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Hello nation! I still don't know exactly what to call the format formally known as EDH. You are playing a general or a commander. In this article, we'll probably mix the terms interchangeably. I still do the same with "enters the battlefield" and "comes into play."
I adore Three Kingdoms. I've read the full four volume unabridged work Romance of the Three Kingdoms. I remember sitting in the US premiere of the full 5 hour version of Red Cliff here at the Detroit Film Theatre. (It's an awesome film, btw). I've written many articles before about how the cards in Three Kingdoms represent different storylines from the work. It's one of the foundational stories of China. It's like their Odyssey and Illiad.
A lot of players have encountered the Three Kingdoms legends from Masters Edition 3 online. Rocking horsemanship and odd abilities, this slate of 40 cards is intriguing. If you never got a chance to draft a Lu Xun, Scholar General then you may really enjoy today's article.
We are going to discuss all 40 of those legendary cards, and their suitability or not for EDH in general, and as your commander in specific. Let's take a look!
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei – For five mana, you get a 3/3 creature that has one single tap ability. Like a lot of portal cards, his tap ability can only be used on your turn, before you attack. It's still a fast effect, so you can do it in response to something. Tap, force someone to discard two. Gaining card advantage in any environment is great. A creature that can tap over and over again to strip two cards is going to quickly force your opponents to discard. But how many cards will they have in their hand by turn six, when this can be used? Since his only ability is to force a discard, it seems well suited for discard decks that are looking for another card to help them out. Otherwise, look to other cards for your leader.
Cao Ren, Wei Commander – You are going to see several of these cards pop out in the 40. All they will have is horsemanship of some sort, and perhaps another ability if you are lucky. This guy is cheap, and the 3 life loss is hardly meaningful in terms of your starting life in the format. However, he has no bells, no whistles, and no tricks. I just don't see him as your commander. As a creature, he looks good in any Black deck that wants unblocked creatures – like ninjutsu or wielding equipment.
Diaochan, Artful Beauty – The very important thing about Diaochan, which makes her rock the block, is that you choose which opponent selects a creature to kill. That means you do not have to choose the opponent that lost a creature to Diaochan. You could easily tap her to destroy Mark's Tidespout Tyrant, and then have Steve choose another creature to go, and he chooses Jessica's Shivan Dragon. Mark would probably kill one of your creatures back, but Steve can destroy any creature he wants to die, which may not be Diaochan. She's very solid in group games as a result. In duels, she's quite poor. As a general, her ability is interesting, but hardly worth building around, and she has little size to threaten in the red zone. I'd give her a pass. She's a great card for your deck though.
Dong Zhou, the Tyrant – Ah, the classics. Getting a kill off Dong Zhou when someone has out Phage the Untouchable is a moment you will take to your grave. Dong Zhou is better than a Lava Axe. It rocks a 3/3 body off five mana, and the ability to force an opponent's creature to his its master. It reminds me of when my dad would grab my hand, playfully slap me with it, and then say "Why are you hitting yourself?" Dong Zhou wants to know the same question. Why are you hitting yourself? Flicker and bounce all love this guy. He's awesome!
Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior – As a general for your deck, Guan Yu has much to be desired. As a horsemanship creature of unblockableness, he rocks.
Hua Tuo, Honored Physician – With an unusual tap ability, Hua Tuo is interesting. He taps to put a creature card from your graveyard to the top of your library. Like all Portal tapping, this has to happen before your Declare Attackers step. For a simple three mana, Hua Tuo has the ability to contribute to your medium and long game strategies. He's not card advantage, so he can get passed over for removal. It's easy to synergize with him as a general, with everything from Krosan Tusker to Eternal Witness having obvious uses and value. He's also solid as just another creature in your deck. He's also one of those rares from Three Kingdoms which is quite expensive for most, clocking in at $38 and out of stock over at CoolStuffInc.com.
Huang Zhong, Shu General – In terms of legendary creatures that have an underwhelming ability, this 2/3 for four mana in White with a simple anti-Goblin War Drums ability for just him is at the top of the list. If you play this as your general, you have your work cut out for you. Ick. It's a sad card for a character I really liked from R3K.
Kongming, "Sleeping Dragon" – Having a Glorious Anthem as your commander means that every game you can guarantee at least one coming out. That's not bad. It's a solid choice for a weenie deck. I've used it in online Commander decks before.
Lady Sun – When you are looking at a legendary creature, and thinking that it is much worse than Wizard Mentor, you should pass and move on.
Lady Zhurong, Warrior Queen – Getting a 4/3 horsemanship for five mana in Green is not a bad call. It's virtually unblockable and in just five hits, you've won with her if she's your general. She's a bit vulnerable to Lightning Bolts, so perhaps there is someone else you want as your general in other colors later on. (White, Red and Blue have better choices, Green and Black do not). In a color with cards like Might of Oaks, she can win quickly.
Liu Bei, Lord of Shu – This five mana 2/4, with horsemanship, is worse than many other options. Liu Bei only gets better if you have out one of the other Oathbrothers (Zhang Fei, Guan Yu). Then he's a 4/6 horsemanship – but that's a little reliant on other cards to be good.
Lu Bu, Master-at-Arms – Ah yes, the greatest warrior of his era. Lu Bu and the next card are the ones I was thinking of when I mention better horsemanship generals. Lu Bu is a bit more expensive, but the haste + horsemanship combination is quite powerful. For just one more mana than Lady Zhurong, (and another color, to be fair) you get a card that wins sooner.
Lu Meng, Wu General – In P:3K, Lu Meng is a legendary Air Elemental. Of course, since that flying is horsemanship in this case, that makes Lu Meng a creature that wins in 5 swings, and has a slightly bigger butt than Lady Zhurong or Lu Bu. Not too shabby, but not amazing.
Lu Su, Wu Advisor – [Sarcasm Gear Engaged] Because there is nothing stronger in EDH than an Archivist for 5 mana. [Sarcasm Gear Unengaged]
Lu Xun, Scholar General – These are the sorts of cards that decks are built upon. It's not flashy, and it doesn't need to be. It's an unblockable Thieving Magpie, and that's really good on its own. Not a great choice for your commander, but a great card to add to your deck.
Ma Chao, Western Warrior – With both horsemanship and a virtually unblockability if it attacks alone, Ma Chao is confused. It's like the card really wants to be unblockable, no matter what! I really like the "If it attacks alone, it is unblockable" mechanic of a couple of cards in Three Kingdoms for Red, and would love to see it expanded.
Meng Huo, Barbarian King – Like Kongming, you can build around Meng Huo and use him to reliably pump your creatures each turn. He makes Kaysa look like a small child. He's good to build around, or to just toss in a Green deck.
Pang Tong, "Young Phoenix" – So you can tap Pang Tong to pump the defense of a creature by two. That's not that good even if you could do it any time, but with the Portal tapping restriction he really fails to impress.
Sima Yi, Wei Field Marshal – As a literal Dakmor Sorceress, and a grounded Nightmare with a set defense of 4, Sima Yi is not impressive. Especially since he often went toe to toe with Kongming, and as occasionally the victor, and no other could say that.
Sun Ce, Young Conquerer – Since this guy was an uncommon in Masters Edition, many online players may be very familiar with him. The combination of a 3/3 horsemanship body with a Man-o'-War bouncing effect means that Sun Ce is very powerful. He's a good general, bouncing and swinging. He's a better creature for your deck – combining a winning condition and tempo in one card. Play him and love him!
Sun Quan, Lord of Wu – One of the single most powerful generals you are going to find is Sun Quan. This guy makes your entire team rock horsemanship. He can force them all to swing through defenses unblocked and kill very quickly. Sun Quan, Ender of Games is uber-powerful, if you can reliably cast him every game. He's perfectly powerful as just another dude in your deck, but as a General, he will lead from in front. I have espoused his power before, and I will again. He's pricey and like many of these cards, a bit hard to find. However, he is totally worth it, when you see him end games. When I get Bribery targeted, people usually take Akroma the First or Darksteel Colossus. When they don't, they grab Sun Quan and attack and kill people right there.
Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed – In the list of expensive legendary creatures from Three Kingdoms, none is as pricey as Xiahou. That's because he does something no other Black card does. You can sacrifice him to bring a Black card from your graveyard to your hand. (Yes, again, it has to be pre-attacking). That's a Black card, not a Black creature. That's a virtual Regrowth for Black decks! He costs four mana, and he's a 3/2 horsemanship soldier. That's a really great package. If he didn't cost more than $100, I'd tell you to run out and grab one for your EDH/Commander decks right now. Some players allow proxies. If so, he is a great general because you can play him, sacrifice him, play him again, and repeat. Yeah, you add mana each time to play him, but since he's so cheap, he can be abused. He can also get to 20 easily with equipment or Howl from Beyond. He's a great card for your decks!
Xun Yu, Wei Advisor – Remember how Pang Tong sucked because, pre-attacking, it could tap to increase the defense of somebody by two? Xun Yu is the exact opposite. He taps to pump the front by two, pre-attacking. It's not that great, and I'd pass this advisor by.
Yuan Shao, the Indecisive – I adore Yuan Shao for two reasons. As a five drop, a 2/3 horsemanship creature is underwhelming but acceptable along with his ability. He is also a reverse Goblin War Drums for all of your creatures on a stick. If you play the War Drums too, then your creatures cannot be blocked at all, which is a cool combo. The ability is very solid, and allows bigger creatures to not get gang blocked, and enables them to punch through. He's a solid card.
Zhang Fei, Fierce Warrior – We've talked previously about the value of the four power horsemanship creatures, and here is one that tacks on vigilance for six mana. The third oathbrother will pump Liu Bei. As a creature, he's solid. He kills quickly, he stays back to block – he definitely adds to your White options for Commander decks.
Zhang He, Wei General – Every color has at last one four power horsemanship legendary creature. Lu Bu, Lady Zhurong, Zhang Fei, Lu Meng, Sun Quan, and now Zhang He in Black. He only has a two defense, so he can be picked off by anything resembling a Shock and above. However, his ability to pump other attackers is pretty nifty. We see that ability elsewhere, but you usually don't want o attack with the guy who pumps the team, because then that guy gets gang blocked. Zhang He doesn't suffer from such weaknesses, since he is highly unlikely to ever be blocked.
Zhang Liao, Hero of Hefei – In terms of playability, this is easily one of the worst five legendary creatures in P:3LK. You spend six mana. You get a 3/3 that has an Abyssal Specter ability. It's doesn't fly, it doesn't have horsemanship, it doesn't have anything. Whoo-hoo.
Zhao Zilong, Tiger General – Five mana for a 3/3 horsemanship creature that's 4/4 on defense. That's Ziao in a sentence. Boring. Adequate, but boring.
Zhou Yu, Chief Commander – Well, he's big. His ability doesn't make that much sense for the character. He's way bigger than he should be. But, he's an 8/8 Sea Serpent. Do you want an 8/8 Sea Serpent (for seven mana)? I didn't think so.
Zhuge Jin, Wu Strategist – He's acceptable. If you want to make a creature unblockable, he can do it. The restriction on his tap ability isn't any at all, since you would use it right around then anyway. I'd never recommend him as a Commander, but as an adjunct for a deck that wants to make something unblockable, he'll do the job.
Zuo Ci, the Mocking Sage – You spend three mana for a 1/2 with troll shroud and an ability that will almost never get used. He's another underwhelming entrant in the legendary family of P:3K.
Now you've seen all of the creatures. Some are great choices for your general, some are good choices for your deck, and some…well...they just aren't. There's a lot of horsemanship, which is usually unblockable at the table.
Would you like to know which of these made the cut into my 2000+ card Abe's Deck of Happiness and Joy? (It's a Highlander deck)
And that doesn't include other cards from the set like Wei Night Raiders and Hunting Cheetah.
I hope that you enjoyed today's article! Commander/EDH is a great format, and Portal's cards are a lot better than a lot of people remember. I'm happy to spend a couple of weeks going over this stuff, so you don't have to.
I'd love to see one or two of these folks get reprinted in the Commander decks coming out in a half year or so from WotC. That'd be very cool. Anyway, thanks for reading!
See you next week,
Abe Sargent
