Creature types mattering has been around since the very beginning of this game. I remember seeing my first Zombie Master and thinking, "huh. That's interesting." Since then, it was a small corner of the game... until Lorwyn.

Lorwyn crashed through the gates and broke all kinds of molds. Suddenly we had new Creature types to care about. And Clear color alignment. (Not to mention it was a four-set block, which was its own craziness.)

Since then, while we've correctly changed the language around it, Kindred decks are a permanent fixture of Commander and Magic at large. And surely, Lorwyn Eclipsed is doing its best to carry on where the original left off, with lots and lots of Creature-type matters.

Which is great! Lots of fun to be had there. But what happens when we apply the same theory - making synergy from something being the same - and use it differently?

Triggered Abilities happen when something else happens. We look for one of three words to determine if something is Triggered. "Whenever," "when," and "at." The presence of a colon means it's an Activated Ability, a different thing, and that's not what Kirol cares about.

The thing is, Commander loves a Triggered Abiility. Because so many Triggered Abilities are when something Enters, it turns Creatures and other permanents into spells that happen to leave a body behind that can Attack or Block or be Sacrificed. Commander players like their value. So, let's see what happens when we really lean in, shall we?

Kirol, Attentive First-Year | Commander | Mark Wischkaemper

• Commander (1)
• 1 Kirol, Attentive First-Year

• Creatures (36)
• 1 Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
• 1 Agate Instigator
• 1 Anim Pakal, Thousandth Moon
• 1 Arabella, Abandoned Doll
• 1 Archivist of Oghma
• 1 Aurelia, the Law Above
• 1 Charismatic Conqueror
• 1 Claim Jumper
• 1 Compassionate Healer
• 1 Drumbellower
• 1 Enduring Innocence
• 1 Etali, Primal Storm
• 1 Helpful Hunter
• 1 Jacked Rabbit
• 1 Knight of the White Orchid
• 1 Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin
• 1 Loran of the Third Path
• 1 Loyal Apprentice
• 1 Loyal Warhound
• 1 Magda, Brazen Outlaw
• 1 Mangara, the Diplomat
• 1 Marvin, Murderous Mimic
• 1 Molten Gatekeeper
• 1 Otharri, Suns' Glory
• 1 Pinnacle Monk // Mystic Peak
• 1 Rumor Gatherer
• 1 Skyclave Apparition
• 1 Solemn Simulacrum
• 1 Spirited Companion
• 1 Sun Titan
• 1 Tataru Taru
• 1 Wall of Omens
• 1 Weftstalker Ardent
• 1 Welcoming Vampire
• 1 Wildfire Awakener
• 1 Witch Enchanter // Witch-Blessed Meadow

• Instants (2)
• 1 Swords to Plowshares
• 1 Path to Exile

• Enchantments (11)
• 1 Airbender Ascension
• 1 Assemble the Legion
• 1 Caretaker's Talent
• 1 Champions from Beyond
• 1 Dazzling Theater // Prop Room
• 1 Impact Tremors
• 1 Prosperous Partnership
• 1 Tocasia's Welcome
• 1 Trouble in Pairs
• 1 Warleader's Call
• 1 Windcrag Siege

• Artifacts (11)
• 1 Boros Keyrune
• 1 Cursed Mirror
• 1 Genesis Chamber
• 1 Halo Fountain
• 1 Idol of Oblivion
• 1 Panharmonicon
• 1 Replicating Ring
• 1 Skullclamp
• 1 Skyclave Relic
• 1 Strionic Resonator
• 1 Strixhaven Stadium

• Lands (39)
• 4 Mountain
• 6 Plains
• 1 Access Tunnel
• 1 Castle Ardenvale
• 1 Clifftop Retreat
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Eiganjo, Seat of the Empire
• 1 Evolving Wilds
• 1 Furycalm Snarl
• 1 Glittering Massif
• 1 Kher Keep
• 1 Legion Stronghold
• 1 Minas Tirith
• 1 Needleverge Pathway // Pillarverge Pathway
• 1 Radiant Summit
• 1 Reliquary Tower
• 1 Restless Bivouac
• 1 Rogue's Passage
• 1 Rugged Prairie
• 1 Scavenger Grounds
• 1 Slayers' Stronghold
• 1 Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance
• 1 Spinerock Knoll
• 1 Sunbaked Canyon
• 1 Sunbillow Verge
• 1 Sundown Pass
• 1 Sunscorched Divide
• 1 Temple of Triumph
• 1 Terramorphic Expanse
• 1 War Room
• 1 Windbrisk Heights

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Doubling Triggered Abilities for Fun and Profit

This deck is designed to use Kirol's ability as much as possible. Once we get to a point we have two Creatures on the Battlefield, we'll probably be able to tap them to double something. The once-per-turn limit is actually kind of cool here, because it means we can't try to copy abilities too much - so we don't need crazy mana. Just a little.

We have two double-sided Land cards (Pinnacle Monk and Witch Enchanter) plus 39 other Lands. That should be plenty for a deck running this lean. However, my standard deal applies. If you have a double-sided Land in your Hand and no other Land drop, you have to swear you'll play it out as a Land. The mana is too important.

Note that the Hideaway Lands can be doubled up! "Hideaway" is a Keyword, which is just a word which stands for a rule or set of rules. In this case, "Hideaway" means "When this Land enters, look at the top four cards of your library and stick one of them under the card with Hideaway." If you do it twice, there are two cards under the Land, and you may choose which one to cast for free when you meet the conditions of the Land. You don't get to cast them all at once, though!

We also have five mana rocks, but note that four of the five have Triggered Abilities we can copy. Copying Replicating Ring's Triggered Ability, which puts a counter on it every upkeep until you have eight, gets you to making eight more Rings in half the time. Skyclave Relic can make five of itself instead of three. And Strixhaven Stadium can quickly get us to "insta-kill" territory quite quickly.

Note that copying Cursed Mirror's triggered ability doesn't actually do anything - one card can't be two Creatures - but it's worth it to have as a potential second Creature to tap if we need it.

We're Not a Tokens Deck, But...

We're not a Tokens deck, but we will make some Tokens with some of our Triggered Abilities, and we probably want them to be able to activate Kirol without having to give up our bigger stuff. The nice thing is, there's a whole ecosystem around Tokens and drawing cards.

Skullclamp is the obvious (and doesn't need Tokens to function, of course), but Idol of Oblivion is great when you make Tokens. Aurelia, the Law Above and Mangara, the Diplomat both aren't Token specific either, but their draw triggers are more easily satisfied by having a lot of Creatures around you don't mind throwing away.

Rumor Gatherer, too, likes it when Tokens appear randomly. Welcoming Vampire likes them, too, and Caretaker's Talent is worth it in our deck with just the first level. We also have some great Triggered draw effects with cards like Wall of Omens and Helpful Hunter. War Room is there as a backup, as well.

How do we win the game?

I don't know how this deck wins the game, honestly. This style of play is a weird combination of assertive and reactive. We're not searching out specific answers, so we just kind of react to the board in front of us as best we can and knock in incidental damage when we can.

I really like the Tokens from Wildfire Awakener, which can do quite a bit of damage with Kirol. Strixhaven Stadium is not unreasonable. Neither is Halo Fountain. Plus, we have Etali, Primal Storm, who can win a game quickly, especially if he's doubling his ability each turn he Attacks!

We've got some cool answers, too. Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile are hard to skip, but Loran of the Third Path, Skyclave Apparition, and Witch Enchanter all solve problems when they enter. Get Airbender Ascension online and you can have a repeatable Enters destroy ability going, which can be quite effective. You can double it, too, if you haven't doubled something else this turn!

There's also quite a bit of synergy going on. We have ways to untap stuff every turn, not just our own. We have things that throw damage when we do stuff, like Impact Tremors or Warleader's Call. Panharmonicon and Strionic Resonator both add extra doublings.

Marvin, Murderous Mimic grabs every Activated Ability on the board - not Triggered, of course, so no doubling with Kirol, but this is the sort of thing that can go nuts with the right board state. And a Token win isn't out of the question - a Jacked Rabbit at the right moment in the game, doubled a time or two, can run over a table quite fast, especially with a Caretaker's Talent on the 'field and leveled up.

Wrapping Up

This is a player's deck. It rewards careful play, decisive choices, and accurate threat assessment. It will not win every game it plays, and it won't dominate most tables. It'll quietly sit there, responding, doubling up, building a board state, and will constantly keep your brain working to solve the problem the game is presenting to you.

With that in mind, I'd call is pretty solidly Bracket 2 - it's not super powerful, no crazy combos, no wildly unfair behavior - but this is Bracket 2 for people who are looking for a challenge.

I didn't worry too much about budget with this one, but if I happened to have a Delney, Streetwise Lookout or Esper Sentinel kicking around, I'd throw them in here.

Thanks for reading.