Zedruu the Greathearted (EDH / Commander)

"If you know exactly what you're going to do, what's the good in doing it?"
—Pablo Picasso
=== I N T R O D U C T I O N ===

I have been playing Commander on a fairly regular basis since 2015, and among the things I learned during that time is that control decks can be a problem in a casual format like this. Naturally, the strategy of a control deck is a) to minimize disruption of my own shenanigans and b) maximize disruption of my opponents' shenanigans; but in EDH, locking everybody else in your playgroup down ("Nobody is playing Magic but me!") takes the fun out of the game. People want to play with their cards, see them in action and enjoy it if their game plan works out. On the other hand, there are players who enjoy control strategies and want to play that deck archetype. How to solve this dilemma?

Enter Zedruu the Greathearted.

I proudly present my refined "chaos control" brew. It mainly consists of janky and/or political spells which create a lot of interaction at the table. And of course, Zedruu brings a decent group hug package with her to speed the game up and make it fun for everyone!

=== S T R A T E G Y ===

I browsed a lot of forums and blogs before assembling my deck, and noticed that chaos has a bad reputation among Commander players. While looking at other players' lists online I understood why - a lot of people play chaos like stax. Some clearly Izzet-aligned madmen find it amusing to play Hive Mind and subsequently Grip of Chaos, followed by Lightning Bolt and Reverberate. While this may sound epic, it will make many players concede out of frustration, because putting all of these effects on the stack and resolving them will take a tremendous amount of time, slowing the game down to a crawl.

The only bad EDH decks are those that won't allow others to play EDH, so I'm avoiding the "bad" chaos cards and only use "good" chaos cards.

What are good chaos cards?

Good - or fun - chaos cards are those that create interaction between players and mess with the board state or the game by only a little, without slowing the pace down too much. For example, Thieves' Auction is a bad - or unfun - card, because it messes with everyone's cards and takes 10 minutes to resolve, while Possibility Storm can be a lot of fun. It warps the game in an entertaining way, without breaking it in half.

Additionally, control strategies are perceived as less oppressive by players if they are left with something. Proteus Staff provides a powerful removal effect, but will give the victim a new toy in return; and it can be used politically, e.g. by "upgrading" someone's Plant Token with it. Time Reversal is hand and graveyard disruption, but since everybody gets to draw a new hand of seven fresh cards, most players won't complain (except for the one that just played Buried Alive or Diabolic Revelation to assemble their combo). Haphazard Bombardment is a powerful removal spell, but it will hit three out of four chosen permanents at random, so no one will get the impression that I'm picking on them.

If I intend to evoke that impression I use Crown of Doom, Akroan Horse or Fractured Identity. They're political instruments, meant to punish the player who's ahead and to help the players who are behind. Oath of Lieges, Humble Defector, Pendant of Prosperity, Diaochan, Artful Beauty, Hunted Dragon and Dawnbreak Reclaimer also fall into this category.

You may ask yourself now, "but what is this deck's win condition?". The answer is: Drawing cards.

My ideal opening hand consists of three different lands, some ramp and something to give away with Zedruu. For example, Pyxis of Pandemonium, Sphere of the Suns or Armistice are perfect early game gifts. Rainbow Vale, Loxodon Peacekeeper and Gilded Drake hand themselves over to an opponent and thus are also appropriate to get early card advantage.

Drawing two or more extra cards per turn allows me to keep the board state in check with my control spells while generating additional value with Hoofprints of the Stag, Chasm Skulker, Nadir Kraken, Psychosis Crawler, The Locust God and Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind. This process is tremendously sped up by spells like Whirlpool Warrior, Teferi's Puzzle Box and Alhammarret's Archive, which will also help me dig for much needed answers or for my win conditions - either casting Approach of the Second Sun on two consecutive turns, or draining all my opponents out by comboing off with Psychosis Crawler. To do that, I need in addition either Alhammarret's Archive and Whirlpool Warrior, or Swans of Bryn Argoll and Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind. The deck can also easily win by old-fashioned beatdown. It contains some heavy, evasive hitters and a few strong token generators; and just in case those won't cut it, I have means to get nice things from my opponents which may.

Speaking of answers: Zedruu seldom takes without giving. I already mentioned Proteus Staff; but Winds of Abandon, Curse of the Swine, Chaos Warp, Indomitable Creativity and Settle the Wreckage also provide compensation for your losses. Removal spells of this kind are strong enough for the Commander format, but also don't draw out games to the point when they're not fun anymore.

I recently gave Mana Flare and Ghirapur Orrery a try, and I wasn't disappointed. With all that card draw, in the past I often ended up with a ton of spells and/or lands in my hand that I weren't able to play, but not anymore. And both cards can also be donated to draw into even more gas with Zedruu! =)

My list is completed by utility spells like Gamble, Thought Vessel and Role Reversal, and some cards that are only in there for hilarity: Bludgeon Brawl provides everyone with shiny new equipment, no one wants to block Volatile Rig, and Boldwyr Heavyweights and Coveted Jewel bring a ton of action to the table.

=== C O N C L U S I O N ===

I love Zedruu to no end, and of all my brews to date, this one is the most fun, for me and everyone else in my playgroup. I'd like to hear your thoughts on it, so please leave a comment if you care. Thanks!