It can be a lot of fun to pick one of the most powerful cards in a set, load it up with staples, throw in a few Game Changers, and build a synergistic powerhouse to try to wreck tables at your LGS.

That isn't today's deck.

Today I'm picking a character that has a very special place in the heart of Marvel fans, especially fans of the franchise's broader cinematic universe (MCU). This is a character that died in one of the MCU films and still managed to have a spinoff series that lasted six seasons.

Played by Clark Gregg, his cool demeanor, dry wit, and lifelong adoration of the Heroes he worked alongside helped make him a fan favorite. Back when the Lord of the Rings sets came out, one of my most fondly remembered decks was a mono-White Bill the Pony list. I'm hoping a MSH mono-White Agent Phil Coulson list will be an equally endearing and fun mono-White EDH deck.

This Commander is a 2/2 Human Spy Hero who costs , has Vigilance, and a somewhat unassuming activated ability. He can tap to put a +1/+1 counter on each other Hero I control. That's it. That's not a lot to build around.

We're in White and we want to load up on Hero Creatures. I'm happy about that because it pushes me to build with cards from Super Hero themed Magic sets and not mix in as many major characters from outside of that card pool.

Back in the day there was a time when your Commander could get tucked into your deck and you didn't have the option of returning it to the Command Zone when it changed zones. The format was very different, but this rule made it decidedly risky to build a deck that centered too much around your Commander.

An Agent Phil Coulson deck is what you might have played back then. Your Commander could be a support card, a decent one if you're able to get enough activations out of him. If he gets removed, it's not like your main game plan is unavailable. You've still got Heroes in your deck. You were going to play them and attack even if Phil wasn't there to give them extra +1/+1 counters.

Playing around the no-longer-relevant tuck rule isn't why this deck is going to be fun.

Decks that rely more on the 99 than on the Commander make it so you can't know how each game is going to play out. You might draw into any number of Heroes, each of which brings something different to your game. It's likely that puts us in a lower bracket, but that's fine. This will probably be a fairly entertaining lower powered deck with interesting games and a Commander that may fly under the radar otherwise.

Avengers Assemble!

There are 70 other cards with the Hero creature type that can be run in a mono-White deck. That means I've got a lot to pick from. To start, I'm focusing on the cards that make the most sense for Agent Phil Coulson.

Our intrepid Hero was a huge Captain America fan, so it makes sense to run a few of the cards printed for Cap in this list. Captain America, Wings of Freedom is probably the best of them. He's a 3/1 Human Soldier Hero with Flying, First Strike and Ward .

Whenever this Cap attacks, all other Heroes I control get +X/+X until end of turn where X is his toughness. I'm also running Captain America, Steve Rogers, and Captain America, Super-Soldier, both of which provide some protective abilities. Steve Rogers is a 4/4 with Lifelink and when he attacks, I'll put a +1/+1 counter on another target Creature I control and that Creature gains indestructible until end of turn.

Super-Soldier enters with a shield counter on him. As long as he has a shield counter on him, me and other Heroes I control will have Hexproof.

Nick Fury was Phil Coulson's boss, so Nick Fury, Spymaster deserves a spot in this list. He's a 4/4 Human Spy Hero with First Strike and whenever a Creature I control attacks alone, I'll draw a card. Then I may put a Creature card worth or less from my hand onto the battlefield. It will enter tapped and attacking and is Indestructible for this turn.

This is an exciting ability to see on a White card, and it definitely has me thinking about what a Nick Fury deck might look like.

In the 2013 Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. TV series, Phil Coulson worked with Daisy Johnson, an inhuman hacker who became a vigilante under the name Quake. She eventually rejoined S.H.I.E.L.D. so it just felt right to include Quake, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. in today's list. Quake's ability isn't that overpowering, but she's a 3/3 that lets me tap target Creature or Land whenever I cast a noncreature spell.

That can be very, very handy for removing blockers and a third of today's list is made up of noncreature spells so it's very likely to come up in a game if I have Quake on the battlefield.

Having Phil Coulson as my Commander provides a reason to run cards that make sense in the context of who that character knew and spent time with. This deck is also a great excuse to run cards I might not otherwise put into a deck.

I'm running a decent number of support Heroes that care about +1/+1 counters, and Silver Sable, Mercenary Leader is one of the best in this list. When she enters, this Human Mercenary Hero will put a +1/+1 counter on another target Creature. Whenever she attacks, target modified Creature I control gains Lifelink until end of turn.

Auras, Equipment and counters are modifications, so this deck should have no problem finding a modified Creature to attack with.

Black Panther, Most Dangerous is a 3/3 Human Warrior Hero with an ability that should play really well with Agent Phil Coulson. Whenever Black Panther is dealt damage, he'll deal that much damage to any other target.

If there's a player tucked behind a pile of defensive Enchantments or blockers I can offer to use Black Panther to push damage directly at that player. I won't be happy losing him to a huge attacker but if that attacker doesn't have Trample, it might be a way to deal with an otherwise unreachable tablemate.

The card I'm most excited to include in this build is Anti-Venom, Horrifying Healer. This Symbiote Hero has a casting cost of so he's not easily going to fit into anything but a mono-White deck. If he was cast normally, I get to return a Creature from the graveyard when he enters. The best part is that anytime Anti-Venom would take damage, it's prevented and he gains that many +1/+1 counters instead.

I've got plenty of other Heroes in the list that either fit thematically or bring something neat to the game. In the 2019 film Captain Marvel, Phil spent a fair amount of time around the titular character, so I made sure to include Captain Marvel, Shooting Star. There are plenty of other Avengers and Heroes in this list that Phil never really crossed paths with.

Counter Support

Any deck that's going to be awash in +1/+1 counters should be running support cards that care about +1/+1 counters. There are a handful of Heroes that either put +1/+1 counters on Creatures or that care about counters in some way.

Matt Murdock, Justice Seeker gives me a way to put a +1/+1 counter on one of my Creatures but, more importantly, any body with a counter on it gets Ward . That's not much, and it isn't affected by how many counters a Creature has, but sometimes an extra payment of one mana is enough to keep a target of your back.

If I'm putting +1/+1 counters on my Heroes at least once per turn cycle, Invisible Woman, Sue Storm is a great fit for this deck. This Human Hero has Lifelink and whenever I put one or more +1/+1 counters on one or more other Heroes I control, I may create a 0/4 colorless Wall token. Sometimes a few extra speedbumps to throw in front of attackers is enough to stay alive an extra turn or two.

Heroes that help me draw cards aren't easy to find, but Iron Spider, Stark Upgrade is a Spider Hero that might just be able to help. It can tap to put a +1/+1 counter on each Artifact Creature or Vehicle I control, and I can pay and remove two +1/+1 counters to draw a card. If I'm also tapping Phil to put counters on my Heroes, this could reliably give me an extra-card, each-turn cycle.

I'm running a few non-Hero creatures, and Towashi Guide-Bot might be surprisingly good in this list. I can pay four mana and tap it to draw a card, but that is reduced by for each modified Creature I control. With four Heroes, each sporting at least one +1/+1 counter, I'll be tapping it for free to draw a card.

Sword of Truth and Justice gives +2/+2 and protection from White and Blue, so that will keep me from targeting the equipped Creature, but Phil's tap ability doesn't target. When equipped Creature deals combat damage to a player I'll put a +1/+1 counter on a Creature and then I'll Proliferate.

If I've been putting counters on all my Heroes, that could amount to a lot over a few turns of attacks and it'll be twice as good if I can equip it to a Creature with Double Strike.

It seems like there's a boardwipe tailor made for every strategy, and Damning Verdict is the perfect boardwipe for a Phil Coulson deck. For , I can destroy all Creatures with no counters on them. There's a chance Agent Phil Coulson won't have any counters on him, but if he needs to take a trip to Tahiti that's not a big problem. It's a magical place, and with a casting cost of , it shouldn't be too hard to pay the Commander Tax to bring him back.

Gods Bleed

Agent Phil Coulson has met Gods, and he's seen Gods bleed. Whether this deck will be able to get a drop of blood out of a God is yet to be seen, but I like its chances. We've got a lot of interesting Heroes, a decent amount of interaction, and plenty of support cards for a +1/+1 counter theme.

I do wish we were in Selesnya because there is a lot of +1/+1 counter support in Green, but we build around the Commander we pick, and today's pick is only in White.

I should note that it took a fair amount of self-restraint not to litter this column with random Phil Coulson quotes. A random "so that's what it does" or "cool origin story, bro" doesn't flow as well as you'd think when writing about a Commander deck. If you haven't watched any Marvel Cinematic Universe movies and have no clue what the big deal is about Phil Coulson, I'd urge you to give them a chance.

Clark Gregg brings a wonderfully dry wit and charm to his dialogue every time he shows up as Agent Phil Coulson.

Agent Phil Coulson | Commander | Stephen Johnson

• Commander (1)
• 1 Agent Phil Coulson

• Creatures (29)
• 1 Abzan Falconer
• 1 Alms Collector
• 1 Anti-Venom, Horrifying Healer
• 1 Archivist of Oghma
• 1 Black Panther, Most Dangerous
• 1 Captain America, Steve Rogers
• 1 Captain America, Super-Soldier
• 1 Captain America, Wings of Freedom
• 1 Captain Mar-Vell, Space-Born
• 1 Captain Marvel, Shooting Star
• 1 Doctor Spectrum
• 1 Enduring Innocence
• 1 Esper Sentinel
• 1 Falcon and Redwing
• 1 Falcon, Joaquin Torres
• 1 Invisible Woman, Sue Storm
• 1 Iron Spider, Stark Upgrade
• 1 Lae'zel, Vlaakith's Champion
• 1 Matt Murdock, Justice Seeker
• 1 Nick Fury, Spymaster
• 1 Peggy Carter, Secret Agent
• 1 Quake, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
• 1 Silver Sable, Mercenary Leader
• 1 Spectacular Spider-Man
• 1 The Falcon, Sam Wilson
• 1 The Wasp, Janet Van Dyne
• 1 Towashi Guide-Bot
• 1 Virtuous Variant
• 1 Winter Soldier, Reborn Avenger

• Instants (10)
• 1 Akroma's Will
• 1 Dawn Charm
• 1 Duty Beyond Death
• 1 Generous Gift
• 1 Leo's Guidance
• 1 Light the Way
• 1 Path to Exile
• 1 Riot Control
• 1 Soldier On
• 1 Swords to Plowshares

• Sorceries (5)
• 1 Ascend from Avernus
• 1 Cut a Deal
• 1 Damning Verdict
• 1 Lay Down Arms
• 1 Secret Rendezvous

• Enchantments (6)
• 1 Armored Ascension
• 1 Felidar Retreat
• 1 Land Tax
• 1 Reconnaissance
• 1 Tocasia's Welcome
• 1 Virtue of Loyalty

• Artifacts (12)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Archaeomancer's Map
• 1 Gilded Lotus
• 1 Lightning Greaves
• 1 Mind Stone
• 1 Oketra's Monument
• 1 Pearl Medallion
• 1 Swiftfoot Boots
• 1 Sword of Truth and Justice
• 1 The Ozolith
• 1 The Wind Crystal
• 1 Thought Vessel

• Lands (37)
• 33 Plains
• 1 Buried Ruin
• 1 Emeria, the Sky Ruin
• 1 Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
• 1 Three Tree City

Buy This Deck Export text

If you wanted to tune this list down you could probably drop out some of the cards that don't fit thematically with a Super Hero themed deck. Three Tree City might be an easy cut, though I should note that I didn't include Rogue's Passage because these are Heroes, not Rogues.

To tune this list up, you might look at combo wincons or just reach out across the multiverse to play more cards that aren't just in the deck because they don't have the Hero creature type. Just dropping out a few basic lands and adding more utility lands can help this list power up a little.

Support cards like Odric, Lunarch Marshal or Avacyn, Angel of Hope can also go a long way towards making a deck more powerful, though each of those cards beg for additional support cards.

More boardwipes, card draw, interaction, and maybe a few Game Changers would also help you push up into Bracket 3 if that's where you want to be playing. Finding a way to make infinite mana, and then tapping and untapping Phil Coulson with a card like Staff of Domination should definitely let you win games at higher powered tables, though I don't see Phil pushing up into Brackets 4 or 5.

Final Thoughts

One of my favorite things about Commander is that decks are rarely, if ever, "done." You can always tweak them to make your game experience different, or to change the power level up or down a bit.

When I thought I had completed today's list, I found myself looking up cards and realizing that Duty Beyond Death was every bit as on-theme as Brought Back for Agent Phil Coulson, and that Reconnaissance should really be in the mix.

I also broke a self-imposed rule and included a non-MSH Legendary Creature in Lae'zel, Vlaakith's Champion because she'll double the rate at which I'm adding +1/+1 counters. She makes me vulnerable to Infect, but she's got to be in the list because she synergizes so well with what I'm doing.

I dropped out White Widow, Free Agent because I hadn't noticed she was actually a Human Hero Villain. That's a silly reason to be sure, but when you add cards you must cut cards. I dropped out Kindred Boon when I added Reconnaissance.

Usually, I try to drop my mana costs and improve the deck, but every now and then I add cards to make a deck more thematic without worrying about lowering the power level.

That's all I've got for today. Thanks for reading and I'll see you next week!