Deck & Commander Strategies
Kentaro, the Smiling Cat
Mono-white Samurai tribal deck that leverages Bushido abilities and Samurai-specific combos to generate incremental advantage and close out games through combat synergy.
Orvar, the All-Form
Mono-blue bird and burn deck that uses direct damage spells and bird tribal synergies to chip away at opponents' life totals while transforming creatures for value.
Zacama, Primal Calamity
Naya ramp deck focused on exploiting Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth turning lands into swamps, enabling powerful swamp-count synergies and mana untapping combos for explosive plays.
Niv-Mizzet Reborn
Five-color creature deck that centers on multi-colored creatures to maximize card draw and value generation, aiming to out-resource opponents and win through sustained board presence.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Zacama’s ability to refund mana and untap lands allowed for potential infinite mana combos when combined with other effects like blink or untap abilities, significantly shifting the game’s tempo.
- 2
Orvar’s strategy of using burn spells combined with creature transformations provided steady pressure and board control, making it difficult for opponents to stabilize.
- 3
The mono-white Samurai deck’s reliance on Bushido and tribal synergies made it resilient in combat but required careful timing to execute combos effectively.
- 4
Niv-Mizzet Reborn’s five-color creature approach, while slower due to mana constraints, rewarded patient play with powerful value generation through diverse creature abilities.
- 5
Players prioritized mana ramp and land drops early on to accelerate their game plans, highlighting the importance of resource development in multiplayer Commander matches.
Notable Cards
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Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
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Zacama, Primal Calamity
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Orvar, the All-Form
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Kentaro, the Smiling Cat
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Niv-Mizzet Reborn
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Land Tax
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Trophy Mage
Gameplay Summary
The game featured four unique and thematic Commander decks: a mono-white Samurai tribal deck led by Kentaro, the Smiling Cat; a mono-blue bird and burn deck helmed by Orvar, the All-Form; a Naya deck built around Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth; and a five-color creature-focused deck with Niv-Mizzet Reborn as commander.
Early turns saw players developing their board states with mana acceleration and synergistic creatures or enchantments.
The mono-blue deck focused on dealing incremental direct damage and leveraging bird tribal synergies, while the Naya deck aimed to exploit the swamp count synergy enabled by Urborg for powerful payoffs.
Zacama’s Naya deck also had strong ramp and combo potential through its ability to generate and untap mana, threatening to overwhelm opponents with big creatures and land synergies.
Kentaro’s Samurai deck, while slower, demonstrated interesting tribal interactions and some combo finishers.
The five-color Niv-Mizzet deck sought to capitalize on a broad array of multi-colored creatures, aiming to generate value through a diverse creature base and card advantage.
Throughout the game, pivotal moments included Zacama's land untapping combos enabling explosive mana turns, Orvar’s efficient burn spells and creature transformations applying pressure, and the Samurai deck’s tribal synergy posing intermittent threats.
The game’s win conditions varied per deck: Zacama looked to close out with overwhelming mana-powered creature attacks, Orvar aimed to burn opponents down, Niv-Mizzet sought incremental card advantage and creature value, and Kentaro relied on tribal synergy and combos.
The interplay of these strategies led to a dynamic and engaging multiplayer match.
![Commander VS S15E5: Roalesk VS Massacre Girl VS Niv-Mizzet VS Neheb [EDH] thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/Xy3w7W-GWgw/sddefault.jpg)
![Commander VS S16E9: Rakdos VS Padeem VS Zacama VS Golos [EDH] thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/dZvTs47Y-pk/sddefault.jpg)
![Zacama vs Lord Windgrace vs Kalamax vs Nicol Bolas [EDH Gameplay] 2020 thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gxW36IDCHOg/sddefault.jpg)
