GOOD Gift or TERRIBLE Gift 🎁❓Commander Deck Gift Exchange! | Magic the Gathering EDH Gameplay

Deck Strategies

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  Kenrith, the Returned King

  A versatile five-color deck that uses Kenrith's multiple activated abilities to support allies, manipulate board state, and maintain pressure. It aims to control the board while leveraging value from flexible interactions.

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  Plagon, Lord of the Beach

  A blue-white deck that focuses on creatures with higher toughness than power, drawing cards on Plagon's entry and assigning damage based on toughness. The deck capitalizes on defensive creatures turning into heavy hitters.

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  Arcades, the Strategist

  A blue-white-green deck that exploits creatures with Defender by drawing cards and making them assign combat damage equal to their toughness. It turns defensive creatures into offensive threats through synergy and card advantage.

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  Azami, Lady of Scrolls

  A mono-blue wizard tribal deck that generates card advantage by tapping wizards, facilitating continuous draws to assemble combos or dominate the board with wizard synergies.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Plagon's ability to draw cards based on creatures with higher toughness than power provided significant card advantage early when many creatures fit the criteria.

• 2

  Kenrith's player used a well-timed Evacuation discard to reset the board, demonstrating the value of holding disruptive spells even in a budget deck.

• 3

  Arcades turned typically defensive creatures into powerful attackers by leveraging their toughness for damage assignment, creating a unique combat approach.

• 4

  Azami's deck capitalized on wizard synergies and incremental card draw, continuously refilling the hand to maintain pressure and resource advantage.

• 5

  Early ramp with cards like Fount of Fertility and Burnished Hart enabled smooth mana development, facilitating timely deployment of key creatures and spells.

Notable Cards

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  Plagon, Lord of the Beach

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  Arcades, the Strategist

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  Kenrith, the Returned King

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  Azami, Lady of Scrolls

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  Mischievous Mystic

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  Champion of Wits

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  Evacuation

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  Temple of Plenty

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  Burnished Hart

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  Terramorphic Expanse

Summary

The game began with each player unveiling their budget decks, selected through a gift exchange process. Players took turns developing their board states with mana ramp, card draw, and early creatures to set up their strategies. Arcades, the Strategist's deck focused on leveraging creatures with Defender and drawing cards to turn defense into offense. Plagon, Lord of the Beach rewarded creatures with greater toughness than power, generating card advantage and enabling powerful swings. Azami, Lady of Scrolls aimed to build a wizard tribal engine, drawing cards through wizard synergies. Kenrith, the Returned King provided versatile abilities to support allies and maintain board presence. Early plays included ramp spells like Fount of Fertility and draw engines such as Mischievous Mystic and Champion of Wits, helping players find key cards. A pivotal moment came when Plagon entered the battlefield, drawing multiple cards and enabling a damage assignment mechanic based on toughness, shifting combat dynamics. Kenrith's player disrupted opponents by discarding a board wipe (Evacuation) to reset threats. The interplay of card draw, tactical creature combat, and timely removal shaped the midgame, with each player maneuvering to assemble their win conditions. The game balanced aggressive attacks with control elements, highlighting the strategic diversity of the decks born from the gift exchange.