But yea, one weird thing i've noticed in the OP's description is about players being finalists. in a 4 player pod, the average is that 1 wins, 3 loses. So if anyone's win % is higher than 25%, that's good. I'm not saying that EDH is a balanced game (it's not), but the fact that some players are always a finalist seems a bit off to me.
In a 4 man pod, 1 win, 3 losses, but in my pod, normally the game ends in a 1v1 fight, so I call a finalist to the last one to die
I have thought about this a lot recently, and I am wondering if there is a dominant strategy among the three strategies mentioned by OP irrespective of the decks present at the table. Do you have a default attack pattern in EDH? What are your experiences?
I think it meta dependant, My playgroup does not like infinite combos very much, so while I do play some combos in my control decks, I do not play the "good ones" or the more competitive or solid ones, but I guess in other playgroups with no problem with those tings early combos can be the most played.
In my meta/pg we normally have a lot of tempo/midrange things abusing sinergies, Atraxa PW, Atraxa counters, Breya full artifacts and control (no combo), Sidisi tokens, Oloro full pillowfort, Markov full vampires/aggro, clerics tribal aggro, mono green animate lands, Marchesa in her both falovours including the stealing dudes one, Alesha, Narset (without extra turns) and a long etcetera.
Most of the decks are midrange/tempo with some doses of control (blue)
My default atack pattern depends on wich deck I am playing
Oloro: I dont attack, I jst sit and see what happends, if some one annoys me I will help someone to kill that player or commit resources to annoy the player back. My goal/strat is to survive to be the last or comboing out.
Markov: I pick one player ang go for it, then a second, then the third, I have lost just 1 game with this strat so far (but to be fair I have play just a few games with edgar)
If everyone's deck is constructed according to format rules and is at an appropriate power level for the group, they're all good. There's no "right" strategy for an EDH game.
Actually that is precisely my point of view, MTG is a strategy game, everyone is his own straegyst and the "right way" for me is the way you feel is worth you more fun/wins/etc
Help me out with a discussion that has arise in my playgroup.
Some players are "pointing each other" that the other one is "playing commander the wrong way" because of their respective playstyles.
These are their oppinions
Player 1: He thinks that in a table of 4, the damage has to be dealt evenly among each player, so there is a balance in the life totals and no one gets deleted early.
He likes playing midrange/tempo decks that normally wins with combat damage, He likes this strategy because is his way to win, when everyone is at lethal range he can "combo out" with a surprise attack and finish the game in 1-2 turns.
He is a god player, normally he has a big impact on the game
Player 2: He likes control decks, he likes politics and always tries to be the last man standing to be able to 1v1 the last player, he does that because he says that for a control deck is easier to win the 1v1 late game against almost any other non control deck, so he tries to survive to be the last.
Unless he has very bad draws he is always a finalist
Player 3: He likes aggro decks, his playstile is picking a victim and go for the thoath, he wins by combat damage only, sometimes he uses politics to get one player ignore him while he atacks one or two. He likes deleting playars one at a time or if his army is huge everyone at a time.
Normally if he dont win he does a pretty good job being a finalist
What do you think? wich one of this ways is "the right way"? is there a right way to play?
In a 4 man pod, 1 win, 3 losses, but in my pod, normally the game ends in a 1v1 fight, so I call a finalist to the last one to die
EDH: RWB Edgar Markov The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Oloro, Ageless ascetic The current updated decklist is here
EDH: UWG Phelddagrif, The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Alela, Artful provocateur The current updated decklist is here
EDH: GB Hapatra, vizier of poisons The current updated decklist is here
I think it meta dependant, My playgroup does not like infinite combos very much, so while I do play some combos in my control decks, I do not play the "good ones" or the more competitive or solid ones, but I guess in other playgroups with no problem with those tings early combos can be the most played.
In my meta/pg we normally have a lot of tempo/midrange things abusing sinergies, Atraxa PW, Atraxa counters, Breya full artifacts and control (no combo), Sidisi tokens, Oloro full pillowfort, Markov full vampires/aggro, clerics tribal aggro, mono green animate lands, Marchesa in her both falovours including the stealing dudes one, Alesha, Narset (without extra turns) and a long etcetera.
Most of the decks are midrange/tempo with some doses of control (blue)
A few aggro decks normally tribal
A very few control decks
And a variety of weird things sometimes, chaos, Mairsil, the pretender, etc
My default atack pattern depends on wich deck I am playing
Oloro: I dont attack, I jst sit and see what happends, if some one annoys me I will help someone to kill that player or commit resources to annoy the player back. My goal/strat is to survive to be the last or comboing out.
Markov: I pick one player ang go for it, then a second, then the third, I have lost just 1 game with this strat so far (but to be fair I have play just a few games with edgar)
EDH: RWB Edgar Markov The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Oloro, Ageless ascetic The current updated decklist is here
EDH: UWG Phelddagrif, The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Alela, Artful provocateur The current updated decklist is here
EDH: GB Hapatra, vizier of poisons The current updated decklist is here
Actually that is precisely my point of view, MTG is a strategy game, everyone is his own straegyst and the "right way" for me is the way you feel is worth you more fun/wins/etc
EDH: RWB Edgar Markov The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Oloro, Ageless ascetic The current updated decklist is here
EDH: UWG Phelddagrif, The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Alela, Artful provocateur The current updated decklist is here
EDH: GB Hapatra, vizier of poisons The current updated decklist is here
Some players are "pointing each other" that the other one is "playing commander the wrong way" because of their respective playstyles.
These are their oppinions
Player 1: He thinks that in a table of 4, the damage has to be dealt evenly among each player, so there is a balance in the life totals and no one gets deleted early.
He likes playing midrange/tempo decks that normally wins with combat damage, He likes this strategy because is his way to win, when everyone is at lethal range he can "combo out" with a surprise attack and finish the game in 1-2 turns.
He is a god player, normally he has a big impact on the game
Player 2: He likes control decks, he likes politics and always tries to be the last man standing to be able to 1v1 the last player, he does that because he says that for a control deck is easier to win the 1v1 late game against almost any other non control deck, so he tries to survive to be the last.
Unless he has very bad draws he is always a finalist
Player 3: He likes aggro decks, his playstile is picking a victim and go for the thoath, he wins by combat damage only, sometimes he uses politics to get one player ignore him while he atacks one or two. He likes deleting playars one at a time or if his army is huge everyone at a time.
Normally if he dont win he does a pretty good job being a finalist
What do you think? wich one of this ways is "the right way"? is there a right way to play?
EDH: RWB Edgar Markov The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Oloro, Ageless ascetic The current updated decklist is here
EDH: UWG Phelddagrif, The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Yennett, Cryptic Sovereign The current updated decklist is here
EDH: WUB Alela, Artful provocateur The current updated decklist is here
EDH: GB Hapatra, vizier of poisons The current updated decklist is here