Black mana in Magic: The Gathering is typified by terrifying monsters, demons, vampires, and other eldritch horrors that spawn from the abyss. To put it mildly, black mana is never cute. And then along comes Tinybones and upends the whole concept of what terror can be.

Related

Magic: The Gathering - Foundations' Draft And Sealed Archetypes, Explained

Going back to the basics.

Posts By  Jim Ziegler

Tinybones is an adorable little rascal that just wants to pilfer everything. Sure, Tinybones might not have a face, but that just adds to his cutesy mystique. But make no mistake; Tinybones is a menace at the table, and woe betides the opposing player who underestimates those itty-bitty kleptomanic bones. Here’s how to build and play Tinybones, Bauble Burglar in Commander.

The Commander: Tinybones, Bauble Burglar

Tinybones, Bauble Burglar might be cute, but he's also a thieving monster. Every card an opponent discards gets exiled with a stash counter. On your turn, you can play any of those stashed cards and use black mana to pay for it. On top of that, Tinybones can also tap to make each opponent discard a card.

Tinybones does everything he needs to function on his own. Cast him on turn two, block with him until turn three (thanks to that three toughness), and then start tapping to make everyone discard, providing you with access to everyone else's spells.

But merely making each opponent discard a single card every turn is slow and inefficient. The best way to play Tinybones is to make everyone discard down to nothing as quickly as possible, limiting their options while providing you with ample opportunities.

There's just one problem with Tinybones. While he works best in a multiplayer environment, playing a Commander that makes everyone discard is going to make everyone at the table hate you. So be sure to build up defenses as you go on your stealing spree.

Seriously, people aren't likely to take Tinybones's antics lying down. Prepare to go on the defensive the moment you make everyone at the table discard and you're the only one coming out ahead.

Related

Magic: The Gathering - Iron Man, Titan Of Innovation Commander Deck Guide

A Marvel crossover brings Iron Man to Magic: the Gathering and this deck is how to play him.

Posts By  Sean Murray

Building Your Tinybones, Bauble Burglar Commander Deck

Tinybones, Trinket Thief by Jason Rainville

The first thing you’ll want in a Tinybones, Bauble Burglar deck is a ton of discard effects. With Tinybones around, every discarded card becomes almost like a card in your hand. Better yet, it’s a card your opponent can’t access.

The ideal scenario is to make every player at the table discard their hand. This gives you all the cards and your opponents only the one card they can draw every turn.

The rest of the deck will be good black spells that help you answer threats while Tinybones goes on a crime spree. You’ll certainly want some cards that could potentially end the game, but odds are you’ll be able to get all the threats you’ll need from your opponents.

Discard, Discard, Discard

There are tons of ways to make your opponents discard just by sticking to black mana. On the creature side of things, Burglar Rat, Nezumi Informant, Virus Beetle, Elderfang Disciple, Liliana's Specter, Necrogoyf, Rankle, Master of Pranks, and Archon of Cruelty all make your opponents discard. Mindslicer makes everyone discard their hands, and Cunning Lethemancer makes everyone discard equally.

For noncreature spells, you've got Vicious Rumors, Dark Deal, Delirium Skeins, Syphon Mind, Arterial Flow, Torment of Hellfire, Tinybones Joins Up, Hopeless Nightmare, and the two big ones, Necrogen Mists and Painful Quandary. Get any of these and watch Tinybones steal the motherlode.

Cards That Like Discard

Your Commander is already reason enough to make people discard, but there are methods of turbocharging your discard plans.

The Raven Man makes tokens whenever anyone discards. Asylum Visitor draw cards when your opponents are eventually reduced to having no cards in hand. Tergrid, God of Fright puts discarded permanents into play faster than Tinybones, and Syr Konrad, the Grim turns discarded creatures into damage.

Let's not forget Tinybones' other incarnations. Tinybones, Trinket Thief helps you draw cards as opponents discard, while Tinybones, the Pickpocket can cast cards in an opponent's graveyard if they manage to avoid Tinybones, Bauble Burglar.

There are also a bunch of enchantments that help out with discard. Liliana's Caress, Megrim, and Raiders' Wake all tack on life loss to those discarded cards. Waste Not makes zombies, mana, or draws you cards depending on what your opponent discarded, and Geth's Grimoire makes every discarded card a card you can draw.

Ramp

Your ability to respond to opponents will depend on having the mana to cast the spells you need to fend them off once Tinybones starts stealing. To get the most out of your Swamps, check out Crypt Ghast, Liliana of the Dark Realms, Dark Ritual, Cabal Ritual, and Bubbling Muck.

On the artifact side, Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Jet Medallion, Thought Vessel, and Mind Stone are your mana rocks. As for land, Nythose, Shrine to Nyx, Cabal Stronghold, and Cabal Coffers supercharge your mana production. Don't forget Urborg Tomb of Yawgmoth to make all your unbasic lands into Swamps.

Good Black Stuff

There are black Commander staples for a reason. Gray Merchant of Asphodel is a huge lifeswing. Defile, Deadly Rollick, Feed the Swarm, and Go for the Throat are great removal spells. Consuming Corruption combines both removal and life gain into one tidy package.

Toxic Deluge, Mutilate, and Damnation keep the board clear when things seem stacked against you. Sign in Blood, Night's Whisper, Read the Bones, and Phyrexian Arena are all great ways to get cards when you need them.

And don't forget about the flexibility afforded by the dual spell/land cards: Fell the Profane / Fell Mire, Malakir Rebirth / Malakir Mire, and Boggart Trawler / Boggart Bog. They can really come through when you need to choose between a spell for the late game or a land for the early game.

Related

Magic: The Gathering - Captain America, First Avenger Commander Deck Guide

Fight for the stars and stripes with Magic: The Gathering's Captain America, First Avenger.

Posts By  Johnny Garcia

Tinybones, Bauble Burglar Commander Deck List

Liliana's Caress by Steve Argyle

With all that in mind, here’s our suggested deck list for Tinybones, Bauble Burglar.

Tinybones, Bauble Burglar Commander Deck List

Commander (1)

Tinybones, Bauble Burglar

Creatures (22)

Tinybones, Trinket Thief

Tinybones, the Pickpocket

The Raven Man

Asylum Visitor

Tourach, Dread Cantor

Burglar Rat

Nezumi Informant

Cunning Lethemancer

Liliana's Specter

Boggart Trawler / Boggart Bog

Crypt Ghast

Sangromancer

Mindslicer

Hostile Investigator

Rankle, Master of Pranks

Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal

Necrogoyf

Syr Konrad, the Grim

Gray Merchant of Asphodel

Tegrid, God of Fright / Tegrid's Lantern

Junji, the Midnight Sky

Archon of Cruelty

Planeswalkers (3)

Liliana of the Veil

Liliana, Walker of the Dead

Liliana of the Dark Realms

Sorcery (11)

Dark Deal

Feed the Swarm

Vicious Rumors

Toxic Deluge

Delirium Skeins

Syphon Mind

Sign in Blood

Arterial Flow

Torment of Hellfire

Damnation

Mutilate

Instants (8)

Dark Ritual

Deadly Rollick

Defile

Go for the Throat

Imp's Mischief

Consuming Corruption

Fell the Profane / Fell Mire

Malakir Rebirth / Malakir Mire

Enchantments (10)

Tinybones Joins Up

Hopeless Nightmare

Liliana's Caress

Raiders Wake

Waste Not

Bandit's Talent

Necrogen Mists

Oppression

Painful Quandary

Phyrexian Arena

Artifacts (8)

Sol Ring

Arcane Signet

Jet Medallion

Thought Vessel

Mind Stone

Lightning Greaves

Swiftfoot Boots

Geth's Grimoire

Lands (37)

Geier Reach Sanitarium

Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Bojuka Bog

Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

Cabal Stronghold

Cabal Coffers

Witch's Cottage

War Room

Barren Moor

Rogue's Passage

Swamp (27)

Budget Substitutions

Some of these cards are pretty pricey, so unless you’re also a tiny skeleton that steals jewels, consider these budget replacements.

Expensive Card

Budget Substitutions

Tinybones, the Pickpocket

Containment Construct, Thieving Varmint, Gnatmiser

Tinybones, Trinket Thief

Virus Beetle, Elderfang Disciple

Crypt Ghast

Defiler of Flesh, Solemn Simalcrum

Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal

The Haunt of the Hightower,

Tergrid, God of Fright / Tergrid's Lantern

Bone Miser, K'rrik, Son of Yawgmoth

Liliana of the Veil

Davriel, Rogue Shadowmage

Liliana of the Dark Realms

Liliana Vess

Deadly Rollick

Infernal Grasp, Snuff Out, Dismember, Baleful Mastery, Shoot the Sheriff

Damnation

Black Sun's Zenith

Torment of Hailfire

Rush of Dread, Exsanguinate, Doomsday Confluence, Peer into the Abyss

Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth

Myriad Landscape, Mortuary Mire, Urza's Cave, Temple of the False God

Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

Myriad Landscape, Mortuary Mire, Urza's Cave, Temple of the False God

Cabal Stronghold

Myriad Landscape, Mortuary Mire, Urza's Cave, Temple of the False God

Cabal Coffers

Myriad Landscape, Mortuary Mire, Urza's Cave, Temple of the False God

Tips For Playing Tinybones, Bauble Burglar In Commander

Hopeless Nightmare by Dominik Mayer
  • This cannot be stressed enough: nobody likes to discard cards. Most decks need cards in hand to feel effective, so being told to discard means you're angering most other players. Prepare to receive the ire of everyone you're playing with.
  • Since you're almost guaranteed to be on the defensive once Tinybones starts stealing, try to ensure you've got enough mana to use the spells that become available once the opponent's discard.
  • Remember: you can only cast spells using Tinybones's ability on your turn. There are no instant-speed answers with Tinybones, so cast defensive creatures and pre-emptively remove threats before passing your turn.
  • Beware of opponents with graveyard recursion strategies. Discard doesn't work as well when you're asking opponents to toss cards where they can still play them.
Next

Every Upcoming Magic: The Gathering Release

There's always something new on the horizon for Magic: The Gathering.

Posts 1 By  Joe Parlock