Back when Modern Horizons 3 first came out, there were a lot of questions about just how well Phlage, Titan of Fire’s Fury would perform in a fast environment like Modern. Following in the footsteps of Uro, Titan of Nature’s Wrath is quite difficult, and Phlage can be a bit clunky all things considered.
Yet, Phlage proved to be an absolute monster, showing up in aggro and control decks alike. Now, it seems that Phlage is taking its dominance to another format.
Phlage has been absolutely crushing recent Duel Commander events. In yesterday’s Magic Online Duel Commander Trial, five of the top eight decks had Phlage at the helm. This comes after winning two Trials back on March 2 and March 3. Phlage brings a lot of grinding power to the table for Boros aggro shells, so let’s take a closer look.
Phlage as a Finisher
As good as Phlage is, Phlage doesn’t really make much noise in traditional Commander. There are a few reasons for this. First, in a 40-life multiplayer format where big creatures rule the day, Phlage’s “Lightning Helix” ability isn’t all that impressive.
On top of that, Phlage doesn’t stick around upon its first cast. In order to get it to start attacking, you first have to escape it, which can take some effort in an EDH setting. After all that, if Phlage gets removed, you have to go through the escape process all over again to get your reward.
The nature of the Duel Commander format, however, allows Phlage to thrive. Duel Commander is a 20-life, one-versus-one format, which means assertive creature decks are much more prominent. Having access to a removal spell in your Command Zone when facing Phelia, Exuberant Shepherd or Norin, Swift Survivalist is incredible.
While you do still have to manage to get enough cards in your graveyard to escape Phlage to fully maximize the Elder Giant, this isn’t too difficult to do. Most of the deck is filled with cards that demand answers. From Ocelot Pride to Broadisde Bombardiers, your opponents will fall quite far behind if they can’t kill your threats on time. If they are removing your other creatures, Phlage will be online soon enough.
You also have access to some cards like Fable of the Mirror-Breaker and Seasoned Pyromancer that fuel your graveyard while simultaneously adding to the board. Before you know it, you’ll be casting Phlage and sending more damage wherever you choose.
In a 20-life format, dealing three damage to your opponent also adds up fast. Casting Phlage, then escaping it already results in a potential 12 point life swing. If Phlage gets a single attack, you likely just win. Even if it doesn’t, you can recast Phlage for five mana and send more damage to your opponent’s face. Phlage keeps the opponent off balance, thrives in attrition battles, and ends games. What more could you want?
Alternative Deckbuilding
Another cool thing about Phlage is that its abilities open the door for some different deckbuilding ideas. Take the winning decklist of the most recent Trial shown above, for example. Many top tier aggro cards, including Ocelot Pride, don’t make an appearance here. In fact, the only creature that costs one mana in the whole deck is Phyrexian Dreadnought.
Phyrexian Dreadnought’s inclusion is a pretty big signal that this deck is constructed very differently. Rather than looking to curve out with aggressive cards and use Phlage as a way to clear away blockers and finish off the opponent, this deck wants to sidestep Phlage’s escape clause altogether.
The key is to land one of many permanents that prevent enters-the-battlefield effects from triggering. Doorkeeper Thrull, Hushbringer, and Torpor Orb, all enable Phlage perfectly.
After playing one of these cards turn two, you can follow up with Phlage. Phlage won’t deal damage when it enters, but it also won’t go to the graveyard. You get 6/6 with a brutal attack trigger ready to go for three mana. These cards like Doorkeeper Thrull then mess with opposing creature decks as a nice bonus.
This shell is much more of a Prison-style deck is a result. There’s even a land destruction package ranging from Boom/Bust to Armageddon.
You’ll also find looting effects such as Bitter Reunion and Faithless Looting to fuel your graveyard for Phlage ahead of schedule and set up your draws. These cards dig for Doorkeeper Thrull and company, too, which make winning much easier.
An Interesting Development
Phlage’s recent surge may seem a bit problematic. Making up five spots in the top eight of a tournament is usually a bad sign for the health of any format. However, the Duel Commander metagame has shown its ability to adjust.
Following the ban to Ezio Auditore da Firenze, there was rising concern that Aragorn decks would be too strong. Aragorn was already the most played deck in Duel Commander according to MTGTOP8 prior to Ezio’s ban.
With Phlage on the rise, though, Aragorn has been much quieter as of late on Magic Online. At the same time, as good as Phlage is performing on Magic Online, MTGTOP8 data suggests that the legend is far from problematic in paper.
It’s still possible Phlage or Aragorn get the axe at some point, but for now, it seems best to let the format play out and see how the metagame evolves.