Hidden Gems, What's yours?

[Gashnaw]

Commander is easily one of the best format, the amount of casual and competitive play, the interaction, the community and while not the selling point of such a popular format, the ability use cards that would otherwise never see play. I play a dragon deck, running 30 creatures (Once forgotten realms launches) and all either have flying or can get it. For this deck, whiel i have a lot of good cards (Teferi's Protection, Nexus of Fate, Vampiric Tutor) and some weird interaction (Sarkhan the masterless and The immortal sun) The actual hidden gem is Bower Passage.

Generally this card would be overlooked, as 99% of the time it is useless. But in my Dragon deck where most of my creatures take to the sky, unable to be blocked by flyers is great. Usually Bowser passage would be a way to use evasion against decks like mine, but by itself, it does very little. But it offers all my dragons evasion, with only reach being able to stop them

Now that is not to say Bower passage would work in every deck. But i played in a meta where Flying is very present. I'd say 40% (Shop closed down due to the pandemic) So the one thing that stopped my board were blockers with flying. Bower passage completely shuts that down. I do know one guy who runs spider tribal, so dead draw against him, but that is one guy who i barely ever played against. And even when i did, my dragons ripped him apart.

So my hidden gem is Bower passage, a card that would probably see no play in any other format. What's your Hidden gem?

[Igzex]

I run Jeweled Amulet in my Golos, Tireless Pilgrim bad colorless deck as one of its intended jank cards but I kinda found it to be a little bit better than I thought. Not exactly going to replace a signet by any means but it can actually be really helpful especially in the really early game. Also helps there's charge counter support in my golos for it runs some sunburst cards.

[DirkGently]

Jeweled Amulet

Amulet is generally a snap-include for most 3mv commanders imo. Outside of green there are very few ways to get an extra mana by turn 2, especially if you want any lasting value, and especially if your commander doesn't require colorless (i.e. Feather, the Redeemed).

For my pick...uh, let's go Telepathy. That card is always hilarious. Nice combo you've got there, it'd be a shame if everyone could see it coming and beat the crap out of you.

[materpillar]

I was always a fan of Curse of Bloodletting. It looks real medium, but you play it on someone and everyone just kinda kills them. Why throw their creatures at anyone else when they can deal double damage to him? Extra points if that person was the most threatening already.

[Magiqmaster]

For me, it would have to be Dissipation Field. Although it doesn't prevent alpha strikes (also bad against creatures with etb triggers), so far I found that it deters my opponents sending attackers my way since they don't want to waste time recasting their creatures afterwards. It also works great with enchantments such as Pyrohemia, for example.

[Gamazson]

Dauthi Embrace Is a very useful combat tool. Sure your can make a few of your creatures unlockable, or you can make an opponents creature unable to block. Whichever works out best for you. I have also used to provide surprise aid when opponents attack each other.

[folding_music]

mmm Vedalken Mastermind has become one of my favourite cards recently. utterly changes how people play removal, can behave as a Crown of the Ages or as a Familiar's Ruse, or lets you be the Nevinyrral's Disk jerk, easily cloneable or untappable to create layers of protection or improvisational combo and has the best creature type. I like to play a certain amount of rattlesnaky stuff and prefer if it looks like it's going to do something interesting. Am also in love with Erratic Portal and so forth, even when it's not about comes-into-play triggers

[kirkusjones]

Pretty sure I've mentioned it before, but Dark Privilege is an absolute house in my Grismold, the Dreadsower deck. Regeneration is an underappreciated ability and the built-in sac outlet is nothing to sneeze at. Plus the art is great.

[Igzex]

Regeneration has also improved by the decline in use of "bury" removal spells like Wrath of God and Terminate as more flexible or value giving destruction effects crop up in current sets. On that note, Wrap in Vigor was a card I found in the chaff chest at my local game store and it's a good budget substitute for Heroic Intervention, if not a card to run alongside it. Let's also not forget about Dark Dabbling and perhaps even Blessing of Leeches for flash and the other abuses possible with its free activation cost.

[illakunsaa]

Jeweled Amulet

Isn't amulet like a cedh staple or something?

One of my favorite cards is Possessed Portal. A very powerful effect that can slot into many strategies and creates interesting decisions.

Sees apparently zero play according to edhrec which to me is a shame. For couple of years now I've been showing people the wonders of the portal. I play portal in Marchesa, the Black Rose robots where my robots return, Valki, God of Lies // Tibalt, Cosmic Impostor prison where I try to just play more stuff than the opponents, Koma, Cosmos Serpent stax where I can sac serpents and Tasigur, the Golden Fang control where commander can return stuff back to hand.

What most people don't realize that portal triggers for every player each end step. Meaning after a single turn cycle every player has sacced/discarded 4 cards. Portal is like Braids, Cabal Minion on steroids and the steroids are also on steroids. One of my favorite things is to point out that lands are permanents too

If casting 8 cmc permanent that creates incremental value isn't edh then I don't know what is.

[Igzex]

Isn't amulet like a cedh staple or something?

One of my favorite cards is Possessed Portal.

According to EDHREC, it doesn't seem to see enough play to be what one would consider a staple of anything really.

As for the Possessed Portal, I wonder if it's less hidden and more of in this weird limbo of being a stax card without a body attached to it so casual players avoid it, while the high mana cost makes tuned stax decks want to avoid it. I ran the card myself in a chaos deck that's all about slapping random global effects onto the board until everyone goes into seizures from trying to figure out the game state.

[brainface]

Might of the Nephilim
Nobody expects child of alara to suddenly be a 16/16 trampler. \o/

I uh... found bower passage a while back for dragon decks. It's great! I'm onto your hidden gem!

[Gashnaw]

Might of the Nephilim
Nobody expects child of alara to suddenly be a 16/16 trampler. \o/

I uh... found bower passage a while back for dragon decks. It's great! I'm onto your hidden gem!

Might can make my 10/10 dragon a 20/20 dor 2 mana. Still bot an OHKO

[Legend]

Extract. I'm not sure about the stats, but it sure is a gem. Not only can it gimp combo decks or just permanently dispose of BS cards (like Torment of Hailfire, which I hate far more than Hullbreacher), but inflicts real (temporary) psychological damage to its target.

[Treamayne]

I'm a fan of Phyrexian Splicer. Not just for offense or defense, but the political applications are wonderful (any two target creatures, not just yours and theirs). Also, it's rarely "strong enough" to draw targeted removal, so it generally sticks around unless somebody wipes artifacts.

Honorable mention to Nature's Blessing and Baton of Morale - the world needs more Banding (especially defensive Banding).

[Igzex]

Extract. I'm not sure about the stats, but it sure is a gem. Not only can it gimp combo decks or just permanently dispose of BS cards (like Torment of Hailfire, which I hate far more than Hullbreacher), but inflicts real (temporary) psychological damage to its target.

I absolutely adored extract type effects in the past. It's like I'm really playing Look at Me, I'm the DCI. One particular card I used to run a fair bit was Hide // Seek. Both modes are really good. They really pack a wallop in a singleton format...but they're losing that punch as WOTC prints so much redundancy now. You try to pluck Laboratory Maniac from someone's library but Thassa's Oracle and Jace, Wielder of Mysteries are still gonna be there. Every dangerous strategy has a number of back-up plans now...

[kraus911]

For me, it would have to be Dissipation Field. Although it doesn't prevent alpha strikes (also bad against creatures with etb triggers), so far I found that it deters my opponents sending attackers my way since they don't want to waste time recasting their creatures afterwards. It also works great with enchantments such as Pyrohemia, for example.

I have this, and have never used it because I have no decks without shocklands. Maybe my monoblue deck actually...

[Mookie]

For me, it would have to be Dissipation Field. Although it doesn't prevent alpha strikes (also bad against creatures with etb triggers), so far I found that it deters my opponents sending attackers my way since they don't want to waste time recasting their creatures afterwards. It also works great with enchantments such as Pyrohemia, for example.

I have this, and have never used it because I have no decks without shocklands. Maybe my monoblue deck actually...

Shocklands don't trigger Dissipation Field - paying life doesn't count as taking damage.

Anyway, I'm going to give a shout to Artificer's Intuition, aka 'Survival of the Trinkets'. It's not quite as broken as Survival of the Fittest, but it's still a repeatable 1-mana tutor that fills the graveyard. If you're running enough cards to justify running Trinket Mage, it's definitely worth considering, as is its BFF Salvaging Station.

[knight_seb]

I play Penance in my Mayael the Anima deck. It's a blast since I can "cheat" creatures I have in hand with Mayael ability but also with Lurking Predators or Wild Pair.

Earnest Fellowship made its way into my Kaalia of the vast deck and messes with blocking rules in a surprise way for my opponents ...

Color hosers cards (like Magnetic Mountain or Flooded Woodlands) are also hidden gems depending on your meta.

[Legend]

Color hosers cards (like Magnetic Mountain or Flooded Woodlands) are also hidden gems depending on your meta.

Savage. Especially if your meta is casual enough for Whim of Volrath and company.

[pokken]

I am not gonna say I single handedly popularized Nightscape Familiar and Stormscape Familiar but when I started running they were played a ton less. They're played a TON less than I thought even today though.

It still blows me away that Stormscape Familiar is not in 100% of Ephara decks. A creature that 1) ramps into Ephara, and 2) combos with Whitemane Lion (and other repeatable cast creatures)? It's about as close to an autoinclude as you can get and yet it's less popular than Sphinx's Revelation in the 760 ephara decks on Edhrec. Borderline comical.

[3drinks]

Since my usual gems were both called out and people are onto me, let's introduce a couple of new challengers.

Codex Shredder is a colourless regrowth and anti top deck tutour card that just so happens to work with Salvaging Station...overwhelmingly so, in fact, that the two "back each other up" if you know what I mean.

Jester's Cap in the context of Glissa, the Traitor decks to ensure you keep unfair decks honest. The card is still about the price of a pack though, so I'm unsure if I can really call this a hidden gem. It was also a staple of play during Ice Age block, so it's not that people don't know about it, I guess.

Devour in Shadow is still a tremendous piece of removal in a single colour, no regeneration, quite powerful yet never played.

Sacred Ground deserves some love. All of you that hate your lands getting killed, this not only stops it, but completely neutralizes the threat of MLD by making it useless. No one casts into this.

The real gem though, and credit Brainstorm Brewery for this guy. Crashing Drawbridge! Who needs a $65 Concordant Crossroads or a $10 Mass Hysteria? No one spends removal on an 0/4 wall. It's colourless so anyone can play it. It's sub a quarter in price. You're welcome.

I'm a fan of Phyrexian Splicer. Not just for offense or defense, but the political applications are wonderful (any two target creatures, not just yours and theirs). Also, it's rarely "strong enough" to draw targeted removal, so it generally sticks around unless somebody wipes artifacts.

Honorable mention to Nature's Blessing and Baton of Morale - the world needs more Banding (especially defensive Banding).

Dang you, I came here specifically to call out both these cards and you beat me to the punch. Splicer especially, but dang is banding ever broken. Every time you explain it lets you blatantly cheat at combat you get some knuckle dragging window licker to respond ThAtS nOt HoW iT wOrKs and then you pull up the oracle text and they stare at you like you were a can of orange juice.

Earnest Fellowship made its way into my Kaalia of the vast deck and messes with blocking rules in a surprise way for my opponents ...

I'm so happy the "Fellowship Kaalia" from 2013 is still finding it's way into the game in 2021. Card has been an under appreciated gem for a decade now (it also randomly laughs at Zada and Feather decks )

[kirkusjones]

Since my usual gems were both called out and people are onto me, let's introduce a couple of new challengers

Devour in Shadow is still a tremendous piece of removal in a single colour, no regeneration, quite powerful yet never played.

I run this in Vilis, Broker of Blood, where it's an absolute house.

[Treamayne]

Sacred Ground deserves some love. All of you that hate your lands getting killed, this not only stops it, but completely neutralizes the threat of MLD by making it useless. No one casts into this.

Ditto Terra Eternal - and both are great for ManLand decks

I'm a fan of Phyrexian Splicer. Not just for offense or defense, but the political applications are wonderful (any two target creatures, not just yours and theirs). Also, it's rarely "strong enough" to draw targeted removal, so it generally sticks around unless somebody wipes artifacts.

Honorable mention to Nature's Blessing and Baton of Morale - the world needs more Banding (especially defensive Banding).

Dang you, I came here specifically to call out both these cards and you beat me to the punch. Splicer especially, but dang is banding ever broken. Every time you explain it lets you blatantly cheat at combat you get some knuckle dragging window licker to respond ThAtS nOt HoW iT wOrKs and then you pull up the oracle text and they stare at you like you were a can of orange juice.

Great minds and all that jazz. If they never bring back banding, they could at least give us new abilities that separate the halves (since, apparently, the fact that it worked differently for attackers and blockers is *why* it was "too complex"). Something like:

<keyword> - When this creature attacks and is not blocked, you may have it deal its combat damage to target blocking creature instead.
<keyword> - This creature's controller assigns combat damage from any attackers it is blocking.

[Jemolk]

For those decks especially that struggle against fliers, I've found Katabatic Winds to be extremely amusing. I run it in Treefolk tribal, and it can be pretty nasty against all those dragon decks that would otherwise have at least one pretty huge advantage over my treefolk.

There's plenty of colorless graveyard hate, but it's mostly sorcery speed only or needs to already be on board in order to be used at instant speed. If you've ever wanted to wipe out all the graveyards without anyone seeing it coming in blue, Mnemonic Nexus can do serious work. It's especially good in a deck that struggles with recursion, given the quality of blue's draw and filtering.

And of course, Withering Boon is hilarious. Nobody expects a counter for their Craterhoof out of mono-black. Similar things apply to Illumination and Bind. Nonblue counterspells are great.