Though much maligned in Constructed, the companion mechanic from Ikoria offers Commander players a unique opportunity to both customize and empower their deckbuilding. In return for meeting the right deckbuilding restrictions, we can add a powerful extra card to our command zone – ranging from an extra ramp piece to potential win condition. We explored the Commander potential of the …
Magic has been around for long enough to spin off hundreds of unique mechanics, each with its own unique advantages, dedicated support cards and memorable payoffs. But when you throw them all together in the grand melting pot that is Commander, a few mechanics clearly stand out from the pack. They offer versatile deck building options, consistent performance in different …
Recently, I’ve used this blog to examine some of Commander’s most powerful and fearsome strategies. Building your deck around mechanics like treasure, cascade, or looting unlocks lines of play which are so good, they’re almost unfair. But isn’t that the natural conclusion of the multiplayer metagame? How do you win a fair fight when you effectively have to beat three …
The big design challenge for Universes Beyond: Fallout is how to adapt such a sprawling, storied franchise into just four Commander precons. Wizards seems to have based each deck on one of the Wasteland’s largest and most recognizable factions, and then added other characters and references from the games which share a similar ideology. The Hail, Caesar precon deck is, …
Magic has been around for long enough to spin off hundreds of unique mechanics, each with its own unique advantages, dedicated support cards and memorable payoffs. But when you throw them all together in the grand melting pot that is Commander, a few mechanics clearly stand out from the pack. They offer versatile deck building options, consistent performance in different …
Ah, it feels good to be back in Ravnica again for a new set. Murders at Karlov Manor combines the hybrid color creativity we’re used to with all sorts of detective-story antics, and even a bit of crime noir borrowed from New Capenna. That Capennan influence is also felt in the draft format, with many mechanics that complicate blocking and …
Anyone who’s seen enough spy movies or political dramas has heard the line: war is brutal, but it’s good for business. War allows you to capture territory, resources or valuables from your enemy as spoils of victory, and as history’s oldest jobs program it often sparks a boom in national economies. This thinking doesn’t typically apply to Magic, where combat …
Murder mysteries and vast, magic-soaked cityscapes are two great tastes that go great together, which is why the Murders at Karlov Manor Commander precons explore how different tropes from the whodunit and film noir genres fit into the beloved setting of Ravnica. And while Deadly Disguise is all about playing cards face-down to obscure your true plans, our upgrade guide …
Murders at Karlov Manor is about to shake up how we buy Magic cards, with Set Boosters and Draft Boosters both being replaced with a single product – Play Boosters. This is both a big change and a not-so-big change, depending on how you look at it. It will certainly impact the vast majority of players in some way or …
It feels a little strange to say that Commander players are overlooking the Ikoria companions. After all, very few cards in Magic history have ever felt the spotlight so brightly as that ten-card cycle! In their heyday, they inspired such unprecedented moves as the first balance-motivated ban in Vintage, a card being preemptively banned in Commander prior to release, and …
