So, you’re diving into the world of Commander, also known as EDH (Elder Dragon Highlander)? Awesome! Building your first deck can feel daunting, but it’s also incredibly rewarding. One of the first questions new players often ask is, “How many cards are in a deck?”. Let’s break down the fundamental building blocks to construct a solid Commander deck and explore the ideal card count.
The Half Deck Rule: Mana Base
The mana base is the engine that fuels your deck. It might not be the flashiest aspect, but it’s arguably the most crucial. In Commander, you want to cast those impactful spells and outpace your opponents. To do that, you need mana, and lots of it. Mana sources come primarily from two categories: lands and ramp. Lands allow you to play one per turn (typically), and ramp spells give you additional mana beyond that single land drop. Cultivate and Sol Ring are prime examples of ramp staples in Commander.
A common guideline is to dedicate roughly half of your deck to mana sources. This translates to around 48-50 cards. This might seem excessive at first. Nobody likes drawing multiple lands in a row, but consistently hitting your land drops and casting ramp spells in the early game will give you a significant advantage.
Typically, you’ll want to run 37 or 38 lands, balancing basic lands with non-basic lands that offer special abilities or color fixing. Supplement this with 10-12 ramp cards to accelerate your mana development. As you gain experience, you can fine-tune these numbers based on your play style and the specific needs of your deck. There’s no absolute “right” answer; what matters is finding what works best for you.
Keeping the Cards Flowing: Card Draw and Advantage
Card draw and card advantage are critical for sustaining your momentum throughout the game. Card draw provides you with more cards in hand, while card advantage gives you access to more resources than your opponents. A simple Harmonize, which lets you draw three cards, is a classic example of card draw. A card like Bolas’s Citadel allows you to cast spells directly from the top of your library, providing card advantage.
In Commander, drawing just one card per turn often isn’t sufficient. Aim for approximately 10 cards dedicated to card draw and/or card advantage. This is a general benchmark, and some strategies may require more or less card draw. Some commanders, like Tatyova, Benthic Druid, act as card draw engines themselves. Since you always have access to your commander, you might consider running less dedicated card draw in decks that feature them. Tatyova draws you a card whenever you play a land, so you might replace some card draw with more land-fetching cards.
Card advantage can also come in the form of graveyard recursion, which allows you to reuse cards from your graveyard. This can involve casting spells from the graveyard or returning cards to your hand or the battlefield. While powerful, graveyard recursion can be vulnerable to effects that exile or remove cards from your graveyard. Consider allotting 2-3 slots for recursion spells, and adjusting based on how heavily your strategy relies on the graveyard. Victimize and Haunted Crossroads are strong recursion options.
Dealing with Threats: Removal Spells
Removal spells are essential for controlling the board and answering your opponents’ threats. Removal encompasses anything that eliminates or neutralizes opposing permanents. This is important because you need ways to deal with problematic creatures, enchantments, or artifacts that hinder your game plan.
Removal spells come in various forms. Path to Exile targets and removes a single creature. Decimate or Casualties of War can eliminate multiple targets. Board wipes like Wrath of God or Blasphemous Act clear the board of most or all creatures. Counterspells like Arcane Denial can also be considered removal, as they prevent threats from resolving in the first place.
A good starting point is to include around 10 removal spells in your deck, but adjust based on your deck’s strategy and the meta (the common decks and strategies in your playgroup). Adapt your removal suite to answer the specific threats you encounter frequently.
Removal can be further categorized into targeted removal and mass removal. Targeted removal deals with specific threats, while mass removal (board wipes) clears the board of multiple permanents simultaneously. If you’re playing a creature-heavy deck, be cautious with board wipes. Also, excessive use of board wipes can prolong games, which some players find frustrating. Aim for around 3 mass removal spells and prioritize targeted removal for various types of threats (creatures, artifacts, enchantments).
Staying Alive: Protection Spells
Protection spells are often overlooked, but they’re crucial for ensuring your strategy can unfold without interruption. Protection prevents your opponents from stopping you.
Protection can take many forms. Swiftfoot Boots provides a single creature with protection, while Privileged Position or Heroic Intervention grants hexproof to all your permanents. If you rely on creatures to win, Unbreakable Formation or Flawless Maneuver can protect you from board wipes. Counterspells, particularly protective counterspells like Keep Safe, can also be used defensively. If your deck is light on creatures, cards like Fog or Aetherize can help you survive massive attacks.
The number of protection spells you need depends heavily on your deck. If your commander is vital to your strategy, prioritize protecting it. If a specific type of card shuts down your deck, include protection against those cards. For example, if you’re playing Kess, Dissident Mage, consider cards like Disallow to counter a Scavenger Grounds that would exile your graveyard. In general, 5-7 protection spells is a reasonable starting point, but experiment to find what works best for you.
Sealing the Deal: Finishers
A crucial question to ask yourself when building a deck is: “How do I win?”. Your deck needs multiple ways to close out the game. These are your “finishers.” If you aim to win through combat, cards like Akroma’s Will, Overrun, or Bedlam provide the necessary boost to overwhelm your opponents. Relying solely on your creatures, no matter how powerful, is rarely sufficient. You need that extra push.
Finishers are as diverse as the strategies in Magic. If you’re running a mill deck, Maddening Cacophony and Traumatize accelerate your milling strategy. With opponents’ graveyards full, Rise of the Dark Realms can let you reanimate their creatures and turn them against them.
Alternative win conditions, such as Thassa’s Oracle or Approach of the Second Sun, offer another route to victory. Aim to include at least 3 finishers in your deck.
Filling the Gaps: Synergy and Theme
With the core components in place, you’ll have around 20-25 slots remaining. Use these slots to include cards that synergize with your deck’s strategy and theme. These cards enhance your overall game plan and add unique flavor to your deck.
Deck Composition Recap:
- 48-50 Mana Sources (Lands and Ramp)
- 10 Card Draw and Card Advantage Spells
- 10 Removal Spells (Targeted and Mass Removal)
- 5 Protection Spells
- 3-5 Finishers
- 20-25 Cards that Fit Your Deck’s Strategy or Theme
This provides a basic structure for building a Commander deck. Remember that these are just guidelines; adjust the numbers based on your play style, your meta, and the specific requirements of your deck. Experiment, adapt, and most importantly, have fun!
