Overview

Cavalry Charge is a Knight tribal deck that wants to attack every turn. Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir has flying and first strike, and whenever he deals combat damage to a player, you return target Knight creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield. His eminence ability works from the command zone: whenever you attack with one or more Knights, draw a card and then discard a card.

The 99 cards are 32 creatures, 13 artifacts, 2 enchantments, 6 instants, 7 sorceries and 39 lands. Every creature is a Knight, so the tribal payoffs such as Knight Exemplar, Valiant Knight, Wintermoor Commander and Knights' Charge work with the whole deck. Several of them, including Adeline, Resplendent Cathar and Hero of Bladehold, make attacking tokens, so a wide board can attack for a lot.

Key Cards

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Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
Token Maker · Attacker
A creature for {1}{W}{W}. It has vigilance, and its power is equal to the number of creatures you control. Whenever you attack, for each opponent you create a 1/1 white Human creature token that is tapped and attacking that player or a planeswalker they control.
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Knight Exemplar
Lord · Protection
A 2/2 for {1}{W}{W}. It has first strike, and other Knight creatures you control get +1/+1 and have indestructible. In a deck where every creature is a Knight, it makes your whole team much harder to remove in combat.
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Hero of Bladehold
Battle Cry · Token Maker
A 3/4 for {2}{W}{W}. It has battle cry, and whenever it attacks you create two 1/1 white Soldier creature tokens that are tapped and attacking. Battle cry also gives each other attacking creature +1/+0 until end of turn.
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Knights' Charge
Drain · Recursion
An enchantment for {1}{W}{B}. Whenever a Knight you control attacks, each opponent loses 1 life and you gain 1 life. For {6}{W}{B} and a sacrifice, return all Knight creature cards from your graveyard to the battlefield.

Playing the Deck

The early game is about cheap Knights and mana. Worthy Knight, Knight of the White Orchid, Corpse Knight and Foulmire Knight // Profane Insight come down cheaply, Acclaimed Contender looks through the top five cards of your library for a Knight, and Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Orzhov Signet, Mind Stone and Fellwar Stone speed you up. Herald's Horn and Vanquisher's Banner reward you for casting Knights.

The middle of the game is about attacking with a growing army. Aryel, Knight of Windgrace makes Knight tokens and can destroy a creature by tapping Knights, Exsanguinator Cavalry grows a Knight whenever a Knight connects, and Syr Konrad, the Grim deals 1 damage to each opponent whenever creatures die. Haakon, Stromgald Scourge lets you cast Knights from your graveyard, Sigiled Sword of Valeron makes an attacking Knight token whenever the equipped creature attacks, and Chivalric Alliance draws a card when you attack with two or more creatures.

The late game is about a huge board and finishing blows. Josu Vess, Lich Knight creates eight 2/2 Zombie Knight tokens if you kick it, Silverwing Squadron grows with your board, and Elenda and Azor draw cards and make lifelink Vampire Knights. Time Wipe, Fell the Mighty and Promise of Loyalty can reset the board, and Unbreakable Formation protects the team from a sweeper.

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths: Because every creature is a Knight, the deck's tribal payoffs, equipment and recursion work with almost every card, and Sidar brings Knights back when you connect. It also has strong removal such as Swords to Plowshares, Path to Exile, Despark and Murderous Rider // Swift End, and plenty of ways to draw cards, including Painful Truths, Read the Bones and Pull from Tomorrow.

Weaknesses: The deck wants to attack, so it can struggle against decks that stop combat or have a lot of blockers, and a board wipe at the wrong moment can undo a lot of tokens. A few strong cards cost a lot of life, such as Read the Bones and Painful Truths, and the deck is three colours with a lot of double-coloured costs.

Want to improve it? See the Cavalry Charge upgrade guide: fourteen swaps with the data behind each one.

Verdict
Cavalry Charge is a straightforward and satisfying tribal deck: play Knights, attack, and use the tokens and drain to overwhelm opponents. It rewards good attack steps and has a lot of room to grow with more Knights and protection.

Want to see what a fully optimised Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir build looks like? Try the Oracle.

✦ Build with The Oracle

Frequently Asked Questions

What cards are in the Cavalry Charge decklist?
The Cavalry Charge precon is a 100-card Commander deck led by Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir. The full Cavalry Charge decklist, with every card, current prices and a button to copy the list into your deck builder, is on this page.

When was Cavalry Charge released?
Cavalry Charge was released on April 21, 2023 as part of March of the Machine Commander.

Who is the commander of Cavalry Charge?
Cavalry Charge is led by Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir, a Esper (W/U/B) legendary creature.

How many creatures are in Cavalry Charge?
The 99 cards besides Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir include 32 creatures.

How many lands does Cavalry Charge have?
Cavalry Charge has 39 lands in the 99 cards besides Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir, including basic lands.

Full Decklist

All 100 cards from the out-of-the-box Cavalry Charge precon, with current prices. Click any card to expand it.

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