Karlov of the Ghost Council Commander Deck Tech

Voltron commanders can be kinda boring but Uncle Karl attacks in multiple ways. He is a huge threat right from the beginning but he can also sit back and control the board.
TappedOut Decklist: tappedout.net/m...

[@mackyronimd]

Thank you for this! This was my reference when I made my first commander deck a few months ago. I love Orzhov and I love how you laid out the strategy for using Karlov. I hope you use this deck in Game Knights!

[@landonzain1661]

i realize it is kinda randomly asking but do anybody know a good site to watch new movies online?

[@mathiasjaxson4079]

@Landon Zain i watch on Flixzone. Just search on google for it =)

[@ThorMan91587]

Uncle Karl is one of my favorite commanders, so I'm so thankful this video exists, even if I'm two years late to the party. Thanks, dude 😀

[@griffingovernment]

Cataclysmic Gearhulk is perfect for this deck. Whatever broken creatures your opponents' choose to keep just get exiled by Karlov 😅

[@Boyo2147]

I built a budget deck around this guy for a friend recently, and a hefty chunk of cards you mentioned went in. One thing I added that I find notable was that I added Sunblast Angel. With the Authority of the Consul, Blind Obedience, and Thalia, Heretic Cathar, it becomes a much better card than what it already is.

[@dhdydg6276]

I forget what it's called, but there's a five mana white enchantment that says that whenever a creature attacks you gain one life. This lifegain not only helps you survive your opponent's attacks, because it triggers for their creatures as well as yours, but each creature also gets its own separate trigger, rather than all of them at once, so karlov gets very, very big with just a few creatures.

[@JumboCommander]

Righteous Cause is the name. There is a creature I didn't know about that does it called Patron of the Kitsune which has FOX OFFERING. Which means you can cast it at instant speed when you sac your Eight-and-a-Half-Tails ... which is good in Karlov anyways for protection! Collin! This is awesome! You win!

[@samb123078]

I made this deck but with a lot less equipment. So far I am undefeated with it. Karlov gets so stupidly big each rotation and Karliv is so cheap to cast that protection isn't that big of a deal. Just recast him when he dies and he gets really big really fast. Gaining life with soul sisters, authority of the counselate and Kambel becomes less reliable after more players are dead. Another card that did well for me was lifeline. You get all the recursion while Karlov just exiles everything, breaking the symmetry of lifeline.

[@JumboCommander]

Great suggestion. Love the art on Lifeline too. I have only played my version of the deck about 6 times and I have won 4. Each time I needed a little more non-creature based disruption. Cards like Anguished Unmaking and Utter End are critical and not to be wasted. What do you have in place of my equipment package? I hope you keep winning!

[@samb123078]

Jumbo Commander I have Auriok champion, polluted bonds, righteous cause to place counters during off turns. I put in a rune-tail essence for more protection on Karlov. Kept jitte, and the two swords with white. Both ghost council cards (orzhova and Obzedat) will proc the soul sisters with each blink, and drain which can give 4 counters or more if you have the soul sisters around. Volrath stronghold, sigil of the new dawn, dawn of the dead and other recursion let you sac kokusho and wurmcoil engine repeatedly. For lands I added trading post and K. Outpost for tokens to sac and gain life. I am not even using instant win cards like the sovereign and test of endurance. I might put aetherflux reservoir in as it is a better upgrade to contemplation.

[@samb123078]

Jumbo Commander I finally started losing at my game store mainly because everyone starts hating on me the instant I use it. I think that means I am on the right track.

[@JumboCommander]

Haha, I have not lost since the last time I posted. When people hate on Kalrov I just wait to bring him out. In this situation I really like equipment because it can make my stupid value creatures relevant. I really like this stage of deck building because now we get to tweak the deck to fit our metagame.

[@samb123078]

Jumbo Commander yes I think I have two ways to go about this; I can either make convert it to an Ayli deck with Karlov in the 99, or go pillow fort style and put in the instant win cards I have been holding on. I don't really like using cards like test of endurance or the sovereign but the hate is real and a win is a win. Ayli is a much different deck as you would want huge life gain rather than trickles and figuring out a win con that doesn't involve instant win cards is harder. With Karlov, he can one shot opponents by himself and remove any blockers in his way but can't really deal with artifacts and enchantments like Ayli can.

[@benlevett2354]

Some cards that say to me that they should be in this deck would be Retreat to Hagra, Ajani Goldmane, Sorin, Grim Nemesis, Kaya, Ghost Assassin. I think Angelic Chorus can be nice in this deck too, along with Angelic Accord. I also like Path of Bravery as an anthem type effect in the deck. Karlov is definitely on my next to build list once I have a few more of the parts.

[@MOLEMITTS12]

Through some pretty extensive testing I've determined that ayli looks a lot more attractive than how she functions you really don't want to lose your creatures, as they're put in the deck with the intention of constant function, so she's counterintuitive. Additionally, karl, at a certain point, is so big that losing the 6 counters is irrelevant as his power and toughness might as well say "you're dead/unkillable through damage", so you might as well use that instead as its cheaper and the goal is to always have karl down to be a constant threat. If that's not possible ayli isn't helping you dig through your deck for other win conditions, so why bother? Another low to the ground, consistent source of lifegain seems to work better in her slot (auriok champion, vampire nighthawk, the black aetherborn with lifelink/deathtouch from aether revolt or vault skirge). I've found phyrexian mana cards are amazing in the deck (again, vault skirge and also dismember) because you care little for the loss of life as you should be gaining it back anyways, but it leaves you with free mana to extort with. I'm running a much more tempo oriented/aggressive list instead of the voltron package, and I'm still deciding on whether or not i like it better. In my play group the deck is notoriously good and can win vs. everyone else targeting me a decent amount of the time.

[@johnadams8569]

Can you post your deck list?

[@trevorharrington3343]

Bolas's Citadel is godtier in this deck now

[@feelfree6917]

I love your vids. Always a Highlight of the day. Awesome work dude

[@JumboCommander]

Thanks. This comment was the highlight of my day.

[@jonrmahnke]

cards like Sanguine Bond, Exquisite Blood, Felidar Sovereign are a double use. decks are going to have removal. you have an enchantment out that helps you and you don't want it gone, toss out a Sanguine bond. The bond will be taken out. use them as a lure for those disenchants and kill spells. even if you don't need them, they will serve the purpose of making your opponents use up removal.

[@JumboCommander]

Great point.

[@sightf2]

Looks fun. Can't wait to play it

[@JumboCommander]

I promise you it is really fun.

[@MrChocobar]

Continuing to love this channel, you seem to be really excited which is fun. One small critique is that when you introduce the cards that you don't actually put in it can be slightly out of place. I do like that you mention cards that people usually play that you don't put in the deck, but I think it'd be better if you maybe put them in their own section of the video, perhaps an "Honorable Mentions" type deal. Regardless, love this channel and this deck!

[@JumboCommander]

Thanks. I think it's important to point out popular pitfalls but I should probably make an "overrated" category or something like that. Cheers.

[@pinsent07-n6c]

Every one of your commander videos makes me want to build that commander, even if that commander is not my colours or playstyle lol. Any chance you could tech a general that would help me against Oloro stacks? having a lot of trouble with him in my playgroup. Either way keep up the great content

[@JumboCommander]

Oh, Oloro stax eh? I would run my Meren Clan of Nel Toth deck because my version gets Meren on the battlefield early, has a few pieces of disruption, and can gain a lot of card advantage over a the course of a game. But it is an uphill battle for sure. I think that the new 4-color WUBR artifact commander could fight a stax strategy really well. I'm going to be building her soon so I'll see if she can fight stax.

[@joshrzepka4139]

use infect :P

[@Altorin]

^

[@DarkSwan01]

Thrull parasite I am warming up to because it puts the use of the life we gain to pick off plainswalkers or +1/+1 counters off of creatures.

[@nazrakore10753]

Sun Bond is a card you want to run. It's an enchantment aura with every time you gain life, put that many +1/+1 counters on the creature its attached to

[@thehamstergeddon]

One of my favorite equipment cards to run is Trailblazer Boots. Basically unblockable at all times and triggers with Concerted Effort.

[@JumboCommander]

Great Suggestion.

[@MrRayRockstar]

This looks so cool. Amazing concept.

[@JumboCommander]

I've been playing this deck a lot recently and it's really fun. I highly recommend it. I'm glad you liked it!

[@mleet3125]

Good thing I watched to the end, I was going to scold you if you didn't mention Archangel of Thune. I'm not sure I want to take my deck the Voltron route but definitely something to consider. With Arch of thune in there I could see adding Mikaeus (perhaps both but I meant Lunarch). But I did have some preliminary cards on my list that you didn't, quite possibly because they're newer than your video but I don't know. I don't stay as up to speed on new cards like I should. Zulaport Cutthroat, No Mercy, did you mention Dawn of Hope? I don't remember and Serra Ascendant.

[@IHollandLop]

I also play Karlov and am loving the flexibility of gameplan. Voltron is kind of my plan B though. Plan A is to play board control and win with late game hits from Karlov, a big creature or infinite combo.

[@JumboCommander]

This guy has been at the top of my rotation of decks I play. He's fun but more importantly he's flexible against different types of opponents. Is your combo sanguine bond + exquisite blood?

[@IHollandLop]

Yes, that's the one.

[@TimPoultney]

One card I'd always recommend with black in a deck where you need evasion/unblockable is Dauthi Embrace -- BB gets you shadow on Karlov, always good. What would you say is the best B/W commander for a soul sisters build? I've been thinking about it for a little while for fun, and I'm torn between Ayli and Kambal, but Karlov would work well too!

[@JumboCommander]

I also like Athreos!

[@crystaltillman7305]

I run phanharmonica, the rhino that doubles your life and a lot of token producers on attack/ enchantments. He gets big and I equip unblockable. If a longer game happens I have vigilance, plainswalk, and lifelink through a few enchantments. Archangel of Thune though is amazing for pumping up everything.

[@Dino-vu8jk]

hey Karlov Extort could be a thing eh Jumbo Commander?

[@wamyc]

Dino 55 I built this deck and love it. Still polishing it but it's really fun. I just wish there were more good extort cards.

[@TanTan-ni4mg]

Sword of fire and Ice could be replaced with Atherflux resivoir for even more synergy.

[@TanTan-ni4mg]

Oops.. Didnt wait long enough.

[@tonkajammin]

i have this commander karlov is awesome. things you could add... alhammerets archive sun droplet sorin markov pristine talisman spectra ward triskadecaphobia angelic accord retreat to hagra polluted bonds profane command shattered angel endbringer the eldrazi sunbond cradle of vitality

[@JumboCommander]

All great suggestions. Karlov is awesome right?!?!?!

[@rayk5785]

Right on. Thanks bud!

[@Altorin]

Note: My playgroup did away with the commander damage rule so my experience might be different. My karlov is all about the passive lifegain. I even have a honden in my deck. And every time I've gotten it out I've won. A good card with an interesting interaction you didn't mention is righteous cause. "Whenever a creature attacks, you gain 1 life" With karlov out it basically locks down all combat. My deck also has a lot of opponent hand manipulation. Castigate. Thoughtsieze. It has a head games just cuz. Jesters cap. Nightmare incursion. That's a fun one. Solve the problems karlov can't solve with those and then solve the problems you can solve with karlov with karlov. Karlov can solve a lot of problems. Oh my karlov deck has an ulamog the ceaseless hunger in it just because sometimes you need to be the biggest dick at the table. Much like your erebos anecdote my ulamog got cloned and they exiled my ulamog and a crypt ghast because karlov was hexproof. But luckily the ulamog was quite real so karlov solved him.

[@RickvantHof]

I like playing him with more of a token theme in the deck. Creating 5+ tokens with both soul sisters and Karlov out is pretty good! If only I could afford a card like Archangel of Thune...

[@JumboCommander]

+Rick van t Hof oh yeah she's awesome. She is overpriced; I think she will be reprinted. Nice strat!

[@Deathtroit.]

Dose he have to be in combat zone to gain 1/1? or can he be in commander zone and gain the 1/1 counters?

[@nookv4659]

auriok champion

[@shhwerealmostthere]

Awesome deck. My buddies just made life gain decks so I'm pumped to give this a try. how much do you think i should expect to drop?

[@JumboCommander]

+Pr0phet the version on tapped out comes in at $500 but that has a $75 scrubland 3 equipment that total to more than $100. I think you can make this for under $100 and have it be pretty powerful. The one expensive card that I would miss is the $23 Archangel of Thune. Good luck building!

[@ashadeofnight]

I echo the thoughts of the person who said about watching your videos and hearing how enthusiastic you are makes me want to build the decks! I am torn between building the erebos mono black control or this karlov deck. Both are very appealing to me. Erebos deck seems like it would be more competitive due to the lack of reliance on creatures and denial of lifegain to opponents. Is that correct? This deck really looks fun as Karlov looks great himself and I already own and love creatures like the soul sisters, serra ascendent, zulaport cutthroat and thalia heretic cathar.

[@ashadeofnight]

How does this deck (Karlov) deal with board wipes? Could it be an idea to run cards such as that card that gives white creatures you own pro from chosen colour til end of turn for 1W or selfless spirit?

[@JumboCommander]

+Tom Padget great question! It can be weak if you are playing against a lot of boardwipes. It helps that karlov is so cheap to cast. I added a little bit more equipment than most in my version. I found that a serra ascendant or some other support cards can be pretty good threats. It's nice to have cards like blind obedience too since it dodges boardwipes and stalls your opponants first plays to refill the board. Personally I have won more 1v1 games with karlov or fast games where I went crazy. My monoblack deck is slow and grundy. It destroys creature strategies but folds to some easy stuff like aura shards ... or an artifact lol, I say play what sounds fun because they are very differently styled ... enjoy!

[@ashadeofnight]

Thanks for the reply. I've begun building the Karlov deck because I just love him as a commander and love the deck list. I like that (as you said) it isn't all in voltron, it has some control elements too. Life drain cards like Kambal and Sanguine Bond are favourites of mine. Another attraction was the very low casting cost of Karlov. Any more advice on dealing with boardwipes? Perhaps a copy of brave the elements? I suppose mother of runes helps a lot! Also, do you have any advice on playing against a Nekusar wheel deck? Keen to see your upcoming deck techs...

[@JumboCommander]

+Tom Padget mom is great, but doesn't help with boardwipes. They will be a problem so try not to overcommit to the board. Save you cheap interaction, karlov activation, swords, etc to kill nekusar in response to a wheel, you are actually well set up to beat that deck, every life you gain is a card they have to make you draw and you are great at deploying threats because your curve is pretty low. So you will take advantage of a wheel more than your opponents. You might want to save enchantment removal like anguished unmaking or return to dust for cards like blood chief ascension which can swing a game.Have fun building!

[@ashadeofnight]

Have you seen Bontu's Monument? Just spoiled. 3 for an artifact, black creature spells cost 1 less to cast, whenever you cast a creature spell each opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life!! Perfect for this deck!!

[@561fergie]

Will you be releasing videos on the C16 soon. Would really like to see your input on Breya.

[@JumboCommander]

Yup, although I need a little time to get Breya right ... I have too many cards and too few slots. I feel like too many choices is going to be a thing with 4 color commanders.

[@561fergie]

Jumbo Commander I agree. I made sure to include the obvious combo and another good synergy that can potentially machine gun all opponents. The mana base has been a bit tricky because I have access to more mana rocks. She is deff my favorite. :D

[@JumboCommander]

I agree when it comes to the mana base. My solution when planning these decks have been to throw money at the mana base putting in shocks, duals, fetches, but I know that real players will need to have a delicate balance to make the mana really work. I think I want to do some testing and the make a video about complicated mana bases. But for now the C16 hype is REAL and I need to brew!

[@HavocTheWendigo]

Wow this deck tech, like the selvala one has inspired to build a new edh. Best part I already had the commander laying around lol thank you for your good sir. Btw that selvala edh is very brutal if I hit mid game cause then you can go about casting and drawing your whole library lol

[@JumboCommander]

Thanks! I can assure you that this deck is very fun to play. It has a lot of interesting angles. I'm going to morph my Mono-green omnath deck into Selvala so I'm glad to hear that it is as powerful as I thought. Is Selvala as fun as she is powerful?

[@HavocTheWendigo]

Jumbo Commander yup very much so btw you didn't mention staff of domination lol but it's very fun but reloading after a board wipe is still trouble lol. You really need to see if it's your style tho I like cool things like combos and interactivity some I love this play style lol I even made a creature based izzet deck so I'm weird like that xD

[@ytkob]

what's the name of the background music?

[@benrichardson5662]

make sure you have early removal in case an opponent runs Stigma Lasher. This deck's kryptonite.

[@JumboCommander]

Oh yeah, some of my friends started playing him too. Erebos is also bad, it's fun to dance as they try and not have Erebos become a creature and I hold up removal just waiting.

[@philippecs]

Great content! thanks for that. Could you please do the gitrog monster?

[@JumboCommander]

Thanks man! I'm glad you like the videos. In my meta I never tackled Gitrog because he was so overbuilt. I want a 4 color lands general so I can combine Angry Omnath, Borborygmos, and Gitrog ALL TOGETHER!

[@Ballpython77]

i made this deck months ago. i find it 1on 1 OP but multiplayer, EVERYONE turns on you. at one point Karlov was costing me 12 mana to take out. as soon you play him, you paint a massive target on yourself

[@vantheman8050]

Could you please do a Kasaeto voltron deck?

[@JumboCommander]

Yeah, when I revisit voltron I'll look at that sneaky snake!

[@vantheman8050]

Thanks! I love it when you-tuber's interact with their fans :D

[@Astronomater]

sweet! i am currently building this commander.

[@JumboCommander]

Any cool cards you are using that I left out?

[@Astronomater]

i went real heavy on the evasion and protection stuff so champions helm, mask of avacyn, prowler's helm, shielded by faith, and key to the city. other notables are repeating life gain like tablet of the guilds, chalice of life, and sun droplet. I also have some protection enchants like ghostly prison, aura of silence, grave pact, no mercy, karmic justice, and such.

[@JumboCommander]

Nice! Thanks for commenting so others can see another great strategy. There are so many ways to build these decks; they are only limited by your creativity. Cheers.

[@papi_walrus9103]

My man, what about dat deathgreeter

[@MycobraII]

shadowspear is better then loxodon hammer imo, also waaay more expensive.

[@tendouji8996]

Necropotence over greed?

[@JumboCommander]

Most certainly the right choice. Necropotence is almost always the right choice.

[@vantheman8050]

First!