Politics broadly refers to the social deals and decisions that players get to make in the Commander format. Since there are 4 players in every game but you can only attack one player at a time, it creates an environment where players are incentivized to form alliances, broker deals for power, and parlay their way into dominance.
What is politics in Commander?
Politics refers to the social nuances and contracts you can make in EDH. Commander/EDH is a 4-player game that’s designed to be social, fun, and encouraging of creative deckbuilding. Since the format is naturally less competitive and you have 3 opponents (instead of 1 as you do in other formats), who you target, what creatures you remove, and who you choose to attack is a matter of choice. Generally speaking, there are two types of “politics” in Commander: Verbal politics and deals. “If I take out his threat, can you not attack me for one turn so we don't all die?” These kinds of social contracts are common in Commander. What kind of deals players come up and who they try to deal with are part of the fun in EDH! Cards that create political decisions. Take a look at Wishclaw Talisman. It lets you search your library for a card and then you have to pick an opponent to “donate” the card to. This is a political choice.
Types of Political Contracts
Friendly agreements If a potential deal allows you and another player to do something they want to do, it’s a productive and friendly agreement. The classic example is something like, “If I let you resolve your commander will you agree to not counter mine next turn?” Basically, both of you get something out of it. Other examples might include: “Please don’t attack me this turn. I want to ult my planeswalker. I’ll let you ult yours next turn if you leave me alone.” “I know you have Supreme Verdict. If you wait a turn so I can draw cards off of my Spectral Sailor I’ll buy you a pop.” You cast a Mob Verdict and tell the playgroup, “If you all vote for me I won’t attack anyone for 3 turns.”
Strategic agreements Since there are 4 players in a game of Commander, there will be situations where it’d be beneficial to you and another player to make a deal so you can fight a common enemy. If a political choice pits you and someone else against another player, it’s a strategic deal. Examples include things like: “If you target Logan’s Sun Titan with your Pacifism, we can take him out next turn if we both attack.” “If you wait to cast your sweeper for a turn I can take out Nancy’s Liliana of the Veil, which benefits both of us.” You cast a Council’s Judgement and say, “Let’s all agree to target Nicky’s Ghostly Prison so we can stop getting taxed, okay?”
“Please let me do it” agreements Sometimes, you just want to do something cool. Commander is all about casting unique and creative cards, after all. The “please let me do it” deal is what it sounds like. You incentivize the other players to let you do something neat, interesting, or powerful. You might say: “I’ll take out Jim and Quincy first if you don’t kill me this turn! I’m about to tutor something gnarly.” “Pizza is on me last week if you guys finally let me pull off this very silly Ob Nixilis, the Fallen and Scapeshift win” You know an opponent has a [Hero’s Downfall] and you say, “Please let me ultimate my Ajani, Mentor of Heroes first. Just for the memes.”
Unspoken Rules
Don’t make intentionally unkind political moves. Sure, you could ask two players to join you in teaming up to kill one of the players in a brutal 3 vs. 1 gauntlet, but that’s not particularly nice. It’s also not fun (the 3 will beat the 1 every time). You could offer to use all of your cards to buff the player who is already winning, but that’s not creating a fun gameplay environment for anyone. If something is going to isolate a player and ruin the game for them, it’s probably not a good maneuver. It’s okay to make deals or play cards that only benefit some of players in the game so long as you aren’t intentionally ganging up on someone or ruining the competitiveness of the game.
When in doubt, let the cool thing happen. Most Commander players are attracted to the format because you get to play with all of the interesting cards that aren’t strong enough to make it in competitive formats like Modern and Legacy. If you have a choice between making political choice that ruins something crazy from happening and not doing that, stick with the latter.
Use politics as a fun way to generate joy, not conflict. The whole point of politics in Commander is that it’s making a social and fun game format more social and fun. If you’re going to throw a deal out there, ask yourself, “Is this sparking more joy than frustration?” If the answer is “no” you’re probably best off just keeping the idea to yourself. While commander does have winners and losers, the game is designed to be less competitive than other Magic formats.
How to Get Better at Politics
Be social at the table. Commander is meant to be a highly social game, so make small talk with your playgroup, talk about whatever’s going on in your lives, and crack jokes with your friends. The more rapport you build with the other players, the more likely they are to give you beneficial deals or take you up on your offers.
Always keep your word. Sure, it’s possible for you to make a deal and then not do what you said you were going to do, but it’ll destroy your credibility with the other players. The next time you want to make a deal, your opponents won’t be willing to work with you if your word isn’t your bond. A lot of playgroups will also refuse to play with players who lie or angle-shoot when making deals.
Embrace the chaos and fun. If a bunch of other players at the table make an elaborate deal to enable some niche combo that causes everybody’s board to be shuffled into the library, laugh it off. Commander is supposed to be the playground of the silly and the absurd, so if there’s some wild nonsense going on at the table, lean into it.
Offer mutually beneficial deals. Put yourself in the other player’s shoes when you’re thinking about making a deal. If you can find a way to make the game more productive and interesting for both you and the other player, do it! Remember, you don’t have to only offer things in the game! You can always offer to buy the beer for next week or give your friend a deal on that spicy trade they offered for your 5th edition Mana Vault in your trade binder.
Time your deals strategically. Let the games develop a bit before you start wheeling and dealing. Politics isn’t supposed to be the centerpiece of gameplay—just a little fun side component of the game. Besides, if you’re always trying to make deals it can cheapen the impact of the actually interesting moments where a deal could radically change the game. The best times to make a deal are usually in the second half of a match when players are on the verge of building a win-condition or close to assembling a key combo.
Don’t take the deals other players make personally. It’s easy to take it to heart if two players make a political decision to keep you from overrunning the board and winning the game. Try to remember that your opponents aren’t out to get you because they don’t like you—you’re probably being targeted because you’re winning!
Most Popular Political Commanders
Xantcha, Sleeper Agent Xantcha, Sleeper Agent is basically “politics: the commander.” She’s designed to be donated to players of your choice to cause all kinds of crazy hot potato games. When paired with a bunch of curse cards and enchantments that tax your opponents, you’ve got yourself a whacky Commander game that’s basically nothing but political decisions.
The Valeyard One of the newer commanders, The Valeyard forces your opponents to make villainous choices twice. Beyond that, you get to vote twice on any cards that require voting. Stuff your deck with cards that require voting and villainous choices and you’ve got a deck full of interesting decision points for all players at the table. Villainous choice is a very new mechanic, so it only appears on 11 cards thus far.
Tivit, Seller of Secrets Like The Valeyard, Tivit, Seller of Secrets lets you vote an additional times. It also forces your opponents to vote on whether you get artifacts that let you draw cards (Clue tokens) or artifacts that let you generate mana (Treasure tokens). Basically, your opponents will always be forced to make tough political decisions that always benefit you.
Kenrith, the Returned King Kenrith isn’t intrinsically a political commander, but his abilities can target anybody at the table. These abilities include card draw, life gain, and even reanimation. If you’re looking for a commander who can help sweeten the pot when you make your offers, Kenrith is the best option. Imagine you’ve got an opponent with 2 health left being attacked for 4 damage. You could offer to “donate” 5 life in exchange for you getting to do something super cool!
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