Form Up Yargle-tron

Posted on by badmoonmtg

There are times in Magic where a location, card, or character captures the hearts and minds of the community.  It doesn’t happen often but, when it does, it comes out of nowhere and has a life of its own.  Who among us doesn’t remember Fblthp fondly?  Well, it has happened again.  The clouds have parted, allowing a single, brilliant ray of light to shine forth onto… a 9/3 vanilla Frog Spirit?  That’s right.  Strap in because we’re taking Yargle, Glutton of Urborg for a spin in Commander.

The Commander

Yargle

Yargle is, as previously stated, a 9/3 Frog Spirit with no abilities.  That’s it.  Nothing much to talk about.  So… why are we talking about it?

Well, Yargle presents us with an interesting challenge for deck building: How do we take a mediocre creature and make it work as a Commander?  Usually a Commander has some ability or attribute that gives us a plan for the deck.  Even our other vanilla Legendary Creature, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, has more going for it than Yargle.  Its low cost and above-curve stats make it a favorite for aggressive White Weenie strategies.  So what does Yargle bring to the table?

He’s a Frog, so maybe mono-Black Frog Tribal?  There are only four other Black Frogs, sadly.  Ok, so what about Spirits?  That’s better, with 96 other Spirits, but a spirit deck is built on abilities, and Yargle doesn’t bring any to the party.  So, what about his stats?  He’s a 9/3 for {4B}.  That’s not terrible.  The 3 Toughness is a little worrisome, but the 9 Power is nothing to sneeze at.  How do we take advantage of his high Power?  Commander damage is a powerful thing and, with very little work, Yargle can get halfway to killing an opponent in one hit.  So maybe that’s the way to go?  Let’s try it.

The Deck

Seclusion Wanderings

When exploring what Black has to offer in terms of buffs, I noticed a pair of cards that both want the same thing.  Homicidal Seclusion and Deadly Wanderings are Enchantments that will buff any Creature we have, as long as it is the only Creature we have.  Since our goal is to pump Yargle to ridiculous levels, I don’t see a problem with that.  These two cards give a combined +5/+1, Deathtouch, and Lifelink.  That seems pretty good, even if it does mean our Frog Spirit gets no back-up.

Memorial

Another way to beef up Yargle with abilities is Akroma’s Memorial.  We need him to have evasion, and the Memorial gives Flying, First Strike, Trample, and Protection from Red and Black.  This can allow us to get through for a lot of damage, if our opponents aren’t ready for it.

Cloak Worldslayer

We’ve also got a lot of Equipment on hand to add stats and abilities.  We have pretty much all the swords ever made, several whips, and some fancy footwear.  Special shout-outs go to Whispersilk Cloak, which makes Yargle unblockable, Darksteel Plate, which makes him Indestructible, and Worldslayer, which destroys literally everything.

Downfall Damnation

Now that Yargle is an unstoppable force, we need to find a way to stay alive.  To that end, we have kill spells and board wipes.  Everything from Hero’s Downfall to Damnation is here to show that, when it comes to killing things, Black is where it’s at.

Fleshbag Sidisi

And I know I said that Yargle wouldn’t have back-up, but we’ve got a few Creatures that will likely not be around for long.  Fleshbag Marauder, Merciless Executioner, and Shriekmaw are here and gone, taking some of our opponents’ Creatures with them.  Sidisi, Undead Vizier will show up just long enough to sacrifice herself to tutor up a card for Yargle.

Vess Sorin

We’ve also got some Planeswalkers along for the ride, because our Enchantments don’t care about them.  We’ve got Liliana Vess, of the Dark Realms, and of the Veil.  These function as hand disruption, tutors, or kill spells, depending on which one we have.  They are joined by Sorin Markov, who can kill a Creature but, more importantly, can set an opponent’s life total to 10.  Yargle can definitely do 10 damage to a player, which means he works really well with Sorin.

Exsanguinate Torment

As alternate win-conditions, we’ve got Exsanguinate and Torment of Hailfire that we can pump a lot of mana into in the late game.  Add in ten different mana rocks, as well as a couple of Cabal lands (along with a massive number of basic Swamps), and you have a mana generation engine that can take opponents out in no time.

The Plan

The trick to playing this deck is to remember that Yargle looks like a sub-par Commander.  Not only that, but while you are getting mana rocks and equipment on the field, other players are going to appear more threatening.  You should be able to fly under the radar for a little while, at least.

Use your targeted removal diplomatically, if possible, taking down a large threat and getting on the table’s good side.  Then, when you’re ready, spring the trap by slamming a Whispersilk Cloak and knocking someone out of the game.  From then on, your opponents will have to respond to you.  Put the fear of Yargle into them, and bargle your way to victory.

The Decklist

Commander

  • Yargle, Glutton of Urborg

Creatures (4)

  • Fleshbag Marauder
  • Merciless Executioner
  • Shriekmaw
  • Sidisi, Undead Vizier

Planeswalkers (4)

  • Liliana of the Dark Realms
  • Liliana of the Veil
  • Liliana Vess
  • Sorin Markov

Enchantments (7)

Artifacts (30)

Instants and Sorceries (16)

Lands (38)

Conclusion

Yargle is more than just a big, dumb Frog monster; he’s a simple, fun design that just makes people want to play him.  What other cards have captured your imagination?  Tell me that, or suggest another Commander, in the comments.  You can also hit up the Contact Page, the Facebook page, or Twitter.

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Published by badmoonmtg