Captain America, First Avenger was previewed alongside Storm, Wolverine, Iron Man and Black Panther as the first of Wizards’ Universes Beyond: Marvel cards in a series of Secret Lair drops.
These Marvel cards are a mixture of brand new designs and reprints, some of which have been reskinned to better fit the theme.
[EDITOR’S NOTE: The Marvel Superdrop won’t release until November 4th, 2024 – we’ll link to alternate versions of the reprinted cards here]
CAPTAIN AMERICA: YEETING EQUIPMENT SINCE 2024
Today I want to look at one card in particular: Captain America, First Avenger. The Captain America SLD contains a reskinned Sigarda’s Aid and Sword of War and Peace (as Captain America’s Aid and Shield of War and Peace, respectively), Flawless Maneuver, In the Trenches, and of course – Cap himself.
The astute among you will have already realized why I’m talking about Cap today – and it’s because he’s a Jeskai equipment Commander. Pretty fitting that he’s in the Red White and Blue!
You get a 4/4 for Jeskai mana, who can auto-equip something at the beginning of combat on your turn. Cost-reducing equip costs is already a solid start. Where it gets spicy is in his activated ability: literally launching equipment at creatures or opponents, with gusto.
By paying {3} and unattaching an equipment, he will deal damage equal to that Equipment’s mana value divided among one, two, or three targets. This ability is really flexible, and with the right set up? You can do some crazy things.
BIG EQUIPMENT, BIG DAMAGE
The obvious card on everyone’s mind is Excalibur, Sword of Eden. In this sort of deck, it’s going to be free or close to free to cast a lot of the time, and nets you a huge twelve damage to throw around.
Building the deck as somewhat of a Voltron Equipment deck is the name of the game, because to get the most out of spending big on equipment, you will want to be using them in the best possible ways. Kaldra Compleat and Hexplate Wallbreaker are two very powerful options, but even Dragonwing Glider and Batterskull can be great options given that they provide a body before you’re ready to move the equipment.
Embercleave is still a great way to end a game, and cheating Argentum Armor’s equip cost, blowing something up, and then dealing 6 damage is a nice line of play.
For the heavy hitters, I’m really interested in running Meteoric Mace here. Getting a chunky equipment into play and cascading for value is a great way to build around Captain America’s utility.
IT’S ALL ABOUT HOW YOU THROW
Now, while doing damage by unequipping stuff can be useful – especially in a pinch – it’s breaking parity on it that’s where the fun really lies. To do this, you need to have him equipped with things that you won’t be detaching, so you can benefit from their effects. You’ll have to prioritize all of the tricks in the book for free equip costs, from Puresteel Paladin to Fighter Class, and everything in between.
Lifelink is a great start, as it’ll allow you to double-dip into lifegain. Resurrection Orb is handy to limit Commander Tax, and Caduceus also gives Cap indestructible, which will come in useful for something else later…
The big one here (or should I say small one?) is, of course, Basilisk Collar. Deathtouch makes detaching any of our small utility equipment – think Mask of Memory, Sword of the Animist, Sword of Hearth and Home – into a mini board-wipe.
You can do something similar here with granting Captain America Infect. By launching equipment at people, you can hit them with poison counters without even attacking them, or to finish them off when you don’t have access to doublestrike.
Arguably one of the scariest things you can equip is Sword of Kaldra. It simply states that when the equipped creature deals damage to a creature, exile it. This turns smaller increments of damage into better-than-lethal. Whew.
Of course, a sword and shield is great, but what about armor? Bracers are the next logical step, and by utilizing Battlemage’s Bracers or Illusionist’s Bracers, you can copy the damage ability, netting you way more damage than you thought possible. Sure, in Magical-Christmas-Land it turns Excalibur into 24 damage, but what’s more important is that it turns a three or four mana value equipment into double the damage.
A UTILITY BELT OF EQUIPMENT
Having three mana to spare while you’re trying to do everything else can sometimes be a stretch. If you want to build around the “yeeting” ability, and not just use it in a pinch, you’ll want ways to make extra mana. Pip-Boy 3000, Lost Jitte, Sword of Feast and Famine and Reaver Cleaver are all ways to keep pitching those equipment, turn after turn, and still be able to re-equip them, curve out, and hold interaction.
Given the quantity of high mana value equipment worth playing is quite low – and how a number of them are legendary – having a clone effect is a useful way to double up on important equipment. The same can be said of Basilisk Collar or Illusionist’s Bracers, and the games I’ve had two copies of Sword of Hearth and Home have always been a snowball.
JUST ADD BLUE
Playing Equipment decks quite often, I find that the ones I enjoy usually are in Boros. The same can be said for a lot of the playerbase, but don’t miss out on some great cards because we’re in blue.
Two of my go-to equipment for blue decks are The Reality Chip, which lets us play off of the top of the library, and Winged Boots, which is practically Flying and Hexproof for the same cost as Swiftfoot Boots. Ward {4} is a lot.
Blue also opens up some interesting Auras. While the deck is all about equipment, there’s no reason you can’t dip into some tasty Auras, especially if you’re aiming lunges at faces.
Curiosity turns his activated ability into one mana for one card, which is an attractive rate.
More devious still is Sigil of Sleep. By targeting players with Cap’s ability, you can then start bouncing their creatures. Savage.
I think my favorite hot pick here is Charisma, though. First up – it’s very fitting, given Steve Rodgers is hella charismatic. More importantly though, it turns his activated ability into a way to steal a whole board of creatures. Pretty wild.
THEMATIC INCLUDES
Anyone who has watched Endgame will know that Mjolnir, Storm Hammer is an absolute flavor win (even if it’s skinned from the Assassin’s Creed universe here). It does actually synergize here, though, with doing damage to each opponent to soften them up before Cap gets in and starts lobbing equipment.
Of course, the Captain has a shield, and Pariah’s Shield is one that could make its way into your build. It’s a great way to redirect damage, and well placed on a Brash Taunter or Protector of the Crown. Alternatively, it works well with a tasty little combo.
IS CAPTAIN AMERICA THE BEST ARCBOND COMBO COMMANDER?
One of the best combos in equipment decks is the Arcbond combo. The combo involves Arcbond, dealing damage to your creature, having a way to make that creature indestructible, and having a way to keep redirecting damage back at itself in order to kill every player at the table. Usually this involves a card like Brash Taunter, or equipment like Darksteel Plate. You also need a burn spell, and you need a way to not die.
Gideon’s Sacrifice, Guilty Conscience, Protector of the Crown, Blazing Sunsteel… there are many moving parts and ways to use it.
What excites me here is that Captain America has an in-built way to deal damage to other creatures (like Brash Taunter) or to himself (if he has the Pariah’s Shield). Being in blue opens you up to protecting that combo with counter magic, and opens you up to way more ways to find and recur Arcbond itself.
Is this the best Arcbond Commander we’ve had? It just might be…
END GAME
Captain America, First Avenger is a very flavorful Commander, and one that ticks a lot of boxes for fans of equipment decks. There’s a little nuance in how you build him, so be sure to pick up a few tips here today.
Kristen is Card Kingdom’s Head Writer and a member of the Commander Format Panel. Formerly a competitive Pokémon TCG grinder, she has been playing Magic since Shadows Over Innistrad, which in her opinion, was a great set to start with. When she’s not taking names with Equipment and Aggro strategies in Commander, she loves to play any form of Limited.