Marchesa d'Amati, First of her Name: Queens Gambit by Taurora

Format: Commander

Commander: Queen Marchesa

Bracket: 3

DeckCheck Threat Index: 34

Deck overview

This Queen Marchesa deck is a classic Mardu Aikido and political control strategy designed to turn opponents' aggression and board development into their own downfall. Built around the Monarch mechanic, the deck secures steady card advantage from the command zone while using deathtouch blockers, goad mechanics, and political incentives to direct combat away from itself. Rather than rushing a proactive combo, the deck controls the flow of the game with a deep suite of over 20 instant-speed interaction spells, highlighted by devastating damage reflection and combat blowouts such as Inkshield, Deflecting Palm, and Comeuppance. Sunforger acts as a repeatable toolbox engine, tutoring removal, protection, and redirection on demand. When opponents have sufficiently weakened one another, the deck closes the game on Turns 6 through 8 via unblockable goad swings with Taunt from the Rampart, an overwhelming Inkling counterattack, or high-damage reflection loops with Brash Taunter and Blasphemous Act.

Decklist (100 cards)

  • 1 Anguished Unmaking
  • 1 Arcane Signet
  • 1 Arcbond
  • 1 Backlash
  • 1 Battlefield Forge
  • 1 Blasphemous Act
  • 1 Blightstep Pathway // Searstep Pathway
  • 1 Boros Charm
  • 1 Boros Signet
  • 1 Brash Taunter
  • 1 Breena, the Demagogue
  • 1 Brightclimb Pathway // Grimclimb Pathway
  • 1 Caves of Koilos
  • 1 Comeuppance
  • 1 Command Tower
  • 1 Curse of Opulence
  • 1 Cut a Deal
  • 1 Deflecting Palm
  • 1 Delirium
  • 1 Desolate Mire
  • 1 Duelist's Heritage
  • 1 Excise the Imperfect
  • 1 Exotic Orchard
  • 1 Fabled Passage
  • 1 Fellwar Stone
  • 1 Fetid Heath
  • 1 Fire Covenant
  • 1 Flumph
  • 1 Forbidden Orchard
  • 1 Generous Gift
  • 1 Generous Plunderer
  • 1 Get Lost
  • 1 Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
  • 1 Graven Cairns
  • 1 Horizon of Progress
  • 1 Humble Defector
  • 1 Inkshield
  • 1 Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant
  • 1 Legion Leadership // Legion Stronghold
  • 1 Loran of the Third Path
  • 1 Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff
  • 1 Malakir Rebirth // Malakir Mire
  • 1 Mangara, the Diplomat
  • 1 Master of Ceremonies
  • 1 Mistveil Plains
  • 3 Mountain
  • 1 Needleverge Pathway // Pillarverge Pathway
  • 1 Nelly Borca, Impulsive Accuser
  • 1 Nighthawk Scavenger
  • 1 Nomad Outpost
  • 1 Oft-Nabbed Goat
  • 1 Olórin's Searing Light
  • 1 Orzhov Signet
  • 1 Path of Ancestry
  • 1 Path to Exile
  • 4 Plains
  • 1 Plaza of Heroes
  • 1 Qarsi Revenant
  • 1 Queen Marchesa
  • 1 Rakdos Charm
  • 1 Rakdos Signet
  • 1 Reflecting Pool
  • 1 Return the Favor
  • 1 Reverberate
  • 1 Rogue's Passage
  • 1 Rugged Prairie
  • 1 Scheming Symmetry
  • 1 Secret Rendezvous
  • 1 Selfless Squire
  • 1 Shadowblood Ridge
  • 1 Shadrix Silverquill
  • 1 Shattered Landscape
  • 1 Sol Ring
  • 1 Stroke of Midnight
  • 1 Sulfurous Springs
  • 1 Sunforger
  • 1 Sunscorched Divide
  • 3 Swamp
  • 1 Swords to Plowshares
  • 1 Take the Bait
  • 1 Talisman of Conviction
  • 1 Talisman of Hierarchy
  • 1 Talisman of Indulgence
  • 1 Taunt from the Rampart
  • 1 Teferi's Protection
  • 1 Tempt with Bunnies
  • 1 Tibalt's Trickery
  • 1 Untimely Malfunction
  • 1 Valakut Awakening // Valakut Stoneforge
  • 1 Vault of the Archangel
  • 1 Verrak, Warped Sengir
  • 1 Wishclaw Talisman
  • 1 Yes Man, Personal Securitron