Hello and welcome everyone to one of the most active Sharuum primers on MTGSalvation (which has yet to receive primer status)! This primer is a collaborative effort, and we’re constantly seeking new advice and tech for the deck. Feel free to join us in discussing everyone’s favorite pretty kitty!
So Why Should You Play Sharuum?
1. Politics-A major misconception is Sharuum’s political offensiveness. Like any top tier general, She draws her share of groans from less experienced pilots and veterans. Playing carefully (and fairly), the Sharuum player can use this to their advantage. A proper build should be able to tutor for reusable enchantment/artifact/creature removal and repeatable wrath effects, making the Sharuum player a valuable ally to keep alive-and a horrid enemy to enrage.
2. Pacing-With fast mana and readily available solutions, Sharuum pilots can easily maintain or destroy a board state. Efficiently controlling the pace and tone of a game give you an edge over the rest of the table, matched only by other toolbox centric decks like Captain Sisay.
3. Metagame Ignorance-Yet another popular misconception is that having a Kataki, Shatter storm or Creeping Corrosion resolve kills the Sharuum player. This isn’t true. Sharuum is in the perfect colors for recovery, and loves to send artifacts to the graveyard!
4. Life total is irrelevant: You're a combo deck. Your life total is only going to matter if you are going to loose at an improper moment, or are getting ganged up on. This leads to hilarious non-interaction with the combat step, which invalidates many strategies in Commander. Couple this with cards such as The Tabernacle at Pender Vale, Ensnaring Bridge and Meek stone, and you’ll never have to worry about your healthy while grabbing combo pieces.
5. Time is on your side: On a long enough time line in any game, the combo deck is going to win. It doesn’t matter how much you punish them, or how much disruption you use-the combo deck will always prevail in a game of CMDR if not dealt with first. Playing a very political game, keep a great poker face and a cool head, and people will soon forget you’re ramping to beat them as they settle their own petty squabbles.
Why SHOULDN'T I play Sharuum?
1. Your playgroup already hates you. You shmuck.
2. Your playgroup runs Fracturing Gust, Shatterstorm, Creeping Corrosion, and 12 other mass-artifact hate cards. In every deck.
3. You're allergic to cats.
4. You prefer a simpler game of CMDR.
5. You're bad at multiplayer politics.
Sounds Cool, But Where’s the Decklist?
Why, right here of course!
Sharuum was the first Commander list I ever piloted. It began as an esper control list with a combo finisher. As my collection expanded, it grew more monsterous and abusive. I've gone through MANY interations of the list in the past 5 years, and have tested possibly every combo or "good" card with the deck.
Through that testing, I came to the realization that there are three primary archetypes with dozens of derivatives therein. The most familiar to Commander players (and basis for this primer) is the combo-style, which tends to center around Sculpting Steel, Bitter Ordeal/Disciple of the Vault/Glassdust Hulk and Sharuum to win. These styles of list tend to focus on quick mana and powerful cards to win. The best versions of these lists also run 1-5 other synergistic combos as back up. Combo lists tend to be the best in multiplayer settings, since any given infinite combo will be the most elegant way to destroy an entire table.
Secondly is the Control-centric lists. These tend to be slower, with more top-heavy (but versatile) spells such as Austere Command. They tend to feature few (if any) combos, and instead rely on creatures to win like Inkwell Leviathan, Sphinx of the Steel Wind, and Blightsteel Collossus. These lists tend to pack denser spells, but have a significantly higher curve and moderately increased interaction with the table.
Third is the Artifact-goodstuff lists. These are the most casual focused of the three, and tend to center around a non-competitive theme (Sphinx tribal, for example). While the effectiveness of these lists varies, they have the least amount of political offense, and have the potential to be the most fun.
I recommend trying out every style, and finding what fits you best. I came to settling for Combo centric out of my love for efficiency and card availability. However, if your playgroup features slower lists or is casually based, the other two archetypes can be just as interesting.
As the list stands today (11/27/12), it is a mix of combo and answers, attempting to tackle the most problematic threats at the table while racing to an early victory. It has a diverse recovery/tutor/pitch/answer suite, and prays on durdles and veterans as well.
Card Explanations-How to play, When to Play
Creatures:
Phyrexian Metamorph: This thing is amazing! It’s a combo piece, general killer, and fantastic way to accelerate yourself by copying mana rocks, Primeval Titan and more. Being the most versatile card in the deck, it is also the most valuable outside of Sharuum herself.
Kuldotha Forgemaster: A tricky card. Forgemaster will traditionally sacrifice itself and two other disposable targets to grab Sphinx of The Steel Wind, the last piece of a combo (or put one in the grave), or Magister Sphinx. Choosing when and how to properly activate the ability takes experience. Traditionally, it’s okay to waste Artifact lands, Spellbomb, Capsules or other small 1 CMC targets, as these are the easiest to recover. Larger targets are advised AGAINST (Save for Sculpting Steel/Phyrexian Metamorph) due to their difficulty of recovering. Mana Rocks should rarely be sacrificed as they are your primary accelerates. Practice with this card many times before using in a competitive setting.
[CARD] Thopter Assembly[/CARD]: Included to feed Kuldotha Forgemaster and combo with Time Sieve. Otherwise a boring, pointless card.
Duplicant: Reusable targeted problem solving. The fact Duplicant isn’t an exact copy of the imprinted card is disheartening, but fine. Duplicant’s sole reason for inclusion is to rid yourself of Primeval Titans and other ilk. Randomly becoming a 10/x or bigger makes it a viable beat stick as well.
Magister Sphinx: This card has been banned in several playgroups I’ve been a part of. In Sharuum lists, this is the easiest way to end the game for a single player (or multiple. Thanks, Momentary Blink!). Be mindful of when you play it, as it will incite the rage of the rest of the table. Use at the last moment, or when a certain player has grown too powerful. Oh, and watch out for clone effects.
Myr Battlesphere: Myr Battlesphere is a recent inclusion, but one which is slowly proving itself. Capable of producing necessary blockers with an already respectable body, it’s penchant for putting the beat down on planeswalkers and players alike makes it have a powerful board presence. Couple this with blink effects in the deck, and you’ve got an easy, non-combo way to win.
Sharuum, The Hegemon: The namesake of the deck, saved for last due to her versatility and difficulty. While you will typically cast Sharuum only to combo off, remembering her ability is very important for when you want to double Mindslaver or bring back Salvaging Station and other toys. If your playgroup is glut with spot removal or tuck effects, be extremely wary of casting her too early; You’ll need to have the mana ready to fire off in one turn more often than you’d think. Like Kuldotha Forgemaster, practice casting Sharuum from the Command Zone as often as possible to realize her full potential.
Non-Creature Artifacts:
Thopter Foundry/Sword of The Meek: This combo should be familiar to anyone playing legacy. An easy engine for lifegain and 1/1 fliers, but by no means as powerful as other win cons. Do NOT attempt to assemble the combo unless you have Intuition in hand, or one piece already in the yard. Great for feeding Timesieve/Forgemaster, or stalling with chumpblockers.
Salvaging Station: I was originally a nay-sayer of this card until I tried it. Salvaging Station saves many board-relevant cards while providing an easy Infinite Mana engine with Lotus Bloom. Though not as speedy as Open the Vaults or as powerful as Yawgmoth’s Will, it adds necessary redundancy for combating Shatter effects. Reusable Executioner’s Capsules are good, I hear.
Oblivion Stone: Scourglass and N. Disk are far too slow, and sorcery options limited to one use. Oblivion Stone hits everything you’d want it to, and can even protect friendly targets (if you’ve the time/mana). It also flies under the radar of Gaddock Teeg, a major problem in my playgroup.
Engineered Explosives: An easily tutored multi-use solution to lots of random problems. Since it doesn't target, it also gets around Shroud/Hexproof, which is meta-relevant but worth noting. The fact it also blows up some of our own items is irrelevant given our recursion. Great against tokens.
Trading Post: Quite possibly the best card in recent sets for the list. Trading post is an affordable recovery suite comparable (or better) than salvaging station. With Unwinding Clock, it'd be even better, but all the same, it works just fine, and fits all of the decks needs.
Scroll Rack: The best hand/library manipulation in the format. Crystal Ball is a distant second. Scroll Rack takes practice to master, but once you've got experience with it, you'll enjoy being able to dig for a new hand for it's low 1 mana activation. It's value here is in being able to grab what you need, when you need it, and faster than any other spell.
Time Sieve: Combos with Thopter Assembly and SoTM/TF for infinite turns. Also a great Sac outlet in a pinch for Sharuum and others.
Sculpting Steel: Combo Piece, versatile tool and random clone effect. While many would advise waiting until you've assembled the Bitter Ordeal combo to use this card, I advise using it during the early game to ramp yourself. Later you can use it defensively to copy your opponent's artifacts, and sac it when you're ready to combo off.
Crucible of Worlds: Here to protect your Academy Ruins, though not absolutely necessary to the deck.
Memory Jar: Arguably the strongest non-color specific draw spell in Commander. Getting a new hand-complete with an opportunity for Graveyard pitch-enables Sharuum pilots to dig deep without negative side effects. Crack this during your upkeep and before your draw phase to net an additional card. Watch out for your opponent's instants and flash-effects, though.
Nihil Spellbom, Tormod's Crypt: Reusable graveyard hate is the best kind of hate. Scrabbing Claws and similar targeted GY removal works best, as it gives you a threat towards other GY based decks. All-player GY removal like Relic of Progenitis should be avoided at all costs due to their counter-productiveness.
Voltaic Key: Low cost, easily tutorable targeted untappyness. The only such effect in the list due to it's CMC and investment cost, both of which are meager. Unwinding Tine/ Unwinding Clock fill a similar role, but at 4 cost us time/mana better spent elsewhere. Besides, you'll rarely-if ever-need to activate mana rocks or similar effects more than once during a pass around the table.
Sensei's Divining Top: Here due to it's low CMC and great utility uses. No card can match the power of Top for it's CMC, especially in a combo-centric build such as this. Manipulating your draws every turn means never getting dead ones. It's political offensiveness varies from region to region, so Crystal Ball fits in it's place as well.
Expedition Map: A tutor for Academy Ruins. With recursion, a possible deck thinner and land drop assurance.
Executioner's Capsule, Dispeller's Capsule: Mandatory in every Sharuum build featuring Salvaging Station and/or Trading Post. While recycling removal is always good, both of these serve a similar fuction to the Seals-they're political safe guards against bad behavior. Players will think twice about attacking into you or your allies, which buys you valuable time.
Pithing Needle: Imagine being able to shut someone's entire deck down for a single mana. Against Captain Sisay pilots and other generals centered around activated abilities, this is a REAL possibility thanks to P. Needle. This also shuts down random lands, planeswalkers and problematic creatures. All this for a single mana, in an easily tutored package? Heck yes!
All the mana rocks: Sharuum is a list centered around high CMC interactions. To make those interactions happen, you've got to use the densest mana rocks in the game. Every single rock included here enables you to ramp faster than anyone at the table (except maybe the Green mage), cast your combos before others can respond, and win. While other mana rocks are worth consideration due to budget constraints, the package included here is one of the strongest and most stable. See "cards not to play" section for the non-inclusion of certain Mana Rocks.
Planeswalkers and Non-Artifact Spells:
Tezz AoB: Due to the immense amount of hate available, it’s best to treat each PW based on their minimal amount of available impact after resolution. At worst, TAoB can dig for a necessary artifact. Turning Inkmoth Nexus or another artifact into a 5/5 beater is nothing to scoff at, either. At the best of times, he’ll win you the game on Inkmoth Nexus or his last ability. By no means a successor or replacement for Tezz, The Seeker, but being a Impulse-on-a-Stick is incredibly powerful.
Tezz TS: Save for mono blue artifact-heavy builds, Sharuum is the deck Tezz was made for. At worst, you’ll pay 5 mana to grab almost any relevant combo piece or Trinket Mage target. At best, you can win the game with his last ability, or use him as a sort-of mana rock. Karn Liberated : This card is powerful. Not because he does anything extraordinary, or because he’s colorless, or because he’s freakin’ Karn-But because unlike other planeswalkers featured here, Karn is such a threat upon resolution that he HAS to be dealt with immediately or he’ll turn the game over to you. Exiling cards, particularly problematic permanents, is never a misplay, and you’ll always be happy to see Karn top decked. His lack of synergy with Artifacts is the only reason he lags behind both Tezzerets. Venser, The Sojourner : Venser is a curious card. On the surface, his blink ability appears cute-but it has much greater depth than that. Venser is Unwinding Clock, Momentary Blink and others aspire to be. He can reset your mana rocks, other planeswalkers, create hilariously advantageous CiTP situations with creatures, and also interact with Animate Dead in ways that will make your opponents cry.
Artificer’s Intuition: Do not underestimate this card. AI allows you to A) pitch Sharuum targets while B) allowing you to go grab a majority of your mana rocks and answer cards. Tutor for this card early, though it’s resolution in the first three turns comes second to Sol Ring, Top and rare Third-turn kill cards. Animate Dead : Included over Reanimate and other means for a simple reason-blink effects are some serious ****, bro. Also works nicely with Open the Vaults.
Intuition: The gamebreaker, and arguably the best tutor in the deck. With Sharuum and other recovery options, it’s easy to make your opponent’s choice irrelevant. This shouldn’t provoke you to be cocky-rather, play the card carefully, choosing targets you can either recur shortly, or ones which incrementally advance your board position. Momentary Blink and Unburial Rites are never bad options. Detention Sphere : A recent addition that-like Animate Dead-is here primarily due to Blink effect synergies and Open the Vaults. Detention Sphere is a super-Oring, arguably better than Vindicate due to it’s recyclability and the fact it’ll draw artifact/enchantment hate out of your opponents hands. Laughs at tokens.
Brainstorm: A draw/selection spell so powerful it's been banned or restricted in almost every format. Entire articles have been wrote about Brainstorm. There's no simple way to sum up it's inclusion save that you should only use it when you absolutely have to.
Vampiric Tutor, Mystical Tutor, Enlightened Tutor, Demonic Tutor: The strongest tutors in the strongest colors in the format. All of these can grab what you need in one form or another at any given point in the game. Be wary of using them for artifacts (except enlightened), as the list already has a way to tutor for those (Kuldotha Forgemaster). Treat them as silver bullets until you're ready to combo off.
Forbidden Alchemy, Windfall, Thirst for Knowledge, Fact or Fiction: The draw package. The primary reason for these spells specifically is their ability to pitch combo pieces to the yard. They also dig incredibly deep for a low mana investment. Other draw spells such as Necrologia can also be considered, but if they're to be included they need to either A)Draw a ridiculously large amount of cards for as low a CMC as possible, or B) Work synergistically with the list by pitching artifacts to the graveyard.
[CARD] Impulse[/CARD], Lim-Dul's Vault, Ponder: The non-artifact draw selection suite. By far, the strongest and trickiest to master is Lim-Dul's Vault, which when executed correctly enables you to cycle through your deck until you draw the best forthcoming hand as possible. This means you can cycle until you get combo pieces, solutions to board states, etc. Impulse serves a similar function-cast it when you desperately need to dig for an answer. Ponder is the weakest, but shouldn't be underestimated. Shuffling your list when your upcoming draws suck can be a lifesaver. And it cantrips!
Entomb: Functions as a tutor, but isn't. Use when you're ready to combo or have Reanimate in hand. Getting Sphinx of the Steel Wind for two mana is fun, I hear. Remember that it can grab ANYTHING-Unburial Rites, Momentary Blink and other flashback targets are all within your means.
Transmute Artifact: The least powerful tutor due to it’s additonal costs. But still add necessary redundancy while giving you a sac outlet for Sculpting Steel and Sharuum. Use as silver bullets or mana-ramp.
Unburial Rites: Casting cards from your graveyard is an easy way to catch your opponent's unaware. While Beacon of Unrest might appear a superior card, there are going to be moments when you absolutely MUST cast a resurrection spell twice in a turn. Unburial Rites fills this role while providing you an affordable, flexible way of getting cards back from the yard. Works well with all of our GY pitch cards as well.
Open the Vaults: Our non-artifact recovery suite. Open the Vaults should be used when you're massively behind, or can combo off and win upon its resolution. In either case, use sparingly and only when absolutely necessary, preferably in the late game when the likelihood of counterspells from your opponents is low. All is Dust : Probably the best non-artifact sweeper not named “Austere Command”. All is Dust is superb at A)Pissing people off, and B)Creating a substantial board position for yourself. Cast only when you’re in a position to either Combo off or Kill remaining players.
Mycosynth Lattice / Karn, Silver Golem: Lattice and Karn allow for some unique interactions together, but apart they're marginally powerful. Lattice and Null Rod could turn the game off for everyone, which-while hilarious-is also extremely political offensive. Karn could create blockers and provide an alternate win condition, but is a creature that doesn't advance our combo, nor does anything uber effective on his own. If you must use these, use them both together or not at all.
Counter Magic: Counter magic isn't important unless you're trying to combo off. They're far too linear a solution for multiplayer commander. The only other counter spell I could justify running outside of Muddle the Mixture is Force of Will, and I don't feel we have a spot for it. A few counters with multiple modes could be justified (Cryptic Command) if your MB can support it. However, this deck doesn’t really care if it’s cards are countered since WE CAN BRING ANY RELEVANT CARD BACK FROM THE GRAVEYARD, and we’ve multiple ways to win.
Master Transmuter/Deadeye Navigator: Let me make something perfectly clear-in another build, these cards would be sick. But considering we're hoping to resolve Sharuum a limited number of times throughout the game, these two are painfully slow. Transmuter is doubly weak thanks to all the shatter effects heading our way.
: Dumb robots are dumb. None of these are capable of pulling anywhere near the amount of work that Sphinx of The Steel Wind does, and require exponentially more work to get into play. Completely pointless.
Traumatize: The fact competent Sharuum players actually run this card baffles me. Why on earth would you run a 5 CMC NON-INSTANT which decks a variable number of cards into your library which may or may not have combo pieces you want (and don't want) into your GY? Why do this when fantastic, synergistic card pitch already exists? Since we have such options, Traumatize is a costly, unnecessary inclusion.
[CARD] Power Artifact[/CARD]: Not included due to availability and the fact no artifacts outside of Grim Monolith benefit from it. Were Staff of Domination legal still, this would be an auto-include.
Unwinding Clock: Dense mana rocks be damned, finding a spot for Unwinding Clock is tough. The clock simply doesn't do enough compared to others at the same CMC, and Voltaic Key is easily tutored.
Scourglass/N. Disk/Sorcery Speed Mass Removal: All of these options are too slow. O-Stone hits everything we want it to hit and proves to be a rattlesnake towards those who would confront you. The only exception to this would be Austere Command, which given room is a great inclusion.
Hex Parasite: Hex Parasite is a neat little card that is better when abused. With the current list, that's not possible, and Hexy doesn't hit enough for it to be a worthy problem solver.
Arcbound Reclaimer: We already run the best artifact recovery suite. Arcbound is unnecessary.
Relic of Progenitis: We're a deck that uses, abuses, and mistreats the graveyard. Targeted graveyard removal is a bigger political offense, but a necessary evil. Relic hitting your own yard as well makes it a bad inclusion in this list. Leyline of the Void is more costly, but more effective.
Ethersworn Adjudicator: On the surface, this appears to be everything the deck wants. But Adjudicator is ponderously slow, and without something like Lifelink or Deathtouch, is a small-fry against late game beaters.
Nim Deathmantle: Not enough creatures with CiTP effects to be worth it.
Sphinx Summoner: Better in builds of Sharuum that make use of goodstuff artifact creatures. Ineffective here.
Etherium Sculptor: A bad, more politically offensive Helm of Awakening. Being an artifact creature, he's doubly delicate. Without a way to abuse him, he's simply not worth it.
Skill Borrower: Great in decks like Arcuum Daggson, but unfortunately her variable utility makes her weak here.
Necrologia: I'm still undecided about this one. I'm using Fact or Fiction in it's place due to the fact most players create lopsided (in YOUR favor) FoF piles. FoF's interaction with the table also makes it appear that you're doing more than just playing with yourself. With more widespread testing, Necrologia may take it's place.
Necropotence: The strongest draw card of all time has a nasty exile clause which directly contradicts what we're attempting to do. Also carries a heavy political stigma. If you must run this or Necrologia, run the latter.
Phyrexian Arena: Card draw is weaker than card selection in combo decks like this. Thus, if we're to be drawing cards at all, it'll be in great volume at the precise moment we need it, not gradually over the course of a game. A weak top-deck late game, and far more effective in control-centric builds.
: Both of these are delicate combo finishers, along with being completely obvious. Running either is a bad idea.
Enigma Sphinx: The nature of cascade-played from the hand rather than just "CiTP"-makes Enigma Sphinx a gamble with every play. Not strong enough compared to others on the curve to warrant inclusion.
Ethersworn Canonist: A majority of our combos deal with casting multiple sorceries in a single turn. Ethersworn achieves nothing but pissing off your peers. Since we're politically offensive just by playing Sharuum, she's an unncessary inclusion. If you MUST run one of these effects, I recommend Rule of Law or Arcane Labratory.
Filigree Angel: I ran this for quite some time before making the jump to Sphinx of the Steel Wind. Filigree is great upon resolution, but has a mediocre board presence. Gaining tons of life is also irrelevant with effects like Sorin Markov and Magister Sphinx in the format.
Sens Triplets: Better in it's own individual deck than here.
Steel Hellkite: For much the same reason we don't use other mass removal spells, Hellkite is excluded. The fact it's a creature and has summoning sickness (with an adjustable destruction effect) makes it less than stellar for clearing the board. Fits great in Mono-blue commander decks, but not here.
Ashnod's Alter, Krak Clan Ironworks: Not included because we've already got fantastic ramp and an infinite mana engine that works. Both allow for some creative tricks with Mirror Works and Nim Deathmantle. If you're looking for a more casual or unexpected combo, consider them.
Mirrorworks: Not included due to it's high CMC and necessary mana investment to work. While duplicating certain artifacts is awesome, there's no room for this card in the current list (8/10/2012), nor much reason for it's inclusion in the first place. Works well in casual and non-combo builds.
Darksteel Forge: DF has been tested and found lacking. It's a lackluster resurrection target since it has no immeadiate effect on the board, and given the recursion suite, is an unnecessary 9 mana inclusion. Plus, your opponents use of Shatter and Shatterstorm style effects against you is time, mana and cards wasted. Allow your opponent to blow stuff up. It's not like you can't grab it back later. Trinket Mage Jostin123’s section on trinket mage says it better than I could, but Mage’s inclusion isn’t necessary with low CMC tutors such as Artificer’s Intuition and Enlightened tutor. Not a bad card, just taking up a spot that is better spent on other cards. Still perfectly acceptable in less powerful or focused builds.
Combos:
Sculpting Steel/Phyrexian Metamorph in the GY+ Sharuum+Bitter Ordeal= The most well known Sharuum combo. Removes all opposing libraries from the game thanks to Gravestorm. Perfect, but obvious. Use this as a ruse to draw out graveyard hate early.
Sword Of The Meek in the GY+ Thopter Foundry in Play= See prior explanation. Also painfully obvious. Use this to draw out GY hate or for chump blockers, but never create more tokens than you need blockers.
Academy Ruins+ Mindslaver= The most mana-intensive game ending combo. Mindslavering the table over and over is ill-advised unless you’re in a position to blunt their revenge. This combo won’t make you any friends, and should be reserved as a last resort with strangers.
Thopter Assembly+ Time Sieve= Infinite turns. Pretty simple. It will take one turn for this to fire off, giving the table ample opportunity to answer either. Thankfully, Sharuum and Academy Ruins makes all of that pointless.
Salvaging Station+ SoTM/TF+Lotus Bloom+Time Sieve/Blasting Station=Here is how this combo works-there was a previous error within the OP.
With Lotus Bloom and Time Sieve/Blasting Station in play, sac lotus to produce tokens with SoTM/TF. Sac tokens to either TS or BS. Recur Lotus Bloom with Station. This allows you the potential to take infinite turns or infinite damage. Courtesy of M3mentoMori:
I also thought of another infinite mana combo, involving the infinite Sharuum-Clone loop, Station, and one of the Lotus' (either petal or bloom). The Sharuum loop creates infinite dying triggers, thus infinite untaps of Station. Use station to recur a used Lotus, sac it, use the untap trigger, sac it... Lather, Rinse, Repeat.
Weaknesses:
The only major weakness of Sharuum is it’s dependency on the Graveyard to win. There are countless options available to every decklist for eating graveyards. Player ineptness and carelessness keep GY hate relatively low, which makes bluffing and baiting players into eating your GY early a fantastic skill to have.
Artifact hate can be a speed bump. But that’s it. Eliminate hate early on so you’re free to stomp faces later.
The deck also has a serious problems with tax cards such as Kataki or Aura of Silence in the early game. The reason for this is Sharuum likes to spend her first few turns ramping up with low CMC mana rocks, and tax effects have a bad habit of slowing her down just enough for the opponent(s) to gain ground. Late game, the tax effects become beneficial, as we’re actively trying to pitch our artifacts to the graveyard.
Sharuum is incredibly popular-and likewise, maligned by a majority of the player base. The reason for this is quite simple-a majority of Sharuum decks look very similar to each other. By virtue of being a combo deck (and a tier 1 general), it also gains a lot of political stigma. Sitting down and playing Sharuum requires knowing how to play the table as well. If you’re incapable of properly manipulating multiplayer politics to your advantage, you need to look for another general.
How to Play:
Begin by being cordial with your table. I’m serious. Being polite with people who are going to groan when they see your general is a must. Making friends before turns are declared will never be the incorrect play, and can sometimes earn you leeway with your plays. Doing so will also give you an opportunity to read the rest of the table and get a feel for who they are and how they’ll play. Are they smiling and laughing back? Are they stone-faced and competitive? And, more importantly, are they playing green or combo-centric generals? Make note of each point mentally, and play your opening turns accordingly. Remember, this isn’t about you-it’s about fooling the others long enough to ignore you.
Your opening hand will determine which path to victory you take. Ideal hands have 2-3 lands, 2 mana rocks, 1-2 tutors and/or 1-2 draw/GY pitch spells. Mulligan aggressively, but always take hands which have Intuition or other filter cards in them. Mana-rock heavy opening hands are also great, as you’ll likely beat everyone else at the table (save for the green mage) in accelerating.
The early game should be as non-offensive as possible. Shift focus away from yourself and onto other high-profile strategies/generals. Tutor for mana rocks, Artificer’s Intuition and ways to set up your differing combos. If it appears as though you’re offending the table, either back off or draw out their GY hate by bluffing-act like you’re going to go off with Combo A, and immeadiately be working towards resolving Combo B. Having your graveyard removed isn’t the end of the world, and letting it happen now means getting a chance to kill everyone later.
Mid-game is when you should begin shifting towards resolving Sharuum and winning, or eliminating anyone who could hate you out of the game. While many players don’t pack sufficient graveyard hate, Kataki or Creeping Corrosion at this point is a significant setback. Start becoming the “Answer” guy/gal and deal with problems which will symmetrically aid everyone. Don’t allow any one player an edge or benefit off of your decisions (note even you. Unless you can do it in secret).
The late game should also be the point in which you begin smashing face or winning. By this point, you should have assembled one (if not more) of the primary combos, needing only one resolution left to take the table. Pay close attention to the board and players-if someone is acting nervous or eying you too often, don’t be a sucker. Bait them into using their removal by attempting an unconventional combo or using symmetrical cards which you massively benefit off of, like Open the Vaults. At this point, also be on the lookout for opposing combo players. If someone is about to go off, do all you can to stop them from achieving their dreams. Crush them, then the others.
Should the game go on longer than expected or your combos not fire off as they should, begin attempting victory in the following order:
1. Attempt all other possible combos.
2. Eliminate the weakest opponent through subterfuge and board politics. Become the control player/answer guy, and bring back Magister Sphinx as your beatstick.
3. Utilize planeswalkers to their fullest extent, and win via either Tezz’s last ability.
4. Man-land beat down.
Conclusion and Final Thoughts:
I hope you’ve enjoyed this rather exhaustive look inside one of my favorite lists! Sharuum is a powerful general that has earned every bit of her reputation. But she’s also fully capable of being a “fair” general as well, given proper pilot motivation.
I encourage you to not only try Sharuum out, but also consider alternatives, including the Sphinx Tribal builds and Reanimator variants. Sharuum’s versatility allows for several interpretations and builds suitable for all tastes and budgets.
Additional Resources:
Jostin123’s invaluable advice and personal list(INVALUABLE MATERIAL! Please read!)-
6/11/2012-Created thread, posted list, put everything in spoiler tags and spammed everywhere I could think of with the link.
6/13/2012-Added "Additional Resources" section, which will feature additional takes on the deck of note, and possibly my own CMDR deck video when I get around to creating it.
6/14/12-Made the following changes to the list:
-1 Plains
-1 Momentary Blink
+1 Aether Spellbomb
+Muddle the Mixture
Gave explanation for MTM's inclusion in "Spells of note" section.
6/18/12-Looked at Bitterroot's list for Sharuum, and realized he was onto something with Jace. Also realized Cabal Coffers is worthless in the deck over 90% of the time.
-1 JTMS
-1 Cabal Coffers
+1 Grim Monolith
+1 Windfall
Added Bitteroot's list/thread to "Additional Resources".
7/16/2012-
-1 Aether Spellbomb
-1 Revoke Existence
-1 Mindslaver
+1 Trading Post
+1 Engineered Explosives
+1 Ponder
7/30/12-
-Helm of Obedience
-Leyline of The Void
-Shizo, Death's Storehouse
+1 Read The Runes
+1 Mindslaver
+1 Reshape
7/31/12-
Added a "cards not to run" section. Will expand as comments and questions appear.
Read the Runes proved too mana intensive. Minor mana base tweak to help speed up the deck as well. Will be adding a detailed explanation of Card Draw vs. Card Filtering later today.
8/10/2012-
CHANGAPOLOOZA!
Was denied primer status, but with the hope and suggestion that I reapply after cleaning up and expanding certain parts of the primer. Due to this, the inclusions of the list have been expanded upon considerably. Mirror Works and Krak Clan Ironworks added to "Cards not to use" section. More beautifying and expansion to come.
Few other changes, will update later.
8/17/12-
Card tags added, general gussying up. Going to (hopefully) alphabetize and/or expand upon the primer more this weekend with testing. Added Darksteel Forge to the "cards not to play" list. Added a "deck history" subsection.
11/7/12-
-Mindslaver
+Spine of Ish Sah
Added Karn, Silver Golem/Mycosynth Lattice and Mindslaver on the "Cards not used and why" section. More changes coming.
11/13/12-
-Spine of Ish Sah
+Karn Liberated
Thanks to Jostin123's mammoth amount of posting, there will be some serious changes coming soon to the OP and my list. Keep your eyes peeled!
11/19/12-
Edited an error within the Op regarding a combo. Will soon integrate Jostin123's contribution to the post, hopefully get some clean-up work done on thanksgiving break, with newest list tested at GP Charleston.
11/27/12-CHANGAPOOLOZA PART 2-
Overhaul of the OP and OP decklist, inclusion of help from the fantastic posters here, and update to cards to play/not to play list. Read over and revel in the change, people!
Also, update of GP Charleston. Finally. Hopefully. Maybe.
you should use master transmuter. i also have a sharuum deck and i would argue that this is the best compliment to sharuum in the entire deck, because you can use her to blink sharuum.
you should use master transmuter. i also have a sharuum deck and i would argue that this is the best compliment to sharuum in the entire deck, because you can use her to blink sharuum.
I actually ran her for the longest time before eventually swapping her out for Tezz AoB. The reason for this was I'd rather be able to dig for artifact cards when necessary or create blockers. Tezz AoB allows me to stall into a combo, as well as provides another alternate win condition. The other major problem with Transmuter is her extremely delicate body-she dies to twice the removal of a normal creature thanks to shatter effects. Couple this with having to wait to activate her, and she just proved to be too slow for me.
However, she works great in builds featuring more ETB/CiTP effects.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
Got some testing in the last few days. I feel comfortable with the number of ways I have to get stuff into the graveyard-but I'm questioning if I don't need another way to resurrect my targets. Getting creatures back isn't a problem-getting artifacts of all varieties sometimes can be. The problem is finding a card that could work before turn six that doesn't detract away from the synergy of the deck and pulls more work than Unburial Rites and Reanimate already do.
Also, I'm thinking about replacing Shizo, Death's Storehouse with Vault of the Archangel, as it works with the rest of my creatures/manlands in a much more proactive fashion. Thoughts?
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Also, I'm thinking about replacing Shizo, Death's Storehouse with Vault of the Archangel, as it works with the rest of my creatures/manlands in a much more proactive fashion. Thoughts?
I guess it would work well with the thopters, using it with the manlands ties loads of mana though. Shizo is nice political tool also, but I guess it can be hard to play politics with deck like this
@ajacobik: Thank you very much! And yep-Sharuum was the very first general I ever piloted, and primarily the reason I got into Commander. I've ran her for the better part of 4 years, and have gone through so many different versions of her. She's incredibly versatile compared to other generals, and time and time again I find myself going back to play her.
I'll be sure to hit yours up in just a minute!
I guess it would work well with the thopters, using it with the manlands ties loads of mana though. Shizo is nice political tool also, but I guess it can be hard to play politics with deck like this
You'd be surprised-True, just seeing Sharuum can cause a lot of people to groan, but if you play it carefully (read: correctly) You can appear harmless until it's absolutely necessary to strike/win. It's rare I activate Shizo for anything more than black mana. Vault would at least give me versatility with my other creatures, and could turn those thopters into great defensive blockers.
We'll see. Hopefully next friday (or before then) I'll be able to provide an update with better testing.
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SO HELP ME GODS, THIS CARD WILL FIND A HOME IN THIS DECK. *also, changed up the mana base a bit and added some removal. Will update change log when I get home.
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This card does literally everything I want it to do for this deck, and then some. I'm beyond excited, I'm ecstatic. Granted, some of that has to be new card fever, but this is an honest-to-goodness test-worthy addition to the list. It gives you pitch, sac and recursion, for relatively minimal investments, and doesn't require any other cards to function.
At the least, this deserves testing. Return ANY artifact card? Whaaattt?
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I keep going back and forth on this card. It costs four mana initially which isn't bad and each of the tap abilities only cost one which is highway robbery. The only thing I don't like about it that you have to tap to do it, so you can only do one ability per go around which isn't horrible but really limits it.
@Dm225 The one mana for the tap abilities is irrelevant when you're pitching combo targets and getting back Executioner's capsules. Also, having to tap it isn't a big deal when Voltaic Key, Unwinding clock and others exist.
What concerns me about the card is finding a place for it in my list. Space is extremely limited, and I don't know what I would put it in over. A land? I'm uncomfortable doing that unless I'm cutting for a degenerate mana rock. Salvaging Station? That'd eliminate one combo from the deck entirely.
I'll have to re-evaluate it when I get home(as well as update the change log).
I feel like this card would be right at home in your list, coincidently. Maybe over Arcbound Reclaimer.
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Hi from a fellow sharuum player... figured i would say youve got quite the list there...
have you ever considered running Deadeye Navigator in your deck??? I haven't seen any mention of the interaction on here yet, but if you pair him with duplicant and leave mana up you could remove multiple creatures every turn..
Good morning everyone!
It's been a month since our last update, but here we go.
I finally got some quality testing in with the list. Mindslaver was woefully under performing, and I've been looking for a reason to cut it. Trading Post gave me that reason. This thing is the real deal-the hype in my earlier posts was warranted. It acts as an additional Academy in many situations, and at worst will enable your combos. It's CMC is a little higher than I'd like, but that's life.
Revoke Existence and Aether Spellbomb have both been removed due to under performing as well. Engineered Explosives is here on a trial basis-tokens have been a serious problem in my meta, and this seemed the most nuanced solution. It's also a great random problem solver. Ponder has been included due to the deck having such a strong combo focus. It should have been there to start with, honestly. We need as much library manipulation as we can get.
Also, one more small change-I used Swords to Plowshares over Path to Exile, because ramping your opponent is badddd.
Also:
Necrologia over Fact or Fiction. Thoughts?
@Tach08: Deadeye and similar blink effects have rarely proven their worth in the list. Momentary Blink was the closest, but only because it could enable cute tricks with Intuition. At 5 mana plus an activation cost, Deadeye is way, wayyy too slow for a deck with so few creatures in it. Master Transmuter would be an even better consideration, but is left out for the same reason-she's too slow.
Hey folks. Made a few small changes to the list. Slaver is back in due to Trading post being a sick card. Read the Runes is in (on trial) due to the decklist lacking synergistic draw. Oh, and Reshape is in, because tutors rock.
EDIT: Primer status applied for. Keep your fingers crossed.
DOUBLE EDIT: Updated with a cards NOT used section. Feel free to comment upon it.
Saw the list linked to me because I've been taking time to look for a really good Sharrum list.
And this is pure win. I love everything about. I was wondering why you weren't running counterspells and the best sweeps, but I figured it's not needed with everything else involved.
Saw the list linked to me because I've been taking time to look for a really good Sharrum list.
And this is pure win. I love everything about. I was wondering why you weren't running counterspells and the best sweeps, but I figured it's not needed with everything else involved.
Due to the recovery suite, you really don't worry about counters or sweep. O-stone does everything you want it to do, and is a great political tool. Though, if I had the room, Austere Command would go in as well.
Counters are extremely linear solutions to problems, and you only need to worry about them when you're trying to combo, which is pointless unless you can cast them for free since you usually can't afford the extra mana to cast them. If a combo fails, you simply try again or move on to the next one.
I test this list every week. I've a few small-ish updates to make, but it's still pretty much the same. I'd run real duals if I had them. Also, this list appears "slow" compared to others-there's a reason for that. You want to appear as politically non-offensive as possible, then combo off when the table least expects it.
I also recommend checking out Bitter Root's list under "additional resources".
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Jack! Long time no talk about nothing and get nowhere!
I love the primer, just one question: since you're looking to stay politically correct, how about a counterspell (sometimes you just need one) like Arcane Denial?
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Amazing Avy & Sig by mchief111 @ Rising Studios [4/22/11]
Hello and welcome everyone to one of the most active Sharuum primers on MTGSalvation (which has yet to receive primer status)! This primer is a collaborative effort, and we’re constantly seeking new advice and tech for the deck. Feel free to join us in discussing everyone’s favorite pretty kitty!
So Why Should You Play Sharuum?
1. Politics-A major misconception is Sharuum’s political offensiveness. Like any top tier general, She draws her share of groans from less experienced pilots and veterans. Playing carefully (and fairly), the Sharuum player can use this to their advantage. A proper build should be able to tutor for reusable enchantment/artifact/creature removal and repeatable wrath effects, making the Sharuum player a valuable ally to keep alive-and a horrid enemy to enrage.
2. Pacing-With fast mana and readily available solutions, Sharuum pilots can easily maintain or destroy a board state. Efficiently controlling the pace and tone of a game give you an edge over the rest of the table, matched only by other toolbox centric decks like Captain Sisay.
3. Metagame Ignorance-Yet another popular misconception is that having a Kataki, Shatter storm or Creeping Corrosion resolve kills the Sharuum player. This isn’t true. Sharuum is in the perfect colors for recovery, and loves to send artifacts to the graveyard!
4. Life total is irrelevant: You're a combo deck. Your life total is only going to matter if you are going to loose at an improper moment, or are getting ganged up on. This leads to hilarious non-interaction with the combat step, which invalidates many strategies in Commander. Couple this with cards such as The Tabernacle at Pender Vale, Ensnaring Bridge and Meek stone, and you’ll never have to worry about your healthy while grabbing combo pieces.
5. Time is on your side: On a long enough time line in any game, the combo deck is going to win. It doesn’t matter how much you punish them, or how much disruption you use-the combo deck will always prevail in a game of CMDR if not dealt with first. Playing a very political game, keep a great poker face and a cool head, and people will soon forget you’re ramping to beat them as they settle their own petty squabbles.
Why SHOULDN'T I play Sharuum?
1. Your playgroup already hates you. You shmuck.
2. Your playgroup runs Fracturing Gust, Shatterstorm, Creeping Corrosion, and 12 other mass-artifact hate cards. In every deck.
3. You're allergic to cats.
4. You prefer a simpler game of CMDR.
5. You're bad at multiplayer politics.
Sounds Cool, But Where’s the Decklist?
Why, right here of course!
Decklist
1x Kuldotha Forgemaster
1x Duplicant
1x Thopter Assembly
1x Magister Sphinx
1x Phyrexian Metamorph
1x Sword of The Meek
1x Thopter Foundry
1x Oblivion Stone
1x Scroll Rack
1x Time Sieve
1x Sculpting Steel
1x Crucible of Worlds
1x Memory Jar
1x Trading Post
1x Salvaging Station
1x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Voltaic Key
1x Tormod’s Crypt
1x Sensei’s Diving Top
1x Expedition Map
1x Executioner’s Capsule
1x Pithing Needle
1x Dispeller’s Capsule
1x Mana Crypt
1x Mana Vault
1x Mox Diamond
1x Lotus Petal
1x Mox Opal
1x Lotus Bloom
1x Engineered Explosives
1x Sol Ring
1x Darksteel Ingot
1x Grim Monolith
1x Chromatic Lantern
1x Aether Spellbomb
1x Mindslaver
1x Elixir of Immortality
1x Artificer’s Intuition
1x Detention Sphere
1x Animate Dead
1x Brainstorm
1x Vampiric Tutor
1x Intuition
1x Forbidden Alchemy
1x Lim-dul’s Vault
1x Fact or Fiction
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Thirst for Knowledge
1x Entomb
1x Impulse
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Windfall
1x Bitter Ordeal
1x Unburial Rites
1x All is Dust
1x Transmute Artifact
1x Ponder
1x Open The Vaults
1x Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas
1x Tezzeret, The Seeker
1x Karn Liberated
1x Venser, Sojourner
1 Islands
1x Wasteland
1x Tolaria West
1x Bojuka Bog
1x Phyrexia’s Core
1x Strip Mine
1x Maze of Ith
1x Academy Ruins
1x Buried Ruin
1x Cephalid Colisum
1x Inkmoth Nexus
1x Creeping Tar Pit
1x Gemstone Mine
1x Marsh Flats
1x Arid Mesa
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Ancient Den
1x Vault of Whipers
1x Darksteel Citadel
1x Seat of the Synod
1x Hallowed Fountain
1x Godless Shrine
1x Watery Grave
1x Ancient Tomb
1x Arcane Sanctum
1x Glimmervoid
1x Command Tower
1x Reflecting Pool
1x Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
1x City of Brass
1x Crystal Vein
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Grand Coliseum
1x Tarnished Citadel
Deck History:
Sharuum was the first Commander list I ever piloted. It began as an esper control list with a combo finisher. As my collection expanded, it grew more monsterous and abusive. I've gone through MANY interations of the list in the past 5 years, and have tested possibly every combo or "good" card with the deck.
Through that testing, I came to the realization that there are three primary archetypes with dozens of derivatives therein. The most familiar to Commander players (and basis for this primer) is the combo-style, which tends to center around Sculpting Steel, Bitter Ordeal/Disciple of the Vault/Glassdust Hulk and Sharuum to win. These styles of list tend to focus on quick mana and powerful cards to win. The best versions of these lists also run 1-5 other synergistic combos as back up. Combo lists tend to be the best in multiplayer settings, since any given infinite combo will be the most elegant way to destroy an entire table.
Secondly is the Control-centric lists. These tend to be slower, with more top-heavy (but versatile) spells such as Austere Command. They tend to feature few (if any) combos, and instead rely on creatures to win like Inkwell Leviathan, Sphinx of the Steel Wind, and Blightsteel Collossus. These lists tend to pack denser spells, but have a significantly higher curve and moderately increased interaction with the table.
Third is the Artifact-goodstuff lists. These are the most casual focused of the three, and tend to center around a non-competitive theme (Sphinx tribal, for example). While the effectiveness of these lists varies, they have the least amount of political offense, and have the potential to be the most fun.
I recommend trying out every style, and finding what fits you best. I came to settling for Combo centric out of my love for efficiency and card availability. However, if your playgroup features slower lists or is casually based, the other two archetypes can be just as interesting.
As the list stands today (11/27/12), it is a mix of combo and answers, attempting to tackle the most problematic threats at the table while racing to an early victory. It has a diverse recovery/tutor/pitch/answer suite, and prays on durdles and veterans as well.
Card Explanations-How to play, When to Play
Creatures:
Phyrexian Metamorph: This thing is amazing! It’s a combo piece, general killer, and fantastic way to accelerate yourself by copying mana rocks, Primeval Titan and more. Being the most versatile card in the deck, it is also the most valuable outside of Sharuum herself.
Kuldotha Forgemaster: A tricky card. Forgemaster will traditionally sacrifice itself and two other disposable targets to grab Sphinx of The Steel Wind, the last piece of a combo (or put one in the grave), or Magister Sphinx. Choosing when and how to properly activate the ability takes experience. Traditionally, it’s okay to waste Artifact lands, Spellbomb, Capsules or other small 1 CMC targets, as these are the easiest to recover. Larger targets are advised AGAINST (Save for Sculpting Steel/Phyrexian Metamorph) due to their difficulty of recovering. Mana Rocks should rarely be sacrificed as they are your primary accelerates. Practice with this card many times before using in a competitive setting.
[CARD]
Thopter Assembly[/CARD]: Included to feed Kuldotha Forgemaster and combo with Time Sieve. Otherwise a boring, pointless card.
Duplicant: Reusable targeted problem solving. The fact Duplicant isn’t an exact copy of the imprinted card is disheartening, but fine. Duplicant’s sole reason for inclusion is to rid yourself of Primeval Titans and other ilk. Randomly becoming a 10/x or bigger makes it a viable beat stick as well.
Magister Sphinx: This card has been banned in several playgroups I’ve been a part of. In Sharuum lists, this is the easiest way to end the game for a single player (or multiple. Thanks, Momentary Blink!). Be mindful of when you play it, as it will incite the rage of the rest of the table. Use at the last moment, or when a certain player has grown too powerful. Oh, and watch out for clone effects.
Myr Battlesphere : Myr Battlesphere is a recent inclusion, but one which is slowly proving itself. Capable of producing necessary blockers with an already respectable body, it’s penchant for putting the beat down on planeswalkers and players alike makes it have a powerful board presence. Couple this with blink effects in the deck, and you’ve got an easy, non-combo way to win.
Sharuum, The Hegemon: The namesake of the deck, saved for last due to her versatility and difficulty. While you will typically cast Sharuum only to combo off, remembering her ability is very important for when you want to double Mindslaver or bring back Salvaging Station and other toys. If your playgroup is glut with spot removal or tuck effects, be extremely wary of casting her too early; You’ll need to have the mana ready to fire off in one turn more often than you’d think. Like Kuldotha Forgemaster, practice casting Sharuum from the Command Zone as often as possible to realize her full potential.
Non-Creature Artifacts:
Thopter Foundry/Sword of The Meek: This combo should be familiar to anyone playing legacy. An easy engine for lifegain and 1/1 fliers, but by no means as powerful as other win cons. Do NOT attempt to assemble the combo unless you have Intuition in hand, or one piece already in the yard. Great for feeding Timesieve/Forgemaster, or stalling with chumpblockers.
Salvaging Station: I was originally a nay-sayer of this card until I tried it. Salvaging Station saves many board-relevant cards while providing an easy Infinite Mana engine with Lotus Bloom. Though not as speedy as Open the Vaults or as powerful as Yawgmoth’s Will, it adds necessary redundancy for combating Shatter effects. Reusable Executioner’s Capsules are good, I hear.
Oblivion Stone: Scourglass and N. Disk are far too slow, and sorcery options limited to one use. Oblivion Stone hits everything you’d want it to, and can even protect friendly targets (if you’ve the time/mana). It also flies under the radar of Gaddock Teeg, a major problem in my playgroup.
Engineered Explosives: An easily tutored multi-use solution to lots of random problems. Since it doesn't target, it also gets around Shroud/Hexproof, which is meta-relevant but worth noting. The fact it also blows up some of our own items is irrelevant given our recursion. Great against tokens.
Trading Post: Quite possibly the best card in recent sets for the list. Trading post is an affordable recovery suite comparable (or better) than salvaging station. With Unwinding Clock, it'd be even better, but all the same, it works just fine, and fits all of the decks needs.
Scroll Rack: The best hand/library manipulation in the format. Crystal Ball is a distant second. Scroll Rack takes practice to master, but once you've got experience with it, you'll enjoy being able to dig for a new hand for it's low 1 mana activation. It's value here is in being able to grab what you need, when you need it, and faster than any other spell.
Time Sieve: Combos with Thopter Assembly and SoTM/TF for infinite turns. Also a great Sac outlet in a pinch for Sharuum and others.
Sculpting Steel: Combo Piece, versatile tool and random clone effect. While many would advise waiting until you've assembled the Bitter Ordeal combo to use this card, I advise using it during the early game to ramp yourself. Later you can use it defensively to copy your opponent's artifacts, and sac it when you're ready to combo off.
Crucible of Worlds: Here to protect your Academy Ruins, though not absolutely necessary to the deck.
Memory Jar: Arguably the strongest non-color specific draw spell in Commander. Getting a new hand-complete with an opportunity for Graveyard pitch-enables Sharuum pilots to dig deep without negative side effects. Crack this during your upkeep and before your draw phase to net an additional card. Watch out for your opponent's instants and flash-effects, though.
Nihil Spellbom, Tormod's Crypt: Reusable graveyard hate is the best kind of hate. Scrabbing Claws and similar targeted GY removal works best, as it gives you a threat towards other GY based decks. All-player GY removal like Relic of Progenitis should be avoided at all costs due to their counter-productiveness.
Voltaic Key: Low cost, easily tutorable targeted untappyness. The only such effect in the list due to it's CMC and investment cost, both of which are meager. Unwinding Tine/ Unwinding Clock fill a similar role, but at 4 cost us time/mana better spent elsewhere. Besides, you'll rarely-if ever-need to activate mana rocks or similar effects more than once during a pass around the table.
Sensei's Divining Top: Here due to it's low CMC and great utility uses. No card can match the power of Top for it's CMC, especially in a combo-centric build such as this. Manipulating your draws every turn means never getting dead ones. It's political offensiveness varies from region to region, so Crystal Ball fits in it's place as well.
Expedition Map: A tutor for Academy Ruins. With recursion, a possible deck thinner and land drop assurance.
Executioner's Capsule, Dispeller's Capsule: Mandatory in every Sharuum build featuring Salvaging Station and/or Trading Post. While recycling removal is always good, both of these serve a similar fuction to the Seals-they're political safe guards against bad behavior. Players will think twice about attacking into you or your allies, which buys you valuable time.
Pithing Needle: Imagine being able to shut someone's entire deck down for a single mana. Against Captain Sisay pilots and other generals centered around activated abilities, this is a REAL possibility thanks to P. Needle. This also shuts down random lands, planeswalkers and problematic creatures. All this for a single mana, in an easily tutored package? Heck yes!
All the mana rocks: Sharuum is a list centered around high CMC interactions. To make those interactions happen, you've got to use the densest mana rocks in the game. Every single rock included here enables you to ramp faster than anyone at the table (except maybe the Green mage), cast your combos before others can respond, and win. While other mana rocks are worth consideration due to budget constraints, the package included here is one of the strongest and most stable. See "cards not to play" section for the non-inclusion of certain Mana Rocks.
Planeswalkers and Non-Artifact Spells:
Tezz AoB: Due to the immense amount of hate available, it’s best to treat each PW based on their minimal amount of available impact after resolution. At worst, TAoB can dig for a necessary artifact. Turning Inkmoth Nexus or another artifact into a 5/5 beater is nothing to scoff at, either. At the best of times, he’ll win you the game on Inkmoth Nexus or his last ability. By no means a successor or replacement for Tezz, The Seeker, but being a Impulse-on-a-Stick is incredibly powerful.
Tezz TS: Save for mono blue artifact-heavy builds, Sharuum is the deck Tezz was made for. At worst, you’ll pay 5 mana to grab almost any relevant combo piece or Trinket Mage target. At best, you can win the game with his last ability, or use him as a sort-of mana rock.
Karn Liberated : This card is powerful. Not because he does anything extraordinary, or because he’s colorless, or because he’s freakin’ Karn-But because unlike other planeswalkers featured here, Karn is such a threat upon resolution that he HAS to be dealt with immediately or he’ll turn the game over to you. Exiling cards, particularly problematic permanents, is never a misplay, and you’ll always be happy to see Karn top decked. His lack of synergy with Artifacts is the only reason he lags behind both Tezzerets.
Venser, The Sojourner : Venser is a curious card. On the surface, his blink ability appears cute-but it has much greater depth than that. Venser is Unwinding Clock, Momentary Blink and others aspire to be. He can reset your mana rocks, other planeswalkers, create hilariously advantageous CiTP situations with creatures, and also interact with Animate Dead in ways that will make your opponents cry.
Artificer’s Intuition: Do not underestimate this card. AI allows you to A) pitch Sharuum targets while B) allowing you to go grab a majority of your mana rocks and answer cards. Tutor for this card early, though it’s resolution in the first three turns comes second to Sol Ring, Top and rare Third-turn kill cards.
Animate Dead : Included over Reanimate and other means for a simple reason-blink effects are some serious ****, bro. Also works nicely with Open the Vaults.
Intuition: The gamebreaker, and arguably the best tutor in the deck. With Sharuum and other recovery options, it’s easy to make your opponent’s choice irrelevant. This shouldn’t provoke you to be cocky-rather, play the card carefully, choosing targets you can either recur shortly, or ones which incrementally advance your board position. Momentary Blink and Unburial Rites are never bad options.
Detention Sphere : A recent addition that-like Animate Dead-is here primarily due to Blink effect synergies and Open the Vaults. Detention Sphere is a super-Oring, arguably better than Vindicate due to it’s recyclability and the fact it’ll draw artifact/enchantment hate out of your opponents hands. Laughs at tokens.
Brainstorm: A draw/selection spell so powerful it's been banned or restricted in almost every format. Entire articles have been wrote about Brainstorm. There's no simple way to sum up it's inclusion save that you should only use it when you absolutely have to.
Vampiric Tutor, Mystical Tutor, Enlightened Tutor, Demonic Tutor: The strongest tutors in the strongest colors in the format. All of these can grab what you need in one form or another at any given point in the game. Be wary of using them for artifacts (except enlightened), as the list already has a way to tutor for those (Kuldotha Forgemaster). Treat them as silver bullets until you're ready to combo off.
Forbidden Alchemy, Windfall, Thirst for Knowledge, Fact or Fiction: The draw package. The primary reason for these spells specifically is their ability to pitch combo pieces to the yard. They also dig incredibly deep for a low mana investment. Other draw spells such as Necrologia can also be considered, but if they're to be included they need to either A)Draw a ridiculously large amount of cards for as low a CMC as possible, or B) Work synergistically with the list by pitching artifacts to the graveyard.
[CARD]
Impulse[/CARD], Lim-Dul's Vault, Ponder: The non-artifact draw selection suite. By far, the strongest and trickiest to master is Lim-Dul's Vault, which when executed correctly enables you to cycle through your deck until you draw the best forthcoming hand as possible. This means you can cycle until you get combo pieces, solutions to board states, etc. Impulse serves a similar function-cast it when you desperately need to dig for an answer. Ponder is the weakest, but shouldn't be underestimated. Shuffling your list when your upcoming draws suck can be a lifesaver. And it cantrips!
Entomb: Functions as a tutor, but isn't. Use when you're ready to combo or have Reanimate in hand. Getting Sphinx of the Steel Wind for two mana is fun, I hear. Remember that it can grab ANYTHING-Unburial Rites, Momentary Blink and other flashback targets are all within your means.
Transmute Artifact: The least powerful tutor due to it’s additonal costs. But still add necessary redundancy while giving you a sac outlet for Sculpting Steel and Sharuum. Use as silver bullets or mana-ramp.
Unburial Rites: Casting cards from your graveyard is an easy way to catch your opponent's unaware. While Beacon of Unrest might appear a superior card, there are going to be moments when you absolutely MUST cast a resurrection spell twice in a turn. Unburial Rites fills this role while providing you an affordable, flexible way of getting cards back from the yard. Works well with all of our GY pitch cards as well.
Open the Vaults: Our non-artifact recovery suite. Open the Vaults should be used when you're massively behind, or can combo off and win upon its resolution. In either case, use sparingly and only when absolutely necessary, preferably in the late game when the likelihood of counterspells from your opponents is low.
All is Dust : Probably the best non-artifact sweeper not named “Austere Command”. All is Dust is superb at A)Pissing people off, and B)Creating a substantial board position for yourself. Cast only when you’re in a position to either Combo off or Kill remaining players.
Cards NOT Used (And Why):
Fabricate/Beseech the Queen/Idyllic Tutor/Diabolic Tutor/Diabolic Revelations/Increasing Ambition: We're already running the best 1-2 CMC instant and sorcery tutors, along with Artificer's Intuition AND Kuldotha Forgemaster. To top it off, these are sub-optimal compared with options from Portal, such as Grim Tutor and Imperial Seal.
Mycosynth Lattice / Karn, Silver Golem: Lattice and Karn allow for some unique interactions together, but apart they're marginally powerful. Lattice and Null Rod could turn the game off for everyone, which-while hilarious-is also extremely political offensive. Karn could create blockers and provide an alternate win condition, but is a creature that doesn't advance our combo, nor does anything uber effective on his own. If you must use these, use them both together or not at all.
Counter Magic: Counter magic isn't important unless you're trying to combo off. They're far too linear a solution for multiplayer commander. The only other counter spell I could justify running outside of Muddle the Mixture is Force of Will, and I don't feel we have a spot for it. A few counters with multiple modes could be justified (Cryptic Command) if your MB can support it. However, this deck doesn’t really care if it’s cards are countered since WE CAN BRING ANY RELEVANT CARD BACK FROM THE GRAVEYARD, and we’ve multiple ways to win.
Master Transmuter/Deadeye Navigator: Let me make something perfectly clear-in another build, these cards would be sick. But considering we're hoping to resolve Sharuum a limited number of times throughout the game, these two are painfully slow. Transmuter is doubly weak thanks to all the shatter effects heading our way.
- Inkwell Leviathan/ Blightsteel Colossus/ Darksteel Colossus
: Dumb robots are dumb. None of these are capable of pulling anywhere near the amount of work that Sphinx of The Steel Wind does, and require exponentially more work to get into play. Completely pointless.Traumatize: The fact competent Sharuum players actually run this card baffles me. Why on earth would you run a 5 CMC NON-INSTANT which decks a variable number of cards into your library which may or may not have combo pieces you want (and don't want) into your GY? Why do this when fantastic, synergistic card pitch already exists? Since we have such options, Traumatize is a costly, unnecessary inclusion.
[CARD]
Power Artifact[/CARD]: Not included due to availability and the fact no artifacts outside of Grim Monolith benefit from it. Were Staff of Domination legal still, this would be an auto-include.
Unwinding Clock: Dense mana rocks be damned, finding a spot for Unwinding Clock is tough. The clock simply doesn't do enough compared to others at the same CMC, and Voltaic Key is easily tutored.
Scourglass/N. Disk/Sorcery Speed Mass Removal: All of these options are too slow. O-Stone hits everything we want it to hit and proves to be a rattlesnake towards those who would confront you. The only exception to this would be Austere Command, which given room is a great inclusion.
Hex Parasite: Hex Parasite is a neat little card that is better when abused. With the current list, that's not possible, and Hexy doesn't hit enough for it to be a worthy problem solver.
Arcbound Reclaimer: We already run the best artifact recovery suite. Arcbound is unnecessary.
Relic of Progenitis: We're a deck that uses, abuses, and mistreats the graveyard. Targeted graveyard removal is a bigger political offense, but a necessary evil. Relic hitting your own yard as well makes it a bad inclusion in this list. Leyline of the Void is more costly, but more effective.
Ethersworn Adjudicator: On the surface, this appears to be everything the deck wants. But Adjudicator is ponderously slow, and without something like Lifelink or Deathtouch, is a small-fry against late game beaters.
Nim Deathmantle: Not enough creatures with CiTP effects to be worth it.
Sphinx Summoner: Better in builds of Sharuum that make use of goodstuff artifact creatures. Ineffective here.
Etherium Sculptor: A bad, more politically offensive Helm of Awakening. Being an artifact creature, he's doubly delicate. Without a way to abuse him, he's simply not worth it.
Skill Borrower: Great in decks like Arcuum Daggson, but unfortunately her variable utility makes her weak here.
Necrologia: I'm still undecided about this one. I'm using Fact or Fiction in it's place due to the fact most players create lopsided (in YOUR favor) FoF piles. FoF's interaction with the table also makes it appear that you're doing more than just playing with yourself. With more widespread testing, Necrologia may take it's place.
Necropotence: The strongest draw card of all time has a nasty exile clause which directly contradicts what we're attempting to do. Also carries a heavy political stigma. If you must run this or Necrologia, run the latter.
Phyrexian Arena: Card draw is weaker than card selection in combo decks like this. Thus, if we're to be drawing cards at all, it'll be in great volume at the precise moment we need it, not gradually over the course of a game. A weak top-deck late game, and far more effective in control-centric builds.
- Glassdust Hulk/ Disciple of the Vault
: Both of these are delicate combo finishers, along with being completely obvious. Running either is a bad idea.Enigma Sphinx: The nature of cascade-played from the hand rather than just "CiTP"-makes Enigma Sphinx a gamble with every play. Not strong enough compared to others on the curve to warrant inclusion.
Ethersworn Canonist: A majority of our combos deal with casting multiple sorceries in a single turn. Ethersworn achieves nothing but pissing off your peers. Since we're politically offensive just by playing Sharuum, she's an unncessary inclusion. If you MUST run one of these effects, I recommend Rule of Law or Arcane Labratory.
Filigree Angel: I ran this for quite some time before making the jump to Sphinx of the Steel Wind. Filigree is great upon resolution, but has a mediocre board presence. Gaining tons of life is also irrelevant with effects like Sorin Markov and Magister Sphinx in the format.
Sens Triplets: Better in it's own individual deck than here.
Steel Hellkite: For much the same reason we don't use other mass removal spells, Hellkite is excluded. The fact it's a creature and has summoning sickness (with an adjustable destruction effect) makes it less than stellar for clearing the board. Fits great in Mono-blue commander decks, but not here.
Ashnod's Alter, Krak Clan Ironworks: Not included because we've already got fantastic ramp and an infinite mana engine that works. Both allow for some creative tricks with Mirror Works and Nim Deathmantle. If you're looking for a more casual or unexpected combo, consider them.
Mirrorworks: Not included due to it's high CMC and necessary mana investment to work. While duplicating certain artifacts is awesome, there's no room for this card in the current list (8/10/2012), nor much reason for it's inclusion in the first place. Works well in casual and non-combo builds.
Darksteel Forge: DF has been tested and found lacking. It's a lackluster resurrection target since it has no immeadiate effect on the board, and given the recursion suite, is an unnecessary 9 mana inclusion. Plus, your opponents use of Shatter and Shatterstorm style effects against you is time, mana and cards wasted. Allow your opponent to blow stuff up. It's not like you can't grab it back later.
Trinket Mage Jostin123’s section on trinket mage says it better than I could, but Mage’s inclusion isn’t necessary with low CMC tutors such as Artificer’s Intuition and Enlightened tutor. Not a bad card, just taking up a spot that is better spent on other cards. Still perfectly acceptable in less powerful or focused builds.
Combos:
Sculpting Steel/Phyrexian Metamorph in the GY+ Sharuum+Bitter Ordeal= The most well known Sharuum combo. Removes all opposing libraries from the game thanks to Gravestorm. Perfect, but obvious. Use this as a ruse to draw out graveyard hate early.
Sword Of The Meek in the GY+ Thopter Foundry in Play= See prior explanation. Also painfully obvious. Use this to draw out GY hate or for chump blockers, but never create more tokens than you need blockers.
Academy Ruins+ Mindslaver= The most mana-intensive game ending combo. Mindslavering the table over and over is ill-advised unless you’re in a position to blunt their revenge. This combo won’t make you any friends, and should be reserved as a last resort with strangers.
Thopter Assembly+ Time Sieve= Infinite turns. Pretty simple. It will take one turn for this to fire off, giving the table ample opportunity to answer either. Thankfully, Sharuum and Academy Ruins makes all of that pointless.
Salvaging Station+ SoTM/TF+Lotus Bloom+Time Sieve/Blasting Station= Here is how this combo works-there was a previous error within the OP.
With Lotus Bloom and Time Sieve/Blasting Station in play, sac lotus to produce tokens with SoTM/TF. Sac tokens to either TS or BS. Recur Lotus Bloom with Station. This allows you the potential to take infinite turns or infinite damage.
Courtesy of M3mentoMori:
I also thought of another infinite mana combo, involving the infinite Sharuum-Clone loop, Station, and one of the Lotus' (either petal or bloom). The Sharuum loop creates infinite dying triggers, thus infinite untaps of Station. Use station to recur a used Lotus, sac it, use the untap trigger, sac it... Lather, Rinse, Repeat.
Weaknesses:
The only major weakness of Sharuum is it’s dependency on the Graveyard to win. There are countless options available to every decklist for eating graveyards. Player ineptness and carelessness keep GY hate relatively low, which makes bluffing and baiting players into eating your GY early a fantastic skill to have.
Artifact hate can be a speed bump. But that’s it. Eliminate hate early on so you’re free to stomp faces later.
The deck also has a serious problems with tax cards such as Kataki or Aura of Silence in the early game. The reason for this is Sharuum likes to spend her first few turns ramping up with low CMC mana rocks, and tax effects have a bad habit of slowing her down just enough for the opponent(s) to gain ground. Late game, the tax effects become beneficial, as we’re actively trying to pitch our artifacts to the graveyard.
Sharuum is incredibly popular-and likewise, maligned by a majority of the player base. The reason for this is quite simple-a majority of Sharuum decks look very similar to each other. By virtue of being a combo deck (and a tier 1 general), it also gains a lot of political stigma. Sitting down and playing Sharuum requires knowing how to play the table as well. If you’re incapable of properly manipulating multiplayer politics to your advantage, you need to look for another general.
How to Play:
Begin by being cordial with your table. I’m serious. Being polite with people who are going to groan when they see your general is a must. Making friends before turns are declared will never be the incorrect play, and can sometimes earn you leeway with your plays. Doing so will also give you an opportunity to read the rest of the table and get a feel for who they are and how they’ll play. Are they smiling and laughing back? Are they stone-faced and competitive? And, more importantly, are they playing green or combo-centric generals? Make note of each point mentally, and play your opening turns accordingly. Remember, this isn’t about you-it’s about fooling the others long enough to ignore you.
Your opening hand will determine which path to victory you take. Ideal hands have 2-3 lands, 2 mana rocks, 1-2 tutors and/or 1-2 draw/GY pitch spells. Mulligan aggressively, but always take hands which have Intuition or other filter cards in them. Mana-rock heavy opening hands are also great, as you’ll likely beat everyone else at the table (save for the green mage) in accelerating.
The early game should be as non-offensive as possible. Shift focus away from yourself and onto other high-profile strategies/generals. Tutor for mana rocks, Artificer’s Intuition and ways to set up your differing combos. If it appears as though you’re offending the table, either back off or draw out their GY hate by bluffing-act like you’re going to go off with Combo A, and immeadiately be working towards resolving Combo B. Having your graveyard removed isn’t the end of the world, and letting it happen now means getting a chance to kill everyone later.
Mid-game is when you should begin shifting towards resolving Sharuum and winning, or eliminating anyone who could hate you out of the game. While many players don’t pack sufficient graveyard hate, Kataki or Creeping Corrosion at this point is a significant setback. Start becoming the “Answer” guy/gal and deal with problems which will symmetrically aid everyone. Don’t allow any one player an edge or benefit off of your decisions (note even you. Unless you can do it in secret).
The late game should also be the point in which you begin smashing face or winning. By this point, you should have assembled one (if not more) of the primary combos, needing only one resolution left to take the table. Pay close attention to the board and players-if someone is acting nervous or eying you too often, don’t be a sucker. Bait them into using their removal by attempting an unconventional combo or using symmetrical cards which you massively benefit off of, like Open the Vaults. At this point, also be on the lookout for opposing combo players. If someone is about to go off, do all you can to stop them from achieving their dreams. Crush them, then the others.
Should the game go on longer than expected or your combos not fire off as they should, begin attempting victory in the following order:
1. Attempt all other possible combos.
2. Eliminate the weakest opponent through subterfuge and board politics. Become the control player/answer guy, and bring back Magister Sphinx as your beatstick.
3. Utilize planeswalkers to their fullest extent, and win via either Tezz’s last ability.
4. Man-land beat down.
Conclusion and Final Thoughts:
I hope you’ve enjoyed this rather exhaustive look inside one of my favorite lists! Sharuum is a powerful general that has earned every bit of her reputation. But she’s also fully capable of being a “fair” general as well, given proper pilot motivation.
I encourage you to not only try Sharuum out, but also consider alternatives, including the Sphinx Tribal builds and Reanimator variants. Sharuum’s versatility allows for several interpretations and builds suitable for all tastes and budgets.
Additional Resources:
Jostin123’s invaluable advice and personal list(INVALUABLE MATERIAL! Please read!)-
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showpost.php?p=9308182&postcount=116
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showpost.php?p=9310134&postcount=119
Kel's Sharuum the Hegemon list on CMDR Decks:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lhtka0t33VU&list=UUuKRPsZAAB1allnQnkCmDtw&index=75&feature=plpp_video
Bitterroot's Highly competitive list, shares many of the same cards/interactions as this one:
http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=174259
Change Log:
6/11/2012-Created thread, posted list, put everything in spoiler tags and spammed everywhere I could think of with the link.
6/13/2012-Added "Additional Resources" section, which will feature additional takes on the deck of note, and possibly my own CMDR deck video when I get around to creating it.
6/14/12-Made the following changes to the list:
-1 Plains
-1 Momentary Blink
+1 Aether Spellbomb
+Muddle the Mixture
Gave explanation for MTM's inclusion in "Spells of note" section.
6/18/12-Looked at Bitterroot's list for Sharuum, and realized he was onto something with Jace. Also realized Cabal Coffers is worthless in the deck over 90% of the time.
-1 JTMS
-1 Cabal Coffers
+1 Grim Monolith
+1 Windfall
Added Bitteroot's list/thread to "Additional Resources".
7/16/2012-
-1 Aether Spellbomb
-1 Revoke Existence
-1 Mindslaver
+1 Trading Post
+1 Engineered Explosives
+1 Ponder
7/30/12-
-Helm of Obedience
-Leyline of The Void
-Shizo, Death's Storehouse
+1 Read The Runes
+1 Mindslaver
+1 Reshape
7/31/12-
Added a "cards not to run" section. Will expand as comments and questions appear.
8/6/12-
-Celestial Colonnade
-Read The Runes
+1 Impulse
+1 Gemstone Mine
Read the Runes proved too mana intensive. Minor mana base tweak to help speed up the deck as well. Will be adding a detailed explanation of Card Draw vs. Card Filtering later today.
8/10/2012-
CHANGAPOLOOZA!
Was denied primer status, but with the hope and suggestion that I reapply after cleaning up and expanding certain parts of the primer. Due to this, the inclusions of the list have been expanded upon considerably. Mirror Works and Krak Clan Ironworks added to "Cards not to use" section. More beautifying and expansion to come.
Few other changes, will update later.
8/17/12-
Card tags added, general gussying up. Going to (hopefully) alphabetize and/or expand upon the primer more this weekend with testing. Added Darksteel Forge to the "cards not to play" list. Added a "deck history" subsection.
11/7/12-
-Mindslaver
+Spine of Ish Sah
Added Karn, Silver Golem/Mycosynth Lattice and Mindslaver on the "Cards not used and why" section. More changes coming.
11/13/12-
-Spine of Ish Sah
+Karn Liberated
Thanks to Jostin123's mammoth amount of posting, there will be some serious changes coming soon to the OP and my list. Keep your eyes peeled!
11/19/12-
Edited an error within the Op regarding a combo. Will soon integrate Jostin123's contribution to the post, hopefully get some clean-up work done on thanksgiving break, with newest list tested at GP Charleston.
11/27/12-CHANGAPOOLOZA PART 2-
Overhaul of the OP and OP decklist, inclusion of help from the fantastic posters here, and update to cards to play/not to play list. Read over and revel in the change, people!
Also, update of GP Charleston. Finally. Hopefully. Maybe.
Thanks, Heroes of The Planes! You guys are great!
Actual Truth:
Experimental Kraj
I actually ran her for the longest time before eventually swapping her out for Tezz AoB. The reason for this was I'd rather be able to dig for artifact cards when necessary or create blockers. Tezz AoB allows me to stall into a combo, as well as provides another alternate win condition. The other major problem with Transmuter is her extremely delicate body-she dies to twice the removal of a normal creature thanks to shatter effects. Couple this with having to wait to activate her, and she just proved to be too slow for me.
However, she works great in builds featuring more ETB/CiTP effects.
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Actual Truth:
Thanks, Heroes of The Planes! You guys are great!
Actual Truth:
Experimental Kraj
Fixed!
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Actual Truth:
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
Woop! Sorry about that. I'll apply in a months time, then.
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Actual Truth:
Got some testing in the last few days. I feel comfortable with the number of ways I have to get stuff into the graveyard-but I'm questioning if I don't need another way to resurrect my targets. Getting creatures back isn't a problem-getting artifacts of all varieties sometimes can be. The problem is finding a card that could work before turn six that doesn't detract away from the synergy of the deck and pulls more work than Unburial Rites and Reanimate already do.
Also, I'm thinking about replacing Shizo, Death's Storehouse with Vault of the Archangel, as it works with the rest of my creatures/manlands in a much more proactive fashion. Thoughts?
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Actual Truth:
I guess it would work well with the thopters, using it with the manlands ties loads of mana though. Shizo is nice political tool also, but I guess it can be hard to play politics with deck like this
I'll be sure to hit yours up in just a minute!
You'd be surprised-True, just seeing Sharuum can cause a lot of people to groan, but if you play it carefully (read: correctly) You can appear harmless until it's absolutely necessary to strike/win. It's rare I activate Shizo for anything more than black mana. Vault would at least give me versatility with my other creatures, and could turn those thopters into great defensive blockers.
We'll see. Hopefully next friday (or before then) I'll be able to provide an update with better testing.
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Actual Truth:
SO HELP ME GODS, THIS CARD WILL FIND A HOME IN THIS DECK.
*also, changed up the mana base a bit and added some removal. Will update change log when I get home.
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Actual Truth:
The sac a creature to return an artifact seems very strong.
At the least, this deserves testing. Return ANY artifact card? Whaaattt?
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Actual Truth:
Experimental Kraj
What concerns me about the card is finding a place for it in my list. Space is extremely limited, and I don't know what I would put it in over. A land? I'm uncomfortable doing that unless I'm cutting for a degenerate mana rock. Salvaging Station? That'd eliminate one combo from the deck entirely.
I'll have to re-evaluate it when I get home(as well as update the change log).
I feel like this card would be right at home in your list, coincidently. Maybe over Arcbound Reclaimer.
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Actual Truth:
I agree with everything you said except I already cut Reclaimer so I'll have to find something else to cut for it.
Experimental Kraj
have you ever considered running Deadeye Navigator in your deck??? I haven't seen any mention of the interaction on here yet, but if you pair him with duplicant and leave mana up you could remove multiple creatures every turn..
It's been a month since our last update, but here we go.
I finally got some quality testing in with the list. Mindslaver was woefully under performing, and I've been looking for a reason to cut it. Trading Post gave me that reason. This thing is the real deal-the hype in my earlier posts was warranted. It acts as an additional Academy in many situations, and at worst will enable your combos. It's CMC is a little higher than I'd like, but that's life.
Revoke Existence and Aether Spellbomb have both been removed due to under performing as well. Engineered Explosives is here on a trial basis-tokens have been a serious problem in my meta, and this seemed the most nuanced solution. It's also a great random problem solver. Ponder has been included due to the deck having such a strong combo focus. It should have been there to start with, honestly. We need as much library manipulation as we can get.
Also, one more small change-I used Swords to Plowshares over Path to Exile, because ramping your opponent is badddd.
Also:
Necrologia over Fact or Fiction. Thoughts?
@Tach08: Deadeye and similar blink effects have rarely proven their worth in the list. Momentary Blink was the closest, but only because it could enable cute tricks with Intuition. At 5 mana plus an activation cost, Deadeye is way, wayyy too slow for a deck with so few creatures in it. Master Transmuter would be an even better consideration, but is left out for the same reason-she's too slow.
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Actual Truth:
Hey folks. Made a few small changes to the list. Slaver is back in due to Trading post being a sick card. Read the Runes is in (on trial) due to the decklist lacking synergistic draw. Oh, and Reshape is in, because tutors rock.
EDIT: Primer status applied for. Keep your fingers crossed.
DOUBLE EDIT: Updated with a cards NOT used section. Feel free to comment upon it.
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Actual Truth:
And this is pure win. I love everything about. I was wondering why you weren't running counterspells and the best sweeps, but I figured it's not needed with everything else involved.
Big fan of Izzet
Due to the recovery suite, you really don't worry about counters or sweep. O-stone does everything you want it to do, and is a great political tool. Though, if I had the room, Austere Command would go in as well.
Counters are extremely linear solutions to problems, and you only need to worry about them when you're trying to combo, which is pointless unless you can cast them for free since you usually can't afford the extra mana to cast them. If a combo fails, you simply try again or move on to the next one.
I test this list every week. I've a few small-ish updates to make, but it's still pretty much the same. I'd run real duals if I had them. Also, this list appears "slow" compared to others-there's a reason for that. You want to appear as politically non-offensive as possible, then combo off when the table least expects it.
I also recommend checking out Bitter Root's list under "additional resources".
Thanks, Heroes of The Planes! You guys are great!
Actual Truth:
I love the primer, just one question: since you're looking to stay politically correct, how about a counterspell (sometimes you just need one) like Arcane Denial?