Hello everyone! I'm Levi from The Thought Vessel, and this week we're looking at taking down a commander near and dear to my heart: Sisay, Weatherlight Captain. A quick note before we dive in. This article focuses on bracket three and bracket four builds of Sisay. We won't be looking at cEDH or bracket five lists, as those operate under a very different strategy. This week's approach is also a bit different. Normally, we use the EDHREC average deck as our reference point, but most Sisay decks lean into cEDH territory and haven't seen major upgrades since Dockside Extortionist was banned. So instead, we'll be examining my personal build, Human Resources, a legendary typal deck that leans into humans for additional synergy. It's not as reliant on Sisay as some other lists, but more on that in a bit.

Sisay came to us in the first Modern Horizons set, the same set that introduced Urza, Lord High Artificer. A nod to the original Captain Sisay, this version serves as a toolbox tutor for all things legendary. Sacrificing efficiency for five-color access, Sisay, Weatherlight Captain is a force to be reckoned with and saw play in cEDH at its highest level.

This particular list plays like most typal decks, through the combat step. You deploy legendary humans to increase Sisay's power, allowing her to tutor up key cards: buffs, protection, removal, and even a bit of stax to slow opponents down. The deck can win through aggro or pivot to a combo finish if necessary. And since Sisay's ability can be activated at instant speed, the deck can always find the perfect answer at the perfect time.

Here is the decklist:

Human Resources | Commander | Levi Perry

• Commander (1)
• 1 Sisay, Weatherlight Captain

• Creatures (39)
• 1 Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
• 1 Anafenza, the Foremost
• 1 Aragorn, King of Gondor
• 1 Basim Ibn Ishaq
• 1 Bloom Tender
• 1 Boromir, Warden of the Tower
• 1 Captain Sisay
• 1 Delighted Halfling
• 1 Derevi, Empyrial Tactician
• 1 Eowyn, Fearless Knight
• 1 Eowyn, Shieldmaiden
• 1 Ertai Resurrected
• 1 Esika, God of the Tree // The Prismatic Bridge
• 1 Faeburrow Elder
• 1 General's Enforcer
• 1 General Kudro of Drannith
• 1 Greymond, Avacyn's Stalwart
• 1 Grima, Saruman's Footman
• 1 Jegantha, the Wellspring
• 1 Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
• 1 Jirina Kudro
• 1 Jirina, Dauntless General
• 1 Jodah, the Unifier
• 1 Katilda, Dawnhart Prime
• 1 Kenrith, the Returned King
• 1 Kyler, Sigardian Emissary
• 1 Kytheon, Hero of Akros // Gideon, Battle-Forged
• 1 Leinore, Autumn Sovereign
• 1 Loran of the Third Path
• 1 Myrel, Shield of Argive
• 1 Najeela, the Blade-Blossom
• 1 Reki, the History of Kamigawa
• 1 Samut, Voice of Dissent
• 1 Saryth, the Viper's Fang
• 1 Seedborn Muse
• 1 Selvala, Heart of the Wilds
• 1 Serra Ascendant
• 1 Shanid, Sleepers' Scourge
• 1 Sigarda, Font of Blessings

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Dihada, Binder of Wills

• Instants (7)
• 1 Akroma's Will
• 1 Assassin's Trophy
• 1 Counterspell
• 1 Cyclonic Rift
• 1 Deflecting Swat
• 1 Swan Song
• 1 Swords to Plowshares

• Sorceries (5)
• 1 Agadeem's Awakening // Agadeem, the Undercrypt
• 1 Mass Appeal
• 1 Primevals' Glorious Rebirth
• 1 Ruinous Ultimatum
• 1 Vandalblast

• Enchantments (5)
• 1 Druids' Repository
• 1 Flowering of the White Tree
• 1 Rhystic Study
• 1 Smothering Tithe
• 1 Vraska Joins Up

• Artifacts (4)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Horn of Gondor
• 1 Relic of Legends
• 1 Sol Ring

• Lands (36)
• 1 Forest
• 1 Island
• 1 Mountain
• 1 Plains
• 1 Swamp
• 1 Blood Crypt
• 1 Bloodstained Mire
• 1 Boseiju, Who Endures
• 1 Breeding Pool
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Exotic Orchard
• 1 Godless Shrine
• 1 Hallowed Fountain
• 1 Luxury Suite
• 1 Mana Confluence
• 1 Overgrown Tomb
• 1 Plaza of Heroes
• 1 Polluted Delta
• 1 Reflecting Pool
• 1 Rootbound Crag
• 1 Sacred Foundry
• 1 Sea of Clouds
• 1 Spectator Seating
• 1 Spire Garden
• 1 Steam Vents
• 1 Stomping Ground
• 1 Temple Garden
• 1 Training Center
• 1 Undergrowth Stadium
• 1 Vault of Champions
• 1 Verdant Catacombs
• 1 Watery Grave
• 1 Windswept Heath
• 1 Wooded Foothills
• 1 Minamo, School at Water's Edge
• 1 Volrath's Stronghold

Buy This Deck Export text

Strengths

The main strength here is versatility. Being able to constantly tutor from your deck means nearly any answer is at your fingertips. There's rarely a situation Sisay can't solve with the right card. Plus, this build gets extra mileage out of typal synergy with humans, offering solid buffs and card advantage. The deck is also built to find resilient pieces against cards that are trying to destroy its creatures with several ways to make all your creatures indestructible.

Weaknesses

Like most toolbox decks, Sisay spreads its answers thin across a wide range of problems. If you present the same problem multiple times, Sisay may eventually run out of effective responses.

This specific build is also weak to flying creatures, so something like The Ur-Dragon can be particularly problematic. And of course, hitting consistent mana means the deck is vulnerable to disruption via mana denial or land destruction.

Here are some cards to keep an eye on in any Sisay, Weatherlight Captain deck, mine or otherwise:

1. Jegantha, the Wellspring - This goes for any -tapping creature in the deck. Thanks to cards like Sisay, Derevi, and other untap effects, Jegantha can fuel multiple tutors per turn - and even enable infinite combos.
2. Seedborn Muse - Possibly the scariest card in the deck. It's extremely rare for me to untap with this on the field and not win the next turn. The sheer mana advantage it provides is lethal.
3. Relic of Legend - Turns every legendary creature into a pseudo-hasty mana dork. Often leads to one or two extra Sisay activations per turn, whether to push for lethal or protect your board.
4. Jodah, Archmage Eternal - A sneaky card that can be used in different ways. Early, it lets you cast high-impact spells for cheap. Late game, I can flash it in from the deck after blockers are declared to give all my legends a sudden power boost - often resulting in a lethal swing.

How to Beat Sisay, Weatherlight Captain

Sisay's tutor ability relies on her power. So, if you can remove her or her supporting creatures (especially using Red or Black spells), it becomes harder for her to fetch the biggest threats.

This deck depends heavily on building and maintaining a board state, so a well-timed board wipe or two can set it way back; it's not great at rebuilding quickly from nothing.

Shutting down tutoring can effectively halt Sisay in her tracks but be ready for retaliation. Sometimes it's easier for the Sisay player to just remove you entirely.

If you keep the Sisay player off balance, you can usually win with raw mana output, since the deck isn't built to cast a ton of spells per turn. You can outpace it.

Commander Kryptonite

Still struggling against Sisay? Consider finding room for these:

1. Opposition Agent - This shuts down tutoring completely. If you flash it in at the right moment, you might even grab a solid card from the Sisay player's tutor attempt.
2. Inkshield - Since this deck often goes for a big combat finish, Inkshield can completely reverse the momentum - preventing damage and creating enough Inklings to swing back for the win.
3. Invasion of Fiora - A symmetrical board wipe that disproportionately hurts Sisay. Most decks mix legendary and non-legendary creatures, but Sisay's list is almost entirely legendary. This battle should cripple them while barely touching other players.

And there you have it! It's always a bit strange writing an article about how to beat my own deck, but I hope you enjoyed it. As always, if there's a particular commander you'd like to see covered on Commander Kryptonite, send me an email at thoughtvesselshow@gmail.com. Until next time, happy gaming!