Hello and happiest of days to each of you! When it debuted, Equipment was a new artifact subtype. In my playgroup, in the era of the Five Color format, we played tons of it, from Loxodon Warhammer to Opaline Bracers! Because they stuck around after the equipped dork dies, unlike most Auras, they were just so much better and they are usually colorless too, so they can go in more decks.

However, if you check out Commander brews today, you'll find less of them than before! Many decks may not have any, and whereas many folks might run Lightning Greaves and Swiftfoot Boots in their brews, I find those harder to deal with for your foes because they have to answer an artifact and then the dork too because of the built-in targeted removal protection. Not to mention they are a bit too obvious and make brews seem too similar.

Today I'll be giving you my case for and against equipment in Commander.

The Case for Equipment

Advantage #1 - They are Often Colorless

We mentioned this above, and in our Five Color format that's brilliant since no matter which lands or Mana Rocks we had, we could play our equipment. Often that Green or Red spell might clog up your hand, but not here! They can be added into any color identity of Commander too. Sword of Fire and Ice gives you card draw and removal when you get damage in, and Basilisk Collar lets you play keep away with its deathtouch. I still often run those two.

Advantage #2 - They Stick Around

We also mentioned this above too! But if a dork that is Equipped by us bites it, the Equipment can just be equipped and then handed off. Many folks will just attack, their dork dies in combat and then Equip again. Good stuff! It's also great with Umezawa's Jitte since it gets better over time with more counters as the dork deals damage. We can use those counters for life gain, pumps, or removal. Love it in multiplayer today too. It's just as strong as in the old days!

Advantage #3 - They add stuff Outside of your Color Identity

Next, equipment often provide effects outside of our color identity! In Five Color that was everything, but not here! Need haste in non-red brews? Swiftfoot Boots! Need the ability to protect your dork with hexproof outside of Blue and Green? Swiftfoot Boots! And Fireshrieker gives someone double strike outside of White or Red. Nasty!

The Case Against Equipment

Weakness #1 - They need a Dork to Do Something

One major caveat to keeping equipment out after removal is that you still need a dork to Equip and swing. How many times have we just been down dorks and we need to draw one to Equip and then swing and we draw something else like anther piece of Equipment. Insert loss here. That's why I love mass sweepers to take out their board and then they don't have support dorks to Equip. Things like Rout or Damnation do the trick!

Weakness #2 - Barring Specific Cases they need Support

Now because Equipment needs creatures to work and cannot attack or kill foes on their own, they do need support, like the above White 2-drop Bear rare dorks. Sram, Senior Edificer will draw you a card when you cast an equipment, as well as Vehicles and Auras too. Love it! Then Puresteel Paladin draws when equipment ETB, and offers free Equips too of you have at least three total artifacts. Both are great adjuncts with free Equips or cards, but they need to be in play. So, outside of decks designed to push equipment with these cards, equipment can really suffer.

When I Use Equipment Outside of Equipment Brews

With those two caveats out of the way, what times do I run the old Equipment? Let's turn to my Exceptions below!

The 'Clamp Exception

Ah yes. The Skullclamp Exception! Many Aggro, Token, and Combo decks adore the 'Clamp! It costs just one to play and can be tutored for by Trinket Mage. Then it equips for one too, and when the equipped creature dies you draw not one but two cards! It also pumps the creature's power by one and reduces it's toughness by one too. In Aristocrats with Goblin Bombardment this is amazing! In many of my brews this will be the only Equipment!

To Combo Out

Sometimes I run Equipment to combo out! Sword of Feast and Famine is a perfect test case. The dork attached gets +2/+2 and then protection from Black and Green! Then a combat damage trigger makes your opponent discard and then you can untap your lands. Remember to tap them out before attacking! I adore this card in Red brews with Relentless Assault that needs five mana, so just spend at least five, get an extra combat, and then untap your lands with the Sword for any number of attacks!

To Secure Punches

If I have a Commander that needs to deal damage to trigger them, like Brago or Rith, I'll often add in Equipment to insure the punches land. Ditto for a Commander that I am trying to win with Commander Damage like Zurgo Helmsmasher! I will toss equipment in with dorks that Punch for Combat Damage triggers in deck with a few of them, like Ophidian, or just to kill in ramp decks with low-cost high power vanilla dorks like 10/10 Gigantosaurus. Whispersilk Cloak will make a creature unblockable and impossible to interact with thanks to shroud. Remember that includes you! I also enjoy the nonbasic landwalk from Trailblazer's Boots.

To Protect Them

Sometimes I run Equipment to protect my precious stuff from answers. Both Mithril Coat and Silver Shroud Costume Equip for free when I need to protect something. The first legendary one costs three, has indestructible, then the dork does too! Although it needs to be legendary to protect it when flashed. Then the 2-drop one gives it shroud like the Cloak above but then just for the turn so you won't be bothered and then also cannot be blocked too.

When it Ramps

Another time I adore Equipment in when they ramp! [cardSword of the Animist[/card] equips for two, gives you a +1/+1 boost and then an attack trigger to ramp a land out tapped from our library. [cardParadise Mantle[/card] taps for any color of mana. The equip only costs one, so you can move it easily enough to turn generic mana into a mana of a color.

When it Wins Games

Now let's take it home with winning games! Blackblade Reforged gives a creature size equal to your land count! It equips legendaries for three mana anything else for seven. Embercleave costs less based on our attacker count and will auto-equip on ETB to provide double strike, trample and a size boost too to kill fast and out of nowhere. Aettir and Priwen is a literal one-hit kill if you have a higher life total since that's the size boost it provides!

There we go! What Equipment do you run in today's multiplayer and Commander metagames? Are you still running tons like Swiftfoot Boots and Lightning Greaves, or just a handful today outside of Equipment and Voltron brews?