“Be without fear in the face of your enemies. Be brave and upright, that God may love thee. Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death. Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong; that is your oath. And that is so you remember it. Rise a knight.”
~ Kingdom of Heaven
Introduction
Chivalry is dead. Or it it? There once was a time where acceptable behaviour is commonly known. Where knights sworn to protect the weak and uphold righteousness. Perhaps we now live in a time less glorious and noble than in the past. Perhaps chivalry is indeed dead, buried and rotting beneath the very ground that we stand on.
If that is so, ask yourself this: is life without chivalry worth living? Can we really call ourselves civilized when we abandoned our cultural traditions, mannerism and good conduct, by replacing them with crudeness, rudeness and a decadent society? Look around you today, look at the young and the old, the rich and the poor, the strong and the weak, and tell me if you see not a lacking of chivalry.
If chivalry is indeed dead and buried, “DIG IT UP!” I say.Without chivalry, we are no different than the beast of burden we employ to work our fields. Let us exhume chivalry and build a better world for our descendants to come.
I bid you, Rise a Knight!
“Kings don’t make knights. Actions do.“~Knighthood
Deck Design – Knighthood
Creatures – 13
Merieke Ri Berit *Commander*
Paladin en-Vec
Mirran Crusader
Phyrexian Crusader
Court Hussar
Black Knight
White Knight
Knight of Glory
Knight of Infamy
Galina’s Knight
Knight Exemplar
Lands – 17
Dimir Guildgate
Orzhov Guildgate
Azorius Guildgate
Tranquil Cove
Dismal Backwater
Scoured Barrens
4 Islands
4 Plains
3 Swamps
Artifacts – 4
Dimir
Orzhov
Azorius
Chromatic Lantern
Enchantments – 0
NA
Instants – 11
Intuition
Cyclonic Rift
Repeal
Render Silent
Dispel
Dromar’s Charm
Sword to Plowshares
Path to Exile
Dimir Charm
Orzhov Charm
Azorius Charm
Sorceries – 5
Careful Study
Compulsive Research
Strategic Planning
Black Sun’s Zenith
Breakthrough
Other Spells
NA
Interesting Interactions
The deck above uses traditional knights with protection from white, black and red to either defend against early rush strategies or to begin it’s own onslaught by chipping away your opponent’s life points. Blue card draw is present to ensure that you have enough fuel to continue putting pressure on your opponent until your late game strategy materializes…in the form of…
HAAKON, STROMGALD SCOURGE
Haakon is a dilemma. He is totally unplayable as a General in Tiny Leaders due to his restriction (you may play Haakon only from your graveyard) and getting him into the graveyard is a challenge on its own. But since we are playing blue, we can rely on blue draw and discard spells to land him in the graveyard or draw into buried alive to tutor him directly into the yard.
The mid-game is where Haakon shines. Once in play, you can start resurrecting your dead knights to fight again. Haakon’s favorite companion is Knight Exemplar as she makes all her fellow knights indestructible. Merieke Ri Berit joins the fray later in the game to steal your opponent’s best blocker (or attacker).
Lastly, the deck packs some one-sided resets (cyclonic rift) and mass removal (black sun’s zenith) to clear the board of blockers before you swoop in for the kill.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Protection from a particular color is extremely strong in a format that lacks consistent mass removal spells. Since creatures with Protection are highly resilient to spot removal spells, this ensures that you have an adequate board position in the mid-game. Remember to ensure that you can protect Haakon before summoning him from the graveyard as he is still vulnerable to be exiled.
I can’t wait to playtest this deck to see if it works well. One problem I foresee with the deck is mana consistency. Most knights in the deck cost either two white mana or two black mana to cast. Even with the guild signets and chromatic lanterns, there will definitely be cases in which you do not have the right mana to summon your knights. Making the deck a straightforward blue/white winnie deck may be a better choice for all you Spikes out there. You don’t get to use Haakon, but the mana base will likely be much more consistent.
As an endnote, the decks worst enemy is Red Deck Wins. Put simply, Red Decks have a mana curve below your knights. Their aim will be to deal initial 8-10 damage with their low costing creatures and fling lightning bolts at your life total in the late-game. Your knights won’t even have a chance to rally in the face of dedicated burn decks (see: Jaya Ballard, Task Mage). Tempo decks like Shu Yun may prove a problem as well by bouncing attackers during the combat step and taking no damage.
Well, for all you Vorthos out there, be without fear in the face of your enemies and give Merieke a try!
For Vorthos and Vulcans
Knights of the Round Table
~Queen Guinevere, The Damsel in Distress~
~King Arthur, Wielder of Excalibur~
~Sir Lancelot of the Lake~
~Sir Bedivere~
~Sir Galahad~
~Sir Kay~
~Sir Tristan~
~Sir Percival~
~Sir Mordred~
~Sir Agravain~
~Sir Gaheris~
~Sir Gareth~
Lady of the Lake?
History to Parody
~Joan of Arc~
Joan of Arc, daughter of simple peasants, rallied the French people in their war with the English. The then uncrowned King Charles VII sent Joan to provide relief to the besieged city of Orleans. Instead of merely providing relief, Joan lifted the siege in nine days. Soon after, she was captured by the British, put on trial for heresy (and cross-dressing), and burnt at the stake. She was merely nineteen years old. I can think of no better person that deserves knighthood for valor.
The Road Ahead
Up next, Nin, the Pain Artist.
Cheerio and Warm Regards,
The Commander Chronicles 
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