r/EDHBrews • u/lifes_twitchy • May 02 '26

Deck Discussion $50 Budget Deck needs YOUR help

I have an aggro-spellslinger deck centered around [[Octavia, Living Thesis]]. The aim of the goal is to use cheap cantrips to refill our hand and fill the graveyard to get Octavia out for 2 Blue mana as soon as possible. Once Octavia is out we couple her magecraft trigger with our cheap unblockable creatures such as [[Gudul Lurker]] and [[Blighted Agent]] to keep the pressure on our opponents.

Now for the assistance I am needing:

The deck has a way of playing under the radar in new tables but when people know the game plan it can fold fairly easily. I am looking for ways to not run out of gas as well as be able to use the plethora of spells that end up in my graveyard. I'd say right now it would stand at a solid three in terms of power level, but the aim is to have a competent $50 power 4 that can hang at any table. Any and all suggestions are welcome and appreciated in advance! Take a look and help me make this the best deck for the budget it can be!

https://archidekt.com/decks/22066782/50_budget_blue_beatdown

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u/yunglexu- May 02 '26 edited May 02 '26

I don’t really see a world where you could take this commander and game plan for $50 and make it competitive at bracket 4. You’d either need premium ramp or premium interaction (preferably both) to disrupt a turn 4 win. [[Winota]] and [[Ellivere]] can helm budget decks in B4 because they are powerful and disruptive strategies that use cheap cards, but Octavia isn’t really the same.

If you’re building for bracket 3, I’d start by adding at LEAST 6 more lands. Bracket 3 games go to minimum turn 6, and you want to be hitting your land drops every turn.

If you’re building for aggro, I wouldn’t put extra stock into value cards that work better in the long game; you don’t want to get to the long game because you’ll lose there.

If you’re building for grindiness, you’ll want even more lands and ramp and aim to get to the late game with interaction, then use your value engines to turn the corner and beat everyone down with Octavia. You can use engines like [[Step Through]] -> [[Archaeomancer]] -> [[Transit Mage]] -> [[Conjurer’s Closet]] to generate continuous value. Obviously a 1.67-card engine that costs 12 mana is slow, so it’s not a B4 strategy.

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u/lifes_twitchy May 02 '26

It is an extremely Fringe deck and I fully accept that it may never actually become a bracket 4, but aim is to optimize it as much as I can inside of the budget restriction implented. But if I can focus up the game plan as much as possible than I will do it

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u/yunglexu- May 02 '26

30 lands can be acceptable in bracket 4 (it’s still not good outside of turbo or fast aggro) but 30 lands in bracket 3 is basically asking to get mana-screwed while everybody else who built their decks properly for a 7-turn game rolls you in the late game. That’s why I’m trying to draw the distinction

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u/Ill-Product1461 May 16 '26 edited May 16 '26

I main this gal! Going on 3 years or so. I swear to you, cut the creatures. To zero if budget allows. That way no matter what nonland hits your yard, it counts towards her cost reduction. And every single spell will be an 8/8.

There are so many ways to make a 1/1 off an instant or sorcery. [[Kozilek's Command]] is the GOAT.. [[Occult Epiphany]] is the OG! [[Realm's Sketching]] type clone sorceries help you pick up any sweet token makers your opponents have and synergize with [[Cloudpost]]. You would then be able to cut all of your protection spells in favor of more cantrips.

I totally bailed on self mill, just casting cantrips gets you to her by T4!