Yesterday, despite Secrets of Strixhaven having a normal-length spoiler season, all the Commander precons were dropped at once. 50 brand-new cards were revealed in the span of an hour, so it’s safe to say there was a lot to pore over. With some seriously compelling new staples and fantastic reprints, too, there was certainly a lot to enjoy.
Thanks to so much being revealed at once, it’s not uncommon that the new MTG Commanders can often end up taking a backseat. After all, since the precons are designed around them, it’s not surprising that these cards look exciting. That being said, it’s not often we get an MTG card like Muddle, the Ever-Changing. Capable of some absolutely insane shenanigans, this Commander is well worth building around, even outside of its precon.
MTG Muddle, the Ever-Changing
On the surface, Muddle, the Ever-Changing just looks like Blade of Selves on a stick. Rather than having the typical equip cost, however, you’ve got to cast an instant or sorcery spell. Naturally, this leans Muddle towards being a Spellslingers Commander, where triggering this ability is trivial.
While Muddle arguably isn’t as flashy as Stella Lee, Wild Card, this Otter can do some wild stuff. Even with the tokens from Myriad coming in tapped, and only lasting until the end of combat, you can easily pop off. Any value engine like Young Pyromancer or Third Path Iconoclast can easily overwhelm the board.
Similarly, cost reduction effects, like the handily reprinted Stormcatch Mentor, go insane with Muddle. With one in play already, you can easily reduce the cost of your spells by four. As if that wasn’t enough, using Muddle with Wizards of Thay and attacking with it will give you six tokens and a cost reduction of eight.
Leaning into this strategy, you can also run Blade of Selves with Muddle, giving you four tokens of whatever you copy. These can even be made to last, too, by using end-of-turn effects like Sundial of the Infinite. Realistically, though, one big swing from Muddle should be more than enough to close out a game.
If anything, the only trouble with Muddle is that you have to attack with it to use its Myriad ability. Thanks to this, you’ll want to run the usual suite of protection like Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots. Notably, you can also run creatures with Indestructible or Hexproof, since an instant lets Muddle become a copy of these creatures on your opponent’s turn.
Myriad Myriad Combos
For better or worse, Muddle, the Ever-Changing doesn’t create any game-breaking brand-new combos in MTG. This might seem surprising, given its wacky ability, but it really is just Blade of Selves on a stick. Still, despite technically not doing anything new, having a key combo piece in the Command zone is always useful.
Realistically, the easiest way to win with Muddle, the Ever-Changing is to copy Blightsteel Colossus, then attack. So long as nothing gets blocked, you’ve got yourself a nifty 17 mana combo. Alternatively, if you’re after something a bit more affordable, using Myriad to copy Mirror-Mad Phantasm lets you Mill your entire deck.
On top of these combos, you can also get infinite combats, using Priest of Urabrask and Hellkite Charger. If you’re after infinite mana, however, Corridor Monitor can get you there alongside Thran Dynamo and Strionic Resonator. Using Wormfang Manta and Torpor Orb, you can even get infinite turns if you so wish.
Sadly, while all of these combos are technically viable, they don’t really fit a Spellslingers shell. As such, when using Muddle, the Ever-Changing it feels better to focus on synergy, rather than specific combos. This might seem somewhat disappointing; however, it’s definitely still one hell of a game plan.
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