So you want to play Izzet in Pauper EDH. Maybe because you love Izzet Blitz. Maybe you like surprising people with Knack Combo. Maybe, just maybe, because pinging your opponents to zero is so much fun.
Either way, you will love this deck, because it can do all of it and more.
This version of Stormchaser Mage is an Aggro-Combo deck. Your playstyle can change drastically depending on the matchup, number of opponents and your opening hand.
In a 1v1 setting, you usually try to be the beatdown. If you have a lot of removal, you can play a tempo-game. Since many of your combo-pieces add to the clock, playing them early can lead to your opponent having to remove the threats, rather than the combo-pieces.
In a multiplayer setting you casually chip away from everyone. One or two damage a turn, spread evenly, can go unnoticed and still set you up for a suprise-kill with some prowess triggers on the most threatening opponent. Because your combo-pieces synergize well with the rest of your deck, you can play them early in many cases, without anyone recognizing them as parts of a combo. In later stages of a game when everyone is a bit lower on life, having a few pingers out can also easily finish a game out of nowhere.
As you can see, this deck runs a multitude of subthemes. Let's see how each of them work.
Izzet Blitz
Izzet Blitz uses creatures that grow whenever you cast an Instant or Sorcery in conjunction with cantrips and some buffs to kill your opponent in one explosive turn.
We are running the most important of those creatures, together with most filtering cantrips. Since your commander has prowess and flying, you can finish off opponents over multiple turns.
Voltron
Since one of your winconditions is chipping away with commander damage, and artifacts and equipment also trigger prowess, we are running a voltron package for additional damage and some protection.
Helix Combo
Do you know what else Bone Saw is good for? Helix Combo.
Helix is a combo with very high redundancy. You need a 0-mana artifact, something that untaps when you play it, Retraction Helix and some payoff.
One of these payoffs is a hasty, evasive prowess creature in your command zone.
Pingers
You may have noticed, that many of Helix's pieces are creatures that deal damage to your opponents. With this amount of redundancy we can run a value package that goes well with our pingers, as well as our evasive creatures.
Value and Control
Usually, your opponents just won't stop doing things. To make sure that you do more things and/or they do less, we are running the most important draw and control spells, as well as some recursion and tutor.
Keep in mind that your transmute cards are not only tutors. In some cases, they are just what you need to win.
Sidegrades
I hope I was able to inspire you to play the fantastic combination of colors that is Izzet. In case you liked some subtheme far more than another one, I'd like to conclude with a few possible sidegrades.
For Izzet Blitz, Stormchaser Mage is still the best choice as the commander, but you can increase the amount of cantrips and prowess creatures. Red also has a high amount of pump-spells and can take the option of blocking away. This will be devastating in 1v1, but probably somewhat weaker in multiplayer.
If you enjoy having a big creature the most, maybe you want to go more into Voltron. Spellheart Chimera not only staying big, but also having trample is your best option here. Add more counterspells, draw and burn, and just control the board until you swing for lethal in 1-3 turns.
Also on the grindier side, but love those pings too much to go for commander damage? Gelectrode is your Weird! This deck will be somewhere between control and storm, keeping the board clear and finishing with occasional pings, a combo or just a big Grape Shot.This might be a good spot to add drake combo, because each cast of Ghostly Flicker untaps your pingers.
If Helix Combo took your heart you might want to look into Herald of Kozilek. You can go deep into the artifact subtheme this way. If you want this to be your only wincon, maybe you want to increase redundancy by branching out into Jeskai, though. I will write about Warden of the Eye in the future.
last but not least, if you just like this deck for the control elements and enjoy having occasional commander beats as your win condition, you should probably branch into Grixis.
You can find the full deck tech by clicking here.
-Thomas
@PDH_Homebase