Korozda Guildmage Pauper Commander (EDH / Commander)

My Magic group has decided to jump into the Pauper format by making commander decks with the following stipulations:

1) Any uncommon can be your commander
2) Any common in any set can be used

With that in mind, I present the Korozda Guildmage Pauper Commander deck!

My previous Pauper Commander deck was three colors (using Sludge Strider as the commander), so I wanted to try a two color option. I really liked the various Guildmages, but Korozda Guildmage stuck out to me for its second card ability: pay 2BG and sacrifice a non-token creature to get X 1/1 saprolings where X = sacrificed card's toughness.

Immediately the idea of playing cards with Defender sprung to mind. Those cards are often cheap for the toughness they provide, making them a perfect target for Korozda Guildmage's sacrifice ability. Green has several good Defender cards, and they have access to Thallids, which can produce additional saproling tokens on their own.

Some Green cards with Defender are just plain nasty. Archers' Parapet allows you to ding every opponent for one; not the most powerful ability, but it can add up over time. (Also- five toughness for converted cost of two is great) Axebane Guardian allows you to get mana of any color for each Defender you control. Overgrown Battlement is similar, but provides Green mana instead.

Of course, I had to include some Thallid cards in a deck that looks to sacrifice creatures. More food for Black creatures to eat (see below) is never a bad thing. Bloodbriar gets a solid nod here, as you put +1/+1 counters on it for each permanent you sacrifice to said Black Creatures. Elvish Skysweeper has an expensive ability, but being able to target pesky flying creatures and just zap them into the graveyard at instant speed can be very helpful.

Black has access to several common cards that allow you to sacrifice a creature to gain either a temporary stat boost (usually +2/+2) or a permanent +1/+1 counter. It also has access to some interesting cards with Defender as well, although the focus for Black in this deck is to eat saprolings and remove/dredge creatures as needed. Gnawing Zombie is the star of the show here, as it allows you to directly damage opponents via sacrificing saprolings. Pair with a Mortician Beetle and you have quite the potent duo.

Artifacts included in this decklist buff the toughness stat, for obvious reasons. Cathar's Shield and the Accorder's Shield both provide +0/+3 and Vigilance (and cost zero to cast) and Slagwurm Armor provides a whopping +0/+6 when equipped. Giving s Steel Wall (cost 1, 0/4) the Slagwurm Armor provides 10 saprolings with Korozda Guildmage's sacrifice ability. This is especially effective if you also have Gruesome Fate in your hand, which damages each opponent 1 life for each creature you control.

Korozda Guildmage isn't just good for making Saprolings- they can also give a creature a small buff and give it Intimidate; this doesn't always guarantee you will be able to attack unblocked, but under the right conditions you can make Vampire Aristocrat or Phyrexian Ghoul unblockable and them pump them up to finish off an opponent.

As always, comments and suggestions for improvements are welcomed!