Brewing an Isshin, Two Heavens as One Commander Deck

Isshin, Two Heavens as One is one of the most exciting commanders from Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. Find out how to take advantage of his double attack triggers in Kristen’s brewing primer. 

Isshin, Two Heavens as One

Isshin is a really cool commander. Similarly to how Panharmonicon and Yarok double up on enter the battlefield triggers, Isshin cares about attack triggers. But not just our attack triggers; all creatures attacking. This is what sets him aside from Wulfgar of Icewind Dale, who only cares about your own creatures attacking.

In practice, this means that Curse of Opulence – an already fantastic card in Wulfgar – gets better in Isshin. When opponents attack to get treasure, Curse of Opulence will trigger twice as it’s your permanent. In a lot of ways, this makes Isshin more powerful than Wulfgar, and I’m super stoked to build Isshin instead.

A few caveats before you get brewin’: Wulfgar is indisputably better at ramping out Eldrazi, and if you’re wanting to double up annihilator triggers, you’ll appreciate the green ramp. While being in black does give you access to reanimation, most bigger Eldrazi self-shuffle and don’t give you the option. 

If you’re playing Isshin, I’d caution you to watch your curve. It’s tempting to slap in all of the best top-end attackers, especially when you can use cards like Sneak Attack, Brought Back and Victimize to cheat costs. But you do need to be able to cast your spells. If you’re intent on cheating costs, then Isshin might be good alongside cards like Winota, Joiner of Forces, or within a Kaalia of the Vast deck. 

If you’d like to play both Wulfgar and Isshin? Maybe give Saskia the Unyielding a go. 

ISSHIN REANIMATOR

Let’s stick with the Reanimator thought for a second, as Isshin can help us get maximum value from some great triggers. Sun Titan is the obvious all-star here, and no matter what build you end up with, not including Sunny T feels incorrect. It’s also time, however, for a Commander Legends card to shine: Rakshasa Debaser. It’s a card I’ve been excited to test for quite some time. 

The usual black package of spells like Victimize, Reanimate, and Animate Dead can be mixed up a little with this build. Offspring’s Revenge is a cool Mardu enchantment from Ikoria that can help you get more of those delicious attack triggers, while Ghouls’ Night Out is at its best when you get twice the fun before your Zombies decay.

Don’t sleep on Smuggler’s Copter for setting up reanimation, either. With Isshin, it’s more akin to Faithless Looting, and can complement your other card draw like Mask of Memory, particularly if you don’t want to put Isshin in the red zone. 

Let’s Get Ready to Rumble

So with Isshin doubling your triggers when opponents attack also, it’s only natural to embrace the melee, and start goading things! Karazikar in particular provides huge value for Isshin decks, but Breena and Vengeful Ancestor are both solid options, too. If you really want to embrace chaos, add Kardur, Doomscourge or Disrupt Decorum. 

Getting into the red zone is what makes an Isshin deck so fun, so doubling up on combats is how we push the value envelope. Aurelia, the Warleader will give you three combats; Moraug will give extra power boosts when you attack; Raiyuu will trigger twice if a Samurai attacks alone. Samurai tribal is one way to build the deck, but if that isn’t your thing, consider Aurelia and Moraug first. One thing to remember is to try and make sure you can get some vigilance going; while you’ll get extra combats, you won’t always get the extra untaps at the right point. Double check your interactions.

The only thing better than doubling attack triggers is doubling instances of those same triggers. To that end, you should consider Rionya and Delina, who can make hasty token copies of your premier attackers. Taranika is great, too, as she can give more than one attacking creature indestructible. 

Speaking of second helpings, it’s probably wise to take a Strionic Resonator or Lithoform Engine to act as redundancy – or gravy – for Isshin. To really take it to eleven, though, consider Blade of Selves.

When a creature equipped with Blade of Selves attacks, Isshin will cause myriad to trigger twice. That’s a total of four token copies entering play, triggering whatever enter the battlefield trigger they have, and tapped and attacking for extra damage. I can’t wait to get up to some serious shenanigans with this synergy. 

Classic Attack Triggers

So, what are we dropping in with Blade of Selves that we’re already happy to be playing? The original titans are certainly up there for impact – even without attacking, we’ll get their ETBs. You could even play the newer titan, Kroxa, Titan of Death’s Hunger. While we won’t get to keep the myriad copies around, their ETBs will go on the stack regardless. 

Archon of Cruelty is probably the spiciest target we can double-dip on, and I guess I’ll be building another deck to take advantage of this game-changer. I’m enjoying it a lot in Liesa, Forgotten Archangel and Chainer, Nightmare Adept already – check out my Liesa deck tech here. 

Solitude and Skyclave Apparition are cards you might already want to run that get better with Blade of Selves, and honestly, the sky’s the limit. Be creative. 

No attack-based deck can be complete without Etali, Primal Storm, but don’t forget Drakuseth, Maw of Flame and even Velomachus Lorehold. Digging even deeper for free spells is pretty sweet. 

Go Wide, or Tall?

Whether you want to go wide or tall – or have a mix of both – there are plenty of options for Isshin. 

Adeline, Resplendent Cathar and Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin are both stellar token generators, and Hero of Bladehold continues to be relevant. Depending how many buffs you have in the 99, Cavalcade of Calamity might prove to be worth a slot. 

Marton Stromgald can provide huge teamwide buffs when you get to double up, and so can hitherto underplayed Mardu enchantment Fervent Charge. Shared Animosity is probably better if you go tribal, though. 

If you’d rather go tall, Sublime Archangel can bestow quite the power boost for a lone attacker – as can Angelic Exaltation – while Duelist’s Heritage and Bruse Tarl are the best ways to dole out great keywords to your creatures. The former will also trigger when opponents attack, too, which takes advantage of Isshin. Coastline Marauders is another port from Wulfgar decks that can do serious work for us (and it’s a bargain budget include). 

Isshin Pillowfort

We don’t need to be constantly attacking to benefit from Isshin’s trigger. Indeed, we don’t have to attack at all. There are plenty of Pillowfort effects that trigger when any player attacks or when they attack you, and Isshin will double these triggers, too. So, while Hellrider might do a lot of work for a go-wide Isshin deck, Calculating Lich and Revenge of Ravens might be even better!

There are some really fun politics cards for a build conscious of this, from Kazuul, Tyrant of the Cliffs to Crown of Doom – one of the more amusing anthem effects on offer. While you’re investing in your pillowfort, make sure to take some protection options for Isshin himself, who will be targeted early and often. 

Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots are obvious includes, but instants like Blacksmith’s Skill, Deflecting Swat and Wild Ricochet are essential to protecting your “King”. Be sure to include some ways to give your creatures haste, too; there’s nothing worse than playing Etali and having it removed before you can untap. Urabrask the Hidden is consistently one of my preferred options, as it slows down blocks, too. 

Ramp & Draw

You can’t forget consistency cards, and given we’re in Mardu, we need to factor those into our game plan as a matter of urgency. Sword of the Animist is the deck’s premier synergy piece, alongside the aforementioned Curse of Opulence. You can add Shiny Impetus and Captain Lannery Storm for more treasure acquisition, especially if you’d rather not play Smothering Tithe. Otherwise? Include those mana rocks, especially ones that help fix you. Getting Isshin down early is crucial. 

Both Cunning Rhetoric and Mangara, the Diplomat will trigger twice with Isshin in play, so they’re well worth looking into once you’ve figured out a strategy. If you’re playing a lot of goad cards, they obviously become less relevant.

Depending on the makeup of your build, you might want to source draw from particular tribes or strategies. If you end up with a lot of Equipment, Wyleth is surprisingly efficient, and if you have a lot of Knights? Syr Gwyn is far from the worst card to have in your 99. She also unlocks Knights’ Charge, which is a lot cheaper to cast than Campaign of Vengeance. 

If you do want to lean into Equipment, then be sure to check out both Lucille and Argentum Armor. Doubling up on those attack triggers is sweet!

Specific Synergies

I spoke previously about how Isshin can be a decent Samurai commander if you have your heart set on a Samurai deck. And, while that is a great way to build him, I’d say that you should be very keen on exalted synergies to complement how the newer Samurai care about attacking alone. 

Isshin can, however, be a boon to other tribes – whether leading a deck, or in the 99. Alesha has long been a good Goblins commander, and Isshin helps those attack triggers out handily. There are also numerous dragons with incredible attack triggers, not least the Ur-Dragon itself. 

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Isshin, Two Heavens as One is a brilliant Magic card. It works well in the 99 of many existing builds, and it offers an exciting new deck option in Mardu. There are plenty of directions to build him, and you’ll have to tweak it to suit your collection and needs. Either way, you’re sure to come out with a powerful and fun deck. Let me know how you’re building Isshin on Twitter.