A Popular Gaming Channel Reveals a Seasonal Commander Format Players Can Play at Home.

Widely known as Magic: The Gathering's friendliest format, the Elder Dragon Highlander format has received a holiday twist just in time for the holidays. During a holiday-themed show, creators from a popular channel demonstrated a multiplayer match titled "Holiday Countdown."

How the Festive Variant Works

Fundamentally is a simple layer superimposed on a regular Commander game. A designated indicator travels between players. Once it arrives at the active player's upkeep, the game briefly pauses. Each participant privately decides if they will be being Naughty or Nice with the help of indicator cards.

Everyone flip their card simultaneously. Next, they resolve the effect associated with their decision, starting with the player holding the marker. This marker is subsequently handed to the next player. A special tracker ticks up by one step, and normal gameplay carries on.

The choices do escalate as the rounds go on, designed to be well-balanced.

Increasing Effects

Early rounds offered small, table-wide advantages for being Nice, such as life gain or Clue tokens. Conversely, Naughty paths usually provided personal advantages, often at the expense of another player. As an example let players who picked Naughty create a 4/4 flying Reindeer token. Players that selected Nice created a small artifact creature token for all participants.

Santa's Big Showdown

On the final round, Santa Claus personally showed up, changing the match. Based on the tally of a participant selected Nice versus Naughty, Santa gave out mystery presents. Outwardly, these were deck boxes, but contained MTG booster packs of varying value.

• The nicest player received a high-value special pack.
• The next kindest player received a slightly less valuable Collector Booster.
• A special guest received a less powerful set.
• The most mischievous player drew the short straw: a famously bad set which is basically a punchline.

Each card unwrapped instantly were used for the remainder of the match, cast from exile with mana as though it were any color. For the nicer players, their gift proved to be a huge boost. Whereas, mischievous participants essentially got a punitive gift.

Playing the Variant Yourself

While the original showcase had a lot of custom components, it's one that anybody could easily replicate at home. Participants uses their regular EDH deck, and all you'd need are four different booster packs of varying value.

The main challenge could be that if players are aware beforehand what being nice gets you, they all try to get the most valuable gift. You could change this in different ways, for example drafting cards together or allowing participants to pull cards from their collection from their binders.

Judging by how the format played out, this holiday variant proves to be a fun way to add holiday cheer this holiday season. It adds a layer to the dynamics at the table in a uniquely festive manner, making it a memorable way to play for MTG players in their playgroups.