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Arin Hanson Forgot He Suggested Crappy Commander Decks | Shuffle Up & Play #37 | Magic The Gathering

Tolarian Community College

Commanders featured in this video Reviewed & Verified

Personalities featured in this video

Decklists

Deck Strategies

  • Ognis, the Dragon's Lash

    Ognis, the Dragon's Lash

    Leverages haste creatures to create treasure tokens, accelerating mana production and enabling rapid deployment of threats.

  • Akim, the Soaring Wind

    Akim, the Soaring Wind

    Focuses on generating and buffing token creatures with double strike, aiming to overwhelm opponents with multiple combat damage instances.

  • Yargle and Multani

    Yargle and Multani

    Utilizes a large, high-power creature combined with pump spells to deliver lethal damage in a single decisive attack.

  • Volrath the Fallen

    Volrath the Fallen

    Employs a discard mechanic to boost Volrath's power dynamically, aiming for surprise, high-impact single strikes despite maintaining an empty board state.

Gameplay Insights

  • 1

    Using haste creatures to generate treasure tokens provides critical mana ramp in a budget-restricted environment.

  • 2

    Token creation combined with double strike can quickly shift board control and pressure opponents.

  • 3

    Maintaining an empty board with Volrath the Fallen as a sign of strategic setup rather than weakness reveals an unconventional approach to tempo.

  • 4

    Aggressive strategies with a single large creature can force opponents to prioritize removal or risk a swift defeat.

Notable Cards

  • Ognis, the Dragon's Lash

    Ognis, the Dragon's Lash

  • Akim, the Soaring Wind

    Akim, the Soaring Wind

  • Multani

    Multani

  • Volrath the Fallen

    Volrath the Fallen

Summary

The game unfolds as four players battle with budget-restricted Commander decks, each built with a $50 spending cap. Arin pilots a Jund-themed deck led by Ognis, the Dragon's Lash, focusing on haste creatures that generate treasure tokens to ramp mana. Spencer commands Akim, the Soaring Wind, a deck emphasizing token creation and double strike boosts to overwhelm opponents. Taalia brings an aggressive approach with Yargle and Multani, aiming to deliver lethal damage with a massive, pumped-up creature. The Professor plays Volrath the Fallen, leveraging a discard mechanic to boost Volrath's power for surprise, high-impact swings. The early game features strategic mulligans and dice rolls to determine turn order, setting the stage for a dynamic battle among diverse strategies. Key turning points include the deployment of haste creatures by Arin to accelerate resource generation, and Spencer's token tactics enabling swift board presence and pressure. Taalia's focus on a single large threat adds tension, as opponents scramble to manage the looming damage threat. The Professor's discard-based Volrath deck plays a careful balancing act, often holding an empty board as a sign of setup rather than weakness. The game emphasizes synergy within the budget constraints, with each player exploiting their commander's unique abilities. While the detailed win condition is not fully revealed, the interplay of aggressive damage, resource acceleration, and power boosts drives the game's tempo and competitive tension.

Description

It’s Crappy Commander day with Arin Hanson (Game Grumps) vs Spencer Crittenden (Harmonquest) vs Taalia Vess vs The Professor! With a $50 spending limit on each of our Commander decks, just how powerful can we make them? Answer: very.

▶Are you looking to Shuffle Up & Play games of Magic: The Gathering over webcam? The “Looking For Game” section of our Patron Discord is 100% free and open to everyone: discord.gg/tolariancommunitycollege

#magicthegathering #mtgcommander #commander

►Check out my guests’ socials! Arin Hanson - @egoraptor

Spencer Crittenden - @thesixler

Taalia Vess - @taalia_vess

▶Decklists Budget Haste archidekt.com/decks/5662889/budget_haste

Budget Frog archidekt.com/decks/5662899/budget_frog

Budget Birds archidekt.com/decks/5662921/budget_akim

Budget Volrath www.mtggoldfish.com/articles/budget-commander-volrath-voltron-reanimator-50-100

►Credits Lead Editor | Director: Kevyn Wallace Editor: Theo Nguyen Assistant Editor: Brian Sirk Music / SFX: Def Cat @defcatofficial Intro VFX: Kyle Sullivan, Kevyn Wallace

►Special Thanks Josh-TheProxyGuy Andre Garcia Jebari Dean

►This episode is brought to you thanks to our wonderful Patreon community. Join to support the show, or just Shuffle Up & Play with other awesome people on our Patron Discord by going to www.Patreon.com/TolarianCommunityCollege

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