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Commander Nexus
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  3. Gandalf, Friend of the Shire

Command zone

Gandalf, Friend of the Shire

Gandalf, Friend of the Shire

Legendary Creature — Avatar Wizard

Gandalf wants a deck that answers everything its opponents play, then wins late. It also works in a deck built around Avatars, The Ring Tempts You or Wizards.

  • Mana cost3 genericblue
  • Blue ()
  • Power / toughness2 / 4
  • RarityUncommon

Flash

You may cast sorcery spells as though they had flash.

Whenever the Ring tempts you, if you chose a creature other than Gandalf as your Ring-bearer, draw a card.

Build a deck with Gandalf Find it in the app

Archetypes

Cards That Fit Gandalf, Friend of the Shire

Picked for what they do in Gandalf's deck. When two cards do the same job, the one with the lower comes first. All of them fit Gandalf'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

plan6

The 6 Cards

plan6

The 6 Cards

Rulings for Gandalf, Friend of the Shire

explain how Gandalf 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 16 Jun 2023

If the creature you choose as your Ring-bearer was already your Ring-bearer, that still counts as choosing that creature as your Ring-bearer for the purpose of abilities that trigger "whenever you choose a creature as your Ring-bearer" or abilities that care about which creature was chosen as your Ring-bearer.

Wizards of the Coast 16 Jun 2023

The second ability applies only to casting spells. It does not, for example, change when you may activate abilities that can be activated "only as a sorcery."

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

Similar Commanders

Commanders that share the most with Gandalf, 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 glossaryUPlayers write colors as letters: U for blue. Blue is U because B was already taken by black.ControlControl decks answer what everyone else plays, stopping spells and removing dangerous cards, then win slowly once they are in charge. Expect lots of removal, spells that cancel other spells, and extra card draw.Open the Control 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 pageThe Ring Tempts YouWhenever the Ring tempts you, you choose one of your creatures as your Ring-bearer and the Ring gets stronger. It comes from Magic's Lord of the Rings cards, and the Ring gains up to four abilities.Open the The Ring Tempts You pageThe RingFrom the Lord of the Rings set. When "the Ring tempts you", you choose one of your creatures to be your Ring-bearer, and it gains new abilities. Each time the temptation happens, the Ring grows stronger.Open the The Ring page