Hello folks! I hope your day is going well.

I was vacationing at Morocco last week and I just returned yesterday, so I didn't have time to write my article as per my normal timeline. Sorry! So I wrote a quick little Commander article for you a few weeks ago that could slide here in this spot. No matter what time of the year it is, Commander is always hot!!!

Magic can get old fast. Same formats. Same decks. Same metagames. It's time to break out of that funk!!!

Random chaos is the only way to build a deck, baby!

I really enjoyed my random challenge two weeks ago that grabbed Nissa, Vastwood Seer and Kefnet the Mindful just before that. No sense letting a good idea drop!

Gatherer has a random card button to inspire your deck-building fun times.

Random Card Fun Times!!!

My first card was a fun Standard legal target for Gruul Smash during the first Ravnica Block. But it's not a Commander.

What's next?

Nope. Not legal!

These are my next cards. Not legal!

So let's dig. Twenty cards pass by. Another ten melt away.

Cards like Rockslide Ambush, Fact or Fiction, and Wax // Wane arrive. Then about fifteen cards later, it arrives:

Isamaru, Hound of Konda.

All right! Let's do it!

What sort of Isamaru deck do I want?

White Weenie? I could run Anthems like Honor of the Pure, and some strong early punchers-in-the-face that smash quickly like my Hound. Maybe some going wide cards like Decree of Silence.

Equipment? Mono-White loves equipment! There is a lot of love in this color, and having a guaranteed 1-drop to target would make a lot of sense.

Auras? Mono-White also loves auras! It has a ton of cards that play well with Auras, and make enchanted dorks better. It also benefits from the guaranteed one-drop of Isamaru to target.

Tribal? I could probably see a Hound or Legendary Matters tribal theme. Mono-White cares a lot about legendary permanents, and you could try a mono-colored build around that.

Anything else come to your mind? I agree. Nothing else sparks me either.

What I want to do is to combine the Aura and the Equipment forces into one powerful engine.

Here, let me show you the card that sparks my thoughts for this build:

This is Sigarda's Aid. Note that it will allow your Auras and your Equipment to flash out, and your Equipment is able to equip anything on arrival (just like your Auras can). As you can see, Sigarda's Aid is a boon for both Equipment and Auras. Why choose? Why not play both?

Sigarda's Aid isn't the only enabler of both in White either!

Sram, Senior Edificer is going to draw you a ton of cards with his Aura and Equipment enabling. Meanwhile, Danitha Capashen, Paragon is going to net you a discount when you cast either of the Auras or Equipment. They twin together nicely, don't they?

Helm of the Gods is the perfect target for equipping your stuff. It's cheap to drop and use, and it will increase in size with the dedication to Aura's that you'll likely run!

Now those aren't the only cards that play into both halves. We have this quartet of powerful cards as well. The Ironclad Slayer will recur either an aura or a piece of equipment back for another go. It's quite strong here. Meanwhile, Open the Vaults will bring back all dead artifacts and enchantments, for everyone, so you can reload your stuff. Fountain Watch gives them both shroud for you, to prevent your opponent from targeting them for removal. Finally, Heavenly Blademaster is a strong dork who can provide a useful top-end option after your big stuff arrives and punches folks in the face.

We also have some equipment cards to lean on!

In addition to the obvious options here and there, these three suggest themselves. The Shikari gives you a flash-equip option, the Puresteel Paladin is an obvious card drawing machine who can also drop your equip costs. Combine them? Nasty! Balan is a strong equip target as well for your team.

Again, besides the obvious equipment options like Skullclamp, Lightning Greaves, and Umezawa's Jitte, I want to have some other strong options. The Hammer of Nazahn gives you a free equip on arrival, so you can drop it on turn four and then equip onto your Hound of Konda immediately. Other equipment that arrives later will also equip once for free too, which will speed up this deck considerably. Godsend will add some useful size and exiling-heft.

But my favorite addition is Bloodforged Battle-Axe! That thing is nasty. It'll churn out artifacts for your various effects, and creature bigger and bigger Isamaru's. Which will, of course be dealing increasingly more Commander damage, soon to go lethal.

I also run some fun enchantments. Some Auras here are obvious, and I won't belabor them. You don't need me to tell you why Armored Ascension or Angelic Destiny are here.

I am running some fun enchantments outside of Auras too. Smothering Tithe is probably the best of them. It makes Treasure tokens that can accelerate your equipment dropping and equipping, as well as artifacts for the battlefield too. We also have Land Tax and others.

I added a few enchantments that answer problems to give you something to find or reuse, as they can be tutored for with your Enlightened Tutor or Academy Rector. You have Soul Snare and Oblivion Ring,

I am also running Bastion Protector, who goes well with Isamaru. Like his owner, who stole That Which Was Taken to give himself indestructibility, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, will also be indestructible with this out!

By the way, this is the first deck I've run where I'm sure that Mox Amber is a good addition!

Duh!

Today's fun throwback card is sponsored by Soul Sculptor! This card works well in making a dork an enchantment until another creature is cast. It's uses are many and varied.

I have run this card for almost 20 years in Abe's Deck of Happiness and Joy. It's worth it! Get your Sculptor of Soul on!

Enjoy your flashback card.

All right! Ready to see my random Isamaru deck?

Isamaru's Face-Smashing Victory | Commander | Abe Sargent

• Commander (1)
• 1 Isamaru, Hound of Konda

• Creatures (27)
• 1 Academy Rector
• 1 Auriok Steelshaper
• 1 Balan, Wandering Knight
• 1 Bastion Protector
• 1 Danitha Capashen, Paragon
• 1 Eidolon of Countless Battles
• 1 Eight-and-a-Half-Tails
• 1 Fountain Watch
• 1 Heavenly Blademaster
• 1 Heliod, God of the Sun
• 1 Heliod's Pilgrim
• 1 Ironclad Slayer
• 1 Kor Duelist
• 1 Leonin Shikari
• 1 Mesa Enchantress
• 1 Mother of Runes
• 1 Nomad Mythmaker
• 1 Puresteel Paladin
• 1 Sanctum Gargoyle
• 1 Serra Ascendant
• 1 Soul Sculptor
• 1 Sram, Senior Edificer
• 1 Stoneforge Mystic
• 1 Stone Haven Outfitter
• 1 Stonehewer Giant
• 1 Totem-Guide Hartebeest
• 1 Umbra Mystic

• Planeswalkers (4)
• 1 Ajani Goldmane
• 1 Ajani, Caller of the Pride
• 1 Elspeth, Knight-Errant
• 1 Nahiri, the Lithomancer

• Instants (2)
• 1 Enlightened Tutor
• 1 Unexpectedly Absent

• Sorceries (3)
• 1 Open the Armory
• 1 Open the Vaults
• 1 Winds of Rath

• Enchantments (11)
• 1 Angelic Destiny
• 1 Armored Ascension
• 1 Aura of Silence
• 1 Brilliant Halo
• 1 Ethereal Armor
• 1 Land Tax
• 1 Oblivion Ring
• 1 Sigarda's Aid
• 1 Smothering Tithe
• 1 Soul Snare
• 1 Unquestioned Authority

• Artifacts (16)
• 1 Batterskull
• 1 Blackblade Reforged
• 1 Bloodforged Battle-Axe
• 1 Fireshrieker
• 1 Godsend
• 1 Hammer of Nazahn
• 1 Helm of the Gods
• 1 Lightning Greaves
• 1 Mox Amber
• 1 Skullclamp
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Spear of Heliod
• 1 Strata Scythe
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Sword of Fire and Ice
• 1 Umezawa's Jitte

• Lands (36)
• 30 Plains
• 1 Buried Ruin
• 1 Emeria, the Sky Ruin
• 1 Myriad Landscape
• 1 Terrain Generator
• 1 Inventors' Fair
• 1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

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And there you have it! One random deck, for your enjoyment!

Was there anything in here that jumped out at you? Anything I missed? Just let me know!

Thanks for your time, and have an awesome-filled day!

Random Commander Appendix:

Did you like this random challenge? Want to see more? Of course, you do! After all, you've always struck me as a person of taste.