Commander Theory

There comes a time in every review cycle when the two hosts of a podcast make time to get together and look at every new card in the Lord of the Rings, Tales of Middle Earth Commander Decklists. For Nick and Zak, that time was last weekend. What are the deck themes, and which themes do the two hosts like the best? What cards are the coolest for the command zone and in the 99? Well, there's a lot here so listen in and tell us your favorite cards too! 

Decklists:

Beregond of the Guard 

The Gaffer 

Treebeard, Gracious Host 

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The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

There are a LOT of options for cards to play in Commander (basically all of them!), but that doesn't mean all cards get the love they deserve! On this episode Nick and Zak are joined once again by Valerio, better known as Golgariguy on Twitter, to discuss cards that have played incredibly well, but see play in 1% or less of decks on EDHREC.  There are a lot of hidden gems in this episode, but also some straight-up surprises, so listen in, and let us know your favorite underplayed cards as well! 

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You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

What's middle earth bringing to the 111th birthday this year? Well, a whole lot of new Magic cards! Nick and Zak dive straight into the nitty-gritty of the new set, talking about all the cards they think could have a splash in Commander.  What's blue look like in a more casual set? How does mono-brown card draw fair in a world where white can, well, just draw cards on its own? And how many legends will we bring up from the last episode in this one? Listen in and find out! 

Also want to say thank you for your patience. It's a lot prepping, recording, and editing these episodes so we thank you for being ok with this one coming out a little late. Enjoy, and as always, let us know what you think! 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

It's finally here! Nick and Zak get into the legends from the set that are poised to make a splash and there are a lot of them! If you don't hear us talking about your favorite new commander from the main set let us know! We'd love to hear about what you'd do to build them. 

Decklists:

Gandalf, The White 

Gandalf, White Rider (yes there's two white Gandalfs!)

Goldberry, River-Daughter submitted by Dionaea

Erekbrand, Lord of Westfold 

Fanghorn, Tree Shepherd  

Radagast the Brown 

Arwen, Mortal Queen 

King of the Oathbreakers 

Shelob, Child of Ungoliant 

Smeagle, Helpful Guide 

Galadriel of Lothlorien 

Shadowfax, Lord of Horses 

Sauron, The Dark Lord 

Tom Bombadill 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

Oh Boy! Our very first in the series before we knew we'd be doing it more! Due to some conflicts, this week will be a rerun episode, but we wanted to look back to an episode we really liked and to name it officially as part of the series. The Dark will always be a special set to both of us, and we hope you can hear that in this episode too. 

Next week is the beginning of Lord Of The Rings, so get ready! We're not going to be able to cover every legend in the set, but we're gonna do our best! See you all then! 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

Nick and Zak are busy, which means more time away from the game table and friends. So how do they cope? Historic Brawl! The cohosts have sung the praises of the format before, but in this episode the two talk about what could be done to improve the format. What are queues like and how can you game them? Is that they best way things could be? Wether you play the format or not, there's some card discussion and meta-analysis of player experiences that you might find interesting, so listen in and let us know how you feel about historic brawl too! 

Sorry for the late episode this week! Some mix-ups in queues meant the episode was delayed, but we'll be back this week with regularly scheduled content. 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

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The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

There are so many new cards, maybe you'd appreciate a blast from the past? This episode looks back at Portal, one of the first supplemental products for Magic: The Gathering that was intended as an on-ramp for new players. But did it work? What did they do differently? And what was the set's lasting impact on commander? Join Nick and Zak as they look back and talk about some stories of their favorite cards from Portal, and let us know if you have any favorites too! 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

So you saw a cool legend on the backside of a battle and were wishing you could play it as a commander, huh? Well, Nick and Zak look back at not just battles, but a lot of cards that are part legendary creature, just not in the way you can helm a deck with them. The "Flip" commanders! Whether it's MDFC or actual "flip cards" from Kamigawa block, we hope you might be inspired to play a commander that might not be a commander most of the time. 

Decklists:

Caetus, Sea Tyrant of Segovia 

Marchesa, Resolute Monarch 

Ephara, Ever-Sheltering 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

Does it count as lying if you didn't know it wasn't going to be true in a week? Nick and Zak have one last (we mean it!) spoiler episode for this cycle, and it's some of the most notable cards from March of the Machine: Aftermath! This set is interesting for a lot of reasons. It has 5/6 card boosters, a 50-ish card set (don't look at the variants), and some rad new commanders! Every mythic and some rares are new legendary creatures! So let's get into it, and let us know what your favorite (or least favorite!) things are in the set!

Nissa, Resurgent Animist
Ob Nixilis, Captive Kingpin
Calix, Guided by Faith
Sigarda, Font of Blessings
Jirina, Dauntless General
Tyvar the Bellicose
Jolrael, Voice of Zhalfir
Kiora, Sovereign of the Deep
Sarkhan, Soul Aflame
Nahiri, Forged in Fury
Niv-Mizzet, Supreme
Karn, Legacy Reforged

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)

Nick and Zak try to stay on top of what people tend to want to play from sets as a thermometer on the format, so predictions are here! What happened with All Will Be One? Did the two co-hosts hit the mark? And what do they think will be popular this time? The co-hosts get in the weeds about specific cards and reasons people might like them, so if you're into some nitty-gritty card analysis this is a great episode for you! 

Support the show

You can reach me on Twitter or email me here

If you like the podcast, please support it on Patreon! Now with ad-free episodes!

If you're planning on shopping with TCGPlayer, you can support the show by using our affiliate link. It costs you nothing and earns money for the show!

The opening theme is Lincoln Continental by Entrophy (now Nic Cage on Soundcloud)