Art by Grzegorz Rutkowski
Saved commander deck
Tormod, the Desecrator
Skeletons are defined by their ability to repeatedly resurrect themselves from the graveyard. Tormod creates a 2/2 Zombie token whenever a card leaves your graveyard, turning every Skeleton self-recursion into double the board presence and fuel for aristocrat sacrifice engines.
Prompt: Build a Commander-legal Typal/Kindred deck around a creative and non-obvious interaction between the commander and a chosen creature type. The commander cannot be of the chosen creature type, and the creature type cannot appear anywhere in the commander's rules text. The commander should meaningfully support the chosen creature type through an unusual mechanical or thematic interaction. Avoid obvious or established pairings where the commander was clearly designed to support that tribe. A generic commander that merely happens to work well with the tribe is not enough. The deck should have a strong mechanical identity, with the chosen creature type being central to the strategy. The connection between the commander and tribe should be clever, unexpected, and easy to explain. Prioritize originality and unusual synergies over simply maximizing the tribe's conventional strategy. focus on skeletons
Commander
1 cards
Tormod, the Desecrator
{3}{B}Legendary Creature — Zombie Wizard
Chosen commander for the requested strategy.
Ramp
9 cards
Jet Medallion
{2}Artifact
reduces cost of all black skeleton and aristocrat spells
Bontu's Monument
{3}Legendary Artifact
reduces black creature costs and drains opponents on creature casts
Phyrexian Altar
{3}Artifact
sacrifices recurring skeletons for colored mana to loop abilities
Card Draw
9 cards
Skullclamp
{1}Artifact — Equipment
turns recurring 1-toughness skeletons into massive card draw
Midnight Reaper
{2}{B}Creature — Zombie Knight
draws cards whenever non-token dying skeletons hit the grave
Grim Haruspex
{2}{B}Creature — Human Wizard
draws cards on non-token creature deaths
Morbid Opportunist
{2}{B}Creature — Human Rogue
steady card draw trigger on any creature death each turn
Species Specialist
{2}{B}{B}Creature — Human Warrior
names Skeletons to draw cards whenever a Skeleton dies
Removal
9 cards
Feed the Swarm
{1}{B}Sorcery
essential black targeted enchantment or creature spot removal
Attrition
{1}{B}{B}Enchantment
repeatable removal using recurring skeletons as ammo
Grave Pact
{1}{B}{B}{B}Enchantment
forces opponents to sacrifice creatures whenever your skeletons die
Dictate of Erebos
{3}{B}{B}Enchantment
flash grave pact effect to force opponent sacrifices
Threats/Wincons
25 cards
Reassembling Skeleton
{1}{B}Creature — Skeleton Warrior
the ultimate recurring skeleton to trigger Tormod on demand
Cult Conscript
{B}Creature — Skeleton Warrior
cheap skeleton that returns easily from the graveyard
Persistent Specimen
{B}Creature — Skeleton
1-drop skeleton that can bring itself back to the battlefield
Sanitarium Skeleton
{B}Creature — Skeleton
skeleton that repeatedly returns to hand to trigger Tormod
Tenacious Underdog
{1}{B}Creature — Human Warrior
recurs from graveyard with Blitz, leaving grave and drawing a card
Clattering Augur
{1}{B}Creature — Skeleton Shaman
skeleton that draws a card on death and regenerates
Gutterbones
{B}Creature — Skeleton Warrior
low-cost skeleton that returns from graveyard to hand
Skeleton Crew
{3}{B}Creature — Skeleton Pirate
skeleton lord that buff skeletons and makes skeleton tokens when cards leave grave
Death-Priest of Myrkul
{2}{B}{B}Creature — Tiefling Cleric
buffs skeletons and generates additional skeleton tokens
Paragon of Open Graves
{3}{B}Creature — Skeleton Warrior
buffs black creatures and gives skeletons regeneration
Duty-Bound Dead
{B}Creature — Skeleton
1-drop skeleton with exalted and regeneration
Bone Dragon
{3}{B}{B}Creature — Dragon Skeleton
flying skeleton dragon that recurs itself by exiling other cards
Skeletal Vampire
{4}{B}{B}Creature — Vampire Skeleton
high-end skeleton token generator and flying threat
Dimir House Guard
{3}{B}Creature — Skeleton
skeleton that can transmute for key 4-cmc spells or regenerate
Wall of Bone
{2}{B}Creature — Skeleton Wall
defensive skeleton with cheap regeneration
Augur of Skulls
{1}{B}Creature — Skeleton Wizard
skeleton that can be sacrificed for mind rot and regenerated
Drudge Skeletons
{1}{B}Creature — Skeleton
classic low-cost regenerating skeleton
Skeleton Scavengers
{2}{B}Creature — Skeleton
gets counters when regenerated from death setup
Mirkwood Bats
{3}{B}Creature — Bat
drains opponents whenever Tormod creates Zombie tokens
Ayara, First of Locthwain
{B}{B}{B}Legendary Creature — Elf Noble
drains opponents as black skeletons enter and acts as a sac outlet
Corpses of the Lost
{2}{B}Enchantment
buffs skeletons with haste and recurs itself from graveyard
Bastion of Remembrance
{2}{B}Enchantment
aristocrat enchantment that drains life when your skeletons die
Zulaport Cutthroat
{1}{B}Creature — Human Rogue Ally
drains all opponents whenever skeletons or tokens die
Utility
9 cards
Tortured Existence
{B}Enchantment
swaps creatures between hand and grave, triggering Tormod repeatedly for B
Desecrated Tomb
{3}Artifact
doubles up token generation by creating Bat tokens when skeletons leave grave
Lightning Greaves
{2}Artifact — Equipment
protects commander and gives recurring threats haste
Animate Dead
{1}{B}Enchantment — Aura
cheap reanimation spell that triggers Tormod
Reanimate
{B}Sorcery
one-mana reanimation spell that pulls skeletons back and triggers Tormod
Oversold Cemetery
{1}{B}Enchantment
returns a skeleton from graveyard to hand every upkeep for free
Phyrexian Reclamation
{B}Enchantment
repeatably returns skeletons to hand at instant speed to trigger Tormod
Buried Alive
{2}{B}Sorcery
tutors 3 key self-recurring skeletons straight into the graveyard
