Duel Commander Rules Summary.

July 2013 Edition
Duel Commander rules
summary
General coordinator: Antoine Fruscio.
Project leader: Claire Dupré.
Participants: Claire Dupré, Ivan Morel, Alexis Rassel, Benoît Verwaerde.
Translators: Daniel Kitachewsky, Kim Warren.
Layout: Ivan Morel, Emmanuel Bernuau.
Editor: Fédération Française de Magic: The Gathering.
Acknowledgments
This work would not have seen the light of day without multiple collaborations. We would particulalry like to thank Kevin Desprez and Damien
Guillemard for their advice and their unwavering support. Further thanks
go to Pol Lesourd and Marie-Françoise N’Goran for their assiduous proofreading. Thanks also go to Stéphane Manaranche, who has provided us
hosting on his site.
And finally, thank you to all the judges who have developed Commander within their communities, and to all the players who paid back their
efforts.
Wizards of the Coast, Magic: The Gathering, Magic, Magic: The Gathering – Commander and their logos, the distinctive look of characters and of the symbols
are the property of Wizards of the Coast LLC in the U.S.A. and other
countries. U.S. Pat. No. RE 37,957.
Preface
The goal of this booklet, besides being easy for anyone to read, is to provide
a clear and precise rule set in order to play Duel Commander.
Occasionally, some of us forget that this passion of ours is first and foremost
a game. Most formats promote a mostly competitive game; this is less the
case for Duel Commander.
While this format was originally popular among judges, it has spread
throughout player communities. Players have discovered - for some, rediscovered - the pleasure of building original decks and playing in a format
where winning is not the be-all and end-all. In order to unite the growing
player community, we decided to propose an official format, based upon
the rules and documents of Magic: The Gathering, to serve as reference
for all Duel Commander play.
This booklet was made on the initiative of the Fédération Française de
Magic: The Gathering. A team made of judges, tournament organizers,
and players has been specially created. For more than 6 months this team
has worked hard, compiling and testing all the available data so as to
finally provide a book and a format available to all. It’s now your turn
to use this booklet to spread the word by organizing Duel Commander
tournaments and playing in them.
Antoine Fruscio
FFMTG
Contents
A Deck building rules
I
Choosing a commander . . .
II
Number of cards in the deck .
III Mana symbols on cards in the
IV Banned cards . . . . . . . . .
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B Gameplay rules
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The mulligan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
III The commander . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1. Placement of the commander . . . . . .
2. The commander attribute . . . . . . .
3. The commander and producing mana . . .
4. Commander’s damage . . . . . . . . .
IV The command zone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1. Specifics of the command zone. . . . . .
2. Commander and command zone . . . . .
3. Casting the commander after the first time .
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C About Duel Commander
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A little history: From EDH to Duel Commander
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Some construction advice . . . . . . . . . . . . .
III Variants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
IV Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Glossary
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42
7
Chapter A
Deck building rules
This chapter explains the rules on how to build a Duel Commander deck.
The number of cards you can include in a Duel Commander deck is not
the same as in the usual Constructed formats, and the cards you can use
depend on a special card - the commander. Additionally, this format has
its own list of banned cards.
8
I
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
Choosing a commander
Each player chooses a commander. A commander can be any legendary
creature card.
Selecting your commander is an important choice. This choice will determine not only your global strategy, but also the colors of the cards in your
deck.
A commander must be a legendary creature card. This means that
a non-legendary creature (e.g. Baneslayer Angel) cannot be chosen as a
commander. Similarly, you can’t choose a legendary card that’s not a
creature (e.g. Umezawa’s Jitte). Lastly, note that Planeswalkers, while
pretty cool, aren’t creatures and can’t be chosen as commanders.
Warning - Some creatures in the Kamigawa TM block, e.g. Jushi Apprentice, are not legendary in their normal state, but are legendary when
flipped. You can’t choose one of these as your commander, since they
don’t begin as a legendary creature.
Tempting, but these aren’t legendary creatures.
I. CHOOSING A COMMANDER
9
Please note that some legendary creatures can be chosen as a commander according to the rules, but in practice will be weakened or unplayable.
Alexander and Natalie are going to play Duel Commander. Alexander
has chosen Haakon, Stromgald Scourge as his commander. As with any
commander, it begins the game in the command zone. Since it can be cast
only from the graveyard, Alexander is not able to cast his commander from
the command zone, and so won’t be able to cast it at all.
10
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
II
Number of cards in the deck
A deck must include exactly 100 cards, including the commander.
Warning - In practice, this means that besides your commander, you
will present a 99 card deck to your opponent at the beginning of a game.
Only a single copy of each card can be included in a deck. This rule
doesn’t apply to basic lands or to cards with a specific text which contradicts this, like Relentless Rats.
Warning - If two cards are functionally identical apart from their English
names1 (e.g. Remove Soul and Essence Scatter), you can include both
cards in your deck.
Warning - Your commander counts as one of the 100 cards in your deck.
As such, you can’t include the same creature as a non-commander card in
your deck.
Lastly, please note that there are no restrictions on which expansions
are legal in Duel Commander. You can use cards from any expansion,
including the oldest ones. Be careful, however, as some cards are banned
(see section IV).
1 In
Magic, English names are used to determine whether two cards are different
II. NUMBER OF CARDS IN THE DECK
11
They’re invading even Duel Commander!
Even though they seem identical, having different English names means
you can play both in a Duel Commander deck.
12
III
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
Mana symbols on cards in the deck
There are some restrictions when you build a Duel Commander deck. The
most important of these is that your commander restricts which cards you
can include in your deck. The color identity of your commander defines
which colors of mana you have access to when building your deck.
The color identity of a commander is determined by its colors, plus the
colors of any mana symbols present in its cost and text box. A card
cannot be in your deck if one of its colors, or if the color of a mana
symbol on it, is not also present in your commander’s color identity.
This means that your deck cannot include cards which have mana symbols in their mana cost and/or text box which are not in the mana cost
and/or text box of your commander.
Thus, the first thing you have to do is to look at your commander:
what colored mana symbols are there in its mana cost? What colored
mana symbols are in its text box? Take note of these symbols: no other
colors of mana can feature on cards in your deck.
III. MANA SYMBOLS ON CARDS IN THE DECK
13
Warning - It’s not enough to just look at
the colors of your commander. In effect, some
commanders are a different color to any colored mana symbols in their text box.
Alexander chose Rhys the Exiled as his
commander. As Rhys has in its mana cost,
Alexander can include cards with
mana
symbols in his deck. In addition, as Rhys has
in its text box, Alexander can also include
cards with
mana symbols in his deck.
Warning - Some cards don’t have colored mana symbols, but are a certain
color due to their rules text or due to a color indicator. These colors should
be taken into account when determining if the card can be included in a
deck or not.
Alexander chose Ezuri, Renegade Leader as his commander. He can’t
include Garruk Relentless in his deck since Garruk’s back face (Garruk,
the Veil-Cursed) has a green and black color indicator, and black is not in
the commander’s color identity.
14
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
Warning - Some cards have hybrid mana costs. In this situation, it’s
important to check all the colors of mana in each hybrid mana symbol to
ensure that none of them are forbidden by your commander.
Alexander chose Oona, Queen of the Fae as his commander. Since
Oona is hybrid blue and black, Alexander can include cards having
and/or
mana symbols in his deck. However, he can’t include Mirrorweave as it includes both
and
symbols, which is not allowed since
Oona doesn’t have the
symbol.
III. MANA SYMBOLS ON CARDS IN THE DECK
15
Warning - Some cards include phyrexian mana costs. Even if it’s possible
to pay for these costs by using life instead of mana, these symbols are still
colored. Their colors have to be in the commander’s color identity in order
to be included in a deck.
Alexander chose Isamaru, Hound of Konda as his commander. He
can include Porcelain Legionnaire in his deck as the
symbol is white.
However, he can’t include Phyrexian Metamorph in his deck as it contains
the
symbol, which is blue.
16
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
Warning - Some cards have reminder text
in italics in their text box. Sometimes, mana
symbols are used there, as an example. These
symbols don’t count under this rule, as reminder text in italics isn’t considered part of
the text box.
Alexander chose Isamaru, Hound of
Konda as his commander. He can include
on
Trinisphere in his deck since the symbol
it is just part of the reminder text that explains
how the rules for this particular card work.
The color identity of your commander also restricts what basic land
types you have access to.
A land that has at least one basic land type can only be in a deck if all
of the colors of mana that it can produce are in your commander’s color
identity.
Alexander chose Isamaru, Hound of
Konda as his commander. He can’t include
Mountains in his deck, as this land produces
red mana and Isamaru only has white mana
symbols.
III. MANA SYMBOLS ON CARDS IN THE DECK
17
Warning - Some lands have more than one
basic land type. In this case, it’s important to
check that none of these types can produce a
color of mana that your commander forbids.
Alexander chose Isamaru, Hound of
Konda as his commander. He can’t include
a Sacred Foundry in his deck as this land produces red mana in addition to white mana,
and Isamaru only has white mana symbols.
Warning - A land that has no basic land type can be in your deck
only if its text box contains no colored mana symbols forbidden by your
commander.
18
CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
IV
Banned cards
A banned card is a card that can’t be included in your deck because it’s not
suited to the current Duel Commander game, or because it was deemed to
be too powerful.
The following cards cannot be included in a deck (even as a commander):
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Amulet of Quoz
Ancestral Recall
Ancient Tomb
Back to Basics
Balance
Black Lotus
Bronze Tablet
Channel
Chaos Orb
Coalition Victory
Contract from Below
Crucible of Worlds
Darkpact
Demonic Attorney
Falling Star
Gifts Ungiven
Grindstone
Hermit Druid
Humility
Imperial Seal
Jeweled Bird
Karakas
Library of Alexandria
Limited Resources
Mana Crypt
Mana Drain
IV. BANNED CARDS
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Mana Vault
Mind Twist
Mishra’s Workshop
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Mox Ruby
Mox Sapphire
Necropotence
Protean Hulk
Rebirth
Sensei’s Divining Top
Serra Ascendant
Shahrazad
Sol Ring
Strip Mine
Tempest Efreet
The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
Time Vault
Time Walk
Timmerian Fiends
Tinker
Tolarian Academy
Vampiric Tutor
Vanishing
Winter Orb
Yawgmoth’s Bargain
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CHAPTER A. DECK BUILDING RULES
The following cards can’t be chosen as a commander:
•
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Braids, Cabal Minion
Edric, Spymaster of Trest
Erayo, Soratami Ascendant
Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary
The above cards can’t be used as commanders. They were thought to
be too powerful to be used as such. However, nothing prevents you from
using them in your deck, as long as they’re not your commander.
21
Chapter B
Gameplay rules
This chapter describes the rules specific to Duel Commander games. Other
than these, a game of Duel Commander follows all the normal rules of a
game of Magic.
22
I
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
The mulligan
Since decks in Duel Commander are made of 100 cards, it can be difficult
and cumbersome to shuffle well enough to ensure that the order of the cards
is perfectly random. That’s why, in order to save you from disastrous hands
every other game, the mulligan rule is more advanced than in a normal
Magic game.
The player who is starting the game chooses whether he or she will mulligan, then the other player decides. Then the mulligans are performed
alternately, as follows:
• After having drawn his or her starting hand, a player can decide
to exile any number of cards of his or her hand face-down. If he or
she does so, he or she draws one fewer cards than the number of
cards exiled this way. The players may repeat this process as many
times as desired.
• When a player has mulliganned at least once and doesn’t want to
mulligan any further, he or she shuffles all the exiled cards into his
or her library.
This way, instead of shuffling your whole hand into your deck if you
don’t like it, you can choose which cards you are going to keep and which
cards you are going to get rid of.
The cards that you don’t want are put aside face-down. You then draw
one fewer than that number of cards. If you still don’t like your hand, you
may then put other cards aside, and once again draw that number minus
one. You may repeat this process until you are satisfied with your hand,
or you don’t want to reduce your hand any further.
Then, you shuffle all cards put aside this way into your library. You
now have your starting hand.
Warning - Shuffle the cards put aside this way into your library only
when you’ve kept your final starting hand. The goal is that you can’t
redraw the cards that you have put aside.
I. THE MULLIGAN
23
Alexander and Natalie are going to play a game of Duel Commander.
Each one shuffles his or her deck and draws 7 cards. Alexander, who’s going to play first, announces that he’s keeping his hand. Natalie announces
that she’s mulliganning and puts 4 cards from her hand aside, then draws
3 new cards, so that she now has 6 cards in hand. Since Alexander kept his
hand, it’s Natalie’s turn to decide if she’ll mulligan further or not. Since
her hand still doesn’t suit her, she decides to mulligan again. She puts a
further 2 cards aside with the first 4 and draws 1 more card, so that she
now has 5 cards in hand. Natalie decides to keep these 5 cards, which then
become her opening hand, and she shuffles the 6 cards put aside into her
library.
The game can now begin.
24
II
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
Life
Each player starts the game with 30 life.
The starting life total in Duel Commander is 30. This gives the players
time to develop elaborate strategies, and balances the fact that each player
has access to a commander with specific abilities from the start of the
game.
III. THE COMMANDER
III
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The commander
1. Placement of the commander
Before beginning the game and before any mulligans, put your commander face-up next to your library. This zone next to your library is the
command zone, and a commander always starts the game in this zone.
2. The commander attribute
The designation of commander is not a characteristic of the object represented by the card: it’s an attribute of the card itself, which retains
this designation even when changing zones.
This means that a copy of a commander has all its characteristics, but is
not itself a commander, and also that a commander remains a commander
in any zone it ends up in.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander, Mistform Ultimus, is in his graveyard.
Alexander casts Body Double and chooses to
copy his commander when it resolves. On the
battlefield, Body Double is a Mistform Ultimus
(it’s a 3/3 blue legendary creature with all
named
creature types and a mana cost of
Mistform Ultimus) but it’s not a commander
and it doesn’t have a commander’s special capabilities.
26
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander is Akroma, Angel of Fury. Alexander decides to cast it using Morph. On the battlefield, this face-down creature is still considered to be Alexander’s commander, and still
has a commander’s special capabilities.
3. The commander and producing mana
If a player would add to his of her mana pool any mana of a color that’s
not in his or her commander’s color identity, the same amount of colorless
mana is added to his of her mana pool instead.
This rule means that it’s impossible to have mana in your mana pool
of a color that’s not in your commander’s color identity. If this would
happen, you add colorless mana to your mana pool instead.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander
is Mistform Ultimus and Natalie’s is Akroma,
Angel of Fury. Alexander enchanted Natalie’s
Mountain with Spreading Seas, turning it into
an island. If Natalie taps that island to make
mana, she will add
to her mana pool and
not .
III. THE COMMANDER
27
4. Commander’s damage
A player who has been dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same
commander during a game loses the game. This is a state-based action.
This means that if you’ve been dealt 21 combat damage from a single
commander (be it your opponent’s or your own if he or she took control
of it) during a game, you lose the game. The 21 damage doesn’t have to
be dealt in a single blow or in a single turn: it’s a count that’s tracked
throughout the game. As such, it’s recommended that you keep track of
the total amount of damage dealt to you by any commander.
Warning - Only combat damage is tracked this way. Damage dealt by
other means doesn’t count towards this 21 damage rule.
28
IV
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
The command zone
1. Specifics of the command zone
We’ve seen already that the commander starts the game in the command zone. This zone is used for some special objects, including commanders.
A player can play his or her commander from the command zone as if
it was in his or her hand.
Warning - This doesn’t mean that the commander is in your hand! You
can’t discard it, and when you cast it, it’s not considered as if it was cast
from your hand.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander
is Myojin of the Seeing Winds. He casts it
from the command zone. When it resolves and
enters the battlefield, he doesn’t put a divinity
counter on it since it hasn’t been cast from his
hand.
IV. THE COMMAND ZONE
29
Warning - Timing restrictions still apply; you can cast your commander
from the command zone only any time that you could cast it from your
hand.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander is Isamaru, Hound of Konda. He can cast
it only any time he could cast a regular creature spell, i.e. normally only during his main
phase. Natalie’s commander is Teferi, Mage
of Zhalfir. It has flash. Natalie can therefore
cast it anytime she could cast an instant, i.e.
when she has priority.
2. Commander and command zone
If a commander would be put into its owner’s graveyard, exiled, or put
into its owner’s library from anywhere, that player can put it into the
command zone instead. This is a replacement effect, which doesn’t use
the stack. If a commander would be exiled face down in a way that allows
its owner’s opponent to look at it, that player must immediately reveal
it and put into the command zone.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game of Duel Commander.
Alexander’s commander, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, is on the battlefield. Natalie casts a Doom Blade to destroy it. When Doom Blade resolves, Isamaru would normally go to the graveyard since it’s destroyed,
but Alexander can choose to put it into the command zone instead.
30
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Natalie’s commander, Mistform Ultimus, is on the battlefield.
Alexander casts an Oblivion Ring and, when
it resolves, targets Mistform Ultimus to exile it. Natalie can let the Oblivion Ring exile
Mistform Ultimus or she can choose to put it
into the command zone. If she chooses to put
it into the command zone, it won’t come back
in the event that Oblivion Ring leaves the battlefield later.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander, Mistform Ultimus, is in his hand. Natalie
casts Vendilion Clique and, when it resolves,
targets Alexander with its enter-the-battlefield
trigger. She looks at Alexander’s hand and
chooses Mistform Ultimus. The latter would
normally go to Alexander’s library. However,
Alexander can put it into the command zone
instead. He then draws a card regardless, following the instructions of Vendilion Clique’s
ability.
Putting your commander into the command zone is optional; you can still let it go
to the graveyard, into your library or to exile if you so wish. Be careful;
once the commander is in one of these zones, you can’t go back and change
your decision not to put your commander in the command zone, unless the
situation presents itself anew.
IV. THE COMMAND ZONE
31
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander, Mistform Ultimus, is on the battlefield.
Natalie casts a Lightning Bolt targeting it.
Mistform Ultimus is destroyed and would normally be put into the graveyard as it’s only
a 3/3. Alexander could put it into the command zone instead, but chooses not to do so.
Mistform Ultimus is put into the graveyard.
Later in the game, Alexander casts a Flash
of Insight from his graveyard and chooses to
exile Mistform Ultimus to pay its flashback
cost. Mistform Ultimus would then normally
go into exile. However, Alexander once again
has the choice to put it into the command zone
instead. This time, he does.
If the commander is put into the command zone using this capability,
then it doesn’t go through the zone it was originally going to go to. As
such, it doesn’t trigger any effects linked to that zone change.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander’s commander, Child of Alara, is on the battlefield and
attacking. Natalie block it with a creature with
deathtouch. The Child of Alara is destroyed
and would normally go to the graveyard. However, Alexander chooses to put it into the command zone instead. Since the Child of Alara
didn’t go to the graveyard, its ability, which
triggers when it goes to the graveyard, doesn’t
trigger.
32
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Natalie’s commander, Mistform Ultimus, is on the battlefield.
Alexander casts Duplicant and announces that
he wants to exile Mistform Ultimus. Natalie
decides to put it into the command zone instead of exiling it. The Duplicant is then 2/4
and not 3/3, since Mistform Ultimus is not in
exile and was not imprinted on the Duplicant.
3. Casting the commander after the first time
Since the commander can go back to the command zone, it’s possible
to cast it several times from that zone during the same game. However, it
becomes more expensive to do so.
Casting a commander from the command zone costs
time it has already been cast from that zone this game.
more for each
This is an additional cost paid when you cast this spell. Your commander’s converted mana cost stays the same, and any effects that decrease
the cost of spells you cast still apply, as do any effects that increase it.
Each time you cast your commander from the command zone, it’s recommended that you make a note of it, so that you can recall the number of
times you’ve cast it and how much additional mana it will cost in future.
IV. THE COMMAND ZONE
33
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander casts his
commander, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, from
the command zone for , since it’s the first
time that he has cast it this game. Natalie
counters it using Counterspell. Rather than
putting Isamaru into his graveyard, Alexander chooses to put it into the command zone.
Alexander can recast his commander from that
zone if he so wishes, but he will have to pay
more (in addition to ) since it’s the second
time he will be casting it from the command
zone.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game of Duel Commander.
Alexander casts his commander, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, from the command zone. This would cost
since it’s the second time that he has cast
it from the command zone this game. However, a Sphere of Resistance is
on the battlefield. This increases the cost of all spells by . Alexander will
now have to pay
. If, instead of the Sphere of Resistance, there was a
Pearl Medallion on the battlefield, reducing the cost of white spells that he
casts by , then Alexander would only have to spend
.
34
CHAPTER B. GAMEPLAY RULES
Warning - If you cast your commander from
another zone, there is no additional cost applied by this rule and it won’t increase the
cost the next times you try to cast it from the
command zone.
Alexander and Natalie are playing a game
of Duel Commander. Alexander casts his
commander, Isamaru, Hound of Konda, from
the command zone. Natalie counters it with
Remand. Alexander can cast his commander
from his hand for just
even though it’s the
second time he has cast it, because this time
he isn’t casting it from the command zone.
35
Chapter C
About Duel Commander
36
I
CHAPTER C. ABOUT DUEL COMMANDER
A little history:
From EDH to Duel Commander
The Elder Dragon Highlander (EDH) format was originally created by a
group of American judges and players who were tired of playing traditional formats. It subsequently became very popular among Wizards of
the Coast employees, as it allowed them to play Magic despite the fact
that they are forbidden from playing in tournaments. At the time, EDH
was a multiplayer format where generals (the old name for commanders)
were normally very impressive, for example “Elder Dragons” such as Nicol
Bolas or Arcades Sabboth - who gave the name to the format (the term
“Highlander”refers to the singleton aspect).
Later came the democratization of the format. Magic developed, the
judge community grew and EDH spread with it, getting exported beyond
the American border. Intrigued by their colleagues interest in this format,
French judges introduced EDH to France and, with the help of players
and organizers, developed the format and notably adapted it for duels.
Since then, EDH hasn’t stopped evolving in France, eventually reaching
the state that we know today.
The EDH format was officially recognized in 2009, and rules for EDH
appeared in the Comprehensive Rules. The name was officially changed
to “Commander”in December 2010.
I. A LITTLE HISTORY: FROM EDH TO DUEL COMMANDER
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But the watchwords of Commander were still those of EDH; that is
to say variety and freedom. Variety because Magic includes more than
400 legendary creatures, meaning that there are more than 400 potential
commanders. Variety because due to the 100 card singleton construction
rule, a Commander deck could contain thousands of different card combinations. And especially variety because no two matches are alike. You
are free to play whatever you wish, with almost every card in Magic: The
Gathering at your disposal and the smallest possible banned list meaning that there is a large number of strategies available. Whether your
Commander deck is a collection of the best cards in existence, those cards
which amuse you the most, or whether it is a well-oiled machine revolving
around your commander; anything is possible. And yet, you are all playing
the same game. It is this variety and this freedom, not found traditional
formats, that make up the richness of Commander.
Which one do you choose? A mad artificer with his machines, an elf
bringing an entire horde in his wake, or a powerful dragon?
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II
CHAPTER C. ABOUT DUEL COMMANDER
Some construction advice
Firstly, it is necessary to spend some time choosing your commander. A list of all the available commanders can be found on this page:
http://gatherer.wizards.com. Your choice of commander will not only determine the colors of your deck, but also your wider strategy and the spirit
of your games. Will you choose a very competitive commander? Will your
game hinge on combos that you enjoy? Would you like to fish your legendary creatures from the Legends TM set or the Mirage TM block out of their
dusty boxes? Is there a creature type which you like enough to make a
tribal deck? With Commander, you have all these possibilities.
Once you have chosen your commander, it is time to move on to the
construction of your deck. One of the problems that you will encounter
at the start of construction is the assembly of a mana base. The number
of lands included should follow similar proportions to in a 60 card deck.
To get an idea of the number of lands, you should use a ratio of 5/3
when compared to a 60 card deck. For example, 21 lands in a 60 card
deck is equivalent to 35 lands in a 100 card deck. If your commander is
multicolored, don’t forget that the format is overflowing with dual and
tri-colored lands, as well as artifacts which can produce mana of a variety
of colors.
Next, you need to choose cards to take your deck to a total of 100
cards. The first instinct is to include all the cards that you can first think
of. Building a Commander deck is a long-term effort. Through games,
advice, encounters, and rifling through trade binders, your deck will evolve.
A point will come where the problem ceases to lie in which cards you can
add to make the deck up to 100 cards, but is instead in which ones you
will remove so as not to exceed 100.
Don’t forget that old, forgotten cards may prove to be veritable treasures for your deck. Poorly distributed expansions, such as Portal Three
Kingdoms TM , and old expansions, such as Antiquities TM , can provide cards
which fit particularly well into your deck.
II. SOME CONSTRUCTION ADVICE
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Finally, don’t hesitate to build multiple Commander decks. By lending
them to people with whom you play regularly, you can motivate them into
building their own decks, increasing the number of possible opponents you
have.
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III
CHAPTER C. ABOUT DUEL COMMANDER
Variants
The original EDH format was multiplayer. Traditionally, American players
use the free-for-all variant with a starting life total of 40 and a different
banned cards list. This document focuses on 1 vs 1 matches, which is the
most common format played in France.
Feel free to test other variants in order to mix up the fun. It’s possible
to combine different alternative Magic formats: Commander plays very
well with the Planechase and Archenemy expansions!
IV. RESOURCES
IV
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Resources
• http://www.wizards.com/commander: The Commander section on
the Wizards of the Coast site (available from June 2011).
• http://www.mtgcommander.net/: The original American Commander forum. Mainly oriented towards multiplayer.
• http://duelcommander.com/: The French blog for the 1v1 Commander format, maintained by the committee who have provided
this guide.
• http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/forumdisplay.php?f=377:
The American Commander forum on MTG Salvation. Provides a
large number of deck lists, as well as inventorying the ’best’ cards
by color.
• http://www.magictrade.org/magic-forum-formats_
alternatifs-fal.html:
The alternative formats forum on
the French site Magic Trade, which includes Commander.
• http://www.magic-ville.com/fr/forum/index.php?themecode=
edh: The Commander forum on the French site Magic-Ville.
• http://www.mtgfrance.com/viewforum.php?f=27: The alternative formats forum on the French site MTGFrance, which includes
Commander.
• http://mtgtop8.com/format?f=EDH: The Commander part of this
website referencing Top 8 lists.
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Glossaire
Commander - In the Commander variant, each deck is directed by a
legendary creature card designated as the deck’s commander. This card
is subject to particular rules regarding how it is cast, zone changes, and is
not affected in the same way as other legendary creatures by the legend
rule. There is a new victory condition associated with it.
See chapter B, Sections III - Le commandant and IV - La zone de commandement.
Deck - The collection of cards that you play form a deck. In Commander,
your deck should contain exactly 100 cards. At the beginning of the game,
your commander is put in the command zone and the other 99 cards are
shuffled together to form your library. It is recommended that you use a
deck box to transport your deck, and use sleeves to protect your cards.
See chapter A - Deck building rules.
The color identity - A commander is characterized by its color identity,
which is defined by the commander’s colors, the colors of the mana symbols
present in its mana cost and those in its text box. This is very important,
as this restricts which cards can be included in a Commander deck.
See chapter A, Section III - Mana symbols on cards in the deck.
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Mulligan - Executing a “mulligan” involves modifying your potential
starting hand, normally getting one less card in return. The Commander
mulligan rule differs from the normal mulligan rule (shuffling the starting
hand into the library, then redrawing it with one fewer cards) in order to
compensate for the randomness of shuffling a 99 card singleton deck, and
in order to avoid multiple successive laborious mulligans.
See chapter B, Section I - The mulligan.
Command Zone - The Command Zone is a part of the play area. This
is the zone in which your commander begins the game in the Commander
variant. When in the Command Zone your commander is face-up and
doesn’t count as being on the battlefield. Its abilities have no effect on the
course of the game. It is recommended that the Command Zone should
be a little away from the battlefield, though separated from the graveyard
or exile zones.
See chapter B, Section IV - The command zone.
Warning - If you are unclear as to the meaning of any other terms, we
recommend that you look in the Magic rules.
See chapter C, Section IV - Resources.