<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Brash Taunter" href="#" target="_blank">Brash Taunter</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by <a href="https://velinov.artstation.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Svetlin Velinov</a></em></p>
<p><a href="https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/announcements/introducing-the-commander-format-panel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Commander Format Panel</a> (CFP) has built <a href="https://edhrec.com/guides/edhrec-guide-to-commander-brackets" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Bracket System</a> to be a tool for players to use in order to create a more enjoyable gaming experience. From <a href="https://edhrec.com/top/game-changers" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Game Changers</a> to sub categories like mass land denial/destruction, the Brackets aim to give players a foundation from which to build their preferred Commander experience.</p>
<p>What many players are apt to point out, however, is that the Brackets can and have been used as a way to improperly gatekeep certain playstyles and experiences from a pod's game night. Players who wish to avoid <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blood Moon" href="#" target="_blank">Blood Moon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> experiences ought to be given the space to do so, but games with certain "unfun" or harsh strategies are experiences worth engaging with, even if just to solidify one's original stance against such experiences.</p>
<p>Becoming a better <em>Magic</em> player is a shared goal among Commander players. There's no better evidence of that than EDHREC's popularity among deck brewers. However, becoming better at anything requires failure and shortcomings, meaning "feel-bad" moments are reasonably expected. Where the Brackets intend to limit most extreme feel-bad cases, it ought not be used as the one-size-fits-all solution to preventing all feel-bads.</p>
<h2>Brackets as a Tool</h2>
<p>Most times, the Bracket system is used among players seeking to play Commander with others that aren't considered an established group. This includes everything from a random Commander pod at your local game store's Commander night to playing with established players at an official <em>Magic</em> event.</p>
<p>In these situations, the Rule Zero conversation (the conversation you have before the game starts to discuss what kind of game you're looking to have) is strongly recommended in order for players to discuss their intentions and expectations from a game.</p>
<p>Does a player seek to try out their new jank <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Toofer, Keeper of the Full Grip" href="#" target="_blank">Toofer, Keeper of the Full Grip</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck? Maybe <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Atraxa, Praetors&#039; Voice" href="#" target="_blank">Atraxa, Praetors&#039; Voice</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> poison counters should wait this game out. Is someone hoping to fire off their <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Winota, Joiner of Forces" href="#" target="_blank">Winota, Joiner of Forces</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck in between events at MagicCon? Perhaps the <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis" href="#" target="_blank">Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> pillow fort should be swapped for something a bit faster.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Toofer, Keeper of the Full Grip"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Winota, Joiner of Forces"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis"></div></div>
<p>The Brackets are intended to be used in this Rule Zero discussion as a way to communicate more effectively. It's very difficult to quantify a deck's objective power on its own, but the Brackets try to rank decks relative to one another and determine whether or not these decks can produce a Commander game the pod will enjoy.</p>
<p>Like any tool, Brackets require the appropriate input for the desired output to be produced. A hammer cannot join a nail to a block of wood unless the required input is provided. Similarly, the Brackets cannot produce an engaging or enjoyable Commander experience unless the players actively work towards this goal.</p>
<p>Players hoping for a productive Commander game will use the Brackets in good faith and will learn how better to engage with the Brackets, just as anyone who uses a hammer will become more proficient in, say, carpentry the more they use the hammer. Sometimes though, mistakes are made and the carpenter smashes their finger instead of the nail just as some Commander games will leave players with sore feelings.</p>
<p>These mistakes are vital to learning how to more effectively use these tools and should be appropriately embraced instead of vilified. Yes, maybe that <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Najeela, the Blade-Blossom" href="#" target="_blank">Najeela, the Blade-Blossom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> player ought to know of Najeela's raw strength and should've played a slower deck or that <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Yarok, the Desecrated" href="#" target="_blank">Yarok, the Desecrated</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> deck should be piloted by someone who doesn't take an hour to resolve their turn before discarding to hand size (from personal experience, if your turn takes an hour and doesn't end the game, please reevaluate the deck you're playing).</p>
<p>What players shouldn't do is use these experiences as barriers. This is to say the uniquely bad experience I had with Yarok shouldn't justify me arguing that the deck was misrepresented somehow or that the Brackets allowed this to happen. A tool can be faulty, but ultimately we players created the experience.</p>
<h2>Brackets as a Shield</h2>
<p>A common criticism of Brackets I've heard argues that the Brackets prevent players, especially newer players, from learning <em>Magic</em> in its entirety. Some players are being overprotected by other, more experienced (or more vocal) players demanding everyone to be shielded from evils like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Drannith Magistrate" href="#" target="_blank">Drannith Magistrate</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Seedborn Muse" href="#" target="_blank">Seedborn Muse</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Drannith Magistrate"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Seedborn Muse"></div></div>
<p>It's as though the Brackets are a helicopter parent guarding their kids from every crack in the street and suspicious looking cartoon shows.</p>
<p>It's not like these arguments come from nowhere; these criticisms are rooted in legitimate concerns and feel-bad experiences. Players have and will continue to justify why they'll never play with or against stax pieces or combo pieces or mass land denial for a multitude of reasons, using the Brackets as a means of gatekeeping such undesirable decks away from their games.</p>
<p>But I'd argue that players that use the Brackets as a shield for new players against <em>every</em> player is a misuse of the tool. In some shape or form, at one point or another, players ought to experience losing against stax pieces or combo pieces or mass land denial.</p>
<p>In the simplest terms, <em>Magic</em> is a game where one person wins and at least one person loses. There's skill to playing <em>Magic</em>, and such skill can only be cultivated through trial and error (You know you've misplayed one of the latter and are now better for it).</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Brainstorm"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thoughtseize"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Scroll Rack"></div></div>
<p>Using the Brackets to broadly police these trials and errors out of Commander is a misuse of the tool and not the outcome it was intended to produce. A safe space must be ensured for players seeking refuge from cards and strategies they don't desire, yes, but this shouldn't be done at the expense of fostering better <em>Magic</em> players.</p>
<p>In fact, such a space should only be used for those who are either so new that they must learn <em>Magic</em>'s basics before engaging with stronger settings or those who <em>have</em> experienced such settings and are seeking a relaxed experience.</p>
<p>This safe space loses its merit the moment it's forced upon players who have no desire to engage with it. Someone who exploits the Brackets by claiming the system demands players to conform to their expectations is misusing the tool for their own benefit. Rule Zero has never forced players to do anything other than open the door to talk about expectations, and the Bracket system is simply a tool that starts this conversation.</p>
<h2>Our Upkeep on Turn Zero</h2>
<p>Until an officially sanctioned Commander tournament forces players to abide by the Brackets regulations, there will never be a time when a player will be forced to go out of their comfort zone when a pod uses the tools at their disposal appropriately. In fact, those who would engage in a tournament regulated by the Brackets make the choice to agree to Bracket expectations, arguably dismissing the "I was forced to play against X" claim.</p>
<p>The issue of being forced into or out of one's comfort command zone doesn't stem from the Brackets imposing the CFP's or WotC's will upon players—it's always been and continue to be the players'. There are <em>plenty</em> of genuine complaints to lodge against WotC, the CFP, and the Brackets, but players misusing the Rule Zero discussion isn't one of them.</p>
<p>The safe space the Brackets intend to create cannot be used as the policing force to "ban" cards or decks. Do you not want to play against <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stasis" href="#" target="_blank">Stasis</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> because you've hated your past experiences with it? Understandable, have a nice day playing against a more suitable deck. Do you not want to play against Stasis because of its reputation? Well... you absolutely have that choice, but you should really be concluding that on your own.</p>
<p>Understand why Statis is so hated, or why talks of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rhystic Study" href="#" target="_blank">Rhystic Study</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> being banned are taking place, or why <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Glacial Chasm" href="#" target="_blank">Glacial Chasm</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is so ubiquitously strong. Take the time to learn <em>why</em> these things are on your own terms instead of exploiting the Rule Zero discussion into preemptively dictating what kind of game the pod should expect to play as opposed to wants to play.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Necropotence"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Panoptic Mirror"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Underworld Breach"></div></div>
<p>Similarly, try playing with these cards in your decks. See how much of a difference <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aura Shards" href="#" target="_blank">Aura Shards</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> makes in your <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rin and Seri, Inseparable" href="#" target="_blank">Rin and Seri, Inseparable</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> token deck, or how <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Smothering Tithe" href="#" target="_blank">Smothering Tithe</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> alters your <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mr. House, President and CEO" href="#" target="_blank">Mr. House, President and CEO</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>'s experience. If it's unfamiliar, get familiar. Play around with them until you find out what your final verdict is.</p>
<p>In essence, we ought to learn how to better use the Rule Zero discussion and the Brackets to build a better Commander experience instead of insisting the tool do the hard work for us. A better <em>Magic</em> player cannot be built through waiting for WotC to analyze which rules are the most popular or which cards are the most hated. It's up to us to determine what Commander, a player-built format, means to us and how we engage with it.</p>
<p>The majority of <em>Magic </em>is <em>The Gathering</em>, after all. It only makes sense that <em>The Gathering</em> is what makes something <em>Magic.</em></p>
<div class="ArticlePage_content__j0Z44 wp-content">
<p>But what do <em>you</em> think? How do you feel about viewing Brackets more as a tool and less as the law? What are your thoughts on a safe space from "unfun" or powerful cards/decks? Do you think using the Brackets as a foundation instead of a deck builder's destination is worthwhile?</p>
<p>I hope this article is helpful in exploring what the Rule Zero discussion can look like and how to use the Brackets more effectively. Find me on BlueSky at <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/ajwicker4.bsky.social?utm_source=edhrec" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">@ajwicker4.bsky.social</a>, I'd love to hear from you and what your thoughts are.</p>
<p>Tune in next time to continue this deep dive in the Bracket system and more <em>Commander Philosophy!</em></p>
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rule 0 conversation

Why Are the Brackets Telling Me How To Play Commander?