PokeDecks: Hamza, the Cufant

The Elephant Typal Never Forgets!

Last article, we looked at an unusual typal deck: Jiwari Earthquakes. Chock full of Earthquake

Today's deck is the giant, lumbering, intelligent, social, and (mostly) peaceful animal: Hamza Elephants!

Hamza, Guardian of Arashin

The deck makes Elephants. Elephants are big, heavy, and thick-skinned. They also stampede over opponents. What's more, they're adorable. Frankly, those terms can also describe me, so it makes sense that I'd have an affinity for them, but my ties to these noble creatures goes a few steps further.

I love typal decks because they simplify Rule Zero conversations and catch people's attention who might not know me, the commander, or even the game of Magic in general. You don't need to know those things to root on an Elephant deck; you just need to like Elephants! I've run typal streams; I have a typal podcast (Quote of Arms), and I've even run a casual 16-person typal tournament, with $20 donated to charity in each podwinner's name and gifting a Cavern of Souls

There are plenty of well-known and well-supported typal decks out there: Elves, Dragons, and Goblins are among those typically supported in main sets, with others getting more and more love over the years. There are others, however, where there hasn't been a lot of official support, especially when members of the type are printed sporadically and do not synergize with one another. This is where the challenge comes in: how can the deckbuilder MAKE the flavor of the type come across?

Thankfully, the PokeAlter was easier than figuring out how the deck would represent the type. Both of the primary pachyderm Pokemon are defensive Elephants: the Phanpy and Donphan line, as well as the Cufant and Copperajah line. I preferred the Cufant line because I tutor a number of students of Indian descent, and one student in particular had it as a favorite Pokemon because it represented his culture. It helps that Cufant has defensive stats and a strong defensive typing, which match what Elephants are typically like. But how do we get the animal and Pokemon to translate to Magic?

Hamza's Abilities

Hamza is, first and foremost, an Elephant. That's already a major reason for its inclusion as the commander of the deck. It also references counters, reducing its cost and the cost of creatures we cast by the number of creatures with counters on them. While counters aren't a major theme of the deck, there are plenty of powerful pachyderms that do feature counters, and even use them to spread onto our other creatures!

Venerated Loxodon

Conclave Sledge-Captain

Lulu, Loyal Hollyphant

Take that, poachers!

Cufant's Moves

Unlike many of the decks I make, there's no subtlety here: the deck is designed to play Elephants and beat down with them. We want to lean those big bodies against our opponents, pushing them until they break under the massive weight and strength of an army of mid-power green and white creatures that have been boosted by counters from a variety of places. This weight pushing on an opponent is perfectly encapsulated in the Steel-type move Heavy Slam, which does more damage when the user is slower.

Song of Freyalise

Cryptolith Rite

Loxodon Restorer

So...we've got waves of Elephants working together as a unit to apply pressure to the opponent, but how do we address their toughness and defensive ability?

The Perfect Fusion

Elephants are also known for their firm, leathery hides, which protect them from the elements, from predators, and from hunters. While they are penetrable, it takes a concerted effort to do so. A steel-type move that Cufant learns to imitate this is Iron Defense. Wrap in Vigor

Unbreakable Formation

Speaking of counters, Inspiring Call

Akroma's Will

Hamza, Use Heavy Slam!

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

What are some of your favorite typal decks? And how might you build some underrepresented ones?