Baylen, the HaymakerBaylen, the Haymaker | Art by Ryan Pancoast

Tappy Tokens Take Tenacity

Hello fellow brewer and welcome back to Brew For Your Buck, where we swap out the top 10 most expensive cards in a deck with 10 budget cards that add a unique twist. We've been getting so many sets lately, that I actually have a backlog of article ideas for the first time since I've been writing Brew For Your Buck. Part of the reason for that is I like to write an article about the most popular commander from each new set, so today's article features Bloomburrow's current deck list leader:

It's not hard to understand why people love this card: it's a fuzzy little Rabbit, it's in three colors, and of course, cares about tokens. Commander players love their tokens, and Baylen gives us so many ways to manipulate them. The average list clocks in at a shocking $708.55, an extreme amount compared to our usual starting point. Upon examining the top 10 most expensive cards, it's easy to see what the common denominator is:

1. 1. 1. 1. 1. 1. Dockside ExtortionistDockside Extortionist ($79.39)
               2. Anointed ProcessionAnointed Procession ($52.53)
               3. Ocelot PrideOcelot Pride ($43.07)
               4. Doubling SeasonDoubling Season ($41.87)
               5. Mondrak, Glory DominusMondrak, Glory Dominus ($38.45)
               6. Teferi's ProtectionTeferi's Protection ($32.56)
               7. Parallel LivesParallel Lives ($32.09)
               8. Smothering TitheSmothering Tithe ($24.87)
               9. Ojer Taq, Deepest FoundationOjer Taq, Deepest Foundation ($21.40)
               10. Charismatic ConquerorCharismatic Conqueror ($15.18)

Total Value of Cuts: $381.41

That's just a list of the best token generators in Naya (). Just those ten cards make up 54% of the deck's total value, and we haven't even looked at the manabase yet. In fact, only three lands would make the above list: Boseiju, Who EnduresBoseiju, Who Endures, Arid MesaArid Mesa, and Sacred FoundrySacred Foundry. Replacing them with basics leads to an additional $73.98 in savings, for a total of $455.39.

Despite cutting those very pricey token doublers and generators, I'm convinced that we can replace them in some capacity with our budget package. As I said before, tokens are extremely popular and Wizards knows this. With so many cards printed that care about tokens, there are a ton of ways to generate them without breaking the bank. Let's take a look:

Additions

Token Explosion

Lately we've seen a lot of effects that give us an extra token when we generate some. Some are already in the deck like Peregrin TookPeregrin Took and Academy ManufactorAcademy Manufactor. We are missing Queen Allenal of RuadachQueen Allenal of Ruadach ($0.15), an uncommon signpost that is probably sitting around in your draft chaff. Follow my logic here: if you have multiple instances of generating a single token, Queen Allenal just became a token doubler for less than a quarter. One of those ways might be Arasta of the Endless WebArasta of the Endless Web ($0.11). While your opponents spend their mana and cards, Arasta will pump out Spiders for you to abuse with Baylen, or as blockers in case of an incoming flying army.

Maybe you'll equip one of those two with Scepter of CelebrationScepter of Celebration ($0.71). This Equipment turns any creature on your board into a HUGE problem for your opponents, and since you're going to have a lot of creatures, your opponents will have a lot of problems. Speaking of problems, if you've never played with Sprout Swarm ($0.47), you're gonna be in for a treat. This card certainly warped and arguably ruined its Limited format, in part because it can easily be turned into a repeatable token engine that can only be "killed" by a counterspell.

Cast and ye shall be rewarded

The next group of token generators reward you for casting the spells you were going to cast anyways. Defiler of FaithDefiler of Faith ($0.29) is perhaps the best, triggering off of the 22 white permanents in the deck (including Baylen) and reducing the cost of all of them by . Oketra's MonumentOketra's Monument ($1.56) does a similar impression, triggering off of the 27 creatures in the deck and also providing a mana reduction to eleven of them.

Going tall while also going wide can make your board scary in two shakes of a Rabbit's tail. Torens, Fist of the AngelsTorens, Fist of the Angels ($0.82) does just that, pumping out tokens that will pump themselves when a larger creature attacks, like perhaps a 7/6 trampling Rabbit Warrior? Finally, we get some more help from the Hobbits: Samwise GamgeeSamwise Gamgee ($1.42) doesn't technically trigger on casting a spell, but the token creation isn't limited to once per turn (as some similar effects are) and he offers the deck some much needed recursion.

Tap Out, Pop Off

To round out our budget package, we'll add a few goodies that care about all the tapping going on. Harvest SeasonHarvest Season ($1.07) is a really good inclusion, especially if you're going put more basics in the deck to save further on the mana base. After you're done tapping everything on your turn, you can explode out ahead of your opponents with a ton of mana, or really pop off if you happen to have Felidar RetreatFelidar Retreat or Tireless ProvisionerTireless Provisioner on the battlefield. Nullmage ShepherdNullmage Shepherd ($0.17) is an additional and on-theme way to abuse token tapping, and could theoretically wipe out a big artifact threat or neutralize your opponents' mana rocks.

Wrap Up & Savings

Let's see what we saved:

Heck yea, 63% of $700 is a lot of cheddar. With a new price of $259.93, there's obviously a lot of additional savings to be had, but this seems like an excellent starting place to me. If you do some work on the mana base, might I suggest Krosan VergeKrosan Verge as an option which can grab any of the typed-duals in the list.

So what do you think? Were there any token related cards that I missed? Which Bloomburrow commander do you want to see before we move on? Or did I miss one from a recent set you'd like to see me backtrack to? Let me know in the comments and I'll see you next time when we brew for your buck!

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Please note: card prices listed in this article are accurate at the time of writing, but prices can vary over time and between locations.

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Brian Cain

Brian played Magic intermittently between 2003 and 2017 when he fully embraced his love for Commander. Finding ways to maximize the value of each piece of cardboard in the deck is one of his favorite things to explore, especially if it involves putting lands in the graveyard! Outside of Magic, Brian works as a consultant in the marine industry, turning his passion for boats and ships into a career.