What is a Good Amount of Lands in a Commander Deck?
When it comes to building a Commander deck, one of the essential decisions you need to make is the number of lands you include in your deck. This decision can greatly affect the performance of your Commander deck. In this article, we’ll explore the usual land count for Commander decks, what factors to consider when building your deck’s land base, and a general guideline for the ratio of lands to non-lands.
Typical Land Count in Commander Decks
A common misconception when building Commander decks is believing that more lands are necessarily better. However, Commander decks require a different mindset than standard Magic decks due to the unique format mechanics. Typically, a deck in Commander should have:
- 33-40 lands in a 36-card deck
- 24-25 lands in a 60-card deck
Keep in mind these are general guidelines, as the actual land count is highly dependent on the Commanders’ abilities, game plan, and overall metagame.
Importance of Land Base Structure
A well-constructed land base is crucial to the success of your deck. Consider the following principles when building your land base:
• Mana fixed: Aim to have 2-4 sources of each color on curve, ensuring you’ve got a solid foundation to play spells on turn-2 or -3 without overloading on a color.
• Color control: Include a distribution of 1- or 2-mana producers for early game, in addition to more expensive mid-game land drops. For example, if you don’t want to play Blue on turn-2 or -3, you would have an early game threat like Misty Rainforest.
• Late game mana: Add the occasional more expensive landdrop to accommodate your Commander, as it may have important effects in the late-game.
• Land ratios: Balance your card count: 1-lane is usually around 30%, 1.5-lane25-30% (with 1 & 2-mana spots), 2-lane 30-35%, and 3-plus lane5-20%.
Benefits of Following the Guidelines
Benefits of following the recommendations for a Commander deck
- Improved consistency
- Better mana positioning
- Enhanced gameplay flow
- Reduced mana issues or screw-offs
Disadvantages of Over-Inclination on Lands or Non-Lands
Pitfalls of having over-inclination on the land or non-lands side:
- Clumsy mana base development: An overabundance of lands can lead to inconsistent land draws and impede early game development.
Why a Commander Could Have Less Lands than Desired
If your Commander creates value or generates mana for you, you may afford to run fewer lands at the start. This design can offset the resource scarcity, allowing you more freedom in your early build. Be cautious, however, not to sacrifice power level or consistency for uniqueness.
In Conclusion: Building a Commander deck comes with specific challenges, land count being one of them. To create a sturdy and cohesive deck, the right balance of lands versus non-lands is fundamental. Following the guidelines as outlined, you’ll cultivate a reliable mana base conducive to gameplay and improve its overall power level. Avoid the pitfall of devoting too much to either option and aim for a satisfying, land-rich, not-too-mana-pool-rich middle ground. Adjust according to your Commander’s signature, deck strategy, or playtesting results. Lastly, do not be ashamed to test and adapt according to the metagames.