One of the nice things about Commander is that there are so many different legends to build around. While many of them incorporate similar overlapping themes, each one presents its own unique charm in deckbuilding. In the Auras and Equipment sphere, for example, Cass, Hand of Vengeance pays you off in very unique ways, and even enables potent game-ending combos.
MTG Cass, Hand of Vengeance
While most Aura and equipment-themed decks are naturally vulnerable to removal, Cass’s abilities circumvent this issue nicely. Even if you load up on one creature with the likes of Inventory Management and it gets killed, you can freely shift your modifications to a new target. As such, the risk of playing elite equipment with massive equip costs like Colossus Hammer goes way down.
Beyond just protecting your squad, Cass’s trigger can also be used proactively. Using sacrifice outlets like Mortarpod, you can continuously retrigger any auras with powerful enters effects like Dragon Mantle, Etali’s Favor, or Pain for All. To fuel these synergies, you’ll also need token generators like Murder Investigation and reanimation effects like Gift of Immortality.
Notably, while Cass’s trigger will primarily be used to reattach auras and equipment to your own creatures, you can choose to suit up an opponent’s creature. This makes Frenzied Fugue a gnarly inclusion, since you can repeatedly steal your opponent’s creatures and sacrifice them, building a pseudo-Plague Wind!
Infinite Mana, Mill, and Damage Combos
As strong as Cass is as a value engine, the legend gets even better as a combo enabler. Alongside a sacrifice effect and Griffin Guide, for instance, you can easily create infinite enters, dies, and sacrifice triggers. This is thanks to Griffin Guide creating a new token that can be reequipped for a self-sustaining infinite loop.
Notably, since you can use any sacrifice engine here, there are tons of potential wincons, like Phyrexian Altar for infinite mana. Alternatively, you can use Goblin Bombardment for infinite damage, or Altar of Dementia to mill everyone out. With Cartouche of Solidarity and Historian’s Boon providing extra redundancy, too, this combo line is surprisingly consistent.
Very Underplayed and Very Cheap
Despite all of the different ways to take advantage of Cass’s abilities, this Commander still remains heavily underplayed. In fact, it only has 569 decks to its name according to EDHREC! The good news, however, is that this card’s lack of demand has ultimately helped keep its price tag down to just $0.33. This makes Cass a relatively risk-free purchase with tons of unique build-around potential, and we highly recommend giving it a chance.
Stick with us here at mtgrocks.com: the best site for Magic: The Gathering coverage. Be sure to check out our deckbuilder for your next big brew, and our brand new MTG Rocks Podcast!