As we edge towards the release of Modern Horizons 3, I've been doing my best to explore what Outlaws of Thunder Junction gave us. With over three dozen new legendary creatures in OTJ it's impossible to write up a column and decklist for each and every one. What I usually end up doing is opening packs and letting the fates help to determine what my next deck and column will be.

As a commander player, buying booster packs isn't necessarily the best way to get cards. I don't need piles of commons and uncommons and I certainly don't need duplicates of most cards, but it is important to me to support the LGS I play at. I end up finding a middle ground between not buying any packs and buying way more than I could ever need. I still get that occasional thrill of opening up a cool new card, and I love pulling a real banger of a legendary creature to turn into my next deck.

Today I'm going to be looking at a Dwarf Berserker. This character had an earlier iteration that was a real banger - she was powerful enough to see play in cEDH, so let's see if we can find a way to break this new version.

Magda, the Hoardmaster is a 2/2 Dwarf Berserker who costs one and a red and has an interest in crime. Whenever you commit a crime, she'll create a tapped Treasure token, but this ability only happens once per turn. For the uninitiated, you commit a crime by targeting at least one permanent, spell, or ability an opponent controls, and/or at least one card in an opponent's graveyard. You can cast spells or activate abilities to commit a crime, but the key things to remember are that you'll need to target something, and the things you target must include something controlled by an opponent.

Magda rewards you for committing crimes by making tapped treasure tokens, and she also lets you sacrifice three treasures to create a 4/4 Scorpion Dragon creature token with flying and haste. This payoff can only be activated at sorcery speed. You can't sacrifice a treasure to make mana and also use that same treasure for Magda's ability, so you'll have to choose carefully how you want to spend your ill-gotten gains.

Choosing A Life of Crime

The interesting thing about Magic's new crime mechanic is that it doesn't do a very good job of ensuring that committing a crime is actually something that would disadvantage or even slightly annoy your opponents.

For example, casting a spell or activating an ability that placed +1/+1 on an opponent's creature would qualify as committing a crime, so long as it targeted the creature. In contrast, casting a Cyclonic Rift or Mizzium Mortars would be a crime, but overloading either of those spells so that every creature your opponents control is affected is somehow no longer a crime because an overloaded spell no longer targets anything.

I don't have a better idea for the crime mechanic, but I do have thoughts on how I'm going to begin my life of crime with Magda.

Encouraging players to use more interaction in EDH is a great thing. Many of the more powerful commanders in the format provide interaction right out of the command zone. The trick is that when you're incentivized to interact more, you risk setting yourself up as the person everyone else wants to kill first. Nobody likes having their permanents messed with all game long or for no good reason, and Magda, the Hoardmaster seems like the kind of commander who wants you to do just that.

Some amount of removal should be expected in any game of Commander, but there's a fine line between responsible interaction and creating a miserable and unpleasant game experience for everyone but you. If you're a regular reader, you'll know that I lean towards running less interaction in lower powered decks for the simple reason that in casual games I want my tablemates to enjoy the game. I still win my share of games, but it's rarely by playing a game of heavy control / removal.

That might make Magda seem like a terrible fit for me as an EDH player, but I've found lots of ways to make her work and even have a little fun with her.

I've got this list filled up with cards that can tap and target my opponents and their creatures for very little impact. A great example is Liquimetal Coating, an artifact that I can tap to make target permanent into an artifact. I won't always ham it up when I play this deck, but part of the fun will be in playing as the "worst criminal ever". Every now and then I'll get someone's attention as they're about to pass turn, and after a dramatic pause, let them know that it breaks my heart to have to do it, but I'm going to have to commit a crime against them. Then I'll tap my Liquimetal Coating or Liquimetal Torque and turn their Sol Ring into an artifact in addition to its other types until end of turn. Sure, it's already an artifact, but it's a legal target and I find the idea amusing.

I'm running a handful of these types of cards. Hotfoot Gnome, Axgard Cavalry, Bloodlust Inciter and Goblin Motivator can all tap to give target creature haste. Goblin Tunneler and Pathbreaker Initiate can make target creature with power 2 or less unblockable. Chandra's Magmutt, Cinder Pyromancer, Goblin Fireslinger, and Staff of Nin can each ping a target for 1 damage. I'm also running Codex Shredder, which can have target player mill a card, and both Relic of Progenitus and Scrabbling Claws, each of which can have target player exile a card from their graveyard.

Humble Defector is an odd little Human Rogue who can tap to draw you two cards, but it can only be activated at sorcery speed, and target opponent will gain control of him. As far as Magda is concerned, that's a crime - and she may have a point. I don't usually like to help my tablemates draw cards, but this deck isn't going to play like your average Magda deck. It's much more fun and a little more friendly. Also, the ability to give someone a creature that can draw two cards can be used to leverage political favor or reward someone for playing nice. I can even try to make Humble Defector go around the table so it gets back to me, or cut a deal where a tablemate and I will bounce him back and forth to draw cards if we're trying to overcome a third player in a stronger position.

My manabase is also part of my criminal enterprise. I'm running Rogue's Passage, but four mana is a lot just to generate one Treasure. Field of Ruin, Ghost Quarter, and Tectonic Edge give me ways to engage in targeted land destruction, which can both solve problems and reward me with a Treasure. I don't usually run lands that enter tapped, but Looming Spires can let me give target creature +1/+1 and first strike until end of turn. I'm also running Valakut, which can deal 3 damage if I play a Mountain and have five or more other Mountains on the field. I've also got Maze of Ith in the mix, though I am wary of meddling too often in my tablemates' attacks if they are not attacking me.

These various ways to target something my opponents control will pay off if I'm able to load up my field with enough of them. My goal is to be able to accrue at least three treasures on every turn rotation so I can make a 4/4 Scorpion Dragon creature token.

It's worth noting that there are way better things to do with treasures, but if I can use a Battlemage's Bracers to make an extra token, play a Cursed Mirror, or turn my Mirage Mirror into a copy of an opponent's Doubling Season, Parallel Lives, or Anointed Procession I'll be happy to make even more Scorpion Dragons.

Turning 4/4 flyers into something more impactful isn't going to be easy, but I've got a few tricks up my sleeve.

Berserkers' Onslaught can give them double strike. Crucible of Fire can give them +3/+3. Dragon Tempest will have them deal damage to any target equal to the number of Dragons I control. That Mirage Mirror could become a copy of one of these, but it could also really put in work depending upon what my opponents have on the battlefield. If I use it to target one of my opponents' permanents Magda will reward me with a Treasure.

Hoardmaster Magic

While I don't really want to encourage any of you to speak ill of a tablemate's Mom, I do want to encourage you to look beyond just targeting things to make your fortune.

Running cheap, repeatable ways to target things is important, and if you do it right - occasionally hilarious, but we also want more traditional Treasure generators.

I'm running a handful of cards that are relatively expensive. Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer, Goldspan Dragon, Ancient Copper Dragon and Dockside Extortionist are each enough to push a deck out of budget territory. I don't proxy cards outside of cEDH, so when I put this list together in paper I actually pulled those cards out of four other decks just to make sure I had what I needed for this build.

I decided to go overboard with my Treasure sources, as they seem like an obvious key to unlocking Magda's potential.

Riveteers Requisitioner is a two-mana Viashino Rogue that I can blitz out for two and a red. When it dies I'll create a Treasure token, and blitz will give it haste, have me draw a card when it dies, and will force me to sacrifice it at the beginning of the next end step. That's all better than just playing it for its regular cost, and hopefully just getting that treasure if it dies.

Beamtown Beatstick is a great way to get regular Treasure tokens. It equips for two mana and gives +1/+0 and menace. Whenever equipped creature deals combat damage to a player or battle I'll create a treasure token. Players will often have at least one flyer or a creature with reach, but there will usually be someone with only one viable blocker, giving me a free shot and a treasure on my turn if I can get a flying attacker through to deal damage.

My favorite kind of removal is the kind that mostly lets a player keep using the thing I'm removing. Shiny Impetus is an aura that will enchant a creature to give it +2/+2 and will goad it. A goaded creature attacks each combat if able, and attacks a player other than me if able. When a creature enchanted with Shiny Impetus attacks, I'll create a Treasure token.

You might think Shiny Impetus wouldn't trigger Magda because it doesn't have the word target in its text box (or oracle text), but auras are unique in that they are the only permanent spell that must have a target when cast in order to be put on the stack. The spell targets, even though the card doesn't have the word target on it.

Magda's Life of Crime

My favorite thing about this list so far is that it has inspired me to include a lot of interesting cards. Mirage Mirror is something I often leave out of decks, but it can give me an easy way to target my opponents' stuff and I've seen it have huge impacts on games based upon what someone else decided to play. I was also inspired to run Fork and Reverberate because copying an opponent's spell on the stack qualifies as a crime, and copying spells can open up all kinds of possibilities based on what your tablemates are playing.

The one thing I didn't really explore in this build was ways to make infinite Treasure tokens. I think a version of this deck with a few combos that could let me make an arbitrarily large army of 4/4 Scorpion Dragon tokens with haste might be worth trying out if the deck struggles to win games. If you're willing to let your Treasure tokens pile up, Hellkite Tyrant is a potential wincon to consider. These lists should very much be seen as potential starting points from which you should brew up your own version of the deck that matches your budget and playstyle.

Magda, the Hoardmaster | Commander | Stephen Johnson

• Commander (1)
• 1 Magda, the Hoardmaster

• Creatures (31)
• 1 Academy Manufactor
• 1 Ancient Copper Dragon
• 1 Axgard Cavalry
• 1 Bloodlust Inciter
• 1 Captain Lannery Storm
• 1 Chandra's Magmutt
• 1 Cinder Pyromancer
• 1 Dockside Extortionist
• 1 Dualcaster Mage
• 1 Gadrak, the Crown-Scourge
• 1 Goblin Fireslinger
• 1 Goblin Motivator
• 1 Goblin Tunneler
• 1 Goldspan Dragon
• 1 Grabby Giant
• 1 Hoarding Ogre
• 1 Hotfoot Gnome
• 1 Humble Defector
• 1 Impulsive Pilferer
• 1 Pathmaker Initiate
• 1 Patron of the Arts
• 1 Pilgrim's Eye
• 1 Plundering Pirate
• 1 Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
• 1 Rapacious Dragon
• 1 Redcap Thief
• 1 Riveteers Requisitioner
• 1 Sandstone Oracle
• 1 Solemn Simulacrum
• 1 Swashbuckler Extraordinaire
• 1 Zenith Chronicler

• Instants (9)
• 1 Chaos Warp
• 1 Expedite
• 1 Flick a Coin
• 1 Fork
• 1 Needle Drop
• 1 Orcish Cannonade
• 1 Reverberate
• 1 Unexpected Windfall
• 1 Wild Magic Surge

• Sorceries (2)
• 1 Jeska's Will
• 1 Renegade Tactics

• Enchantments (4)
• 1 Berserkers' Onslaught
• 1 Crucible of Fire
• 1 Dragon Tempest
• 1 Shiny Impetus

• Artifacts (18)
• 1 Amulet of Vigor
• 1 Battlemage's Bracers
• 1 Beamtown Beatstick
• 1 Codex Shredder
• 1 Cursed Mirror
• 1 Endless Atlas
• 1 Liquimetal Coating
• 1 Liquimetal Torque
• 1 Mind Stone
• 1 Mirage Mirror
• 1 Relic of Progenitus
• 1 Ruby Medallion
• 1 Scrabbling Claws
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Staff of Nin
• 1 Symmetry Matrix
• 1 Tamiyo's Journal
• 1 Thought Vessel

• Lands (36)
• 26 Mountain
• 1 Buried Ruin
• 1 Field of Ruin
• 1 Ghost Quarter
• 1 Looming Spires
• 1 Maze of Ith
• 1 Myriad Landscape
• 1 Rogue's Passage
• 1 Tectonic Edge
• 1 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
• 1 Shiny Impetus

Buy This Deck Export text

If you wanted to power this list up, you could throw in fast mana and build it around combos that can produce the aforementioned infinite army of Dragons. Dockside Extortionist and Cloudstone Curio can combo off if you've got another creature to bounce and you have enough artifacts and enchantments under your opponents' control. Nim Deathmantle and a sacrifice outlet can loop Dockside in the same way if Dockside is producing enough treasures. These are good options but being in mono-red might be enough of a drawback to keep this version of Magda from making a real impact in cEDH. I can be done, but this is no Godo, Bandit Warlord or even Magda, Brazen Outlaw.

Many of you might want to drop out my janky targeting options and play more serious removal. Lightning Bolt isn't a card you play in that many red EDH decks, but this might be one of them. If you were to lean towards instants and sorceries, you'd throw in Storm-Kiln Artist, which is only missing from today's list because I've got less than a dozen combined instants and sorceries. If you want to combo off and win even if someone has a Ghostly Prison out or they're sitting on a Spore Frog, you'd want to throw in Impact Tremors and Purphoros, God of the Forge, so your token creatures deal ETB damage.

To power this list down, your first choice might be to drop out the more expensive Treasure generators. Usually when you're dropping in power you're also looking to lower your budget as well. You could rework the deck to play with burn spells and engage in more removal, but remember that not every playgroup likes playing games where they are constantly having their stuff blown up.

Final Thoughts

I should note that my list has a criminally low number of lands for a non-cEDH deck. I'm comfortable with the number, given the treasures I will likely be making in a given game. Magda costs a paltry two mana, and my mana curve is quite low, but I could see the argument for dropping a few underperforming cards and adding in a few more lands. This list was built in paper out of cards I had available. I would likely add in lands that let me target players or permanents, such as Forbidden Orchard, Flamekin Village, or Hammerheim.

If you're not willing to run combos, I think Magda probably tops out as a mid or maybe high-powered deck. If you throw in Cloudstone Curio and tutors, you should be able to play at high powered tables, though the drawback of being in mono-Red is significant. You'll absolutely want to abandon my silly "your blocker now has haste!" approach to making a friendlier Magda build and run well-costed removal to deal with threats. Higher-powered games generally have more things you simply have to remove to avoid losing before you can even threaten a win.

So far my biggest challenge with this deck has been in getting my hands on those 4/4 Scorpion Dragon creature tokens. I've opened a dozen booster packs or so and I've looked through the draft chaff at my LGS but so far I haven't found any. Chances are good I'll get one before too long, but as I write this they are currently out of stock on this fine website. Hopefully that will change, but I can also get by using 4/4 Dragon tokens.

That's all I've got for today. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next week!