Matchup Analysis - Eldrazi Ramp

The big spaghetti monsters are here, and we have just the [Colossal] tools for the job.

There are a few wrinkles to the various Eldrazi builds (Tron, Temur, UG, RG). While they all play powerful tools like Kozilek’s Command and Sowing Mycospawn, there is some variation in if they are playing Kozilek’s Return and Karn, the Great Creator. Due to the power of the latter 2 cards, I will be discussing the deck as if it has all of them in the main deck. The Eldrazi deck is very powerful, primarily due to the number of ways it has to play a 4 mana card on turn 2. They can either open up with a Forest + Utopia Sprawl, Eldrazi Temple, or Ugin’s Labyrinth into a Talisman. As such, you should plan to mulligan most hands that aren’t presenting a powerful early clock. That can be a fast Hammer or a Turn 1 Saga with Mopal for constructs early on. Note that the interaction they have in their hand is usually fairly clear to parse out since both Command and Return are fairly expensive. Note that while Surge plays well against Command as a way to stop the removal, it does not do anything against Kozilek’s Return.

Additionally, cards like Devourer of Destiny cannot exile a colorless creature, so prioritizing those as your equipment carriers is often the best avenue. Additionally, if you can put a spear/axe on a Paladin, it protects him from the front side of Return. 

This play patterns where the Eldrazi deck wins typically play out in a few main ways against us, and often doesn’t change too much post-board unless you know they have access to Force of Vigor (most do not play FoV anymore since the addition of Karn)

• They may try to act as a control deck by holding up Command/Return until they can stick a Karn as a way to stabilize.

• They get very aggressive in playing out Mycospawns quickly to attack our lands and further their board position.

• They chain Commands until we lose.

Our best angle of attack against them is a fast kill, plain and simple. Careful not to board in too much interaction, but bring in every copy of Consign to Memory you have access to. If you have fewer than 4, look to supplement with some Surge of Salvation as a way to protect us from their targeted removal as well as Emrakul, the Promised End trigger. While you plan out your kills, it is important to gauge how big of a command that they can cast. Note that even a Command for 0 can tag a Thopter/Memnite/Construct. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go for the kill, but that you should try to have a contingency plan in the event that they do. Being able to go for the kill and then move everything over with a Paladin post-combat after they got little value from their best card can end up working out well for you. If you do NOT have the ability to kill quickly, try to best leverage your interaction in a way to maximize the mana benefit. Obviously countering a Command can be backbreaking, but even just tagging a Mycospawn or Worldbreaker trigger can swing things back in your favor. Finally, note that even getting in a single big hit can make the difference in these games. Oftentimes you will find a spot where you can hit for 10-12 damage. Since they don’t have many ways to gain life outside of Karn for Haywire Mite, it can be a strong plan to go wide with a couple constructs and a pile of 1/1s, 1/2s, and 2/2s to wrap things up. 

Post-board will depend heavily on how many Consigns/Surges you have access to, but having 4 Consign is a really good way to make this matchup much better.

Overall, I am fairly happy to face all but their absolute best draws, and I like our spot against Eldrazi Ramp.