Hello folks!

I hope your day is going well!

So, what do you do when you have the itch to build something, but you aren't sure what? What deck? Colors? Archetypes?

That happens to me a whole lot, and one of the ways that I can force myself to do something unusual is to head to the random Gatherer button over at Wizards, and then start smashing that random card button until I find my first legal Commander.

I've done this 8 times for you in the past. Ready for the next edition?

Sometimes, I am not sure people believe my random Commander (or other random Gatherer) hits are, in fact, random. I figured this time I'd record it for you!

Here are my rules before we get started.

1. It has it be legal as a Commander. If it's banned or silver bordered or something, I won't take it.
2. It has to be something new for me. If I hit something like Diaochan, Artful Beauty, well I have a real life version of that leader that I use all of the time. It's not eligible.

And then....that's it! I will build around the first randomly selected legendary dork over at Gatherer. I'll take a quick video with my smart camera for you.

Ready?

Let's do it:

All right, and there you are!

I checked and nope, I've not built around the first edition of the Izzet Leader.

Here we go! Ready? Let's do it!

What does ol' school Niv-Mizzet offer you as a player?

Did you draw a card?

Great!

Now ting some stuff for damage for free.

Now how do I put an Abe spin on a classic known card?

Over at EDHREC.com, we have 593 registered decks. However, it far outpaces Dracogenius. That's the 3rd least played Izzet leader after Tawnos, Urza's Apprentice and Ludevic, Necro-Alchemist played without the leader just by itself.

You don't respect the Dracogenius! I wish I had grabbed this one instead! The Parun is already the third most played Izzet leader after The Locust God and Mizzix of the Izmagnus. So, people have an abiding respect for him, but just not the 2nd version.

Now I certainly could switch over. I don't think I'd get much pushback. I think you'd be fine with it, just taking another Mivy and moving on.

But I can't do that. I must have a fidelity to the process that forces me to go with my random commander.

Hello Firemind!

My goal is to run three things and push them:

Thing #1 - Increase my card drawing as much as possible, so I can maximize my Niv-Mizzet damage triggers

Thing #2 - Increase my triggers, so my card drawing will have more options to do relevant things.

Thing #3 - Push targeting abilities so my targeting can run additional interference

Thing #1

To begin with, we have some obvious cards.

I want to push card drawing, and which is good as I can draw some fun cards. Cards will head in that you expect, like Mind's Eye and Consecrated Sphinx; Magus of the Wheel and Wheel of Fortune too.

Of course, that's not all! We are running cards like Induced Amnesia and Thought Reflection. The Amnesia is basically a self-Windfall effect that stores the cards into the Amnesia for later recalling. When the Amnesia heads out, you can draw a ton of cards too. It's also a useful tool against graveyard recursion as you can take out something from a person's hand that you might not be able to answer. Thought Reflection is obviously a powerhouse here too as you draw those goodies.

I also really like the Dragonlord's Prerogative too. Sure, it's six mana for four cards, but if you control your Niv-Mizzet when you cast it, then you have an uncounterable four cards, and four triggers for your stuff as well. Not bad!

All right, next?

Thing #2

Next we have some triggers for card drawing that will tether to the card drawing fun times we already have here. Psychosis Crawler is the obvious choice, as unlike Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind, it'll hit all opponents for a life loss, thus making it a very strong clock. Meanwhile something like The Locust God will give you a few options that you can enjoy as well. Making flying dorks for card drawn is awesome, and you can use it's activated ability to loot and thus net more and more triggers from your stuff.

Creatures like Chasm Skulker and Toothy, Imaginary Friend will swell as your card drawing rises. When either is defeated, they will also give you a powerful death trigger as they built up over time, either in dorks or in cards drawn.

Another card in here that plays into that realm is Diviner's Wand, which you really want t toss onto Niv-y as you can tap him to draw a card, and then pump him up at the same time. Like our The Locust God friend, you can invest four mana into a card drawn, only you won't be forced to discard after.

Have you noticed this duet? The first is a fine Jace for card-drawing, and can feed out counters too in various places. Meanwhile, Jace's Projection get's bigger too, and you can toss loyalty counters onto Jace's. Both are fine here! I'm sure that you'll unearth some useful synergies in cards like these.

Jace, Wielder of Mysteries and Laboratory Maniac are both alternate win cards that'll work if your Niv exhausts the deck. Possible. The latter is classic for the role in plays in doling out wins, while the former is much harder to interact with. I really like the Wielder of Mysteries here as another option for Jace-countering with that cool Projection.

While I'm talking of Jaces, two more Jaces are making the cut in my build:

Jace, TMS is best for his 0 here where you'll Brainstorm each turn, and thus get three card drawing triggers. His +2 is fine, his bouncery useful. But the 0 is where I suspect he'll be best suited. Meanwhile, the Memory Adept edition of Jace, can draw and mill a card, force someone to mill 10 cards, and then for his ultimately, draw you a nasty twenty cards. Drop and use his +1 and you are at 5 loyalty and you are close to a Niv-Mizzet smashery kill zone, right? Right!

Thing #3

The first thing any Niv-Mizzet deck needs to decide is this.

Are you going to be a Curiosity deck? Are you going to include the auto-wins of cards like Curiosity and friends?

Curiosity works simply. When the enchanted dork deals damage to player, then draw a card. It was written prior to new templates that would likely have added in "combat" to your damage. When your Niv is enchanted, all you have to do to win the game is Draw a card. When you draw a card, then your leader will deal one damage anywhere you want, which can be another player. When you deal damage, you draw a card with Curiosity, and the loop continues. You will draw your deck, and you deal enough damage to kill most players.

Since Niv-Mizzet can tap to draw a card, you just drop the one-mana Curiosity and then tap and win. It's a classic combo for winning.

We have more abilities than just Curiosity that'll do it, as we have stuff like Tandem Lookout or Ophidian Eye that'll punch into the same corner. Draw a card, deal damage, draw a card, deal damage, etc.

Now... are you that deck? I've decided to toss all three in. When I run it, I wouldn't feel required to auto-kill, as they are also amazing on lots of other cards in the deck as well, and will help my plans. And then if I want to combo kill a nasty Spike player who is preventing folks from playing or having fun, then it's an option. Or I could use it to finish a game that's gone on for way too long.

But they aren't the only synergies for damage dealing we'll be running!

Deathtouch is great for your leader, as you can aim one damage to a dork, and then slay said dork. That's not at all! And then do you know what's better? Gaining life for all of that damage doled out over time too!

We also have some other synergies too! You can tap and target a foe's dork when you have the Dismiss into Dream, and it'll be sacrificed forthwith. It plays into creatures in here that have some fun targeting chops, like Goblin Sharpshooter which will shoot down all of the pretty dorks as it'll untap after each firing of the cannon. Meanwhile Cowardice will send them all home to their owner's hands. Note that I am also sending out a Kira, Great Glass-Spinner to help protect my house from these issues

What else? Want to find another way to bounce your foe's stuff? I hear you, who wants unsightly opposing creatures keeping your team from swinging through their open yard and punching them in the face? All you have to do is turn a single damage from Niv-Mizzet, Ruler of Ravnica's Skies and you can bounce a dork they have. This will also permanently slay token creatures, and it's amazing with Dismiss into Dream, because you can target your foe's for damage and slay their dorks without losing the valuable player killing.

You know what? Maybe you are a little more classy than merely bouncery or player killing! Sure thing! Why not steal the creature in question instead? Come on! We all know that you want to steal their Commander and have them work for your team moving forward, right? No sense letting them cast and recast it if you can just Charisma it over to your side!

And who has more Charisma than Niv-Mizzet?

Exactly!

All right, now let give you the deck in its glory.

The Firemind Doth Slayeth Thy Foes | Commander | Abe Sargent

• Commander (1)
• 1 Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind

• Creatures (24)
• 1 Cavalier of Flame
• 1 Chasm Skulker
• 1 Consecrated Sphinx
• 1 Dong Zhou, the Tyrant
• 1 Goblin Sharpshooter
• 1 Jace's Archivist
• 1 Jace's Projection
• 1 Keranos, God of Storms
• 1 Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
• 1 Laboratory Maniac
• 1 Magus of the Wheel
• 1 Mulldrifter
• 1 Nezahal, Primal Tide
• 1 Niv-Mizzet, Parun
• 1 Psychosis Crawler
• 1 Sphinx of the Final Word
• 1 Stigma Lasher
• 1 Stuffy Doll
• 1 Tandem Lookout
• 1 The Locust God
• 1 Thundering Djinn
• 1 Toothy, Imaginary Friend
• 1 Whirlpool Warrior
• 1 Willbreaker

• Planeswalkers (4)
• 1 Jace, Arcane Strategist
• 1 Jace, Memory Adept
• 1 Jace, the Mind Sculptor
• 1 Jace, Wielder of Mysteries

• Instants (9)
• 1 Chaos Warp
• 1 Counterflux
• 1 Cryptic Command
• 1 Dismiss
• 1 Dragonlord's Prerogative
• 1 Force of Negation
• 1 Force of Will
• 1 Rewind
• 1 Urza's Rage

• Sorceries (4)
• 1 Arm with Aether
• 1 Reforge the Soul
• 1 Wheel of Fortune
• 1 Windfall

• Enchantments (12)
• 1 Charisma
• 1 Cowardice
• 1 Curiosity
• 1 Curse of Verbosity
• 1 Dismiss into Dream
• 1 Ever-Watching Threshold
• 1 Induced Amnesia
• 1 Monastery Siege
• 1 Ophidian Eye
• 1 Propaganda
• 1 Rhystic Study
• 1 Sigil of Sleep

• Artifacts (13)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Commander's Sphere
• 1 Diviner's Wand
• 1 Firemind Vessel
• 1 Lightning Greaves
• 1 Mind Stone
• 1 Mind's Eye
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Staff of Nin
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Talisman of Creativity
• 1 Thought Vessel
• 1 Thornbite Staff

• Lands (33)
• 8 Island
• 8 Mountain
• 1 Cascade Bluffs
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Desolate Lighthouse
• 1 Fiery Islet
• 1 Geier Reach Sanitarium
• 1 Izzet Boilerworks
• 1 Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
• 1 Minamo, School at Water's Edge
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Spirebluff Canal
• 1 Steam Vents
• 1 Sulfur Falls
• 1 Swiftwater Cliffs
• 1 Temple of Epiphany
• 1 Temple of the False God
• 1 Wandering Fumarole

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And there we are!

So, what did you think of my Niv-Mizzet build? Anything I missed or you'd add? Just let me know!

Random Commander Challenges!

Did you enjoy today's deck and want to be excited by previous editions? Great! Here they are.

1. For my first challenge, I hit on Random Gatherer Gwendlyn di Corci from the set that introduced legendary permanents. I create a discard-matters deck around her.
2. I flip over one of the original Elder Dragon Legends that the format was initially named after - Arcades Sabboth. I decide to build around a non-Red and non-Black Dragon theme. Get ready!
3. The Random Fairy Strikes Again! This time it lands on Toshiro Umezawa, one of the major protagonists of the Kamigawa Block storyline. Check out my spell-based fun time deck!
4. My submission of the random button finds the vanilla The Lady of the Mountain. Inspired by one of the few Commander options legally printed as a common, I decide to create a Pauper EDH deck for you! Let me know what you think!
5. I hit the random button and got Kefnet the Mindful. I turned him into a budget build for fewer than $33 as part of my Budget Commander series. Enjoy!
6. Random Gatherer hits Nissa, Vastwood Seer for a fun, mono-Green Forests-matter deck! Check it out!
7. This time, we hit 1-drop Vanilla Isamaru, Hound of Konda. What do I do with him? How about Isamaru Ultron? Let's give our pet some pants.
8. Teshar, Ancestor's Apostle - This build wants to build a fun challenge around the historic recursions of Teshar's potential. You can check it out here.