
# The Hidden Gem of Strixhaven: Building Aziza, Mage Tower Captain

Secrets of Strixhaven is positively brimming with fantastic new commanders and thrilling new cards to put in the ninety-nine. From the upcoming cycle of elder dragons to the five Strixhaven commander precons there are so many great legendaries to build entire decks around. Amidst this plethora of flashy and explosive cards, I want to highlight a commander that has potentially flown under the radar.

<BlogCard cardId="MTG-SOS-174" size="lg" />

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<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-SOS-174" title="Aziza, Mage Tower Captain" /> is a two mana, boros commander that lets you copy instant and sorcery spells if you tap three untapped creatures as you cast them. It's important to note that Aziza's ability does not care about summoning sickness. What's even better is this isn't limited to once per turn, so there is a possibility to chain spells, especially if the spells you copy create tokens.

## So What's the Game-plan?

After play-testing Aziza, it became somewhat apparent that a two cmc commander can actually seem like a removal magnet. If it's the first spell you cast, that can sometimes draw the ire or fear of the table. I personally would prefer to first get some tokens or ramp on the board before Aziza, if possible. Once you have some ramp and/or creatures on board, then cast Aziza. Optimally, by turn 4 you should be able to copy your first spell. After that, I would try to protect from board wipes all while building up tokens and accruing value. Sometimes that value is expressed through treasures to setup some of the many pay X token spells and sometimes that value is simply an overwhelming board state.

As far as win conditions go, <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-FDN-717" title="Impact Tremors" /> and cards like it are great ways to damage the whole table. Cards like <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-INR-337" title="Cathars' Crusade" /> and <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-PDSK-4p" title="Porcelain Gallery" /> that benefit from many creatures are fantastic additions to close out the game by making all of your tokens massive. <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-DSK-208" title="Arabella, Abandoned Doll" /> is also quite the killer in this deck as it can deal a significant amount of damage and lifegain.

<BlogCards cardIds="MTG-FDN-717,MTG-MKM-242,MTG-INR-337,MTG-PDSK-4p,MTG-DSK-208" />

## What About Removal?

When assembling the removal for this deck, I was surprised by how many board wipes synergize well with this strategy. <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-PLST-CLB-691" title="Dusk // Dawn" />, <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-PIP-156" title="Austere Command" />, and <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-C19-65" title="Hour of Reckoning" /> all have the ability to be mostly, if not completely, one sided. Further, the other instants and sorceries that act as spot removal can be twice as good as usual with all of the copying that Aziza sets out to do.

<BlogCards cardIds="MTG-PLST-CLB-691,MTG-PIP-156,MTG-C19-65" />

## Full Deck List

_If you are curious on my take on a full Aziza deck check it out below_

<BlogDeckList deckListIndex="0" />

## Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, Aziza can function as a token doubler as well as a powerful spell-slinger commander. So many instant and sorcery spells go from being good to being outstanding if you're able to copy them. Because of this, there are so many different options for spells to put in this deck. I tried to build an all around solid build with this commander but one could focus on the spell-slinger side a bit more than the token side. If there are any cards you think I should have considered, please keep the conversation going in the comments below.


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The Hidden Gem of Strixhaven: Building Aziza, Mage Tower Captain