What is Duel Commander? | Kinnan vs Tivit

Deck Strategies

• 

  Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

  Ramp aggressively using mana dorks and artifacts to generate large amounts of mana, then draw and deploy a combo finish involving Basalt Monolith and Wizard's Rockets to take infinite mana and eventually win through massive damage or combo lock.

• 

  Tivit, Seller of Secrets

  Control the game with counterspells, removal, and disruption to prevent opponent's combos and board development, while generating incremental advantage through treasures, clues, and card draw engines like Shai, Genesis Engine. Win via commander damage and attrition.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Ryan successfully assembled an infinite mana combo with Basalt Monolith and Kinnan, enabling deep deck digging with Wizard's Rockets.

• 2

  Chloe used Toxic Deluge at a critical moment to clear the board, resetting Ryan's combo setup and regaining control of the game.

• 3

  The use of Solitude by Chloe to exile key creatures like Kinnan stalled Ryan's board development temporarily but allowed him to recast Kinnan.

• 4

  Chloe's incremental advantage through Tivit's treasure and clue token generation and Shai, Genesis Engine's card draw helped maintain pressure and outvalue Ryan.

• 5

  Ryan's repeated attempts to resolve Kinnan were met with counterspells and bounce effects, highlighting the importance of disruption in this matchup.

Notable Cards

• 

  Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy

• 

  Basalt Monolith

• 

  Wizard's Rockets

• 

  Tivit, Seller of Secrets

• 

  Toxic Deluge

• 

  Mana Leak

• 

  Solitude

• 

  Orcish Bowmasters

Summary

The Duel Commander game featured a clash between a ramp/combo deck piloted by Ryan with Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy, and a control/disruption deck led by Chloe with Tivit, Seller of Secrets. Ryan focused on ramping aggressively with mana dorks and artifacts like Basalt Monolith, aiming to draw and play powerful cards to assemble a combo finish. Key moments included successfully establishing infinite mana with Basalt Monolith and Kinnan, which allowed Ryan to cast Wizard's Rockets and dig deeply into his deck. However, Chloe's control strategy, leveraging counterspells, board wipes like Toxic Deluge, and disruption effects such as Mana Leak and Solitude, repeatedly stalled Ryan's progress. Chloe also gained incremental value through her commander Tivit creating treasures and clues, and card advantage engines like Shai, Genesis Engine to maintain pressure and resources. Despite Ryan's combo attempts, Chloe's timely removal and counter magic kept him in check. The pivotal turn came when Chloe cast Toxic Deluge, clearing the board and resetting the game state. She then leveraged her incremental advantage to close out the game by attacking with Tivit and an orc token army, ultimately winning through commander damage and board presence. The duel demonstrated the tension between explosive combo ramp and resilient control, with control prevailing through efficient disruption and resource denial.