Bracket 3 · Our Thranduil, the Elvenking decklist · Elf Tribal
Our Thranduil list is Sultai Elves. Thranduil has every activated ability of every Elf card in your graveyard, so each Elf that dies or gets discarded becomes a new tool for your commander.
The deck floods the board with mana Elves, fills the graveyard with Entomb and Buried Alive, untaps everything with Dionus and Staff of Domination, and wins with Lathril's ten-Elf drain or a pumped Elf swing.
- Strategy
- Elf Tribal
- Bracket
- 3
- Avg. mana value
- 2.74
- Lands
- 33
01The Commander
Thranduil, the Elvenking is a five-mana 5/6. He has all activated abilities of all Elf cards in your graveyard. Whenever another legendary Elf you control enters, you draw two cards, then discard a card.
Put Lathril, Blade of the Elves in the graveyard and Thranduil can tap with ten other Elves to drain each opponent for 10. Put Priest of Titania there and he taps for {G} for each Elf on the battlefield.
Abilities with {T} still need Thranduil to be free of summoning sickness. Thousand-Year Elixir, Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler and Lightning Greaves let him use them the turn he arrives.
02How This Deck Wins
- 1
Ramp with Elves
Llanowar Elves, Elvish Mystic and Fyndhorn Elves come down early, then Elvish Archdruid and Priest of Titania turn a wide board into a lot of mana.
- 2
Stock the graveyard
Entomb, Buried Alive, Fauna Shaman and Thranduil's own loot trigger put the right Elves in the graveyard for him to borrow.
- 3
Drain or overrun
Tap ten Elves for the Lathril drain, untap with Dionus, Elvish Archdruid and do it again, or pump the team with Ezuri, Renegade Leader and attack.
03Deck at a Glance
Bracket 3 · Elf Tribal · 100 cards
Composition
- Commander1
- Creatures36
- Instants & sorceries19
- Artifacts & enchantments10
- Planeswalkers1
- Lands33
- Tokens8
Mana Curve
Color Split
symbols
- Blue 16%
- Black 18%
- Green 65%
By the Numbers
Cards by Role
04Mana Elves
Cheap Elves that make mana and grow with the board.
Also in this role
05Graveyard Setup
The right Elf in the graveyard gives Thranduil a new ability.
Also in this role
06Haste and Untap
Tap abilities are better when you can use them twice.
Also in this role
07Elf Army and Payoffs
Make more Elves, draw off them, and pump them.
Also in this role
08Interaction
Sultai answers and protection.
Also in this role
09Combos and Key Interactions
Elvish Archdruid + Staff of Domination
Tap Archdruid, pay {3} to untap it with the Staff, then {1} to untap the Staff. With five or more Elves, each loop makes more than it costs, so you have unlimited green mana to spend on Staff draws or Ezuri pumps.
Thranduil, the Elvenking + Lathril, Blade of the Elves
With Lathril in your graveyard, tap Thranduil and ten other untapped Elves to make each opponent lose 10 life while you gain 10. With Dionus out, they all untap once and you can do it again.
Buried Alive + Thranduil, the Elvenking
Put Lathril, Priest of Titania and Fauna Shaman in the graveyard at once. Each is a {T} ability, so Thranduil picks one each time he untaps: drain, ramp or tutor.
10How to Play
Opening hand
Keep hands with two or three lands and a one-mana Elf. Hands with Entomb or Buried Alive plus ramp are strong.
Early gameturns 1-3
Play Llanowar Elves, Elvish Mystic or Deathrite Shaman, then Elvish Archdruid or Priest of Titania on turn two or three.
Mid gameturns 4-7
Cast Thranduil and set up the graveyard with Entomb or Buried Alive. Add legendary Elves to loot with his trigger.
Late gameturn 8+
Tap Thranduil and ten Elves for the Lathril drain, or make huge mana and pump the team with Ezuri, Renegade Leader or Elvish Warmaster.
Tips
- Thranduil's loot trigger only fires on another legendary Elf, and this deck runs over a dozen of them.
- Discard Elves with useful activated abilities, like Lathril or Priest of Titania, to Thranduil's loot.
- With Devoted Druid in your graveyard, Thranduil can put -1/-1 counters on himself to untap and reuse a tap ability.
- Dionus untaps each Elf only once per turn, and only during your turn.
Common mistakes
- Activating Thranduil's {T} abilities the turn he enters without a haste source.
- Exiling your own graveyard Elves with Deathrite Shaman.
- Paying too much life to Toxic Deluge and killing your own Elves.
- Tapping out for mana before you have a plan for it.
Watch out for
- Graveyard exile, which strips Thranduil's borrowed abilities.
- Board wipes against your Elf board.
- Removal on Thranduil.
- Fliers your ground Elves can't block.
11Bracket and Rule 0
Our list runs no Game Changers.
This is a Bracket 3 (Upgraded) style deck with no Game Changers.
Elvish Archdruid with Staff of Domination makes unlimited mana with five Elves out, and Thranduil with Lathril in the graveyard can drain the table fast, so mention both at Rule 0.
12Full Decklist
Every card in our Thranduil, the Elvenking proxy deck (100 cards). Hover or tap a name to see the card.
Commander
- 1Thranduil, the Elvenking2BGU
Creatures (36)
- 1Deathrite ShamanB/G
- 1Elves of Deep ShadowG
- 1Elvish MysticG
- 1Fyndhorn ElvesG
- 1Llanowar ElvesG
- 1Bloom Tender1G
- 1Devoted Druid1G
- 1Elvish Warmaster1G
- 1Fauna Shaman1G
- 1Incubation Druid1G
- 1Leaf-Crowned VisionaryGG
- 1Priest of Titania1G
- 1Abomination of Llanowar1BG
- 1Circle of Dreams DruidGGG
- 1Eladamri, Korvecdal1GG
- 1Elrond, Moon-Reader2U
- 1Elvish Archdruid1GG
- 1Ezuri, Renegade Leader1GG
- 1Formidable Speaker2G
- 1Imperious Perfect2G
- 1Marwyn, the Nurturer2G
- 1Selvala, Heart of the Wilds1GG
- 1Tyvar, the Pummeler1GG
- 1Beast Whisperer2GG
- 1Dionus, Elvish Archdruid3G
- 1High Perfect Morcant2BG
- 1Immaculate Magistrate3G
- 1Jarad, Golgari Lich LordBBGG
- 1Lathril, Blade of the Elves2BG
- 1Prime Speaker Vannifar2GU
- 1Thranduil's Company2GU
- 1Thranduil, Sindarin Liege2G/UG/U
- 1Tyvar the Bellicose2BG
- 1Maralen, Fae Ascendant2BGU
- 1Selfless Safewright3GG
- 1Underrealm Lich3BG
Planeswalkers (1)
- 1Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler1BG
Instants (11)
- 1An Offer You Can't RefuseU
- 1EntombB
- 1Swan SongU
- 1Arcane Denial1U
- 1Assassin's TrophyBG
- 1CounterspellUU
- 1Heroic Intervention1G
- 1Beast Within2G
- 1Dina's Guidance1BG
- 1Frantic Search2U
- 1Galadhrim Ambush3G
Sorceries (8)
- 1ReanimateB
- 1Farseek1G
- 1Finale of DevastationXGG
- 1Nature's Lore1G
- 1Buried Alive2B
- 1Cultivate2G
- 1Toxic Deluge2B
- 1Raise the Palisade4U
Artifacts (6)
- 1Sol Ring1
- 1Arcane Signet2
- 1Lightning Greaves2
- 1Swiftfoot Boots2
- 1Staff of Domination3
- 1Thousand-Year Elixir3
Enchantments (4)
- 1Ripples of Undeath1B
- 1Sylvan Library1G
- 1Elven Chorus3G
- 1Kindred Discovery3UU
Lands (33)
- 1Breeding Pool
- 1Command Tower
- 1Deathcap Glade
- 1Dreamroot Cascade
- 1Elven Passage
- 1Exotic Orchard
- 6Forest
- 1Hinterland Harbor
- 2Island
- 1Llanowar Wastes
- 1Misty Rainforest
- 1Overgrown Tomb
- 1Path of Ancestry
- 1Polluted Delta
- 1Rejuvenating Springs
- 3Swamp
- 1Three Tree City
- 1Undergrowth Stadium
- 1Verdant Catacombs
- 1Watery Grave
- 1Wirewood Lodge
- 1Woodland Cemetery
- 1Yavimaya Coast
- 1Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth
- 1Zagoth Triome
Get the deck
Thranduil, the Elvenking Elf Tribal proxy deck
Thranduil turns your graveyard into a toolbox. Ramp with Elves, bin the right ones, and drain the table.
Every card in this guide is shown exactly as it prints in the deck you get, sleeve-ready, with tokens.
Shop the deck · $45Every card named in this guide is in our deck, and every image is our own proxy card, rendered from the art in this deck.