Lab Report 60: From Mad Saxxon to Mentor: Why Commander Should Stay Fun

From Mad Saxxon to Mentor: Why Commander Should Stay Fun

There was a time—long ago, when my beard was less gray and my plays were a lot wilder—when I earned the nickname Mad Saxxon. Why? Because in the middle of a brutal match, someone once said:

“You’d cut off your own arm just to beat someone to death with it!”

And honestly… they weren’t wrong. That was my vibe back then. Winning wasn’t enough—I wanted to win with fire, with style, with absolute chaos.

But time (and Magic formats) have a way of shaping you. My headspace has changed, my opinions and strategies have shifted, and I’ve learned that Commander is a whole different beast.

Now, as I work with other creators on bringing new players into this format, I’ll admit—I almost overthought it. I was looking at the enormity of the task, the endless possibilities, the labyrinth of Commander politics and deckbuilding. I was making it way too complex.

Here’s the truth:
This is a game. It should be fun.

The job isn’t to spoon-feed every line of play or drown a new player in encyclopedic deck techs. The job is to give them the framework—a place to start, a way in—and then let them discover the depth they love on their own.

Some will fall for the math. Some will fall for the story. Some will just want to slam giant Dragons on the table and laugh when they die. That’s the beauty of Commander: there’s room for all of it.

And me? I still carry that Mad Saxxon spark—the part of me that would gleefully hurl my own arm at the board if it meant making a statement. But now, I also know that the real joy of Commander is watching someone else’s spark catch fire for the first time.

So as I prep for the shows ahead, here’s my promise: I’ll keep the framework strong, the advice simple, and the fun as the priority. Because at the end of the day, Commander isn’t about finishing first. It’s about loving the game enough to come back for the next one.

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