Is Boros Powerful Again? The Force of Velomachus Lorehold, the Sunforger By Shawn Wasserman

Is Boros Powerful Again? The Force of Velomachus Lorehold, the Sunforger By Shawn Wasserman

Is Boros Powerful Again? The Force of Velomachus Lorehold, the Sunforger

New ramp and card advantage tricks make Boros viable in Commander.

Author: Shawn Wasserman

 

Of all the enemy color pairings, none have spoken to me more than Boros. Given my attachment to existential philosophies, I gravitate to the concepts these colors uphold, namely:

  • White’s color wheel concepts of
    • Morality
    • Peace
  • Red’s color wheel concepts of
    • Freedom
    • Emotional impulse
    • Spontaneous action

 

The MTG color wheel. Image courtesy of MTG Wiki.

So, it should be no surprise that my first deck, back in Amonkhet, was the red/white Gideon, Martial Paragon precon. It taught me about many of the mechanics I still prefer, such as flying, vigilance, and haste. But, after a few games it taught me a more important lesson: Boros runs out of gas!

Traditionally, Boros is weak on card advantage and even weaker on ramp. Since these are two of the most important concepts in Commander, I’ve had a tough time making the color pair work in the format. 

However, recently thanks to Commander Legends, Kaldheim, and Strixhaven cards like Velomachus Lorehold prove that even Boros can break MTG’s ‘laws’ and this color pairing’s ‘short-sightedness.’

Velomachus Lorehold, the Sunforger: Optimizes Spellslinger Builds 

The best Velomachus builds will lean heavily into instant and sorcery spells in order to optimize the attack trigger that digs into your deck and casts spells for free. 

As a result, the star of your ninety-nine will likely be a similar card, like Sunforger. 

Not only does this equipment boost your commander’s power to nine—skyrocketing its ability to cast free cards—it also turns your deck into an instant Swiss Army Knife. By paying a red, a white and unattaching sunforger, you search your library for an instant to play for free.

Sunforger’s limitation to instants of CMC four or less will barely hold you back. Just looking at instants with a CMC of one will already get you a laundry list of tools. For instance:

Remember for just two mana, you can also tutor up and play heavy hitting instants like:

Keep in mind, every single one of these instant cards are compatible with Velomachus’s attack trigger. So, have fun spellslinger!

Fans of Strixhaven will note that Plargg, Dean of Chaos//Augusta, Dean of Order is another potential add-in that is similar to Velomachus. However, I think his activation cost is too rich for my mana pool.

How to Consistently Tutor Instants in Boros

To get Sunforger running consistently you need a few add-ins to the deck. Additionally, with its equip cost of 3, you’re going to want to attach it to a creature for free whenever possible. That makes Nahiri, Heir of the Ancients a perfect inclusion for the deck.

 

To find the Sunforger, add a few cards like Relic Seeker, Stoneforge Mystic, Steelshaper Apprentice, Taj-Nar Swordsmith, Stonehewer Giant, Godo, Bandit Warlord, Quest for the Holy Relic and Hoarding Dragon.

To equip Sunforger for free, add some cards like Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist, Armory Automaton, Brass Squire, Kazuul’s Toll Collector, Auriok Windwalker, Halvar, God of Battle. 

Now that’s a lot of ‘potential includes’ to get a single card consistent. So, consider adding some win-con equipment like:

How to Get Card Advantage in Boros

The ability of the Lorehold Elder Dragon to dig seven cards into a deck would make a Simic commander green with envy, but is it enough to solve the card advantage problem in Boros? By utilizing some new tools that break the typical mould, we're bound to leave Simic mages feeling blue.

 

Wyleth, Soul of Steel, is an auto-include in many upcoming Boros builds. Each equipment  attached to Wyleth nabs you a card whenever he attacks. Since you’ll be adding a few key equipment cards into this deck, this is a card to consider. 

Bell Borca, Spectral Sergeant, enables you to exile the top card of your library and play it that turn. Effectively, drawing an extra card at each upkeep. 

Explosion of Riches, is also a great way to cause some late game damage and get cards. Additionally, if you can boost Velomachus’s power by one, you will be able to hit this on his attack trigger.

Adventure cards, like Bonecrusher Giant // Stomp, are another way to add card advantage to this deck. Just cast the adventure side, using Sunforger or your commander, then keep the creature in exile until you need it. 

Few red cards in a spellslinger deck will give you repeatability like Krark, the Thumbless. Each time you cast an instant or sorcery—which Velomachus Lorehold will do plenty—flip a coin. Regardless of how that coin lands, you win. Either copy the spell or return it to your hand.

For a Boros Voltron Commander build with card advantage, consider the aforementioned Wyleth, Soul of Steel.

How to Get Ramp in Boros

Birgi, God of Storytelling, may very well be the best red ramp spell ever printed. This legendary god turns every one of your spells into a Ritual. Not only that, you will also not lose mana as steps and phases end. The Harnfel, Horn of Bounty side of this card can dig into your library, but come on, will anyone in the history of magic ever use that side?

A card like Impulsive Pilferer also has a lot of potential in a Velomachus build. When it dies it creates a treasure token which can be used as temporary ramp. Then, pay it’s three-and-a-red Encore cost to create a token copy attacking each opponent. As these tokens each leave its own treasure, you get two Ritual-like effects from one card.

As for Ritual effects, don’t forget Jeska's Will. It isn’t easy on the pocket book, but its ability to ramp and create card advantage is hard to ignore.

Since you are working with a lot of equipment in this build, Explorer’s Scope and Dowsing Dagger are cards to consider for permanent ramp. Additionally, Prying Blade can add more treasure to the board.

Game Ending Plays

This Velomachus build has a few win conditions up its sleeves. It already has the ability to storm off, tutor game ending instants and play some heavy hitting equipment. However, as your commander’s trigger will also go off with sorceries, there are still some more cards to consider.

For instance, if you get Velomachus’ power high enough, you could dig into Soulfire Eruption or  Approach of the Second Sun and cast them for free. The first card will not only demolish the battlefield, it can also be lethal to all of your opponents. The second card guarantees you a win the next time your commander attacks unless someone makes you shuffle, or Velomachus’ power drops below seven.

Other potentially lethal storm-based sorceries include:

Now this isn’t the only way to get ramp and card advantage in red and white. For a Boros Voltron Commander build, consider the aforementioned Wyleth, Soul of Steel. To learn how to build this deck, click here.