Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Strategy”
Undying is creature-based recursion mechanic that is essentially the mirror of persist. If a creature with it dies, it will return to the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter on it. If it already had a +1/+1 counter, it will stay dead in the graveyard. So yes, it is very much like persist, but with +1/+1 counters instead of -1/-1 counters. …
Commander is all about identity. Most decks are focused on the commanders and the influence they have on the deck: the colors you can play are decided by them, and the themes and style of play are intrinsically linked to their abilities. Some of the most unique deck identities come from a particular type of commander: planeswalkers. Some planeswalkers are …
Kristen explains why Cursed Mirror is one of her favorite cards by considering how it fares under Quadrant Theory Quadrant Theory has been a great way to evaluate Magic cards since it originated with Brian Wong, a former co-host of the Limited Resources podcast. It looks at how good any given card is based on evaluation in four key scenarios: …
Combos are an often inescapable part of older formats, even though they have been largely stamped out in the Pioneer format. Inverter of Truth, Underworld Breach and many more cards ended up banned by Wizards of the Coast to help keep the format in line with their vision. However, despite the company’s best effort to keep combo decks down, they …
This week’s combo breakdown tackles one of the longest-lived archetypes in Magic history — and one of its weirdest names (and there’s some stiff competition for that crown). It’s almost always combo decks that garner the most esoteric monikers among the community. I blame the need to find distinct shorthand references for tons of specific strategies combined with their creators’ …
Drawing a piece of equipment when you don’t have any creatures on board can sometimes be a bit of a letdown, as while you can get the equipment on the board, it can’t really help you out right away. Living Weapon from Scars of Mirrodin Block solves that potential problem. When you cast an Equipment with Living Weapon, as it …
Commander is, perhaps, the largest sandbox environment in gaming. There are countless commanders, cards and archetypes available — to the point where it’s impossible to build every combination. Many Commander players can struggle with this extreme level of choice, and decision paralysis is something I personally experience often when deciding on decks to build. However, there is a sort of …
Magic has such a wide vocabulary associated with it that words begin to mean different things to different people. “Efficiency” is one such word, and its meaning has changed over the lifespan of Modern. The technical definition of efficiency is, “the ratio of the useful work performed by a machine or in a process to the total energy expended or …
Battle Cry is a combat mechanic that appears solely on creatures, and is a little unique in that it’s an attack-encouraging mechanic that affects every attacking creature except for the one that has it. When a creature with Battle Cry attacks, each other attacking creature gets +1/+0 until the end of the turn. This means that if you have multiple …
Everyone wants to feel unique when playing Commander. Building a Commander deck that is unlike any other lets you stand by your creation with pride. However, this can be quite difficult given the sheer volume of players and decks out there. To give some perspective, EDHREC alone has data on over a million decks — so finding a unique take …
