Magic: The Gathering Commander Gameplay EDH | Atraxa v Be'lakor v Mayael v Intet | Ep. 14

Deck Strategies

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  Be'lakor, the Dark Master

  Utilizes demon tribal synergies and clone effects to generate damage through Be'lakor's triggers, overwhelming opponents by dealing damage whenever demons enter the battlefield.

• 

  Atraxa, Praetors' Voice

  Focuses on planeswalkers and proliferate mechanics to build incremental advantages and pressure opponents with flying, vigilance, and other combat abilities.

• 

  Mayael the Anima

  Cheats large creatures with power five or greater onto the battlefield from the top cards of the library, aiming to deploy powerful threats quickly.

• 

  Intet, the Dreamer

  Ramp-heavy deck that accelerates mana to cast large creatures and spells early, often leveraging landfall and graveyard recursion to maintain pressure.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Be'lakor's Lord of Torment ability functioned like a warstorm surge, dealing damage to targets whenever demons entered the battlefield, synergizing well with token generation from Garuda's companion effect.

• 2

  Intet's extensive ramp and land recursion, especially using Crucible of Worlds and repeated land drops with fetchlands, enabled casting massive threats like Ulamog ahead of curve.

• 3

  Mayael's commander ability to cheat creatures into play was inconsistent, missing key turns and limiting her impact, showing the variance inherent in top-deck manipulation strategies.

• 4

  Atraxa's early play of planeswalkers and proliferate set up a gradual board control and incremental advantage, focusing on long-term value rather than immediate board presence.

• 5

  Casting of See the Unwritten by Intet highlighted the risk/reward of top-deck manipulation, revealing mostly non-creature spells but still enabling some board presence.

• 6

  Removal of key artifacts and creatures by Ulamog’s exile triggered a major shift in board state, forcing players to adapt and reposition their strategies.

Notable Cards

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  Be'lakor, the Dark Master

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  Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger

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  Lotus Cobra

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  See the Unwritten

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  Atraxa, Praetors' Voice

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  Academy Rector

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  Swiftfoot Boots

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  Mayael the Anima

Summary

The game featured a four-player Commander match with decks led by Be'lakor, Atraxa, Mayael, and Intet. Early turns saw players ramping and setting up their strategies: Be'lakor focused on demons and damage triggers, Atraxa on planeswalkers and proliferate, Mayael on cheating big creatures into play, and Intet on ramping for large spells. Key moments included Vince (Intet) casting Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger, which exiled two important permanents, significantly disrupting the board state. Meanwhile, the Be'lakor player established a demon army with Garuda, triggering multiple damage effects. Mayael struggled to find impactful creatures with her commander’s ability, while Atraxa began proliferating and deploying planeswalkers. The game intensified as Intet leveraged massive mana and card advantage through Lotus Cobra and land recursion, deploying powerful threats and using See the Unwritten to put creatures onto the battlefield. Combat phases became deadly, especially with Ulamog’s large presence and Be'lakor’s warstorm surge effect, which dealt damage whenever demons entered. The game revolved around managing board presence, heavy damage from demon token generation, and large Eldrazi threats aiming to overwhelm opponents.