Deck & Commander Strategies
Seizan, Perverter of Truth
A political and attrition-based deck that leverages forcing opponents to draw and discard cards, dealing damage through their forced discards and drawing spells, creating chaos and incremental damage over time.
Rafiq of the Many
A Voltron-style deck focused on equipping and buffing Rafiq or other creatures to deliver lethal commander damage quickly, often using evasion and combat tricks.
Koma, World-Eater
A ramp and tribal synergistic deck using snake and shark creatures with evolve and other mechanics to generate board presence and overwhelming threats.
Varina, Lich Queen
A zombie tribal deck that generates zombie tokens, cycles through cards by drawing and discarding, and gains life, aiming to overwhelm opponents with zombies and incremental card advantage.
Gameplay Insights
- 1
Playing Iron Maiden was a strategic move to punish opponents for holding too many cards, effectively limiting Seizan’s and Rafiq’s card draw and putting pressure on their hand sizes.
- 2
Grand Abolisher provided a temporary lockdown preventing opponents from casting spells or activating abilities during the active player's turn, enabling decisive attacks or setups.
- 3
Koma’s player used Bigfin Bouncer to bounce Grand Abolisher, temporarily removing the lockdown and opening the window for interaction and combat damage.
- 4
Rafiq’s use of the evolve mechanic on Battering Krasis allowed the creature to grow rapidly, becoming a massive threat capable of dealing significant commander damage quickly.
- 5
Seizan’s early Sol Ring and mana acceleration enabled fast deployment of spells that pressured opponents through forced discards and damage.
- 6
Varina’s ability to generate zombie tokens and cycle cards helped maintain a robust board state and card advantage despite opponents’ disruption.
Notable Cards
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Sol Ring
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Varina, Lich Queen
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Iron Maiden
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Grand Abolisher
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Bigfin Bouncer
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Battering Krasis
Gameplay Summary
The game began with early mana acceleration, notably a turn one Sol Ring from Seizan's player, setting the pace for a fast, interactive match.
Varina, Lich Queen established a zombie tribal theme, generating tokens and card advantage through combat damage.
Rafiq of the Many focused on a Voltron strategy, aiming to quickly build a large, evasive creature that could deal commander damage in a single strike.
Koma, World-Eater brought a mix of ramp and aggressive creature plays, focusing on synergistic interactions with his snake and shark tribal elements.
One key moment came when Varina's player deployed Iron Maiden, punishing opponents for holding too many cards and disincentivizing excessive drawing, which was critical against Seizan’s and Rafiq’s decks that rely on card advantage and aggressive plays.
The dynamic shifted when a Grand Abolisher was played, locking down opponents’ ability to interact during the active player’s turn, providing a window for aggressive attacks or setup.
A notable interaction was the bouncing of Grand Abolisher by Koma’s player using Bigfin Bouncer, temporarily removing this protection and opening combat opportunities.
Rafiq's deck leveraged the evolve mechanic on Battering Krasis to create a massive threat, swinging a 32/32 creature to deal significant commander damage, forcing the table to respond quickly.
Varina’s repeated zombie token generation and card cycling helped maintain a steady board presence, while Seizan’s damage and discard effects pressured opponents' hands, contributing to a game state of constant tension.
Overall, the game unfolded as a battle of tempo and resource management, with aggressive threats, control elements, and attrition weaving together until a decisive strike or combo could close out the match.
![Purphoros vs Kumena vs Rafiq vs Varina [EDH Commander] Gameplay 2020 thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/XkAbuHNZfYE/sddefault.jpg)
![Varina vs Rafiq vs Lathril vs Valki [EDH/Commander, Magic The Gathering Gameplay] 2021 thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/lecwGN70PSY/sddefault.jpg)
![Commander VS S14E8: Varina vs Damia vs Mina and Denn vs Varchild [EDH] thumbnail](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/JdFaJi1vTn8/sddefault.jpg)
