Responding to a question about the possibility of a "commander masters" set on Blogatog a couple of months back, Mark Rosewater reported that such a set would require cards that do not yet exist. One of the challenges that I could see for such a set is fairly simple. In a reprint-based commander set, Wizards would likely want to have the freedom to reprint mono-color commanders and the color identity rule kind of gets in the way. Players would come to the experience expecting that any legendary creature in the packs could be used as a commander but players can't reliably force 1-color decks in draft environments. Without a partner-esque mechanic to let one-color slots hold legendary creatures, you run into some real logistical problems. To have such a set, you'd need a mechanic to tack on a color to a previously one-color commander.
My original thoughts for such a mechanic would be to create "conspiracy-like" cards for use in drafts only, allowing cards to break the rules without affecting the commander format in general. Given the larger deck sizes required for commander drafts, however, I think that having cards that literally cannot exist in your 59/58 is a bit of a risk.
Instead, taking a page from the background mechanic, I created a series of legendary instants and sorceries called Tactics. If you have a commander whose color identity includes no more than one color, you may have a Tactic as a second commander. In addition to the normal casting limitations of legendary instants and sorceries, however, starting the game with a Tactic increases the cost to cast spells from your command zone by 2.
1. As using a tactic essentially starts all of your commanders (including the tactic itself) with a commander tax, using a tactic isn't necessarily the optimal choice if you want to afford your commander as fast as possible (unless using specific combos, of course).
2. You cannot use a tactic as a third commander with partners. As partners can reach 3-4 colors, Tactics aren't the best option for making color soup decks that don't care about the commander.
3. The two commanders who completely cheat their commander tax, Yuriko and Derevi, cannot be combined with Tactics as they have more than one color in their identity. No free commander for them.
4. You can finally add a color to your non-morophon eldrazi/Traxos/Karn deck.
Even with all of that in mind, Tactics is a fairly volatile mechanic with the ability to break about as easily as storm. Below are the sample cards that I came up with but I would appreciate assistance with tweaking/rebalancing them to minimize the potential for harm (keeping in mind that these cards will generally cost +2 mana when cast from the command zone). The 4-MV cycle was designed to be self-sustaining over time.
Prepare for War
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
If Prepare for War is your commander, choose a color before the game begins. Prepare for War is the chosen color
Put a +1/+1 counter or loyalty counter on target commander you control. Draw a card.
Plea for Mercy
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, creatures you control with power 3 or less gain indestructible until end of turn. Otherwise, scry 2.
Learn from the Ancestors
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Return a noncreature card of target opponent’s choice from your graveyard to your hand.
Attack as One
Legendary Instant – Tactic (U)
Tactic (You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Distribute X +1/+1 counters between any number of target creatures you control, where X is the number of creatures you control.
Call Reinforcements
Legendary Instant - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Convoke
Untap each nontoken creature you control. Create two 1/1 white soldier creature tokens.
Pyrrhic Victory
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Starting with you, each player chooses Survive or Protect. Each player who chooses Survive sacrifices all creatures except for up to one legendary creature. Each player who chooses Protect sacrifices all creatures except for up to two nonlegendary creatures.
Assert Will
Legendary Instant – Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, counter up to one target noncreature spell. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Evoke Hostility
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Goad target creature an opponent controls. It cannot be blocked until your next turn.
Double Up
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Create a token that’s a copy of target creature you control.
Consult the Archives
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Buyback Tap all untapped permanents you control.
Scry 2. Draw 2 cards.
Long-Term Machinations
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (R)
Exile the top three cards of your library. For each card exiled in this way with mana value one or greater, put a number of time counters on that card equal to its mana value and that card gains suspend.
Crush Opposition
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, target nonlegendary creature gets -5/-5 until end of turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Cruel Interrogation
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Each player discards a card and loses X life, where X is 5 minus the mana value of the discarded card (X may not be lower than 0).
Unhallowed Ranks
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
Tactic (You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Return a creature card from target opponent’s graveyard of their choice to the battlefield under your control. At the beginning of your next end step, if it has power 4 or greater, sacrifice it.
Drive to Madness
Legendary Instant - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Delve
The next time a creature dies this turn, you and target opponent each mill X, where X is twice the number of times you have cast a commander from your command zone this game.
Blight with Misfortune
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Target opponent mills 13. Their life total becomes 13.
Channel Madness
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, double target creature’s power until end of turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Leave No Quarter
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Split-Second
Until your next turn, players cannot be life or search their library.
Until your next turn, spells and abilities cannot be countered by spells or abilities.
Assemble the Horde
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Exile the top five cards of your library. You may cast creature cards exiled in this way until the end of your next turn.
Scavenge Supplies
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Improvise
Each player sacrifices a nontoken artifact and creates two tapped treasure tokens.
Fog of War
Legendary Instant - Tactic (R)
You may only cast Fog of War during postcombat main phases.
Untap and goad all creatures that attacked this turn. After this phase, there is an additional combat phase followed by an additional main phase.
Guerilla Warfare
Legendary Instant – Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, prevent all combat damage that would be dealt this turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Ready the Stockpile
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Mana doesn’t drain from your mana pool as steps and phases end until the end of your next precombat main phase.
Use the Terrain
Legendary Instant – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Choose two-
Untap target creature
Target creature gains deathtouch until end of turn.
Target creature gains hexproof until end of turn.
Target creature gains reach until end of turn.
Survey the Surroundings
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Affinity for Basic Lands
Search your library for a basic land and put it into play tapped, then shuffle.
Slaughter the Weak
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Creatures you control get +3/+3 and gain vigilance until end of turn.
All creatures must block this turn if able.
Designing the "open partner" ability to only work with mono-colored commanders is a good safety valve. The commander tax part is clunky, but something like that may just be necessary.
The biggest downside to this, especially your 4 MV ones, is creating repetitive game states in the same way buyback does. Typical commanders hit the battlefield and then usually stick around for a while while you do other things on your turns. "Commander spells" will immediately return to the command zone to be cast again the next turn, even if they get countered.
Instead of the added commander tax and being legendary spells, I'd suggest a limitation similar to how backgrounds were implemented - make the spells only do something (or something meaningful) if your other commander is in play. Then your opponents can turn off the spell by killing the on board commander. That also ties into the flavor of it being a "signature spell" of the commander.
Blight with Misfortune 3BB
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Target opponent mills 13. If you control a commander permanent, their life total becomes 13.
Private Mod Note
():
Rollback Post to RevisionRollBack
To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
My original thoughts for such a mechanic would be to create "conspiracy-like" cards for use in drafts only, allowing cards to break the rules without affecting the commander format in general. Given the larger deck sizes required for commander drafts, however, I think that having cards that literally cannot exist in your 59/58 is a bit of a risk.
Instead, taking a page from the background mechanic, I created a series of legendary instants and sorceries called Tactics. If you have a commander whose color identity includes no more than one color, you may have a Tactic as a second commander. In addition to the normal casting limitations of legendary instants and sorceries, however, starting the game with a Tactic increases the cost to cast spells from your command zone by 2.
1. As using a tactic essentially starts all of your commanders (including the tactic itself) with a commander tax, using a tactic isn't necessarily the optimal choice if you want to afford your commander as fast as possible (unless using specific combos, of course).
2. You cannot use a tactic as a third commander with partners. As partners can reach 3-4 colors, Tactics aren't the best option for making color soup decks that don't care about the commander.
3. The two commanders who completely cheat their commander tax, Yuriko and Derevi, cannot be combined with Tactics as they have more than one color in their identity. No free commander for them.
4. You can finally add a color to your non-morophon eldrazi/Traxos/Karn deck.
Even with all of that in mind, Tactics is a fairly volatile mechanic with the ability to break about as easily as storm. Below are the sample cards that I came up with but I would appreciate assistance with tweaking/rebalancing them to minimize the potential for harm (keeping in mind that these cards will generally cost +2 mana when cast from the command zone). The 4-MV cycle was designed to be self-sustaining over time.
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
If Prepare for War is your commander, choose a color before the game begins. Prepare for War is the chosen color
Put a +1/+1 counter or loyalty counter on target commander you control. Draw a card.
Plea for Mercy
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, creatures you control with power 3 or less gain indestructible until end of turn. Otherwise, scry 2.
Learn from the Ancestors
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Return a noncreature card of target opponent’s choice from your graveyard to your hand.
Attack as One
Legendary Instant – Tactic (U)
Tactic (You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Distribute X +1/+1 counters between any number of target creatures you control, where X is the number of creatures you control.
Call Reinforcements
Legendary Instant - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Convoke
Untap each nontoken creature you control. Create two 1/1 white soldier creature tokens.
Pyrrhic Victory
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Starting with you, each player chooses Survive or Protect. Each player who chooses Survive sacrifices all creatures except for up to one legendary creature. Each player who chooses Protect sacrifices all creatures except for up to two nonlegendary creatures.
Assert Will
Legendary Instant – Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, counter up to one target noncreature spell. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Evoke Hostility
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Goad target creature an opponent controls. It cannot be blocked until your next turn.
Double Up
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Create a token that’s a copy of target creature you control.
Consult the Archives
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Buyback Tap all untapped permanents you control.
Scry 2. Draw 2 cards.
Long-Term Machinations
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (R)
Exile the top three cards of your library. For each card exiled in this way with mana value one or greater, put a number of time counters on that card equal to its mana value and that card gains suspend.
Crush Opposition
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, target nonlegendary creature gets -5/-5 until end of turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Cruel Interrogation
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Each player discards a card and loses X life, where X is 5 minus the mana value of the discarded card (X may not be lower than 0).
Unhallowed Ranks
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
Tactic (You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Return a creature card from target opponent’s graveyard of their choice to the battlefield under your control. At the beginning of your next end step, if it has power 4 or greater, sacrifice it.
Drive to Madness
Legendary Instant - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Delve
The next time a creature dies this turn, you and target opponent each mill X, where X is twice the number of times you have cast a commander from your command zone this game.
Blight with Misfortune
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Target opponent mills 13. Their life total becomes 13.
Channel Madness
Legendary Instant - Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, double target creature’s power until end of turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Leave No Quarter
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Split-Second
Until your next turn, players cannot be life or search their library.
Until your next turn, spells and abilities cannot be countered by spells or abilities.
Assemble the Horde
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Exile the top five cards of your library. You may cast creature cards exiled in this way until the end of your next turn.
Scavenge Supplies
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Improvise
Each player sacrifices a nontoken artifact and creates two tapped treasure tokens.
Fog of War
Legendary Instant - Tactic (R)
You may only cast Fog of War during postcombat main phases.
Untap and goad all creatures that attacked this turn. After this phase, there is an additional combat phase followed by an additional main phase.
Guerilla Warfare
Legendary Instant – Tactic (C)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Clash with target opponent. If you win the clash, prevent all combat damage that would be dealt this turn. Otherwise, Scry 2.
Ready the Stockpile
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Mana doesn’t drain from your mana pool as steps and phases end until the end of your next precombat main phase.
Use the Terrain
Legendary Instant – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Choose two-
Untap target creature
Target creature gains deathtouch until end of turn.
Target creature gains hexproof until end of turn.
Target creature gains reach until end of turn.
Survey the Surroundings
Legendary Sorcery – Tactic (U)
(You may use a card with Tactic as a second commander if your other commander’s color identity has no more than one color. Casting spells from the command zone costs you 2 more if you started the game with such a commander).
Affinity for Basic Lands
Search your library for a basic land and put it into play tapped, then shuffle.
Slaughter the Weak
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Creatures you control get +3/+3 and gain vigilance until end of turn.
All creatures must block this turn if able.
The biggest downside to this, especially your 4 MV ones, is creating repetitive game states in the same way buyback does. Typical commanders hit the battlefield and then usually stick around for a while while you do other things on your turns. "Commander spells" will immediately return to the command zone to be cast again the next turn, even if they get countered.
Instead of the added commander tax and being legendary spells, I'd suggest a limitation similar to how backgrounds were implemented - make the spells only do something (or something meaningful) if your other commander is in play. Then your opponents can turn off the spell by killing the on board commander. That also ties into the flavor of it being a "signature spell" of the commander.
Blight with Misfortune 3BB
Legendary Sorcery - Tactic (R)
Target opponent mills 13. If you control a commander permanent, their life total becomes 13.