commander · Kaalia of the Vast
Heavenly Inferno (CMD).
A Mardu angel, demon, and dragon cheat deck from the original Commander set, led by Kaalia of the Vast — attack and put any angel, demon, or dragon directly onto the battlefield tapped and attacking without paying its mana cost.
The Commander
Heavenly Inferno is one of the original 2011 Commander precons and Kaalia is the most notorious commander in the history of the format. She's a 2/2 with flying and haste — she attacks the turn she enters. Whenever Kaalia attacks, you may put any angel, demon, or dragon card from your hand onto the battlefield tapped and attacking without paying its mana cost. A ten-mana demon arrives tapped and attacking on turn four. The deck is full of the most powerful angels, demons, and dragons ever printed, all deployed for free.
Kaalia of the Vast makes opponents' removal policy simple: kill her or lose. Every attack that connects deploys a game-ending threat for zero additional mana. Lightning Greaves enters the deck as its most important support piece — give Kaalia shroud and haste the moment she lands, and that protection often means at least one free threat deploy before opponents can react.
Key Cards
Gisela, Blade of Goldnight
All damage dealt to opponents is doubled. All damage that would be dealt to you is halved. When deployed for free via Kaalia's attack trigger, Gisela enters attacking immediately. Damage from all other attacking creatures doubles on the same swing. The game-math becomes impossible to survive: your team deals double damage, your opponents' retaliation deals half. A board with Gisela plus two other flyers can kill a forty-life opponent in a single combat.
Rune-Scarred Demon
A 6/6 flying demon that tutors any card from your library to your hand when it enters. Deploy via Kaalia's attack trigger and tutor another threat to your hand. Get Gisela for the next attack, or get Lightning Greaves to protect Kaalia. Rune-Scarred Demon converts a free deployment into a free tutor plus an attacking 6/6. Against interactive opponents who counter the tutored card, you still got a free 6/6 attacker without spending mana.
Master of Cruelties
Master of Cruelties can only attack alone. Whenever it attacks a player and isn't blocked, that player's life total becomes one. With Kaalia deploying Master of Cruelties as an additional attacker, the Master attacks solo in a separate attack declaration. Getting through sets a player to one life — then any damage source kills them immediately. Lightning Greaves into Kaalia, attack, deploy Master, Master attacks unblocked, player drops to one, follow up with any damage to finish.
Lightning Greaves
Zero equip cost. Gives haste and shroud. The most important card in the deck. Kaalia's entire strategy collapses if she's removed before she attacks. Lightning Greaves enters for zero equip, gives Kaalia shroud from targeted removal and haste to attack immediately. Opponents must spend their removal before Greaves resolves or watch at least one free deploy. Against interaction-heavy pods, Greaves is what separates Kaalia generating value every turn from Kaalia never connecting.
Aurelia, the Warleader
A 3/4 flying first strike vigilance angel that grants an additional combat phase after her first attack each turn. Untap all creatures first. Deploy Aurelia via Kaalia's first attack trigger, then Aurelia's trigger grants a second combat step. Kaalia attacks again in the second combat — deploying another threat for free. Two free threats in one turn cycle, attacking twice, with every creature untapped between combats. Aurelia in a Kaalia deck converts one attack into two complete combat steps.
How to Play
Get Kaalia onto the battlefield as fast as possible — mana acceleration through rocks by turn three, Kaalia on turn four, Lightning Greaves equip immediately. The first Kaalia attack deploys the most game-changing threat in your hand. Rune-Scarred Demon tutors the next threat. Gisela doubles your incoming damage on the second attack. The deck wins through the sheer power of deploying two to three game-ending threats in the first three turns Kaalia is active, backed by double damage math from Gisela. Master of Cruelties closes games from any life total when it gets through unblocked alongside a Kaalia attack.