Commander w/Affinity for Commander! | Commandfest 2023 | Sam/Frodo v Xyris v Unesh v Shadowheart

Deck Strategies

• 

  Xyris, the Writhing Storm

  Group hug style deck that ramps all players while accumulating snake tokens for defense, aiming to stay alive through political play and resource sharing.

• 

  Shadowheart, Dark Justiciar / Master Chef

  Aristocrats combo deck that sacrifices creatures to draw cards and generate value, seeking to find and execute a combo to close the game.

• 

  Sam, Loyal Attendant / Frodo, Adventurous Hobbit

  Hobbit tribal focused on creating food tokens and gaining life, leveraging synergy between commanders to drain opponents and stabilize through life gain.

• 

  Unesh, Criosphinx Sovereign

  Sphinx tribal deck that ramps aggressively with lands and draws cards through flying Sphinx creatures, aiming to outvalue opponents through card advantage.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  The group hug player's New Frontiers accelerated mana development for all players, increasing the game's tempo but also benefiting opponents.

• 2

  The aristocrats deck's use of Ba and Master Chef enabled powerful card draw and sacrifice interactions that could quickly generate advantage or damage.

• 3

  The Hobbit deck's synergy with food tokens and life gain created continuous pressure on opponents while providing resilience.

• 4

  The Sphinx deck's combination of ramp spells and multiple draw triggers maintained strong card flow, allowing it to adapt to the chaotic board state.

• 5

  Multiple players generating food tokens and drawing cards led to a highly interactive game with shifting alliances and threats.

Notable Cards

• 

  New Frontiers

• 

  Master Chef

• 

  Sam, Loyal Attendant

• 

  Frodo, Adventurous Hobbit

• 

  Xyris, the Writhing Storm

• 

  Wood Elves

• 

  Folio of Fancies

Summary

The game featured a dynamic four-player Commander match with varied deck archetypes: a group hug strategy, an aristocrats combo deck, a Hobbit tribal life-gain deck, and a Sphinx tribal ramp deck. The early turns saw significant ramp and card draw spells, with the group hug player accelerating mana for all and distributing benefits. The aristocrats deck set up with creatures that generate value through sacrifice, while the Hobbit deck focused on food token generation and life gain. The Sphinx deck concentrated on ramping with lands and drawing cards through powerful creatures. Key turning points involved the group hug player's use of New Frontiers to ramp all players, which accelerated the game pace. The aristocrats player deployed commanders that enable card draw through sacrifice, setting up potential combos for value and damage. The Hobbit deck's use of multiple commanders created synergy around food tokens and draining life, pressuring opponents. The Sphinx deck's continuous ramp and card draw spells kept it in a strong position, although the game's chaotic pace and multiple draw effects led to a wild, unpredictable board state. The interactions between ramp, card draw, and token generation created an engaging and complex gameplay experience.