Hidden Gems, Redux
Sheldon Menery returns to finding hidden gems for Commander decks. He lists 50 cards that have been flying under the radar that you can use to improve and spice up your own Commander decks.
AuthorSheldon Menery
Magic Judge Hall of Famer Sheldon Menery was one of the most influential judges in the history of the game. He pioneered Commander and was a founding member of the Commander Rules Committee. After a seven-year battle with cancer, Sheldon passed away in 2023, leaving behind a legacy of kindness and respect, turning acquaintances into friends, and friends into family. “I count myself in nothing else so happy as in a soul remembering my good friends.” - William Shakespeare, Richard II
Other People’s Decks: Toby Elliott’s Ghost Council
In this edition of Other People’s Decks, Sheldon features Level 5 Judge Toby Elliott’s Ghost Council Commander deck. Find out about this unique control deck that has both no artifacts and no instants.
The Dragonmaster
As promised last week, Sheldon builds a Commander deck in honor of Brian “The Dragonmaster” Kibler’s victory at PT Dark Ascension. He does a card-by-card breakdown of choices for his Dragon-themed deck.
Pro Tour Dark Ascension Coverage Odyssey
Sheldon shares the experience he had working in the booth and on the sidelines for the new and improved coverage at Pro Tour Dark Ascension. Find out the insights he gained by interviewing and watching the best pro players in the world.
Armada League Points System
The League Points System rewards Commander players for doing good/fun things, while punishing them for doing unfun things in multiplayer. Cast land destruction? Boo. Controlling lots of tokens? Yay!
The Isperia Challenge
A few weeks back, I posted an Isperia deck. One criticism was that the deck was full enough of staples that it wasn’t particularly interesting, so I put out the challenge to come up with a better one.
Dark Ascension Cards I’ll Be Playing (And A Few That I Won’t)
Sheldon reviews Dark Ascension for Commander. He looks at the new Generals and every spell, creature, and land for their EDH potential.
Other People’s Decks: Isperia The Inscrutable
Sheldon talks about other people’s decks, namely a blue-white control build using Isperia the Inscrutable as the General by Matt Newnam. It’s a deck that requires skill and clever board evaluation to play.
Fifty-Two Cards I’m Not Playing And Am Not Quite Sure Why
Sheldon lists 52 cards that he isn’t playing in Commander that he feels he should be. Check out the list and see if you agree with his choices!
The Cast Of Characters
Sheldon introduces the cast that he plays Commander with every week and lists all his current EDH decks. With Dark Ascension on the horizon, it’s time to get ready to make new decks, so Sheldon does some “spring cleaning.”
Alphabet Soup
As a fun exercise, Sheldon builds a Commander deck using cards only starting with his initials, SKM. With a surprising amount of options, find out where he took Sharuum the Hegemon.
You Did This To Yourself
I was wholly inspired to build an EDH deck because of a single card: Parallectric Feedback. It may be my first step towards a “Your Tears Sustain Me†deck, which means I could be slipping toward the dark side.
State Of The Format And What’s Next (For Me)
Commander has had a very successful year. Sheldon goes over the state of the format and talks about his plans as a retired Level 5 judge.
Worlds 2011 Head Judge Report
Sheldon tells more awesome stories from Head Judging Worlds in San Francisco before retiring as a Level 5. There is cake, interesting rulings, and food.
Modern EDH?
Sheldon wonders what it would be like if there were a Commander format that was restricted to the modern expansions in Magic. Would it be better, worse, or almost the same?