Reverse Voltron with Eriette in Commander

Posted on September 12, 2023

Hello awesome folks! I hope that you are having an awesome day today! Today I wanted to build around my first leader from Wilds of Eldraine in the Orzhov color combo. Who? Eriette!

Eriette costs three for a 2/4 body with two abilities. The first says that if people try to attack you or your planeswalkers when enchanted by an Aura you control, well...they can't they have to head elsewhere. That's a great pillow fort. Then on your end step each foe loses X life and you gain it where X is your Aura count, so it's a win con and pillow fort on one cheap three-drop.

What I want to do here is to run Auras that pump the power of opposing stuff so that they kill more quickly when they swing at each other. It'll be a Reverse Voltron! There is a Standard deck around her where they toss negative Auras on each foe's stuff to hurt them, but I prefer to boost their ability to punch each other instead, since I'd prefer they not really care about the Auras and see them as ways to speed up the game for them. I am going to have backup pillow fort stuff for when Eriette is killed or for stuff without an Aura on it because with four players some won't have enough Auras on them.

Mana, Ramp, Lands

Since we aren't in the color of ramp with Green, I am leaning into mana rocks and White for my ramp. I am running two-drop signets like Arcane Signet but since I'll still have the occasional third turn three-drop, I also have a few three-drops with abilities. The two-drop above taps for both of my colors and then the three-drop taps for any color and then also prevents me from discarding due to hand size. Also, I am running Thought Vessel. Since we are drawing cards in big numbers from Enchantress effects, I want some discard breaks.

Check out this land and mana rock. The Black tapping one ETBs tapped, so you take a turn off. Then you can exile one graveyard from a foe. Then the colorless tapping one costs four, taps for two, and then can be sacrificed with two mana to draw a card and then exile all other graveyards. It's a break on graveyard abuse and then can be done instantly to exile everything. We also have mass recursion of the artifact and enchantment type to exile away.

Now let's turn to a pair of ramping White enchantments. Smothering Tithe will make you a Treasure for free temporary ramping if your foes don't spend two mana when they draw. Considering how often they draw, that'll be rarely, so you'll net a bunch of free tokens. It's here because it's an enchantment synergy and then tax alongside Pillow Fort stuff like Ghostly Prison and Windborn Muse.

Land Tax can be cast turn one. In your upkeep, if a foe is rocking more lands you tutor for three basics and put them into your hand. It's here to get you some lands to hit your land drops every turn as green players often are casting Farseek and Cultivate effects early to trigger this over and over again. Both are more likely to trigger in multiplayer and they are Commander Classics.

Let's finish this section with lands! Rogue's Passage is also a Commander Classic since four mana will tap and make anything unblockable. Normally it's played with higher power Commanders as a win con in the land zone, or with Commander's with combat damage triggers like Brago. But you can use it politically on an opposing dork to smash your foe's, and it's here to make your befriended Voltron dork by a foe to attack someone else without pushback by blockers. Shizo, Death's Storehouse arrives untapped, and then can be tapped for just one to give a legendary dork the evasive fear, again, any dork you are looking at. I also tossed in Access Tunnel with this fun duo.

Arcane Lighthouse can tap it with one mana to target hexproof and shroud opposing stuff and put your Auras on them. I also have Detection Tower that does this for hexproof as well. Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire can be discarded for no more than three to shoot an attacker or blocker for 4 damage. It's here to hurt someone who attacked you this turn in your pillow fort.

Now let's finish with this colorless tapping legendary land pair! The former will use that two mana tap to stop all combat damage from an attacker this turn. If one or two dorks are paid for in your Group Hug or aren't enchanted and swing, I want defense, enter this land, as well as Maze of Ith and Labyrinth of Skophos. The latter land is the best land in the deck. It'll turn it's two mana tap to reload an enchantment from your graveyard to the top of your library. You can get the best one for the situation! And that legendary land pair finishes this section!

Reverse Voltron Stuff

Now let's turn to Reverse Voltron stuff! The Spirit costs three, and then has bestow for four. The enchanted dork get's +1/+1 for each dork and Aura you control, and when it falls off, it'll be itself on your side to finish someone off with. We have tons of Auras and then 13 dorks. The Aura costs two and was just downshifted to common for Pauper commonality. The enchanted dork in question gets a huge boost in size equal to your enchantment and artifact count! With mana rocks, equipment, randomly artifact dorks like Solemn Simulacrum and then the enchantment that could be quite the threat! Also remember it's synergy with the Treasures tokens you can make en masse. Then I also tossed in enchantment caring Ethereal Armor that costs one and gives first strike too. They are win cons in a Reverse Voltron way.

There are three Auras in Orzhov that make the enchanted dork goaded called "Impetus," nasty here with the boosts, combat stuff and then swing or death triggers. All three are here.

Ghoulish Impetus costs three, gives deathtouch so no one will want to block, a +1/+1 boost to size and then is a Rancor and recurs when the dork dies for you to use it again! There is one equipment goad which is here too! Bloodthirsty Blade costs two, equips an opposing dork for just one mana and then gives it +2 power and then goads. Nasty here! You'll wanna put these on sizeable things like with the Eidolon or All That Glitters or their beaters or evasive Commanders to get a faster Commander kill.

Let's finish with this Aura pair! The White one costs three, draws you a card when it ETBs, and then it gives protection from dorks, so it cannot be blocked. Since it's free, toss this on their goaded dork or beater with All That Glitters or their nasty non-evasive beater like Gigantosaurus. The Black costs just one, will enchant an artifact or dork. It gets -1/-1 if it's a dork and cannot block so they'll want to swing. Then it will want to attack since it cannot block. Then at their upkeep they lose a life so it's a slow win con. I love casting this on their solo blocker for your Eidolon after you get it back or for creature kill of a key dork that needs to go like Mother of Runes which will kill Auras one at a time by giving them that protection. Since it costs just one you can do that on the first turn after they drop Momma. Nice pair of synergy to finish this bad boy up with!

Synergies and Winning Conditions

Now let's turn to synergies and other win-cons. Archon of Sun's Grace is an on-curve 3/4 with flying and lifelink. Your Pegasi have lifelink. It has constellation. When an enchantment ETBs you make a free 2/2 flying Pegasus! Nasty since we have loads of them here. I also am running the flying dork making Sigil of the Empty Throne which has an enchantment cast trigger which will resolve even if countered of the 4/4 flying size. These mass token makers are great with killing with your Eidolon.

Three Dreams allows you to tutor for three Auras with different names and put them into your hand - three tutors in one spell! Although just Auras, it's still strong. I am also running Idyllic Tutor for tutoring just one for three but any enchantment.

Now let's turn to another dork and sorcery. The Kor Scout costs three and is legendary for giving fear, by the by. At the beginning of combat on your turn you can move all Auras and Equipment that you control to one permanent or player. Normally this is done to get free equips on your stuff in equipment-matters brews. Here it is to move around Auras to other opposing dorks, combine them into one killer with all Pluses and goads. It's also a backup in case your foes are stuck and cannot get through another foe. Just move your Eidolon, All That Glitters, Vow of Malice and more to your stuff and swing away to finish off someone.

The sorcery costs a pricey 7 mana with four White symbols in the cost, hard, but worth it to return all of your artifacts and enchantments to play from your graveyard. Sacrifice your card flow mana rocks first like the Crystal we looked at earlier or Commander's Sphere. I am also running mass recursion for everyone Open the Vaults so exile their graveyards and Retether for my Auras.

Ondu Spiritdancer has one ability. Did an enchantment ETB under your control this turn? Great! Make a copy of it! Note that this will copy anything without any additional things like mana or tapping. Its only brake is that it's just once per turn. Sphere of Safety is an uncommon enchantment in the Pillow Fort theme. Opposing stuff cannot attack you or your planeswalkers unless they spend mana for each one equal to your enchantment count. That's going to be rough to do! Nice White pair to finish this section with!

Answers

Now let's turn answers! The first are answers to answers. Most White instant answers to answers give your creatures indestructible and save them from removal targeted or mass, but here that's not what I want to save. I want to save my enchantments. Enter this three-cost instant, which phases out all of your permanents, so they cannot be exiled with Farewell, bounced with Cyclonic Rift, destroyed with Akroma's Vengeance, or otherwise dealt with. And your life total cannot change so you can do this instantly. I also have the one mana instant Surge of Salvation to give you and all of your stuff hexproof this turn which will work on the Rift.

Then I have emergency targeted removal like Vindicate since I am in Orzhov. That includes Vindicate, sure, and then the End above, Generous Gift and more.

Now let's turn to two sweepers. Every deck needs mass removal for key things, even a deck that has a big body of permanents. Promise of Loyalty costs five and player puts a vow counter on a dork and sacrifices the rest. Note the use of the word "sacrifice" which gets past indestructible. Most will likely keep their Commander, like you. Vow counters cannot attack you, only each other. That plays into the same space as your leader.

Austere Command can destroy two things, all artifacts, enchantments, small dorks or big dorks. The default here is artifacts and big dorks, since your dorks tend to cost three or less or are tokens. Maybe you'll hit dorks twice since you don't have many you'll care about here.

Let's finish with this themed removal section. The Aura costs two. You can tutor it. An enchanted thing gets indestructible, loses all abilities and becomes a 0/1. It's here to answer opposing Commanders who cannot be killed by chump blocking to send them back to the Command Zone or having abilities with a Pacifism on them. Nasty! The enchantment creature costs five. It has a 4/6 body and then when an enchantment ETBs each opposing dork gets -1/-1 for the turn, so that'll kill small one toughness dorks and you can stack them to kill bigger stuff. Great themed enchantment removal section!

Card Flow

Now let's turn to card draw and flow with these two enchantments. The Arena is a classic. In your upkeep you draw one and lose a life. Most people have been pulling this for Sign in Blood effects, but it's an enchantment so it's here. I am also running Underworld Connections that counts as an Aura to draw. Both are Tutorable with your stuff. The Contract costs five, and you draw four and lose four life, so this is basically Tidings. You can ignore the last ability since we have no Demons here.

Mesa Enchantress costs three on a 0/2 body. Did you cast an enchantment? Draw that card! Note this is a cast trigger so if your Phyrexian Arena is countered you'll still draw. I also have two Aura cast draws in legendary Sram and then two-drop Kor Spiritdancer. Sage's Reverie you draw for each Aura attached to a dork. That's a lot of card flow here. Then the enchanted dork gets boosts to size equal to your Aura on dorks count, so it scales up and refills your hand.

Let's finish our card flow section with this Black creature uncommon pair. The enchantment creature is a one-drop 1/2 with lifelink. When an enchanted dork dies, you draw a card for each Aura that was attached to it you control. Nasty card flow here since your foes will be attacking each other, blocking, and dying. The non-enchantment creature costs four mana for a 3/3. Then when your enchantments die, you draw a card. More card flow from the natural death of your enchanted dorks in death. And if you control a Reaper and an Aura/Enchantment cast dork you could draw one when they are cast and another when they die!!! Two per aura.

Alright, now let's turn to my decklist!