CovertGoBlue's Commander Is Banned (by Prof) | Shuffle Up & Play 80 | Magic: The Gathering Gameplay

Deck Strategies

• 

  Grand Arbiter Augustin IV

  Control and tax opponents by increasing their spell costs to disrupt their tempo and limit their options, aiming to win through attrition and incremental advantage.

• 

  The Celestial Toymaker

  Manipulate opponents' decisions by forcing them to divide cards into piles and make choices, causing chaos and strategic disruption while exploiting those forced choices.

• 

  Uril, the Miststalker

  Build a Voltron-style deck by equipping and enchanting Uril to become a large, hexproof attacker, focusing on combat damage to close out the game.

• 

  Torbran, Thane of Red Fell

  Increase damage output for all red sources, aiming to burn opponents down quickly through direct damage spells and combat damage.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Grand Arbiter Augustin IV’s taxing effect significantly slowed down the game, forcing opponents to pay extra mana or lose tempo, shaping the strategic flow early on.

• 2

  The Celestial Toymaker introduced a meta-layer of forced choices that complicated opponents' decision-making, leading to unpredictable game states.

• 3

  Uril’s deck focused on establishing a powerful Voltron threat with hexproof, requiring opponents to manage combat damage carefully.

• 4

  Torbran’s presence on the battlefield raised the stakes by amplifying all red damage, making each burn spell and attack potentially lethal.

• 5

  Use of Liar’s Pendulum provided steady card advantage through guessing mechanics, supporting the blue-white control player’s hand management.

• 6

  Mana base choices like Exotic Orchard and fetch lands ensured color fixing to support multi-color strategies effectively.

Notable Cards

• 

  Grand Arbiter Augustin IV

• 

  The Celestial Toymaker

• 

  Uril, the Miststalker

• 

  Torbran, Thane of Red Fell

• 

  Liar's Pendulum

• 

  Flooded Strand

• 

  Exotic Orchard

• 

  Faithless Looting

Summary

The game began with four players piloting distinct Commander decks: a blue-white control deck led by Grand Arbiter Augustin IV, a decision-forcing deck with The Celestial Toymaker, a Voltron-style aura deck with Uril, the Miststalker, and an aggressive mono-red burn deck headed by Torbran, Thane of Red Fell. Early turns saw setup plays with mana acceleration and utility lands, as well as key enchantments like Liar's Pendulum to generate card advantage and interactive effects. Grand Arbiter Augustin IV’s player leveraged taxing effects to slow down opponents, creating a controlling atmosphere that pressured others to pay more for spells or lose tempo. The Celestial Toymaker’s unique mechanic forced players to make difficult deck-manipulating decisions, adding a layer of chaos and choice manipulation to the game. Meanwhile, Uril, the Miststalker focused on assembling a Voltron threat by attaching multiple auras, growing into a formidable attacker with built-in hexproof. Torbran aimed to accelerate damage output, increasing burn damage and punishing opponents for any creature or red source damage. The game featured a significant interplay of taxing and group hug elements, alongside attempts to build board presence and apply pressure through combat and spells. Tensions rose as the taxing effects and decision-making mechanics shaped the pacing and interaction, with the red deck poised to deliver heavy damage if unchecked. The critical turning points involved managing Grand Arbiter’s taxing lock and navigating the forced choices from Celestial Toymaker, while players jockeyed for position to execute their win conditions.