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r/CompetitiveEDH•
Temp_Variable

Help with optimizing Yasharn stax

Optimize My Deck

https://www.moxfield.com/decks/j5UnP8aTvUyMUAAYcfd63w

I'm looking for opinions on my current Yasharn list.

Yasharn disables some normal green white wincons like pod or pattern rector. So, I have had to deviate.

The current win cons are:

Dranith Magistrate/Uba Mask lock

Devoted Druid/Swift Reconfiguration infinite green

Finale of Devastation

Combat damage (Elesh Norn, Allosaurus Shepard, etc.)

Elspeth, Knight Errant 7/7 flying commander damage

Mana outlets:

Shalai, Voice of Plenty

Allosaurus Shepard

Duskwatch Recruiter

Finale of Devastation

I also have a couple "soft locks" where I make it so I just can't lose the game. These are pretty clunky though so I may remove them.

Cloudsteel Kirin

The Book of Exalted Deeds (3 angels + Mutavault)

An alternate combo I'm considering is Quirion Ranger/Ashaya, Soul of the Wild. This opens up some lines with repeated etbs and would make Blind Obedience an outlet using extort, but it doesn't work with the Rule of Law effects I think are important in my turbo Ad Nauseum meta right now.

I also know the lands need a bit of work.

There is no budget restriction.

I have gold fished this list a good bit, but I haven't gotten it to the table yet.

Please let me know what you think. Any and all feedback is appreciated.

Posted Mar 1, 2022, 4:21 PM UTC · edited

1617
Mt_Koltz•

Does Seedborn Muse belong in here? Only mana outlets I see are Duskwatch Recruiter and Shalai.

I haven't seen Book of Exalted Deeds in cEDH much, but it seems worth exploring. Problems I see are:

  • How little the Book does outside of this combo, and
  • 3 White pips is tough to achieve sometimes.
  • Only Mutavault is an interesting target IMO. All the other angels are too vulnerable.
3
Temp_VariableOP•

Yeah I've been thinking about that Seedborn. There is one more outlet in Gavony Township, but you're right it can just be dead if I don't have an outlet.

With book I could also add Faceless Haven as a land target but that just makes the mana even harder. The mana cost is one of the reasons I think it's kinda clunky.

Do you have any opinions on Cloudsteel Kirin? Like book it's a bit fragile, but I feel like the they can't win effects might be really effective. With how little creature interaction folks are running I'm thinking they may have a Swords or something for the stax piece that's stopping them, but not a second piece for the creature carrying Kirin.

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Mt_Koltz•

Cloudsteel Kirin seems interesting for sure. If your meta is light on creature removal, it could be backbreaking, but the problem as you mentioned is the mana cost. If you attached it to, say, Drannith Magistrate, it would be 10 Mana in total for the first equip (2+3+5), which is enormous.

That kind of mana expenditure is literally game-winning for a Godo deck, for example. In Yasharn, it would be "maybe not game losing".

5
Temp_VariableOP•

I don't think I could rely on doing it all in one turn. I think a more likely scenario is play out a hate piece and the Kirin for something like 5 total mana and then equip the next turn.

So, I think the real question might be can I afford spending that three mana on something that isn't immediately affecting the board? Can I afford to spend that mana not further locking down the board or building resources?

2
Mt_Koltz•

Yes, you can play out the combo on multiple turns, but the total mana expenditure is still worth looking at, because that 10 mana doesn't net you any extra resources, nor threaten a win.

Threatening a win forces the opponents to hold up interaction, which slows them down long-term by a LOT. Re-configuring Cloudsteel Kurin doesn't force them to do anything immediately, which is what you want for a big mana expenditure. Platinum angel effects are rough, because it allows all three opponents time to deal with it, over many turns.

1
shadowmage666•

I have a similar deck but I use selvala explorer return instead as the general to make mana , draw cards, and also be an extra win con ( draw opponents out ) and also kill thassas oracle players with the ability on the stack and an empty library after consult resolves

2
Temp_VariableOP•

Link? Sounds a bit different since I'm going for a stax strategy, but I'm interested to see what you've done.

1
HypnopompicState•

Gonna be honest, with this kind of commander I wouldn’t focus too much on the combos, as you’re never going to get there before other people do. Instead, I’d have one or two silver bullets and lean wayyy heavier into the stax, as you need to stop the faster decks to even stand a chance. Gotta remember that people are packing the new boseiju so I’d definitely not run the book. If I were you I’d just run ashaya/hope tender (doesn’t care about rule of law as much, unlike ranger) and earthcraft/squirrel nest or something.

On the mana front, I’d cut a few lands and then cards like bloom tender and faeburrow, as they’re not good enough to cut it in a two color deck.

I’m brewing a Kamahl/Prava deck that puts the win cons in the command zone, instead of the stax, and fills the deck with the stax (including the big pig, of course). The deck is far from perfect yet, as I need to figure out how to stuff a silence or two and other interaction in, but it has some cards that could could be food for thought for you.

2
Temp_VariableOP•

Thank you! I'll definitely give your list a look for ideas. I like the idea of Hope Tender instead of Quirion Ranger to get around Rule of Law.

1
Responsible_Penguin4•

I know its hella wxoensive but have you considered humility/ that one encantjent that makes your opponents landa into 1/1s as a win con

1
Temp_VariableOP•

Humility turns off all of my stax creatures. That seems actively bad for me. Are you thinking of something else?

1
Responsible_Penguin4•

Ywah i cant remeber what the card is But the land one you could definiely use i think its called living plane.

1
scissor_rock_paper•

[[Living plane]] and [[elesh norn]] can close out games real fast as your opponents lose all their lands and you have an army of 3/3s

1
MTGCardFetcher•

Living plane - (G) (SF) (txt) (ER)
elesh norn - (G) (SF) (txt) (ER)
^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call

1
Temp_VariableOP•

I'm not too sure about living plane because it does nothing without Elesh Norn. So it's later in the game, and it only stops lands not rocks or mana dorks.

My meta doesn't do a lot of land ramp outside of thrasios activations.

1
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