<p style="text-align: right;"><em><span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Doubling Cube" href="#" target="_blank">Doubling Cube</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> | Illustrated by <a href="http://www.marktedin.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mark Tedin</a></em></p>
<p>Yesterday, we covered <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/edge-of-eternities-two-new-commander-formats-announced/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Commander Box League</a>, an event that <em>Wizards of the Coast</em> is spearheading for <em>Edge of Eternities</em>. Many players seem to find some issues with it.</p>
<p>Because it's a sanctioned event format, there's not a lot that players can do to change the policies of this event series. However, with this article, I'd like to introduce a way to augment your next Sealed Box league for Commander play that may revolutionize the way you play it.</p>
<h2>Background</h2>
<p>For a few years, I've tried to make the Commander Boxing League work. I started my first foray into it with <em>Zendikar Rising</em>, and that ended rather poorly with no actual games conducted. The idea simply petered out amongst my playgroup.</p>
<p>The next booster Commander Boxing League saw me with a booster box of <em>Bloomburrow</em>. This posed its own set of distinct issues despite games firing with more ease. My playgroup had great commanders but not necessarily the needed tools to make a deck work smoothly.</p>
<p>I mulled this idea over for the better part of a year, and, with <em>Final Fantasy</em>, finally got to enact a means to make a Commander Booster Box League fire on all cylinders for myself and two other eager playtesters.</p>
<p>Enter: The Booster Box Buffer Kit.</p>
<h2>What Is the Booster Box Buffer Kit?</h2>
<p>Simply put, this kit is a 70-strong singleton kit of cards that each player in your Commander Sealed Box event should have ready and open access to that augments one of the most major aspects of any Commander deck: mana smoothing. The kit contains 13 artifacts and 57 lands, in its current iteration.</p>
<p>Furthermore, these cards assist with mana production, fixing, land fetching, and even a little bit of card advantage.</p>
<p>Notably, all of the cards in the Buffer Kit are easy to fit in many single players' given budgets, at about $41 for the full kit. They're all geared towards generic usefulness in Commander and augment your experience for a much smoother game. In turn, this allows you to focus on putting more of your cool cards from your booster box proper into the deck.</p>
<h2>Positives to the Buffer Kit</h2>
<p>According to one player who playtested this with me during the <em>Final Fantasy</em> prerelease:</p>
<blockquote><p>The supplemental material is very helpful at helping players feel like they can still play on curve even when their box cards aren’t “ready” to go in an opening hand. Having something to play every turn helps keep games competitive through midgame. The question is in picking the right dual lands or staples. Maybe some decks really want a <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="City of Brass" href="#" target="_blank">City of Brass</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>-like card instead of <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Command Tower" href="#" target="_blank">Command Tower</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, for instance. It adds a selection mini-game to break up the initial overwhelming excitement for new, unplayed cards.</p></blockquote>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="City of Brass"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Command Tower"></div></div>
<p>As my playtester points out, the potential for mutability from set to set is one positive aspect of this kit. What works in a lands-matter set like <em>Zendikar Rising</em> won't always work for a set like <em>Edge of Eternities</em> or <em>Bloomburrow</em>. As such, cards can be added or removed to shore up any glaring issues with a given set, be they mana fixing, land fetching, or pretty much any other general aspect of the Commander play experience.</p>
<p>Fortunately, my other playtester noted how smoothly the games we played went. Mana fixing was so easy to draw into. Because of this, we all had an easy experience getting to our needed land drops. In turn, this allowed us all to secure mana on time for our more impactful plays to be made in an even measure.</p>
<p>Furthermore, this kind of buffer to a booster box's Sealed pool enables players to more easily use their cards in a manner more befitting the actual rules of Commander. Singleton decks with 100 total cards are much easier to make with this kit. They'll also be able to adhere well to color identity rules as Commander as a format dictates.</p>
<h2>Potential Shortcomings of the Buffer Kit</h2>
<p>My other playtester for the Booster Box Buffer Kit praised it highly. That said, they pointed out one possible issue with it. Being a 70-card list, it may be a bit too much for the average player to amass four times over. Shortening the list may be a necessity for some playgroups.</p>
<p>However, my colleague also remarked that doing so may limit options too much. As such, adding or replacing options will almost always feel better than simply removing them.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__cards"><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Azorius Chancery"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Tranquil Cove"></div><div class="edhrecp__card-container" name="Thriving Heath"></div></div>
<p>To this end, I can agree with my colleague. If you want to cut some amount of cards from this list, I would advise you cut one to two full cycles of dual lands, such as the Ravnica Karoo cycle (<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Azorius Chancery" href="#" target="_blank">Azorius Chancery</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> and friends) the lifegain duals (<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Tranquil Cove" href="#" target="_blank">Tranquil Cove</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, etc.), or the "Thriving" land cycle (<span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Thriving Heath" href="#" target="_blank">Thriving Heath</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, etc.).</p>
<p>This in turn will cut down on some options while keeping similar options open, if you cut no more than two of these aforementioned cycles. Remember, your playgroup will want equal treatment here so you'll want three or four of each card in the Kit as you see fit to add them.</p>
<h2>Buffer Kit List</h2>
<p>This list focuses on my personal iteration of the Buffer Kit. Feel free to make your own additions and subtractions from it to enhance your experience.</p>
<div class="edhrecp__deck mtgh"><span class="edhrecp__deck-s" name="Booster Box Buffer Kit" site="edhrec" archidekt_link="" cards="[Lands]
*1 Arcane Sanctum
*1 Ash Barrens
*1 Azorius Chancery
*1 Bloodfell Caves
*1 Blossoming Sands
*1 Boros Garrison
*1 Bountiful Landscape
*1 Command Tower
*1 Contaminated Landscape
*1 Crumbling Necropolis
*1 Deceptive Landscape
*1 Dimir Aqueduct
*1 Dismal Backwater
*1 Evolving Wilds
*1 Exotic Orchard
*1 Foreboding Landscape
*1 Frontier Bivouac
*1 Golgari Rot Farm
*1 Gruul Turf
*1 Izzet Boilerworks
*1 Jungle Hollow
*1 Jungle Shrine
*1 Myriad Landscape
*1 Mystic Monastery
*1 Nomad Outpost
*1 Opal Palace
*1 Opulent Palace
*1 Orzhov Basilica
*1 Path of Ancestry
*1 Perilous Landscape
*1 Rakdos Carnarium
*1 Reliquary Tower
*1 Rugged Highlands
*1 Rupture Spire
*1 Sandsteppe Citadel
*1 Savage Lands
*1 Scoured Barrens
*1 Seaside Citadel
*1 Seething Landscape
*1 Selesnya Sanctuary
*1 Shattered Landscape
*1 Sheltering Landscape
*1 Shimmering Grotto
*1 Simic Growth Chamber
*1 Swiftwater Cliffs
*1 Temple of the False God
*1 Terramorphic Expanse
*1 Thornwood Falls
*1 Thriving Bluff
*1 Thriving Grove
*1 Thriving Heath
*1 Thriving Isle
*1 Thriving Moor
*1 Tranquil Cove
*1 Tranquil Landscape
*1 Twisted Landscape
*1 Wind-Scarred Crag
[/Lands]
[Artifacts]
*1 Arcane Signet
*1 Chromatic Star
*1 Commander&#039;s Sphere
*1 Expedition Map
*1 Fellwar Stone
*1 Hedron Archive
*1 Mind Stone
*1 Prismatic Lens
*1 Prophetic Prism
*1 Sol Ring
*1 Thought Vessel
*1 Wayfarer&#039;s Bauble
*1 World Map
[/Artifacts]"></span></div>
<h2>The Future of the Buffer Kit</h2>
<p>I'm sure I'll make adjustments to the experience. As sets come out and their themes are made more apparent, I may remove certain cards from the Kit list. Even so, I'll work to retain a majority of the core of this experience. Feel free to try this out at your next Sealed Commander Booster Box event!</p>
<p>And now, I'd really like to hear from the readership of this article. Do you think this idea will make Sealed Commander Box Leagues better for players? What do you think about the possibility of using this kit in the future? Finally, does it appeal to you more than the previously-announced Commander Box League, for example? Sound off below!</p>


Adding Buffers to a Commander Booster Box League

<p style="text-align: right;"><em>MagicCon Vegas event key art | copyright Wizards of the Coast</em></p>
<p>It's a scenario with which many are very familiar. You're heading to a MagicCon and perusing the mammoth list of artists who'll be in attendance, and wondering if there's an efficient way to search through your decks to see just how many cards you're playing that were illustrated by those artists.</p>
<p>To help, Archidekt has just announced a new "<a href="https://archidekt.com/magiccon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MagicCon</a>" feature, free for users of the deckbuilding website. For the upcoming MagicCon Vegas, there are <a href="https://mcvegas.mtgfestivals.com/en-us/art-of-magic/artist-directory.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a whopping 61 artists</a> who'll be on-hand to sign cards, sell prints and tokens, and chat with attendees. And with Archidekt's help, you can arrive prepared.</p>
<h2>How to Use the Archidekt Artist Search Feature</h2>
<p>Previously, you'd have two options. You could have simply memorized every card done by every artist. Or, you could open up Scryfall, search cards by each artist, and cross-reference that with every card in every deck you've got.</p>
<p>Now, simply sign in (though it's not required) to Archidekt, choose your deck from the drop-down menu or import a text list, and Archidekt will tell you instantly which cards in your deck were illustrated by artists who'll be attending MagicCon Vegas.</p>
<p>And even if you're not signed in, you can easily paste in an export from another site to import into the program.</p>
<p><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-155401" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1-300x187.png" alt="" width="934" height="582" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1-300x187.png 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1-1024x638.png 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1-768x478.png 768w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon1.png 1260w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 934px) 100vw, 934px" /></a></p>
<p>And if you'd rather see entire catalogs of each artist's work, you can do that, too:</p>
<p><a href="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-155400" src="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2-300x196.png" alt="" width="947" height="619" srcset="https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2-300x196.png 300w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2-1024x670.png 1024w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2-768x503.png 768w, https://edhrecstatic.com/articles/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/archmagiccon2.png 1375w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 947px) 100vw, 947px" /></a></p>
<p>Simply head to the page, scroll down, and click "view artist's cards" for a convenient ready-made syntax search revealing every card by each artist.</p>
<p>And while you're there, if you see a card that strikes your fancy, you can add it to one of your existing decks with the click of a button.</p>
<h2>See Archidekt and the EDHRECast at MagicCon Vegas</h2>
<p>If you're heading to MagicCon Las Vegas, look for <a href="https://archidekt.com/">Archidekt</a>'s banners near the Artist Alley at the convention center, bearing a QR code that'll take you right to the Archidekt MagicCon Artists page.</p>
<p>Until then, be sure to keep up with the latest <a href="https://edhrec.com/articles/archidekt-deckbuilding-contest-june-2025">Final Fantasy deckbuilding contest</a> and get your decks ready to rock.</p>
<p>Are you ready to brave a journey into the desert for MagicCon Vegas?</p>
<p>If you are, be sure to <a href="https://mcvegas.mtgfestivals.com/en-us/experience/panels-and-events/panel-information.html?gtID=898650&amp;panel-name=EDHRECast-Live" target="_blank" rel="noopener">check out the EDHRECast Live in the Spindown room Sunday, June 22 at 4pm</a>!</p>


Archidekt Announces New 'MagicCon' Feature for Searching Artists

<p>A message from Don, the founder of EDHREC:</p>
<blockquote><p>In this article, Josh goes through a new collaboration between EDHREC and <a href="https://scryfall.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Scryfall</a>. These two websites do complementary things already and it's hard to build a deck without using both of them. Scryfall has become my and many of my friends' go-to card search website recently due to its ease of use, up to date data, and advanced syntax. However, one thing that always annoyed me was that search results had tons of EDH unplayable cards and you have to scroll through many results to find what you need. This feature uses EDHREC's data to help bubble reasonable cards up to the top of your searches and make brewing with Scryfall even more efficient.</p></blockquote>
<p>Today I have the pleasure to introduce everyone to an exciting new integration between EDHREC and Scryfall. We've teamed up with Scryfall combine our resources to help you find cards for EDH on their website.</p>
<hr />
<h2>What is Scryfall?</h2>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-9952" src="http://articles.edhrec.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/scryfall-icon.jpg" alt="" width="232" height="232" /></p>
<p>Scryfall is a Magic: The Gathering card database and search engine and is one of our personal favorites. It allows visitors to search for cards based on a free range of filters and keywords. It offers pricing data in addition to the basic filters, so budgeting your next deck becomes a breeze. They have color identity filtering included, which is a must for Commander players.</p>
<p>One key feature is being able to sort search results by a number of factors, such as price, CMC, and toughness. Now you can organize your search results by their EDHREC rank! A card's EDHREC rank is based on how many decks in EDHREC's database have that card in it. It also weighs newer decks slightly higher, this way you know what people are playing today. This means when you're building your next deck, with Scryfall, you can instantly see which cards are being played more in your search criteria. This works both as a boon to understanding what may help more within particular query and understanding what players are not playing at all. The best part is the time you're going to save by not having to scroll through hundreds of cards to find playable choices.</p>
<hr />
<h2>How to use the new feature</h2>
<p>On the Scryfall search page, there is a box with "sorted by" to the left of it. Click on that drop down menu and towards the bottom there is a new sort filter called "EDHREC Rank." Simply click on this filter and your current search with be reorganized to show the most used cards first and the least used last.</p>
<h4>Sorted by Name at First:</h4>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="wp-image-9947 alignleft" src="http://articles.edhrec.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/scryfall_lifegain.png" alt="" width="772" height="634" /></p>
<p>You can see this list is filled with cards that would normally not make any decks. [Card]Abzan Guide[/card] was a great draft pick, but falls extremly low on the playability in Commander. In fact, it's only in a total of 32 decks.</p>
<p>Sorted by EDHREC Rank After:</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-9950" src="http://articles.edhrec.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/scryfall_lifegain_EDHRECRank.jpg" alt="" width="773" height="630" /></p>
<p>Here we can see cards that are abundantly played in Commander. <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Aetherflux Reservoir" href="#" target="_blank">Aetherflux Reservoir</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is in the same place as our above Abazan Guide, but is played in 8124 decks!</p>
<hr />
<h2>Quick Uses</h2>
<p>I personally use this feature now to try and narrow some of my more obscure ideas down. I'm a fan of life gain decks in Commander, even though most of us think they're underpowered. I've recently wanted to look at some outlying colors for this theme. I used this new feature to filter down to all green cards that have life gain in their text. This what I got after I applied the EDHREC rank Filter.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-9951" src="http://articles.edhrec.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/09/scryfall_grreen_lifegain_EDHRECRank.jpg" alt="" width="763" height="728" /></p>
<p>Each one these cards peaks my interest enough to consider adding them. These cards along bring a certain power level to any green deck. Using this sorting ability has drastically lowered my deck building time for this idea. The idea itself may not be the strongest, but with these suggestions, I can see what cards are on the top end of my mono green life gain deck. In case you're wondering how bad the bottom end gets for this search, <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rysorian Badger" href="#" target="_blank">Rysorian Badger</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span> is in the bottom ten. However, it might make the cut with that amazing art!</p>
<hr />
<h2>Parting Thoughts</h2>
<p>This new level of organization will help the newest and most experienced deck builders among us. I will be using this feature for many of my decks in the future. The time alone I can save is the reason enough to use Scryfall and the EDHREC ranking, but also being able to see what cards may not be seeing play is also helpful. I joke about <span class="edhrecp__link"><a class="edhrecp__link-a" content="Rysorian Badger" href="#" target="_blank">Rysorian Badger</a><span class="edhrecp__link-image"></span></span>, but truthfully, that card has some niche play as graveyard hate within my life gain theme. I know you will enjoy using this new feature as much as I do. If you use this to help build a deck let us know in the comments down below!</p>


feature

Adding Buffers to a Commander Booster Box League

Archidekt Announces New 'MagicCon' Feature for Searching Artists

NEWS — An EDHREC Powered Scryfall