Top 8 Gameplay - TOURNOI DES CHRONIQUES w/ EN Commentary [Duel Commander] - Magic: The Gathering

Deck Strategies

• 

  Grist, the Hunger Tide

  This deck aims to leverage sacrifice and graveyard synergies to generate value and control the board, focusing on incremental advantage through creature removal and recurring threats. It typically wins by grinding the opponent down with efficient creatures and disruptive spells.

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  Ertai Resurrected

  Ertai Resurrected focuses on controlling the game through counterspells, efficient removal, and value-generating spells like Lingering Souls. It aims to maintain board presence with tokens and tempo plays, eventually winning by outvaluing opponents and dealing damage with evasive creatures.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  The use of Skyclave Eviction early to generate tempo and remove blockers was a key turning point.

• 2

  Lingering Souls provided significant board presence and pressure, making it difficult for the Grist player to stabilize.

• 3

  The Ertai player’s strategic use of bounce effects to reset board states and protect key creatures maintained tempo dominance.

• 4

  Grist’s player struggled to find impactful plays early, which put them on the back foot against Ertai’s continual pressure.

• 5

  Discarding less useful cards to maintain hand quality and ensure effective use of spells was critical in the midgame.

• 6

  The decision not to block Skyclave Eviction’s attacks allowed the Ertai player to maximize value through flashback spells and token generation.

Notable Cards

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  Lingering Souls

• 

  Cut Down

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  Ethereal Forager

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  Brazen Borrower // Petty Theft

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  Burst Lightning

Summary

The game featured a matchup between two powerful commanders: Grist, the Hunger Tide and Ertai Resurrected. Early on, the player piloting Grist faced difficulties due to a passive hand and lack of impactful creatures, while the opponent with Ertai leveraged tempo and card advantage to establish control. A pivotal moment came when the Ertai player successfully deployed Skyclave Eviction and Lingering Souls, generating multiple threats and board presence that proved difficult for Grist to handle. Despite attempts to stabilize with spells like Cut Down and Ethereal Forager, Grist's player struggled to keep pace with the mounting pressure and efficient removal. The Ertai player continued to maintain tempo by bouncing threats, generating tokens, and applying damage, eventually overwhelming the opponent. The game ended with Ertai's superior tempo and value plays securing victory.