Breaking the Rules: Kari Zev and Ragavan
Hello, Sheepwave here! While many of you may know me for my presence as an artist on Twitter, this is the first in a series of articles I will be writing! I'll be focusing on playing EDH decks that are not legal according to the official rules, but with a bit of talking, can be played via use of the wonderful Rule Zero. In addition to discussing how one might play a "Rule Zero" deck, I will also examine both why you might do so, and how you can maximize your chances that your playgroup agrees and has a fun time. Welcome to Breaking the Rules!
Rule Zero Partners
Magic: the Gathering is more than just a card game; It is a highly expansive multiverse of stories that are extremely important to some players, myself included. One of the interesting aspects of Commander decks all being led by specific characters in the Magic canon is that many have existing relationships and connections with each other. In some cases, a pair of deeply linked characters appear on two separate cards, such as Saffi Eriksdotter
Now that Modern Horizons 2 has been released, Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer takes the concept and runs with it, having a Dash cost the same as Kari's original mana cost, and a trigger on dealing combat damage to an opponent that makes a Treasure and exiles the top card of the defending players library, letting you cast spells hit.
Adding Partner to any given pair of cards makes both cards strictly better. The pairings that are often Rule Zero partnered are not exactly powerhouses-- Saffi Eriksdotter
This is not the case with Ragavan specifically. Ragavan is powerful enough to lead a mono red deck entirely on his own, and a deck that can cast Ragavan normally, that also has access to Kari, is sort of boring. Kari Zev, on the other hand, is far from particularly powerful-- Her ability to attack and create a Ragavan token is certainly interesting, but not particularly viable nowadays. For the first entry of Breaking the Rules, I've decided to split the difference by adding Ragavan to Kari Zev, but in a way that isn't as powerful and plays with the unique properties of Kari Zev as a commander.
Added Special Rules
The change is simple; Ragavan Nimble Pilferer
This level of rules modification is unusually complicated among decks I play. Some people are less comfortable with anything resembling custom cards, which is something worth keeping in mind! While some people would be fine with me just playing them as standard partners, the unique gameplay of having one of my Commanders create the other, having Kari's monkey dash out and steal cards and treasures, is the kind of strangeness that excites me. To be honest, if I had the ability to just cast Ragavan for a red, I probably wouldn't play Kari from the zone at all. So with that established, how do we build the deck and how does it differ from Kari and Ragavan separately?
Strategy and Spicy Includes
This deck will have a lot of instances of enter-the-battlefield triggers and combat damage triggers from Pirate sources, as Kari Zev's attack trigger causes Ragavan to enter play every time she can attack. Breeches, Brazen Plunderer
Getting through for combat damage with small creatures can be tricky. Due to the fact that Kari has three toughness, it is possible to activate Pyrohemia
Beyond my pirate tribal theme, i decided to go heavy on Faithless Looting
Sometimes people say "No"
As much fun as it is to play rule zero decks, not everyone wants to do so. What's the backup plan for still being able to play the deck if someone doesn't want to play with the modification? While the easy answer is "play something else", I always make sure that my Rule Zero decks are able to pivot into a legal decklist, if required. This particular deck happens to have a very easy answer, as both of the partners are mono red, and can just move Kari from the command zone into the 99.
However, people saying no is something you do have some control over! Manabarbs
The best words to use during a Rule Zero talk to put people at ease and feel excited to play against it are going to be "flavorful" and "unique". Exploring the new twist on gameplay that this modification brings to your game is likely to excite most players you ask! I don't imagine it will be that hard to sell a playgroup on letting you do this as long as you don't make them regret it by building some kind of pubstomping Kari Ragavan EDH stax deck.
Final Thoughts
While they may exist, I cannot immediately think of any other sets of legendary creatures that might be paired in this particular way. The nature of Kari Zev's attack trigger is that she is uniquely suited to be modified in this manner. Effectively adding Ragavan's rules text to her token gives her the ability to be so much more than the pure burn and aggro she is relegated to when alone. This gives her access to the ramp and card advantage red needs, without sacrificing her flavorful mechanical uniqueness. Are there other similar pairings in Magic lore that might one day be completed? Let me know what to keep an eye out for next time on Breaking the Rules!
Finally, here is the decklist I decided to go with, though I encourage anyone who does try this combination out to get creative and focus more on one of the subthemes I used, or experiment with some new ones!
Kari Zev and Ragavan
View on ArchidektCommanders (2)
Creatures (20)
- 1 Anger
- 1 Breya's Apprentice
- 1 Breeches, Brazen Plunderer
- 1 Breya's Apprentice
- 1 Coercive Recruiter
- 1 Conspiracy Theorist
- 1 Dire Fleet Daredevil
- 1 Dockside Extortionist
- 1 Efreet Flamepainter
- 1 Etali, Primal Storm
- 1 Fumiko the Lowblood
- 1 Grenzo, Havoc Raiser
- 1 Pia Nalaar
- 1 Port Razer
- 1 Ruin Grinder
- 1 Runaway Steam-Kin
- 1 Storm-Kiln Artist
- 1 Subira, Tulzidi Caravanner
- 1 Surly Badgersaur
- 1 Torbran, Thane of Red Fell
Enchantments (6)
Sorceries (13)
Instants (10)
Lands (36)