How Good Are the Meld Commanders? | The Brothers' War | The Command Zone 500 | Magic Commander EDH

Support the show and become a Patron! Be a part of our community, receive awesome rewards, and more! / commandzone
--------
Show Notes:
The Brothers’ War features legends so powerful they can’t be contained on just one card. This episode, we’re breaking down the Meld Commanders from Magic’s newest set to see just what we get for all our hard work. Are the synergies and combos worth the trouble? How powerful are the front faces on their own? Come find out what these fusible cards can do!
--------
OUR OFFICIAL MERCH STORE:
If you love our content, then you should see our merch: store.commandzone.com/ Show your support at the next FnM, Commander night, or Magic event with our apparel and stickers. Already a Patreon supporter? Then enjoy exclusive discounts on the store!
--------
BETTERHELP:
This podcast is sponsored by BetterHelp! Join over 1 million people who have taken charge of their mental health. Get 10% off your first month by visiting: www.BetterHelp.com/CommandZone
INDEED:
Need to hire? You need Indeed! Check out the platform where you can attract, interview, and hire all in one place at www.indeed.com/commandzone
ETSY:
For gifts of all kinds, Etsy has it. Go to www.etsy.com/ and use code MERRY10 at checkout for 10% off your first purchase.
--------
CARD KINGDOM:
The Command Zone is sponsored by Card Kingdom! If you want to receive your cards the fastest and experience the best customer service, make sure to order your Magic cards, accessories and more at Card Kingdom: www.cardkingdom.com/command
ULTRAPRO:
Huge thanks to UltraPro for sponsoring this episode and providing awesome prizes for our giveaways. Be sure to check out their new PRO GLOSS eclipse sleeves and super classy MYTHIC COLLECTION deck boxes. If you want to keep your cards protected and support the show, visit:
ultrapro.com/command
--------
Relevant Links:
The Professor:
Twitter:@TolarianCollege
Gavin Verhey:
Twitter: @GavinVerhey
Abbott and Costello Who's on First:
• Who's on First?
Lexi
Socials: @blackgirlmage
Graham Stark:
Socials @Graham_LRR
Ashlen Rose:
Socials: @AshlenRose
--------
Follow us on Instagram:
@CommandCast
Follow us on Twitter:
@CommandCast
@JoshLeeKwai
@jfwong
Follow us on Facebook:
/ commandcast
Email us:
[e-mail]
--------
Commander Rules and Ban List:
mtgcommander.net/

[@bulbasaurappreciator]

Sad to see you go Ashlen, thanks for all you've done for the channel. I think the Ixalan episode where everyone cosplayed was one of my favorite moments with her. Best of luck in the future.

[@marconator360]

Ash, wish you the best in your career! Hope to see you on the show again soon!

[@alanregis6792]

Wishing you all the best, Ashlen! May the Eldrazi grant you all the success in your new opportunity!

[@InTheRedShirt]

Sad to see Ashlen go. She's always been a bright smile anytime she's on the show. Good luck in your new endeavors.

[@justinanderson2631]

Thanks for all the hard work you did Ashlen! Here's hoping you enjoy your new line of work! My favorite moment with you was when you played Phyrexian Arena...Which is to say every game!

[@c0barsm]

Great Episode guys! Sad to hear that Ashlen is moving on, but she will be missed. Ashlen, your enthusiasm and joy have been felt by me in every episode you have been part of, and doubtlessly many many things I am not even aware of! Good luck with everything you do in life!

[@Snaglbeest]

It's a pretty well known quantity, but if you use Titania's animate ability on Inkmoth Nexus you can pump it up and then pay one single mana to turn it into an infect flier and use it as a kill strike.

[@elliottroose4194]

Congrats on 500, @CommandZonePodcast!! Here's to 500 more

[@Spinoguy03]

Was hoping some kind of special episode was going to happen... but Meld is pretty special in a way I guess

[@starmanda88]

Congrats on 500 my friends! Couldn’t happen to better people! I’ve been here since the beginning and it’s been a blast watching you grow. Here’s to even crazier heights!!! ❤❤

[@rhysfuuma4640]

Best of luck in your new endeavor Ashlen. So many great episodes of Game Knights and Xtra Turns with you in them. Will be looking forward to any special guest appearances you make on here in the future.

[@ErikTheRedd1]

6:30 actual discussion

[@janmelantu7490]

1:06:42 I mean you probably don’t want to sack *all* of your lands to Zuran orb in response, then Titania would have 0 toughness and die (it doesn’t have an extra toughness like Tarmogoyf), but it’s a good idea to sack some of your lands in response

[@moedark4390]

I love how the biggest mtg channel hasnt said a single word about 30th anniversary ..ts like the nicest thing we can do for you wizards is pretend its not there.

[@1ntegrator]

Sorry to disagree. I think they should comment critically on it. And also they are not the biggest MTG channel

[@ssriceboat]

Ashlen Nooooo! Good for you and congrats! but Nooooo! I'm always pumped when I see you on GK or ET because you're one of my favorite players to watch, sad that will happen less now.

[@arielshalem5698]

Ashlen u will be missed! Have good luck on ur next adventure 🎉

[@Stewbiwan]

I do think the Mishra meld is awesome. I may build him as commander, but I'm gonna try him out in my Isshin, Two Heavens as One deck. Double the attack triggers, great for Mishra's front side, absolutely devastating if you get to meld him. Melding him in Isshin, a bit of a tall order, but oh boy magical Christmas land if it happens!

[@sarahmetcalfe50]

I was just thinking this. it would be awesome.

[@frostraven]

Thank you for all that you have done Ashlen! You will be missed!!!

[@DuxBellorum13]

Looking forward to putting rare and meld Mishra in the Mishra Commander deck for the fun.

[@quintmarcelis2691]

All the best to Ashlen Rose, consider all future Phyrexian Arena plays I make in your honour, since you opened my eyes to how fun that card is.

[@gonzoron]

Shoutout to the editor for "Ashlen has worn many hats" :D

[@majinantipanda]

Wishing Ashlen all the best. I'm sure whatever she moves on to next will be spectacular!!!!

[@Jaebird88]

Currently compiling a list around Urza, Lord Protector, which I was fortunate enough to acquire via the prerelease. Just need to get The Mightstone and Weakstone.

[@DrOmnipotent]

Hey Congrats on 500 fam. Truly inspiring

[@EmperorsTeeth]

I have loads of Time Spiral, I even have a copy of Pull From Eternity, and somehow I still wasn't aware of this card. So useful.

[@andrewkoch9027]

I can't wait to put Tatiana in my Slogurk deck, the way they are worded makes them seem perfect together. Sad to see ashlyn go but good luck in future endeavors!

[@EnemyToad]

I’m building Slogurk right now - what are your favorite cards in the deck?

[@MTGTheStack]

Oh so thats how you're supposed to build Mishra

[@TheLivingDeadPunk]

Jimmy's shirt has me wanting a shirt with all the text from Questing Beast on it.

[@jeppekjr4618]

Congrats on 500 boys!

[@TMGTCG]

gonna to miss Ashlen Rose! she is one of the best !😭

[@Ellie-bs5zq]

Mishra's powerstone option is probably best if you expect a removal spell on it fairly quickly? It enables you to Unearth the dragon more easily.

[@terradusa4219]

Sylvan Safekeeper also a must-have in Titania

[@NarutoGeek411]

I already wanted to put Mishra in my Isshin tokens deck, but hearing the Knights discuss it made me realize that he's even more powerful than I thought. I definitely want him in the deck NOW to replace the Calculating Lich that's in it.

[@bashlindsay7618]

I would go for the Titania, Voice of Gaea and Argoth, Sanctum of Nature for my Lord Windgrace Deck

[@EpicGamerz01]

I’m thinking of building the Mishra as a menace tribal deck. While he doesn’t have menace, he pays you off for creatures attacking, which generally is pretty safe for menace creatures to do

[@SingerOfW]

Just for the record, I'm pretty sure you can't play Mighstone and Weakstone in Mishra, since its backside is Urza, whose color identity is WU.

[@Onlyjesuscansave777]

Let’s u in arena

[@Parthet]

I feel like Titania has one advantage over the other two. A real way to recover your non-Commander meld piece if/when it gets exiled with Riftsweeper. Exiling your melded creature is a big downside, but as you said you want to have alternatives. Also being in green with lands matter gives you a lot of toolbox capabilities with things like Glacial Chasm, Boseiju, and others. I do like the combo of Rootpath and all the fetches to filter out a TON of lands very quickly. You can run all the relevant fetches, panoramas, and new capenna fetches. Lastly for alternatives I really like things like Greensleeves, Ashaya, Multani, as well as the card Awaken the Woods.

[@barneyhogue6203]

Fetches, Panoramas and Capenna Fetches all search Islands, Mountains... and not "basic lands" so that doenst work with Rootpath Purifier :/

[@Parthet]

@@barneyhogue6203 yeah my phrasing was a bit off. That should have been really 2 different thoughts. You can use Rootpath like they pointed out in the video. But apart from that all the other various fetches are good in Titania as well.

[@chrisgebben2043]

looking forward to the game knight episode i will mention this but jimmy and josh mentioned earlier on their commanders on the episode jimmy is playing - Queen Kayla bin-Kroog and josh is playing - Ashnod the Uncaring

[@michaelshine8837]

Lady Danger's pirate Ad for indeed is a treasure

[@RedCometNurse]

Urza, Lord Protector would benefit greatly from Relic of Legends since he can tap to pay for his meld. He is also great replacement for Goblin Electromancer in decks that have all three colors. He does work just as the base creature. It is definitely going to be hard to get to that meld off though. One thing though, Isochron Scepter and Dramatic Reversal will be cast for free, but it isn't going to do anything different after that point. Urza, Lord Protector doesn't reduce activation costs. HOWEVER, The Mightstone and Weakstone is another mana floating target for the Isochron/Reversal combo to keep it casting.

[@maxxchop4466]

I’m surprised with all of that talk of discarding cards, playing creatures from your graveyard, and effects that give haste to the phyrexian dragon engine you didn’t mention Chainer, nightmare adept. The perfect combo!

[@ty_does]

Chainer I feel is one of those commanders who never gets mentioned but goes in like every Rakdos 99, he’s in 4 decks of mine and I’m needing a 5th already which is insane.

[@friedpinnapple]

Hes fine. He’s a reliable way to recast things in the graveyard. An important thing to note is that when you cast a card it enters the battlefield from the stack and not the graveyard. So PDE doesn’t get its wheel trigger.

[@ty_does]

@@friedpinnapple chainer isn’t just a recaster, he also is a better anger for decks like prosper or graveyard decks. Hell, that extra land in your hand on turn 9 could be useless unless chainer is out then you discard it to get a game changer out of the graveyard. His second ability is what drives him from mediocre to insane, you just need to know how to use him. Every deck he’s a part of for me loves him and uses him to his full potential every time.

[@friedpinnapple]

@@ty_does you think i have that chainer trivia randomly stored in my head? I play a nightmare adept, its one of my favorite decks. You said your self his 1st ability is mediocre, its taking advantage of both abilities that makes him good. And this doesn’t strike me as a deck that really utilize both abilities well.

[@ty_does]

@@friedpinnapple I genuinely don’t understand why you’re trying to argue with me, but if Mishra, Lost to Phyrexia gets destroyed (which it will be, because it’s a major threat) chainer just allows you to recast original Mishra, then you unearth PDE, and BAM you’ve got Mishra LtP back. Chainer is most definitely worth it in almost any rakdos colored decks, I stand my ground.

[@THE_T.o.P]

my card kingdom order has been processing for 4 days

[@piecho99]

27:05, Hey Jimmy, just thought you should know that you cannot path to exile Brisela because path has a cmc of 3 or less and therefor cannot be cast.

[@ZidaneTribal1989]

Mishra, lost to forrexia has a 120 different ways you can use its ETB trigger/attack trigger.

[@matthewjurgens6912]

A good strategy with Titania is to sac all of your lands other than Argoth to Zuran Orb on the player before you end step, while having the Titania from mh2 out to make a ton of 5/3 with pseudo haste and return all the lands back on your upkeep

[@seththeace6217]

I have a Titania, protector of argoth deck and both new titanias are going to be amazing in it

[@crawdaddy2004]

It should be noted that the Might Stone and Weak Stone can produce 2 of that seven mana to meld. And would you really use the “instants and sorceries cost 2 less to cast” twice in a turn? How many more things are you casting that have that cost that much?

[@terradusa4219]

They did note the mana can be used for his meld… they also listed some examples for your other question too.

[@evapilotcas]

Good luck to Ashlen, the best Eldrazi commander. Can't wait to see what is next.

[@I.H.R07]

Love your videos

[@jakeshortt2479]

I somehow didn't realize it was Jimmy in Bonelabs until now 😳

[@ThatHoodlum19]

Shout out to Ashlen!! All the best in the future.

[@johnlundblad2840]

I am a new to playing magic and I could use some guidance. I am wondering if the Urza meld cards would be worth it in a Brago deck. I think that they don't work well as a melded card because as the planeswalker blinks, it would separate into the single cards, right? That being said, the artifact seems effective to blink and the Urza card gives a good mana reduction. Comments?

[@Gshadewolf14]

Josh be lookin like he’s bouta fight Dio Brando

[@nik700]

27:03 Good luck trying to path Brisela! Snarky jokes aside, congrats on 500 episodes! Edit: Best of luck to Ashlen!

[@olivierdebilde4292]

Let's spread some Ashlen love ! Good luck to you, Ashlen !

[@sorok8742]

Bonne route ahley. I wish you the best from France

[@canoli62]

How do you not mention Sensei's Divining Top with Urza? Don't tutor the meld card - tutor top and draw your whole deck with Reality Chip or Mystic Forge giving top deck access. This card is basically its own win con.

[@crawdaddy2004]

I play Tireless Provisioner in a deck and had no idea it made Food tokens. 😂

[@tr4pkeedyoungking677]

Already got a cedh deck for new urza😎

[@xxpercevaalxx2275]

I wish you all the best Ashlen. We will miss you a lot

[@jaredarquette6320]

Tempt with Vengence is definitely a good card honestly could just be a game ending card if you are allowed to go into combat and have mishra out

[@herra16]

Congrats on Episode 500 guys heres to stability and longevity

[@xor5000]

I love you guys, but I literally lol when you talk about how fast Card Kingdom's shipping is. I live in LA and order from them all the time and have never once had an order ship out in under 4 days.

[@damo9961]

Love you guys keep it up.

[@LynxLord1991]

Does Amulet of vigour and root maze work as a combo? As in all land an artifacts enters tapped and u then untaps yours but everyone else is still hit by slowness

[@ertai222]

Good luck Ashlen.

[@deanofcool]

What happens to a melded pair if you cast a if it dies return to battlefield card, like undying, does it return both and you need to remeld them?

[@Sackquaza]

Titania works extremely well with Ashaya and turn into a very nice combo

[@Omaly360]

Also if you Leadership Vacuum a melded or mutated permanent all parts go to the CZ and only the actual commander can be recast.

[@liamcool2139]

I play a heavy artifact deck and it’s possible for turn three to have all artifacts cost 6 less to cast and then cast Portal to Phyrexian.

[@friedpinnapple]

Mention all the splendid reclamation effects accept for the best one, The Mending of Dominaria.

[@jacobbrj]

Mishra meld cards in a sedris deck appeals to me, because then you can mil half your deck at a time and do entomb effects, and use obeka...

[@thetruth4654]

I look forward to that commander game the meld commanders seem insane

[@FightinTheGorlax]

Does meld not care that the unearthed Dragon Engine gets exiled when it would leave the battlefield? Would something like this also work with an unearthed Nicol Bolas the Ravager?

[@TheBagwell269]

That titania will go well with Ashaya

[@dangottsacker2061]

How are you casting path to exile if your opponent has Brisela?

[@joshfigs]

Josh where did you get that jacket ! Please someone let me know ! I need it !!!!

[@SyouSociety]

I think for the meld cards, they are not really ideal commanders, because if the other part got exiled, the full potential is just gone. For Mishra & Engine, I think it would be very nice as part of the 99 in a Isshin deck for example 🧙‍♂️

[@Onlyjesuscansave777]

Mishra without meld is beautiful in a token goblin deck

[@Jhyrryl]

Going to put Titania (and Argoth) into Baba Lysaga.

[@anikensanchez5040]

Avengers End Battle? Where to I find this movie? Sounds amazing!!!

[@prestonjohnson1537]

The planeswalker side, is NOT that hard to kill. Hero's downfall? Dreadbore? Burn? I think you meant to say that it'd tricky to get through to it via combat damage. And that could be difficult if they have blockers.

[@spiderverse4380]

Also what's really good after Urza melds is the chain veil and oath of teferi

[@DM-Oz]

Unfortunately Oath of Teferi dosnt work because of the wording in Urza

[@spiderverse4380]

@@DM-Oz Please elaborate. They should work.

[@FunkyGamerGuy]

Card kingdom can be more expensive but I will admit I was able to find some weird cards super cheap like Urza, Lord going for $15

[@LouieSloven]

So if they Path to Exile your melded commander, then the second half of the card is... exiled? Seems like a really big flaw in any gameplan to win by using the melded version -- very fragile, can be exiled and then an ingredient you need to meld is just *gone* for the rest of the game.

[@janmelantu7490]

Correct, this is why you need to have ways to protect it. Counterspells, Hexproof, be able to blink/flicker or bounce it, etc. I mean, you should be able to protect a non-meld commander or a regular wincon anyway.

[@barneyhogue6203]

@@janmelantu7490 If you blink / flicker / bounce your meld card, both cards enter on the front side. Better than exiled, but you'd have to meld it again

[@markdziamski4859]

So if I enchant my opponents commander with Kenrith’s Transformation and swing at me for 3 it’s still 3 commander damage?

[@SoloBluePrints]

When josh talks about how exile won’t happen after a meld and then the next statement is jimmy saying the same thing… at least josh listens to his co-host

[@troycrockett8886]

Ashaya ,soul of the wild will it work with Titania, voice of gaea

[@damo9961]

You guys should get Rudy to do an episode of Game Knights. I know he isn't everyones cup of tea, but he is very entertaining lol.

[@julialindgren190]

I like the meld commanders

[@nitsuaselkcub9889]

On Mishra, lost to phyrexia's ability can you just one of the affects 3 times in a row?

[@chrisgebben2043]

it would say "You may choose the same mode more than once." if that was possible which it doesn't so sorry you can't

[@coldmetalzer0164]

Urza ive been using tf out of him .. I really really really enjoy the deck aetherflux res with latnam is the ideal win con but .. Gin+time warp and portal to phyrexia is also disgusting and fits the deck ..

[@swanboi174]

With the phyrexian dragon engine, can you unearth it, and then swing and meld it? And then at the end step would you lose it or not?

[@andreabimonte7688]

It will meld, and the exile clause will fizzle when no Phyrexian Dragon Engine exists at your end step

[@swanboi174]

@@andreabimonte7688 so you keep the melded card.

[@EmperorsTeeth]

So... a BR Mutate deck with meld-Mishra? 😈

[@DraygaFlight]

Mishra in Alesha!

[@stevethe1362]

i love to put gisela into my graveyard and cast bruna then flaming fist so next turn i can do 18 commander damage

[@Chaoslorden]

I pulled mishra and three engines so I'll take that as a sign to build a proper angry Rakdos deck! Attack! Attack again! Keep attacking! And when stuff dies or taps or whatever, extra damage for all of youuuu! 😜😂

[@rhysfuuma4640]

Tbh, meld creatures should have the cmc of both cards on the back if thats how they want that to work. Otherwise the cmc of the melded creature should be 0 regardless of what the other sides are.

[@ThePowerfreak]

Do they post this anywhere as a podcast?

[@WeebsUnite]

They used to put them on Spotify. Idk if they still do.

[@commandcast]

we are on most major podcast outlets- spotify, apple, etc. Just look up Command Zone Podcast!

[@TheBobaJames]

The way not to get confused is to say, THE one set, not THAT one set.

[@ryans.5843]

Titania sounds good in slogurk

[@rubyseverinwhitworth9066]

OG Titania needs it to go from the battlefield