Budget Commander Staples: Orzhov

Last year (see May and September), I did a series of posts on Budget Commander Staples, each focusing on a different color (or color pair). Then, I covered only half of the two-color combinations. This month, I'll complete that series and look at the remainin two-color 'enemy' [non-adjacent color pairs on the color wheel] combos. Today I look at budget Commander staples in Orzhov colors (white/black). I focus on four categories: ramp, card draw, targeted removal, and board wipe. And this is budget, so cards cost under $2.

Ramp

Ramp is about accelerating land deployment and/or mana access. There are no budget ramp cards in exactly Orzhov colors.

Card draw

Pickings are slim here, too. Hardened Tactician counts but only makes sense if you are playing a sacrifice/token deck.

Targeted removal

This is where Orzhov shines. It has many cards (I show eight below) that can destroy or exile permanents, sometimes requiring additional costs of sacrificing one of your own or paying life. The other two cards featured: 1) Death Grasp does damage (and pairs it with life gain) and 2) Castigate exiles a card from your opponent's hand. 

Board wipe 

This is another Orzhov specialty. Sometimes you get treasure (Covetous Elegy) or gain life (Kaya's Wrath) to boot.

Combination

Doom Foretold is a 'slow' board wipe that could also count as targeted removal and card draw, depending on how long it stays on the board.

Conclusion

The 16 cards shown above are worth considering for any Orzhov Commander deck, and won't break your bank to include.