Within the Commander format of Magic: The Gathering, a participant loses the sport if they’ve been dealt 21 or extra fight injury by the identical commander over the course of the sport. This injury is tracked cumulatively throughout all video games inside a match. As an example, if a participant takes 15 injury from a selected commander within the first recreation after which 6 from the identical commander within the second, that participant loses the second recreation. That is distinct from common fight injury, which solely wants to cut back a participant’s life complete to zero in a single recreation.
This “commander injury” rule provides a novel strategic layer to the format. It provides a constant win situation even in opposition to lifegain methods, whereas additionally creating vulnerabilities for gamers relying closely on their commander. The rule encourages various deckbuilding selections and cautious menace evaluation, resulting in extra dynamic gameplay. Launched to curb the dominance of sure methods involving voltron (constructing a deck centered on boosting the commander’s energy and toughness), it has change into a cornerstone of the format, shaping its metagame and contributing considerably to Commander’s enduring reputation.
