more interesting here,
giving me some real cool things to work with (plus some zombies). The Abomination basically does the same.

MODULAR WHITE (Ghave, Guru of Spores)

In:

Out:

As I was working out how I was going to squeeze Abzan Ascendency and Anafenza into Karador, I realized that I have another Abzan deck. Abzan Ascendary
works because there’s constant traffic to and from the graveyard. The danger of getting Anafenza cloned was also too much for Karador. Teneb is out since
it was kind of a placeholder. Aura of Silence is a tough cut because it slows down lots of decks without completely neutering them, but there was nothing
else I was willing to cut.

MODULAR RED (Sek’Kuar, Deathkeeper)

No changes.

Unlike most other releases, Khans of Tarkir is overbalanced toward certain color combinations. While it’s awesome for those wedges, it means the
concentration of changes to existing decks is going to be limited to just them. This is hardly problematic. The cards are exciting, and I’m stoked about
getting my hands on them and playing them. I imagine you are too.

This week’s Deck Without Comment is You Did This to Yourself, complete with Khans of Tarkir updates.

If you’d like to follow the adventures of my Monday Night RPG group (in a campaign that’s been alive since 1987), ask for an invitation to the Facebook
group “Sheldon Menery’s Monday Night Gamers.”

Here is the latest database version of all my decks:

ADUN’S TOOLBOX
; ANIMAR’S SWARM;AURELIA GOES TO WAR;DEMONS OF KAALIA;EREBOS and the HALLS OF THE DEAD;GLISSA, GLISSA;HELIOD, GOD OF ENCHANTMENTS;DREAMING OF INTET;FORGE OF PURPHOROS;HALLOWEEN WITH KARADOR;KARRTHUS, WHO RAINS FIRE FROM THE SKY;KRESH INTO THE RED ZONE;LAVINIA BLINKS;LAZAV, SHAPESHIFTING MASTERMIND;ZOMBIES OF TRESSERHORN;MELEK’S MOLTEN MIND GRIND;MERIEKE’S ESPER CONTROL;THE MILL-MEOPLASM;NATH of the VALUE LEAF;OBZEDAT, GHOST KILLER;PURPLE HIPPOS and MARO SORCERERS;ZEGANA and a DICE BAG;RAKDOS: LIFE IS SHORT;RITH’S TOKENS;YOU DID THIS TO YOURSELF;RURIC THAR AND HIS BEASTLY WEREWOLF FIGHT CLUB;THASSA, GOD OF MERFOLK;THE ALTAR of THRAXIMUNDAR; TROSTANI and HER ANGELS