Using @SpellTable I played eight games of EDH over the weekend. I don't play a lot of EDH or multiplayer, so I learned a lot and figured a thread would help me capture some thoughts.

My commander was Tahngarth, First Mate.

I picked Tahngarth because although I like big crazy combos, I don't really like playing them out in paper, especially over a camera. Tahngarth does tend to shorten the game, but he also allows you to interact with other players and make deals.

I played this deck a few times earlier this year. Initially I built him "Voltron" style, with equipment, auras, etc. I added in some other big creatures, especially hasty ones. Tahngarth felt good in those games but the rest of the deck didn't.

My hand was clogged, my mana tied up with equip costs and I wasn't making use of things like Arch of Orazca. I'd sometimes sneak in some hasty damage but basically any engine would outpace me.

I thought about what to change for a while, ordered a crop of cards using some store credit, and ended up with this list: https://scryfall.com/@timfreilly/decks/cfe306a0-129c-4012-85eb-17ba54a7bac0

My big focuses were:
- Cutting average CMC way down (almost by half)
- More cheap ramp to help stick Tahngarth on turn 3
- Lots of artifact/enchantment destruction
- Sources of card draw that didn't require lots of ongoing mana.

With Tahngarth on the battlefield, there are just enough ways to do something like draw 5 for 5 mana. With cheap cards and ramp, I can often play out those fresh cards quickly. If I do have some irrelevant cards, I can discard them to rummage effects.

I still have a few equipment, but most are gone. Tahngarth himself usually gets to hit for 5, then join an attack during the turn cycle for another 5. You don't need many turns of that to put serious pressure on people's life totals.

I realized I didn't need to focus much on making Tahngarth stronger. Instead, I keep my board pretty lean, just a few mana sources and maybe a card draw enchantment. My earthquake-like effects can often be X=4, wiping everything but Big T.

Now I'd like to move onto some observations on the game I played and what I'm learning about EDH decks and EDH games.

I play a lot of draft, a little of some other formats, and some single player games like Slay the Spire.

Draft deckbuilding usually devotes a lot of energy to weighing which of your last few mediocre cuts, and maybe deciding if a weirdo card will actually do anything in practice. You get to play 5-10 games with a deck at an event and learn how you did.

Draft decks often be thematic and flavorful, but that comes more from the design of the set than from the player.

Identifying combos and synergy are a big part of what the player contributes during the draft phase.

Coming from limited to EDH meant adjusting how I looked at deckbuilding.
- Single target removal drops in value
- Thematic deckbuilding is a huge part of the field
- Getting out ahead early can make you the target
- Relying on synergy between several on-board cards is a risk

This leads to a dynamic I saw a lot in my games this weekend:

Someone builds up a combo and is on the cusp of locking out the game. There's a wipe, some key removal, or a counter, and the thing falls apart. The player doesn't lose the game on the spot, but they sorta do.

There are many sweet, powerful, thematic combos in EDH, but the more your deck is about those combos, the more demoralizing it is to get dismantled. My Tahngarth deck was often the jerk destroying something at a key moment, though I watched it happen too.

Not being all-or-nothing in deckbuilding is what lead me to my Tahngarth build. Rather than having any key pieces, Tahngarth is my threat and everything is homogeneous and just keeps me in the game.

Games played out like:
- I get T on board early, dealing 10ish damage per turn cycle.
- Eventually life is like 22/19/27/35, I'm ahead, and take a couple hits.
- The game enters the last segment and one of a few things happen to close it out.

Because everyone's down to teen life totals, it only takes one or two plays to win. Someone gets an indestructible team or finally lands a recursive combo.

Many of my games came down to a kingmaker situation. Player1 can't win, but still has spells to cast. Conceding can be rude, because P1's enchantment benefits P2 more than P3. Any spell P1 casts probably changes whether P2 or P3 wins, so you bum someone out no matter what you do.

I don't mind losing, and find a lot of joy in seeing combos and synergies explode. Reminiscing about a cool play brings a bigger smile to my face than eeking out a victory. Multiplayer adds a lot of craziness to the game and it's awesome.

I just don't know how to feel about players being in kingmaker situations. It feels crappy, confusing, and worse than losing. It's a five minute phase in an otherwise fun game that grinds the fun to a halt.

Infinite combos are a more fun way to lose.

Back to the games themselves. It was super fun learning when to use my removal, and when to fire off board wipes. It's really unclear who the "final boss" will be when a game starts, which means there's plenty of skill to gain.

Some of my favorite cards in the Tahngarth deck:

I found cards that drew me one extra card a turn to be great for this playstyle. My favorite was Tome of Legends. I appreciated that one extra card per turn cut down on thinking time. When I'd draw five cards at once, I felt like I was holding the table up.

I started playing with Revised, and so I enjoy being able to put Revised cards in the deck that fit my vision (and budget). My favorite was Red Elemental Blast, which always made people laugh when I cast it at key times.

I was surprised to find that most Equipment ended up being way to expensive to cast+equip. It's also hard to find equipment that is relevant both on T and on other creatures. Mask of Memory was a highlight for its ability to filter cards during other players' turns.

My red board wipes sometimes clashed with my mana dorks, and made me want to cut all but the 1 mana elves. That said, being able to Rolling Earthquake for 4 and crunch with Tahngarth always felt great.

I appreciated any very cheap ways to cycle and set up my early turns. It's obviously great to get an elf or a rampant growth to help get T out, but 1 mana card flow and Explore also fit the deck nicely.

The reward for playing T and all these very cheap spells were my draw spells. Back when the deck was higher CMC, extra cards sat stale in my hand. Now I get to cast an Escape to the Wilds, play two lands, and play all three of the other cards right away.

The final thing I'd like to highlight about my experience is building the deck with a budget. I'm a pretty analytical and like to optimize every card choice.

Many of the priciest Green and artifact cards are the big rampy value cards. Someone like Tahngarth is small ball compared to getting up to 12 mana in 4 or 5 turns. I might have gone down that route if not for the price.

Staying cheap, fast, and interactive ended up being a rewarding playstyle that still had plenty of room for deckbuilding, tweaking, and personal expression.

Anyhow, thanks for following along this long thread! I enjoy the opportunity to get my ideas out there and see what people think!