The Professor's BACK | Magic: The Gathering Commander | Big Deck Energy

Deck Strategies

• Scholar of the Seas

  Builds a Merfolk tribal deck that creates token copies of powerful Merfolk lords upon the commander entering the battlefield, generating incremental buffs, card draw, and evasion to control the board and outvalue opponents.

• 

  The Ur-Dragon

  Focuses on casting multiple dragons efficiently with cost reductions, drawing cards for each dragon, and deploying powerful dragons to overwhelm opponents with large threats and card advantage.

• 

  Orvar, the All-Form

  Utilizes blink effects and token generation to copy and reuse enters-the-battlefield effects, enhancing creatures and applying pressure through repeated value and evasion.

• 

  Bristly Bill, Spine Sower

  Ramp-heavy deck that leverages landfall and land growth effects to create large threats and swarms of tokens, aiming to dominate the board with overwhelming numbers and resilient creatures.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  The Professor strategically allows an opponent to choose which Merfolk token to create from his commander’s ability, demonstrating political awareness and managing aggression.

• 2

  Ryan’s use of Sword of Wealth and Power on The Ur-Dragon significantly increases combat damage output and provides protection, making his commander a high-priority threat.

• 3

  Players are cautious with removal and interaction early on, focusing instead on ramp and board development to avoid escalating the political tension too soon.

• 4

  Orvar’s player enhances his commander with boots to enable evasive attacks, maximizing value from combat and triggering abilities that copy spells.

• 5

  The deployment of Sentinel Worm signals a key turning point toward aggressive board presence by The Ur-Dragon player, forcing opponents to respond or risk falling behind.

Notable Cards

• 

  Silvergill Adept

• 

  Sword of Wealth and Power

• 

  Orvar, the All-Form

• 

  Bristly Bill, Spine Sower

• 

  Orb of Dragonkind

• 

  Cultivate

Summary

The game begins with players ramping and developing their boards cautiously, with each commander showcasing their unique strengths. The Professor's Scholar of the Seas focuses on assembling a Merfolk tribal synergy by creating token copies of powerful Merfolk lords, boosting the team with incremental card draw and buffs. Ryan pilots The Ur-Dragon, leveraging cost reduction and card draw from casting multiple dragons to gain overwhelming board presence. Charlie, on Orvar the All-Form, combines blink and token strategies, while Drew's Bristly Bill deck emphasizes land ramp and landfall triggers to grow threats and swarm the board. Early turns see moderate development, with key plays like Silvergill Adept and Deep Root Wayfinder enhancing card advantage. The Professor's Merfolk tokens start applying pressure, though he is wary of retaliation due to the political nature of the game. Ryan equips his commander with Sword of Wealth and Power, turning it into a formidable 7/7 attacker with protection, enabling him to strike fear by swinging in for commander damage. Charlie quickly responds by casting Orvar and equipping boots to enable evasive plays. The pace intensifies as Ryan drops a Sentinel Worm, indicating a shift toward more aggressive board presence. Throughout, players carefully manage threats and political tension, with key interactions around combat and protection shaping the flow of the game.