<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span style="font-weight: 400;"><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://www.artstation.com/mokhman">Alexander Mokhov</a></span></em></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This is getting out of hand! Now there are <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=gandalf+is%3Acommander&amp;unique=cards&amp;as=grid&amp;order=name">eleven of them</a>!</span></p>
<p>With the upcoming release of <em>The Hobbit</em>, we've been treated to more Gandalfs than any reasonable <em>Magic</em> player would know what to do with. We already had some super powerful versions of this Wizard, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf the White" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf the White</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf the Grey" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf the Grey</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, but we've seen five more representations of Ian McKellan's legendary character on cardstock.</p>
<p>Thanks to this set, we've now got three mono-<span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> Gandalfs! I'll be focusing on the most expensive (and coolest) one, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, in today's deck tech!</p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe"></div></div></p>
<h2><strong>What Does Gandalf Do?</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This version of everyone's favorite Avatar Wizard costs a whopping <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-5" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>. It's a 3/4 with vigilance, and lets us flicker three lands upon entering the battlefield. Gandalf's also got a landfall ability, gaining a +1/+1 counter and letting us draw a card whenever a land enters the battlefield under our control.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">It's somewhat common to see land-centric abilities appear in <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span>'s slice of the color pie. The MTG Wiki notes that 9.6% of landfall cards fall in this fifth of <em>Magic</em>, beating out <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-b" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> at 8.4%. We've even seen some blue commanders that mess with lands, like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Cosima, God of the Voyage" href="#" target="_blank">Cosima, God of the Voyage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Patron of the Moon" href="#" target="_blank">Patron of the Moon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Gandalf is, interestingly enough, <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=fo%3Alandfall+is%3Acommander+ci%3Du&amp;unique=cards&amp;as=grid&amp;order=name">the first and only mono-blue commander to have the ability word "landfall" in its rules text</a>!</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Cosima, God of the Voyage"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Patron of the Moon"></div></div>
<p>Gandalf provides a relatively clear path to victory for us. We'll ramp as hard as we can in the early game, hopefully casting our seven-drop commander by turn four. Once it's on the field we'll use its landfall ability to keep our hand full of gas, and use all the mana we've got available to plop some extremely impactful permanents on the board. We'll even try to blink Gandalf a few times to get some extra value from its enters-the-battlefield (ETB) effect.</p>
<h2><strong>Key Cards for Gandalf</strong></h2>
<p>First, let's talk about the land-based ramp that we'll use to get our commander out ahead of schedule. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dreamscape Artist" href="#" target="_blank">Dreamscape Artist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is a unique creature, turning each card in our hand into a copy of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Harrow" href="#" target="_blank">Harrow</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. We don't have many ways to bring the discarded card or sacrificed land back from the bin, but this is still a super powerful way to accelerate our mana production.</p>
<p>I've also included both <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="PuPu UFO" href="#" target="_blank">PuPu UFO</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Walking Atlas" href="#" target="_blank">Walking Atlas</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. We've got a full 40 lands in our deck, meaning that we'll often have a few extras in our hand. These artifact creatures both let us put extra lands onto the field, letting us ramp and trigger our commander's landfall ability easily. The duo of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sword of the Animist" href="#" target="_blank">Sword of the Animist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Bitterthorn, Nissa&#039;s Animus" href="#" target="_blank">Bitterthorn, Nissa&#039;s Animus</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is here too. These Equipment are extremely strong, and will provide us with a constant stream of lands on the field.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dreamscape Artist"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="PuPu UFO"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sword of the Animist"></div></div>
<p>To round out this section, I've put utility lands like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Horizon of Progress" href="#" target="_blank">Horizon of Progress</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Myriad Landscape" href="#" target="_blank">Myriad Landscape</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> in our mana base. We can afford to play a few nonbasic lands, given this deck's monocolor identity.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Horizon of Progress"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Myriad Landscape"></div></div>
<p>With all the lands we'll be slamming onto the board, our commander's landfall ability will be triggering pretty consistently. So, let's get some other permanents to capitalize on that fact! The recently printed <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Weather Maker" href="#" target="_blank">Weather Maker</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is an interesting three-mana rock, making more mana than average if we're consistently hitting our land drops. It's also notable that this artifact provides access to on-demand, damage-based removal, something that <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-u" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> decks often lack.</p>
<p>We've also got <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Roil Cartographer" href="#" target="_blank">Roil Cartographer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to draw even more cards. This is the only source of <span class="mana-container-container"><span class="mana-container"><i class="ms ms-cost ms-e" style="margin-left: inherit !important;"></i></span></span> in our deck, but we'll be blinking Gandalf (and playing lands) frequently enough that this Merfolk Rogue will be a solid card advantage engine.</p>
<p>Finally, for when we're feeling extra mean, I've included both <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Grappling Kraken" href="#" target="_blank">Grappling Kraken</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Roil Elemental" href="#" target="_blank">Roil Elemental</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. If we can stick either of these six-drops on the battlefield, our opponents won't be able to take many meaningful game actions. Just imagine playing Roil Elemental the turn before our commander, then getting four triggers (land drop for turn + Gandalf's three land blinks) when we cast our commander!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Weather Maker"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Roil Cartographer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Roil Elemental"></div></div>
<p>Gandalf costs a full seven mana, so it'd be a shame to trigger its ETB ability just once. To that end, we've got a slew of ways to exile it and return it to the battlefield. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sword of Hearth and Home" href="#" target="_blank">Sword of Hearth and Home</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> pulls double duty as a blink engine and a mana advantage engine, letting us extract an absurd amount of value upon dealing combat damage. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Displacer Kitten" href="#" target="_blank">Displacer Kitten</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will pair very well with the 32 noncreature spells in our deck, and should provide a repeatable way to flicker our Avatar Wizard.</p>
<p>Finally, the newly minted <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Roll-Roll-Roll-Roll" href="#" target="_blank">Roll-Roll-Roll-Roll</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can flicker our commander <em>or</em> a land we control, providing us with some flexibility based on the board state at the start of our first main phase.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Sword of Hearth and Home"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Displacer Kitten"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Roll-Roll-Roll-Roll"></div></div>
<p>As a more expensive blink option, I've also added <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Silver Surfer, Cosmic Voyager" href="#" target="_blank">Silver Surfer, Cosmic Voyager</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Even in a deck like this, six mana is still a lot to spend on any one spell. But, if we manage to cast this Alien Hero, we'll be in the money.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Silver Surfer, Cosmic Voyager"></div></div>
<h2><strong>How Does This Deck Win?</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Once we've put dozens of lands onto the field, we need some impactful spells to spend our mana on. So, I've made room for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Lord of Change" href="#" target="_blank">Lord of Change</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Galactus, Devourer of Worlds" href="#" target="_blank">Galactus, Devourer of Worlds</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> as top-end threats. These two provide a good amount of value upon entering the battlefield, and act as hard-to-remove, evasive attackers too. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I'll note the exclusion of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Silver Surfer, Galactus&#039;s Herald" href="#" target="_blank">Silver Surfer, Galactus&#039;s Herald</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> here. Although the Herald makes Galactus a bit better, I'm not willing to spend a slot in our 99 on a relatively useless 4/5. With that said, though, both Galactus and the Lord of Change provide a bit of extra value when targeted with something like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Teferi&#039;s Time Twist" href="#" target="_blank">Teferi&#039;s Time Twist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, which is a bonus. </span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The best curve-topper by far is <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Summon: Bahamut" href="#" target="_blank">Summon: Bahamut</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Even if we've got just the Saga Dragon and Gandalf on the field, this creature's final triggered ability will deal a whopping sixteen damage to our opponents. If we've got even a few permanents on the field, that damage can reach to more than two dozen with ease!</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Lord of Change"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Galactus, Devourer of Worlds"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Summon: Bahamut"></div></div> </span></p>
<p>Finally, for less immediate victory, I've included a few ways to turn the cards that we'll draw into concrete advantage. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Ominous Seas" href="#" target="_blank">Ominous Seas</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will create an 8/8 token once every turn or two, presenting a real problem for whichever opponent we choose to release the Kraken(s) upon. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Psychosis Crawler" href="#" target="_blank">Psychosis Crawler</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will whittle away everyone's life total, while also presenting a veritable brick house for any opponent who dares to attack us. In my playtesting, I've frequently got enough cards in hand to make this brain in a jar quite scary. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim" href="#" target="_blank">Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is also here. If we're lucky, we can activate its ultimate ability within a turn or two of him hitting the field!</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Ominous Seas"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Psychosis Crawler"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim"></div></div>
<h2><strong>Gandalf, Shadow's Foe Commander Deck List</strong></h2>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Gandalf, His Number Legion" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Commander]
*1 Gandalf, Shadow&#039;s Foe
[/Commander]
[Artifacts]
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Bitterthorn, Nissa&#039;s Animus
*1 Golden Argosy
*1 Machine God&#039;s Effigy
*1 Misleading Signpost
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Sword of Hearth and Home
*1 Sword of the Animist
*1 Thought Vessel
*1 Wayfarer&#039;s Bauble
*1 Weather Maker
*1 Wizard&#039;s Staff
[/Artifacts]
[Instants]
*1 Aetherize
*1 Arcane Denial
*1 Blur
*1 Consult the Star Charts
*1 Counterspell
*1 Cyclonic Rift
*1 Disdainful Stroke
*1 Displace
*1 Essence Flux
*1 Planar Incision
*1 Resculpt
*1 Snap
*1 Teferi&#039;s Time Twist
[/Instants]
[Creatures]
*1 Brazen Borrower // Petty Theft
*1 Canoptek Wraith
*1 Cosima, God of the Voyage // The Omenkeel
*1 Dauntless Scrapbot
*1 Deadeye Navigator
*1 Displacer Kitten
*1 Dreamscape Artist
*1 Elven Raft-Steerer
*1 Faerie Mastermind
*1 Galactus, Devourer of Worlds
*1 Glasspool Mimic // Glasspool Shore
*1 Grappling Kraken
*1 Hedron Crab
*1 Kid Loki
*1 Lord of Change
*1 Psychosis Crawler
*1 PuPu UFO
*1 Roil Cartographer
*1 Roil Elemental
*1 Ruin Crab
*1 Silver Surfer, Cosmic Voyager
*1 Starfield Vocalist
*1 Summon: Bahamut
*1 Thassa, Deep-Dwelling
*1 The Reality Chip
*1 Tiller Engine
*1 Walking Atlas
[/Creatures]
[Sorceries]
*1 Aminatou&#039;s Augury
*1 Replication Technique
[/Sorceries]
[Enchantments]
*1 Ominous Seas
*1 Retreat to Coralhelm
*1 Roll-Roll-Roll-Roll
*1 Search for Azcanta // Azcanta, the Sunken Ruin
[/Enchantments]
[Planeswalkers]
*1 Teferi, Temporal Pilgrim
*1 Ugin, the Spirit Dragon
[/Planeswalkers]
[Lands]
*1 Evolving Wilds
*1 Field of the Dead
*1 Flooded Strand
*1 Halimar Depths
*1 Horizon of Progress
*27 Island
*1 Misty Rainforest
*1 Myriad Landscape
*1 Mystic Sanctuary
*1 Polluted Delta
*1 Reliquary Tower
*1 Scalding Tarn
*1 Urza&#039;s Cave
[/Lands]"></span></div>
<h2><strong>Conclusion</strong></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I've gotta say, this set has delivered in a big way so far. The cards have just the right amount of mechanical complexity, while still fundamentally feeling like <em>Magic</em>. Other Universes Beyond sets (like <em>Final Fantasy)</em> may have made a bigger splash upon release, but <em>The Hobbit</em>'s high fantasy vibe is exactly what I want out of an external IP's product drop.</span></p>
<p>I'm particularly excited to see which version of Gandalf leads the most decks on EDHREC when all is said and done. I expect <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf the White" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf the White</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to remain top dog, but I could see <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gandalf, Party Guest" href="#" target="_blank">Gandalf, Party Guest</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> overtaking him in short order. Which printing of the bearded mage do you like the most? Let me know in the comments, and I'll be back with another article soon!</p>


deck list

Gandalf, Shadow's Foe | Blue Landfall Commander Deck