Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow | Upping the Average

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[@Train__]

Something cheeky if you have top deck manipulation (but also works with just Brainstorm if you have it) Multiple triggers of Yuriko's trigger could be responded to, which is often overlooked. If you have 2 or more ninjas that deal damage and trigger Yuriko, you could reveal one card, then respond to the other triggers. You could resolve the first trigger to deal damage, then hold priority and cast Brainstorm, putting back the high CMC card on the top of the deck, then reveal it again!! More expensive cards: - Scroll Rack in play will work the same way - Top deck tutors (like Vamp/Mystical, or a Lim Dul's Vault) could be cast if you flip them on the first few triggers

[@RecklessFables]

I just want to keep putting Draco on top to finally have a use for this card that I pulled from a pack back when I was drafting Invasion block

[@pyromonky437]

Love this series Joey! You've covered many of my personal commanders and everytime I'm shocked by the great suggestions you have for additions to the deck. Can't wait for the next episode!

[@ViXoZuDo]

I have a fully optimized Yuriko deck (around 8.5 power level) and I really impressed that they put scroll rack in the average decklist, but not a Vampiric tutor (considering the price of both and how impactful is each of them in this deck... vampiric have won me way more games than the scroll rack). Also, that some cards that are not that expensive like Cover of Darkness that are MVPs in the deck are missing. Also, after playing the deck for so long you realize that all the high cmc ninjas that can't be cheated with ninjutsu for less than 4 mana are useless.... All of them should be replaced with a high cmc cheateable cards (Snuff Out, Murderous Cut, Commandeer, etc) or extra turns. Also, if you're going the budget route, things like Distended Mindbender and Elder Deep-Fiend are better options... You could just sac Yuriko to reduce their mana cost and Ninjutsu an "unblockable Yuriko" next turn. Also, you forgot a great budget card: Runed Stalactite... personally I think it's better than xenograph and conspiracy... As someone who played a lot of yuriko, It's really hard to have a big board state, and usually 1 unblockable is enough to get the card advantage and also it's way cheaper. Also, if you're going the budget route, you will be surprised how many times you end up in a board state where Yuriko (or any ninja) can't even attack. A simple 2/2 can block her forever... that the reason there is the whispersilk cloak. Giving unblockable to any ninja is always good. In any budget list I'm sure that it's way better than a lot of the cards you added to the list. In the other hand, the bident is not about drawing, it's about forcing your opponent to attack, so they end up with no blockers so your ninjas can attack freely. I personally don't have the card in my decklist (because mine is actually already optimized and is way more competitive than it should), but If I ever play it budget, that is probably one of the 1st cards that I would add. BTW, 34 lands with no fetchlands is a lot of lands in Yuriko. With the amount of card draw that this deck have, you end up having land drops every single turn. I play 35 with every single untapped fetchland available and even fetching every turn, I end up drawing lands. Also, fetchlands are probably way more important in this deck than most decks because you greatly reduce your chances of topdecking a land with yuriko. Also, the average cmc including land of the deck is less than 2 (my list have 1.9)... having a lot of Yuriko's triggers usually don't win you the game because of the "extra damage", but because of the card advantage that enable you to have extra turns (attacks), extra counters to control the table and the top deck manipulation. I assure you that top deck manipulation is 100% more important than having more ninjas hitting. Remember that even hitting with only ninjas, you would need over 20 ninja hits to kill all of your opponents... but with a little of top deck manipulation you can easily reduce that number to under 10 hits...

[@3vol2]

great advice dude! My Yuriko is more on a budget and there's a few cards I didn't think of. Thanks!

[@ViXoZuDo]

@@3vol2 www.moxfield.com/decks/PKnfbKe7SUiMDSjtM3DlxQ This is my actual decklist... check the Considering list... there are a bunch of cards that could be good in your deck... there are some cards that I don't own but should be in the list like Capture of Jingzhou... also some cards that are meta dependent or for a more 1v1 focused list (originally I build the deck for 1v1 french commander, but the ban hammer hit it, so I modified it for a regular EDH)... Also, take into consideration that the "best" Yuriko decklist is a combo list with Thassa's Oracle/Consultation, but I didn't want to play it combo.

[@hiddenleaf414]

Yea I took our Xenograft and Conspiracy for the new free commander spells. Worlds difference. One card that I am surprised how much weight it pulls in the deck is Exquisite Blood. My biggest problem with Yuriko is that ppl will target the deck quick so life gain is pretty important. Hitting even a 5cmc spell off the top and gaining 15 while your opponents lose 5 each is massive.

[@izmayaya7693]

@@ViXoZuDo Hey dude, I would like to know if you could check my decklist out please? I'm trying to build a somehow budget version of your decklist and having what you think would be a great help. Here's my decklist: tappedout.net/mtg-decks/03-08-20-rEb-ninja/?cb=1596506346

[@jbs6614]

Wow, that is a mana-intensive build. You’d spend mana on turns just to play and/or equip artifacts. even on a mid-power scale, i wouldn’t run that. Yuriko is already tempo-negative as she is (save for the card draw) with the mana you’re using. Equipments add some more mana-eating plays.

[@buddatello]

I've played yuriko since she dropped and that trickery charm was new for me thanks for that!

[@pauldyson8098]

Joey, no bullshit: you are the voice of the format. Also, yes, running Draco just to "hit" with Yuriko is a bad plan, methinks. Excellent work, as always.

[@ViXoZuDo]

Actually, it's not a bad plan if your deck is 100% budgetless... having all the top deck manipulation cards like Jace and scroll rack end up in a big draco every single turn and an easy draco early on with any of the top deck tutors. Now, if you're playing a more budget list, temporal trespass is the way to go and you just try to cycle it a couple of times with cards like brainstorm...

[@kendallstauffer689]

Oh my word!!! I needed this so bad! I love her but I didn't know how best to make an affordable deck with her and now I do!!! THANK YOU!!!!

[@jahpocalypse]

as a yuriko player, thanks for this video! trickery charm and unnatural selection could be decent additions i'll have to try! inexpensive cards that i think should have had some mention: ornithopter, memnite, and phyrexian walker are 0 cost creatures and have given very good results. abjure is an amazing counterspell for yuriko. runed stalactite can make any creature a ninja. amoeboid changeling is a ninja and can tap to make anything else a ninja. connive/concoct is a 9 cmc split card that can either steal back yuriko or surveil 3 and get a creature from the gy. meekstone is really good because everybody will want to attack you but this might make them reconsider. i have to disagree about whisper silk cloak because putting it on yuriko guarantees a ninja attack and protects yuriko at the same time. yes, it's a little slow but yuriko needs protection and needs to deal combat damage and this allows both in 1 card. i also run protective bubble for the same reason.

[@mark-shieldanvilsstudy3006]

Great job as always! I’d love to see you do Varina Lich Queen or Sisay, Weatherlight Captain in the future

[@itsjacobj]

I was debating on scrapping my Yuriko deck for parts, but this retech may give it new life

[@Solemnyty]

I like it. Your changes makes the deck look a lot more like my version than the original did. But there are a couple things I saw that I’ll probably try out!

[@Seedmember]

I use the owl trio in my deck (augury, sage and spire). I like them so far. They fix your top, have evasion and can be recasted everytime you bounce them for ninjutsu.

[@lthawkeye88]

I think the commander Jori En, Ruin Diver would be a cool one to showcase.

[@williamhoward7624]

Keep up all the good work I would love to see you do Sen Triplets in the future

[@Kellis12594]

I would love to see Zirda looked at! It is part of the “less attacky” boros commanders and it has opened a lot of the doors for boros to play with

[@Thane627]

I also throw in a vote for Zirda! I enjoy boros as a color pair, but also know that aggro at a commander table isn't always great. Would love to see an episode all around boros abilities.

[@luketargett2233]

yeah Zirda is super cool

[@jacobjensen7704]

I don't know about "less attacky," Zirda can actually attack really well since it's ability lets you equip equipment for cheap.

[@bobrashley5936]

My favourite EDH video series at the moment. Please do Ezuri, Claw of Progress.

[@HaydenLucke]

0:57 I laughed WAY too hard. 😂

[@austin3879]

Glad I wasn't the only one

[@RobMedellin]

Mee too. Didn't expect it so gains the award of Best joke ever

[@YgorSantos0]

Great serie!!!! I am liking a lot, for the next episodes I would like to se Kess, dissident mage.

[@matteobagni1235]

Great hints that's where I want to go with yuriko!

[@dreddbolt]

My list has budget, jank, and cEDH cards in the deck. Even without the top and rack, I did decide to go with a top-deck manipulation strategy, since Yuriko (the Tiger's Shadow) is viewed as a 'party-pooper' commander. A commander with an ability which causes everyone's life total to be reduced extensively and simultaneously is going draw quite a bit of ire in the direction of the Yuriko player, so I have to mitigate as needed. I synergize further with Arcane Adaptation and Conspiracy. I decided to go with transmute tutors and some ETB creature tutors. Thankfully, the transmute cards in my build actually have useful abilities in certain situations. Diabolic Intent is excellent for Yuriko, because you can just send her back to the command zone. Mortuary Mire and Witch's Cottage are excellent for getting costly CMC critters back on top of the library. The graveyard recursion also helps get back the transmute critters, so I can transmute again. Brainstorm, Dream Cache, Conch Horn, Riverwise Augur, Dimir Machinations, Lim-Dûl's Vault, Liliana Vess, Doom Whisperer, and yes... even Scheming Symmetry is in my current build, because my control strategies can remove cards from the chosen opponent's library or hand. I balance things out with board wipes and other forms of mass removal, since Yuriko gets around commander tax. Because of my removal strategies, I only have 3 counter-magic spells... namely Perplex, Familiar's Ruse, and Silumgar's Command. My removal 'flow' centers around being a scathing annoyance to combo players and generally keeping opponents from getting or staying too far ahead. I like high CMC removal like Thief of Blood (get wrecked, planeswalkers), Grip of Desolation, Scour From Existence, and Decree of Pain, because of the synergy with Yuriko. I have the ninjas to cast spells from my opponent's hand, exiled off their library, and steal a creature from their graveyard. Memory Plunder is also great for hitching a ride off of your opponent's yard. As far as unblockables, I try to have usefulness integrated, even if the creature isn't a ninja. Tetsuko Umezawa (Fugitive), Quickling, and Nightveil Sprite are really effective at getting in hits as well as getting things to work. Tormented Soul is low-key brilliant, because I don't have to block a creature with a Lure or Nemesis Mask, because the critter can't block. My unblockable package has about 11 unblockable and flying creatures, along with Hot Soup and Rogue's Passage. I don't worry nearly as much about swinging in unblocked, due to my removal strategies. Deadeye Quartermaster, Brass Squire, Grappling Hook, Fireshrieker, Helm of the Host, Wound Reflection, and Archfiend of Despair do interestingly well for a double down package. ...and finally, a little more recursion goes a long way, like with Call to Mind and Archaeomancer. The deck may have been brewed with an odd mindset, but it should be reasonable to pilot for an intermediate difficulty blue-black control build, and being sneaky can be part of having your opponents play right into your machinations. An aggro brew (like in the video) is more efficient, yes, but Yuriko paints way too much of a tempting target on the player's head. Also, I wanted something closer to the sabotage and information gathering of actual traditional ninja, not Ninja Gaiden or Naruto.

[@snakefer5059]

I've tried one version of Yuriko very similar to this list and was surprisely efficient, not less efficient than de more expensive list I used to use.

[@BoredOCM]

Love these videos, they really show how to edit a deck list, and the consequences of doing so. Could I put forth a goofier commander imo, Arixmethes, The Slumbering Isle, specifically with a focus on Sea Creature tribal. Its the first deck I built, and after a year or so of playing with it, I want to edit it, but keep the flavor. Also, I didn't include the Penmin's Aura/Freed from the Reel infinite mana combo, just personal preference.

[@32narutofan]

I do have one interaction that most people dont use. It's not amazing, but it can help. Since most of my creatures are 1 drops, I have Pherexian Altar. I sac Yuriko at the end of each combat and replay the 1 drop unblockable creature.

[@goochtheotaku]

Really love the fresh look at the deck, question though, isn't bident there more about forcing the attack to make someone more vulnerable to get more ninjas through?

[@mikelesnieski1488]

One card I really enjoy playing in my yuriko deck that I don't see many of anyone else playing is mistform wakecaster yes it's not as good as the conspiracy but it's a card that costs a quarter and can get you a ton of yuriko triggers.

[@aladoristcg3769]

I find Windcaller Aven and Snuff out to both be fantastic. I've also caught many people off guard with Contaigon. Also Darkness, ninjas love the darkness

[@gangrel1234]

Windgrace, yuriko, omg, U r awesome !

[@occasj]

Love how the past 2 videos are decks I'm currently working on. They are at a standstill because adulting and money. Might have to do your lists then come back to the original later.

[@WnderBoyxYungNstyMan]

Nice video Sajam

[@revx86]

These videos are dope

[@Naozwc]

Yay yuriko that's my girl (and my first edh deck)

[@heavenbot]

I had to break down my Yuriko deck, but many of the pieces have found a new home in Ukkima and Cazur. Who knew adding green to Ninjas would make it more fun?

[@lonelySires]

Recommendation for the next Upping the Average: Thraximundar :)

[@danifogarty2003]

great vid! there's another little trick i learned recently about, which is that you can ninjutsu in a ninja after first strike damage but before regular damage. is there any reason to include some first strike tricks to get additional damage from the unblockables? or do they mostly hit too lightly for this to be of value?

[@sebastien7330]

I think a Tatyova benthic druid (no idea about the spelling to be honest XD) would be an amazing commander to look at for future episodes

[@jalbor]

Commit//Memory is a great callout. I have that card in my deck, but you're right, I think Spite//Malice is better. I would defend Consign//Oblivion though as it hits non-land permanents and not just creatures. That versatility means everything when I need to hit a combo piece, save my own enchantment, or even just remove hexboots off of an opponents creature.

[@Aquitanius]

Nice to see I already made almost all the cuts you suggested, though some I disagree with. Whispersilk Cloak definetely needs to stay in for example. But how the hell have I never seen or heard of Trickery Charm? That card is made for this deck. Really cute tech. Nice video as always, some nice suggestions. What I would definetely also suggest is Aqueous Form. It's really good.

[@rekdaahtelambar4420]

I love my Yuriko deck, but mine focuses more on the top deck rather than the mass ninja count. If you'd prefer to manipulate your topdeck on a budget, look for the owls. Augury owl, sage owl, spire owl and the owl man, Descendant of Soramaro (I know he has nothing to do with owls, but he has a similar effect). The owls have built in evasion and manipulate the topdeck. My Yuriko deck is commonly known as owl tribal, because of how many times I cast them per game.

[@cwill1090]

The Cosplay was on POINT!!!

[@TheDige]

Bident does double duty, but most effectively it forces an opponent open to attacks for 3-4 ninjas mid game (no late game for Yuriko players -- kill or be killed).

[@Silver_light77]

Personally i built yuriko around changelings, it allows me to have evasive enough creatures that still trigger yuriko, and more importanly allows me to play a sea creature subtheme, anything that whelming wave will leave on the field is either a changeling that will trigger yuriko, or a leviathan, octopus, or Kraken that is a heap of damage on the field or revealed with yuriko, while bouncing my ninjas and the opponents creatures to reload ninjitsu

[@Chriscross257.]

I would love to see Marchesa the black rose. A deck that has a lot of decks but not that crazy amount all other commanders in this series have

[@isaiasjustinianes5686]

Filth and Wonder are excellent techs. Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth makes Filth amazing.

[@slkwillis122974]

Good deck tech what do ya think about adding quietes spike as a huge damage swing equipment

[@spencersonnier1]

I’d love to see your take on Sram Senior Edificer.

[@jacknelson8640]

I just want to put gingerbrute in a deck ❤️ Love that guy !

[@rohansingh7698]

6:50 Why is that tormented soul's creature type ninja 😂

[@Circular_Square]

9:35 A ninja on the field is worth 2 in the bush. I still think Ghave would be interesting considering how many ways there are to play that deck.

[@brianmellema109]

My favorite thing to do is cast New Blood in my Edgar Markov deck targeting a Yuriko.

[@danielerdmann2952]

Thank you very much for these upping videos, I really enjoy them and your energistic style of presentation. I'd like to see a video about Saskia and her average decks. Mine is a human tribal one, freshly updated with the commander precons, but there are never enough ideas to be thought. And by the way: nice cosplay ;>}

[@Mentaliyah_fine]

can the rule to ninjutsu in "end of combat" somewhere be find? my friends are always a bit sceptical when i show them some rule which aren't too obvious. i would appreciate to get some help! Liked that video and the help to build my own yuriko deck :) (sorry if my english is not so good)

[@EDHRECast]

Of course! It's definitely a confusing interaction. The MTG Wiki has a Rulings section lower on the page, which might be helpful, and this 'end of combat' interaction was also used in an episode of Game Knights! Links to both below: mtg.fandom.com/wiki/Ninjutsu#Commander_ninjutsu kzbin.info/www/bejne/l4W5hqevp7uNfZY

[@KennyViTran]

Exactly my thought process when i brewd my yuriko. Just so many "ninjas" top deck doesn't matter. I think a really good card for creature aggro decks is throne of the god-pharaoh. It is sort of like a yuriko lite effect. Putting it out early can do some nice chip dmg that will add up and help maybe close out a game if you were a few points off.

[@whitebearbest]

Do Feather the Redeemed!

[@xXDerPuppenspielerXx]

What exactly does Ashiok in this deck, apart form stopping other players from tutoring? I do not see synergy here, and would, at least for my playgroup, cut it for sure. Apart from that, great job. I am planing to build a Yuriko Deck somewhere in the future, and this is maybe a good starting point ;)

[@ah-lc4lf]

my guess is the graveyard hate as well as the effect to stop tutoring makes it quite a versatile hate piece

[@falandrion2870]

Ashiok is amazing hate. It stops two unrelated things people do in commander which are both very powerful. It's kinda like a Rest in Peace / Bojuka Bog with an upside. Personally, I have found myself adding it to most of my decks (though its usefulness obviously depends on the playgroup).

[@EDHNeoRoyal]

Being in non green, stopping the green players from ramping for a turn or 2 really makes a difference! For the grave hate it depends on your group but in mine there's grave deck everywhere. Creatures, lands, instant sorcery. I run it in all my UB deck

[@Seedmember]

If you have ways to look at the top cards of your library and they all suck, you can mill yourself and get rid of them for a chance at a better reveal. Otherwise, both the grave hate and the tutoring stop are very good.

[@adamcappella8088]

Cedh yuriko is more of a stax commander. So its probably a bit of bleed over from cedh decks

[@Keynomaru]

as long as you have the mana and 2 ninjas can you keep ninjutsuing them off each other till you run out of mana right?

[@RodrigoCML7]

I mean the vanishing ninja joke was good and all but I was really expecting some sort of costume when I clicked to be honest. I’m really looking forward to the episode and costume for Yargle.

[@BladedCreed]

Can you do nekusar next? I need some more card ideas for the deck

[@suntitan4419]

Cool deck tech but I wouldn’t add split cards because I hate them they are hideous lol I have a yuriko deck but there are only three ninjas in it. It’s mainly top deck manipulation and just dimir good stuff like a lot of the cards you cut because I already owned them so wasn’t a budget issue

[@nik700]

As someone who despises Dimir so much, Yuriko is so much fun

[@ZOMBIEBRAINS69]

It feels like you took a top deck decklist and turned it into a ninja tribal

[@Manifibell]

Nice cosplay 10/10!

[@polgarcia7938]

is cavern of souls useful for ninjutsu?

[@patrickfliess]

I'm a yuriko player and I play literally every blue extra turn spell

[@jackdineen8523]

How about Nekusar

[@Winterhe4rt]

I totally understand removing the scroll rack or top for budget reasons. BUT in this kind of casual Yuriko list you def want to have Insidious Dreams! Its like a poor mans Doomsday. Really. Just discard excess lands or dorks with it and stack the top of your deck with your most expensive spells (or spells you actually need). Heck its even an instant! So you can just wait and see how many Ninjas actually come through and then cast the dreams in response to burn the table for the last 20 or 30 damage.

[@jeffnosdivad3080]

Why is diabolic vision never used in a Yuriko deck!?

[@austin3879]

~15 cards (aprox. 1/6) in the average Yuriko deck are 5+ CmC which is where I draw the line for decent damage on a trigger. Diabolic Vision only digs 5 deep so on average you will wiff more than you will find a bomb. Diabolic Vision also does not let you bottom any of the cards so if all 5 are dead cards you haven't improved your situation. Sorcery speed isn't necessarily a negative but its worth mentioning. It's impossible to not compare this card to Lim-Dul's Vault which suffers from none of these downsides.

[@Farycane]

Bident of thassa taps your opponents creatures

[@gabrielethier2046]

Why no snuff out, its about as good as deadly rollick and cheaper

[@andreww479]

why are the miracle spells even in the deck? the trigger is first card draw that turn, Yuriko triggers on combat meaning you have already drawn your first card when you started the turn and her ability is not drawing a card either way.

[@austin3879]

The high amount of top deck manipulation make it easy to miracle and they are high CmC for blind Yuriko triggers. The deck runs a few ways to put cards from hand or grave back on top of the library should that be required as well.

[@ViXoZuDo]

Also, the only miracle that they show was an extra turn... a good Yuriko list will have a lot of extra turn for extra attacks, card draw, land drops, etc... Yuriko is the kind of deck that truly shine with those extra turns...

[@Atlas_Invictus]

I would love to see a Brokkos, apex of Forever Mutate take on this :)

[@BackyardRonin]

Throatseeker has saved me and allowed me to take a game before but honestly it feels weird playing ninjas that don’t have ninjutsu. I don’t mean to nitpick the two ninjas that don’t have ninjutsu but I do like what you said about what the tribe stands for, which is tempo control. And I don’t think that throatseeker adds to the personality of the tribe. Just an opinion

[@mattguillien1994]

Oona is nice with all the bouncing

[@deadeye7924]

so theres a meme with abusing ninjutsu i shitpost on every vid that mentions her. Etrata, the silencer's ability to put a hit mark on a creature can be interacted with by ninjutsu. So you let her hit, then jutsu her out after dmg to have a ninja in then if shes a ninja due to adaptation or conspiracy you still get the trigger while still not having to shuffle her back into your library. This trick lets you fix the deck as well as proper stacking lets you use the top before yuriko goes off in case your trigger is looking to be rather sub par. Overall i love me some ninjas and hope they make more flavorful ways to win with them cause so far im stuck with wheeling and stealing with notion thief or the usual Yuriko group slug way

[@CrazyCatMan13]

Friend: Peter, you’re making a CASUAL Yuriko deck. Are y- hey stop it! Me: *sliding in Thassa’s Oracle and Demonic Consultation into the deck* IT’S VALUE

[@vasylpark2149]

I like tempest caller, open into wonder, and Vela the night clad. Edit: Ukkima, Stalking Shadow. It is a guaranteed two damage when it leaves play.

[@dustinivy4125]

The kid’s got jokes.

[@av110386]

What you're not dressed like a ninja?

[@av110386]

Spoke too soon

[@JABarnes18]

Oh my gosh that ninja cosplay *facepalm*

[@NightfallTH]

Meh, no eyeshadow in this episode ;)

[@VitalSyntax]

You ruined the deck

[@lunalove438]

personally i found a lot success with these cards: - darksteel pendant, a cheap scry 1 artifact that is indestructible so not easily removed. - distortion strike, a 1 mana spell that gives evasion for two turns. - aqueous form, gives evasion and helps with your top fixing for 1 blue mana. - blustersquall, taps down all your opponents creatures for cheap, leaving you free to swing in with a lot of ninjas. - as foretold, needs a turn or two but it is a great way to recast the unblockable creatures after they are ninjutsu'd back into your hand., as well as being able to cast free counterspells on opponents turns.