Duel Commander (later referred to as DC) is a format about which Andrea Mengucci has already written here. He talks about technicalities of what the format is but also breaks down the meta in a digestible way.

Today though, I'd like to explore what's particularly characteristic about the format that would make 100 and 60 card format players alike be enticed to give it a go. While jumping from EDH to Modern and vice versa might be a huge leap, I think Duel Commander is the perfect bridge between the two.

Space for innovation

This typically applies to EDH but it's going to be a nice breath of fresh air to the 60-card gamers. While in competitive environments a big chunk of your deck is pre-built because there's a limited pool of best cards, here the innovation is nigh-endless.

When you decide to build a Rakdos deck in Pioneer, it's hard not to start with 4 Thoughtseize, 4 Push, 4 Harvester, 4 Fable ... at which point most of the deck is done.

Because we're talking about 99 cards here, you're going to have to reach for some under-utilised, often power-crept-out cards that you wouldn't normally see in a competitive environment. Naturally, the pre-built-ness will still apply but in an analogous Rakdos Duel commander deck, one copy of the best cards like Thoughseize or Fable would amount to 5-10 cards total, so more like 5-10% of the whole deck, rather than 50%. And you will need to fill out the other 90.

What follows is that you could reasonably see decks different by 30-50 cards, introducing a ton of diversity but also your agency in what the deck looks like.

Cube Constructed

As far as I'm concerned, the best way to describe a DC deck is that it's like playing Cube Constructed. You know the feeling of drafting a perfect deck that's cohesive in its plan and does insane things. On top of that, you have a eureka moment seeing that one particular card that you normally never draft acts in a weirdly powerful way with a different card you normally never draft.

You feel as if you've actually reinvented the wheel and cannot wait to show the trick to your opponent. This is exactly how engaging with Duel Commander feels. You sit in your brewing lab at home and come up with some sweet interactions, never before seen.

As an Azusa gamer myself, it felt great to realise that you can self-Stone-Rain with Zuran Orb that's found with Urza's Saga to then bring all the lands back with Aftermath Analyst. I knew the cards separately but I never had a chance to combine them.

YOU win your games

Since DC is a competitive 1 on 1 format, there is no person to third party you out of a win. If you win, it means you won the game. If you lose, you lose. As simple as that.

While it's the bread and butter for competitive players, it's not a vibe that you get at an EDH table.  You get all satisfaction from squeezing out a win yourself and all the disappointed from letting it slip away. No one to blame or praise but yourself. It's a very human way to feel about a finished game.

Interaction is better

Compared to EDH where your interaction is spread thin across all the other players, here all the ammunition is targeted at a single opponent - and naturally likewise theirs as your.

It means that games are very interaction dense which, to me, makes for a more enjoyable experience. There is no situation where everyone at the table squanders interaction to stop player C so then player D just wins because everyone is out of interaction already.

Action-packed games

If you've played competitively in the last couple of years, you know the impact Companions have had. There was always an 8th card lurking. Pre-errata they weren't so much lurking as being deployed early and often. Now, imagine every deck has a Companion but it's as if it had been tailor-made for your specific deck.

Since a ton of Commanders cost 1-3 mana, it means they are going to play a part early in the game. Therefore, there is going to be interaction thrown around to stop the opponent from enacting their plan while hopefully progressing our own. 

Unlike Commander, but more in Modern's vein, the game is on from the very first turn. There is no set-up dead-air time.

Cards you've never seen cross paths

What I love is that it's a format where you can see cards from Legacy and Pioneer alike meet and interact, causing completely unexpected outcomes.

How many times have you seen Overlord of the Balemurk go against Glacial Chasm? Or Bloodtithe Harvester against Aminatou, the Fateshifter? Exactly.

Underexplored

This format has existed for quite some time already, way before it was officially supported on MTGO (which it is! You can play Leagues online). However, it still is relatively underexplored because the format is played by hundreds if not thousands of people. This means that you yourself could actually break it! You could make a deck nobody ever has or optimise an existing strategy through different lens. It's a great opportunity for EDH players to use their extensive card pool knowledge and 60-card players to use their experience in brutally efficient environments to all create a deadly yet innovative machine.

Conclusion

Duel Commander has been my favourite way to spend time, engaging with a 100-card format as a predominantly Modern aficionado. Give it a go at your LGS or with your friends and I promise you - you won't be disappointed!

As as always, please remember to hold my hand and let's pass the turn together. Cheers!