How to turn friends to enemies by Hybridfenyx

Format: Commander

Commander: Zedruu the Greathearted

Bracket: 3

Deck overview

This Zedruu the Greathearted deck pilots a "bad gifts" strategy, donating harmful or symmetrical permanents to opponents to draw cards and gain life while pillow-fort effects protect the pilot. The core engine is Zedruu's upkeep trigger, which rewards you for permanents you own that opponents control. Key donate targets include Illusions of Grandeur (gain 20 life, then pass the upkeep burden), Nine Lives (prevent damage, then exile and lose the game-on an opponent), Grid Monitor and Steel Golem (lock opponents out of creature spells), and Jinxed Idol (punish them for having creatures). The deck also uses Puca's Mischief, Cultural Exchange, and Role Reversal to swap control of permanents. Wins come via Approach of the Second Sun (cast twice), Laboratory Maniac (draw the entire library through Zedruu's triggers), Psychosis Crawler (life drain from each draw), or Niv-Mizzet, Parun (pinger synergies). The plan is slow, grindy, and heavily reliant on the commander to generate value.

Decklist (100 cards)

• 1 Akroan Horse
• 1 Approach of the Second Sun
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Azorius Signet
• 1 Banishing Light
• 1 Bazaar Trader
• 1 Blasphemous Act
• 1 Boros Charm
• 1 Boros Signet
• 1 Bucknard's Everfull Purse
• 1 Chaos Warp
• 1 Clifftop Retreat
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Commander's Sphere
• 1 Coveted Jewel
• 1 Cultural Exchange
• 1 Darksteel Mutation
• 1 Deflecting Swat
• 1 Dovescape
• 1 Exotic Orchard
• 1 Fierce Guardianship
• 1 Fumble
• 1 Generous Gift
• 1 Ghostly Prison
• 1 Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
• 1 Glacial Fortress
• 1 Grand Abolisher
• 1 Grid Monitor
• 1 Hallowed Fountain
• 1 Harmless Offering
• 1 Heliod's Pilgrim
• 1 Howling Mine
• 1 Humble Defector
• 1 Idyllic Tutor
• 1 Illusions of Grandeur
• 1 Imprisoned in the Moon
• 8 Island
• 1 Izzet Signet
• 1 Jinxed Idol
• 1 Khârn the Betrayer
• 1 Laboratory Maniac
• 1 Land Tax
• 5 Mountain
• 1 Mystic Monastery
• 1 Nine Lives
• 1 Niv-Mizzet, Parun
• 1 Oblivion Ring
• 1 Open the Armory
• 1 Pendant of Prosperity
• 6 Plains
• 1 Pramikon, Sky Rampart
• 1 Propaganda
• 1 Psychosis Crawler
• 1 Puca's Mischief
• 1 Rainbow Vale
• 1 Raugrin Triome
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Robe of Stars
• 1 Role Reversal
• 1 Rust Elemental
• 1 Sacred Foundry
• 1 Sea of Clouds
• 1 Smothering Tithe
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Spectator Seating
• 1 Sphere of Safety
• 1 Statecraft
• 1 Steam Vents
• 1 Steel Golem
• 1 Sulfur Falls
• 1 Supreme Verdict
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Swords to Plowshares
• 1 Talisman of Conviction
• 1 Talisman of Creativity
• 1 Talisman of Progress
• 1 Teferi's Protection
• 1 Thought Vessel
• 1 Training Center
• 1 Wild Research
• 1 Windborn Muse
• 1 Witness Protection
• 1 Wrong Turn
• 1 Zedruu the Greathearted