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Commander 2020: Top 10 Cards for Oathbreaker

This is my final top 10 for Ikoria/Commander 2020, this time going over new cards printed in the Commander 2020 decks. At the very end of this article, I’ll also list my overall top 10 cards from the sets for Oathbreaker. My Top 10s are based on 1) how strong I think a card will be in Oathbreaker, and 2) how many different types of Oathbreaker decks I expect the card to see play in. While I do try to be as objective as I can, these are ultimately just my own thoughts/opinions.

Since there are so many new cards in these preconstructed decks, I’m also going to have an “Honorable Mentions” section, similar to my multicolor Ikoria cards article. I’m also admittedly “cheating” on a few of the spots on this list by giving single spots to some of the card cycles in the set. With all that out of the way, let’s get into it!

Honorable Mentions:

Gavi, Nest Warden and Xyris, the Writhing Storm are both honorable mentions because while they are very cool cards, they’re ultimately not going to go into that many Oathbreaker decks due to color restriction. I do think Ukkima, Stalking Shadow and Yannik, Scavenging Sentinel are two of the better “partner” creatures from C20 for Oathbreaker, but a few of the other partner creatures made it onto the list over them. Nesting Grounds is an interesting new utility land, particularly since it can put counters on other player’s permanents. The sorcery-speed ultimately pulled it back just short of the list, but I do really like its potential in Oathbreaker.

Cartographer’s Hawk is an honorable mention because although it is an example of some interesting design space for ramp in white, mana ramp just isn’t quite as ubiquitous in Oathbreaker as it is in EDH. The rules text on Vitality Hunter is a bit more relevant, and I admit I could be underestimating the strength of its monstrosity ability. Tidal Barracuda is a cool new way to stop people from playing spells during your turn, but it does allow your opponents to potentially cast their Oathbreakers/Signature Spells at instant-speed. The life price on Netherborn Altar is a bit too high for most Oathbreaker decks, but I do think it could perform well in certain lifegain strategies. The final honorable mention is Frontier Warmonger, a new political card that just got edged out over some other political tools on the list. Now, on to the real Top 10!

#10: The “Impetus” Cycle

These are the political cards I was referring to a minute ago. I admittedly could be a bit biased in my evaluation here since I do have a fondness for clever little cycles like these cards; however, I do think they have some real potential in Oathbreaker. Some of them are certainly more powerful than others, with Psychic Impetus and Parasitic Impetus probably being the least and most powerful, respectively, of the cycle. Shiny Impetus isn’t particularly exciting either, but an extra treasure token here and there can make a big difference for certain strategies. Martial Impetus seems a bit stronger, though it’s weird that it seems like an enchantment I’d rather put on my creatures than my opponent’s. Predatory Impetus is a bit expensive at five mana, though it does present the potential opportunity to remove an opponent’s creature from the board every turn cycle. This cycle of cards certainly does not pack the most power from this set, but goad is a sweet multiplayer mechanic and I’m excited to see it make a mini-return here.

#9: Brallin, Skyshark Raider

Brallin, Skyshark Rider is a pretty powerful new option for various discard strategies in Oathbreaker. The triggered ability on this card is very reminiscent of Glint-Horn Buccaneer, and Brallin has the potential to become a much bigger threat very quickly. Out of the various different discard archetypes, Brallin seems like a particularly deadly addition to wheel decks, where they’ll be able to deal massive amounts of damage to the rest of the table out of nowhere. Brallin, Skyshark Rider is ultimately going to be limited to only seeing play in discard decks, but they’re definitely one powerhouse of an addition.

#8: Cazur, Ruthless Stalker

The triggered ability on Cazur, Ruthless Stalker may look innocuous enough at first glance, but it’s definitely the kind of effect that can snowball out of control. With green being the color with the biggest creatures and the most access to trample, it won’t be that difficult for many lists to add a lot of power/toughness to their board with this ability. Pretty much any green stompy strategy could easily benefit from this type of effect, but I imagine it will be particularly potent in +1/+1 counter-themed decks. The only thing holding me back from being too excited about Cazur is that he requires you to already have a fairly strong board presence in order to benefit from his ability, but I don’t think that will stop him from seeing his fair share of play in Oathbreaker.

#7: Call the Coppercoats

Call the Coppercoats uses the old “strive” mechanic from the original Theros-block in a very interesting way. Strive has historically been used to target multiple permanents, but Call the Coppercoats is built to be better suited for multiplayer formats by being able to target additional opponents instead. The fact that this card is an instant is also pretty exciting since it means you could potentially create a lot of 1/1s out of nowhere, whenever you feel like spending the mana for it. The only real downside to this card is that it requires your opponents to have a good number of creatures on-board already in order to get any substantial value. Still, I expect Call the Coppercoats is going to be a very nice new option for many token strategies, and maybe even some aristocrat lists.

#6: Surly Badgersaur

Oh. My. Goodness. Surly Badgersaur is the red equivalent of Bone Miser, and I love everything about it. Aside from its amazing creature type of “Badger Dinosaur”, there’s a lot of appeal to this card for various discard strategies. Surly Badgersaur won’t be dealing damage directly to your opponents like Brallin, Skyshark Rider, but it can accrue you a lot of different types of value over the course of a game. Its first and third triggered abilities work particularly well together, offering the potential to build up the badgersaur, then use it as a repeatable source of creature spot removal. The second ability is pretty handy as well since it makes discarding away lands feel a bit less risky. The only reason this card is this low on the list is its obvious limitation to discard strategies, but I am very excited to see what people do with Surly Badgersaur in Oathbreaker. I’m really going to have to make a Dack Fayden deck now, aren’t I?

#5: Molten Echoes

I’ve always been a fan of Flameshadow Conjuring and similar effects, and I think Molten Echoes is pretty high up there in terms of power level for these kinds of “temporary clone” cards. Molten Echoes comes with the restriction of only working with one chosen creature type, but it has the upside of not requiring extra mana for its triggers. The ceiling on this card is pretty freaking high, especially for lower mana-cost tribes that are looking to go wide, like goblins. Even in higher mana-cost tribes like dragons, getting an extra copy of each creature you play for a turn can net you a lot of extra value. Even though Molten Echoes is only going to be useful in tribal decks, I expect it’s going to be a very powerful addition to many red Oathbreaker decks.

#4: Ethereal Forager

I really like the way that the delve mechanic was integrated into Ethereal Forager‘s card design. In case paying only two blue mana for a 3/3 flyer wasn’t good enough for you, Ethereal Forager can even net you card advantage when it attacks. It is limited to only returning instants and/or sorceries to your hand, and there is a small risk with exiling cards to this creature’s delve ability; if Ethereal Forager is removed before you can get your card advantage out of it, those exiled cards are gone for good. Having said that, I think the potential value that this card is certainly worth the risk, and I imagine Ethereal Forager is going to see a comfortable amount of play in decks looking to fill their graveyards.

#3: Sawtusk Demolisher

Am I the only one that thinks green is getting an oddly solid amount of decent spot removal these days? I think there’s a pretty good chance that Sawtusk Demolisher is the best mutate creature out of Ikoria/C20 for Oathbreaker. Beast Within is a very playable removal spell in the format already, and Sawtusk Demolisher lets you mutate a 6/6 trampler onto one of your creatures on top of all that. For four mana. Four freaking mana. Yes, there are the risks/downsides that all mutate cards have, but I’ll take that risk for the chance to destroy an opposing Oathbreaker and get a 6/6 trampler for four mana. This card is obviously going to be most effective in creature-heavy strategies, which just so happens to be green’s strong suit anyway. I expect Sawtusk Demolisher to see a very solid amount of play in Oathbreaker, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it becomes a new green staple of the format.

#2: Verge Rangers

Verge Rangers may not have quite as big a personality as Sawtusk Demolisher, but I think this new white creature may see even more widespread play in Oathbreaker. On top of having the solid rate of a 3/3 with first strike for three mana, Verge Rangers can also do something white mages have only dreamed about: net card advantage! All jokes aside, Verge Rangers does represent an interesting new way for white to filter its draws and hit its land drops more consistently. While a card like Sawtusk Demolisher is going to mostly be limited to creature-heavy strategies, I can’t think of many different kinds of white decks that couldn’t take advantage of Verge Ranger‘s effect. White weenie decks and midrange strategies are probably the easiest fit for this card, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see it pop up in other types of decks, especially non-green lists. I’m glad to see white catch a bit of a break in the card advantage department, and I look forward to trying Verge Rangers out in many of my white Oathbreaker lists.

#1: The “Free if you control a commander” Cycle

This last choice probably comes as a surprise to no one. Who would of thought that free spells could be powerful? These cards aren’t all equal in power level, but it felt wrong to have them taking up multiple spots on this list for essentially the same reason. Fierce Guardianship is definitely the strongest of the cycle for Oathbreaker, given that decks in this format are literally built around a chosen pair of noncreature spells. I think the pick for second-most powerful is actually pretty close, but I’d say it’s Deflecting Swat. It can deflect both spells and abilities (yes, including loyalty abilities), and it specifically uses the word targets, meaning it even works well against cards like Windgrace’s Judgment. Flawless Maneuver is also a very strong effect to have at instant-speed for zero mana, though it does have the small downside of doing literally nothing if you don’t have any creatures in play. I’d put Obscuring Haze next in the power rankings since it’s a zero mana, one-sided improved Fog, a type of effect that can be useful in a variety of ways. I’d say that Deadly Rollick is the least powerful of the cycle for Oathbreaker, but I still think it’s a very good card. Black doesn’t get exiling removal all too often, and Deadly Rollick can exile any creature in play for zero mana. There really isn’t any sort of significant deck-building restriction to this powerful cycle, so expect these cards to start showing up often in many, many Oathbreaker decks.

Now, for my overall Top 10 cards from Ikoria/Commander 2020 for Oathbreaker:

*insert drumroll*

What are your favorite cards from Ikoria and Commander 2020? Are there any cards you’re particularly excited to try out in Oathbreaker? Make sure to tell me in the comments or on Twitter!

Now that I’m done with these Top 10s, I’ll be back to my normal routine of one article every Friday. I’m going to have a “Brainstorming” article ready for next week, and I have other exciting article ideas in store for after that, so keep an eye out!

About the author: My name is Alex Enders. I am a college student that’s been playing MTG for almost eight years, though I only recently began experimenting with writing content. My personal formats of choice are Oathbreaker, EDH, and draft. My other interests include music, education, and most things nerdy. You can find me on Twitter (@AAAEnders) or email me at aenders2112@gmail.com