#orochi archmage

[mtg-cards-hourly]

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage

"Our revered ancestor Seshiro gave us wisdom greater than poison and fangs."

Artist: Aaron Miller TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

[kay-jay-self-shipping]

Nicknames

Here are the nicknames my F/Os have for my OCs and vice versa!

Orochimaru

Orochimaru's Nicknames for Kaede: Firecracker (Inspired by the fact that she can burst into flames and the flames spark against her skin before she ignites. Also, she has a bit of a firecracker temper.) Kaede's Nicknames for Orochimaru: Snake-Eyes (Self explanatory.) Orochi-sama (The shortened version of his name for affection, and the -sama as a Japanese honorific meaning Lord. So Lord Orochi.)

Lotor

Lotor's Nicknames for Ziera: Darling (Simple Affectionate term.) Dearest (Another Affectionate Term.) Treasure (He calls her this before she escaped Tylyrio, and it stuck.) Renzo (Her original name before she lost her memories, he's the only one who can call her that.) Ziera's Nicknames for Lotor: Love (Simple Affectionate Term.) My Prince (He was a prince.) My Emperor (He is an emperor.)

Mereoleona

Mereoleona's Nicknames for Lucia: Luci (Shortened version of her name.) Ice Queen (She can both control ice and acts as cold as ice, so this nickname stuck between the friend group.) My Wife (Literal and a little possessive, since Lucia is part of her pride.) My Mate (Another reference to Lucia being her partner.) Captain (She's the captain of the Aqua Deer, it's a form of praise.) Lucia's Nicknames for Mereoleona: Mereo (Shortened name. Previously it was Leona, but as you'll see later, that had to change.) My Wife (Literal.) My Lioness (She is part of Mereo's pride and proud of it.) Captain (Uses it in a teasing way, since Mereo swore she'd never step up as a captain, it's also a term used in pride that Mereo was able to overcome her hatred for the title to avenge her brother's injuries.)

Piers

Piers' Nicknames for Thorn: Thorn (It's her stage name, and therefore a nickname.) My Champion/Champion (While she lost the championship in the semi-finals, he sees her as a champion for getting that far and achieving her dreams.) Trouble. (She gets into any sort of trouble at all times, he had to call her this once, and it stuck.) Thorn's Nicknames for Piers: Superstar (She called him this when challenging him to a battle and it stuck.) Music Man (She teased him with this name when he offered to help her after she moved into her new home.) Hun (A mostly-british term of affection.)

Leona (This is why Mereo is Lucia's main nickname now, lol.)

Leona's Nicknames for Danika: Raven (She's quite literally a Raven Fae.) Little Raven (Her original name was Lilith in the story so little was a good name for her since it can be shortened to lil' in both cases, but even after I changed it to Danika, this nickname is too good.) My Pillow/Pillow (He uses her as a pillow for his naps.) Danika's Nicknames for Leona: Leo (Shortened version of his name.) My King (He wants to be a king so badly, that she made him the king of her heart and world.)

Aaravos

Aaravos' Nicknames for Nymera: Nymph (The first three letters of her name. It's cute alright. XD) Starlight (Not sure if he uses this one or she does.) Archmage in the Making (It's her dream.) My Lovely Little Hybrid. (Affectionate term to comfort her on the fact that he is the only one who doesn't care if she's human or elf and loves her for being who she is.) Nymera's Nicknames for Aaravos: Starlight (Once again, unsure who uses it.) My Constellation (He looks like the night sky, this needed to be a thing.) Shooting Star (A reference to a one-shot I made where they watch shooting stars fly across the sky.)

Rumple/Gold

Gold's Nicknames for Cecilia: Cecil (Her fake name but shortened.) Zelda (Her real name which she doesn't use anymore.) The Grimm (Before confession, her murderous alias.) My Wife (After Marriage.) Mrs. Gold. (After marriage.)

Cecil's Nicknames for Gold: The Dark One (His true self.) Gold (Before confession, his fake name.) Rumple (After confession, his real name shortened.) My Soulmate. (Doesn't use it often, but does use it when she needs to drill into his head just how much he means to her.)

Vax'ildan

Vax's Nicknames for Kadorya (Her true form:) Ryah (The shortened version of her real name.) Cupcake (He says this because it's cringe and she blushes because of it.) Tiny (She's shorter than he is, despite being a literal high elf.) Princess. (This originated from her other female form, but it fits so he uses it.) Peach. (Uses this on both female forms, but uses Handsome for her male form.)

Vax's Nicknames for Kado (Her male form:) Handsome (Affectionate term.) Tiny (Messing around, Kado is taller than Vax.) Big Man (Flirting usually.) Vax's Nicknames for Lhynn (Her alternate female form:) Princess (She's a little snooty in this form, it fits.) Your Highness (Sarcastic usually.) Peach. (Affectionate term.) (Used on both female forms.)

Kadorya's Nicknames for Vax: Vax (Shortened version of his name.) My Thief (He's quite literally a thief that stole her heart.) Romeo (Just messing around with this one, lol.) Gorgeous (She still doesn't understand why this term is mostly used to compliment women.) Prince (This originates from her other female form, but it stuck and she likes it.) Kado's Nicknames for Vax: Sexy (Flirting.) (Ryah uses this as well.) Short Stuff (Messing around, he's taller than Vax.) Vax (Obviously his name.) Romeo (Just messing around with this one, lol.) Lhynn's Nicknames for Vax: Prince (To collaborate on his Princess name for her.) Thief. (She uses this to tease him and it's practically universal, but Kado doesn't use it because he's more for the flirty obvious nicknames.) Gorgeous (Doesn't care for the gender bias, he is quite literally gorgeous in her eyes.) Romeo (Just messing around with this one, lol.)

Okay, that's it! Hopefully, I didn't miss anyone, lol! I love these nicknames, but some of them need serious workshopping! If you guys have any ideas, let me know!

[haaaaaaaaaaaave-you-met-ted]

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage by Aaron Miller

[mtgbracket]

Round of 1024 - Batch 15

We near the end - this batch features Hazoret, Jhoira, Narset, Purphoros, and Fblthp.

Voting is open for one week here.

Full list of matchups:

Jazal Goldmane vs Syr Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale Linessa, Zephyr Mage vs Karona, False God Takeno, Samurai General vs Eron the Relentless Ramirez DePietro vs Dalakos, Crafter of Wonders

Vaevictis Asmadi, the Dire vs Phylath, World Sculptor Fblthp, the Lost vs Jasmine Boreal Marwyn, the Nurturer vs Juri, Master of the Revue Mayael the Anima vs Sun Quan, Lord of Wu

Isareth the Awakener vs Arcades Sabboth Rakdos the Defiler vs Daxos of Meletis General Tazri vs Garna, the Bloodflame Visara the Dreadful vs Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain

Slivdrazi Monstrosity vs Noyan Dar, Roil Shaper Narset, Enlightened Master vs Mangara, the Diplomat Kozilek, Butcher of Truth vs Spike, Tournament Grinder X vs The Scarab God

Linden, the Steadfast Queen vs Kels, Fight Fixer Livonya Silone vs Anowon, the Ruin Thief Purphoros, God of the Forge vs Tatyova, Benthic Druid Nemata, Grove Guardian vs Cloudhoof Kirin

Hazoret the Fervent vs Thada Adel, Acquisitor Phelddagrif vs Shanna, Sisay's Legacy Kataki, War's Wage vs Vona, Butcher of Magan Gallowbraid vs Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood

Tawnos, Urza's Apprentice vs Gavi, Nest Warden Kaseto, Orochi Archmage vs Taigam, Sidisi's Hand Najeela, the Blade-Blossom vs Ixidor, Reality Sculptor Obosh, the Preypiercer vs Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest

Lord of Tresserhorn vs Konda, Lord of Eiganjo Tana, the Bloodsower vs Nylea, God of the Hunt Atalya, Samite Master vs Godo, Bandit Warlord Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis vs Tinybones, Trinket Thief

[vorthosjay]

Is it known if Kaseto, Orochi Archmage is from the Kamigawa from our present (like Tamiyo)?

Kaseto is somewhere on the timeline between Seshiro and the modern day. It’s not clear exactly where that lands.

[curiooftheheart]

I know I made a post about this but I forgot to properly tag it so whatever. I’m building an EDH deck with Jodah and all the creatures are legendary Wizards. Mainly because I realized there are a whole bunch of Legendary Wizards and Jodah is the first five color one. So here’s the planned Wizards inclusions but some might get dropped (maybe added but unlikely as I have gone through all the legendary Wizards. Maybe Arjun but I’m not sure.)

Baral, Chief of Compliance Jace, Prodigy of Vryn Jushi Apprentice Nabam, Dean of Iteration Nezumi Graverobber Nin, Pain Artist Thasios, Triton Hero Adeliz, the Cinder Wind Derevi, Empyrial Tactician Ertai, Wizard Adept Jhoira of the Ghitu Jori En, Ruin Diver Kaseto, Orochi Archmage Mangara of Corondor Vendilion Clique Braids, Conjurer Adept Jodah, Archmage Eternal Kess, Disident Mage Kydele, Chosen of Kruphix Linessa, Zephyr Mage Mairsil, the Pretender Marchesa the Black Rose Mizzix of the Izmagnus Naru Meha, Master Wizard Raff Capashen, Ship's Mage Talrand, Sky Summoner Venser, Shaper Savant Yidris, Maelstrom Wanderer Azami, Lady of the Scrolls Ikra Shidiqi, the Usurper Inalla, Archmage Ritualist Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Nekusar, the Mindrazer Riku of Two Reflections Sen Triplets Taigam, Sidisi's Hand Teferi, Mage of Zhalfir Arcanis the Omnipotent Melek, Izzet Paragon Niv-Mizzet Dracogenius Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind Oona, Queen of the Fae Uyo, Silent Prophet Vela the Night-Clad Damia, Sage of Stone Ith, High Arcanist Memnarch

[my-mtg-decks]

Swell the Host

Commander (1)

Ezuri, Claw of Progress

Creatures (33)

1 Arbor Colossus 1 Bane of Progress 1 Broodbirth Viper 1 Caller of the Claw 1 Caller of the Pack 1 Chameleon Colossus 1 Coiling Oracle 1 Cold-Eyed Selkie 1 Elvish Visionary 1 Eternal Witness 1 Experiment One 1 Forgotten Ancient 1 Great Oak Guardian 1 Illusory Ambusher 1 Kaseto, Orochi Archmage 1 Loaming Shaman 1 Lorescale Coatl 1 Mulldrifter 1 Mystic Snake 1 Ninja of the Deep Hours 1 Noble Quarry 1 Ohran Viper 1 Patagia Viper 1 Plaxmanta 1 Prime Speaker Zegana 1 Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 Skullwinder 1 Solemn Simulacrum 1 Stingerfling Spider 1 Thelonite Hermit 1 Trygon Predator 1 Viridian Shaman 1 Wistful Selkie

Other spells (25)

1 Arachnogenesis 1 Beastmaster Ascension 1 Bident of Thassa 1 Biomantic Mastery 1 Cobra Trap 1 Day of the Dragons 1 Desert Twister 1 Ezuri’s Predation 1 Kodama’s Reach 1 Krosan Grip 1 Mirror Match 1 Orochi Hatchery 1 Overrun 1 Rampant Growth 1 Rapid Hybridization 1 Scytheclaw 1 Simic Keyrune 1 Simic Signet 1 Snakeform 1 Sol Ring 1 Swiftfoot Boots 1 Sword of Vengeance 1 Synthetic Destiny 1 Thought Vessel 1 Verdant Confluence

Lands (41)

14 Forest 11 Island 1 Command Beacon 1 Command Tower 1 Evolving Wilds 1 High Market 1 Llanowar Reborn 1 Mosswort Bridge 1 Novijen, Heart of Progress 1 Oran-Rief, the Vastwood 1 Reliquary Tower 1 Simic Growth Chamber 1 Simic Guildgate 1 Terramorphic Expanse 1 Thornwood Falls 1 Vivid Creek 1 Vivid Grove 1 Zoetic Cavern

[warlock0103]

The last of the main characters from that contest story with Teo, but one that didn’t get screentime. Archmage Cynbel. He’s the teacher of Madella, and lets Orochi live in his castle. He’s usually calm, but he didn’t get the title Archmage for being a pushover. He can fight with the best of them.

I’m glad I’ve been able to keep up with the sketches so far. :D

[tanknspank]

Changes to my Commander Decks

Retiring:

Wrexial, the Risen Deep - Incredibly mean and cruel, Mesmeric Orb OP pls nerf

Emmara Tandris - Low win rate, generally inconsistent, flavourful, but lacks power

Daxos of Meletis - More flavour that function. very one trick pony

Modifying:

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage: Unblockable Infect is too unreliable, Keeping the Unblockable, but dropping Infect

Lorthos, the Tidemaker: Need to focus on either deep sea beasts or Sphinxes (Also need to get new sleeves for the deck cause I spilled beer on them and now they are kinda sticky)

Padeem, Consul of Innovation: Need to focus on either Energy Counters or Thopter Tokens

Brewing:

Jeleva, Nephalia’s Scourge: Need lands

Tyamret, the Murder King: Need more cards for strategy

[loreleywrites]

Command Zone: The State of Commander – Aether Revolt

Commander is largely a multiplayer format. This disposes it to being a format that strongly embraces my favorite aspect of Magic: community. Magic doesn’t begin with the first land drop and end when a player’s life hits zero; the people who experience the game with us stay part of our lives through friendships, online communities, various forms of consumable content, and a network of ideas and emotions to be shared by everyone.

Much of what I peddle on this blog are facts, ideas, and speculations. Today’s article will contain little of that. Instead, this is all about me.

Since Commander is steeped in variation, I want to share all twenty-three of my decks with you. Part of the fun of Commander is seeing what cards other people are playing that you’re not. What strategies they’re embracing that you’re curious about. What novelties spring from their brains that you find enjoyable. Hopefully the deck lists and brief descriptions in today’s article can entertain you, spark inspiration in your own decks, and foster conversation about the best format in Magic.

Karn Artifacts

Karn, Silver Golem by Mark Zug

The deck.

Colorless is not a color, which always makes colorless decks weird. Karn is built around artifacts, obviously, as their main ability animates artifacts. That makes for a lot of potential creatures running around, which is why there are so many noncreature artifacts present. I decided to eschew Wastes and keep the mana base classically colorless.

Kozilek Eldrazi

Kozilek, the Great Distortion by Aleksi Briclot

The deck. (Note: This is the only list that shows the actual card versions I’m using.)

Battle for Zendikar block brought Wastes and tons more colorless Eldrazi cards to Commander. I split my existing Kozilek deck into two parts. Karn took the artifacts, and the Great Distortion took the Eldrazi. This is my favorite deck and my current foil-out project. As you can see in the link, I’m most of the way there. It’s purdy.

Nahiri Equipment

Nahiri, the Lithomancer by Eric Deschamps

The deck.

We first learned the Lithomancer’s identity with Nahiri’s first planeswalker card. Conveniently, she can also be a commander! I chose her as the leader of my Equipment deck because her +1 can always poop out a creature token after a board wipe, which she won’t die in herself. My pet card here is Lancers en-Kor, who have trample. Exceptionally rare for a mono-White card, but very powerful when loaded up with Equipment.

Thassa Sea Monsters

Thassa, God of the Sea by Jason Chan

The deck.

Sea monsters are the best part of Blue, and Thassa is the perfect commander for a deck full of them. Leviathans, Krakens, Serpents, Squids, Octopuses, and Crabs rise from the depths to wreak havoc on landlubbing foes. The prized cards here are Thassa’s Emissary and Skittering Crustacean, which I received as a gift signed by Kelly Digges, Alison Luhrs, Michael Yichao, and Mel Li. Thanks again, Wizards peeps!

Chandra Burn

Chandra, Fire of Kaladesh by Eric Deschamps

The deck.

Chandra is my second favorite planeswalker (Kiora #1!), but she’s the one with the legendary creature. This deck is just full of flavorful Chandra spells and other cards that represent pyromancy. The goal here isn’t to play a stellar game of Magic, it’s to sling as many burn spells around as recklessly as possible.

Titania Lands

Titania, Protector of Argoth by Magali Villeneuve

The deck.

A Mel deck through and through, as Titania offers such a bizarre style of play. Destroying your own lands for value is a twist on how Magic normally goes, but Titania makes it possible. Basically every card in this deck helps find lands or destroy them. If you’ve never cast Scapeshift for twenty lands while controlling Avenger of Zendikar, you have never truly played Green. The deck used to have a Squirrel subtheme, but those cards really took away from the deck, you know, working.

Ojutai Snow

Ojutai, Soul of Winter by Chase Stone

The deck.

There are not many good commanders for a snow-flavored deck, but Ojutai just so happens to be the Soul of Winter. This deck combines a snow permanent theme with a Dragon tribal subtheme. It’s kind of controlling, what with all the freezing, but can hit pretty hard with big fliers. There are tons of neat winter-themed cards, as that’s the central gimmick of the deck. I can’t wait until we get another block with snow permanents so I can add even more flavor.

Ulasht Tokens

Ulasht, the Hate Seed by Nottsuo

The deck.

One of my first Commander decks, Ulasht has survived through the years by just being a blast to play. The token theme allows Ulasht to be downright explosive, giving the deck a sort of modular feel. Sometimes I’m making lots of Saprolings. Other times, Goblins. I will say that I should probably go through this deck at some point and cut down on the number of different tokens it makes. Focusing on only a few types will make it easier to represent them with dice and such in case I don’t have the actual tokens.

Karametra Enchantress

Karametra, God of Harvests by Eric Deschamps

The deck.

The power of Nyx is bestowed upon me with my Karametra deck. This one is all about enchantments, featuring almost no nonenchantment, nonland cards. There’s plenty of Theros flavor, but also powerful mechanical icons like Mesa Enchantress and Mirari’s Wake. If you’ve never seen an indestructible God loaded up with Auras before, then you probably haven’t died the most agonizing death in the Multiverse yet.

Vish Kal Vampires

Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter by Michael C. Hayes

The deck.

This deck has been all over the place, but it finally settled on two related themes: life gain and Vampire tribal. Nearly every creature is a Vampire, leveraging some of the unique tribal spells that support them. Gaining life is easy with the Ravnican and Zendikari Vampires that had it as a theme. Vish Kal himself is also very powerful, able to smash for a ton of damage as well as repeatedly remove opposing threats. This deck can attack on a lot of axes, which makes it kind of a midrange Commander deck.

Melek Spells

Melek, Izzet Paragon by Johann Bodin

The deck.

The Izzet are all about instants and sorceries, so of course my Melek deck is no different. My main goal is to resolve Epic Experiment as many times as possible (My single-game record is four.) There are a lot of familiar cards here if you’ve seen a spell-centric deck like this before. Expectedly, this deck is capable of explosive turns that are difficult to interact with.

Glissa Artifacts

Glissa, the Traitor by Steve Argyle

The deck.

Phyrexia just makes Elves better. This is an aristocrats-style deck that grinds out a lot of value over the course of a game. There are tons of little artifacts with little effects that don’t seem worth a card. But when you consider that I can get those effects multiple times over the course of a game, they start looking very attractive. And just to clarify: I have zero artifact-based decks with Blue in them. I know, it’s weird. But Glissa makes grindy games so much fun I don’t care.

Aurelia Samurai

Aurelia, the Warleader by Slawomir Maniak

The deck.

Please please pleaseee, @wizardsmagic, print a legendary Samurai with a Red/White color identity. Aurelia is just a placeholder for my Samurai tribal deck. It’s filled with flavorful Kamigawa cards, attacking-matters cards, and lots of extra combat spells (hence Aurelia). I want more Samurai so bad too, as there are lots of bad cards in this deck. But that’s part of the fun of Commander. You can build tons of decks at different power levels.

Vorel +1/+1 Counters

Vorel of the Hull Clade by Mike Bierek

The deck.

If you’ve never seen a Vorel deck before, things can get ridiculous. Most of the permanents in this deck utilize counters in some way. Hydras are featured, as almost all of them scale with your mana and use +1/+1 counters. Needless to say, Deepglow Skate was a boon for this deck. And Armorcraft Judge. And Rishkar, Peema Renegade. OK, it was a great year for +1/+1 counter decks.

Kaseto Snakes

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage by Aaron Miller

The deck.

sneaky sneks

I had a casual 60-card Green/Blue Snake deck for a long time. Kaseto let me translate that into Commander, evolving one casual deck into another. Sosuke’s Summons is absurd when you can cast it almost every turn. Even when I can’t flood the battlefield with tokens, Kaseto can turn any single Snake into a monstrous attacker.

Ezuri Infect

Ezuri, Claw of Progress by James Ryman

The deck.

I like Simic decks. Sue me.

This is my most flavorful deck. Ezuri embraces New Phyrexia’s most sinister theme: infect. Thankfully, most infect creatures are pretty crappy in Commander. They’re so little! Ezuri does help fix that, but he’s also pretty fragile. Every spell in this deck is from New Phyrexia, and every land is either from there or could feasibly be from there (Breeding Pool definitely sounds like it could be Phyrexian.)

Karrthus Dragons

Karrthus, Tyrant of Jund by Dave Kendall

The deck.

DARGONS!!! This deck is pretty straightforward. Ramp, cast some removal spells, and then attack with the tyrants of the sky. Yes, it amuses me that between this and Ojutai, I have Dragon decks for all five colors. I used to have a Scion of the Ur-Dragon deck, but it was too repetitive.

Surrak Creatures

Surrak Dragonclaw by Jaime Jones

The deck.

With only seven noncreature, nonland cards, it’s clear what Surrak is about. Hint: it’s creatures. Ramp, removal, card draw, beatdown, it’s all being done by creatures here. Restrictions breed creativity and yadda yadda yadda IT’S TIME TO PUNCH THINGS NOW. This deck is one of my favorites to play.

Ghave Fungi

Ghave, Guru of Spores by James Paick

The deck.

There are a lot of degenerate Ghave decks that do stupidly broken things with +1/+1 counters. Part of that is because Ghave is really powerful. My take on the deck is much more focused on the Fungus/Saproling tribal theme. Most of the noncreature spells are also flavorfully connected to the decomposing organisms. I literally finished this deck this week, so I haven’t gotten to play with it yet. I’m eager to.

Mimeoplasm Mill

The Mimeoplasm by Svetlin Velinov

The deck.

Mill, eat, repeat. Mill, eat, repeat. Mill, eat, repeat. I wanted to build a deck that lets The Mimeoplasm eat tons of enemy creatures, but also provide a ton of options to eat itself. The self-mill and reanimation strategies also mean this deck doesn’t have to rely on Muraganda’s legendary Ooze to muscle through games. This was one of my first decks, and the list has probably changed more than any other in my repertoire.

Atraxa -1/-1 Counters

Atraxa, Praetors’ Voice by Victor Adame Minguez

The deck.

Keep your superfriends and infect and +1/+1 counter decks. I embraced the decay of New Phyrexia and built my Atraxa deck around -1/-1 counters. Plus a bunch of flavorful New Phyrexia cards (I can’t help my Vorthos nature.) Even though I’m not focusing on Atraxa’s most powerful themes, this is quite a mighty deck.

Yidris Chaos

Yidris, Maelstrom Wielder by Karl Kopinski

The deck.

I had originally planned this deck to be built around Maelstrom Wanderer, but Yidris gave me the perfect opportunity to add another color. This deck has one goal: never know what will happen next. That doesn’t mean send the game into a death spiral of chaos (well, not completely), but to keep it progressing towards a conclusion in the flashiest way possible. There are a number of Group Hug style cards in this deck. I want things to happen. I want to force players to make decisions. I want the game to go somewhere, no matter how ugly it gets when it arrives. I also just completed this deck, so I haven’t gotten to experience the wild ride I have designed.

Sliver Queen Slivers

Sliver Queen by Ron Spencer

The deck.

My arsenal wouldn’t be complete without a WUBRG deck for my favorite tribe, Slivers. Naturally, the Queen is the one leading the deck. I really like how Slivers play in Commander, as you never know what mix of abilities you’re going to get. It makes every game unique and keeps the deck from getting stale. Considering this deck hasn’t changed since Magic 2015, that’s a very good thing.

Twenty-Three and Counting

I’m not deliberately trying to build a Commander deck for every color combination, but I won’t be surprised if I get there one day. I do factor what combinations I don’t have yet when considering new decks, as I like pushing myself into new territory in order to make each deck unique. At the moment, I’m considering mono-Black King Macar, the Gold-Cursed; mono-White Bruna, the Fading Light; and Mardu Alesha, Who Smiles at Death as my next deck. And then who knows what Amonkhet will bring in a few months!

And now that I’ve shared my decks with you, planeswalkers, what Commander decks do you arm yourself with?

[mtg-cards-hourly]

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage

"Our revered ancestor Seshiro gave us wisdom greater than poison and fangs."

Artist: Aaron Miller TCG Player Link Scryfall Link EDHREC Link

[askkrenko]

Vorthos Discussion: Commander Locales?

For the past few years, Wizards has put out Commander sets with new and minor characters... But not all of these characters have particularly detailed backstories. What I’d like to do, with all your help, is look at each commander and see if we can’t figure out what Plane they’re actually from. For the purposes of this conversation, we’re going to assume everybody’s from a known plane, merely because being from an unknown plane makes guessing impossible. So... I’m going to start with a list, and remind you all that Autocard Anywhere makes this a lot easier to do without me filling the screen with card images..

Commander:

Kaalia of the Vast: ???, has to be somewhere with lots of demons, dragons, and angels.

Tariel, Reckoner of Souls: ???, but is a fallen angel so has to be somewhere with angels. That said... That’s Rakdos armor, isn’t it? I mean, it’s rediculous and spiky and bright red. Isn’t that pure Rakdosy goodness? Being a fallen Boros or Orzhov angel into Rakdos would also explain the three colors.

Basandra, battle Seraph: ???, That is a rather unique style she’s got going there. Doesn’t feel like it fits on most worlds, but I’m not sure where it does fit. She’s certainly not a Bant, Ravnica, or Zendikar angel.

Riku of Two Reflections: ???,  That’s a lot of shoulderpad there. I feel like it’s familiar. Where is that style of dress from for mages?

Animar, Soul of Elements: ???, Animar is ultimate source of life and elements on his plane... Which rules out a lot of planes, if not most of them. We shouldn’t assume we don’t know it, but Animar seems like such a big deal that it’d have to be a plane we don’t know much about, or we’d know more about Animar.

Edric, Spymaster of Trest: Fiora. Edric was actually one of the first glimpses of Fiora we ever had.

Ghave, Guru of Spores: ???, somewhere with a hell of a lot of saprolings. It can’t be Jund because of his colors, so I feel like this suggests Dominaria in Thallid country, wherever that is. You know what? I’m gonna go ahead and guess Ghave IS a Thallid.

Karador, Ghost Chieftain: ???, but Magic has only 51 centaurs and very few share Karador’s design. Now, I don’t know where he found a forest, but the ONLY centaurs in Magic to have human faces and bigass horns outside of Karador are Burning-Tree Shaman and Ghor-Clan Savage. Further, he was a warchief who fought rival warchiefs. Unfortunately, he lives in a forest valley, which Ravnica doesn’t seem to have many of. Still, it’s not impossible for there to be a spot or two like that, however unlikely.

Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter: ???. Very few vampires in Magic have wings, and only Falkenrath Marauders really resemble him in design. There’s no precedent for white vampires on Innistrad, though, and his outfit would look very out of place there.

Zedruu the Greathearted: ???, Zedruu is unique. I can’t really find any clues here, or anything that looks remotely like her.

Ruhan of the Fomori: Ir. Yeah. Apparently the fomori are home to the plane of “Ir” which shows up just on a Planechase card.

Nin, the Pain Artist: ???, but the existance of Staff of Nin in M13 makes me lean toward Shandalar.

The Mimeoplasm: Muraganda, which we know little about

Damia, Sage of Stone: ???, and her art includes references to multiple planes, so using it as a clue just confuses the issue.

Skullbriar, the Walking Grave: ???, but everything about this card screams Innistrad as far as flavor goes.

C13:

Jeleva, Nephalia’s Scourge: Innistrad. Because Nephalia.

Nekusar, the Mindrazer: ???, Surprisingly, his biggest clue is being a former king, not being a lich. Most worlds have liches, but kingdoms are actually pretty rare these days.

Oloro, Ageless Ascetic: ??? . Remote, mist-shrouded island could put him on basically any plane. Kinda feels like a Theros ideal, though, especially with his lack of pants. There are no pants on Theros.

Sydri, Galvanic Genius: Fiora. She got announced with a story.

Marath, Will of the Wild: ???  , but I’m guessing Naya here. Feels like a Naya thing.

Gahiji, Honored One:  ???.  Off in some tribal place, with a battle of flat sky. Somewhere with a jungle.

Prossh, Skyraider of Kher: Dominaria, because Kher

Shattegang Brothers: Ravnica, stated originally and appear in “Limits”

Derevi, Empyrial Tactician:  Bant. Confirmed.

Roon of the Hidden Realm: ???, but he’s a Rhox soldier in Bant colors. Further, we don’t know when this takes place, but it’s possible the Hidden Realm was one of the other shards.

C14 is all people we know from elsewhere, but special note to Ob Nixilis, whose plane is gone and who nobody else knows the name of.

C15:

Anya, Merciless Angel: ??? Could be a Boros angel, but could also be basically anywhere

Arjun, the Shifting Flame: ??? , that is a unique sphinx though

Daxos, the Returned: Theros

Ezuri, Claw of Progress: Argentum.

Kalemne, Disciple of Iroas: Theros

Karlov of the Ghost Council: Ravnica

Kaseto, Orochi Archmage: Kamigawa. Not only is that an Orochi, but the flavor text references Seshiro, so it can’t even be an Orochi from elsewhere

Mazirek, Kraul Death Priest: Ravnica, references the “Undercity.”

Meren of Clan Nel Toth: Alara, specifically Jund

Mizzix of the Izmagnus: Ravnica, obviously Izzet

C16: Most of these are obvious or stated outright, so there’s just two I want to mention...

Saskia the Unyielding: ???, but generally accepted to be a Balduvian from Dominaria, due to the woad and costuming of herself and her allies.

Tana, the Bloodsower: ???, but various visual clues suggest she lives in the same area as Ghave. They use the same Saproling design, which is also shared with a card that has Ghave mentioned in flavor text in M13.

So, for anybody unknown... I’d love to hear what you think. And if you disagree with some of my assessments, let’s hear ‘em.

[mtgbracket]

Round of 1024 - Batch 7

This is a big one - with Sliver Queen vs Rofellos, Eldrazi Titans Emrakul and Ulamog, plus Jaya, Momir Vig, and Reaper King!

Voting is open for one week HERE.

Full list of matchups:

Atemsis, All-Seeing vs Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Ormos, Archive Keeper vs Iizuka the Ruthless Reaper King vs Jodah, Archmage Eternal Darigaaz Reincarnated vs Mistform Ultimus

Grakmaw, Skyclave Ravager vs Daghatar the Adamant Tromokratis vs Sasaya, Orochi Ascendant Gonti, Lord of Luxury vs Hanna, Ship's Navigator Dragonlord Silumgar vs The Lady of the Mountain

Oona, Queen of the Fae vs Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger Jaya Ballard, Task Mage vs Glissa Sunseeker Pianna, Nomad Captain vs Jerrard of the Closed Fist Colfenor, the Last Yew vs Kentaro, the Smiling Cat

Grismold, the Dreadsower vs Rafiq of the Many Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed vs Wydwen, the Biting Gale Oloro, Ageless Ascetic vs K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary vs Sliver Queen

Verdeloth the Ancient vs Acornelia, Fashionable Filcher Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger vs Gabriel Angelfire Kaalia, Zenith Seeker vs Bosh, Iron Golem Axelrod Gunnarson vs Kwende, Pride of Femeref

Gishath, Sun's Avatar vs Jeska, Warrior Adept Sharuum the Hegemon vs Virtus the Veiled Xenagos, God of Revels vs Opal-Eye, Konda's Yojimbo Gallia of the Endless Dance vs Emrakul, the Aeons Torn

Ertai, Wizard Adept vs Surrak, the Hunt Caller Dragonlord Ojutai vs Zurgo Helmsmasher Dargo, the Shipwrecker vs Squee, the Immortal Tymaret, Chosen from Death vs Thryx, the Sudden Storm

Dong Zhou, the Tyrant vs Feldon of the Third Path Brinelin, the Moon Kraken vs Louvaq, the Aberrant Sakiko, Mother of Summer vs Saffi Eriksdotter Tymaret, the Murder King vs Omnath, Locus of Mana

[mtgbracket]

Round of 512 - Batch 15

Merry Christmas!  But the Bracket stops for no one...

The penultimate batch of the round is here!  This one has many Gods - Nylea, Mogis, and Hazoret.

Here are all the open batches:

Batch 15 Batch 14 Batch 13 Batch 12 Batch 11 Batch 10 Batch 9

Batch 8 results will be up shortly.

Here’s the full list of matchups:

Syr Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale vs Mogis, God of Slaughter Sai, Master Thopterist vs The Mimeoplasm Nylea, Keen-Eyed vs Ormos, Archive Keeper Ezuri, Claw of Progress vs Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign

Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim vs Azor, the Lawbringer Dragonlord Silumgar vs Arjun, the Shifting Flame Azami, Lady of Scrolls vs Momir Vig, Simic Visionary Geth, Lord of the Vault vs Azusa, Lost but Seeking

Isamaru, Hound of Konda vs Thrasios, Triton Hero Kaseto, Orochi Archmage vs Ashaya, Soul of the Wild Karn, Silver Golem vs Lavinia, Azorius Renegade Sidisi, Brood Tyrant vs Dralnu, Lich Lord

Hans Eriksson vs Hazoret the Fervent Brimaz, King of Oreskos vs Alexander Clamilton Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive vs Depala, Pilot Exemplar Pia and Kiran Nalaar vs Animar, Soul of Elements

[mtgbracket]

Round of 1024 - Batch 8

We reach the half way mark!

If you like Mirri, then today is your day as all THREE versions are up for voting. Plus we have Leovold, Progenitus, and Chulane!

Voting is open for one week here.  Batch 1 results will be up shortly.

Full list of matchups for today:

Commander Eesha vs Rick, Steadfast Leader Angus Mackenzie vs Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker Grusilda, Monster Masher vs Stitcher Geralf Kiku, Night's Flower vs Mirri the Cursed

Gisa and Geralf vs Lu Su, Wu Advisor Mogis, God of Slaughter vs Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper Rhys the Exiled vs Varchild, Betrayer of Kjeldor Falthis, Shadowcat Familiar vs Inalla, Archmage Ritualist

Nebuchadnezzar vs Pia and Kiran Nalaar Emmara Tandris vs Kopala, Warden of Waves Jalira, Master Polymorphist vs He Who Hungers God-Eternal Kefnet vs Silumgar, the Drifting Death

Prossh, Skyraider of Kher vs Raff Capashen, Ship's Mage Kiyomaro, First to Stand vs Volrath, the Shapestealer Mirri, Weatherlight Duelist vs Otrimi, the Ever-Playful Ragnar vs Patron of the Orochi

Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter vs Xira Arien Lim-Dûl the Necromancer vs Borborygmos Enraged Mikaeus, the Unhallowed vs Ma Chao, Western Warrior Orim, Samite Healer vs Mirri, Cat Warrior

Johnny, Combo Player vs Shisato, Whispering Hunter Admiral Beckett Brass vs Progenitus Silvos, Rogue Elemental vs Vadrok, Apex of Thunder Mirko Vosk, Mind Drinker vs Chulane, Teller of Tales

Hazduhr the Abbot vs Korvold, Fae-Cursed King The First Sliver vs Kamahl, Fist of Krosa Bruna, Light of Alabaster vs Judith, the Scourge Diva Josu Vess, Lich Knight vs Hunding Gjornersen

Leovold, Emissary of Trest vs Anax and Cymede Rin and Seri, Inseparable vs Torbran, Thane of Red Fell Ol' Buzzbark vs Lavinia, Azorius Renegade Rebbec, Architect of Ascension vs Drana, Liberator of Malakir

[mtgbracket]

Round of 1024 - Batch 15 results

The penultimate set of results!  Don’t miss out on the last batch, which is open for 24 more hours here.

Visual results are here and the full spreadsheet is here.  Today’s results in full:

Fblthp, the Lost defeats Jasmine Boreal with 87.1% of the vote Godo, Bandit Warlord defeats Atalya, Samite Master with 85.8% of the vote Phelddagrif defeats Shanna, Sisay's Legacy with 78.2% of the vote Karona, False God defeats Linessa, Zephyr Mage with 76.9% of the vote

Mayael the Anima defeats Sun Quan, Lord of Wu with 76.6% of the vote Anowon, the Ruin Thief defeats Livonya Silone with 74.6% of the vote Nemata, Grove Guardian defeats Cloudhoof Kirin with 71.1% of the vote The Scarab God defeats X with 69.7% of the vote

Vaevictis Asmadi, the Dire defeats Phylath, World Sculptor with 66.7% of the vote Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain defeats Visara the Dreadful with 66.5% of the vote Kozilek, Butcher of Truth defeats Spike, Tournament Grinder with 66.4% of the vote Hazoret the Fervent defeats Thada Adel, Acquisitor with 65.5% of the vote

Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood defeats Gallowbraid with 65.5% of the vote Marwyn, the Nurturer defeats Juri, Master of the Revue with 64.5% of the vote Noyan Dar, Roil Shaper defeats Slivdrazi Monstrosity with 63.5% of the vote Takeno, Samurai General defeats Eron the Relentless with 62.1% of the vote

Nylea, God of the Hunt defeats Tana, the Bloodsower with 61.9% of the vote Kels, Fight Fixer defeats Linden, the Steadfast Queen with 61.7% of the vote Syr Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale defeats Jazal Goldmane with 60.9% of the vote Isareth the Awakener defeats Arcades Sabboth with 60.9% of the vote

Narset, Enlightened Master defeats Mangara, the Diplomat with 58.1% of the vote Purphoros, God of the Forge defeats Tatyova, Benthic Druid with 57.8% of the vote Vona, Butcher of Magan defeats Kataki, War's Wage with 56.3% of the vote Daxos of Meletis defeats Rakdos the Defiler with 55.0% of the vote

Dalakos, Crafter of Wonders defeats Ramirez DePietro with 54.7% of the vote Gavi, Nest Warden defeats Tawnos, Urza's Apprentice with 54.3% of the vote Lord of Tresserhorn defeats Konda, Lord of Eiganjo with 53.8% of the vote Kaseto, Orochi Archmage defeats Taigam, Sidisi's Hand with 52.8% of the vote

Obosh, the Preypiercer defeats Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest with 51.8% of the vote General Tazri defeats Garna, the Bloodflame with 51.6% of the vote Ixidor, Reality Sculptor defeats Najeela, the Blade-Blossom with 50.4% of the vote Tinybones, Trinket Thief defeats Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis with 50.1% of the vote