Brainstorming - Dalakos, Hand-crafted

[OCPunisher]

A few months ago, I decided to try and make an Urza deck based on a cool video I saw from mtgmuddstah's YouTube channel, where the guy tried to suit up Urza with a bunch of swords and other equipment. It seemed like a great way to apply a fun strategy to an otherwise broken commander.

Unfortunately, Urza proved to be too scary upfront and completely overshadowed everything. I tried several other commanders to reduce the fear. None of them felt right after getting a taste of what Urza could do for me. As a result, I shelved the idea and put all my fancy swords on the back burner in favor of other things.

Enter Dalakos. He adds a new color to the package that has had favorable interactions with artifacts in the past, and he brings two of good things to the table: low CMC and two relevant abilities.

This deck will be focusing on equipment (especially Swords of X and Y), and some of the legendary creatures that interact well with them, namely Padeem, Sai, Jhoira, Godo, Urza, Valduk, Thada, and Emry. I'm also a big fan of cost reducers in artifact decks that could potentially make some spells free to cast, so Etherium Sculptor, Foundry Inspector, Jhoira's Familiar, and Ugin, the Ineffable are all locks (and they carry swords). Assuming that the average CMC comes in under 3.0, it should be able to operate with about 36 lands to start.

I don't think gimmicky stuff like Champion of the Flame and Goblin Gaveleer are what I want to do. Bludgeon Brawl also feels a bit cheesy here.

Dalakos, Hand-crafted (so far)

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

Creatures (17):

1 Goblin Welder

1 Etherium Sculptor

1 Goblin Engineer

1 Emry, Lurker of the Loch

1 Foundry Inspector

1 Sai, Master Thopterist

1 Scrap Trawler

1 Thada Adel, Acquisitor

1 Tribute Mage

1 Trinket Mage

1 Trophy Mage

1 Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain

1 Jhoira's Familiar

1 Padeem, Consul of Innovation

1 Phyrexian Metamorph

1 Urza, Lord High Artificer

1 Godo, Bandit Warlord

Planeswalkers (3):

1 Tezzeret, Artifice Master

1 Tezzeret the Seeker

1 Ugin, the Ineffable

Enchantments (1):

1 Storm the Vault

Artifacts (3):

1 Sol Ring

1 Izzet Signet

1 Mirage Mirror

Equipment (18):

1 Bloodforged Battle-Axe

1 Skullclamp

1 Lightning Greaves

1 Mask of Memory

1 Neurok Stealthsuit

1 Swiftfoot Boots

1 Sword of the Animist

1 Champion's Helm

1 Darksteel Plate

1 Sword of Body and Mind

1 Sword of Feast and Famine

1 Sword of Fire and Ice

1 Sword of Light and Shadow

1 Sword of Sinew and Steel

1 Sword of Truth and Justice

1 Sword of War and Peace

1 Hammer of Nazahn

1 Embercleave

Instants/Sorceries (8):

1 Gamble

1 Pongify

1 Rapid Hybridization

1 Arcane Denial

1 Counterspell

1 Chaos Warp

1 Stoic Rebuttal

1 Whir of Invention

Lands (37):

1 Academy Ruins

1 Blast Zone

1 Buried Ruin

1 Cascade Bluffs

1 Castle Vantress

1 Command Tower

1 Darksteel Citadel

1 Desolate Lighthouse

1 Field of the Dead

1 Fiery Islet

1 Ghost Quarter

1 Great Furnace

1 Highland Lake

1 Inventors' Fair

1 Izzet Boilerworks

1 Izzet Guildgate

1 Memorial to Genius

1 Scalding Tarn

1 Seat of the Synod

1 Shivan Reef

1 Steam Vents

1 Sulfur Falls

1 Swiftwater Cliffs

1 Volcanic Island

4 Island

4 Mountain

3 Snow-Covered Island

2 Snow-Covered Mountain

Approximate Total Cost:

That's all I got so far.

EDIT:

Change log

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1/28/20:
- Added eight artifact-friendly legends, and eight swords (7 "of X and Y" plus Animist).
- Added four spells that reduce the casting cost of artifacts.
- Added Bloodforged Battle-Axe, plus six equipments to protect our legends via hexproof, shroud, and/or indestructible.
- Added a fifth cost-reducer in Herald of Kozilek.
- Added 36 placeholder lands.

1/29/20:
- Added Mask of Memory, Gamble, Storm the Vault, and five mana rocks.
- Added three Mages: Trinket, Tribute, and Trophy.
- Added two Tezzerets, a Welder and an Engineer.
- Added Embercleave.

1/30/20:
- Added a bunch of non-basic lands.
- Moved a couple of cards into the "haven't acquired yet" pile.

1/31/20:
- Added a few artifact staples: Whir of Invention, Scrap Trawler, Skullclamp, Phyrexian Metamorph, and Mirage Mirror.

2/3/20:
- Cut a few ETB-tapped lands for more basics.
- Cut three mana rocks that don't actually accelerate anything in this deck.
- Added some cheap counters and other interactive spells.

Cards I haven't acquired yet

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Dockside Extortionist
Herald of Kozilek
Treasure Nabber
Valduk, Keeper of the Flame
Curse of Opulence
Shadowspear
Arcane Signet
Mana Drain
Narset's Reversal

[weltkrieg]

I think bloodforged battle axe belongs here. It has positive interactions with everything and is the only equipment to make more of itself. It's also easy to find via trinket mage which I assume is almost an autoinclude due to its ability to find many other goodies.

[OCPunisher]

I think bloodforged battle axe belongs here. It has positive interactions with everything and is the only equipment to make more of itself. It's also easy to find via trinket mage which I assume is almost an autoinclude due to its ability to find many other goodies.

Good call on the axe. One of the things I'm trying to take into consideration is the equip cost of each piece, as it will most likely have to be paid multiple times per card and is arguably more important than the CMC. I've come to the conclusion that I'm willing to pay up to 2 per equip, and if something has an auto-equip clause like Hammer of Nazahn or Batterskull, that helps to mitigate a more expensive equip cost.

I'm a little torn on whether or not to include Trinket Mage or his newer brethren. On the one hand, they will probably have at least a dozen options each to dig up. On the other hand, they aren't artifacts, and every non-artifact spell dilutes the potency of Dalakos and others that rely on a higher density of artifacts.

[MeowZeDung]

I made a list of possible includes when I saw him a few weeks ago that I'll share when I get home. I remember kazuul toll collector was one.

Edit: I also really liked the idea of building not necessarily around all the best possible equipment (although that's sweet too) but instead keeping equip costs low and taking advantage of haste/ flying with combat damage payoffs like Jhessian Thief.

[MeowZeDung]

Here was the list I was tooling around with. Some you've already mentioned as wanting to include or avoid. I think there are a couple directions to take a Dalakos list, even though they all involve equipment, but as I mentioned, I personally to want to lean into the haste/evasion and what I could do with combat damage or attack triggers moreso than the equipment itself. Then again, you own the swords, so of course you want to play them! Who could blame you? Even I would include my SOFaF.

• Kazuul's Toll Collector
• Deadeye Quartermaster
• Champion of the Flame
• Brass Squire
• Armory Automaton
• Godo, Bandit Warlord
• Valduk, Keeper of the Flame
• Etched Champion
• Bastion Inventor
• Invisible Stalker
• Padeem, Consul of Innovation
• Shimmer Dragon
• Slippery Scoundrel

Given the list you've already got, I would take a look at Hero's Blade also. Decent stats and a free equip on Dalakos and a number of the creatures you're looking to run.

Edit: given that you're running the artifact cost reducers, maybe you'll also want to run Vedalken Engineer as one of your mana ramp spells?

[OCPunisher]

Here was the list I was tooling around with. Some you've already mentioned as wanting to include or avoid. I think there are a couple directions to take a Dalakos list, even though they all involve equipment, but as I mentioned, I personally to want to lean into the haste/evasion and what I could do with combat damage or attack triggers moreso than the equipment itself. Then again, you own the swords, so of course you want to play them! Who could blame you? Even I would include my SOFaF.

From that list, the one that is most appealing and isn't already on the list is Brass Squire. It shouldn't take much effort to give this guy haste, which will enable a lot of other utility.

[weltkrieg]

Good call on the axe. One of the things I'm trying to take into consideration is the equip cost of each piece, as it will most likely have to be paid multiple times per card and is arguably more important than the CMC. I've come to the conclusion that I'm willing to pay up to 2 per equip, and if something has an auto-equip clause like Hammer of Nazahn or Batterskull, that helps to mitigate a more expensive equip cost.

I'm a little torn on whether or not to include Trinket Mage or his newer brethren. On the one hand, they will probably have at least a dozen options each to dig up. On the other hand, they aren't artifacts, and every non-artifact spell dilutes the potency of Dalakos and others that rely on a higher density of artifacts.

I wouldn't run tribute mage (only good equipment that I know of off the top that he directly finds is umezawa's jitte and boots which seem unneeded with your general), though he does find a ton of good mana rocks.

Trinket mage finds mana crypt/sol ring/mana vault/sensei's divining top in addition to Bloodforged Battle-Axe and newcomer shadowspear (extremely good, in my opinion). After it does that, then it gets to carry something and swing in.

Trophy mage finds all 7 swords, darksteel plate, champion's helm, loxodon warhammer, shimmer myr, and armory automaton, etc. and then gets to carry the equipment.

Additionally, they themselves only cost as much as dalakos, so it's not like you're having to wait for late game to cast them. I thin it behooves you to consider at least the two I backed lol.

edit: There exist a couple of interesting options I hadn't previously considered. Captain's claws makes tokens on attack (which can give you more body's to equip) and neurok stealthsuit acts as an instant speed spot removal counter.

[EbonRose]

Another creature to potentially add is Vulshok Battlemaster. Him and the aforementioned Armory Automaton should be great fits for a deck that wants to spam equipment.

Metalworker is an amazing mana generator for a deck like this, if your budget supports him. And don't forget Inspiring Statuary. Equipment still works just fine even when tapped.

[OCPunisher]

Good call on the axe. One of the things I'm trying to take into consideration is the equip cost of each piece, as it will most likely have to be paid multiple times per card and is arguably more important than the CMC. I've come to the conclusion that I'm willing to pay up to 2 per equip, and if something has an auto-equip clause like Hammer of Nazahn or Batterskull, that helps to mitigate a more expensive equip cost.

I'm a little torn on whether or not to include Trinket Mage or his newer brethren. On the one hand, they will probably have at least a dozen options each to dig up. On the other hand, they aren't artifacts, and every non-artifact spell dilutes the potency of Dalakos and others that rely on a higher density of artifacts.

I wouldn't run tribute mage (only good equipment that I know of off the top that he directly finds is umezawa's jitte and boots which seem unneeded with your general), though he does find a ton of good mana rocks.

Trinket mage finds mana crypt/sol ring/mana vault/sensei's divining top in addition to Bloodforged Battle-Axe and newcomer shadowspear (extremely good, in my opinion). After it does that, then it gets to carry something and swing in.

Trophy mage finds all 7 swords, darksteel plate, champion's helm, loxodon warhammer, shimmer myr, and armory automaton, etc. and then gets to carry the equipment.

Additionally, they themselves only cost as much as dalakos, so it's not like you're having to wait for late game to cast them. I thin it behooves you to consider at least the two I backed lol.

edit: There exist a couple of interesting options I hadn't previously considered. Captain's claws makes tokens on attack (which can give you more body's to equip) and neurok stealthsuit acts as an instant speed spot removal counter.

Yeah, at first it doesn't seem like there are many options, but then you dig a little bit and it becomes viable.
Loxodon Warhammer is currently on the outside looking in because of that equip cost. This is shaping up to be a low curve deck that will use up every single mana and not generate too much.
Shadowspear will definitely come in once the price comes down.
Shimmer Myr is interesting, but has some competition in Vedalken Orrery and Leyline of Anticipation. Right now, it's the Orrery by a hair.

Another creature to potentially add is Vulshok Battlemaster. Him and the aforementioned Armory Automaton should be great fits for a deck that wants to spam equipment.

Metalworker is an amazing mana generator for a deck like this, if your budget supports him. And don't forget Inspiring Statuary. Equipment still works just fine even when tapped.

I'm still hesitant to include creatures that only exist to self-equip like Armory Automaton because they don't do anything else by themselves. The T-Mages dig stuff up, all of the legends have their own abilities, etc.

Metalworker isn't out of the budget, just needs a high enough density of artifacts in hand. I'm a little concerned that the artifacts might get cast too quickly and the non-artifacts might get stuck in hand.

Finally, I think Gamble needs to be included as a way to dig up the non-artifacts (looking at you, Urza).

EDIT: Maybe I didn't read Inspiring Statuary well enough, but after doing so again, it looks like it might be a fit.

[pokken]

goblin engineer and goblin welder feel like two very powerful, cheap staples for this kinda deck. Engineer in particular is going to really do work at finding swords and putting them out at the cost of say, a bloodforged battleaxe token. Being able to equip them to give them really supercharges the abilities.

[OCPunisher]

goblin engineer and goblin welder feel like two very powerful, cheap staples for this kinda deck. Engineer in particular is going to really do work at finding swords and putting them out at the cost of say, a bloodforged battleaxe token. Being able to equip them to give them really supercharges the abilities.

Spot on! Probably also need two Tezzerets!

Edit: just won a copy of Embercleave!

[Tevesh]

I've played about half a dozen games and made two revisions with my Dalakos deck. Here's some of my observations:

Cost reducers pay their weight in gold. All of those Creatures that reduce cost make it cheap to play Equipment, then Dalakos can suit them up easily and you can toss them at opponents. They feel better than straight up Rocks.

Since your game plan is to turn sideways, Conqueror's Flail is almost mandatory. That way you don't need to worry about people Fogging your Combat Step. I am also fond of Grafted Exoskeleton as it one shots players pretty easily, whether that is by searching it up with Godo, Bandit Warlord or on a high power Creature that can get in. It's nice having a way to kill people quickly.

One of the more effective noncombat ways to kill is Vicious Shadows. People need to Wrath to deal with your board and then you make them pay. The better your opponents are, the better Vicious Shadows is. If they're new and blow their load early without a way to gas up, then the Shadows pings them. In my book, you've won right there. The tricky foes, the ones who keep drawing throughout the game or do stupid, greedy %$#% like Stroke for 10 with Infinite handsize get rightly punished by Shadows.

You're going to want some interaction, just to keep your guys and Equipment safe. I'm fond of Narset's Reversal and Wild Ricochet. I'll have to see how frequently I get to four power to see if I can reliably reduce Bolt Bend's cost. I saw a Lazotep Plating in the wild and I want to try that out in this deck. Someone tries to do something bad, you stop them and then make a Zombie who can wear Equipment in retaliation.

You have a bunch of lands that ETBT, this deck is a pseudo-midrange tempo deck. I'd advise against anything that'll really slow you down, as I've noticed fumbled starts really hurt the deck. You want to get your chain of value rolling by the time people have Flyers or Reach to keep them on the back foot. I'd go to more Basics, even if that makes your Field of the Dead less likely to hit. You're probably still in good shape.

[OCPunisher]

I've played about half a dozen games and made two revisions with my Dalakos deck. Here's some of my observations:

Cost reducers pay their weight in gold. All of those Creatures that reduce cost make it cheap to play Equipment, then Dalakos can suit them up easily and you can toss them at opponents. They feel better than straight up Rocks.

Since your game plan is to turn sideways, Conqueror's Flail is almost mandatory. That way you don't need to worry about people Fogging your Combat Step. I am also fond of Grafted Exoskeleton as it one shots players pretty easily, whether that is by searching it up with Godo, Bandit Warlord or on a high power Creature that can get in. It's nice having a way to kill people quickly.

One of the more effective noncombat ways to kill is Vicious Shadows. People need to Wrath to deal with your board and then you make them pay. The better your opponents are, the better Vicious Shadows is. If they're new and blow their load early without a way to gas up, then the Shadows pings them. In my book, you've won right there. The tricky foes, the ones who keep drawing throughout the game or do stupid, greedy %$#% like Stroke for 10 with Infinite handsize get rightly punished by Shadows.

You're going to want some interaction, just to keep your guys and Equipment safe. I'm fond of Narset's Reversal and Wild Ricochet. I'll have to see how frequently I get to four power to see if I can reliably reduce Bolt Bend's cost. I saw a Lazotep Plating in the wild and I want to try that out in this deck. Someone tries to do something bad, you stop them and then make a Zombie who can wear Equipment in retaliation.

You have a bunch of lands that ETBT, this deck is a pseudo-midrange tempo deck. I'd advise against anything that'll really slow you down, as I've noticed fumbled starts really hurt the deck. You want to get your chain of value rolling by the time people have Flyers or Reach to keep them on the back foot. I'd go to more Basics, even if that makes your Field of the Dead less likely to hit. You're probably still in good shape.

Lucky you...I haven't been able to play any games so far this year.

I have managed to goldfish a few "games" with this deck, and one thing I've noticed is that other mana rocks aren't nearly as important. Our fearless leader is basically a Worn Powerstone, so things like Fire Diamond, Sky Diamond and Coldsteel Heart don't really have much of an effect on the game: we either cast our commander on turn three, or we don't (and probably lose). Therefore, I cut several of them to fit the three T-Mages back in. What is your experience with the traditional cheap mana rocks in this deck?

I'm firmly on board with all cost reducers. They're much more subtle than mana doublers or even bigger rocks, and they easily pay for themselves several times over, and they're usually at a lower CMC.

I also double-checked the ETBT land count, and it is admittedly a little higher than the rest of my multi-color decks, probably because there just aren't as many enemy-color duals. Shouldn't be too hard to cut a couple for more basics.

[OCPunisher]

So, I'm up to 88 cards in this list as of this writing, which means I have 12 spots left in the deck, and I've compiled a list of about 15 cards that could fit into those spots:
Spellskite
Brass Squire
Solemn Simulacrum
Karn, Scion of Urza
Basilisk Collar
Shadowspear
Umezawa's Jitte
Crucible of Worlds
Inspiring Statuary
Mystic Forge
Vedalken Orrery
Batterskull
Thopter Spy Network
Cyclonic Rift
Reality Shift
Blasphemous Act
...plus any number of other two-mana counterspells (too many to list).

I think Rift and/or Act have to be in first because I have no other sweepers. Shadowspear and Solemn Simulacrum check a lot of boxes. Karn, Thopter Spy, and Mystic Forge all offer some extra draw power, which seems like the most important thing to stock up on given that our commander covers the mana ramp aspect of the deck. Otherwise...I don't know.

Also, hot take time: I'm still not a huge fan of the T-Mages, and the sheer number of tutor spells in this deck is higher than just about all of my other decks, so they are still very much on the hot seat in a deck that has a lot of things to try out.

[Tevesh]

Inspiring Statuary is a house. It's the only pure mana rock I want asides from the silliness that is Sol Ring. It turns all of your Equipment into mana rocks, that's ridiculous!

I think you're underestimating Evacuation. You play it on an attack and when it gets to your turn, you toss down Dalakos and whatever Critter, gear it up and it gets in there with no blockers in sight.

I haven't played Brass Squire in my build but based on my previous experience with it in an Akiri, Line-Slinger Voltron shell, it wasn't worth my while.

[darrenhabib]

100% you should be playing Fervent Champion, Kazuul's Toll Collector.

Mana management is key and these guys help to mitigate that and are just the best play after a wrath effect, where you just cast them out equip them with everything and smash hard.
Kazuul's Toll Collector also get's around Stony Silence and Null Rod.

Rogue's Gloves. The deck needs as many draw advantages as you can get.

Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion and Neheb, the Eternal are excellent creatures to suite up and attack with.

Riddlesmith for incredible card filtering.

When I was looking at Dalakos, Crafter of Wonders I was thinking that the haste element could be utilized on activated abilities, rather than just attacking.
Nin, the Pain Artist, Jace's Archivist, Arcanis the Omnipotent are excellent with haste because it means you can get value straight away.

[OCPunisher]

100% you should be playing Fervent Champion, Kazuul's Toll Collector.

Mana management is key and these guys help to mitigate that and are just the best play after a wrath effect, where you just cast them out equip them with everything and smash hard.
Kazuul's Toll Collector also get's around Stony Silence and Null Rod.

Rogue's Gloves. The deck needs as many draw advantages as you can get.

Neheb, Dreadhorde Champion and Neheb, the Eternal are excellent creatures to suite up and attack with.

Riddlesmith for incredible card filtering.

When I was looking at Dalakos, Crafter of Wonders I was thinking that the haste element could be utilized on activated abilities, rather than just attacking.
Nin, the Pain Artist, Jace's Archivist, Arcanis the Omnipotent are excellent with haste because it means you can get value straight away.

Setting aside the fact that there are already more playables than slots, the one problem I have with (almost) all of these is that they aren't artifacts, so Dalakos can't help cast them. This deck is shaping up to be more of a tempo-oriented, lower curve style with a few less lands, relying on Dalakos to be that early mana rock that pushes us ahead. Maybe I'm approaching this the wrong way, but I'm giving any non-artifact spell an extra layer of scrutiny just because of the increased potential for them to sit in hand.

Rogue's Gloves is the closest, but it still requires a successful combat step and offers no other bonus.

[Myllior]

I like what you're doing here. I've been toying with the idea of incorporating cost reducers into my Kefnet Voltron list, as well as removing the mass bounce element in favour of more equipment, so I'm eager to see how this develops.

I think Grand Architect would be a house in this deck. It gives all your blue creatures a slightly better version of Dalakos' mana ability (including itself) while buffing them. It also lets you turn your artifact creatures blue so you can eek out that little bit of extra ramp from creatures you're not planning to attack with.

Dowsing Dagger is another one worth considering for ramp, although needing to deal combat damage with it equipped can make it a little clunky.

[MeowZeDung]

Setting aside the fact that there are already more playables than slots, the one problem I have with (almost) all of these is that they aren't artifacts, so Dalakos can't help cast them. This deck is shaping up to be more of a tempo-oriented, lower curve style with a few less lands, relying on Dalakos to be that early mana rock that pushes us ahead. Maybe I'm approaching this the wrong way, but I'm giving any non-artifact spell an extra layer of scrutiny just because of the increased potential for them to sit in hand.

Rogue's Gloves is the closest, but it still requires a successful combat step and offers no other bonus.

IMO you're viewing this through the wrong lens. Dalakos is good for 2 mana per turn. Sweet. Kazuul's Toll Collector, Fervent Champion, Brass Squire, Ronin Warclub, or Hero's Blade type effects have a MUCH higher ceiling than functionally generating 2 mana per turn. I strongly think you should build more around the haste/flying Dalakos enables rather than a conditional Worn Powerstone on a body.

Edit: Have you considered Sword of the Animist? Cheap to cast and equip, and it gives you some land based ramp.