PokeDecks: Klothys, the Landorus
Klothys, God of Destiny by Jason Engle
Fertile Ground for a Different Kind of Enchantress
When it comes to deckbuilding, I've gone through many different phases. One of my better-known deckbuilding phases, was Kerosene and Matches: group hug decks designed to share a particular resource and use it better. My colorshifted Klothys PokeDeck is one of the coolest examples of this!
What is a PokeDeck? A PokeDeck is a collaboration between brewer and alterist that results in a uniquely-flavored commander deck built around a given Pokémon's moves.
Klothys Enchantress is one of several PokeDecks that preceded the alter. In fact, it was tough to retroactively find a good match for the deck. The concept for the deck came when I tried to put mana multipliers and damage multipliers together, in order to see just how much it could make the table explode, many of which were Enchantments. When I saw the Enchantment theme, I decided to lean into it. That left me with Klothys and Xenagos, but there weren't enough creatures for Xenagos. For now, the question arose about how to find a worthy Pokémon for a God.
Given that Klothys is a God, it meant that the alter needed to be a particularly special Pokémon. I decided, and have since continued this trend, that Gods in Magic should be represented by similarly mythical Pokémon. I did some research, discovering that Landorus is considered "God of the Field", which seemed to work well with the deck's undercurrents of fertility, both in the Fertile Ground effects and in the shared resources. But how could I weave the rest of Klothys into what I was doing? And how would Landorus fit in?
Klothys's Abilities
The first challenge was to figure out what Klothys brings to the table. Klothys felt kind of like the best of a bad situation, as it seemed like it could potentially be relevant, but there wasn't an obvious commander for a Gruul Enchantress deck. Those decks are usually in Selesnya, Simic, or Bant colors. Ultimately, Klothys got the nod because it was an Enchantment in the command zone, which happened to be in the right colors. But how could Klothys be weaved in, such that having it out felt natural?
Klothys has the ability to make mana, which all decks need. Some decks get mana from mana rocks, but those don't provide Devotion or trigger Constellation. Other decks use mana dorks, which have much the same problem. Green and Red do have a few ways to make mana with Enchantments, which happen to work well with Klothys and the core of the deck. Vessel of Volatility is a holdover from Innistrad draft formats, where it would provide a boost of mana and then be used with grave synergies. Klothys can eat it for benefit during combat. A well-placed Curse of Opulence can provide a deluge of treasures over the course of the game. And Mana Flare, like Overabundance, is a mana doubler that helps to make the table explode. None of this speaks to the functional version of "Landorus", though, so how do we integrate the alter?
Landorus's Moves
The next challenge is to figure out how to cross the IP from Pokémon to Magic. The research into Landorus seems to fit the mana doublers in the deck, but the reference seems like a bit of a stretch, and not everyone playing the deck will get the feeling of playing Landorus. Landorus has a signature move, called Sandsear Storm, which burns and hits all opponents. So, how does this translate into Magic?
Each of these spells deals direct damage to all opponents (or all players), and provides a great outlet for all of the extra mana the deck can generate with the mana doublers. When each land taps for multiple mana, cards that scale in damage get increasingly deadly. Crackle with Power has become a quintessential Red mana sink, dealing a lot of damage to a few targets. Jaya's Immolating Inferno is a similar exhaust spell for excess mana, although it does require a legendary permanent out. Thankfully, Klothys is cheap and Indestructible, so it can continue to burn opponents over and over! Finally, Earthquake and Hurricane form an impressive 1-2 punch of old-school board wipes and burn spells that hit hard.
The Perfect Fusion
Klothys is a commander that exemplifies the commitment to the enchantress theme, highlighted by mana doublers. Landorus's signature move is shown through burn spells that hit all opponents. They seem to work together decently: Klothys's mana explosions fuel Landorus's mana-hungry burn. In fact, both pieces work well with Klothys's abilities themselves: each combat, it either makes mana or burns opponents. But how could we make this deadlier, while still working with Enchantments and direct damage?
The answer is to multiply the damage, too! Quest for Pure Flame seems like a card that can sit around for a while, but it cares about individual opponents being damaged, so it works well with Klothys's ability to damage all opponents. It can also lull opponents into a false sense of security because it comes out so early. Furnace of Rath is the quintessential damage doubler, providing a hefty dose of Devotion as well as a fun way to make games go chaotic, as everyone's damage is doubled. Fire Servant is one of the weaker damage multipliers, but it does work well with the burn spells, even if it is a bit more susceptible to removal than the rest of the deck.
With these pieces together, Klothys's deck multiplies mana, multiplies damage, and creates a neat little mini-game of just how much damage it can deal in one big shot!
Klothys, Use Sandsear Storm!
This is the most recent iteration of the deck, which I used to play with higher-power pods. The deck was retired because there weren't quite enough copies of certain effects, but it certainly provided memorable moments. Sometimes, the damage doublers would lead to silly combat situations. Other times, the mana doublers would help opponents achieve things they only dreamed of. Maybe it's time for a revision! City on Fire, in particular, is a card I'd love to put in!
What would you change?
And what commanders would you use to fill out the rest of the Weather Trio?
