(The Thirteenth Doctor | Art by Pauline Voss | Yasmin Khan | Art by Andrey Kuzinskiy | Etali, Primal Storm | Art by Raymond Swanland)
Hey friends. Beth, Queen of Cardboard here with another Precon Upgrade Guide. Today we’re focusing on the Universes Beyond: Doctor Who deck Paradox Power.
As I mentioned in my Upgrade Guide for Blast from the Past, these decks are some of the most thematic precons I’ve seen, and that can make them incredibly hard to upgrade. With this deck, I chose to focus on what the commanders are trying to do, which is cast spells from a location other than your hand. In my upgrades I focused specifically on playing from exile.
Let’s get into the deck.
Dinos on a Spaceship
Our companion, Yasmin Khan, already lets us cast from exile, so this seems to be the way the deck wants to go. My favorite cast-from-exile creature has got to be the OG Etali, Primal Storm. In addition to Etali, I included the new Etali, Primal Conqueror, as well as Laelia, the Blade Reforged and Plargg and Nassari.
Cascade is another great way to cast from exile, so to support this we’re adding Maelstrom Wanderer and Wild-Magic Sorcerer. And a surprise pick for the deck is Sword of Forge and Frontier, the newest Sword of X&Y, from Phyrexia: All Will Be One.
Paradox Power Cards Added
1 Elven Chorus1 Visions of Phyrexia
1 Chaos Wand1 Sword of Forge and Frontier
1 Etali, Primal Conqueror // Etali, Primal Sickness1 Etali, Primal Storm1 Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald1 Keeper of Secrets1 Laelia, the Blade Reforged1 Maelstrom Wanderer1 Plargg and Nassari1 Wild-Magic Sorcerer
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I also added Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald and Keeper of Secrets for a few more benefits for casting from exile. And to ensure that we know what’s coming, I included Elven Chorus so that we can check the top of our library before Cascading or activating Yasmin.
No More Me
Making cuts from a deck is probably my least favorite thing to do, but in this deck the alternate commander, Me, the Immortal, just isn’t on the same page as The Thirteenth Doctor and Yasmin Khan. Me had to go.
In addition, I removed cards that weren’t directly benefitting the cast-from-exile plan. Cards like Dan Lewis and Bill Potts, while fun, felt like they fit in a different deck. The one Foretell card I removed, Frost Fair Lure Fish, needed more support other than just being a cool 7/7 with some evasion.
A strong argument could be made to keep Danny Pink in the deck, as he gives lesser-power creatures +1/+1 and allows you to draw a card the first time a +1/+1 counter is put on a creature each turn. However, he doesn’t directly correlate with the goal of casting or benefiting from casting from exile. While he can be used for more card draw, I let him go.
I made 14 swaps and I feel pretty good about where the deck is going.
Paradox Power Cards Removed
1 Become the Pilot1 Fugitive of the Judoon
1 Bill Potts1 Dan Lewis1 Danny Pink1 Frost Fair Lure Fish1 Jenny Flint1 Madame Vastra1 Me, the Immortal1 Nardole, Resourceful Cyborg1 River Song1 Strax, Sontaran Nurse1 Thijarian Witness
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Big Beats
The ultimate goal of this deck is combat, benefitting from both your and your opponents’ spells. Your creatures start big or get bigger and make for some impressively large creatures swinging in to deal damage. If you’re stuck, continuing to cast from exile can help you with a few well-placed burn spells. Foretell Impending Flux face down and wait for the moment for it to make the most impact. And a few Etali swings should get you right where you need to be.
Paradox Power Precon Upgrade Guide
1 The Thirteenth Doctor1 Yasmin Khan
1 Arcane Signet1 Chaos Wand1 Confession Dial1 Cursed Mirror1 River Song’s Diary1 Sol Ring1 Sonic Screwdriver1 Sword of Forge and Frontier1 TARDIS1 Talisman of Curiosity1 Talisman of Impulse
1 Beast Within1 Chaos Warp1 Decaying Time Loop1 Flatline1 Growth Spiral1 Surge of Brilliance1 Think Twice
1 Bigger on the Inside1 Carpet of Flowers1 Elven Chorus1 Heaven Sent1 Return the Past1 The Flux1 Visions of Phyrexia
1 Clara Oswald1 Etali, Primal Conqueror // Etali, Primal Sickness1 Etali, Primal Storm1 Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald1 Flaming Tyrannosaurus1 Graham O’Brien1 Iraxxa, Empress of Mars1 Karvanista, Loyal Lupari // Lupari Shield1 Keeper of Secrets1 Laelia, the Blade Reforged1 Lunar Hatchling1 Maelstrom Wanderer1 Memory Worm1 Osgood, Operation Double1 Plargg and Nassari1 Ryan Sinclair1 Sisterhood of Karn1 The Foretold Soldier1 The Fugitive Doctor1 The Twelfth Doctor1 Wild-Magic Sorcerer
1 Cultivate1 Escape to the Wilds1 Farseek1 Impending Flux1 Into the Time Vortex1 Jeska’s Will1 Last Night Together1 Ponder1 Preordain1 Quantum Misalignment1 Search for Tomorrow1 Start the TARDIS1 Throes of Chaos1 Truth or Consequences1 Twice Upon a Time // Unlikely Meeting1 Wreck and Rebuild
1 Cinder Glade1 Command Tower1 Desolate Lighthouse1 Dreamroot Cascade1 Exotic Orchard1 Fiery Islet4 Forest1 Frontier Bivouac1 Frostboil Snarl1 Gallifrey Council Chamber1 Game Trail4 Island3 Mountain1 Myriad Landscape1 Ominous Cemetery1 Path of Ancestry1 Reliquary Tower1 Rockfall Vale1 Rogue’s Passage1 Rootbound Crag1 Sheltered Thicket1 Stormcarved Coast1 Temple of Abandon1 Temple of Epiphany1 Temple of Mystery1 Temple of the False God1 Vineglimmer Snarl1 Waterlogged Grove
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In Conclusion
It might be my coming off of MTG Summit and getting to play Mental Misplay’s Etali deck there, but I think this deck is going to be a lot of fun. I only made a few changes in this one because it’s so flavorful and synergistic. If you want to power it up a bit more, I highly suggest looking at ways to copy Etali or another creature that allows you to cast spells from exile for free. Remember friends, free spells are good spells.
Let me know in the comments how you upgraded Paradox Power or other ways you like to cast from exile.
If you liked this article, check out:
Too-Specific Top 10 – You’re Gonna Pay
Who doesn’t love free stuff? Come check out Beth’s Upgrade Guide for Paradox Power, the Doctor Who deck that gives you tons of value from exile. Read More Articles, commander, dinosaurs, doctor who, edh, exile, paradox power, Precon, temur, universes beyond, Upgrade EDHREC
