Magic is going back to its core with Foundations, the next Standard legal set that will stay in the format until at least 2029 as with the other Standard sets that are released, there are tons of goodies for Commander and Foundations definitely delivers! As with our other Top 10 lists, we’ll focus on cards that shine in your ninety nine. Beyond new cards there are also a bunch of awesome reprints to build out our your collection if you're just getting started with Commander. Let's dive in and see what new toys we can play with.
1. Celestial Armor
Similar to Mithril Coat, Celestial Armor offers a nice response to targeted removal for one of your Creatures. This new equipment is technically weaker than it's Lord of the Rings counterpart, but it offers some unique benefits in being able to protect any Creature, adding Hexproof (to dodge Exile effects) and a combat buff with some evasion via Flying. Celestial Armor will be a great way to turn the tides when your opponents least expect it.
2. Divine Resilience
Saving your Creatures from removal can be key for winning, especially if that Creature is enabling your deck in some way or providing value through drawing cards or tampons ng lands. Divine Resilience gives us another way to save one (or all) of our Creatures. Whether it's a response to a board wipe or targeted removal, this little Instant will keep you in the game.
3. Valkyrie’s Call
If you've never played with Lifeline, you may not realize how strong Valkyrie’s Call can be. Bringing back your Creatures that die with some extra power and Flying will make your opponents think twice about casting that board wipe, or you can sacrifice them yourself to get even more benefit in your Aristocrat deck. Unlike Lifeline, this new Enchantment only revives your Creatures.
4. Homunculus Horde
What’s better than one Homunculus? A whole bunch of Homunculi! Cards that exponentially replicate are few and far between (like Scute Swarm), but they are a lot of fun to play with to see just how far you can push the count. Homunculus Horde will require some creativity as it's limited to once a turn, but think of how much fun it'll be to tell the story of how you overran your opponents with a horde of Mike Wizowsky’s.
5. Abyssal Harvester
Do you ever get jealous of the cool Creatures your Opponents cast? Now there's another way to make copies similar to Mimic Vat, Abyssal Harvester! This Demon let's you create Nightmare copies AND exile the Creature you've got a copy of so your Opponent can’t bring them back. It does require you to destroy the Creature first, but that should be easy in decks including Black.
6. Blasphemous Edict
Blasphemous Act has been a staple in Commander since its release, and I expect no different for Blasphemous Edict. The cost reduction is a bit harder to meet requiring five more Creatures than it's Red counterpart but it can get around Indestructible. It's also limited to thirteen Creatures per Opponent, but that should be more than enough in most cases.
7. Electroduplicate
You know what's better than Heat Shimmer? A Heat Shimmer you can cast twice! Electroduplicate lets us do that with the tradeoff being we can only copy our own Creatures. We do lose some flexibility here, but making two copies of a critical Creature for your deck can help you meet your goal.
8. Twinflame Tyrant
Furnace of Rath effects can be a lot of fun and so can Dragons. Now we can have both at once with Twinflame Tyrant. We have seen this effect on a Creature before with Fiendish Duo, but the cost is a bit higher and it only doubles damage to players. With this effect on a Dragon you’ll certainly see it in more games.
9. Loot, Exuberant Explorer
Extra land drops in Commander can be great, that's why Azusa, lost but Seeking has seen so much play over the years. While Loot, Exuberant Explorer only lets you play one additional Land per turn, its activated ability is pretty sweet. For 6 and tapping this Beast Noble you can look at the top six cards of your Library and put a Creature into play with mana value less than the number of lands you control. Late game this could be a big beater or early on you could find a key Creature if you're ramping with Artifacts as well. I don't think Loot, Exuberant Explorer goes into every Green deck, but I think it's a great option with some extra modality that will go in many Creature based decks.
10. Banner of Kinship
Coat of Arms is an anthem that scales to the number of similar Creatures in okay, but like Lifeline, it's a global effect your Opponents can benefit from as well. Banner of Kinship has some similarities to Coat of Arms but the buff itself is a “snapshot” based on the number of Creatures you control that share a type when you cast it. It is a win more card, but even if you cast it with 3 Creatures that share a type that's still +3/+3 for 5 mana which is great. Maybe you'll get to live the dream and cast this with an army of tokens making them all huge!
As mentioned at the beginning of this article there are tons of awesome reprints in this set. You should definitely check out the full catalog of Foundations Singles as soon as you can! Were there any cards you’re excited about that I missed? Let me know in the Chimera Gaming Discord, or reach me directly on Twitter.
Did you know we usually have 20 pods firing for Commander night on Tuesdays? Tables fill up fast and I hope to see you there!
