Legendary Creature — Phyrexian Human Wizard

Ertai Resurrected

Mana value4EDHREC#3,228

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The Commander

Flash

When Ertai Resurrected enters, choose up to one —

• Counter target spell, activated ability, or triggered ability. Its controller draws a card.

• Destroy another target creature or planeswalker. Its controller draws a card.

Guide

Gameplan

Ertai Resurrected is a flash control commander who comes down at instant speed to either counter a key spell/ability or kill a creature/planeswalker, all while you durdle with permission and removal. You hold up mana, react to threats, and grind opponents out of resources before closing with a compact combo or evasive threats. The card-draw downside is real, so you build to make those draws meaningless or to recur Ertai repeatedly.

Strengths

Flash plus a flexible removal/counter ETB makes Ertai a reactive threat that demands answers at any time
Can counter activated and triggered abilities, hitting fetchlands, mana rocks, and combo triggers most counterspells miss
Blink and reanimation turn Ertai into a repeatable Counterspell-on-a-stick
Strong in Dimir control shells with access to the best removal and card advantage

Weaknesses

Every mode hands an opponent a card, accelerating the very player you're trying to slow
As a 3/2 body it's fragile and a removal magnet, taxing your reanimation/blink package
One-shot ETB unless you invest in flicker/recursion engines
Dimir lacks fast mana and ramp, so holding up interaction strains your mana

Key Cards

Ephemerate — Cheaply reblinks Ertai for a second counter or kill, and buys back the trigger twice.
Deadeye Navigator — Soulbond gives repeatable blinks, turning each untap into another Ertai counter or removal.
Conjurer's Closet — End-step blink reliably recurs Ertai's ETB every turn for incremental control.
Reanimate — Cheaply returns Ertai from the yard after it dies, refiring the counter/kill mode.
Talrand, Sky Summoner — Synergizes with the spell-heavy shell, building a board while you hold up interaction.
Cyclonic Rift — The premier blue blowout that lets your reactive deck pivot to a decisive closing turn.

Upgrade Path

Add the best low-cost interaction (Mana Drain, Force of Negation, Swan Song) and fast mana (Mana Crypt, signets) so you can hold up Ertai while developing. Lean into a flicker/reanimation engine—Ephemerate, Deadeye Navigator, Conjurer's Closet, Reanimate—to make the ETB repeatable. Tighten the wincon with a tutorable combo or efficient evasive threats so your control shell can actually close before the extra cards you gave away matter.

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

▸Grind opponents out and win with evasive or recurring threats over time
▸Assemble a compact combo (e.g., Deadeye Navigator loops) once the board is controlled
▸Cyclonic Rift overload into an unanswerable alpha strike
▸Mill or commander-damage finish via Dimir staples once you stabilize

Archetypes

Control — Flash, counters, and removal on a recurrable body let you police the whole table.
Blink — Flicker effects refire Ertai's ETB to repeatedly counter spells or destroy threats.
Reanimator — Cheap reanimation recurs Ertai for value after it's killed or sacrificed.
Spellslinger — A heavy instant/sorcery package pairs with payoffs while supporting the reactive plan.