 |  |
I’ll never forget when I first learned about the Midnight Guard and Presence of Gond combo in Magic the Gathering. It was actually while I was picking through the bulk commons and uncommons boxes at my local game store. While I was hoarding Utopia Sprawl and other useful commons and uncommons, one guy was hoarding specifically Midnight Guard and Presence of Gond. He wanted to build several playsets because he felt they were a good investment for Pauper. For the 10 cents a piece that commons were at that game store, it was a pretty good move on his part.
Midnight Guard was originally printed in Dark Ascension and would be reprinted in Magic 2015 and Battlebond. Presence of Gond was originally printed in Shadowmoor and would get a reprint in Commander 2013 and Masters 25. Midnight Guard’s effect in itself isn’t that exciting, as what it does is untap whenever another creature enters the battlefield. But, Presence of Gond is an enchantment that allows you to tap the enchanted creature to create a 1/1 Elf creature token. Because the Guard will untap when the Elf token enters play, you can create as many tokens as you like. On its own, you can create as many tokens as you like and overwhelm the board, so the Midnight Gond combo is a win condition all in itself.
But, in Pauper, there are plenty of other cards that supplement this combo. Check out this Midnight Gond combo deck that master deck builder SaffronOlive built back in August 2018.
Creatures (23)
4 Benevolent Bodyguard
4 Nettle Sentinel
4 Soul Warden
3 Soul's Attendant
4 Thermo-Alchemist
4 Midnight Guard
Spells (10)
4 Faithless Looting
4 Sprout Swarm
2 Prismatic Strands
Enchantments (4)
4 Presence of Gond
Lands (23)
4 Ash Barrens
3 Blossoming Sands
2 Boros Garrison
2 Crumbling Vestige
1 Forest
1 Khalni Garden
1 Mountain
2 Plains
1 Rugged Highlands
1 Selesnya Sanctuary
2 Survivors' Encampment
3 Wind-Scarred Crag
Sideboard (15)
2 Electrickery
2 Pyroblast
1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Journey to Nowhere
2 Standard Bearer
1 Kor Sanctifiers
2 Oblivion Ring
3 Spidersilk Armor
Benevolent Bodyguard is a great card in this combo deck, as he allows you to protect your key creatures at the cost of his sacrifice. Soul Warden and Soul’s Attendant let you take advantage of lots of creatures entering the battlefield by gaining lots of life over the course of the game. Nettle Sentinel is a cool card that combos well with another key card in this deck, Sprout Swarm. As if your Elf tokens weren’t enough, this two-mana Convoke spell allows you to make even more 1/1 creature tokens!
Thermo-Alchemist is a cool card that allows you to not only have a 3 toughness creature on board, but also allows you to “ping” opponents over the course of a game. Faithless Looting gives you the ability to dig for your combo creatures and is generally just one of the best draw spells in the game - especially Pauper. Prismatic Strands gives you another way to protect your combo.
Another Midnight Gond Pauper Deck: Gond Life
There’s another pretty gond Midnight Gond combo deck that’s seen some competitive success called Gond Life. It’s similar to the Midnight Gond Combo deck we just looked at, but it focuses more on the gaining life aspect. It incorporates Commune with the Gods to dig for your Presence of Gond or Midnight Guard and plays powerful token generation cards like Battle Screech, Cenn’s Enlistment, and Rally the Peasants in place of Sprout Swarm. It’s posted decent results in Pauper Challenges on Magic the Gathering Online and is definitely a list worth checking out.
Creatures (16)
4 Benevolent Bodyguard
4 Midnight Guard
4 Soul Warden
4 Soul's Attendant
Spells (17)
1 Cenn's Enlistment
4 Commune with the Gods
3 Faithless Looting
3 Prismatic Strands
2 Rally the Peasants
Enchantments (4)
4 Presence of Gond
Lands (23)
3 Ash Barrens
2 Blossoming Sands
1 Boros Garrison
2 Crumbling Vestige
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Forest
2 Khalni Garden
1 Mountain
3 Plains
2 Selesnya Sanctuary
2 Survivors' Encampment
3 Wind-Scarred Crag
Sideboard
2 Electrickery
1 Flaring Pain
1 Journey to Nowhere
2 Last Breath
2 Oblivion Ring
2 Pyroblast
3 Spidersilk Armor
2 Standard Bearer
Presence of Gond Combo in EDH
Unsurprisingly, Presence of Gond does see a fair amount of play in EDH decks, although not at an extremely high rate. Elf decks with Commanders such as Rhys the Redeemed and Ezuri, Renegade Leader particularly like having Presence of Gond around as a way to produce a few extra Elf tokens over the course of a game. It also sees play in some token Commander decks such as Trostani, Selesnya’s Voice. It’s not a huge card in the format, though. Midnight Guard does sometimes see play alongside Presence of Gond in Rhys and Trostani decks. The combo isn’t bad in EDH. But because you’re playing with single copies in a 99 card deck, the Midnight Gond combo is nowhere as reliable, so not as many people tend to include it in their EDH decks.
Is the Midnight Gond Combo Playable in Modern?
In a deck sometimes known as G/W Twin, the Midnight Gond combo is one that some Modern players have attempted to make a competitive deck in the format. If someone comes up with a good list, I’ll definitely want to give it a look. But the Midnight Gond combo is a bit slow and too easily disrupted in the highly competitive Modern format. Pauper has enough protection to push it through and multiple strategies that can incorporate it.
The Midnight Gond combo is a pretty fun way to flood the board with tokens, although it’s not quite as “oops, I win” as Splinter Twin combo - although it’s pretty close in the Pauper format. Also, because the combo pieces have been reprinted a couple of times, it’s cheap to build and easy to acquire in foil.
Have you ever played a deck with the Midnight Guard and Presence of Gond combo?
Midnight Guard was originally printed in Dark Ascension and would be reprinted in Magic 2015 and Battlebond. Presence of Gond was originally printed in Shadowmoor and would get a reprint in Commander 2013 and Masters 25. Midnight Guard’s effect in itself isn’t that exciting, as what it does is untap whenever another creature enters the battlefield. But, Presence of Gond is an enchantment that allows you to tap the enchanted creature to create a 1/1 Elf creature token. Because the Guard will untap when the Elf token enters play, you can create as many tokens as you like. On its own, you can create as many tokens as you like and overwhelm the board, so the Midnight Gond combo is a win condition all in itself.
But, in Pauper, there are plenty of other cards that supplement this combo. Check out this Midnight Gond combo deck that master deck builder SaffronOlive built back in August 2018.
Creatures (23)
4 Benevolent Bodyguard
4 Nettle Sentinel
4 Soul Warden
3 Soul's Attendant
4 Thermo-Alchemist
4 Midnight Guard
Spells (10)
4 Faithless Looting
4 Sprout Swarm
2 Prismatic Strands
Enchantments (4)
4 Presence of Gond
Lands (23)
4 Ash Barrens
3 Blossoming Sands
2 Boros Garrison
2 Crumbling Vestige
1 Forest
1 Khalni Garden
1 Mountain
2 Plains
1 Rugged Highlands
1 Selesnya Sanctuary
2 Survivors' Encampment
3 Wind-Scarred Crag
Sideboard (15)
2 Electrickery
2 Pyroblast
1 Relic of Progenitus
2 Journey to Nowhere
2 Standard Bearer
1 Kor Sanctifiers
2 Oblivion Ring
3 Spidersilk Armor
Benevolent Bodyguard is a great card in this combo deck, as he allows you to protect your key creatures at the cost of his sacrifice. Soul Warden and Soul’s Attendant let you take advantage of lots of creatures entering the battlefield by gaining lots of life over the course of the game. Nettle Sentinel is a cool card that combos well with another key card in this deck, Sprout Swarm. As if your Elf tokens weren’t enough, this two-mana Convoke spell allows you to make even more 1/1 creature tokens!
Thermo-Alchemist is a cool card that allows you to not only have a 3 toughness creature on board, but also allows you to “ping” opponents over the course of a game. Faithless Looting gives you the ability to dig for your combo creatures and is generally just one of the best draw spells in the game - especially Pauper. Prismatic Strands gives you another way to protect your combo.
Another Midnight Gond Pauper Deck: Gond Life
There’s another pretty gond Midnight Gond combo deck that’s seen some competitive success called Gond Life. It’s similar to the Midnight Gond Combo deck we just looked at, but it focuses more on the gaining life aspect. It incorporates Commune with the Gods to dig for your Presence of Gond or Midnight Guard and plays powerful token generation cards like Battle Screech, Cenn’s Enlistment, and Rally the Peasants in place of Sprout Swarm. It’s posted decent results in Pauper Challenges on Magic the Gathering Online and is definitely a list worth checking out.
Creatures (16)
4 Benevolent Bodyguard
4 Midnight Guard
4 Soul Warden
4 Soul's Attendant
Spells (17)
1 Cenn's Enlistment
4 Commune with the Gods
3 Faithless Looting
3 Prismatic Strands
2 Rally the Peasants
Enchantments (4)
4 Presence of Gond
Lands (23)
3 Ash Barrens
2 Blossoming Sands
1 Boros Garrison
2 Crumbling Vestige
1 Evolving Wilds
1 Forest
2 Khalni Garden
1 Mountain
3 Plains
2 Selesnya Sanctuary
2 Survivors' Encampment
3 Wind-Scarred Crag
Sideboard
2 Electrickery
1 Flaring Pain
1 Journey to Nowhere
2 Last Breath
2 Oblivion Ring
2 Pyroblast
3 Spidersilk Armor
2 Standard Bearer
Presence of Gond Combo in EDH
Unsurprisingly, Presence of Gond does see a fair amount of play in EDH decks, although not at an extremely high rate. Elf decks with Commanders such as Rhys the Redeemed and Ezuri, Renegade Leader particularly like having Presence of Gond around as a way to produce a few extra Elf tokens over the course of a game. It also sees play in some token Commander decks such as Trostani, Selesnya’s Voice. It’s not a huge card in the format, though. Midnight Guard does sometimes see play alongside Presence of Gond in Rhys and Trostani decks. The combo isn’t bad in EDH. But because you’re playing with single copies in a 99 card deck, the Midnight Gond combo is nowhere as reliable, so not as many people tend to include it in their EDH decks.
Is the Midnight Gond Combo Playable in Modern?
In a deck sometimes known as G/W Twin, the Midnight Gond combo is one that some Modern players have attempted to make a competitive deck in the format. If someone comes up with a good list, I’ll definitely want to give it a look. But the Midnight Gond combo is a bit slow and too easily disrupted in the highly competitive Modern format. Pauper has enough protection to push it through and multiple strategies that can incorporate it.
The Midnight Gond combo is a pretty fun way to flood the board with tokens, although it’s not quite as “oops, I win” as Splinter Twin combo - although it’s pretty close in the Pauper format. Also, because the combo pieces have been reprinted a couple of times, it’s cheap to build and easy to acquire in foil.
Have you ever played a deck with the Midnight Guard and Presence of Gond combo?
RSS Feed
