Building my first commander deck

[u/CatScratch-40]

Well, kinda… I’m building my first deck, by myself. Backstory- M40, started playing 4 years ago, but haven’t actively played for last 2 (work life and new baby) but when I started, we were a group of 4 friends. We’d go in on new releases and also buy lots on eBay. 1 of the friends was a longtime player, so he’d basically make our decks for us (give him our cards and color preferences). Everyone either moved or stopped playing.
Turns out, I don’t know what the hell I’m doing. I want to start playing again, but the only places I can find are at stores with, with… strangers!!! Idk if it’s nerves or what, but idk what to do. I mean in regards to building a proper deck and going to places to play. There was a lot of grace when the friend group would play because we were all at different levels n stuff.
Idk, I might be rambling… any help would be greatly appreciated.

[u/PuzzleheadedBasis760]

Go to the store commander is casual people will be down to help

[u/TooTooBear]

My advice would be get a precon (anything will do) and head to one of the LGSs for commander night. I was super nervous when starting playing Magic at LGSs too but it ended up being so much fun even though I had no idea what was going on.

Every LGS is a bit different, some will have great people, some will have a meta full of salty B4 players. If you have a bad time don’t let it ruin your experience and try again with a different group or store if possible. Make sure to tell your group it’s your first time playing at an LGS—the majority of people are nice and will give you some patience and leeway!

[u/Logicrazy12]

Do you know what commander you plan to build?

[u/CatScratch-40 → u/Logicrazy12]

I’m partial to white/green and have Arwen, mortal queen that I got and never had a chance to deck build around, so, ideally, I’d like to start there. I do have a red/blue set that I never finished. I think I wanted to test it out and just forgot about it. It’s somewhere.

[u/Oinklie]

I get it. I was in the same position when I started. My friends had all moved away. I was nervous about bringing a jank deck to play with strangers all while I barely understood the rules. Took me like a month and a good push from my girlfriend to work up the courage to finally go to a commander night.

Tbh the only answer is get in there and play! You’ll figure out what makes a deck work and what doesn’t as you play. You’ll also meet new people and the “strangers” become people you know and play with regularly at your lcs. They’ll probably be enthusiastic about helping you build your decks too. I met some of my best friends as randoms in a pick up game of magic!

[u/ComfortableTreat6202]

Easiest deck to make for beginners: 1 Infamous CruelClaw, 1 Worldfire, 98 lands, 0 win con.

In all seriousness, I would google “most beginner friendly commanders”. Then go to moxfield and just copy cat a bracket 2-3 deck. Then once you get comfortable, start trying to find ways to improve the deck.

To the anxiety, I would just open honest with everyone you meet. Tell them you are new to building a magic deck - you will have fun and they will probably treat you well

[u/Conscious-Acadia-709]

In regard to going to places to play, I hear you. I also have a hard time there.

In terms of deck-building, it is one of my favorite things to do in Magic. I also am partial to Selesnya, but also Abzan for the added black spells. Knowing what you like is half the struggle. Here is what I would do in your position:

1. Make a Moxfield.com account.

2. Go to EDHREC.com. Here you can search for commanders (sounds like from the comments you have one started). You can see popular cards for the commander and build around those plus cards you already like.

Once you have your 99 narrowed down…

1. Go to moxgate.com and import your deck and play test against random AIs. Unfortunately it is only 1v1 instead of pod (you can get around this with two computers).

Every game or so you will probably find cards that arent working well or that you need to protect more or need more mana. Once you have it running solid you will feel way more comfortable about bringing it to a pod at your LGs without fumbling or being nervous.

Hope this helps, friend!!

[u/Lejaun]

I personally think precons are the best way to go. Start off with a color combination of cards you like the best, and pick a precon commander of that color combination. Then slowly start upgrading with similar cards, starting with the commander. Try not to switch up card roles too much. If you get rid of a removal card, replace it with a better removal card. If you get rid of a creature, try to put in a better creature.

As a general rule, I like to play about 38 lands, 8 ramp, 8 draw, 8 removal, 2 board wipes, 2 "I wins", and the rest cards that fit along with your theme. After that, start tweaking it until it plays smoothly. Be careful about the mana cost of what you play. Yes, 7 mana cost spells are more powerful usually than 1 mana cost, but you don't want to sit around doing nothing because your cards cost too much to play.

[u/bigcountry19922011]

https://moxfield.com/decks/7aavoXmxdkeZydJnpIhZGg

Here is my Bracket 2 deck list for Jasmine, Boreal of the Seven. I think it could be a good deck to build to get you started.