Premise (5/10/24)
At this moment in history for Commander, when WotC has taken over management of the format, I have had a chance to reflect on what I have always loved about this particular format.
I have always been for a more casual style of play, keeping away from cEDH and its mechanics, always however trying to build decks that are as balanced and efficient as possible. Often, like many, I have been tempted by the more tempting commanders, which even in non-competitive contexts, were often disliked by other players thus leading me to reevaluate them in a less conventional light.
At other times I built decks that were more “ bizarre” and according to my personal taste, always trying to maintain a structure that made them not solely an experiment but also an overall functional deck. These have often been criticized by other players I have encountered by often defining them as “meaningless” since they do not come across as strong and optimized as the more “conventional” and widespread ones.
Recent events regarding the management of the format, and especially the reaction these have had on the community, have led me to the personal conclusion that everything really is, and always will remain, in the hands of the players. Banning 3/4 cards will not change the format: those who want to compete will still do so, those who wanted a more casual game will still follow. Those who want to play disproportionately strong decks against for fun decks will continue to do so.
So what to do now? For me that means thinking about a return to basics. Commander for me has always been about creativity rather than competition. I never liked “jank” decks; even decks based on “gimmicks” have to be, in their own way, functional and with possible win conditions.
I have always loved the color blue over the others, the control of the game and the search for less obvious victory conditions. On the other hand, I have never understood “group hug” strategies, being more inclined to forms of “cruel control” while still disavowing the opposite extreme of “group slug.”
The synthesis of these reflections led me here, to build a blue deck with “group hug” strategy, unprecedented for me, that does not rely on infinite combos, that has a medium power level but still with its clear and possible strategy and concrete unconventional win conditions.
Kami of the crescent Moon
The strategy of the deck is very simple and is based on trying to get everyone to draw as many cards as possible. In order to stay in the game as much as possible I have included cards to avoid being targeted by opponents' attacks and a fair section of cards for pure control. Since, as will be explained later the goal is rest alive as long as possible and not to draw other players' attentions (and hate), i've preferred a pillofort strategy over a more oppressive stax.
The deck can win in two main ways: the first is about making the opponents' deck mill themselfs to which are added the ones concerning the fulfillment of specific conditions of certain cards (usually regarding the number of cards in our hand). In order to achieve the first objective, I preferred to keep the “mill” subtheme less obvious and more subtle to avoid being targeted early. Opponents must feel that the deck does “everything and nothing,” leaving it in the background compared to the dangers generated by other players. All without counting the advantage however generated for everyone by this strategy. In order not to immediately worry opponents about possible tricks, cards are included that do damage based on the number of cards in hand, annoying, but not very intimidating. These will suggest that the idea of the deck is to drain each player's life points, a mechanic that is always useful but inconsistent as the main strategy for getting to victory, making us a minor threat at the table. Then, when the game has advanced and the players have drawn many cards, here will have the spotlight the cards dedicated to mill. I had originally thought of including many more cards related to this component of the deck, but I feel that without including infinite combos these would simply generate more pressure on us. Therefore, for this reason, the cards that proceed to mill the opponents' decks are either cards that can act as a coup de grace, or with immediately very impactful effects compared to slower but consistent cards in the long run which would be better for a more upfront mill strategy.
I then included “Laboratory Maniac” and “Jace, Wielder of Mysteries” only in order to avoid losing to auto mill.
Then there are other fun, more circumstantial win conditions that can still be met even if more difficult.
Finally, I have included a few token generators in order to ensure a more board presence.
This is my take on Kami of the crescent moon, trying to remember what EDH/Commader, for me was all about, doing always something new but alway according to my personal philosophy.
