The Hobbit: a cEDH Set Review

<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Smaug, Wicked Worm" href="#" target="_blank">Smaug, Wicked Worm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.tylerjacobsonart.com/">Tyler Jacobson</a></em></p>
<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dockside Extortionist" href="#" target="_blank">Dockside Extortionist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://forrestimel.artstation.com/">Forrest Imel</a></em></p>
<p>The hits just keep on coming with <em>Magic</em>'s forthcoming set, <em>The Hobbit</em>, which is shaping up to have a huge impact on the cEDH meta.</p>
<p>So, with Elves having just received a new one-card combo thanks to <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/thranduil-the-elvenking-a-cedh-one-card-combo">Thranduil</a>, where next can we turn for a new commander? Well, atop a hoard of Treasure, next up is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Smaug, Wicked Worm" href="#" target="_blank">Smaug, Wicked Worm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> — a card that does just enough of a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dockside Extortionist" href="#" target="_blank">Dockside Extortionist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> impression to give cEDH players some rather unpleasant flashbacks.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Smaug, Wicked Worm"></div></div>
<h2>What Does <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Smaug, Wicked Worm" href="#" target="_blank">Smaug, Wicked Worm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Do?</h2>
<p>Coming in at <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-3" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-b" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-r" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>, Smaug, Wicked Worm is a legendary 5/5 Dragon creature with flying that, when it enters, creates a tapped Treasure token for each artifact your opponents control. It also has the triggered ability "When you cast a spell, if mana from a Treasure was spent to cast it, you draw a card and lose 1 life."</p>
<p>First off, that enters trigger. In an average game of cEDH, you'll likely be making around three to five Treasure tokens when Smaug enters, assuming everyone has at least one Mox, Signet, or Talisman. Unfortunately, these tokens enter tapped, making them too slow to enable any particularly potent combos, but they are exactly the kind of mass mana bank that'll launch you ahead if you can survive a turn.</p>
<p>Moving to the second trigger, this is where we really start to see things pop off. Red is the color of Treasure production, meaning that — with the right synergy pieces — it's not hard to imagine casting Smaug and having plenty of untapped Treasure tokens left over from previous spells and abilities. With Smaug in play, each of those Treasure tokens effectively represents up to one additional card, providing an opportunity to storm off as you flip through card after card.</p>
<h2>Key Cards for Smaug, Wicked Worm</h2>
<h3>Treasure Producers</h3>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Knuckles the Echidna"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Grim Hireling"></div></div>
<p>Our first batch of key cards is composed of just about every cEDH playable that makes a Treasure token. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer" href="#" target="_blank">Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is already a cEDH all star, so that's all well and good, but where things get really exciting is with creatures like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Knuckles the Echidna" href="#" target="_blank">Knuckles the Echidna</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Grim Hireling" href="#" target="_blank">Grim Hireling</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>These hit the board and quickly enable mass Treasure accumulation, with Grim Hireling in particular providing up to six Treasure tokens in a single combat step.</p>
<h3>Burst Draw</h3>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ominous Harvest"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Wheel of Fortune"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Jeska&#039;s Will"></div></div>
<p>So, you've made your Treasure pile, now it's time to spend it on something. From classic burst draw effects like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wheel of Fortune" href="#" target="_blank">Wheel of Fortune</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jeska&#039;s Will" href="#" target="_blank">Jeska&#039;s Will</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to the more niche Ominous Harvest (which will get copied for, among other things, the number of Treasure tokens you sacrificed this turn), cards like these are vital to ensuring that you're actually able to put all that mana to good use.</p>
<p>Smaug does an excellent job at flipping through cards one at a time, but it's burst effects like these that give you a range of options to pick from.</p>
<h2>How Does Smaug, Wicked Worm Win?</h2>
<h3><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Underworld Breach" href="#" target="_blank">Underworld Breach</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Combo</h3>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Underworld Breach"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Grinding Station"></div></div>
<p>First up, we've got the mono-red <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Underworld Breach" href="#" target="_blank">Underworld Breach</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> package, which uses <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Grinding Station" href="#" target="_blank">Grinding Station</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and any mana-positive mana rock to generate infinite mana and churn through your deck (or mana-neutral rock, if you don't need mana and just want to find cards).</p>
<p>With Underworld Breach in play, the plan here is to use Grinding Station's activated ability to sacrifice an artifact (the rock) and target yourself, milling three cards. Recast the rock from your graveyard thanks to Underworld Breach, triggering Grinding Station's untap ability when the rock enters. Float whatever mana the rock can produce, sacrifice it to mill three cards, then continue the loop until you find a way to actually kill the table, which is where our next combo (or a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mayhem Devil" href="#" target="_blank">Mayhem Devil</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>) comes into play.</p>
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<h2><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dualcaster Mage" href="#" target="_blank">Dualcaster Mage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> Combo</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dualcaster Mage"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Molten Duplication"></div></div>
<p>Another red classic, this combo involves casting <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Molten Duplication" href="#" target="_blank">Molten Duplication</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> (or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Twinflame" href="#" target="_blank">Twinflame</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>), holding priority, and copying it with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dualcaster Mage" href="#" target="_blank">Dualcaster Mage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. The copied spell will then be redirected to target Dualcaster, which — upon resolution — will give you another trigger to copy a spell (which will be the still-on-stack Molten Duplication). Rinse and repeat as many times as you wish, eventually winding up with a board of infinite, hasty 2/2 creatures.</p>
<div id="147-5487" style="width: 100%; position: relative; overflow: visible; display: flex; justify-content: center;"><img decoding="async" id="csbLoad" src="https://commanderspellbook.com/images/gear.svg" alt="csb logo" width="300" /><br />
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<h2>Smaug, Wicked Worm cEDH Deck List</h2>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Smaug, Wicked Worm cEDH" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Smaug, Wicked Worm
[/Commander]
[Creatures]
*1 &quot;Name Sticker&quot; Goblin
*1 Birgi, God of Storytelling // Harnfel, Horn of Bounty
*1 Dragon&#039;s Rage Channeler
*1 Dualcaster Mage
*1 Enterprising Scallywag
*1 Grim Hireling
*1 Hexing Squelcher
*1 Imperial Recruiter
*1 Knuckles the Echidna
*1 Magda, Brazen Outlaw
*1 Mayhem Devil
*1 Orcish Bowmasters
*1 Professional Face-Breaker
*1 Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer
*1 Rev, Tithe Extractor
*1 Simian Spirit Guide
*1 Storm-Kiln Artist
[/Creatures]
[Instants]
*1 Ad Nauseam
*1 Big Score
*1 Burnt Offering
*1 Cabal Ritual
*1 Culling the Weak
*1 Dark Ritual
*1 Deflecting Swat
*1 Desperate Ritual
*1 Final Fortune
*1 Flare of Duplication
*1 Pyretic Ritual
*1 Pyroblast
*1 Rain of Filth
*1 Red Elemental Blast
*1 Redirect Lightning
*1 Sacrifice
*1 Tainted Pact
*1 Unexpected Windfall
*1 Vampiric Tutor
[/Instants]
[Enchantments]
*1 Black Market Connections
*1 Necropotence
*1 Underworld Breach
[/Enchantments]
[Artifacts]
*1 Amulet of Vigor
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Chrome Mox
*1 Defense Grid
*1 Fellwar Stone
*1 Grim Monolith
*1 Grinding Station
*1 Jeweled Amulet
*1 Lion&#039;s Eye Diamond
*1 Lotus Petal
*1 Mana Vault
*1 Mox Diamond
*1 Mox Opal
*1 Sensei&#039;s Divining Top
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Talisman of Indulgence
*1 Vexing Bauble
*1 Wishclaw Talisman
[/Artifacts]
[Sorceries]
*1 Beseech the Mirror
*1 Demonic Tutor
*1 Diabolic Intent
*1 Gamble
*1 Imperial Seal
*1 Jeska&#039;s Will
*1 Last Chance
*1 Lively Dirge
*1 Molten Duplication
*1 Ominous Harvest
*1 Praetor&#039;s Grasp
*1 Rite of Flame
*1 Strike It Rich
*1 Twinflame
*1 Wheel of Fortune
[/Sorceries]
[Lands]
*1 Ancient Tomb
*1 Arid Mesa
*1 Badlands
*1 Blood Crypt
*1 Bloodstained Mire
*1 City of Brass
*1 City of Traitors
*1 Command Tower
*1 Gemstone Caverns
*1 Luxury Suite
*1 Mana Confluence
*1 Marsh Flats
*1 Mount Doom
*1 Mountain
*1 Prismatic Vista
*1 Scalding Tarn
*1 Snow-Covered Mountain
*1 Snow-Covered Swamp
*1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
*1 Starting Town
*1 Sulfurous Springs
*1 Swamp
*1 Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
*1 Tarnished Citadel
*1 Urza&#039;s Saga
*1 Verdant Catacombs
*1 Wooded Foothills
[/Lands]"></span></div>
<h2>Wrap Up</h2>
<p>Smaug, Wicked Worm is not <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dockside Extortionist" href="#" target="_blank">Dockside Extortionist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<p>It makes a lot of mana, certainly, but that belies the real strength of this deck: consistent card advantage, spell after spell, as you churn Treasure tokens into an unstoppable flood of card draw. It may not go infinite immediately the way Dockside did, but make no mistake — Smaug has all the makings of a unique, powerful, and all-together interesting cEDH commander.</p>


smaug wicked worm

The Hobbit: a cEDH Set Review

Smaug, Wicked Worm | cEDH's Next Dockside?