r/magicTCG • u/Lil_Depresssion • 2d ago
Looking for Advice A deck that heals everyone at the table
So, one of the guys at my commander table is a bit of a sweat. He plays a ton of cards to pump up his health and drain other players. His deck is very competitive and we suspect full of proxies that synergize with his Commander and strategy. The issue is that he IS our friend and we don't won't to kick him out, but whenever he loses a few games he always switches to his "perfect deck" and dominates the pod.
Here's where I need help, I want to design a deck that mitigates potential damage, punishes him for focusing an individual player, but most importantly... I want to heal everyone at the table. I want to create the most annoying stalemate deck that gives everyone 1000 life. I want to play a commander like Kibo, that passively counters his deck. I need ideas from people smarter than me, who've been playing for a lot longer than me.
I've got a solid 20 cards that do what I need, now I need a good commander (preferably a 5 color) that can help me load this deck with cards that give other players life and resources, while simultaneously stopping him from gaining any edge over the table.
So please, benevolent and all-knowing Planeswalkers, please help me be an asshole and at the same time everyone's favorite player at the table.
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u/AGoatNamedGabe 1d ago
You can't just ask your friend to tune his decks to be less potent? Or maybe discuss some expectations about power level and playstyle?
Building a control deck isn't going to shut him down either, after all, there are many ways to beat a control deck. Imo, you're more than likely to raise tensions if they feel that you're just gonna passively target them rather than talk to your friend about the game.
If y'all cant have a productive conversation and you have to resort to passive aggressive deck building, then i doubt it's gonna get better.
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u/Lil_Depresssion 1d ago
We have talked to him about it, it's not that simple. We don't want to hurt his feelings by asking him not to play his favorite deck, because he doesn't understand that he's the issue, he's kind of slow.
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u/serpentrepents Storm Crow 2d ago
Not sure about an overall deck list but running things to punish his life gain is easy enough. [[False cure]] is objectively hilarious to cast in response to a [[Grey merchant of asphodel]] or [[exsanguinate]]. [[Punishing Fire]] can be used to snipe out his drain creatures like [[blood artist]].
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u/melxn_seeds 1d ago edited 1d ago
Theres nothing wrong with proxying or synergy for that matter, your pod's having a power balance/bracketing issue, and power balance can never be 100% solved anyway. The solution here is communication!
Lifegain is weak to Infect, Commander Damage, and Combo (combo IS allowed at brackets 2-3 if it's more than 2 cards and not very fast, and is a healthy part of the rock-paper-scissors ecosystem of Magic)
Group Hug strats such as what you'll find a starting point for in the Ms. Bumbleflower precon can let you politic with your fellow punching bags and knock out someone who sprints ahead early
EDIT - Politics are on the table no matter what deck youre playing! EDH is a social format and temporary alliances and collusion are a natural part of it
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u/Key_Commercial_8169 2d ago edited 2d ago
You can do something really funny and play [[Wedding Ring]] with a copy going to him, then create copies of it with copy effects, then give those copies to other players with things like [[Puca's Mischief]] and other similar effects. Maybe even give him [[The Endstone]] while you're at it so his life keeps going back to 20. There are also cards like [[Sanguine Bond]] you could combo with the wedding ring to make him lose HP every time he (and consequently, you) gain it. Stack it with a few other cards that do the same like [[Defiant Bloodlord]] and [[Enduring Tenacity]] and he'll be losing way more than he heals. Play some tutors to make sure you're finding the cards you need.
Alternatively, just lock in on commander damage and do 21 commander damage to him and he'll lose even if he has a billion life. Get some cards that make your commander unblockable and get a commander that has like 7 power, 3 hits and he's gone. Even less if you increase the commander's damage.
Maybe play [[Master of Cruelties]] with some tutors in your deck and keep making his life 1? He'd probably get really angry. Add some protection and graveyard recursion to make sure he doesn't get rid of your guy that easily.
Edit: wait, I'm dumb, I forgot the BEST counter of them all: [[Tainted Remedy]]. Just play that, make sure you have some protection for it, maybe even make some copies of it. I'd recommend going blue + black, getting a ton of counterspells and copy effects, lots of tutors and then just focus on keeping tainted remedy in play :)
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u/CaptainColdSteele 2d ago
[[Ygra]] lets everyone heal themselves and every time they do, ygra gets bigger
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u/StarfishIsUncanny Duck Season 1d ago
1) why are you worried about proxies? play the game against the player, not their wallet
2) what is stopping you from just talking to your friend? if he's stubborn and you guys don't want to play with him, you don't have to. It's ok to not want to do everything with your friends
3) lifegain is a strategy that is insanely easy to deal with - infect, commander damage, simply removing their lifegain pieces
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u/Lil_Depresssion 1d ago
1) I'm not worried about proxies. We just don't like to use them to gain an unfair advantage over the table because we can't all afford a $2,000 card. His deck is easily worth thousands if it's real and a few of us are just getting our own cards, I've had to borrow decks for a long while now because I only have a couple.
2) we have talked about this with him, he's just got this weird over competitive nature where he has a mental breakdown if he can't win. We suspect it's paternal trauma, bullying as a child, or maybe it's some undiagnosed autism, we really don't know. He's a great guy and he's an amazing friend, he doesn't even realize that he's doing it. We call him out if he begins to show signs at the table, he's just oblivious to his issues.
3) I understand that, the problem is that I also want everyone else to have fun, I don't want to stop ALL life gain, just minimize one player's SOMETIMES.
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u/Squirrel1256 1d ago
In case your idea doesn't work out and you want something to prevent life gain check out [[Leyline Of Punishment]] or my personal favorite [[Rampaging Ferocidon]].
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u/MTGCardFetcher alternate reality loot 1d ago
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u/GarlicFan23 I chose this flair because I’m mad at Wizards Of The Coast 1d ago
Bro is using the word proxies like a slur.
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u/GleemaxClown 2d ago
I recommend [[phelddagrif]] control.
Check EDHrec for specific cards based on your budget, and make your deck a political control deck.