Rhystic Study | art by Paul Scott Canavan

Welcome back to Bracketology, the miniseries where I take existing Commander decks and see how they can fit into the Commander Brackets. Be sure to check out the first article in the series where I looked at adapting decks for the Upgraded Bracket (3).

This week, I'll be looking at two of my personal decklists and proposing some tweaks and substitutions to get them to match the game experience of the Core Bracket (2) as described by Wizards.

For those of you who missed the announcement, the Commander Format Panel announced a beta trial of a new system to "create a common language to help people find well-paired games" consisting of five brackets.

Personally, I've had far too many "my deck is a seven" or "it's a lightly upgraded precon" Rule Zero conversations at my local game store, so these Commander Brackets offer a breath of fresh air.

While I don't think they're perfect by any means (I think it's really hard to quantify the power level of highly synergistic decks), it's good to see that the Commander Format Panel is giving us a new tool to aid in pregame conversations.

The Core Bracket (2)

In many ways, Core Bracket decks are the easiest to quantify because they are intended to play against "average current preconstructed deck."

The announcement article goes on to elaborate that Core Bracket decks "may not have every perfect card, they have the potential for big, splashy turns, strong engines, and are built in a way that works toward winning the game" and notes that games are "unlikely to end out of nowhere and generally [go] nine or more turns."

Notably, Core Bracket decks have a few additional deckbuilding limitations: zero Game Changers, no intentional two-card infinite combos, no mass land-denial, sparse tutors, and while a Core Bracket deck can play extra-turn spells, they should not be "chained in succession or looped."

Bracket 2 seems like the ideal entry point for a new Commander player since it's centered around pre-constructed decks, so I thought it would be an interesting thought experiment to see how I could adapt my home brew decks to better fit the Core Bracket.

While I don't imagine the bulk of my games will be played here, it certainly doesn't hurt to have a couple of options in my roster. Let's dive into this week's decklists:

Deck #1: Gandalf, Westward Voyager with Keruga, the Macrosage as a Companion 3+ Mana Spells

For our first deck, we're looking at my personal Gandalf, Westward Voyager deck that runs Keruga, the MacrosageKeruga, the Macrosage as a companion. This deck looks to cast big, splashy spells that are multiple card types, like Triplicate TitanTriplicate Titan, Greater TanukiGreater Tanuki, and Wurmcoil EngineWurmcoil Engine, and copy them with Gandalf's triggered ability. It tries to fill the board with copies of chonky creatures and doesn't run any cards that cost less than three mana.

Keen-eyed readers will point out that Gandalf, Westward VoyagerGandalf, Westward Voyager was actually the backup commander in the Elven Council precon that came out in the Tales of Middle-earth Commander product. While you could simply swap Gandalf to be at the helm of that deck and call it a day, I found that Elven Council cared more about Elves and scrying than big mana spells like Gandalf wants.

Additionally, running Keruga, the MacrosageKeruga, the Macrosage as a companion prevents us from playing any cards with mana value less than three. It's an interesting deckbuilding restriction that also drives us towards games that will develop more slowly and prevents us from running cards like Sol RingSol Ring and Elvish MysticElvish Mystic to power our our commander.

I've always thought of it as a deck that I play when my opponents want to play a game that develops slowly and ends in more of a 'battlecruiser' fashion. It used to have Ancient TombAncient Tomb in the list, but I cut that immediately after the brackets were revealed. That being said, I think there are still a few tweaks that could be made to bring this deck more in line with the Core Bracket.

In total, I ended up changing 27 cards from my original decklist, you can see the cards I removed in the maybeboard of this decklist, and the additions I made are highlighted with an orange flag as well so you can view them easily. The first nine changes I made were to remove some more expensive, untapped lands and replace them with basics or lands from the Elven Council precon. This should slow the deck down just a hair and save on cost too.

The next major area I changed was the deck's suite of interaction. Here, I looked to add in more cards that aren't perfect or the best-in-class version of their effects. Out went cards like Desecrate RealityDesecrate Reality, Sink into StuporSink into Stupor, and Ugin's BindingUgin's Binding in favor of things like Meteor GolemMeteor Golem, Perplexing TestPerplexing Test, and Mystic ConfluenceMystic Confluence, many of which come in the Elven Council precon as well.

Lastly, I took a look at the top-end of the mana curve and made a few trims for both power level and cost. Out went Hullbreaker HorrorHullbreaker Horror, Platinum AngelPlatinum Angel, Flayer of LoyaltiesFlayer of Loyalties, and friends in favor of splashy, but more tempered ways for us to end the game. I dropped in some cards like Augmenter PugilistAugmenter Pugilist, Beast of BurdenBeast of Burden, and Realm SeekersRealm Seekers instead, but there are tons of cards that you could add here.

The updated decklist still keeps the spirit of my original deck alive, including running Keruga, the MacrosageKeruga, the Macrosage as a companion. With the 20+ changes I made, it feels definitely closer to the original Elven Council deck's power level, though I wouldn't be shocked if that precon was perhaps a little bit below the power level of the average modern precon.

Deck #2: Wizard Kindred with Marchesa, the Black Rose

For our second deck this week, let's take a look at my Wizard kindred deck helmed by Marchesa, the Black RoseMarchesa, the Black Rose. This is a very standard kindred deck in many ways, leaning on the well-supported Wizard creature type, that plays an aggressive, +1/+1 counter-centric style of game headlined by cards like Metallic MimicMetallic Mimic, Sage of FablesSage of Fables, and Unspeakable SymbolUnspeakable Symbol.

It can be really resilient to removal and tends to encourage combat while placing early pressure on my opponent's life totals. If my opponents' creatures get too big, I can lean on effects like Kindred DominanceKindred Dominance and Raise the PalisadeRaise the Palisade to clear the way for my Wizards to resume their onslaught before winning with Shared AnimosityShared Animosity or Dire Fleet RavagerDire Fleet Ravager.

This deck wasn't running any Game Changers when the Bracket System was first unveiled, but it runs a lot of cards that work well together. There are tons of kindred effects that care about Wizards, and +1/+1 counters are a well supported theme in almost every color combination. It's a deck that I like to play in more casual pods, but I can imagine a pre-constructed deck would struggle to chain removal spells together to get rid of Marchesa, the Black RoseMarchesa, the Black Rose reliably.

Ultimately, I ended up making 21 swaps from my original list to get to this decklist. Seven of those swaps were lands that I exchanged for basics or tap lands to slow the deck down a hair or two. I also ended up swapping in more traditional mana rocks, like Izzet SignetIzzet Signet and Commander's SphereCommander's Sphere, for expensive pieces of "ramp", like Urza's IncubatorUrza's Incubator and Sword of the AnimistSword of the Animist, from my original decklist.

While my original list was just under $400, I wanted to get this revised list down under $150 so that it would be closer to the range of a precon's "reprint equity." I cut several cards, like Kindred DiscoveryKindred Discovery, Molten EchoesMolten Echoes, and Roaming ThroneRoaming Throne, both for their high pricetag and the fact that they can be difficult value engines for your average precon to deal with.

Given how sticky the threats in this deck can be, I decided to remove some of the more oppressive pieces of interaction, like Galecaster ColossusGalecaster Colossus, Glen Elendra ArchmageGlen Elendra Archmage, and Patron WizardPatron Wizard. In my experience these cards can nullify most of my opponents' removal spells, so I decided to cut them from this revised build. I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on what 'precon level' interaction looks like in the comments below!

Lastly, given this is a highly synergistic kindred deck, I decided to make some additions that would add a spellslinger sub-theme to the deck. Most modern precons have a sub-theme or two, often supported by the deck's alternate commander, so that felt like a natural way to dilute the potency of a kindred deck. I added cards like Diluvian PrimordialDiluvian Primordial, Eris, Roar of the StormEris, Roar of the Storm, and PteramanderPteramander to further support this new sub-theme.

Overall, the revised deck is much lighter on efficient, kindred threats, has an additional sub-theme, and will need to be more selective about how and when it interacts with its opponents. All of these feel like things that will slow the deck down a little and make it feel less inevitable when it manages to get up and running while still keeping the core idea together. Here's the revised list:

How to Apply My Method to Your Own Decks

In going through this exercise, there were a handful of takeaways I came across that I'd recommend when adapting your deck for the Core Bracket (2):

De-optimize your manabase - Being able to reliably hit your colored mana sources is one of the first thing brewers tend to do to upgrade a preconstructed deck, so if we're looking to match the speed of a precon it makes sense to add more basics and lands like Bloodfell CavesBloodfell Caves or Molten TributaryMolten Tributary.

Add in a sub-theme - Since most precons have multiple potential commanders, they often have multiple themes in the deck as well. The Elven Council pre-constructed deck for example cared about scrying, Elves, and expensive creatures. Having multiple themes in your deck will help prevent it from snowballing game after game and allow games to develop a little more slowly.

Make some choices for anti-synergy - Whether it's including cards that support only a sub-theme, like PteramanderPteramander, or have the potential to backfire on you at the wrong time, Core Bracket 2 decks often have "answers" that come at a cost to the caster. This adds a nice bit of tension to games since we can't always rely on emerging from a Wrath of GodWrath of God-effect in the best position.

Review your win conditions - In the Core Bracket, games are "unlikely to end out of nowhere and generally [go] nine or more turns," so we'll want to avoid effects like Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth and instead lean on more limited versions of them, like End-Raze ForerunnersEnd-Raze Forerunners or even OverrunOverrun, depending on the deck.

Evaluate how resilient your deck is - One common thing I've noticed about pre-constructed decks it that while they can protect their commander with things like Swiftfoot BootsSwiftfoot Boots, they're unlikely to run effects like Teferi's ProtectionTeferi's Protection or even strong counterspells like Mana DrainMana Drain. Take a look at your deck and make sure that your opponents won't be slowly locked out from winning the game the longer it goes.

Till Next Time

For the next article in this series, I'm looking to adapt decklists for the Optimized Bracket (4). I have a couple of my own lists that I think can be pushed to their maximum power level, but I'd love to hear from you about the changes you're making to your own personal lists that you're looking to adapt for the Optimized Bracket (4).

Here's a quick recap of what decks in the Core Bracket (4) look like: "You can expect to see explosive starts, strong tutors, cheap combos that end games, mass land destruction, or a deck full of cards off the Game Changers list. This is high-powered Commander, and games have the potential to end quickly."

I hope you found this experiment in tweaking my decklists to fit the new Bracket System helpful! I believe it's really important to think through the choices we make in our decklists to help them fall into a particular bracket or power level, and that doing so can help us better describe what our decks due to enable better Rule Zero conversations.

Let me know in the comments below what tweaks you're making to either power up or power down your decks to fit them into the Core Bracket (2). I'm also curious to hear what other changes you'd make to the two decks I featured this week to help it fit into the new bracket system.