Naya Gates was originally conceived with the release of Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate, but it became a stronger strategy in the competitive scene in 2025, as players combined the Gates base with generic staples like Writhing Chrysalis.
The Decklist
This list follows the standard used by most variants we see in Magic Online Leagues, and it operates in three stages: first, the deck uses Gatecreeper Vine to fix mana while Outlaw Medic and Sacred Cat hold the fort.
In the mid-game, we establish our threats on the board and start using the interaction with Basilisk Gate to dominate the game, finishing it with Armadillo Cloak.
Maindeck
Sacred Cat is much more important than it seems. It holds back early attacks, trades early, and comes back from the graveyard for a second round of attacks. As the game goes long, it becomes a way to race the opponent's clock alongside Basilisk Gate, making it functional at any stage of the match.
Thraben Inspector offers a decent body against Rally and a relevant ETB effect for longer games. It's one of the primary targets for Kor Skyfisher.
Outlaw Medic also helps hold back the opponent's clock with an efficient body that provides an extra card when destroyed. Since it also has Lifelink, its interaction with Basilisk Gate can make winning impossible for the opponent.
Gatecreeper Vine is the glue of the deck. It fixes mana and fuels the long-term plan of our strategy while also being a blocker against Aggro and a way to hold back Midrange advances.
Kor Skyfisher connects various parts of the list by reusing ETB effects. Furthermore, its Flying body holds off Faeries creatures and works as an effective clock alongside Basilisk Gate against lists without many blockers.
Guardian of the Guildpact represents our primary win condition. Having protection from most removal in the format and evading various blockers, it's the perfect target for Basilisk Gate, and even against decks like Affinity, its combination with Armadillo Cloak is extremely dangerous.
Writhing Chrysalis grows considerably for a very low cost, making it one of the best creatures in the format today. Combining it with Armadillo Cloak and/or Basilisk Gate is also an effective passport to victory.
Lightning Bolt is one of the most powerful interactions in Pauper and the best red removal in the format for lists without an artifact base. Since our game plan is slower, we need cheap cards to interact with the board.
Journey to Nowhere handles creatures that escape the reach of Lightning Bolt. Although vulnerable to Thraben Charm and others, it plays a fundamental role in removing Writhing Chrysalis, Myr Enforcer, and other larger threats from the board.
Thraben Charm has three versatile modules for different matchups: it removes creatures from the board with some ease, exiles graveyards against archetypes dependent on it, and can also prevent a problematic enchantment from staying on the board—all for two mana and at instant speed.
Prismatic Strands functions as pseudo-"extra turns" against Aggro, invalidating punishing attacks and frequently forcing the opponent to make difficult decisions between maintaining their clock or guarding against the possibility of wasting an explosive turn.
Basilisk Gate is the true win condition we have. With enough Gates on the board, it turns any creature into a constant threat that demands an immediate answer, which not every archetype can handle in the maindeck or Sideboard.
Armadillo Cloak complements the strategy around Basilisk Gate by granting evasion and life gain to a creature. On its own, it's a fundamental piece alongside Guardian of the Guildpact and Writhing Chrysalis, while also turning Kor Skyfisher into a decent threat that dodges Galvanic Blast.
Since our game plan revolves around having many Gates on the board, we use 20 copies of them in the mana base, with the advantage that most of them can "fix" our color access the moment they enter the battlefield.
Sideboard
Breath Weapon deals with small creatures at instant speed and for a low cost. It works almost universally against Aggro decks and go wide strategies.
Saruli Gatekeepers might seem a bit slow, but seven life on ETB on a decent body that dodges traditional damage spells makes it a way to add even more value with Kor Skyfisher in matchups against Burn and Mono Red Rally.
Masked Vandal is a decent standard answer against Affinity, Bogles, and other archetypes with problematic enchantments. It can be replaced by Dust to Dust if we want to respect Affinity, but the flexibility in Sideboard slots tends to justify its use.
Obsidian Acolyte protects our creatures from black removal while itself also being a good target for Armadillo Cloak and Basilisk Gate in those matchups. Ideal against Golgari Gardens and similar decks.
Pyroblast comes in against any archetype highly dependent on blue spells and becomes our most effective interaction against Mono Blue Terror.
Relic of Progenitus also matters in games against Terror, but its main function is to hinder the Spy Combo for a few turns—a matchup where we're forced to be as aggressive as possible if we want any chance of winning.
Sideboard Guide
Mono Blue Terror
With Delver of Secrets:
IN
OUT
Without Delver of Secrets:
IN
OUT
Mono Red Rally
IN
OUT
Grixis Affinity
IN
OUT
Mono Blue Faeries
IN
OUT
Madness Burn
IN
OUT
Elves
IN
OUT
Spy Combo
IN
OUT
Bogles
IN
OUT
Wrapping Up
That's all for today!
If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment!
Thanks for reading!
Sign in and join the conversation
— Comments 0
, Reactions 1
Be the first to comment