Ayara, First Of Locthwain: Aristocrats Commander Guide

by Axel Sørensen 55 views

Hey guys! Ever felt the thrill of sacrificing creatures for immense gain in Magic: The Gathering? If so, Ayara, First of Locthwain might just be the commander for you. This mono-black beauty from Throne of Eldraine is a powerhouse in the Aristocrats strategy, allowing you to drain your opponents dry while building a formidable board presence. This comprehensive guide dives deep into crafting a killer Ayara deck, covering everything from essential cards to cunning strategies.

Understanding Ayara, First of Locthwain

Before we dive into deck construction, let's break down what makes Ayara so special. For the low cost of {1}{B}{B}, you get a 2/3 legendary creature with a crucial ability: "Whenever another black creature enters the battlefield under your control, each opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life." This seemingly simple text packs a serious punch. It means that every time you play a black creature, Ayara triggers a life drain on each opponent, providing a steady stream of damage and life gain. This effect scales incredibly well in multiplayer formats like Commander, where you can simultaneously drain multiple opponents. Ayara's life drain ability provides a constant source of incremental advantage, pressuring opponents' life totals and giving you valuable life gain to offset aggressive strategies. This continuous drain effect makes Ayara a formidable commander in long, drawn-out games, gradually chipping away at your opponents' life totals until they are within lethal range. Furthermore, the life gain aspect of Ayara's ability can be crucial for sustaining your own life total, allowing you to weather early aggression and survive into the late game. This life gain can be particularly important in black-based decks, which often rely on self-harm effects for card draw and other advantages. In addition to her life drain ability, Ayara's low mana cost makes her easy to cast early in the game, allowing you to start applying pressure to your opponents right from the beginning. This early pressure can disrupt your opponents' plans and force them to react to your board presence, giving you a strategic advantage. Moreover, Ayara's relatively small size (2/3) makes her a less attractive target for removal spells, as opponents may prioritize dealing with larger threats on the board. This can allow Ayara to stay on the battlefield for longer periods, maximizing the value of her ability. Ayara's combination of life drain, life gain, and low mana cost makes her a versatile and powerful commander that can lead to a variety of winning strategies. Whether you're looking to grind out your opponents with incremental damage or assemble a devastating combo, Ayara provides the perfect foundation for an Aristocrats-style deck. Her ability to synergize with other black creatures and sacrifice effects makes her a natural fit for decks that focus on generating value from creature death and recursion. By building a deck around Ayara's strengths, you can create a formidable force that can dominate the battlefield and leave your opponents reeling.

Building Your Ayara Aristocrats Deck: Key Components

An Ayara deck thrives on synergy, so let's break down the key components you'll need: Black Creatures, Sacrifice Outlets, Payoff Cards, Card Draw, and Mana Ramp.

Black Creatures: The Fuel for the Fire

The core of your deck lies in black creatures. You want a mix of cheap creatures to trigger Ayara's ability early and efficiently, and powerful creatures that offer additional value. Some key examples include:

  • Bloodghast: This resilient creature returns from your graveyard whenever you play a land, providing a recurring source of triggers for Ayara.
  • Grave Titan: This powerhouse generates two 2/2 black Zombie creature tokens whenever it enters the battlefield and whenever it attacks, providing a significant boost to your board presence and Ayara triggers.
  • Reassembling Skeleton: Similar to Bloodghast, this creature can be repeatedly sacrificed and brought back from the graveyard, offering a steady stream of Ayara triggers.
  • Pawn of Ulamog & Sifter of Skulls: These creatures generate Eldrazi Spawn tokens (which can be sacrificed for mana) whenever a creature dies, providing both mana ramp and Ayara triggers.
  • Ophiomancer: This creature generates a 1/1 black Snake creature token at the beginning of your upkeep, ensuring a constant supply of sacrifice fodder and Ayara triggers.

These black creatures serve as the engine of your Ayara deck, constantly triggering her life drain ability and fueling your sacrifice outlets. The more black creatures you can deploy, the more damage you'll inflict on your opponents and the more life you'll gain. It's important to include a mix of creatures with different abilities and mana costs to ensure that you have a consistent stream of triggers throughout the game. Cheap creatures like Bloodghast and Reassembling Skeleton are excellent for early-game pressure and recurring value, while more powerful creatures like Grave Titan and Ophiomancer provide significant advantages in the mid-to-late game. By carefully selecting your black creatures, you can create a resilient and powerful engine that will grind your opponents down and secure your victory. Furthermore, consider including creatures that have additional synergies with your sacrifice outlets and payoff cards. For example, creatures with death triggers or abilities that activate upon entering the battlefield can provide even more value when combined with sacrifice effects. This can create a cascading effect, where sacrificing one creature triggers multiple abilities and generates a significant advantage. Remember, the key to a successful Ayara deck is to maximize the value of each creature you play, ensuring that it contributes to your overall strategy and helps you achieve your ultimate goal.

Sacrifice Outlets: Turning Creatures into Advantage

Sacrifice outlets are essential for any Aristocrats deck. They allow you to turn your creatures into valuable resources, triggering Ayara's ability and fueling other powerful effects. Key examples include:

  • Viscera Seer: A cheap creature that allows you to scry 1 whenever you sacrifice a creature, providing valuable card selection.
  • Carrion Feeder: A similar creature that grows in size whenever you sacrifice a creature, turning into a formidable threat.
  • Phyrexian Altar: This powerful artifact allows you to sacrifice creatures for mana, enabling explosive plays and combo potential.
  • Ashnod's Altar: Similar to Phyrexian Altar, this artifact generates colorless mana when you sacrifice creatures, fueling your spells and abilities.
  • Yahenni, Undying Partisan: This creature gains +1/+1 and indestructible whenever you sacrifice a creature, making it a resilient attacker and a valuable sacrifice outlet.

These sacrifice outlets provide the crucial link between your black creatures and your payoff cards. They allow you to convert your creatures into tangible advantages, such as card draw, mana, and direct damage. Viscera Seer and Carrion Feeder are excellent early-game options, providing both sacrifice outlets and additional value. Phyrexian Altar and Ashnod's Altar are essential for generating mana, enabling you to cast more spells and activate more abilities. Yahenni, Undying Partisan, on the other hand, provides a resilient attacker and a valuable sacrifice outlet in one package. The key to using sacrifice outlets effectively is to maximize their value. Don't just sacrifice creatures randomly; think about the long-term consequences and how each sacrifice will contribute to your overall strategy. For example, you might sacrifice a creature to generate mana to cast a powerful spell, or you might sacrifice a creature to trigger a death trigger that will benefit you in some way. By carefully planning your sacrifices, you can turn your creatures into a powerful resource that will help you dominate the battlefield and secure your victory. Furthermore, consider including sacrifice outlets that have additional synergies with your other cards. For example, a sacrifice outlet that also draws cards or deals damage can be incredibly powerful in an Aristocrats deck. By building a cohesive strategy around your sacrifice outlets, you can create a deck that is both resilient and explosive, capable of grinding out your opponents or launching a devastating combo attack.

Payoff Cards: Reap the Rewards of Sacrifice

With creatures and sacrifice outlets in place, you need cards that reward you for sacrificing creatures. These payoff cards turn your sacrifices into devastating effects.

  • Blood Artist & Zulaport Cutthroat: These creatures drain your opponents whenever a creature dies, amplifying Ayara's effect and creating a deadly drain engine.
  • Grim Haruspex & Midnight Reaper: These creatures draw you cards whenever a creature dies, ensuring you never run out of gas.
  • Dictate of Erebos & Butcher of Malakir: These enchantments force your opponents to sacrifice creatures whenever you sacrifice a creature, crippling their board presence.
  • Grave Pact: Similar to Dictate of Erebos and Butcher of Malakir, Grave Pact forces opponents to sacrifice creatures, further disrupting their plans.
  • Massacre Wurm: This creature deals 2 damage to each opponent whenever a creature dies, and gives -1/-1 to all creatures your opponents control, potentially wiping their board.

These payoff cards are the engines of your Aristocrats strategy, converting your sacrifices into tangible advantages. Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat amplify Ayara's life drain ability, creating a devastating drain engine that can quickly deplete your opponents' life totals. Grim Haruspex and Midnight Reaper ensure that you never run out of gas, drawing you cards whenever a creature dies. Dictate of Erebos, Butcher of Malakir, and Grave Pact cripple your opponents' board presence, forcing them to sacrifice creatures whenever you sacrifice a creature. Massacre Wurm can wipe your opponents' boards while simultaneously dealing significant damage to their life totals. The key to using payoff cards effectively is to maximize their impact. Don't just sacrifice creatures for no reason; sacrifice them when you have payoff cards in play to generate significant advantages. For example, you might sacrifice a creature to trigger Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat, draining your opponents for a significant amount of life. Or you might sacrifice a creature to trigger Dictate of Erebos, forcing your opponents to sacrifice their best creatures. By carefully planning your sacrifices and playing your payoff cards at the right time, you can create a powerful engine that will grind your opponents down and secure your victory. Furthermore, consider including payoff cards that have additional synergies with your other cards. For example, a payoff card that also generates tokens or provides card draw can be incredibly powerful in an Aristocrats deck. By building a cohesive strategy around your payoff cards, you can create a deck that is both resilient and explosive, capable of overwhelming your opponents with a barrage of devastating effects.

Card Draw: Fueling the Machine

In any Commander deck, card draw is crucial. In an Ayara deck, it's essential to keep the engine running. You need a steady stream of cards to ensure you have creatures to play, sacrifice outlets to use, and payoff cards to reap the rewards.

  • Phyrexian Arena & Greed: These enchantments provide consistent card draw at the cost of life, a cost easily offset by Ayara's life gain.
  • Dark Confidant: This creature reveals the top card of your library at the beginning of your upkeep and puts it into your hand, but you lose life equal to its converted mana cost. Again, Ayara's life gain helps mitigate this.
  • Yawgmoth, Thran Physician: This powerful creature can sacrifice creatures to draw cards and put -1/-1 counters on creatures, providing both card draw and removal.
  • Sign in Blood & Night's Whisper: These instant-speed spells provide a quick burst of card draw when you need it.
  • Skullclamp: This powerful equipment draws you two cards whenever a creature with toughness 1 or less dies, making it an excellent tool for an Aristocrats deck.

Sustained card draw is essential for keeping your Ayara Aristocrats deck running smoothly. Without a steady stream of cards, you'll quickly run out of resources and be unable to maintain your board presence or trigger Ayara's ability. Phyrexian Arena and Greed provide consistent card draw over time, ensuring that you always have options available. Dark Confidant offers a similar effect, but at a slightly higher risk. Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, on the other hand, provides both card draw and removal, making it a valuable addition to any Aristocrats deck. Instant-speed spells like Sign in Blood and Night's Whisper offer a quick burst of card draw when you need it most, allowing you to react to your opponents' plays or find the perfect card to close out the game. Skullclamp is an incredibly powerful tool in an Aristocrats deck, drawing you two cards whenever a creature with toughness 1 or less dies. This makes it especially effective when combined with token-generating creatures or creatures that create tokens upon death. The key to maximizing your card draw is to balance the risk and reward. Cards like Phyrexian Arena and Dark Confidant come with a life loss cost, which can be significant in a long game. However, the card advantage they provide is often worth the risk, especially in an Ayara deck where you can offset the life loss with Ayara's ability. By carefully selecting your card draw spells and balancing the risks and rewards, you can ensure that you always have the cards you need to execute your strategy and dominate the battlefield. Remember, a well-stocked hand is a powerful weapon in Magic: The Gathering, and in an Aristocrats deck, it's essential for keeping your engine running and your opponents on the defensive.

Mana Ramp: Accelerating Your Game Plan

Black decks often struggle with mana ramp compared to green decks, but there are still some excellent options available. Ramp allows you to cast your spells faster and more consistently.

  • Sol Ring & Command Tower: These are Commander staples that provide efficient mana acceleration.
  • Crypt Ghast: This creature doubles the mana produced by your Swamps, allowing for explosive plays.
  • Cabal Coffers & Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth: This powerful land combination generates a massive amount of mana in the late game.
  • Dark Ritual & Cabal Ritual: These one-shot spells provide a temporary burst of mana, allowing you to cast key spells early in the game.
  • Jet Medallion: This artifact reduces the cost of your black spells, making them cheaper to cast.

Effective mana ramp is crucial for accelerating your game plan and outpacing your opponents. In an Ayara Aristocrats deck, mana ramp allows you to cast your key creatures, sacrifice outlets, and payoff cards faster and more consistently, giving you a significant advantage. Sol Ring and Command Tower are Commander staples that provide efficient mana acceleration in any deck. Crypt Ghast doubles the mana produced by your Swamps, allowing for explosive plays and enabling you to cast multiple spells in a single turn. Cabal Coffers and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, when combined, generate a massive amount of mana in the late game, allowing you to cast game-winning spells and activate powerful abilities. One-shot spells like Dark Ritual and Cabal Ritual provide a temporary burst of mana, allowing you to cast key spells early in the game and get your engine running. Jet Medallion reduces the cost of your black spells, making them cheaper to cast and allowing you to deploy more threats and generate more value. The key to effective mana ramp is to find the right balance between early-game acceleration and late-game consistency. Cards like Sol Ring and Dark Ritual provide a quick boost in the early game, while lands like Cabal Coffers and creatures like Crypt Ghast provide sustained mana ramp in the mid-to-late game. By carefully selecting your mana ramp spells and lands, you can ensure that you always have the mana you need to cast your spells and execute your strategy. Remember, a mana-efficient deck is a powerful deck, and in an Ayara Aristocrats deck, mana ramp is essential for maximizing your potential and overwhelming your opponents.

Sample Ayara Decklist

This is just a sample list to get you started, feel free to adjust it to your budget and play style:

  • Commander: Ayara, First of Locthwain
  • Creatures (35): Bloodghast, Grave Titan, Reassembling Skeleton, Pawn of Ulamog, Sifter of Skulls, Ophiomancer, Viscera Seer, Carrion Feeder, Yahenni, Undying Partisan, Blood Artist, Zulaport Cutthroat, Grim Haruspex, Midnight Reaper, Dark Confidant, Yawgmoth, Thran Physician, Nether Traitor, Doomed Dissenter, Gutterbones, Plaguecrafter, Fleshbag Marauder, Merciless Executioner, Demon's Disciple, Braids, Cabal Minion, Liliana, Untouched By Death, Undead Augur, Overseer of the Damned, Corpse Knight, Elenda, the Dusk Rose, Judith, the Scourge Diva, Pitiless Plunderer, Priest of Forgotten Gods, Sengir Autocrat, Wurmcoil Engine
  • Sorceries (10): Demonic Tutor, Beseech the Queen, Profane Tutor, Reanimate, Animate Dead, Living Death, Yawgmoth's Will, Pox, Syphon Mind, Army of the Damned
  • Instants (8): Sign in Blood, Night's Whisper, Go for the Throat, Tragic Slip, Feed the Swarm, Deadly Rollick, Victim of Night, Infernal Grasp
  • Enchantments (10): Phyrexian Arena, Greed, Dictate of Erebos, Grave Pact, Necromancy, Bitterblossom, Phyrexian Reclamation, Black Market, Bloodchief Ascension, Revel in Riches
  • Artifacts (12): Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Jet Medallion, Skullclamp, Phyrexian Altar, Ashnod's Altar, Thran Dynamo, Gilded Lotus, Charcoal Diamond, Mind Stone, Fellwar Stone, Talisman of Dominance
  • Lands (34): Command Tower, Cabal Coffers, Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, Bojuka Bog, High Market, Witch's Cottage, 28x Swamp

Ayara Strategy and Gameplay

The core strategy of an Ayara deck revolves around generating value from sacrificing creatures. You want to flood the board with black creatures, sacrifice them for various effects, and drain your opponents with Ayara's ability and other payoff cards like Blood Artist and Zulaport Cutthroat. Here are some key gameplay tips:

  • Early Game: Focus on ramping your mana and deploying cheap creatures to trigger Ayara and establish a board presence. Cards like Sol Ring, Command Tower, and Bloodghast are crucial in the early game.
  • Mid Game: Start sacrificing creatures for value. Use sacrifice outlets like Viscera Seer and Phyrexian Altar to draw cards, generate mana, or trigger other abilities. Payoff cards like Blood Artist and Grim Haruspex will help you snowball your advantage.
  • Late Game: Overwhelm your opponents with a barrage of sacrifice triggers and life drain. Use powerful spells like Living Death and Yawgmoth's Will to recur your creatures and generate massive value. Cards like Grave Titan and Army of the Damned can create a devastating board presence.

Budget Ayara: Building a Deck on a Dime

Don't let a limited budget stop you from enjoying Ayara! Many of the key components of an Ayara deck are relatively inexpensive. Here are some budget-friendly alternatives:

  • Instead of: Grave Titan Use: Sengir Autocrat
  • Instead of: Phyrexian Altar Use: Ashnod's Altar
  • Instead of: Demonic Tutor Use: Beseech the Queen or Profane Tutor
  • Instead of: Cabal Coffers Use: Crypt Ghast and more Swamps
  • Instead of: Yawgmoth's Will Use: Living Death or Rise of the Dark Realms

Unleash the Aristocrats!

Ayara, First of Locthwain is a fantastic commander for players who enjoy strategic gameplay and generating value from sacrifice. With the right cards and a cunning strategy, you can build a formidable Ayara deck that will drain your opponents dry and leave them begging for mercy. So, gather your black creatures, find your sacrifice outlets, and unleash the power of the Aristocrats! Happy brewing, and may your opponents' life totals dwindle!