No Pain No Gain: Building With Rowan, Scion of War

Posted on September 19, 2023

Hello awesome Commander fans! I hope that you are having an awesome day today! Today I am going to bring you one of my favorite powerful legendary creatures from Wilds of Eldraine who made my Top Ten last week! Rowan hit my 10th spot overall for kitchen table play!

So, I want to build a life loss matters deck to take full advantage of her ability. She has menace and four power on a 3-drop, so that's pretty good at a backup Commander Damage win if the life loss plan doesn't work. I love her power and ability to tap and reduce the cost of spells that are black and red by X, where X is equal to your life lost this turn. My goal is to run win con X spells and life loss stuff. Ready to win by losing life? I got you!

Mana, Ramp, Lands

Since Rowan costs three mana, I don't have the normal mana rocks here to drop her a turn early, but we are running thematic stuff instead. The Palette is a Manalith that costs three and taps for one of any color of mana. Then when you cast an X spell you toss two charge counters here and then tap this for that much mana in colorless for X stuff only. The Vault costs one, drops on the first turn, and then taps for three, and then can be untapped with four in your upkeep. If not you'll take a damage. Then I also have Mana Crypt which has a 50/50 chance of Bolting you in your upkeep, triggering Rowan.

Many of my mana rocks cost more than three and tap for multiple colorless like Thran Dynamo and this. This costs four, taps for two, and sacrifices for two and then draws a card and exiles all other graveyards at instant speed. Bojuka Bog is here to clear them out as well. The red dork costs two, and rocks a 1/2 body. When he ETBs, he makes you Treasures equal to your foes' artifact and enchantment count. That dials up over time and can make a lot of mana for big X spells.

Let's stick with red with this pair. The sorcery costs seven and then makes you Treasures equal to your land count. It only has one Red in its cost, so with Rowan you can drop that easily, but there's no reason to unless you need something bigger. Just like the Goblin above, this scales up over time. I also am running reliable Treasure maker Storm-Kiln Artist. Treasonous Ogre costs four for a 2/3 with dethrone. Since we won't have the most life here ever that should trigger reliably. It's here for the mana making. Spend three life and make a mana. There's no tapping or anything there that's needed, just life and you can do it after it arrives.

Now let's turn to lands! The Tomb is a land that taps for two colorless but you lose two life. It's a classic in 40 life formats that care about speed not life lost, and here we can turn that into a two mana first turn play as well as losing two life each turn. Nasty. And with Sol Ring and Mana Crypt that gives us three ways to get two mana on the first turn - pretty good odds that we'll draw one and drop Rowan turn two. Then the legendary land was printed in Kamigawa Block. It ETBs' tapped, and taps, with a cost of two life, to add one colorless mana, but that one makes the instant or sorcery it spend it on uncounterable. Use this on your big X spells and other pricey and game changing instants/sorceries. We are running 25 instants/sorceries and most will want this but not minor things like Gut Shot, which would often be free anyway.

Now let's turn to two Middle Earth lands. The black tapping one ETBs tapped unless we spend 3 life. Then you can tap it with two mana and choose the player with the most life. You can have a dork be unblocked by that player, like a cheaper Rogue's Passage that taps for . The Rakdos mana tapping thing enters untapped, and then you spend a life to make that mana so it's a pain land. Then you can shoot your foes for three and a tap. That's why its here. I am also running pain land Sulfurous Springs and the Blood Crypt here too.

Let's finish this section with this pair. The final land taps for colorless, ETBs untapped and ready, and then taps with three to swap two life for a card, card flow and life loss here at instant speed. Nasty! The artifact arrives on the first turn and can be sacrificed with two mana to Tutor for any land and put it into your hand. I am running Cabal Coffers and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth to get to make mana for our X Spells en masse. Just get the one you didn't draw. Then I am running Demonic Tutor for it too, or you can use that for your X spell that'll best kill this turn.

Life Loss

Now let's turn to other life loss things that weren't already built into the infrastructure here or later. The Standard legal Staff was just printed. This costs three, and has four tap abilities that trade life for things. The two life is for a mana, and four life are for cards, and those are why this is here, mana making and card draw. Sure, you can one life to destroy or three to proliferate but we don't have any planeswalkers here or any +1/+1 counter things either or infect or toxic stuff either. Then you can spend five mana to untap it. So, you can spend four life to draw a card, drop Rowan's costs by four, spend five to untap it and repeat and drop by eight.

The Citadel costs six and three is Black so that may be rough. You can look at the top card of your library any time, and cast it by spending life equal to it's cost rather than mana, so you can spend four life to cast Thran Dynamo and keep your mana free. It's a Commander Classic in black but it's even stronger here. It's nasty here with your life loss theme.

Check out this mono-black creature pair. The mythic costs five for a 6/6 Demon. It has flying and trample, so double evasion that's hard to stop. Then you can spend two life over and over again to surveil 2. And on a backup win-con 6/6 smasher that's on curve? Nasty! The common also costs five for a 3/4 with swampwalk, under the curve. It has cycling for two life for free. That's why it's here, for the two life loss card free dork. Both of these have synergy with a few X spells in the deck!

X Spells

Now let's turn to X spells that are designed to abuse this brew. The former costs two Rakdos to start, and then X. Its X will shoot a player or planeswalker for X damage and then they'll discard X spells too, so that's Mind Shatter and Blaze in one spell. The latter one costs one to start and makes X 1/1 Rats that don't block and then all of your stuff has haste this turn, so you can swing with your big horde now and other things you may have cast that turn too in order to fetch a faster win out of nowhere.

Now let's finish this section! The Mono-Red X spell costs to start and can only be cast if you control your leader or another rare legendary. But then you can deal X damage to three targets. In your typical multiplayer four player Commander game that means you can shoot all three foes. Or you can do two foes and a planeswalker or a creature like Consecrated Sphinx that needs to go! The Rakdos one is an X spell dork. It costs four to start, but two is generic, so that's if you tapped Rowan for a lot of life lost this turn. Then you get a 5/3 with flying and trample, another duo of evasion. Then you have two X sized options. You can kill all other creatures by losing -X/-X and that much life this turn. That gets past indestructible and hexproof. Or you can return X dorks with total mana value X or less to your battlefield from your graveyard and they get haste. This is where the surveil and the cycling of the above life loss stuff will be rewarded. You can bring them back. I am also running Profane Command which can return one dork and lose life from a foe too.

Synergies and Other Winning Conditions

Now let's turn to synergies and other win-cons that weren't X spells. The red creature costs four and then ETBS with a 4/4 first strike size, on curve. Your red permanents are now Phyrexian Red mana so you can spend life for each instead of mana, then when you cast one you can ping any target for one, so that's a win con, synergy and more here in. I don't have that many, but it's nice. I am also running Defiler of Flesh which helps with black permanents that way, which is much more here. Then I am also running Commander Eligible K'rrik. He costs four generic and three Phyrexian black mana. So free if you lost four life this turn with Rowan and six life. All of your black costs have a Phyrexian black mana including activated costs and non-permanents. Did you cast a black spell? But a counter on him of the +1/+1 variety and he has lifelink too. Nasty trio of cost reduction and life gain and cast triggers.

Now let's turn to life loss triggers in black. The creature costs eight and rocks triple black, so it'll cost no more than triple black. It's a game-winning 8/8 with flying. You can pay two life, and mana without tapping over and over again to have a dork get -1/-1 for the turn, nasty there. And when you lose life, you'll draw that many cards. Here? That'll be massive card flow. The enchantment costs just one so it's a first turn play. When you pay life for effects, put that many counters on it. So, if you control both, then your pay of two life will add two counters. Then for two mana and four counters you can Murder stuff. That's very strong here in the synergy section.

Agadeem's Awakening // Agadeem, the Undercrypt

Let's finish this section with this duo! The Shard costs eight too for a pricey 8/8 with flying and just triple to start. Then when it ETBs if you cast it, a foe loses half of their life and you gain it. Do it the turn before killing someone off. It'll also net you life back to use for other things or to stay alive, like Exsanguinate also a win-con and life gain. The modal spell costs triple Black to start and then X. You can return from your graveyard any dorks that have different costs of X or less, nasty mass recursion that also counts as a land that drops for three life loss to tap for this turn if you need the mana or life loss. I am also running the red modal land in that cycle that X spell smashes two dorks.

Answers

Now let's turn to answers. Most of those are already in my deck with X spells like Comet Storm, so let's look at other things. The modal land costs one and you can choose a dork and lose two life (Rowan trigger). Then when it dies, it reruns tapped this turn, so you can save Rowan, the life loss card flow Demon, or more key stuff and lose life too. The removal spell will cost no more than three and has Phyrexian black mana for two. Then a dork gets -5/-5 this turn so it's creature removal tethered to life loss of up to four, and it will slip past indestructible.

Every deck needs mass removal, enter this pair. The sorcery costs three, and you spend X life when you cast it, and then all things get -X/-X this turn. That's big removal spell, again it gets past indestructible and hexproof, but let's you recur you stuff or save it with the Malakir Rebirth // Malakir Mire. The instant costs three, and is an uncommon from way back. You can spend X life to deal X damage to any number of dorks, like the opposing ones that you care about. That theee mana instantly can clear out a lot and set up a big Rowan this turn. For example, you could Fire Covenant for 15, kill everything else, and then tap for a massive free stuff this turn and then also get in some hits for free with your stuff. This pair is very strong with Rowan in the sweeper and life loss section of this brew.

Card Flow

Now let's finish with card flow, all of which swap life for cards! The Pact costs and is X sized. Then a target loses X life and draws X cards. I do like this as a backup player kill with decking or life loss. Then you can draw that much, lose that much life, and give even more cost reduction to Rowan this turn. I am also running Cut of the Profits which is the same but won't targets but can be forked for casualty. I am running every mana free upkeep draw and then lose life like Phyrexian Arena. The Muse is different. In your upkeep you draw X equal to the to Zombies you control and lose that much life.

This two mana two powered pair are next. In your upkeep they'll trigger. The first one will reveal the top card of your library and you'll draw it and lose life equal to its casting cost. Card flow, a beater and a big life loss this turn. Note that X costs count as zero. The second has you and a foe reveal in your upkeep. You each draw and they lose life equal to your costs and you lose life equal to theirs. Nasty card flow two drops that can swing early and often.

Let's finish with this pair! The enchantment costs three. In your precombat main phase you can choose one or more options of three to swap life for the goods. You have to choose at least one. You can swap one life for a Treasure, two life for a card, or three life for a 3/2 changeling token. Note changelings count as Zombies. It's here for ramp and card flow and life loss for free! The instant costs as massive eleven with three Rakdos mana in the cost, so you can cast it for just three with a Rowan tap if you lost at least eight life this turn, and then it has the self-built in cost reduction. You discard your hand and draw eight cards, so it's better than Wheel of Fortune. Then you shoot each foe for eight damage, so it's a win-con and card flow in one spell!

Awesome possum, now let's look at my deck!