How Do You Change the Background Blue and Change the Decks in All the Games
The release of Streets of New Capenna is in the rearview mirror. Now, Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate is the newest MTG set. The Dungeons and Dragons inspired Commander set releases on June 10th. And while official spoilers have just started, there have already been some pretty juicy reveals, including brand new mechanics. In this article, I'm going to go over the new MTG Background mechanic.
Background is a type of Legendary enchantment which can be paired with certain mono-colored commanders. These enchantments serve as an extension of your commander, expanding their color-identity while also giving players constant access to the enchantment.
If this all sounds a bit complicated, don't worry. I'll do my best to answer any and all questions you might have about this exciting new mechanic.
Table of Contents
- What Is the MTG Background Mechanic?
- How Does the MTG Background Mechanic Work?
- Does MTG Background Change Your Commander's Color-Identity?
- Can I run Background enchantments in the regular deck, or only in the Command Zone?
- What Happens When a Background Leaves the Battlefield?
- Does Commander Tax Apply to MTG Backgrounds?
- Full List of MTG Background Cards
- End Step
What Is the MTG Background Mechanic?
Background is a type of Legendary enchantment introduced in the Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate set. The easiest way to think about Background is to compare it to the Partner mechanic. With Partner, you get to use two commanders instead of one. Background is basically the same thing, but instead of your second commander being a creature, it's an enchantment.
Background also expands your commander's color-identity. For example, if your commander is mono-white, and you choose a green Background, then you can include green cards, as well as white, in your main deck.
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How Does the MTG Background Mechanic Work?
Certain Legendary creatures in the new Commander Legends set have the text "Choose a Background". If you pick one of these creatures as your commander, then you get to choose a Background card to be your second commander.
These Legendary creatures and enchantments appear at every rarity, making the mechanic perfect for draft as well as regular Commander games.
Let's take a look at a few of the leaked cards. Ellyn Harbreeze, Busybody and Inspiring Leader is a good commander and Background combination to take a look at.
Ellyn Harbreeze, Busybody is a commander that cares about token creation. Her activated ability lets you look at the top X cards of your library where X is the number of tokens you created so far that turn. Then you get to add one of those cards to your hand. Ellyn also lets you choose a Background to use as a second commander.
It just so happens that one of the leaked Backgrounds, Inspiring Leader, pairs pretty well with Ellyn.
The Inspiring Leader Background says "Commander creatures you own gain 'creature tokens you control get +2/+2.
I think these two cards are a great example of the flavor that Wizards of the Coast is going for with this mechanic. You get to choose a "background, and your commander gains certain abilities based on that background.
Does MTG Background Change Your Commander's Color-Identity?
Yes, choosing a Background can expand your commander's color-identity. For example, if your commander is mono-white you can choose a red Background. You can then include both white and red cards in your main-deck.
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Can I run Background enchantments in the regular deck, or only in the Command Zone?
Yes, players can use Backgrounds in the main deck, as long as they're not already using the same card in the command zone.
What Happens When a Background Leaves the Battlefield?
If your Background card gets destroyed, exiled, or otherwise leaves the battlefield, you can choose to have it return to the command zone instead.
Does Commander Tax Apply to MTG Backgrounds?
Yes, when casting a Background you have to pay an extra two mana for every time you've cast it from the command zone previously. This works the exact same way as it does with your regular commander.
Full List of MTG Background Cards
We don't have a full list of MTG background cards just yet but we'll update this post as more are released. Below is what we have so far.
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End Step
For those who might not know, the MTG Background mechanic comes directly from the Dungeons and Dragons game. For Magic players who aren't familiar with D&D, the Background mechanic might seem a bit forced and strange. I'm confident, however, that once the set releases and players actually get to play with these cards, it will all make perfect sense.
MTG Background is a very flavorful mechanic, and I personally can't wait to see more of the cards. Previews for Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate previews start May 16th, and the set releases June 10th, 2022. I'll update this page frequently as we get more information, so be sure to check back soon.
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Source: https://bluemonkeygaming.com/mtg-background-how-it-works-and-what-it-does/