The fourth most popular MTG Lorwyn Eclipsed commander makes this Avatar card virtually unbeatable

by

After 19 years, Magic: The Gathering is revisiting the world of Lorwyn with the Lorwyn Eclipsed set. Although the original Lorwyn wasn’t a huge commercial hit, early signs suggest this return will be different. The trailer for Lorwyn Eclipsed received more views than almost any other in Magic‘s history, and fans are already enthusiastically discussing the set online. With strong cards in the main set and exciting preconstructed Commander decks, Magic: The Gathering‘s next release has a lot to offer, and there’s one commander in particular you should keep an eye on.

While the discussion around Magic: The Gathering’s Universes Beyond series has been controversial, not all of the sets planned for 2025 and 2026 have received the same negative reaction. The recent Avatar set, for example, included some powerful and well-received cards, even among players unfamiliar with the source material. One particularly notable card is The Walls of Ba Sing Se – a nearly indestructible 0/30 defensive creature. Players have already developed several effective strategies around this card, and the new commander from Lorwyn Eclipsed is making it even more powerful.

Say Hello to MTG’s Doran, Besieged by Time

In the Lorwyn Eclipsed set of Magic: The Gathering, there’s a card named Doran, Besieged by Time. It’s a legendary creature costing four mana (one of each: generic, white, black, and green) with 0 power and 5 toughness. Doran reduces the cost of your creature spells with more toughness than power by one mana. Additionally, creatures you control that are attacking or blocking get a power and toughness boost equal to the difference between their toughness and power until the end of the turn.

According to EDHREC, a popular website for Magic: The Gathering commander deck information and combo ideas (including future cards), the newly revealed Doran, Besieged by Time is currently the fourth most popular commander. Here’s where it ranks:

  • High Perfect Morcant – 2,057 decks
  • Maralen, Fae Ascendant – 1,145 decks
  • Eirdu, Carrier of Dawn / Isilu, Carrier of Twilight – 1,015 decks
  • Doran, Besieged by Time – 624 decks

As a Magic player, I’m really intrigued by this card, Doran, the Siege Tower. It’s a 3-mana creature with 0/5 stats, but here’s the cool part: your creatures deal damage equal to their toughness instead of their power! It’s a bit unusual, but it opens up some interesting strategies. And because of the legendary rule in Magic, you can actually play it alongside Doran, Besieged by Time – having both on the field at once could be a really powerful combo!

How Lorwyn Eclipsed Makes Avatar’s Biggest Creature OP in MTG

This card is already strong on its own, gaining +5 power when it attacks or defends. However, it significantly enhances the effectiveness of The Walls of Ba Sing Se for a few key reasons.

  • Doran, Besieged by Time is a relatively cheap MTG commander at 4 mana, and it makes The Walls of Ba Sing Se easier and faster to cast, which can be a problem for the 8-mana creature.
    • Doran’s Azban identity (White, Black, Green) means that MTG mana rocks are easily accessible in the deck, ramping up mana production more easily, which is a further benefit for The Walls.
  • The Walls of Ba Sing Se can be used in combination with Doran and Felothar the Steadfast from Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander decks.
    • The combo has multiple layers, as Doran makes The Walls a 30/60 creature when it attacks or blocks, Felothar allows The Walls to attack even if it has defender and assign combat damage equal to its toughness, and by spending 3 mana and tapping Felothar, you can sacrifice The Walls to draw 60 cards and discard 30 if The Walls was attacking or blocking.
  • Jaws of Defeat is a 4-CMC Black enchantment that can be played in the Doran/Walls deck to make an opponent lose 30 life (the difference between The Walls of Ba Sing Se’s power and toughness) when the creature enters the battlefield.
    • This also works with blink effects in White used on The Walls of Ba Sing Se, like Ephemerate, Last Blink, and Restoration Angel. It also works with MTG‘s Avatar mechanic of Airbending.
  • Arbor Adherent can make the Doran + Walls combo generate at least 60 mana, as it adds mana equal to the greatest toughness among creatures you control.
  • Enchantments and temporary effects like Stoneskin, which gives +0/+10 to the enchanted creature, can further improve the Doran + Walls combo because if The Walls of Ba Sing Se’s toughness increases, so does its power when it attacks or blocks (and its toughness increases even more).
    • Refuse to Yield is a 2-mana instant MTG spell that gives a creature +2/+7, meaning The Walls will become a 39/74 creature when attacking or blocking.
  • Unnatural Growth is an enchantment that costs 1 mana of any color and 4 Green, giving creatures you control double power and toughness at the beginning of combat. Without further effects, Doran + The Walls combo would get The Walls of Ba Sing Se to an astonishing 60/120.
    • Zopandrel, Hunger Dominus is a 7-mana 4/6 creature with the same effect, and they stack. If Doran, The Walls, Unnatural Growth, and Zopandrel are on the field, The Walls of Ba Sing Se can get to a whopping 0/120 before attacking or blocking, and become a 120/240 when attacking or blocking.
  • Cards like Primal Rage, a 2-mana enchantment that gives your creatures trample, are highly recommended in order to make the combo less likely to fall flat in combat.
  • Canopy Gargantuan is a 7-mana 7/7 creature that allows you to put a number of +1/+1 counters on each creature you control at the start of every upkeep, equal to that creature’s toughness. This means that Doran becomes a 5/10 and Walls a 30/60 before combat (so a 15/20 and a 90/120, respectively, when attacking or blocking) and after just one turn, with their power and toughness scaling exponentially.

The Walls of Ba Sing Se Combos in MTG Can Skyrocket Out of Control

Let me tell you, this combo isn’t just powerful, it’s ridiculous. Once you get the basic pieces in place, things escalate fast. I was tinkering with it, and after just two turns with Canopy Gargantuan, alongside cards like Doran, The Walls of Ba Sing Se, Unnatural Growth, and Zopandrel, Hunger Dominus… well, The Walls became a massive 360/480 creature. Seriously! You don’t even need all those extra pieces to win once the initial combo is going, you just need to protect your Walls from removal. But a word of warning: playing this deck will absolutely paint a target on your back. Get ready to be the villain at your next Magic: The Gathering Commander night!

Read More

2026-01-13 23:37