I don't think so ... Commander is actually making Magic miles ahead better.
This format is very enjoyable for all the non competitive mtg players, sure sometimes there will be those players bring cutthroat tier 1 combo decks, but most of the players are casuals.
I am not quite sure if The Immortal Sun will get a place in my creature heavy Ruric Thar deck. (Lurking Predator/Warstorm Surge as my 2 biggest Enchantments)
This card is quite good tho, reduce my creature spell cost, turns Primal Surge into 9 mana, more card draw, stops planeswalker, pump my creatures.
I've faced against a Keranos, God of Storms deck using Obliterate, Decree of Annihilation, Jokulhalps, and a Sigarda deck using Armageddon and Catastrophe, those decks have a stratedgy to win games using MLD.
It seems annoying, but just think about all the other fast combo decks with counterspell backup they are even worse.
Even my G/R deck I run Blood Moon/Magus of the Moon to lock my opponents manabase, it is part of a stratedgy to win.
You have Cultivate, Kodama's Reach, Explosive Vegetation, or creatures that can get you basics, sure those signets are fast mana, but they are really useless later on, while lands can help you cast more spell per turn.
Naya Charm:
I don't get it why I often see this card as one of the most played instants for Naya aggressive creature decks. The first effect is underwhelming, second effect... ok... return 1 card to your hand at instant speed, seems fine, why not just play a Eternal Witness? Third effect, seems underwhelming too, you could just use things like Iroas, Gratuitous Violence or other pump effect to make your creatures more stronger to ignore that kind of effect.
Thunderfoot Baloth:
This card is kind of useless when your commander leaves the battlefield, and it is still one of the top played 6 cmc creatures, there are more powerful 6 cmc creatures than this one.
I played G/R Ponza twice before and won, usually you always save your fetchland, just in case if they try to Blood Moon or Stone Rain/Acid-Moss you, you have a response to fetch for your basics.
Against that matchup if they are on the play and you have less lands in your hand it can be very difficult, don't ever keep 1 land, Street Wraith, Cycler hand.
Fulminator Mages is not that great since it is against a 2 color deck, you sideboard them out for Ingot Chewer/Shriekmaw, Ingot Chewer hits Relics, and Shriekmaw can kill all their creatures, use Shriekmaw as soon as possible when you see they play a Birds/Arbor Elf, this stops them to drop early Blood Moon and Stone Rain.
Beast Within is quite good in that matchup because it can kill a land and Utopia Brawl attatched to it, it puts G/R Ponza very behind, also saves you from Blood Moon.
Just be as fast as possible to cast your Living End, it is kind of hard game 1 when G/R Ponza have Blood Moon and LD, but after sideboarding, you have a bit more advantage, it is 50/50 matchup I think.
Yeah Storm is so frustrating to play against when they on the play, but if you are on the play and have a very fast hand, once they drop a turn 2 guy, you can just combo very easily.
Leyline shuts down their deck tho, just remember they have Echoing Truth, so it is not guareented advantage vs them.
Right now I am still wondering what is the best way to attack GDS, do I keep the Fulminator mage on the play? Or on the draw side them out. Right now I have 3 Leyline of the Void, 2 Richochet Trap for that matchup, the biggest problem with GDS is like no matter how good your sideboard is, they can still beat you fast, like get to low lifetotal with 2 wraith, thoughtseize, bunch of shocks, then a Temur Battlerage on huge DS then it is over.
Game 1 - He is on the play, he managed to quickly use spreading sea to screwing my manabase, I have 2 Living End on my hand =/......then once he is up to 4 land, I cast my outburst, attempt to cast my last Living End, he used Cryptic and countered, on well.
Game 2 - This game was just unlucky as well, I never been able to draw my green mana base for some reason, it is like swamp, swamp, 2 blackcleave cliffs, never saw any Groves or Verdant to get that green mana, he also used spreading sea to make my mana even worse (eww >.<), once I got that green mana to cast my cascade spell, he had Negate to stop my Living End, sigh.
Round 2: Abzan, won
Game 1 - He is on the play, He won due early disruption, Grim Flayer, he also had a Ooze, I must use Beast Within to stop it, his clock was too fast, I can't find my cascade spell.
Game 2 - I won due to 2 quick Fulminator Mage to disrupt his mana base, then got few creatures in with cascade Living End, he can't cast any of his spells. He had a early spellbomb but I respond with a Ingot Chewer.
Game 3 - He had 2 mana early game, used Thoughtseize to take away my Ingot Chewer, then put down a spellbomb to blow up my graveyard, but I had a Fulminator Mage to slow him down, once I got to 5 mana and up, I was keep casting huge threats like Archfiend and Ceradon, he cannot stop it.
Round 3 - Abzan, won
Game 1 - The opponent is quite new playing against Living End, he used Thoughtseize to take away my Fulminator Mage instead of Violent Outburst, then on turn 3 I combo out.
Game 2 - This time he used Thoughtseize on my Living End, but I have too much Fulminator Mage to disrupt his mana base, He can't stop my combo after that.
Round 4 - Abzan, won.
Game 1 - He used his Thoughtseize/Inquisition on my cascade spell, but however I draw one later on, then I comboed out, his clock was too slow.
Game 2 - He had early Ooze, but I quickly respond with Beast Within, then I used Fulminator Mage to attack his mana base, he wasn't able to draw any lands, and I comboed out.
I guess there is way too much BGx at this store now... The U/W Control matchup will be better if I never draw 2 Living End and didn't mana screwed game 2.
I would say quite a bit of dropping, but not too much, reasons:
1. Before Eternal Masters, Iconic Masters, MM3, Modern staples was at all time high, ($100 Verdants, $200 Goyf, $40 Voice etc), therefore a lot of players cannot keep the balance to get those staples, this leads players quitting the formats and dislike the price of the game in general.
2. Standard bannings/Modern banning/Modern metagame change.
Recently standard lost a lot of players due to the bannings, some cards are way too powerful by breaking the format, Smugglers Copter literally makes Chandra, Torch of Defiance out of the meta game, and it is in every Aggro vehicle decks, Emrakul also got banned due to too many graveyard delirium abusing with it.
Same with Modern, some banning are killing certain archtype, Twin/Pod become unplayble due to key cards moving to the banned list, U/G Infect went to tier 3 deck just because of one card Gitatian Probe. Also the "Eldrazi Winter" was sick to the stomach to most of the players, lots of Modern players quit just because of that.
3. Other game starts to become more popular, also cheaper.
This is one biggest problem, Magic need to find a way to gather players attention, Hearthstone already took lots of player off from Magic due to the game being digital, cheaper, more faster to play/learn.
Verdant is not must need for the deck I think. Bloodstained Mire is one other option if you can't afford Verdant.
Aww for the next GP, which is at my hometown, I might bring Living End, if I bring Abzan I will get smashed by Tron/Scapeshift for sure, too much Tron at my local meta game.
Using a early ramped Terastodon continuously destroying my opponents land during EDH games, just cloning, reanimate him, pretty sure they are tilted lol.
This format is very enjoyable for all the non competitive mtg players, sure sometimes there will be those players bring cutthroat tier 1 combo decks, but most of the players are casuals.
This card is quite good tho, reduce my creature spell cost, turns Primal Surge into 9 mana, more card draw, stops planeswalker, pump my creatures.
It seems annoying, but just think about all the other fast combo decks with counterspell backup they are even worse.
Even my G/R deck I run Blood Moon/Magus of the Moon to lock my opponents manabase, it is part of a stratedgy to win.
Signets in Green decks:
You have Cultivate, Kodama's Reach, Explosive Vegetation, or creatures that can get you basics, sure those signets are fast mana, but they are really useless later on, while lands can help you cast more spell per turn.
Naya Charm:
I don't get it why I often see this card as one of the most played instants for Naya aggressive creature decks. The first effect is underwhelming, second effect... ok... return 1 card to your hand at instant speed, seems fine, why not just play a Eternal Witness? Third effect, seems underwhelming too, you could just use things like Iroas, Gratuitous Violence or other pump effect to make your creatures more stronger to ignore that kind of effect.
Thunderfoot Baloth:
This card is kind of useless when your commander leaves the battlefield, and it is still one of the top played 6 cmc creatures, there are more powerful 6 cmc creatures than this one.
Against that matchup if they are on the play and you have less lands in your hand it can be very difficult, don't ever keep 1 land, Street Wraith, Cycler hand.
Fulminator Mages is not that great since it is against a 2 color deck, you sideboard them out for Ingot Chewer/Shriekmaw, Ingot Chewer hits Relics, and Shriekmaw can kill all their creatures, use Shriekmaw as soon as possible when you see they play a Birds/Arbor Elf, this stops them to drop early Blood Moon and Stone Rain.
Beast Within is quite good in that matchup because it can kill a land and Utopia Brawl attatched to it, it puts G/R Ponza very behind, also saves you from Blood Moon.
Just be as fast as possible to cast your Living End, it is kind of hard game 1 when G/R Ponza have Blood Moon and LD, but after sideboarding, you have a bit more advantage, it is 50/50 matchup I think.
Leyline shuts down their deck tho, just remember they have Echoing Truth, so it is not guareented advantage vs them.
Right now I am still wondering what is the best way to attack GDS, do I keep the Fulminator mage on the play? Or on the draw side them out. Right now I have 3 Leyline of the Void, 2 Richochet Trap for that matchup, the biggest problem with GDS is like no matter how good your sideboard is, they can still beat you fast, like get to low lifetotal with 2 wraith, thoughtseize, bunch of shocks, then a Temur Battlerage on huge DS then it is over.
Round 1: U/W Control, lost
Game 1 - He is on the play, he managed to quickly use spreading sea to screwing my manabase, I have 2 Living End on my hand =/......then once he is up to 4 land, I cast my outburst, attempt to cast my last Living End, he used Cryptic and countered, on well.
Game 2 - This game was just unlucky as well, I never been able to draw my green mana base for some reason, it is like swamp, swamp, 2 blackcleave cliffs, never saw any Groves or Verdant to get that green mana, he also used spreading sea to make my mana even worse (eww >.<), once I got that green mana to cast my cascade spell, he had Negate to stop my Living End, sigh.
Round 2: Abzan, won
Game 1 - He is on the play, He won due early disruption, Grim Flayer, he also had a Ooze, I must use Beast Within to stop it, his clock was too fast, I can't find my cascade spell.
Game 2 - I won due to 2 quick Fulminator Mage to disrupt his mana base, then got few creatures in with cascade Living End, he can't cast any of his spells. He had a early spellbomb but I respond with a Ingot Chewer.
Game 3 - He had 2 mana early game, used Thoughtseize to take away my Ingot Chewer, then put down a spellbomb to blow up my graveyard, but I had a Fulminator Mage to slow him down, once I got to 5 mana and up, I was keep casting huge threats like Archfiend and Ceradon, he cannot stop it.
Round 3 - Abzan, won
Game 1 - The opponent is quite new playing against Living End, he used Thoughtseize to take away my Fulminator Mage instead of Violent Outburst, then on turn 3 I combo out.
Game 2 - This time he used Thoughtseize on my Living End, but I have too much Fulminator Mage to disrupt his mana base, He can't stop my combo after that.
Round 4 - Abzan, won.
Game 1 - He used his Thoughtseize/Inquisition on my cascade spell, but however I draw one later on, then I comboed out, his clock was too slow.
Game 2 - He had early Ooze, but I quickly respond with Beast Within, then I used Fulminator Mage to attack his mana base, he wasn't able to draw any lands, and I comboed out.
I guess there is way too much BGx at this store now... The U/W Control matchup will be better if I never draw 2 Living End and didn't mana screwed game 2.
1. Before Eternal Masters, Iconic Masters, MM3, Modern staples was at all time high, ($100 Verdants, $200 Goyf, $40 Voice etc), therefore a lot of players cannot keep the balance to get those staples, this leads players quitting the formats and dislike the price of the game in general.
2. Standard bannings/Modern banning/Modern metagame change.
Recently standard lost a lot of players due to the bannings, some cards are way too powerful by breaking the format, Smugglers Copter literally makes Chandra, Torch of Defiance out of the meta game, and it is in every Aggro vehicle decks, Emrakul also got banned due to too many graveyard delirium abusing with it.
Same with Modern, some banning are killing certain archtype, Twin/Pod become unplayble due to key cards moving to the banned list, U/G Infect went to tier 3 deck just because of one card Gitatian Probe. Also the "Eldrazi Winter" was sick to the stomach to most of the players, lots of Modern players quit just because of that.
3. Other game starts to become more popular, also cheaper.
This is one biggest problem, Magic need to find a way to gather players attention, Hearthstone already took lots of player off from Magic due to the game being digital, cheaper, more faster to play/learn.
Aww for the next GP, which is at my hometown, I might bring Living End, if I bring Abzan I will get smashed by Tron/Scapeshift for sure, too much Tron at my local meta game.
Somberwald Sage, Shaman of Forgotten Way are pretty good too, they can ramp your big dinosaur easily.
Urza's Incubator is even better.
True Conviction can deal massive dmg.
Krosan Grip/Beast Within is also important, since you want artifact/enchantment removal in the deck just in case.
Another threat besides Relics/Chalice is Wraping Will, it can counter your Living End.