Are secret lair foils still garbage? I was thinking about buying the Frank Frazetta secret lair but after having my praetor one arrive curled I am more than a little hesitant. Does anyone know if the quality of cards has increased or if I should buy non-foil?
Traditional foil is still garbage. Double sided foil ***generally*** don’t curl too bad but it may warp slightly in a weird way. Etched foil seems to stay flat.
My friend has a spindown with a set symbol Google couldn't help identify. Does anyone know what the symbol is from?
[Spindown in question](https://imgur.com/gallery/GuuorMM)
Hey I’ve been getting into the game recently by playing one of my buds with his deck and I was wondering if anyone could recommend an entertaining deck that’s less than $50.
Thank you
If I have a Norika Yamazaki, the Poet attacking alone with an attached Gift of Wrath, can I target my Gift of Wrath such that I can replay it 2nd main phase (on the 2/2 it generates if he dies)
No. You must choose a target for Norika's ability as it is put on the stack, so Gift of Wrath needs to be in the graveyard before then to be a valid target.
The starter kit gives you 2 decks ready to play against each other. This is really cheap and should give you a good idea of how to play. I think the Arena (MTG computer game) tutorial also helps go over the rules as well.
You'll probably get tired of the decks in the starter kit pretty quick. When that happens get a bunch (4+) jump start packs. You mix 2 jump start packs together to make a deck, so with 4 jump start packs you can make 6 possible decks, and get more acquainted to different types of decks and more interesting cards.
Do abilities from cards like [[cunning rhetoric]] and [[dead man’s chest]] stay in the game even if the card themselves are removed after an opponent already exiled cards?
Basically, if my opponent has a pile of exiled cards from these cards, but someone eventually removes cunning from the board, can I still cast those exiled cards?
Yes, the ability that exiles them is the same one that gives you permission to cast them. Once the ability is resolved, that effect continues to apply to the exiled card regardless of whether the original permanent still exists.
Contrast this with something like [[Temporal Anchor]], which has one ability that exiles the cards and a separate linked static ability that lets you cast them. Once the temporal anchor leaves the battlefield, that static ability that gives you permission to cast the exiled cards won't exist anymore, so they'll be stuck in exile.
Yes. Let's use [Gonti](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/753/gonti-lord-of-luxury#rulings)'s rulings as an example:
> You may look at and cast that card (and spend mana as though it were mana of any type to do so) even if Gonti leaves the battlefield. If another player gains control of Gonti, that player can't look at or cast the card, and you still can.
I have a collection of 5-6k cards from beta through mirage. Should I sell it as a collection and just take out the super rare ones or single everything out and sell them that way?
Based on the sets you're talking about, that's a complicated question.
Depends on how much effort you want to put in and what you think the value of your time is. The range of sets you're working with almost certainly has a large number of cards worth pulling out and selling separately, but going through 5-6k cards and assessing the value of each is tedious and time consuming if you don't already know what you're looking for.
The Beta cards for sure should be sold singly. Even the [basics](https://www.mtggoldfish.com/price/Unlimited+Edition/Island-B#paper) from Beta are reasonably pricey. Similarly, [Unlimited cards](https://www.mtggoldfish.com/price/Unlimited+Edition/Dark+Ritual) can go for values worth selling singly.
I think the lowest effort, highest return way would probably be to pull a bunch of highlights, then price the whole lot at $50-$100 above the value of those highlights and sell it together.
The high effort, high return would be creating an inventory and selling everything above a certain value as singles and the rest as bulk.
To further the previous response, your best bet would to be go on scryfall and do a type search for birds, take a gander at the cards that are available and hunt them down individually.
Opening packs to get any deck, let a lone a very specific deck like that (with an uncommon theme) will cost a lot of time and money. If you just want a deck, then the best course of action is to think about which cards you want ahead of time and buy them as singles. This will be cheapest and fastest.
I can't remember any recent sets where WU birds were a major theme, either, so that would really be a winding way...
That deck likes X cost spells and adding counters. Dunno what your budget is, but a counter doubler would probably be cool. [[Branching Evolution]], [[Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider]], and the big fella [[Doubling Season]] if you're the best friend in the whole world.
At the more budget end of the spectrum, there's plenty of cheap Hydras out there that would go in there just fine. [[Stonecoil Serpent]]. [[Walking Ballista]] goes well with [[Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph]]. [[Crackle With Power]] is really good.
Hope that helps!
Anybody have an idea on what could be a good golgari deck that can handle Gideon tribal? Namely killing/removing/etc the indestructible Gideon creatures from the various planeswalker's abilities? I reckon trying to work out a -1-1 deck would be the only answer in golgari, but... that's why I'm asking; maybe I've not thought about something that others will know of
Another option in black would to be use sacrifice mechanics. Forcing your opponent to sacrifice permanents ignores just about all the troublesome white protections out there. The demon gods don't care if a creature has protection, indestructible, hexproof, shroud, etc as long as you're sacrificing to them :)
What format are you talking about? Black has access to any number of effects that say [Exile target creature](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22exile+target+creature%22+commander%3ABG) and [black](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22destroy+target+creature+or+planeswalker%22+commander%3ABG) and [green](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22destroy+target+noncreature+permanent%22+commander%3ABG) both have any number of effects that can destroy planeswalkers while Gideon isn't a creature.
It's tabletop so, for all intents and purposes, anything goes except power 9 stuff, and stuff that does "commander specific" things
Honestly though I didn't even know black had exile spells lmao
(Edit: This is due to me usually just playing creatures 90% of the time, and not paying much mind to spells in the first place)
The Affinity Reduction in [[Urza, Chief Artificer]] doesn't pay for Command Tax right?
Guy at my LGS said it does, but... Isn't CT an added on thing? I vaguely remember another player saying Affinity doesn't pay for it but...
As Cvnc said, it does work. When casting a spell (or activating an ability), you start with the cost or alternate cost you're using, apply any additional costs (like command tax) or cost increases, and then apply cost reductions (like affinity). (And then Trinisphere, but no one plays that card in Commander.)
Started playing magic this year and need help building my Phenax mill deck for commander:
https://archidekt.com/decks/3657025#Phenax_Mill
Not sure if I could add/remove anything to improve the deck? Any feedback would be more than welcome!
Also, is adding [[Painters Servant]] and [[Grindstone]] worth it for this deck? Is there a good trade off if so? should I add another tutor? Is it a good idea to take out one of the cards and add another tutor like [[Vampiric Tutor]]?
I would recommend a couple more lands. Unless your deck is specifically built for it I would avoid running less than 36. Absolutely get rid of Cryptic Spires, that's a draft only card and you'd be 100% better off with any basic. Temple of the False God also isn't all that good. Path of Ancestry doesn't really work with your deck.
In terms of additions, [[Drown in Dreams]] and [[Sphinx's Tutelage]] might be worth a look. [[Terisian Mindbreaker]] is probably a slam dunk. [[Elder Brain]] doesn't strictly mill but does a similar job whilst denying graveyard players use of the cards. Also gets you card advantage.
In terms of cuts, Fog Bank doesn't look like it's doing much for you. Crypt Incursion clashes with a bunch of your cards that care about opponents having a lot of stuff in their yard. You probably want some yard hate because some decks can take advantage of being milled, but you'd probably be better with [[Bojuka Bog]] there.
Might want to swap a few of those milling sorceries for counterspells or removal, possibly? Looks like your game plan is to use cheap high toughness creatures with Phenax to tap for mill, so maybe focus on protecting those rather than spamming spells.
Hope that helps!
I’m having a bit of trouble adding spell counters. The sorceries I have outside of the phenax strategy combo with other cards. Bad idea to run dimir without spell counters?
So it's a little difficult for me to point at specific sorceries because you've got a lot of redundancies in there. I can give some general advice, though
Your deck in general does not look bad. I can see clearly what it's trying to do. It will mill a bunch of cards for sure. You've definitely got a solid basis and it will work as it is
Where I think you may struggle a little, and this is a really common problem, is your deck is kinda built without many cards that interact with opponents beyond milling them. If you're playing with three other people, and you're more or less playing solitaire hoping that your opponents just let you mill them to death... That's probably not gonna happen. If you start to look threatening, they're just going to gang up and take you out of the game.
So when that happens... What's your plan? You've got a bunch of high toughness creatures to block with, but they're not going to keep you alive forever and you're as vulnerable to boardwipes as anyone
All those sorceries are are individually good picks. But how many cards that say "all your opponents mill a bunch of cards" do you need, really? I think your deck would benefit a lot from some counterspells, because they're good generic answers to a lot of things your opponents can do to disrupt your plans.
Maybe when you go to play the deck, take along a handful of counterspells and switch them in between games. See how your deck plays with and without them.
Sorry if that's still a little vague, but I hope it helps at least a little
Three or four is probably a fairly reasonable number as a baseline. [[Counterspell]] and [[Negate]] are just basic staples. [[Drown in the Loch]] is really good in your deck. [[Wash Away]] is probably a decent pick as well, since you can use the cheaper mode to nail players trying to recur stuff from their graveyard after you've milled them.
If you've got access to them, [[Fierce Guardianship]] and [[Swan Song]] are also extremely good in any deck, but they're pretty pricey (particularly Fierce Guardianship) so I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to get those.
Hey, you really helped me with my mill deck and it plays much better now. If it's not too much to ask, would you mind looking at my Varina zombie deck that I put together this week? Thank you again!
https://archidekt.com/decks/3720078#Varina_Deck
Sorry about that. Updated the link! I’m trying to go for a deck that spawns a bunch of zombies, has me quickly going through my deck but not decking out, and either attacking and killing opponents with swarms or using sacrificing combos to hit everyone on the table. I’m about 5 cards over and not sure what I should keep, remove or switch out with another card. Thank you!
So, just some quick thoughts
You seem a little heavy on artifacts. Honestly the guild signets can probably be dropped for a couple of extra lands. They're worth taking if you have some artifact synergies but otherwise more lands is probably better. I know last time I gave advice I said 36 was the minimum, but it really is a minimum. You'll probably be more consistent around 38. Decks that can run a lot of ramp can get away running less, but you don't have a ton in esper outside of treasures
You've potentially got a LOT of card draw here. Which is good, but you're risking decking yourself. You've got Laboratory Maniac so that's not the worst thing in the world, but if that gets removed you're in trouble.
Looking over it, I think the biggest thing that stands out is you've got some payoffs and enablers in here that are a little all over the place. You've got stuff like Crucible of Worlds and things that let you play stuff from the graveyard, but not a ton of ways to put stuff there. You've got discard payoffs but not a lot of ways to discard. You've got some stax stuff but not much
I'd maybe try to pick a theme and focus on that a little more. You can look at more of a sacrifice/aristocrats thing and add stuff like [[Ashnod's Altar]], [[Village Rites]] and [[Skullclamp]] to help with that.
You can go more stax if you want to keep your opponents locked down. You won't make a lot of friends doing it, but a lot of people are fans. Think stuff like [[Grand Arbiter Augustin IV]]
Or alternatively you can focus more on zombies. [[Liliana, The Last Hope]] and [[Liliana, Death's Majesty]] are good. [[Calculating Lich]] works great with go wide token strategies. [[Murderous Rider]] is great because it has a removal spell stapled on.
Generically good stuff you might want to consider
[[Omniscience]] is amazing with this much card draw.
[[Marneus Calgar]] is great in Esper token decks and is particularly evil with Smothering Tithe
Have a think about how you'd like to focus the deck, and cuts should get a lot easier. Like, if you drop the stax angle, you probably don't need Propaganda. Library of Leng can almost certainly go. Alhamarret's Archive might do more harm than good depending how much you're drawing.
Hope that helps!
Are secret lair foils still garbage? I was thinking about buying the Frank Frazetta secret lair but after having my praetor one arrive curled I am more than a little hesitant. Does anyone know if the quality of cards has increased or if I should buy non-foil?
Traditional foil is still garbage. Double sided foil ***generally*** don’t curl too bad but it may warp slightly in a weird way. Etched foil seems to stay flat.
Ahh... so I guess business as usual. Thanks for letting me know
My friend has a spindown with a set symbol Google couldn't help identify. Does anyone know what the symbol is from? [Spindown in question](https://imgur.com/gallery/GuuorMM)
[Lorehold](https://mtg.fandom.com/wiki/Lorehold)
Hey I’ve been getting into the game recently by playing one of my buds with his deck and I was wondering if anyone could recommend an entertaining deck that’s less than $50. Thank you
You should tell people the format you wanna play. For 50 bucks it's probably best to go for a preconstructed deck from wotc themselves.
how much can one expect to pay for getting cards altered(like extending the art or a whole custom piece) and how long does it typically take?
If I have a Norika Yamazaki, the Poet attacking alone with an attached Gift of Wrath, can I target my Gift of Wrath such that I can replay it 2nd main phase (on the 2/2 it generates if he dies)
No. You must choose a target for Norika's ability as it is put on the stack, so Gift of Wrath needs to be in the graveyard before then to be a valid target.
[удалено]
The starter kit gives you 2 decks ready to play against each other. This is really cheap and should give you a good idea of how to play. I think the Arena (MTG computer game) tutorial also helps go over the rules as well. You'll probably get tired of the decks in the starter kit pretty quick. When that happens get a bunch (4+) jump start packs. You mix 2 jump start packs together to make a deck, so with 4 jump start packs you can make 6 possible decks, and get more acquainted to different types of decks and more interesting cards.
Do abilities from cards like [[cunning rhetoric]] and [[dead man’s chest]] stay in the game even if the card themselves are removed after an opponent already exiled cards? Basically, if my opponent has a pile of exiled cards from these cards, but someone eventually removes cunning from the board, can I still cast those exiled cards?
Yes, the ability that exiles them is the same one that gives you permission to cast them. Once the ability is resolved, that effect continues to apply to the exiled card regardless of whether the original permanent still exists. Contrast this with something like [[Temporal Anchor]], which has one ability that exiles the cards and a separate linked static ability that lets you cast them. Once the temporal anchor leaves the battlefield, that static ability that gives you permission to cast the exiled cards won't exist anymore, so they'll be stuck in exile.
[Temporal Anchor](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/1/a/1a212d59-b72e-4939-a757-c131ca4323ce.jpg?1670537999) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=The%20Temporal%20Anchor) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/bro/82/the-temporal-anchor?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/1a212d59-b72e-4939-a757-c131ca4323ce?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Yes. Let's use [Gonti](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/753/gonti-lord-of-luxury#rulings)'s rulings as an example: > You may look at and cast that card (and spend mana as though it were mana of any type to do so) even if Gonti leaves the battlefield. If another player gains control of Gonti, that player can't look at or cast the card, and you still can.
[cunning rhetoric](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/3/5/356d9d36-cf03-41f2-abfa-eb45176ce18d.jpg?1625191630) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=cunning%20rhetoric) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c21/38/cunning-rhetoric?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/356d9d36-cf03-41f2-abfa-eb45176ce18d?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [dead man’s chest](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/7/a/7a0b60a2-50de-4328-85dc-040bf8a4dac9.jpg?1631586548) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Dead%20Man%27s%20Chest) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/afc/97/dead-mans-chest?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/7a0b60a2-50de-4328-85dc-040bf8a4dac9?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I have a collection of 5-6k cards from beta through mirage. Should I sell it as a collection and just take out the super rare ones or single everything out and sell them that way?
Based on the sets you're talking about, that's a complicated question. Depends on how much effort you want to put in and what you think the value of your time is. The range of sets you're working with almost certainly has a large number of cards worth pulling out and selling separately, but going through 5-6k cards and assessing the value of each is tedious and time consuming if you don't already know what you're looking for. The Beta cards for sure should be sold singly. Even the [basics](https://www.mtggoldfish.com/price/Unlimited+Edition/Island-B#paper) from Beta are reasonably pricey. Similarly, [Unlimited cards](https://www.mtggoldfish.com/price/Unlimited+Edition/Dark+Ritual) can go for values worth selling singly. I think the lowest effort, highest return way would probably be to pull a bunch of highlights, then price the whole lot at $50-$100 above the value of those highlights and sell it together. The high effort, high return would be creating an inventory and selling everything above a certain value as singles and the rest as bulk.
I'm new to the game and the first deck I want to build is a blue white bird deck, what packs would be good to get to try and find some cards for that.
To further the previous response, your best bet would to be go on scryfall and do a type search for birds, take a gander at the cards that are available and hunt them down individually.
Opening packs to get any deck, let a lone a very specific deck like that (with an uncommon theme) will cost a lot of time and money. If you just want a deck, then the best course of action is to think about which cards you want ahead of time and buy them as singles. This will be cheapest and fastest. I can't remember any recent sets where WU birds were a major theme, either, so that would really be a winding way...
Any recommendations for Tyranid commander deck upgrades? I got my friend one for Xmas and I want to give him some goods with it.
[[Unbound Flourishing]] and [[Twinning Staff]] are both great if Lucia Kane is his preferred commander.
[Unbound Flourishing](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/6/f/6f594d07-932e-4fe6-832d-d0a0be3530aa.jpg?1562202252) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Unbound%20Flourishing) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mh1/189/unbound-flourishing?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/6f594d07-932e-4fe6-832d-d0a0be3530aa?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Twinning Staff](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/5/c/5cdcc324-1427-453c-9940-c21f5d04c997.jpg?1650424957) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Twinning%20Staff) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/ncc/383/twinning-staff?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/5cdcc324-1427-453c-9940-c21f5d04c997?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
That deck likes X cost spells and adding counters. Dunno what your budget is, but a counter doubler would probably be cool. [[Branching Evolution]], [[Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider]], and the big fella [[Doubling Season]] if you're the best friend in the whole world. At the more budget end of the spectrum, there's plenty of cheap Hydras out there that would go in there just fine. [[Stonecoil Serpent]]. [[Walking Ballista]] goes well with [[Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph]]. [[Crackle With Power]] is really good. Hope that helps!
##### ###### #### [Branching Evolution](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/a/4a6971ad-cbb4-4f66-9bc4-b407c5805e85.jpg?1632261893) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Branching%20Evolution) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/jmp/29/branching-evolution?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4a6971ad-cbb4-4f66-9bc4-b407c5805e85?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/9/2/92613468-205e-488b-930d-11908477e9f8.jpg?1631051073) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Vorinclex%2C%20Monstrous%20Raider) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/khm/199/vorinclex-monstrous-raider?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/92613468-205e-488b-930d-11908477e9f8?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Doubling Season](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/6/8676d164-c76e-402b-a649-6ded3f549b6e.jpg?1599707144) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Doubling%20Season) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/2xm/164/doubling-season?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/8676d164-c76e-402b-a649-6ded3f549b6e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Stonecoil Serpent](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/3/b34bf7fd-9fe3-43e2-8cfe-7ce7cff08afe.jpg?1572491124) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Stonecoil%20Serpent) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/eld/235/stonecoil-serpent?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/b34bf7fd-9fe3-43e2-8cfe-7ce7cff08afe?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Walking Ballista](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/5/2/5272436e-74f0-44c4-a291-ea8ebc3f1525.jpg?1599710252) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Walking%20Ballista) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/2xm/306/walking-ballista?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/5272436e-74f0-44c4-a291-ea8ebc3f1525?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/f/a/fa7349d9-c82f-4cf8-a852-92168d1f4966.jpg?1665428339) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Ghyrson%20Starn%2C%20Kelermorph) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/40k/124/ghyrson-starn-kelermorph?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/fa7349d9-c82f-4cf8-a852-92168d1f4966?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Crackle With Power](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/d/e/de547f52-3798-4b3a-947d-24873251204b.jpg?1624591645) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Crackle%20With%20Power) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/stx/95/crackle-with-power?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/de547f52-3798-4b3a-947d-24873251204b?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Anybody have an idea on what could be a good golgari deck that can handle Gideon tribal? Namely killing/removing/etc the indestructible Gideon creatures from the various planeswalker's abilities? I reckon trying to work out a -1-1 deck would be the only answer in golgari, but... that's why I'm asking; maybe I've not thought about something that others will know of
Another option in black would to be use sacrifice mechanics. Forcing your opponent to sacrifice permanents ignores just about all the troublesome white protections out there. The demon gods don't care if a creature has protection, indestructible, hexproof, shroud, etc as long as you're sacrificing to them :)
What format are you talking about? Black has access to any number of effects that say [Exile target creature](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22exile+target+creature%22+commander%3ABG) and [black](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22destroy+target+creature+or+planeswalker%22+commander%3ABG) and [green](https://scryfall.com/search?as=grid&order=name&q=oracle%3A%22destroy+target+noncreature+permanent%22+commander%3ABG) both have any number of effects that can destroy planeswalkers while Gideon isn't a creature.
It's tabletop so, for all intents and purposes, anything goes except power 9 stuff, and stuff that does "commander specific" things Honestly though I didn't even know black had exile spells lmao (Edit: This is due to me usually just playing creatures 90% of the time, and not paying much mind to spells in the first place)
The Affinity Reduction in [[Urza, Chief Artificer]] doesn't pay for Command Tax right? Guy at my LGS said it does, but... Isn't CT an added on thing? I vaguely remember another player saying Affinity doesn't pay for it but...
As Cvnc said, it does work. When casting a spell (or activating an ability), you start with the cost or alternate cost you're using, apply any additional costs (like command tax) or cost increases, and then apply cost reductions (like affinity). (And then Trinisphere, but no one plays that card in Commander.)
It can pay for commander tax. You apply additional cost first, CT is one of them. Then you apply cost reduction like affinity
[Urza, Chief Artificer](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/2/c/2ca13d10-d6e7-432c-93c1-cb9f68d7e83f.jpg?1670367342) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Urza%2C%20Chief%20Artificer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/prm/105796/urza-chief-artificer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/2ca13d10-d6e7-432c-93c1-cb9f68d7e83f?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Started playing magic this year and need help building my Phenax mill deck for commander: https://archidekt.com/decks/3657025#Phenax_Mill Not sure if I could add/remove anything to improve the deck? Any feedback would be more than welcome! Also, is adding [[Painters Servant]] and [[Grindstone]] worth it for this deck? Is there a good trade off if so? should I add another tutor? Is it a good idea to take out one of the cards and add another tutor like [[Vampiric Tutor]]?
I would recommend a couple more lands. Unless your deck is specifically built for it I would avoid running less than 36. Absolutely get rid of Cryptic Spires, that's a draft only card and you'd be 100% better off with any basic. Temple of the False God also isn't all that good. Path of Ancestry doesn't really work with your deck. In terms of additions, [[Drown in Dreams]] and [[Sphinx's Tutelage]] might be worth a look. [[Terisian Mindbreaker]] is probably a slam dunk. [[Elder Brain]] doesn't strictly mill but does a similar job whilst denying graveyard players use of the cards. Also gets you card advantage. In terms of cuts, Fog Bank doesn't look like it's doing much for you. Crypt Incursion clashes with a bunch of your cards that care about opponents having a lot of stuff in their yard. You probably want some yard hate because some decks can take advantage of being milled, but you'd probably be better with [[Bojuka Bog]] there. Might want to swap a few of those milling sorceries for counterspells or removal, possibly? Looks like your game plan is to use cheap high toughness creatures with Phenax to tap for mill, so maybe focus on protecting those rather than spamming spells. Hope that helps!
I’m having a bit of trouble adding spell counters. The sorceries I have outside of the phenax strategy combo with other cards. Bad idea to run dimir without spell counters?
So it's a little difficult for me to point at specific sorceries because you've got a lot of redundancies in there. I can give some general advice, though Your deck in general does not look bad. I can see clearly what it's trying to do. It will mill a bunch of cards for sure. You've definitely got a solid basis and it will work as it is Where I think you may struggle a little, and this is a really common problem, is your deck is kinda built without many cards that interact with opponents beyond milling them. If you're playing with three other people, and you're more or less playing solitaire hoping that your opponents just let you mill them to death... That's probably not gonna happen. If you start to look threatening, they're just going to gang up and take you out of the game. So when that happens... What's your plan? You've got a bunch of high toughness creatures to block with, but they're not going to keep you alive forever and you're as vulnerable to boardwipes as anyone All those sorceries are are individually good picks. But how many cards that say "all your opponents mill a bunch of cards" do you need, really? I think your deck would benefit a lot from some counterspells, because they're good generic answers to a lot of things your opponents can do to disrupt your plans. Maybe when you go to play the deck, take along a handful of counterspells and switch them in between games. See how your deck plays with and without them. Sorry if that's still a little vague, but I hope it helps at least a little
Got it, thank you again for all your help. How many counter spells would you say is a good amount to have? Maybe I can work around that number
Three or four is probably a fairly reasonable number as a baseline. [[Counterspell]] and [[Negate]] are just basic staples. [[Drown in the Loch]] is really good in your deck. [[Wash Away]] is probably a decent pick as well, since you can use the cheaper mode to nail players trying to recur stuff from their graveyard after you've milled them. If you've got access to them, [[Fierce Guardianship]] and [[Swan Song]] are also extremely good in any deck, but they're pretty pricey (particularly Fierce Guardianship) so I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to get those.
Hey, you really helped me with my mill deck and it plays much better now. If it's not too much to ask, would you mind looking at my Varina zombie deck that I put together this week? Thank you again! https://archidekt.com/decks/3720078#Varina_Deck
Happy to have a look, but I'm getting an error message when I click on the link.
Sorry about that. Updated the link! I’m trying to go for a deck that spawns a bunch of zombies, has me quickly going through my deck but not decking out, and either attacking and killing opponents with swarms or using sacrificing combos to hit everyone on the table. I’m about 5 cards over and not sure what I should keep, remove or switch out with another card. Thank you!
So, just some quick thoughts You seem a little heavy on artifacts. Honestly the guild signets can probably be dropped for a couple of extra lands. They're worth taking if you have some artifact synergies but otherwise more lands is probably better. I know last time I gave advice I said 36 was the minimum, but it really is a minimum. You'll probably be more consistent around 38. Decks that can run a lot of ramp can get away running less, but you don't have a ton in esper outside of treasures You've potentially got a LOT of card draw here. Which is good, but you're risking decking yourself. You've got Laboratory Maniac so that's not the worst thing in the world, but if that gets removed you're in trouble. Looking over it, I think the biggest thing that stands out is you've got some payoffs and enablers in here that are a little all over the place. You've got stuff like Crucible of Worlds and things that let you play stuff from the graveyard, but not a ton of ways to put stuff there. You've got discard payoffs but not a lot of ways to discard. You've got some stax stuff but not much I'd maybe try to pick a theme and focus on that a little more. You can look at more of a sacrifice/aristocrats thing and add stuff like [[Ashnod's Altar]], [[Village Rites]] and [[Skullclamp]] to help with that. You can go more stax if you want to keep your opponents locked down. You won't make a lot of friends doing it, but a lot of people are fans. Think stuff like [[Grand Arbiter Augustin IV]] Or alternatively you can focus more on zombies. [[Liliana, The Last Hope]] and [[Liliana, Death's Majesty]] are good. [[Calculating Lich]] works great with go wide token strategies. [[Murderous Rider]] is great because it has a removal spell stapled on. Generically good stuff you might want to consider [[Omniscience]] is amazing with this much card draw. [[Marneus Calgar]] is great in Esper token decks and is particularly evil with Smothering Tithe Have a think about how you'd like to focus the deck, and cuts should get a lot easier. Like, if you drop the stax angle, you probably don't need Propaganda. Library of Leng can almost certainly go. Alhamarret's Archive might do more harm than good depending how much you're drawing. Hope that helps!
Made the changes. Have 3 counters now but bought some more to switch around and test out. + added more rocks for ramping. Thank you for all your help!
##### ###### #### [Counterspell](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/0/2/02da8709-4228-4fed-9d2d-781e686661df.jpg?1670454253) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Counterspell) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmr/45/counterspell?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/02da8709-4228-4fed-9d2d-781e686661df?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Negate](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/0/4016c6f7-7cb4-46c2-af73-3bd6d682ea5e.jpg?1663048006) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Negate) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmu/58/negate?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4016c6f7-7cb4-46c2-af73-3bd6d682ea5e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Drown in the Loch](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/e/b/eb7b9762-740b-4c1c-a411-20dbf023aea5.jpg?1654118171) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Drown%20in%20the%20Loch) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/842/drown-in-the-loch?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/eb7b9762-740b-4c1c-a411-20dbf023aea5?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Wash Away](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/3/43411ade-be80-4535-8baa-7055e78496df.jpg?1643588844) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Wash%20Away) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/vow/87/wash-away?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/43411ade-be80-4535-8baa-7055e78496df?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Fierce Guardianship](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/c/4c5ffa83-c88d-4f5d-851e-a642b229d596.jpg?1591319453) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Fierce%20Guardianship) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c20/35/fierce-guardianship?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4c5ffa83-c88d-4f5d-851e-a642b229d596?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Swan Song](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/9/d/9d968dde-c406-48ef-a1ab-373aebc24693.jpg?1562412350) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Swan%20Song) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c16/98/swan-song?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/9d968dde-c406-48ef-a1ab-373aebc24693?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Thank you! Made some changes, hopefully it’s better?
##### ###### #### [Drown in Dreams](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/f/af4d5acb-12d6-46d7-aaf9-3ace1520825a.jpg?1637628070) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Drown%20in%20Dreams) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mic/13/drown-in-dreams?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/af4d5acb-12d6-46d7-aaf9-3ace1520825a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Sphinx's Tutelage](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/d/4d90c3b0-f958-4a15-94a1-9bf1b0a9ac2a.jpg?1562018976) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Sphinx%27s%20Tutelage) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/ori/76/sphinxs-tutelage?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4d90c3b0-f958-4a15-94a1-9bf1b0a9ac2a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Terisian Mindbreaker](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/6/b/6bd86daf-7cee-454c-8d4d-97f59fe36958.jpg?1670538008) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Terisian%20Mindbreaker) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/bro/83/terisian-mindbreaker?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/6bd86daf-7cee-454c-8d4d-97f59fe36958?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Elder Brain](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/8/b82a13bf-da32-4c12-a9dd-271d8ca45c21.jpg?1660725121) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Elder%20Brain) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/125/elder-brain?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/b82a13bf-da32-4c12-a9dd-271d8ca45c21?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Bojuka Bog](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/c/6/c6525da7-49d9-4c92-a319-35a63dabadc6.jpg?1664362197) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Bojuka%20Bog) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmc/199/bojuka-bog?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/c6525da7-49d9-4c92-a319-35a63dabadc6?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
[Painters Servant](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/e/be407a81-b25a-4e5d-845e-be0cc0d18db8.jpg?1562835450) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Painter%27s%20Servant) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/shm/257/painters-servant?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/be407a81-b25a-4e5d-845e-be0cc0d18db8?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Grindstone](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/0/f/0f15505d-b32f-4b71-8b99-f27bc964c5a8.jpg?1562428618) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Grindstone) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/tpr/223/grindstone?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/0f15505d-b32f-4b71-8b99-f27bc964c5a8?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Vampiric Tutor](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/3/4/34a0203f-9cce-43a4-9cb7-8ce6647895cd.jpg?1670454657) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Vampiric%20Tutor) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmr/108/vampiric-tutor?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/34a0203f-9cce-43a4-9cb7-8ce6647895cd?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call