While the set has been out for a few years at this point, there's still a lot to explore in Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth. We've already looked at what the set can offer Pauper players, but what else is there for Commander players aside from the Precons? I've decided to offer breakdowns on a few interesting deck ideas focused around the cards in the set. Ideally, I want to keep them budget, but I'll add some suggestions for game-changers that fit well into these decks. Let's dive right in!

Elrond, Master of Healing

Simic () has a reputation for being great with mana fixing and ramping. Green is the home of elves and +1/+1 counters, while Blue is a master of scrying and drawing. What better way to combine these elements than with Elrond, Master of Healing?

At its core, this deck plays heavily into Elrond's ability, focusing on scrying with creatures and spells while ramping up with creatures to build a board. There's also a subtheme since most of our creatures are elves, we're running some elf support in the form of a few lords. Finally, to round out the list we've included a few counterspells and bounce spells to allow for decent interaction against opponent creatures. There are also a few "Ring tempts" cards in there for the value and because they work remarkably well with some payoffs like Galadriel of Lothlorien.

Elrond Master of Healing Budget | Commander | Jason Dookeran

• Creatures (29)
• 1 Arwen Undomiel
• 1 Augury Owl
• 1 Celeborn the Wise
• 1 Chance-Met Elves
• 1 Cryptic Annelid
• 1 Elrond, Lord of Rivendell
• 1 Elvish Archdruid
• 1 Elvish Mariner
• 1 Elvish Mystic
• 1 Evolution Witness
• 1 Fathom Mage
• 1 Galadhrim Guide
• 1 Galadriel of Lothlorien
• 1 Glorfindel, Dauntless Rescuer
• 1 Grey Havens Navigator
• 1 Imperious Perfect
• 1 Inga Rune-Eyes
• 1 Kami of Whispered Hopes
• 1 Legolas, Counter of Kills
• 1 Llanowar Elves
• 1 Lothlorien Lookout
• 1 Master Biomancer
• 1 Nimrodel Watcher
• 1 Prognostic Sphinx
• 1 Reclamation Sage
• 1 Rishkar, Peema Renegade
• 1 Sigiled Starfish
• 1 Sphinx of Foresight
• 1 Willow-Wind

• Planeswalkers (1)
• 1 Nissa, Steward of Elements

• Instants (12)
• 1 Behold the Multiverse
• 1 Bombadil's Song
• 1 Council's Deliberation
• 1 Deliberate
• 1 Dissolve
• 1 Growth Spiral
• 1 Hithlain Knots
• 1 Inspiring Call
• 1 Joint Exploration
• 1 Negate
• 1 Opt
• 1 Shower of Arrows

• Sorceries (9)
• 1 Arwen's Gift
• 1 Cultivate
• 1 Elven Farsight
• 1 Freeze in Place
• 1 Horses of the Bruinen
• 1 Preordain
• 1 Rampant Growth
• 1 Serum Visions
• 1 Tamiyo's Epiphany

• Enchantments (8)
• 1 Aqueous Form
• 1 Fall of Gil-galad
• 1 Gift of Strands
• 1 Lost Isle Calling
• 1 Psychic Impetus
• 1 Season of Growth
• 1 Song of Earendil
• 1 Sylvan Anthem

• Artifacts (6)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Lembas
• 1 Lifecrafter's Bestiary
• 1 Mirror of Galadriel
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 The Temporal Anchor

• Lands (28)
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Crystal Grotto
• 10 Forest
• 10 Island
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 1 Quandrix Campus
• 1 Rivendell
• 1 Temple of Mystery
• 1 The Grey Havens
• 1 Thornwood Falls

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Sauron, the Dark Lord

"One Ring to Rule them all. One Ring to find them. One Ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them. In the land of Mordor, where the shadows lie."

We can't just look at the alliance of free peoples if we're exploring popular commander decks from Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth. Sauron, the Dark Lord is a pretty powerful commander, even on a budget. Most players got the precon and upgraded it, but even with a wholly single-card build, it can be a menace on a table. There are a lot of ways you can build him too, and in this build we'll be looking at budget value, and amassing the biggest orc army your opponents have ever seen.

Amass Orcs was one of the mechanics for this set and Sauron, the Dark Lord plays into this really well. No wonder, since in-lore he's known for amassing huge orc armies. His ability to discard your hand and draw four cards when your Orc Army hits someone works well with reanimator synergies. The Mouth of Sauron helps to get more value out of those instants and sorceries in your graveyard too, making for a huge, hulking orc army. Thanks to the set-lock for this keyword, most of the cards will be from The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth, but there are a few standout additions that still keep the build budget.

Sauron, the Dark Lord Budget Amass Orcs | Commander | Jason Dookeran

• Creatures (24)
• 1 Bilbo, Retired Burglar
• 1 Corsairs of Umbar
• 1 Dunland Crebain
• 1 Easterling Vanguard
• 1 Gollum, Patient Plotter
• 1 Gorbag of Minas Morgul
• 1 Gothmog, Morgul Lieutenant
• 1 Grima Wormtongue
• 1 Grishnakh, Brash Instigator
• 1 Lazotep Chancellor
• 1 Mauhur, Uruk-hai Captain
• 1 Mirkwood Bats
• 1 Moria Scavenger
• 1 Nightscape Familiar
• 1 Orcish Siegemaster
• 1 Saruman the White
• 1 Saruman, the White Hand
• 1 Sauron, Lord of the Rings
• 1 Sauron, the Necromancer
• 1 The Balrog of Moria
• 1 The Mouth of Sauron
• 1 Ugluk of the White Hand
• 1 Warbeast of Gorgoroth
• 1 Warg Rider

• Instants (10)
• 1 Commence the Endgame
• 1 Deceive the Messenger
• 1 Glorious Gale
• 1 Lazotep Plating
• 1 Nasty End
• 1 Negate
• 1 Orcish Medicine
• 1 Saruman's Trickery
• 1 Sauron's Ransom
• 1 Soothing of Smeagol

• Sorceries (14)
• 1 Assault on Osgiliath
• 1 Birthday Escape
• 1 Claim the Precious
• 1 Faithless Looting
• 1 Feed the Swarm
• 1 Foray of Orcs
• 1 Mordor Muster
• 1 Ringsight
• 1 Sam's Desperate Rescue
• 1 Summons of Saruman
• 1 Surrounded by Orcs
• 1 Swarming of Moria
• 1 Treason of Isengard
• 1 Widespread Brutality

• Enchantments (6)
• 1 Book of Mazarbul
• 1 Call of the Ring
• 1 Dreadhorde Invasion
• 1 Fall of Cair Andros
• 1 Fiery Inscription
• 1 March from the Black Gate

• Artifacts (9)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Commander's Sphere
• 1 Dimir Signet
• 1 Fellwar Stone
• 1 Inherited Envelope
• 1 Izzet Signet
• 1 Mind Stone
• 1 Rakdos Signet
• 1 Sol Ring

• Lands (28)
• 4 Island
• 4 Mountain
• 4 Swamp
• 1 Barad-dur
• 1 Choked Estuary
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Crumbling Necropolis
• 1 Dragonskull Summit
• 1 Evolving Wilds
• 1 Exotic Orchard
• 1 Foreboding Ruins
• 1 Frostboil Snarl
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 1 Rogue's Passage
• 1 Seething Landscape
• 1 Smoldering Marsh
• 1 Sulfur Falls
• 1 Sunken Hollow
• 1 Terramorphic Expanse

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Tom Bombadil

Within the lore of The Lord of the Rings, Tom Bombadil is among the most powerful characters in Middle-earth. Here, he also has quite a powerful presence as a Sagas commander. Not only does he rely on Sagas to become almost impossible to remove, but he also replaces triggered sagas from your deck without you having to cast them. As a great person once said, "The best cost you can pay for any spell in Magic is free."

Sagas tend to ramp up in power as time goes by, but what if you could manipulate the counters on those Sagas and treat them like a toolbox? This build focuses on resolving some Sagas and then using creatures to add or remove counters, sometimes re-triggering previous Saga chapters. Finally, reanimation spells like Resurgent Belief mean that your deck can compete in the long game, reanimating all your Sagas to do it all over again.

Tom Bombadil Budget Sagas | Commander

• Creatures (18)
• 1 Archon of Sun's Grace
• 1 Barbara Wright
• 1 Brago, King Eternal
• 1 Doomwake Giant
• 1 Eidolon of Blossoms
• 1 Ghen, Arcanum Weaver
• 1 Goldberry, River-Daughter
• 1 Jukai Naturalist
• 1 Mesa Enchantress
• 1 Narci, Fable Singer
• 1 Sanctum Weaver
• 1 Satsuki, the Living Lore
• 1 Satyr Enchanter
• 1 Sigurd, Jarl of Ravensthorpe
• 1 Sythis, Harvest's Hand
• 1 Thrummingbird
• 1 Weaver of Harmony
• 1 Yenna, Redtooth Regent

• Instants (5)
• 1 Clockspinning
• 1 Entish Restoration
• 1 Experimental Augury
• 1 Flicker of Fate
• 1 Swords to Plowshares

• Sorceries (7)
• 1 Cultivate
• 1 Dance of the Manse
• 1 Farseek
• 1 Rampant Growth
• 1 Resurgent Belief
• 1 Search for Glory
• 1 Unnatural Restoration

• Enchantments (29)
• 1 Azusa's Many Journeys
• 1 Ballad of the Black Flag
• 1 Binding the Old Gods
• 1 Birth of the Imperium
• 1 Boseiju Reaches Skyward
• 1 Elspeth Conquers Death
• 1 Enchantress's Presence
• 1 Firja's Retribution
• 1 Inventive Iteration
• 1 Jugan Defends the Temple
• 1 King Narfi's Betrayal
• 1 Michiko's Reign of Truth
• 1 One Ring to Rule Them All
• 1 Phyrexian Scriptures
• 1 Scroll of Isildur
• 1 Song of Earendil
• 1 The Aesir Escape Valhalla
• 1 The Akroan War
• 1 The Bath Song
• 1 The Elder Dragon War
• 1 The Eldest Reborn
• 1 The First Iroan Games
• 1 The Horus Heresy
• 1 The Kami War
• 1 The Phasing of Zhalfir
• 1 There and Back Again
• 1 The Restoration of Eiganjo
• 1 The Trickster-God's Heist
• 1 The Weatherseed Treaty

• Artifacts (5)
• 1 Arcane Signet
• 1 Chromatic Lantern
• 1 Commander's Sphere
• 1 Sol Ring
• 1 Wayfarer's Bauble

• Lands (35)
• 4 Forest
• 4 Island
• 1 Mountain
• 4 Plains
• 1 Swamp
• 1 Arcane Sanctum
• 1 Ash Barrens
• 1 Canopy Vista
• 1 Cinder Glade
• 1 Command Tower
• 1 Crumbling Necropolis
• 1 Evolving Wilds
• 1 Exotic Orchard
• 1 Frontier Bivouac
• 1 Jungle Shrine
• 1 Krosan Verge
• 1 Myriad Landscape
• 1 Mystic Monastery
• 1 Opulent Palace
• 1 Path of Ancestry
• 1 Prairie Stream
• 1 Sandsteppe Citadel
• 1 Seaside Citadel
• 1 Smoldering Marsh
• 1 Sunken Hollow
• 1 Terramorphic Expanse

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Other Options to Consider

The hardest thing was to pick out the best Commanders from The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth. I built my own Frodo Baggins deck that reanimates creatures that cost three or less consistently, but there are a few great options that I didn't get to explore here.

Among the other options that players should look at include:

Aragorn is a value engine, no matter how you build him. Most people have opted to use him as a four-color legends commander, but he's also good in other archetypes. Running him as a Human Typal deck, or a tokens commander are also viable directions to build him in.

Few things are as terrifying to regular people as Nazgul, and the Lord of the Nazgul can become quite terrifying. This commander rewards you for casting spells, allowing you to create huge token boards of Nazgul that overwhelm the opponent. The best direction for building this Commander is wither cantrips or spellslinger. Cantrips help you refuel your hand after casting each spell, keeping your deck snowballing. Spellslinger focuses more on spells that can impact the board or your opponents while getting that sweet, sweet token value.

If you're a fan of Voltron commanders, this one is for you. Frodo, Sauron's Bane, is a legendary version of those creatures that transform into bigger bodies by pumping mana into them. While he could technically work in a Lurrus Companion list, I feel he's best as a Voltron/equipment commander.

A Powerful Set With Great Commanders

All in all, Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth represents one of the most fantastic Universes Beyond sets we've ever seen. With great attention to detail and treating the lore of the universe with respect, it's no wonder it spawned so many great commander options for players. Which one are you building?