The super-competitive nature of cEDH makes the format inhospitable to funky brews for the most part. Yet, every so often, an unexpected archetype still manages to crush a tournament out of nowhere. Just yesterday, for example, an Edric, Spymaster of Trest deck with an extremely unorthodox game plan won a 73-player event.
Drawing Cards and Taking Turns
In order to get the most out of what Edric brings to the table, this cEDH shell piloted by Yoshida Toshiyuki unsurprisingly plays a high density of cheap creatures. In the one-drop slot, you’ll find a bunch of mana dorks ranging from
Delighted Halfling
Delighted Halfling
{T}: Add {C}.
{T}: Add one mana of any color. Spend this mana only to cast a legendary spell, and that spell can't be countered.
to
Boreal Druid
Boreal Druid
{T}: Add {C}.
, all capable of accelerating towards Edric. From there, most of the rest of the creature base is filled with efficient fliers like
Faerie Mastermind
Faerie Mastermind
Flash
Flying
Whenever an opponent draws their second card each turn, you draw a card.
{3}{U}: Each player draws a card.
and
Ledger Shredder
Ledger Shredder
Flying
Whenever a player casts their second spell each turn, this creature connives. (Draw a card, then discard a card. If you discarded a nonland card, put a +1/+1 counter on this creature.)
that can reliably trigger your Commander.
Once you’ve assembled a formidable force of attackers, all you’re looking to do is cast a flurry of extra turn spells and continue drawing more cards.
Nexus of Fate
Nexus of Fate
Take an extra turn after this one.
If Nexus of Fate would be put into a graveyard from anywhere, reveal Nexus of Fate and shuffle it into its owner's library instead.
,
Walk the Aeons
Walk the Aeons
Buyback—Sacrifice three Islands. (You may sacrifice three Islands in addition to any other costs as you cast this spell. If you do, put this card into your hand as it resolves.)
Target player takes an extra turn after this one.
, and many more similar effects make an appearance, making it more likely you can chain extra turn spells together.
Alrund’s Epiphany
Alrund’s Epiphany
Create two 1/1 blue Bird creature tokens with flying. Take an extra turn after this one. Exile Alrund's Epiphany.
Foretell {4}{U}{U} (During your turn, you may pay {2} and exile this card from your hand face down. Cast it on a later turn for its foretell cost.)
and
Notorious Throng
Notorious Throng
Prowl {5}{U} (You may cast this for its prowl cost if you dealt combat damage to a player this turn with a Rogue.)
Create X 1/1 black Faerie Rogue creature tokens with flying, where X is the damage dealt to your opponents this turn. If this spell's prowl cost was paid, take an extra turn after this one.
even have the upside of netting you extra fliers in the process, further increasing your board presence.
While these spells are admittedly quite expensive, this deck has tons of ways to develop an overwhelming mana advantage.
Gaea’s Cradle
Gaea’s Cradle
{T}: Add {G} for each creature you control.
is particularly broken, but
Carpet of Flowers
Carpet of Flowers
At the beginning of each of your main phases, if you haven't added mana with this ability this turn, you may add X mana of any one color, where X is the number of Islands target opponent controls.
and
The Cabbage Merchant
The Cabbage Merchant
Whenever an opponent casts a noncreature spell, create a Food token. (It's an artifact with "{2}, {T}, Sacrifice this token: You gain 3 life.")
Whenever a creature deals combat damage to you, sacrifice a Food token.
Tap two untapped Foods you control: Add one mana of any color.
also work wonders alongside your wealth of mana dorks.
From there, you just need ways to guarantee your extra turn spells resolve, so this deck comes prepared with multiple anti-counterspell measures.
Dosan, the Falling Leaf
Dosan, the Falling Leaf
Players can cast spells only during their own turns.
makes a splash among your creatures, tutorable with
Birthing Pod
Birthing Pod
({G/P} can be paid with either {G} or 2 life.)
{1}{G/P}, {T}, Sacrifice a creature: Search your library for a creature card with mana value equal to 1 plus the sacrificed creature's mana value, put that card onto the battlefield, then shuffle. Activate only as a sorcery.
when necessary. Similarly,
Sylvan Scrying
Sylvan Scrying
Search your library for a land card, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle.
and
Crop Rotation
Crop Rotation
As an additional cost to cast this spell, sacrifice a land.
Search your library for a land card, put that card onto the battlefield, then shuffle.
can grab
Boseiju, Who Shelters All
Boseiju, Who Shelters All
Boseiju enters tapped.
{T}, Pay 2 life: Add {C}. If that mana is spent on an instant or sorcery spell, that spell can't be countered.
or
Mistrise Village
Mistrise Village
This land enters tapped unless you control a Mountain or a Forest.
{T}: Add {U}.
{U}, {T}: The next spell you cast this turn can't be countered.
at will to serve the same task.
All the while, your healthy mix of free counterspells and protective elements like
Sylvan Safekeeper
Sylvan Safekeeper
Sacrifice a land: Target creature you control gains shroud until end of turn. (It can't be the target of spells or abilities.)
make it trivial to keep Edric on the board and ride it to victory. Eventually, thanks to Nexus of Fate’s ability to shuffle back into your deck, you should be able to loop extra turns endlessly until you cross the finish line.
A One-Dimensional Plan
Despite its unusual theme, this deck has a streamlined approach with several benefits. In the context of cEDH, where creature removal and board wipes aren’t super prevalent, your plan of building out a big board unencumbered is more reliable than you might expect. At the same time, Edric does a great job digging for counterspells to keep
Underworld Breach
Underworld Breach
Each nonland card in your graveyard has escape. The escape cost is equal to the card's mana cost plus exile three other cards from your graveyard. (You may cast cards from your graveyard for their escape cost.)
At the beginning of the end step, sacrifice this enchantment.
and other traditional combo pieces in check.
Where this deck can run into problems, however, is with its lack of removal. Outside of
Gilded Drake
Gilded Drake
Flying
When this creature enters, exchange control of this creature and up to one target creature an opponent controls. If you don't or can't make an exchange, sacrifice this creature. This ability still resolves if its target becomes illegal.
and
Volatile Stormdrake
Volatile Stormdrake
Flying, hexproof from activated and triggered abilities
When this creature enters, exchange control of this creature and target creature an opponent controls. If you do, you get {E}{E}{E}{E}, then sacrifice that creature unless you pay an amount of {E} equal to its mana value.
, you don’t have easy ways to deal with
Orcish Bowmasters
Orcish Bowmasters
Flash
When this creature enters and whenever an opponent draws a card except the first one they draw in each of their draw steps, this creature deals 1 damage to any target. Then amass Orcs 1.
, which single-handedly demolishes Edric. This deck’s reliance on mana dorks also makes it rather weak to
Cursed Totem
Cursed Totem
Activated abilities of creatures can't be activated.
in some games, and your anti-artifact measures like
Collector Ouphe
Collector Ouphe
Activated abilities of artifacts can't be activated.
don’t negate its effect.
If that weren’t enough, there are even go-wide strategies like
Winota, Joiner of Forces
Winota, Joiner of Forces
Whenever a non-Human creature you control attacks, look at the top six cards of your library. You may put a Human creature card from among them onto the battlefield tapped and attacking. It gains indestructible until end of turn. Put the rest of the cards on the bottom of your library in a random order.
that get a big advantage from Edric’s symmetrical effect. This combination of weaknesses makes this Commander feel a step below other top-tier options. Still, winning a 73-player cEDH tournament is no easy feat, suggesting that Edric can be a fantastic metagame counter to a lot of common decks.
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