Eminence is Back?!? | Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir | March of the Machine Spoilers | Magic: the Gathering

[@TheCommandersQuarters]

Make sure you check out my episode on the new Battle card type! kzbin.info/www/bejne/q4K7dp-PnMulp68

[@adamwitt8160]

You realize that you are Reviewing the commander for a commander deck. That's what the symbol is at least, If it's actually going to be a commander I don't know I hope so it makes sense, But then wizards is like oh let's make commander With no decks and see if people will by the set boosters.

[@morrius0757]

Hope you start making more budget deck techs, I always liked your builds. The deck this came in is great btw, would love to see you upgrade it.

[@TheyCallMeDio]

The reason why Sidar has the Eminence mechanic is because it still exists in Zhalfir this whole time but it was still phased out

[@TheIancoop]

I think I'd like eminence more if it was only when they were in the command zone. That way you had to play around which part of your commanders kit you needed at the time.

[@JediMasterRevenantMADNESS]

So far it's only on tribal commanders though, at least.

[@TheSoulTakerX1]

Don't hate that idea ! Do you want it as enchantment or the in play. Could be more early play effect to !

[@benturtl9076]

Thats a cool idea!

[@numnut154]

That is definitely a more interesting version of Eminence, a little more skill based rather which is fun.

[@Oxygen1004]

Would also allow for interesting commanders, they could have a better effect on field but with the obvious risk that it can be removed

[@TheIhplodur]

Syr Konrad works with him quite good as well. You get Knights into your Graveyard and return them with your Commander, so two ways to trigger his ability and he is a knight himself. So you can attack with him to discard a knight and drain your opponents.

[@daviddent5662]

Well it's interesting effect and certainly nice to see a Knight Commander in colors that aren't common for them, wonder if this means Eldraine will see us having more than two mono-blue knights. Esper Knights with eminence is sure to shake up the table at least! I welcome this new knight to my wish list.

[@RoughTurbo]

We will prob see knights acrsot all 5 colors

[@ZEDEX252]

Choosing between him and syr gwynn is gonna be tough. I guess jabari is the better knight tribal but gwyn is the better knight/equipment hybrid deck?

[@ubberJakerz]

​@@ZEDEX252That's my thought. I play Gwyn a lot but it doesn't feel too tribal focused. I look forward to Sidar though.

[@sun332s7]

Thing is I love gywn way more cause you know. Give all your knights cool weapons and attack. Idk

[@ubberJakerz]

@@sun332s7 Totally! I found more success with it just making Gwyn an obscenely massive beatstick. Super fun but didn't feel really tribal.

[@kevinwlee1]

I'm surprised more people aren't talking about how well this pairs with Haakon, Stromgald Scourge and the changeling spells like Crib Swap and Nameless Inversion.

[@BriggsMullen]

Haakon was my first thought when I read the card

[@Sivarias]

Knight Creature Card

[@myloveforpenguins]

Would be nice if it gets reprinted in the commander deck or multiverse legends.

[@mzurran1003]

@@Sivarias sidar gets haakon into the grave (which can be tricky) and haakon does the rest, it is busted because haakon only cares about knight cards

[@marcoottina654]

Underrated quotation of Haakon!

[@ZEDEX252]

YES! Never expected eminence to come back but i think the mechanic is really cool, as long as it's properly valanced of course

[@joelucas4263]

The problem is it isn't properly balanced and never has been

[@casteanpreswyn7528]

It literally cannot be balanced.

[@ZEDEX252]

I mean this one is at least. It's literally just draw discard. I mean what could go wrong?........ right?

[@casteanpreswyn7528]

@@ZEDEX252 idk, a free effect, in colors that interact with the graveyard, that draws you a card and costs no resources seems *totally* balanced and not at all broken... /s

[@ZEDEX252]

@@casteanpreswyn7528 I guess when you put it like that.....

[@Sobaegaming]

Yesss!!!!!! Finally knights getting the love they deserve!!!!!!

[@TheCommandersQuarters]

Absolutely!

[@Flip4Crypt]

But where's the Red?!?!

[@Sobaegaming]

@@Flip4Crypt honestly that’s what I thought too, kinda wish we got red instead of blue or maybe a four color deck. Still, glad knights have a legitimate CMDR now that’s actually good for tribal

[@Urd-Vidan]

Syr Gwyn?

[@shaduko07]

Syr Gwyn is my favorite commander. I want my knights to go on quests and me back with cool artifacts.

[@wintersoldier909]

Mitch: Eminence is hotly debated. Some players hate it, some are okay with it, and some love it. Me: so it's magic... Mitch: you can't really interact with it. Me: sooooooo it's magic...

[@mr.wafflesrz1137]

it's not the same

[@TheButTickler]

I’m making this deck list, but with 9 Nazgûl and Ringwraiths as my main focus. Came here to see the budget options I can put in since all of my budget went to buying the 9 😅

[@SuperAmaton]

I welcome Eminence back frankly, one of my friends often plays Cat Tribal with the Eminence Commander that can give his cat +3/+3 which is a pain in the ass. This one here combined with my Syr Konrad and my other Self-Discard Deck combined could become quiet nice.

[@mauricioleon7807]

I didn't get Sidar commander's deck when MoM was released and found the card alone in my favorite store and immediately fell in love. I'm building the deck from scratch and this video is a great help to fill some gaps I have because I'm struggling to find some cards like the Cavalier of Dawn and night. I'm gonna attach a Rhystic study on it (why not? Hehe) an other nasty stuff I got on the Eldraine boosters I opened. Thanks for the video!!!

[@zeropoint2594]

Konrad will definitly like that Commander dishing out damage whenever you return a knight

[@Redbeard_obby]

Haakon Stromgald Scourge plays nicely with this dude. Throw in the enchantment Conspiracy and you got something fun.

[@cuckoophendula8211]

Haha, it's good that this came out now as I was literally in the middle of scrounging through my cards looking for black, white, and red knight related cards (for the WBR knight theme from eldraine). I say "good" because I am still in a spot where I can switch my deck's direction (i.e. switching from R to U) if I prefer this guy over the Eldraine choices. I think this guy has the edge given that Haakon would work well with him too!

[@bloodyjester4284]

EMINENCE!? Oh Boy. I hope for cool Eminence effects. I have made so many Commanders since returning to the game (Mostly because I had no playgroup) I hope one of these new Eminence Commanders will catch my attention. This one isn't really in my wheelhouse, but that's just me.

[@wordsonpaper3869]

I played the Sidar precon last night with only three card swaps …. (For now) and this deck started to pop off a bit. I barely went through a quarter of my deck it was so much fun. Cant wait to throw some upgrades into it.

[@ClexYoshi]

Syr Konrad the Grim loves this guy.

[@ryanrodgers3099]

I think this is about as close to a balanced eminence commander as we can get with the current framework: - Decent effect with conditions that isn't likely to go off a large amount of times prior to being able to cast the commander - "Strict" requirements for build around to take advantage of the eminence effect - Full benefit of the eminence effect really requires the commander out. Obviously this is still quite strong and there's plenty of ways to break the looting effect or milk it more, as you point out in the card suggestions. I think eminence could really be fixed a lot by having some kind of "If you have cast your commander this game" clause. Some different wording probably, but I think that would alleviate a lot of the degeneracy of the mechanic. Additionally some anti-eminence type effects would be good, such as effects that turn off triggered abilities of Commanders that your opponents control or are in your opponents' command zones. You'd need to keep them broad enough that it's not *purely* anti-eminence tech, though that would obviously be the main application. Eminence is an interesting design space, it's frustrating to see people just rake in the benefits of stuff like Edgar or Ur-Dragon without ever having to do any work for it while their opponents can't really do anything about it.

[@Sivarias]

Eminance is broken. The weakest possible luminance effect "During your upkeep, gain 2 life" is still ridiculously powerful.

[@lberghaus]

Yeah Eminence should require the guy to have been in play at least once.

[@zackkelley2940]

This one is at least somewhat interactable.... kill the Knight. It also helps that Knights aren't usually very big or evasive (Firststrike is the main one) so there's a decent chance they're trading a body to loot. Sure Sidar Jabari can get them back but you have to cast him AND connect for combat damage for that.

[@pyschob61]

Do you commander games on another channel or do u guys not play games anymore? Love the review videos and discussion topics though!

[@XendlessXbreakX]

I put one upgrade in this deck so far and it was just a rhystic study and let me tell you that card put in a lot of work it was insane

[@XendlessXbreakX]

A lot of the cards mentioned in the video are in the deck everyone!

[@brandyourfan9244]

I'm so stoked for more Eminence. This card doesn't seem broken, and Eminence gives Wizards a lot more creative space for new cards. I hope there are more coming

[@Shoyro]

Never saw Eminence as a complete mistake of a broken mechanic. It became seen as such due to the ones being too powerful and are unable to interact. I'm feeling we may get more cards that interact with the Commander zone specifically. If there's new means of interactions, it could become more acceptable for Eminence.

[@Pers0n97]

Eminence is designed to be broken. It's literally the strongest thing you could ever get in a tribal deck, even if the commander itself wasn't allowed to leave its commander zone it would still be the strongest tribal commander you could have.

[@ecureuilADN]

Finally Eminence is given a chance again. Maybe there will more tries in the future, the Eldrazi deck maybe ?

[@CSDragon]

Thought Reflection doesn't seem like a great card for the situation unless you have a way to cheat it out It's 7 mana. By the time you get to 7 mana there's only a small number of turns left. And the way Sidar's effect is worded, it can only trigger once each combat. So if your main reason for running it is Sidar's eminence, it'll draw you like 2-3 cards for 7 mana over 3 turns. Not great.

[@michaelnaramore9310]

Love seeing the cards and similar strategies of my raffine deck show up. Hyper aggressive esper shenanigans is a fun deck type. My easy fix puting arcane adaptation into this deck to make sure all your board tokens are knights ensuring easy triggers and more comfortable running a tribal shell.

[@HealingSwordsman]

I'm so pumped for this!! Finally a good Knight tribal commander, who is a knight and interacts specifically with Knights!!!

[@stevendrake3155]

I had a flanking deck in '97. I'm old. I started with Mirage.

[@SofaKingDead]

I am loving this, I have no problem with eminence.

[@Seanbault1983]

Preordered this and already picked up a ton of upgrades for it, I’m hoping to surprise my pod with it immediately

[@dmajor9982]

I’m only annoyed at 2 things. 1, may mean more eminence that could be broken. 2,this seems cheap to cast

[@ZEDEX252]

Man choosing between him and syr gwynn is gonna be tough. I guess jabari is the better knight tribal but gwyn is the better knight/equipment hybrid deck?

[@zacharyjoy8724]

Oh boy. On one hand, plenty of people will play it, because Eminence is ridiculously good. Plus, it’s nice to see an old face getting a new treatment. But on the other hand, Eminence has often been called TOO good. Pair it with a draw trigger, and things will get insane FAST. And that’s BEFORE you get into the reanimation effect, which is equally ridiculous. I won’t personally call this card “OP”, but it’s close.

[@barreltech8949]

I dig it. Big fan of knights and the esper color combo

[@Sinfamous81]

People like Eminence when they have a commander with it. It's a definite advantage over decks that don't have it.

[@micheal5973]

Well time to retool my sir gwyn deck from knight tribal to more equipment foccused instead. Fingers crossed the new knight precon will actually have a ton of the knight cards that just havnt been reprinted in forever.

[@Zenith8924]

I wonder why they took green away from Sidar.

[@nathanyates7331]

Am I wrong in thinking that If you used the trigger ability to get a "all knights have double strike" knight out of the yard that you would actually get the second hit that very same combat for a second trigger? I would think that since firstrike damage resolves in its own step then by the time the normal combat damage step comes along and checks your commander for it he will qualify and deal normal damage for a second trigger?

[@bepis6780]

"dealing combat damage" and "attacking" are different mechanics. In the case you described, the double striking knight is only declared as an attacker one time ("attacks" only once) and then goes on to deal damage in multiple phases

[@idiota730]

Eminence could work really well if it said "when X thing happens put an eminence counter on this card, then when it etbs do X based on how many counters" or keep eminence just with weaker triggers and make the counter one a whole new mechanic

[@ryanhutson107]

I think it’s funny that white black blue is orolo the first “eminence” commanders colors

[@syllycatface]

I love eminence type effects, for me commander isnt so much about winning as it is about themes and fun! Having a theme that's permanent and doesn't rely on your commander sticking is great for that. It's more fun than playing cedh and just being able to play UB and quite easily win on turn 1 with a good hand. Even my cedh deck is themed 😅

[@badegg1262]

Why blue instead of red. The most powerful knights are r/w or black/r

[@GrizzneyGames]

I kinda like the early voice but, I could be biased with my own arsenal of voices. 😅

[@cread13]

a link to the article he mentioned at the start would be nice. i dont get why every time someone makes a video about something they never give a link to the very thing they are talking about.

[@joshbaker1639]

So this is the face commander of the knight precon right? If so I wonder if the other face commanders for the other decks are too?

[@ItsMeBeeee]

This set is basically just Commander Legends: March of Machines

[@kakaclaymore]

Haakon, Stromgald Scourge MONSTER IN THIS DECK!!!!!!!

[@BSengen]

Makes sense that someone from zhalfir has eminence considering how little they affected things in the story, but we’re still there

[@I2Privet21]

There should be a commander with eminence as a downside, like spells cost 1 more to cast and to balance it it would be super powerful

[@MachinaBahamut]

Circle of Loyalty in a Knight Tribal deck that uses White?

[@JulioGarcia-pj8rq]

Him and hakkon together holy crap

[@BriggsMullen]

I know it's incredibly rare, but you can interact with Eminence. If you cast something that lets you control the player during their turn (Emrakul, The Promised End), you then can control that player's turn. Then while you're controlling them, cast something that exiles target creature (Swords to Plowshares) on their commander. Since you're controlling them, you are the one who chooses whether the commander gets exiled or goes to the command zone. If the commander is in exile - no more Eminence. It's dirty, and the stars have to align for it to happen - especially since you don't know what's in their hand, but it works!

[@numnut154]

Stifle effects don't hit eminence?

[@Oxygen1004]

@@numnut154 some are static abilities like "Dragon spells cost {1} less" while some can be stifled, it won't get all of them

[@HotRocker32]

Wouldn't Pithing Needle stop Eminence?

[@nzephier]

I think sidar is an example of how eminence can be good but not OP.

[@magicmac7975]

I've had a discussion with my play group and thought up of a Drannith magistrate but for non-battlefield triggered abilities. I want to observe other people's opinions. Obviously best video, Mitch, and can't wait to see your quick picks for the spoiled cards.

[@andrewspears8891]

Call it the Stifle Stick.

[@magicmac7975]

@@andrewspears8891 , I was thinking to make it an uncommon creature like most little hatebears with the most relevant example being Keen-Eared Sentry to squeak in some set related hate that just so happens to have extra text to make it more playable. But a Cursed idol or Torpor Orb version would definitely be called the stifle stick if I were producing it. Maybe Stifling Staff?

[@AleksandarBradaric]

And if you want to be an even bigger troll add Syr Konrad, who know that I think about it works nice in this deck....XD

[@autobotjazz1972]

this might be the pre con i pick up.

[@tygerfoster3799]

his last card is green white why make him esper?

[@AdraTheGhost]

Guess I'm making a knight tribal deck..presuming this isn't one of the precons

[@robloxplayer0003]

Wait, did they make a not-broken eminence commander?

[@cordeliabristol3335]

that's almost better than the Kermit voice.

[@swimfast4]

Cracking doomsday piles with eminence. Sign me up.

[@baconsir1159]

Changeling Outcast will be an all-star here

[@criticalcat]

as someone who plays alot of yuriko, changeling outcast is my favorite card

[@asuronkun95]

Don’t forget Unsettled Mariner!!!

[@Azurenere]

In what world did they think this was a good idea?

[@mrpoparq]

It’s a perfectly balanced mechanic with no issues- the sales team.

[@AlfaWolf777]

I think this is fine. Looting is good, but limiting it to once per turn and you have to attack.

[@Azurenere]

The issue isn't power, it's that it's an un-interactable mechanic that takes no setup.

[@AlfaWolf777]

@@Azurenere but in this case it does require setup. You need to have a knight in play that can attack. All of the other eminence abilities were either static/upkeep triggers or ETBs. Tieing it to attack inherently limits it because it gives your opponents a chance to respond when moving to combat. It also does not scale with number of knights.

[@Azurenere]

@@AlfaWolf777 I don't disagree in this case. You do need to do something to get the effect. What I am saying is that eminence is either overpowered or boring, and in general is just poor commander design philosophy.

[@diegoperezsommariva2509]

Eminence should be something like: " X effect happens while your commander is on the battlefieldand and when it leaves the battlefield until the end of your next turn". That way there is more incentive to play the cmder and has a chance to be interacted with. Having the continous ability and have no one to be able to interact with is kinda lame.

[@galleon1924]

Might try this out with syr konrad and tortured existence to discard elemental knights and recycle smitten sword master

[@only1sn1not1taken]

So Arcane Adaptation, Aurelia, the Warleader, and a sacrifice outlet.....if only our colors were right! QQ

[@faceless266]

I wish this thing was mardu so much T.T

[@IsNow-iy9bs]

Vampire knighta man.

[@oldbordergeek]

perfekt for haakon?

[@jasondeutschbein8102]

I think Eminence should be reserved for expensive commanders so they still influence the early game.

[@LordChrome375]

Ayo! It’s named after me!!!!

[@sawyermifsud852]

"We acknowledge that it's bad for the game but we like money"

[@dragonknite314]

I was hoping for an eminence Angel after the story

[@gabomon08slayerofdragons]

Same, something like "cards in your hands have convoke" but I guess it was wishful thinking

[@r.i.pete55]

Eminence Angel tribal would be great

[@regalia2020]

Shout out to not another dnd podcast I'm going to be yelling out JABARI!!!!!! every time I swing with him

[@GamerX13X]

Watsy showing the people that Eminence doesn't have to be broken. Yes, Ur-Dragon and Daddy Markov are def uber powerful, but the others aren't that bad.

[@deathmastersnikch4365]

The thing is not that eminence makes cards instantly broken. Sidar seems pretty weak, because the colors, tribe and playstile dont really match up. But a free loot each turn in colors which can easily reanimate is not balanced. Keyword here is free. Also the commanders start with an advantage you cannot in any way interact with, which imo is just bad design.

[@Deviltrigger44]

As much I hate this mechanic at least it's not broken it's kind of "once a turn effect" like if like other eminence was like that it wouldn't be as broken (cough cough) Edgar. Yes oloro technically once per turn thing since its a upkeep trigger but this one you have to attack. Also I really wished now this commander was mardu because the way his eminence has a very aggro type effect attacking and looting which what red both do.yes I know blue does the looting too but I feel like red would be better since you have now you have a color to give haste which helps his eminence or maybe that's what they were avoiding when they designed this card

[@TheCrafter365]

Nobody is gonna let you have 20 knights on the field unless you are playing ultra budget and ultra casual

[@jacobbrj]

You can also elk the commander to deal with emminence, but yah, really hard to interact with.

[@soulassassin0g]

"People forget, forget they're hiding, behind an eminence front. Eminence front, it's a put on" - The Who "Eminence Front".

[@Pers0n97]

They made fun of me when I said Eminence will be back for Commander Master. "huuuuur wizard said they won't do any more eminences because it's busted" Well, yeah, that's why they WILL bring it back, because they are desperately in need of busted stuff to sell. As I predicted, the 4 commander master precon will have an eminence commander at their head. That sweet sliver and eldrazi sliver is going to be silly.

[@KamekazeKuban]

I’m going on 0 sleep and I read “sidebar of jabroni” 😂😂😂🤦🏻‍♂️

[@sun332s7]

Yes a knight commander! In BLUE?!? WAIT WHY.

[@Winterwarriorc]

I still say eminence should only work if your commander has been cast and resolved once

[@Imp3rdLord]

I think eminence would be neat as a downside. Like a strong commander but it has eminence : lose 2 life every turn

[@zerowolf0006]

I want a custom card art of Sidar as Droopy in his knight outfit

[@McBaseball]

YES EMINENCE

[@thekeening3778]

Kinda feel like this should have haste. Maybe I'm trippin

[@basilniebla5535]

I’m disappointed that this doesn’t have Red in its identity. A lot of Knights are in Red :/

[@hanschristopherson8056]

I still think eminence is bad card design because you get an effect for free without casting your commander, at least this one incentivizes you to actually cast it

[@danih.5675]

Scary title

[@dudemetslagroom8065]

It's cool that we get another knight commander....But ffs keep eminence fucking buried!

[@movieguy4245]

I hope we can agree that eminence should support weaker tribes, even if it is inherently broken it is still a build around. PLEASE wizards do not combine this effect with phasing

[@TarnaxTheBarbarian]

Draw trigger on an eminence ability? I don't like eminence to begin with, due to it being completely uninteractive, but making it a draw ability is too much. MtG's power creep is out of control.

[@crazydeadperson]

Eminem is back baby

[@TheCommandersQuarters]

Shady's back, tell a friend.

[@tonjolley6422]

If only the command zone did something different than when they were in play. Now its just lame Knight tribal in esper. Imagine having to choose which effect you wanted based on their zone! Nope, sad.

[@bradleycox8835]

Emeria knight exemplar ❤

[@controlaltdeleteish]

madness commander?

[@Pakaxin]

Commanders in 2025: Eminence - when you play a spell you can look at the top x cards of your library were x is the converted mana cost of that card, you can put any number of permanents with converted mana cost x or less onto the battlefield without paying there mana cost. you cant cast your commander LOL

[@southernxsouth4729]

I don’t like how there is no sort of flanking ability on the new card. No flavor to say it’s legendary…