u/westergames81

So I went to play commander at my LGS on Monday evening. I'm running a little late but I don't mind joining game late and making people wait on me. I find some kids playing precons so I tell them I pretty much have a precon-- just a TMNT one I've upgraded. NBD.

To start, I kept a pretty bad hand and that is largely their fault. For most of the game I'm sitting on three lands and 8+ CMC creatures. I try to play a few things but they remove my artifacts with pest infestation, no biggie-- the shuffler is screwing me here and this is a forced loss. Meanwhile The Sauron player is amassing a MASSIVE orc army, the elemental player has numerous big flying elementals and a big board and the witherbloom player is doing witherbloom things.

Now I'm pretty much a pro so I'm basically playing speed chess here, but they are all playing soooo slowly, especially the elementals player. My turns are fast because I'm good and have nothing to do, but they like actually take game actions on their turn.

It's pretty clear that The Sauron and Elementals are the threats. Either player could run away with the game if not kept in check. I decided to kill the elementals player commander and that is when things turned nasty.

The elementals player TALKED to me. I'm just like bro, I've been playing since I was 15 and you dare question my judgement here? This person is super tilted and I completely keep my cool.

I mean I'm still angry about it today and I was ready to pack up my stuff and walk away at that point but I wasn't angry. I just felt VERY insulted by what he said. Who the fuck talks to people about game actions during a game!?

Anyways, it's nearly door prize time and I need that single pack of Spider-Man so I bless them enough to stay. There's a lot of back and forth in the game, lots of swinging, and power shifts. I bet these kids thought this was a good game but this was probably the worst game of commander EVER.

So yeah, stupidly long game we didn't finish, slow players, complaining player, getting insulted for targeting a player clearly in a commanding position and being mana screwed. Such fun.

I'm currently in the process of editing a sort of exhaustive video going over the 10 decks of commander which are listed below. Which are your favorites? And which one do you think are the strongest/weakest? Feel free to discuss so I can have content to put in my big youtube video as my own.

1. The One Ring
2. Technically bracket 2
3. Thoracle combo
4. Lifegain
5. My deck is a bracket 4 but it really belongs in bracket 2
6. Bracket 3 deck
7. Solitaire player
8. Simic nonsense
9. Extra turns nonsense
10. Combo

I like to play bracket 3 commander. True bracket 3. Cards like Metalworker absolutely do not belong in any game of Commander I play, save that for bracket 5. In fact, game changers just aren't allowed in bracket 3.

You see, the bracket system is just a starting point. When using it, the first thing you do is say you're bracket 3 and then ignore the rest of the bracket info. The real game is the conversation before the game and the lessons you learn about your opponents deck before the game.

I create a QR code for every deck I make so when I sit down for a game I can force every to download my deck list. They MUST study it and identify every combo while I calmly and slowly explain every aspect of my deck. If it's a newer player, I actually have a powerpoint presentation on my laptop I can show players that also explains every rule they will need to know to play against me.

You see, I care so much more about the hour long pregame conversation and making sure my pod enjoys all my spreadsheets of information. Those players that just build a bracket 3 deck and then sit down with their single game changers are ruining the game by making things lopsided.

Every time I play Kinnan my opponents immediately concede. If I played him on turn 2 and I go second and my opponents concede that's 4 lands!

My table warned me that it might be considered MLD but I played it anyways and I want people to know if I'm being unreasonable here.

PSA time boys.

Board wipes should only be used as a strategy to setup your board state. If you're using a board wipe as removal, you're just needlessly prolonging the game. There's no strategy there!

Wiping without winning that turn is a no from me.