Building theme decks is one of the joys of Commander, and it’s something that sets it apart from other formats. I remember trying to build theme decks in the dark ages before EDH existed and finally realizing there was no format my goofy cards-that-are-also-the-titles-of-songs deck was going to be legal in, much less be playable. Commander lets us give those thematic deck ideas a home (although, as for the song-titles theme deck, it's still terrible).

Before we can start role-playing, we have to build a properly themed deck. With Isperia, the theme is pretty obvious: She's a judge. There are a lot of judgment-themed cards (Supreme Verdict, Day of Judgment, Karmic Justice, Council's Judgment), along with plenty of crime-and-punishment cards (Prison Term, Condemn, Detention Sphere). But to fill out the deck, we need to think of Isperia as a character—and to think about the stories she'll be part of.

We can imagine each Commander game involving Isperia as a sort of Magic-themed courtroom drama with all the trappings of legal authority, the weight of justice, and a cast of other characters that carry out the will of the court. Courtrooms have juries, so that gives us cards like Fact or Fiction, Recurring Insight, and Careful Consideration, along with the Conspiracy voting cards, which are so much fun in Commander. Courts usually have bailiffs around to maintain order, so we have Angelic Field Marshal and Elite Inquisitor, and in a more passive way, we have Mystic Barrier and Wall of Denial.

There are some interesting characters working for the court, too. Sometimes Arbiter of Knollridge is called in to help with a difficult decision. Thada Adel, Acquisitor works to uncover crucial evidence in the cases before the court (if that seems like a stretch, I'll admit it's just really fun to dig around in opponents’ decks). Spurnmage Advocate is a lawyer always looking to cut a deal—he'll free two lesser criminals in exchange for putting a bigger threat behind bars. Jace Beleren appears as an expert witness, providing additional information when you put him on the stand.

What's a courtroom drama without objections? Isperia is packing several counterspells to turn aside key arguments or deny faulty lines of questioning. Overruled! When Isperia does finally make her judgment, it can be a narrow decision or a sweeping reform. Sometimes Path to Exile is enough to send a strong message, but other times, only a sweeper will get the job done.

Finally we have odds and ends, effects that fit the theme but are maybe not the best cards in the deck. Judge's Familiar and Due Respect are both pretty bad, but it's so hard to cut cards that are that perfect for the theme. Robe of Mirrors is actually a very nice way to protect your Commander, and what else would a judgy Sphinx wear to court?

Isperia, Supreme Judge of Fun ? Commander | Ed Grabianowski

• Commander (0)

• Creatures (20)
• 1 Angel of Finality
• 1 Angelic Field Marshal
• 1 Arbiter of Knollridge
• 1 Archon of Justice
• 1 Azorius Justiciar
• 1 Brago's Representative
• 1 Cephalid Constable
• 1 Court Hussar
• 1 Custodi Squire
• 1 Echo Mage
• 1 Elite Inquisitor
• 1 Fiend Hunter
• 1 Jeskai Barricade
• 1 Judge's Familiar
• 1 Mistmeadow Witch
• 1 Phyrexian Ingester
• 1 Spurnmage Advocate
• 1 Wall of Denial
• 1 Ephara, God of the Polis
• 1 Thada Adel, Acquisitor

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Jace Beleren

• Spells (42)
• 1 Angel's Grace
• 1 Cancel
• 1 Careful Consideration
• 1 Channel Harm
• 1 Condemn
• 1 Counterspell
• 1 Dismiss
• 1 Dissipate
• 1 Due Respect
• 1 Fact or Fiction
• 1 Foil
• 1 Judge Unworthy
• 1 Overrule
• 1 Path to Exile
• 1 Return to Dust
• 1 Rewind
• 1 Split Decision
• 1 Austere Command
• 1 Council's Judgment
• 1 Day of Judgment
• 1 Recurring Insight
• 1 Supreme Verdict
• 1 Act of Authority
• 1 Arrest
• 1 Cyclonic Rift
• 1 Detention Sphere
• 1 Faith's Fetters
• 1 Ghostly Prison
• 1 Karmic Justice
• 1 Mystic Barrier
• 1 Oblivion Ring
• 1 Prison Term
• 1 Reparations
• 1 Righteous Authority
• 1 Robe of Mirrors
• 1 Volition Reins
• 1 Azorius Keyrune
• 1 Coercive Portal
• 1 Commander's Sphere
• 1 Everflowing Chalice
• 1 Scroll of the Masters
• 1 Sol Ring

• Lands (36)
• 11 Plains
• 13 Island
• 1 Adarkar Wastes
• 1 Azorius Chancery
• 1 Azorius Guildgate
• 1 Coastal Tower
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Flooded Strand
• 1 Hallowed Fountain
• 1 Opal Palace
• 1 Sejiri Refuge
• 1 Tranquil Cove
• 1 Vivid Creek
• 1 Vivid Meadow

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Like all Commander lists, this is by no means in its final form. There are some places the theme could be tightened up. (Adarkar Wastes, Phyrexian Ingester, and Cyclonic Rift don't make much sense.) The land count might be a little low, although this deck draws cards so efficiently it's never been a problem. The ability to render judgment effectively would also benefit from a few tutors and niche answers such as Containment Priest or Aven Mindcensor. I think a couple more sweepers would be nice—if Isperia is going to hand down a decision, it better count for something.

Now we have a solid theme deck. We've established that Isperia is judging something, but what is she basing her decisions on? Fun. With this deck, you become the arbiter of what is and isn't fun at your Commander table. That's why I call this deck Isperia, Supreme Judge of Fun. How do you judge fun? That's obviously going to differ from one player to another, and this play style doesn't work if you're really focused on being the Spike at the table. I tend to use Isperia for things like keeping another player alive when he or she might be facing an early exit or protecting a moderately threatening creature or enchantment so its owner has a chance to use it. If I know the Kaalia of the Vast player isn't playing a combo and just wants to drop a few crazy Demons on the board, I'll try to give her at least one chance to enjoy the attack trigger (and then play a sweeper once she's had her fun).

Counters are nice for disrupting annoying combos or endless durdle turns. You can also deploy your removal and counterspells to help out if one player seems to be getting ganged up on. Some of the deck's effects are nice for resetting the board state when it reaches that point of being too complicated to be enjoyable anymore. And of course, you can play kingmaker, helping to decide who wins and even pushing the game to a conclusion on those occasions when it drags on too long.

Don't forget to play up the story aspect. When you play a counterspell, yell, "Objection, your honor!" Whenever you cast Isperia, solemnly say, "All rise." Even cards that seem a little off theme can fit if your storytelling is strong enough. Courtrooms are full of weird ceremonies and traditions, so maybe in this one, we gather around the Hallowed Fountain before we get to the Righteous Authority, and maybe the Archon of Justice resides in a Coastal Tower. And before we can get to the business of judging things, we have to pay our respects to Ephara, God of the Polis, under whose purview all matters of civil and criminal justice fall.

So far, this is the only role-playing Commander deck I've built. I have an idea for a W/B Athreos, God of Passage deck with a religious order of Clerics and other cards that reference faith, but the initial tribal cleric idea was terribly boring, so I need to rethink it. The idea of a cult that cultists of which readily sacrifices themselves because they exert control over the boundary between life and death could turn into a really fun deck.

What other legends would make for good role-playing decks? An Ascendant Evincar deck that actively helps out any other player at the table playing black and openly hates anyone who isn't would alter the political aspect of a Commander game pretty significantly. I also like the idea of an Edric, Spymaster of Trest deck that works to discover hidden information, such as by peeking at an opponent's hand or what's on top of his or her deck. There’s finally a home for Mesmeric Sliver and Spin into Myth, and Gitaxian Probe is an obvious choice. It's a fun to imagine a situation in which someone wants to play a big spell and wonders if he or she has to play around a counterspell. How much would that information be worth? How about a Rafiq of the Many deck that takes the idea of putting forth a single champion to battle to an extreme and only uses legendary creatures? Rafiq and his band of heroes!