The GOAT by user9514475

Format: Commander

Commander: Zedruu the Greathearted

Bracket: 3

DeckCheck Threat Index: 39

Deck overview

This deck is a classic Zedruu the Greathearted political control build that wins by donating harmful permanents to opponents while hiding behind a dense pillowfort shell. The early game focuses on deploying 2-CMC mana rocks and setting up defensive enchantments like Ghostly Prison and Propaganda to deter early aggression. Once Zedruu enters the battlefield, the pilot transfers control of benign or self-passing permanents like Humble Defector and Akroan Horse to fuel massive card draw and life gain every upkeep. In the late game, the deck weaponizes Zedruu's donation ability to hand lethal liabilities to opponents, including Thought Lash, Transcendence, Illusions of Grandeur, and Pyromancer's Swath. Token engines like The Locust God and drain effects like Psychosis Crawler provide strong secondary win conditions. The deck excels at table politics and resource generation, though it requires careful timing to avoid holding backfiring enchantments when Zedruu is removed.

Decklist (100 cards)

  • 1 Akroan Horse
  • 1 Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos
  • 1 An Offer You Can't Refuse
  • 1 Arcane Signet
  • 1 Arid Mesa
  • 1 Azorius Signet
  • 1 Bazaar Trader
  • 1 Body of Knowledge
  • 1 Boros Signet
  • 1 Bronze Bombshell
  • 1 Bucknard's Everfull Purse
  • 1 Chaos Warp
  • 1 Cinder Giant
  • 1 Command Tower
  • 1 Counterspell
  • 1 Curse of Opulence
  • 1 Deflecting Swat
  • 1 Delaying Shield
  • 1 Delusions of Mediocrity
  • 1 Enlightened Tutor
  • 1 Esper Sentinel
  • 1 Fellwar Stone
  • 1 Flooded Strand
  • 1 Form of the Dragon
  • 1 Generous Gift
  • 1 Ghostly Prison
  • 1 Gilded Drake
  • 1 Gleaming Splendor
  • 1 Goblin Cadets
  • 1 Hall of Heliod's Generosity
  • 1 Hallowed Fountain
  • 1 Homeward Path
  • 1 Humble Defector
  • 1 Illusions of Grandeur
  • 1 Iroh, Tea Master
  • 8 Island
  • 1 Izzet Signet
  • 1 Jinxed Choker
  • 1 Jinxed Idol
  • 1 Khârn the Betrayer
  • 1 Land Tax
  • 1 Marina Vendrell's Grimoire
  • 8 Mountain
  • 1 Mystic Remora
  • 1 Nine Lives
  • 1 Path to Exile
  • 1 Perplexing Chimera
  • 8 Plains
  • 1 Plateau
  • 1 Propaganda
  • 1 Psychosis Crawler
  • 1 Puca's Mischief
  • 1 Pyromancer's Swath
  • 1 Reliquary Tower
  • 1 Role Reversal
  • 1 Rust Elemental
  • 1 Sacred Foundry
  • 1 Scalding Tarn
  • 1 Sea of Clouds
  • 1 Smothering Tithe
  • 1 Sol Ring
  • 1 Spectator Seating
  • 1 Sphere of Safety
  • 1 Statecraft
  • 1 Steam Vents
  • 1 Stiltzkin, Moogle Merchant
  • 1 Swords to Plowshares
  • 1 Talisman of Conviction
  • 1 Talisman of Creativity
  • 1 The Locust God
  • 1 Thought Lash
  • 1 Thought Vessel
  • 1 Training Center
  • 1 Transcendence
  • 1 Tundra
  • 1 Volcanic Island
  • 1 Yes Man, Personal Securitron
  • 1 Zedruu the Greathearted
  • 1 Zidane, Tantalus Thief