[EDH / Commander] Zur the Enchanter budget

[Mc.V]

Zur the Enchanter budget

A budget Zur the Enchanter deck with 4 combo:
Solemnity +  Phyrexian Unlife = no damage
Vedalken Mastermind + Stasis = no opponent can untap
Solemnity + Decree of Silence = opponents cant play spells
Rule of Law + Knowledge Pool = nobody can play spells enymore (with Zur you don`t care about that)

Please tell me what you think about this deck!

[Rust71898]

Hello Mc.V,
So one quick bit of housekeeping: what you are calling combo's are referred to as stacks locks in the commander community. When you say combo in commander it usually means a set of cards that wins you the game immediately. As opposed to stacks locks which stops your opponents from playing the game. Stacks games can go on for hours if they managed to stop your win con before you locked them. If you ever intend to play this deck with other people, please be up front with them on what the deck does. Stacks games are not fun for people that aren't prepared to deal with them.

With that out of the way here's a few card swaps I would do:
1) Silence ---> Render Silent
2) Steel of the Godhead ---> Unquestioned Authority
3) Hanna, Ships Navigator ---> Mistveil Plains or Hall of Heliod's Generosity

Your list has a few awkward cards, that you can definitely play but may nonbo from time to time.
1) Monastery Siege and Spirit of the Labyrinth. On their own their fine, but with both you draw and discard as opposed to draw 2 discard 1. Given you have multiple locks that stop your opponents from playing, I'd suggest cutting Spirit.
2) Island Sanctuary does work in stopping ground attacks, but if an opponent slams a hasty Drakuseth, Maw of the Flames your in trouble. If you want another Zur target I'd look at Propaganda.
3) Lightning Grieves is a bit awkward because you are trying to get 2 to 3 aura's on Zur. This card is fantastic if your not on a Zur damage win con. You may want to look into Mask of Avacyn instead.
4)  Desolation, Mana breach, and Overburden are all very dangerous cards to have out if Zur dies and you cant re cast him. Look instead at Back to Basics and Mana Maze for mana based disruption. If your play group isn't very removal inclined, you can keep these in.

One last general note: This deck should have about 2 more rocks and 8-10 more pieces of card draw, because if someone powers out a turn 2 Nevermore or Phyrexian Revoker naming Zur your deck needs to function without him. Right now your card "draw" is Zur fetches and tutors, meaning you gain very little card advantage off of Monastery Siege and Brainstorm.

[Mc.V]

Thank you, thats very helpful!
I wanted to build this commander deck for playing with my playgroup, but you are right with what you sayed abou stacks decks.
So I don`t know if I should realy build this deck in paper, what do you think about playing a stacks deck in a casual playgroup?

[Rust71898]

I think the only time you should play a stacks deck in a casual group is if all the members express an interest in higher level play. Otherwise you should never play a stacks deck at a casual place.

My first surprise encounter with stacks was a month into my commander lifespan, with a The Gitrog Monster land destruction list. It was jarring going from my bad Oona, Queen of the Fae mill deck versus a deck throwing out cards like Death Cloud and Static Orb. Needless to say staring at cardboard for consistently 2 hour games while I was locked was not fun.

I can understand the want to explore this type of deck in commander as it's a very powerful one, but when you stop others from playing the game it can make a lot of feels bad moments. Luckily there's usually people that, after you express an interest in higher level play, they will also want to start playing stronger decks. However, therein lies another problem proliferation in the group. If you and another start powering up, you may end up with a play group that you all no longer find fun. All in all just have a healthy conversation with your playgroup before you invest in this deck.

[Mc.V]

Thank you,
I talked with my playgroup, and I will not play a stacks deck like this.
Instead, I tried to build a superfriends deck (If you want you can check it out and give feetback).