In my last “New Perspectives”, I talked about Daretti, Ingenious Iconoclast, so I thought it would be appropriate to follow up with a planeswalker that covers the rest of the color pie. At a whopping 261 decks on EDHrec (at the time I’m writing this), Tamiyo, Field Researcher is already quite a popular Oathbreaker. This popularity is largely due to her versatility, as well as her Bant color identity.
The Oathbreaker
Let’s take a look and see just what makes Tamiyo so versatile.
This first ability is probably the most flexible of the three, which is fortunate given it’s her +1 ability. Not only can this ability grant further card advantage for creature-based strategies, but it can also be useful on defense by disincentivizing our opponents to attack with their best creatures. Solid ability all around.
Tamiyo’s second ability shares a similar kind of flexibility, being useful on both offense and defense. This -2 ability can be used to keep two opposing threats in check, or it can be used to clear the way of blockers for a big attack. Being able to target any kind of nonland permanent also allows this ability to tap down opposing Vehicles, or even a Gideon planeswalker. (As a side note, I also just realized both of these abilities are disgusting in tandem with Willbreaker, though none of the builds I’m going over in this article include it. So there’s that.)
Yes, this ability is nuts; yes, it combos well with Doubling Season; and yes, it will almost certainly win you the game. Ultimate abilities aren’t usually a great metric to judge planeswalkers by, but this one is surprisingly easy to reach. I’ve managed to get off this ability in two different games of Oathbreaker before with my own Tamiyo list, and all it took to get there was a solid board state that could defend Tamiyo for a few turns. Admittedly, I did manage to lose one of those two games, but not before playing about half of my deck!
Tamiyo, Field Researcher can clearly be built around in any number of different ways, but in this article, I’ll be focusing on three particular builds.
Build #1: Merfolk Tribal
Decklist: Tamiyo Merfolk Tribal
Tamiyo’s +1 ability pairs very well with evasive creatures, and there aren’t many creature types more evasive and low-to-the-ground than Merfolk. Aquitect’s Will is my Signature Spell of choice here because many Merfolk use Islandwalk to get around blockers. At the low cost of one mana, this Signature Spell ensures our opponents have an island to turn on Islandwalk, and it draws us a card to boot. Oh, it’s also a pretty sweet flavor-win since it’s a Tribal Merfolk spell.
- Evasion: Lord of Atlantis and Master of the Pearl Trident give all of our Merfolk Islandwalk, ensuring we can always get in for damage against our opponents or opposing planeswalkers. In lieu of that plan, creatures like Triton Shorestalker, Mist-Cloaked Herald and River Sneak don’t need any help getting in for damage. Merfolk Sovereign is another lord that can also make one of our Merfolk unblockable at a time.
- Merfolk Tribal: Merfolk Mistbinder and Merrow Reejerey are two more lords that buff all of our Merfolk, and Deeproot Elite selectively makes our creatures bigger as we play more of them. Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca is the most flexible lord in the deck, being able to grant itself evasion, grow all of our Merfolk, or draw cards. Kumena pairs especially well with Merrow Commerce, a Merfolk-enchantment that gives our Merfolk creatures pseudo-vigilance.
- Protection: Unsettled Mariner and Kopala, Warden of Waves both make it more difficult for our opponents to target our Merfolk with spells or abilities. Sygg, River Guide acts as a Merfolk-equivalent of Mother of Runes, albeit at a higher cost. Heroic Intervention and Swan Song are two instants that can also save our Merfolk from board wipes or spot removal.
- Redundancy: Spreading Seas is an additional way to ensure our opponents have an island when we need them to. Forerunner of the Heralds, Merrow Harbinger and Eladamri’s Call can search for specific Merfolk, most often one of our Islandwalk lords. We can also use Quasiduplicate to double up on Merfolk lords or our other evasive Merfolk.
Build #2: Flyers
Decklist: Tamiyo’s Flyers
Similar to the previous build, this deck is looking to primarily use Tamiyo’s +1 to take further advantage of attacking with evasive creatures. The difference here is instead of attacking with Merfolk by sea, this list takes to the skies! Blue and white are traditionally a great color pairing for a flyers deck, but green has its share of tricks to offer here as well. I ultimately decided to go with Rally of Wings as the Signature Spell for one main reason: similar to Tamiyo herself, Rally of Wings is effective on both offense and defense. More specifically, Rally lets us play offense and defense at the same time by giving us a way to untap all of our flyers on other player’s turns.
- Anthems: Empyrean Eagle and Thunderclap Wyvern are two flying creatures that make the rest of our flyers even bigger. Favorable Winds offers the same effect, and Serra the Benevolent goes one step further by also making “Serra Angel” tokens. Pride of the Clouds doesn’t buff our other flyers, but it does get bigger for each flying creature in play, not just the ones under our control.
- Creature Protection: Siren Stormtamer can be sacrificed to stop a particular spell or ability, and Spell Queller stop any spell that costs 4 or less (at least temporarily). Shalai, Voice of Plenty is a flyer that gives all of our other creatures hexproof, and she can even be used to buff our team if necessary. Selfless Spirit can be used to give our other creatures indestructible until end of turn, and Sephara, Sky’s Blade does the same as long as she’s in play.
- Redundancy: Rally of Wings isn’t the only card allowing us to play offense and defense simultaneously. Always Watching gives most of our creatures vigilance, and triggers from Derevi, Empyrial Tactician can be used to untap any of our attacking creatures. Archon of Absolution offers a little protection to us and our planeswalkers, and Magus of the Moat can potentially stop our opponents from attacking at all.
- The Green Spice: Although green isn’t offering the most support for this strategy, it certainly has its role to play. Birds of Paradise, Gilded Goose, and Maraleaf Pixie all help fix our mana base and can go on offense if needed. Birds of Paradise and Gilded Goose aren’t typically used for attacking, but it is certainly a possibility here given all of our anthem effects. Trygon Predator is a flyer that can double as spot removal, sniping specific artifacts or enchantments whenever it connects with an opponent. However, the spiciest card in this list is definitely Bower Passage, a cheap enchantment that nullifies any flying blockers our opponents may have.
Build #3: Bant Snowherder
Decklist: Bant Snowherder
This deck is arguably the spikiest out of the three, and it’s the only one with an infinite combo. Bant Snowherder is most commonly known as a Modern deck built around Soulherder, often winning through taking infinite turns with Soulherder, Eternal Witness and Time Warp. This list is my take on an Oathbreaker-equivalent of that archetype. Although it can win “fairly”, this list is very much geared towards achieving the infinite turns combo with Soulherder. I decided to run Congregation at Dawn as the Signature Spell since it allows us to play Soulherder and other combo pieces more consistently, and Tamiyo’s +1 ability can help us draw the cards we search for.
- House Rule: This list was built taking into account a house rule that my playgroup uses which allows players to have a 10-card “wishboard” that can be accessed by certain cards. In this case, the wishboard was made to pair with Fae of Wishes. Not every playgroup is okay with this house rule, so definitely check in with your playgroup about it before playing a game with a wishboard. If your playgroup does not allow this house rule, I would advise replacing Fae of Wishes with either a Mnemonic Wall or any one of the cards from the wishboard.
- Redundancy: Since this entire strategy is built around an infinite combo, it’ll be pretty helpful to have some redundant combo pieces. Venser, the Sojourner can fill in for Soulherder if necessary, and Spark Double can be played as a backup copy of either. Ephemerate and Eerie Interlude are primarily here to help protect some of our combo pieces, but they can also fill in for Soulherder. Temporal Manipulation is an alternate extra turn spell that can be tutored for with Fae of Wishes. If you are not allowed to use a wishboard, replacing Fae of Wishes with Mnemonic Wall would give you another creature that could fill in for Eternal Witness if needed.
- Win Conditions: Taking infinite turns also means being able to infinitely blink our creatures. Loaming Shaman ensures that we don’t accidentally mill ourselves out during our infinite turns. Thragtusk both gains us infinite life and makes an infinite number of 3/3 beasts, while Elite Guardmage gains us infinite life and lets us draw our entire deck. Overwhelmed Apprentice also gives us the option of milling our opponents out of the game. Although they technically don’t win the game on their own, the ultimate abilities on Tamiyo, Field Researcher and Venser, the Sojourner can also help facilitate a faster win.
- Valuable Tutor Targets: In addition to our combo pieces, there are other creatures in the deck that we may commonly want to search up with Congregation at Dawn. Coiling Oracle and Risen Reef give us extra lands in play and cards in hand, all of which help speed up our combo. Shalai, Voice of Plenty makes it more difficult for our creature combo pieces to be disrupted, and Lavinia of the Tenth helps lock down the board until we’re ready to go off. The fact that Lavinia also affects planeswalkers that cost 4 or less can be especially helpful in keeping opposing Oathbreakers in check.
Shared Cards
Here’s a quick overview of what notable cards each of the lists share with each other.
- Merfolk and Flyers: Always Watching, Sword of Sinew and Steel, and Heroic Intervention.
- Flyers & Snowherder: Birds of Paradise, Ice-Fang Coatl, and Shalai, Voice of Plenty.
- Merfolk, Flyers & Snowherder: Brainstorm, Once Upon a Time, and Path to Exile.
The Field Research Continues
These three lists are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Tamiyo, Field Researcher. I chose to focus on Merfolk tribal in this article, but she could easily be used to run Slivers, Humans, Spirits, Cats, or Elves, just to name a handful of other tribes. I could also see her at the head of a Superfriends deck, a Prison build, or even a general Proliferate strategy. I may even decide to write a second “New Perspectives” article on her sometime in the far future.
How would you build a deck around Tamiyo? Are there any different card choices you’d make with the archetypes I went over? Even after months of playing Oathbreaker, I’m still having a lot of fun brewing new lists, and I’m excited to share even more ideas with all of you!
About the author: My name is Alex Enders. I am a college student that’s been playing MTG for almost eight years, though I only recently began experimenting with writing content. My personal formats of choice are Oathbreaker, EDH, and draft. My other interests include music, education, and most things nerdy. You can find me on Twitter (@AAAEnders) or email me at aenders2112@gmail.com