Nekusar vs Zaxara vs Shorikai vs Yarok | Commander Melee S3:E5 Magic the Gathering EDH Gameplay

Deck Strategies

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  Nekusar, the Mindrazer

  Utilizes forced card draw to deal incremental damage to opponents while maintaining steady resource acceleration, aiming to win through attrition and burn damage over time.

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  Zaxara, the Exemplary

  Focuses on casting large X spells to create massive hydras and maintain board pressure, aiming to overwhelm opponents with powerful creatures.

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  Shorikai, Genesis Engine

  Built around planeswalkers and artifact synergy, leveraging Super Friends tactics and board resets like Out of Time to control the battlefield and generate incremental advantage.

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  Yarok, the Desecrated

  Landfall-focused deck that doubles triggered abilities from lands entering the battlefield, generating value through repeated triggers and synergistic spells.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Casting Out of Time to phase out all creatures was a key defensive maneuver to reset the board and stall aggressive opponents.

• 2

  Nekusar’s consistent card draw triggers forced opponents to manage life totals carefully while setting up for a damage-based win.

• 3

  Countering Windfall prevented a major card advantage swing that could have shifted momentum decisively.

• 4

  Cyclonic Rift was effectively used to disrupt a threatening enchantment lock, maintaining game balance.

• 5

  Acidic Slime targeted key enchantments and artifacts, showing the importance of versatile removal in multiplayer Commander games.

• 6

  Players balanced ramping and card draw carefully to maintain tempo without overextending and becoming vulnerable to board wipes or counters.

Notable Cards

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  Nekusar, the Mindrazer

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  Zaxara, the Exemplary

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  Shorikai, Genesis Engine

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  Yarok, the Desecrated

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  Out of Time

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  Cyclonic Rift

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  Acidic Slime

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  Thought Vessel

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  Mystic Remora

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  Windfall

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  Mission Briefing

Summary

The game featured four powerful commanders with distinct strategies competing in a dynamic and high-stakes environment. Early turns focused heavily on ramp and card draw, with Nekusar leveraging his card draw-and-damage ability to steadily chip away at opponents' life totals while accelerating his own resources. Zaxara aimed to build up large hydras via big X spells, putting continuous pressure on the board. Shorikai, Genesis Engine utilized a Super Friends style approach, focusing on planeswalkers and artifact synergy to control the board and generate value. Yarok, the Desecrated played a landfall-centric deck, maximizing triggers to double the benefits of lands entering the battlefield and maintaining strong board presence with synergy-heavy spells. A pivotal moment occurred when Shorikai's player cast Out of Time, phasing out all creatures and effectively resetting the battlefield to stall aggressive board states. Meanwhile, Nekusar's player continued to capitalize on drawing multiple cards each turn, dealing incremental damage to opponents while setting up his game-winning damage engine. The game saw several key interaction points, including a counter on a potentially devastating Windfall and a Cyclonic Rift that cleared a threatening enchantment combo. Acidic Slime was tactically used to remove problematic permanents, but the game remained tense with players managing life totals carefully against powerful draw and control effects. Ultimately, the fluctuating tempo and layered threats kept the outcome uncertain until the very end.