How to make your EDH deck's consistent | Deck Driver MTG

[@PlayAtJoes]

Honestly, it’s very easy and meme-like to simply say “just run more removal”, and simply leave it at that. However, you don’t. Instead, you actively explain why it’s important to “run more removal” and even explain your own methodology as to how it might be done. While 16-20 removal pieces may be a tad excessive, this is a valuable video resource that should be shared with more players in the community. It’s got me rethinking how to build and rebuild my decks. Heck, it might even get me some of my own wins in commander in the long run. Thank you for making this video. Absolute legend.

[@alexanderficken9354]

I like to build removal engines or have synergistic removal that I get advantage with in other ways.

[@healusion8912]

I usually run between 13-16 removals, board wipes included, it feels like it's on a sweet spot for me so I have interaction in My hand pretty consistently but I'm not obvwrflooded with it

[@commanderpower99]

16 is doable if you run MDFCs like Hagra Mauling (and the other black one), the 2x fighting green MDFCs, the white creature that destroys ench/artif, and Sink into Stupor. That's a good way to amp your removal count while not taking too many synergy slots. They are not optimal, but you can increase interaction this way.

[@TeaGarrison]

@@alexanderficken9354 that’s a pipe dream with some decks/achetypes, but cool when you can do it. In my case, I just play a lot of white for other reasons, but the efficient removal is a big bonus IMO. Edit: I find draw engines are easier to build with synergy in a deck, which is a primary part of my deck building.

[@PaulissVegan]

believe me, it is extremely annoying when you are the primary (often times the only one) control player at the table and people ALWAYS look at you when someone puts a huge threat on the stack... I always tell my group, please run more removal. There are so many games where not a single wipe gets cast nor a single artifact/enchantment removal. I mean wtf...

[@isaacdaigle694]

Maybe a controversial opinion, but in most decks, limiting interaction to 12-14 pieces while running more card draw is almost always better than pumping that interaction number up and up

[@coopertolbertsmith6067]

While true, I think he mentioned that if your colors or budget don’t lend themselves well to just adding more card draw, then upping the number of removal spells is an option.

[@levelhumor2nd790]

Your numbers here look like what I often shoot for. Keeping pace up with draw means I have answers in many other forms, I LOVE fog, and I love saving myself (and others) from what otherwise would have been a “let’s all scoop now” scenario.

[@GoulashKroket]

Most draw engines dont do anything if your behind or got boardwiped. And just adding a bunch of random draw spells will usually be unsynergetic. Sure a few 5 mana spell that refills your hand is good, but adding 5 sorseries that draw 2 cards wont help, and thematic draw cards usually dont do anything if your behind, a removal spell can prevent an opponent by popping off. Destroying 1 draw permanent or destroying their commander usually sets them back 2 turns.

[@rastrisfrustreslosgomez544]

I think you're right for the most part, only exception is when the commander provides all the card draw (or most of it) by itself. Korvold and Yawgg don't really need to any extra card draw

[@brandyourfan9244]

My tables always find my decks to be a problem. The secret... Ramp and Card Draw. Load up on both, and you can always be a threat, no matter the strategy.

[@zakromero7795]

“The secret” 😂

[@jessewallace3805]

Just tell them go make better decks to contend with, too easy.

[@keiharris332]

​@@jessewallace3805commander players get really butt hurt when you tell them to git gud

[@mutsuhanma7807]

yep, i run draw punishment and land destruction/mass artifact removal

[@brandyourfan9244]

@@mutsuhanma7807 Draw hate is so good. Mass Land Destruction is only good if you can capitalize on it. If you're just restarting the game, then people will feel the salt 🧂

[@sethdawson5196]

In my pod, there is a guy that builds decks to counter all of his friends decks. So naturally he plays a ton of removal. He immediately kills threats as soon as they come out almost every turn each game. People quickly get the shits of it, turn on him, and he loses all the time.

[@SoulHydron]

That kinda sounds like bad politics by him. You shouldn't remove every single thing

[@manueltic5703]

So you kill your friend out of spite? Sounds like a salty pod

[@Morvagor82]

As a new player usually my decks need a better mana base and more card draw. Whatever your gameplan is, to be able to cast those spells you need to draw them and have the mana for it.

[@enfe8858]

Manabases are the least important but most impactful upgrade you can do just be prepared to pay alot of money. In terms of general upgrades, removal and card draw are key and can be done on a budget nicely.

[@SDOP7665]

I really like your mindset on adding more interactions. I started playing recently, and for my friend group, running a bit more removal and interaction makes the game instantly more interesting for me. I was always focused on how to play my own deck without considering that I was losing a lot because I couldn’t respond to my friends. Your Otharri deck helped me a lot to learn the game btw.

[@smargio]

My suggestion is to find spells that fit your decks theme that also fill another role. For example, kogla is big creature that also removes creatures and artifacts and enchantments. Works really well in a big creatures deck. Or in an aristocrats deck, running cards that sacrifice a creature to draw cards and make a treasure does 3 things for you. But most importantly, look for ways to draw cards. You dont need to make 20% of your deck removal if you can draw enough to increase your odds. Look for cards that draw you lots of cards and work well with your deck. In a big creatures deck? rishkars expertise, spellslinger? Frantic search. Go wide deck? Toski, etc.

[@danielmurphy123]

“Run more removal” has been my deck building philosophy since day 1 lol. I wholeheartedly endorse this message haha.

[@Minty_MH]

I completely agree with the overall assessment. In a solitaire race, the best deck wins. In an interaction-heavy pod, frontrunners can be brought in-line with the other players by trading resources. You remove an opponent's key engine or win-con, for the cost of just 0-2 mana and a card that would otherwise, on the margin (if that removal spell was the 'next best' proactive include instead), likely be a mid card in your strategy? Sign me up. I think that 20 pieces of removal might be a BIT excessive in most casual decks, because a casual deck's "win package" tends to not be very compact. Instead, it relies on critical mass of synergy snowballing instead of the most raw efficient cards possible. Too much removal might lead to stalling out, though it's a delicate balancing act. You want as much removal as possible, while still reliably getting over the finish line through a few roadblocks. I usually think 12-14 ways to interact at instant speed is where I'm mostly at in a casual deck. In high power/cedh I'm often closer to the 20 mark since I only need a card or two to present a win there. Another thing, removing opponent's engines is often very worthwhile and in those cases you generally want to fire the removal ASAP. So while you do often want to wait as long as possible to remove a proactive threat, a card advantage engine that is letting the opponent go +4 on cards every turn should likely be killed immediately, don't let that snowball ever get rolling in the first place.

[@screebb]

Loving these “deck philosophy” videos. Spending more time these days consume this content rather than gameplay. Great Job!

[@PM-xc8oo]

Recently put together a Lazav, Dimir Mastermind deck that is basically just land, card draw and removal and the deck is both pretty solid and a lot of fun to play since you always have something to do and that something always changes based on what your opponents are playing.

[@steelmyr1485]

If you want to run a removal control deck make sure to make your deck around it. For example one of my decks is a enchantment deck and every single piece of removal is a enchantment, every time I cast a removal spell I will be either drawing a card or creating a creature token You can do this for sorceries and instants, there’s commanders that benefit from you casting sorceries or instants. If you don’t like this play style make your deck around protection, protection to counter the removal and to have a stronger end game plan.

[@caffeineandsleepingpills]

5:35 The other day I was playing historic on arena and realized that I was playing against a guy who had over 100 cards in his deck and it was full of apparently nothing but removal and sweep, and his win condition was to simply make me quit or wait until I decked out because I had fewer cards. It was absolutely miserable.

[@onewayraildex4827]

The deck you described may do well In a best of 1 format, but what you described is easily countered by decks that have good sideboards. Black has a million ways to remove cards from your opponents hand. Red, you just unload all of your burn spells to the face. Green, hexproof and strong Enter The Battlefield trigger cards are your friend. Blue: counter and draw cards. Have more threats than answers from your opponent. Commence the endgame and thoughseize is one of my favourite cards against an opponent running control White: has a ton of 1 mana gives indestructible instant cards along with a ton of cards that draw you a card when it enters the battlefield.

[@al8188]

I think "interaction" and "removal" being used interchangeably is what has people balking at the 16-20 number. Removal is a kind of interaction. Counterspells, protection effects like Surge of Salvation or Selfless Spirit, hand attack, and even redirection effects are all interaction. The long and short of it is acknowledging that you're playing against humans who want to do stuff to your game plan and have their own plans as well, and you might want to deal with those facts. If I'm a creature combo deck, something like Rhythm of the Wild is interaction because it blanks countermagic against my guys. If that creature combo deck has trouble against overrun effects, a Spore Frog can help blank combat steps and buy me time. If I need my guys on board to stay on board a Selfless Spirit can blank a lot of board wipes. If a particular stax piece, like a Torpor Orb or a Collector Ouphe, would fold me in half then an Abrade solves that problem. If I think a specific combo deck might be a turn faster than me, then a timely casting of An Offer You Can't Refuse can potentially give me the time to go over top of them. 16-20 pieces of specific problem solvers for your deck sounds way more doable than 16-20 Swords to Plowshares and its lookalikes.

[@pkassad]

My most interactive deck has 22 cards dedicated to protecting the gameplan. This is through 9 spot removals, 3 asymmetric board wipes, 5 counterspells, and 5 mass board protection spells. Once my board is in a state that I can play one of my finishers like Akroma's Will I need to survive 3-5 players turns before my next turn where they are all really really wanting to remove/wipe my board. A hand full of interaction is the only way to make it to that finisher consistently.

[@34N119W]

Can you make a video on some basic wording. Here is an example: Mist dancer. There is a lot of talk online about the Encore, but I question what seems like the easy part, "Other Merfolk you control get +1/+0 and have flying". Does this apply to all merfolk coming after I play Mist Dancer?

[@toromisher]

One of my favorite unique removal combos is ghyrson starn, grafted exoskeleton, and tectonica hazard/end festivities. It can push towards a poison counter win as well as killing all 3 toughness creatures even if they are indestructible. Then you can always cast the other sorcery to kill 6 toughness while also adding more poison counters. Just the best of both worlds into an eventual grapeshot for the win xD

[@maidenless_tarnished]

Biggest deck building change I've done is actually running less removal and more card advantage. If my deck is faster than everyone else's then I can beat them to the punch, have better midgames, and can recover faster from board wipes. I've had a lot more fun "focusing" on my gameplan rather than "worrying" over someone else's

[@Tom-bb3fm]

Your channel is goated my man, you are the man, you are HIM Your advices are top notch

[@Emil.Trausti]

We need you on the trinket mage podcast 🙏🏾

[@Macwylee]

What makes you say that?

[@griffbot1408]

High synergistic ramp that goes well with your deck. Your hand is nice but have access to your graveyard and being able to playing from the top of your library is great. The more answers you can get to is really helpful.

[@sweetjohn3340]

To be fair, adding removal does inherently make your deck’s engine less consistent because you probably have to take out engine cards to fit removal. So it’s all about balance. Also, if your engine can provide you with removal then you may be able to dial down the number of dedicated removal spells you play.

[@Justin-lg1qb]

I just found your channel and I instantly subbed.

[@pencilswordfish]

Removal and in a broader sense interaction is what the whole 'social' aspect of the game is built on anyway. I've seen way too tables where something big happens and we all look at each other and nobody has an answer? And it just goes uncontested. Then it's just a race. And it's like us as players forgot the stack and interaction or something. Being too focused on my own gameplan is the deckbuilding trap that I've been on for probably almost a Decade. It took a LONG time for me to slot in more Interaction and Draw in my decks. The biggest shift for me happened when I finally narrowed and cut down my decklists' wincon or gameplan pieces to just 10% of the deck sometimes 20% max. Now I try to win with a very specific plan A and Plan B. And the rest of the deck is just Ramp/Lands to have consistent curve (I'd rather draw lands than to be stuck at a pitiful mana-base for a majority of the game), Removal/Interaction (I run 15 now), and the biggest chunk besides Lands is a LOT of digging/Draw effects. More draw has been the idea I've latched on to for a while now. Draw solves a lot of problems in a card game as it turns out - the worst feeling in the game is seeing a whole turn rotation and you're just topdecking.

[@Donny-G]

If you are looking for consistent magic play constructed - commander was invented to celebrate the variance, that's why it's a 99 card singleton deck with 4 players - as the format was designed that no 2 board states should ever be the same

[@cheesy_87]

In all fairness, having a consistent deck, which means it is very probable to be able to do its "thing" every game, does not mean consistency in terms of constructed. In constructed, you run the same cards four times and it always boils down to the same end goal. In commander, consistency means diversifying. You actually have to look for useful cards that give you the same or a similar effect, think about how important the "thing" you're trying to pull off is, and then adjust your deck accordingly. And it also means having an answer to the problems on the table as well as being able to bounce back from setbacks. That's harder in commander than it is in constructed. I played enough janky commander decks to know that this is not the way to go if your pod evolves and expects you to evolve with it (or, you know, you wanna win a game for a change)

[@Yourbeautiful666]

Commander has evolved so much since it was first created. We aren’t limited to the Elder Dragons as commanders anymore and we certainly aren’t forced to play with less consistency purely for the “spirit of the game”. There are so many different ways to play commander now days and playing with consistency is one of them.

[@zerodraw13]

Take a drink every time he says pubsto- dead.

[@stardust2010123]

Great reminder! Thanks for your content

[@RickyG93]

16 removal spells is insane. 10-12 pieces of interaction is fine. And you should 100% have some amount of card draw no matter what you play. Preferrably engines, like Guardian Project.

[@Critham]

My best decks don’t run anywhere near 20 pieces and unintentionally I am the pumbstomper stopping my enemies from winning and then out valuing them 😂 My most interactive İzzet deck (Eris) runs 13 interaction spells and it can consistently cast 4-8 every game. Why? Card draw and card selection. If you are going to add 16-20 removal spells to your decks it will simply cease to work. If you do not play a draw/value engine in your command zone you need one on the board EVERY GAME before turn 5. Then you can play less (6-10) removal spells and still see them. Also people play way too little cantrips. Blue is obvious with ponder preordain etc. , but I made a Zask deck recently and cards like cache grab, malevolent rumble and winding way are insanely good. Cantrips allow you to play less lands, less removal and more synergy pieces and still be able to get all you need every game. For reference - power level of my pods starts at mothman precon and ends at Hogaak Gaias Cradle insanity with everything in between. Please don’t dillute your deck with 20 removal spells.

[@InfinityBarn]

How many cantrips would you recommend running? I recently built a Bria, riptide rogue deck with around 20 cantrips and it's been kind of flopping. Any advice?

[@Critham]

@ enough so that you can consistently hit your draw/value engines in the early turns. Try goldfishing your deck - moxfield has a good playtest feature. During the goldfish asses if you can set up an engine that will make you see more cards in the first 4-5 turns consistently - aim for 7/8 games out of 10 . Of course you also want to ramp if able and hold up some kind of interaction if able on turn 4-6. Generally 2-6 high quality cantrips should do the trick. The more cantrips you run the less lands you can play and the slower your deck becomes - cantrips rise your consistency, but spending mana on them makes your decks slower. Play only high quality cantrips - ponder, preordain, malevolent rumble, impulse, faithless looting (not a cantrips per se, still insanely good if you have discard synergy). Cantrips only smooth out your deck, if you don’t have good synergies/engines/ramp to draw into, your deck will fumble anyway.

[@enfe8858]

@@InfinityBarn that's when playtesting and the overall strategy of your deck come into play. For example you could run cantrip elves in elfball-decks or opt in an spellslinger-deck. The amount depends on your deck, card selection and overall strategy. Opt is weaker in creature-bases decks, while the cantrip-elf is not the best choice in your spellbased deck. I typically run around 10-15 sources of card draw including recursion, cantrips, burst draw and draw engines if my commander is not a draw engine.

[@InfinityBarn]

@@enfe8858 I ended up swapping out a bunch of cantrips for some combat based draw sources. When I was play testing I found that I'd be running out of cards since none of my cantrips made me go up in cards. A lot of the sources proc bria's unlockable ability so they also replace themselves at a minimum

[@Aldebarean]

I can't keep track anymore of the times I've won against greedy Yuriko decks by playing cards like banishing light or imprison in the moon. Majority of players are so greedy they forget to put enchantment removal in the deck....

[@itslexactually]

Or blue-black is just not good at dealing with enchantments…

[@rohacjustrohac3581]

I swear games with a turn 3 oppresion in commander with like 2 additional Dimir decks on the table were the most fun i had in recent times. As the game ran you just seen threats get removed very quickly or in some kind of convoluted plot and it forced everyone to just try that much harder to progress the game.

[@GreenM931]

HYDRAS. That’s the secret. Make so many so big and boom. 😝 who doesn’t love a 756/756 with trample and hexproof??? Hella ramp with mono green also.

[@notavan17]

2:50 "You just need to git gud"

[@domsilvestri8681]

My most consistent deck is my Azorius blink control deck. The absurd amount of interaction and protection means i usually end up doing my thing 😁.

[@DuskyPredator]

I just finished a new deck last night built almost entirely around removal. The commander just happens to give me stuff when I remove creatures. Hopefully, I will see this weekend if I have any friends after continuously removing their stuff. Fully expect to at least play the bad guy as I create an army of rats.

[@dougclendening5896]

I agree, but i think you should have mentioned draw, tutors and ramp first. Assuming those are in place, next up is removal. Also, I consider poweral stax pieces as removal as well.

[@Sunborne187]

The best removal/interaction is always synergistic IMO

[@Charley-ju6yg]

When I first switched to magic from yugioh, I wanted to play the same type of gameplan that I did in yugioh; completely disregard interaction except for protecting my board, and instead make up for the lack of interaction with a TON of extenders to be able to play through any amount of interaction. It was actually quite effective within yugioh too. Unfortunately, this was generally not possible in magic, and especially in commander. One point that i have learned that you didn't mention(or I missed it), is the wrong assumption that you can make up for less removal with more card advantage. In reality, doing it like that will result in LESS card advantage, mainly because all your opponent beeds to do is remove your longterm card advantage(phyrexian arena, rhystic study, and so on so forth), while THEIR longterm advatage generators will be able to stick around for longer. You won't just be struggling to get your wincons through the interaction, but you will have a hard time generating the card advantage to get there. Except for very few exceptions, you cannot even out removal with extenders and card advantage in MTG. Or at the very least commander, i still don't have too much experience in other formats

[@bmorr]

The issue I have is when I play commanders that lack card advantage in the command zone and I have another theme, I struggle to always have cards of my theme, card advantage, removal, and most importantly enough lands/ramp in my hands. Maybe my card advantage engines are bad or maybe I’m committing too many cards to my theme. I always force myself to run 15 removal spells, and sometimes I run more if the deck is smooth enough.

[@Trollwut]

The last third is a very important thing when considering removal: You can use it for politics! Yes, maybe you add an "Path to Exile", but thats only for creatures and maybe most often you wont need it in your hand... but hey! Another player might struggle with a specific creature, so you could use diplomacy to do stuff like "Ok, I'll remove their Thalia, but you will attack him. I paved your ways for that"

[@maxjf1]

In a nutshell: if your opponents interacting with you is ruining your gameplan, start interacting with them

[@akumu2625]

I think, 16-20 is like, overdoing it 😅. Should be 8-10 at least, depend your decks or commander.

[@inkedteddy4627]

Running 16-20 peices of removal is cEDH territory. 8-12 is more appropriate for casual pods. This advice is basically to stop a pub stomper become the pub stomper.

[@itslexactually]

True… everything does not have to be an arms race. I do think most people don’t run enough removal and/or draw power. You really want permanents that sit in play and say “when,” “whenever,” or “at.” Give yourself resources that naturally replenish as players take normal game actions.

[@Lornext]

I hate it how everyone is always trying to disregard the "play more removal" line... As if your problem is just gonna go away by itself without you realizing your own flaws. Sometimes the actual answer is just to run more removal and interaction as a whole.

[@steelmyr1485]

If you want to run a removal control deck make sure to make your deck around it. For example one of my decks is a enchantment deck and every single piece of removal is a enchantment, every time I cast a removal spell I will be either drawing a card or creating a creature token You can do this for sorceries and instants, there’s commanders that benefit from you casting sorceries or instants. If you don’t like this play style make your deck around protection, protection to counter the removal and to have a stronger end game plan.

[@ItsTaur]

I feel minimum of 16-20 is very high. My usual rate is about 5-8 pieces of removal with about 15 pieces of card draw/card advantage to ensure I’m seeing my removal. That setup has only ever done me wonders for my decks and such a high count of removal means less card draw effects, less effects that accelerate or compliment your game plan, and potentially leaves you with nothing to do but to just try and slow down others while you are basically out of steam because your hand is 3-4 removal spells and some ramp 🤷‍♂️

[@angryfyce]

A good way to keep removal fun in your deck is to try and use themed removal. I have an Arabella deck, and in it, most of my creature removal involves only effecting creatures with power higher/lower than X. Is it perfect for every situation? No, sometimes you'll get swarmed by Krenko and his boys, and you'll really struggle to find one of your lower power boardwipes. It does keep your deck flavorful, and it does handle most situations most of the time. If you're playing casually, most of the time is plenty good enough, imo.

[@shotgunmacgaming2391]

I’d have to disagree with more removal = consistency. I think it evens the playing field and acts as a buffer to catch up from behind or to slow down faster decks. Consistency comes down to tuning/balancing a deck and a healthy amount of card advantage imo. Finally speed comes down to ramp and optimally getting to your wincon.

[@sunsfssb7699]

People might not like it, but Counterspells are simply just the best removals. How often do you see turn 1 Sol Ring or Mana Vault into Signets? Your Vandalblast WILL BE TOO LATE. They will most likely win on turn 3 or 4. But Force of Will always is there for you! ❤

[@paulopaixao9648]

Hey @Deck Driver MTG. I have just stumbled upon your videos, loving them so far. Great job, man. If I may ask. Do you perhaps give some deck tips if we pass you the list? I'm building a mono-black one and would like someone experienced to take a look and advice on it. Let me know. Thanks

[@julientourigny-gagnon1508]

Be careful man, it happens quite a few times in your videos that you edit your audio with retakes or segments but you miss cut them. 🙂

[@OscarSilva-b6d]

I don't totally agree with his concept, but if it helps newbies, I'm all for it.

[@DJMigrane]

I agree that more interaction is the key. I think the number you are advocating for is a bit high. It feels like you are assuming no one else is running any removal, so it's on you. There ARE two other players.

[@raoninery]

great content.

[@kanikmesh8870]

This is helpful.. I just want zombies to fit my 'theme' and a blue counterspell or a path to exile isn't very Liliana like.. I need to change!

[@kawaiiLorenz1995]

Removal/disruption that takes advantage of your commanders thing if possible.

[@thecharredminer5797]

I’ve been telling my friends all the time who dislikes my deck is to just remove the problems

[@Spencer4686]

For me consistency is controlled more by your mana curve and hitting your lands drops each turn. To many spells/permanents of the wrong MV for your deck and not enough resources to use them is why I see so many decks struggle and why some people can only cast 1 spell a turn thus wondering why they had no impact on the game That being said removal is a key area players should definitely focus on. 16 pieces might be abit high unless your playing control....

[@N13J]

1.Should I increase my removal? 2.Should I increase my board wipe? 3.Should I up or down my land drop? 4.Fuck this shit, I’m playing unmodified precon. My usual thought process recently getting into commander😂

[@Milotic14]

Thanks that makes sense 👍🏽

[@idontcare7396]

My friend, it would be amazing if you can categorize Removal cards or options. I say this since I usually need help with understanding Removal vs Interaction.

[@Gmoney5891]

Become the problem/ archenemy Instead of playing 15-20 pieces of removal be like me and my Breena deck Play creatures that get huge and play 15-20 pieces of protection so you blank everyone’s removal F’en love this deck!

[@brandoncreek5709]

As a Gruul Player, my solution to removal is to just slam more threats. You'll run out of removal eventually, but I won't run out of threats.

[@solidplays5500]

Example: Elf decks. Should o run more anti removal spells or more cards that Destroy opponent spells? I'm new to Magic, thanks for the tips, awesome video.

[@angelorangesticks5560]

Example: don't run elves if you want to win

[@sceadumor]

This is definitely a thing that people need to do but with my playgroup and card shop when I played frequently I won SIGNIFICANTLY more than other players even when we swapped to each others decks with more or less removal and winning MORE when I wasnt using my own deck. People should not only run more answers but learn what ACTUALLY needs to be answered and when. So many people answer shit they dont need to answer with their precious few counters or removal letting someone else win right after because they wanted something gone that wasnt anywhere near a threat yet or because it was mildly annoying.

[@seanedgar164]

16 to 20 is ridiculous. I tried this to stop a pubstomper in my pod but you run out of space to actually play a proactive game. I'd have times where I'd draw 4 pieces in a row and just sit there and pass

[@xChikyx]

yeah, i play a deck that is 50 lands + ramp, 36 removal and boardwipes, and the rest are a few draw spells and combo pieces... that kind of build only works for combos you can stall the game for...

[@Jostradamus2033]

I agree most of the time, but if you take this advice to like a battlecruiser goon sesh you will be the subject of player removal

[@liketofish4383]

Card draw and tutors are what makes decks consistent. Removal is just a waste of time in most cases. Run less removal and know what to actually remove to allow you to win.

[@Temuldjin]

If I have to run 20 removal, 15 card draw and 35 lands to be able to stop getting pub stomped... what's the point in even playing at all? Is there even a deck left to actual play if I'm trying to have some sort of theme, or synergy while still having some ramp and I have to squeeze all that in to 30 cards total? ( because we just spend 70 cards, on removal, draw and lands... )

[@allannechio7368]

Path of exile is not removal,is one mana instant rampant growth in tokens deck

[@chimarielucie]

I see a lot of people who advocate for lots of removal say that it creates dynamic and interesting games, but I've literally never seen this happen. I personally think removal feels really bad, especially because theres so many different kinds and not as much protection against all the different kinds of removal. At some point it can really feel like no one is playing the game. I'd rather a game with no removal whatsoever than one where each person has 20+ pieces of removal. They slow the game down, ESPECIALLY board wipes. My playgroup has soft banned symmetrical board wipes when they don't lead to a win. We had a game where there were 3 in 3 turns and it was miserable. So yes, run more removal if you want a better deck. But it won't always make the game more fun or dynamic.

[@drpepper998]

I find that the more removal I run the more I have in my hand. Which is great if my game plan is to remove things. But when you have a hand full of removal and can't do my thing, how is that more consistent? I suggest you put in more interaction, whether it is removal, card draw or protection. That is the toolbox you need for more situations.

[@Thatbiddyboi]

I’m semi new to mtg. But when we say removal is that just sorceries and instants or are we also talking about creature effects like annihilator?

[@deckdriverMTG]

Removal can come in many different forms. Often time creatures that can remove things are great because they typically trade equally or favorably. Since you still have a creature after the fact

[@416610971]

targeted removal has been phased out due to all of the synergies now. Board wipes are my go to form of removal now. I still hold some targeted removal but it must be versatile or cheap to cast (1 or zero mana). Edh has become too fast and too big to rely on targeted removal.

[@steelmyr1485]

If you want to run a removal control deck make sure to make your deck around it. For example one of my decks is a enchantment deck and every single piece of removal is a enchantment, every time I cast a removal spell I will be either drawing a card or creating a creature token You can do this for sorceries and instants, there’s commanders that benefit from you casting sorceries or instants. If you don’t like this play style make your deck around protection, protection to counter the removal and to have a stronger end game plan.

[@ekans4555]

The issue with interaction, that a lot of new players face, is...A bit odd. They have all this cool-ass cards. Your atraxa, sheo or other big stuff and they want to play it. They add ramp, some cool stuff and throw in a bit of removal. This, leads to an issue where they KNOW they need that 15-20 removal but they have NO idea what to slot out of their deck. New players need to be taught to tighten the focus on their desk, rather than think of adding 15-20 removal. We need to teach them that. Instead of 20 big creatures, run like 6 or 7, but they will cause slaughter! Then use the now free slots on removal. Every new player will have too much of ''something'' in their new deck. Its also a video topic you should make, players running too much of something or being too narrow focused on a particular idea.

[@piet_501]

Hello, I have a question for your related to this topic and your Otharri list: You emphasize the importance of removal and specifically enchantment/artefact removal in Otharri. However you don't seem to include Witch Enchanter or similar in many decks, often limited to ~2 MDF lands. Have you tried and decided to remove them from your lists? What is your general stance on the bolt-MDF-lands? Thank you in advance!

[@jcstaff1007]

Here’s the problem isn’t just “run more removal” or “look at your deck”. The problem is actually an inherent problem with commander itself. Commander is a 4v4 format. You CANNOT 1 for 1 your removal unless you NEED to. And the problem is that thanks to the power creep in the game, every card is now a kill-on-sight threat. Every card your opponents play draws them 10 cards and ramps them a ton. Not to mention only white has the best answers to on board cards and blue to ones on the stack. So your options are extremely limited outside of those colors in my opinion. This is why arcane denial is better theoretically than plain old counter spell. It’s why board wipes are better than spot removal. Etc. Not to mention most “pub stompers” are just going to play faster than you. So now they’re throwing down threat after threat incredibly fast while you just barely put down your third land and cast a Generous Gift putting yourself further behind when you could’ve been developing your board turn 3. At some point they just built their deck to have a critical mass of faster mana sources and more efficient spells and more explosive spells. Then there’s the factor of budget. A Rhystic study that’s $40 is going to be more effective at drawing cards than a Fact or Fiction for $1. If you’re limited by budget, things just are often going to be of lower quality outside of synergies. But synergies take time and higher power decks will leave lower power decks in the dust because they don’t use synergies and instead play tons of “good stuff”. That doesn’t mean it’s not possible to win against them or not possible to out advantage those decks but it does take a lot more effort in both deck building and playing the game. I think Deck Driver and other content creators always miss this point whenever they say “run more removal”.

[@coopertolbertsmith6067]

And just for me personally, whenever I hear “just of run more removal” it feels like the person telling me that is saying “just don’t let your opponent play/use any of their cards” which always irks me.

[@jessewallace3805]

1V3*

[@Controlqueen31]

@@jessewallace3805 Yep. In some cases, when someone is pubstomping, the other 3 players need to focus on them and take them out of the game unless they stopped their deck enough. I know Commander is a "for fun" format (except cEDH), but people don't have fun if they loose every single time to the same person/deck. I agree with OP in the sense that 1 for 1 removal/interaction in Commander is bad unless you are stopping someone from winning the game on the spot or killing a super powerful engine. That's why I prefer recursive cards or Commanders, like Meren, Sidar Jabari, etc... Things that bring back other things to cause trouble. If I hit a creature with a Chupacabra, and then I sac it to bring it back at the end of turn, I'll be fine doing a two for one, even if I hit two different players. But when you need to use that Assassin's Trophy in something and they recover easily, you feel bad.

[@andrewsigrist9981]

​@coopertolbertsmith6067 both this feeling and OPs attitude usually stem from a lack of experience with interaction. The key is not to go 1 for 1 with every spell each opponent is playing. Thats just gonna make you a lot of enemies and run you out of cards. The key is to pick your moments, and only interact with things when you have to. There are a lot of scary looking cards out there but guess what, they probably also look scary to everyone else at the table too. A card is not a problem until its a problem for you. Yes its hard work to do correct threat assessment, and its hard to know what can stay and what needs to go, but thats why i love control archetypes, it really lets me test my skill at the game not just "play big creature, turn sideways, hulk smash"

[@Dev.L]

Something I would caution against is putting too much removal though. I've found myself, less so, playing my deck as intended, than I am playing fun police and controlling the board.

[@Jondude201]

Solution to counter spells? Run mono green Eldrazi. Then counter spells don’t hinder you, hooray!

[@adamgarcia4985]

thats why i play cedh. its more about interaction

[@jsoholt11]

I run child of alara as a commander and i run 16 pieces of removal 😅

[@xChikyx]

16-20 cards is insane that + lands + ramp would leave my decks with at most 30-35 cards for the game plan, and you need to add draw and protection as well... not enough, already a pain in the ass to fit the gameplan in 50 cards Edit: Also, the video title is misleading. More removal doesnt make your deck consistent. Redundancy does. Removal makes it reactive which is diffefent.

[@janellerbrok1798]

Bro is sponsored by removeal XD

[@systemerror07]

if im running 30 pieces of removal, how many cards do i get to make what my deck does? seems like you are selling a play style and not a build strat? doubling down on things that do two or 3 things is great. and having what removal you do have work harder for you is also great. however 20 to 30 removal spells or pieces i hear everyone saying they HAVE to run makes there deck just a removal deck. yeah? there is not and should not be such a cookie cutter ideal for deck building. so is the flip also true? if i pack my deck with indestructible and hexproof and shroud and board wipe dodges will work? neither of these sound that fun of a space to be in. sorry just trying to figure it out. is this fun? im asking before i get "too" deep into the game?

[@kennethmarkwith4678]

Just going to state the obvious...card draw is the most important thing for consistency. Blue decks ALL run Rhystic and Mystic.

[@paniago82]

I don't think commander is a place for consistent decks and i think a big percent of the player base agree if we look at the number of played tutors in commander.

[@idog8x]

Say it with me y'all... Run. More. Removal. lmao 🤣

[@judenelson4080]

No. I will not succumb.

[@TheEvilPinkOne]

Yes removal, the best removal? Player removal

[@dusklightmusic]

This is such contradictory advice, so everyone else will run synergy decks and I will play a removal/counter deck. This is such terrible advice.

[@NeoChromer]

Can you try to make a flubs the fool deck??

[@austinmack5791]

If it’s at every power level it’s a skill issue in deck building I’m sorry and the testament of running more removal drawing hate and salt is so true😂 it seems like every other game at my lgs someone is telling me to fuck myself because I countered or took control of their wincon

[@jessewallace3805]

Tell them to adapt or to do the same they told you. I've lost all patience with whining players.

[@seanedgar164]

EDH these days is packed full of decks that exclusively run win-more cards or "must-kill" cards.

[@aaronfisher7513]

Would you ever be up to looking over people's deck lists and helping improve ....I'm only asking because my deck feels good I just wanted to push it a little further

[@aaronfisher7513]

ALSO love your videos they have been helping me a lot

[@FlaminGinga]

I feel like yourself and a lot of other popular edh creators miss the point on this. Commander is a 4 person game. What if youre the only one running adequate removal in your pod? Then it always falls on thst player to remove the big scary things. Its very hard to convince 3 other people to change their decks fundamentally , when in reality people just want to do proactive things and watch their deck pop off. I agree eith a lot of points that adding removal is generally a good thing. But i think its a lot deeper when you consider 3 other people in the game that may or may not want to do the same thing

[@deckdriverMTG]

In the video, I explain that you should be very greedy with your removal because you can't count of the 3 other players to run the right amount of removal. Wait until the last second or wait until they target you to use your removal. I agree that we can't change others deck building, but you'll never regret having more removal for yourself!

[@CUATROMORCE]

If there’s not one single answer, why do you kinda present it that way? a deck that wants to win with aggro does NOT need 16-20 removal spells. you can run like 10 creatures that remove stuff plus 5 board protection spells and youre good to go. the fewer creatures you play, the less you will win with creatures. why remove a threat when i can keep on drawing my own threats? and in a control deck, i think you should run AT LEAST 20 removal spells because you need time to build your own board

[@bongladera6748]

More cards to draw.

[@SlipDoodle]

I agree for the most part but let's say you're the only one in your regular group that cares about this level of optimization, how do you deal with the inevitable focus that you'll receive cause of the "feels bad" reactionary kind of player? Threat assessment isn't always the best in commander (and to be fair it's p hard with how complicated board states get) and there's just no way to have an answer for all three players. The wishy washy nature of commander being "casual" and cards just becoming exceedingly better and commander focus creates a meta that people pretend isn't there and it's just not fun as it used to be. I mean hell I'm sure it's cause I'm just bad, politics are my weak point, but I do think commander is too flawed to be the mainstay of Magic. I know that's a little bit of a tangent but this deckbuilding tip, although correct to me, doesn't necessarily help when big channels promote the adage that counters are unfun and you should LET people "do their thing." You'll just get hated out for trying to play well. TLDR; the real solution is convince your playgroup to play Cube or Canlander, I promise it'll be the best decision you guys could make in Magic, and you get way more games in.

[@steveolie985]

noone wants to play cube unless they have fucking 5 hours for a game. Do you know why this format even exists? (commander)

[@kosche99]

i thought singleton should make it less consistent.

[@angelorangesticks5560]

Can somebody do a count on how man mfkn times this guy says "removal" in this video. 🥴 it drove me insane

[@johnnywoodson4231]

Sir, 16-20 is like forcing someone to go fucking vegan

[@WhizzerdSupreme]

Step 1: Stop playing White Step 2: Every EDH Problem solved

[@deckdriverMTG]

Sans white decks rn >>>>

[@RazorDevil1]

my pubstomping friend just plays niv mizzet, cant counter it. and removing it turns into a stack war that draws him 7 cards and boardwipes me. never a fun time. removal is very weak vs free counterspells