city defenders by Gaullo

Format: Commander

Commander: Arcades, the Strategist

Bracket: 3

DeckCheck Threat Index: 41

Deck overview

This deck is a Bant toughness-matters aggressive combat deck commanded by Arcades, the Strategist. The core strategy deploys low-cost creatures with defender during the early turns to build mana acceleration and a wide defensive foundation. Once Arcades enters the battlefield on turn 4, every defender becomes a potent attacker assigning combat damage equal to its toughness while cantripping on entry to maintain a full hand. The deck transitions into an offensive powerhouse on turn 5, utilizing oversized stats on cheap creatures alongside explosive pump spells like Tower Defense, Unnatural Growth, and Triumph of the Hordes to eliminate opponents in rapid succession. Robust protection spells safeguard the board against board wipes, while redundant toughness-combat enablers such as High Alert ensure the deck can maintain combat pressure even if the commander is removed.

Decklist (100 cards)

• 1 Academy Ruins
• 1 Angel's Grace
• 1 Approach of the Second Sun
• 1 Arcades, the Strategist
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Axebane Guardian
• 1 Azorius Chancery
• 1 Bedrock Tortoise
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Coral Colony
• 1 Counterspell
• 1 Crystal Barricade
• 1 Dovin's Veto
• 1 Enlightened Tutor
• 1 Finale of Devastation
• 1 Finale of Revelation
• 1 Flawless Maneuver
• 1 Flumph
• 6 Forest
• 1 Fortified Area
• 1 Glacial Fortress
• 1 Gleaming Splendor
• 1 Growth Spiral
• 1 Heroic Intervention
• 1 High Alert
• 1 Hinterland Harbor
• 1 Hornet Nest
• 1 Idyllic Tutor
• 6 Island
• 1 Lightning Greaves
• 1 Mana Reflection
• 1 Mistrise Village
• 1 Mnemonic Wall
• 1 Mox Opal
• 1 Multiversal Incursion
• 1 Mystic Sanctuary
• 1 Overgrown Battlement
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 6 Plains
• 1 Psychic Membrane
• 1 Rammas Echor, Ancient Shield
• 1 Reflecting Pool
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Render Silent
• 1 Rhystic Study
• 1 Seaside Citadel
• 1 Selesnya Sanctuary
• 1 Shield-Wall Sentinel
• 1 Simic Growth Chamber
• 1 Smothering Tithe
• 1 Sokrates, Athenian Teacher
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Spara's Headquarters
• 1 Spectra Ward
• 1 Spidersilk Armor
• 1 Sporocyst
• 1 Staff of Domination
• 1 Stalwart Shield-Bearers
• 1 Storm, Windrider
• 1 Sunpetal Grove
• 1 Sunscape Familiar
• 1 Super State
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Swords to Plowshares
• 1 Sylvan Caryatid
• 1 Temporal Manipulation
• 1 The Birth of Meletis
• 1 The Pride of Hull Clade
• 1 The Walls of Ba Sing Se
• 1 The Water Crystal
• 1 The Wind Crystal
• 1 Thought Vessel
• 1 Tower Defense
• 1 Towering Titan
• 1 Tree of Redemption
• 1 Triumph of the Hordes
• 1 True Conviction
• 1 Unnatural Growth
• 1 Wall of Blossoms
• 1 Wall of Essence
• 1 Wall of Frost
• 1 Wall of Kelp
• 1 Wall of Reverence
• 1 Wall of Stolen Identity
• 1 Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth