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Commander Nexus
  1. Commander Nexus
  2. Commanders
  3. Arcades, the Strategist

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Arcades, the Strategist

Arcades, the Strategist

Legendary Creature — Elder Dragon

Arcades wants a deck that removes its creatures and brings them right back to reuse them. It also works in a deck built around Dragons or Elders.

  • Mana cost1 genericgreenwhiteblue
  • White, Blue, Green ()
  • Power / toughness3 / 5
  • RarityMythic

Flying, vigilance

Whenever a creature you control with defender enters, draw a card.

Each creature you control with defender assigns combat damage equal to its toughness rather than its power and can attack as though it didn't have defender.

Build a deck with Arcades Find it in the app

Archetypes
Themes

Cards That Fit Arcades, the Strategist

Picked for what they do in Arcades's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Arcades's color identity.Mana ValueThe total amount of mana a card costs, all added up. A card costing two generic and one green has a mana value of three. Wizards renamed this from "converted mana cost" in 2021, so older cards and articles may still use the old name.Sol RingOpen the full glossary

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The 6 Cards

Does what Arcades, the Strategist does6

The 6 Cards

Rulings for Arcades, the Strategist

explain how Arcades works in tricky situations. They come from Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic.RulingThe official answer to how a card works in a tricky situation. Most rulings are written by Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic, and a few are notes from Scryfall, the card database Magic players use. A ruling explains a card. It does not change what the card says.Open the full glossary

Wizards of the Coast 19 Mar 2021

Arcades's last ability doesn't actually change any creature's power. It changes only the amount of combat damage it assigns. All other rules and effects that check power or toughness use the real values. For example, Rabid Bite won't cause a creature with defender to deal damage equal to its toughness.

Wizards of the Coast 19 Mar 2021

If Arcades leaves the battlefield after a creature with defender has attacked, that creature remains an attacking creature, although it will assign damage equal to its power.

2 rulings, all written by Wizards of the Coast. Read the originals on Gatherer ↗

Similar Commanders

Commanders that share the most with Arcades, and what they share.

Color identityEvery color of mana symbol on a card, in its cost and in its rules text. Your commander's color identity sets the limit for your whole deck: every other card has to fit inside it. A deck led by a green and white commander cannot play a card with any blue in its color identity.Open the full glossaryWUGPlayers write colors as letters: W for white, U for blue, G for green. Blue is U because B was already taken by black.Blink/FlickerBlink decks briefly remove their own creatures from play and return them at once, so every 'when this enters' ability happens again. The move is called a flicker, and it can also rescue a creature from a spell aimed at it.Open the Blink/Flicker pageETB PayoffRewards you whenever your permanents enter the battlefield. It either gives you something for each arrival or makes their 'when this enters' abilities happen twice. Impact Tremors, PanharmoniconOpen the ETB Payoff pageDrawDraws you extra cards. More cards means more choices every turn, and in a 100-card deck it is the main way to find the pieces you need. Rhystic Study, SkullclampOpen the Draw pageToughness CombatLets creatures deal combat damage equal to their toughness instead of their power. It turns defensive creatures with big toughness into real attackers. Doran, the Siege Tower, Assault FormationOpen the Toughness Combat pageEvasionAn ability that makes a creature hard to block, so its attacks reach the player. Flying, menace, landwalk and plain 'can't be blocked' are the common kinds.Open the Evasion page