Hullbreacher – Commander Legends
Date Reviewed: December 29, 2020
Ratings:
Constructed: 4.38
Casual: 4.25
Limited: 3.25
Multiplayer: 4.13
Commander [EDH]: 4.38
Ratings are based on a 1 to 5 scale.
1 is bad. 3 is average. 5 is great.
Reviews Below:
David
Fanany
Player
since
1995
This card was #7 on my Top Ten list.
You know by now that I’m not the type of Magic fan to get on my internet soapbox and act like the game has no flaws. You’ve seen that by now. One of those flaws is that drawing extra cards is too much better than too many other strategies. There have been new cards over the years that reduced the imbalance, not only weaker card drawing for Standard and fan-made environments but also things that strengthen other strategies or allow them to fight back. We need more, but the situation is better now than it was ten years ago.
Hullbreacher is a potent threat to anybody whose gameplan revolves around drawing lots of cards. Consider that one of the reason to draw cards is to find answers – if doing so allows your opponent to play more threats than you can answer, even with your extra cards, you have a problem. Hullbreacher also makes cards like Howling Mine asymmetrical, and throws off the plans of the group hug deck in your Commander group. I know it’s tempting to compare it to Consecrated Sphinx, through the light of our meta-knowledge that drawing extra cards is The Way. But Hullbreacher is more interesting, potentially more powerful, more flexible, and better for your feelings.
Constructed: 4/5
Casual: 4/5
Limited: 3/5
Multiplayer: 4/5
Commander: 4/5
This card was 8th on my Top 10 list.
Hullbreacher is a creature that would likely have been higher for me if it had longer to show what it was able to do, but I can’t say this is an unfair placement for an unfair creature. Notion Thief has always been a patently brutal creature in Legacy and Vintage as a particular counter to blue decks or decks that draw crazy amounts of cards, and while Treasure is generally slightly worse than raw card advantage, mana acceleration can be something blue struggles with. This sort of helps correct that issue, and it even comes with a playable enough body besides that (and a well-supported tribe). It may well be that Hullbreacher is the most-played card from Commander Legends in the years to come, and it definitely deserves a spot on the Top 10 list; if you’re in Legacy and in blue, there’s no reason not to run this at least in the sideboard.
Constructed: 4.75
Casual: 4.5
Limited: 3.5
Multiplayer: 4.25
Commander: 4.75
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