Slurrk, All-Ingesting // Alharu, Solemn Ritualist Counters Pauper EDH

“You need not follow, but you must witness”

Art:Slurrk, All-Ingesting by Jehan Choo

Art:Alharu, Solemn Ritualist by Chris Rallis

Today’s Featured Commanders Are:

Slurrk and Alharu are the perfect leaders for a Selesnya counters deck. Generating two points of value out of one of our creatures dying helps position us very strongly. Since we are in Selesnya, we can easily ramp out our commanders/creatures. While we have the typical weaknesses that Selesnya decks have, we have a ton of strengths, and besides a few bad matchups, we can be really strong against many of the decks in the format. This deck is perfect for a player of any skill level. Whether you hand this to a new player or an old player, they should get some enjoyment. Without further adieu, let’s get it!

The Deck:

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Slurrk, All-Ingesting // Alharu, Solemn Ritualist Counters!

Commander (2) 1 Alharu, Solemn Ritualist 1 Slurrk, All-Ingesting Creatures (31) 1 Avacyn’s Pilgrim 1 Bond Beetle 1 Elvish Mystic 1 Llanowar Elves 1 Ainok Bond-Kin 1 Dauntless Survivor 1 Duskshell Crawler 1 Pollenbright Druid 1 Sakura-Tribe Elder 1 Crocanura 1 Deepwood Denizen 1 Fertilid 1 Heir of the Ancient Fang 1 Pridemalkin 1 Trufflesnout 1 Yavimaya Elder 1 Ambitious Dragonborn 1 Ardenvale Paladin 1 Axgard Braggart 1 Basri’s Acolyte 1 Bloom Hulk 1 Gavony Silversmith 1 Ivy Lane Denizen 1 Longshot Squad 1 Peema Outrider 1 Prowling Felidar 1 Relief Captain 1 Wildheart Invoker 1 Squad Captain 1 Supply Runners 1 Anointer of Valor Instants (10) 1 Ancient Animus 1 Crib Swap 1 Generous Gift 1 Hunger of the Howlpack 1 Lifecrafter’s Gift 1 Nature’s Claim 1 Prizefight 1 Ram Through 1 Return to Nature 1 Snakeskin Veil Sorceries (10) 1 Courage in Crisis 1 Cultivate 1 Ent’s Fury 1 Inspiring Roar 1 Kodama’s Reach 1 Nature’s Lore 1 Righteous Charge 1 Silverflame Ritual 1 Skyshroud Claim 1 Smell Fear Artifacts (5) 1 Arcane Signet 1 Greatsword of Tyr 1 Selesnya Signet 1 Wedding Invitation 1 Weapon Rack Enchantments (6) 1 Forced Adaptation 1 Utopia Sprawl 1 Journey to Nowhere 1 Grafted Growth 1 Master Chef 1 Oblivion Ring

Lands (36) 1 Botanical Plaza 1 Cave of Temptation 1 Command Tower 1 Desert of the Indomitable 1 Desert of the True 1 Drifting Meadow 12 Forest 1 Forge of Heroes 1 Hidden Courtyard 1 Hidden Nursery 1 Idyllic Grange 8 Plains 1 Radiant Grove 1 Secluded Steppe 1 Slippery Karst 1 The Fair Basilica 1 The Hunter Maze 1 Tranquil Thicket

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Why Slurrk All-Ingesting and Alharu, Solemn Ritualist?

Slurrk and Alharu work off of each other very well. Slurrk allows us to buff up all of our creatures when one of them dies, and Alharu allows us to create a spirit on death and provides an ETB buff. While there is no doubt a downside to both of our commanders costing five being in Selesnya, we can ramp out and cast them many turns early. Slurrk and Alharu are the perfect commanders for our deck and provide a ton of utility and payoff for the cards in our deck.

Deck Overview:

This section contains information about cards in the deck and how they function within the deck! I also highlighted some of my favorite cards in the deck!

Creatures:

We have a few creatures that are strong payoffs for all of our counters, like Ainok Bond-Kin, Duskshell Crawler, and Longshot Squad which are all great ways to add keywords to all of our creatures. Deepwood Denizen is one of my favorite creatures in the deck since we can draw cards for pretty cheap when we have a board established. Ivy Lane Denizen is a sweet buff that hits nearly every creature in our deck. We also have some ramp in our creature package, like Sakura-Tribe Elder, Elvish Mystic, and Llanowar Elves, which can be strong ways for us to get ahead in the early game. Ambitious Dragonborn can be a huge game-ender once our board is established.

Instants:

We have some creature / permanent removal like Crib Swap and Generous Gift, which can be a strong way to take out many threats. Nature's Claim and Return to Nature are great removal for artifacts and enchantments. We are quite limited on A/E removal, so this should be saved for key artifacts/enchantments of our opponents. Ram Through and Prizefight are great ways to kill bigger creatures of our opponents once we have a big creature established.

Sorceries:

Our sorcery package is where nearly all of our ramp lives. We have Cultivate, Kodama's Reach, Nature's Lore, and Skyshroud Claim which can help us get ahead of our opponents and cast our commanders and all of our stuff quicker. Our big buffs also reside in our sorcery package, like Inspiring Roar, and Silverflame Ritual, which can be great cards to cast once we fill up the board. Courage in Crisis is a card I really like, but we need to have a pretty full board to get the full value out of it.

Artifacts:

We don’t have a lot of artifact ramp, staples like Arcane Signet and Selesnya Signet, which are quite strong. Wedding Invitation is a great way to guarantee damage and get some card draw. Weapon Rack is a cool card we can ramp out early and transfer counters from Weapon Rack to any of our creatures. Greatsword of Tyr can be equipped on pretty much anything, and we can gain a ton of advantage from a pretty easy-to-cast / equip equipment. The buff and tapping down an opponent’s creature is also very strong.

Enchantments:

Master Chef is by far the best enchantment in our deck since it buffs both of our commanders and every other creature. Utopia Sprawl is a strong piece of ramp that also lets us get both of our colors established. Grafted Growth is a little bit expensive for an enchantment ramp, but it makes up for it by having a buff with it as well. Oblivion Ring and Journey to Nowhere are two very cheap and very strong pieces of removal. I typically use Forced Adaptation as early as possible, and it can get out of hand quickly.

Land Base:

We have a lot of draw through our land base, but this is mostly because we don’t have many other additional draw sources in the deck. Tranquil Thicket, Slippery Karst are both great and cheap ways to a card. The Hunter Maze and The Fair Basilica are great lands that we can sacrifice for some extra card advantage. We also have some lands that help buff up creatures/commanders, like Cave of Temptation and Forge of Heroes which can be strong additional buffs. Beyond that, we have a few Selesnya duals, and the rest of our land base is filled with basics. I found that 36 lands was perfect for this deck. After testing a 35 land version, I found that at 35, it could be a little inconsistent.

Strengths of the Deck:

• All of our buffs allow us to be strong in combat
• Alaharu can be a great way to recover when our creatures die
• Slurrk can be a huge buff to all of our creatures

Weaknesses of the Deck:

• Not a ton of card draw
• Not a ton of removal
• Weak to creature hate

Deck Stats:

Sample Hands:

Main Win Conditions:

There are no infinite combos or loops in the deck. Since we are a Selesnya deck, we spend our early game ramping and building a creature presence. Once our board is established, we can use various means, including our commanders, to buff up all our creatures. We are a combat deck through and through; our buffs allow combat to be much easier, and we can often win many blocks and attacks.

Conclusion:

Slurrk and Alharu are two really strong commanders who work absolutely perfectly together. Combine that with a ton of support for counters in PDH, and we have a very strong deck. Just like nearly every PDH deck, it is perfect for players of any skill level, and players who lean more toward combat and creature decks will likely really enjoy this one. Thanks for reading to the end, and thanks for your support!