Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast in Oathbreaker

Posted on April 21, 2020

Last week we covered four Oathbreaker decks featuring the new free instant cycle from Commander 2020. Of those, we paired Deflecting Swat with Lukka, Coppercoat Outcast. In this new casual format, you start with two cards in the command zone: a planeswalker and their signature spell. The instant or sorcery can be cast if your planeswalker is on the battlefield, and each card is taxed two generic mana more each time. In this two-card locket, Deflecting Swat works perfectly to protect the creature Lukka targets with his -2 ability, enabling you to summon a titan.

I loved finding such a great deck for the powerful Deflecting Swat, and I wanted to improve last week's list. During testing I found the strategy both fun and strong. Being able to change the target of a spell or ability punished opponents to a ridiculous degree. Target my Void Winnower with Beast Within, will you? Nope, blow up your only Plains instead. I had a ruckus, summoning a random monstrosity, and flipping over the cards from the top of the deck built up suspense. Would it be an eldrazi? Or would Drakuseth, Maw of Flames burst onto the battlefield with all the force of a volcano erupting unexpectedly?

By not playing any middling creatures, Lukka can upgrade our three-drop into a seven-drop or bigger. We will begin with a deck of odd creatures, meaning almost all of them cost 3 mana, except for our three bombs, which cost seven, nine, and 13 mana. Void Winnower would approve. After discussing strategy, we will cover another version of the deck with only two-drops and even-costed finishers.

Lukka's Odds | Oathbreaker | AE Marling

First thing's first. Let's talk titans. I've chosen to play three and not only because it's an odd number. Two would be too few. You might draw one then lose the last to misfortune. Four might be acceptable, but I think that would be better in the Lukka's Evens deck, as more of those happen to be easier to cast. I matched odd-costed payoffs with the three-mana enablers in order to make best use out of a card you've likely never heard of.

Not only is it cute to play all odd or even creatures, but it allows us to play Ashling's Prerogative. Enabling haste is extremely important, as attacking right away with our monstrosities and can kill an opponent before they kill us. If you would prefer to mix and match the casting costs of your payoff creatures, you would need to cut Ashling's Prerogative. Instead you could try Dragon Breath or Fervor, which again would fit better in the curve of Lukka's Evens. Hellraiser Goblin is an option for the Odds, but I prefer to side with Ashling.

There aren't too many other haste options. The incarnation of Anger won't work, as you would hit it with Lukka's -2 ability. The decklist already includes two lands that grant haste: Mass Hysteria, and Crashing Drawbridge. By the way, you don't want to -2 the Drawbridge. Not only will Lukka likely transform it into a three-drop, but it won't get haste. Only creatures on the battlefield when you activate the ability get to run over the moat for a surprise entrance.

And there are few things more surprising than a sky-full of tentacles. Emrakul, the Promised End is deliciously dreadful, even without her cast trigger. Yes, she can die to board wipes. That's why you attack the control player with haste and kill them on the spot. Now, I know what you're thinking. Can we annihilate our opponents before killing them? Sadly (and perhaps reasonably) Emrakul, the Aeons Torn is also banned from Oathbreaker. You could play with Kozilek, Butcher of Truth and Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre. First consider these two points.

Those cards are both more expensive than other good options, such as Void Winnower. Don't feel bad if you don't own them.

Annihilator is the biggest feel-bad ability in the game. Forcing your opponent to sacrifice permanents one by one is an agony, especially knowing it probably doesn't matter what they choose. They're dead anyway.

It's far more polite to devour your opponent in one bite with Emrakul, the Promised End and put them out of their misery. Then they can move on to their next game instead of lingering crippled. Before playing those mythic Eldrazi, I would ask for my table for consent. "Permission to annihilate?"

More competitive tables should be game, and Lukka's is a competitive strategy. In fact, the inclusion of Magus of the Moon may be too competitive for some. You could easily swap it out for another of your favorite three-drops. Feel free to make the deck more budget by substituting Imperial Recruiter with another value card: Squee, the Immortal. The last big-ticket card is Emrakul, the Promised End. You could play Ignition Team instead. It might even be bigger. We'll discuss other options to destroy your opponents' worlds shortly.

First, let's touch on the final component of our game plan: acceleration. Ideally, our hand would include enough lands, a three-drop, a haste enabler, and a fast-mana producer of some sort. This could be a rock, like Fire Diamond. I also want to surprise the opponents with a few ritual effects, such as Simian Spirit Guide.

If these four components come together (land, three-drop creature, haste enabler, and accelerant), we will have a good chance to win. At the same time, we don't want to draw our finishers, which we usually will not be able to cast. Neither do we want to draw multiple haste enablers. To make use of these dead draws and to increase our ability to find all four elements, our card filtering effects are extremely important.

Those are the strongest ones. Faithless Looting is a necessary evil. Fire Prophecy is a welcome addition, as it can also kill the biggest target in the format, Drannith Magistrate. I even considered adding more rummagers, such as Anje's Ravager and Burning-Tree Vandal. Those aren't great, but they do have the same advantage of Seasoned Pyromancer, in that they're also a three-drop.

Some creatures in the deck perform double duty. Alpine Guide and Captain Lannery Storm both accelerate and can act as fodder for Lukka to exile, to lure true monsters to your team. Creatures that only fill one role are far less powerful in this deck, even multiplayer staples such as Taurean Mauler. Often when playing I was wildly grateful to draw the unassuming Pilgrim's Eye. And the changeling isn't so great when it's my only creature, and I want to exile something with Lukka.

Given the deck-building pressures, I did not have room for much outside the Venn diagram of our four necessary components. I included two bolts, to kill opposing planeswalkers and Drannith Magistrate. Fling can do the same thing in a pinch, but it also can end games, dealing a lucky 13 with Emrakul. One elective card I picked was Disrupt Decorum, as I respect its power in multiplayer. But it is a card that could give, and feel free to take it out if you need to. One of my last cuts was Not of this World. It's a hilarious surprise and can protect any permanent or spell on the stack, if you have a titan in play. Yes, it's less strong than Deflecting Swat, but you lose access to that signature spell after they kill Lukka. Perhaps the eldrazi tribal instant should be in the 58, but again, there is little room for cards that don't fulfill the four deck-building requirements.

For that reason, I included Through the Breach but not Sneak Attack. If we played more than three monstrosities, these cards would have more value. If you select all Red finishers, then I would cut Through the Breach and include Blazing Shoal.

Where can we find win cons that aren't colorless? It's time to step out of the Odd paradigm and explore a whole new world of Evens.

Lukka's Evens | Oathbreaker | AE Marling

Oops! Did I promise more Red finishers? I couldn't pass up Blightsteel Colossus and Kozilek, the Great Distortion. Those colorless colossi can close games fast. In comparison, Inferno Titan seems smol, but don't worry. He also attacks for twelve (6+3+3) if you give him haste. Blightsteel Colossus also can also be rummaged from your hand to your graveyard and back into your library, ready again for Lukka. If you are looking for budget or more colorful options, peruse the following list. I ordered these alternates by my own preference, strongest to weakest.

Magmatic Force

Utvara Hellkite

Platinum Emperion

Akroma, Angel of Fury

Avatar of Slaughter

Dragon Tyrant

You can and should rotate your titanic end game to keep things interesting. Changing the whole deck from Odds to Evens wouldn't be too expensive; (the other way around is less true). I've tested both and am not certain which is best. Compared to the bears, three-drops have more than 50% power and utility. However, as you know, all good aggressive curves start before turn three. You should base your deck selection around your play preference. Pick Odds for midrange, Evens for aggro.

I will close on a few card choice discussions. In a casual format without Sol Ring and with a lesser need for ramp, Dockside Extortionist isn't going to be much better than Wily Goblin. I also excluded the Commander card Grenzo, Havoc Raiser, as he requires you attack players. Half the time in Oathbreaker you attack planeswalkers instead.

Flamekin Village most often comes into play tapped, except when you can reveal Ashling the Pilgrim. (In Lukka's Odds, you can also flash a Taurean Mauler.) Too bad Ashling's Prerogative isn't a tribal enchantment. Oh well, the deck still does Ashling proud.