Magic: The Gathering Commander Decks – what you need to know
What is the Commander format?
Commander, officially known as EDH (Elder Dragon Highlander), is a multiplayer format for Magic: The Gathering played with 3–4 players. Each player starts with 40 life and commands a 100-card deck built around a legendary creature – the Commander – which determines what colors you can use in your deck. The format only allows one copy of each card except for basic lands, making each deck unique and each game a new experience.
Commander is known for its social and political gameplay – alliances are formed and broken during the game, and no player is guaranteed safe until the last one remains. It's a format that rewards creative deck-building and strategic thinking as much as card knowledge.
What does a Commander Deck contain?
A Commander Deck from Wizards of the Coast contains exactly 100 cards: a legendary foil Commander, unique thematic cards not found in regular booster packs, powerful synergies, and a complete land package. The deck is built around a specific strategy – such as tribal, lifegain, tokens, graveyard recursion, or spellslinger – and is ready to play straight out of the box without needing to buy additional cards.
Many Commander Decks also include reprints of older cards that were previously expensive or hard to find, making them attractive to players who want access to powerful staples without paying premium prices for single cards.
Commander Decks for beginners
Commander is an excellent format for those new to Magic: The Gathering. The pre-constructed decks provide an immediate playing experience without needing to understand deck-building from scratch. Choose a deck with a clear and simple strategy – tribal decks with a specific card type or midrange decks with a balanced mix of cards are often easier to learn than combo-oriented decks that require deeper card knowledge.
Commander Decks can then be gradually upgraded with cards from MTG booster packsor single cards to strengthen specific strategies and adapt the deck to your playstyle.
Commander Decks for experienced players
For experienced MTG players, Commander Decks are a quick entry into a new strategy or theme. The exclusive cards included in Commander Decks – and not found in booster packs – are often sought-after staples that can be worth extracting from the deck and using in other decks. The foil Commander card is also a natural collector's item for those who grade MTG cards.
Protect and transport your Commander Deck
A 100-card Commander Deck requires a deck box with sufficient capacity. Choose a model that can hold 100 double-sleeved cards if you use inner sleeves and outer sleeves – this provides an extra layer of protection for the cards during intensive shuffling. Standard card sleevesin 66×91 mm fit standard-sized MTG cards. Explore the full range of TCG accessoriesat Hobbykort.se for more solutions tailored for Commander players.
