Spreading the Love - Remembering a Good Boy
September 18, 2018 by
Kya Vess 
The Goodest Boy
Hello everyone, Kya here!
I apologize for the delay since my last article. Oh, who are we kidding, no one is paying attention to my schedules. Anyhow, last we spoke I was on my way to Dragon Con for some cosplay fun. Unfortunately, while going up to Georgia to stay with my brother, our beloved family dog, Diesel, passed away. My brother's best friend and protector of the family will be missed dearly. Just look at this face and tell me even you won't miss him just a little bit now yourself.
Isn't he an adorable little ham? Instead of covering the Dragon Con and wacky EDH adventures, I thought instead I would dedicate this article to the legacy of the great and mighty Diesel. What could be better than finding a way to immortalize our great protector than to have him continue to guard me from danger in EDH? This way he can continue to be with me even as I'm distracted by one of my favorite hobbies. Since he always loved to play, I'd like to think he would have approved of this. EDH is one of the few hobbies where you can truly go wild with your themes, and having the ability to create something that holds deep meaning is something that I think is special about this format. Sure, this won't be a necessarily powerful deck, but it'll be one if I need a pick-me-up. After all, bringing joy into those around him is what Diesel did best!
The Hound of Kya
So what commander should we use to represent Diesel? I thought of going Hound Tribal at first (yes, there is a Hound tribal, I didn't believe it either). However, there can only be room in my heart for one puppy, so this quickly became a big fat 'no.' There's only one fit worthy of today's star, and that's...
Isamaru, Hound of Konda! Not as cool as a name as Diesel, but he'll have to do. This is a proud guard dog watching over us from bad spirits and misfortunes. He became the perfect commander, faithfully protecting his master Planeswalker from harm. Since he's only one white mana, casting and recasting Isamaru will never be a concern. Very few commanders can claim such a quick appearance. Fitting, as Diesel was always the first to come running when we came home. The goal of this deck is to aim for thematic Voltron, so let's get to work.
The Fangs of Isamaru
Now because we have such a low-costed commander, it's important we get him hitting hard as quickly as possible. As Blackblade Reforged demonstrates, we don't need an expensive piece of equipment like to do plenty of damage. Bloodforged Battle-Axe gives our pup more and more toys. As for accessories, of course, every good doggie needs his collar.
Man's Best Friend
Being one of the best and lovable puppies in town, Diesel had many friends who loved to pet him. Here we have some friendly help from the locals to give Diesel the strength he needs to win! I can't stress enough how important Sram, Senior Edificer is, as he can keep netting you card draw.
Angelic Resonance
Diesel's spirit still lives on with us, as it's important that our deck represents this. You can use more than artifacts to boost up his power! Angelic Destiny really helps shine what a good boy our little angel was.
A Bite Worst then His Bark
Of course, we do want some good equipment in here as well. The 'Sword of' cyle, such as Sword of Feast and Famine, are an auto-include without question, as Diesel only deserved the best. Anyone remember Masterwork of Ingenuity? That was a thing. A very good thing that I think most people forgot about. These are definitely the kinds of chew toys our good boy wants to get his teeth on.
Protector of the Home
Always being at alert, Diesel was the first to react to any (percieved) threat of danger! We have to make sure that we keep ourselves safe with a little protection. That's right people, there's a white counterspell. Is it great? No. Will it cause shock and awe when you counter something, though? Always. Every single time.
Home Intruders Beware
Finally, Diesel's ability to warp-the-material-universe was always worse than his bark. He now proves you don't need thumbs to snap someone out of existence. Unlike a certain super villain, Wrath of God will do more then just knock out half the field. Of course, this isn't a worry for our low-cost commander.
Here's the full list for our little boy of destruction:
A Planeswalkers Best Friend
View on Archidekt
Closing Thoughts
I hope everyone enjoyed! Diesel was everything one could ever want in a pet and I thought he deserved today's spotlight. I'm sure there are many out there who have pets or loved ones who they've thought of representing through their deckbuilding. Hopefully this provided a little motivation for those who were looking to do the same. Next time we'll continue on our regular scheduled programming,I promise. I might even have some more 3D-printed goodies to share!
To all the good boys out there,
-Kya
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