John Benton by basbas

Format: Commander

Commander: Sergeant John Benton

Bracket: 4

DeckCheck Threat Index: 58

Deck overview

This deck is an explosive Selesnya Voltron and card-velocity engine helmed by Sergeant John Benton. Leveraging an ultra-dense suite of 1-mana ramp pieces, the deck deploys its commander on Turn 2 with haste and trample. Casting cheap pump spells like Giant Growth, Invigorate, or Embiggen enables Benton to connect for substantial combat damage, triggering symmetrical card draw that floods the hand with fresh resources. On Turn 3, the deck leverages hand-scaling powerhouses such as Empyrial Armor, Empyrial Plate, and Inner Calm, Outer Strength alongside double strike to deal 21+ lethal commander damage, knocking out one opponent while drawing dozens of cards. The massive card influx supplies continuous land drops via Exploration and Azusa, Lost but Seeking, fueling a dense wall of 1-mana protection spells like Blacksmith's Skill, Heroic Intervention, and Teferi's Protection. Over Turns 4 and 5, Benton systematically eliminates the remaining opponents through consecutive lethal swings.

Decklist (100 cards)

  • 1 Arboreal Grazer
  • 1 Avacyn's Pilgrim
  • 1 Azusa, Lost but Seeking
  • 1 Become Immense
  • 1 Bilbo's Gambit
  • 1 Birds of Paradise
  • 1 Blacksmith's Skill
  • 1 Blossoming Defense
  • 1 Boreal Druid
  • 1 Bountiful Promenade
  • 1 Branchloft Pathway // Boulderloft Pathway
  • 1 Brushland
  • 1 Burgeoning
  • 1 Canopy Vista
  • 1 Collective Resistance
  • 1 Command Tower
  • 1 Crystalline Armor
  • 1 Delighted Halfling
  • 1 Duelist's Heritage
  • 1 Elvish Mystic
  • 1 Elvish Pioneer
  • 1 Embiggen
  • 1 Empyrial Armor
  • 1 Empyrial Plate
  • 1 Exploration
  • 1 Exponential Growth
  • 1 Fated Clash
  • 1 Flaming Fist
  • 1 Force of Vigor
  • 9 Forest
  • 1 Fortified Village
  • 1 Galadriel's Dismissal
  • 1 Giant Growth
  • 1 Groundswell
  • 1 Heroic Intervention
  • 1 Hushwood Verge
  • 1 Inner Calm, Outer Strength
  • 1 Invigorate
  • 1 Lion Umbra
  • 1 Llanowar Elves
  • 1 Loran's Escape
  • 1 Mana Tithe
  • 1 Might of Old Krosa
  • 1 Might of the Nephilim
  • 1 Monstrous Growth
  • 1 Mutagenic Growth
  • 1 Nature's Claim
  • 1 Overgrown Farmland
  • 1 Overprotect
  • 1 Path to Exile
  • 1 Phytoburst
  • 9 Plains
  • 1 Ram Through
  • 1 Reflecting Pool
  • 1 Reliquary Tower
  • 1 Reprieve
  • 1 Restoration Magic
  • 1 Sakura-Tribe Scout
  • 1 Scale Up
  • 1 Scent of Ivy
  • 1 Selesnya Sanctuary
  • 1 Sergeant John Benton
  • 1 Sheltered by Ghosts
  • 1 Silence
  • 1 Single Combat
  • 1 Skyshroud Ranger
  • 1 Sol Ring
  • 1 Solitary Confinement
  • 1 Spellbook
  • 1 Summer Bloom
  • 1 Sungrass Prairie
  • 1 Sunpetal Grove
  • 1 Swell of Growth
  • 1 Swords to Plowshares
  • 1 Teferi's Protection
  • 1 Temple Garden
  • 1 Tifa's Limit Break
  • 1 Titanic Growth
  • 1 Tyvar's Stand
  • 1 Utopia Sprawl
  • 1 Vines of Vastwood
  • 1 Wild Defiance
  • 1 Wild Growth
  • 1 Wooded Bastion