As innovative as Magic’s resource system design is, there is one glaring flaw that’s extremely difficult to get away from. Every once in a while, you’re bound to flood, meaning that you’ll be stuck with a lot of cards that don’t achieve anything. Sadly, avoiding this in every game of MTG you play is nigh impossible, but there are some things you can do to help.
Careful deckbuilding can mitigate a lot of problematic land scenarios, and, for many Commander players, part of that is using utility lands. Having other things that your lands can do can help give you more options when your draws otherwise leave you hanging.
Underdark Rift
While six mana is expensive, even for a flexible removal effect like this, Underdark Rift being on a land means that it won’t take up the slot of another nonland card in your 99. With Commander decks routinely presenting all kinds of different threats, being able to hit artifacts, creatures, and Planeswalkers is an underrated upside.
This makes Underdark Rift a decent budget utility land choice for most Commander decks, but there are some additional synergies to be had. Dice-rolling decks like Mr. House, President and CEO can get additional triggers off the d10 that Underdark Rift uses. Otherwise, Wan Shi Tong, All-Knowing cares about cards going back into your opponent’s decks, allowing Underdark Rift to create some Spirits as it resolves.
Whether you synergize with the card or not, Underdark Rift’s price tag should make it an easy inclusion for all kinds of decks. Available for just $0.43, so long as you don’t need lots of mana fixing, trying Underdark City is a no-brainer.
If you’re interested in having multiple effects like this, Ominous Cemetery is another budget utility land that offers a similar effect that can only target creatures.
Isolated Watchtower
Ramp is hard to come by outside of green, making Isolated Watchtower all the more valuable for other mono-colored Commander decks. Thanks to the prevalence of green ramp in Commander, the activation requirements of Isolated Watchtower aren’t as harsh as they look, either. Cultivate and Rampant Growth effects are absolutely everywhere, turning the Watchtower on even when you don’t miss a land drop. Since this land offers a Scry, Isolated Watchtower can provide value even when there isn’t a land on top.
It’s difficult to find any lands that have built-in ramp effects, and for $1, Isolated Watchtower is a fantastic addition to any non-green monocolored MTG decks. Considering that this card doesn’t have an accessible reprint after its appearance in Commander 2019, this cheap price point is particularly surprising.
Cathedral of War
Cathedral of War can offer your creatures buffs from unexpected places. The cost to playing this land is rather high, thanks to it both being a colorless and a tapped land. That said, for many Commanders, this Exalted trigger can get a lot of value over the course of a game.
For Commanders who want to attack alone already, like Rafiq of the Many, Squall SeeD Mercenary, and Raiyuu, Storm’s Edge, Cathedral of War can both stockpile extra damage while making your Commanders more difficult to block. Otherwise, Isshin, Two Heavens as One can copy your Exalted triggers, making them more effective.
If you’re interested in trying Cathedral of War for yourself, a recent Edge of Eternities reprint has made the card far more affordable than usual. So long as you don’t mind the new artwork, you can pick up the Stellar Sights Cathedral of War for just $0.50. The card’s prices otherwise vary wildly, but most other printings are available for around $1.50.
The Biblioplex
The Bibioplex sees even less play than a majority of the less popular utility lands, and it’s not hard to understand why. The effect of this card is incredibly powerful for an untapped land, but the activation requirements are a nightmare. If you have seven cards in hand, you probably don’t want to be activating this card’s ability in a Commander game. Alternatively, having zero cards, for most decks, means you’re going to need a lot more than this land to catch up.
This means that The Biblioplex will shine at its brightest in strategies that often find themselves Hellbent. Decks like Flubs, the Fool, who thrive on having an empty hand, can use The Biblioplex in a pinch when they’re topdecking a lot of lands. Decks that otherwise run lots of big instants and sorceries that struggle with card advantage, like Codie, Vociferous Codex and Mizzix of the Izmagus, can use The Biblioplex to find help topdeck the massive spell they need to get back in the game.
For just $0.10, most decks will be hard-pressed to get value out of The Biblioplex, but if you’re able to consistently trigger it, this is one of the most powerful budget utility lands in all of MTG.
Throne of the High City
In the right deck, Throne of the High City can grant an extremely powerful buff. So long as you’re confident you can hold on to it, becoming The Monarch can grant a lot of card advantage over a longer game. That said, thanks to the Monarchy drawing a card on your end step, this utility land is quite poor if you can’t hold onto The Monarch.
Fortunately, not every deck needs to maintain the Monarchy at all times to get value out of Throne of the High City. Jared Carthalion, True Heir, for example, can use the Throne to steal the Monarch at instant speed, making your Commander immune to damage. This also allows the utility land to pair particularly well with the cycle of Court enchantments, like Court of Bounty, since you can steal back the Monarch in response to your Upkeep triggers.
While Throne of the High City is a slam dunk in these decks, for just $0.10, this utility land is worth trying in any creature-based Commander deck that can reliably defend The Monarch.
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