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WHO'S THE BEST COMMANDER IN IKORIA FOR cEDH - PLAY TO WIN

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Commanders featured in this video Reviewed & Verified

Decklists

Deck Strategies

  • Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

    Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

    Focuses on mana acceleration through creatures and mana rocks to generate large amounts of mana quickly, enabling the casting of powerful spells and combos such as food chain for infinite mana.

  • Brallin, Skyshark Rider Shabraz, the Skyshark

    Brallin, Skyshark Rider / Shabraz, the Skyshark

    Utilizes curiosity-driven card draw and wheel effects combined with free discard outlets like Tireless Tribe to maintain an optimal hand size and repeatedly trigger card draw synergies to fuel the deck’s engine.

  • Cazur, Ruthless Stalker Ukkima, Stalking Shadow

    Cazur, Ruthless Stalker / Ukkima, Stalking Shadow

    Leverages aggressive board presence and synergy with companion creatures to pressure opponents while using disruption and value creatures to control the pace of the game.

Gameplay Insights

  • 1

    Using Tireless Tribe as a no-cost discard outlet is crucial for the Brallin/Shabraz deck to enable consistent card draw from curiosity triggers.

  • 2

    Early gemstone caverns plays help secure mana bases and protect combo pieces against disruption.

  • 3

    The interplay between protective counterspells and combo execution highlights the delicate timing and resource management needed in cEDH.

  • 4

    Hard casting Food Chain despite high mana cost demonstrates the deck’s ability to leverage mana acceleration for explosive turns.

  • 5

    The sequencing of plays often involves bouncing critical permanents or casting wheels to reset hands and maintain momentum.

Notable Cards

  • Gemstone Caverns

    Gemstone Caverns

  • Chrome Mox

    Chrome Mox

  • Tireless Tribe

    Tireless Tribe

  • Pact of Negation

    Pact of Negation

  • Force of Will

    Force of Will

  • Food Chain

    Food Chain

  • Frilled Mystic

    Frilled Mystic

Summary

The game features a competitive four-player cEDH match with commanders from the Ikoria set, including Cazur, Ruthless Stalker; Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy; Brallin, Skyshark Rider; Shabraz, the Skyshark; and Ukkima, Stalking Shadow. Early turns focus heavily on ramp and setting up key pieces such as gemstone caverns and mana rocks like Chrome Mox and Chrome Lux, which accelerate the players' ability to cast impactful spells. Kinnan's player leverages dorks and mana acceleration to generate large amounts of mana, aiming to cast powerful spells and combos quickly. Meanwhile, the Brallin/Shabraz deck utilizes card draw synergies with curiosity and wheels, supplemented by discard outlets like Tireless Tribe to maintain hand size and enable repeated value from their commander triggers. A pivotal moment occurs when the player piloting Okemah (likely Kinnan) harnesses the food chain combo to generate infinite mana, capitalizing on opponents who have expended resources early. The game also demonstrates classic cEDH interactions, including protective counterspells such as Force of Will and Pact of Negation used to safeguard combo pieces and critical spells like Time Twister. The gameplay highlights the importance of disruption, mana acceleration, and combo execution, with each player trying to leverage their commander’s unique strengths to close out the game, particularly through generating infinite mana or overwhelming card advantage.

Description

Ikoria is almost here, and there looks like there’s going to be a lot of power in this set. What do you think of the new commanders?

Kinnan - tappedout.net/mtg-decks/kinnan-dork-lord Brallin//Shabraz - www.moxfield.com/decks/BTzHHbf0ZE-0Wz2IGCMnkg Cazur//Ukkima-http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/wolf-of-whalestreet/

(Tyler’s updated Kinnan list - www.moxfield.com/decks/-0lwLXXZ1U-SKfGx3h2t3g)

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