Just built a mono white “Choke your opponents with pillows” deck. I always have a hand of 7+ cards and end up with health in the triple digits at the end of the game. My friends banned me from playing that deck...
Here it is (It is a budget deck if you didn't get the gist, but there are plenty of cards that you can add to buff up this deck): Card Draw: 1x Temple Bell 1x Well of Lost Dreams 1x Tamiyo's Journal 2x Illuminated Folio 2x Bottled Cloister 3x Farsight Mask Notes: I used to have a "Book of Rass" in here, but the card draw these artifacts give usually stack up enough to give me a nice advantage. Life Gain (The meat ;)): 4x Contemplation 4x Soul Warden 4x Nyx Fleece-Ram 4x Ajani's Mantra 1x Staff of Sun Magus Notes: You could easily add the other soul sister, as you get the card draw. The main reason there are 4 copies is to draw almost all of them by the end of the game. YOU SHALL NOT PASS (Preventing attackers): 4x Orim's Prayer 4x Righteous Cause 4x Sphere of Safety (MOST IMPORTANT CARD IN DECK YOU CANNOT TAKE THIS OUT) Notes: Main reason that there is no removal is that these (if you get them out) can usually nullify most creatures power 6 and less, and stronger creatures can have their damage reduced to low levels. Once you get 1 or two spheres out you win the game. Win Conditions: 4x Felidar Soverign 4x Angelic Accord 4x Aetherflux Reservoir (Don't worry about storm just pay the life) There are a plethora of other cards you can add (Serra Ascendant, Test of Endurance etc.) Other cards: x2 Reknit x4 Open the Vaults (THE OTHER MUST HAVE CARD IN THE DECK) The main reason this deck is so strong is that most of my opponents play red, and barely any play white (housing the scariest card of all "Cleanfall"). Starting out this deck is slow, so it is important to establish yourself as "not a threat" before swooping in with 3 to 4 life gain/ draw cards. Over time you become harder and harder to kill, and as Reknits and Open the Vaults begin to stockpile in your hand, even a Vandalblast will barely delay you. Additions (if I weren't a cheapskate): 4x Mana Tithe 2x Privileged Position 4x Ghostly Chains Do not add: Enduring Ideal: This card actually slows you down a large amount.
Oh yeah I forgot lands existed: x27 Plains (Probably going to go lower in the future) x3 Ruins of Trokair (Very helpful for your "debut" turn) x2 Secluded Steppe (In the later stages of the game it is good to have lands that you can cycle)
No Mercy doesnt just prevent others from attacking you, it destroys the creature if it does any kind of damage, not just combat damage. Goodbye pingers, Niv-mizzet Parun will think more than twice to do a love tap on you, Kaervek too, and soooo many other effects. It's just so good!
For quite awhile I've really enjoyed playing things like painful quandary and it took awhile but eventually I realized pillow fort cards where a necessity if I wanted to kill people with a bleed out strategy. Queen Marchesa has been hilariously fun ever since :) Your list is almost perfect too, I use many of these to great effect, but I would also say Glacial Chasm and Maze of Ith are likely the most powerful pillows in many metas. Most places frown on land destruction making them much more powerful than they really should be...
While it only works in certain decks, Collective Restraint can be superior to both Propaganda and Ghostly Prison. Also, while it's not strictly a pillow fort card, Meekstone is an incredibly underrated card in EDH that functions similarly.
My deck runs Sphere of Safety, Ghostly Prison, Sterling Grove, Greater Auramancy, Archangel Avacyn, Ancestral Mask, and a ton of other enchantments. If a masked archangel can’t destroy players outright, Opalecence and Starfield of Nyx will. Toss in Teferi’s protection for good measure, and Sigarda, Host of Herons. Also running Aura of Silence, not just for the taxing, but also so I can blow up opalecence etc. in case of a boardwipe before I get everything indestructible. I also run Null Rod, Stony Silence and Linvala, Keeper of Silence, but careful when I play them so I don’t get hated on too early. Mistveil Plains is also a good inclusion, as you can sac your sterling grove and tutor it back on top of your library again if it’s trageted before Greater Auramancy comes online.
Looking forward to using a few of these in a Thantis Deck. Forcing your opponents to attack and paying for it with cards like Kazuul, Sandwurm Convergence, No Mercy, and other cards not mentioned here.
Aurafication is my fave, 2, white white, whenever a creature deals combat damage to you, put a gold counter on it, that creature becomes a wall in addition to its other types, kinda a worse no mercy tbh but still really funny
Statecraft is another really good one if you're either going wide with creature tokens and/or have the ability to pass it off to someone else, either for politics or to gimp a high damage dealing deck. It basically makes everything into a Fog Bank. AMAZING in Zedruu and decent in Angus McKenzie decks. War Tax and Angus McKenzie are also great pillow fort cards. No one wants to tap themselves out attacking if the player with an Angus McKenzie doesn't want them attacking literally anyone else. The only thing I'm really confused with is why Glacial Chasm wasn't on the list. That's a super basic go to staple for any deck that wants to pillow fort.
What about Orzhov Advokist? He stops them from attacking you while encouraging them to attack others. Basically during your upkeep each player may put two +1/+1 counters on a creature they control. The catch is if they do that player cannot attack you or a Planeswalker you control until your next upkeep. Bonus, you get the +1/+1 counters as well. Pillow fort with teeth...
Is the ruling for Moat that "the creatures can not attack you" as he said in the video or is it that "they can not attack at all" as it says on the card?
Norn's annex is no where to be seen despite being considerably more powerful then either of the number ones. 3 and two phyrexian white means you can drop it early st a cost or if you're color screwed, and forcing people to either pay white or two life per attacking creature can outright shut down some decks. Goblins and elf tokens are hosed hard by this kind of effect.
Where ma boi revenge of ravens at? It makes attacking with any number of 1/1 creatures counterproductive, and card that says "whenever a creature deals damage to you" still procks, but you get healed. Also, Tasha, Unholy Archmage and Eternal Wanderer are great, one is silent arbiter as a planeswalker that also bounces creatures or makes tokens or can boardwipe if necessary, leaving your best creature alive and giving your opponent like a 2/2 zombie with decayed in the best case, and the other gives -1/-1 counters to everything that attacks. And if that doesn't sound like a big deal to you: proliferate. You can kill pretty much everything by proliferating those (except creatures with +1/+1 counters). Indestructible creatures? Nope, doesn't matter. Ward? Hexproof? Shroud? Doesn't target. Protection from blue or black?! Nope, doesn't target, doesn't deal damage, nothing. And since you're gonna want a blocker, I would personally advise you to get a creature with indestructible and vigilance and then put in as many mirran swords as you can afford. Sword of Light and Shadow, Feast and Famine, Fire and Ice neat, your previously 1/1 is now a 7/7 that can't be blocked or targeted by anything except colorless creatures, it doesn't tap when attacking, so you can still block and it doesn't get dealt damage and when it connects you gain 3 life, return a creature fron the graveyard to your hand, deals 2 damage to any target, draws you a card, untaps all your lands and your opponent discards a card. That's three cards card advantage, damage, lifegain, mana advantage, near unblockable creature, near irremovable blocker and your opponent can't attack with more than one creature.
sloth9669 In my pillowfort deck, it's the combination of them not being to attack me while my commander (Elesh Norn) and a bunch of anthems make my cheap little flyers huge and nearly unstoppable.
sloth9669 Yeah, I don't know of any one card that can reliably end games in those colors, but Gwafa Hazid can really shut an opponent down and he's blue and white.
sloth9669 I totally spaced on this before, but my big finisher is Blighted Agent, a common that costs about a quarter. He has unblockable and Infect, if you just put one or two cheap-o equipment that only buff power (Bonesplitter, Throwing Knife, Blood-Forged Battleaxe, Bone Saw etc) then it only takes a couple of turns to put 10 poison counters on someone. Cloak and Dagger works great because since Blighted Agent is a Rogue it can be equipped for free.
"Moat? What good is that?" -Edric and a swarm of 1/1 flyers that suddenly got pumped into 6/6 flyers and have an extra turn.
Just built a mono white “Choke your opponents with pillows” deck. I always have a hand of 7+ cards and end up with health in the triple digits at the end of the game.
My friends banned me from playing that deck...
Jeane Greene your friends need to up there game thats all
Jeane Greene ... Can i have a decklist >:)
Here it is (It is a budget deck if you didn't get the gist, but there are plenty of cards that you can add to buff up this deck):
Card Draw:
1x Temple Bell
1x Well of Lost Dreams
1x Tamiyo's Journal
2x Illuminated Folio
2x Bottled Cloister
3x Farsight Mask
Notes: I used to have a "Book of Rass" in here, but the card draw these artifacts give usually stack up enough to give me a nice advantage.
Life Gain (The meat ;)):
4x Contemplation
4x Soul Warden
4x Nyx Fleece-Ram
4x Ajani's Mantra
1x Staff of Sun Magus
Notes: You could easily add the other soul sister, as you get the card draw. The main reason there are 4 copies is to draw almost all of them by the end of the game.
YOU SHALL NOT PASS (Preventing attackers):
4x Orim's Prayer
4x Righteous Cause
4x Sphere of Safety (MOST IMPORTANT CARD IN DECK YOU CANNOT TAKE THIS OUT)
Notes: Main reason that there is no removal is that these (if you get them out) can usually nullify most creatures power 6 and less, and stronger creatures can have their damage reduced to low levels. Once you get 1 or two spheres out you win the game.
Win Conditions:
4x Felidar Soverign
4x Angelic Accord
4x Aetherflux Reservoir (Don't worry about storm just pay the life)
There are a plethora of other cards you can add (Serra Ascendant, Test of Endurance etc.)
Other cards:
x2 Reknit
x4 Open the Vaults (THE OTHER MUST HAVE CARD IN THE DECK)
The main reason this deck is so strong is that most of my opponents play red, and barely any play white (housing the scariest card of all "Cleanfall"). Starting out this deck is slow, so it is important to establish yourself as "not a threat" before swooping in with 3 to 4 life gain/ draw cards. Over time you become harder and harder to kill, and as Reknits and Open the Vaults begin to stockpile in your hand, even a Vandalblast will barely delay you.
Additions (if I weren't a cheapskate):
4x Mana Tithe
2x Privileged Position
4x Ghostly Chains
Do not add:
Enduring Ideal: This card actually slows you down a large amount.
Oh yeah I forgot lands existed:
x27 Plains (Probably going to go lower in the future)
x3 Ruins of Trokair (Very helpful for your "debut" turn)
x2 Secluded Steppe (In the later stages of the game it is good to have lands that you can cycle)
Jeane Greene Not a Commander Deck. That was the premise of the Top Ten. Your deck seems neat, but it isnt EDH legal.
You might want to read Moat again.
A fine list, but I was shocked that Ensnaring Bridge and Maze of Ith were not mentioned at all.
Lol sometimes I forget a couple cards on my lists.
Was hoping to find Dissipation Field as well
Rogier Oostrom Dissipation Field also deals with enchantment and creatures that deal noncombat damage, like Nekusar
Rogier Oostrom no mercy?
Ayden Sauvageau No Mercy can't deal with indestructible and non-creature sources of damage tho
Norn's annex???
No Mercy doesnt just prevent others from attacking you, it destroys the creature if it does any kind of damage, not just combat damage. Goodbye pingers, Niv-mizzet Parun will think more than twice to do a love tap on you, Kaervek too, and soooo many other effects. It's just so good!
For quite awhile I've really enjoyed playing things like painful quandary and it took awhile but eventually I realized pillow fort cards where a necessity if I wanted to kill people with a bleed out strategy. Queen Marchesa has been hilariously fun ever since :) Your list is almost perfect too, I use many of these to great effect, but I would also say Glacial Chasm and Maze of Ith are likely the most powerful pillows in many metas. Most places frown on land destruction making them much more powerful than they really should be...
While it only works in certain decks, Collective Restraint can be superior to both Propaganda and Ghostly Prison.
Also, while it's not strictly a pillow fort card, Meekstone is an incredibly underrated card in EDH that functions similarly.
My deck runs Sphere of Safety, Ghostly Prison, Sterling Grove, Greater Auramancy, Archangel Avacyn, Ancestral Mask, and a ton of other enchantments. If a masked archangel can’t destroy players outright, Opalecence and Starfield of Nyx will. Toss in Teferi’s protection for good measure, and Sigarda, Host of Herons. Also running Aura of Silence, not just for the taxing, but also so I can blow up opalecence etc. in case of a boardwipe before I get everything indestructible. I also run Null Rod, Stony Silence and Linvala, Keeper of Silence, but careful when I play them so I don’t get hated on too early.
Mistveil Plains is also a good inclusion, as you can sac your sterling grove and tutor it back on top of your library again if it’s trageted before Greater Auramancy comes online.
Teysa, Envoy of Ghosts, Koskun Falls, Elephant Grass, Glacial Chasm, Norn's Annex, Stormtide Leviathan, War Tax, Windborne Muse
sir knightdude
Thank you for saying Glacial Chasm. It's the one card in my area of play that has warped our Commander games....
What about Collective Restraint ? Better than Ghostly Prison or Propaganda in some decks....
Looking forward to using a few of these in a Thantis Deck. Forcing your opponents to attack and paying for it with cards like Kazuul, Sandwurm Convergence, No Mercy, and other cards not mentioned here.
Aurafication is my fave, 2, white white, whenever a creature deals combat damage to you, put a gold counter on it, that creature becomes a wall in addition to its other types, kinda a worse no mercy tbh but still really funny
Statecraft is another really good one if you're either going wide with creature tokens and/or have the ability to pass it off to someone else, either for politics or to gimp a high damage dealing deck. It basically makes everything into a Fog Bank. AMAZING in Zedruu and decent in Angus McKenzie decks. War Tax and Angus McKenzie are also great pillow fort cards. No one wants to tap themselves out attacking if the player with an Angus McKenzie doesn't want them attacking literally anyone else. The only thing I'm really confused with is why Glacial Chasm wasn't on the list. That's a super basic go to staple for any deck that wants to pillow fort.
Sad to see Mirri, Weatherlight Duelist didn't make it on your list. Then again, there's only so many places available.
What about Orzhov Advokist? He stops them from attacking you while encouraging them to attack others.
Basically during your upkeep each player may put two +1/+1 counters on a creature they control. The catch is if they do that player cannot attack you or a Planeswalker you control until your next upkeep. Bonus, you get the +1/+1 counters as well.
Pillow fort with teeth...
I personally love collective restraint.
I like the combo of Caltrops and Death Pits of Rath. Go ahead, attack. I dare you.
Lightmine Field and Mystic Barrier
I was suprised norn's annex wasn't on the list as it functions similarly to properganda except costs them a phrexian white instead of 2 colourless.
May be a bit janky, but I really like Meishin, the mind cage as a pillow fort option
I love Riddlekeeper, I use him in my Phenax-deck. His toughness is pretty decent as well.
Norn's annex, collective restraint
You should have mentioned Dread alongside No Mercy. Good stuff though! Love it!
How did you not mention koskun falls? It's a mono black pillow for. Its amazing. It makes people tap 2 for each creature.
I bet Archon of Absolution and Blazing Archon are gonna be on this list
Love these videos! Thanks.
May i suggest Koshkun falls as an honorable mention in black decks
Is the ruling for Moat that "the creatures can not attack you" as he said in the video or is it that "they can not attack at all" as it says on the card?
I believe it's as it says on the card. Really wish I had one for my all-flyers Kaalia Deck!
Great list! As far as black cards, what do you think of Koskun Falls (gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Koskun+falls)?
Sandwurm convention + moat = nothing can attack you at all
though in a rock paper scissors match, a voltron deck beats most pillow forts
Zur with Solitary Confinement, Necropotence and Greater Auramancy is hilarious
On a side note, there's always Magus of the Moat even though it's more vulnerable since it's a creature.
Darkest Hour + Light of Day
Or
Humility
Moat and Gravity Well work well together.
What about Noras anix? Agest a none white deck it's almost aways a full stop.
so probly a stupid question but with propaganda and ghostly prison if u had both out at the same time would it coast 4? or would it still be 2?
It would add up to 4
Norn's Annex is great in artifact builds
Norn's annex is no where to be seen despite being considerably more powerful then either of the number ones. 3 and two phyrexian white means you can drop it early st a cost or if you're color screwed, and forcing people to either pay white or two life per attacking creature can outright shut down some decks. Goblins and elf tokens are hosed hard by this kind of effect.
I thought glacial chasm should at least be on the honourable mentions
Would you consider Tabernacle/Magus to be Pillowfort material?
What about dissipation field and worship?
Where ma boi revenge of ravens at? It makes attacking with any number of 1/1 creatures counterproductive, and card that says "whenever a creature deals damage to you" still procks, but you get healed. Also, Tasha, Unholy Archmage and Eternal Wanderer are great, one is silent arbiter as a planeswalker that also bounces creatures or makes tokens or can boardwipe if necessary, leaving your best creature alive and giving your opponent like a 2/2 zombie with decayed in the best case, and the other gives -1/-1 counters to everything that attacks. And if that doesn't sound like a big deal to you: proliferate. You can kill pretty much everything by proliferating those (except creatures with +1/+1 counters). Indestructible creatures? Nope, doesn't matter. Ward? Hexproof? Shroud? Doesn't target. Protection from blue or black?! Nope, doesn't target, doesn't deal damage, nothing. And since you're gonna want a blocker, I would personally advise you to get a creature with indestructible and vigilance and then put in as many mirran swords as you can afford. Sword of Light and Shadow, Feast and Famine, Fire and Ice neat, your previously 1/1 is now a 7/7 that can't be blocked or targeted by anything except colorless creatures, it doesn't tap when attacking, so you can still block and it doesn't get dealt damage and when it connects you gain 3 life, return a creature fron the graveyard to your hand, deals 2 damage to any target, draws you a card, untaps all your lands and your opponent discards a card. That's three cards card advantage, damage, lifegain, mana advantage, near unblockable creature, near irremovable blocker and your opponent can't attack with more than one creature.
What about platinum angel??? The best fort in mtg!
Moat prevents all creatures without flying from attacking. Not just attacking you.
I was wondering that too. Huge difference.
for crawlspace my answer natures claim
Dissipation field and isolation cell?
Why not Dovescape?
3 words: web of inertia.
PILLOWFORT FIGHT!!!
I like "war tax" because you can activate it when your opponents are being attacked in exchange for political favors.
Aaron Garcia Plus an amazing flavortext that is even more relevant now with tribal Pirates.
Lightmine field.
Did you get a better mic? Your voice sounds much clearer than it used to
No mercy is with any damage
I think you misread moat....
What’s the win condition?
sloth9669 In my pillowfort deck, it's the combination of them not being to attack me while my commander (Elesh Norn) and a bunch of anthems make my cheap little flyers huge and nearly unstoppable.
howsjames1 I am looking at blue white but haven’t figured out what I want as my finisher.
sloth9669 Yeah, I don't know of any one card that can reliably end games in those colors, but Gwafa Hazid can really shut an opponent down and he's blue and white.
sloth9669 I totally spaced on this before, but my big finisher is Blighted Agent, a common that costs about a quarter. He has unblockable and Infect, if you just put one or two cheap-o equipment that only buff power (Bonesplitter, Throwing Knife, Blood-Forged Battleaxe, Bone Saw etc) then it only takes a couple of turns to put 10 poison counters on someone. Cloak and Dagger works great because since Blighted Agent is a Rogue it can be equipped for free.
sloth9669 win con is to survive
Norns Amex isn’t bad
Bridge is the best.
No mercy!!
Peter Fucking Griffin!!!!!!!!
Great video, I'll add one more Honorable Mention for Coastal Piracy. Make them pay 5+ to attack you with each creature.
Koskun Falls gets no love? Black propaganda or ghostly prison??
Aw yeah
koskun falls is a black propaganda
KaiTheElusive that's what I said lol
unsubbed for no wassabi