The Gathering – Linden, The Steadfast Queen Commander Deck Guide

Linden, the Steadfast Queen Commander Deck Guide 

 

### Linden, the Steadfast Queen Commander Deck Guide

Linden, the Steadfast Queen, from *Throne of Eldraine*, offers an intriguing option for mono-white Commander decks. Her ability to grant life gain whenever a white creature attacks makes her ideal for decks centered on life-gain synergies, go-wide strategies, and combat-centric themes. This guide will delve into deck-building strategies, essential card choices, and gameplay tips to optimize Linden’s potential in the Commander format.

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### **Who is Linden, the Steadfast Queen?**

Linden is a 3/3 legendary Human Noble with vigilance, costing {W}{W}{W}. Her ability states:
*Whenever a white creature you control attacks, you gain 1 life.*

This ability rewards aggressive strategies with consistent life gain, enabling synergies with cards that care about life totals or life gain triggers. While Linden lacks direct utility beyond life gain, building around her opens up powerful mono-white strategies that can overwhelm opponents or outlast them in longer games.

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### **Core Strategies**

Linden excels in decks built around three primary themes:

1. **Life Gain Synergies**
Linden’s ability makes life gain a cornerstone of your strategy, enabling interactions with cards that provide bonuses when you gain life.

2. **Go-Wide Aggression**
Flooding the board with white creatures maximizes Linden’s life-gain potential and creates pressure through combat.

3. **Combat & Vigilance Support**
Linden’s vigilance allows her to contribute to both offense and defense. Enhancing this trait with other creatures and enchantments bolsters the deck’s resilience.

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### **Key Components of a Linden Deck**

#### **1. Life Gain Payoffs**
Life gain alone doesn’t win games, but synergistic cards can turn life gain into a powerful resource:

– **Creatures**
– *Soul Warden* / *Soul’s Attendant*: Gain life when creatures enter the battlefield.
– *Ajani’s Pridemate*: Grows larger with each life gain trigger, becoming a major threat.
– *Archangel of Thune*: Distributes +1/+1 counters to all creatures whenever you gain life.

– **Enchantments**
– *Felidar Retreat*: Creates tokens or boosts creatures whenever you play a land, synergizing with life-gain themes.
– *Authority of the Consuls*: Gains life as opponents’ creatures enter tapped.

– **Artifacts**
– *Well of Lost Dreams*: Converts life gain into card draw.
– *Venser’s Journal*: Offers no maximum hand size and life gain based on cards in hand.

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#### **2. Token Generators for Go-Wide Strategies**
To fully capitalize on Linden’s ability, you’ll need a wide board presence:

– **Token-Creating Creatures**
– *Knight-Captain of Eos*: Produces Soldier tokens.
– *Requiem Angel*: Generates Spirit tokens as non-Spirit creatures die.

– **Planeswalkers**
– *Elspeth, Sun’s Champion*: Creates three Soldier tokens and clears large threats.
– *Gideon, Ally of Zendikar*: Provides an emblem or a steady stream of tokens.

– **Enchantments**
– *Anointed Procession*: Doubles token production, accelerating board presence.
– *Luminarch Ascension*: Quickly generates Angels in life-gain-heavy strategies.

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#### **3. Anthem Effects**
Buffing your wide board turns tokens and small creatures into significant threats:

– *Cathars’ Crusade*: Places +1/+1 counters on creatures whenever one enters the battlefield.
– *Glorious Anthem*: A straightforward buff for your entire army.
– *Benalish Marshal*: Provides a static +1/+1 to all other creatures.

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#### **4. Protection and Resilience**
Maintaining board presence is crucial for Linden’s strategy:

– **Indestructibility**
– *Avacyn, Angel of Hope*: Grants indestructibility to all permanents.
– *Selfless Spirit*: Provides a one-time shield for your team.

– **Board Wipes with Asymmetry**
– *Winds of Abandon*: Exiles opponents’ creatures while leaving yours intact.
– *Austere Command*: Selectively clears problematic threats.

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#### **5. Card Draw in Mono-White**
Mono-white struggles with card draw, but several options exist to mitigate this weakness:

– **Creatures**
– *Esper Sentinel*: Draws cards when opponents play spells without paying extra mana.
– *Mentor of the Meek*: Draws cards as you play small creatures.

– **Enchantments and Artifacts**
– *Tome of Legends*: Gains counters for Linden’s attacks, which can be spent to draw cards.
– *The Immortal Sun*: Reduces casting costs and provides a steady draw engine.

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#### **6. Mana Ramp**
Ramp is critical for keeping up in Commander. Mono-white has limited ramp, but efficient artifacts can help:

– *Smothering Tithe*: Generates Treasure tokens when opponents draw cards.
– *Marble Diamond* / *Mind Stone*: Solid, cheap mana rocks.
– *Land Tax*: Keeps you on pace with opponents by fetching lands.

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### **Sample Linden, the Steadfast Queen Decklist**

Below is an example decklist incorporating the key strategies mentioned above:

**Commander:**
– Linden, the Steadfast Queen

**Creatures (30)**
– Ajani’s Pridemate
– Soul Warden
– Archangel of Thune
– Knight-Captain of Eos
– Mentor of the Meek
– Selfless Spirit
– Sun Titan
– Requiem Angel

**Instants and Sorceries (10)**
– Swords to Plowshares
– Winds of Abandon
– Austere Command
– Secure the Wastes
– Teferi’s Protection

**Enchantments (10)**
– Authority of the Consuls
– Cathars’ Crusade
– Anointed Procession
– Luminarch Ascension
– Glorious Anthem

**Artifacts (8)**
– Well of Lost Dreams
– Smothering Tithe
– The Immortal Sun
– Sol Ring

**Planeswalkers (3)**
– Elspeth, Sun’s Champion
– Gideon, Ally of Zendikar

**Lands (39)**
– Emeria, the Sky Ruin
– Myriad Landscape
– Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx

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### **Gameplay Tips**

1. **Early Game**: Focus on building a wide board with tokens and small creatures. Use Linden’s ability to gain incremental life while setting up payoffs like *Ajani’s Pridemate*.

2. **Mid-Game**: Transition to larger threats and synergies. Deploy anthems like *Cathars’ Crusade* to make your army formidable and maintain pressure.

3. **Late Game**: Use powerful finishers like *Elspeth, Sun’s Champion* or *Archangel of Thune* to overwhelm opponents. Protect your board with indestructible effects or *Teferi’s Protection* against wipes.

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### **Strengths and Weaknesses**

#### **Strengths**
– Effective life-gain synergy.
– Resilient go-wide strategy with token generation.
– Strong synergy with vigilance, allowing offense and defense.

#### **Weaknesses**
– Mono-white’s limited card draw and ramp.
– Vulnerability to board wipes without protection.
– Reliant on combat for life gain and damage.

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### **Final Thoughts**

Linden, the Steadfast Queen, provides a solid foundation for a life-gain and combat-focused Commander deck. Her ability pairs well with go-wide strategies, turning a mono-white deck into a consistent life-gain engine capable of scaling into the late game. With the right balance of creatures, synergies, and support cards, Linden can lead an aggressive yet resilient deck that thrives in casual and competitive settings alike.