Commander (designation)

A Commander or General is the central card of a Commander-deck. It is played from the command zone.

Rules

1. Players may choose any legendary creature as their Commander. Players may also choose a planeswalker as a commander if that planeswalker has an ability allowing it to be chosen as a commander.
2. The Commander's color identity restricts what cards may appear in the deck.
3. Being a Commander is not a characteristic but a property of the card.
4. If a player has been dealt 21 points of combat damage by a particular Commander during a game, that player loses the game.
5. While a Commander is in the command zone, it may be cast. As an additional cost to cast a Commander from the command zone, the player casting it must pay for each time that player has previously cast it from the command zone.
6. If a commander would be put into its owner's graveyard, be exiled, or returned to a player's hand or library from anywhere, that player may choose to put it into the command zone instead.

Commander interaction cards

Every commander series product introduced a new card, which would specifically interact with your commander.

• Command Tower from Commander (2011); reprinted in Commander's Arsenal, Commander 2013 and Commander 2015
• Opal Palace from Commander 2013
• Commander's Sphere from Commander 2014
• Command Beacon from Commander 2015
• Cards with the Lieutenant ability word.