Tomer Brings Budget Commander And Cookies | Shuffle Up & Play #25 | Magic: The Gathering Gameplay

Deck Strategies

• 

  Minn, Wily Illusionist

  Generate Illusion tokens on drawing the second card each turn and use their deaths to cheat permanents from hand to battlefield, building a board presence that pressures opponents through value and tempo.

• 

  Baba Lysaga, Night Witch

  Utilize sacrifice of multiple permanents with diverse card types to drain opponents’ life totals, gain life, and draw cards, embodying a Golgari Aristocrats archetype with incremental advantage and resilience.

• 

  Satoru Umezawa

  Grant ninjutsu to demons in hand, enabling evasive creatures to enter play unexpectedly and trigger card filtering (scrying), focusing on tempo and card advantage through ninja-themed interactions.

• 

  Halana and Alena, Partners

  Leverage partner synergy likely centered around combat tricks, token generation, or creature buffs to create board states that pressure opponents through coordinated attacks and value creatures.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Minn’s ability to create Illusions on drawing a second card each turn allowed consistent board development without heavy mana investment.

• 2

  Baba Lysaga’s sacrifice ability required careful setup of multiple permanent types to maximize damage and card draw, encouraging diverse board states.

• 3

  Satoru Umezawa’s ninjutsu mechanic combined with demons provided a unique evasive threat and card filtering, enabling tactical plays and surprises.

• 4

  Players embraced budget constraints by choosing inexpensive ramp and mana-fixing lands, demonstrating how effective strategies need not rely on costly cards.

• 5

  The lighthearted exchange of cookies among players reflected a friendly casual environment, but the gameplay remained focused and competitive.

Notable Cards

• 

  Minn, Wily Illusionist

• 

  Baba Lysaga, Night Witch

• 

  Satoru Umezawa

• 

  Halana and Alena, Partners

• 

  Ornithopter of Paradise

Summary

The game featured four players each piloting a budget Commander deck around the $50 price point. Tomer's deck, led by Minn, Wily Illusionist, focused on generating Illusion tokens whenever he drew his second card each turn, leveraging those tokens' deaths to cheat permanents into play from his hand. Joey played a Golgari Aristocrats-style deck with Baba Lysaga, Night Witch, which allowed him to sacrifice multiple permanents to drain opponents' life, gain life, and draw cards, creating value through sacrifice and recursion. Alec piloted a Satoru Umezawa ninja-themed deck that granted ninjutsu to demons, enabling evasive creatures and card filtering through scrying. The Professor commanded a partner duo, Halana and Alena, focusing on synergistic interactions presumably involving combat and token generation. Early turns showed players ramping mana and establishing board presence, with Minn quickly deploying tokens and Baba Lysaga setting up sacrifice engines. The game included lighthearted moments with players exchanging cookies as bribes, but gameplay remained strategic with players carefully balancing aggression and resource development. The interaction between token generation, sacrifice triggers, and evasive ninjas created dynamic board states that shaped the midgame tempo.