Example NBL deck.
True No Banned List
We tried out this new fangled singleton format you kids seem to like, but the Ban List and the anti wish hate are boring to me. Finally, other cards like these planeswalkers are legendary, why don’t you all play with them as commanders? Legendary Artifact/Enchantment/Etc? Sure, why not!
So called "Rule Zero" obviously solves this, which I guess my polycule does; but i'd like to share this format with you. We play by the principle of "If it was printed it was meant to be played." This means silver bordered or them new fangled black borders with an acorn or even the convention cards are legal and meant to be played.
I present to you the way I believe magic was meant to be played.
Main Deck Construction Rules:
Build a 100 card deck; and an up to 15 card wish/sideboard. Your deck can contain only one of each card other than basic lands or cards that say you may include any number. Each card in the deck must contain cards with mana costs of the color identity of your commander; this includes abilities for both the commander and each card in your deck.
Choose one legendary card is your "commander" and set it aside in the command zone.
- This card or cards in the case of partner and background DO count towards your 100 card deck.
- You may play that card at any time you normally could, it is treated as if it were in your hand for the purposes of casting and playing it.
- It does not get shuffled away with cards such as timetwister.
- Each time it is removed from the battlefield in any way you may return it to the command zone. Its cmc increases by 2 each time this happens.
No card printed by wotc is banned or illegal to play, even those ones that say not for constructed play, like mirrored lotus or barry's land; even those giant oversized thorn elementals you got two decades ago. Each card in your deck must be the same physical size, you may use regular sized proxies that are replaced by your oversized cards or visa versa if youre playing an oversized deck. Basically, the company made them, the creators want you to play with them. You can play proposal and have you and another play win the game. If you choose to play invoke prejudice or any of the other racist cards you lose the game and your opponents are allowed and encouraged to beat you and evict you from the place of play.
Starting the game
You start with 40 life, your initial hand size is seven. Unless modified by your vanguard, if you have one.
The Vanguard Rule:
You may have at most one vanguard card, this card does not count towards the one hundred card deck size. Follow any rules restrictions on the card in addition to these rules. Backup Plan and other cards that would start the game with an extra hand are affected by the vanguard’s hand size modifies, if it has one.
The Conspiracy Rule:
You start the game with one conspiracy, if you did not choose a conspiracy you are considered to have a copy of “Backup Plan” in your command zone. The conspiracy does not count towards your main deck. If the conspiracy has a color identity it must be legal to have in your deck by having a color identity your commander has.
Backup plan text:
Draw an additional hand of seven cards as the game begins. Before taking mulligans, shuffle all but one of your hands into your library.
The ante rule:
If you put ante cards in your deck, Ante works as follows: At the beginning of the game before hands are drawn, place a random card from your main deck in the ante zone. Cards in the ante zone are considered part of the game for wish cards and may not be chosen, they are not in an exiled or removed from the game zone and cannot enter the game by any means. At the end of the game return that card to your deck.
The physical action rule:
If a card refers to a physical action, ex knight of the hokey pokey or chaos orb, you should first feel ashamed that you have done this, then do the action required. If youre playing online or otherwise unable to do the physical action, discuss with your fellow players if you should be allowed to play the card and perform its effects. Yes, if you get really good at flipping or balancing magic cards this is your reward.
The blacker lotus rule:
If a card instructs you to deface or destroy a card, you may exile the card instead. If you don't own the card, you must exile the card instead. Yes, you can use stickers to exile cards you own, I dont know why you would want to but you can if you come up with a neat trick.
The whammy deck rule:
If a card in your deck would instruct you to have a deck other than your main deck, ex attractions or the whammy deck; build that deck as well according to its normal rules. Those cards do not count towards the 100 card count of your main deck.
The Planechase rule:
You may bring either 0 or more than ten planes cards. These cards do not count toward your main deck total. If you chose to bring ten or more planes you may include Phenomenon at a rate of 2 per 10 cards. At the start of the game if there are any planes cards, you follow the rules for planeschase. We suggest you play with the blind eternities rules of creating a planar map. If you are playing the blind eternities rules, when a Phenomenon is revealed while building the map its effects happen immediately and then is replaced by a plane on the planar map. Rules for blind eternities can be found here :
Suggested Power Level Errata:
If you find the game is too fast, we have some silly suggestions for you namely given how we have found that the most important card in the format is time vault now that it doesn’t have those funny power level erratas; which apparently, they messed up and made time vault go infinite in a damage dealing way. As these power level erratas were so successful we’ve now made our own suggested power level erratas.
Time Vault
Time Vault {{2}}
Artifact
Time Vault enters the battlefield tapped.
Time Vault enters the battlefield detained. (Until your next turn, that permanent can't attack or block and its activated abilities can't be activated.)
While Time Vault is detained it may not be the target of spells or abilities you control.
Time Vault doesn't untap during your untap step.
If you would begin your turn while Time Vault is tapped, you may skip that turn instead. If you do, untap Time Vault.
Tap: Take an extra turn after this one.
