I will start with a brief introduction as to the approach taken with this deck.
This Commander (EDH) deck is a labor of love that has been in the making for more than just a while, even before the release of the 'Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle Earth' set by WotC.
Being an avid fan of Tolkien's work, with the rather common trait of having one of his books ('The Hobbit' in this case) as my favorite, I had strived to make a thematic deck revolving around a legendary creature that would come to represent the titular Hobbit: 'Bilbo Baggins'.
Past contestants were Legendary Creatures such as 'Jori En, Ruin Diver', 'Alora, Merry Thief', 'Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive', 'Thada Adel, Acquisitor', 'Daxos of Meletis', 'Norin The Wary', 'Fblthp, The Lost'. Each one of them with their respective fitting traits to portray the tricksy Hobbit. Various artifacts had already been selected in order to represent the story's tools and weapons. In the place of 'The One Ring', for example, would be the 'Ring of Evos Isle' and so on and so forth.
Times being what they are, however, we got actual versions of many things within Tolkien's universe translated into the world of Magic: The Gathering.
Having said all that, let's cut into the chase of the approach the deck takes and the logic behind it all, including the reason for the selection of many of the individual cards.
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My Favorite GIF
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Utilizing the 'The Ring Tempts You' mechanic, 'Bilbo, Retired Burglar' is a rather offensive Voltron Commander that benefits the pilot of this deck for being aggressive in their approach by generating 1 Treasure per instance of combat damage dealt onto a player. Something quite sought after, specifically in this color combination (Izzet / ).
Having a low base power of 1, works wonders in the deck's approach, rendering Bilbo essentially unblockable to the majority of the game's creatures through the Ring Temptation's first ability (Your Ring-bearer is legendary and can't be blocked by creatures with greater power). His toughness being 3 also works relatively well in case he is blocked at some point or targeted by a damaging cantrip. His low CMC of enables us to replay him quite often should he be killed, destroyed, exiled etc. Something that shouldn't necessarily sadden us, should it happen, for Bilbo makes sure to progress the Ring's Temptation not only by entering the battlefield but by leaving it as well.
A Voltron strategy can take many different paths. It can go the Enchantment way and it can go the Equipment way. It can rely on the mechanic of Exalted and it can rely on various enabling cantrips, Instants and Sorceries meant to pave the way towards victory for our chosen Commander.
Being in the colors that we are, the main thing that we are lacking is Ramp (something that Bilbo himself attempts to mitigate). So my chosen approach in terms of trying to maintain a board presence and the capacity to bounce back after a board wipe, targetted removal etc (beyond having several Counterspells in our arsenal to safeguard ourselves against such scenarios) is to utilize a rather grand and diverse gallery of artifacts that shall remain on the battlefield so that they may be utilized time and time again if needed. Among those artifacts, 8 mana rocks are included (so that we may, more easily, equip Bilbo with everything that he may need depending on the journey ahead).
The artifacts, beyond buffing Bilbo's attributes (Power and Toughness) in some manner, include a suite of abilities such as Shroud, Draw a Card through Combat Damage, further Treasure Generation, Trample, Haste, Hexproof, Nonbasic Landwalk, Unblockable, Vigilance, Indestructible.
As further assistance, there is also a small selection of Enchantments meant to generate Card Advantage, Information Advantage, Evasion, Protection and even Land Destruction.
The Instants and Sorceries of the deck are there to turn the tables on your opponents during crucial moments. So that their plans will be foiled through the selection of Counterspells, so that Bilbo will be saved at the last moment from certain doom (while also progressing the Ring's Temptation), so that a meager unblocked Bilbo will offer you one extra turn or a free card off of an opponent's own deck and even a way to return Auras to one's hand should you fear they will be heading to the Graveyard.
The Creatures within the deck serve two reasons. If necessary, they can serve as able bodied wielders of our weapons. However, their primary duties aim to serve our gameplan. Duties like providing Mana or Card Advantage, Protecting our Commander, rewarding us for playing the majority of the card types available in our deck or making our opponents think twice before attempting to interact with our gameplay.
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The deck's three main strengths, from my own point of view at least, are its budget, flavor and respective power deriving off of the first two. It certainly leans towards the 'Casual EDH' side of the scale, without that meaning that it cannot compete against stronger decks through careful piloting and, of course, a Hobbit's luck.
It can certainly be upgraded, in terms of power. Probably at some degree in terms of flavor too, but I think that route would lead towards some decline in power level. My experience after playtesting sets it somewhere around the level of a WotC Preconstructed Commander deck. With its price being almost exactly that of a WotC Precon.
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References (Formatting is a Work in Progress) :
Zariel, Archduke of Avernus - Azog, The Defiler
Daretti, Scrap Savant - Great Goblin
Esior, Wardwing Familiar - Thrush
Tandem Lookout - Bard
Iron Myr / Silver Myr / Alloy Myr - The Three Trolls
Niv-Mizzet, Parun - Smaug
Sleep - Bilbo helping the dwarves escape the elves
Tales of the Ancestors - Bilbo telling tales of his exploits to the Shire youth
Insult // Injury - Bilbo's cheeky approach to Smaug
Rescue - Gandalf rescuing the group from the Trolls
Turnabout - Gandalf saves the dwarves from the Goblins
All instances of 'unblockable/blink/phasing' or 'protection from creatures' - The Ring's Invisibility Effect
Destructive Urge - Smaug's attack on the Dale
Notorious Throng - Bilbo's adventurous youth and the journeys he made searching for Fey in the forest
Knowledge Exploitation - Bilbo takes the Arkenstone to the Elves & Men
Treasure Trove - Smaug's Hoard
Opal Palace - Elvenking's Halls
Tectonic Edge - Mirkwood
Dwarven Mine - Erebor
Temple of the False God - Dol Guldur
Forgotten Cave - Troll Cave
Looming Spires - Misty Mountains
Rogue's Passage - Hidden Door to Erebor
Glasses of Urza / Telepathy - Bilbo's ability to gain knowledge undetected through the Ring
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell - Thorin
Sky Diamond / Fire Diamond - Treasure from Smaug's Hoard
Coveted Jewel - Arkenstone
Elixir of Immortality - The Ring's Anti-Aging Effect
Candlekeep Sage - Bilbo's Precious Books
My Favorite GIF
((reminder to remove sth to add torbran in paper deck))
