Blightsteel Colossus is one of those cards that always gets more and more fun as you stick more and more effects onto it. It also has a tendency a ending games very abruptly. Not as abruptly as my Dovescape deck; it managed to deal 2[SUP]64[/SUP] points of damage to every other player in a star magic game turn 7. Then again, it's Dovescape. What else do you expect?
I wrote a Magic article. Feel free to tell me what you guys think. Read it below if you wish: Spoiler: EDH/Commander: The "Theros" Gods as Commanders EDH/Commander: The "Theros" Gods as Commanders From the day I was first introduced to the beautiful - and sometimes frustrating - format known to many as Elder Dragon Highlander, I was hooked. I made Commander decks out of every kind of color combination, challenging myself in every way. I built mono-colored builds, builds around popular tri-color commanders such as Nekusar and Prossh, and even a pretty fun W/R deck based around Gisella, Blade of Goldnight. But when I was tinkering with my EDH decks the night of the Journey Into Nyx Pre-Release, it occurred to me that the various gods of Theros might make pretty interesting commanders for two-color or mono-color EDH decks. I quickly became obsessed with the idea of which god would be the best commander, but the answer would prove more complicated than I initially thought. After a bit of testing, some combo experimentation and an awful lot of math, I present my findings, here. You are looking at a countdown of the Top Five Best Theros Gods as Commanders. The rankings of each individual god will remain disputed by many, but here I have used the speed with which a god's effects can win a game, the relevance of each god's effects in Commander as a format and the political value of each god in Commander. For example, Iona, Shield of Emeria can lock out a mono-colored player, but she doesn't make for a very good commander because she isn't a political card; a player using Iona often gets killed first and often. I narrowed the list down to five gods that were flavorful, powerful and welcome additions to the format. I recognize some of the other gods can be used well, but these as I see them are the best five. The Honorable Mentions: Keranos, Ephara and Erebos These are three very significant gods. When I first thought about Keranos, God of Storms as a Commander, I was excited. Izzet doesn't get too many commanders that don't make you a target for damage, attacks or removal, so I thought Keranos would offer players a balanced and fair alternative to the typically risky, powerful Izzet commanders. Keranos does pack burn with draw and field presence, so he's a good card and a nice little clock, but the fact of the matter is that he just isn't very efficient. He didn't make the cut for the list because unlike the gods we will look at later on, Keranos' strong points are either already commonplace in his colors (Izzet never wants for drawing cards or burning) or near-useless in any practical situation (staying on the field is only relevant if we're going to use his effects to further our game state or attack). In addition, his burn can only target one creature/player per turn, so he isn't very efficient in commander. I might use him, but he wouldn't be my first choice. Keranos, while he is one of my personal favorite three gods for his color combinations and flavor, just doesn't make the cut. Ephara, God of the Polis is similarly good for drawing cards, but we find ourselves making a choice between Ephara, who can give you some basic draw, and every other Azorius commander who has some insane ability that is easy to combo or work with. I like Ephara and believe she is a good card, even without recognizing her awesome artwork. That said, all she does is draw cards. Drawing cards is important but does not win you games. I think this card has been a little over-hyped by some players, though I can't deny its usefulness in any deck that can run it. In addition to not providing any other effects, Ephara herself belongs to a color (Blue) that draws cards easily; in that sense, she has the same problem as Keranos. I would probably put her in at #6 on this list had I chosen to create such a slot. Erebos, God of the Dead's real strength is in his ability to draw cards and stop your opponents from gaining life. This is very significant and relevant to Commander, so why isn't he on the list? I truly believe the other five gods are better commanders and that their abilities outweigh Erebos' strengths of paying life to draw a card in mono-black or stopping your opponents from gaining life. That said, the ability to shut down all life-gain abilities and then gain life yourself is nothing to sniff at. Erebos is a fair commander in Black, which is often thought of as one of the the three stronger colors in the format. His field presence doesn't hurt, and his ability is relatively cheap, just like he is. Toss his whip and a bunch of other life-gain effects in, and you've got yourself a deck to be reckoned with. I'd play him as one of the 99 any day, and if this list went to six, he would be on it. Now, let's move on to the real contenders. #5 Mogis, God of Slaughter While he doesn't offer any draw or anti-life gain strategies, Mogis is one of the more flavorful gods, forcing your opponents to make a choice that is right in line with his colors. Cast him early, and your opponents will start to take a boatload of damage lest they sacrifice everything they put down. It makes for some very fun games.While I'm not certain I would call him competitive, I've tried Mogis out alongside Havoc Festival, Leyline of Punishment and some other fun cards. The best thing about Mogis is that as soon as you really start the game, everybody stops caring who wins. He's a fun card and he makes games fun while giving you a chance to succeed. As such, I rate him very highly. #4 Purphoros, God of the Forge At this point, you probably think I'm in love with Red. I won't lie to you, I've always liked mono-Red in Standard, but in EDH mono-Red tends to suck it up. They have only a couple nice commanders, almost nothing in the way of draw, and their late game strategies tend to be restricted to playing a bunch of dragons. Until you get a card like Purphoros. Good 'ol Purph makes mono-Red fun again. He's also great in, say, a Jund sacrifice deck or a Naya tokens deck. He's actually quite the magnificent card, dealing 2 to each opponent whenever his controller puts a creature into play. That includes tokens. All of a sudden, Tempt With Vengeance is looking pretty good, isn't it? #3 Xenagos, God of Revels I have seen this guy crush other players in a single turn, and then move on the crush the next player simply because he demands an immediate answer. Imagine that +X power effect with Worldspine Wurm. Attack for 30 damage? Oh yes please. Unfortunately, Xenagos is still bound by the traditional mana-curve, but he comes out quick and then sits there waiting for your big creatures, which can be tricked out if you're sneaky. Once that happens, you're the biggest threat on the table and the game is in the palm of your hand. #2 Karametra, God of Harvests EDH is a format of giant creatures and crazy combos. Ramping is key. If you can ramp into your commander and then use your commander's ability to ramp into something else, you'll put out a huge creature when your opponents are just getting started. Karametra is the best ramping commander that comes to mind simply because she is so hard to kill. Decks built around her aren't as aggressive as those built around Xenagos or Mogis, but Karametra is a good card for Commander and is often underrated. She can rock in tokens aggro or in anything G/W control; she gives the builder freedom to choose a number of styles, promising to give them more lands either way. #1 Kruphix, God of Horizons Ah, I can hear the pitchforks knocking at my door already. Kruphix has, alongside Karametra, been decried as the worst god in the Theros block. And that's fine and good, as long as you're talking about Standard. In EDH, the story is a bit different. Kruphix offers near-unlimited mana for a very small cost, and combined the Prophet of Kruphix you're getting at least 15 extra mana the turn after you cast him. This means you can go straight into a giant Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre, or save up to cast a Mistcutter Hydra with 40 power and swing for game on one of your opponents. The possibilities are truly endless, and in two rocking Commander colors Kruphix is sure to gain a lot of love very fast. If you think this is a bad card, think again. So, that's it for this countdown. Are there any unmentioned gods that you think make great commanders? What else do you have to add about the honorable mentions, Keranos, Ephara and Erebos? Which god have you built a deck around?
Khans of Tarkir has been announced for this fall! We're finally seeing the home plane of Sarkhan Vol!
"Here's some art spoilers from the next block," he said, bumping the thread with his third post in a row. I'm excited to see Sarkhan Vol return; I really, really want him to be a Red/Green walker this time. Let's give the Gruul colors some draw in standard! We truly need it; we have some niched plays, plus Genesis Hydra and Chord of Calling, only one of which really fits in with the current Red/Green monsters build. Come on, Wizards, let's see some more Gruul love! You can do it!
