DimirLegendary Creature — Vampire Cleric // Legendary Creature — Kraken HorrorRuno Stromkirk // Krothuss, Lord of the Deep
Mana value3Rank#9,501
The Commander
Flying
When Runo enters, put up to one target creature card from your graveyard on top of your library.
At the beginning of your upkeep, look at the top card of your library. You may reveal that card. If a creature card with mana value 6 or greater is revealed this way, transform Runo.
Flying
Whenever Krothuss attacks, create a tapped and attacking token that's a copy of another target attacking creature. If that creature is a Kraken, Leviathan, Octopus, or Serpent, create two of those tokens instead.
Guide
Gameplan
Cast Runo cheaply, set up a fat creature on top of your library, then transform into Krothuss to swing with copied attackers. The deck is a sea-monster-flavored ramp/toolbox build that drops huge Krakens and Leviathans and uses Krothuss's attack trigger to double or triple your board's impact each combat.
Strengths
- Flips into a flying threat that snowballs combat damage by copying your biggest attackers
- Krothuss creating two tokens off Kraken/Leviathan/Octopus/Serpent copies generates explosive blowout swings
- Runo's recursion puts back a key creature, giving card advantage and self-mill synergy
- Plays the powerful UB color pair with access to ramp, counters, removal, and reanimation
Weaknesses
- Flipping Runo is inconsistent without library manipulation and stranding him pre-flip is a do-nothing 1/3 flyer
- Heavily reliant on expensive top-end creatures, so the curve is clunky and mana-hungry
- Token copies are tapped and attacking, so they can be chump-blocked and offer no defensive utility
- Vulnerable to board wipes and spot removal on Krothuss before he connects
Key Cards
- Quest for Ula's Temple — Top-deck-revealing synergy plus a payoff that free-casts the very sea monsters Runo wants on top.
- Sea Gate Restoration — Stocks your hand while putting expensive creatures into play range for the flip and Krothuss copies.
- Kiora, the Crashing Wave — Untaps your big bodies and protects Krothuss while fitting the leviathan theme perfectly.
- Lullmage's Domination — Steals an opponent's huge creature using your abundant sea monsters as tribute, then copy it with Krothuss.
- Brainstorm — Cheap top-deck setup that guarantees revealing a 6+ MV creature on upkeep to flip Runo.
- Octavia, Living Thesis — A castable Octopus/Leviathan payoff that Krothuss happily doubles into two more copies.
Upgrade Path
Tighten the curve with more cheap card selection (Ponder, Mystic Sanctuary, Sylvan Library effects in blue substitutes) so you flip Runo reliably, and add fast mana and ramp like Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, and Cultivate-style accelerants to deploy monsters earlier. Lean into the best copy targets—creatures with deathtouch, trample, or evasion—and add reanimation (Reanimate, Animate Dead) to cheat top-end into play. Protect Krothuss with counterspells and a swiftfoot boot, and consider extra-combat or untap effects to maximize his attack trigger.
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
- ▸Swing with Krothuss plus doubled/tripled copies of giant Krakens and Leviathans for lethal flying and trample damage
- ▸Token copies of evasive or high-power creatures overwhelming the table in a single combat
- ▸Stealing and copying an opponent's bomb to turn their threat against them
- ▸Grinding incremental advantage with recursion and big bodies until the board is uncontested
Archetypes
- Sea Monster Tribal — Krothuss's double-token clause rewards filling the deck with Krakens, Leviathans, Octopuses, and Serpents.
- Reanimator — Runo's enter ability and Krothuss's copies pair with putting and recurring giant creatures, plus UB reanimation spells.
- Ramp / Big Creatures — The deck wants to accelerate into 6+ MV monsters that both flip Runo and become huge attackers.
- Tempo Control — UB gives counters and removal to protect your transformed commander and stabilize until your monsters land.
Combos
- Runo Stromkirk // Krothuss, Lord of the Deep + Rune-Scarred Demon + Beacon of Tomorrows
→ Infinite turns, Lock
- Runo Stromkirk // Krothuss, Lord of the Deep + Rune-Scarred Demon + Nexus of Fate
→ Infinite turns, Lock
Combos via Commander Spellbook.
Related Commanders
Same color identity (BU), by popularity.
