Conditions Allow - Norin, Swift Survivalist EDH

Ben Doolittle • September 26, 2024

Deckbuilding
(Norin, Swift Survivalist | Art by Yigit Koroglu)

Norin Bravely Ran Away, Away

Hello, and welcome back to Conditions Allow, where I take legendary creatures with drawbacks and turn them into strengths. We've officially left the idyllic fields of Bloomburrow behind to delve into the twisted halls of Duskmourn, and while we all like to imagine ourselves the heroes of our stories, if I were trapped in a horror movie, there's no Magic character I'd rather follow than Norin, Swift Survivalist.

Norin, Swift Survivalist is a Human Coward who gives you the ability to exile your creatures whenever they become blocked. This can save them from being killed in combat, but this also leaves your opponents' creatures alive, and while Norin does let you recast those creatures on that turn, there are many more efficient ways to re-trigger enter-the-battlefield effects. What Norin, Swift Survivalist really offers is a consistent way to cast creatures from exile.

Follow Your Impulses

Norin, Swift Survivalist also excels at presenting your opponents with difficult decisions, and these cards are a big part of why. Whether your creature gets blocked or not, someone is going to take damage. Passionate Archaeologist and Keeper of Secrets are also the reason this deck has a slightly higher curve than average, based on EDHREC data. Not only do more expensive creatures generally have better effects when they enter, but they also push more damage.

Bigger creatures also get better benefits from your value pieces as well. Cascading from Inferno Titan is better than Circuit Mender. Nalfeshnee letting you attack with two Inferno Titans every turn is also a great way to end a game in a real hurry. Warped Space makes sure you can cast those expensive creatures from exile every turn as well, letting you hold up mana for interaction.

I Will Not Pass

 A vital form of interaction for this deck are effects that force creatures to block, and Invasion Plans is the best of these. It's in effect from the moment you cast it without needing any additional mana. Nemesis Mask and Grappling Hook require you to re-equip to whichever creature you want blocked every turn, which the discount from Warped Space makes much more manageable. It's also important to keep in mind the differences between these two Equipment. Nemesis Mask forces every creature to block that can, so you'll almost always exile your creature with Norin, Swift Survivalist to keep it alive. Grappling Hook, on the other hand, only forces one creature to block, so you can safely pick out key creatures to kill in combat.

I'm also including a few one-time effects that force blocks. This deck simply needs a certain density of these spells to function. Besides, who wouldn't want to pass a copy of Melee around the table twice just to figure out what it does? 

For a true head-scratcher, though, this deck also plays Magnetic Web. Magnetic Web taps to put a magnet counter on a creature. Then, whenever a creature with a magnet counter on it attacks, any creatures the defending player controls with magnet counters must block it. The idea is that you'll want to put magnet counters on your opponents' creature first, then put them on your own creatures when you're ready to attack. Your creature must then be blocked by any creatures with magnet counters, but then they return from exile for free from Magnetic Web's effect when you recast it. This ensures you're only forcing blocks when you want to.

Unless...

A savvy opponent will realize that you secretly want your creature to be blocked every turn, and with only seven ways to force blocks, you'll often be reliant on the natural impulse of a Magic player to preserve their life points to incentivize those blocks. It's at this moment where Norin, Swift Survivalist thrives. You could shy away from that chump blocker, perhaps to re-trigger a powerful effect. Or you can flash in Embercleave to punch through and deal a surprise chunk of damage. 

Most of these double strike spells are best when you aren't blocked since they don't give trample, but even when you are, they can turn what would be a trade into a surprise victory. With Norin, Swift Survivalist in the command zone, your opponents will expect you to shy away from a real conflict, so they often won't expect you to double down, and once they've seen these combat tricks once, you can bluff having one to safely attack when you might otherwise not be able to.

The Rest of the Gang

This brings us to the actual creatures you'll be attacking with. Inferno Titan is joined by Sunspine Lynx; both are excellent ways to deal serious damage when they enter and when they attack. Trumpeting Carnosaur and Cavalier of Flame bring a little value to the table while also threatening a lot of combat damage to encourage blocking. 

Rounding out the five- and six-mana creatures, I'm including a few theft effects. If the creature you steal is blocked, Norin, Swift Survivalist can exile it, either permanently removing it or letting you cast it and steal it forever. I'm limiting myself to just these three creatures, but you could focus the whole deck around this interaction for a mono-red theft deck. While the timing of Norin, Swift Survivalist's ability stops any of these from being able to steal a creature every turn, you can exile and recast them to untap any of your other creatures that attacked for some pseudo-vigilance.

Finally, I'm including a number of smaller creatures that do a smattering of odd jobs every deck needs. Emberwilde Captain and Caves of Chaos Adventurer add a little extra value, while Defiler of Instinct, Swashbuckler Extraordinaire, and Professional Face-Breaker make sure you can cast any creature you exile. 

Add a few mana rocks and a couple removal spells, and here's the full decklist.

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Norin, Swift Survivalist is a great twist on a classic card. He also makes for a fun C1ommander deck that makes you and your opponents make a lot of decisions throughout the game, which you don't necessarily expect from a mono-red deck. 

How have you built around Norin? Are there any cards or synergies I've overlooked? Let me know in the comments, and thanks for reading!

Ben Doolittle

Ben Doolittle

Ben was introduced to Magic during Seventh Edition and has played on and off ever since. A Simic mage at heart, he loves being given a problem to solve. When not shuffling cards, Ben can be found lost in a book or skiing in the mountains of Vermont.