KARADOR GHOST CHIEFTAIN COMMANDER DECK TECH **UPDATED FOR 2022** 

thank you it means alot! I plan to

Plantinum angel is underrated to me. I’ve heard other RU-vidrs say it’s horrible and people that say it’s too expensive for what it does. I get that it’s prone two the two most popular types of removal but when you get it out you can’t lose and more importantly your opponents can’t win. That means when they have their infinite combo and go off on their turn it doesn’t matter until they take care of platinum angel. By herself, she’s Probly not going to last super long but people don’t always have removal. I also run cards like avacyn and archetype of endurance which further protects her. The best feeling is when your super low life and have and angel out then manage to get resolute archangel out to shoot back to full.

I had teneb in the deck at one point. I ended up not needing him but I like him a lot. What are some of the ideas you’re going to use. I’m curious

@@commanderinsight Nothing fancy. I dropped most of the big creature reanimation strat from the Teneb build and leaned more into a toolbox with Aristocrats and a healthy amount of self mill. So we can slam Avacyn or Moonshaker Cavalry, rinse and repeat small utility and removal creatures from the yard, and also attempt to drain em out with cards like Syr Konrad. Certainly not a focused build but I want to try out some new cards and learn from playing.

@@ty_sylicus Karador is very versatile. Many different ways to build the deck and he just helps it no matter what. The effect is generic but so powerful. And most graveyard decks don’t let you have white so he really can add a unique flavor to the deck. I built mine to be fast but more so to be resilient. Wipe the board and u can rebuild in 1-3 turns where my opponents can’t. Hermit druid isn’t needed but even with 7 basics it’ll still mill you a bunch.

I have a Meren deck and a Karador deck and to make sure they aren't too similar i try and isolate strategies for each. Meren is my sac deck and karador is my heavy creature recursion deck. It can rebuild so well as long as GY doesn't get completely exiled. Luminous Broodmoth has been in and out of the deck for me. Issue is a lot of the big creatures I run have flying already to broodmoth doesn't do anything there. Panharmonicon is always a great card if you build around it. Theres a bunch of good white flicker and bounce creatures that can also help.

Hey thanks for commenting! I’m glad you got some inspiration! I love Karador the deck is so resilient. So many good cards and combos you can alternate in and out to keep the deck fresh and new while still keeping the main core strategy. Also to answer your Vito and resolute archangel question. It does work and the reason being because in order to change life total you have to gain or lose life. If I was higher then 40 life and played resolute angel I would lose life (why would you beer do that lol) but nonetheless even though the card doesn’t say you’re gaining life, it still is life gained amd vito will trigger. Here is the Mtg ruling for reference as well. It’s the second bullet on the ability. gatherer.wizards.com/pages/card/details.aspx?multiverseid=383361 www.mtgassist.com/cards/Magic-2015/Resolute-Archangel/rulings/

Also, I have a Liesa Shroud of Dusk deck too! Here is the video, check it out if you want and let me know what you think. Maybe you have some cool suggestions too. Mine is slightly outdated now where I've changed a few cards than what the deck tech shows. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ffZqMUpOtB0.html

​@@commanderinsight Amazing! I don't remember the card combo for Liesa anymore, but it didnt say "gain" either and actually didnt work, so thats great News. Also, in my Playgroup my Karador Deck isn't even weak - anything but actually - still, i think it can have alot more punch and fun by removing a good chunk of tutors and the boonweaver Combo. Also, pre-upgrade i run 19 Basics, since i'm too cheap to cash out for the better Mana base. I try to replace some to bringt that number down. Would you still recommend getting the Hermit Druid? On average, with 19 Basics, he would still mill me 5 cards

@@mofomiko yeah I ran the boomweaver combo too but it became stale when I kept doing the same thing and going for the same few cards. My deck is very strongly built around using hermit druid but there’s 2-3 back up plans because hermit druid gets targeted hard when he hits. With 19 basics I don’t think he’s worth it honestly. He won’t give you very much value and he most likely won’t survive more than 1 or 2 turns. I’d either bite the bullet and get some two color lands (even the tapped lands and bounce lands are very cheap just slower) or don’t use that aspect of my build. There are other cards that self mill and could be better. Mesmeric orb is one that’s great.

Thank you I appreciate it! I haven’t kept up with videos recently but have a bunch of decks to update. I have many ideas I want to do so I think I’ll make updates soon. Are you running karador? How’s it going with him if so?

I’ve only been playing for a little under a year. I’ve got a few decks built but I’m looking to commit on a recursion commander soon. Considering all the usual suspects and Karador keeps popping up as my front runner. I wish I could add some insight. Was really considering building your exact deck but saw the age and thought it wouldn’t hurt to see if an update was on the horizon before ordering. I’ve watched almost all deck techs on most of the popular graveyard commanders and yours was my favorite. Hope you make some more videos 😊

@@NF-nn9ij awesome. I think Karador is just overlooked because of how old he is but still the best due to the colors and options. The best part about him is you can really build the deck around any creature strategy you want. There really aren’t any “must haves” other than the staples that would be run according to your strategy. This video uses hermit druid and big beaters along with vito. So I do a lot of self mill and then try and do like a living death or bolas citadel. You could do aristocrats, tokens spam, spirit tribal, abzan good stuff, sub enchantment theme and a bunch more. I plan to make updates probably after the ixilan set but there’s nothing crucial in the set that Karador absolutely needs. One card that stood out is the new Ghalta tyrant stampede. Since we already run greater good the play is to reanimate ghalta for cheap like with an animate dead or something, then on his etb activation you sac him to greater good and draw 12 then proceed to drop all the creatures in your hand onto the field. Also if you haven’t seen, I made a Meren deck tech because she can be just a powerful and fun and technically the Karador deck was a meren deck first that evolved and added white. It’s also older but has a different play style if you’re in the research phase.

Hey really appreciate the feedback and advice. I’m going to go check out the Meren tech you did for sure as of course she’s in the mix. The flexibility does seem really wide for Karador, and your strategy and maybe Spirit tribal appeal to me but not sure how strong spirits are compared to your mill. I’ll definitely let you know how it goes and again thank you for your help!

Hey, just wanted you to know I’m ordering cards for Karador and appreciate your amazing deck tech and your advice. I’ll definitely let you know how it plays out with my pod once I get it put together.

Yeah that’s a great card just expensive to cast. It’s like living death kind of but on a creature.

Hey thanks! I appreciate the comment Karador is my favorite deck . I don’t have an updated deck list but here is the original video and in the description of this is the link to the deck list. I changed a few cards around but not a ton so it’s still relevant ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-3v6LL-XLLIc.html

Hey thanks you! I appreciate the feedback. There’s a guy on Instagram atomicashes he makes proxies and I’ve bought from him. Back when I did it, it was just from his pictures on Instagram but he may have grown to a point where there’s a website and such now. I love the proxy it’s more bad ass and less cartoon-y I have a cool meren of clan nel toth too. See her deck tech vid if you’re interested.

Is it okay to LOL to this? Was it paper or online? If it was paper i would say thats insanely rare and dont let it deter you from playing the deck with that strat. If it was online, i don't trust the computer's shuffle patterns and "randomness" so my bet is it will happen again. That being said, when that happens where you dont have a setup gy and hermit druid is no longer a viable option, you want to try to get your other mill cards like a mesmeric orb and satyr wayfinder. It's an uphill battle for sure but redundant self-mill effects are crucial especially for situations like you experienced. Lastly, milling your entire deck isn't always a bad thing. Its very risky, but if you have a plan it can pay off big. if hermit druid has no more basic land targets and you still use his effect to mill yourself out completely, you want to make sure you have at least 1 of the following.... 1. Platinum angel on the field (if you go to draw and cant you normally lose but angel would prevent that) 2.Life from the loam in your graveyard (the dredge effect is a draw replacement so its instead of drawing you would mill 3 and return loam to your hand. then just recast it to get it back in the yard if you cant win on the spot. and 3.Out of the tombs (this is a necron card from the warhammer set also with a draw replacement. it actually can help mill if its out early enough. the easiest would be hermit druid is out, with a living death in hand and 6 mana up. mill ur whole deck and living death everything.

@@commanderinsight It was against a few friends on table top simulator. Not gonna keep me from playing the deck. I was still able to set up a nasty board of avacyn and archtype on I think turn 4/5. Game was close and almost won. Thanks for the tips for the future tho.

@@imhoenn5710 I knew it wasn’t irl because the chances of it happening your first game are astronomically low. That type of shenanigans only happens online when you rely on a computer to shuffle.

Are you referring to the death and ETB trigger shenanigans? here is a quick google search i did to try and find another explanation. This one involves dead eye navigator but the process flow is the same for etb and ltb triggers www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/magic-fundamentals/magic-rulings/776835-permanently-exile-creatures-with-angel-of-serenity

Hey nice to hear! i think its great because Karador is such a widespread deck that doesn't need that many "required" cards. Its canvas to build is very large and everyone can have very different decks that still thrive. Its partly why its my favorite deck because it can constantly change but keep the core essence of the deck. Ive had 10+ versions just to try out new creatures and strategies so the deck doesnt get stale. anyway just to comment on some of the cards you mentioned, I like bramble sovereign alot and think it could be an awesome value adder by doubling creatures. Cloud stone curio to help cheat out creatures too. I use to run crypt of agadeem myself but i ended up taking it out because as my deck evolved i had less black creatures so the crypt wasnt as good. Fiend artisan is amazing and i had it in the deck for a while. i always got hermit druid from it to get things rolling. I took it out because it was a better fit in my meren deck and i try not to have decks with duplicate strategies. Lastly, in case you wernet aware, recurring nightmare is banned in commander format, but you may be playing with friends who allow it. Im just letting you know in case you didnt. with Wiards pumping out commanders so often now, cards like Karador are too "old" to be looked at seriously. I think hes a sleeper and a very good and versatile deck. its funny that muldrotha is in the top 10 most popular decks but karador is better imo.

@@commanderinsight nice!. Yeah I know wasn't aware on the reoccurring nightmare, but our play group plays anything goes. if wizard printed it, than it's legal to us. Wich can be great and can suck big time. Lol. Yeah I dig karador's versatility in he can be made so many different ways. He's been a very very fun commander

Hey great question! I guess it would depend on your opponents decks. Regardless of what you chose it’ll make Karador cost 3 less which is great. Therefore you Probly want cheaper mana creatures so you can bring out Karador then cast them. Since the deck really accelerates from hermit druid I would pick him for sure. Then depending on the board state I would change up the last 2. If you can reliably get out Karador in the next turn or 2 and need to stall I would pick kami of the false hope (white spore frog). Granted it’ll only stop one opponent from attacking you but usually, you only have one that is ahead with an army. If the rest of the board is building and slower then I would pick the priest of fel rites and a big smasher like avacyn or sun Titan or elesh norn. If you unearth the priest you can use it the turn it comes out to bring out the other big creature. That’s Probly the two options I can think of for a turn 3 buried alive without reanimation. Once hermit druid is out everything else is easy lol

@@commanderinsight Do you have a deck list. I stole a bunch of your ideas here, but I don't know if I got everything. Looking forward to trying this Saturday. I've run Karador since his release, but played magic on and off. My old list was more toolbox and what my friends called "fair magic". Playing one thing per turn. Excited to actually pilot a decent deck.

@@Sonminiser tappedout.net/mtg-decks/16-08-21-karador-ghost-chieftain/?cb=1676465551 this is the most recent deck list. theres been 4 card changes since this video included. I took out the last 2 high cmc sorceries at the end of the video as well as circle of the life druid and cavalier of dawn. I added in 3 creatures, foundation breaker, cathar's commando and caustic caterpillar because my meta needed more artifact and enchantment removal. you may not need all 3. The last card i added was demonic tutor. expensive card so not needed if you dont have one. I would put a few more lands in the deck if you were substituting. 34 is a little low for some peoples liking and the worst feeling is having an awesome deck that just cant do anything because you dont have lands lol. none of the 4 new cards i mentioned are required so you have some room to play with and make the deck your own too. GL and let me know how it goes!

I know it’s incredible! He’s only ever 3 mana typically I love it. What do you like so much about the prosper deck? Does it play similar to Karador? I don’t like that you have to play the exiled card by next turn or you lose it. Maybe I’m not seeing the benefits as much.

@@commanderinsight Prosper is a total value engine. Some things get exiled forever but that's fine. The whole point is getting the impulse to get through your deck, continuously getting the card advantage and ramp from the treasure. Mine isn't a cEDH deck but can for sure do it. Though there are tons of synergies. As you exile through your deck, there's cards to deal damage as you cast from exile, make treasures, dealing damage from gaining the treasures, dealing damage sacrificing them to cast more spells from exile. Or unloading the treasure for a KO with like Marionette master. I had Xorn, Inspiring Statuary, and Academy Manufactor out and it was just nuts, I was making 2 treasure, 2 food, 2 clues off of each exile cast, which then I can tap them to cast more things from exile to exile more cards making 6 artifacts. On top of that cascading giving even more. My opponents were sweating. The extra treasures help to pay for commander tax, having nim death mantle is nice, even tapped out can sac 4 treasures to save Prosper. With a few other staples to protect him. Players can't remove exile like they can a graveyard so that is nice, so no need to try to protect that.

Hey, good question. So with karadors effect you can cast one creature from your graveyard per turn. So any creature in your graveyard can be treated as if it was in your hand. So the bigger your graveyard the more options you have. You can get cheeky with it and use effects that bring back multiple creatures and keep recurring them. If you’re looking for a commander that brings back a creature without paying for it that would be Meren of clan nel toth. She’s golgari black green and a lot of fun too. I also have a deck video for her if you’re interested but it’s a little outdated. Still relevant and good though.

@@commanderinsight thank you so much for responding i will definitely check that out too thank you

Yes this could work well. I actually put demonic tutor in the deck as well