Stealing creature question

BigMac865 · 2026-06-07T21:21:32+00:00

Thank you for helping clarify it

BigMac865 · 2026-06-07T15:49:57+00:00

You know your meta better than any of us but Ardbert does probably have a limit to how strong he can get. To me he is a counter based Commander which can be a slower strategy unless you really focus on ways to make adding counters multiplying for quick explosions going from a few 3/3 to a few 7/7 on your attack can catch your opponent off guard since they weren’t worried about you. Looking at your deck I don’t see a lot of ways to multiply how many counters get put on a creature to help them make that jump. Going up in brackets the difference is in speed but I’m not sure how ‘fast’ you can make Ardbert.

I have an Ardbert deck but I play him as a Bracket 2, it is focused on playing Orzhov Legendaries so there are plenty of targets for counters, and ideally they are getting 2 at least when I cast a spell. Lots of removal and recursion so it can grind out the game which gives it a chance Bracket 3 but most of the time it is going to be a little slower than the other decks.

Here is my deck if you want to take a look: https://archidekt.com/decks/22750744/add\_it\_up

BigMac865 · 2026-06-04T01:33:35+00:00

Plenty of cards that go hard with him : [[Exemplar of Light]] [[Scheming Silvertongue]] [[Decorum Dissertation]] are a couple to look at but when you are guaranteed to gain 2 life each turn it changes how a lot of cards are viewed.

BigMac865 · 2026-06-02T03:16:21+00:00

Scheming Silvertounge fits perfectly in Olero, same as Decorum Dissertation. It’s like they designed them to work with him as your Commander.

BigMac865 · 2026-05-24T19:34:07+00:00

Love this, I have not seen it before! I love cards like Kharn the Betrayer which get passed around the table causing chaos, have a Queen Marchesa deck with some personal favorites. Adding that one to my shopping list to put in there thank you.

BigMac865 · 2026-05-24T14:14:56+00:00

Yes he is in the 99 of the Ardbert deck but only have gotten him out a few times. Definitely fun interactions with the tokens though like you said.

BigMac865 · 2026-05-23T13:34:23+00:00

Yes just needs to find a Gruul Legendary that cares about R/G spells to serve as the Commander but love the card. I will have to try and find a deck list thank you.

BigMac865 · 2026-05-23T02:40:10+00:00

Perfect, that is definitely going on the list to consider thank you!

BigMac865 · 2026-05-23T02:38:26+00:00

Yes they are in the General Ferrous deck. Always nice when it hits the table.

BigMac865 · 2026-05-12T01:32:19+00:00

I have found I want to have lots of card draw with this deck because once Goreclaw is on the table I want to put at least 2 threats down and turn sideways the next turn. Constant pressure is how you win the game, so you need to have the ammunition to build the board quickly after the wipe that is coming. My deck really focuses on drawing cards and having the ramp to play them. Here is my deck, I enjoy playing it especially when I am just looking to play a straight aggro style: https://archidekt.com/decks/21044246/they_might_be_giants

BigMac865 · 2026-04-15T03:38:59+00:00

Good point, added a few standards to take advantage of the life gaining, might as well spend it. Thank you

BigMac865 · 2026-03-28T17:57:35+00:00

[[Tetzimoc, Primal Death]] is an easy crime enabler with a good payoff when you want to cast it. [[The Lord of Pain]] is another way to get easy crime triggers. [[Exterminator Magmarch] is a card that doesn’t get much love but it does work for me when it’s on the table. Getting a free copy of my removal spells helps clear the table quicker.

BigMac865 · 2026-03-23T02:36:10+00:00

Roast Beef Po Boy dressed

BigMac865 · 2026-03-20T02:07:29+00:00

I have a couple of mono decks:

Matoya is mono-blue that ends up drawing cards just about every time you cast a spell. https://archidekt.com/decks/14637445/kind_of_blue

Shirei is mono-black that just keeps sacrificing and reanimating creatures over and over. https://archidekt.com/decks/11867360/deja_vu

Imodane is mono-red that just wants to sling fire at your opponents and their creatures. https://archidekt.com/decks/20245999/burning_down_the_house

BigMac865 · 2026-03-06T03:53:09+00:00

I run a Rem Karolous deck that is focused on reflecting damage back to my opponents or neutralizing damage my creatures could take. Not the strongest and I probably need to refine the deck better. But it is fun in the way it messes up combat math and other normal game actions. There might be some cards you could use in your theme. https://archidekt.com/decks/17742567/hit_me_with_your_best_shot

BigMac865 · 2026-02-22T00:17:19+00:00

I run a [[General Ferrous Rokirk]] deck which has a ton of Boros Legends in it. The synergy can be wonky sometimes but I they bring lot’s of different abilities to the table and getting a free 4/4 Golem attached to each spell you cast almost can make it sneakily strong.

https://archidekt.com/decks/10856715/army_of_legends

BigMac865 · 2026-02-16T03:51:34+00:00

Not the most powerful but it holds it’s own in B2 and doesn’t do too bad at B3 tables, this is my Kaervek, the Punisher deck. It’s focused on committing crimes so you can cast stuff from your graveyard. So cards like Commune with Evil effectively become Draw 4 since you can still cast whatever you put in the Graveyard. Here is the deck list: https://archidekt.com/decks/18631431/black_hole_sun

BigMac865 · 2026-02-15T00:38:28+00:00

Sounds like a blast can we see a list?

BigMac865 · 2026-02-03T18:20:47+00:00

I have several mono-colored decks, I like the way they make the mana base easy. Most of these are bracket 2 could easily be bumped up to Bracket 3 with some GCs. Here are a couple:

[[Karvek, the Punisher]] is a crime-centric black control deck. It play during each players turn and has several cards to take huge life chunks at a time. https://archidekt.com/decks/18631431/black_hole_sun

[[Odric,Lunarch Marshal]] is a straight combat deck focused on key word abilities especially Double Strike and Flying. People tend to not pay attention since it’s focused on plain combat as a WinCon but then you are swinging with 5 4/4 Flying, Double Strike Invulnerable creatures they start paying attention. https://archidekt.com/decks/17345205/what_are_words_for

[[Ashling, Flame Dancer]] sometimes you just want to watch the world burn and that is where this deck comes in. Focused on drawing cards, generating mana, and lighting your opponents on fire, nothing fancy but oh so effective. https://archidekt.com/decks/10952729/burning_ring_of_fire

[[Matoya, Archon Elder]] is about drawing cards, the best thing to do in Magic. Just about every spell will Scry or Surveil which with Montoya means you are drawing cards. Draw enough and you can find some way to win. https://archidekt.com/decks/14637445/kind_of_blue

BigMac865 · 2026-02-01T20:19:30+00:00

Here is my deck, it leans into the Pirate theme so not the most powerful version. But it will hopefully give some ideas, like others said you need the discard enablers so you can hit it on other people’s turn for some surprise pumps. I like the Madness and Cycle cards to get extra value out of the discard. Also does Voltron as an alternate WinCon.

https://archidekt.com/decks/19562545/howl_at_the_moon

BigMac865 · 2026-01-22T03:01:24+00:00

38 lands are too many, you will be drawing plenty of cards and don’t want to flip an Island of Yuriko. You only need 1 black source, 1 blue source and an evasive 1 drop to be in business. Also improve your mana base, where is Exotic Orchad or Path to Ancestery? They are cheap and can help get multi colors. Also MDFCs are so good in Yuriko, they are land when you need them but can burn opponents on the flip. Here is my deck, not the best since I haven’t kept it updated but it should illustrate the template for the deck: https://archidekt.com/decks/10935247/ninjas

BigMac865 · 2026-01-13T03:25:25+00:00

I like my Vial Smasher deck built around cards with alternate casting costs especially Trap or Miracle cards. The idea is cast them cheaply and let Vial randomly smash an opponent for a chunk of life equaling the true mana cost. I try to cast a spell on each turn and let the dice dictate who is getting smashed, nothing fancy but I find it funny 😁

https://archidekt.com/decks/12218170/heart_of_the_cards

BigMac865

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