Into the Vault: Najeela the Blade-Blossom

Written by Christian Gil Portugalisa

        It’s been a while since I last posted an article for EDH/Commander. This article goes out to two of my friends, Richard Sy and Mary Lyndel Amora. Today, I want to talk about one of the best combat centric 5-color commander in my opinion. This commander was released in Battle Bonds and what a commander she is. Let me introduce Najeela, the Blade-Blossom.

        We will talk about the following:

               • The Commander

               • Infinite Combat Phase and Kill Clock

               • Mana Ramp

               • Mana Base

               • WUBRG Control Shell

               • Different Builds

The Commander

        Najeela, the Blade-Blossom is a very unique commander since she and General Tazri are the only 5-Color Commanders that are currently being played in Competitive EDH. The difference is that General Tazri lean more towards a more combo game play using cards such as Foodchain and Misthollow Griffin or Squee the Immortal to generate infinite mana and win using cards like Purphoros, God of the forge. While Najeela lean toward a more combat centric combo win. This is unique since most Competitive Commander decks use combat as a final out if they cannot win with their main combo strategy.

        Najeela’s first ability allows her to create 1/1 white warrior tokens when a warrior is attacking. What’s great is that Najeela does not even have to attack for the tokens to be created. The caveat is that these tokens are also attacking opponents. This is important in conjunction to her second ability. And even if someone was able to disrupt our combo turn, we can still beat their faces with a lot of 1/1 warriors.

        And here is what makes Najeela a very powerful combat engine. By paying WUBRG or one of each of the five colors of mana, we can untap all attacking creatures, they all gain several buffs (trample, lifelink and haste until end of turn) AND you also get an ADDITIONAL COMBAT PHASE! What this means is that for as long as you can produce all five colors of mana, you can generate infinite combat steps and infinite warrior tokens. This is all well and good however, most of your games with Najeela can still be won by just abusing her 1st ability.

Infinite Combat Phase and Kill Clock

        Dealing combat damage in a fast-paced game like Competitive EDH is very difficult. For one, you need to deal 120 combat damage (in a normal game of 4 players) by turn 3 to 5, before your opponents can combo off. Two, your opponents will also have answers to what you are doing so taking care of them as soon as possible is your best bet. So how do we go about this?

     

        These are one card combos with our commander Najeela, the Blade-Blossom and will propel you to win the game. These cards will either untap lands or help produce the five colors of mana which you will then use to activate Najeela’s second ability. Remember that Najeela will create warrior tokens whenever a warrior attacks. As you generate more combat steps, you also generate more warriors, and this is the reason why we can deal that ever elusive 120 combat damage.

        A key part for this to function is to make sure that we can cast Najeela, the Blade-Blossom as early as turn 2. Your mulligan decisions should always be “Can I cast Najeela on turn 2?” The reason we want her in play as fast as possible is because we want to start building our warrior token count. An alternate card we want in our opening hand is Mindblade Render.

        Mindblade Render cast on turn 2 and followed up with Najeela on turn 3 will achieve the same result. So when you are building this deck, look for 2 casting cost warrior cards that can help start that game plan.

Mana Ramp

        Mana ramp for this deck is very important. We cannot just add any type of mana rock or dork since we want to make sure that we can produce all 5 colors as soon as possible. Cards like Boreal Elf or too many dorks that produce too much green mana is not really the right place for this deck. Here are some examples of mana dorks you want to add.

       

        What’s great about these mana dorks is that they can produce colors other than green. Our mana rocks should also follow the same philosophy.

   

        Here are some of the best mana rocks. Mana crypt does not produce colored mana however what it can do is allow us to play Najeela on turn 1 and attack with her on turn 2.

Mana Base

        The mana base is also a little tricky. If budget is not an issue then the best mana base would be to have all 10 original dual lands, all 10 shock lands and all 10 sac lands. This will guarantee that we can get to that all important 5 colored mana. Some of us, myself included may not have the budget to get these expensive $200 cards. There are alternatives to these dual lands.

     

        The best ones in my opinion are the 5 Battlebond dual lands. Hopefully Wizards of the Coast will print the other 5 this year to complete the set. Looking at you Modern Horizons. Another good replacement is the 10 Pain Lands. You can also use filter lands if you have access to them. I prefer the Odyssey Filter lands also known as Signet lands versus Shadowmoor/Eventide filters since the later needs specific mana colors for them to work as intended. Also move away from tap lands since you want to be able to cast your commander and other cards as soon as possible and giving your opponents a turn or two can be very devastating.

WUBRG Control Shell

        Najeela is a perfect commander for a control deck. She brings every color and has a low CMC cost plus she is also a WINCON on her own. We can play the best control cards from all colors and all card types. We don’t even need to look for any special package or special energy.

     

        Every card in this deck is good on its own and can stand alone. In other words, no matter what card you draw, you will always have good cards in your hands. You might be asking yourself, why Emrakul? Just like what Josh from the Command Zone said, “It is Emra-COOL!” Even if your opponent counters your Emrakul, the cast trigger will still kick in. They will basically need Counterspell and Stifle on hand to stop this spaghetti monster from becoming a reality.

Different Builds

        Playing with 5 all five colors allows us to pick and choose what playstyle we want. We can go with a reanimator gameplay and carry the Razakats combo. Go infinite with Aluren and the Earthcraft combo or go with a 13/13 beater with the Najeela the Promised End beatdown. The world is your oyster with Najeela, the Blade-Blossom. Build it the way you want to. In the end, she is and will always be one of the most versatile and powerful commander.

        To help you on your journey in building your very own Najeela Commander deck, here are some deck lists that you can gloss over or simply make your own.

Najeela Reanimator

Land (30)
1x Arid Mesa
1x Badlands
1x Barbarian Ring
1x Bayou
1x Bazaar of Baghdad
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Cabal Pit
1x City of Brass
1x Command Tower
1x Exotic Orchard
1x Flooded Strand
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Horizon Canopy
1x Mana Confluence
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Plateau
1x Polluted Delta
1x Savannah
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Scrubland
1x Taiga
1x Tarnished Citadel
1x Tropical Island
1x Tundra
1x Underground Sea
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Volcanic Island
1x Windswept Heath
1x Wooded Foothills

Enchantment (7)
1x Animate Dead
1x Carpet of Flowers
1x Druids' Repository
1x Goblin Bombardment
1x Mystic Remora
1x Necromancy
1x Survival of the Fittest

Creature (21)
1x Alesha, Who Smiles at Death
1x Anger
1x Arbor Elf
1x Avacyn's Pilgrim
1x Aven Mindcensor
1x Azra Oddsmaker
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
1x Elesh Norn, Grand Cenobite
1x Elves of Deep Shadow
1x Feldon of the Third Path
1x Karmic Guide
1x Leonin Relic-Warder
1x Loyal Retainers
1x Mindblade Render
1x Noble Hierarch
1x Razaketh, the Foulblooded
1x Squee, Goblin Nabob
1x Tymna the Weaver
1x Wonder

Sorcery (13)
1x Buried Alive
1x Deep Analysis
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Dread Return
1x Exhume
1x Faithless Looting
1x Life
1x Reanimate
1x Stitch Together
1x Timetwister

1x Victimize
1x Wheel of Fortune
1x Windfall

Instant (19)
1x Cremate
1x Crop Rotation
1x Entomb
1x Flusterstorm
1x Force of Will
1x Frantic Search
1x Intuition
1x Izzet Charm
1x Mana Drain
1x Mental Misstep
1x Mogg Salvage
1x Nature's Claim
1x Negate
1x Pact of Negation
1x Pull from Tomorrow
1x Slaughter Pact
1x Snuff Out
1x Submerge
1x Swan Song

Artifact (9)
1x Chrome Mox
1x Mana Crypt
1x Mana Vault
1x Mox Amber
1x Mox Diamond
1x Phyrexian Altar
1x Skullclamp
1x Sol Ring
1x Sword of Feast and Famine

Najeela Aluren

Enchantment (23)
1x Arcane Laboratory
1x Aura of Silence
1x Back to Basics
1x Blind Obedience
1x Blood Moon
1x Carpet of Flowers
1x Cindervines
1x Cryptolith Rite
1x Destructive Flow
1x Druids' Repository
1x Earthcraft
1x Energy Flux
1x Fertile Ground
1x Leyline of the Void
1x Mystic Remora
1x Nature's Will
1x Rest in Peace
1x Squirrel Nest
1x Stony Silence
1x Stranglehold
1x Sylvan Library
1x Utopia Sprawl
1x Wild Growth

Sorcery (10)
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Farseek
1x Gitaxian Probe
1x Into the North
1x Pir's Whim
1x Rampant Growth
1x Restore
1x Ruination
1x Subterranean Tremors
1x Sweltering Suns

Creature (18)
1x Anafenza, the Foremost
1x Arbor Elf
1x Avacyn's Pilgrim
1x Aven Mindcensor
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
1x Elves of Deep Shadow
1x Hushwing Gryff
1x Kataki, War's Wage
1x Knacksaw Clique
1x Krosan Tusker
1x Magus of the Moon
1x Mindblade Render
1x Noble Hierarch
1x Shefet Monitor
1x Tymna the Weaver
1x Zur the Enchanter

Instant (13)
1x Abrupt Decay
1x Enlightened Tutor
1x Fire Covenant
1x Force of Will
1x Izzet Charm
1x Krosan Grip
1x Mental Misstep
1x Nature's Claim
1x Negate
1x Rending Vines
1x Shadow of Doubt
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Vampiric Tutor

Land (31)
1x Arid Mesa
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Flooded Strand
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Polluted Delta
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Serra's Sanctum
9x Snow-Covered Forest
3x Snow-Covered Island
3x Snow-Covered Mountain
3x Snow-Covered Plains
2x Snow-Covered Swamp
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Windswept Heath
1x Wooded Foothills

Artifact (4)
1x Helm of Obedience
1x Null Rod
1x Skullclamp
1x Sword of Feast and Famine

Najeela the Promised End

Land (30)
1x Arid Mesa
1x Badlands
1x Bayou
1x Bloodstained Mire
1x Breeding Pool
1x City of Brass
1x Command Tower
1x Exotic Orchard
1x Fetid Pools
1x Flooded Strand
1x Gaea's Cradle
1x Horizon Canopy
1x Mana Confluence
1x Marsh Flats
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Plateau
1x Polluted Delta
1x Savannah
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Scrubland
1x Taiga
1x Tarnished Citadel
1x Tropical Island
1x Tundra
1x Underground Sea
1x Verdant Catacombs
1x Volcanic Island
1x Windbrisk Heights
1x Windswept Heath
1x Wooded Foothills

Artifact (10)
1x Chrome Mox
1x Engineered Explosives
1x Mana Crypt
1x Mishra's Bauble
1x Mox Diamond
1x Nihil Spellbomb
1x Phyrexian Altar
1x Skullclamp
1x Sol Ring

1x Sword of Feast and Famine

Instant (23)
1x Abeyance
1x Abrupt Decay
1x Brainstorm
1x Counterspell
1x Cyclonic Rift
1x Demonic Consultation
1x Fire Covenant
1x Flusterstorm
1x Force of Will
1x Hallowed Moonlight
1x Hide
1x Mana Drain
1x Mental Misstep
1x Nature's Claim
1x Negate
1x Pact of Negation
1x Remand
1x Shadow of Doubt
1x Snuff Out
1x Submerge
1x Swords to Plowshares
1x Tainted Pact
1x Vampiric Tutor

Sorcery (10)
1x Beck
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Diabolic Intent
1x Driven
1x Gitaxian Probe
1x Imperial Seal
1x Inquisition of Kozilek
1x Ponder
1x Preordain
1x Thoughtseize

Planeswalker (1)
1x Dack Fayden

Creature (15)
1x Arbor Elf
1x Avacyn's Pilgrim
1x Azra Oddsmaker
1x Birds of Paradise
1x Deathrite Shaman
1x Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
1x Elves of Deep Shadow
1x Elvish Mystic
1x Emrakul, the Promised End
1x Gilded Drake
1x Grim Flayer
1x Mindblade Render
1x Noble Hierarch
1x Notion Thief
1x Tymna the Weaver

Enchantment (10)
1x Aura of Silence
1x Carpet of Flowers
1x Cindervines
1x Druids' Repository
1x Ground Seal
1x Mystic Remora
1x Nature's Will
1x Sylvan Library
1x Utopia Sprawl
1x Wild Growth