Last updated on February 22, 2025
Circle of Elders | Illustration by Jakub Kasper
Gavin Verhey, Principal Magic Designer at Wizards of the Coast, sat down with press at MagicCon: Chicago to answer questions about the Commander Bracket system Beta, which went public with first details last week.
The Q&A lasted just over an hour with Gavin answering a variety of questions on topics like when cards would get unbanned, how he expects new players to integrate with the system, and the design team's hesitancy to make changes to an already incredibly successful format.
Unbans Coming in April
The Commander Brackets Beta system was detailed last week, and players everywhere are already speculating on what will or won't get unbanned as a part of the new system. Gavin talked about this for over 20 minutes during the Q&A panel.
The system, which launched in beta last week, includes a list of ‘game changer,' cards that not only help define a deck's bracket, but that also acts as a warning zone for cards that may be banned in the future.
Gavin said that the team will “come back in late April” to discuss unbanning cards “if we choose to” and that it'll also be when they hope that Commander Brackets will “launch out of beta.”
“We can pull cards off the banned list and put them in the game-changers list,” Gavin explained. “If we ban any cards, it'll be off of [the game changers list].”
This also means that the game changers will will act as a pre-ban step, so players can better set expectations as to what is or isn't at risk of getting banned.
“No matter how you feel about what happened in September with Jeweled Lotus or Mana Crypt,” I think most people would agree that the surprise is what they were unhappy with,” Gavin said. “I'm not saying go unload your Gaea's Cradles.”
“We want to create a framework so you can know what to expect.”
Bracket 4 vs. Bracket 5
Baron Von Count | Illustration by Jesper Ejsing
Another hot topic of discussion was the difference between bracket 4 vs 5, and how the intent of the bracket system makes that difference clearer.
“This is not an algorithm you run your deck through,” Gavin said. “Ultimately you decide what it is and your intent really matters a lot here.”
He went on to say that the Commander Brackets are meant to be the guiding light to help you “describe the games that you're looking for,” and give you more language to communicate your intentions. This was also why the bracket's name changed from “Commander Power Brackets” to just “Commander Brackets.”
“It's not just about raw card power,” he went on to say. “A single list of cards… is much easier to reference.” It allows you to play ‘a little bit of these cards' while still being in Bracket 3.
“The terminology of ‘game changer' let's you have that pre-bracket discussion. My hope for qualifying 5 different brackets for players is to ‘open up' different levels for players. We went low intentionally with [the number of] game changers so it didn't become too much.”
Ultimately, the intention behind the bracket system isn't to provide an ultimate funnel or filter to define decks. It's a way to empower player intention and provide additional language, guidelines, and explanations for power level and what kind of games players want to play.
Introducing Brackets to New Players
Edgewall Innkeeper | Illustration by Matt Stewart
“Commander has always had these unwritten rules,” Gavin said when asked about introducing the game to new players. “You don't need to use this, you don't need to touch this. If you have games that you're happy with, then that is awesome, and you shouldn't feel compelled to start using this. New players are really important in all this.”
“This is most useful at a game store or at a convention… it's for more enfranchised people,” he added. “New players are probably coming in with precons that are meant to play with each other.”
In his mind, Gavin sees new players learning about the brackets from other, more experienced players at their LGS.
“Commander is a social format … where you learn things. It's a great discussion point,” he said.
“I ran [the system] by a couple of people in the building at Wizards who don't play as much Magic or as much Commander… they took it like a personality test. Some people said ‘I'm definitely a Bracket 2 player.'”
New players identify themselves with an experience, and it reinforces that idea that its meant to spark discussion, give players the onus, and define their experience with more words.”
Keeping Commander Community
Gather the Townsfolk | Illustration by Dan Scott
One large topic of discussion was how Commander would be kept a community-focused format now that Wizards of the Coast controls the format.
“I don't expect much to get veto'd,” Gavin said when asked about how WotC will handle community requests and concerns.
“Commander is not a format that needs to move fast. We can take our time with it, we should take our time with it. We're trying to be metered about it.”
When a follow-up was asked about the possibility of WotC changing game rules for the new system, Gavin expressed hesitancy.
“Commander is the most successful format in the world right now. I don't want to go in and tinker with it. “[Owning Commander] hasn't really changed design philosophy. I don't really want to change a lot about it.”
More Proactive Design
Oko, Thief of Crowns | Illustration by Yongjae Choi
One of the most important things Gavin covered was how Magic designers are trying to be a bit more proactive with design, especially in the wake of things like Oko, Thief of Crowns. Gavin called out things like “regular check-ins” and designing cards without having to pre-emptively add them to the list of ‘game changers' before release.
However, he also stressed that this won't include any “product-level stuff,” and that the design intent of precons or other EDH products won't be affected by this philosophy or the bracket system. This goes back to the point he made earlier, which is that the Commander Bracket system is meant to be a more of a guiding light than something people should feel compelled to use.
Additionally, they want Commander to continue moving slowly. Wizards doesn't want people to have to consistently update decks with new game changers or broken cards, as that would be “really exhausting.”
Wrap Up
Overall, the Q&A with Gavin gave us a huge look into the Commander Format Panel's philosophy and the design intentions behind the new Commander Brackets beta.
Gavin and the team very much want to provide more ways to talk about Commander, have smoother and fun Commander games, and keep Commander on the same track it has been for years — community driven and slow-moving.
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