Best commander for a learning player?
Commander Deck Help forum
Posted on May 21, 2019, 8:57 a.m. by Qolorful
Hey guys! I finally convinced my GF to give commander a shot (I dont really play other formats), and now I need to build her a deck that is simple for her and cheap, as well as on a good oriented theme. She doesnt really like demons and zombies and stuff like that. My thoughts were Sigarda, Host of Herons or Mayael the Anima , but I want to know if anyone has anything that would be even easier for her to learn.
Nasser_inside1 says... #3
Krenko, Mob Boss if she’s interested, or just one of the gods from theros, Prossh, Skyraider of Kher , or just Isamaru, Hound of Konda
Personal favorite Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind
May 21, 2019 9:34 a.m.
I would recommend against most of the suggestions presented above, for the following reasons:
Ezuri, Renegade Leader / Krenko, Mob Boss - tribal strategies are pretty easy to pick up, but very limited in what they do. If she does not like the tribe or the very linear, go wide and swing playstyle, that's going to dissuade her from playing the game.
The Theros Gods are pretty hit-or-miss. You'll want to avoid the mono-coloured gods, since you want to provide as much diversity of play as possible so she can start to learn what type of deck she enjoys. Kruphix, God of Horizons might be a good choice--decent colours and an ability that fits well in a couple different types of playstyle.
Prossh, Skyraider of Kher can probably be fine, but, based on the limited information provided, R/B does not seem like her colours.
Isamaru, Hound of Konda and other Voltron commanders tend to be a bit linear.
My recommendation would be to get a couple of the precon decks, as they tend to be similar in power level to one another, and tend to be diverse enough to be enjoyable, without being too complex.
Baring that, consider building your own decks that are at the precon power level (i.e. not that optimized, so they produce longer games where new players can experience a plethora of different interactions). It's pretty easy to take a couple random Legends you already have sitting about and combine it with bulk to build a precon-level deck with little-to-no additional investment.
This will leave you with a bunch of different decks, so she has several options and can learn what type of playstyle she enjoys. The decks themselves might not be great, but I've found diversity and playing against similarly-powered decks is more important than optimization to a new player.
May 21, 2019 9:57 a.m.
GhostChieftain says... #5
cdkime makes some good points. I said elves simply because they are super easy to learn, but if she doesn't want a go wide strategy she will probably dislike it. I will second the motion to get a precon deck. Make sure to do some looking into what each does and have her pick what she likes best.
May 21, 2019 10:07 a.m.
Sorry, I didn't realize how limited my information was. cdkime was right in that she wouldn't be too into RB colors, I just don't see her playing sacrifice or any of those "evil" creatures. My decks are pretty unevenly powered, and I've never been terribly good at estimating power levels, so I think the commander decks might be the way to go. Although I disliked the C18, so I'll probably wait for C19 to come out and just buy all of them.
For now, though, I'm just looking to get a deck that's on the cheaper side, but could be taken to my LGS to teach her with a couple of friendly unspiky players who would let her enjoy the game. I was mostly looking for suggestions on commanders that are simple to play, can be built cheaply, and would make her feel like "the good guy."
I think Kruphix has the potential to work, and now that I think about it Karametra, God of Harvests could be a good and simpler option too.
May 21, 2019 10:13 a.m.
I assume she has not played Magic before so you may want to go down to your LGS and grab some of there free for new player decks also and just sit down with her one evening and teach her the basics of the game before tossing her into one of the most complex formats. This also can give you some idea of what she would be interested in to pick up for her.
May 21, 2019 10:17 a.m.
Pervavita that is a good point. Just occurred to me that even if she plays a simple commander deck that doesn't mean everyone else will, she might just get lost anyway if I toss her in there.
May 21, 2019 10:23 a.m.
Last_Laugh says... #9
I'd say no on Karametra... that's a lot of shuffling a 100 card deck. Just think back to how difficult that was getting used to just pregame, let alone 10+ extra times per game. Meanwhile everyone else makes it look easy which is frustrating in it's own right.
May 21, 2019 10:52 a.m.
griffstick says... #10
When I was a learning player my Cmdr was Kalitas, Bloodchief of Ghet . I had no problem with it, but the meta has shifted and that card is bad. I would suggest a Cmdr that's not confusing. One that does exactly what it reads. I think drawing cards is the funniest thing in magic so I suggest Selvala, Explorer Returned . Its low costed, it's not gonna break the bank, people like selvala because people like drawing cards, so it doesn't die to spot removal often, she can generate lots of mana to play big spells, and playing big spells is the next most fun thing you can do. It doesn't make you fo a specific theme, Plus it's my second Cmdr while I was a learning player.
If that's not good I think Queen Marchesa it another good option. For some of the same reasons.
May 21, 2019 12:49 p.m.
DerektheRed says... #11
I agree a precon is a great way to learn. I'd suggest one of the following:
Adaptive Enchantment (C18 with Estrid, the Masked ) - this deck is simple (play enchantments) but not too linear; it has good interactivity, good card draw, and is more protective than aggressive. It's also still comparatively cheap, and can be improved/upgraded on a budget. If a planeswalker commander is daunting to start, just put Estrid into the 99 and play Tuvasa the Sunlit as the commander.
Second suggestion is Stalwart Unity (C16 with Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis ) - every color but black! There are few decks in the format better suited for "the good guy" - group hug + pillow fort. It also happens to be super fun to play (when we played C16 out of the box, this deck won). Downside is that like all old precons, it has escalated to between $80-$100.
May 21, 2019 5:23 p.m.
Bant and Selesnya decks sound like the way to go.
Trostani, Selesnya's Voice can be a cool general. Let's you gain a ton of life, and populate can be a versatile mechanic where you can choose to go wide with alot of tokens, or focus on creating and copying bigger tokens from cards like Advent of the Wurm and Desolation Twin .
Arcades, the Strategist is another interesting option. Using defenders can be like being the good guy. But assigning combat damage with toughness rather than power could be a little confusing for a beginner.
May 21, 2019 9:20 p.m.
I would suggest Ezuri, Claw of Progress (even if a bit expensive himself). It has a clear game plan and usually has a good amount of interaction. It's a good way to learn magic in my opinion. Plus, he is an elf, even if slightly touched by phyrexia: not a scary monster, but in the middle... It could be a nice way to introduce her to magic lore while playing.
Another good one would be Sram, Senior Edificer Voltron with cheap equipments that let you draw lots of cards. Niche deck, but surprisingly fun and effective. Plus, he's a dwarf: there aren't may around magic, you know.
GhostChieftain says... #2
Anything tribal should be fine to start. Elves with Ezuri, Renegade Leader would be my suggestion.
May 21, 2019 9:24 a.m.