Don Krenko, Combo Goblins
Breaking Bad
As some of you may no doubt be aware, I'm a bit of a Goblin fiend. Squee, Goblin Nabob was one of my first cards as a kid, and I returned to the game just in time for Duel Decks: Elves vs Goblins and Lorwyn. Since then, I've adamantly followed all the great goblin legends with each release, like Wort, Boggart Auntie or Tuktuk the Explorer, but it wasn't until the release of Krenko, Mob Boss that my goblin decks went from merely strong (in my playgroup at the time) to broken. When I transitioned from a kitchen table casual player to a league Commander player, it was only natural that I convert Krenko into one of my first Commander decks.
Krenko is a solid red Commander and one of the strongest token producers in the game, especially when you consider cost to value compared to other, similar commanders. He is a relatively simple deck to play, and so you'll rarely find yourself agonizing over what the next correct choice is. His token ability ensures a consistent exponential growth curve (I'll compare him to other Token commanders later). He is also advantageous as a budget commander, as there are only about five cards in my version of the deck that cost upwards of $20 (I'll discuss budget options later). However, with all of that said, he's still a mono-red commander, and a token commander, with all of the drawbacks inherent with those kinds of decks.
Who is the Mob Boss?
Krenko is goblin native of Ravnica first introduced in Magic 2013. He's Number Five on the Azorius Ten Most Wanted list. While he runs his own crime syndicate, he doesn't shy away from doing the dirty work himself and he takes on the occasional odd job from Mr. Taz. He's broken into the most secure buildings of many of the guilds and stolen from the Obzedat, blown up Azorius statues, set Selesnyan Saprolings on fire, helped push the Boros to overthrow Feather as guildmaster, killed one of the notorious Shattergang Brothers and managed to shank Gideon Jura despite his invulnerability field after being apprehended."We won't sit like lazy gob-slugs waiting for death to come to us. We'll bring death, shiny sharp, to our enemies." - Krenko, mob boss
My Metagame
I built Krenko for play in a weekly points-based Magic league in which Krenko has been tested for several years. The points system rewards crazy plays and occasionally punishes or rewards certain kinds of plays (multiple extra turns, MLD) to keep the meta from going stale. The players range from very casual, barely modified precons to highly tuned, very competitive decks. Krenko fairs well in both, and against the wide variety of decks I encounter.
You'll Like Krenko If
- You like a wide variety of win conditions, through both combo and aggro
- You like surprising your opponent with unexpected explosive combos
- You like casting a lot of quick, cheap spells
- You like having dozens of minions die for your cause
- You like having a strong early game
- You like battle cruiser magic
- You like casting big splashy spells
- You prefer to put out strong creatures and keep them there
- You prefer to control the board and avoid creatures
- You don't like regularly losing all your creatures
Krenko has a number of strengths that recommend him:
- He's Fast - Wins with Krenko will usually happen early in the game, and if you're playing right on turn five you'll already be looking at eight or more goblins on the field.
- Strong early game - Because Krenko works so quickly, he tends to overpower decks that favor the mid or late game.
- Resilient - Krenko can and will suffer setbacks, but Krenko's strength is that he can bounce back quickly.
- Indifferent to Stax - Simply put, outside of Contamination, stax will make little difference to your game.
- He's a Target - Once your playgroup faces a few Krenko wins, you'll start to become an early target in the game.
- Runs Out of Steam - Krenko can survive the mid-game, but if you're forced to go into a long game Krenko will run out of steam.
- Vulnerable to Control - Decks with a heavy focus on control, especially effects that shut down tokens or Krenko's activated ability, can be a major problem.
- Vulnerable to Early Hate - This isn't usually a problem in Commander, but if your opponents can get out some really early game hate (like a Turn 1 Pithing Needle), Krenko will be in a much weaker position until you find an answer.
There are quite a few solid token commanders and Krenko has access to only red spells, arguably commander's weakest colors. So why would you choose Krenko over those others? I had mentioned budget early, and that's certainly true - a Krenko deck can be a deadly threat with only a modest investment, but that isn't the only reason - most other token commanders are aiming for a mid-game win, which Krenko speeds past much earlier on.
Versus Kiki-Jiki
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker shares a LOT of similarities with Krenko. They're both goblins, they both come with the ability to create tokens. Kiki-Jiki even has haste built-in, for one extra mana. So why would you pick one over the other? The first reason, and the most important reason for a lot of people, is the cost. The commanders themselves have a pretty decent price difference, with Kiki-Jiki running for about $20, while Krenko costs around $5. Overall, the difference in cost between strong versions of both decks is about $100-$150. The second is politics, Kiki-Jiki has a much longer history in commander is frequently the cause of groans when revealed as your commander, while Krenko is much lesser known. The third is really just preference - Krenko is much more tribal-centric, and has the ability to pull off strong aggro wins, while Kiki-Jiki is primarily a combo centerpiece.
When playing Kiki-Jiki, remember that it has a lot of the same strengths and weaknesses as your deck. Without any external help, they both go active on turn 5, so you should plan accordingly. Your best bet is to go on the offensive as soon as possible to prevent Kiki from building into a game-winning combo before you (in fact, this is generally going to be your strategy with any fast, combo or control oriented deck).
Versus Marath
Marath, will of the Wild is the token control deck. Marath hits the board a turn sooner than Krenko if you hit all three colors early enough, and typical acceleration through mana rocks doesn't help Marath get out sooner. I used to run a Marath deck until I realized Marath and Prossh wanted all the same cards and cut it in favor of Prossh. In terms of token making ability, Marath is okay but leans more toward control rather than mass tokens... and Marath gets expensive, quickly - I often found Marath's abilities competing too much with my spells, making it a much more difficult deck to play than Krenko.
When competing against Marath, make sure not to cast Krenko the same turn the Marath player has left three mana open. Generally, however, a Marath player will be too busy setting up their board while Krenko continues to make you tokens. Marath simply can't make tokens fast enough to block attacks from a Krenko deck if you want to go that route, or can't keep you from using the tokens as fuel to combo out.
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher is another strong token deck, and can also lean heavily into Stax. If you're looking to play more battlecruiser-style magic, Prossh is your dragon. Prossh's evasiveness also allows its deck to avoid the huge number of chump blockers Krenko has available. However, Prossh as a deck is much slower than Krenko (sensing a theme, here?) and even though Prossh can sometimes get out the same time as Krenko, you usually won't see Prossh himself come into play until Krenko has already made enough goblins to get past the kobolds.
When playing against a Prossh deck, there are many similar win strategies as Krenko, including using Prossh's tokens to deal huge damage with Impact Tremors or Purphoros, God of the Forge. Since Prossh can keep pretty close pace with Krenko, your best option is to avoid attacking Prossh altogether unless they get a stax engine going. Instead, keep your tokens as a reserve against Prossh going for commander damage until you're able to combo out - but be warned that that's exactly what the Prossh player will be going for, too.
Versus Nath
Nath of the Gilt-Leaf is a great token stax commander. It can take some time to set up properly, but a well built Nath deck can effectively shut down the entire game. Contamination is a huge problem for Krenko, and while the discard isn't a huge deal after Krenko first comes out (as you'll usually be playing out your hand after turn 5), it can still hurt if you're holding back a win con.
When playing a Nath deck, you should always go aggro immediately. Usually I'd say hold back your tokens for the right move, but in this case your best solution is to just remove the Nath player immediately.
The Deck
Don Krenko, Combo Goblins
Approximate Total Cost:
Card Explanations
Haste Enablers
We've got a lot of haste enablers in this deck, so choose carefully when you have more than one, and try to use them as effectively as possible while you curve into Krenko. You will always want to be activate Krenko the moment he hits the board, even if there are no other goblins.
- Ashling's Prerogative is a great two drop. Almost everything that you want to have haste in this deck is considered even (remember, tokens are cmc 0, which for the purposes of this card is even). It also does a fantastic job punishing half your opponent's creatures. This is the card you desperately want every game (and the deck happens to be focused on even-numbered creatures, anyway).
- Fervor, Goblin Chieftain, and Goblin Warchief are all great haste enablers for the turn before Krenko comes into play, but if you have a choice a haste enabler with a body is always better than Fervor/Hammer, if only because it adds to your goblin count.
- Thousand-Year Elixir does double-duty in this deck. It gives Krenko functional haste for abilities. More importantly, it allows you to cheaply untap that creature, which allows for much more explosive turns. A single untap may not seem like much, but just activating Krenko twice on a turn can make the difference for a win.
All the anthem effects in this deck are pretty self-explanatory. Quest for the Goblin Lord, Shared Animosity, Coat of Arms, Goblin King, Goblin Chieftain, and Goblin Trashmaster can be win cons by themselves, if you have enough goblins to make use of them. They're also scary distractions for your opponents, keeping the pressure on and making them focus on the aggro strategy rather than disrupting your combos.
Ramp Effects
- Battle Hymn is specifically here to power your combos without going infinite. This cards allow you to get explosive and use one of the various combo engines in this deck a few times without going infinite. Late game, you'll need them to get Krenko back out once he starts cost or more, to keep you going when this deck starts to run out of steam.
- Dockside Extortionist is the late game ramp this deck needs, and will usually pay for itself five times over.
- Skirk Prospector, Phyrexian Altar, Ashnod's Altar, and Mana Echoes are infinite combo enablers with Umbral Mantle. You only need relatively few goblins to go infinite with any of these sac outlets, generally two goblins and an untapped Krenko. All but Mana Echoes also combo nicely with Thornbite Staff.
- Myriad Landscape is a simple and slow ramp, but I like it because it serves just fine as a regular land unless you need it.
The various tutors in this deck are fairly strong. Your primary target is almost always going to be Skirk Prospector, as it enables so many of the combos in this deck. After prospector, you're going to want to find yourself some of the utility creatures in this deck, depending on your board state. Don't forget Boggart Shenanigans is a 'Goblin Card' and is thus tutorable.
- Goblin Recruiter is cheap and lets you mass tutor and stack the top of your library, but avoid the urge to do so. Instead, only choose two or three cards at most that complement what you've already got going.
- Goblin Matron's target should be chosen carefully, since you can only get one out of it. Because you'll rarely play her curving into Krenko, she'll almost always be used to find combo piece that you can play the same turn you cast her.
- Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin Worst case scenario,Krenko 2.0 creates three goblins for Krenko 1.0. With all the anthem effects for goblins here, Krenko 2.0 may be creating a whole lot more. Getting stronger with every swing makes repeat token generation likely.
- Mogg War Marshal and Goblin Instigator aren't particularly strong token producers, but they're great early game plays leading into a turn 4 Krenko.
- Goblin Warboss is a fixed Goblin Rabblemaster, with no risk to Goblins you'd rather hold back. Getting a hasty goblin every combat is VERY helpful, especially the turn before Krenko. Remember, you can activate all sorts of abilities before that poor goblin token marches off to war.
- Siege-Gang Commander is a great card regardless of format, but its primarily here as a token produce, as creating four bodies in one go is obviously powerful. The damage ability is also useful to get rid of utility creatures. In a pinch, its also your finisher when you've got infinite mana and tokens.
These free outlets are important, as they feed the death triggers of cards like Boggart Shenanigans, Pashalik Mons, Goblin Sharpshooter, and Thornbite Staff. They'll also net you infinite versions of their effects when you have infinite tokens, but their effects are still pretty powerful even when you've got a limited supply of creatures to sacrifice.
- Dark-Dweller Oracle isn't a free outlet, but it more than makes up for it in, if not card advantage, at least letting you sift to what you need. It's a centerpiece to any infinite combo that makes mana.
- Goblin Bombardment is fabulous. Combined with a Goblin Sharpshooter and Krenko, you generally won't need to go infinite to deal serious damage, but it's also the easiest win con in the deck once you have an infinite token engine going.
- Goblin Trashmaster is strong artifact removal with an anthem stapled on top.
- Skirk Prospector, Phyrexian Altar, and Ashnod's Altar were all mentioned in the ramp section, so I won't go into them again here.
- Goblin Chirurgeon gives you some protection, sacrifice a goblin token to protect the likes of Krenko - or any other important goblin - from the inevitable wraths coming your way. If you find yourself up against decks with a lot of wraths or removal, Chirurgeon is the card that's going to keep you alive.
- Goblin Sledder/Mogg Raider don't seem very impressive at first, but you can never have enough sac outlets in a deck like this. Sledder and Raider allow you to perform useful combat tricks, sacrificing your chump blockers to kill an enemy creature, or sacrificing all your blocked attackers to pump up a creature that gets through.
Impact Tremors and Purphoros, God of the Forge are some of the scariest cards in any token deck, and for good reason. With Purphoros (or Purphoros Jr.) on the board, you can do a lot of added damage just by playing your deck normally. If you have a chance to get either one onto the field, do it ASAP.
- Boggart Shenanigans and Pashalik Mons are useful because this deck has such a high token turnover rate that you'll often see one of these on the board doing 10 or more damage per game, minimum. It's nowhere near Purphoros or Tremors in terms of value, but combined with an infinite death trigger combo it'll finish the game for you.
- Goblin Sharpshooter works well with the rest of this deck by itself, but a good sac outlet (like Goblin Bombardment) can mean a ton of damage output from this little guy. Like Boggart Shenanigans, an infinite death trigger combo means this card wins you the game, but otherwise it provides a lot of value and has the added bonus of counting as a goblin for Krenko's ability. It's pretty brutal in that it can kill everything on the board with one toughness. It's more useful than Boggart Shenanigans but also more fragile.
- Thornbite Staff is critical to this deck, as it's the easiest means to activate several infinite combos. However, even without an infinite combo it's an extremely useful card, especially when combined with sac outlets. It really maximizes the values of any creature in the deck that taps as an activated ability (Krenko, Mob Boss, Moggcatchter, Rummaging Goblin, Goblin Sharpshooter, or on any creature when Kyren Negotiations is on the battlefield).
- Arcane Lighthouse - For those annoying to hit creatures and opponents.
- Blood Moon slows down your opponent's decks (especially multi-color decks) by turning all their non-basic lands into mountains. It also basically turns off their utility lands. In essence, it significantly slows down craftier decks (especially combo decks) that use more than one color or ramp through cards like Gaea's Cradle or Cabal Coffers. With Goblin King, it also turns on your creatures' Mountainwalk.
- Tectonic Reformation - Drawing a land after turn four has serious diminishing returns in this deck, and this card helps you replace it with something you want more.
- Buried Ruin is here to recover your equipment or Rings of Brighthearth. Basically just another layer of protecting to ensure you have what you need.
- Castle Embereth is a easy anthem to help you push.
- Cavern of Souls is, by far, the most expensive card in the deck... but it also happens to be one of the most useful. It ensures that Krenko will always make it to the battlefield rather than be countered.
- Conspicuous Snoop is a Future Sight for goblins, at a great cost. Easily a very valuable card in terms of card advantage, and some fun combos with the ability rider.
- Grenzo, Havoc Raiser is great card advantage OR a great way to force your way out of stalemates and keep the pressure on.
- Haunted Fengraf has a marginal advantage due to it not letting you select the creature you're bringing back, but ultimately it doesn't matter. Almost any of the creatures in this deck are worth bringing back.
- Homeward Path is to protect yourself against mass creature theft. Having your Krenko stolen is a painful experience, and if you don't have a sacrifice outlet to kill him first, you can always use this to get your creatures back.
- Strip Mine is here to slow down your opponent's game. This deck will rarely need more than six lands in play, but most decks will need a lot more. You can buy yourself a turn or take out a utility land.
- Underworld Breach is RECURSION IN RED. Bring back any of your combo pieces! Holy heck! I can't understate how much this card will change the game for you after a few bad turns.
I spoke about Goblin Sharpshooter already in the death trigger section, so I'm not including it here.
- Arms Dealer gets through cards like Linvala and many of your opponent's utility creatures.
- Brash Taunter is a goblin [Stuffy Doll], and makes an incredible deterrent. Make your opponents pay for big creatures or attacking you. It also pairs nicely with Skirk Fire Marshal, as it's indestructible and pays the 10 damage forward.
- Five-Alarm Fire is here to mess up your opponent's day. Since you'll be getting plenty of counters on this by attacking, it should allow you to repeatedly knock-out problem creatures or bring your opponent's life totals down.
- Lightning Crafter is a lightning bolt every turn, at worst. Combined with Thornbite Staff you can rack up damage pretty quickly.
- Kyren Negotiations seems relatively weak at first glance, but rememeber: cards with summoning sickness can still be tapped by it to pay for damage. At it's worst, it means every untapped creature you control deals damage to a player directly at the end of every turn regardless of whether or not it has summoning sickness. Why would you risk your creatures attacking when you can just tap them right before the start of your turn and deal the same damage directly? It allows you to keep a bunch of blockers available and get to damage an opponent like you're attacking them, too. Combined with a sac outlet, it allows you to get some extra value out of a creature before it dies.
- Skirk Fire Marshal is one of your best win-cons in the deck, and will also clear the board and finish out a game if you time it right.
- Throne of the God-Pharaoh is insane in this deck, as it effectively doubles your successful combat damage by having every tapped creature deal damage again. And that's only against one opponent. It's incredibly strong in this deck, especially paired with the various tapping effects.
I've already talked quite a bit about Thornbite Staff, so I'm not going to repeat it here, except to say it's by far the most valuable equipment in the deck. Umbral Mantle is an adequate back-up but require more cards to go infinite. Lightning Greaves' and Swiftfoot Boots' purposes are obvious: to give protection and give your important creatures haste.
Krenko is relatively inexpensive, but I do have some pricier cards in this list. Here are the most expensive cards, and a budget option to replace them with if you don't want to make the investment. I'm listing cards $10 and above here:
- Blood Moon - Blood Sun
- Cavern of Souls - Mountain (Seriously)
- Phyrexian Altar - Worn Powerstone
- Rings of Brighthearth - Illusionist's Bracers (It's a relatively weak substitution, however)
- Strip Mine - Ghost Quarter
- Gamble - Wild Guess
- Blood Moon: I've been in and out with this card, but at this point the deck is so tuned that I hate having anything that doesn't directly synergize with the overall strategy. Blood Moon is a valid choice in some decks and turns on Mountainwalk with Goblin King, but it's also the card most likely to NOT be in a version of this deck because of the price, and the face that it makes you an instant target.
- Warren Instigator & Goblin Lackey: Instigator and Lackey are strong cards most of the time, but they're both typically too late in the game to provide much value - either my hand is empty of Goblins or there is just no way they're doing combat damage.
- Goblin Rabblemaster: This card is tempting at first, but ultimately this Krenko deck isn't really about attacking. If you're attacking, you should be either (A) winning the game or (b) in the first few turns, before anyone else has played creatures.
- Chancellor of the Forge: This is another card that is tempting at first. However, this Krenko deck is pretty lean and if I'm paying more than 4 cmc for something, it needs to be winning me the game. The likelihood that I'd need this card, rather than either recasting Krenko or one of my finishers, is incredibly low. He was useful before the tuck rule changed, but since I can't really lose Krenko now, there isn't much point to him in this deck.
- Barrage of Expendables: This was in an earlier version of this deck, but I found I rarely got to activate it or have it do what I needed it to. Creature Sacrifice needs to be (mostly) free in this deck)
- Outpost Siege: While this seemed like a nice second Boggart Shenanigans, that extra mana makes a big difference in this deck, and there just wasn't enough to justify its place.
- Illusionist's Bracers: This card is really tempting to work with Krenko, but unlike the other equipment in this deck it doesn't provide the value for the cost.
- Various Aggro Cards: I used to run a much more attack-heavy package, more anthems, Legion Loyalist, Goblin Bushwhacker, Goblin Wardriver, Hellrider, In the Web of War, Ogre Battledriver, Goblin King, etc. The challenge was that it was much easier for my opponents to shut down that strategy through various means (see Problem Cards below), and moving to a more combo-oriented package leaves attacking as an option but gives me more flexibility.
- Mana Crypt: If you've got the budget for it, it's not a bad choice, but I've found I'm rarely hurting for more colorless mana. It's a great ramp out of the gate, but it has almost no value after turn 4. The low CMC overall of this deck also makes mana rocks not particularly effective.
- Wheel of Fortune: Slate of Ancestry ends up being a repeatable Wheel in this deck, frequently for a lot more value. Wheel could definitely be an asset in this deck, but Your Mileage May Vary. Personally, I'm not sure it's worth the price. If you've already got one, try it.
- Moggcatcher is on the pricier side and is not a goblin, so it can't be tutored for by matron or recruiter. However, the ability to tutor every turn and put a goblin right into play can't be ignored. In general, catcher will be used to find the higher cost goblins (Siege-Gang) for value, whereas you'll generally shy away from that with recuriter and matron. I just didn't have much luck with it.
- Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Zealous Conscripts, Splinter Twin, and Combat Celebrant are all strong cards, but I felt like the deck was getting diluted trying to pull off combos focused exclusively around these four instead of focusing on the core mechanics. See the cut combos section below for the potential of these cards. They're perfectly legitimate, if you want to include them in your own version.
- Hordeling Outburst was just outclassed by Krenko 2.0, but if you're looking for a budget alternative, this card is a good slot-in.
Cut Combos
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Kiki-Jiki Combos
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Lightning Crafter + any sac outlet = Infinite ETB Triggers, Infinite Death Triggers, & Infinite Damage
This combo use Kiki-Jiki's ability to copy Lightning Crafter. The copy champions Kiki-Jiki and is then sacrificed to any sac outlet. Kiki-Jiki returns to the battlefield untapped, and process is repeated. The copies can tap to deal damage before being sacrificed.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Thornbite Staff + any other creature + any sac outlet = Infinite ETB Triggers & Death Triggers
This combo uses a Thorbite Staff equipped Kiki-Jiki's ability to copy any creature, get the value one whatever creature it is, and then sacrifice it to any sac outlet, which untaps Kiki-Jiki to repeat the process.
Zealous Conscripts Combos
These combos use Kiki-Jiki's ability to make a copy of Zealous Conscripts, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts = Infinite Conscript Copies
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Combat Celebrant Combos
These combos use Kiki-Jiki's ability to make a copy of Combat Celebrants between each attack phase, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki... and everyone else.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes =Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Krenko, Mob Boss = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Goblins, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Goblin Sharpshooter/Lightning Crafter = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Skirk Fire Marshal + 3 Other Goblins = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin Combos
Goblin Sharpshooter Combo
This combo uses the Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Goblin Sharpshooper, and then uses a sacrifice outlet to create infinite ETB & Death triggers.
Splinter Twin + Goblin Sharpshooter + Any Sac Outlet = Infinite Death & ETB Triggers
Zealous Conscripts Combos
These combos use Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Zealous Conscripts, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap the enchanted Conscript.
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts = Infinite Conscript Copies
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Combat Celebrant Combos
These combos use Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Combat Celebrant before each attack phase, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki... and everyone else.
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes =Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Krenko, Mob Boss = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Goblins, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Goblin Sharpshooter/Lightning Crafter = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Skirk Fire Marshal + 4 Other Goblins = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Staff of Domination Combos
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Mana Echoes + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Ashnod's Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Ashnod's Altar + two other goblins = Infinite Mana, Tokens, & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + two other goblins = Infinite ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + three other goblins = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Lightning Crafter + any sac outlet = Infinite ETB Triggers, Infinite Death Triggers, & Infinite Damage
This combo use Kiki-Jiki's ability to copy Lightning Crafter. The copy champions Kiki-Jiki and is then sacrificed to any sac outlet. Kiki-Jiki returns to the battlefield untapped, and process is repeated. The copies can tap to deal damage before being sacrificed.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Thornbite Staff + any other creature + any sac outlet = Infinite ETB Triggers & Death Triggers
This combo uses a Thorbite Staff equipped Kiki-Jiki's ability to copy any creature, get the value one whatever creature it is, and then sacrifice it to any sac outlet, which untaps Kiki-Jiki to repeat the process.
Zealous Conscripts Combos
These combos use Kiki-Jiki's ability to make a copy of Zealous Conscripts, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts = Infinite Conscript Copies
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Zealous Conscripts + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Combat Celebrant Combos
These combos use Kiki-Jiki's ability to make a copy of Combat Celebrants between each attack phase, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki... and everyone else.
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes =Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Krenko, Mob Boss = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Goblins, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Goblin Sharpshooter/Lightning Crafter = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker + Combat Celebrant + Skirk Fire Marshal + 3 Other Goblins = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin Combos
Goblin Sharpshooter Combo
This combo uses the Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Goblin Sharpshooper, and then uses a sacrifice outlet to create infinite ETB & Death triggers.
Splinter Twin + Goblin Sharpshooter + Any Sac Outlet = Infinite Death & ETB Triggers
Zealous Conscripts Combos
These combos use Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Zealous Conscripts, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap the enchanted Conscript.
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts = Infinite Conscript Copies
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Splinter Twin +Zealous Conscripts + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes = Infinite Conscript Copies & Mana
Combat Celebrant Combos
These combos use Twin's duplication ability to create a copy of Combat Celebrant before each attack phase, and then uses Conscript's 'Untap' ability to untap Kiki-Jiki... and everyone else.
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Phyrexian Altar = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Ashnod's Altar/Mana Echoes =Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Untapping & Mana
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Krenko, Mob Boss = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Goblins, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Goblin Sharpshooter/Lightning Crafter = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Splinter Twin + Combat Celebrant + Skirk Fire Marshal + 4 Other Goblins = Infinite Celebrant Copies, Infinite Attack Phases, Infinite Damage, & Infinite Untapping
Staff of Domination Combos
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Mana Echoes + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Ashnod's Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Ashnod's Altar + two other goblins = Infinite Mana, Tokens, & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + two other goblins = Infinite ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Staff of Domination + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + three other goblins = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
- Ghostly Prison/Propaganda/Etc: These cards are a lot more effective on Krenko builds that win primarily through combat. For this deck, they're not really a problem, since attacking is secondary. I'm giving away a bit of a trade secret here by mentioning this, but when people are worried about a horde of goblins turning sideways and prepare to deal with THAT, they're not prepared for you to deal lethal damage with just a handful of goblins through a combo.
- Linvala, Keeper of Silence: Linvala is probably one of the only real threats out there. Chaos Warp, Voracious Dragon, Burn at the Stake, Goblin Bombardment and Last-Ditch Effort can all deal with her, and while I'd prefer not to waste any of these, she's a significant enough threat that it's a solid trade-off.
- The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale/Magus of the Tabernacle: While this can hurt a bit, this deck tends to be more explosive and not a static build up. By the time you've got enough tokens for them to matter, you've generally won anyway.
- Pithing Needle/Torpor Orb: Artifacts aren't much of a concern, as red can deal with those pretty easily. Torpor Orb is a pretty major one as it shuts down some of the better combos in this deck, but not all. I'm still judging the value of adding Shattering Spree, but it couldn't hurt.
- Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite: Unless this is some bizarre ramp into Elesh Norn deck, I'm not really afraid of her. I will generally have won long before an Elesh Norn makes it onto the field, and even if I haven't, she can't kill Krenko and I can still get death triggers off the tokens (unless I get Coat of Arms into play, at which point her effect is largely countered). Worst case, I can deal with her the same way I'd deal with Linvala.
- Contamination/Stax: In general Stax is just provokes an 'lol ok' response when playing this deck. Contamination is a problem, but in general for strong stax generals like Nath, they're not going to be playing contamination when it would matter against Krenko because they need to set up their side of the board first.
Krenko has, essentially, two methods of victory available to him. The first is the most obvious: attacking with a butt load of tokens and overwhelming your opponents defenses - but that's what everyone thinks you're going to do with him, and what kind of goblin commander would he be if he did what people expect? The second is using those tokens to fuel explosive win cons instead. And Krenko can do both of these things much earlier in the game than most people expect. Even with access to Doubling Season, most other token producers just can't match him. My version of Krenko certainly isn't the only way to build him. I used to run a version that had a lot more emphasis on attacking, but as I played I realized I preferred the combo aspect more. The one piece of advice I give for all Krenko decks is make sure to keep your CMC low - don't include anything over 4cmc unless it's going to seriously improve your board state or win you the game.
The most basic strategy for Krenko is to lay the groundwork for him to come into play on turn four. That means have a haste enabler in play, a goblin or two already in play to increase his initial token production, and maybe some combo piece. This deck uses several different (often complementary) mechanisms for combos: ETB triggers, death triggers, tapping creatures, sacrificing creatures, and counting the number of goblins you have in play. If you're playing against a control-oriented deck, you want to attack quickly and relentlessly. If you're playing virtually anything else, you want to hold back your goblins as fuel to combo out.
On turns 1 through 3 you prepare the battlefield for Krenko. This means that in your opening hand, you should have multiple cards you can play early on, and the lands to support them. Haste enablers are preferred, followed by combo pieces and then just anything you can curve into Krenko with. The ideal opening hand would give you something to play on each of these turns and the lands to cast them. You may also have some card filtering available to you, which you should use depending on your strategy (discard combo pieces if you're going aggro, discard aggro pieces if you're going combo).
On turn 4, you cast Krenko and, if you could manage a haste enabler, tap him just before the start of your next turn to double your goblins. Otherwise, tap him on turn 5 to double your goblins. If you get delayed (and it happens), it's okay. Many decks don't even really get started until this point, anyway, and it'll just be a tighter fight. Either way, once he's out, start looking to your combo pieces and win cons for subsequent turns, and building your board state if not.
A few things to remember:
- If your opponent(s) is open, always attack early and often. Don't let your creatures go to waste.
- Individual goblins don't matter, not even Krenko. There are plenty of back-up plans.
- Surprisingly few goblins are needed to activate most combos.
- You don't need to flat-out kill the opponent for a combo to be effective, so don't wait for the perfect moment.
- You don't need to go infinite to deal massive damage.
- Any creature that taps benefits from the equipment in this deck.
Krenko has a lot of combos available, so I'll go through them piece by piece here. First are the infinite combos. They're are a lot of permutations here, so I'm going to list the basic theories behind the various engines, and then give some examples.
The combo engines are based around Krenko, Mob Boss, using equipment that allows you to untap creatures with a tap ability. The equipment require either or a death trigger to untap. The death trigger is the easiest, as any sac outlet will trigger it with the tokens you create. The mana is trickier, but cards like Skirk Prospector, Ashnod's Altar, Phyrexian Altar, and Mana Echoes will allow you to produce it, supposing you're making enough tokens every time.
The net result is usually infinite mana, infinite tokens (and by extension, ETB triggers), and/or infinite death triggers. However, many of these are strong combos even if you don't have all the prerequisites to go infinite. For instance, just being able to untap Krenko once per turn means you can quadruple your current number of tokens every turn, instead of just doubling it - which often enough to defeat a player. Here are lists of the various combinations:
Krenko Combos
Infinite Combos
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Umbral Mantle Combos
The following combos involve making the mana to pay for Mantle/Paruns to untap Krenko and repeat the process. These are the minimum requirements, having extra goblins at the start will accumulate rewards faster. The Mana Echoes version requires three turns before it starts making extra tokens, as you net one mana every time and you need to be able to untap Krenko twice before tokens can begin to accumulate (an extra goblin at the start will skip this step).
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Mana Echoes + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Ashnod's Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Ashnod's Altar + two other goblins = Infinite Mana, Tokens, & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + two other goblins = Infinite ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + three other goblins = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Thornbite Staff Combos
The following combos involve using a sacrifice outlet to generate death triggers as a means of untapping Krenko using Thornbite Staff. Any free sacrifice outlet will work for these combos, and adding an extra goblin (if the sac outlet isn't a goblin itself) at the start will result in infinite goblin tokens in addition to the listed effect.
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Skirk Prospector = Infinite Mana
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Phyrexian Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Ashnod's Altar = Infinite Mana
Note: Add Dark-Dweller Oracle to any of the above combos to impulse draw your entire deck.
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Bombardment = Infinite Damage
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Chirurgeon = Infinite Tokens & Regeneration Shields
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Sledder/Mogg Raider = Infinite Tokens, Power, & Toughness
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Trashmaster = Infinite Artifact Destruction
The following combos involve making the mana to pay for Mantle/Paruns to untap Krenko and repeat the process. These are the minimum requirements, having extra goblins at the start will accumulate rewards faster. The Mana Echoes version requires three turns before it starts making extra tokens, as you net one mana every time and you need to be able to untap Krenko twice before tokens can begin to accumulate (an extra goblin at the start will skip this step).
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Mana Echoes + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Ashnod's Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Ashnod's Altar + two other goblins = Infinite Mana, Tokens, & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + two other goblins = Infinite ETB & Death Triggers
Krenko, Mob Boss + Umbral Mantle + Skirk Prospector/Phyrexian Altar + three other goblins = Infinite Mana, ETB & Death Triggers
Thornbite Staff Combos
The following combos involve using a sacrifice outlet to generate death triggers as a means of untapping Krenko using Thornbite Staff. Any free sacrifice outlet will work for these combos, and adding an extra goblin (if the sac outlet isn't a goblin itself) at the start will result in infinite goblin tokens in addition to the listed effect.
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Skirk Prospector = Infinite Mana
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Phyrexian Altar + another goblin = Infinite Mana & Tokens
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Ashnod's Altar = Infinite Mana
Note: Add Dark-Dweller Oracle to any of the above combos to impulse draw your entire deck.
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Bombardment = Infinite Damage
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Chirurgeon = Infinite Tokens & Regeneration Shields
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Sledder/Mogg Raider = Infinite Tokens, Power, & Toughness
Krenko, Mob Boss + Thornbite Staff + Goblin Trashmaster = Infinite Artifact Destruction
Muxus Combo
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The Ideal Muxus-inclined Goblin Stack from Goblin Recruiter is as follows (start with Muxus, Goblin Grandee if not in hand already):
First Six When Lightning Crafter hits the Battlefield, Champion Muxus. Tap Goblin Sharpshooter to deal 1 damage, then Tap the Lightning Crafter to deal 3 damage, then sacrifice it to Trashmaster and destroy an artifact (there will usually be at least one). Then tap Goblin Sharpshooter for another 1 damage and don't forget about the 1 damage from Pashalik Mons. Muxus will re-renter play and your second six cards will hit.
Second Six
*Note: If you attack with Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin, you can get another 5 goblins. Even if Krenko dies, that nets you about 20 goblins, total (If you have Mob Boss on the Battlefield, double that to 40). You can ideally tap them all to deal 40 damage to everyone and everything instead, and then another 40 through Brash Taunter.
First Six When Lightning Crafter hits the Battlefield, Champion Muxus. Tap Goblin Sharpshooter to deal 1 damage, then Tap the Lightning Crafter to deal 3 damage, then sacrifice it to Trashmaster and destroy an artifact (there will usually be at least one). Then tap Goblin Sharpshooter for another 1 damage and don't forget about the 1 damage from Pashalik Mons. Muxus will re-renter play and your second six cards will hit.
Second Six
- Siege-Gang Commader
- Skirk Fire Marshal
- Brash Taunter
- Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin
- Goblin Instigator
- Mogg War Marshal
*Note: If you attack with Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin, you can get another 5 goblins. Even if Krenko dies, that nets you about 20 goblins, total (If you have Mob Boss on the Battlefield, double that to 40). You can ideally tap them all to deal 40 damage to everyone and everything instead, and then another 40 through Brash Taunter.
Instant Wins
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Instant Wins from Infinite Death TriggersInstant Wins from Infinite ETB Triggers:Instant Wins from Infinite ManaInstant Wins from Infinite Tokens:
So it's after turn 4 and you don't magically have an infinite combo to immediately win you the game. Surprise! It happens, and you should never rely on them or not make good plays in the hopes of getting one. So then, without that overwhelming force... how do we win?
If you're going for the combo win, follow this rule: Add, Tap, Count, then Sac & Die. What does this mean? Well, consider the following:
- Add: Impact Tremors, Purphoros, God of the Forge, Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
- Tap: Kyren Negotiations, Burn at the Stake, Skirk Fire Marshal
- Count: Goblin War Strike, Battle Hymn
- Sac: Last-Ditch Effort, Goblin Bombardment, and Voracious Dragon
- Die: Boggart Shenanigans, Thornbite Staff and Goblin Sharpshooter
Change Log
Change Log
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Changes made prior to 2015 can be found on the legacy version of the primer on MTG Salvation. Legacy as in "old and not updated" version, not the format. This will track changes to the deck from Ikoria: Lair of the Behemoths forward.
20/05/22 Ikoria: Lair of the Behemoths update: No changes at this time, but I have my eye on Molten Echoes as a possible inclusion.
20/07/11 Core 2021 update: I've decided not to include Molten Echoes at this time.
Out: Staff of Domination, Vanquisher's Banner
In: Brash Taunter, Conspicuous Snoop
20/09/28 Zendikar Rising update: No updates from the set itself, but some changes in the deck.
Out: Brightstone Ritual [/card], Massive Raid [/card]
In: Muxus, Goblin Grandee [/card], Five-Alarm Fire[/card]
20/05/22 Ikoria: Lair of the Behemoths update: No changes at this time, but I have my eye on Molten Echoes as a possible inclusion.
20/07/11 Core 2021 update: I've decided not to include Molten Echoes at this time.
Out: Staff of Domination, Vanquisher's Banner
In: Brash Taunter, Conspicuous Snoop
20/09/28 Zendikar Rising update: No updates from the set itself, but some changes in the deck.
Out: Brightstone Ritual [/card], Massive Raid [/card]
In: Muxus, Goblin Grandee [/card], Five-Alarm Fire[/card]
Hi, my name is Jay13x, and I'm bad at magic. I've been playing magic on and off since 1998, and I've grown incrementally better at it in all that time. I have always loved goblin decks and have had one in one form or another for years. In 1999, I was a young Magic players with only a starter set and a few Sixth Edition packs to my name. One day, at the mall with my parents, we happened upon a game store… back when game stores could afford mall rent. At the store, I begged my parents to buy me a pack of cards, which ended up being Mercadian Masques. I opened the pack, and inside was Squee, Goblin Nabob. I was blown away! A card that when it died, I could return it to my hand every turn? I'd gotten my first taste of Goblins.
Eight years later, I'm in college and working as a graphic designer. I hadn't played magic since before high school. My coworker, a guy named Chris, mentions he's going to a Magic tournament that weekend. "Seriously?" I ask, "Magic is still a thing?". Intrigued, I convince a friend to come with me, and we both go to what ended up being a pre-release tournament for Future Sight. We're hooked. When I see that my LGS has a copy of Elves vs Goblins, I immediately snatch it up and get to work on my goblin deck. Then Lorwyn is released, and it's a trove of Goblin cards, further fueling my obsession. For years, I have a goblin deck - sometimes more than one - that I play regularly with friends. My goblins became feared far and wide. When Krenko is released, my friends refuse to play my goblin deck without warning.
My playgroup tried the Commander Precons and decided we didn't like them... until I moved away just a couple years ago. A friend (from this site, no less), introduces me to Commander, and my first choice for an original deck is obvious: Krenko. My first build was terrible. I won't bore you with the details, but I didn't understand Commander yet and years of playing with a small playgroup hadn't prepared me yet for what was to come. I found Dorino's primer here to get me started in revamping Krenko into something more useful, and along with a fellow Krenko player at my new LGS, Don Krenko was born.
