MTG Commander Cube: How Commander Draft Changes Cube Design
Table of Contents
This post helps cube designers build a fun, draftable MTG Commander cube by explaining what changes when you shift from 40-card 1v1 drafts to 60-card multiplayer Commander Draft, so your pods always have viable commanders, playable mana, and smoother games.
TLDR
- A Commander cube is not just “regular cube, but bigger.” The format change (60-card decks, color identity, multiplayer) forces different design priorities.
- Your #1 job is commander access: enough legends (and enough flexible ones) that nobody gets color-locked.
- Your #2 job is mana density: multiplayer 60-card decks want more fixing and ramp than a typical 40-card cube.
- The clean “Commander Legends style” setup is 3 packs of 20, pick 2 cards per pick, then build 60-card decks and play in 4-player pods.
- Use the Minimum Viable Commander Cube template below to get a working environment fast, then tune power and archetypes.
Commander cube vs regular cube: what actually changes
When people say “MTG Commander cube,” they often mean: I want my cube night to feel like Commander. Cool. But Commander Draft is a real format shift, and it changes what “good cube design” means.
Here’s the short version:
| Topic | Typical cube draft | Commander cube draft |
|---|---|---|
| Deck size | 40 cards | 60 cards |
| Game | Usually 1v1 | Usually 4-player free-for-all |
| Packs | 3×15, pick 1 | Often 3×20, pick 2 |
| Constraints | Just “what you drafted” | Color identity based on commander(s) |
| Build pressure | Curve + synergy | Curve + synergy + mana + table scaling |
| Feel | Tempo and efficiency | Big turns, politics, board stalls unless you plan for them |
A commander cube fails in two predictable ways:
- someone drafts a pile of good cards but can’t find a commander that matches, and
- the table spends two hours stuck behind boards because there aren’t enough sweepers, evasion, or inevitability.
Fix those two, and the rest becomes tuning.
Draft rules box
Commander Cube Draft Rules (default)
- Draft: 3 packs of 20 cards per player. Pick 2 cards each pick. Pass left (pack 1), right (pack 2), left (pack 3).
- Build: Each player builds a deck of at least 60 cards, including their commander(s).
- Copies: Duplicates are allowed in deckbuilding (this is draft, not singleton Commander).
- Color identity: Your deck can only include cards within your commander(s) color identity.
- Play: Start at 40 life. Commander tax applies. 21 commander damage from the same commander is lethal.
- Pods: After drafting, split into 4-player pods if you have 8 players.
If you want a house rule that makes drafts smoother (especially at lower legend density), skip down to Legends density for “safety valves.”
Cube math that keeps you honest
Commander Draft asks for more cardboard per player than normal cube draft.
Standard Commander Draft math
- 8 players × 3 packs × 20 cards = 480 cards drafted per pod
- Each player drafts 60 cards total (because you pick 2 per pick from 20-card packs)
Standard cube math (for comparison)
- 8 players × 3 packs × 15 cards = 360 cards drafted per pod
So if you’re trying to run “Commander Draft style” out of a cube that was built for 360-card usage, you will feel it immediately.
Rule of thumb:
- If you want the Commander Draft experience, plan for 480 cards per 8-player pod.
- If your cube is 540 cards, you’ll see almost the whole thing every time (great consistency, less replay variety).
- If your cube is 720+, you get more replay and more room for niche archetypes without stranding drafters.
Minimum Viable MTG Commander Cube template
This is the fastest path to a commander cube that drafts cleanly without special pleading.
Option A: The “works every time” template (recommended)
Cube size: 720 cards
Build three piles (then collate packs):
- Commander pile: 120 commander-eligible cards
- Fixing pile: 120 mana cards (lands + rocks + a little green ramp)
- Main pile: 480 everything else (creatures, interaction, build-arounds, draw, wipes)
Pack collation (20 cards each):
- 2 cards from the Commander pile
- 2 cards from the Fixing pile
- 16 cards from the Main pile
For an 8-player draft you make 24 packs. This guarantees:
- 48 commanders appear (2 per pack × 24 packs)
- 48 fixing cards appear
- 384 main cards appear (with 96 main cards left undrafted each time, so drafts do not feel identical)
Option B: The “minimum viable” template (budget-friendly, very consistent)
Cube size: 540 cards (this is the smallest size that comfortably supports 8-player 3×20 drafting)
Three piles:
- Commander pile: 90
- Fixing pile: 66
- Main pile: 384
Pack collation:
- 2 commanders, 2 fixers, 16 main (same as above)
This runs clean, but note the tradeoff: with 540, you will draft every main card every time (384 main slots used, 384 main cards in the pile). Your variety comes mostly from which commanders and fixers show up.
“Minimum viable” legend and mana targets (if you do not want to do piles)
If you refuse collation and want to just shuffle everything, aim for these rough densities:
- Commander-eligible cards: ~15–20% of the cube
- Fixing + ramp: ~15% of the cube
- Board wipes: ~2–3% of the cube (yes, really)
Shuffling-only cubes can work, but they are swingier. Collation is the easy mode that still feels like cube.
Legends density: the “don’t strand a drafter” rules
In a normal cube, your archetype can be “open” for a while. In Commander Draft, your commander choice is a hard constraint. That means your cube needs more legends, and it needs more flexible legends.
Legends density rules of thumb
- Two legends per pack is the gold standard (it’s what Commander Draft products were built around).
- Make sure a meaningful slice of your commanders are monocolor, Partner, Choose a Background, or otherwise flexible, so players can pivot without throwing away half their picks.
- Include at least a few “I can always play something” commanders.
Safety valves (pick one)
These are not “baby mode.” They’re how you keep drafts fun.
- Wildcard commander cards: Add a handful of flexible commanders that can “patch” color identity problems.
- Shared backup commanders: Have a small side pool players can access only if needed after drafting (Commander Legends used this idea with a specific card).
- House rule: monocolor legends have Partner: This dramatically reduces color-lock and makes drafts feel smoother, especially in smaller cubes. Use it if your playgroup likes wild decks and fewer non-games.
You do not need all of these. One safety valve plus good legend density usually does it.
Pack building: 20-card packs, pick-two, and collation recipes
Why 20-card packs and pick-two matter
Pick-two does two important things:
- Speed: Commander Draft would take forever if you did 60 single-card picks per player.
- Coherency: You can grab a build-around plus a support piece, or a commander plus a fixing card, in the same pick.
Quick collation checklist (for an 8-player pod)
- Packs: 24 total packs of 20
- Shuffle: Shuffle your Commander pile, Fixing pile, and Main pile separately
- Build each pack:
- 2 Commanders
- 2 Fixers
- 16 Main
- Draft direction: left, right, left
- After draft: split into two 4-player games
Small group note (4 players)
Four players drafting Commander cube is extremely common because it matches a Commander pod.
- You only need 12 packs (4 players × 3 packs)
- If you collate, you only need 24 commanders and 24 fixers to show up in that session
That is why Commander cube is a great “we only have four people” format, as long as your legend density is real.
Multiplayer tuning: interaction, wipes, and pacing
Commander cube games naturally go longer. If you do nothing, you’ll get:
- board stalls
- value engines that snowball
- “who drew the one wipe” outcomes
So you tune for movement.
The cards that matter more in commander cube
- Board wipes: not just Wrath effects, also “soft resets” and mass bounce
- Evasion and inevitability: flyers, menace, drain engines, scalable finishers
- Repeatable card draw: multiplayer is a resource war
- Mana rocks and fixing: most decks want them, and it keeps games from stalling on colors
- Flexible removal: effects that answer multiple permanent types
The cards that matter less (or need help)
- Pure aggro one-drops: 40 life and three opponents is a different sport
- Narrow sideboard cards: Commander Draft has less room for “gotcha” picks
- Hard color traps: double-pipped early cards are fine, but your cube needs enough fixing that they’re a choice, not a punishment
A simple pacing target
If your average game is going past “everyone has 12 permanents and nobody can attack,” add:
- More wipes, or
- More evasion, or
- More inevitability (drain, monarch-style pressures, recurring threats)
Commander cube is at its best when the board gets big, but the game still ends.
FAQs
How many cards do I need for a commander cube?
If you want the classic Commander Draft experience for 8 players, plan around 480 cards drafted per pod. A 540-card cube works but is very consistent. 720+ gives better replay.
Do I have to do 20-card packs and pick-two?
No, but it’s the cleanest way to keep drafts moving and decks coherent. If you change pack size, re-check your math so players draft enough playables and enough commanders show up.
Should my commander cube be singleton?
It can be, but Commander Draft rules allow duplicates. In practice, many commander cubes break singleton specifically for fixing and glue cards (signets, removal, role-players) because it makes decks function more often.
How many commanders should I include?
If you collate 2 legends per pack, you need 48 commanders to appear in an 8-player pod. In the cube itself, 90–120 commander-eligible cards is a very comfortable range for consistent drafts.
What’s the easiest way to stop color-lock?
Use one of these: higher legend density, more flexible commanders (Partner and friends), or a small backup commander pool for emergencies.
Any print considerations for commander cubes?
Commander cube board states get crowded. The biggest quality-of-life wins are readable text, consistent color, and durable shuffle feel so the table spends time playing, not squinting and babying cards.