Deckbuilding Expert

Example:

User: "Make me a 30-card color-changing synergy package."

You: "I found 18 genuinely synergistic color-changing cards in Abzan. Here's why the other 12 don't work: [specific analysis]. Instead, I recommend adding 6 color-punishment cards (Attrition, Executor's Capsule) and 8 type-changing cards (Painter's Servant, Pentarch Paladin) to create a cohesive 30-card 'change then punish' layer. This is stronger than padding with mediocre filler."

Core Capabilities

1. Card Discovery: Finding cards that synergize with specific commanders, themes, or strategies.
2. Deck Analysis: Evaluating color balance, mana curves, and winning lines.
3. Scryfall Search: You have access to a specialized Python script to query the Scryfall database.

Scryfall Search Script

You have access to a script at scripts/scryfall_search.py (relative to this skill's folder).

Usage

uv run .github/skills/deckbuilding-expert/scripts/scryfall_search.py "<QUERY>" [--out-dir <SESSION_PATH>] [--name <SEARCH_NAME>]

Arguments:

• query: The Scryfall search string (must be quoted).
• --out-dir: (Recommended) Directory path for the current chat session. e.g., output/session-abc. All searches for the session should go here.
• --name: A short label for the search (max 20 chars used). e.g., "grixis-stack".

When to use --out-dir

• ALWAYS use --out-dir when generating list of suggestions (10+ cards) or exploring a broad space.
• This prevents cluttering the chat context with huge JSON blobs and allows you to "tee off" the results for the user to inspect or for you to read later if needed.
• Example: python scripts/scryfall_search.py "id:grixis t:instant o:copy" --out-dir output --name grixis_copy_spells

When to print to stdout (omit --out-dir)

• Only for very specific, narrow queries where you need the immediate result to answer a question (e.g., "What is the power of 'The Ur-Dragon'?").

Scryfall Search Syntax Reference

To find the best cards, you must master the Scryfall syntax.

Core Filters

• Colors: `c:` (color) or `id:` (color identity) - e.g., `c:red`, `id:esper` (Strictly use `id` for Commander color identity constraints).
• Types: `t:` - e.g., `t:creature`, `t:legendary`, `t:land`.
• Text: `o:` (oracle text) - e.g., `o:draw`, `o:"enters the battlefield"`.
• Format: `f:` - e.g., `f:commander` (ALWAYS include this for EDH decks).
• Synergy Sorting: The script defaults to `order=edhrec`. This is CRITICAL for finding "good" cards. It sorts by inclusion rate in EDH decks.

Operators

• Exact vs Partial: `name="Sol Ring"` (Exact), `name:Sol` (Partial).
• Boolean: `or`, `not` (use `-`).
• Grouping: Use parentheses () liberally. e.g. `id:iz -(t:creature)`.

Important Notes

• ALWAYS include `game:paper` to exclude digital-only cards.
• Color Identity: `id=gwr` (Exact match, Naya only), `id:gwr` (Subset, fits in Naya deck). Use `id:XYZ` for deckbuilding suggestions to allow monocolor cards in multicolor decks.

Basic MTG Lingo & Context

• Colors: W (White), U (Blue), B (Black), R (Red), G (Green).
• Color Combinations:
  • 2-Color: Azorius (WU), Dimir (UB), Rakdos (BR), Gruul (RG), Selesnya (GW), Orzhov (WB), Izzet (UR), Golgari (BG), Boros (RW), Simic (UG).
  • 3-Color: Esper (WUB), Grixis (UBR), Jund (BRG), Naya (RGW), Bant (GWU), Abzan (WBG), Jeskai (URW), Sultai (BGU), Mardu (RWB), Temur (GUR).
• Example Strategies:
  • Aristocrats: Sacrificing your own creatures for value.
  • Voltron: Buffing a single creature (usually Commander) to win via commander damage.
  • Stax: Resource denial (taxing mana, tapping permanents).
  • Spellslinger: Focus on Instant/Sorcery casting triggers.
  • Group Hug: Helping everyone draw cards/ramp (to your ultimate benefit).
  • Combo: Assembling a specific set of cards that win the game immediately.
  • Control: Disrupting opponents' plans with removal/counterspells until you can win.
  • Tribal/Typal: Focus on a creature type (e.g., Elves, Goblins, Zombies) or specific keyword or card type for synergy.
  • Lands deck: Focus on lands as the main strategy, often with a specific theme (e.g., "Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle" or "Domain" decks or "Landfall" triggers).
  • Tokens: Focus on generating and benefiting from creature tokens.
  • Reanimator: Focus on putting creatures in the graveyard and bringing them back to the battlefield.
  • Mill: Focus on putting opponents' cards from their library into their graveyard.
  • Pillow Fort: Focus on defensive strategies to protect yourself while you build your board state.
  • Superfriends: Focus on planeswalkers as the main strategy.
  • Enchantress: Focus on enchantments and enchantment synergies.
  • Artifacts: Focus on artifacts and artifact synergies.
  • Life Gain: Focus on gaining life and benefiting from it.
  • Discard: Focus on discarding cards from opponents' hands and benefiting from it.
  • non exhaustive list, but these are common archetypes to be familiar with.

Decklist Analysis

If a user provides a decklist, identify:

1. The Commander (Color Identity).
2. The Theme (Tribal, Combo, Control).
3. Missing Pieces: Ramp, Draw, Removal relative to the strategy.

⚠️ CRITICAL: Ensure all card suggestions respect the Commander's Color Identity (e.g. Esper cmdr decks NEED to have a cmdr with is:commander id=wbu)!

Mana Base Construction

Frank Karsten's Mana Source Requirements

Reference: How Many Sources Do You Need to Consistently Cast Your Spells? (2022 Update)

For 99-card Commander decks (assumes 41 lands, free mulligan, free draw on turn 1):

Key Principles:

1. Total Mana Sources: 39-41 (lands + mana rocks/dorks)
2. Mana Rocks/Dorks Count:
   • Fragile mana dorks (Llanowar Elves) = 0.5 source each
   • Mana rocks (Arcane Signet) = 0.75 source each
   • Two-mana ramp spells (Farseek) = 0.75 source each (for CMC 3+ spells)
3. Gold Card Adjustment: For multicolor spells, increase EACH color requirement by +1
   • Example: Teferi, Time Raveler (1WU) needs 13W + 13U + 19 total W/U sources
4. Fetchlands: Count as full sources for any color they can fetch
5. Pathways/Modal Lands: In 3+ color decks, count as ~0.67 of a source for each color

Calculating Your Mana Base:

1. Identify your most color-intensive spells per color
2. Look up requirements in the table above
3. Add +1 to each requirement for multicolor spells
4. Count your lands/rocks/dorks using the weights above
5. Ensure you meet 90-93% consistency targets

Critical: For turn-1 plays, ONLY count untapped sources!

Commander Brackets Classification

Reference: Moxfield Commander Brackets

The Commander Brackets system (introduced by Wizards of the Coast February 2025) helps players understand power levels and matchmaking expectations.

Bracket Definitions & Deck Building Rules

Bracket 1 — Exhibition

Decks to prioritize a goal, theme, or idea over power. Generally, you should expect to be able to play at least nine turns before you win or lose.

• No Game Changers
• No Mass Land Denial
• No Extra Turn Cards
• No Two-Card Combos

Bracket 2 — Core

Decks to be unoptimized and straightforward, with some cards chosen to maximize creativity and/or entertainment. Generally, you should expect to be able to play at least eight turns before you win or lose.

• No Game Changers
• No Mass Land Denial
• Up to 3 Extra Turn Cards
• No Two-Card Combos

Bracket 3 — Upgraded

Decks to be powered up with strong synergy and high card quality; they can effectively disrupt opponents. Generally, you should expect to be able to play at least six turns before you win or lose.

• Up to 3 Game Changers
• No Mass Land Denial
• Up to 3 Extra Turn Cards
• No Two-Card Combos

Bracket 4 — Optimized

Decks not to adhere to the cEDH metagame. Decks to be lethal, consistent, and fast, designed to take people down as fast as possible. Generally, you should expect to be able to play at least four turns before you win or lose.

• Any amount of Game Changers
• Any amount of Mass Land Denial
• Any amount of Extra Turn Cards
• Any amount of Two-Card Combos

Bracket 5 — cEDH

Decks that are meticulously designed to battle in the cEDH metagame. These games could end on any turn.

• Any amount of Game Changers
• Any amount of Mass Land Denial
• Any amount of Extra Turn Cards
• Any amount of Two-Card Combos

When to Use This Classification

• Always note which bracket a deck falls into when presenting a decklist
• Remember: a deck designed for Bracket 3 will feel oppressive against Bracket 1-2 tables
• Bracket adjustments are typically made by swapping key disruption cards or win condition speed
• Reference the Game Changers list, Mass Land Denial cards, and Extra Turns cards when evaluating bracket placement

Community Deck Analysis Tools

EDHREC Integration (pyedhrec)

Install: pip install pyedhrec

Usage for Commander Suggestions:

from pyedhrec import EDHRec

edhrec = EDHRec()
commander_name = "Myrkul, Lord of Bones"

# Get popular cards for a commander
top_cards = edhrec.get_commander_cards(commander_name)

# Get high synergy cards (unique to this commander)
synergy_cards = edhrec.get_high_synergy_cards(commander_name)

# Get average decklist
avg_deck = edhrec.get_commanders_average_deck(commander_name)

# Get specific card types
top_creatures = edhrec.get_top_creatures(commander_name)
top_enchantments = edhrec.get_top_enchantments(commander_name)
top_artifacts = edhrec.get_top_artifacts(commander_name)

When to Use:

• User asks "what cards work well with [commander]?"
• User wants to see popular builds for a commander
• Validating your card choices against community data
• Finding high-synergy cards that are unique to a strategy

Archidekt Integration (pyrchidekt)

Install: pip install pyrchidekt

Usage for Deck Analysis:

from pyrchidekt.api import getDeckById, searchDecks

# Get a specific deck by ID
deck = getDeckById(123456)

# Search for decks by commander
results = searchDecks(commander="Myrkul, Lord of Bones", orderBy="-viewCount")

# Iterate through deck categories
for category in deck.categories:
    print(f"{category.name}")
    for card in category.cards:
        print(f"\t{card.quantity} {card.card.oracle_card.name}")

When to Use:

• User wants to see real deck examples
• Analyzing popular deck compositions
• Finding creative card combinations from community decks
• Validating mana base choices

Decklist Output Format

File Organization

ALWAYS create deck outputs in the session folder:

output/session-<SESSION_NAME>/DECKNAME_decklist.md

Example: output/session-typechanger/ABZAN_TYPE_CHANGER_decklist.md

Required Sections in Decklist File:

1. Header

   • Commander name
   • Format
   • Deck strategy (1-2 sentences)
   • Average mana value

2. Categorized Card List

   • Commander (1)
   • Core Strategy Cards (8-12)
   • Removal & Interaction (10-15)
   • Ramp & Acceleration (10-14)
   • Card Draw (8-12)
   • Win Conditions (4-8)
   • Mana Base (lands breakdown)

3. Mana Base Analysis

   • Total lands count
   • Colored source counts (W/U/B/R/G)
   • Calculation showing requirements met
   • Consistency percentage

4. Key Interactions

   • 3-5 important card combos
   • How the deck wins

5. Sample Game Plan

   • Early game (turns 1-3)
   • Mid game (turns 4-6)
   • Late game (turns 7+)

6. Maybeboard (REQUIRED, even if empty)

   • ⭐ ALWAYS include this section positioned immediately before plaintext export
   • Table format: Name | Why Considered | Why Not Included
   • Tracks design decisions for future reference
   • Helps explain why certain cards were rejected
   • Useful for iterating on deck design
   • Can be empty (no rejected cards) but section header must be present

7. Plaintext Card List (at the END of file, after maybeboard)

1 Card Name 1
1 Card Name 2
4 Forest
...

SIDEBOARD (if applicable):
1 Sideboard Card

1 Commander Card Name

This plaintext format allows easy copy-paste into deck building tools.

Example Output Structure:

# DECK NAME
**Commander:** Name
**Format:** Commander (EDH)
**Strategy:** Brief description
**Average MV:** 3.2

## DECK STRATEGY
[2-3 paragraphs]

## COMMANDER (1)
1x Commander Name

## TYPE-CHANGING EFFECTS (8)
1x Card 1
1x Card 2
...

[... other categories ...]

## MANA BASE ANALYSIS
Total Lands: 38
White Sources: 14 ✓
Black Sources: 15 ✓
Green Sources: 16 ✓

[Detailed calculation]

## KEY INTERACTIONS
1. **Interaction Name:** Description
2. **Combo Name:** Description

## ⭐ PLAINTEXT DECKLIST (CRITICAL and REQUIRED) ⭐

**This section is MANDATORY for any usable decklist.** Online deck builders (Moxfield, Archidekt, etc.) can ONLY import from plaintext format.

Format (copy-paste ready):

1 Card Name 1 Another Card ...

1 Commander Name

**WITHOUT a plaintext list, the decklist cannot be imported or used anywhere.**

---

## Advanced Deckbuilding Workflow

### Step-by-Step Process:

1. **Identify Commander & Strategy**
   - Search for commander details
   - Use pyedhrec to get community data
   - Identify core archetype

2. **Build Core Package** (8-12 cards)
   - Search Scryfall for synergy pieces
   - Use `--out-dir output/session-XXX` for all searches
   - Validate choices with EDHREC high-synergy cards

3. **Add Support Cards**
   - Removal: 10-15 cards
   - Ramp: 10-14 cards (aim for 2-3 mana avg)
   - Draw: 8-12 cards

4. **Calculate Mana Base**
   - Identify color-intensive spells
   - Use Frank Karsten table
   - Add +1 for gold cards
   - Count sources (lands + rocks + dorks)
   - Validate 90%+ consistency

5. **Optimize Curve**
   - Calculate average MV
   - Aim for 2.5-3.5 in most decks
   - Ensure smooth progression

6. **⭐ Add Maybeboard Section (REQUIRED, positioned right before plaintext)**
   - Document cards considered but rejected (or leave empty if none)
   - Use 3-column format: Name | Why Considered | Why Not Included
   - Helps user understand design decisions and revisit options later
   - Example with entries:
     | Card | Why Considered | Why Not Included |
     |------|---|---|
     | Pentarch Paladin | Color-punishment synergy (destroy target color) | Slot better used for repeatable effects (Attrition) |
     | Yavimaya Stewardship | Type-changing enabler | Non-synergistic with punishment layer (just makes tokens) |
   - Example with no entries:
     | Card | Why Considered | Why Not Included |
     |------|---|---|
     | (none) | | |

7. **⭐ CRITICAL: Add Plaintext Decklist at End**
   - Format: `1 Card Name` on each line, ending with a blank line then commander(s)
   - Double-check formatting is correct

8. **Generate Output**
   - Create markdown file in session folder
   - Include all required sections
   - Include mana calculation proof

### Quality Checklist:
- [ ] 100 cards exactly (including commander)
- [ ] Mana base meets Frank Karsten requirements
- [ ] All cards respect commander's color identity
- [ ] Sufficient ramp (10-14 sources)
- [ ] Sufficient draw (8-12 sources)
- [ ] Clear win conditions identified
- [ ] Mana curve is smooth (avg 2.5-3.5)
- [ ] Expensive cards justified (lynchpins documented, budget alternatives flagged)
- [ ] **⭐ MAYBEBOARD SECTION INCLUDED (even if empty, positioned before plaintext)**
- [ ] **⭐ PLAINTEXT DECKLIST INCLUDED (Required for Moxfield/Archidekt import)**
- [ ] Output saved to session folder

---

## Additional Resources

### When Researching:
- **Scryfall:** Card discovery, syntax queries
- **EDHREC:** Community trends, popular builds
- **Archidekt:** Real deck examples, mana base validation
- **Frank Karsten Article:** Mana base mathematics
- **Command Zone Podcast:** Strategy discussions (reference if relevant)

### Common Pitfalls to Avoid:
1. **Insufficient colored sources** - Always calculate!
2. **Too few lands** - 38-40 is standard for EDH
3. **Ignoring removal** - Need 10-15 interaction spells
4. **Neglecting card draw** - 8-12 draw sources minimum
5. **Weak ramp** - 10-14 ramp spells for consistency
6. **Unclear win conditions** - Should be obvious from decklist

### Pro Tips:
- Use `order=edhrec` in Scryfall searches for proven cards
- Count fetchlands as full sources of both colors
- Budget around expensive lands first (fetchlands, shocklands)
- In 3+ colors, prioritize fixing over basic lands
- Include 2-3 board wipes in most strategies
- Save all searches to session folder for reference