5 Underrated Commander Cards From Onslaught

Bloomburrow is Magic’s newest set and it’s very focused on creature types. However, it’s not the first time we’ve had a set with a very focused typal theme – that was 2002’s Onslaught (Or at least, that’s the first time they did it successfully. They tried several years earlier with 1994’s Fallen Empires, but we know how that went).

Despite its significance in the history of Magic design, Onslaught cards don’t see a whole lot of play in Commander. The one exception to this is the ally-colored fetchlands. However, I think there are some cards that are being seriously overlooked. And not all of them are focused on creature types.

UNDERRATED COMMANDER: IXIDOR, REALITY SCULPTOR

In addition to successfully implementing a typal theme, Onslaught also introduced Magic’s first face-down creatures with the Morph mechanic. Ixidor is a lord for those creatures while they are face down, and he can turn them face up too, usually at a discount.

Part of the fun of Morph is that your opponent has no idea what might be lurking underneath. This can wreak havoc on combat. The more Morph creatures you have, the betters your others get, because the variability of what that creature might become is much higher, making decisions more difficult for your opponent.

Many Morph creatures also have powerful effects when they turn face up, making Ixidor’s activated ability that much more impressive. You can use Thousand Winds to bounce a bunch of creatures, Brine Elemental to make your opponents skip untap phases, or Voidmage Apprentice to counter spells. 

And if you really want to be mean, you can use Vesuvan Shapeshifter to rebuy these powerful Morph triggers every turn. While this is pretty nasty with Thousand Winds, Voidmage Apprentice, and other Morph creatures, the Shapeshifter is the most potent if you have it copy Brine Elemental every turn, which will make your opponents skip their untap steps indefinitely.

Ixidor has recently gotten a power boost too, thanks to Murders at Karlov Manor’s Disguise mechanic. This strictly better version of Morph, which adds Ward 2 to the mix, has expanded the roster of face-down creatures that he synergizes with. Coveted Falcon and Exit Specialist are the most notable among these.

One word of caution though – Ixidor’s ability to buff face-down creatures is symmetrical. While that won’t matter most of the time, especially because your deck is going to be filled with creatures who have Morph and Disguise, there will be times when that comes up.

AIRBORNE AID & SEASIDE HAVEN

While Onslaught and Bloomburrow are very similar sets when it comes to their design, there’s only one creature type that both sets support – Birds. And it’s in Azorius in both sets, too! 

Kastral is arguably the best bird Commander we’ve ever seen, so Airborne Aid and Seaside Haven have both recently gotten much better. They each allow you to turn your birds into card advantage. Airborne Aid can draw you a huge chunk of your deck, while Seaside Haven is a utility land that lets you cash in birds for cards.

Seaside Haven even has some awesome combo potential with Kastral, as you can sacrifice a bird every turn and then reanimate when a bird does combat damage to your opponent. This can allow you to rebuy birds with powerful ETBs or death triggers, like Skyboon Evangelist and Jackdaw Savior, respectively.

READ THE RUNES

Read the Runes has an incredibly high ceiling. On the face of it, it’s an instant that can draw you a huge number of cards. While having to discard cards and/or sacrifice permanents for each of those cards you draw is meant to be a downside, it actually makes it useful in a wide swath of decks. Whether you’re interested in drawing cards, discarding cards, or sacrificing stuff, Read the Runes is a card you should consider.

For example, Niv-Mizzet Parun and The Locust God can turn all of that card draw into insects and damage respectively, in which case it doesn’t really matter that you’re also going to end up discarding cards or sacrificing permanents.

However, a Brallin and Shabraz partnership is likely the best way to abuse Read the Runes. This is because Brallin loves it when you discard cards and Shabraz likes it when you draw them. So, if you only have one of them in play when you cast Read the Runes you’re going to feel pretty good about things. But if you have them both? It’s probably game over for your opponents.

STEELY RESOLVE

I’ve seen people make the mistake before, so it’s important to note that this does not grant Hexproof. It’s Shroud. Onslaught was well before either Shroud or Hexproof had been keyworded, so I understand the confusion. While the two keywords are similar, Shroud is symmetrical. In other words, no one can target a creature with Shroud.

This means that Steely Resolve isn’t a card that any Green typal deck should consider, because if a big part of your deck that heavily involves you targeting your creatures, Steely Resolve is a pretty big nonbo. However, if you’re playing a Green typal deck where this are a small or nonexistent number of cards that target your creature, Steely Resolve is for you.

This is often the case for Dragon Commander decks, which are more about just cheating big scary bodies into play. So if you’re using The Ur-Dragon or Miirym, Steely Resolve will be a nice addition to your deck.

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I hope I introduced you to some new cards from Onslaught today, and that they’ll help make your deck better. If you think there are any underrated cards I left out, let me know over on X.