Commander Banlist History

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Commander Banlist History

History of the Commander format banlist. This page is unofficial; see the official banlist on mtgcommander.net here. I gathered this information from several sources; one particularly good one I found is here. If there is something inaccurate, please let me know via email at smileylich@smileylich.com; please include a link to the source. Click here to see my EDH main page and decks. Click here for my EDH Card Reference pages

DateBannedUnbannedGame Changers addedGame Changers delisted****Other Notes April 2025Braids, Cabal Minion Aura Shards Trouble in Pairs• All of the unbanned cards here were added to the game changers list. • April 2025 banlist update • April 2025 game changers update Coalition Victory Braids, Cabal Minion Trinisphere Gifts Ungiven Coalition Victory Panoptic Mirror Consecrated Sphinx Sway of the Stars Crop Rotation Deflecting Swat Field of the Dead Food Chain Gamble Gifts Ungiven Humility Intuition Mishra’s Workshop Narset, Parter of Veils Natural Order Necropotence Notion Thief Orcish Bowmasters Panoptic Mirror Seedborn Muse Sway of the Stars Teferi’s Protection Worldly Tutor February 2025Ad Nauseam• Commander Brackets Beta Initial 40 cards on the “Game Changers” list added (see column to left). (I will eventually need to add a “Game Changers removed” column as well I suppose.) Ancient Tomb Bolas’s Citadel Chrome Mox Cyclonic Rift Demonic Tutor Drannith Magistrate Enlightened Tutor Expropriate Fierce Guardianship Force of Will Gaea’s Cradle Glacial Chasm Grand Arbiter Augustin IV Grim Monolith Imperial Seal Jeska’s Will Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur Kinnan, Bonder Prodigy Lion’s Eye Diamond Mana Vault Mox Diamond Mystical Tutor Opposition Agent Rhystic Study Serra’s Sanctum Smothering Tithe Survival of the Fittest Tergrid, God of Fright Thassa’s Oracle The One Ring The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale Trinisphere Trouble in Pairs Underworld Breach Urza, Lord High Artificer Vampiric Tutor Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger Winota, Joiner of Forces Yuriko, the Tiger’s Shadow September 2024Dockside Extortionist• The Rules Committee (“RC”) gives management of Commander to Wizards of the Coast. (A week after the bans, due to controversy.) Jeweled Lotus Mana Crypt Nadu, Winged Wisdom September 2021Golos, Tireless Pilgrim Worldfire• (minor change) Previous Rule 10 (commanders are subject to the legend rule), which was redundant, is removed. (Actual gameplay doesn’t change from this.) Rule 11 renumbered to Rule 10. July 2021Hullbreacher• Dungeons are legal. April 2021• Learn cards cannot retrieve Lesson cards, due to no sideboards. June 2020Cleanse• WotC announcement on these bans Crusade• Commanders now “die” like other creatures. If a commander has an ability which triggers on it dying or going to exile, it will trigger before heading to the command zone. Imprison Invoke Prejudice Jihad Pradesh Gypsies Stone-Throwing Devils May 2020• Commander banlist no longer uses Vintage banlist as a baseline. (e.g. Lurrus of the Dream-Den is banned in Vintage but not in Commander.) April 2020Flash Lutri, the Spellchaser July 2019Iona, Shield of Emeria Painter’s Servant Paradox Engine April 2019• Added Rule 0: These are the official rules of Commander. Local groups are welcome to modify them as they see fit. If you’d like an exception to these rules, especially in an unfamiliar environment, please get the approval of the other players before the game begins. • Rule 13 reworded for clarification: Abilities which bring card(s) you own from outside the game into the game (such as Wishes; Spawnsire of Ulamog; Karn, the Great Creator) do not function in Commander. March 2018• Brawl format is introduced as a Commander variant that uses only Standard-legal cards. December 2017[temporary: Silver border cards]• Silver border cards were legal for 45 days (December 1, 2017 to January 15, 2018). The cards that were banned during this time were: Ashnod’s Coupon, Double Cross, Double Deal, Double Dip, Double Play, Double Take, Enter the Dungeon, Magical Hacker, Mox Lotus, Once More With Feeling, R&Ds Secret Lair, Richard Garfield, Staying Power, Time Machine. April 2017Leovold, Emissary of Trest Protean Hulk• Oathbreaker format introduced. (Date uncertain; it was sometime in 2017.) September 2016• The optional sideboard rule (allowing a 10 card sideboard) in House Rules on mtgcommander.net was removed. January 2016Prophet of Kruphix• Rule 4 (mana generation restriction) removed; decks may now generate mana of any colour. March 2015• The “tuck rule” was changed. If your commander would go into the library or your hand, you may choose to put it into the command zone. January 2015• Face down commanders still deal commander damage when they attack. September 2014Braids, Cabal Minion Kokusho, the Evening Star• “Banned as Commander” is eliminated. Erayo, Soratami Ascendent Metalworker Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary June 2014[cards of type Conspiracy] February 2014Sylvan Primordial September 2013• Optional section on mtgcommander.net replaced with House Rules section. (The main impact of this change is that there won’t be any endorsement of sideboards as an ‘official optional’ rule.) • Tiny Leaders created as a variant format. (date uncertain; it was sometime in 2013) April 2013Trade Secrets Staff of Domination January 2013• Confirmation: Extort adds no colored mana symbols to a card outside of its reminder text, and therefore is legal for play in Commander decks of any color or colors (as long as the card it appears on is otherwise legal, of course). September 2012Kokusho, the Evening Star (as General)Kokusho, the Evening Star• Before this update, Kokusho was banned (since February 2008). It became legal in the 99 with this update. Primeval Titan Worldfire June 2012Griselbrand Sundering Titan September 2011Erayo, Soratami Ascendant (as General)Lion’s Eye Diamond• Before this update, Shahrazad was allowed as an exception to the “Commander follows Vintage banlist” rule. Shahrazad June 2011Worldgorger Dragon December 2010Emrakul, the Aeons Torn• “EDH” is now called “Commander” by Wizards, with the announcement of their original Commander set to be released in June 2011. • A general’s color identity amended to include symbols in the textbox, so cards like Thelon of Havenwood can be a general now. June 2010Channel Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary (as General) Staff of Domination Tolarian Academy May 2010• Re-clarified “Wish rule” that wishes may retrieve cards from the sideboard if the optional sideboard rule is in use. December 2009Painter’s Servant Grindstone September 2009Riftsweeper• The command zone is adopted for generals. (Generals now move to the command zone instead of Exile.) June 2009Fastbond Gifts Ungiven Braids, Cabal Minion (as General) March 2009Metalworker Crucible of Worlds Tinker Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary December 2008Time Vault September 2008Grindstone Test of Endurance• Card-specific rules removed (e.g. Rune-Tail, Kitsune Attendant). Karakas Lion’s Eye Diamond Protean Hulk Riftsweeper June 2008Limited Resources February 2008Kokusho, the Evening Star Recurring Nightmare November 2007Beacon of Immortality July 2007• Riftsweeper errata’d so it can’t target generals in removed-from-game zone. March 2007Coalition Victory• Duel Commander (aka French EDH) created as a variant format. (date uncertain) Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary (as General) November 2006Heartless Hidetsugu (as General)(Updates from here and earlier are from various sources: Dreamwizards, Alaska Magic.) (Might not be reliable?) Kaervek the Merciless (as General) Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind (as General) May 2006Yawgmoth’s Bargain February 2006Heartless Hidetsugu (as General)• (Date for this Kaervek the Merciless ban is uncertain.) Kaervek the Merciless (as General) Niv-Mizzet, the Firemind (as General) December 2005Crucible of Worlds• Rune-Tail, Kitsune Ascendant is errata’d to trigger at 1.5 times your initial starting life. Shahrazad• The alternate casting cost on Fifth Dawn’s Bringer cycle is exempted. (They can be played in mono-colored decks, this gets reversed on September 2008.) October 2005[Unique Portal/Starter cards]• Starter Level sets Starter 1999, Starter 2000, Portal, Portal Second Age, and Portal Three Kingdoms become legal in Vintage (and thus Commander). April 2005Ancestral Recall• Formation of the EDH Rules Committee (sometimes abbreviated “RC”). (Date uncertain; see here.) The Rules Committee manages the EDH/Commander banlist until September 2024. Balance Black Lotus Biorhythm Chaos Orb Falling Star Library of Alexandria Mox Emerald Mox Jet Mox Pearl Mox Ruby Mox Sapphire Panoptic Mirror Sway of the Stars Time Walk Upheaval Worldgorger Dragon [Ante cards] October 2004Beacon of Immortality Burning Wish• Wishes and Ring of Ma’ruf can only fetch cards that were exiled during the course of play. Cunning Wish• (Date for this Beacon of Immortality ban is uncertain.) Death Wish Enlightened Wish Living Wish Ring of Ma’ruf May 2003Burning Wish• Basic lands unrestricted. Cunning Wish• (Date for this Ring of Ma’ruf ban is uncertain.) Death Wish Golden Wish Living Wish Ring of Ma’ruf October 2002Test of Endurance• Basic lands were restricted at this time. Nonbasic hate was out, so Blood Moon, Back to Basics, Primal Order, and Ruination might have been banned at this time as well. [Collector’s Edition]• Life totals begin at (200/number of players). Any player who takes 21 points of damage from a single General loses the game. [Poker cards]• Cards unique to Starter 1999, Starter 2000, Portal, Portal Second Age, and Portal Three Kingdoms are not legal in Vintage, and thus are not legal in Commander. This gets reversed in October 2005. [Silver border cards] [Unique Portal/Starter cards] July 1996• “Elder Dragon Legend Wars” (by Jesus M. Lopez) is published in The Duelist. June 1994• Adam Staley creates the “Highlander” format (date uncertain). (source)