Setup

🧳 Deck Construction

  • Main Deck: 50 cards (including commander and signature equipment)
  • Sideboard: 10 cards
  • Total cards carried: 60
  • Singleton: Only one copy of any card, except basic lands
  • All cards in your deck must share your commander's color identity
  • Colorless cards can be included in any deck regardless of commander color identity
  • Accessories allowed: A single roll-down D20 die — no extras

👥 Players

  • Designed primarily for 1v1 play (similar to Tiny Leaders)
  • Can be played multiplayer

👑 Commander & Signature Equipment

Commander

  • Your commander must be a legendary creature
  • Your commander begins the game in the command zone
  • You may cast your commander from the command zone
  • If your commander would be put into a graveyard or exile from anywhere, you may put it into the command zone instead
  • Commander tax: Each time you cast your commander from the command zone beyond the first, it costs {2} more

Signature Equipment

  • You also choose a signature equipment card that shares your commander's color identity
  • Your signature equipment begins the game in the command zone alongside your commander
  • You can only cast your signature equipment if you control your commander
  • Your signature equipment is subject to commander tax, calculated independently from your commander
  • If your signature equipment would be put into a graveyard or exile from anywhere, you may put it into the command zone instead
  • Your signature equipment must be Nomad-legal (no equipment that uses counters, creates tokens, or violates other Nomad rules)

⚠️ Gameplay Restrictions

🔢 No Counters

  • All forms of counters are banned:
    • Loyalty, +1/+1, -1/-1, Poison, Energy, Experience, etc.
  • Prohibited mechanics include:
    • Level up, Persist, Undying, Suspend, Cumulative Upkeep, Ring Tempting, Vanishing, and other mechanics that rely on counters or track values on cards
  • No Planeswalkers, Sagas, or battles.

    Counter 1 Counter 2
    Examples of cards using counters that are not allowed in Nomad

🎲 No Coin flips, or Dice Rolls

  • Cards that require the roll of a die or the flip of a coin are not Nomad legal

    Dice Example Flip a Coin
    Examples of cards using dice rolls and coin flips that are not allowed in Nomad

🧪 No Tokens or Extra Game Objects

  • Cards that create tokens or any other additional cardboard objects are not allowed
  • Banned token types include:
    • Creature tokens (e.g. 1/1 Spirits, 2/2 Zombies)
    • Non-creature tokens (e.g. Food, Clue, Treasure, Blood, Map, Emblems, Copies, etc.)
  • Cards like Bitterblossom, Esika's Chariot, or Lingering Souls are not Nomad legal

    Token MTG Example Token MTG Example 2
    Examples of cards that create Tokens that are not allowed in Nomad

🧼 Clean Board State

  • No emblems, stickers, dungeons, attractions, or other extra objects
  • No Monarch or City's Blessing
  • If a card requires external physical pieces to track or function — it's not Nomad legal

    Ascend Example Monarch Example
    Examples of cards using Extra game objects that are not allowed in Nomad
Extra Rules →