Fact or FictionFact or Fiction | Art by Matt Cavotta

The question of how many lands to play has plagued players for nearly as long as Magic has existed. Common wisdom says that slightly more than a third of your total deck size is enough, although the math would suggest a number closer to half is better. Many players stick to the low ends of these ranges, because spells are more exciting than lands, but some archetypes encourage you to play even fewer lands.

Perhaps the best known archetype to play as few lands as possible is Storm. Storm decks want to chain as many spells together as possible, which a couple of lands on top of your deck can easily interrupt. Whether you're chaining artifacts with Jhoira, Weatherlight CaptainJhoira, Weatherlight Captain or paying life with Bolas's CitadelBolas's Citadel, there's no worse feeling than having your turn end thanks to an unlucky land on top of your deck.

Of course, other cards might encourage you to play even fewer lands. Goblin CharbelcherGoblin Charbelcher is a famous combo finisher for decks that play no lands, but you could also play only Mountains to still ensure revealing fewer cards in a lethal blast.

On the flip side, some decks want to play more lands than usual. Landfall and Lands Matter decks need plenty of lands to fuel their primary engines, and often to win the game as well.

Omnath, Locus of RageOmnath, Locus of Rage, Field of the DeadField of the Dead, and Valakut, the Molten PinnacleValakut, the Molten Pinnacle are all much less impressive when you don't have any lands to play.

Decks with many expensive spells, like Dragons or Eldrazi, usually also want more lands to ensure they can cast their big spells. You might also play more lands than usual to take advantage of creatures like Cavalier of FlameCavalier of Flame and Multani, Yavimaya's AvatarMultani, Yavimaya's Avatar, which grow more powerful the more lands you have in play or in your graveyard.

How To Participate

• Brew an EDH/Commander-legal deck on Archidekt that satisfies the prompt.
• Any unreleased cards spoiled during the contest’s duration are allowed.
• Silver-bordered and acorn cards, while cool, are not allowed.
• Digital-only cards (such as those designed for the Alchemy format on Arena) are not allowed.
• Strictly one deck submitted per user.

This month we're also revamping the submission process. Decks must now be submitted on Archidekt via a button on the newspost. This will make it easier to view all submissions in a single place. Additionally, it will simplify the process of writing a description by sharing the same text on the submission page and the deck page itself.

You can also comment on individual decks directly from the submission, making those discussions easier to find and track later.

To submit a deck, select the orange button labeled "Submit a deck to this contest" and follow the form prompt. Submissions are accepted until 9:00 pm EST (UTC -4, currently) on Wednesday, August 13, 2025.

Only one submission per user! If you change your mind and want to submit a different deck before submissions close, you may do so by first deleting your submission. To edit your description, you can do so from the deck page itself.

From the eligible submissions, we'll select three finalists with lists that we believe best embody the spirit of the prompt. Deck descriptions are not required but certainly may provide valuable context!

Finalists will be contacted via email regarding their winnings within roughly 24 hours following the conclusion of voting on Wednesday, August 27, 2025.

Please note, you must have a Cardsphere account in order to receive your winnings. It's quick and free - register here if you don't have an account already!

Here are the official contest rules. If you have any questions, feel free to ask here, or join the Archidekt public Discord server. We look forward to seeing what you all come up with!