History, Restapled - Walkers This Way
Welcome back for another History, Restapled, a Commander-focused column which attempts to validate a newer card’s status as a staple by looking at how cards that are similar, synergistic, or competing have fared in the past financially.
It’s not quite time to enter Middle Earth, so let’s chill on Phyrexian time for a bit longer with a few planeswalkers worth your loyalty and your wallet.
The Eternal Wanderer
Planeswalkers are often the last cards I consider when deckbuilding. Players often freak out when I drop them in a game, making me the target. And though they contain lots of juicy lines of text, most of those lines are irrelevant if I get, at best, one activation out of them.
The calculus of planeswalkers in Commander doesn’t exactly equate to that of other constructed formats, as players have to protect them, or they must protect themselves, through three
The Eternal Wanderer arrived in
The Eternal Wanderer is only $1, whereas, for comparison’s sake, Elspeth, Sun’s Champion’s price has benefited from a
STATUS: Tragically stapled
| The Eternal Wanderer | ||
| The Eternal Wanderer (Borderless) |
Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler
Not all planeswalkers are meant to last forever. Some, like Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler, are easy to snuff out but perfectly happy burning brightly for one turn, particularly if they enable combo shenanigans. And Tyvar does just that. Any deck Golgari and above seeking a
When Tyvar sticks around, it offers an immediate
However, the most compelling reason to pick up a Tyvar is that the sweet alternate art foil version is also only $1. What are our cards for if not to admire while they’re in our hands?
STATUS: A staple with big brawls
| Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler | ||
| Tyvar, Jubilant Brawler (Showcase) |
The Reason for the Doubling Season
Which Planeswalkers have found a home in your commander decks? Does your playgroup find them terrifying to face? And which have surprised you in their efficiency? Let me know, and together we can identify the staples amid all the lost loyalty.
Check out these other articles:
Dodgy Little Hobbitses: The Two Towers by Jason Alt
Over and Underhill - Tales of Middle-earth by Harvey McGuinness
Hidden Gems - Man! I Feel Like a Zombie! by Adam Berg
Steve Heisler
Steve Heisler is a writer and pop culture journalist covering comedy, games, television, film and the tech industry. His work has been published in Rolling Stone, GQ, Variety, The AV Club, Fast Company and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began collecting Magic cards during Fourth Edition and plays Commander and Modern primarily. He also enjoys tennis, the Dark Souls family of video games and supporting live comedy. He lives in Chicago with his cat, Rosie.