We Played Magic's Newest Commander Against Other cEDH Decks

Deck Strategies

• 

  Talion, the Kindly Lord

  Use Talion's ability to select a number and punish opponents for casting spells or creatures with that CMC or power/toughness, generating card advantage and draining life. Combine with Bloodchief Ascension to maximize value and outvalue opponents over time.

• 

  Oloro, Ageless Ascetic

  Gain incremental life each turn, use that life gain to draw cards and drain opponents' life. Stabilize the board with board wipes like Toxic Deluge and establish strong control elements to enable combo finishes.

• 

  Thalia and The Gitrog Monster

  Overwhelm opponents with board presence and card draw synergies, particularly exploiting land and graveyard interactions. Use Witherbloom Apprentice combo lines to achieve combo kill conditions.

• 

  Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait

  Focus on heavy ramp and card draw to fuel infinite turn combos, leveraging lands and spells to generate overwhelming advantage and lock opponents out.

• 

  Jeska, Thrice Reborn & Ishai, Ojutai Dragonspeaker

  Grow Ishai with opponents casting spells while Jeska provides aggressive and combo-oriented damage output, aiming to close out games quickly through combat damage and burn.

• 

  Nath of the Gilt-Leaf

  Use Nath’s ability to recur creatures from the graveyard and generate incremental value from sacrifice and combat damage, aiming for attrition and grind game plans.

Gameplay Insights

• 1

  Choosing the number two with Talion early created repeated triggers and card draw, significantly increasing resource advantage.

• 2

  Bloodchief Ascension reaching three counters early allowed for frequent life drain and card draw triggers, amplifying the impact of other cards.

• 3

  Nathan's timely use of Toxic Deluge cleared the board, resetting the game state and slowing down aggressive strategies.

• 4

  Copying Oloro with Phantasmal Image created a powerful engine for life gain and card draw that pressured opponents continuously.

• 5

  Casting Dark Ritual and Jeweled Lotus early helped accelerate Talion and other key spells, enabling early board presence and combos.

• 6

  Interplay between multiple life gain and loss triggers caused complex life total swings that required careful tracking and strategic planning.

• 7

  Force of Negation was used effectively to counter a key combo piece and prevent a lethal combo from resolving.

• 8

  Players made use of land ramp such as Ancient Tomb, Gaia's Cradle, and Carpet of Flowers to accelerate their game plans quickly.

Notable Cards

• 

  Talion, the Kindly Lord

• 

  Bloodchief Ascension

• 

  Oloro, Ageless Ascetic

• 

  Witherbloom Apprentice

• 

  Phantasmal Image

• 

  Toxic Deluge

• 

  Ledger Shredder

• 

  Jeweled Lotus

• 

  Ancient Tomb

• 

  Lotus Cobra

• 

  Force of Negation

Summary

The game featured a diverse and powerful field of commanders including Talion, the Kindly Lord; Oloro, Ageless Ascetic; Thalia and The Gitrog Monster; and Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait among others. Early turns saw aggressive mana development and key plays such as casting Talion to leverage its unique ability of drawing cards and draining life based on chosen numbers, alongside the activation of Bloodchief Ascension to draw even more cards and exert pressure on opponents. Nathan's Oloro deck leveraged life gain and board wipes with Toxic Deluge to stabilize, while Bill's Thalia and Gitrog deck established board presence and card draw engines to set up a combo finish with Witherbloom Apprentice. Jordan's Aesi deck focused on ramp and card draw to enable infinite turn combos. The game turned with strategic plays including a crucial board wipe by Nathan and heavy interaction from Bill to disrupt opponents' plans. Bill's use of Phantasmal Image to copy Oloro generated a strong engine for card advantage and life manipulation. The interplay of Bloodchief Ascension triggers and commander abilities created complex life total swings and card draws that shaped the midgame. Overall, the game revolved around building resource engines and controlling the board while seeking to execute infinite combos or overwhelming board states to win.