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Widely considered Magic: The Gathering's most social format, Commander is getting a festive update perfect for the holidays. As part of a holiday-themed episode, personalities Josh Lee Kwai and Jimmy Wong played a multiplayer match called "Holiday Countdown."

How the Festive Variant Works

At its core is a simple layer superimposed on a normal EDH match. One special indicator travels between players. When it the current player's turn, the game temporarily stops. Each participant privately decides if they will be being Nice or Naughty by using indicator cards.

All players reveal their choice at the same time. After that, they resolve the bonus tied to their decision, first with the person who has the token. The token is subsequently handed to the right. The countdown moves forward a single increment, and normal gameplay carries on.

The choices do escalate over time continue, designed to be finely tuned.

Escalating Outcomes

At the start offered minor, collective advantages for the Nice path, such as gaining life or investigation clues. In contrast, The Naughty choices often gave personal upsides, frequently to the detriment of someone else. As an example let players choosing Naughty create a 4/4 flying Reindeer token. Players that selected Nice generated a small artifact token creature for all participants.

The Grand Showdown

On the last phase, Saint Nick personally showed up, transforming the game. Depending on how often each player chose Naughty versus Nice, Santa handed out sealed “gifts”. These looked like deck boxes, but contained Magic booster packs of varying value.

• The kindest player received a high-value Collector Booster.
• The next kindest player got a different Collector Booster.
• One player received a older set.
• The least nice player got the worst prize: a notoriously weak set acting as a punchline.

Every card opened immediately became used for the remainder of the match, used as a bonus using mana treating it as all colors. Players who were nice players, their gift wound up being a major boost. Meanwhile, the naughty players essentially got a disadvantage.

Playing the Format at Home

While the original showcase included significant polish and preparation, the format is something players could easily replicate in their own playgroup. Participants would bring their regular Commander deck, and the additional materials needed are several MTG packs with different worth.

One potential issue could be that if everyone are aware beforehand the best pack's identity, they all strategize for the best booster pack. One might change this in different ways, for example drafting cards from a shared pool or allowing participants to use cards they own from their binders.

Based on the successful demonstration, this holiday variant is definitely a festive method to create laughter when playing with friends. It changes the social interplay at the table in a fun and manner, resulting in a special way to play for MTG players this season.