Despite being one of the most interesting mechanics in MTG, Meld cards have yet to live up to their potential. In constructed formats, needing to assemble a powerhouse threat before using it is far too much setup to be viable. Even in Commander, having to find and protect both Meld pieces is a massive hoop to jump through.
Thankfully, while most Meld cards are pretty meh when apart, Urza, Lord Protector is actually worth playing. Beyond just being good on its own, this card becomes an absolutely obscene threat once Melded. Despite this, this Urza doesn’t see a great deal of Commander play, which seems like a real shame.
MTG Urza, Lord Protector
On their own, Urza, Lord Protector, is simply a good MTG card. Cost reduction for artifacts, instants, and sorceries is hugely relevant in Commander, and for three mana, it’s a godsend. This naturally makes Urza a fantastic fit for an artifact-themed deck with a control edge.
Admittedly, while Urza, Lord Protector is very powerful, its applications in Commander are very straightforward. By letting your mana go further, you can easily cast more counterspells and threats like Bronze Guardian. This, in turn, lets you get more artifacts onto the board, setting up Affinity payoffs to keep your hand stocked like Krang, Master Mind.
Notably, Urza’s cost reduction will also make The Mightstone and Weakstone cheaper, but casting that card isn’t the hard part. Instead, finding it is the real issue, but thankfully, artifact tutors help solve this problem. Between Enlightened Tutor, Fabricate, and Scour for Scrap, finding what you need mercifully isn’t too difficult.
Once all the pieces are in play, Melding Urza as soon as possible is vital to keep them protected. While Teferi’s Protection and Dawn’s Truce can come in clutch here, cost-reduced counterspells are your bread and butter. Should everything go according to plan, finally Melding Urza into Urza, Planeswalker absolutely supercharges your game plan.
MTG Urza, Planeswalker
Between providing cost reduction, card draw, bodies, and removal, Urza, Planeswalker really does it all. Since you can activate two of these per turn, you can easily push toward Urza’s ultimate, too. Without any help, you can do this the turn after you Meld Urza, but it’s possible immediately with The Chain Veil.
While Urza, Planeswalker can clean up on its own, playing Teferi’s Talent makes Urza that much more obscene. Using an effect like Brainstorm and Urza’s +1 ability, you can easily hit 13 loyalty to activate the new -12. From here, you can bury each opponent in card advantage while exiling their toughest threats.
As if this weren’t enough, you can even copy Urza, Planeswalker with Spark Double for extra shenanigans. Even without these extra synergies, however, Urza, Planeswalker has tons of combo potential. Hell, even the unmelded Urza, Lord Protector enables a few infinites, making this Commander seriously scary.
Infinite Draw, Magecraft, and Land Destruction
On their own, Urza, Lord Protector can easily go infinite when paired with Sensei’s Divining Top and Mystic Forge. Since you can cast Top from the top of your library for free, draw with it, then cast it again, drawing your entire deck is effortless. From here, you can use Thassa’s Oracle, or countless other wincons, to end the game.
While drawing your deck with Sensei’s Divining Top should put your Storm count in the high 70s, Urza can also go truly infinite. After Melding to put Urza, Planeswalker on the board, using its +2 ability once will let you loop Ghostly Flicker endlessly. All you need alongside this is a card like Archaeomancer to return the sorcery to your hand between bounces.
If you want to be really mean, it’s even possible to remove all of your opponents’ lands using either Urza, Lord Protector or Planeswalker. Thanks to the cost reduction, you can loop Sculpting Steel by copying Spine of Ish Sah and sacrificing it with Krark-Clan Ironworks. While this is a four-card combo, destroying all of your opponent’s lands is worth branching out into.
Flawed but Fun
Realistically, while they are capable of some incredibly powerful plays in MTG Commander, Urza, Lord Protector isn’t perfect. The most fun from this card is locked behind Meld, and on its own, it’s neither the best artifact nor control-focused Commander. Thankfully, Commander has enough depth and freedom to make this Urza viable, letting fun be the focus.
Sadly, this fun does come at a bit of a cost, as copies of Urza, Lord Protector, sell for around $9 to $10. As if this wasn’t enough, needing The Mightstone and Weakstone ups costs by another $4 or so. While this combined $14 price tag pushes Urza out of the budget range, there are definitely more expensive Commanders out there.
As much as Urza, Lord Protector is fairly expensive, they’re not actually that popular in the command zone. Instead, this card is more commonly found as a solo cost reduction piece in artifact and Azorius spellslinger decks. Thanks to this utility, Urza is in the 99 of around 20,800 decks, while it only helms 4,300. This gives plenty of opportunity for Urza, Lord Protector to surprise your Commander pod.
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