PokeDecks - Kaza the Inkay

Time to Get Flipped, Turned Upside-Down!

Sometimes decks are designed to fit into a traditional mold: Voltron, Chaos, Kindred, etc. Sometimes decks are designed around the commander: see what it does, build around its effects, and try to take advantage of what you have going on in the command zone. And sometimes, especially now that there are more and more cards being pumped into non-rotating formats, you find that there's a critical mass of previously unique effects, and you can stretch the commander into a unique place!

Just like last week, today's deck has a unique relationship with removal. Last week, Polymorph

Kaza, Roil Chaser

This deck is designed around changing power and toughness and then flipping them when it works for us. Since many of the effects are instants or sorceries, Kaza can make them cost less. This also helps the deck multi-spell, which is particularly important when we want to copy the effects that adjust the power and toughness. Kaza is a role-player, and she plays her role well!

One of the more intriguing aspects of the deck is just how little it costs. The initial version cost about $50, as quite a few of the cards either were draft chaff or have low pricetags because there weren't enough effects to make a deck until a critical mass was printed. This type of deck, which looks to elevate underrated rares, didn't-pan-out uncommons, and also-ran commons, is the kind of deck that makes the last few days of preview season exciting. When a torrent of new cards comes out, there are always cool little cards that slip through the cracks and add to decks like this.

The ability to play with power and toughness is part of Izzet's experimentation, encapsulated in cards like Schismotivate

The best part of the alter, courtesy of Foxnoctom, is the background. The image of Inkay is right-side up, but the background has the sky on bottom and the grass on top, revealing that it has already warped reality!

Kaza's Abilities

Kaza, herself, is a bit of a role-player. It's an interesting position for a commander to find herself in: she provides the mana discount needed to push the deck's ambitious plans and fuel big turns. It needs that push, as the deck tends to be mana-hungry from using over-costed, under-powered cards. It's possible that Kaza might not be the perfect commander for a deck like this, but such a commander doesn't exist in this color identity, and sometimes you just need use what works.

Goblin Electromancer

Maelstrom Muse

Mana Geyser

Inkay's Moves

Topsy-Turvy is an ability that swaps stat changes, making boosts turn to drops and drops turn to boosts. Inkay can use this offensively, to turn stat drops into setups for big damage, or defensively to undo the changes opponents have made for themselves. Swapping power and toughness is big game, especially when zero toughness means death!

Inside Out

Dwarven Thaumaturgist

Mannichi, the Fevered Dream

Speaking of making the deck perfect, how do we take advantage of the flipping? And what do we do when cards don't care about being flipped?

The Perfect Fusion

How do we make zero toughness mean death, especially if opponents have both power and toughness? We drop the power and THEN flip it! Creatures don't usually care about not having power, but our ability to flip power and toughness means that we make it relevant, and dropping power means we can create exploitable weaknesses in others!

Stream of Unconsciousness

Downsize

Will Kenrith

Kaza, Use Topsy-Turvy!

Here's the most recent iteration of the deck, which is still one of my favorites.

How do you feel about removal spells in Commander? And how do you bring life to draft chaff? Let me know in the comments below!

Further Reading:

Five Budget Combos You Should Try Next!

Conditions Allow - Eternal Dominion in Zaffai EDH

Top Five Budget Commanders from The Lost Caverns of Ixalan