Magus of the BalanceMagus of the Balance | Art by Kev Walker

Last month I explored the art of balance in Commander deckbuilding. Today, I'm back to continue investigatingcontinue investigating how this concept applies to gameplay in this format as well. Let's get into it!

Balancing Consistency With Randomness

Commander is a singleton format, meaning only one copy of each card - aside from nonbasic lands - is legal in each deck. There are some exceptionssome exceptions and we can have any number of basic lands, but the vast majority of games in this format adhere to the single card experience.

Another thing setting this format apart from most others is the large deck size. Singleton plus big decks means that, at first glance, we will have a pretty unique game experience each time.

However, a few things mitigate this randomness. One important part of Commander since its inception have been tutors, which can search for any card (or any of a subset of cardsany of a subset of cards). Tutors are a great way to access exactly the cards we need at the right time, but too much streamlined searching can make games feel monotonous.

Part of the fun of Magic is its randomness, and finding the same three or so most powerful cards every single game might feel unfulfilling after awhile.

A healthy balance between complete randomness and monotony comes in the form of "smoothers," mentioned in the previous balance-focused article. A card like Ancient StirringsAncient Stirrings fills a similar role as a tutor, helping us find the right resources at the right time. Smoothers, however, come without the downside of making every game feel the same and forcing opponents to wait as we search through our whole deck.

It's also fun to find on-theme smoothers like Thundertrap TrainerThundertrap Trainer or Oath of NissaOath of Nissa rather than relying exclusively on starkly powerful cards like Demonic TutorDemonic Tutor and friends. If you're interested in experimenting more with this kind of card, check out this package of 80 budget-friendly smoothers.

Another factor cutting against complete randomness is the pool of legal cards expanding each year with new releases, to the point where there are tons of cards with similar effects.

For example, when the original Commander 2011 set was first released, Soul's MajestySoul's Majesty was pretty much the only card with its effect. Today, players also have access to Garruk, Primal HunterGarruk, Primal Hunter, Rishkar's ExpertiseRishkar's Expertise, Return of the WildspeakerReturn of the Wildspeaker, Last March of the EntsLast March of the Ents, Season of GatheringSeason of Gathering, The Legend of KyoshiThe Legend of Kyoshi, and more! This means that even though we will technically have cards with unique names, we can have as many as five or even ten of cards that function similarly.

This is where the balance comes in – it's nice to have each game feel special and different, but also helpful to some kind of core plan and synergies we can always tap into regardless of what we draw.

Balancing the Upsides and Drawbacks of Multiplayer

Commander is a social game that encourages some amount of collaboration. But when this teamwork turns into everyone else unfairly ganging up against one opponent or kingmaking in general, the enjoyable multiplayer nature of the format can quickly turn into disappointment and salt.

Some players do avoid ganging up on others altogether, but it's because they're taking long solitaire turns with commanders like Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre StraitAesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait, which isn't necessarily enjoyable for opponents either.

Finally, there's the question of balancing symmetrical "group hug" effects with just repeatedly helping out a single opponent. There's a big difference between a Rites of FlourishingRites of Flourishing that everyone benefits from and a terrible lock where one player uses their Pulsemage AdvocatePulsemage Advocate to keep returning counterspells to another player's hand and get back a Spore FrogSpore Frog every turn.

This doesn't necessarily mean that one of these situations is better or worse than another, just that balancing these different ways to exist within a multiplayer format like Commander is an interesting aspect of the game. For example, the potential to create a huge imbalance between players is what led to Trade SecretsTrade Secrets getting banned, even though it appeared in the original Commmander 2011 set.

Balancing Hidden Information With Lies and Deceit

One thing that sets Magic apart from a game like chess is the fact that some information is hidden during the games. This is also part of what makes it fun, leading to interesting design with cards like Cabal TherapyCabal Therapy and fun bluffing opportunities with all sorts of instant-speed interaction like CounterspellCounterspells or mass token production like Secure the WastesSecure the Wastes.

Hidden information also allows players to actively deceive each other, or build up a reputation of trust with players we consistently encounter when we play Commander. Players outright lying in a cutthroat way just to maximizing winning can create a lot of friction. But on the other hand, announcing to all opponents at all times that we have a counterspell, a sweeper, or just revealing cards to other players too often can take away the fun mystery and ebb and flow of the game.

For example, loudly proclaiming "I have drawn a SunfallSunfall, no one better play creatures" takes away the enjoyable natural tension and decision making of aggressive deploying threats vs. not overextending.

Not having access to full information is also important when it comes to "take-backs," another discussion topic when it comes to finding an appropriate balance. Most players are ok with their opponents tapping their mana differently or putting one spell on the stack and then quickly reversing course and choosing to cast another one instead. But it may be harder for a player to garner sympathy when attempting a take-back after their all-out swing is met by an AetherspoutsAetherspouts or trying to un-cast a spell after it is countered.

In a similar way, drawing cards gives us access to more information, so casting a spell, drawing a few cards, then attempting to take it back and cast a different one is a completely different story.

Balancing a Casual and Competitive Approach

Although Commander is often seen as a casual format, most players are trying to win when they sit down to play. This is usually a common understanding, but issues arise when players care so much about winning that it affects their etiquette and leaves everyone else feeling bad. Most situations we hear or read about on the Am I the Bolas? series, for example, involve players like this.

While it may fly more under the radar, the opposite can actually be a problem as well. For more casual-minded players, "winning" might not actually mean defeating all their opponents, but creating a fun moment with their decks. But these players can also cause issues, especially if everyone isn't on the same page.

For example, I recently played a four-player game with my friends. I brought Tetzin, Gnome ChampionTetzin, Gnome Champion with Zirda, the DawnwakerZirda, the Dawnwaker as the companion, another brought Averna, the Chaos BloomAverna, the Chaos Bloom, another played Tannuk, Memorial EnsignTannuk, Memorial Ensign, and the final one opted for Tam, Mindful First-YearTam, Mindful First-Year.

Throughout the game, we all developed our plans, with me self-milling with double-faced artifacts, the cascade player assembling tons of mana, the landfall player going wild with Icetill ExplorerIcetill Explorer, and the colors-matter player gleefully growing his Mold AdderMold Adder as we cast spells.

But after a point, although all four of us were technically still in the game, it essentially became 1v1. The cascade player had set up The Lost and the DamnedThe Lost and the Damned and had a fearsome army of 3/3s, while the Tannuk player had found a Field of the DeadField of the Dead and had his own steady stream of creature tokens.

Meanwhile, my version of "winning" had been successfully flipping my Thaumatic CompassThaumatic Compass into an awesome Maze of Ith-style landMaze of Ith-style land, my Matzalantli, the Great DoorMatzalantli, the Great Door into a massive mana producera massive mana producer , and my Conqueror's GalleonConqueror's Galleon into a powerful value enginea powerful value engine. But even after all that, I was still powerless to stop my inevitable demise at the hands of my opponents' hoards.

At the same time, the colors-matters player "won" in his own way by using tricks to max out Ana SanctuaryAna Sanctuary in a deck with no and planned to create chaos through Well-Laid PlansWell-Laid Plans with instant-speed color changing backup. But he couldn't significantly impact the onslaught of tokens we were facing either.

This wasn't a complete blowout; I was able to put up a fight against the token players for a few turns with Steel HellkiteSteel Hellkite and the Tam player could have drawn his on-theme Painter's ServantPainter's Servant + GrindstoneGrindstone combo to take someone out. However, the fact that he and I couldn't lend significant resources to help each other really cemented in my mind that being too casual can create just as unfulfilling moments as being too competitive.

Conclusion

What parts of your Commander gameplay experiences do you have the most trouble getting right? What aspects of the game do you feel like you have a healthy balance of? Sound off in the comments and I'll see you next time!