Grixis, Bolas and Planeswalkers

As a mentioned a few posts ago, playing against Eldrazi isn't always fun. So, my Arcanis / Braids / Eldrazi deck is on hiatus for a while. In it's place, behold: Nicol Bolas!



Okay, maybe Bolas isn't tons of fun either, but this deck isn't designed to go all out. With Bolas in the Commander slot and no way to cheat him into play, it's not like you won't see him coming. Besides, I'm not running ANY equipment (no haste, shroud, or hexproof). A couple of other things to note:

1) There are no sweepers other than O.Stone and N.Disk.
2) There are enough Planeswalkers to see a couple per game.
3) The creatures are few. And they are ones that I felt made an impact on the game that other players would feel. They aren't just random beaters.
4) These are my leftover cards. I'm not taking anything else apart to build this, so most of the "staple" EDH cards are not here: Solemn Simulacrum, Sol Ring, etc.

The Creatures:

Clone and Evil Twin are both there to cause problems to Legendary creatures, particularly Commanders. Because of the Legend rule, both of these cards work as very effective Commander removal. Phyrexian Metamorph and Phantasmal Image are probably both better, but I don't have them. :)



Charmbreaker Devils, Kozilek, Consecrated Sphinx, Magus of the Future, and Sphinx of Uthuun are all spectacular at giving me more fuel for the fire. The Devils throw a spell back into my hand. Kozilek is a powerhouse. He doesn't just beat up Truth; he butchers it. The Consecrated Sphinx is ridiculous. No, seriously. Future Sight is one of my all-time favorite cards, so the Magus of the same gets the nod, and who doesn't like Fact or Fiction stapled to a big, flying Sphinx?



Geth, Kaervek, Prince of Thralls, Psychosis Crawler, Gilded Drake and Thraximundar are all trouble-makers. Geth's ability fits my theme of "stealing" creatures, only his thievery happens after they are dead. The Drake steals the best targetable creature on the table. How is the flavor text on that card not, "Here, have a drake."? The Prince lets me ask this question over and over, "Do I get it?" No end of fun there. Psychosis Crawler can get really out of hand, fast. And as Bolas' Zombie Assassin, Thraximundar is in-theme. Although he is a great creature (and causes a sacrifice), I'm not sure that I want him here. He's on my watch list. Saying his name is fun, though.




With all the Planeswalkers running around, Savor the Moment and Rings of Brighthearth really shine. Savor the Moment basically reads: Activate your Planeswalkers again. Oh, and play a land if you've got one. Blue ramp! Rings of Brighthearth is crazy and deserves a separate post altogether. Pro-tip: You can use Rings with the Planeswalker abilities, and the fetch lands, and cycling, and the list goes on.




I'm thinking that the deck might want Keening Stone. There are a few other possibilities I'm considering, but I want to try it in this configuration before I start making wholesale changes. I love building and testing new decks! There's something fulfilling about testing out themes and pushing them. I like winning as much as the next guy, but this is about winning with style.




Minor Note: I switched out Syphon Mind for Liliana of the Dark Realms in my mono-black demon deck. Syphon Mind can be a spectacular card, but it doesn't really fit the themes in my deck and I've never had a big turn from playing it. Your mileage may vary. Plus, Liliana is what the deck is all about. :)