Brallin, Skyshark Rider
RLegendary Creature — Human Shaman

Brallin, Skyshark Rider

Mana value4EDHREC#4,675PartnerYes

The Commander

Partner with Shabraz, the Skyshark (When this creature enters, target player may put Shabraz into their hand from their library, then shuffle.)

Whenever you discard a card, put a +1/+1 counter on Brallin and it deals 1 damage to each opponent.

{R}: Target Shark gains trample until end of turn.

Guide

Gameplan

Brallin turns every discarded card into 1 damage to each opponent and a +1/+1 counter on himself, so you build a deck full of wheels and rummaging effects to discard cards in bulk and burn the table out. Pair with Shabraz to spread that damage (and counters) across both partners while gaining life, then close with a giant trampling Brallin or a single explosive wheel turn. Turn to turn you ramp, draw, and loot, setting up a critical mass of discard outlets before unloading a hand on one turn.

Strengths

  • Each discard pings every opponent, so a big wheel can deal lethal damage across the whole table at once
  • Mono-red gives access to the best wheels and impulsive card advantage to fuel discards
  • Scales fast: Brallin grows into a hard-to-block beater while burning everyone
  • Shabraz adds resilience, life gain, and a second body to absorb counters and flying damage

Weaknesses

  • Relies heavily on the commander; without Brallin in play, your discard does nothing
  • Mono-red struggles with interaction, card-type diversity, and answering enchantments/artifacts
  • Symmetrical wheels often refill opponents' hands, fueling their game plans
  • Vulnerable to graveyard hate and to a single removal spell resetting your engine

Key Cards

  • Khorvath's FuryA repeatable, cheap discard-and-draw engine that pings the table every loop.
  • Wheel of MisfortuneMass discard from every player triggers Brallin once per card you pitch for huge burst damage.
  • Containment ConstructLets you replay discarded cards, converting wheel fuel into card advantage.
  • Glint-Horn BuccaneerEach discard deals extra damage to each opponent, doubling Brallin's burn output.
  • Sneak AttackCheats out fatties and lets you discard them for value when needed, plus pressure.
  • Daretti, Ingenious IconoclastLoots for value and provides removal and a blocker the deck otherwise lacks.

Upgrade Path

Add more nonsymmetrical or repeatable discard outlets (Containment Construct, Bone Miser, Geier Reach Sanitarium) and burn multipliers like Glint-Horn Buccaneer and Khorvath's Fury to maximize triggers. Improve mana with fast rocks (Mana Crypt, Jeweled Lotus) and add protection (Heroic Intervention effects are off-color, so lean on counters from Shabraz and recursion) plus stax pieces like Smokestack to slow opponents. Tighten the curve so you can deploy a discard outlet and a big wheel in the same turn for an explosive kill.

Core Cards

The most-played cards for this commander, built from aggregated deck data (the Mythic Graph). Build public decks to seed it.

Win Conditions

  • A single huge wheel triggering Brallin (and Glint-Horn Buccaneer) for lethal damage to the whole table
  • Beating down with an oversized, trampling Brallin
  • Chip burn accumulating across many small discard triggers over the game

Archetypes

  • Wheels/Discard BurnBrallin converts every discarded card into direct damage, weaponizing mass card draw spells.
  • Spellslinger AggroLooting and impulse draw feed a burn-and-beatdown plan centered on the commander.
  • VoltronBrallin grows with every discard, becoming a trampling threat that can carry equipment.

Combos

No combos found for this commander on Commander Spellbook.

Related Commanders

Same color identity (R), by popularity.

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