Kodama of the West Tree will give you more mana than you’ll know what to do with. This Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Commander puts insane amounts of land into play, ramping you into some of the biggest spells in all of Magic: the Gathering.
Kodama of the West Tree
Kodama of the West Tree puts a land into play whenever one of your modified creatures deals combat damage to a player.
Modified is a new mechanic from Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. A creature is considered modified if they are equipped, enchanted with an Aura, or has counters.
It is possible to make a Kodama deck with an emphasis on Equipment or Auras. But Kodama of the West Tree really wants to attack with as many modified creatures as possible. To maximize Kodama’s ramping potential, this deck focuses on developing wide board states with many creatures and modifying them with +1/+1 counters.
MVP’s of the Deck
Avenger of Zendikar
Avenger of Zendikar is a classic inclusion in many ramp-focused Commander decks. But it synergizes particularly well with Kodama of the West Tree.
Not only does Avenger of Zendikar make a ton of tokens, but the Elemental also modifies them. With a single land, Avenger puts a +1/+1 counter on every plant you control. At that point, attack your opponents and put chunks of land into play with Kodama.
And if Kodama has already ramped out your 20+ Forests from your deck, then Avenger will make 20+ tokens!
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The Great Henge
With all the +1/+1 counter effects in this deck, it is easy to cast The Great Henge for as little as two mana. At that point, the Henge will modify every nontoken creature that enters your battlefield and draw you a card for each one.
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Nissa, Who Shakes the World
Kodama of the West Tree will put epic amounts of Forests into play. Nissa, Who Shakes the World, will double the mana those lands can produce. On top of that, she can also turn you lands into modified creatures with +1/+1 counters.
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Kodama’s Two Avenues For Ramping
There are two main ways to set up Kodama and get the most out of its land-ramping ability. You can either play creatures that come into play with +1/+1 counters, or you can use spells to put +1/+1 counters on otherwise unmodified creatures.
Low-Cost Modified Creatures
One and two mana creatures that come into play with +1/+1 counters create some of the most explosive opening plays in the deck because they come into play before Kodama does. This way, you can attack with creatures such as Swarm Shambler on the turn you play Kodama of the West Tree and immediately ramp lands into play with Kodama’s ability.
Creatures that Scale Up
Creatures with X in their mana value are extra versatile in a Kodama of the West Tree Commander deck.
The above creatures all enter the battlefield with +1/+1 counters equal to the amount of mana you use to play them. You can play them as early modified creatures to ramp with Kodama. But after you’ve ramped, you can also dump a ton of mana into these creatures to make them as big as possible.
Modifying Low-Cost Creatures
As with most green Commander decks, Kodama will play the typical suite of mana dorks such as Elvish Mystic, Llanowar Elves, and Fyndhorn Elves. This deck also produces a sizable army of tokens.
All of these low-cost creatures can be easily modified with +1/+1 counters so that they’ll trigger Kodama’s ability.
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Landfall Payoffs
Kodama of the West Tree will put a lot of lands into play over the course of a game. If that weren’t already good enough, you can capitalize on these land drops with landfall abilities.
Tireless Tracker is a card-drawing engine in combination with Kodama; it can also modify itself easily. Evolution Sage will make all of your modified creatures bigger with proliferate. And Tireless Provisioner can provide life gain or additional ramp through its stream of Food and Treasure tokens.
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Ramp Payoffs
With all the lands that Kodama puts into play, you can easily cast some of the biggest, baddest creatures in Magic: the Gathering.
Classic MTG Bombs
Vorinclex doubles the amount of +1/+1 counters put on your creatures. Vigor protects your team from damage while drawing a substantial number of cards in the process. And Craterhoof is a classic, game-ending Commander spell.
Eldrazi
The Eldrazi are some of the biggest creatures in the entire Magic: the Gathering universe. They can be difficult to cast. But in a dedicated ramp deck like Kodama of the West Tree, casting an Ulamog is a walk in the park.
Hydras
Similar to the X spells previously mentioned, Hydras usually modify themselves with +1/+1 counters and scale well throughout the different stages of a game.
Steelbane Hydra is a good source of artifact and enchantment removal. Vastwood Hydra modifies your other creatures when it dies. And Wren’s Run Hydra can either be played as a massive creature, or used to reinforce another creature with +1/+1 counters.
Kodama notably gives all the above Hydras trample giving them lethal potential.
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+1/+1 Counter Support
This deck is as much of a +1/+1 counter deck as it is a ramp deck. Here are a few inclusions to make the most out of the +1/+1 counters theme for Kodama of the West Tree.
Counter Doublers
Doubling effects make for some of the most epic Commander plays. If you’re going to modify a creature with +1/+1 counters, why not make them doubly as big with the above enchantments?
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Card Draw
With all of the +1/+1 counters in this deck, Armorcraft Judge and Inspiring Call can draw a ton of cards. Inspiring Call can also serve as a good defense against board wipes.
Infinite Creatures Combo
The best combos in Commander are the ones whose individual pieces naturally synergize with a deck on their own.
Ivy Lane Denizen practically modifies every creature in this deck when they come into play. And both Scurry Oak and Herd Baloth produce tokens when +1/+1 counters are placed on them.
But together, these cards create an infinite number of tokens that can attack your opponents for infinite damage. When Ivy Lane Denizen places a +1/+1 counter on Scurry Oak or Herd Baloth, they will make a green creature token, which will trigger Denizen’s ability again. This loop can be performed an infinite number of times.
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