I have teetered back and forth for a long time about writing on this topic. It is controversial by nature. I am talking about getting competitive. About taking your show on the road, as it were. So you win casual games. So you can beat your friends decks. I am going to lay out the seven decks that I consider tier 1. The decks that, built right, will break the format. The decks that I won't even play against unknown opponents. It has been asked for, it shall be given. The tier one decks...and the decks that would be tier one if some additional rules applied. I am currently on a quest to prove my points to my play group; to demonstrate that these decks will, in the absence of dedicated hate, overwhelm the format and create a consistently unfair game.
These decks violate all the social rules of the format. Some of these are banned by the official rules. Knowing that I don't abide by that document you can take my comments with a grain of salt. This, at most, constitutes my personal opinions about the format. Note that, as usual, I am discussing these cards from a 1v1 perspective, but the unique thing about these decks is that they happen to be very strong in multiplayer because they win in broken ways. These decks can certainly be built in such a way that they are fair and engaging and not abusive, but the reverse isn't true of most other decks. I'd love to hear what decks you guys don't want to play against, whether you agree with this list or not.
Since these aren't being presented in any particular order I don't feel bad about starting in a weird spot. Sharuum is probably the most fair and normal of the decks on this list. Most games tend to play out in a pretty normal fashion. The thing that makes this deck so strong is the consistency and resiliency it has. The tutors in this color combination are top notch and you also have access to virtually any kind of disruption you want. Thoughtseize, Mind Twist, Armageddon, Counterspells. These cards make people pretty unhappy. It is pretty miserable to begin a game knowing that you are going to be dead on turn 8 and will never resolve a spell. This is the only three-color general on my list. Consistency is a big part of why these decks are so strong, but Sharuum is different in that it has dozens of possible win conditions that don't overlap and are easy to set up. Isochron locks, Strip Mine + Crucible, Sculpting Steel combos, Mindslaver, pretty basic stuff, but there is much available that I won't bother listing individually. Knowing which win-cons your opponent's deck has can be very tough to figure out pre-match. Unlike the other decks on this list (which experienced players will be familiar with) you can't guess the composition of a Sharuum deck very easily.
This is a little bit more like what I am really talking about. When somebody whips out a Jhoira deck know exactly what they are up to. There really isn't much of a surprise factor here. Mass land destruction -> Resolve Eldrazi. In fact, you can probably guess 94 of the cards in a Jhoira deck right off the bat. Of these seven, this is the only deck that I have actually built and played myself. I can never find opponents that want to battle it...so it doesn't see a whole lot of action.
Another pretty self-explanitory deck. Play braid, preferably early, and proceed to the win phase. You always have access to a Smoke Stack and getting stuck on 3-4 lands means that most Commander decks will never be able to cast even half of their spells. This deck is somewhat less viable in multiplayer, where you will immediately draw tons of hate, but it still is very powerful since the ability affects all players. Keep in mind most of those players are not going to be prepared to play a low-econ game.
A very basic, very consistent combo deck. This deck is actually pretty easy to disrupt, but the fact that this deck is chock full of counterspells means that patient players will be able to force the combo through every time. If don't have counterspells you just can't beat this deck. You try kill the Kiki-jiki, they counter your removal and you lose on the spot. No fun for anyone.
This is the exact same deck as Niv-Mizzet, except the win conditions are slightly different. Note that I am not talking abut the Wizard Tribal version of this deck. I am speaking strictly about the focused combo version, which I think we can all agree is much more competitive and less fun.
Another general that enjoys the dubious distinction of being banned by the 'official' rules. This deck is unique among these seven because it has virtually no disruption and doesn't win with infinite combos. What it does do is make an absurd amount of mana on turn three every single game. Either you mulligan to removal or you get destroyed by a giant monster before you cast anything relevant to the board. Warping the game in this way is exactly what makes these decks so powerful and so unfair.
And here it is, the final card. I am sure that you all guessed this anyway. This is the one true master deck. It was banned the instant the rules committee formed and with good reason. If you have ever tried to build this deck or have played against it you will know why it is so frustrating. Spot removal is rarely effective at preventing the Erayo lock from happening. If they cast Erayo and then you cast a kill spell then they are already halfway to flipping it and trust me, this deck plays plenty of free spells. I don't want to call it unbeatable, because it isn't, but this deck destroys the other 6 on this list and will make a mockery of your typical Commander game, multiplayer or not. The process of actually getting killed will be slow, painful, and embarrassing, but the game is almost always unwinnable by turn three.
Honorable Mentions: Blue Braids, Momir Vig, Arcum Dagsson, Glissa the Traitor. These use the same pieces (infinite combos, overloading on disruption and counterspells, cheating mana requirements), but can't consistently beat all seven of these decks, so I left them off the list, although an explanation of the individual match ups is important in understanding why, I don't have the time or space to do so here. A story for another day I guess. There are a lot of decks that are in my 'tier 2' that are very good, but still play fair and fun so they aren't a problem in the format. Rhys for example.
Bonus section: in competitive 1v1 tournaments the landscape of Commander changes slightly. A more restrictive ban list is implemented, fast mana is restricted, and players are aware of and prepared for the popular decks. In this format there are two other decks that I would consider top tier. I won't spend too much time discussing them,
That's all for today zoners. Leave some comments to let me know what you think about these decks and what role they play in the format. If you think I missed any let me know!
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