Reconstruct History — Mass Land Destruction

<h6 style="text-align: right;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">(<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Magnetic Mountain" href="#" target="_blank">Magnetic Mountain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Art by</span> <a href="https://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Search/Default.aspx?action=advanced&amp;artist=[%22Susan%20Van%20Camp%22]"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Susan Van Camp</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">)</span></h6>
<h1><span style="font-weight: 400;">How to Lose Friends and Irritate People</span></h1>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Feel like your deck just is not coming together? Welcome to </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Solve the Equation</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;">, where we take a look at the numbers and see what's making your deck and in-game decision-making fall flat.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In honor of the recent update of the salt scores, I wanted to take a look at a genre of cards that is sure to be salt-inducing to many of you out there: color-hosers. Color-hosers are cards that restrict or affect only cards of a given color, or in some cases lacking a given color.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The irritating effect of these cards comes down to two main factors. First and foremost, they often will have an asymmetrical effect on the playgroup, only affecting certain players.The second factor is the absolute brutal effect of some of these cards. Early <em>Magic: the Gathering</em> design was not considering the impact of long multiplayer games when they printed cards like <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Acid Rain" href="#" target="_blank">Acid Rain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Acid Rain"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, all that said, I think these cards have a place in Commander and are often underplayed. I often forget these cards or ignore them because of the risk that they could be dead in my hand if no players are playing a certain color. I wanted to take a deeper dive to see what the odds were that these cards would have a target.</span></p>
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<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">What are the Odds?</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sure, we can never predict exactly what commanders we'll come up against, but in order to best estimate the color combinations I could face, I turned to the <a href="https://edhrec.com/commanders">top 100 commanders of the last 2 years</a>.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The top 100 commanders have an average number of colors in their color identity equal to 2.77, with just 11 commanders featuring 1 or fewer colors. Below is a complete breakdown of what colors commanders have within their color identity.</span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">White: 52%</span></li>
<li>Blue: 62%</li>
<li>Black: 60%</li>
<li>Red: 56%</li>
<li>Green: 47%</li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Yes, I too was shocked to find that green was the only color that featured in less than 50% of the top EDHREC generals. However, the biggest takeaway is how high all these numbers are. If you randomly selected any top 100 commander, there is a ⅗ chance that it has black within its color identity.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">That's just the odds of one commander being that color, but most of our commander games feature 3 opponents. Let's take a look at the odds that <em>at least</em> one of our three opponents will have a commander of any given color.</span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">White: 89%</span></li>
<li>Blue: 95%</li>
<li>Black: 94%</li>
<li>Red: 92%</li>
<li>Green: 86%</li>
</ul>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The odds that we run into a certain color are much higher than I would've guessed. That makes the “dead card” draws we risk by playing color-hosers are a lot less likely. The times they're dead are painful and definitely more memorable, but that doesn't mean we should write off these cards. There are plenty of steps we can take to mitigate the downsides.</span></p>
<hr />
<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">No Card Left Behind!</span><span style="font-weight: 400;"><br />
</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">We can mitigate the fail-case of these cards in many ways. First, sometimes our commander can give us extra benefit for casting spells, so even if the card doesn't achieve its intended goal, we still benefit. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Deekah, Fractal Theorist" href="#" target="_blank">Deekah, Fractal Theorist</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Talrand, Sky Summoner" href="#" target="_blank">Talrand, Sky Summoner</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will create tokens no matter what our card does. However, if we do go this route, it's important we find cards that <em>do not</em> need a target: we cannot cast a spell that targets without a legal target. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Blue Elemental Blast" href="#" target="_blank">Blue Elemental Blast</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will occasionally be uncastable, but we can always cast <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Hibernation" href="#" target="_blank">Hibernation</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Deekah, Fractal Theorist"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Blue Elemental Blast"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Hibernation"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Second, we can use looting and rummaging effects to sculpt our hand and ditch dead cards. These cards have a very low opportunity cost, as many of them are powerful cards that already see substantial play. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Faithless Looting" href="#" target="_blank">Faithless Looting</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Frantic Search" href="#" target="_blank">Frantic Search</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Thrill of Possibility" href="#" target="_blank">Thrill of Possibility</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> already see play in over 10% of eligible decks. These cards will power up your deck whether or not you intend to ditch certain cards.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Faithless Looting"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Frantic Search"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thrill of Possibility"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Third, not all color-hosers are created equal. Watch out for cards that can affect more than one color. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Omen of Fire" href="#" target="_blank">Omen of Fire</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is absolutely brutal and will punish any control deck you come up against. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nature&#039;s Wrath" href="#" target="_blank">Nature&#039;s Wrath</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will punish any Dimir opponents, and it fits great in an enchantment-based deck such as <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sythis, Harvest&#039;s Hand" href="#" target="_blank">Sythis, Harvest&#039;s Hand</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>. Other cards affect all colors but have a particularly backbreaking effect on some, such as <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Elephant Grass" href="#" target="_blank">Elephant Grass</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, another great inclusion for enchantment decks.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Omen of Fire"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Nature&#039;s Wrath"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Elephant Grass"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Other cards leave nothing to chance and allow us to pick a color to hate on. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wash Out" href="#" target="_blank">Wash Out</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Teferi&#039;s Moat" href="#" target="_blank">Teferi&#039;s Moat</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dromar, the Banisher" href="#" target="_blank">Dromar, the Banisher</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> all give us the option to use them flexibly. Just remember, these cards affect you as well, which means Dromar might send itself back to your hand.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Wash Out"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Teferi&#039;s Moat"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dromar, the Banisher"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">If our opponents don't have a certain land type, we can change that! <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth" href="#" target="_blank">Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and the more recently printed <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth" href="#" target="_blank">Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can help us leverage cards that care about our opponents' <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Swamp" href="#" target="_blank">Swamp</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>s and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Forest" href="#" target="_blank">Forest</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>s. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Acid Rain" href="#" target="_blank">Acid Rain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> all of a sudden becomes <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Armageddon" href="#" target="_blank">Armageddon</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Kormus Bell" href="#" target="_blank">Kormus Bell</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> opens up all lands to a board wipe. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Stern Judge" href="#" target="_blank">Stern Judge</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can deal out a boatload of damage when paired with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth" href="#" target="_blank">Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Yavimaya, Cradle of Growth"></div></div>
<hr />
<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">What Did I Miss?</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Turns out Marit Lage hates Izzet decks. Both <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Curse of Marit Lage" href="#" target="_blank">Curse of Marit Lage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Wrath of Marit Lage" href="#" target="_blank">Wrath of Marit Lage</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can shut down blue and red decks respectively. Actually, a lot of cards hate <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Island" href="#" target="_blank">Island</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>s and blue permanents. I guess <em>Wizards of the Coast</em> realized pretty quickly what color was getting a little too much love. Blue mages, be on the lookout for <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Boil" href="#" target="_blank">Boil</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Boiling Seas" href="#" target="_blank">Boiling Seas</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tsunami" href="#" target="_blank">Tsunami</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Choke" href="#" target="_blank">Choke</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> to shut down your mana production while <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Magnetic Mountain" href="#" target="_blank">Magnetic Mountain</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> takes care of your other permanents.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Curse of Marit Lage"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Wrath of Marit Lage"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Not to be outdone, blue has a number of mana-restricting cards targeted at its enemy colors of red and green. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Chill" href="#" target="_blank">Chill</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will slow down your aggro opponents, while <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Dream Tides" href="#" target="_blank">Dream Tides</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will make sure your green opponent's biggest creatures can't hit you more than once.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Chill"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Dream Tides"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The black and white portions of the color pie are also not fans of each other. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Gloom" href="#" target="_blank">Gloom</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> will shut down any white deck, while <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Major Teroh" href="#" target="_blank">Major Teroh</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can even sit in your command zone and come in just to blow out the players with black creatures. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Perish" href="#" target="_blank">Perish</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Nature&#039;s Ruin" href="#" target="_blank">Nature&#039;s Ruin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Virtue&#039;s Ruin" href="#" target="_blank">Virtue&#039;s Ruin</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> are all color-based board wipes at black's disposal for a cut rate cost of just three mana.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Major Teroh"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Gloom"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I know much of this article has focused on the heavy hitters and cards with high salt scores, but there are plenty of less egregious cards that fall into the color-hoser category that shouldn't lose you any friends. Most of these cards are predicated on giving you a reward rather than punishing your opponent. For many playgroups this will be much more palatable.</span></p>
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<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Okay, Okay, No More Land Destruction</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Let me take a break from sharing cards that will get you kicked out of your playgroup to share a variety of cards with huge effects against the right opponent. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Veil of Summer" href="#" target="_blank">Veil of Summer</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> sees play in a variety of formats and fits right at home in Commander. It protects you against both blue and black, making it incredibly unlikely that this card misses. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Regrowth" href="#" target="_blank">Regrowth</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> sees play in 7% of eligible decks, while <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Reap" href="#" target="_blank">Reap</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> sees less than 1%. Reap can have a much bigger effect and at instant speed with even an opponent with a few black permanents.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Veil of Summer"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Reap"></div></div>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Carpet of Flowers" href="#" target="_blank">Carpet of Flowers</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is so dang efficient! For just a single mana, this card can create so much mana against decks with one of <em>Magic</em>'s most popular colors. Once you have all that mana, you can use it on the cards that <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Insight" href="#" target="_blank">Insight</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Compost" href="#" target="_blank">Compost</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> can gain you. Your red decks can close out a game by pushing through damage against white decks with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Havoc" href="#" target="_blank">Havoc</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> or against white and blue with <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Magistrate&#039;s Veto" href="#" target="_blank">Magistrate&#039;s Veto</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>.</span></p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Carpet of Flowers"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Compost"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Magistrate&#039;s Veto"></div></div>
<hr />
<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">In Conclusion</span></h2>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Don't count out a card just because it looks like it might be a dead card in some games. We aren't hesitant to include expensive bombs in our deck even though the'll be dead for most of the game. We can apply that same leniency to these cards. With smart deckbuilding, we can rely on the odds that we are likely to face at least one opponent playing the color our cards hate. Give some of these cards a second look, and remember to discuss with your playgroup before pulling out a deck that will blow up all their <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Island" href="#" target="_blank">Island</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>s.</span></p>


acid rain

Reconstruct History — Mass Land Destruction

Solve the Equation - The Odds on Color-Hosers