Leatherhead, Swamp StalkerLeatherhead, Swamp Stalker | Art by Lie Setiawan

After a mix-up caused nearly all of the rares and mythics from the upcoming Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to get spoiled (you can read about it here), we now have a bunch of new legends we can brew Commander decks around.

I've been a fan of green since I opened my first Magic cards back in 1994, and my eyes always catch on a nifty and neat new mono-green legend. This time around, I homed in on this cool Crocodile Mutant Rogue!

What follows is a deck tech for the Commander deck I brewed up around Leatherhead, Swamp StalkerLeatherhead, Swamp Stalker, so be sure to check out the deck list near the bottom of the article!

What Does Leatherhead, Swamp StalkerLeatherhead, Swamp Stalker Do?

First, let me say I'm just a smidge disappointed that a card called "Swamp Stalker" does not have swampwalk. The early days of Magic had green get a handful of creatures with swampwalk - some Snakes, a couple Oxen, even a Dinosaur.

Maybe Wizards of the Coast (WotC) thought it would look weird alongside the trample ability providing two forms of evasion, but we have tons of Magic cards that do that.

At any rate, I do appreciate the trample on a creature with sizable power. Leatherhead also enters with a hexproof counter on it and that, combined with trample, makes the card an ideal candidate for attaching Equipment or other ways to boost its power.

Lastly, whenever Leatherhead deals combat damage to a player, you may remove a counter from it; if you do, destroy target artifact or enchantment that player controls. While I'd usually be loathe to give up that hexproof counter, sometimes you've just got to take out a problematic artifact or enchantment. But I looked for ways to add other counters to Leatherhead to get the best of both worlds.

Leatherhead reminds me a lot of Thrun, the Last TrollThrun, the Last Troll, which had hexproof before it was a keyword ability. Both are awesome at picking up Equipment cards, though I think Leatherhead's trample ability edges out Thrun's regeneration. Leatherhead also has a touch of Glissa SunslayerGlissa Sunslayer with its trigger from dealing combat damage to an opponent.

Key Cards for Leatherhead, Swamp StalkerLeatherhead, Swamp Stalker

Two amazing cards in this deck are going to be Liquimetal TorqueLiquimetal Torque and Liquimetal CoatingLiquimetal Coating. When you're attacking an opponent and are sure Leatherhead is going to deal damage to them, being able to turn their most problematic permanent into an artifact and then pick it off by removing a counter from Leatherhead is going to be huge!

Just keep in mind that the Torque can only turn a nonland into an artifact. Ashnod's TransmograntAshnod's Transmogrant is a one-shot artifact, but it's quite flexible - you can turn an opponent's creature into an artifact to mow down with Leatherhead, or you can target Leatherhead and use that +1/+1 counter for Leatherhead's ability.

Since we're incentivized to run the above cards, it makes sense to also run Glissa SunseekerGlissa Sunseeker, which is another way to destroy artifacts so you can keep the counters on Leatherhead.

The Mutagen tokens from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles is another way to add +1/+1 counters to Leatherhead you can cash in for its triggered ability. Mutagen Man, Living OozeMutagen Man, Living Ooze can make a handful of them, and its static ability lets you crack them off for no mana.

The OozeThe Ooze is another way to create Mutagen tokens, and has a nifty graveyard hoser ability. Michelangelo, Weirdness to 11Michelangelo, Weirdness to 11 brings a Mutagen token with it, and also boosts the number of +1/+1 counters put on creatures you control.

Explore is another, though slightly less reliable, way to add +1/+1 counters. I'm a big fan of Twists and TurnsTwists and Turns in lower Bracket decks since getting to seven lands to transform is pretty easy to do. Over the EdgeOver the Edge offers removal if you need it, or exploring - twice! - if you don't.

Then there's Glowcap LanternGlowcap Lantern which is an excellent Equipment for Leatherhead.

I really like the graft mechanic for immediately adding a +1/+1 counter on Leatherhead when it enters, but unfortunately there aren't all that many available in mono-green. Llanowar RebornLlanowar Reborn, Simic InitiateSimic Initiate, and Aquastrand SpiderAquastrand Spider are all great for playing early so Leatherhead can snag a counter.

Since WotC continues to bombard us with a plethora of good ways to add +1/+1 counters I'm adding a fair number of them to the deck, starting with Hardened ScalesHardened Scales. Ride the ShoopufRide the Shoopuf throws them around from its landfall trigger, and in a pinch can turn into a 7/7 beatdown Beast. BiophagusBiophagus is mana acceleration that perfectly curves into a Leatherhead on turn three, and any creature you cast with its mana enters with an additional +1/+1 counter on it.

Gift of the ViperGift of the Viper adds a whopping three counters to target creature, so if you target Leatherhead you got lots of counter fodder for artifact and enchantment destroying. Origin of MetalbendingOrigin of Metalbending and the awesome Season of GatheringSeason of Gathering provide a lot of flexible options including potentially adding a counter to Leatherhead.

Forgotten AncientForgotten Ancient is a +1/+1 counter machine, soaking them up for a full turn cycle and then during your upkeep you can shift some or all of them onto other creatures - but let's be real, they'll be going on Leatherhead.

Kami of Whispered HopesKami of Whispered Hopes both gives and is happy to receive +1/+1 counters. Benevolent HydraBenevolent Hydra is an excellent mana sink that can potentially throw a steady supply of +1/+1 counters on Leatherhead.

Loyal GuardianLoyal Guardian and Defiler of VigorDefiler of Vigor can throw around +1/+1 counters to your entire team.

The Earth CrystalThe Earth Crystal is an awesome card that you can really make full use of here. Conformer ShurikenConformer Shuriken is sneaky good, and a perfect way to grow Leatherhead if an opponent has a huge blocker that would otherwise be difficult to get around.

Nesting GroundsNesting Grounds is a cool way to move counters around from one creature to Leatherhead. Slippery BogbonderSlippery Bogbonder provides an extra hexproof counter and can move counters from other creatures to Leatherhead. Family's FavorFamily's Favor is a neat enchantment that can give Leatherhead a shield counter you can either cash in to draw a card, pay for Leatherhead's damage trigger, or save Leatherhead from dying.

Since Leatherhead enters automatically modified with a hexproof counter, Lion UmbraLion Umbra is an awesome Aura for it, making it a powerful attacker and blocker. Kodama of the West TreeKodama of the West Tree will usually trigger whenever Leatherhead deals combat damage. Strong BackStrong Back is perfect when going all Voltron with Leatherhead.

I rounded out the deck with cards that appreciate Leatherhead's trample ability. Ram ThroughRam Through can function as a green FireballFireball, especially if it's power has gotten significantly boosted... say, with Blackblade ReforgedBlackblade Reforged! Bow of NyleaBow of Nylea gives your attacking creatures deathtouch, which combines quite nicely with trample to easily push through damage, and it can also add a counter to Leatherhead that you can cash in to destroy an artifact or enchantment.

Buster SwordBuster Sword, Sword of Light and ShadowSword of Light and Shadow, and Sword of Sinew and SteelSword of Sinew and Steel are all awesomely powerful cards that only trigger if the equipped creature deals damage... thanks to trample!

The AethersparkThe Aetherspark's first ability equips to Leatherhead and gives it a +1/+1 counter, and since you're attacking with Leatherhead you're going to add a bunch of loyalty counters. Ohran FrostfangOhran Frostfang gives your attacking creatures deathtouch and help you draw fresh cards.

How Does This Leatherhead, Swamp StalkerLeatherhead, Swamp Stalker Commander Deck Win?

This is a solid Core (Bracket 2) deck designed to grind value and slowly build up to a game-winning battlefield state. You can read more about Commander Brackets here.

Canopy GargantuanCanopy Gargantuan plays well with the +1/+1 counters theme, and if it sticks around long enough to trigger, it should very easily end the game.

Then there's Triumph of the HordesTriumph of the Hordes which is another way to end games, particularly if an opponent has been gaining a ton of life and you're having a difficult time closing with commander damage.

Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker Commander Deck List

Conclusion

Monocolored decks will often struggle against certain strategies, but if you like relatively simple and definitely cheaper land bases, it feels good to go with monocolored.

This particular deck has more play against creatures than most mono-green decks thanks to the combo of Leatherhead and cards like Liquimetal CoatingLiquimetal Coating. I think it has lots of good play in the lower brackets; even with a bunch of Game Changers I think it would struggle in Brackets 4 and above. If your playgroup run decks with a ton of powerful artifacts or enchantments, Leatherhead is a great way to keep them in check!

What sort of cards would you play in a Leatherhead, Swamp Stalker deck that I don't have here?

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