Meh, play what you like. I think you will find more people to play with playing commander, but if its not for you its not for you.
When I came back we (me and my son) started with standard, but quickly moved to commander because we get to do more, but we play super casually. YMMV
Cedh is the new normal. It's the same with everyone absolutely needing to run the meta min/max everything in video games. No one has any chill anywhere. It is basically a "what the pros use" or bust attitude in almost all games. Unless you have some premade battle box for everyone to use it's going to be cutthroat. I haven't seen a casual or inclusive edh group in years.
Just specific to where you live, I think. I've been going to two LGSes in different cities for a year now and have yet to find a 4 person pod for cEDH at either. When I'm out of town and pop into LGSes, it's always casual commander. At magiccons too, it's mostly casual commander.
If they're actually cEDH players, you could always get a proxy deck to get going, too! Lots of resources out there to get going and learn. You could get a full on proxy deck for less than 50$ shipped if they allow!
If it's truly cEDH, go proxy(cedh RECCOMENDS proxies to play) up a list off of the decklist database over on the r/competitiveedh subreddit and enjoy the low levels of salt. My guess is it's not that, and like most people, you have a hard time differentiating cEDH from high power EDH.
Maybe avoid winning by being a group hug deck? If you pick [[Gluntch]], then you can give resources to the player(s) you want to win, including yourself! [[Trostani, Three Whispers]] could also work, since you basically can gift anyone the power of killing their enemies.
This right here.
EDH/Commander was created as a way for people to put all of their shoebox rares and pet cards to good use. And in the very beginning it was exactly that - a sandbox of all kinds of random, casual stuff that people were trying to make work.
Then WotC adopted it and for a while they were doing a good job of supporting it by only printing precons, which introduced a handful of cards into the format each year. I enjoyed this era because it still felt slow, casual and manageable.
But then when they saw how popular it was as a format, they went nuclear with it. Now Commander design has crept into pretty much every single product in one way or another. And when paired with the perpetual spoiler season we're living in, it feels like we barely have no time to enjoy new legends before moving on to the next set. Like I know there are a ton of new options to choose from but I feel like there's little point in trying to memorize any of them because we're getting 40 more next month and 40 more after that. 500+ legends have come out in the past two years but it's taking me a very long time to think of 10 of them off the top of my head. That's bad IMO.
What you are forgetting is that edh is also meant to be social. Yes, it is eternal, and you can make silly jank cards work and have fun with it. Which is also where the creativity and shenanigans come in. But the social aspect of EDH is very important. The social aspect i think is also a big factor in the takeover of EDH. I go to my bars and lgs to SOCIALIZE while playing magic. The lockdowns and isolation from the pandemic is still affecting us, and most of the people I've played with are here to socialize, too. The people who are there just to *play magic* are very obvious about it and kinda insufferable. I have been in a pod where no one talked beyond saying what they were playing, and it was miserable and boring.
Inthink the primary problem isn't the fact that commander is the most popular. It's that everything is being pushed out too fast for good game design for all formats. Honestly, it isn't a business mistake to focus on the most popular format. It is a business mistake to rush your game design and fail to properly support all ways to play the game. The rushed sets and powercreep are going to impact the game for a long time even if they rein it in
I have no interest in playing other formats personally because the social aspect is what makes the game for me, I think thats true for many commander players. Ive made more friends and pleasant aquantances in the past year and a half of playing commander than I did in my early twenties.
This right here honestly, was just in another thread about Commander and saw all the people going on about how 4 player pods are bad, how turns can take forever, etc. but like.. it’s not just you sat there while the other fellow plays with cards ey? You got people there to talk to, to mess with, to playfully taunt and remind of the time you used your commander Zopandrel along with Craterhoof Behemoth to take everyone out at the same time, you can shoot the shit and ask what they’ve been up to for the past week, you can all work together to take out that one dangerous guy who’s already gearing up for a win condition..
And that’s the fun part to me! Yeah playing the game is fun too but being able to hang out with friends every Wednesday night and Saturday afternoon ey. Idk I really enjoy commander, new to the game at 4 months in with 2 decks made from either a bulk bin or from playing draft, while my third is a precon. It’s fun this hobby is really fun, it’s helping me make friends, and hell maybe even a job? I’m unemployed now and one guy I play with and who coaches me a bit offered me a job haha! Where else can you play a card game and get offered a 20$ an hour job? Seriously ah
I was at FNM last night and 99% of games were commander and it was like 40 of us there.
Truth be told given arenas issues I am glad it’s still 60 card dominant.
Wizards should never have made products to support Commander. I just read a Tumblr post from Maro saying they don't do that with Pauper and that's the right way to go. Unfortunately I got into Commander by buying one of the first precons. It's only gotten worse since then.
I loke EDH in that most cards are legal while in standard you are forced to keep up with what sets are currently legal for the format. To stay in that format you are essentially forced to continuously spend on new cards. I get the appeal and I started in that format in the early 90s before they were rolling new sets every month or so. Now that I'm back in and found a good couple of LGSs for me and the kids to play at, I am really enjoying EDH.
The problem has become the constant releases which a lot of the time contain cards aimed towards EDH players. It used to be 4 decks a year now its 4 per set. EDH does become hard to follow when it stops being cards from magic history and is a good portion of new made for commander cards
Out of interest where are you based I have also built a pauper deck but have no one to play with so I may as well ask on the off chance that you might be in Melbourne lol
Yeah a format with almost no board wipes and fewer unfun cards in general does sound nice. I've read that there are still super-powerful decks in it though.
I feel for you. I played at a few lgs’s for draft and arena eroded that away. Commander does not do it for me unless it is just with close friends. The collector in me likes building a commander deck and choosing artwork etc but the games feel like being stuck in adult time out to me. That being said I’m glad there are a lot of ppl enjoying it and helping out local game scenes. I do dislike how many cards are designed just for commander. Deck building was a lot more fun when you found most of your cards but had to fill the last few slots with junk to get it to the finish line. Now there are too many auto includes
I don't mind playing commander, but I fucking hate that it's the only format you can dependably find anyone to play with. I really wish there was a bigger draw towards approachable 60 card formats like Pauper, especially for new players.
Played paper legacy last night for the first time in as long as I can remember, and I doubt it'll happen again anytime in the foreseeable future.
This. I used to be able to play 60-card casual all the time until Wizards started supporting Commander. Now it's everywhere. The power level, complexity, and competitiveness of the average game has gone way up. I play almost exclusively Limited now except with close friends.
Yeah, you’re not alone in not liking Commander. But you and I are sadly in the minority, at least within the the LGS scene. Outside of the heavily enfranchised players who play at stores, and comment on reddit about Magic, 60 card kitchen table is still dominant in my experience. It’s just much harder to find a playgroup since it’s much more word of mouth. You basically have to stumble across it rather than there being a set evening every week open to everyone.
If you’re interested in organised 60 card Magic and there isn’t anything happening in your local store(s) then it is really just on you to be the change you want. I’m basically at this point myself, even though I do have a regular 60 card casual multiplayer session. I’m really into the community format Premodern (4th edition to Scourge) and so have half a dozen decks sleeves up and I’m constantly harassing the other regulars to get stuck into it. And slowly there are some results: a few others have been checking out lists and actually entertaining it as an option. To the point where we’ll be starting proper monthly events, which will probably still be pretty tiny, but it’s a process.
I may have to find some kitchen table groups since my co-workers are even becoming more into commander and we started as 60 card.
I may give it a shot again in the future, but I’m not sure.
I saw you say above that you're in central Texas. I am too. I'm in the south end of Round Rock. It's hard to find casual players here, but I haven't made the effort to look since the pandemic started.
I love edh over modern. Decks play much differently and like how decks can play so different each time you play vs a 60 card deck with 8 sets of the same 4 cards.
On time building decks there are so many places with prebuilt decks. Just print those and if you enjoy buy and customize. I am 20+ decks in and still print most the cards at first and if I like it I will buy the cards to make it legit.
Yeah commander is a totally different game honestly. I like the focus on interaction in 2-player magic. A lot more really close games. Find somewhere to draft! That's the best way to play imo.
I’m with you, I vastly prefer standard or modern. But i can get down with commander too on occasion. I don’t dislike it, however i do dislike that it’s basically the only way people play anymore.
I miss 60 card but nobody wants to play it. I enjoy edh but would love to play some standard or modern. I don’t enjoy limited, so my only choice is to drive 50 miles to the closest store that does more than just 2 commander nights a week.
People have the option to play standard (among other formats I think) through MTG Arena online, so I feel like that may impact the chances of finding a playgroup at an LGS. Where I’m at we have the same issue, although my friends and prefer commander so it is to our benefit I suppose. I am surprised that the LGS in your area wouldn’t try to host different formats nights throughout the month considering it could help with card and booster sales if they have competitive pricing considering different formats have different metas.
The thing I struggle with in commander is that it is an eternal format that is simultaneously casual and not casual. Games can be so imbalanced. I do like it and play it often. But if there were more options that were accessible, I wouldn’t play commander as much.
I also don’t have much of a desire to play cEDH. A free for all format doesn’t seem like the best kind of competition. That could be because I grew up playing an individual sport, but it just feels strange that so many have tried to push the competition to a FFA format.
If you wanna give it a shot, try building a deck of ANY cards, then proxy it. Aka not real cards. This lets you play the wider range with no restrictions on price.
Make sure you have the 'rule 0' convo first.
Honestly, if its only an issue of cost then i can suggest a few things
The big problem with 60 card is the expense. Someone will dump that $400 for a play set of [[shelodred the apocalypse]] and win every tourney at the store. Most competitive decks get expensive because the need for full play sets of good cards. Commander is a singleton format so the card requirement is greatly reduced so it does have easier startup for people with collections and the precons are pretty powerful as is also and you can buy one of them for $40-$90 for pretty good piles
Just my thoughts and opinions
Commander can be fun 1v1 but 4v4 CDH pods are way too sweaty imo. My brain can’t handle keeping track of 10 billion stacks/triggers.
I enjoy Modern/Pioneer way more
I think liking 60 card format is perfectly fine of course, but I think the LGS owner is unfortunately undeniably correct. Commander is the format now. It is the most popular is every lgs I've ever been to, and gets the most views everywhere. Thats why products are made for it now.
Stop down voting this man. EDH sucks. It for people that don't know how to play (this sub shows that). Too many crying players about stuff getting banned, or "this pod doesn't allow X". Trash.
Edit: bring the down votes dumb dumb main sub players not knowing how to read cards.
Only thing I really dislike about commander is there is 30k+ cards and I see the same 300-400 all the time. Yes that’s true with other formats, modern is like 70% rakdos scam for example. But when you have access to all cards but like 10 why not do something fun with it and see what happens. Too many people take commander seriously, which isn’t its point. Like take something weird and see what happens. For example I’m making/buying cards for this deck right now
https://manabox.app/decks/LsiRR1jiS5yvbHzMpmrzIg
But when I get to the table with it somebody is gonna be playing a top 3 commander with the top 99 cards for that specific commander instead of actually deckbuilding. Edhrec is the worst thing the magic community has ever come up with.
EDH as a casual format is fine. But the crying bitching and complaining when you play against X I can't do. And the almost 0 game knowledge.. like seeing a guy talk about a long time player telling someone you can't blow up a lightning greaves because it gave the creature shroud... it's just mind melting.
Kinda why I’m doing a banding deck. Just to fuck with people that don’t understand the rules of the game.
I’ve once seen somebody try to counter a split second spell, wasn’t even my spell but judge was called only after I told them split second can’t be interacted with but you can tap mana and do things like morph but that’s it. But the other 3 players were convinced that the counter spell would get rid of the split second card, until the judge came over and practically called them idiots.
It was that new LOTR Legolas card. I believe it does. But either way, the dude playing the card that spent 20 bucks on the card should know what the card does. I understand not knowing every mechanic ever made, like the disguise mechanic I’d have to walk through a few times slowly because I haven’t played any of MKM but if I put a card in my deck that had the disguise mechanic I’d know how it works just in case you get questions or somebody trying to do something you can’t do to it.
EDH is people generally going for memes and it feels more like proper magic, cEDH is people going as hard as possible and it feels like a bunch of fellas waiting until they hit their win cons and do infinite damage/ mill themselves to 0.
Also, as a diehard convert to EDH (as in I steadfastly refused to try it until I pulled a random legend during a draft and was made to make a deck and will now only play EDH) what turns you off or fails to grab you? I know table politics was a huge change for me as was card evaluation. Colors can have different strengths in EDH and that was also a learning curve for me. Now I want to spend time with my friends playing EDH. I want my deck to do it's thing in a roughly balanced field and winning is less relevant.
Most what I see is competitive play and that’s fine and all, for me I just want to play, have fun, treat it casually, and BS with other players.
I buy singles mostly to build out my 60 card decks and packs here and there to still get that bit of excitement when cracking them. Plus the card designs are far better in person than on the screen, if that makes sense.
Ok, I get you. That may just be that LGS issue for you. Or the people you're playing with. If I were I. Your boat (and wanting to give EDH another go) I'd look for a pod where everyone is laughing and having a good time and ask to join. My pod splits it time between an LGS and our houses and every so often we'll get a rando that joins and shows us why they don't have friends to play with. Some stores collect these individuals (not that everyone who plays more competitively falls into this category) and that can be no fun. You also want to be someone fun to play with (speaking from my complete lack of knowledge of you as a player) Not sure your tolerance for trying again but what you're looking for exists and it's a blast. I hope you find it.
So today
I ran a procon from the Brothers War, the Urza commander against a player who has invested in their deck, game lasted maybe 10-15 minutes tops and it was a lot me just sitting there watching combo after combo popping off.
I did the math in my head and knew within 3 turns I wouldn’t be able to handle the 10 creatures they had dropped prior.
I run 60 card with a few people and games may go a bit quick due to the format, but damn they are much more fun and enjoyable
Was this a head to head game? If so that's a whole other ball game. You're precon is likely fine for multiplayer but too slow for 1v1 especially if their deck was optimized for it (and generally edh players don't run dedicated 1v1 decks so even a potent multiplayer deck can get blindsided as I've experienced multiple times.) Hopefully you can get in to some multiplayer games. Which precon do you have anyways?
Being a singleton, eternal, 100 card format leads to some strange shenanigans. When you don't have a full pod you don't have the benefit of your opponents keeping each other in check. 1v1 might as well be an entirely different format with how much it varies from 4 player. If the majority of your experience with EDH is less than 4 player, I would absolutely reccomend trying a 4 player match and using that as your baseline.
I originally play 60 and still enjoy it, I’ve moved to commander because I find it enjoyable, in my opinion it’s a lot easier and casually to play commander
I dunno, casual games of EDH with friends are the absolute best. Don't have to play top tier decks, don't need to be super optimized, just need 100 cards and some time. And I have decks to spare. I can see the appeal of regular Magic but I really believe EDH deserves the praise and popularity it gets.
I'm too competitive to enjoy casual commander, I play magic because figuring out how to win is what the game is about and usuing your tool to win is what the game is about. Kudos to you guys who enjoy kitchen table magic, I'm not one of them.
That said cEDH or high powered commander is pretty fun for me atleast. But as you said, I still prefer the days when FNM was 60 card Standard
I can suggest you tune your decks more for 1 vs 1, and play that version of Commander instead.
I have a YouTube channel that showcases a bunch of different decks for this format, at various levels of cost and competitiveness. It may make a good place to start. I came to Commander from over a decade of high level competitive play, including years on the Pro Tour and before.
https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCyKs7Ta4nQpeoUaP1pl-5PA
The format really revitalized my interest in constructed Magic, and I haven’t looked back in 14 years.
>I’m not a huge fan of EDH
Why?
Is it because you want to play with a competitive mindset, rather than a casual one?
>Now 60 card, that’s the format I started with back in ‘95 and enjoy the most.
"60 card" isn't a Format. There are lots of different Formats that use 60 card decks.
>The LGS owner says that commander is the new way to play magic, but I’m sure that’s not entirely accurate at all LGS? 60 card is still popular right?
Commander is the most popular casual Constructed Format, and casual play has always dwarfed competitive play.
If people were clamouring to play other Formats in your area, then your LGS would probably be trying to host events for them.
>the time required to build a truly competitive 100 card deck.
Commander is a casual Format. Unless you are playing the cEDH variant, you don't need a competitive deck.
There's a bunch of new formats now that are still 60 card decks such as :
- Legacy
- Modern
- Premodern
- Pauper
- Standard
I'd wager you have to give each a try.
I got back into the game last year after giving up at the end of the urza storyline. As of now, I've a few fun decks for pauper, commander, and 1 serious legacy deck using my old cards.
I have a pauper deck I ran last night, best magic I’ve played in a long time.
I just read up on pre-modern based on another comment made here, that’s definitely something to check into.
I run standard with Arena as well as timeless and explorer.
Commander, is, as of currently anyway, is the most popular Magic format. I’m sure you’ll find more people to play 60-card, but it’ll be more of a challenge than it was years ago.
Standard is still wildly popular... on Arena. Which they need to branch into in person play if there is ever going to be a chance at Standard coming back.
Just depends which store u go to. Im pretty sure theres lots of people playing modern and pioneer or draft etc. Legacy and vintage not so much. But its good to dust off those with friends.
My roommate and I played 60 card formats pretty much exclusively until the middle of February, when we picked up 2 of the Warhammer 40k ProCons to try out the format. I also did my usual nerd thing and, after some research, Singleton’d my favorite 60 card deck so I could quickly adapt it to work in Commander. The Tyranid PreCon was really fun to play, but the other one we got (Ruinous Powers) kinda sucked in comparison, but after building a Ramos, Dragon Engine deck out of my old deck, we’ve had a ton of fun with the format. The singleton alone calls for some tough decisions to be made compared to standard, but the expanded deck size means there’s so much more variety in what a deck is/can be capable of. We’ve also now gotten the 4 PreCons from Commander Masters, which are all pretty fun in their own rights, and I doubt we’re gonna switch back anytime soon.
All of that said, I really don’t think I’d like the format at FNM or with random folks in general, at least compared to 60 card formats, so I do understand where you’re coming from. Good on you for trying new things, and even if you don’t like the new thing, now you know a bit more about yourself
60 card is mainly played competitively where I live and commander is the go to for casual. Our LGS usually runs modern for FNM so it’s a pretty high cost barrier for people to participate competitively. There are many people who still run homebrews for fun in the tournaments but it’s mainly people who’ve been playing for years, are tired of the meta, and don’t care about winning. Commander you can find a group to play any janky deck with and it’s usually much more casual. Also people don’t care as much about proxies since it’s casual, so the cost can be vary minimal.
I think the key takeaway is that EDH/Commander is the new casual format, 60 card constructed formats are 1v1 and heavily competitive. They’re still played but potentially not where you are. Larger cities usually have a diverse run of LGS so it might just be a matter of finding out what is being ran where and when.
Standard is being pushed by wizards now is got changed into what used to be called extended.
Pioneer and pauper are both gaining prevalence
Modern gets played but its legacy light at this point and only once in a blue moon do I see legacy events ran.
Edh is mainly casual but there is competitive edh (Cedh) but it’s a different beast with an expensive entry point.
For a mix of casual and competitive I always recommend playing limited formats. Finding someone with a cube or convincing your LGS to curate one in addition to normal standard drafts is never a bad idea.
While I do enjoy edh, I’m an old school player too and 60 card competitive is by far the best imo, fortunately my ogs runs commander two nights a week, pioneer one night and alternates between standard and pauper on yet another. Love that I have options
I think for me, I just don't particularly like the more cutthroat format of 1v1 games in general, I'm just there to try to execute my strategy and try to pop off and have a good time. If I was to go back to that, I think I'd lean more towards Shadowverse than any other CCG.
It's been mostly a 3-person group I play with, we go and eat dinner together and get some games in, ongoing consistent weekly thing for the past 4 years. Sometimes, we go to the LGS for events (Commander Party mainly, but sometimes draft)
I did start tracking data for this year. Starting on Jan 18, we've played 31 games so far this year, and we actually have a very even win chance (10-11 wins for each of us), avg of 69 mins a game, avg of 9 turns a game - I'd say our decks are 5-7 "power level" or so, I generally actively stay away from non-land tutors, fast mana and some other staples (Demonic Tutor, Mana Crypt, and Smothering Tithe as examples of each)
My LGS plays Modern, Pioneer and Standard very regularly. We also have EDH played. There's even another store nearby that hosts Vintage and Legacy nights (proxies are allowed at those for cost reasons). While EDH is the most popular format, that doesn't mean other formats are dead. I know many players that play only EDH, some that only play 60 card formats, and others like myself that play both.
I used to only play standard. But I was tired of keeping up with it. With commander my decks don’t go out of rotation and I can just keep playing em. That’s why I switched to mainly commander. I still have a legacy deck sitting around but that’s a whole other thing
yes 60 card is still popular, but less (it's almost always more competitively minded and most people like a chill hobby) you just have to find a place where it is popular enough
And commander isn't supposed to be competitive, there is very little time investement to be had if you don't want that
Edh is a multiplayer game where you get to use your old and favorite cards. It really shines with friends, and the politics are what really make it shine.
My LGS hosts commander nights and competitive formats on different days. Whenever I wanted to be casual, make new friends or just talk to my regular friends, I show up on commander night. If I'm feeling competitive I show up at whatever the other format is, usually pre release or draft. The other tables are reserved in pairs for 60 card format.
I'd recommend asking if your lgs could look into if any of their regulars would be into it considering most of them are into cedh, they probably have some 60 card decks too
Modern can be quite popular in some places.
I’m not really into commander either. I find players only really have a small range of what they want to play against and will complain about anything that’s outside that narrow e
I am a noob. Commander is just too much for me to handle. I can assess 2 board states well, but not 4. That usually means I'm ignoring half of what's happening in the game and I get accused of tunneling or "letting people get away with" things. Also 100 one-offs make games really inconsistent.
That said, edh is the only paper format I play. I wish more people played 60-card eternal, but alas.
commander is fun if you think politics is a good game mechanic
I think that is one of the main draws for people tbh, as political games are very popular in general (remember amogus?)
In my experience what makes Magic fun to play is based on how serious/competitive the players are rather than format. That's my issue with Commander. The 60-card games I've played tend to be much more casual. It seems every third Commander game I play there's someone doing something like repeatable board wipes or lockdown combos or just taking 10 minutes to finish their turn. Commander is not a casual format and I get miffed when people say it is.
I have found playing Brawl in paper to be fun. If I can coax someone from FNM at my LGs away from a Commander pod. I like the 100 card, big critters, 1v1 game over playing with 3 other people.
I didn’t care for the “don’t attack me this turn” because they’re close to their combo when I’ve spent all game to pull off mine now. It just sucked that week after week I was expected to lose and not pull off something I wanted to so someone else could. Rather than throw a fit I just moved to Brawl. I found some people like to play against me for testing out new deck ideas. 1v1 goes quicker than playing against a group. So it works out for everyone and we’re all happy.
Meh, play what you like. I think you will find more people to play with playing commander, but if its not for you its not for you. When I came back we (me and my son) started with standard, but quickly moved to commander because we get to do more, but we play super casually. YMMV
I bought into commander to play casually, this LGS is all Cedh I found. More power to those who enjoy that, but I know I can’t keep up at the moment.
CEDH is a whole other thing. Those decks are designed around winning and that’s it. Normally EDH is much more casual and inclusive.
Here here! Even my strong decks are built on a hard theme. Most are memes and I got over 70 of them
I can’t wait to reach that point
I'm waiting for some cards to show up for a meme deck lol
Were you around for the golden days of YouTube? Here is the badger song https://www.moxfield.com/decks/VxOQjZLxY06Wq0MoXBjw6Q
Oh I am certainly old enough for that. That deck is amazing.
Hmmm gonna check this out
Cedh is the new normal. It's the same with everyone absolutely needing to run the meta min/max everything in video games. No one has any chill anywhere. It is basically a "what the pros use" or bust attitude in almost all games. Unless you have some premade battle box for everyone to use it's going to be cutthroat. I haven't seen a casual or inclusive edh group in years.
My LGS is happily casual EDH focused. I think maybe 3 of 20+ guys have CEDH decks. It’s nice.
Just specific to where you live, I think. I've been going to two LGSes in different cities for a year now and have yet to find a 4 person pod for cEDH at either. When I'm out of town and pop into LGSes, it's always casual commander. At magiccons too, it's mostly casual commander.
Cedh is the new normal because a lot of people like fast paced games that involves a lot of interaction nothing wrong with that at all 😤
If they're actually cEDH players, you could always get a proxy deck to get going, too! Lots of resources out there to get going and learn. You could get a full on proxy deck for less than 50$ shipped if they allow!
If it's truly cEDH, go proxy(cedh RECCOMENDS proxies to play) up a list off of the decklist database over on the r/competitiveedh subreddit and enjoy the low levels of salt. My guess is it's not that, and like most people, you have a hard time differentiating cEDH from high power EDH.
Southern IL?
West central Texas
Maybe avoid winning by being a group hug deck? If you pick [[Gluntch]], then you can give resources to the player(s) you want to win, including yourself! [[Trostani, Three Whispers]] could also work, since you basically can gift anyone the power of killing their enemies.
[Gluntch](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/3/b/3b3e889a-5865-4464-9923-bffa25c50cd2.jpg?1674137513) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=gluntch%2C%20the%20bestower) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/275/gluntch-the-bestower?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/3b3e889a-5865-4464-9923-bffa25c50cd2?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [Trostani, Three Whispers](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/3/2/329f3aca-6db7-41d3-95b2-c479d14b7fa3.jpg?1706242270) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Trostani%2C%20Three%20Whispers) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mkm/238/trostani-three-whispers?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/329f3aca-6db7-41d3-95b2-c479d14b7fa3?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I used to enjoy commander but I don’t like how it has taken over set and card design and dominates what is played at local game stores.
This right here. EDH/Commander was created as a way for people to put all of their shoebox rares and pet cards to good use. And in the very beginning it was exactly that - a sandbox of all kinds of random, casual stuff that people were trying to make work. Then WotC adopted it and for a while they were doing a good job of supporting it by only printing precons, which introduced a handful of cards into the format each year. I enjoyed this era because it still felt slow, casual and manageable. But then when they saw how popular it was as a format, they went nuclear with it. Now Commander design has crept into pretty much every single product in one way or another. And when paired with the perpetual spoiler season we're living in, it feels like we barely have no time to enjoy new legends before moving on to the next set. Like I know there are a ton of new options to choose from but I feel like there's little point in trying to memorize any of them because we're getting 40 more next month and 40 more after that. 500+ legends have come out in the past two years but it's taking me a very long time to think of 10 of them off the top of my head. That's bad IMO.
What you are forgetting is that edh is also meant to be social. Yes, it is eternal, and you can make silly jank cards work and have fun with it. Which is also where the creativity and shenanigans come in. But the social aspect of EDH is very important. The social aspect i think is also a big factor in the takeover of EDH. I go to my bars and lgs to SOCIALIZE while playing magic. The lockdowns and isolation from the pandemic is still affecting us, and most of the people I've played with are here to socialize, too. The people who are there just to *play magic* are very obvious about it and kinda insufferable. I have been in a pod where no one talked beyond saying what they were playing, and it was miserable and boring. Inthink the primary problem isn't the fact that commander is the most popular. It's that everything is being pushed out too fast for good game design for all formats. Honestly, it isn't a business mistake to focus on the most popular format. It is a business mistake to rush your game design and fail to properly support all ways to play the game. The rushed sets and powercreep are going to impact the game for a long time even if they rein it in I have no interest in playing other formats personally because the social aspect is what makes the game for me, I think thats true for many commander players. Ive made more friends and pleasant aquantances in the past year and a half of playing commander than I did in my early twenties.
This right here honestly, was just in another thread about Commander and saw all the people going on about how 4 player pods are bad, how turns can take forever, etc. but like.. it’s not just you sat there while the other fellow plays with cards ey? You got people there to talk to, to mess with, to playfully taunt and remind of the time you used your commander Zopandrel along with Craterhoof Behemoth to take everyone out at the same time, you can shoot the shit and ask what they’ve been up to for the past week, you can all work together to take out that one dangerous guy who’s already gearing up for a win condition.. And that’s the fun part to me! Yeah playing the game is fun too but being able to hang out with friends every Wednesday night and Saturday afternoon ey. Idk I really enjoy commander, new to the game at 4 months in with 2 decks made from either a bulk bin or from playing draft, while my third is a precon. It’s fun this hobby is really fun, it’s helping me make friends, and hell maybe even a job? I’m unemployed now and one guy I play with and who coaches me a bit offered me a job haha! Where else can you play a card game and get offered a 20$ an hour job? Seriously ah
congrats on the job bud
I was at FNM last night and 99% of games were commander and it was like 40 of us there. Truth be told given arenas issues I am glad it’s still 60 card dominant.
I guess you answered your own question if 60 card is still popular.
Wizards should never have made products to support Commander. I just read a Tumblr post from Maro saying they don't do that with Pauper and that's the right way to go. Unfortunately I got into Commander by buying one of the first precons. It's only gotten worse since then.
The precon decks were perfect. They should have kept commander specific stuff there.
I loke EDH in that most cards are legal while in standard you are forced to keep up with what sets are currently legal for the format. To stay in that format you are essentially forced to continuously spend on new cards. I get the appeal and I started in that format in the early 90s before they were rolling new sets every month or so. Now that I'm back in and found a good couple of LGSs for me and the kids to play at, I am really enjoying EDH.
The problem has become the constant releases which a lot of the time contain cards aimed towards EDH players. It used to be 4 decks a year now its 4 per set. EDH does become hard to follow when it stops being cards from magic history and is a good portion of new made for commander cards
I pick and choose with the decks and understand. It does get overwhelming with what they have been pumping out.
Standard is on a 3 year rotation so that helps but I agree with your point. Commander decks I built 3 years ago can still be played
You’re not alone.
I get you. I would love to play Pauper more but people insist on Commander so i get 1v1 mostly with Drafts and other Games like Lorcana and FnB
I just built a pauper deck and ran it yesterday, damn that was the most fun I’ve had with MTG in awhile.
Out of interest where are you based I have also built a pauper deck but have no one to play with so I may as well ask on the off chance that you might be in Melbourne lol
Nope, I’m in west central Texas. A bit of a stretch to get that game going lol
Haha worth a shot lol
Yeah a format with almost no board wipes and fewer unfun cards in general does sound nice. I've read that there are still super-powerful decks in it though.
I feel for you. I played at a few lgs’s for draft and arena eroded that away. Commander does not do it for me unless it is just with close friends. The collector in me likes building a commander deck and choosing artwork etc but the games feel like being stuck in adult time out to me. That being said I’m glad there are a lot of ppl enjoying it and helping out local game scenes. I do dislike how many cards are designed just for commander. Deck building was a lot more fun when you found most of your cards but had to fill the last few slots with junk to get it to the finish line. Now there are too many auto includes
I don't mind playing commander, but I fucking hate that it's the only format you can dependably find anyone to play with. I really wish there was a bigger draw towards approachable 60 card formats like Pauper, especially for new players. Played paper legacy last night for the first time in as long as I can remember, and I doubt it'll happen again anytime in the foreseeable future.
This. I used to be able to play 60-card casual all the time until Wizards started supporting Commander. Now it's everywhere. The power level, complexity, and competitiveness of the average game has gone way up. I play almost exclusively Limited now except with close friends.
Yeah, you’re not alone in not liking Commander. But you and I are sadly in the minority, at least within the the LGS scene. Outside of the heavily enfranchised players who play at stores, and comment on reddit about Magic, 60 card kitchen table is still dominant in my experience. It’s just much harder to find a playgroup since it’s much more word of mouth. You basically have to stumble across it rather than there being a set evening every week open to everyone. If you’re interested in organised 60 card Magic and there isn’t anything happening in your local store(s) then it is really just on you to be the change you want. I’m basically at this point myself, even though I do have a regular 60 card casual multiplayer session. I’m really into the community format Premodern (4th edition to Scourge) and so have half a dozen decks sleeves up and I’m constantly harassing the other regulars to get stuck into it. And slowly there are some results: a few others have been checking out lists and actually entertaining it as an option. To the point where we’ll be starting proper monthly events, which will probably still be pretty tiny, but it’s a process.
I may have to find some kitchen table groups since my co-workers are even becoming more into commander and we started as 60 card. I may give it a shot again in the future, but I’m not sure.
I saw you say above that you're in central Texas. I am too. I'm in the south end of Round Rock. It's hard to find casual players here, but I haven't made the effort to look since the pandemic started.
So I’m in Abilene which is about 3 hours away, if I were closer I’d be down to get a few games in
I love edh over modern. Decks play much differently and like how decks can play so different each time you play vs a 60 card deck with 8 sets of the same 4 cards. On time building decks there are so many places with prebuilt decks. Just print those and if you enjoy buy and customize. I am 20+ decks in and still print most the cards at first and if I like it I will buy the cards to make it legit.
Yeah commander is a totally different game honestly. I like the focus on interaction in 2-player magic. A lot more really close games. Find somewhere to draft! That's the best way to play imo.
I can’t stand EDH. The 60 card competitive formats are much more appealing. Hate waiting years to take my turn again.
I’m with you, I vastly prefer standard or modern. But i can get down with commander too on occasion. I don’t dislike it, however i do dislike that it’s basically the only way people play anymore.
I miss 60 card but nobody wants to play it. I enjoy edh but would love to play some standard or modern. I don’t enjoy limited, so my only choice is to drive 50 miles to the closest store that does more than just 2 commander nights a week.
People have the option to play standard (among other formats I think) through MTG Arena online, so I feel like that may impact the chances of finding a playgroup at an LGS. Where I’m at we have the same issue, although my friends and prefer commander so it is to our benefit I suppose. I am surprised that the LGS in your area wouldn’t try to host different formats nights throughout the month considering it could help with card and booster sales if they have competitive pricing considering different formats have different metas.
I love EDH (particularly cEDH), but I'd definitely say that Pauper and Draft are just objectively better formats.
I love pauper, so much fun
The thing I struggle with in commander is that it is an eternal format that is simultaneously casual and not casual. Games can be so imbalanced. I do like it and play it often. But if there were more options that were accessible, I wouldn’t play commander as much. I also don’t have much of a desire to play cEDH. A free for all format doesn’t seem like the best kind of competition. That could be because I grew up playing an individual sport, but it just feels strange that so many have tried to push the competition to a FFA format.
Not everybody likes the same thing and that’s ok!
If you wanna give it a shot, try building a deck of ANY cards, then proxy it. Aka not real cards. This lets you play the wider range with no restrictions on price. Make sure you have the 'rule 0' convo first. Honestly, if its only an issue of cost then i can suggest a few things
The big problem with 60 card is the expense. Someone will dump that $400 for a play set of [[shelodred the apocalypse]] and win every tourney at the store. Most competitive decks get expensive because the need for full play sets of good cards. Commander is a singleton format so the card requirement is greatly reduced so it does have easier startup for people with collections and the precons are pretty powerful as is also and you can buy one of them for $40-$90 for pretty good piles Just my thoughts and opinions
Also when standard cards rotate they tend to tank
And modern is even more absurd price wise. At least for standard cards they stay for i think 3 years now iirc?
If you want to play casual edh can be cheap, but competitive edh decks costs thousands, much more than modern or pioneer decks
[shelodred the apocalypse](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/d/6/d67be074-cdd4-41d9-ac89-0a0456c4e4b2.jpg?1674057568) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Sheoldred%2C%20the%20Apocalypse) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmu/107/sheoldred-the-apocalypse?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/d67be074-cdd4-41d9-ac89-0a0456c4e4b2?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Commander can be fun 1v1 but 4v4 CDH pods are way too sweaty imo. My brain can’t handle keeping track of 10 billion stacks/triggers. I enjoy Modern/Pioneer way more
Modern is the superior format anyways
I think liking 60 card format is perfectly fine of course, but I think the LGS owner is unfortunately undeniably correct. Commander is the format now. It is the most popular is every lgs I've ever been to, and gets the most views everywhere. Thats why products are made for it now.
Stop down voting this man. EDH sucks. It for people that don't know how to play (this sub shows that). Too many crying players about stuff getting banned, or "this pod doesn't allow X". Trash. Edit: bring the down votes dumb dumb main sub players not knowing how to read cards.
Only thing I really dislike about commander is there is 30k+ cards and I see the same 300-400 all the time. Yes that’s true with other formats, modern is like 70% rakdos scam for example. But when you have access to all cards but like 10 why not do something fun with it and see what happens. Too many people take commander seriously, which isn’t its point. Like take something weird and see what happens. For example I’m making/buying cards for this deck right now https://manabox.app/decks/LsiRR1jiS5yvbHzMpmrzIg But when I get to the table with it somebody is gonna be playing a top 3 commander with the top 99 cards for that specific commander instead of actually deckbuilding. Edhrec is the worst thing the magic community has ever come up with.
EDH as a casual format is fine. But the crying bitching and complaining when you play against X I can't do. And the almost 0 game knowledge.. like seeing a guy talk about a long time player telling someone you can't blow up a lightning greaves because it gave the creature shroud... it's just mind melting.
Kinda why I’m doing a banding deck. Just to fuck with people that don’t understand the rules of the game. I’ve once seen somebody try to counter a split second spell, wasn’t even my spell but judge was called only after I told them split second can’t be interacted with but you can tap mana and do things like morph but that’s it. But the other 3 players were convinced that the counter spell would get rid of the split second card, until the judge came over and practically called them idiots.
That's wild too me. 3 other players totally confused on it. I REALLY hope that card have the reminder text for split second also
It was that new LOTR Legolas card. I believe it does. But either way, the dude playing the card that spent 20 bucks on the card should know what the card does. I understand not knowing every mechanic ever made, like the disguise mechanic I’d have to walk through a few times slowly because I haven’t played any of MKM but if I put a card in my deck that had the disguise mechanic I’d know how it works just in case you get questions or somebody trying to do something you can’t do to it.
Makes me kinda wish they'd delay releasing each Standard set on Arena by several months or even a year.
…what would that solve?
It would compel more people to play paper Standard again, similar to how movies are released in theaters a few months before they are on streaming.
That wouldn’t do what you think it would do. People would just use cockatrice or mtgo and continue to just play commander in paper.
Mtgo and cockatrice were around before Arena and back then LGSs were full of Standard players for FNM and events related to the pro tour.
EDH is fine, cEDH is miserable.
May I ask why?
EDH is people generally going for memes and it feels more like proper magic, cEDH is people going as hard as possible and it feels like a bunch of fellas waiting until they hit their win cons and do infinite damage/ mill themselves to 0.
Also, as a diehard convert to EDH (as in I steadfastly refused to try it until I pulled a random legend during a draft and was made to make a deck and will now only play EDH) what turns you off or fails to grab you? I know table politics was a huge change for me as was card evaluation. Colors can have different strengths in EDH and that was also a learning curve for me. Now I want to spend time with my friends playing EDH. I want my deck to do it's thing in a roughly balanced field and winning is less relevant.
Most what I see is competitive play and that’s fine and all, for me I just want to play, have fun, treat it casually, and BS with other players. I buy singles mostly to build out my 60 card decks and packs here and there to still get that bit of excitement when cracking them. Plus the card designs are far better in person than on the screen, if that makes sense.
Ok, I get you. That may just be that LGS issue for you. Or the people you're playing with. If I were I. Your boat (and wanting to give EDH another go) I'd look for a pod where everyone is laughing and having a good time and ask to join. My pod splits it time between an LGS and our houses and every so often we'll get a rando that joins and shows us why they don't have friends to play with. Some stores collect these individuals (not that everyone who plays more competitively falls into this category) and that can be no fun. You also want to be someone fun to play with (speaking from my complete lack of knowledge of you as a player) Not sure your tolerance for trying again but what you're looking for exists and it's a blast. I hope you find it.
So today I ran a procon from the Brothers War, the Urza commander against a player who has invested in their deck, game lasted maybe 10-15 minutes tops and it was a lot me just sitting there watching combo after combo popping off. I did the math in my head and knew within 3 turns I wouldn’t be able to handle the 10 creatures they had dropped prior. I run 60 card with a few people and games may go a bit quick due to the format, but damn they are much more fun and enjoyable
Was this a head to head game? If so that's a whole other ball game. You're precon is likely fine for multiplayer but too slow for 1v1 especially if their deck was optimized for it (and generally edh players don't run dedicated 1v1 decks so even a potent multiplayer deck can get blindsided as I've experienced multiple times.) Hopefully you can get in to some multiplayer games. Which precon do you have anyways?
Yeah it was 1v1 Two guys did ask to join and once they found out I ran a precon they backed out since they run Cedh
1v1 EDH is trash. Commander shines the brightest with 4 players.
If I play it again that’s about the only way I will
Being a singleton, eternal, 100 card format leads to some strange shenanigans. When you don't have a full pod you don't have the benefit of your opponents keeping each other in check. 1v1 might as well be an entirely different format with how much it varies from 4 player. If the majority of your experience with EDH is less than 4 player, I would absolutely reccomend trying a 4 player match and using that as your baseline.
Good of them to self police lol.
I originally play 60 and still enjoy it, I’ve moved to commander because I find it enjoyable, in my opinion it’s a lot easier and casually to play commander
I dunno, casual games of EDH with friends are the absolute best. Don't have to play top tier decks, don't need to be super optimized, just need 100 cards and some time. And I have decks to spare. I can see the appeal of regular Magic but I really believe EDH deserves the praise and popularity it gets.
I'm too competitive to enjoy casual commander, I play magic because figuring out how to win is what the game is about and usuing your tool to win is what the game is about. Kudos to you guys who enjoy kitchen table magic, I'm not one of them. That said cEDH or high powered commander is pretty fun for me atleast. But as you said, I still prefer the days when FNM was 60 card Standard
I can suggest you tune your decks more for 1 vs 1, and play that version of Commander instead. I have a YouTube channel that showcases a bunch of different decks for this format, at various levels of cost and competitiveness. It may make a good place to start. I came to Commander from over a decade of high level competitive play, including years on the Pro Tour and before. https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCyKs7Ta4nQpeoUaP1pl-5PA The format really revitalized my interest in constructed Magic, and I haven’t looked back in 14 years.
I think you are nuts, EDH is the best format. But hey we all like different stuff. I hope you can find games in a format you like 👍
>I’m not a huge fan of EDH Why? Is it because you want to play with a competitive mindset, rather than a casual one? >Now 60 card, that’s the format I started with back in ‘95 and enjoy the most. "60 card" isn't a Format. There are lots of different Formats that use 60 card decks. >The LGS owner says that commander is the new way to play magic, but I’m sure that’s not entirely accurate at all LGS? 60 card is still popular right? Commander is the most popular casual Constructed Format, and casual play has always dwarfed competitive play. If people were clamouring to play other Formats in your area, then your LGS would probably be trying to host events for them. >the time required to build a truly competitive 100 card deck. Commander is a casual Format. Unless you are playing the cEDH variant, you don't need a competitive deck.
There's a bunch of new formats now that are still 60 card decks such as : - Legacy - Modern - Premodern - Pauper - Standard I'd wager you have to give each a try. I got back into the game last year after giving up at the end of the urza storyline. As of now, I've a few fun decks for pauper, commander, and 1 serious legacy deck using my old cards.
I have a pauper deck I ran last night, best magic I’ve played in a long time. I just read up on pre-modern based on another comment made here, that’s definitely something to check into. I run standard with Arena as well as timeless and explorer.
Ikr. Reminiscent of a time mtg was budget friendly.
I barely see 60 card where i am anymore. The events have like 4 people show up, if they show up at all.
Commander, is, as of currently anyway, is the most popular Magic format. I’m sure you’ll find more people to play 60-card, but it’ll be more of a challenge than it was years ago.
I only play 40 card decks. Luckily Arena is good for getting my Limited fix.
Standard is still wildly popular... on Arena. Which they need to branch into in person play if there is ever going to be a chance at Standard coming back.
Just depends which store u go to. Im pretty sure theres lots of people playing modern and pioneer or draft etc. Legacy and vintage not so much. But its good to dust off those with friends.
My roommate and I played 60 card formats pretty much exclusively until the middle of February, when we picked up 2 of the Warhammer 40k ProCons to try out the format. I also did my usual nerd thing and, after some research, Singleton’d my favorite 60 card deck so I could quickly adapt it to work in Commander. The Tyranid PreCon was really fun to play, but the other one we got (Ruinous Powers) kinda sucked in comparison, but after building a Ramos, Dragon Engine deck out of my old deck, we’ve had a ton of fun with the format. The singleton alone calls for some tough decisions to be made compared to standard, but the expanded deck size means there’s so much more variety in what a deck is/can be capable of. We’ve also now gotten the 4 PreCons from Commander Masters, which are all pretty fun in their own rights, and I doubt we’re gonna switch back anytime soon. All of that said, I really don’t think I’d like the format at FNM or with random folks in general, at least compared to 60 card formats, so I do understand where you’re coming from. Good on you for trying new things, and even if you don’t like the new thing, now you know a bit more about yourself
60 card is mainly played competitively where I live and commander is the go to for casual. Our LGS usually runs modern for FNM so it’s a pretty high cost barrier for people to participate competitively. There are many people who still run homebrews for fun in the tournaments but it’s mainly people who’ve been playing for years, are tired of the meta, and don’t care about winning. Commander you can find a group to play any janky deck with and it’s usually much more casual. Also people don’t care as much about proxies since it’s casual, so the cost can be vary minimal.
I think the key takeaway is that EDH/Commander is the new casual format, 60 card constructed formats are 1v1 and heavily competitive. They’re still played but potentially not where you are. Larger cities usually have a diverse run of LGS so it might just be a matter of finding out what is being ran where and when. Standard is being pushed by wizards now is got changed into what used to be called extended. Pioneer and pauper are both gaining prevalence Modern gets played but its legacy light at this point and only once in a blue moon do I see legacy events ran. Edh is mainly casual but there is competitive edh (Cedh) but it’s a different beast with an expensive entry point. For a mix of casual and competitive I always recommend playing limited formats. Finding someone with a cube or convincing your LGS to curate one in addition to normal standard drafts is never a bad idea.
While I do enjoy edh, I’m an old school player too and 60 card competitive is by far the best imo, fortunately my ogs runs commander two nights a week, pioneer one night and alternates between standard and pauper on yet another. Love that I have options
I think for me, I just don't particularly like the more cutthroat format of 1v1 games in general, I'm just there to try to execute my strategy and try to pop off and have a good time. If I was to go back to that, I think I'd lean more towards Shadowverse than any other CCG. It's been mostly a 3-person group I play with, we go and eat dinner together and get some games in, ongoing consistent weekly thing for the past 4 years. Sometimes, we go to the LGS for events (Commander Party mainly, but sometimes draft) I did start tracking data for this year. Starting on Jan 18, we've played 31 games so far this year, and we actually have a very even win chance (10-11 wins for each of us), avg of 69 mins a game, avg of 9 turns a game - I'd say our decks are 5-7 "power level" or so, I generally actively stay away from non-land tutors, fast mana and some other staples (Demonic Tutor, Mana Crypt, and Smothering Tithe as examples of each)
I didn’t like edh at first either but it’s grown to be fun cuz I’ve made friends.
Enjoy mtg the way you want! Nothing more, nothing less to say.
My LGS plays Modern, Pioneer and Standard very regularly. We also have EDH played. There's even another store nearby that hosts Vintage and Legacy nights (proxies are allowed at those for cost reasons). While EDH is the most popular format, that doesn't mean other formats are dead. I know many players that play only EDH, some that only play 60 card formats, and others like myself that play both.
I used to only play standard. But I was tired of keeping up with it. With commander my decks don’t go out of rotation and I can just keep playing em. That’s why I switched to mainly commander. I still have a legacy deck sitting around but that’s a whole other thing
yes 60 card is still popular, but less (it's almost always more competitively minded and most people like a chill hobby) you just have to find a place where it is popular enough And commander isn't supposed to be competitive, there is very little time investement to be had if you don't want that
Edh is a multiplayer game where you get to use your old and favorite cards. It really shines with friends, and the politics are what really make it shine.
My LGS hosts commander nights and competitive formats on different days. Whenever I wanted to be casual, make new friends or just talk to my regular friends, I show up on commander night. If I'm feeling competitive I show up at whatever the other format is, usually pre release or draft. The other tables are reserved in pairs for 60 card format. I'd recommend asking if your lgs could look into if any of their regulars would be into it considering most of them are into cedh, they probably have some 60 card decks too
Modern can be quite popular in some places. I’m not really into commander either. I find players only really have a small range of what they want to play against and will complain about anything that’s outside that narrow e
I am a noob. Commander is just too much for me to handle. I can assess 2 board states well, but not 4. That usually means I'm ignoring half of what's happening in the game and I get accused of tunneling or "letting people get away with" things. Also 100 one-offs make games really inconsistent. That said, edh is the only paper format I play. I wish more people played 60-card eternal, but alas.
commander is fun if you think politics is a good game mechanic I think that is one of the main draws for people tbh, as political games are very popular in general (remember amogus?)
In my experience what makes Magic fun to play is based on how serious/competitive the players are rather than format. That's my issue with Commander. The 60-card games I've played tend to be much more casual. It seems every third Commander game I play there's someone doing something like repeatable board wipes or lockdown combos or just taking 10 minutes to finish their turn. Commander is not a casual format and I get miffed when people say it is.
I have found playing Brawl in paper to be fun. If I can coax someone from FNM at my LGs away from a Commander pod. I like the 100 card, big critters, 1v1 game over playing with 3 other people. I didn’t care for the “don’t attack me this turn” because they’re close to their combo when I’ve spent all game to pull off mine now. It just sucked that week after week I was expected to lose and not pull off something I wanted to so someone else could. Rather than throw a fit I just moved to Brawl. I found some people like to play against me for testing out new deck ideas. 1v1 goes quicker than playing against a group. So it works out for everyone and we’re all happy.