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Magic: The Gathering’s Selesnya colors,greenandwhite, aren’t just about life–it’s about organized life. It’s about revering nature and all things it produces but as caretakers. As such, Selesnya will share green’s propensity for casting lots and lots of creatures, but it’ll also still have white’s ability to clear the board when its opponents don’t follow Selesnya’s carefully orchestrated plan.
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With both strong ramp and removal, green and white can be one of Commander’s most potent color combinations. If you’re looking at making your first Selesnya Commander deck, consider these staple cards. You’ll be glad you did.
Ramp
With full access to green’s many, many ramp spells, it’s no surprise to see cards likeCultivate,Kodama’s Reach, andFarseekin Selesnya Commander decks. Likewise,Sakura-Tribe Elder,Delighted Halfling, andBirds of Paradiseare fine additions for both ramp and mana fixing.
Once you add a splash of white, you get a few new interesting ramp options.Faeburrow Elder,Steward of Valeron, andKatilda, Dawnhart Primeare all great creatures that provide mana along with a little extra.Smothering Titheis an excellent way of ramping yourself up or slowing your opponents down, but it can also draw a few angry glances in a casual playgroup.
Selvala, Explorer Returnedis the exact opposite of Smother Tithe. Selvala makes everyone smile by drawing cards, but it lets the Selesnya player gain both mana and life.
Card Draw
As with mono-green decks, the most efficient way Selesnya can grab extra cards is by harnessing its tendency to cast a lot of creatures.Camaraderie,Leinore, Autumn Sovereign, andHuatli, Radiant Championall love it when you cast creatures or already have a lot of creatures on the board. DittoBeast Whisperer.
Rite of Harmonynot only lets you grab more cards whenever you cast creatures that turn, but it also works for enchantments too. Besides loving creatures, Selesnya is also a big fan of enchantments, which is whySythis, Harvest’s Handis a great way to draw cards, alongsideMesaandVeruduran Enchantress.
But if you just want more cards without the strings,HarmonizeandAjani Unyieldingare likely your best bets.
Removal
If you need to get rid of a problematic creature, Selesnya has the best spells in Magic withPath to ExileandSwords to Plowshares.Beast WithinandGenerous Giftare also there, andBanishing Lightis especially good in enchantment strategies but is perfectly acceptable even without any additional deck synergy.
If you need artifacts or enchantments dead,Knight of Autumn,Sundering Growth, andQasali Pridemagewould like to have a word.Sylvan Reclamationcan even get two at once. Aura Mutation is perfect for token strategies (something else Selesnya loves), and you may’t go wrong withKrosan GriporNature’s Claim.
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Board Clear
If you want to get rid of a lot of artifacts or enchantments, green has you covered withBane of ProgressorBack to Nature. Throw in a bit of white andFracturing Gustwill give you some extra life on the side.
Getting rid of a lot of creatures, however, is white’s wheelhouse.Wrath of God,Vanquish the Horde, andFarewellare all great ways to reset the board. But if you want an especially fun way of destroying all creatures,Novablast Wurmcomes attached to a 7/7 body that repeatedly blows up the world every time it attacks.
Little Creatures With Big Dreams
There are a lot of smaller Selesnya creatures that have pretty big effects. Some sacrifice themselves for the good of the people, likeSaffi Eriksdotter,Loxodon Hierarch, orDauntless Escort, while others take a more active role in protecting your army, likeSigarda, Font of BlessingsorSigarda, Heron’s Grace.
Still others, likeFleeceman LionandBronzehide Lion, merely offer big, efficient bodies that can help protect your board in the early game while becoming a big threat later on.Gaddock Teegis especially noteworthy as he can completely shut down certain deck archetypes all on his own.
Captain Sisayis a fantastic tutor,Knight of the Reliquaryis a great way to grab particular lands, andMirrican keep you relatively safe while she’s off dueling with your opponents.
Big Creatures With Even Bigger Dreams
Lest we forget, Selesnya can also cast some pretty big bodies too.Dromoka, the EternalandDragonlord Dromokaare both big, helpful dragons, whileArchon of Valor’s ReachandSigarda, Host of Heronscan cripple opposing strategies. Best to play those at the right time.
If hexproof wasn’t enough bothPhantom NishobaandArashin Sovereignoffer tricky creatures for your opponents to deal with, whileAutochthon WurmandWorldsoul Colossuscan convoke their way into the early game with the right strategies.
And since we’re green,Woodfall Primusremains one of the best big beasts for any Commander to cast.
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Tokens, Tokens, Tokens
Besides enchantments, which we’ll get to later,Selesnya has a love of producing tons of creature tokens. Whether they be +1/+1 tokens or just 1/1 human tokens, Selesnya will make as many as it can. Creating a deck that centers around this strategy can be very potent, but even without doing so, some token-centric cards are powerful enough even on their own.
For example,Rhys the Redeemedis great in a token deck, but he’s also perfectly capable of creating a token army without any help whatsoever.March of the Multitudesis a great spell to cast even if you don’t gain anything else other than those tokens.Trostani, Selesnya’s Voicedoesn’t need a token in play to be a life-gain machine, but it certainly helps.
There areloads more cards that can supercharge a token strategy, but these are the cards that you should pay attention to first.
Enchantments
As with tokens, Selesnya can supercharge an enchantment-based strategy such that it’s all your deck is about. But even without being part of a theme,these enchantments are great to play with on their own.
RancorandArmadillo Cloakturn any creature into a threat.Mirrari’s WakeandKarametra, God of Harvestsare monstrous ramp cards that can help power out that Autochthon Wurm.Privileged Position,Ghostly Prison, andGlare of Subdualare great for protection while you’re building your army.
And let’s not forgetAura Shards, the enchantments that turn every creature into a Disenchant. If you play with no other enchantments, play with Aura Shards.
Lands
As with any multicolor deck, you’ll want to use as many green and white-producing lands as you can. Pay special attention to lands withForestandPlainskeywords, so they can be fetched by Farseek or Karametra.
Beyond that, there are a few lands worth considering. BothGrove of the GuardianandStirring Wildwoodcan turn into surprise creatures, whileVitu-Ghazi, the City-TreeandGavony Townshipcan help produce an army even if you run out of cards.
Bretagard Strongholdonly offers the bulk of its benefits for one turn, but withRogue’s Passage, one turn might be all you need.
