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Widely regarded as Magic: The Gathering's friendliest way to play, the Elder Dragon Highlander format has received a festive twist just in time for the festive season. In a special show, personalities from a popular channel demonstrated a multiplayer game titled "Holiday Countdown."

The Mechanics of the Festive Format Function

Fundamentally is a simple layer superimposed on a normal Commander match. A designated marker circulates between players. Once it arrives at the active player's turn, the game temporarily stops. Every player privately decides if they will be being Naughty or Nice via indicator cards.

Everyone turn over their card together. Next, they resolve the consequence linked to their decision, beginning with the player who has the token. The token then gets passed clockwise. A special tracker ticks up by one step, and standard Commander continues.

The Naughty/Nice options do escalate over time go on, designed to be finely tuned.

Increasing Effects

At the start provided small, table-wide advantages for choosing Nice, including gaining life or investigation clues. In contrast, Naughty choices typically offered more specific benefits, often at the expense of someone else. One round let those choosing Naughty get a powerful airborne Reindeer token. Those who picked Nice created a 1/1 Toy creature token for each player.

The Grand Showdown

On the eighth round, Father Christmas personally showed up, transforming the match. According to the frequency with which each player selected Naughty versus Nice, Santa gave out sealed “gifts”. They appeared to be deck boxes, but contained MTG booster packs of varying value.

• The nicest player was awarded a top-tier Collector Booster.
• The next kindest player got a another type of premium pack.
• A special guest got a older set.
• The very naughty player essentially received coal: a notoriously weak set that's essentially a gag.

All cards unwrapped immediately became playable for the rest of the game, used as a bonus using mana treating it as any color. The kinder players, their boon wound up being a significant advantage. Meanwhile, those who chose Naughty essentially got a punitive gift.

Recreating the Game Yourself

While the original showcase featured a lot of custom components, this is a concept that any group could easily replicate with friends. Participants plays with their standard EDH deck, and the additional materials needed are a selection of MTG packs with different worth.

A possible issue is that if players are aware beforehand the prize for being Nice, players might might aim for the most valuable gift. Groups can add variety in different ways, such as doing a mini-draft from a shared pool or letting players pull cards from their collection from outside the game.

Based on the entertaining match, Countdown to XT-Mas stands as a fun method to spread some joy when playing with friends. It changes the social interplay at the table in a uniquely festive manner, making it a memorable experience for MTG players in their playgroups.