Deck & Commander Strategies
Jon Irenicus, Shattered One
Manipulate combat by giving opponents creatures and goading them to attack others, disrupting opponent plans while growing your own board and benefiting from combat chaos.
Shabraz, the Skyshark
Draw cards and build a big flying shark to dominate the skies and pressure opponents’ life totals with evasive damage.
Wilson, Refined Grizzly + Cultist of the Absolute
Leverage flying bears with sacrifice mechanics to generate incremental value and board presence, balancing risk and reward from sacrifices.
Burakos, Party Leader + Folk Hero
Utilize party mechanics to draw cards and generate treasure tokens by casting creatures sharing types, building a synergistic tribal board presence.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Using Jon Irenicus to gift creatures and goad opponents effectively shifted combat focus and created opportunities to control the battlefield indirectly.
- 2
Shabraz’s card draw engine enabled sustained pressure by replenishing resources while building a large flying threat.
- 3
Wilson’s synergy with Cultist of the Absolute required careful management of the sacrifice cost to maintain board presence without falling behind.
- 4
Burakos capitalized on party mechanics to turn casting creatures into card draw and treasure generation, effectively ramping and maintaining card advantage.
- 5
The inclusion of Mystic Remora slowed down opponents’ plays, providing a tempo edge early in the game.
- 6
Oozolith added resilience by allowing key creatures to return to the battlefield, reinforcing the decks’ endurance in longer games.
Notable Cards
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Jon Irenicus, Shattered One
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Shabraz, the Skyshark
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Wilson, Refined Grizzly
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Cultist of the Absolute
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Burakos, Party Leader
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Folk Hero
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Mystic Remora
Gameplay Summary
The game featured a dynamic four-player Commander battle with each pilot bringing distinct strategies and synergies from the Battle for Baldur's Gate set and other cards.
John played Jon Irenicus, Shattered One, focusing on manipulating combat by giving opponents creatures and goading them, aiming to control the board with this unique form of combat manipulation.
Lucas piloted Shabraz, the Skyshark, leveraging a flying shark theme to draw cards and generate a large, aggressive flying creature to pressure opponents.
Alan brought Wilson, Refined Grizzly paired with Cultist of the Absolute, a deck built around flying bears and sacrifice mechanics to gain incremental advantages while managing the cost of sacrificing creatures.
Colin fielded Burakos, Party Leader with the Folk Hero background, focusing on party synergies and drawing cards by casting creatures that share types, enabling a value engine that rewards tribal unity and board presence. Early plays involved ramp and setup with key cards like Mystic Remora slowing down opponents and Oozolith providing recursion.
The game shifted as players deployed their signature commanders and began leveraging unique abilities—John gifting creatures to opponents to be attacked, Lucas building a formidable flying shark, Alan cycling sacrifice fodder, and Colin drawing off party synergies.
Key turning points included board control shifts via combat manipulation and the threat of large flying creatures, while players balanced aggressive and value-driven tactics.
The interplay of sacrifice triggers, card draw engines, and combat tricks created a tense and interactive midgame.
The overall win condition appeared to revolve around either overwhelming air superiority, incremental sacrifice value, or party synergy card advantage, depending on the player’s deck.