Commander Showcase: Welcome to EDH!

There are an endless number of articles and videos out there explaining how to play Commander, you won’t find any of that here! As a new player in the Magic community (or even a veteran), it’s easy to be overwhelmed by the number of formats to be played and you want to make sure you find the one that’s right for you. So let me explain to you WHY you should play Commander!

One of Commander’s biggest draws has always been the multiplayer aspect of the format. Getting together with your friends to play and interact as a group has a real feel of hijinks and adventure that can only be compared to embarking on a quest with your regular D&D party. However, Commander comes with the core difference that you are not a jolly band of explorers, you are playing against each other and thus must masterfully traverse Commander’s most unique feature; the politics. Striking deals, forging alliances and making your plea to be kept alive are all regular aspects of an Elder Dragon Highlander (EDH) game and trying to get into the mind of your opponents is all part of the fun.

A lot like the internet’s Rule 34, if you can think of a theme, you can build a Commander deck around it. Prime examples of this are my buddy’s F deck, containing nothing but cards starting with the letter F and his “Stabbo Crabbo Meme” deck built around crabs wielding swords and other menacing blades. Not only is there an endless variety of themes and flavours for you to build from but each comes with many power levels and budgets to approach your build with. Whether you’re looking for a budget merfolk deck or a blinged out 5 colour competitive build, there is something for everyone.

As a new player, Commander has never been more accessible than it is right now. Wizards Of The Coast have done an excellent job of tuning into the EDH community and providing preconstructed decks suitable for all players, new and old.

You can hit up a store like Chaos Cards and pick up a deck ready to play straight out of the box for a very reasonable price. And once you’ve inevitably fallen in love with Commander you can find plenty of events to get involved with outside of your Friday night playgroup. Whether it’s casual Commander at your local game store or a yearly CommandFest event, there’s now so many places to get your EDH fix.

This blog series will go on to showcase some of my personal favourites to have in the command zone, as I explore a different commander deck each week on my Wednesday live streams over on Twitch!

I’ll be taking a look at a variety of ways you can build each commander, important themes/game plans and some of the most synergistic cards to load into your library. See you next time!