
In this life there are many great mysteries. Why are we here? What happens after we die? Is the global economy about to collapse? And, will I have enough money for pretty cardboard during the next recession/depression? Such mysteries have baffled people for years, decades, centuries, and sometimes entire millennia, but unlike those mysteries, today's object of inquiry has recently been spoiled!

**Mystery Booster Commander Edition** has a lot of fantastic new mechanics and cards. Many of them feel like a love letter to Magic fans with exciting and innovative new card designs. The Magic fans I've talked with and the Magic creators I've listened to online all seem fairly excited about the cards from this new set. So without any further ado, let's talk about it.

## Rulebreaking with Tolabow

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Many of the **rulebreaker** mechanics seem fresh and intriguing without completely throwing balance out the window. I like the idea of granting a second color identity while still fitting within a very strict build style. <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-12" title="Tolabow, Loch Rascal" /> being limited to only one extra color of instants and sorceries — and only basics for that extra color — gives deckbuilders more of a chance to make a Tolabow deck their own. This feels reminiscent of partner and choose a background commanders without actually having a second commander in the command zone. It also adds an extra air of mystery to Commander. In 60-card formats you generally don't know what colors your opponents are playing. In this case there will be some mystery while still obviously being a Tolabow deck. Finally, the limitation of only using instants and sorceries in the new color prevents anyone from just throwing in extra value cards. If this was Tolabow with white added, there would be no Smothering Tithe. If this was Tolabow with black, Bolas's Citadel would still be illegal. This rulebreaker mechanic honestly seems more balanced and focused compared to partner and choose a background. Many of the rulebreaker cards are forced to stay on theme, whether they're dealing with Angels, Auras, Equipment, or Phyrexians.

A concluding note on rulebreaker: <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-57" title="Whtz, the Bibliophile" /> is fairly funny. Finally, you can run Yorion, the Sky Nomad as a companion in Commander (sarcasm). You can also now win with Battle of Wits. What I look forward to most with this commander is watching people try to shuffle their 250-card pile and then have to take a mulligan. Please, build a deck around this little guy and only run cards that make you shuffle.

## A Sorcery in the Command Zone?

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<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-34" title="Ashaya's Enduring Bond" /> looks intriguing. I don't think it's good, but it could enable some cascade combo I'm unaware of. It's unfortunate that you need a legendary creature or planeswalker in play to cast it, but with the massive amount of legendaries printed this year alone, low-CMC legends are easier and easier to come by. The only other instance of a sorcery in the command zone that I know of is <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-STX-149" title="Extus, Oriq Overlord" /> // Awaken the Blood Avatar. Let me know in the comments if there are any other examples I'm missing, because I do like the idea of command zone sorceries. I've built a few versions of Awaken the Blood Avatar decks in Arena Brawl, and it can be quite the strong aggro deck in two-player games. As for Ashaya's Enduring Bond, I think it would be smart to build it with the discovery hits you want in mind. The biggest problem is needing a legend out first to cast it, though. Let me know if you have any ideas to make this commander good in the comments — I'm curious to see if anyone can make this sorcery work.

## Eminence is Back?

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<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-18" title="Sahir, Visitor in Darkness" /> is a new eminence commander that pings you in the face whether he's alive or in the command zone. Now this is the kind of value I want out of an eminence commander. If they were all like this, no one would have a problem with the Ur-Dragon or Edgar Markov. If this is the future of eminence as a mechanic, I look forward to more commanders with that keyword. Eminence doing something bad while still synergizing with your commander is exactly the way to balance such a strong ability.

## Lightning Round of Funny Commanders

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<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-17" title="Olinda the Oblivious" /> can make other commanders stinky. This is a clear innovation as well as untapped design space that must be further explored in the future if we hope to ever achieve world peace. Stinkifying your opponents' creatures is objectively hilarious, and one should make stinky jokes while piloting this commander.

<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-32" title="Meatsqueak, Hoard Lord" /> is a king among squirrels. Hoarding food as an archetype is great. This is the kind of food deck I can get behind — one that just hopes to make the food but not eat the food. Plus, the theme of a squirrel hiding away its food for winter feels pretty on point.

<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-41" title="Itazura, Lingering Wick" /> might be my favorite new group slug commander. Making your opponents bid to cast your cool stuff is so much fun! Fill the deck with value (and maybe some artifacts that give Itazura lifelink) and watch the chaos ensue.

<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-28" title="Blor the Impervious" /> would be a 0/0 without his Overprotect spell — a true genius.

<BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-48" title="Olag and Miau, New Friends" /> pairs two unlikely archetypes and is the perfect home for the perfect card, <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-AKH-27" title="Sacred Cat" />. Overall a solid commander that can likely get some solid wins. The art really sells me on this new archetype of cats with zombies.

## But, Is There Evil?!?

There are a few commanders in this set that do seem kind of evil. The most obvious one is <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-40" title="Homer, the Hermit" />, the new mill crab. It probably isn't too evil, but mill can generate some ire from the table for sure. If you build this as a mill deck, you might get got, but if you build this as a reanimator deck, you might win lots.

There are many planeswalker commanders, and a lot of people generally don't like playing against those. Personally I don't mind them, but it is wild that there is a planeswalker aristocrat in the command zone known as <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-51" title="Sifa Grent" />. She might be the most evil of the new planeswalker commanders, but she does seem like she could be pretty fun in an aristocrat goad deck.

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As for me, the one I think is the most evil is <BlogCardLink cardId="MTG-MBC-50" title="Selenia, the Cursed Heart" />. Orzhov lifegain can often imply some of the most heinous and easy to achieve combos in Commander, such as the infamous Exquisite Blood - Sanguine Bond infinite. You don't have to build Selenia like that, and could build a relatively moral lifegain deck, but what seems wicked to me is her death trigger. A deck built around spamming that death trigger, or even just doubling it, could prove to be quite evil. There are so many cheap spells like Supernatural Stamina and Feign Death, and methods to auto-sacrifice creatures like Viscera Seer, that it could be possible to build a deck with the sole purpose of creating Selenia's Curse. Is this strategy a strong one? Probably not, with a six-mana commander, but it does seem like a spite-filled build. You could also conceivably stack curses on a single player if you wanted. Selenia is no Tergrid, God of Fright, but she does seem pretty evil.

All in all, I am excited for this set, but not as stoked for how it's slated to be distributed. Hey, if you can't get your hands on any of these cards, or if they end up really expensive, proxying is great for casual games. Are there any Mystery Booster Commanders that you're interested in? Are there any that you think I should have covered? Please continue the conversation in the comments below!


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Mystery Booster Commander Edition is Full of Great New Cards