Elbrus, the Binding Blade, is a Legendary Artifact - Equipment that transforms into Withengar Unbound, a Black Legendary Demon. Can I use Elbrus/Withengar as a Commander, and if I can, is my deck colorless or black?
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2 Answers
Here's an official ruling from Sheldon Mennery, who is the authoritative source for Commander rulings:
[O] Elbrus is not playable as a General, and its color identity is Black.
Elbrus, the Binding Blade is not a Legendary Creature, so it cannot be your Commander. It doesn't matter that it could become a creature. In fact, I'd be surprise if there is a card that couldn't become a creature.
711.2a In every zone other than the battlefield, and also on the battlefield with its front face up, a double-faced card has only the characteristics of the front face.
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Thank you. I suspected this might be the case (though it's saddening), but I wanted confirmation from folks who understand Commander better, since I'm assembling my first-ever deck for it now. Feb 12, 2013 at 6:30
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It's not really a Commander question, because you already knew the Commander part. It's really a question about double-faced cards. Added the relevant rule to the answer.– ikegamiFeb 12, 2013 at 6:33
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3@ikegami I think it is a Commander question. Because what it's actually asking is "Does the back of the card count during deck-building?" And the answer it's necessarily obvious because the precedent in Commander is that it can, based on how we handle the color identity of cards like Garruk Relentless.– Alex PFeb 12, 2013 at 6:38
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@Alex P, Fine, then no, it's not like color identity. It merely looks if the card is a Legendary Creature.– ikegamiFeb 12, 2013 at 7:08
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@AlexP Deckbuilding isn't the issue. The issue is the Command Zone, which counts as a zone other than the battlefield. The back face doesn't show in the Command Zone, so you can't cast it as a commander.– ghoppeFeb 12, 2013 at 19:53