Hello friends, and welcome back to the column that explores the casual, from Peasant Magic to Five Color, from the kitchen table to the side table at tournaments. As part of one of the very few virtually exclusive casual columns on the major sites, I feel that it is my role to be more than just a person who advocates Five Color and multiplayer. I love Five Color and I love multiplayer, but I do like playing other forms of Magic, from Pez to PPS, offline to online.
I’ve written articles on Elder Dragon Highlander before, and I enjoy the format. Other writers talk about it more often, so I’ve allowed them to take up the space on this format, but I still like it. EDH is enjoying a great bout of sunshine as the casual format du jour, and no one knows whether it will be long lasting or not.
There was a time for a while when Five Color was the hot format of the day, but that day has waned and interest of many has gone elsewhere. It is still a blast of fun to play, but just as Magic players are drawn to new cards and new sets, so are they also drawn to new formats. Hopefully EDH will have a good long era in the shade, and who knows? Perhaps it will be the newest format to get the DCI’s nod and there will be EDH tournaments around.
In the meantime, it has been moved to online just like other formats before it. Pauper, Five Color, Highlander, and Tribal are all examples of formats with an online presence. The Elder Dragon Highlander format is called Commander.
I have now set the stage for today’s article. Okay, here we go.
Like Prismatic (online Five Color), Commander is a casual format. There might be the occasional small Constructed tournament for fun and prizes, but it is a casual format. You can play it in multiplayer or in the casual room.
Now, what does the following mean to you?
A casual format being played in the casual room.
I want you to think about that clause. Here is my favorite Commander deck. It is very, very janky and a lot of fun to play.
Zombies and Goblins
1 Reaper King — Commander of the Deck
1 Death Baron
1 Goblin King
1 Undead Warchief
1 Lord of the Undead
1 Mad Auntie
1 Wort, Boggart Auntie
1 Brass Herald
1 Dralnu’s Crusade
1 Nameless Inversion
1 Fodder Launch
1 Tarfire
1 Siege-Gang Commander
1 Crib Swap
1 Boggart Harbinger
1 Game-Trail Changeling
1 Woodland Changeling
1 Mirror Entity
1 Avian Changeling
1 Changeling Hero
1 Changeling Titan
1 Changeling Berserker
1 Taurean Entity
1 Fire-Belly Changeling
1 Shapesharer
1 Turtleshell Changeling
1 Amoeboid Changeling
1 Vengeful Dead
1 Unnatural Selection
1 Mistform Ultimus
1 Peer Pressure
1 Patriarch’s Bidding
1 Artificial Selection
1 Skeletal Changeling
1 Cairn Wanderer
1 Moonglove Changeling
1 War-Spike Changeling
1 Changeling Sentinel
1 Goblin Matron
1 Shared Triumph
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Tar Pitcher
1 Goblin Grenade
1 Goblin Warrens
1 Weirding Shaman
1 Gravedigger
1 Warren Pilferers
1 Grave Defiler
1 Goblin Assassin
1 Goblin Recruiter
1 Murderous Redcap
1 Outrage Shaman
1 Tin-Street Hooligan
1 Stingscourger
1 Distant Melody
1 Harsh Mercy
1 Door of Destinies
1 Coat of Arms
1 Standardize
1 Vulturous Zombie
1 Stronghold Assassin
1 Urborg Volcano
1 Cinder Marsh
1 Rocky Tar Pit
1 Sulfurous Springs
1 Unholy Grotto
1 Tresserhorn Sinks
1 Jungle Shrine
1 Rakdos Carnarium
1 Rupture Spire
1 Crumbling Necropolis
1 Arcane Sanctum
1 Savage Lands
1 Seaside Citadel
1 City of Brass
1 Grand Coliseum
1 Gemstone Mine
1 Shivan Oasis
1 Ancient Amphitheater
1 Caves of Koilos
1 Salt Marsh
1 Highland Weald
3 Island
3 Plains
3 Forest
5 Swamp
5 Mountain
Okay, there’s my deck.
As you can see, it is the rather janky crossroads of goblins and zombies. How does it play? It plays very inconsistently, thank you. Sometimes it’s a zombie deck, sometimes it’s a goblin deck, but usually it’s a mixed mash.
The deck simply sports changelings, lords, tribal cards, and a few actual zombies and goblins of solid use. With the exception of Fact or Fiction, every non-land card in the deck supports the theme.
The deck must use Reaper King as its commander over something like Wort or Mistform Ultimus because it needs all five colors. I have gotten the changeling/Reaper King engine to work a few times. I had a Tar Pitcher out and an Unholy Grotto in play along with my Reaper King. I would sacrifice a changeling to the Tar Pitcher, then recur it with the Grotto, and then play it again to Vindicate something of one opponent.
Because the deck is heavily Red/Black I make sure to include that in my lands with cards like Tresserhorn Sinks and Cinder Marsh putting in appearances.
I chose to include the good changeling cards as much as I could afford to acquire them. I don’t have the expensive-to-purchase-from-a-bot Changeling Colossus. I do have Mirror Entity and Taurean Mauler, and that’s enough to make me happy. I also included Nameless Inversion and Crib Swap so that the deck could have some more removal. Like Tarfire and Fodder Launch, they also work with cards like Wort and Goblin Recruiter and Boggart Harbinger.
Deciding to run the cards that benefit from a tribal deck was easy to do. Cards like Distant Melody, Coat of Arms, Harsh Mercy and Patriarch’s Bidding were automatic includes. I also tossed in a few extra cards. Artificial Evolution is great at making whatever lord you currently have out work on the other tribe. When you have a bunch of goblin’s out, Lord of the Undead makes a great goblin enabler with the help of Artificial Evolution. Reaper King loves to Vindicate when zombies are played. There are plenty of examples from Goblin King to Undead Warchief and Death Baron.
Dralnu’s Crusade is the intersection between goblin and zombies. This deck loves to get that enchantment in play. Brass Herald can be set to be a lord for whichever creature type you happen to have out. Door of Destinies and Shared Triumph can similarly be set to help whichever of the two races you happen to be drawing at the moment.
Cards like Peer Pressure, Standardize and Unnatural Selection can provide surprises and tricks to the deck. With the many changelings in the deck, Peer Pressure has some power. You can use effects like Amoeboid Changeling and Unnatural Selection to make sure you get the most powerful Peer Pressure you can. Standardize is a neat trick for a turn to make all of your creatures fall into line behind powerful lords. It’s not uncommon to have Death Baron and Undead Warchief out and then drop a Siege-Gang Commander and a Murderous Redcap. Using Standardize to make them all zombies and give them +3/+2 and deathtouch is pretty strong as a combat trick.
I tried to find creatures that fit the deck well. Warren Pilferers and Gravedigger can get you a dead creature. The Redcap can kill something small or ping for damage. Stronghold Assassin, Tar Pitcher and Siege-Gang Commander can turn creatures into damage or removal. Outrage Shaman can deal out a lot of damage in the right circumstances. Weirding Shaman can make a lot of goblin tokens . Tin-Street Hooligan can pop an artifact. Stingscourger can bounce an opposing creature.
The deck does feature some creatures of size. Vulturous Zombie can swell very quickly and flies. Reaper King, Changeling Hero, Berserker and Titan all have solid sizes. Taurean Mauler can fatten as well, plus Mirror Entity can turn everything into a massive beater.
Because of the awkwardness of the deck, I don’t expect to win every game. I don’t anticipate even being in every game. My cards are obviously inferior to many decks. My beaters are a 7/7 and a 6/6 and so forth. Other decks may rock Akroma the Elder and Loxodon Hierarch and Meglonoth. I’ve got Changeling Titan. They have Tarmogoyf, I’ve got Woodland Changeling.
They have Swords to Plowshares or Path to Exile, I have Crib Swap. They have Lightning Bolt and Incinerate, I have Tarfire. They have Fireball and I have Fodder Launch. I have two card drawing spells in my entire deck, they could have ten. I have five removal spells in my deck (Grenade, Launch, Swap, Tarfire and Inversion) they could have 20. I have one way of destroying artifacts and none to blow up enchantments, they could have dozens of each in their decks. I have no sweeping removal. I have no countermagic. This is not a good deck, it’s a fun deck. It is designed to be fun to play, not to win-win-win.
Now, here is my second Commander Deck. I just have two.
Tolsimir Wolfblood Commander
1 Tolsimir Wolfblood – Commander
1 Watchwolf
1 Akroma, Angel of Wrath
1 Loxodon Hierarch
1 Fleetfoot Panther
1 Saffi Eriksdottir
1 Wrath of God
1 Winds of Rath
1 Rout
1 Terashi’s Grasp
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 Path to Exile
1 Exalted Angel
1 Akroma’s Vengeance
1 Silklash Spider
1 Pristine Angel
1 Anurid Brushhopper
1 Aura Mutation
1 Eladamri’s Call
1 Knight of the Reliquary
1 Mystic Enforcer
1 Selesnya Guildmage
1 Wax/Wane
1 Wilt-Leaf Liege
1 Ravenous Baloth
1 Sylvan Library
1 Land Tax
1 Crib Swap
1 Exile
1 Chastise
1 Seal of Primordium
1 Kodama’s Reach
1 Journeyer’s Kite
1 Harmonize
1 Weathered Wayfarer
1 Krosan Grip
1 Cho-Manno, Revolutionary
1 Kami of Ancient Law
1 Voice of All
1 Wing Shards
1 Nostalgic Dreams
1 Eternal Witness
1 Silvos, Rogue Elemental
1 Wall of Blossoms
1 Serra Angel
1 Archangel
1 Crown of Convergence
1 Sensei’s Divining Top
1 Loxodon Warhammer
1 Altar’s Light
1 Arashi, the Sky Asunder
1 Jareth, Leonine Titan
1 Thriss, Nantuko Primus
1 Jayemdae Tome
1 Verdeloth the Ancient
1 Tooth and Nail
1 Civic Wayfinder
1 Indrik Stomphowler
1 Genesis
1 Glory
1 Secluded Steppe
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Elfhame Palace
1 Selesnya Sanctuary
1 Wasteland
1 Mishra’s Factory
1 Treetop Village
1 Forbidden Watchtower
1 Mosswort Bridge
1 Temple Garden
1 Boseiju, Who Shelters All
15 Plains
14 Forest
This deck is obviously better than the first deck. It has a lot of cards that obviously outclass the Zombies and Goblins. A lot of the power cards of Green/White are here. I only play what I own, so there are a few missing cards that I would add if I had them, like Savannah, Yosei, and Chameleon Colossus. There are also cards from offline that I would look to like Multani and Radiant.
The deck plays simply. It loads up on the beats from Silvos to Akroma, from Jareth to Mystic Enforcer. You see the presence of early creatures like Watchwolf and Selesnya Guildmage. There are also some nice utility creatures such as Weathered Wayfarer and Eternal Witness.
The deck sports several ways of sweeping the board, from flyers (Arashi, Silklash Spider) to all creatures (Wrath of God and variants) to everything not a land (Akroma’s Vengeance). In addition to board sweepers is features some nice removal. The best White creature removal is included, with a nice little suite of creature removal spells from Wing Shards to Swords to Plowshares. It also rolls with some strong enchantment and artifact removal. You can see Altar’s Light, Seal of Primordium, Aura Mutation, Indrik Stomphowler and more in the deck.
The deck knows the value of a good amount of card advantage. Jayemdae Tome is making an unusual appearance. You also have Journey’s Kite, the Wayfarer, perhaps Sylvan Library, Harmonize, Tooth and Nail, the CIP creatures like Indrik Stomphowler, Wall of Blossoms and Eternal Witness, the mass removal spells, Land Tax, Kodama’s Reach and Genesis.
Want to get some mana? Perhaps Knight of the Reliquary, Land Tax, Kodama’s Reach, Journeyer’s Kite or Weathered Wayfarer will be of service. There should be enough in here to serve. The deck sports a nice selection of non-basics, some of which have special uses like Mosswort Bridge and Wasteland. They make good targets for the Knight or the Wayfarer.
The deck has a bit of deck manipulation. At first, the Crown of Convergence may appear worse than Glorious or Gaea’s Anthem. As a mere card that grants +1/+1 to your creatures, it is worse. However, it really works well with Sylvan Library and Sensei’s Divining Top, which are both in your deck. Pulling cards off the top of your library can help you get to the good cards more quickly with those tools.
You’ll note the occasional card poking its head above the water like Loxodon Warhammer and Nostalgic Dreams. One of my favorite little tricks is to play Tooth and Nail with entwine, then get Akroma and Eternal Witness. Recur the Tooth and Nail with the Witness and replay it next turn, while swinging with Akroma this turn for some serious damage.
Note that one of your lands is Boseiju. This is great for forcing through big spells like Akroma’s Vengeance or Tooth and Nail past countermagic.
As a consequence of these cards, the Tolsimir Wolfblood deck is solid. It is not amazing. It does not pack many of the format’s greatest hits. It steers away from the format’s more powerful colors (Blue and Black). However, it is not bad. It can go the distance in multiplayer and it shouldn’t get steamrolled in duels.
Again, it is fun to play. I love playing Tolsimir Wolfblood and I like the deck. It has some tricks, it has some powerful cards, but the deck is very predictable. It has a few wraths, a few flyers, a few beaters, a few card drawing tricks, a few game changing-ly powerful spells and creatures, and some stuff to tie it all together.
The Rant
Now, as you can see from these two decks, my preference is to play the casual side of Commander. I am interested in the longer games and the part of the format that feels like a casual format. Want to know one of the reasons why I got tired of tournaments? The games in most formats feel too similar. Oh no, another X deck. Shoot me in the head. You just see the same cards and ideas recycled ad nauseam with little difference. It’s boring. It’s mind numbing. It’s not fun for me.
I like fun casual formats with new ideas, new cards, new decks, and new players playing nice longer drawn out games. I like playing against someone who created a deck I didn’t expect. Over the past month, I’ve played Zombies and Goblins over 20 times in the casual room online, at various times, and against various foes. Want to know something?
Every single player, every one, was playing a cutthroat deck. I never even got started with my deck. I’d have to go up against a tricked out Teferi deck, or a Kokusho recursion deck that plays Kokusho by turn four and then combos you on out turn five.
Game after game, deck after deck, player after player, it is a barrage of super powerful tricked out decks against my Reaper King deck with some changelings, zombie lords and goblin lords. I’d get blown out of the water. The players weren’t even apologetic. Think I want to play against a tricked out LD deck with every LD spell in Red online plus burn, plus cards like Winter Orb?
Let me tell you, I absolutely loved the Commander version of major Type Two decks. The guy with the Oona deck, all of the powerful faerie cards, counters, removal, and more things like Persuasion to back up the faeries — that was awesome. (Sarcasm fully engaged.) I also enjoyed the awesome of the soft lock decks that made me take an additional 10 to 15 minutes for them to win but locked me out of the game early with cards like Armageddon or Ravages of War and Crystal Shard + Avalanche Riders.
All I wanted was a fun match. I’d have taken Slivers with Sliver Queen or Overlord. I would have taken Scion of the Ur-Dragon in a Dragon and reanimation deck. I would have taken an opponent with any number of fun casual ideas. But no, what do I get?
I get a second foe with ANOTHER TEFERI deck.
Seriously, what is wrong with you? This is a casual room and a casual format. Hey, I could understand dueling a tricked out Pox deck in the casual room for Online Classic or a tournament winning Standard deck. Even in the casual room, these are formats with competitive sides. However, Commander barely has any tournaments at all, and none of real value. This is a casual format and a casual room, and I get one player after another with their Decks looking like Magic’s greatest hits.
We’ve all played against someone in the casual room with a very un-casual deck. You just grin and bear it. However, I have never experienced a format where every single deck I face looks like a list of the most powerful cards ever.
I just want fun matches for my casual side. Why are Commander players building such annoying overly powered decks? You don’t see this in Prismatic. I play 20 Prismatic decks and only two or three are fully tricked out, and they are nice and pleasant to play against. In Tribal, your odds are about 50/50 you’ll get an interesting tribal decks versus an uber-powerful tournament tribal deck from Lorwyn block. At least you know you’ll occasionally play against ninjas or drakes.
Pauper decks are almost always casual decks too. You’ll find a nice counter-burn deck that’s not too powerful but interesting to play against, or someone trying to make U/G madness but without the powerful cards like Arrogant Wurm, Circular Logic or Wonder. It’s nice.
Pauper is fine, Prismatic is fine, Tribal is troublesome but there are enough players out there to counteract it. Why is Commander filled with such overwhelming Spike-ishness? How come I can’t find players that actually want to play with fun decks for a nice time by both sides?
Simply put, “What is wrong with you Commander players?”
I’m sure a few Commander players out there will post and say that they have their casual Patron of the Kitsune deck or a Sisters of Stone Death deck. Like all Internet writers, I have learned the value of good hyperbole. You get more hits and more readers by saying “What is Wrong With You Commander Players?” instead of “What is Wrong With MOST of You Commander Players?”
I’m sure there are a few good apples out there. However, my Commander experience has been spoiled and I doubt you are going to see me play much in the casual room any more. Perhaps a Multiplayer game occasionally, but no more Commander in the casual room. I don’t mind losing; I just want good casual games. That’s the problem with Commander.
It’s just not casual.
Until later…