Relax, Lord Xander Isn't Going To Ruin MTG's Commander Format
As a format that uses almost any card from Magic The Gathering's 30-year history, it's easy to accidentally break Commander. It's happened numerous times, whether that be Hullbreacher in Commander Legends or Lutri the Spellchaser in Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths.
With the upcoming set Streets of New Capenna, the Commander community insists that the latest card to 'completely ruin the format' is going to be Lord Xander, the Collector. As the head of the art-collecting assassins known as the Maestros, Xander is a big, scary, and honestly, incredibly hot demon vampire that almost every Commander is now convinced is losing their collective shit over. Except, for all the step-on-me energy Xander radiates, it's unlikely he will be the oppressive ban-in-waiting the community is predicting.
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To get into the nitty-gritty, Lord Xander, the Collector is a 6/6 blue/black/red Vampire Demon Noble. When it enters the battlefield, a target opponent discards half of their hand, rounded down. Whenever it attacks, the defending player mills half of their library, rounded down. And then, when it dies, a target opponent sacrifices half of their non-land permanents. Once again, rounded down.
To be clear, Xander is absolutely a scary card. All three of his abilities are triggered, which can be hard for a lot of decks to counter, and he will absolutely impact the game the second he hits the battlefield. Everything from Mill decks to Graveyard to Aristocrats decks will love him, and he is certainly one of the strongest Commanders we've had in a while. But is he ban-worthy, as the Commander community is claiming? Probably not. Many players are missing Xander's big
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