Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools: Mastering Board Control

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Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools card art

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Mastering Board Control with Tevesh Szat

If you’ve ever felt the tug of a well-timed Political Pivot in a Commander game, Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools slides into the scene with a darkly elegant promise: control the board by engineering value from sacrifice and leverage from the command zone. This legendary planeswalker from Commander Legends arrives at a thoughtful color identity—black only—paired with a potent trio of abilities that reward patient setup and ruthless timing. With a mana cost of 4 generic and 1 black (total CMC 5) and loyalty of 4, Szat invites you to lean into a strategy that blends token generation, card advantage, and the ultimate power move of commandeering the battlefield. 🧙‍♂️🔥💎

What makes Tevesh so compelling is not just the raw numbers on a card, but how those numbers interact with the social and strategic layers of a Commander game. The +2 ability creates two 0/1 black Thrull creature tokens. Those little creatures aren’t just filler; they provide an adaptable foundation for pace, defense, and resource conversion. They can block early threats, trade with larger creatures, or be sacrificed to fuel bigger plays later in the game. The Thrulls also synergize nicely with sac outlets and stax elements that love a steady stream of expendable bodies. 🧙‍♂️🎲

The +1 ability is where Szat truly starts to resemble a self-contained engine. You may sacrifice another creature or planeswalker to draw two cards, and you draw a third if the sacrificed permanent was a commander. That nuance matters: in a game where every card draw counts, Szat rewards you for thoughtful sacrifices—boosting hand size while thinning away unnecessary pieces. In practice, you can funnel Thrulls and other fodder into a draw loop, refilling your hand as you pressure the board with threats and disruption. It’s a delicate balancing act—sac, draw, repeat—yet one that pays off with momentum late in the game. ⚔️

And then there’s the −10: Gain control of all commanders. Put all commanders from the command zone onto the battlefield under your control. This is the iconic payoff in Commander Legends: if you can weather the early penalties and establish a durable position, Szat’s ultimate ability can swing the entire table in your favor. Because it references commanders from the command zone, this effect lives at the heart of commander politics, where alliances shift and the threat of an “I control your leader now” moment reshapes negotiations around the table. As a result, you’re not just playing a card; you’re orchestrating a narrative where the table’s leadership could flip in a single transformative turn. 🧙‍♂️🔥

Tevesh Szat can be your commander, and its partner-ready design invites you to craft a Command Zone-centered strategy that thrives on control, draw, and political maneuvering. The card’s lore-rich flavor—dreadful Thrulls, shadowy bargains, and the ominous promise of “Doom of Fools”—feels tailor-made for a deck that loves twisting the board to its favor.

Practical deck-building and gameplay tips

  • Lean into sacrifice outlets. The +1 rewards you for sacrificing a creature or planeswalker. Include reliable sac outlets so you can convert Thrulls and other expendables into steady card draw without tipping your hand to opponents.
  • Protect the engine, not just the board. While Szat’s -10 is a game-winner, you’ll want to keep your life total and position stable long enough to reach that moment. Counterspells, removal, and tapped-out protection help buy the time you need to assemble your draw-and-sustain plan.
  • Pair Szat with a like-minded partner. The “Partner” keyword invites you to team Szat with a complementary commander, creating dual-shade pressure and diverse paths to victory. The symmetry of two plans—one to generate value and one to destabilize opponents—can be especially potent in multiplayer formats.
  • Manage the command-zone dynamic. Your -10 gains you control of all commanders, but the table’s politics can make the path to that moment delicate. Use tokens to keep threats in check, and lean into draw-heavy lines to outpace opponents who may try to disrupt your plan mid-game.
  • Maximize Thrull value. Thrulls aren’t just chump blockers; they’re scalable fuel for your draw engine and sac-based synergy. Early Thrull generation helps you stabilize, while later Thrulls can feed your bigger plays or be fodder for value engines you assemble along the way.

In practice, a Szat-led build tends to ride a wave of incremental advantage: you create bodies, you trade them away for cards, and you prepare the catalyst that makes your commander steal permanent. The thrill lies in turning a seemingly modest board state into a momentum engine that culminates in the coveted “all commanders under your banner” moment. It’s a narrative arc worthy of any MTG night—strategic, a touch sneaky, and absolutely triumphant when it lands. 🧙‍♂️🎨

Artwork and design sing here too. Livia Prima’s illustration captures the dark, command-forging atmosphere that Szat embodies, reinforcing the sense that every Thrull token is a step toward a larger, more cinematic clash of wills. The set, Commander Legends, is a home for iconic, kitchen-table-friendly legends like Szat, spotlighting the collector’s thrill of mythic rarity while staying grounded in the practical realities of restricted-format design. And yes, the card is fully legal in Commander and duel formats that support its color identity, offering a rich, flexible home for any black-heavy deckbuilding palette. 🎲

As you map out your next deck, consider how Tevesh Szat’s toolkit can reshape the table’s dynamics. The tokens provide a reliable entry point, the card draw from sacrifices keeps your hand full, and the ultimate steal of all commanders can become a memorable, game-ending crescendo. It’s the kind of strategy that feels both old-school and freshly devious—a true hallmark of the Commander Legends era. 🔥💎

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Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools

Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools

{4}{B}
Legendary Planeswalker — Szat

+2: Create two 0/1 black Thrull creature tokens.

+1: You may sacrifice another creature or planeswalker. If you do, draw two cards, then draw another card if the sacrificed permanent was a commander.

−10: Gain control of all commanders. Put all commanders from the command zone onto the battlefield under your control.

Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools can be your commander.

Partner

ID: 8f244716-78ab-46f5-b6e9-fc1e6db28052

Oracle ID: 79a1783f-ea7e-4cdf-95f5-53b383d38c66

Multiverse IDs: 497673

TCGPlayer ID: 226122

Cardmarket ID: 509910

Colors: B

Color Identity: B

Keywords: Partner

Rarity: Mythic

Released: 2020-11-20

Artist: Livia Prima

Frame: 2015

Border: black

EDHRec Rank: 3058

Set: Commander Legends (cmr)

Collector #: 153

Legalities

  • Standard — not_legal
  • Future — not_legal
  • Historic — not_legal
  • Timeless — not_legal
  • Gladiator — not_legal
  • Pioneer — not_legal
  • Modern — not_legal
  • Legacy — legal
  • Pauper — not_legal
  • Vintage — legal
  • Penny — not_legal
  • Commander — legal
  • Oathbreaker — legal
  • Standardbrawl — not_legal
  • Brawl — not_legal
  • Alchemy — not_legal
  • Paupercommander — not_legal
  • Duel — legal
  • Oldschool — not_legal
  • Premodern — not_legal
  • Predh — not_legal

Prices

  • USD: 7.25
  • USD_FOIL: 8.23
  • EUR: 5.91
  • EUR_FOIL: 10.42
  • TIX: 2.81
Last updated: 2025-11-14