Commander is Magic: The Gathering's most popular format and the one most players default to when they think about "playing a game of Magic."

Still, with over 30,000 cards currently legal in the format and 25 years of history with shifting rules behind that history, Commander can be daunting to enter. Some rules, like the Commander Tax and color identity, require a bit more explanation.

What is the Commander Tax?

The Commander Tax rule is relatively uncomplicated.

Rule 903.8 from the Magic: The Gathering Comprehensive Rules states: "A player may cast a Commander they own from the Command Zone. A Commander cast from the Command Zone costs an additional for each previous time the player casting it has cast it from the Command Zone that game. This additional cost is informally known as the 'Commander Tax.'"

This means that the first time you cast Skullbriar, the Walking Grave from your Command Zone, he costs to cast. If your opponent destroys it, he'll return to the Command Zone and will cost to recast and so forth.

In most games of Commander, it becomes prohibitively expensive to cast even the cheapest Commander more than three or four times, which helps regulate the power of decks and adds tension to the game. It's also flavorful, making it feel as though you're tapping into your war chest to encourage your powerful warrior back into battle.

Why is there a Commander Tax in MTG?

Commander Tax has existed as a part of Commander almost since the format began. The original version of Elder Dragon Highlander, as innovated by Alaska-based Magician Adam Staley, didn't have the Commander Tax rule.

The second wave of EDH players who honed the game into the current version, a project that was headed by Magic judge and format evangelist Sheldon Menery, included it to check the power of certain Commanders.

Without the Commander Tax, your low-cost Commanders could warp the metagame; recasting Vivi Ornitier at or Giada, Font of Hope at multiple times per game is a much more dangerous proposition than adding a two-mana tax each time they're dealt with. The Commander Tax gives the other players at the table some breathing room before they must face a powerful Commander again.

Commander Tax Evasion & Mitigation

There are ways around the Commander Tax.

Some cards, like Command Beacon and Road of Return let you cast your Commander tax-free one extra time.

While others evade the Commander Tax entirely, like Liesa, Shroud of Dusk and Yuriko, the Tiger's Shadow.

Another option, Myth Unbound is especially relevant for sacrificial Commanders because it cuts the tax in half, making it much more feasible to recast later in the game.

In addition, cards that reduce costs affect the amount of mana you pay for any tax, so Ghalta, Primal Hunger and The Capitoline Triad can come down much more quickly than they would appear.

Recent all-star Witherbloom, the Balancer features a similar cost-reduction mechanic in Affinity for Creatures.

You can also just accept the two-mana Commander Tax and play cheaper Commanders. Arabella, Abandoned Doll, Ragost, Deft Gastronaut, and Tinybones, Trinket Thief are all popular Commanders that can be recast multiple times despite the Commander Tax.

Mana ramp will also take the sting out of Commander Tax, with the classic combo of Cabal Coffers and Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth scaling nicely over the length of the game.

Green has several effects, from Scapeshift to Cultivate, that will let you ramp enough to easily recast even the priciest Commanders.

The other colors, especially White, have less options for ramp, but mana rocks like Arcane Signet or The Mind Stone can help pick up the slack.

Wrapping Up & Paying the Two

The Commander Tax is an important safety valve for the game; if a certain Commander becomes too big of a problem, the table can team up to take it out repeatedly and tax it into oblivion. Vivi Ornitier at is a menace, while Vivi at is less threatening.

It's not perfect, as these easier-cast Commanders can get tripped up by removal like Abrupt Decay, but it does help regulate the game.

As envisioned by Menery, Commander was designed to scale up. The cards that were too expensive in traditional Magic found a place in the early "battlecruiser" era of Commander, and the lengthier games gave disadvantaged players time to catch up.

As the format continues to evolve and Wizards of the Coast prints cards deliberately to suit it, this sense of scale has shifted.

But Rule 903.8 hasn't changed since it was implemented. The Commander Tax, unlike many other taxes, has stuck at two mana, implying that it was perfectly established.

There's something very suitable and fitting about that cost, as it mirrors Commander's most iconic card: Sol Ring.