Outlaws of Thunder Junction is just on the horizon, and we have a heaping herd of legendary creatures we need to wrangle on down to our rodeo. From Demons to Plants to familiar faces, there is an abundance of critters to choose from. I mean, we basically struck oil, because as I write this article, we have 43 legendary creatures to choose from. As a connoisseur of Commander, I thought it would be fun to corral some of my favorite legendary creatures from this set. Who knows? Maybe one of these varmints could end up being your new commander.
Fblthp, Lost on the Range
Let’s start out with my little buddy. Yes, Fblthp is lost once again, but this time, he’s in Outlaw country! Fblthp, Lost on the Range was one of the first legendary creatures to be previewed for Thunder Junction, and he immediately sparked conversation. What the heck is plot? Well, as previews have trickled out onto the scene, we’ve learned exactly what it is. Plotting a spell for its plot cost places it into exile. Then, on another turn, you can cast that spell without paying its mana value (only at sorcery speed).
This inspired me. How could I brew Fblthp? When toying with ideas for this deck, I knew I wanted to abuse his top-of-deck ability, so I packed it full of zero-cost spells and cheap draw spells. Pieces like Spellbook, Cathar’s Shield, Bone Saw, See the Truth, and Surge of Brilliance thrive in a deck like this.
“But Chase, what’s the win condition?” Well, to win with this deck, you want to either storm out with Mind’s Desire and Brain Freeze, or blow your opponents up with Aetherflux Reservoir. I truly believe this commander has the potential to be fringe competitive, but even at the casual level, I find myself to have fallen in love with him.
Riku of Many Paths
I was really confused to see Riku in Thunder Junction. Some of the other familiar faces I could justify, but this one did surprise me. I am definitely not upset about it, though. Riku is one of those legendaries that I didn’t expect to see for a long time, so I’m really happy he’s here. What makes me even happier is his ability. I can’t explain it, but I look at it and just smile. I like to see designs centered around mechanics that you don’t really think too much of until they are presented to you. Further, I adore that he is a clean-cut modal commander. He likes modal spells, and while Outlaws of Thunder Junction has its fair share of them, there are tons in the annals of Magic history.
Modal spells are so fun. To me, they’re kind of like the appetizer samplers of Magic. You get a bit of everything. For example, this deck would love the Commands! Primal Command, Quandrix Command, Atarka’s Command, you name it! It also likes the classic Charms, such as Simic Charm and Gruul Charm. Riku doesn’t even care what kind of modal spells you cast, so you get this value off modal counterspells like Cryptic Command and Mystic Confluence.
What makes me love Riku even more is that his ability isn’t at sorcery speed. If you have a handful of instant modals, you could give Riku an instant buff with his counter mode or create blockers by making Birds. I’ve never been a Temur person, but Riku has me second-guessing this decision.
Kambal, Profiteering Mayor
Let’s continue with the trend of me enjoying cards not in my preferred colors. Kambal is another face I did not expect to see in Outlaws of Thunder Junction, but his ability has me pushing that surprise aside. The thing I enjoy about this commander is that he punishes your opponents for making tokens. How? Well, whatever tokens your opponents make, you make tapped copies of them. Sure, it triggers only once each turn, but in Commander, that isn’t a hindrance.
This makes a Dockside Extortionist all the more troublesome, as your opponent will have to weigh the pros and cons. Kambal’s secondary ability, however, takes it up a notch. Whenever one or more tokens enter the battlefield under your control, each opponent loses one life and you gain one life. With this ability tacked on, it won’t be hard to knock over the dominoes in Kambal’s color combo.
We are in the perfect colors for an incredible token deck. There is a ton of support ripe for the picking. Anointed Procession; Mondrak, Glory Dominus; Mirkwood Bats; and Thalisse, Reverent Medium are no-brainers for Kambal. These maximize your token generation and help reduce life totals pretty quickly. For some extra fun tech, you could run cards that give your opponents tokens, which will then make you tokens. Combat Calligrapher, Hunted Horror, and Slaughter Specialist all fit the bill and can lead to some interesting shenanigans.
In my humble opinion, I think Kambal is one of the strongest commanders from this set due to his low mana value, his access to great token generation, and the Commander metagame as a whole making him all the more threatening.
Ghired, Mirror of the Wilds
The boy is back in town, the boy is back in town! Ghired, baby! I missed you. I swear, this set has the most random returning characters, but I love it! Truthfully, I didn’t expect to see Ghired ever again, so this is a wonderful little reunion from Commander 2019. Much like the Ghired of the past, Ghired, Mirror of the Wilds likes tokens as well! While you could jam in tons of strength with Parallel Lives and Anointed Procession, I really think the power of this commander lies in the red pip.
Yes, of course, run those usual suspects. But let’s talk red, baby! Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker and Fable of the Mirror-Breaker definitely come to mind at first. They are some of red’s most iconic token makers. But there is so much more. I love Flameshadow Conjuring because of how easy it is to make token copies of your biggest and baddest creatures. When you make tokens of those, you can make more of them thanks to Ghired’s ability! These are the kind of hoops I love to jump through.
Twinflame is another funny addition to your brew that can pop off in a snap. Just choose your favorite creature and go off, king! Rhys the Redeemed is a cheap way to essentially double your tokens. While I find the concept of token generation to be a little linear, pieces like Ghired and Kambal renew my interest in the archetype. I love these new cards.
Yuma, Proud Protector
Lastly, we have Yuma, Proud Protector. I truly feel as though players will write off this commander when they look at its high mana value. Yeah, eight is a lot, but his reduction is the easiest thing to achieve in a dedicated lands deck. You could easily achieve this with fetchlands. Those aside, sacrifice outlets for lands decks are pretty common, making Yuma essentially a three-mana commander in the right brew. That’s ignoring his enters and attack trigger!
Aside from your lands, this deck has a solid foundation. Outlaws of Thunder Junction offers new Deserts to supplement those in the past. This means you can have a ton of cute Plant Warrior tokens. Move over, Hazezon, we’re going vegan!
You can easily recur these lands with Ramunap Excavator, Conduit of Worlds, Crucible of Worlds, and Life from the Loam. You can generate even more bodies using Titania, Protector of Argoth; Avenger of Zendikar; and Scute Swarm. Lands decks are incredibly powerful and get more support with each passing day. As a Millennial, playing a lands deck is the closest thing I’ll ever get to owning property of my own. Why not go hardcore and invest in some gorgeous fetches and bling promo pieces to make Yuma stand out from the Omnaths and Gitrogs of the archetype?
We Struck Gold
Outlaws of Thunder Junction is not at all what I expected it to be, and yet I am absolutely living for this set. It’s nice to have us take a breather to luxuriate in a lighthearted plane. This set really is the yee to my haw. The amount of legendary creatures is a bit overwhelming, but when I reframe my thinking, it provides players a broad selection to choose from when exploring such a unique plane. I cannot wait for Release Weekend, because you will see me with my boots and brews. I am shook the house Houston I’m deceased. Happy heehawing, deckbuilders.
