What's the Best 1-Drop Creature? Commander Clash Podcast 116

[@Couldnt_Be_Bothered]

I think what we learned most from this is that you guys need a fifth person on the podcast when ranking things

[@SpecialKail]

They have one. It's chat gpt

[@hanschristopherson8056]

Crim and richard are agents of chaos

[@Mushroomhaus0001]

They really need someone who isn’t from their play group to balance things out. Every deck running Ondu Inversion and 5 other board wipes is insane

[@Steven-rb7ph]

Phil! Phil! Phil! Phil!

[@xxbehemothxx69]

Chat gpt is awesome! Lol

[@crawdaddy2004]

9:30 The debate between Birds versus Druid is the debate between whether to use the floor or the ceiling.

[@hanschristopherson8056]

I’m glad someone finally pointed out that commander clash has WAY more boardwipes than your average pod, so cards that “die to boardwipes next turn” are way more playable than they’re being given credit for

[@collinbeal]

I faced a Nethroi HB deck earlier today, and I didn't know Arena even had that many boardwipes 😂. That and toxic-ass Superfriends, which works much better in 1v1 commander.

[@ToSGod]

But honestly players should play MORE board wipes. I’m on the Crim side. I played much more wipes than my opponents for awhile, and I was winning more than I should from a well timed wipe. Now a days my playgroup has realized this and run more in their decks.

[@hugovellver5114]

My pod has even more wipes , we turned to combo focus, we also allow land destruction and stuff but we know how to play into tournament level and play agrro

[@sir_quirkus7206]

I Personally play 5-7 wipes. I’ve noticed any less someone runs away with the game and that needs to be mitigated. Also depends on the deck archetype too, if I’m running combo or aggro I’ll run 2-3 as my game plan is to win quickly anyway

[@kaszael]

Crim being a control player and not recognizing the power of tutoring a channel land with Weathered Wayfarer at instant speed for a blowout is astounding.

[@jamespatterson5644]

especially since he is ALWAYS low on lands

[@godspeedhero3671]

He has a deep hatred of White mana it seems. lol

[@bobbobo5911]

Someone should’ve told Richard that birds taps for its own Path to ramp

[@felipeguidolin1055]

"we put a Ramp in your Ramp so you can ramp while ramping!!!"

[@doormat85]

And the perfect sword holder with frying and dragon blocker later in the game?

[@hunterhamiltondvdscv2323]

I almost spit out my coffee that would've killed.

[@andrewgolubiewski3463]

30 minutes in and I feel like you could revist this episode as two separate rankings- one for staples and one for build arounds.

[@JoshBeatty6]

Or like for turn 1 vs for turn 6

[@jjvh500]

30 minutes in? The very first match up was a discussion of "Generic" v "Specific." It seems like a conversation they should have had before the episode 😅

[@andrewgolubiewski3463]

@@jjvh500 yeah but I didn't comment on a 1 off. I let them have the discussion a few times before I felt like it should be pointed out.

[@nykthosacolyte5710]

I'm just starting the video but if bodyguard doesn't get mentioned I call shenanigans. BB is at least in the top 100.

[@bugwrld8891]

for real and a card being more generally usable does not make it more powerful. And this disconnect happens every single time they compare power level of cards.. Still love these guys tho even if they can be insane

[@person3176]

i like that richard says spectral sailor is good because you can hold up interaction, and use 3U draw a card as a backup but.. what interaction are you holding richard? :D you don't have any!

[@Dom9606]

Richard: don't use interaction because it makes enemies also Richard: don't play birds because it will be bolted what level is this man on

[@SpecialKail]

Teferis protection is what he's holding up

[@bye1551]

@@Dom9606 literally just full of contradictions. If you tried to built a coherent gameplan from Richards "tips" your deck would be just as boring as.... Well Richards decks. Useless 1/1s and literally only going for 2nd because you have no hope of ever closing out a game (I know Richard has won occasionally, but the crew have usually had to make massive blunders for it to be even possible)

[@Lucarioguild7]

​@@Dom9606In Richard's make believe world there's a boardwipe every turn but you still need to run 5 fogs in your deck to stop all the creatures from running you over.

[@BobardeZanzibar]

Generous gift.

[@headhunterhades3816]

I think Deathrite Shaman should’ve definitely been in the bracket given its utility, but other than that gripe great video guys

[@alexscott8799]

Deathrite shaman is so versatile. I love it, definitely would have chosen it over spore frog

[@avall0nNn1992]

I think they went with popularity and Deathrite Shanan goes in way less decks since it is two colors.

[@Lucarioguild7]

Yeah I'm pretty pissed there was 4 different 1 mana evasive creatures while Deathrite Shaman and other 1 drops with unique effects were left off

[@HtoC940]

Yet another card that's way better than BoP.

[@windwaker01]

​@@Lucarioguild7lol, imagine getting your feelings hurt over a tcg bracket

[@PieEater1492]

"You have to play welder and untap with it" I think I'm going to be way to triggered to make it through this one lol

[@joewhite4456]

Vs a card that needs to attack to do what it does anyway too

[@Lucarioguild7]

Yeah I don't think welder is the best of the list by far, but in this world they live in where the only acceptable ramp is rocks and cultivate how is welder a do nothing card lol

[@joewhite4456]

@@Lucarioguild7 I think it's only one of them that's that stupid, birds did still win the bracket, just that one guy that says mana dorks don't do anything...

[@diegotejada55]

Birds vs heritage druid is like debating Cultivate vs Walking Ballista

[@bye1551]

I guess they're debating within the framework of "in a deck that wants this effect and doesn't have enough of them"?

[@NewSchoolPOKERstrat]

Walking balista

[@Grinthex]

Cultivate is better. 😉

[@traviscochran9253]

The ceiling of Cultivate is two lands, whereas the ceiling of Walking Ballista is your opponents control zero lands. Therefore, Walking Ballista is a better ramp spell than Cultivate :)

[@josephhawkins7974]

Birds of Paradise is a BoP, and Heritage Druid isn't.

[@LibertyMonk]

I feel like Richard has 1v1 brain assessing Mother of Runes. It's an "on board trick", which makes people less likely to target any creatures you control or attack you. The threat of activation means they won't commit to you unless they feel they have to. If the people you play with spam board wipes instead of spot removal, sure. I don't understand how Esper Sentinel is "it draws you cards, or makes people play around it", but Mother of Runes is "it's an on-board trick."

[@Dragon_Fyre]

I think if opponents are going to spam board wipes, few creatures are relevant. That would not be much of an argument versus Mother of Runes. It’s along the lines of the ever unhelpful “just play more removal” advice. I think to answer your question, Esper Sentinel always has a significant impact on either card draw or as the alternative, forcing players to go slow to pay the X. Mother of Runes likely just stops one removal then is hit by another while vulnerable and removed (thus it often serves to just absorb one removal). When played very early, it can discourage removal until there is enough untapped mana available for two removals to be played but otherwise it blocks one removal spell/ability. The X cost from Esper Sentinel is frustrating up until end game play. I really like Mother of Runes but I think Esper Sentinel is more impactful.

[@Spaced92]

Idk this is one of the few areas I agree with Richard on, 1 out of 10 games I feel like Mother of Runes is super annoying but in the rest it's just irrelevant, and I'm usually the heavy on spot removal guy. I also can't think of anything worse in a White deck than drawing into Mother of Runes when you don't have anything else going on.

[@Dragon_Fyre]

@@Spaced92 Another argument for cards like Mother of Runes is the re-direct factor. If you cannot target my creatures while she is in play, there is a good chance that you will eventually use your removal on one of the other players rather than just holding it in your hand waiting for her to be removed. Mom is not just protecting your creatures, but potentially turning those removal spells to your advantage. None of this changes my opinion that Esper Sentinel deserved to be crowned the winner, but just that Mom can be very impactful as a card.

[@thatonedudejake]

Mom is really strong in 1v1

[@TheAverageGuyTAG]

​@@Spaced92 As someone who runs Mother of Runes myself, she without fail elicits a ton of groans if I play her turn 1. She is very good at protecting my commander in the early game for little investment.

[@jeffreycarey1641]

To explain Richard's question about why the anime art spectral sailor is wearing a school uniform, that uniform style is called a sailor uniform. So the spectral sailor is wearing a sailor uniform.

[@Dragon_Fyre]

I think it just feels out of place and confusing because while the name is spectral sailor, the anime sailor uniform is influenced by old-fashioned naval uniforms and this creature is a pirate. It just doesn’t make much sense.

[@direkitsune]

​@@Dragon_Fyrehow so? Many olden day pirates were former navy, either officially or hired by them to work inder their flag

[@Dragon_Fyre]

@@direkitsune They wouldn’t keep wearing the Navy uniform once they were a pirate.

[@direkitsune]

@@Dragon_Fyre many did, after all they were made to last on the sea. They would get torn, or parts removed, but many kept the garments they had. They would be replaced in time, and some got ride of them entirely out of some principle, but many definitely kept them for practicalities sake

[@Dragon_Fyre]

@@direkitsune They would have to be significantly disheveled or otherwise marked/defaced so as not to be confused with any active navy sailor or it would very likely get them murdered.

[@hanschristopherson8056]

It never ceases to amaze me how Richard can so consistently be so wrong 😂

[@Jug_or_not]

I think he is right most of the time, but sometimes his takes are a bit extreme

[@lach10211]

He was right about heritage druid

[@gibbysg8143]

@@lach10211nah birds is better in like 49/50 decks or whatever which automatically makes it better even though heritage Druid has a higher ceiling in its one specific deck. It’s really not even close in any way whatsoever lol

[@DiscardatRandom]

@@lach10211 how is getting 3 mana turn 2 bad?

[@peewee0224]

@@lach10211no he objectively wasn’t I’m a elf ball player I love my elves heritage Druid is literally only good in one deck and birds of paradise is good in that same exact deck and even more.

[@troacctid]

Wait, why are there three Slither blades and only one mana dork?

[@hopposai787]

Richard's take on mom is crazy. Knowing it's there is part of the power. Half the time the removal you would have to burn safekeeping to stop is just used somewhere else instead. The fog that stops a dozen attacks because its known to exist is way stronger than the fog played only once to stop 1 attack.

[@muditjohar5323]

Agreed. Say the opponent had 3 removal spells in hand. More often than not mom is basically 3 safeties against removal spells rather than just 1. Not to mention, it incentivizes players to target opponent creatures that are not urs so that they don’t just lose the removal spell to mom, giving u even more free value

[@kedros45]

his take is plain wrong. He says there is no removal that Mom counters but forgets that it is because of Mom that no removal is played. Though I know he'll debate that's virtual card advantage because that removal spell will now stay in opponents hand and be cast after the next board wipe blah blah

[@peewee0224]

Mom is so good I play step mom and bug mom just because that effect is so strong.

[@Bstone410]

Spectral sailor is a joke compared to Mom. Bug Mom is dope for getting in protected attacks as well

[@discoviolenza1984]

Did Deathrite Shaman get folded into the mana dork category?

[@crawdaddy2004]

I think it’s because it’s based on the 16 most commonly run 1-drops. Deathrite requires the player to be in two specific colors instead of just one.

[@ray_the_red8047]

They took the top 16 one drops from EDH rec, there is no categories.

[@jebooiii6462]

Doesn't make sense to include a planeswalker into a creature bracket, right?

[@joewhite4456]

​@@ray_the_red8047there is categories, they even said it at the beginning. Hence the fact ignoble hierarch isn't on there despite being the second most used.

[@Lucarioguild7]

​@@joewhite4456Then why tf is there 2 unlockable creatures, functionally 4 on the list?

[@colecarmichael5724]

Okay mtggoldfish fans when are we having a intervention for Richard?? He might be suffering from some post partum depression with some of these takes. SPECTRAL SAILOR OVER MOM?!? This is clearly a cry for help

[@MentalCrusader]

You should have Phil as the tie breaker

[@SuperFlamingTomato]

Richard has somewhat of a point that if you creature ramp to other creatures, you make yourself very vulnerable to wraths. However, my experience with dorks in these decks is that you want to use them to turbo out your engines, so that if you do end up getting wrathed this won't impact you as much. You don't birds into a creature, your birds into elemental bond, or hardened scales, or whatever your strategy is. I also find that wraths are a lot less prevalent then MTGGoldfish suggests.

[@TheSentientTuba]

I wish there was an actual conversation at the beginning of the podcast about what 'best' entails. Is it versatility, power, consistency, other? BoP falls under the consistent value due to it being bad enough to not be removed while a welder requires instant removal and frog just shuts down entire decks strategies. Without nuanced discussion prior, everyone was often talking past each other Side note: serra avatar vs goblin welder was like saying dark ritual is better then paradox engine because it can go in any black deck vs the engine which requires a mana rock package

[@AgonalRhythm]

Crim is so spot on about Welder. Even if you don't have explicit artifact synergies, someone else may. I feel like maybe the crew has completely forgotten just how much of red is based on discard. Incidentally. The impulse draw maybe overtook looting in their minds. Welder is a red staple while ascendant is just a beater

[@trehenry413]

100% my thoughts as well. Since it is a sacrifice effect, it also gets around artifacts that are indestructible.

[@alttiseppanen]

Even if they have artifact synergies it's not guaranteed at all they have artifacts in their graveyard and cycling some mana rocks is so meaningless. Strong with build around yes, but serra is so busted in every level of commander and in any white deck.

[@exsnypre]

The crew completely ignoring that you can swap out your opponent's good artifacts for anything bad in their graveyard is just complete madness to me. Killing an Aetherflux Reservoir, Bolas's Citadel, or even a Skull Clamp can be fantastic plays that Serra Ascendant can't even come close to competing with.

[@Kcfd2024]

Not to mention, with the abundance of treasure and food tokens these days. Red has limited card draw options and welder does what it does welding those weaknesses - getting artifacts that draw card, or just swapping for better artifacts. It's also a 1 drop that does well to disrupt artifact shenanigans yours opponents have. I have cut down the use of serra ascendants in most of my white decks. Just doesn't make the cut anymore.

[@AgonalRhythm]

@@Kcfd2024 Actually, that's a great point we all missed - treasures, clues, food, blood, etc. So many things create them incidentally that artifacts are likely around for most players anyhow. And in red, most of the cards you play for card advantage are going to loot or rummage things into the bin.

[@colbybastian17]

With goblin welder, i think they underestimate how many generically powerful artifacts show up in commander. Both for yourself and your opponents, there is always going to be something good and bad in both the graveyards and the field.

[@trehenry413]

Yeah, it is at is best if you are also playing an artifact deck. But, it can also be repeatable artifact hate too. Especially for powerful artifacts like a Darksteel Forge.

[@ArtPlaysGames]

I put the starting bracket in front of my local edh chat group so people could fill out their own brackets. Thanks for the great discussion and the extra discussions the bracket caused with my playgroup. :-)

[@kaszael]

1:16:32 Richard: "There are many, many, many ways to draw cards in white(...)" Time traveler from 2018: "what the hell did this guy say?"

[@FunnyFunFunTime]

The more I play Haywire Mite, the more busted it seems..

[@kevinthecarpathian]

Seth makes a great point - how can you judge creatures like this if your meta runs sweepers every other turn? This sounds like a brutal group to play with but I'm used to more battlecruiser I guess, maybe 1-2 board wipes a game max

[@ammonaustin9081]

Yeah, I understand board wipes are a healthy part of magic. But this playgroup sounds awful unless you're playing a creatureless deck that durdles

[@swiftdragonrider]

Richard is basically saying don’t play any card that don’t provide card advantage

[@bye1551]

​@@swiftdragonriderRichard both doesn't like removal... And argues everything is bad because removal exists. It's a self defeating argument

[@hanschristopherson8056]

Most people only run 1-3 in their deck max whereas crim and richard run 5+

[@kevinthecarpathian]

@@hanschristopherson8056 That sounds miserable haha. I mostly listen to the podcast and don't watch the clashes so how do their games usually run? Is it a bunch of sweepers until someone combos out?

[@exsnypre]

Too many Mana Dorks, so we'll just use birds as the best, but we'll have 3 1 drop unblockable creatures that basically accomplish the same exact thing. That was a choice.

[@pizzabone9353]

Serra ascendant over goblin welder is crazy, this episode is gonna be tough to watch

[@danielsniff6405]

They ranked it based on general use, not on ceiling power level. Goblin welder only works well in specific decks, while ascendant is an insane beater in any deck that can play it.

[@trehenry413]

@@danielsniff6405 I still think this is wrong. Goblin welder might be at its best in an artifact deck. But it certainly has great value outside of it too. Repeatable artifact hate if your opponent has a threat out (swords, ashond's altar, etc), while also bringing insane value for any red deck. Red generally has a higher amount of artifacts than other colors, and also lends itself towards discard effects. Welder is great is both situations. Welder is also good no matter when you draw it, unlike ascendant.

[@kylegonewild]

@@trehenry413 "Welder is also good no matter when you draw it, unlike ascendant." This is just patently untrue. You can't even activate it if nobody has any artifacts in the graveyard and you can't hate on your opponents' cards with it by discarding your own. It of course has a way higher ceiling but the floor of both cards is "this draw lost me the game" and an average play pattern of "this card got to do its thing once or twice."

[@ChinmanPlayCOD]

Tomer isn’t my favorite goldfish crew member but I agree with him, 12:33 what have we walked into? Is there 3 simultaneous gas leaks across the country?

[@bye1551]

I can't believe they actually used "dies to removal" as an argument.

[@Shimatzu95]

As someone that does not play manadorks normally i personally think delighted halfling is the best one, if only for the uncounterability

[@Dragon_Fyre]

I guess it depends on whether you often have your Legendaries countered. It could be potentially very impactful, but mana of any colour for non Legendaries can be equally important. It would depend on your deck and your opponents decks.

[@kylegonewild]

@@Dragon_Fyre It also survives getting got by an end of turn Bowmasters.

[@DiscardatRandom]

@@kylegonewild this isn't cedh where everyone is playing orcish bowmasters you don't need to build your decks around it

[@TheSpunYarn]

Whenever Richard says he's "debated" with himself he really means "I thought about it and continued agreeing with myself. I was right all along"

[@DocShotsPhotography]

im with tomer in most of these decisions. everyone knows ragavan can run away with a game but no one looks at spore frog and think i gotta stop this

[@Spaced92]

Tomers been the only non meme opinion for a long time now, love all these dudes though.

[@lucasaugsten]

And at most games no one will care about ragavan because everyone will randomly have blockers and he can't attack, but if frog is in the field they need to keep it in mind

[@olafwulfgarson1224]

Spore frog can completely shut down aggro decks. There's not many one drops I'm afraid more of than Spore Frog. I can't count how many times it shut my deck down, fogging me every turn, leaving me sitting there helplessly and my only hope was to draw 1 of my 2 grave hate cards.

[@DocShotsPhotography]

@@olafwulfgarson1224 the decks that run it are made to abuse it. Ragavan doesn’t have to built around and it’s always a problem. So I’m terms of power it is the more in general powerful card.

[@Cptgreenbeetle]

Richard, how can u decide between two cards using an argument that fits both? Spore frog is a slow board trick that also gets wrathed, i don't get it lol

[@JcadeH1]

As far as birds vs heritage druid goes i would agree with richard that the druid is more powerful or has a much higher ceiling it also has the lower floor since you need two other elves for it to do anything so i have to give it to birds since it has the lower floor dince its always going be able to tap for mana. On top of that birds fills the role of being a one drop much better where youre always happy to slam it down turn 1 where druid is a card youd rather hold on to until youve developed your board and you're ready to pop off

[@Sinistra359]

To be fair and in defense of goblin welder, the floor for serra ascendant is just a 1/1 with lifelink and also needs a turn before it can attack. Not arguing, just pointing out that the floor for both cards are just as bad lol.

[@colecarmichael5724]

I though that was the closest in power was those two

[@Dragon_Fyre]

I think the reason that I might go with Serra Ascendant is that it basically works well in any deck as long as you play it while at 30+ life where Goblin Welder is more specific to the types of decks it is useful in (where you can sacrifice artifact tokens to get artifacts from your graveyard into play, which admittedly is still a lot of decks); Also, when played early to plan, opponents may not have answers to Serra Ascendant, but Goblin Welder typically takes a few turns to be relevant, where there should be removal available by then for a 1/1. Several turns in, the Serra Ascendant has already done its work. The welder is a powerhouse but I think it’s like 55/45 for the Serra Ascendant.

[@colecarmichael5724]

@@Dragon_Fyre people forget goblin welder targets other peoples stuff too tho🤷🏽‍♂️

[@SpecialKail]

U don't have to untap with it to block w a 6/6 lifelink.

[@SpecialKail]

​@@colecarmichael5724Tomer mentioned it

[@traviscochran9253]

21:07 I love when Niuttuc gets to make these little edits xD, almost as good as Tomer screaming from beyond about the crew's opinions when he's not on the cast.

[@natejablonski]

I think Tomer edits the Commander Clash podcasts and he was telling future him to roll the clip.

[@zotha]

Richard lives on another planet from the rest of us.

[@RyanEglitis]

"But remember, you gotta play the welder and untap with it" As opposed to Serra Ascendent, which as we ALL know has haste and can attack immediately... 😑

[@munsulight721]

Not surprised by the lack of love for mana dorks for this podcast. Your crew is so BOARD WIPE HEAVY that your argument make sense there. On streamed games and onlines games, I barely see any boardwipe. I would gladly take the turn 1 acceleration over rampant growth or Wood Elves in a heavy creature decks even if a board wipe mean I will be set back. I just gained so much advantage from this turn 1 acceleration In the end though I think the finals was spot on for those 1 drops . 3rd would be Mom for me . 4th would be Serra Ascendant

[@zotha]

The floor on Esper Sentinel being a 1 mana asymmetrical Thalia is still insanely good. Even if you don't draw a single card you are often half a turn ahead of everyone else.

[@Enos666]

This is gonna be fun, I loved the last time you called on ChatGPT to break your ties.

[@VinniePaul91]

I'm appalled by your conclusion on ascendant vs welder. You can cut ascendant from any deck its in and barely notice. Welder is such a powerhouse and one of the best cards in every deck it's in.

[@hanschristopherson8056]

I think the conclusion was that welder was stronger but can’t go in every deck whereas you can put ascendant in any white deck but choose not to because synergy is more important in commander today

[@kylegonewild]

You could also cut welder and barely notice. Its effect isn't unique or necessary and is pretty much unusable turn 1 anyway. Everyone is aware it has a higher potential payoff than ascendant. The argument breaks down like hans here was saying. One thing people are forgetting is that it either forces a removal spell because it's *too much* value that's immediately available or makes you untouchable via creatures for several turns without ever having to actually turn it sideways. The Baleful Strix effect but it *can* go on the offensive. All for a throwaway single mana at the beginning of the game. Obviously a welder in any artifact deck will be better than ascendant in white weenies or whatever though.

[@MrWing946]

Love the fact that tomer defended goblin welder because he said he leans into synergistic decks, but just 10 minutes ago he was having a mental breakdown because they were defending heritage druid over birds

[@bugwrld8891]

seth saying grave crawler isnt good in zombie decks outside of combo is just insane. Its one black mana trigger all your sac and death triggers as many times as you want. I was running it without combos and it was so obscenely good i took it out

[@wchenful]

In cEDH the ranking criteria is a lot clearer: T1 (Birds / Ragavan) - go into almost every deck that can play them T2 (Esper Sentinel) - goes into a lot of decks as a value play T3 (Gingerbrute, Slitherblade Viscera Seer, Mother of Runes, Changeling Outcast, Serra Ascendant) - goes in a handful of decks (mostly Yuriko) Rest is unplayable :) I should also mention that Ragavan is practically a red cEDH staple - run in the majority of red decks as an additional mana / card advantage source. An opening hand Ragavan generates so much mana and card advantage that it is generally better than anything short of sol ring / mana crypt - and the smaller pool of played cards in the cEDH format means that you have much higher chances of hitting something useful for your gameplan (card draw / fast mana)

[@Summer_Snows]

Absolutely wild that half the cast is so anti mana dorks They aren't strong because they last forever, or even because of creature synergies necessarily. They're strong because they're, on average, cheaper than land ramp

[@michaelcollins4534]

Really love this bracket sytle video, and ngl im pretty happy its been a while since we got an endless spoiler season video Also goblin welder got robbed hard

[@jeremymorris6000]

Crim: "There are a LOT.... a LOOOOOHT.... of things I LOOOOOOVE..... about SLITHER BLAAAAAADE!"

[@jeremymorris6000]

This bracket format is great at cultivating divisive, argumentative debates over the tiniest semantics and I'm here for it!!

[@sanguavour]

I'm...really questioning some of this opinions, I'm not going to lie. Like, looking at BOP vs Heritage Druid, I feel like it is a very unequal comparison. Obviously Heritage Druid is terrifying in elf decks, because you can tap increments of three elves and and get three mana for each, and you can tap summoning sick elves for the ability. It's basically useless outside of elf decks, and I would hardly consider it a one-drop. I've never seen a deck actually play it on turn one, you hold it until you have at least two other elves to immediately use its effect. Same with mother of runes and spectral sailor, I don't know a single person who would consider spectral to be the better one-drop outside of specific decks that cater to it. Pirates, spirits, decks that need cheap evasive creatures, flash or flying decks, where else would you see this card? Mother of runes actively changes the way other people play the game, and in a group that talks about how Richard constantly goes under the radar and avoids looking like the enemy, I'd point out that people will also look at someone and go "Well I can't do anything to [Player] because of ___, I'll attack elsewhere so I'm at least doing something." It's why pillowfort strategies work, you make it hard to attack you, so people just look elsewhere because they don't want to risk falling behind because they invested resources on relatively small actions. Saying you'd consider playing Spectral Sailor to draw off it seems absurd to me, because I know I would rather pay 3 mana to draw two at sorcery speed with Divination instead of paying 5 mana to get a 1/1 and draw one at instant speed. I understand that card draw is king in card games, but the cost of drawing those cards are important too, spectral sailor is very overcosted for one card in my opinion. It feels like you're trying to equate bronze to gold, to explain how bronze is better than silver. Does it have its place? Sure. Do those specific places make it better than something thats just generally decent? I don't think so.

[@cablefeed3738]

Tournament style I agree with everything. Up to a esper sentinel losing it should have won Ranking 16. Spectral Sailor 15. Slither Blade 14. Changeling Outcast 13. Gingerbrute 12. Gravecrawler 11. Heritage Druid 10. Soul Warden 9. Ragavan 8. Mother of Runes 7. Spore Frog 6. Viscera Seer 5. Goblin Welder 4. Serra Ascendant 3. Weathered Wayfarer 2. Birds of Paradise 1. Esper Sentinel

[@PalPlays]

Mother of Runes basically gives every creature you control hexproof. You're crazy Richard, ESPECIALLY in a pod with Crim! You're arguing that a 5 mana cycler that gives a 1/1 flyer. Yes, a cycler, because this is trash if you're actually planning on drawing cards with the sailor.

[@gavingaudet3562]

The way Richard describes things makes it seem like he runs 8 board wipes per deck😂

[@dylanortego4655]

This episode made me really happy with my play group, if there are 4 board wipes in a single game I'd leave and never play again with that group

[@jamespatterson5644]

*looks up from Child of Alara commander* Hmm?

[@DiscardatRandom]

4 board wipes isn't even that much

[@jamesclare1858]

I appreciated the entertainment value of this podcast. It's also great to hear white get a shutout for their 1 drop creatures. This bracket showed the range of effects & power of white one-drop creatures.

[@ringoderbar1522]

About Golbin Welder, there is something that wasn't said, which makes Golbin Welder the best One-Drop in all of EDH, and easily better than Serra Ascendant. And it's only three word: The One Ring Edit: Spectral Sailor made it, but Shrieking Drake didn't? sadface

[@TheARehmar]

Just built a Ragavan commander deck and it’s absolutely hilarious to get to play your commander first turn every time.

[@jdh100000]

Richard's hot takes are getting old. It's a 1 drop CREATURE tier list and his hold up about BOP is that it does to removal. So does everything else on the list!

[@Kestral287]

Except Mother of Runes, which he also hates.

[@fredt1983]

"So Esper vs Ragavan?" Close, but could never predict the AI wildcard.

[@adamparker4580]

Their interaction amongst each other, especially debating rankings, always has me smiling.

[@seththeace6217]

I hate to break it to you guys. All of these die to removal, it's not a knock against or a point for any of them.

[@atevalve]

The struggle between "best" and "most powerful" is real

[@yellowbot.league]

This went from an infuriating mess to at least a happy ending lol

[@andyspendlove1019]

I was today years old when I realized Weathered Wayfarer is the little guy pulling on the big horse animal thing and doesn’t actually have anything to do with the horse

[@AmazingAlec93]

The gravecrawler disrespect hit almost as hard as the Grimgrin disrespect from the zombies video 🥲

[@inkarozu2309]

Richard should love changeling outcast because it lets him flip dowsing dagger.

[@UniGya]

I don't get Richard's point about using "creature rampant growths" over mana dorks because Sakura Tribe Elder or whatever *isn't a one drop*. The advantage that mana dorks give you is that they get you extra mana on to use on turn 2. It's like saying Darksteel Ingot is better than Arcane Signet because it's indestructible. You shouldn't rely on only mana dorks to ramp you but ramping faster is a big deal

[@CommanderBazaar]

Richard tried to pull "Dies To Removal" on the best mana dork of all time...wow.

[@helfiswelf]

I just rewatched this and I can’t believe changeling outcast, spectral sailor and slither blade are here but not Deathrite Shaman, Ignoble/Noble Hierarch, Speaker of the Heavens, Dragonmaster Outcast or Dragons’ Rage Channeler, Haywire Mite or Allosaurus Shepard, Rhys the Redeemed or even Voldaren Epicure: all things with extra abilities and perks beyond those above. Richard and/or Crim’s pod must be strange.

[@zenoooooo]

Hey guys! Was curious- why not have 5 members on these bracket podcasts? Prevents the need for the coinflip from Chat GPT

[@MTGGoldfishCommander]

Because we don't want 3hr podcasts

[@deepspeed84]

Crim literally flipped a coin.

[@Terry.M.I.]

The craziest part for me was hearing white finds lands is a staple thing when I first started playing I remember people talking about how white was the worst ramp

[@Terry.M.I.]

Scratch that just got to the soul warden argument might be biased but soul is triggering off other people minions unlike the other life gainers and combod with other life gain cards like ajani pridemate style cards soul warden can't be replaced

[@arghanothername]

Richard is right on the Birds argument. Birds is good in a few select decks. Heritage Druid is a fundamental combo piece in a few select decks.

[@weare1388]

Richard always got good points.

[@vanstromi7810]

Goblin welder also lets you sac treasures, clues or foods for what could be a huge game changing card. You can literally pull a sol ring with it. 😂 Most everyone is playing artifacts heavy these days in most decks.

[@TheTexasDice]

Manadorks in Commander are REALLY good if you run a 3-drop Commander which always wants to be on the board as fast as possible. Think about Yisan, the Wandering Bard. Rampant Growth doesn't help you cast Yisan earlier, since having 4 Mana on turn 3 makes 0 difference.

[@vanstromi7810]

I think you’re underestimating the flash on Spectral Sailor and if you’re running blue, you often have mama held up. Then you just draw at opponents end step. Then, untap on your turn. You can play this in flash decks, decks that want creatures to come in on opponents turns, etcetera.

[@danielhe2123]

It was a surprise not to see Goblin Lackey in the bracket, it is like the most broken goblin ever existed.

[@Hypnusrecords]

Casual commander is a midrange format, going ~10 turns. What you do on turn 3 is almost irrelevant unless you plan to combo and win on turn 4-5. Drawing cards, hitting land drops consistently is more valuable than sticking your nose out early to have it smashed by three players. Unless you enjoy that!

[@VinegarAndSaltedFries]

Crim, I’m disappointed you didn’t fight for Thieves Guild Enforcer more. Clearly the best Rogue I mean Card.

[@Kopekemaster]

Here's a hot take for ya - I like Gilded Goose more than Birds. Birds just makes mana. What does Goose do? ETB ability to double/flicker Creates token Creates artifact Sacrifices artifact Activated ability to make more artifacts Artifacts can sacrifice themselves to gain life That is a lot of possible synergies. Birds is certainly STRONGER generically, but I think Goose will play better in some decks due to having a lot of potential synergies.

[@Kryptnyt]

Richard's argument that Birds of Paradise is a mana dork and therefore bad, so Heritage Druid (A card that turns your other creatures into mana dorks) must be better is kind of his most insane take yet Also he's got it all backwards, mana dorks in commander are more popular than I've ever seen them, every random game with people on MTGO features people with turn 1 accelerative plays of a nature, and the game has gotten extremely fast as a result

[@jaspertenhaken9751]

I think you are misunderstanding the argument. It's not that mana dorks are bad because people want to kill them, richard thinks they are bad cause they accidentally get killed with the rest of the board. Heritage druid isn't really a ramp card in that aspect, it's more a ritual. You don't run it out to accelerate your curve you run it out on the turn you're going to pop off. (Since things can be summoning sick and still tap for mana)

[@Kryptnyt]

Well if mana dorks are bad because they only work for a little while, surely rituals must be bad, because they only work once, right? It's a card disadvantage argument, yet oftentimes you use these mana advantages to create card advantage and the argument falls apart. The classic Dark Ritual into Necropotence or something, or maybe you have a Gilded Lotus into your Maelstrom Wanderer, or a Birds of Paradise into a very clean and neat and humble turn 2 cultivate. Now, if your deck is slow and full of board wipes, maybe you shouldn't be jamming creatures onto the board this way. I'm more of an Exploration/Burgeoning kind of guy. Another person will play a lot of Wild Growth type stuff. Still these accelerants are gonna have weaknesses with their advantages.

[@kylegonewild]

@@Kryptnyt "Well if mana dorks are bad because they only work for a little while, surely rituals must be bad, because they only work once, right?" No? They serve different functions in a deck unless you're the type to reduce anything that generates mana to equal utility. Not sure why you included this incorrect rhetorical question in your otherwise correct comment here.

[@Kryptnyt]

@@kylegonewild We're talking about how Richard's philosophy towards cards would work. If mana dorks are bad because they die someday, therefore, rituals are bad because they die immediately. Alternatively, and in reality, both are good in the right decks.

[@jaylunwilliams1544]

I feel like in all my casual commander games played, I've seen maybe 2 fogs.

[@trailertrasher3881]

One thing missed is that esper sentinel combos with Goblin welder

[@NoNo-qt4ov]

Not having Phil / whoever is the one player not on here record their response to be used as a tie breaker is a crime and would be a great idea for future bracket vids

[@gingrsnap1951]

Birds is also jsut the best cheap flying blocker in the late game. It’s def saved me from getting knocked out and deterred the attack.

[@miguelyt8015]

If everyone pays the one for esper sentinel, esper sentinel acts (at best) like a mana dork. It sets the caster ahead of the table by a measly one mana

[@MFSIMBA]

To be fair Slither Blade probably also dies to Bowmasters because the decks that would be running it will probably be drawing cards from the attack or combat damage triggers.

[@KingQuetzal]

Birds vs Esper - They are both 10/10 in the early game. The difference is Esper can be countered by having people pay for it & it can only ever trigger once per turn. In the late game bird is better too, it can block flyers, it can hold an equipment and has evasion; it can be used multiple times be turn should a tap-untap synergy be set up. Whereas the top-end for Esper relies on having opponents misplay.

[@timbombadil4046]

In commander on board is not worse than instant speed from hand. E.g. Mother of Runes or Spore Frog. Richard is always worrying about 1 for 1 trades with removal. But on board answers can continue to exist holding off several other players simultaneously without needing to be expended. Thats value! Someone has a spore frog you might just attack someone else instead. Thats basically working like a pseudo Ghostly Prison while it exists. And MoR means opponents just focus removal elsewhere unless they have the means to peel your onion.

[@Jlizard27]

Granted I play in a weird and maybe not the highest power level play group, but the two games where I played turn one Esper Sentinel, I have drawn 0 cards off it. Birds of Paradise has never not ramped me into my midgame when I needed it to.

[@redeyesdragunknight6255]

My only thing with Soul Warden/Incidental lifegain especially in a early game drop like that is when people are deciding who to swing one of the first things they look at is Life Totals

[@Mithrandork]

Richard talking smack about Mother of Runes dropped my jaw 😮 it basically guarantees a 2 for 1 because they have to make you use the mom before they can safely target anything on your board and if they don't hit the mom then and there they have to play that game again every time there's a threat on your board. That's not even to mention that it's evasion to get your attacker through

[@thorne5072]

Birds of paradise straight up overruling delighted halfling? Weird. Bird: Ok someone brought up the bird in the room

[@joewhite4456]

Did he actually just say "well if every other deck on the table is only casting creatures" like that happens more than 5% of the time...

[@khub5660]

Serra ascendant is so good that I play her in cEDH. It's not as a combo piece, but because she is a must answer threat in a format that plays little creatures that aren't necessary for combos. The fact that Birds was ranked above Esper Sentinel is insane. Rhystic Buddy doubles as card draw and a stax piece because if your opponent doesn't want you to draw, they always have to pay the 1. Mana dork ramp doesn't always win games, as creature decks tend to run out of gas. Especially when a boardwipe comes out. The person who draws the most cards is typically the one who will win, no matter if it's casual or cEDH. And Rhystic Buddy draws you a lot of cards

[@camerongrey3643]

Serra Ascendant is the truth. It’s a 12 pt life swing per turn, it’s evasive, it holds swords, it’s incredibly annoying for anything but white or black to answer, and that’s just the floor. The only card on here that I’d give the edge to is esper sentinel because the raw card advantage is so strong.

[@Icarus_inc]

Wonderful video guys, good job

[@Todtodtodtod]

Worst case scenario for esper sentinel is that it’s a 1 CMC Thalia

[@Shimiphew]

Delighted Halfling is a house if you want a Turn 2 Commander (I have a Henzie deck that wants him turn 2). But for general applicability and affordability... Probably the bird.

[@KykyJyky]

It's funny that Seth didn't go with Soul Warden since he's always on the lookout for abusing Soul Sisters