Elas and Lurrus - Best couple or Not a good idea? - Help wanted

[cheonice]

I finally got my hands on Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim and started thinking, how well he would work with Lurrus of the Dream-Den as a companion. I'd like to build him as an aristocrats deck rather than a combo deck. But I'm not sure, if one could make the deck work while committing to MW 2 to enable Lurrus. So without further ado, here are some thoughts:

What do we have?

• Most aristocrat creatures are allready MW 2: Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat, Cruel Celebrant, Corpse Knight, The Meathook Massacre, Suture Priest
• There should be enough sac outlets: Altar of Dementia, Viscera Seer, Carrion Feeder, Fleshtaker, Priest of Forgotten Gods, Spawning Pit, Hidden Stockpile, Vampiric Rites, Cartel Aristocrat
• We still have alle the recursive creatures: Reassembling Skeleton, Nether Traitor, Gravecrawler, Bloodghast, Cult Conscript, Gutterbones, Tenacious Dead
• We keep some great token producers: Bitterblossom, Dreadhorde Invasion, Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia, Ghoulish Procession

What do we get?

• A deckbuilding challenge
• A strong reanimation engine in the command/companion zone that hits ALL of our permanents: Lurrus of the Dream-Den
• Highly efficient recursion: Unearth, Patch Up, Call of the Death-Dweller, Return to the Ranks, Immortal Servitude, Ascend from Avernus
• Specialiced removal: Dusk // Dawn, Fell the Mighty, Retribution of the Meek

What do we loose?

• Some strong payoffs, especially regarding card draw: Grim Haruspex, Midnight Reaper, Morbid Opportunist, Marauding Blight-Priest, Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose, Syr Konrad, the Grim, Pawn of Ulamog, Pitiless Plunderer, Relic Vial, Bastion of Remembrance, Agent of the Iron Throne, Blight Mound, Dictate of Erebos
• The army-in-a-can creatures for more explosive turns: Chittering Witch, Cloudgoat Ranger, Sengir Autocrat, Company Commander, Elenda, the Dusk Rose
• Great sac outlets: Ashnod's Altar, Phyrexian Altar
• More high-end creatures: Teysa Karlov, Liesa, Forgotten Archangel, Sun Titan, Luminous Broodmoth, Reveillark

My biggest concern is the card draw. Loosing all the draw engines seems hard and I'm not sure how to compensate that... Same thing with the other payoffs. On the other hand we got a really great aristocrat in the command zone.

What do you think? Does anybody have any experience with Lurrus as a companion?

[TheAmericanSpirit]

I think tutoring for skullclamp will be very important if you go with lurrus.

[cheonice]

:D fair enough, totally forgot about the clamp! Yep, this would require quite a few tutors.

[NZB2323]

Cards you could run for card draw:

• Castle Locthwain
• Skullclamp
• Esper Sentinel
• Dark Confidant
• Sign in Blood
• Night's Whisper
• Read the Bones
• Village Rites
• Plumb the Forbidden
• Ad Nauseam

[Mookie]

A slightly different direction, but I'll call out Wernog, Rider's Chaplain as another option in the command zone (or the 99) if you're looking for more card draw. Cracking clues may be a bit too mana-intensive though.

[darrenhabib]

When companions came out I set myself a challenge to make a deck for each of the legal ones. And actually one of them my Kaheera, the Orphanguard companion deck has remained one of my favorite casual decks of all time.
At the time when companions was released I only had two options for Lurrus, Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim and Karlov of the Ghost Council. I made a Karlov+Lurrus deck, but it just didn't feel that good to play with Lurrus as companion.
The biggest thing with Lurrus is that your commander has to be doing something really special in order to warrant not just playing Lurrus as your commander. It allows you to get around the restriction (2 cmc) and also not having to spend an additional 3 is a big deal. Then having Lurrus goto the command zone, rather than graveyard as a companion is a huge deal as well.
I guess this is my long-winded way of saying if you're going to have Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim as your commander it can't just be nickle-and-dime stuff, but rather as a combo piece. Now unfortunately Phyrexian Altar or Pitiless Plunderer are key cards in infinite graveyard recursion with Gravecrawler, Oathsworn Vampire, Reassembling Skeleton and some others.
Some combos;
Gravecrawler + Carnival of Souls + Sacrifice/Death outlet.
Oathsworn Vampire + Carnival of Souls + Jet Medallion/any cost reduction.
Leonin Relic-Warder + Animate Dead/Dance of the Dead gives infinite ETB/LTB triggers.
These are the only combos I could come up with to utilize Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim as a combo. So in these instances you DON'T want to be playing the Blood Artist type creatures (in 99) because you already have the combo card in the command zone.

You could look to go wide with creatures and have instant or sorcery like Secure the Wastes, Army of the Damned, Storm Herd to flood the board. Getting that mana in Orzhov and specifically 2cmc is much more difficult. But you always have the Cabal Coffers + Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and plenty of ways to search for them including Expedition Map which can be recast with Lurrus to get both.
But it's kind of weird having a deck that costs all 2 or less and then having some big mana cards.

I understand just wanting to do it for the design challenge as I've done that myself, but if you truly want to have a deck that feels good and lasts long term then you do want to justify the commander + companion choice.

[darrenhabib]

A slightly different direction, but I'll call out Wernog, Rider's Chaplain as another option in the command zone (or the 99) if you're looking for more card draw. Cracking clues may be a bit too mana-intensive though.

Ok and actually you can play both Wernog, Rider's Chaplain and Bjorna, Nightfall Alchemist as "partner" commanders and put you into 4 colors!
Now this interests me personally because I've been looking for a design challenge to play Lurrus as a companion and not commander and the fact that I can get into 4 colors rather than just Orzov is the right type of reason

[Dunadain]

Aside from all the card draw already mentioned, you've also got Skeletal Scrying, Damnable Pact, and Cut of the Profits as more spell options, and Clattering Augur and Tenacious Underdog as draw engines.

Vampiric Rites is also pretty strong.

I honestly think you'll be fine in regards to card draw.

[cheonice]

Thank you so much for your input!

I honestly think you'll be fine in regards to card draw.

Yep, that should be less of a problem than I anticipated. Thanks for all of your suggestions!

[...]
The biggest thing with Lurrus is that your commander has to be doing something really special in order to warrant not just playing Lurrus as your commander. It allows you to get around the restriction (2 cmc) and also not having to spend an additional 3 is a big deal. Then having Lurrus goto the command zone, rather than graveyard as a companion is a huge deal as well.
I guess this is my long-winded way of saying if you're going to have Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim as your commander it can't just be nickle-and-dime stuff, but rather as a combo piece. Now unfortunately Phyrexian Altar or Pitiless Plunderer are key cards in infinite graveyard recursion with Gravecrawler, Oathsworn Vampire, Reassembling Skeleton and some others.
[...]

You could look to go wide with creatures and have instant or sorcery like Secure the Wastes, Army of the Damned, Storm Herd to flood the board. Getting that mana in Orzhov and specifically 2cmc is much more difficult. But you always have the Cabal Coffers + Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth and plenty of ways to search for them including Expedition Map which can be recast with Lurrus to get both.
But it's kind of weird having a deck that costs all 2 or less and then having some big mana cards.

I understand just wanting to do it for the design challenge as I've done that myself, but if you truly want to have a deck that feels good and lasts long term then you do want to justify the commander + companion choice.

You're right, using a companion just for the sake of it isn't enough. As with any commander the relevant question is: What does Lurrus do for my deck?
Going down the combo road like you suggested, would be a strong option. But in my playgroup nobody plays any dedicated combo decks. So that's not really an option. I'm with you that going with big spells feels odd, too.

A slightly different direction, but I'll call out Wernog, Rider's Chaplain as another option in the command zone (or the 99) if you're looking for more card draw. Cracking clues may be a bit too mana-intensive though.

Oh, that could be an interesting deck, too! Some blink artifact combo with everything beeing mv 2 or less! Would be a different plan, though.

I think, I'll give it a try. Maybe even use a combo as plan B or C. I will probably loose, if we enter the endgame, so being fast should be a priority. Will post a decklist later! Thanks again

[cheonice]

With your feedback I threw together a list with your stereotypical aristocrats plan and some combos. Not sure, if my plan with the self-recurring creatures is any good, but I will give it a try.

Elas & Lurrus

DecklistCMCManaPricesChartsDraw 7

//Commander

1 Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim

//Companion

1 Lurrus of the Dream-Den

//Aristocrats

1 Blood Artist

1 Corpse Knight

1 Cruel Celebrant

1 Suture Priest

1 Zulaport Cutthroat

//Sac Outlets

1 Altar of Dementia

1 Cartel Aristocrat

1 Fleshtaker

1 Hidden Stockpile

1 Priest of Forgotten Gods

1 Spawning Pit

1 Vampiric Rites

1 Viscera Seer

//Self-recurring Creatures

1 Cult Conscript

1 Gravecrawler

1 Gutterbones

1 Nether Traitor

1 Oathsworn Vampire

1 Reassembling Skeleton

//Token Creators

1 Bitterblossom

1 Dreadhorde Invasion

1 Ghoulish Procession

1 Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia

//Recursion

1 Call of the Death-Dweller

1 Dusk // Dawn

1 Patch Up

1 Phyrexian Reclamation

1 Priest of Fell Rites

1 Rally the Ancestors

1 Return to the Ranks

1 Unearth

//Combo

1 Animate Dead

1 Carnival of Souls

1 Kaya's Ghostform

1 Leonin Relic-Warder

//Card Draw

1 Costly Plunder

1 Deadly Dispute

1 Dusk Legion Zealot

1 Night's Whisper

1 Plumb the Forbidden

1 Reckoner's Bargain

1 Skullclamp

1 Village Rites

1 Wall of Omens

//Tutors

1 Mausoleum Secrets

1 Open the Armory

1 Stoneforge Mystic

//Ramp

1 Arcane Signet

1 Loyal Warhound

1 Orzhov Signet

1 Sol Ring

1 Talisman of Hierarchy

1 Wayfarer's Bauble

//Removal

1 Austere Command

1 Benalish Sleeper

1 Cathar Commando

1 Dismember

1 Remorseful Cleric

1 Rite of Oblivion

1 Swords to Plowshares

//Other

1 Kami of False Hope

1 Karlov of the Ghost Council

//Lands

18 Plains

18 Swamp

Approximate Total Cost:

[Sefir]

With Lurrus always available, Mesmeric Orb can also work as a pseudo-CA card, while making cards like Bloodchief Ascension even more deadly.

[cheonice]

With Lurrus always available, Mesmeric Orb can also work as a pseudo-CA card, while making cards like Bloodchief Ascension even more deadly.

With Lurrus as a commander, this could work. But I think it's not reliable enough, if she's just the companion.