Commander Cards Gone Wild
Nadu, Winged Wisdom | Illustrated by Daren Bader
Underdark Explorer | Illustrated by David Astruga
Hey, nerds! Today we will be taking a look at some "Commander" cards that have left Wizards scrambling and players outraged. Remember Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis' summer vacation in Modern? Or the time Lurrus of the Dream-Den and friends tried to companion their way into every deck in existence? Well, buckle up, because we're about to take a trip down memory lane visiting some of Magic's most notorious format-breakers.
Now, not all of these cards are from true Commander sets, but they appear to have been designed with Commander in mind, so if you're ready to discover how a bin chicken, a glittery enchantment, and even a humble ornament managed to flip formats on their heads, stick around. It's time to meet the Commander cards that couldn't stay in their lane!
Bonder's Ornament
First up, we have Bonder's Ornament. Now, at first glance, this unassuming artifact seems harmless enough. Three mana for a mana rock that can occasionally draw you a card? Seems fair, right? Tell that to the Pauper players. In a format defined by its limited card pool and slower pace, Bonder's Ornament became a powerhouse. It ramped you, fixed your colors, and provided repeatable card draw, all in one convenient package. The result? A warping of the Pauper meta led to its eventual banning. The ban announcement mentions that the card was never intended to see competitive play and was simply common due to how rarity is done in Commander decks. While this issue doesn't affect most of the player base, it is something I hope WOTC keeps in mind going forward.
Nadu, Winged Wisdom
But the fun doesn't stop there. Enter Nadu, Winged Wisdom. This Bird Wizard flew straight out of Modern Horizons 3 and into the nightmares of Modern players everywhere. While not from a true Commander set, Nadu still presents some signs of being a designed-for-Commander card. Aside from being legendary, which could be for balance reasons, if I'm being charitable, it is well above rate, being a 3/4 flier, and its ability seems like something we'd see on a face commander.
There is a ban announcement in a few weeks from the time I'm writing this script, and hopefully, it won't be an issue; however, it has warped Modern around it, with over 25% of the Pro Tour MH3 field running Nadu, and 5 of the top 8 being some Nadu variant. I know people can't wait for the nightmare that is Nadu Summer to be over; hopefully, that'll be in a few weeks.
Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis
Speaking of summer nightmares, if I had a nickel for each summer Modern was awful, I'd have two nickles, which isn't a lot, but it's weird it happened twice. The original awful summer meta was thanks to Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis. This deck ran rampant from June 14th - August 26th of 2019. It was an incredibly resilient and fast deck thanks to Stitcher's Supplier and Faithless Looting. Oh, and it could be cast from the graveyard. Again, Hogaak wasn't from a Commander set, but it has the markings of a card made for Commander and not 1v1.
The One Ring
The final Modern card comes courtesy of The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth and is none other than The One Ring. At the time of recording, it is currently the most played card in Modern seeing play in 47% of decks. An artifact that provides card draw, can go into any deck, and provides protection is so insanely pushed. Even the cheapest printing of the card right now is $90, and that was available in the bundle. I think this card was made as a chase mythic for Commander players, but sometimes when you power creep a little hard, this is the result.
Small Creatures. Big Problem.
Aarakocra Sneak, Underdark Explorer, and Vicious Battlerager were all printed in Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate on June 10th, 2022, and by September 19th of the same year, they were all banned, alongside Stirring Bard, the reason being Dark Ritual and Lotus Petal starts with these cards were causing too many non-games, where you'd lose turn one. But in less than three months, these Commander cards took over the format and had to be banned.
Fall from Favor
Then we have Fall from Favor, an innocent-looking common that turned into a Pauper powerhouse. This card's ability to tap down creatures while providing card advantage via the monarch was too much to deal with. It only took 55 days to be banned in pauper.
The Companion Problem
Last, but certainly not least, we need to talk about the elephant (or should I say companion) in the room: Lurrus and the companion mechanic as a whole.
When first introduced, companions sent shock waves through every format from Standard to Vintage. The ability to have a guaranteed extra card in your starting hand proved to be far more powerful than anticipated. Lurrus of the Dream-Den, in particular, with its ability to recur low-cost permanents, became an auto-include in countless decks.
The impact was so severe that Wizards had to change the entire companion mechanic, forcing players to pay three mana to put the companion into their hand before casting it. Even with this change, Lurrus of the Dream-Den, Yorion, Sky Nomad, and Zirda, the Dawnwaker still ended up banned in most formats. The Companion Saga is a prime example of how mechanics designed with Commander, or in this case having a literal Commander, can have major issues across all formats. I will say companions in Limited are incredibly fun.
Conclusion
As we wrap up our journey through these format-breaking Commander cards, it's clear that the intersection of Commander design and competitive Magic is a complex and often unpredictable space. And to their credit, Wizards has been responsive to these issues. They've also been quicker to issue bans when necessary, as we saw with cards like Hogaak, Lurrus, and hopefully Nadu.
What do you think? Which of these cards had the biggest impact in your favorite format? Are you excited or concerned about future Commander designs? And let me know what your thoughts are on this style of article! Do you want more like it?
