Into the Arena: Kasmina Gets an Upgrade Dawson Reynolds July 1, 2022 Decklists, Into the Arena It’s the dog days of summer, and most competitive formats are pretty quiet right now. Standard has had Streets of New Capenna for some time now, and won’t be getting any new cards for a few months still. Historic and Alchemy are both very steady right now, and don’t have many decks rising or falling. For that reason I have been getting into Historic Brawl as my format of choice this summer. Last week I brewed up a deck based on a New Capenna commander, but this week I’m going to be going back to an old favourite! My Kasmina, Enigma Sage Brawl deck is one of the first ones I ever brewed, but to this day it is still my most powerful by far. I wrote an article on it last summer when I first finalized the list, but since then there have been a lot of new cards to try! Plus, playing with the deck for nearly a year has of course led me to some different card choices. Below I’ll dive into all the upgrades I’ve made to the deck and provide the updated list. This deck has been performing really well, delivering a win percentage of about 75% (in a non-competitive setting, albeit). Whether or not you plan on building this deck yourself, diving into the tuning of this deck should provide a good look at how to make improvements on a singleton deck. For reference, here is the decklist from last summer: Commander1 x Kasmina, Enigma Sage Creature1 x Gilded Goose1 x Llanowar Elves1 x Druid of the Cowl1 x Tangled Florahedron // Tangled Vale1 x Lotus Cobra1 x Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse1 x Scavenging Ooze1 x Incubation Druid1 x Lovestruck Beast // Heart’s Desire – Showcase1 x Brazen Borrower // Petty Theft1 x Spark Double1 x Elder Gargaroth1 x Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider – Showcase Instant1 x Pact of Negation1 x Brainstorm1 x Opt1 x Callous Dismissal1 x Once Upon a Time1 x Memory Lapse1 x Growth Spiral1 x Heroic Intervention1 x Counterspell1 x Censor – Foil1 x Tale’s End1 x Quandrix Command1 x Commit /// Memory Sorcery1 x Abundant Harvest – Foil1 x Explore1 x Regrowth1 x Spring /// Mind1 x Bala Ged Recovery // Bala Ged Sanctuary1 x Cultivate1 x Tezzeret’s Gambit1 x Creeping Mold1 x Time Warp1 x Karn’s Temporal Sundering1 x Body of Research1 x Alrund’s Epiphany1 x Kamahl’s Druidic Vow Artifact1 x Mox Amber1 x Heart of Kiran1 x Mind Stone1 x Coldsteel Heart Enchantment1 x In Search of Greatness1 x Leyline of Anticipation1 x In Bolas’s Clutches Planeswalker1 x Tamiyo, Collector of Tales1 x Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner1 x Vivien Reid1 x Nissa, Who Shakes the World1 x Narset, Parter of Veils1 x Jace, Wielder of Mysteries1 x Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor1 x Garruk, Unleashed1 x Jace, Cunning Castaway1 x Teferi, Master of Time1 x Karn, Scion of Urza1 x Ugin, the Spirit Dragon1 x Ugin, the Ineffable Land1 x Barkchannel Pathway // Tidechannel Pathway1 x Botanical Sanctum1 x Breeding Pool1 x Hinterland Harbor1 x Temple of Mystery1 x Thornwood Falls1 x Vineglimmer Snarl1 x Woodland Stream1 x Simic Guildgate1 x Rimewood Falls1 x Quandrix Campus14 x Island (335)14 x Forest (347)1 x Hall of Storm Giants Buy This List MTG Arena decklist Commander 1 Kasmina, Enigma Sage Deck 1 Tamiyo, Collector of Tales 1 Regrowth 1 Quandrix Command 1 Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner 1 Vivien Reid 1 Nissa, Who Shakes the World 1 Narset, Parter of Veils 1 Jace, Wielder of Mysteries 1 Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor 1 Garruk, Unleashed 1 Jace, Cunning Castaway 1 Brainstorm 1 Opt 1 Pact of Negation 1 Teferi, Master of Time 1 Counterspell 1 Growth Spiral 1 Censor 1 Callous Dismissal 1 Memory Lapse 1 Tale’s End 1 Brazen Borrower 1 Commit /// Memory 1 Time Warp 1 Tezzeret’s Gambit 1 Karn’s Temporal Sundering 1 Alrund’s Epiphany 1 Abundant Harvest 1 Explore 1 Once Upon a Time 1 Spring /// Mind 1 Heroic Intervention 1 Bala Ged Recovery 1 Cultivate 1 Creeping Mold 1 Kamahl’s Druidic Vow 1 Body of Research 1 Leyline of Anticipation 1 In Bolas’s Clutches 1 In Search of Greatness 1 Mox Amber 1 Coldsteel Heart 1 Mind Stone 1 Karn, Scion of Urza 1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon 1 Ugin, the Ineffable 1 Heart of Kiran 1 Gilded Goose 1 Llanowar Elves 1 Druid of the Cowl 1 Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse 1 Incubation Druid 1 Lotus Cobra 1 Scavenging Ooze 1 Tangled Florahedron 1 Lovestruck Beast 1 Elder Gargaroth 1 Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider 1 Spark Double 1 Barkchannel Pathway 1 Botanical Sanctum 1 Breeding Pool 1 Hinterland Harbor 1 Temple of Mystery 1 Thornwood Falls 1 Vineglimmer Snarl 1 Woodland Stream 1 Simic Guildgate 1 Rimewood Falls 1 Quandrix Campus 14 Island 14 Forest 1 Hall of Storm Giants Since then, some sweet new cards have come out that fit perfectly in this deck, so let’s start by looking at some of those. The first change I made was relatively minor, swapping out Opt for Fading Hope. Cantrips like Opt don’t actually play into this deck’s strategy very much, and I am already able to scry a lot thanks to Kasmina. However, slowing down aggressive opponents in order to protect all my planeswalkers is very important, so Fading Hope is a great addition. Sadly, Ugin was banned from Historic Brawl because he was too powerful as a commander. Luckily, another very powerful planeswalker was printed around the same time. While Wrenn and Seven can’t control the board as well as Ugin could, they can still win games by ramping, drawing cards, and making very large tokens. Next up, the very powerful card Storm the Festival was released in Midnight Hunt and I absolutely had to include it. Not only can it often provide two planeswalkers for just one card and six mana, it is also an excellent target for Kasmina’s ultimate. I decided to cut Body of Research for it, since it was a card that folded to any removal or bounce spell. It was fun to make 80/80 tokens, but not overly powerful. Since this deck isn’t really in the market for a five-mana counterspell, I eventually decided that it was time for Pact of Negation to go. However, this deck is very much in the market for a five-mana planeswalker, and when Tamiyo, Compleated Sage was released I immediately included her. The Simic planeswalker can ressurect other planeswalkers that died, and help control opponent’s attackers and mana rocks. Luxior is one of the few cards on Arena that is designed specifically to synergize with planeswalkers, and it is a lot of fun! While it can make them more vulnerable to removal, getting to use your planeswalkers as attackers is super fun. It is also really cheap, and so sometimes you can even start attacking with Kasmina before your opponent has their defenses up. I cut Heroic Intervention for Luxior since there weren’t very many instances where Heroic Intervention was very useful. There were also a few cuts I made that were unrelated to new cards coming out. Leyline of Anticipation was actually quite bad in this deck. I included it because I thought it would be fun, but since most planeswalkers can only use their loyalty abilities as a sorcery there isn’t much point in being able to cast them as an instant. Meanwhile River’s Rebuke is an excellent card in Brawl, as it can singlehandedly let you come back against an opponent with a massive board full of creatures, artifacts, planeswalkers, or whatever! Plus it can be cast by Kasmina’s ultimate, which I often find myself doing. Alrund’s Epiphany was nerfed for Alchemy, which sadly also effects it in Historic and Historic Brawl. It doesn’t make birds now unless its foretold, which means it is just a Time Walk when cast off of Kasmina’s ultimate. Since I already have two other time walk effects in the deck, I am taking out the overpriced Alrund’s Epiphany for now. In its place I have Mind’s Desire, which could lead to some very explosive turns if I am able to cast a few spells and then cast Mind’s Desire from Kasmina’s ultimate ability. This is the change that I am most unsure of, and I could see myself changing it back if Mind’s Desire never pans out. Lastly, I switched out four of the basic lands for these new and improved options! Dreamroot Cascade is just a great new Dual. Boseiju and Otawara provide a lot of extra utility at no extra cost! Sea Gate Restoration provides a potential extra spell for the late game but can mostly still just be used as a land. Overall, the mana base for this deck is pretty great. Here is the updated version of the decklist: Commander1 x Kasmina, Enigma Sage Creature1 x Llanowar Elves1 x Gilded Goose1 x Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse1 x Tangled Florahedron // Tangled Vale1 x Lotus Cobra1 x Incubation Druid1 x Druid of the Cowl1 x Scavenging Ooze1 x Lovestruck Beast // Heart’s Desire – Showcase1 x Brazen Borrower // Petty Theft1 x Elder Gargaroth1 x Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider – Showcase Instant1 x Fading Hope1 x Brainstorm1 x Growth Spiral1 x Censor1 x Memory Lapse1 x Tale’s End1 x Counterspell1 x Once Upon a Time1 x Quandrix Command1 x Commit /// Memory Sorcery1 x Abundant Harvest – Foil1 x Regrowth1 x Sylvok Explorer1 x Callous Dismissal1 x Spring /// Mind1 x Bala Ged Recovery // Bala Ged Sanctuary1 x Cultivate1 x Tezzeret’s Gambit1 x Creeping Mold1 x Time Warp1 x Karn’s Temporal Sundering1 x Storm the Festival1 x Mind’s Desire1 x River’s Rebuke1 x Sea Gate Restoration // Sea Gate, Reborn1 x Kamahl’s Druidic Vow Artifact1 x Mox Amber1 x Luxior, Giada’s Gift1 x Heart of Kiran1 x Coldsteel Heart1 x Mind Stone Enchantment1 x In Search of Greatness1 x Spark Double1 x In Bolas’s Clutches Planeswalker1 x Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner1 x Narset, Parter of Veils1 x Jace, Cunning Castaway1 x Tamiyo, Collector of Tales1 x Jace, Wielder of Mysteries1 x Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor1 x Garruk, Unleashed1 x Teferi, Master of Time1 x Karn, Scion of Urza1 x Vivien Reid1 x Wrenn and Seven1 x Nissa, Who Shakes the World1 x Tamiyo, Compleated Sage1 x Ugin, the Ineffable Land1 x Dreamroot Cascade1 x Boseiju, Who Endures1 x Barkchannel Pathway // Tidechannel Pathway1 x Botanical Sanctum1 x Breeding Pool1 x Hinterland Harbor1 x Temple of Mystery1 x Thornwood Falls1 x Vineglimmer Snarl1 x Woodland Stream1 x Simic Guildgate1 x Rimewood Falls1 x Quandrix Campus1 x Hall of Storm Giants1 x Otawara, Soaring City11 x Island (335)13 x Forest (347) Buy This List MTG Arena decklist Commander 1 Kasmina, Enigma Sage Deck 1 Tamiyo, Collector of Tales 1 Regrowth 1 Quandrix Command 1 Kiora, Behemoth Beckoner 1 Vivien Reid 1 Nissa, Who Shakes the World 1 Narset, Parter of Veils 1 Jace, Wielder of Mysteries 1 Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor 1 Garruk, Unleashed 1 Jace, Cunning Castaway 1 Brainstorm 1 Fading Hope 1 Teferi, Master of Time 1 Counterspell 1 Growth Spiral 1 Censor 1 Callous Dismissal 1 Memory Lapse 1 Tale’s End 1 Brazen Borrower 1 Commit /// Memory 1 Time Warp 1 Tezzeret’s Gambit 1 Karn’s Temporal Sundering 1 Tamiyo, Compleated Sage 1 Abundant Harvest 1 Explore 1 Once Upon a Time 1 Spring /// Mind 1 Luxior, Giada’s Gift 1 Bala Ged Recovery 1 Cultivate 1 Creeping Mold 1 Kamahl’s Druidic Vow 1 Dreamroot Cascade 1 Storm the Festival 1 In Bolas’s Clutches 1 In Search of Greatness 1 Mox Amber 1 Coldsteel Heart 1 Mind Stone 1 Karn, Scion of Urza 1 Boseiju, Who Endures 1 Ugin, the Ineffable 1 Heart of Kiran 1 Gilded Goose 1 Llanowar Elves 1 Druid of the Cowl 1 Jolrael, Mwonvuli Recluse 1 Incubation Drui 1 Lotus Cobra 1 Scavenging Ooze 1 Tangled Florahedron 1 Lovestruck Beast 1 Elder Gargaroth 1 Vorinclex, Monstrous Raider 1 Spark Double 1 Barkchannel Pathway 1 Botanical Sanctum 1 Breeding Pool 1 Hinterland Harbor 1 Temple of Mystery 1 Thornwood Falls 1 Vineglimmer Snarl 1 Woodland Stream 1 Simic Guildgate 1 Rimewood Falls 1 Quandrix Campus 11 Island 13 Forest 1 Hall of Storm Giants 1 Otawara, Soaring City 1 Wrenn and Seven 1 Sea Gate Restoration 1 River’s Rebuke 1 Mind’s Desire The deck has come a long way, and runs as smooth as ever now. I am pretty proud of how streamlined and explosive it is turning out to be. More than anything, however, I am just excited to see what new options are released next! Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName Email Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ