Art by Mark TedinOVERVIEW
This cube replicates much the feel of a constructed game of commander while still being a rewarding limited draft environment. This list is packed with commander staples, haymakers, and powerful spells and effects that should come together into powerful and fun commander decks that would dominate any preconstructed commander deck.
SPECIFIC TO THIS CUBE• Snow: All the basic lands are snow covered basic lands. There are a few cards in the list that synergize with snow lands, snow mana, or snow permanents. Many of the non-basic lands available to be drafted will be snow lands as well, however, you will always have access to snow basics
• Non-Singleton: This cube breaks with traditional cube design philosophy and has multiple copies of some of cards. For deck construction purposes the singleton rule of commander is not in effect, and you can include as many copies of a specific card as you are able to draft. Up to ten copies of cards like Command Tower, Arcane Signet, and Arcum's Astrolabe can be found within this list.
• Planeswalkers: Any Planeswalker can be a commander. This gives drafters more options when drafting their decks. Color identity rules and commander tax rules apply to planeswalkers just like they would for a legendary creature.
• Partner Mechanic: All legendary creatures with only one color in their color identity are errata to have the partner mechanic. Any mono-colored legendary creature can partner with any other mono-colored legendary creature. This ensures that two color decks are very easy to draft and build. There is a very high density of mono-colored legendary creatures in this cube, so the partner combo possibilities are nearly unlimited.
• Friends Forever Mechanic: This cube treats the friends forever mechanic just like partner. Any legendary creature with the friends forever ability can partner with any other legendary creature with partner.
• The Nephilim: This cube treats the four remaining Nephilim within it as if they were legendary creatures. They can be commanders with four colors of color identity.
DRAFTING THIS CUBE
• Packs: This cube is designed to be drafted by up to eight drafters. We will be given four packs of twenty cards and drafted similarly to Commander Legends making two draft picks at a time each pick. The cards drafted become your draft pool from which you will construct a commander deck. You will end the draft with eighty cards in your draft pool. Drafting the extra pack helps one- and two-color commander decks to have enough playable cards to build a sixty-card deck and gives all decks a boost in power level so that the games play out like a traditional Commander experience.
• Deck Requirements: Draft Commander decks must be exactly 60 cards including your Commander(s).
BANT Flicker and Gating
*Blink creatures in and out of existence to abuse their “enters the battlefield abilities” repeatedly for value. Focus on drafting cards with strong ETB abilities. While this theme is rooted heavily in Bant, it is possible to draft x flicker decks as well.
ESPER Control*Dominate and control the battlefield. Utilize 's powerful boardwipes and removal spells to allow you to find and assemble late game lock and combo pieces. provides counter spells to counter your opponent's threatening spells or just steal them outright.
GRIXIS Big Spells*Cast the biggest and baddest known spells in the multiverse... and then cast them all over again. Use copy effects to get double duty out of your spells or cheat them onto the stack and then later flash them back from your graveyard. When your are throwing these kinds of haymakers around you won't need very many of them to connect in order to bring your opponents to their knees in submission.
JUND Sacrifice for fun and profit- What do you have a bunch of token producers? why, sacrifice them for fun and profit of course. You know that the things that hurt you a little will hurt your opponent's so much more. You also know that death is only the beginning for your creatures as you can always bring them back later to introduce even more mayhem to the battlefield.
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Naya Tokens*Make tokens and then make more tokens. Make some more tokens and then make them huge and turn them sideways. The tokens deck wants to go as wide as possible, flooding the board with as many Soldiers, Elves, Angels Goblins etc. Eventually your opponent's won't be able to block them all.
MARDU Aggro*Play efficient attackers and equip them with powerful ancient relics. . The best defense is a strong offense so keep your guard up by pressuring a constant barrage of attacks against your opponents. Strike fast, strike hard, and strike often.
TEMUR Cheat Creatures*Big creatures win games, but why pay full retail for a creature when you can cheat it into play way ahead of curve? Ramp, discount, cascade, or just straight up drop your thickest boys directly onto the battlefield. While your opponents are still struggling to summon 2/2s and 3/3s you'll be swinging with 8/8s and 10/10s. Be sure to pick up some the effects that also reward you for playing big creatures or for having the biggest creature on the battlefield.
ABZAN +1/+1 Counters*Use powerful enchantments and effects to manipulate and double your creature's +1/+1 counters. Grow your creatures to colossal sizes. Keep you eyes open for infinite combos and creature synergies.
JESKAI Spellslinger*Your prowess at casting a furious barrage of instance and sorceries in unparalled. Each spell you casts rewards you in some way. Cost reducers for your fast effects keep the spells coming.
SULTAI Reanimator / Graveyard Shenanigans*Reuse and recycle your best creatures over and over again. Death is no excuse for your creatures to fail you so bring them back to keep fighting. Treat your graveyard just like a second hand and keep it full.
FIVE COLOR DRAGONS*You can't build a cube around Elder Dragon Highlander without having a ton of dragons in it, right? There are plenty of Elder and Ancient dragons to dominate the skies and battlefield. Cheat them out or reanimate them.