We Play Our First Decks | Commander Clash S14 E12

Deck Strategies

• 

  Jareth, Leonine Titan

  A mono-white altar deck focused on sacrificing creatures for value and leveraging upkeep triggers to generate incremental advantages and eventually overwhelm opponents.

• 

  Riku of Two Reflections

  A spells and creatures value deck that aims to double the impact of spells and creatures, generating massive board presence and card advantage through copying key spells.

• 

  Thraximundar

  An aggressive Grixis (blue-black-red) deck that uses sneaky attacks and disruption, combining Standard-era favorites with upgrade cards to pressure opponents and control the board.

• 

  Zedruu the Greathearted

  A political and group-hug style deck that uses enchantments and gifting mechanics to manipulate the game state while drawing cards and controlling the table through diplomacy and value.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Early mana ramp with Birds of Paradise and Cultivate set the stage for accelerated plays and enabled deploying commanders and key spells swiftly.

• 2

  Force of Will was used to counter an important spell, highlighting the critical role of interaction and control in maintaining balance in multiplayer Commander games.

• 3

  The political nature of Zedruu's deck introduced elements of table diplomacy and gifting, influencing player decisions beyond pure combat or combo lines.

• 4

  The game demonstrated how older Commander decks, while featuring nostalgic and sometimes less optimized card choices, still present unique challenges and interactions.

• 5

  Players adapted their decks and strategies to accommodate format changes, such as substituting banned cards with similar effects to preserve deck functionality.

Notable Cards

• 

  Jareth, Leonine Titan

• 

  Riku of Two Reflections

• 

  Thraximundar

• 

  Zedruu the Greathearted

• 

  Birds of Paradise

• 

  Cultivate

• 

  Journeyer's Kite

• 

  Force of Will

• 

  Shadowmage Infiltrator

Summary

The game featured four players piloting decks from their earliest Commander experiences, showcasing a nostalgic mix of cards and strategies from various Magic sets and eras. Tom played a mono-white deck led by Jareth, Leonine Titan, focusing on altar synergies and upkeep triggers, which reflected his initial deck-building days from the early Zendikar block. Phil ran a Riku of Two Reflections deck emphasizing value and doubling spells and creatures, a strategy still effective despite some outdated inclusions. Crim brought Thraximundar, a more aggressive and upgrade-focused deck from around 2013, blending elements from Standard and early Commander staples. Lastly, the political-themed Zedruu the Greathearted deck was played largely in its original precon form, highlighting the format's origins and political gameplay elements. Early turns saw typical mana ramp and setup plays, including Birds of Paradise, Cultivate, and Journeyer's Kite to accelerate mana bases. The players engaged in interactions involving counterspells and control elements, notably a Force of Will countering a key spell to prevent a player from snowballing too far ahead. The game underscored the tension between evolving Commander power levels and the charm of older deck builds, with players balancing nostalgic card choices against modern gameplay realities. While the transcript cuts off before the game's conclusion, the narrative suggests a dynamic multiplayer battle with multiple win conditions, including combos, value engines, and political manipulation, exemplifying the diverse strategic approaches of early Commander decks.