<h6 style="text-align: right;"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Toxrill, the Corrosive" href="#" target="_blank">Toxrill, the Corrosive</a> Illustrated by <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=a%3A%E2%80%9CSimon+Dominic%E2%80%9D&amp;unique=art">Simon Dominic</a></h6>
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Hello, and welcome to Am I the Bolas?
This column is for all of you out there who have ever played some Magic and wondered if you were the bad guy. I'm here to take in your story with all of its nuances so I can bring some clarity to all those asking, "Am I the Bolas?"
I'm ready to hear you out and offer advice. All you have to do is email amithebolas@gmail.com with your story, a pseudonym you want to use, and of course, only include details you don't mind in the column! You might see your story below one day. You might even hear it on the podcast. Which podcast?
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-25893" src="https://commandersherald.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/bolcast_logo430x430-300x300.png" alt="" width="249" height="249" />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@AmITheBolcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">THIS PODCAST!</a>
I'm Mike Carrozza and I'm learning to hug Nothing.
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Embrace Oblivion"></div></div>
I want to hug everything and so I want to hug nothing. 
This week, graveyard decks, am I right?
(Post edited for brevity, clarity, and then some.)
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<h2>SUBMISSION</h2>
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Hey there, Mike!
Long time peruser, first time commenter. I love checking out all the little articles about Magic that catch my eye, and I can't believe that I haven't heard of AITB before today! Hopefully, my boss doesn't mind that I'm inconspicuously writing an email about a trading card game 😉
Anyway, this story is more of an overall vibe check more than anything? I didn't feel like I was super in the wrong for playing how I did. For some context, I tend to have an 'I play to have fun, but I also like to win fairly' mindset. Stomping a pod is not fun at all to me if we're not all on the same playing field.
I'd like to think that I know the power level of LGS pretty well, along with a Rule 0 talk beforehand. I was playing a <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Ancient One" href="#" target="_blank">The Ancient One</a> deck that's more focused on reanimation and self-mill. The other player's commanders and board states aren't super relevant at this time, but you will see why.
Now, with <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="The Ancient One" href="#" target="_blank">The Ancient One</a>, it's pretty easy to get cards into the grave, but not so easy to get them out consistently. It doesn't really become a problem until later in the game when I'm able to play <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sheoldred, Whispering One" href="#" target="_blank">Sheoldred, Whispering One</a> or <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Virtue of Persistence" href="#" target="_blank">Virtue of Persistence</a> and be able to <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Reanimate" href="#" target="_blank">Reanimate</a> every turn. I managed to get such a board state along with the main villain of the story: <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Toxrill, the Corrosive" href="#" target="_blank">Toxrill, the Corrosive</a>. I hard cast him, only for him to die at the end of my turn.
Somehow, I either evaded graveyard hate or nobody was able to draw it because Tox was by far the best thing to continue reanimating, and I continued to do so while digging for one of my wincons, like <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Syr Konrad, the Grim" href="#" target="_blank">Syr Konrad, the Grim</a> or <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Jace, Wielder of Mysteries" href="#" target="_blank">Jace, Wielder of Mysteries</a>, without much luck unfortunately. 
One of the players in particular was the biggest voice of my opponents, complaining about why I keep reanimating Toxrill instead of "something better", like MOM <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Sheoldred" href="#" target="_blank">Sheoldred</a>. It kinda made me feel bad, but I truly felt that keeping the board clear of creatures was the way to go until I found a win condition. AITB?
Best, 
Slug Fest
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<h2>VERDICT</h2>
Thank you for writing and asking me to weigh in on your story. As I mention every week, if folks don't write to me, there's no column, so if you, the reader, want to send me a story, whether it's your own or one from Reddit or a friend's, please send it to amithebolas@gmail.com and I'll get to it here.
I'll start by saying this: I would not be surprised to learn if <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Toxrill, the Corrosive" href="#" target="_blank">Toxrill, the Corrosive</a> is the card whose art has been the featured image for my article series the most amount of times.
So... I'd say not the best start, if I'm being real. Toxrill may not be a Game Changer since it eats a <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Path to Exile" href="#" target="_blank">Path to Exile</a> real nice, but Sluggy Sluggerson definitely changes how people have to play the game.
I can appreciate your playstyle being "I play to have fun, but I also like to win fairly", but I have questions for where on the spectrum one tips the scales for the other.
It sounds like you have fun by winning, but not too easily. I mean, that's fair, right? If it wasn't challenging, the game wouldn't be so engaging, but if you keep losing, you can get a little frustrated.
That said, looking at it from the other players' perspective, you kept bringing back a board wipe on legs and most decks are at least built around a creature people want to keep in play.
To try to see it from the receiving end's perspective, considering you kept having to reanimate Toxrill, it sort of sounds like the rest of the table's resources were used up to get rid of the big Slug in hopes that a large enough window allows for them to make a dent in your reanimation engine or to set up in a way that won't be affected by Toxrill.
Toxrill might have been the best card to reanimate to win the game eventually, but when does the tipping point of liking to have fun come into play here, and was it fun for you to keep doing this? As a fellow reanimator player, if the best option to bring back is the card that makes the table groan, at a certain point, I'll be picking the sub-optimal play because the game isn't all about me.
Inb4 people talk about the concept of "playing with your food", yada yada: I think it's important to let your opponents have a breather if they aren't willing to concede and all that's left is digging for your wincon. I'm very clearly erring on the side of "I like to have fun" rather than the "win fairly" end of your play philosophy, but I guess my question is "where is the line?" How badly is a win going to contribute to your fun if the rest of the group isn't stoked to be playing a multiplayer game with you?
It's the jury management problem from Big Brother and other such socially competitive reality shows; I talked about it in this <a href="https://commandersherald.com/am-i-the-bolas-a-brainstorm-brewery-boardwipe-bonanza/">article</a> a while back and mostly recounted the Paul fiasco from memory, but it's definitely informed some of my decisions in Magic.
While you want to win, it's important to make people feel challenged and not trounced. If you are an unstoppable force and have inevitability, there is usually a recognition of the possibility of ending the game prematurely.
Some people don't like to bring it up when they're in the position of power, which is understandable, especially if they think the only way to do this is by asking repeatedly "do you want to just scoop?"
Instead, you can float the idea that you will continue to reanimate Toxrill as it is the best option to not only clear the board but also to provide you with the necessary tokens to draw your cards and get closer to closing out the whole deal.
Heck, Tox is a 7/7 that can probably get in for decent damage while it's wrecking everybody's board, there's some more inevitability. Bringing this up to the table might kickstart a discussion about whether or not it is worth it to play through the rest of the game or just give you the W.
On some level, the more competitive end of the spectrum, you're correct to keep bringing back Toxrill as this is what will get you closer to the end of the game, victorious.
On the fun side, if opponents are openly requesting you bring back something less oppressive and point to one of the all-time best <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Fleshbag Marauder" href="#" target="_blank">Fleshbag Marauder</a>/Edict effects with a Saga that ends in <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rise of the Dark Realms" href="#" target="_blank">Rise of the Dark Realms</a>, yeah, buddy, you might be going a little too hard.
You aren't wrong, but it's important to know who you're playing against. At an LGS, people are more hesitant to say what they're feeling for fear of stepping face first into a faux pas like <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouau9SVVrBA">Sideshow Bob in a yard of rakes</a>.
Take the temperature, be more communicative and receptive to this communication. Your opponent begging for a break from the slime counters can sound a lot like "okay, you win this one, can we play it through without you reanimating Toxrill for a bit?"
Nobody's stopping you from tucking this one away as a win, spiritually. Enjoy knowing you had it, but then enjoy cranking up the difficulty level to your own game after being the high difficulty level for everybody else's.
I'm going to give you a Bolas here. Clearly showing my bias for "fun" being more of the social element and the progressive nature of a game engine rather than stalls.
If everybody at the table is playing competitively and telling you they need to play it through and they want to win really badly, then fine, you get this one, but otherwise, pull back, buddy, you've already won... basically.
I should also reiterate that I appreciate that you read the column and that you wrote in! It really means a lot. Being the Bolas isn't a constant state of being, but rather simply a moment in time. You're not a bad person for any of this.
&lt;3
Mike
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Virtue of Persistence"></div></div>

Am I The Bolas? - (Not So) Welcome Back, Toxrill!

<h6 style="text-align: right;"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Mr. House, President and CEO" href="#" target="_blank">Mr. House, President and CEO</a> Illustrated by <a href="https://scryfall.com/search?q=a%3A%E2%80%9CJoseph+Meehan%E2%80%9D&amp;unique=art">Joseph Meehan</a></h6>
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<h1>I HAVE SOME NEWS</h1>
Before we move ahead with the latest Am I The Bolas? article you're here for, I have some news.
You may have noticed that a couple of weeks ago, AITB was on Commander's Herald and EDHREC on the same day.
That's because Am I The Bolas? is moving to EDHREC from now on! In fact, that was supposed to be the day we made the announcement, but this one is the official real deal.
Commander's Herald will always be the site that took a chance on a little ding dong from Canada and allowed me to give you my takes on stories every week.
I hope you continue to support Commander's Herald and you follow me over here at EDHREC to keep reading.
This does mean that the archives of <a href="https://commandersherald.com/author/mike-carrozza/">past articles are over on Commander's Herald</a>, and things will look a little sparse for me over at EDHREC, but with time, that'll grow, and the folks who enthusiastically write in, discovering the column will still have a way to dive into the back catalogue, too.
I appreciate you all. Thank you so much. Let's get into it!
<hr />
Hello, and welcome to Am I the Bolas?
This column is for all of you out there who have ever played some Magic and wondered if you were the bad guy.
I'm here to take in your story with all of its nuances so I can bring some clarity to all those asking, "Am I the Bolas?"
I'm ready to hear you out and offer advice. All you have to do is email amithebolas@gmail.com with your story, a pseudonym you want to use, and of course, only include details you don't mind in the column!
You might see your story below one day. You might even hear it on the podcast. Which podcast?
<img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-25893" src="https://commandersherald.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/bolcast_logo430x430-300x300.png" alt="" width="249" height="249" />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/@AmITheBolcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener">THIS PODCAST!</a>
I'm Mike Carrozza, aka Mark Carbonza, and it's time to say welcome to the team full time, Mikey!
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Warm Welcome"></div></div>
I promise to make less fart jokes (I made a lot, and "less" means still making some here and there).
This week, the house has spoken.
(Post edited for brevity, clarity, and then some.)
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<h2>HELLO, MIKE</h2>
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Hello,
I have joined a Commander playgroup, rounding out the group of four, being invited by a friend from work. While I've known the work friend for several years before joining, the three have been friends since high school. We are all now in our mid-to-late 30s to give you an idea of how long I'm talking.
The group has been super welcoming and a great time. The elephant in the room is that I played Magic in middle school, a few times in Arena, and a couple of times during Christmas at work with the friend coworker. They have all been playing for nearly two decades.
Again, the group has treated me well, pointing me to helpful precons, giving me leniency in games, and also treating me as the threat when warranted.
Getting to the meat of things: the group has some house-banned commanders from some tense spats in the past. One of these commanders fits me like a glove in terms of playstyle, color arrangement, and even just creature theme and art.
 Would I be the Bolas if I were to inquire about being an exception to the ban rule? With the understanding that I probably won't know how to build/play to the same level of table flipping frustration, am I just poking at old wounds?
I'd rather leave out which commander it is if we can.
Signed, 
Newbie
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<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Mr. House, President and CEO"></div></div>
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<h2>HOWDY, NEWBIE!</h2>
Thank you for writing and asking me to weigh in on your story. As I mention every week, if folks don't write to me, there's no column, so if you, the reader, want to send me a story, whether it's your own or one from Reddit or a friend's, please send it to amithebolas@gmail.com and I'll get to it here.
I love this submission. There are so many interesting pieces to this that makes me pretty stoked to get into it.
First, I want to say a big "hell yeah, that rules" about joining a playgroup of folks who've welcomed you so much and treat you in a way you appreciate. That's awesome, and I wish this for everybody looking to join a playgroup. It's a beautiful thing!
Secondly, I think the line you're walking in this group is a difficult one to tow. As the new guy, you've got to adapt to their rules and determine how you like it while also being careful not to overstep or change things up too much as to avoid the possibility of not being invited back, etc.
I think the way they've taken you in tells me that you'll be alright altogether.
Finally, I think your desire to play a commander that is house-banned is definitely fair. You weren't around for the banning and don't know exactly what caused it.
I believe it should be fine for you to inquire about their reasoning, but be prepared to be met with the possibility of not being encouraged to build that deck.
To the readers, I should probably tell you that Newbie has asked me not to include the legendary creature in question, but they have disclosed it to me.
To give you an idea, it's a commander that I would also kind of sigh at if I saw it in the command zone, but I wouldn't be rushing to push it off my table. It's definitely a difficult creature to deal with, and for experienced players to be upset at the sight of it, I should say I don't think they're totally overreacting by banning it.
As Commander players, I'd say it's pretty likely that we came to the format long after the banned cards list was established. When you get into the format and see that <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Griselbrand" href="#" target="_blank">Griselbrand</a> is banned, I would hope your first instinct isn't to say "hey, I want to play that card" and try to get away with it in your deck. You play by the rules, right?
In this case, there are some extra rules. This playgroup has seen some things they'd rather avoid in the future.
It's fair to question why it's banned and to ask if you could potentially build it, but a card like that (again, sorry I can't give you all the information, readers) even being <a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Clone" href="#" target="_blank">Clone</a>d is brutal and could still cause issues at the table again.
It's not a banned commander in the game overall, so if you wanted to put together the deck and have it for when you find yourself at an LGS or playing with other people, nobody can stop you there.
However, in this playgroup, you'll need to run it by them and be ready for a negative response.
You are new, and they've given you a lot of grace, though I don't think they're likely to bend here. I could be wrong, though!
You are not the Bolas for wanting to ask. You would be if you showed up with the deck built and ready to go at the group's table.
Okay...warning....
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I will tell you who the creature is.
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It's....
&nbsp;
.....
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<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Hunding Gjornersen"></div></div>
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Did you really think I'd betray Newbie's trust?
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Thanks for reading!

aitb

Am I The Bolas? - (Not So) Welcome Back, Toxrill!

Am I The Bolas? - House Banned Commander