Throughout the past year, MTG players have watched as the Commander format has been on quite a journey. Back in September, following the chaos that ensued after unprecedented bans, Wizards officially took over the format. Since then, the format has seen a massive shift thanks to the new bracket system and recent unbans.
While Commander was already the most popular MTG format, on paper, Wizards clearly isn’t shying away from innovating. If you ask me, however, I don’t think Wizards has gone far enough. Between the official ban list and Game Changers, the format already has two major ban lists. Personally, I think it needs a third, in order for the format to truly flourish.
On or Off
Right now, there’s not a tremendous amount of wiggle room on the Commander banlist. Either a card is banned, so it can’t be played anywhere, or it’s on the Game Changers list. As we know, cards on this list can be played partially in Bracket 3, or without limits in Bracket 4 and above.
For the most part, this system works rather well, since there are a good deal of cards that are powerful, but not entirely game-ruining. Limiting the use of these cards prevents staples from dominating games and creating unfun play patterns. Most of the recent unbans are the perfect example of what a Game Changer should be.
Coalition Victory, for instance, is technically a bomb of a win condition that doesn’t take much to get going. At the same time, this card is also pretty bad, thanks to its high cost and the threat of instant-speed removal. Even with fast mana and tutors, building your card around this deck doesn’t guarantee wins, but it could nonetheless ruin casual games.
Braids, Cabal Minion, on the other hand, is in a slightly different league, thanks to their lower mana cost. In Commander, even in Bracket 3, there’s a non-zero chance you can power her out early and completely shut down a game. While this does take a lot of moving pieces, Dark Ritual into Sol Ring, it’s definitely a possibility.
Obviously, this three-card combo is way too strong for Bracket 2 and below, hence Braids being a Game Changer. Personally, however, I also think that this potential turn one win is too fast for Bracket 3, as well. Even Wizards’ revised description of the bracket seems to reflect this, as it’s the last of the more casual-ish-oriented brackets.
A Missed Opportunity
Since Braids, Cabal Minion is the problem here, unbanning her may have simply been the wrong choice. As much as Rule Zero can stop opponents from facing her, the brackets are meant to ease those conversations. If we’re left listing off the Game Changers we don’t want to play against before starting, then the system feels somewhat flawed.
To remedy this, I think Wizards of the Coast should really implement a second Game Changers list into Commander. Essentially, this second list would function as a new banlist, which is only playable in Bracket 4 and above. Not only would this allow Wizards to unban more cards, but it’d keep Bracket 3 safe from any potential problem Game Changers.
So far, I believe the only real problem is Braids, but that doesn’t mean I’m suggesting a one-card banlist. As mentioned, this extra banlist would be a great opportunity to unban additional cards. For Brackets 4 and 5, where winning is the primary concern, a lot more MTG cards could be viable.
As we discussed recently, Wizards of the Coast could have definitely unbanned more cards during their recent announcement. If Wizards is hesitant to make them Game Changers now, the Bracket 4 list would be an obvious home. On top of these cards, cards like Primeval Titan, Sundering Titan, and Sylvan Primordial would all be totally reasonable in Bracket 4.
Essentially, so long as it doesn’t break cEDH or make the format incredibly stale, it’d be a compelling Bracket 4 unban. Ideally, this gives MTG players more options without compromising the integrity of otherwise casual-focused games.
A Complexity Spike
Obviously, given I’m writing about it, I’m pretty fond of this extra Game Changer/Banlist idea. At the same time, however, I’m fully aware that it’d cause a massive complexity spike for the format. The original Game Changers list was already a huge step in this direction, and a second may be one too far.
For new MTG players, managing five brackets with three banlists between them doesn’t exactly make Commander approachable. On top of this, additional banlists may be too granular of an approach that essentially aims to rule out Rule Zero entirely. That said, I feel it’s easier to implement bans using Rule Zero, rather than unbans, during pre-game discussions.
Ultimately, I very much doubt Wizards of the Coast is going to implement this suggestion anytime soon, if ever. There’s a good chance that this isn’t even a new suggestion and that Wizards considered it while developing the bracket system. Even if that wasn’t the case, radically overhauling things with an extra banlist is likely too much of a change.
If we’re honest, most of the MTG cards on the Commander banlist are there for good reason. While the Game Changer list does present an interesting opportunity for unbans, it’s hardly the Wild West out here. For good reason, Wizards of the Coast is likely going to be cautious with unbans going forward.
For better or worse, we already know this is going to be the case. It’s been confirmed that the Commander banlist isn’t being touched until 2026 at the earliest. With this in mind, it seems Wizards is definitely playing it safe, rather than looking to mix things up radically.