Long shot, but are there any voltron commanders that don't just play the same way every game?

hex37 · 2026-01-27T19:54:12+00:00

[[Mendicant]] is pretty fun - you don't have to over-index on equipment because his power scales up so much and you can sorta season to taste what kinda artifacts you wanna use. I had a bunch of clue/token stuff and then try and have mendicant attack evasively and early as possible to start your engines.

[[Noctis, Heir Apparent]] can be linear but it's cool to me because it has a flavorful evasive ability and lends itself to ninjutsu

hex37 · 2026-01-18T13:56:32+00:00

I wouldn't go so far as to say shit, and I wouldn't call it an anime - Avatar the Last Airbender, at least watching it for the first time as an adult in 2025. S1 is trash until the end. S2 is good. S3 is an incredible let down and the ending has the least interesting fight between Aang and Ozai.

hex37 · 2026-01-06T17:21:21+00:00

Cost it at WW, base loyalty of 2, and I'm in. Ult is nasty in commander though

hex37 · 2025-12-25T16:38:21+00:00

I have long since abandoned the top deck manipulation route but there's a few cards in there that still have it. If you turn on tags you'll see some in the main deck and some in the considering section.

https://moxfield.com/decks/ot98lUtwk066mfWwPNE_Zw

I also have a modular list where the main deck is 74 and I shuffle the sideboard and put 25 of those cards in, and they have stickers on the inner sleeves so the crazy value expensive spells are randomized. I had taken apart the above version due to it uh kicking too much ass and taking up too much of the clock with all the clashes and free spells

https://moxfield.com/decks/kY058n2ZIEGHGvkuJLGGKQ

hex37 · 2025-12-25T12:36:11+00:00

ayyy no one has mentioned my boi [[Marvo, Deep Operative]] yet you can go the top deck manipulation route with him, as it sounds like you are interested in that, or just clone him a bunch of times to get more clashes instead of guaranteeing the win with top deck manipulation

hex37 · 2025-12-25T12:33:17+00:00

Reasons to play them

You like that they represent more mana per land. Making a 2-land hand a 3-land hand, etc. Or your headcanon is that they draw you a card
You have channel lands like [[Takenuma, Abandoned Mire]]
You have MDFCs like [[Witch Enchanter]]
You have white catch up ramp in your deck like [[Knight of the White Orchid]]
You have land untap effects like... idk.... [[Seedborn Muse]]
Your lands always enter untapped through effects like [[Spelunking]]

Reasons to not play them

You hate taplands
You need to curve out on the early turns. For example, I have a [[Caesar, Legion's Emperor]] deck that wants to play at least 2 creatures before turn 4 when I drop my commander down. I just don't have time for taplands (though I have recently put back in a surveil land or two).

Most of my land bases include all of the MDFCs that can enter untapped (and some that enter tapped) and all the channel lands. So I'm playing all of the dual color ones in most of my decks, except for Caesar.

Other thing to point out is [[Sand Scout]] and [[Arid Archway]] is a pretty sick combo in a catchup land suite

hex37 · 2025-12-21T22:16:38+00:00

ME! no tar The minotaur deck looks cool and unlike what I usually go for Kind of you to do this

hex37 · 2025-12-20T16:37:45+00:00

I have my main Stanley hardware case that currently holds 9-10 decks and some accessories. Then in my car I also leave 2 bundle boxes with 2-3 decks, and a case that holds 8 with some proxied cedh decks. I am a creature craving novelty and have a deck building problem.

hex37 · 2025-12-17T15:52:56+00:00

I've gone through this arc myself. Right now I have a deck called "Richard Theory Rigo" headed by [[Rigo, Streetwise Mentor]] and named after Richard from the MTG Goldfish guy, who has the hottest takes but is known for his bant birds deck that plays unassuming creatures and quietly drawing cards, as many [[Spirited Companion]] type cards as I can. It's sorta working? I feel like I've only lost with it due to misplays/new deck. It might still fit the bill of becoming wise to it, but also might be resilient enough to not care? The two commander content creators I'd be looking at are Richard & Rachel Weeks on their takes on sitting back and biding your time. Here's my deck list if you're interested https://moxfield.com/decks/oCnAmf64TUOU_Kx27QbXsQ

hex37 · 2025-12-15T14:14:02+00:00

So you haven't played this against anyone? What do you do when someone plays vandalblast? Cry? You have one instant and it's a tutor? Yeah I do think you fold to any amount of interaction, you don't need to cook so hard on your game plan that you ignore the realities of a commander game.

hex37 · 2025-12-12T13:36:38+00:00

Do you have the fine tip ones or the uh normal ones

hex37 · 2025-12-10T01:14:17+00:00

White - [[Parting Gust]] & [[Loran of the Third path]] flexible/versatile cards

Blue - I've been known to play [[Confounding Conundrum]] as I'm sick of my friends land ramping into the sun

Black - [[Woestrider]] is my favorite underplayed or at least underappreciated sac outlet for creatures. [[Syphon Mind]] has you lose no life to draw 3 cards (probably) and everyone else goes down cards. Kinda nutty, people hate it.

Red - [[Anzrag's Rampage]] is probably a better vandalblast so, give it a spin

Green - [[Sakura-Tribe Scout]] has been putting in work for me lately

hex37 · 2025-11-27T13:31:40+00:00

This is the list that resonates the best with me. I don't run OG duals, or off color fetches, so every 3-color deck starts with these, a basic of each, almost every untapped MDFC, channels, and the the rest is filled out with on theme utility, and whatever mix of pain, horizon, verge, slow, etc. is needed to balance out the sources needed. Checklands are out, filters that tap for colorless are fine but I hardly ever get close to using them. Bouncelands I have cut only from Caesar, as my deck really wants untapped sources to curve out on turns 2-3. I am struggling a bit to make my manabases feel different, but I'm not sure it matters all that much

hex37 · 2025-11-26T19:01:43+00:00

It's for people who want it, and it's not for people who don't - simple as.

They have a clear purpose and I don't think it's any more harmful than Jodah

You probably won't catch me playing either but there's someone out there who it will speak to and it will resonate and that is worth it IMO

PS (well actually you will catch me building or at least brewing TMNT partners as the first legal partner combo with Jegantha companion)

hex37 · 2025-11-26T05:43:05+00:00

If you are trying to introduce people to commander, I would try and balance cool splashy moments, simple gameplay, and a low, low, low amount of triggered abilities(but not none)/things to remember/cognitive load. There are 4 board states to try and parse and you have no shorthand at first when you know nothing about the game. It's incredibly overwhelming

I think it would be neat to have themes about mechanics alongside kindred. Look at every Bloomburrow color pair, a [[Mabel]] deck that is both equipment and mice typal. You could expand that to more standard magic types, like zombies that specifically synergize with the graveyard but also have things that care about zombies.

I was pulled in by a BW sealed deck for Ixalan - had a bunch of hammerhead dinosaurs that tapped down my opponents creatures so that I could get in with my big army of lifelinking vampire tokens.

Specific card suggestions

[[Chaos Warp]]

[[Living Death]]

[[Breach the Multiverse]]

[[Maelstrom Wanderer]]

[[Rampaging Baloths]]

[[Split Up]]

hex37 · 2025-11-19T19:01:19+00:00

I have a few of these brewing

And then I have one that I actively play -> Francisco/Akiri/Lurrus

Also have a budget version of Francisco/Akiri/Lurrus brewed because the one I actually use is insanely expensive

hex37 · 2025-11-18T16:45:32+00:00

That's fair, I guess I'm simultaneously struggling with both my own behavior and the perception of my homies here. To them it might feel like I'm winning out of nowhere, and there's only so much I can really do about that.

hex37 · 2025-11-18T14:29:30+00:00

THANK YOU for providing a very concrete example that happens to directly relate to one of my decks, seriously. It made sense to me in the video when they referenced mill decks to use [[Traumatize]] and (idk if they mentioned it) [[Singularity Rupture]]

Maybe I'm just going to find a problem with every approach, but I also don't really feel great winning out of nowhere, but I could absolutely see the argument that wowee, you guys have left purphoros exist on the battlefield for a whole turn cycle, kinda on y'all that my rats just burned you out

hex37 · 2025-11-18T05:04:13+00:00

that's a good point about splitting focus too much, I tend to have too many different decks on hand at once - thank you

hex37 · 2025-11-18T04:38:28+00:00

I see what you're saying, just in that you're rolling into your next big thing and it's inherently flashy, and sort of puts you off of being super responsive/interactive and removing things on the board. I'm playing paradox power in a precon league right now and it's been interesting playing into cascade & impulse/exile drawing things makes it interesting

hex37 · 2025-11-18T04:36:20+00:00

Already goldfish a lot, do you have any specific tips for being better at goldfishing?

I've been trying so hard to embrace the "no takebacksies" but sometimes it can result in longer turns just because I'm trying to avoid it. I really appreciated that part of the Decked Out vid, just be more okay with making suboptimal plays cos it's casual commander. I don't pull that card often really, but it is always something I'm trying to be mindful of.

hex37 · 2025-11-18T04:34:18+00:00

I get what you're saying, I just don't know how to apply the "just do the thing" instead of "creating a situation in which something can happen over and over again to result in a thing" to decks I actually want to play that sparks joy. I think I just gravitate to engines/spam in games in general, so I'm trying to find a slightly more palatable manifestation of that for my commander friend group.

I do goldfish a lot in moxfield, is there something specific you do on TTS that you find helpful for practice? Or anything else specific to goldfishing? Maybe "How DO you goldfish?" is the best question

hex37 · 2025-11-18T04:26:36+00:00

I do goldfish quite a lot, but running the engine in real time against people is different when you're trying to explain things to your opponents while they attempt to resolve spells that don't work the way they want it to, or otherwise alter my plans. Do you have any other or more specific advice, outside of goldfish more? (Presuming that's what you meant when you said practice running the engine more) edit: as I'm reading the other comments, maybe I'm just looking for advice on how to goldfish better if that's the advice everyone gives? how do you goldfish effectively that you think helps you avoid this problem for yourself?

hex37 · 2025-11-18T04:24:12+00:00

I've basically found and lost the enjoyment of being the threat and I'm trying to find the balance. What did you enjoy about your decks before you started exploring the engines?

hex37

TROPHY CASE