What bothers me most about combo is when people think it's acceptable to bring their decks to low-powered tables because the deck isn't hyper competitive. I've seen guests to my playgroup:
- People who insist that their deck isn't a combo deck, proceed to play nothing but lands and defensive cards like Propaganda and evacuation, then when everybody's tapped out draw their entire deck and win the game on the spot.
- People who insist that combo wins aren't the focus of the deck and it's not really all that strong of a combo deck, then proceed to chain three tutors together to win by turn six (again, once everybody's tapped out)
- People who say "this is my pet deck, it's not that strong but I really like it", then proceed to start off with the trifecta of turn one mana rocks and wipe the table before anybody else makes their fourth land drop.
Our playgroup tends to be low-powered because people prefer it like that. Having an environment where new players can join and be relevant, people without the time or energy to build their own decks can simply buy precons, and where everybody can feel like they're contributing to the game, even if they start off with a *****ty hand, it's what attracts people to our playgroup. Quite often however, outsiders tend to either miss the intended power level target, or intentionally misunderstand it, and create problems. Usually with combo.
Testing? What's that? I just mash 99 cards together and give it a try next EDH night.
Though when you've got no MLD and no infinite combos and everybody's pretty chill about having a good time, I guess the playability line is a bit less thin.
I've found Sram, senior edificer to be a good voltron option for those who don't like the traditional pitfalls of voltron (losing to a boardwipe, running out of steam if the game goes long, stuff like that).
oblivion stone needs to be reprinted and it needs to go in every deck. It's the most staple-ey card there is in Commander and it's a serious issue if the cost increase causes players to not have access to it.
There are much fewer games where a lucky start causes a player to run away with the game when everybody at the table has a reset button or two somewhere in their decks.
I think the above situation greatly depends on group power level and meta.
If your playgroup is the type where games last until turn 20+, people generally don't do anything interesting until turn five, and gunning for quick combo wins is considered bad manners, then the dual + fetch mana base isn't really doing a whole lot anyway, except frustrating the other players.
I can understand the equalizing factor proxies have in more "early play-heavy" playgroups however, where you need to be able to swords to plowshares that turn-one hermit druid and/or shattering spree that mana crypt into sol ring turn one play. Generally in my experience people who belong to those playgroups tend to be very pro-proxy anyway since they enjoy the equal playing field.
Like most playgroup-focused issues in EDH, it depends on the playgroup and the only real measure for "good" or "bad" is "does it disrupt group harmony?"
e.g. if everybody at the playgroup understands that outside circumstances (carrying grudges, threats to scoop, "I'll buy you a drink if you don't attack me" bargaining) is fair play and is fine and expects it, then it's not a problem. That's just the way that the playgroup works.
If, however, nobody is really a fan of meta-strategies except for one player who leans heavily on them with the excuse of "it's well within the rules!", that can be a problem similar to bringing a turn four Hermit Druid combo deck to a table of precon-level players with the defense of "nothing in my deck is banned!".
Additionally, playing in unfamiliar playgroups could have similar issues, such as someone going in for the lethal attack under the assumption that he's going to gain enough life back to survive the swingback. If his previous experience has shown that an opponent scooping is not kosher, he might be in for a bad experience when he finds out this playgroup has no such issue with spite scooping.
So in summary I don't think it's a rules issue. It's a playgroup issue, similar to how some playgroups prefer no mass land destruction or no "counter or win" spells.
Let's make one thing clear here: EDH is a social format, so first and foremost the primary concern is if all participating members of a particular playgroup are enjoying the metagame. If everybody enjoys and prefers hour-long battlecruiser games with no instant-win combos or "counter or lose" cards, that's fine. If everybody enjoys cutthroat turn-four "counter or lose" combos and the expectation that everyone at the table should have counters and removal available at all times, that's also fine. One side of the spectrum is not more wrong or more right than the other; it's more about making sure everybody involved are playing the flavor of EDH they enjoy.
With that said, what has been shown to be a problem for EDH in the past (if you use the banlist as a guide) is when cards and strategies cause group harmony issues because they look like they should fit in the former category but in practice belong in the latter category. For the most part infect isn't too much of a problem with that in mind, though there are a few "oops I ruined the game" situations like the aforementioned Xenagos/Phyrexian Hydra combo.
I have an ephara, god of the polis deck that has a heavy clone subtheme. Ephara is a great commander for this because as long as you have enough cards that create creatures, you basically don't have to put any draw effects at all in your deck, leaving a lot more deckspace for clones!
For me it's Ephara, God of the Polis. I love the card and the colors but I just don't know how to build her or how to win with her. If you have any idea, please message me.
I made a thread a while back, still using the same deck and the fundamental use of the commander is the same (play a creature each turn and she turns into an indestructible phyrexian arena), but the focus has since shifted more toward clone effects, difficult-to-kill beaters, and removal-on-legs. The mana curve can actually get quite high without any significant ramp simply because you can stall the game out while drawing a bunch of cards, so you're naturally playing a land every turn and never missing a drop.
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- People who insist that their deck isn't a combo deck, proceed to play nothing but lands and defensive cards like Propaganda and evacuation, then when everybody's tapped out draw their entire deck and win the game on the spot.
- People who insist that combo wins aren't the focus of the deck and it's not really all that strong of a combo deck, then proceed to chain three tutors together to win by turn six (again, once everybody's tapped out)
- People who say "this is my pet deck, it's not that strong but I really like it", then proceed to start off with the trifecta of turn one mana rocks and wipe the table before anybody else makes their fourth land drop.
Our playgroup tends to be low-powered because people prefer it like that. Having an environment where new players can join and be relevant, people without the time or energy to build their own decks can simply buy precons, and where everybody can feel like they're contributing to the game, even if they start off with a *****ty hand, it's what attracts people to our playgroup. Quite often however, outsiders tend to either miss the intended power level target, or intentionally misunderstand it, and create problems. Usually with combo.
1
Though when you've got no MLD and no infinite combos and everybody's pretty chill about having a good time, I guess the playability line is a bit less thin.
1
1
1
There are much fewer games where a lucky start causes a player to run away with the game when everybody at the table has a reset button or two somewhere in their decks.
1
If your playgroup is the type where games last until turn 20+, people generally don't do anything interesting until turn five, and gunning for quick combo wins is considered bad manners, then the dual + fetch mana base isn't really doing a whole lot anyway, except frustrating the other players.
I can understand the equalizing factor proxies have in more "early play-heavy" playgroups however, where you need to be able to swords to plowshares that turn-one hermit druid and/or shattering spree that mana crypt into sol ring turn one play. Generally in my experience people who belong to those playgroups tend to be very pro-proxy anyway since they enjoy the equal playing field.
2
e.g. if everybody at the playgroup understands that outside circumstances (carrying grudges, threats to scoop, "I'll buy you a drink if you don't attack me" bargaining) is fair play and is fine and expects it, then it's not a problem. That's just the way that the playgroup works.
If, however, nobody is really a fan of meta-strategies except for one player who leans heavily on them with the excuse of "it's well within the rules!", that can be a problem similar to bringing a turn four Hermit Druid combo deck to a table of precon-level players with the defense of "nothing in my deck is banned!".
Additionally, playing in unfamiliar playgroups could have similar issues, such as someone going in for the lethal attack under the assumption that he's going to gain enough life back to survive the swingback. If his previous experience has shown that an opponent scooping is not kosher, he might be in for a bad experience when he finds out this playgroup has no such issue with spite scooping.
So in summary I don't think it's a rules issue. It's a playgroup issue, similar to how some playgroups prefer no mass land destruction or no "counter or win" spells.
2
With that said, what has been shown to be a problem for EDH in the past (if you use the banlist as a guide) is when cards and strategies cause group harmony issues because they look like they should fit in the former category but in practice belong in the latter category. For the most part infect isn't too much of a problem with that in mind, though there are a few "oops I ruined the game" situations like the aforementioned Xenagos/Phyrexian Hydra combo.
1
1
I made a thread a while back, still using the same deck and the fundamental use of the commander is the same (play a creature each turn and she turns into an indestructible phyrexian arena), but the focus has since shifted more toward clone effects, difficult-to-kill beaters, and removal-on-legs. The mana curve can actually get quite high without any significant ramp simply because you can stall the game out while drawing a bunch of cards, so you're naturally playing a land every turn and never missing a drop.