If you have any interest in popular culture at all, you’ve likely heard of Magic: The Gathering, even if you don’t really know what it is.
Also known as MTG or just “Magic”, Magic: The Gathering collectable card game from Wizards of the Coast, Magic can be played physically as a tabletop game, or digitally online.
It’s been around for three decades and having got our hands on its latest expansion, Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate, I must admit that this might just be one of its most accessible and social yet.
The new expansion returns to the world of Dungeons & Dragons, the tabletop roleplaying game also brought to us by Wizards of the Coast, and brings us a whole grimoire of familiar characters, spells, and artifacts from the D&D world.
Straight off the bat, there’s a lot for both D&D fans and Magic fans to get excited about. The cards themselves have great artwork and pay homage to a whole swathe of D&D heroes, villains, items, and locations from right across the Dungeons and Dragons timeline.
The cards themselves are as you’d expect in a lot of ways, they come in a scale of different rarities, different levels of shininess, but in addition there are also some special artwork cards, displaying well-known D&D characters in an eye-catching light. As someone who collects more than plays these days, these look fantastic and are an absolute gem.
There’s also a huge variety of cards in all different colours (colours are essentially the different “flavours” of Magic cards), meaning you won’t find yourself short of ideas for your deck.
Historically, the artwork on Magic cards has always been high quality, but the newest expansion seems to genuinely take this to a whole new level. I had a persistent smile on my face as I flicked through the packs I opened, brought on by a combination of heartwarming recognition for D&D characters I hadn’t seen in years, and the fact that the cards themselves are just an absolute joy to behold.
The thing is, even if you’ve never played D&D, you’ve almost definitely come into contact with the world whether you realised it or not. It’s referenced in TV shows and films, its tropes are used repeatedly in anything related to fantasy (any Lord of the Rings fan will feel right at home in the world of D&D for good reason), and even some of the most popular video games are either based off of (think World of Warcraft) or just downright set in the Dungeons and Dragons world.
The most obvious example of this is the Baldur’s Gate games, which have always been hugely popular and are literally set in Baldur’s Gate - the city, this Magic expansion is named after. “Baldur’s Gate 2”, originally released in 2000, is still to this day one of the highest-rated games on PC in terms of critic and user review, no matter where you try to look it up.
With that in mind, the release of this new set, which is geared towards the “Commander” format, marks what is probably the best time to get into the game, whether you’re a beginner or someone who hasn’t played in years.
What is the Commander Format in Magic: The Gathering?
The “Commander” format is a version of MTG which is actually one of, if not the most popular way to play the game. It’s social, geared around up to 4 players, as well as accessible and casual.
Commander decks are made up of 100 cards (which is more than a standard deck) and are typically built around one Legendary Creature which leads the deck into battle. The emphasis in a Commander game is generally around the fun of playing more than winning, and the rules are generally not managed by Wizards of the Coasts, with there instead of being a “Commander Rules Committee”.
Commander is so popular because of how social it is, and how low stakes it feels. People will usually allow takebacks, they don’t really expect you to know all of the rules, and they’ll often even give you suggestions if you ask.
The format allows a deck to be made using any Legendary Creature as the Commander, with the Commander gaining its own special place on the field (the Command Zone) and the ability to return there if it’s ever destroyed or removed from play. Any creature is theoretically viable, so if you find one you like just because the art is cool you can pick it up and run with it.
In addition to the above, you can play the Commander Draft Format just using Draft Boosters, with up to four players building a 60-card deck by choosing two cards at a time from a 20-card booster.
This often means that you’re often not expected for your deck to be “good” in the conventional, and there’s an element of fun and chance involved alongside the potential for skill. A lot of the new cards within the Commander Draft take advantage of having multiple opponents and might be better when drafting.
You also get more “life” in Commander. The reason for this is simple - it allows you to have more time for your commander to do whatever cool thing you want it to do. This is something that I just love, and it really emphasises the spirit of this game mode.
Almost any card is legal in Commander, and you can generally only have a maximum of one of each (except Lands) in your deck. Again, this adds to the accessibility, since you aren’t going to be playing against people who have stacked their deck full of copies of strong and expensive cards.
On top of this, if you’ve got old dusty cards lying around, you can use them in Commander - the cards aren’t time-based like they are in Standard Format, where cards go “out of rotation” and become illegal after a while.
In essence, Commander offers an opportunity for you and a few friends to grab a job-lot of cards, pick one that you like the most that are marked as a “legendary creature”, and then grab a load of cards of the same colours to form a massive deck without a whole lot of thought or worry. Because the decks are so large, any “overpowered” cards will often get drowned out - it turns into a fun free-for-all with a “what have I got that I can make the best of” attitude for everyone involved.
It can, and often is, played when one person has a large collection of old Magic cards, or when a bunch of friends decide they want to try the game out and get hold of a job lot of cards or some Commander structure decks.
Speaking of Commander Structure decks, the new set offers four of them with different colour combinations. Party Time (White and Black), Mind Flyarrs (Blue and Black), Draconic Dissent (Red and Blue) and Exit from Exile (Red and Green).
I got my hands on the Draconic Dissent, and while the deck does have a basic theme and concept, it really does embody the chaotic and carefree spirit of the Commander Format.
Verdict: 5/5
I know it seems weird to give a set of Magic: The Gathering cards a star rating, but I honestly just love these so much.
The cards are fun, great to look at, and really do the crossover with the Dungeons and Dragons world justice. As a fan of D&D and Baldur’s Gate, I found each and every card an absolute joy to trawl through, with repeated references to D&D characters, items, and locations both old and new.
In addition, the artwork is fantastic, and really fits the style of both franchises. If you’re not interested in playing Commander, then some of the structure decks might not be for you but if you’re just the type of person that likes to open shiny cards and look at the artwork (which let's be honest, is a good 75% of people), then this set definitely ticks all of the boxes.
In addition, the set adds some new mechanics - including Backgrounds, The Initiative, and Gates, and marks the return of older mechanics like Dungeons and Adventures.
Fundamentally, Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate is a great set with a great concept that offers an awesome opportunity for beginners to dive into the social side of Magic.
What’s not to love?
Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate Review is out now and available from Wizards of the Coast website and Amazon.
