Duel Commander - Deck Tech: Yoshimaru

Do you remember that in Duel Commander we can only play one of our Partner commanders if we do put them in our deck, right? Well, today we're discussing one of the best aggro lists in the format, which plays a commander like this.

The first thing we must mention is that there are 4 main partners for this Dog, and that they all have something in common: they're all red.

These commanders are incredibly similar. We'll show their differences in the end because first we need to understand how this deck works. It essentially plays out like a Boros aggro list.

Like all aggro lists, creatures dominate this list. Usually, around 37 to 43 creatures see play in these types of lists. We'll do what we can to discuss the most critical ones.

The Aggressive Kit

Apart from Screaming Nemesis, all these cards are legendary, so they buff your Yoshimaru by +1/+1. Their haste will also be critical, as it allows you to put pressure on your opponent quite fast.

All these cards are useful in other ways as well. They create card advantage, for instance, or, like Headliner Scarlett, may enable lethal plays. This kit is extremely consistent, and I don't remember seeing a Yoshimaru list that doesn't play all of these cards.

The Annoying Kit

This kit also sees play in all aggressive lists. It is as aggressive as the creatures above, but in a different way. The idea behind them is to buy time by taxing spells or making opponents play removals at the wrong time.

You can amplify this kit with cards like Giver of Runes, but overall this list doesn't play creatures with a CMC of 1 because it already plays something excellent in this curve - Yoshimaru itself. Some hate cards sometimes show up, like Sanctifier en-Vec.

The Good Cards

These creatures are simply too good. Some can win the game by themselves (Ocelot, Bombardiers, Pyrogoyf), and others are just generically strong (3 power with flash is great, but both Cathar Commando and Spectacular Spider-Man have relevant abilities as well). Senu interacts really well with other cards in this list quite unexpectedly (you can exile it with a Parallax Wave, pitch it for Solitude, with Inti's or Laelia's ability...).

All these cards are critical in these types of decks, and drawing them means you'll be able to play your best threats. With them in play, your opponent will have to be extremely reactive.

We're talking about Commander, so each deck can only play one copy of each card. Here are a few cool options to close the game.

Finishers

Without a question, this is the dream team. In a deck full of legendary cards, Flowering of the White Tree is ridiculously strong. A Yoshimaru automatically hits for 4 (and has ward 2!) if you play this enchantment and no other card. Embercleave is also legendary and makes attacking for 14 damage with a Yoshimaru really trivial. Forth Eorlingas! is better than a fireball (each mana deals 2 damage, after all). It also makes you the Monarch and builds your board.

Keep an eye out for these 3 cards because they're your main finishers. In particular, you can tutor Embercleave with...

The two first cards above also see play in all aggro lists. Kellan usually doesn't see play, but it is an alternative if you want to swap commanders or get cards for combo matchups. These tutors are great because you can get other great cards with them, like Pre-War Formalwear and even Skullclamp or Shadowspear.

Removals and Tricks

These are this list's main removals, besides, of course, Lightning Bolt, Chain Lightning, and Ghostfire Slice. These cards can also deal damage to the opponent directly, so they're even better. As this list plays enchantments and artifacts that are both proactive and reactive, this deck also plays Enlightened Tutor.

All colored legendary lands are great in this list because they're essentially basic lands that can put counters on Yoshimaru:

All of these lands are both legendary and have relevant abilities (ok, Hammerheim doesn't, but that's fine). We can't fathom a deck without any of them.

This deck doesn't play many colorless mana sources because you'll usually play with just a few lands, and many cards need or . Urza's Saga is certainly a must (creating 2 Constructs is great against control lists, and Skullclamp is a powerhouse), and Mutavault is incredibly popular. As a rule, you shouldn't play more than 3 colorless mana sources, and even the third source is debatable. Use them wisely.

Together, these cards are this deck's mana base. I'll show you the standard list for this commander below, and then discuss what you can gain and lose from each partner.

(Yes, this deck is called Yoshi/Kraum, but it uses Ludevic in the command zone. That's the good thing about a commander that can't be played.)

Blue, the New Normal

The blue version typically doesn't play blue mana. It simply uses this extra color to play hybrid and phyrexian mana. This is the most popular as well as the most successful version lately. Some players have even tried to rebuild this version with a few blue cards:

All of these cards are great, but they make this list less consistent. Some of these lists perform really well, but they're considered quite unorthodox.

Green Because of One Broken Card

Seriously, I believe this is the strongest card in Duel Commander. It is so great that it is definitely reason enough to splash green. I've won matches after being totally flooded simply because I had resolved a Minsc & Boo. It allows you to put a lot of pressure on the game (if the opponent ignores it, you'll simply draw a lot of cards - which a Boros Aggro list should never do).

But there are many cool cards that could see play in this version. As the mana base is already adjusted, you can simply add a few of them to it.

Pure Boros

If you read this far, you might be asking yourself, "why would I play a Boros commander?". After all, even if you don't use any of these cards, you can simply bluff you do, which would already be an advantage. You must have a good reason to play a pure red commander...

Dargo in the command zone will solely enable Cactus Preserve. A manland that hits for 7 in a Boros aggro list is certainly good. That being said, this combination isn't considered worth it.

Command Beacon will get Bruise Tarl, which is truly great. Another advantage that comes with playing a pure Boros list is that you can swap commanders in between matches. Phlage is incredibly strong against aggressive decks (particularly Monored), and Kellan is particularly valuable against combos (though this strategy is a lot more popular in Europe, where the meta is more combo-centric). Because of these reasons, some people don't play blue cards (though we must say this strategy is becoming less popular - a Mental Misstep in your opening hand makes the match very easy).

There are many ways you can customize this list to your tastes. Every spoiler season comes with a legendary card that costs 2 or 3 and that players think improves Yoshimaru. The truth is that there are many cards fighting for slots in this deck. Let's go over some of my favorites and most popular.

These are by far my favorite cards that fight for slots in this deck. Most of them impact the game the turn they come in, which is sort of essential for this deck to succeed.

This is a Boros Aggro list that wants to end the game by turn 4 or 5. The idea is to put as much pressure on the opponent as possible and keep doing that until they can't take it anymore. With these lists, however, you'll often lose the game because you ran out of cards.

This is not unusual: it's what makes this deck what it is. There are ways to deal with it - they probably create other weaknesses, and that's why we don't recommend them. But if you believe they're good ideas for your meta, they can surprise you.

Enlightened Tutor can always be a part of this deck because it gets Parallax Wave (and this card can win games), Embercleave, removals like Chained to the Rocks, etc. Adding enchantments that make you the Monarch may give you the victory against decks that don't play many creatures - particularly those that try to win through attrition or by stalling the game.

Attacking the opponent's mana base is always an interesting option. The biggest problem with this strategy is that this deck already struggles with resources, and adding too many cards that don't do anything in certain situations could make things a lot worse.

This deck is so powerful that many people think it is easy to play, which is not true. It is really forgiving because the opponents often don't have time to react, and, frequently, even if you give them an extra turn, they won't be able to stabilize. However, contrary to popular belief, "math is not just for blockers".

This deck performs really well without Plateau (2 life hardly points matter because you'll be racing past your opponent - you'll only lose because you ran out of cards, not speed), and it has a lot of space for creativity. As long as you keep aggressive creatures, you'll do well. It is considered the "fun police" because it's simple and punishes any deck that isn't ready to interact from the very first turns.

What do you think? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!