facebook

CoolStuffInc.com

MTG Secret Lair x Marvel available now!
  
Account Meeple
Location IconLocations
Account MeepleLogin
0 Item
Advanced Search
   Sign In
Create Account
Main » Articles » Building with Bruenor in Standard

Building with Bruenor in Standard

Mike Likes
Posted on August 26, 2021
 Reddit

Hello everyone. I'm a big fan of the series of novels written by R.A. Salvatore that feature Drizzt Do'Urden. The Companions of the Hall are all favorites of mine, so I was excited to see nearly all of the main crew printed as cards in Adventures in the Forgotten Realms booster packs and commander decks. As such, this week I have for you a quartet of decks that feature Bruenor Battlehammer. Each of these decks has something different to offer, so let's get started.

Bruenor's Equipment/Warriors

When taking a look at Bruenor Battlehammer, the most obvious choice for a deck featuring him is in a deck that includes a lot of equipment cards. But, don't forget that Bruenor is also a Warrior. Let's take a look at the first deck.

Bruenor's Equipment/Warriors | AFR Standard | LegenVD, aetherhub.com user

Plate Armor
Equipment is the name of the game, and this deck has equipment in spades. Leather Armor boosts the user's toughness by one and provides ward 1. It also equips for zero mana, but only once per turn. Boots of Speed provide a power bonus of one and provides haste. Plate Armor gives the equipped creature +3/+3 and ward 1. In this deck, Plate Armor also has a decent chance to be equipped for free. Dancing Sword boosts the creature using it by +2/+1. This sword can also 'dance' on its own after its user has died, enabling continued use without the need to re-equip it. Finally, Maul of the Skyclaves provides a +2/+2 bonus, plus flying and first strike to boot.

All of these equipment cards work well in conjunction with Kor Blademaster. This Kor Warrior provides double strike to any Warrior you control that is equipped. One thing to notice in this deck is that each creature happens to be a Warrior. Bruenor Battlehammer allows you to equip a creature for free if it's the first time you're equipping this turn. That synergy between Kor Blademaster and Bruenor Battlehammer helps this deck immensely. With the bonuses that your equipment provide and the double strike from Kor Blademaster, you'll be attacking for a ton of damage that will be difficult to block. You'll also be drawing quite a few cards and have a measure of protection with a copy of Akiri, Fearless Voyager on the battlefield.

Bruenor's Carts

Next, I have a deck for you that features Bruenor, alongside other Dwarves, that attempts to run over your opponent with Gilded Assault Carts. Let's check it out.

Bruenor's Carts | AFR Standard | MTGABrewLab, aetherhub.com user

Gilded Assault Cart
Gilded Assault Cart is a card not found in the usual Draft Booster Packs. Instead, it's found mostly in Theme Boosters. Having 5 power and trample makes it easy to deal damage to your opponent, while likely being destroyed in the process. Destruction can be avoided, however, by equipping Gilded Assault Cart with Maul of the Skyclaves after it has been crewed, you can create a virtually indestructible threat thanks to having first strike. Bruenor can make this possible thanks to his ability to allow you to equip once per turn for free.

Gilded Assault Cart also helps you make additional Treasure tokens when you have Magda, Brazen Outlaw on the battlefield. Many times with Magda, you'll need to overextend yourself and attack at times you might not want to in order to tap a Dwarf, thus creating a Treasure token. Now, you can keep your Dwarves untapped, saving them for defense. Then, at the end of your opponent's turn, you can tap each Dwarf you control to crew the Gilded Assault Cart. Since you are allowed to crew a vehicle with more crew than it needs, you'll be able to create a Treasure token for each Dwarf you have in play.

2022 Bruenor's Equipment Control

The next deck I have for you is a post-rotation deck that features ways to control the creatures your opponent has on their side of the battlefield. Let's take a look at it.

2022 Bruenor's Equipment Control | AFR Standard | WattsVxI, aetherhub.com user

Forging the Tyrite Sword
With this deck, you'll want to use your spells, such as Frost Bite, Doomskar, and Heated Debate, to keep your opponent's side of the battlefield clear of threats. Doing this will buy you the time you need to get enough lands into play to cast your big finishers with. Goldspan Dragon fills the role of finisher very well in this deck. With its evasiveness and haste, you'll often find yourself dealing four damage directly to your opponent the turn it enters play. If you thought Goldspan Dragon was dangerous that first turn, think again. It gets more dangerous on your following turns.

With Goldspan Dragon in play, casting Halvar, God of Battle // Sword of the Realms will help seal your opponent's fate very quickly. Halvar provides double strike to any creature that you control that is equipped. By using Forging the Tyrite Sword to find either Halvar or an equipment (Maul of the Skyclaves), you'll set things up for a massive attack. If you also happen to have Zariel, Archduke of Avernus in play, you can work toward achieving Zariel's emblem, granting you an additional combat phase. These cards can allow for one massive turn, enabling you to defeat your opponent very quickly, and Bruenor Battlehammer helps with this plan by allowing you to equip for free.

2022 Bruenor's Dwarves and Dragons

The final deck I have for you is another post-rotation deck that features Bruenor Battlehammer doing what he does best, equipping your creatures for game-winning results. Let's take a look at the deck.

2022 Bruenor's Dwarves and Dragons | AFR Standard | S0VERE1GN, aetherhub.com user

Magda, Brazen Outlaw
This deck takes Treasure making to a whole new level. Of course, it includes Magda, Brazen Outlaw, who creates a Treasure token each time a Dwarf you control becomes tapped. You also have Plundering Barbarian, a Dwarf that can create a Treasure token when he enters the battlefield. Finally, you have Goldspan Dragon, who creates Treasure tokens when it attacks or becomes the target of a spell. With these creatures, you can make a ton of Treasure tokens. You'll create even more if you have a copy of Xorn in play.

To win the game, you can spend the Treasure tokens you've accumulated to increase the power of Inferno of the Star Mounts to twenty, allowing you to deal 20 damage to your opponent directly. Most likely, this will reduce their life total to zero. Alternatively, you can equip your creatures with the various weapons included in this deck and attack repeatedly. One of the best weapons in this deck is Bearded Axe, which gives the equipped creature a +1/+1 bonus for each Dwarf and Equipment you have in play (there are no Vehicles in this deck). That can provide a huge bonus to the equipped creature, and if that creature has evasion, they might be able to end the game on the spot.

Wrapping Up

While Bruenor Battlehammer might not be the biggest and baddest creature in your deck, he plays a supporting role in ensuring that your team has access to equipment that makes the entire team stronger. He's a terrific supporting character, both in literature and in these decks, and he makes any deck that plays equipment run a little bit more smoothly.

What do you think of these decks? Do you have any suggestions for improvements? Let me know by leaving a comment below. Also, feel free to share this article with your friends anywhere on social media. And be sure to join me here again next week as I continue my search for innovative decks in Standard. I'll see you then!

-Mike Likes

TAGS articles, standard, constructed, analysis, decklist, arena, mike likes, mtg arena, bruenor battlehammer, afr standard, standard 2022, 08262021

Recent Articles

View Archive
Sell your cards and minis 25% credit bonus