Summary
Wizards of the Coast has announced that it is assuming management ofMagic: The Gathering’s popular Commander format, taking the role from the community-based Commander Rules Committee. This comes in the wake of a tumultuous week forMagic: The Gatheringthat resulted from major and unexpected format-shaking card bans.
The community saw a wild uproar afterfour powerfulMagic: The Gatheringcards were bannedfrom Commander: fast mana artifacts Mana Crypt and Jeweled Lotus, combo creature Dockside Extortionist, and consistent value generator Nadu, Winged Wisdom, which was already exiled from other tournament formats. The Commander Rules Committee deemed these four cards too powerful for the format as a whole, choosing to remove them completely to spare casual players from those who are more competitive.
In an announcement, Wizards of the Coast said that it is taking over the management for Commander. Following the bans, unhappy players have not only voiced their anger at the developments, but some have also taken to doxxing and threatening the five members of the Commander Rules Committee, resulting in some resignations ofprominentMagic: The Gatheringcommunityfigures. In assuming oversight of the format, Wizards is protecting the community-based representatives from further harm and lending Commander its expertise in game development and management.
A Possible New Way to Classify Commander Decks
While Wizards will still remain the official face and authority of the Commander format, it has said that some members of the Rules Committee will still be involved in input. Another big vision the company is looking to implement is the fleshing out of power level conversations in Commander play groups, proposing a bracketing and tiering system that would help classify the strength of individual decks based on specific cards included. The suggested system would put decks in tiers based on their strongest cards and help figure out whether a certain table is fun and balanced, but it would also involve a lot of meticulous work and thorough conversations to ensure its effectiveness.
In the meantime, any suggested fixes after the big bannings are more long-term solutions. A major concern right now is the sudden tanking of these particular valuablecards, which many players invested considerable amounts in. Many are trying to sell as fast as they can while the cards still have some relative value, andsome accommodatingMagic: The Gatheringvendors are refunding playerswho have recently bought these from them.
And although the bans have upset a lot of players, it’s also entirely possible that these changes can still be reversed. A petition to walk back the bans has already receivedthousands of signatures fromMagic: The Gatheringplayers, and with the takeover of the format by Wizards, this can still happen as the company has proven on occasion that they listen to the pulse of the player base.
