The War of the Worlds: an attack that clears its approach

The Martian Tripods leads a Rakdos (black/red) Commander deck built around the Heat-Ray of the Martian invasion. Heat-Ray triggers when its creature attacks and deals the printed amount of damage to every creature controlled by the defending player. The commander's Heat-Ray 2 therefore sends two damage across that player's creature board before blockers are declared, if the trigger resolves in the normal combat sequence. The deck turns advancing machines into repeated pressure on opposing creatures.

• HEAT-RAY: When a creature with Heat-Ray N attacks, it deals N damage to each creature the defending player controls. This ability does not target those creatures.
• THE MARTIAN TRIPODS: The commander has trample and Heat-Ray 2. Whenever one or more opposing creatures die, it puts a +1/+1 counter on each Martian you control, with that ability triggering only once each turn.
• THE SHEPPERTON MACHINE: The Shepperton Machine has Heat-Ray 2 and deals 3 damage to each creature your opponents control when it dies.
• THE RED WEED: The Tripod of Horsell Common creates a Red Weed token when it attacks. This 0/1 red Plant has defender and can tap and sacrifice itself to add black or red mana.

Concentrate the sweep or divide the advance

Each attacking machine applies its own Heat-Ray to the player it is attacking. Sending several toward the same opponent can combine damage before blocks, while splitting them spreads the pressure across different boards. The commander's growth trigger counts an event where one or more opposing creatures die, rather than awarding a counter for every creature in that event. Its once-per-turn limit keeps later deaths that turn from repeating that reward.

The Martian Intellect strengthens your other Martians and draws a card when another Martian you control dies. Slain by the Humblest Things destroys all creatures and prevents regeneration, echoing the invasion's vulnerability without sparing your own machines. This The War of the Worlds Magic Proxy deck suits players who enjoy artifact creatures, attack-triggered damage and the tactical question of which defender the next Heat-Ray should sweep.

A 100-card Commander deck plus 3 tokens, with the existing Bracket 4 designation.