Our Favorite Commander Planeswalkers | Ep 8

Deck Strategies

• 

  Aminatou, the Fateshifter

  Aminatou's deck focuses on blink effects to repeatedly reuse enter-the-battlefield triggers, generating card advantage and value while controlling the board through tempo plays.

• 

  Grist, the Hunger Tide

  Grist leverages its mill ability to fill the graveyard with insects, creating insect tokens and growing loyalty counters to enable creature removal and a potential life loss finisher.

• 

  Saheeli, the Gifted

  Saheeli aims to generate numerous tokens and artifact synergies, drawing cards and dealing damage to overwhelm opponents through a combination of card advantage and board presence.

• 

  Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes

  Minsc & Boo prioritize early board dominance by playing big creatures quickly and using aggressive combat to pressure opponents, capitalizing on their synergy to control the battlefield.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Aminatou's use of Charming Prince to exile and return Baleful Strix allowed repeated card draw and tempo advantage.

• 2

  Grist's milling chain to find insects accelerated loyalty growth and board presence, creating a snowball effect.

• 3

  The decision to cast and potentially monstrous Stormbreath Dragon was critical to dealing with Grist's board and applying pressure.

• 4

  Skullclamp was used effectively on small creatures to draw additional cards, enhancing resource advantage.

• 5

  Players balanced early ramp and board development with careful consideration of when to engage in combat or remove threats.

Notable Cards

• 

  Charming Prince

• 

  Baleful Strix

• 

  Stormbreath Dragon

• 

  Skullclamp

• 

  Arcane Signet

• 

  Fertile Ground

Summary

The game began with a typical ramp and setup phase, where players developed their mana bases and deployed early threats. Aminatou focused on blink effects and value creatures to generate card advantage and disrupt the board state. Grist utilized its unique ability to mill insect cards and transform them into insect tokens, steadily growing its loyalty counters and board presence. Saheeli aimed to produce a stream of tokens and leverage artifact synergies to draw cards and deal incremental damage, while Minsc & Boo aggressively pursued early board dominance with large creatures and impactful combat plays. Key turning points included Grist's successful milling chain that rapidly increased its loyalty counters, enabling powerful creature removal and life loss effects. Aminatou's use of Charming Prince to blink Baleful Strix repeatedly generated card draw and maintained tempo. A notable interaction was Grist's minus two ability forcing opponents to react quickly, prompting a Stormbreath Dragon to be cast and potentially monstrous to shift the combat dynamics. The game showcased a mix of incremental value plays, board control attempts, and pressure through combat and planeswalker abilities, setting up a complex midgame scenario with multiple threats vying for control.