Bant Group Hug Crime-Lord

Hello awesome folks! I hope your day is going super mega well!! Today I wanted to do something fun. I was reading the ability descriptions for Group Hug Commander Classic Phelddagrif. I realized that they targeted the foe with good stuff, not just generally, and that counted as crimes for the recent Outlaws at Thunder Junction set. Let's try to make a Crime-Lord take on this classic!

Here's the classic! Four cost for an on curve then 4/4 with no non-activated abilities. You can give them 2 life for flying, bounce to avoid removal or Commander Tax for them drawing, or trample but a 1//1 Hippo token. Flying and trample are rough to stop in the red zone with double evasion.

Now let's turn to mana!

Lands, Mana, Ramp, Rocks

Let's start with crime ramp. The mana rock costs three, taps for any color of mana, and then when you commit a crime toss one loot counter here. You can tap it with two mana and swap two counters for a card. The mana dork costs two for a 1/1 and then it also taps for all of the mana. When you commit that crime you'll untap this for more mana! Just once per turn. The reach three-drop 3/3 on curve has a commit crime trigger to dig five, and ramp a land tapped, the rest head to the bottom of your library. Love this crime trio loads!

Now let's turn to mana stuff that targets your foe. The classic here is Tithe where search your library for a Plains, and toss it in your hand. You can get nonbasic. If a (targeted) foe has, more? Snag two! Targeted. The three-drop Forestwalk 2/1 Yavimaya Dryad will ETB and give any target player a Forest (nonbasic too), so you can give it to a foe to walk them, trigger crimes, or just to be nice in a group hug to get someone out of land screw.

I am running the plainscycler Angel of the Ruins to cost seven mana for a 5/7 flying artifact, dork, body with the ETB trigger of exiling two annoying enchantment/artifact things your foes control, and triggering crimes. Since our Commander costs four, you can drop him a turn early with second turn mana ramp like Farseek, and since he costs one of each color, I wanted ramp that could get duals first and then a few later that don't.

Now let's turn to lands a bit. The colorless tapping legendary one will tap with two White mana to stop all combat damage...target...attacker would deal. I also tossed in Maze of Ith. The other legendary land turns all lands to Forests, yours and your foes' too, which you will want to grab and drop as soon as possible for the Forestwalking of the Dryad. The one-drop Elf will tap to untap a Forest, so with the Yavimaya that's any land, or your foe's, to give them a crime, or just reuse Maze and Haven.

I wanted interaction and card draw in my land base. The channeling Boseiju, Who Endures will ETB untapped or blow up their stuff or nonbasic, and ramp them a land, for crimes. I also tossed in the other two in my colors for criminal to bounce or shoot something in combat. I love the colorless Geier Reach Sanitarium to make everyone draw and discard too.

You know what would be great with your sorcery speed permanents? Flash! Enter Alchemist's Refuge and drop dorks when attacked or EOT and swing or get your Howling Mine effect first. I wanted pingers in land form, enter the four Deserts that Etb and ping like Creosote Heath, three of which fix my mana all up and down the coast.

Synergies and Alternate Winning Conditions

Now let's turn to synergies and alternate win-cons. The Azorius colored three-drop 0/4 defender is first. He has hexproof if untapped and then can tap to prevent all combat damage from a dork to a player but they'll each draw half damage cards. This will encourage people to attack for cards. Love it loads here. I also like defenders in my Group Hug brews to encourage people to attack elsewhere as well as the guy giving them cards and other benefits. The Bant colored four-drop has a blockable 1/5 body with vigilance, and a cast trigger for you to have target (crime) foe draw a card and toss a counter on your dork with flying this turn great with her with vigilance or the trampling Commander. You can draw two the second time this resolves each turn.

Now let's turn to my three alternate win con. The three-drop uncommon blocker Deepmuck Desperado will turn crimes into opponents milling three cards each but just once per turn. Since they'll be drawing so much, you could easily deck them here. Approach of the Second Sun will gain seven life and win the second time it's cast restocked seven down. You could easily redraw in a couple of turns. The other rare three-drop 2/2 Laboratory Maniac will turn drawing from your empty library into winning from losing. I am not running Jace, since that's very Blue and hard to cast here against this splashable one.

Now let's turn to synergies again. First the Djinn! It'll give an opposing dork Forestwalk each turn and targets. With Yavimaya you can gang up to Forestwalk the big bad. The other Phelddagrif is here! Its Green ability pumps it and gives a Hippo token to a foe, the White will give it double protection from targeted removal of red and Black and they'll gain life, and Blue flying too, for that card. Love it here!

I wanted to give folks the chance to activate classic two-drop upkeep trigger of Oath of Druids if a foe has more dorks that you. Flip until one is revealed, and then drop for free. With our giving tokens away with our Commander, Questing or Forbidden Orchard that's pretty likely for us too. Then I am running the Selesnya three-drop Gluntch, the Bestower that can block swings in the air. In your EOT it'll trigger and give one player a card, another ramp in two Treasures and a third a pair of +1/+1 counters. Note you can target yourself for give Treasures to the mana screwed person, and then you must do it, it's not worded may.

Let's turn to some support cards. We need recursion. The three-drop deathtouching 1/3 is first. It'll be an Eternal Witness on arrival but a foe can recur. Note that choice is not targeted. You can gang up to choose removal for the Archenemy. Also, you have a deathtouching blocker after, and very few are going to want to swing your way to trade down. The four-cost instant will untap all dorks you and another control, swap them, and then they gain haste. You can use this to finish off a foe.

Now let's finish this section with a Blue pair in Leyline of Anticipation and The Council of Four! Again, flashing is key and a free enchantment to start the game with it out is key! The five cost Azorius colored blocking 0/8 is last. When a player draws their second card in a turn, you'll draw, and then when they cast their second spell, you'll make a free blocking 2/2 Knight token. Love that combo here!

Answers

Now let's turn to answers. Since our deck is deep with permanents, we'll need a couple of ways to save them from removal, or mass stuff. The two-cost instant gives all dorks hexproof and indestructible for the turn your foes too and players hexproof. Use that to make friends. The other two cost gives your stuff, everything not just dorks, hexproof. Then you can gift a card to give them indestructible to stop destruction. Gifting doesn't target so it's not a crime.

Since I am in Blue, I wanted three emergency counters to keep you from dying or a foe from winning. The common three-drop Vex will counter anything and they'll draw. Counters do count as crimes. The classic common Arcane Denial will also counter anything, and they'll draw two and you one. The just printed two-drop double Blue uncommon Long River's Pull will counter creatures normally, but gift anything.

Now let's turn to targeted removal that leaves them stuff. Since we are in their colors, I am tossing in Beast Within and Generous Gift to destroy anything and leave a 3/3 dork. Ditto Standard legal three cost above that'll destroy any nonland and leave a 1/1 dork. Then I tossed in bounce. The three cost modal spell land can bounce any nonland or spell back to their hand. Note spell for delaying things like countermagic that's tied to something on the stack. My only mass "removal" sorta answer is the four cost instant above that bounces all attackers.

Card Draw

Now let's finish with card draw. Let's start with planeswalkers. The Simic colored four-drop from Outlaws arrives with 3 loyalty and can +1 to draw two and discard two too unless you committed a crime, then just one is discarded. You can -1 him to make a 3/3 dork and on your turn he's a copy of your best dork that now has hexproof. Might I suggest Group Hug or stuff like that? The White three-drop three loyalty is next and he arrives with a 0/4 flying Wall that can block attackers in the air. You can also +1 him to have you and (target) a foe draw too. You can also -2 him to make everyone only attack one direction left or right.

Now let's turn to two-drop rare fliers! Duelist of the Mind can swing and stay back for blocking, and has power equal to the cards you've drawn this turn. Nasty win con, and his crimes draw and discard but once per turn. Flumph has a 0/4 blocking defender body. Then when he is dealt damage from any source, you and a target (crime) foe draw. That's not just combat damage so it could be burn like Lightning Bolt.

The artifact in Blue costs two and players have no max hand size, you too. Then you can tap this for XX and have everyone draw that many cards, and then three mana to have each foe mill equals to their cards in hand, so it backups the crime milling as a win con. The Azorius colored legendary four-drop 2/4 blocker also has no hand size for everyone. In your EOT everyone can draw a card, you too. For each one who does they cannot swing your way next turn. I am running every Howling Mine effect, but let's look at the Green enchantment above. It costs three for a Howling Mine and Exploration for each player too, to help them ramp up with their cards.

Ready for my decklist? I got you, it's hither:

Bant Group Hug Crims | Commander | Abe Sargent

• Commander (1)
• 1 Phelddagrif

• Creatures (25)
• 1 Arbor Elf
• 1 Angel of the Ruins
• 1 Deepmuck Desperado
• 1 Duelist of the Mind
• 1 Erhnam Djinn
• 1 Faerie Mastermind
• 1 Freestrider Lookout
• 1 Flumph
• 1 Gluntch, the Bestower
• 1 Hardbristle Bandit
• 1 Kami of the Crescent Moon
• 1 Kwain, Itinerant Meddler
• 1 Laboratory Maniac
• 1 Loran of the Third Path
• 1 Magus of the Vineyard
• 1 Ms. Bumbleflower
• 1 Questing Phelddagrif
• 1 Sakura-Tribe Elder
• 1 Selvala, Explorer Returned
• 1 Skullwinder
• 1 Sokrates, Athenian Teacher
• 1 The Council of Four
• 1 The Second Doctor
• 1 Yavimaya Dryad
• 1 Veteran Explorer

• Planeswalkers (3)
• 1 Jace Beleren
• 1 Oko, the Ringleader
• 1 Teyo, Geometric Tactician

• Spells (20)
• 1 Aetherize
• 1 Approach of the Second Sun
• 1 Arcane Denial
• 1 Beast Within
• 1 Dawn's Truce
• 1 Everybody Lives!
• 1 Farseek
• 1 Generous Gift
• 1 Long River's Pull
• 1 Nature's Lore
• 1 Rampant Growth
• 1 Reins of Power
• 1 Secret Rendezvous
• 1 Seize the Secrets
• 1 Sink into Stupor
• 1 Stroke of Midnight
• 1 Tempt with Bunnies
• 1 Three Visits
• 1 Tithe
• 1 Vex

• Enchantments (6)
• 1 Dictate of Karametra
• 1 Dictate of Kruphix
• 1 Leyline of Anticipation
• 1 Heartbeat of Spring
• 1 Oath of Druids
• 1 Rites of Flourishing

• Artifacts (7)
• 1 Bandit's Haul
• 1 Folio of Fancies
• 1 Font of Mythos
• 1 Horn of Greed
• 1 Howling Mine
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Temple Bell

• Lands (38)
• 1 Alchemist's Refuge
• 1 Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1 Breeding Pool
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Creosote Heath
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Forbidden Orchard
• 1 Geier Reach Sanitarium
• 1 Hallowed Fountain
• 1 Hedge Maze
• 1 Kor Haven
• 1 Lair of the Hydra
• 1 Lonely Arroyo
• 1 Lush Oasis
• 1 Lush Portico
• 1 Maze of Ith
• 1 Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
• 1 Meticulous Archive
• 1 Otawara, Soaring City
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Seaside Citadel
• 1 Shifting Woodland
• 1 Spara's Headquarters
• 1 Sunscorched Desert
• 1 Temple Garden
• 1 Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth
• 5 Forest
• 4 Island
• 3 Plains

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All done! Please note that I didn't run annoying cards here to turn the table your way like Cyclonic Rift, Consecrated Sphinx, Mind's Eye, The One Ring, Esper Sentinel, Rhystic Study, Smothering Tithe, and more. I am running Veteran Explorer to help everyone ramp two. Nope, this Crime-Lord is pretty nice, not onerous. What do you think? What would you add?

Enjoy!