One of the best things about the Commander format is that there’s a huge variety of themes to craft around. Different legends reward different mechanics and playstyles, ensuring that there’s something for everyone.
Elrond, Master of Healing is a great example of a Commander that pays you off for sticking with a very unique theme in Scrying. This keyword provides solid card selection on its own, but with Elrond at the helm, you can assemble some pretty gnarly Scry-centric combos.
MTG Elrond, Master of Healing
Elrond, Master of Healing offers two powerful abilities that work well in tandem. The Elf essentially both buffs your creatures and discourages your opponents from removing them. So long as you’re consistently Scrying, Elrond can make any board of creatures turn into a nightmare.
Because of this, permanents that repeatedly Scry like Lifecrafter’s Bestiary, Palantir of Orthanc, and The Temporal Anchor all make for great inclusions. Once you have tons of Scry enablers ready, additional Scry payoffs like Planetarium of Wan Shi Tong, Matoya, Archon Elder, and Galadriel of Lothlorien can create an absurd amount of card advantage. From there, fully powering up Lost Isle Calling is easier than it might seem.
In addition to these extra payoffs, however, Elrond needs a reliable suite of creatures to buff. Counters payoffs like Fathom Mage and Evolution Witness that provide value each time Elrond’s first ability triggers are among your strongest options. Mass token producers like Pest Infestation also have merit since they help you abuse Elrond, Lord of Rivendell, Sylvan Anthem, and Season of Growth.
Infinite Counters and Token Combos
As impactful as Elrond is when being used “fairly,” he’s even stronger as a combo enabler. There’s a multitude of three-card combos out there that all put you in a commanding position. The strongest of the bunch combines Elrond, Master of Healing, Elrond, Lord of Rivendell, and Basking Broodscale.
With all three cards in play, all you need to do is Adapt Basking Broodscale and make an Eldrazi Spawn token. When the token enters, Elrond, Lord of Rivendell triggers to Scry 1. This, in turn, triggers your Commander, which is then able to put a +1/+1 counter on Basking Broodscale. Because this creates a chain reaction, you can repeat this process as many times as you wish. In the end, you’ll have infinite Eldrazi Spawns that can make infinite mana, as well as an arbitrarily large Basking Broodscale.
Notably, there are a ton of similar combos that also net you infinite tokens, just without the infinite mana bonus. Replacing Basking Broodscale with either Herd Baloth or Scurry Oak will do the trick, for instance. Plus, Sylvan Anthem or Season of Growth can fill the same role as Elrond, Lord of Rivendell. The same is true for Arwen Undomiel, who can sub in for Elrond, Master of Healing if your Command Tax is too steep.
Very Powerful and Cheap
Between the wealth of redundant infinite combos and the various ways to generate value, Elrond, Master of Healing is quite a strong Commander. He also perfectly mashes Scry and Counters themes together, something that sets him apart from other generic Commander options. Despite Elrond’s appeal, though, the Elf Noble legend only leads 2,274 decks, according to EDHREC.
The good news is that Elrond’s low demand has helped him maintain a budget-friendly $0.30 price. If that weren’t enough, none of the combo pieces mentioned exceed $2. This makes it easy to construct a decent deck without breaking the bank. With all of this upside, Elrond, Master of Healing undoubtedly fits the description of an underrated Commander.
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