Pirates, Vampires, Merfolk and Dinosaurs are back with brand new cards. Kristen sits down to evaluate what new The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Precon exclusive cards are worth adding to your collection. Lost Caverns of Ixalan brings with it four Commander decks: Ahoy Mateys, Blood Rite, Explorers of the Deep and Veloci-Ramp-Tor. Each is filled with a bevy of new, …
What Makes a God in Magic
Even in an epic fantasy card game like Magic: the Gathering, populated by giants, dragons, angels, titans, krakens and demons, labeling something a “god” creates an extra layer of expectation. A god card has to feel powerful, and in a unique way that sets them apart from other high-impact creatures. Some games might elevate them above the mere mortals by …
The Lost Caverns of Ixalan: Exploring Flip Lands
Other than mighty dinosaurs and mythical treasures, the big theme in The Lost Caverns of Ixalan is exploration and discovery — the different factions of pirates, vampires, merfolk and native Oltcec all racing to reach the mysterious Core. This journey to the center of the Earth is represented in-game not just by the explore keyword action, but the signature, transforming …
Why is Rofellos Banned in Commander?
While Commander’s grassroots origins make it different from many other Magic formats, it still has a ban list like the rest of them. However, since Commander is not a format with tons of tournament data to back up banning certain cards, some players are unsure why certain offenders end up on the list. Today, I’m going to take a look …
The Best Ability Keywords in Commander in 2023
Commander is an ever evolving metagame, with new cards being added all the time. What’s changed in the past year or two? Which keywords are doing the heavy lifting? Commander Advisory Group member Kristen shares her thoughts on how things are shaping up. It’s been nearly three years since I last wrote about Casual Commander’s Most Underrated Abilities. The format …
River Song Commander Deck Tech
River Song is one of the most exciting Commander cards from the Doctor Who set due to the unique way she changes your play-experience — but maximizing her capabilities can be tough. So, today we’re going to do a deck tech and make the building process much easier. That said, Commander, as a format, is a lot of things to …
Why is Gifts Ungiven Banned in Commander?
While Commander’s grassroots origins make it different from many other Magic formats, it still has a ban list like the rest of them. However, since Commander is not a format with tons of tournament data to back up banning certain cards, some players are unsure why certain offenders end up on the list. Today, I’m going to take a look …
Five Commander Archetypes You Can Build in an Hour
When you’re lacking inspiration ahead of game night, it can be tempting to try a new brew. Kristen has five Commander archetypes that can be built lightning fast to inject some novelty into your roster. Sometimes you look at your collection of decks and feel like nothing is catching your eye. Maybe you’ve played them all recently; maybe you’ve deconstructed …
Exploring Cavern of Souls’ Reprint
To enfranchised Magic players, rare lands are always headline cards for any new set. The availability of color-fixing lands is a huge factor in deciding the metagame of a format, especially the presence of multicolor aggro decks. But despite this vital role, there’s usually not a lot interesting to say about the cards themselves. But that’s different for Cavern of …
Doctor Who: Flavor Highlights
Header Designer for Magic: the Gathering Mark Rosewater recently wrote that Universes Beyond allows for designs that just wouldn’t have happened without the inspiration of an external intellectual property. I think he’s right, especially when it comes to flavor — and the recent Doctor Who set is a perfect example. With that in mind, I’m going to give my picks …