Esper mastermind and longtime magic aficionado Shaheen Soorani battled last weekend at the SCG Invitational in Las Vegas to a third place finish. Fighting through a field of 299 qualified participants he was able to slaughter most every mage who stood in his way. The Invitational, much like the Pro Tour, is a multiformat tournament requiring proficiency in both Standard and Legacy to find success. In true Soorani fashion his weapon of choice for both formats was blue, white and black control style concoctions. With the two byes he had been awarded he drudged to a final swiss record of 12-3-1, the last round an intentional bye with Thea Steele to clinch the top 8 berth. The competition was fierce with hard wins against Tom Ross, Tim Landale, Erik Smith and Jeff Hoogland. Some tough losses came at the hands of Matt Nass the last round of day 1 playing for the perfect 8-0 and against eventual winner Max Brown entering the second leg of Legacy putting Shaheen on the ropes fighting to maintain a top positioning. In the top 8 he was immediately put to the test against Brian Brawn-Duin but dispatched him easily in three games but was knocked out by Greg Hatch after a hard fought five game battle.
Planeswalkers (6)
Spells (25)
Creatures (8)
Planeswalkers (3)
Sideboard
Regardless if you call it Commander or EDH I’m certain you found some goodies in for a deck you may be working on…I certainly found a bunch of cards that had me thinking.
Lazav, Dimir Mastermind – While he could maybe head an all-in mill deck its probably better to slip him as support in a The Mimeoplasm deck with the hexproof it’s a pretty nice pick the best of the bunch you hit that turn and it could be pretty fun. Too bad for them you CAN copy the Eldrazi and then Bribery it from his deck and yes that’s two Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre, nice.
Obzedat, Ghost Council – He makes me want to start work on an Orzhov style of bureaucracy advisors deck. Seems better with less opponents but if you pair it with Vizkopa Guildmage you can work them all down.
Aurelia, the Warleader – She is definitely the card I am going build my aggro Boros deck for. She is also a great include in a Razia, Boros Archangel deck.
Prime Speaker Zegana – Its a wizard and a merfolk so obviously there’s a spot in a deck. If you can get some synergy with a Deadeye Navigator that could draw through your deck nicely.
Borborygmos Enraged – Maybe in some kind of a 70+ land deck that can really make use of him but I haven’t seen that list yet, but I would love to.
Sylvan Primordial – This is just so absolutely ridiculous and ramp a Riku of Two Reflections to copy can be pretty oppressive. This is definitely the top of the cycle.
Diluvian Primordial – As always it’s about timing but by the time you play him it should be at a point where your payoff is ludicrous.
Luminate Primordial – A huge Swords to Plowshares and if you can get a flicker effect going can constantly pick off your greatest threats.
Sepulchral Primordial – Another interesting addition in a Mimeoplasm mill deck.
Molten Primordial – It has potential to get a massive effect but feels like the one of the cycle that could end up with more frequent meh scenarios.
Giant Adephage – When you add that to Doubling Season it just looks like that could go loopy…and I’d love to see the alter in the token.
Ooze Flux – Not super but again you can pull of some shenanigans with it.
Crowned Ceratok – Really nice global effect for swarm decks that that abuse +1/+1 counters.
Ivy Lane Denizen – This might be useful with Doubling Season but also just as an elf looks relevant to include especially in an Ezuri, Renegade Leader deck.
Serene Remembrance – Well obviously its you getting your best cards back and will again & again…I see some beautiful Riku of Two Reflections interaction, I would love a spell that’s RUG to shuffle itself and six cards from your graveyard back into your library.
Wight of Precinct Six – Interesting zombie that can potentially get humongous.
Hellkite Tyrant – This sick dragon will definitely net you some booty.
Angelic Skirmisher – Besides the obvious inclusion in angel decks she can do some major work in token strategies as well. First strike, vigilance or lifelink to all of your creatures, wow !!! And every combat step, just brutal.
Deathpact Angel – Could find a spot maybe in a Kaalia of the Vast deck but is fighting for precious space.
Shadow Alley Denizen – Relevant as a vampire and will trigger many times.
Merciless Eviction – Just so damn versatile, and much much better when you can recur it to your advantage.
Thespian’s Stage – With so many targets to choose from it’s going to be doing some heavy lifting for you. Looks like one of those support lands I want to squeeze into most decks.
Crypt Ghast – Another ramp for black. He has a fragile body and average cost but helps black ramp strategy by adding the redundancy.
Stolen Identity – Way too expensive to be viable in constructed but the ability to hit artifacts and there should be a way for you to trigger every turn.
With a list like that there must be something to tickle your fancy. To be honest I’m a novice to Commander but have absolutely had a blast every game I’ve played. I’m going to work on an Aurelia deck because I’ve always gone Boros. I love to see cool lists so feel free to send me a tweet and time permitting I’ll get back to you.
– Eric J Seltzer
@ejseltzer on twitter
ejseltzer@hotmail.com
