Burning Star IV — The Deck of Apollo’s Regret
Tagline: “I write you into ruin so I can finally be free.”
View the Good Apollo decklist on Archidekt.
Opening Chords
I don’t just like Coheed & Cambria—I orbit them. I catch their shows almost every year, screaming the choruses until my voice gives out while Claudio Sanchez spins yet another twist in his sprawling sci-fi opera. Their narrative-driven prog-rock blends raw emotion with meticulous craftsmanship, and I wanted a Commander deck that could slam the table with that same cinematic weight.
“I write you into ruin so I can finally be free.” — The Writer
That sentence is my own distillation of the Writer’s spiral through Good Apollo. I stitched together the spite-laced taunts of “Ten Speed (Of God’s Blood & Burial)”, the self-exorcising desperation of “Apollo I: The Writing Writer,” and the severing finality of “The Final Cut.” It captures the instant the Writer decides the only escape is to destroy the lives he authored.
With that mantra as my compass I forged Burning Star IV — The Deck of Apollo’s Regret: a five-color legend toolbox where every card is a character, a setting, or a scream from the album’s pages. Normal art couldn’t carry the weight, so I used generative tools to create bespoke artwork for every single card—alternate-reality cover art for a record I’ve never stopped spinning.
Why Build a Narrative Deck?
Magic already asks us to suspend disbelief—giant hydras, time-rending planeswalkers, the occasional goblin grenade. By leaning into story we turn that suspension into intention: every shuffled hand becomes chapter order, every top-deck a reveal. When your playgroup knows the source material, the board state turns into a live reading—each spell resolving to gasps, groans, or guitar riffs.
Part I — Framing the Frame Story
These are the narrative engine pieces—the Writer and his tools that set the stage and keep the story moving.
| Role | Card Name | Card (Alt Name) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commander-Author | Sisay, Weatherlight Captain | Writer-as-God | Tutors any legend like an author yanking plot threads. |
| Self-Insert | Captain Sisay | The Writer’s Memory | Recursive flashback. |
| Id / Ten Speed | Ob Nixilis, the Hate-Twisted | Ten Speed, of God’s Blood | “Draw, then destroy.” Perfect sabotage. |
| Splintered Timeline | Aminatou, the Fateshifter | The Writer, Shattering | Blinks legends; fractures reality for three mana. |
| Typewriter | The Peregrine Dynamo | The Typewriter Dynamo | Double-tutors Sisay activations. |
| Diary | Reki, the History of Kamigawa | Claudio, the Diary of the Wars | Every legend casts a drawn verse. |
Takeaway: If Sisay survives one rotation, the story snowballs.
Part II — Claudio’s Burden (Protagonists)
Meet the heroes whose choices and flaws drive the plot—and keep your hand and life total healthy.
| Role | Card Name | Card (Alt Name) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reluctant Hero | Kenrith, the Returned King | Claudio, Reluctant Hero | Five-color Swiss-army leader—heals, buffs, resurrects. |
| Observer | Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain | Ambellina, Observer | Draws on each historic deed; chronicles the saga. |
| Lost Sister | Tymna the Weaver | Maria the Weaver | Turns combat pain into card draw—grief as insight. |
| Voice of Reason | Mangara, the Diplomat | Inferno, the Calm | Rewards opponents’ excess; keeps tables honest. |
| Song of Hope | Toski, Bearer of Secrets | The Prise’s Song | Indestructible draw engine that scales with swings. |
Design Note: Life-gain plus steady card flow keeps the heroes alive through Act II.
Part III — The Resistance
The crew that ramps, tutors, and shields Claudio, giving the deck its mid-game momentum.
| Role | Card Name | Card (Alt Name) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| First to Fight | Zilortha, Strength Incarnate | Sizer, Loyal Aberration | Overkill damage—reckless courage on claws. |
| Wandering Bard | Yisan, the Wanderer Bard | Jesse, the Wandering Bard | Tutors the next verse, assembling the crew. |
| Rallying Soldier | Ranger-Captain of Eos | Same | Fetches utility creatures; sac silences sweepers. |
| Moment of Clarity | Epiphany at the Drownyard | The Split Truth | Splits reality; you choose the insight. |
| Collective Strength | Faeburrow Elder | Same | Mana scales with unity—the crew’s shared power. |
| Heroic Sacrifice | Gerrard, Weatherlight Hero | Josephine | Dies to reset, returns allies from the grave. |
Takeaway: Ramp, tutoring, and protection—the pit crew that keeps Claudio’s engine roaring.
Part IV — Even My Angels Bleed Ink
Divine and monstrous power spikes that turn late-game turns into cinematic finales.
| Role | Card Name | Card (Alt Name) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fallen Grace | Liesa, Forgotten Archangel | Ambellina, Forgotten Prise | Death-to-grace loop mirroring martyrdom. |
| Split Soul | Gisela, the Broken Blade | Split Prise | Halved damage for you, double for foes—love torn in half. |
| Lingering Memory | Bruna, the Fading Light | Same | Resurrects allies; the past won’t stay buried. |
| Calamity Incarnate | Zacama, Primal Calamity | Same | Heaven’s Fence collapsing; untaps lands, nukes permanents. |
| Reborn Fury | Nethroi, Apex of Death | Same | Coheed reborn, hauling bodies from the grave. |
| Cosmic Audit | O-Kagachi, Vengeful Kami | Same | Sin-eater that exiles stolen fate. |
Stage Cue: Two angels or beasts on board → prog-metal finale.
Part V — Regret & Control
Edits born of guilt—taxes and removal that erase threats and punish hubris.
| Role | Card Name | Card (Alt Name) | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mask of Remorse | Karmic Guide | Same | Reanimates fallen legends—sins revisited. |
| Final Edit | Anguished Unmaking | Same | Exiles any permanent; storyline hard-stop. |
| Retribution Tax | Michiko Konda | Same | Doubles cruelty back onto aggressors. |
| Dogmatic Law | General Kudro of Drannith | Same | Tradition as weapon—pumps humans, exiles yards. |
| Obsolete Ideal | Thalia, Heretic Cathar | Same | Taxes haste and hubris; stubborn protector. |
| Silken Guillotine | Etrata, the Silencer | Erica Court | Deletes a name from reality—one strike, gone. |
Design Note: Spot removal and taxes channel the Writer’s spiraling remorse into board control.
Part VI — Relics & Edits
Artifacts, wipes, and ink: the Writer’s editorial kit for resetting scenes and accelerating fate.
| Tool | Cards | Narrative Function | Game Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hourglass of System Collapse | Gerrard’s Hourglass Pendant | Stolen moment between worlds; rewrites disaster. | Resets board to pre-wipe state. |
| Cataclysm Suite | Austere Command · Hour of Revelation · Merciless Eviction · Vanquish the Horde · Dusk//Dawn | Chapter ends; entire factions deleted. | Flexible mass removal to level the stage. |
| Unwanted Choices | Swords to Plowshares · Utter End · Generous Gift · Abrade · Beast Within | Erase the unsavable. | Cheap, versatile spot removal. |
| The Ink | Chromatic Lantern · Talismans · Cultivate · Sol Ring · Nature’s Lore · Three Visits | Arcane fuel that manifests the story. | Color fixing and acceleration for narrative velocity. |
Part VII — Heaven’s Fence (The World Itself)
A mana base that doubles as setting: flawless five-color fixing woven into the lore of a shattered universe.
| Shard | Lands | Narrative | Mechanical Reason |
|---|---|---|---|
| Timeline Glue | Cascading Cataracts · Path of Ancestry | Timelines collapse; ancestral memories guide. | Five-color fixing & free scries for legends. |
| Identity Crisis | Mana Confluence · City of Brass · Reflecting Pool | Every version of you bleeds together. | Untapped rainbow sources for greedy keeps. |
| Deserted Thrones | Opal Palace · Ash Barrens | Once-sacred thrones now dust. | Commander returns stronger; budget fetch patches basics. |
| Broken Shards | Shocklands | Fragments of Heaven’s Fence. | Fetchable duals; life paid for narrative speed. |
Math check: Twelve untapped sources per color by turn three while keeping seven basics for green ramp lines.
Building the Art
- Print at 600 DPI and sleeve over authentic copies (tournament-legal proxies).
Download the full gallery: Google Drive folder
These cards are not tournament-legal. Use printed proxies only in casual pods that are comfortable with them. For sanctioned events, bring the genuine cards.
Piloting Cliff-Notes
- Early — Establish POV: Mull for ramp plus cheap legends; land Sisay by turn three.
- Mid — Thicken the Plot: Chain legend tutors; blink Sisay with Aminatou to dodge removal.
- Late — Burn the Manuscript: Zacama or Nethroi close the curtains; Hourglass undoes catastrophic edits.
Signature line: “I’m the author—I rewrite.”
Power Level & Rule 0
Designed for Bracket 1 casual tables, but relentless tutoring and recursion pilot closer to Bracket 3. Flag this before the game so everyone knows they’re in for interactive, cinematic swings—just shy of cEDH one-turn kills.
Narrative Commander turns cardboard into chapters. If Coheed’s operas stir you, sleeve this story and see who gasps first—the table or the Writer.
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